“It was,” I admitted.
A subtle shifting behind me drew my attention to Hawk. I couldn’t stop myself from beaming at him as I stepped aside to let him see Sandy better. “This is my friend, Sandy.”
He extended his hand toward her. “I’m Hawk.”
Sandy smiled as she shook his hand; I ignored the questioning look she sent me. “I’m going into the Wilds with Hawk and some others to hunt for the horsemen,” I told her.
Sandy released Hawk’s hand. “Ash…” Her voice trailed off, and she pulled off a glove to wipe at her eyes. “I know it was your plan before all this, but are you sure you still want to go?”
“Yes. They have to die.”
Sandy snorted as she surveyed the dead. “I can’t argue with that.”
“Have you been here since last night?”
“Yes.”
“You must be exhausted.”
“I missed most of the battle; this is the least I can do.”
“Sandy—”
“I’ll only be here for a few more hours, and then I’ll head home.”
“Are you all alone there?” I asked.
“Yeah, I found my new roommate an hour ago, but I’ll be fine. I should get back to work; these bodies won’t move themselves. At least I hope they won’t.”
I forced myself not to step away from the bodies closest to me. “I don’t know when I’ll be back, but when I return, I’ll find you,” I promised.
“Just make sure you return.”
I closed my eyes when we hugged again and tried not to think about the possibility this might be the last time I saw her. Tears burned my eyes, but before I could shed them, I stepped away from her. She smiled at me before slipping her glove and mask on; she waved goodbye to Hawk and returned to the woman who was still standing by the body Sandy had released when she saw me.
Some of my happiness faded as we made our way back through the bodies. The horsemen had to pay for what they’d done.
I walked with Hawk back into the town and to his house. We didn’t speak as he packed a backpack full of supplies before we returned to meet with Corson, Wren, Lix, and Bale. There were no other demons with them, but they’d all gathered supplies too. Since this was a demon mission, there were a lot fewer supplies than would have been required if humans were joining us.
I’d packed a couple of bottles of water and granola bars that would keep me going; plus, I could always hunt if I got hungry.
“Ready?” Corson asked.
“Always,” Hawk replied.
The king, queen, Erin, and Vargas came out to join us and escorted us to the road we’d have to take to bypass the still smoldering ruins of the forest. They broke away and waved goodbye as we continued with six hellhounds. It was going to be a long journey.
Chapter Nineteen
Hawk
After a week of traveling on foot, riding the hounds, and briefly using a couple of vehicles we found parked in a garage, we were closing in on Caim and the horsemen. We were also deeper into the Wilds than I’d ever been before and exhausted. Demons required less sleep than humans, but only sleeping an hour or two at a time was not enough.
Riding the hellhounds was also a miserable experience, but it was the fastest way to travel. Unfortunately, the beasts pounded up and down hills and through the woods with no concern for whoever was on their backs. They could often go around some of the obstacles they hit, but I think they took joy in running us into low-hanging branches and knocking us off.
They wanted us on their backs as much as we wanted to be there. We could have taken some of the horses from the wall, but they couldn’t cover as much land as fast as the hounds could. The horses required more rest and a steady food and water supply that we couldn’t guarantee for them.
So we were stuck riding the hounds, and they expressed their dislike in every way possible, but the beasts were relentless in their pursuit of the horsemen.
