Dagger

Chapter 33

Forest held Melody's hand and looked at her complacent face. He heard muffled yells through the open doorway of Sophia's house.  Kieran had started training the townspeople while Forest stayed with Melody. He really didn't feel like doing anything.

    Melody's bandage on her stomach was almost completely coated in blood, he would have to get Sophia to change it. Her hand was cold and her breathing steady, it truly did seem like she was asleep. Melody had lost a lot of blood when she was stabbed and she was now in a coma. No one knew when, or if she was going to wake up. He mentally smacked himself for saying if, he had to stay positive.

    Kieran walked through the door, sweaty and gulping down water. "She still asleep?"

    He didn't tear his eyes from her face. "That doesn't make it seem as bad," he muttered. "But yes, she's still in a coma."

    "Man, that kiss must've been awful to send her into a coma."

    Forest turned his head and glared at him. "Do you think this is a joke?" He stood up and came face to face with him. "She's in a god damn coma!"

    Kieran looked completely stunned. Forest shook his head and stormed out the door. The crowd Kieran was teaching had dispersed. Most of them went back to the wheat fields, but some still occupied the road and were sparring with each other.

    The more Forest walked and thought, the more he calmed down. Although it was a bad timed joke, he shouldn't have snapped. He unfortunately still needed Kieran's help.

    Forest stopped in his tracks and turned around to observe the town. It was a pretty town as it was surrounded by lush green hills and autumn burnt woodlands. A chill breezed past him as he took in a deep sigh. He felt stressed, with Melody and the battle preparations. There was a lot that had to be done and he wasn't doing anything. Wyatt helped rebuild the homes while Kieran was training. He decided he needed to be in charge of getting a bigger army, but he had no idea how to go about it.

His thoughts had occupied him, that he hadn't even noticed that he was making his way towards Aki's truck. A group was once again huddled around it. Forest looked confused as he gestured to Aki, who was packing up supplies into the trunk. Rai leaned against the side of the truck.

Rai inhaled and pushed herself off of the truck. "I didn't know how to tell you guys. You were already busy with Melody..."

"What's going on here?" Forest asked in confusion.

"My brother is apart of the Red roses. I've decided to go with him."

Forest eyed Aki. This was the madman that had killed that innocent man. He suddenly felt the hairs on the back of his neck stick up. Fear had filled his body as he realized how close they were.

Rai and Forest huddled together. "You do know what they've done, right?"

Rai looked back at him, completely ignorant yet determined. "He's my brother. My parents told us to stay together and that's what we're going to do."

Forest was concerned for his friend. "The Red Roses are a gang!"

"So are the Silver Blades!"

Forest was slightly taken aback with her response. "Yes, but he's crazy. I've seen the things he's done."

Rai rolled her eyes. "I appreciate your concern, but whatever he did, he did it for good reason. And I assure you he's sane."

"He wasn't when I encountered him."

"That was when he was looking for me. Fear can make you irrational, trust me, I know all too well."

Forest nodded. "As long as you know what your getting into."

"I do." She punched him in the arm. Then a small smile stretched across her lips. "Well goodbye, I guess."

"Bye. And good luck." Forest stepped back and lightly waved.

Aki slammed his car door and waited for Rai. Kieran then approached the vehicle. Rai smiled at him. Aki's eyes darted between the two, his eyebrows seemed to be twitching.

"I'll miss you," Kieran whispered.

"Me too." They then had a long goodbye hug. They were way closer than Forest and Rai were. In all honesty, Forest thought they were pretty cute, even if Kieran was human trash.

Kieran held up his hand in goodbye and Rai did the same as she climbed into the packed truck.

It was eerily silent as the loud engine of the truck faded away. Forest stood in the dirt path as the townspeople slowly left. The silence didn't last long as he heard yelling coming from the edge of the wheat field. He began to panic, what if it was the Silver Blades?

    His nerves began to calm down as a wolf emerged from the trees. If it were any old wolf he would still be panicking, but he recognized Lovette. Her claws had hints of blood on it, staining her fur. He was reassured as Jack and Julianne followed closely behind.

    Forest's face brightened at the sight of them. "Wyatt! Wyatt!" He yelled.

    A part of him felt relieved, one less thing to worry about. He was ecstatic that his friends had made it.

    Wyatt came running down the path and saw what Forest did.Tears of joy overflowed from his eyes. He then ran as fast as he could through the wheat in an attempt to meet Jack halfway.

    Jack almost ran into Wyatt. He looked exhausted from running the whole way, but his bright smile didn't falter.  He slowed down just in time and they fell into a hug. Jack was so happy, until his eyes then looked into the town and he noticed Forest. He was usually calm, but the sight of him set Jack off.

Lovette stepped into the town and Forest pet her soft grey fur. Julianne stopped to catch her breath, she stood there panting as Forest smiled at her.

"Where were you guys!" Forest beamed.

Julianne took a few seconds to catch her breath. "We were in the city. Looking for you guys actually."

Forest slightly laughed. "That's a war zone, why would we stay there?"

Julianne shrugged. "It was Jack's idea."

"I saw your wanted poster!" Wyatt said as they approached Julianne and Forest.

Julianne turned towards them. "See, I was right wasn't I-"

She was interrupted mid gloat as Jack furiously marched towards Forest. Jack's fist collided with the side of Forest's face. His head turned upon impact. Wyatt and Julianne's face we're struck with shock. Forest spit blood into the ground. His lip was bleeding and his cheek had a nice bruise that throbbed.

Jack stood up straighter, he looked like he was ready to throw another punch. Forest got into his personal space. "And what exactly was that for?" He asked as he gritted his teeth. He was clueless and angry, and yet he managed to keep his calm.

Julianne and Wyatt yelled their protests at him as they pulled Jack away.

"Why did you do that?!" Wyatt cried.

"Are you insane?!" Julianne yelled.

Jack seemed to ignore them as he struggled to get free to hit Forest again. "How dare you!" He looked like a wild beast, thrashing about. "How dare you put Wyatt and Julianne in danger!" Forest just stood there and took it. "You liar! Untrustworthy Silver Blade scum!" He spat in Forest's direction.

Kieran stepped in as he rolled his eyes and muttered, "Nice to meet you too."

"You knew- you knew what you were getting into!" Forest replied.

"Yes, but I didn't know you were a conniving, murdering Silver Blade!"

Forest straightened and slightly advanced forward. He then bit his tongue and withdrew. "Whatever," he muttered and walked away. He was furious, Jack just didn't understand. If they were going to pull this off they needed to work together not fight.

"Get back here and face me you coward!" Jack called after him.

He so wanted to ignore Jack. Forest turned around and shook his head. "No, I won't." To his surprise, he spoke very calmly. He was definitely angry, but there was no use in making things worse.