Forged by Vanessa Nelson

Author:Vanessa Nelson [Nelson, Vanessa]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: Fantasy
Amazon: B0C9N2T8VR
Goodreads: 181653057
Publisher: anonymous
Published: 2023-10-30T16:00:00+00:00

Chapter eighteen

With the sound of the medical helicopter fading overhead, the remaining warriors moved with her, Cas and Pol towards the row of buildings.

Before they could check the other, closed, buildings, they needed to make sure there was nothing left in the one they’d opened.

Max wasn’t sure what was worse. Picking her way past the bits and pieces of dead cuchara, or the stench wafting out of the open door when she eventually reached it. A quick glance inside the building told her that there were no more adults, and no juveniles. There was, however, a large nest in one corner, the stack of eggs almost up to the ceiling.

“Raymund and his team are going to have their work cut out,” Max commented, her voice harsh as she fought to control her breathing against the stench in her nose and mouth. “Wait a moment,” she said, taking a step forward. She didn’t go beyond the building threshold, pulling her torch out and shining it at the eggs. “That’s not normal,” she said.

The egg-laying creatures that the Marshals hunted had various different ways of creating their nests and arranging their eggs. All of them were fairly haphazard and looked organic. The eggs here were set in tidy columns from the floor to the ceiling. As Max moved her torch beam around the interior of the building, she caught glimpses of metal between the rows of eggs.

“That almost looks like a frame of some kind,” Bryce said, just behind her.

“Yes,” Max agreed. She remembered thinking that the cuchara had been larger than normal, and unusually resistant to bullets. She’d never heard of the insects working with metal, either. Their natural habitats were forests, and they would seek out wooden structures in the city. Not metal. More unease crept over her along with revulsion as she drew in another lungful of the stench.

“Let’s check the other buildings,” she suggested.

Bryce didn’t say anything, just followed her to the next door. This time, Killan and Osvaldo took up position on either side of the door before Osvaldo pulled it open. Khari had taken Joshua’s place at Max’s side, her face tight. Max had to admire the woman’s dedication. Her husband was badly injured, but Khari was focused on her job. She seemed almost disappointed when nothing leapt out of the building at her. She’d told Bryce that she wanted to kill something, and looking at her determined face, Max could see that was still true.

The larger, middle building was, thankfully, empty of creatures. Max’s eyes widened as she took in the amount of equipment that had been crammed into the space. Every wall was taken up with racks and hangers, and there were hooks hanging from the ceiling as well. She didn’t recognise half of the tools she saw, and every one of them looked well-used, and well cared for. There was not a speck of rust on any of them.

“It’s the tool shed for the community gardens,” Bryce told her, perhaps catching the surprise on her face.

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