Page 105 of Red

We pause and listen. Two men walk together around a building on the far right, and we wait until their voices become distant.

Let’s go, Nikolas says through his connection.

Kiya nudges me, and I step forward. Nikolas tucks in behind the trees and hands me the end of the spool. I balance it on top of the small box, then Kiya and I move in.

We stop outside the glow of all the buildings, less than fifteen feet away from the unsettling man inside. I do wish I could get him out, but that’s not how wars work.

We look at each other and nod. Our footsteps are quick, my heart racing inside my chest. The second we crouch underneath the building, I take a breath, then drop the box and leave Kiya to it.

Out in the open on the pathway, I step on the wire to blend it into the muddy path. My chest feels tight, like I’m waiting for a bomb to go off next to me.

When I hear footsteps, I have no choice other than to stand tall and walk in the opposite direction. I keep on the path, and their steps continue this way. The stick swings a bit, and I cut around the sharp corner of the steel-sided building next to the one Kiya’s under. I slow my uneven breath and duck underneath it, crawling on my hands and knees to hide my shadow. The footsteps pause right behind the armory, then turn past it.

I crawl forward and spot Kiya’s form underneath the armory, hooking up the explosives. She pulls at the tape, the stripping sound far too loud for comfort. I scan the bases of the surrounding buildings for any sign of humans. Hoping it stays clear, I crawl out and cross between the buildings to join her. Dropping onto my hands and knees again, I motion for the tape. When she hands it over, I tear off pieces slowly, not chancing the harsh sound she made when rushing.

Once she connects everything together, the bottom of the trailer will be a circuit in the darkness. I hope she got all the wires right without seeing the colors under here.

When she’s done, we shift to where we first ducked under and wait. Creaks in the trailer come from above our heads, and Kiya’s eyes go wide. I didn’t tell her anyone would be inside.

She’s more like Stark than I thought, Kiya thinks.

I try not to smile at her admitted thought.

We grip each other’s hands and bolt across the path into the forest. We reach Nikolas, and Kiya hands me the lighter, her other hand gripping mine tight.

“Go,” I say.

Nikolas gives me a hug and squeezes the air out of my lungs.

They both headback the way we came, and in seconds, two large wolves appear, then fade into the darkness. They’ll reach the pack in no time.

Now it’s my time to finish the job.

I follow the wire Nikolas placed and reach the end. I stare at the trailer, then toss my fake rifle onto the ground. They killed my brother, and I will do anything for my revenge.

As the sky above starts to lighten, the pack lines should be waiting on the other side.

I flick the lighter to test it, and a small flame sparks. I hold it down to the wire. It sizzles, and a small ember snakes along the forest floor. It speeds up, then disappears. Still, I wait, holding my breath.

Nothing happens.

I take careful steps to where the line is now disintegrated in the dirt. The line hit a puddle in a tree’s roots. I lift it up and dry the line with my shirt, but I’m too close now. I’ll have to make it work.

The building is less than five trees away when I light the line again. The small glow sizzles to the edge of the forest floor, and I gulp. I let heat fire in my limbs and bolt.

The second an explosion erupts behind me, I hit the forest floor behind a fallen tree. The boom tears through the air, shaking the ground beneath me. The sounds don’t stop ammunition ignites, and bark snaps off trees above as bullets and debris fly.

I stay down, hearing shouting over the shots. I lift my head up to see the armory engulfed in fire and no longer standing.

It worked.

A huge blaze burns, and the building next to it burns as well. Humans try to get close, but drop to the ground each time a shot goes off.

I suddenly feel a burn on the side of my shoulder. I turn and look through the hole from a bullet inside the trunk of the tree beside me. I pat my shoulder, and blood covers my fingertips. I have no time, though. I need to move.

Cooling the heated nerves in my limbs, I run. It’s a long way to get to the other side of the camp through the trees. If I just changed, it’d be easier, but I don’t know what the humans’ reaction will be. They might start stationing each other in all directions. Luckily, Kiya and Nikolas should be far ahead of me.

“Someone’s running.”