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Still, I’m not sure if it’s because he is lying to avoid scaring me, if he genuinely doesn’t know, or if I’m misreading him altogether.
“Hands where I can see them,” a voice I don’t recognize snaps into the night.
Oz raises his hands, but Zig keeps hold of me and doesn’t move an inch.
“Identify.”
“Codename Ophis.”
“Holy fucking shit. Oz, it’s really you,” the voice croaks out a second before a flashlight is aimed our way, nearly blinding me.
I hiss and bury my head back against Zig’s chest.
“Move the goddamn light, Cooper,” Zig growls.
“Zig? How the fuck? You know what? None of that matters. We need to get you out of here now. This place is crawling with hostiles.”
“Lead the way,” Oz orders.
I keep my head buried against Zig’s throat as we begin to follow the mystery man. Being around strangers makes me feel vulnerable all of a sudden, and I hate it. I hate not knowing who I can and can’t trust. I’m not about to put my faith in a man I haven’t met, one who hasn’t earned my trust yet.
I think about telling Zig I can walk, but I bite my tongue, wanting to seem more fragile than I am. If these are the good guys, then they won’t care that I am being carried regardless. And if they’re not so good, then having them underestimate me can only work in my favor.
It’s too dark for me to keep track of where we are going, and under the canopy of trees that hide the moon, it’s eerie as hell. I grip Zig tighter; the heat of his body against mine the only thing grounding me at the moment.
We walk for what seems like forever—but I have no sense of time right now—before the trees give way to a large man-made clearing. Now the moon is high above us, spilling enough silvery light to illuminate the ground below. Tree stumps edge the clearing, but beyond that, everything is barren and flat.
I’d heard of deforestation. I remember learning about it at school. But like most people, I hadn’t thought a lot about it in years, with my own problems always dominating my mind. But seeing this place—this wild land that has been as terrifying as it has been majestic—cut down to nothing makes me want to bawl my eyes out.
When a loud whooping sound fills the air, making my hair whip around in a frenzy, I squint and look up to see a helicopter hovering above us. I squeeze Zig tight and close my eyes as grit and dirt fly up and scratch my face. When the helicopter lands, Zig cups the side of my head and rushes toward it.
“That the girl?” the man they called Cooper asks as Zig climbs in and sits me beside him.
He doesn’t answer. He looks me in the eye while he straps the seatbelt around me and slides on a pair of ear protectors. Oz sits on the opposite side of me, sandwiching me between the two of them. Each of them reaches for my hand at the same time.
Cooper looks from them to me before his eyes drop to our hands. His eyes widen for a fraction before his lips twitch, and he shakes his head. Two guys climb in on either side of him, and a third climbs into the seat next to the pilot.
“Who are they?” Oz asks, nodding to the men.
“This is Dillon and Mark. The one flying the bird is Denny, and the one next to him is Skinner. While you’ve been gone, we’ve…had our hands full,” he says, looking at me as if he is choosing his words carefully. I’m guessing he has no idea what the guys told me.
“We have two new teams in rotation, helping to keep everything running smoothly.”
“Doesn’t seem like it’s been too successful,” Zig points out, looking down at the still-smoking village as the helicopter rises into the sky.
Cooper sighs and shakes his head, suddenly looking exhausted himself. “What can I say? It’s been a hell of a few months. But man, I’m glad to see you guys. We’d almost given up hope.”
“Why didn’t you?” Oz asks, his thumb smoothing over the back of my hand.
“Luna.” He huffs, making both Zig and Oz snort. “She refused to believe that you were dead. She told me flat out that if I didn’t believe that you would both walk out of the jungle alive, then I clearly didn’t know you. She also promised to fire me if I so much as suggested it again. Your sister is terrifying when she wants to be.” Cooper grimaces.
I can’t help but grin at his face. From what I’ve heard, Luna sounds like hell on wheels. I suppose she would have to be to survive having big brothers like these two.
“We have another team heading to the rendezvous point. There was an explosion—”
“It was us. No team is necessary. There’s nothing left.”
It’s completely silent for a minute until Oz speaks up. “I take it you haven’t been able to stop the leak.”
