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"Nerd out later. I'm trying to school Sessah here."
"Maybe he doesn't need to be schooled. Maybe he's just asking a question."
Liz narrows her eyes. "What's crawled up your ass?"
Sam just gestures at the beach. As if on cue, a tentacle waves in the distance.
"Okay, fair point." Liz turns back to Sessah. "So it doesn't make sense to put up huts right now, okay? I'm sorry if your bunk-buddy smells or is gassy, but we need to focus on the food first, and privacy la…ter…" She trails off as he storms away, a confused look on her face. "What the fuck did I say?"
I watch, too, interested. Sessah's always so good-natured and eager to please. It isn't like him to be moody and temperamental, and I have to admit that it pricks my interest. I want to talk to him, dig deeper. See if I can help. "Maybe I should go see how he's doing?" I offer. "I could—”
"No." Juth speaks up for the first time, and it's to scowl at me. "You need to rest your foot."
"Oh, I don't think that's really necessary," I begin, but Juth gets to his feet, takes a bowl from Harlow, who's serving food by the fire, and puts the bowl in my hands.
To my surprise, both Harlow and Liz give me knowing looks.
"I'm not hungry," I protest.
Juth strokes my hair, the movement caressing and possessive all at once. "I noticed you did not eat much. Eat your fill. There will be plenty of work to do if there are no food stores."
"Not much," agrees Liz. "I haven't seen Bek or Elly this morning. Are they with Veronica?" When Angie nods, Liz taps a finger on her chin. "Okay. We've got a lot of pregnant ladies, a lot of kids around camp, and some injured. Those that can hunt will hunt. Those that can't hunt can watch the kids and keep them occupied while the parents are busy, and help with food preparing."
"And Bek?" Harlow asks reasonably, stirring the food pouch over the fire. "Because you know he's not going to leave Elly's side for a moment."
"Bek can kiss my skinny pale ass," Liz mutters. "But fine, he can play bodyguard here at camp. Whatever." She points at Juth. "You. Do you know how to hunt in the mountains?"
Juth stiffens at my side again, and I worry he's about to get offended. Liz can be hard to take at times, and I worry she's far too abrasive for the newly-joined Outcast. But he gives her a sharp look. "I know how to kill things for food. It cannot be that different from hunting on the sands."
She breaks into a grin. "Good answer. I like you." She wags a finger at him. "You will need boots, though. And a spear. Steph?"
"I'll get him kitted out," I promise, touching Juth's arm. For some reason, I'm awfully proud that Liz likes him. She can be a tough nut to please unless you throw some Star Wars trivia in her direction.
Liz nods. "Raahosh and I can show you the basics and where to set traps and how to cache. After that, you'll be on your own." She looks out in the distance. "We need to find N'dek and pry him off Devi's ass so he can hunt, too. There's too much to do to go farting around with these creatures all day long. I think we—"
"Helllooo," calls a loud female voice in the distance.
Harlow turns to Liz, confusion on her face. "What the heck?"
Liz starts away from the fire, a worried look on her face. "Is something wrong with the travelers already? Fuck, what now?"
"You think it's Brooke?" Harlow asks. "She's getting heavy with kit but she swears she can walk it. You think it's too much for her?" She presses her fingers to her mouth, as if just uttering the words is upsetting.
"One way to find out," Liz says, and storms away.
I bite my lip as Liz races down the canyon. I touch Juth's arm. "Go with her?"
He gets to his feet, silently heading after her, and I'm grateful. I exchange a look with Harlow. I hope it's nothing. I can't think of a reason for someone to come back, hours after they left, unless something terrible has happened. My mind starts to run through all the possibilities. More of those enormous, man-eating bird things? The yeti-like metlaks that we've been told about but rarely see? An avalanche? More tentacled shell-beasts? What?
A few quiet, tense minutes later, Liz comes charging back into camp, a furious look on her face. "No jury would convict me if I murdered her," she mutters as she passes by us. "I'm getting Raahosh."
Harlow and I exchange a look of confusion, and a few moments later, it all becomes clear. Juth is the first one to return to camp, with a pack tossed over one shoulder. Behind him, her white fur cloak wrapped around her like she's some sort of Hollywood starlet, is Daisy. A few steps behind her is O'jek, with the same stony expression that Juth is wearing. For a moment they look so alike, it's startling.
