Chapter 28: Night seventeen/ Day eighteen in the Arena
"Alright. Nobody move" Antonio shouts.
He has me in a tight grasp and has a knife to my throat. Cleo skips though the trees into sight.
"Well this is nice isn't it?" Cleo says. "All us friends here together. A little birdie told me you were camping near the lake. We couldn't believe you'd still be alive so we had to check it out. And here you were sitting with your three new best friends with a mountain of supplies. Oh, by the way, it wasn't a little birdie that told me. More like a little mermaid"
Coral.
"Stop messing around. Just get on with it" Antonio says.
"Since when do you me boss around?" Cleo asks.
"I don't. It's just we don't have a lot of time" Antonio replies.
"Relax none of them are going to move. Not unless they want Willow dead" Cleo says packing our food supplies, weapons and blankets into a huge backpack. "All because of their stupid loyalty to one another".
That's a good point. It is obvious Alexis can't stop them. She's on the ground with tears streaming down her face, trying to keep Mason's jacket on her wound. Mason isn't going to do anything to stop them. He just stands there in awe-struck horror.
"Where's the other one?" Antonio asks.
"He's probably still caught in the snare we set out for him" Cleo smirks.
"You're the one who has been setting snares around the arena" I exclaim.
"That's right. My trainer taught me how to do it" Cleo said, beaming.
"Well he didn't do a very good job" Luca shouts emerging from the tress, carrying an axe.
"Cleo...he still has an axe" Antonio quavers.
Cleo quickly zips up her backpack, throws it over her shoulder and runs.
"Slice her throat and run" she screams.
I wait for the sliced throat and the gasp for air that would soon follow. It doesn't come. Antonio's arm stays in the same position.
"Kill her now" Cleo screams.
"You said we wouldn't have to kill anyone" Antonio protests.
"That's right no one needs to get hurt" Luca says calmly. "You can lower your knife and we can settle this like human beings"
"He's trying to trick you. Just kill her already" Cleo shouts.
"I don't know about you, but I don't want to be hacked to death" Antonio says.
"That's what you think I'm going to do?" Luca asks.
"It would most likely be decapitation" Mason adds.
"I don't know what that is, but I'm sure that's not the way I wanna die" Antonio says, dropping his knife.
He doesn't want to kill me. I don't give him a chance to change his mind. I spin around and drive my knuckle into his right arm, where I stabbed him with my spear. Antonio crumples to the ground with inhuman groan.
"Antonio" Cleo screams.
Luca grabs my arm and drags me away. Alexis and Mason are right behind us, although Mason has to help Alexis hobble along. Alexis must be in so much pain; she sons uncontrollably.
"It...h-hurts" She screams.
"I know I know, but we have to move quickly" Luca says.
"You'll...n-never get away with me draggin' behind. You have to leave me behind"
"No way" Mason says. "I promised your mom I would keep you safe"
"It's okay. She'll understand" Alexis says.
"They're not coming after us" I say. "Cleo is probably trying to nurse Antonio's wound and they got what they wanted".
"They might be gone for now but they know where our camp is. They could attack us again at any moment" Luca says.
"Great. We've got nowhere to go" Alexis says, gritting her teeth. "All because of Coral. We should've killed her when we got the chance".
"We could go to my old camp. I'm sure the tent is still there" I suggest.
"Willow, you're a genius" Luca laughs. "Where is it?"
"I don't know where it is from here, but I know how to get to it from the lake" I say.
"Great. Let's go there" Mason says, but his usual cheery façade was gone.
Finding my old camp from the lake was trickier than I thought, especially in the dark. Eventually I spot the outline of the tent in the pale light of the morning.
"There it is" I exclaim.
We all manage to squeeze in the tent. It's quite snug, but at least we'll be warm. Everyone is exhausted so I volunteer to go on lookout.
"You don't have your spear" Luca says.
"No, but I have the knife Antonio dropped" I say.
"Quick thinking" Luca smiled.
It's a good thing too, because we have nothing next to nothing now. I have a knife, Luca still has his axe and well that's it.
I sit on the log near the tent while the others drift away into dreamland. I soon join them involuntarily I don't realize I've fallen asleep until the sound of someone shuffling through leaves wakes me.
How could I have fallen asleep? The others trusted me. I shake myself awake and dive for the knife I stole.
"It's just me" Luca says.
"Why are you sneaking around?" I snap.
"Why were you sleeping?" he retorts.
"I wasn't sleeping" I protest.
"Right. Okay" Luca says sitting next to me on the log.
"Is Alexis going to be alright?" I ask.
"I don't know. I hope so" Luca says.
"I'm still confused about what happened last night" I say.
"So am I. It's all such a blur. One minute everything was fine the next..." Luca sighs and then continues. "I heard rustling coming from the bushes nearby. I went to see what it was and my foot got caught in the snare. The next thing I know Alexis is screaming"
"Why didn't you chop the snare off?" I ask.
"I did. Then I hid and watched the commotion unfold. Waiting for the right moment. Or what I thought was the right moment" Luca sighs. "Stupid.
"We're alive. That's all that matters" I say.
Luca smiles. "When you say things like that it reminds me of the ways we used to be"
"Have I really changed that much" I say, scared to hear the answer.
"No. You're the same as you were when you were five" Luca says.
We laugh and then Luca stops and looks up at the sky, quizzically. I do the same and spot a parachute descending from the sky.
"It's a parachute" Luca says.
He runs to catch it, then unravels it and finds a small vial of clear liquid and a long strip of cloth.
"What is it?" he asks.
"I think it's a bandage and some medicine" I reply.
"What's all the commotion 'bout?" Mason asks, emerging from the tent.
"We think we have something that might help Alexis" Luca says.
Mason seems to brighten at that.
"Hey Alexis" Mason says.
"What is it?" Alexis says staggering out the tent, still drowsy.
"This came from a parachute" I say, holding up the bandages and the vial.
Alexis snatches the objects and narrows her eyes.
"It's to clean the wound" Mason says.
"Well alright then" Alexis says, as if we're offering her poison.
Mason removes his jacket which was wrapped around Alexis's arm. He has to tug at hit, because it appears to be stuck to the wound. Mason then takes the vial of antiseptic and pours it over the wound. Alexis grabs my arm, clamps down on it and screams. I'm glad Mason is taking care of Alexis, because I don't think I could. I feel queasy just looking at it. Mason wraps the bandage around Alexis's arm.
"Thanks" she says.
Even though she must be in a lot of pain, that doesn't stop Alexis from talking.
"What are we gonna do about our supplies. We virtually have nothing" she says.
"There might be some supplies left at our camp" Luca suggests.
"And what if there isn't?" Alexis replies.
"Then we ransack the Cornucopia" Luca says, being deadly serious.
We head back to our camp and sure enough it has been picked clean. Cleo and Antonio must've came back. I guess our next trip will be to the Cornucopia. I'm sure my old friend April will be delighted to see me.