“Screw off,” Vargas muttered and sloshedthrough the water to retrieve his end of the net. He cast ascathing glance at the three on the shoreline before taking up aposition across from me again. “I’m going to kill all thefish.”
That statement was the end of me holdingback any longer. I glanced away from the irritated look he shot meas I tried to stifle my chuckles while setting my net up once more.“Want to try coming toward me again?” I called over to him afteranother ten minutes passed.
He took a deep breath but carefullymaneuvered through the current toward me again. When he made it, weclasped the net together and dragged it toward the shore. Hawk andErin came forward to help pull it onto the riverbank. Water pouredout from the net to reveal a rock bass, two largemouth bass, andwhat I believed was a carp.
“Fucking A!” Vargas shouted as he tossed aflopping bass into the cooler Hawk held open for him.
“See what happens when you stay on yourfeet,” Hawk quipped as he closed the lid of the cooler.
“Like you could do any better,” Vargasretorted.
“Oh, we will,” Hawk replied with ashit-eating grin. “All Erin and I have to do is remain standing andwe’ll catch twice as many as you.”
Vargas flipped him the bird beforereclaiming the net. “Let’s go,” he said to me. “We’ll catch waymore than those two.”
“You can go about twenty feet behind us, butto the other side,” I said to Erin as Vargas and Hawk bickered backand forth about who would catch more fish.
“Will do,” Erin said and climbed into thestream with Hawk on her heels.
“My money’s on you two,” Corson said to meas I slid back into the water.
“Smart man,” I tossed over my shoulder.
The next hour passed in a rush of teasingand complaints.
“You’re using your power to catch them,”Hawk accused me when Vargas and I hauled another catch of fish ontothe shore. Erin and Hawk had switched positions with us a half anhour ago and stood at the front, but Vargas and I were stillcatching more. “Light attracts fish, you’re shooting sparks orsomething under the water.”
“I am not!” I retorted.
“Prove it.”
“And how am I supposed to do that?”
“Keep your hands above the water.”
“No problem.” Returning to the water, Ipinned the net down with my foot and lifted my hand into the air. Iwiggled my fingers at him when he turned to watch me over hisshoulder. “Still going to kick your ass.”
Hawk glanced at my other hand holding thenet above the water. “Just keep ‘em where I can see ‘em.”
“Was he right?” Vargas whispered to me. “Areyou somehow attracting the fish?”
“Of course not,” I replied. Vargas andCorson both gave me disbelieving looks. “I’m not!”
“Someone protests too much!” Hawk calledover his shoulder.
“Oh, shove it,” I replied.
Keeping myself carefully balanced on theslippery rocks beneath my feet, I waited until it was time to goback to the shore again before lowering my hand to grip the net.Lines of concentration etched Vargas’s face as he carefully madehis way toward me.
He was only five feet away when the worldaround me became completely still. Vargas faded away, and all thatremained were the trees swaying in the breeze and the thingssliding like shadows from tree to tree as they moved silentlythrough the woods toward us.
I’d seen these hideously strange creationsbefore from a distance. They were the same demons we’d continuouslyfled from while we’d been making the journey to the gateway.Lanavours. That was what they were called, and they’d found us.
My vision receded to leave me in the presentonce more. Vargas stood directly before me; his deep brown eyestroubled as he stared at me. I couldn’t hear his words, but I knewhe was speaking because his mouth was moving.
“River! Are you okay?”
I blinked at him as his words finallypierced through the lingering haze of my vision. “We have to go,” Iblurted.
