Page 36 of Resurgent

Hunter’s jaw tightens. “Nothing.”

“Nothing?”

“No animal. No den. No sign of anything large enough to have done what happened to that recruit.”

My stomach sinks as Korr drops his blood-stained gloves onto the entry table. “Lorenson found a few things, though. Claw marks on several trees.”

“That sounds promising,” I say.

“They were inconsistent. Some were too shallow. Some are too deep. The spacing was completely different from what we’ve found on either of the victims.” He pauses. “And there were paw prints...Random ones. Some were consistent with animals in the area, but then there were others of various sizes, heading in directions that just don’t make sense. None of the fresher ones formed a trail.”

“So…what?” Matt asks. “The monster just decided to leave its footprints wherever the fuck it felt like?”

Korr gives him a look that I imagine would show his irritation if his energy weren’t so depleted. “Apparently.”

Silence settles over the room; it isn't the answer any of us wanted.

“What about the recruit?” I ask quietly. “The one who was attacked?”

Korr looks at me. “His name is Markson.”

The name tugs at something in the back of my mind. “First name?”

Korr shakes his head. “Eric.”

I stare at the floor for a second. “We know him.” I rub my thumb against my palm. “He's in Vanguard with us.”

“You know him well?”

“No.” I shake my head. “Not really. But he was…nice the few interactions we’ve had.”

Korr nods once. “That's all we've got. We'll keep doing patrols, but until it attacks again, we're out of options.”

Matt and I sit in the living room while Hunter cleans up, both of us silent with the uncomfortable knowledge that something had attacked Markson. Something left marks behind, but was still somehow smart enough not to leave enough evidence to tell us what the hell it was. Horrified that our only chance of finding the creature hunting at Scion, is for another recruit to become its' prey.

Eventually, Matt pushes himself off the couch. “I should get home.”

“You sure?” I ask, glancing toward the window.

“Yeah.” He grabs his jacket. “I need to get my paper done for Strategy tomorrow.”

“I’m done with the battle reports from a few years ago and the old maps from some of the demolished towns if you need them?”

“That’s okay. I went in a different direction with my report. The books I need are all in my room, mostly unopened, so it’s going to be a looong night of reading.”

“Tyr will you fly over him to make sure he gets home safe? If anything so much as sneezes suspiciously, I want you to kill it.”

“Don’t worry, Blood-thirsty Faren. I won’t let anything near him.”

I can't help the small smile that pulls at my mouth.

Matt catches it. “Guessing that means I’ll have a babysitter?”

“Yup! Text me when you get home.”

“I always do.”

“You don't.”