The Crossbow of Destiny by Brandon Hoang

Author:Brandon Hoang
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Scholastic Inc.

Some time had passed and there was still no sign of Duy. “Should we have gone with him?” asked Freddie.

“No way. If he’s going to try and act all macho and not ask for our help, I’m not offering it up to him.” Liên looked to the sky at the exact same thing Freddie was looking at. It was getting dark now, and the moon was peeking out. It had been a long day. “Freddie, why are we even trusting this kid? He’s the son of the enemy!”

“What are we supposed to do, ditch him when he’s trying to find us shelter—after he saved us? I don’t think karma would look too kindly on us,” Freddie reasoned. “Besides, it’s not like we know how to navigate our way through this jungle. We don’t even know where we are!”

“Then it doesn’t matter if we go on without him! I say we find a way out of this jungle and get back home … together.”

It didn’t feel right to completely abandon the one person who had saved them from Con Hổ. Twice. As much as she wanted to side with Liên, Freddie had to go with her gut. “Look, it’s getting dark and I think we need all the help we can get right now, Liên.”

“So you’re saying you trust him more than you trust me?”

“What? No! Of course not.” Freddie knew she had to choose her next words carefully.

The fact was, Freddie did trust Duy in this situation. It was a matter of survival, and somehow, Freddie knew they had a better chance of doing that if they stuck together. And besides, it wasn’t that Freddie didn’t trust Liên. It was simply … a complicated situation.

“I’m just saying that he seems to know what he’s doing. How much jungle knowledge do you have, Liên? I don’t have any problem admitting that I don’t have any.”

Liên turned her chin up toward the cave. “Keep an eye on that entrance. I’ll bet you my college fund that that boy will come running out any second.”

Sure enough, there was a scream, followed by Duy racing out of the cave stumbling over himself as he slid down the embankment’s slope. Liên winked at Freddie as if to say Told you so.

“New plan.” He was cradling his left arm. “There’s definitely something in there. Tell me you heard that.” He stared up at the cave as if waiting for something to emerge.

“The only thing we heard was a yelp of terror, and that came from you,” said Liên.

“What’d you do with the flashlight?” asked Freddie. “What happened in there?”

Duy gulped some air, catching his breath. He began pacing. “I think someone was living in that cave. There was definitely some kind of a … a campsite or something. I didn’t get too good a look. I saw something moving. And then I heard a squeal. I can’t believe you didn’t hear it. So then I started running, and then I tripped on some stupid— Ow!” Duy had raised his arms, wincing.

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