“You’re sure he went this way?” Miyasha asks.
“Yes. Garrick has a longer stride with his right leg. See?” I say, pointing the tip of my rifle.
Miyasha squints. “Kind of? How would you even notice that?”
I don’t bother answering as I keep my head moving, eyes scanning in every direction. Halfdan is back at camp with the others. Mary seems to have calmed down enough that I’m not entirely worried she’ll lose her mind and go on a killing spree.
As much as I hate to admit it, I think I’d have come looking for Garrick even if I wasn’t sure it was safe to leave Mary behind. On the one hand, he’s clearly full of potential we’re all going to need to survive this place. On the other? I don’t mind his company, which is rare for me.
“Still think you should wait back home,” I say.
“Still don’t care,” Miyasha says. “First Kato disappeared and now Garrick. We’d be idiots to keep sending one person to go looking.”
“Probably idiots either way,” I mutter.
“He’d look for us if he was in our place,” she says.
“Yeah. I know.”
We don’t talk much after that, which suits me just fine. But Miyasha is unbearably loud, seeming to step on every dry branch, rustle every bush, and stomp rather than step.
“Are you capable of being even a little quiet?” I ask after a while.
Miyasha gulps. “Trying.”
“Try harder.”
Eventually, the tracks stop in a clearing. The snow has been falling relentlessly, but I can see signs of some kind of struggle. It looks like Garrick stopped here, then a large number of people approached him from all directions. “Shit,” I whisper.
“Is this what it looks like?” Miyasha asks.
I notice a silvery glimmer in the snow and kneel, picking it up. I hold up the small metal ball for her to see. “Yeah. Someone captured Garrick. Probably Kato, too.”
Miyasha’s face goes pale. “Why would they—” but she trails off with a heavy breath. “Do you… think there’s a chance they’re still alive?”
I turn the ball over between thumb and forefinger, hating the way this always feels. Losing brothers. No matter how many times they’re taken, it never gets easier. I lift my eyes to Miyasha, forcing a shrug. “Could be. Yeah.”
She smiles a little. “So we’re going to rescue them?”
“Count the steps,” I say softly. “This is at least twelve people. Could’ve been more who didn’t approach, too. There’s no telling how many more they have back at their outpost or how many are marked.”
Her expression starts to fall.
“But…” I say. “We can try to scout a little. Get a better idea of what we’re facing.”
“Okay,” Miyasha says. “Gather intel… then we bust them out of there.”
I stand, brushing the snow from my knees. Around us, the clearing is eerily silent, the snow drifting down without end. My eyes fall to the place where Garrick’s tracks stop.
Sorry, brother.
“Come on. We should get back and tell the others what we’ve learned first,” I say.