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Chapter Twenty Seven: On The Run.
The alarm blares loudly and I jump out of my sleep, my eyes struggling to open as I stretch and yawn. For a moment, I think I'm back at home, being awoken for school. I snap out of that thought as soon as I open my eyes, seeing Seth stirring beside me, the open window revealing the early hours of the day. Groaning, I slam my hand on the alarm, silencing it before watching Seth for a moment, reluctantly shaking him awake.
"Seth, we need to go, babe" I say gently, continuing to shake him as his eyes open. I stop, watching him yawning and then stretching, his face sleepy as he looks at me.
"Mmmm, morning" he moans, wiping his eyes roughly with his hands.
"Morning. How are you feeling?" I ask, my hand on his arm.
"Ok. Tired mostly" he says and I give a little smile.
"I didn't mean it like that" I say and he nods.
"I know. I'm Ok. I'm going to miss them" he says and I move closer to him, hugging him tight, trying to comfort him as he prepares to leave his family . . . for me.
I get up first, rushing into the en suite to change into my new, sturdy clothes; beige trousers and a black vest. I tie my hair into a high ponytail and straighten my vest, looking in the mirror at the myself before I go back into my room, finding Seth ready and dressed in black walking trousers and a white vest.
My eyes linger over the muscles on his arms, looking at the muscles on his chest that can be seen through the thin vest. "What are you looking at?" he asks and my eyes snap to his, my cheeks blushing slightly.
"Nothing" I answer quickly and he smirks, shooting in front of me and kissing me quickly.
"Ready?" he asks, weaving his fingers with mine. I nod, take one last look around the bedroom, and then start walking towards the door with Seth.
* * * * *
The bags are packed, the maps are ready and everyone is ready. As we stand in the meeting room, I can't help the grey cloud of guilt and sadness stay over me, putting me down as I realise everyone in the room is sacrificing their home, their comforts, to come and protect me.
"Cheers" Red says and we all clink our glasses together, drinking the blood in them in one go.
"What time is it?" Meadow asks.
"About two in the morning" Logan replies.
"We should go soon then" she sighs, her hand brushing through her ponytail.
"We'll finish another glass and then we'll be on our way" Red confirms, pouring all of us a bigger glass than before, all of us drinking hungrily, finishing them in seconds.
We pick up our huge bags and I smile, not feeling the heavy weight of it as I sling it on my back. "This should be easy" Red says, smiling hopefully.
"If we keep drinking blood regularly" Logan comments and Red nods.
"We've got some stored for the next few weeks. We won't be around many people, sticking to the country more than the towns" Red explains and we all nod, already knowing our course. "We should get going. Everybody ready?"
"Yes Red" we all say in unison, laughing nervously.
We walk into the kitchen and out the back door, cutting through the garden quickly and heading in the direction of the country, the fields becoming closer and closer as we walk at a steady pace. Seth and I keep our hands locked, smiling at each other from time to time. Luckily, I don't ache or feel any pain, the bag light and then distance easy. We only pause once at mid day, shaking off our packs to apply some sun cream, not wanting to burn in the strong, summer sun.
"We've covered more distance than I planned in such a short time. I propose we go onto the second night stop instead of the first. It might be a push but I don't want to get there too early and hang around. If Blaze or Maver are following us, we don't want to be hanging around one place longer than necessary" Red says and I nod, not really caring, not feeling too tired at the moment.
"Ok. But what if we struggle? Have we an alternative stop?" Seth asks and the two look over the map, finding new stops on our journey while the rest of us drink deeply from our cantines of blood. Meadow looks a lot more tired than the rest of us, leaning against Dustin, her eyes drooping every few seconds. Dustin smiles, holding her as she starts to sleep, her breaths deeper and her eyes closed.
"How are you feeling?" Logan asks, moving over as he sees I'm on my own.
"Good, you?" I reply, putting away my canteen, knowing I'll need it later.
"Fine, yeah. You seem very quiet today, everything Ok?" he asks and I shrug.
"I'm feeling Ok. I mean, guilty as hell, but Ok I guess" I admit.
"What have you got to be guilty about?" he says, looking confused.
"Everything. You guys shouldn't be here, you're putting . . . I'm putting you in danger" I sigh.
"I wish you'd stop saying that. Like Seth would let you go on your own, like any of us would have let you go on your own. You're strong and an Ok fighter, but you wouldn't make it in a fight against Blaze or Maver" he says.
"I know but I don't want you guys risking your safety over me" I moan and he rolls his eyes.
"Shut up" he grunts, making me laugh, him joining in too.
* * * * *
"Somebody better wake Meadow" Seth murmurs in my ear, bring me tighter against his side. We're still sitting down, Seth beside me, the sun shining brightly down on us. Dustin is left with the task of waking up Meadow while the rest of us slip on our bags.
Red leads the way, Seth holding my hand tightly as we slip to the back, strolling rather than hiking. "We've a long way to go" Seth says and I sigh, not wanting to walk anymore. "Tired?" he asks, smiling.
"No, I just don't want to. It's getting boring" I reply and he laughs.
"Not what you expected?" he continues and I shrug.
"Not really. I thought it would be tougher for a start, these bags look really heavy. I also expected terror, having people follow us constantly, carefully. I was expecting being scared, but I'm no more scared than usual" I say and he looks at me.
"'No more scared than usual'? What do you mean?" he asks and I smile at his worried tone.
"I'm never scared for me, only you guys. I worry and scare myself, thinking something terrible is going to happen. I can't bare the thought of you guys getting hurt or worse because of me" I say.
"We won't get ourselves hurt. You need to stop worrying" he says and I sigh.
"You don't know we won't get hurt" I say and he laughs.
"Are you wishing it on us or something? Stop thinking of the negatives, honey" he says and as I go to protest he silences me with a kiss, making me smile through the slight irritation.
