Dreamscape: Saving Alex

Chapter Nineteen

I nodded and looked around at the other men. They seemed distracted, either looking at the map or the forest. Their gazes seemed to always skip over me. I sighed and took another bite.

"I haven't noticed any signs of the army. They must be on a different trail," Boris said, pointing to one of the marked paths on the makeshift map.

"That's good, right?" I piped in, my mouth full of bread

"As far we can tell. We should be able to get to camp without any more issues," he said, refusing to meet my eyes.

"The only issue we have is already with us," Cale muttered.

I jerked my head towards the surly man as he puffed a ring of smoke at my face. I waved the smoke away and glanced at Arrow.

Arrow took a quick bite of his jerky and smacked Cale on his shoulder. "There's no need for that this morning."

Cale grumbled something under his breath and blew another ring.

"Stop that!" I coughed, swatting at the rings of smoke.

"Is it too much for you, little girl?" he snarled back. "Do you want to run away again?"

"Cale," Arrow said, moving between the two of us. "This isn't helping anything."

"No, Arrow, it's fine," I said, stepping around him. "He obviously has something he wants to say. We might as well get it out now. I'm tired of seeing the glares. From everyone," I added, moving forward. "So what is it Cale? What's your issue with me?"

"Alex," Arrow said, grabbing my arm. "I don't know if—"

"I have to know what his problem is with me. I came back. I'm here. Either he accepts that, or I don't know what." I brushed Arrow's fingers off my wrist. I didn't want my hand held; I wanted to fight.

Cale choked on his smoke, but still managed to exhale a perfect circle. "Fine, girly, you want to know why I don't like you? It's simple. You're like spoiled cheese—only parts of you seem good."

"Spoiled cheese?" I put my hands on my hips. "That's the best you can come up with?"

"I don't need to come up with anything. It's the truth. I'm just not afraid to tell you."

I looked around at the other men, noticing how they looked away. "Is this how you all feel?" Heaviness sank my heart. I hadn't imagined they'd all agree. One or two or five, maybe, but not all of them.

Arrow stepped in and pulled me away from the group. "This isn't helping anything. It's been a long night, and we have a full day ahead. Just give them some time to come around. You're back. That's what matters."

"Too little, too late," Cale said under his breath. The familiar words stung. "Let me spell it out for you, Goldy. You only came back for Arrow. You know it, and we know it. You don't care about the rebellion or our lives. Do you?" He blew another ring at me, waiting for my response.

Had I really been that obvious? I looked away and tore into the strip of jerky before I said something I might regret.

"You must be getting senile in your old age," Arrow said with a tense laugh. "Like it or not, Alex's one of us. She came back to warn us about the army. We should be grateful. We owe her our lives."

"I still wonder. If it had been just us in trouble, would she have come?" Cale asked, blowing a final ring before turning his back on me.

"I could still leave you behind, don't forget that. I don't have to take this," I snarled, throwing my bag over one shoulder.