Bite Risk: Caught Dead by S.J. Wills

Author:S.J. Wills
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Simon & Schuster UK
Published: 2024-03-14T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 19 Mika

This cage was made for animals a lot bigger than us. ‘I can get out,’ I tell Arty, poking my head and my bottom part-way through the bars carefully.

Eyes squeezed shut, she breathes in and out through gritted teeth, hissing with pain. I don’t think she can speak.

I’m not in a hurry to go out there. The Revenant might still be close. But I’m scared that what’s happened to her foot is really serious. It looks bad. One of the metal poles has gone right through the leather of her boot, and – unless the boots about six sizes too big for her – through her foot as well. I know from my first-aid classes that you shouldn’t take stuff like that out by yourself, because once it’s out, the blood will really flow. But we can’t just stay here.

After a couple of minutes I tell her I’m going to the Wellness Centre for help, and she finally speaks. Her voice is faint. ‘No. Get the circular saw from the bottom locker with a number six on it. Bring it to me. And the first-aid kit from twelve.’

I squeeze through the bars, and creep as quietly as I can round to the caravan door, on alert, ears straining for sounds, my heart belting away in my chest. I find the saw and the kit where she said in the caravan and slip back to her, then watch as she cuts the bar sticking into her boot. Eventually the top part falls away. She blows out a couple of long, harsh breaths, then yanks out the rest with a strangled cry. Blood starts to ooze up from the leather. I have to look away when she takes the boot off. When I glance back, she’s bandaged up the foot. But there’s no way that’s going to be enough.

‘Let me help you get inside.’ I feel awful for even thinking she might throw me out here as bait.

She bats away my hand, and stands up, grimacing, holding the cage for support as she steps out. Then she slams at the bars with the flat of her hand, making me start.

‘Someone unplugged it.’ She glares at me as if she thinks I did it, but then says, ‘Immutables.’ She spits. ‘What a bunch of petty… Just because I don’t want to join their pointless club. They have no idea what they’ve done.’

I can’t believe they’d do something like that out of spite. But then, perhaps they want to be the ones to get the glory for catching the Revenant. Or perhaps they just don’t care about Rippers being bitten. It doesn’t affect them.

‘How did you fall over?’ I ask. ‘The Revenant had gone.’

‘Shut up.’

The words might as well be a slap in my face.

She limps off round to the front of the caravan, refusing to let me near her.

‘Arty?’

As she reaches the door, she spins round to face me and I rear back. Her expression frightens me.

‘You screwed up, Mika. That thing would have been trapped right now, if you hadn’t interfered.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.