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Paige gave a hard kick with her legs, and the dirt gave way. Her top half spilled out through the opening, knocking dirt away from the small hillside from which she emerged.
Dewey released her hands and grabbed her shoulders, tugging her farther from the hole. She scrambled out, crawling on her hands and knees a few feet away before she flopped onto her back, staring up at the canopy of trees above her.
She puffed out a few breaths and swallowed hard.
Dewey hovered above her. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” she said between gasps. “Thanks.”
Dewey pointed a finger gun at her and winked. “Anytime, partner.”
After another few gulps of the hot, humid air, she sat up and glanced around. “Where are we?”
Dewey scanned the horizon in all directions.
“There’s the temple,” he said, pointing through the trees.
Paige climbed to her feet, brushing off as much dirt as she could from her clothing before slinging on the backpack. “Come on. Let’s get out of here.”
She popped open his carrier, and he hopped inside.
“I can’t wait to get into air conditioning,” Paige grumbled. “And a shower.”
“There’s a shower on the plane,” Dewey said.
A smile formed on Paige’s lips. “I saw that. It’s nicer than the shower in my apartment. I can’t wait to try it. I feel so grimy.”
“And right after, we need to talk about where to go next. Where is the mirror?”
Paige shook her head as she fought through the trees and into the clearing.
“I’m not–“ Her voice cut off, and she squared her brows together. She spun, searching the clearing. “Where is everyone?”
“Really? They left us?” Dewey complained from inside the crate.
“I can’t believe they’d do that, unless…”
“Unless what?”
“Unless they made a deal with the werewolves,” Paige said as she circled around the temple in search of the others.
As she rounded one corner, she spotted a lump lying on the ground. She raced toward it, finding Mateo sprawled on his stomach.
Paige rolled him over. Blood stained his shirt, and he gasped for breath.
“Mateo? What happened?” Paige asked as she knelt next to him.
His hand shook, and his eyes grew wide. “Hombre lobo.”
“What?” Paige questioned. “Where is everyone else?”
“Tomado. Hombre lobo.” The man gasped in a shaky breath before his head lolled to the side, and his eyes stared ahead at nothing. Paige pressed her lips together, dipping her chin toward her chest and offering a silent prayer for the man as she slid his eyes closed.
“Umm, Paige, I think we’d better go.”
Paige stood and glanced around. “But where are the others?”
“Gone.”
