Thirteen

“And I suppose you’ve made a new friend or two?” I smirked when Three approached me from behind, rather loudly. I had heard him from practically a mile away, and it wasn’t until he had entered my premises that I realized he had done so on purpose. The solid sound of his shoes cracking the fallen twigs began to grow louder, but I still remained faced towards the flickering fire I’d built earlier.

“Is that a trick question, dearest Three?”

A chuckle escaped his lips as he stabbed darkly, “Every question for you is a trick question.”

“I have no time for your petty bicker.” I muttered, feeling the muscles of my jaw beginning to clench. He was now only feet behind me, and eagerly beginning to close the gap between.

“See,” He chided, finally slumping against one of the barn’s walls beside me. Lights of orange and yellow fought against the darkness across his face, like an ongoing battle of good and evil. His eyes were ablaze with excitement, and I watched as his pupils exercised themselves, growing and shrinking. I knew just by a glimpse that Three was scoping the area, checking out the inside of the barn without hardly turning his head. “You’re quite foolish, Thirteen. Why must you steal an unimportant and worthless being, drag her countries away, and still bargain her life?”

I slid my tongue across my lips, almost threateningly, as our eyes locked. “The woman is bait. I thought you would see that, Three.”

“You can kill and capture without bait. She just weighs you down.”

My eyes narrowed. “Maybe they’re not what I’m after.”

Three veined interest, cocking a perfect eyebrow. “You’re countries away, not even in the same time zone. It’s almost mid day where your prey reside. And if they regroup...You’re to let that happen? So you’re saying, the protectors are not in your best interests and you’re going to let your bait rot?”

The corners of my mouth tugged upward, as I pushed a stick into the flames with my toe. I knew Three knew exactly what I was doing. He was just confirming. So I could hear myself later, quite literally. Still, I cleared my throat. “No. However, I think there’s quite more to the story than what the cover proclaims.”