* * * * *
Day soon shifts into night, the sun setting and leaving us walking under the starry sky. Red wants to keep on walking but Meadow just isn't up to it, most of us feeling tired after a long day of walking. We try and find somewhere to sleep, wanting a cover in case it rains, ruining our things. We find a stable block and camp out in an old tack room, the bails of straw offering us a bed.
Seth pushes two bails together and we set them up like my bed at home, without the comfy mattress, pillows or blanket! Instead, we have a thin sleeping bag and make pillows from our bags. The beds aren't the most comfortable in the world, but they're better than nothing. Dustin and Meadow are already fast asleep and Logan is drifting off, everyone looking like they need a good nights sleep. Getting into my sleeping bag, I move closer to Seth, his warm breath dancing on the back of my neck.
"How come we're all so tired?" I ask Seth and I hear him chuckle under his breath.
"Not all vampire myths are true. We still need sleep, I guess we still have come human genes in us, and we do actually tire, although not as much or as quickly as humans" he explains.
"But what about Meadow? She seems so much more tired than us" I say.
"She hasn't been drinking much blood lately, what with organising all this. I guess she's regretting that now" he says.
It's not long until sleep claims me, throwing me into terrified dreams that are haunted with me being chased.
* * * * *
I wake, close to tears, trying to ignore the horrible dream.
It's still pitch black and that makes me slightly nervous, especially as I hear noises outside, like something or somebody moving. I shiver, trying to shake off the horrible thoughts that threaten to enter my mind.
Knowing I'm not likely to go back to sleep, I get up, carefully moving Seth's hand from my waist as I sit up and stretch. I slip out of my sleeping bag and walk out of the tack room, shutting the door behind me quietly. Deciding to investigate the farm, I use my sensitive eyes to guide me in the darkness.
The stable block is old and crumbly, the grey bricks struggling to keep together and the green tin roof looking weather worn and rusty. No horses are in the stables and I smile, thanking that nobody is putting their animals in danger. I stroll around, finding some decent looking stables that do have horses in them, all over them frightened of me as I walk around, probably knowing what I am and what I do.
It's not just horses at this farm, there are a few sheep, pigs and a lot of cows, all of them calling to each other as I walk by. Feeling a little better, I go back to the tack room, knowing if Seth wakes and I'm not there he'll worry. Luckily, nobody has woken and I get back into my sleeping bag, my little adventure unnoticed by the others.
Tiredness washing over me as soon as my head touches my bag, sending me back into sleep, although this time it's dreamless.
* * * * *
"I think we should just go on to the third stop today and see how it goes. Nobody is going to be as energetic as they were yesterday. We worked hard yesterday and had a crap nights sleep last night. Let's not push our luck" Seth is saying as I wake.
"I'm just saying that we did so well yesterday maybe we should go a little further than the third. I'm not saying we should go straight to fourth, just more than third" Red persists.
"We aren't even officially at second yet" Meadow murmurs and I yawn. Seth holding me tighter as I open my eyes.
"Morning" he says, kissing my neck as I turn my head to see him leaning over me protectively, smiling down at me quickly.
"Morning" I reply and stretch my arms. "What were you guys going on about?"
"Red wants to try and get to fourth" Meadow says, looking at me hopefully, as if to get me on her side. "What do you think?" she adds and I smile.
"Erm, I think we should see how we all feel and see how we go. I'm really tired, it might just be because I only just woke up, but I don't know how I'll cope when we walk" I say and Meadow looks at Red triumphantly. Seth laughs as Red rolls his eyes, kissing my neck again quickly.
The boys are sent out so Meadow and I can change, both of us changing into light trousers and a vest. We leave the boys to change, walking around the stables in the open environment, the sky still dark but starting to lighten.
"How are you feeling today?" I ask her as we start walking back to the tack room.
"Better. I didn't have a lot of blood and haven't really hunted, but I drank my canteen full last night and finished off Dustin's, so hopefully I'll make it through today" she replies, looking determined.
"You'll do it" I say and she smiles. "I know you can"
"Thanks" she replies and we reach the tack room, the boys all ready and rearing to go.
Seth hands me my bag and we set off, removing any traces of our stay before we leave. The walk is a lot slower than the day before, nobody really feeling up to the distance even if it is easy. We walk through the darkness, watching the sun come up as we walk, the bright light hurting my eyes for a little while until I adjust to it. Seth makes sure I drink enough blood, none of us wanting to become as drained as Meadow last night.
The only time we pause is at mid day, wanting to put on more sun cream and drink some blood, taking a moment to rest. Red is focused on his maps again, watching them carefully as he checks our route, not even taking a break from them. Seth plays with my hair while I watch the country side, never having seen it in real life before.
My parents never were the outdoors type, wanting to stay in the town and build up their social lives in wine bars and at private parties. They never took me out to the country and our school never went on any school trips situated outside the town. The only time I ever saw fields were on TV or from a distance from outside the windows in school.
"Enjoying the view?" Seth asks, kissing down my neck.
"Yeah" I reply, smiling even more. "I've never been in this environment before, never been in the country or even near a field"
"Really? Well you better make the most of it, we'll be heading into the city soon" he says and I smile, watching some birds flying above us.
"Where will we sleep and stuff?" I ask quietly, not wanting the others to hear my silly question.
"A hotel or something" he replies, hugging me a little tighter.
"Won't it look a little strange if we're walking round the city looking like hikers?"
"It might but it's something we'll have to deal with and ignore"
Red gets us up and moving, leading the way to another farm and a new tack room. He gets his own way in the end and we make it to the fourth stop, camping out in a cramped, old, moldy tack room. It isn't my first choice but I take it, sleeping next to Seth again and waiting for the next day to come.