The Missing - Kiersten Modglin (the reading strategies book TXT) 📗

peripheral vision, the rest of his body and the entirety of Ava’s and James’s blocked by the trees.

“What are you doing out here?”

“I’m a friend,” she said quickly, her voice too low as she glanced behind her, almost like she was afraid someone was watching us. “I don’t have much time. I came to warn you…”

“Warn me—”

“You can’t build a raft,” she said quickly, cutting me off.

My blood went cold. “What are you talking about? How do you know about that?”

“I heard you talking today.”

“But how? Where do you live? How did you even get on this island?”

She glanced behind her again. “They brought me here.”

“They? They who? The men in the cliff house? Who are they?”

“I don’t have time to explain. If they find me here, they’ll kill us both. Just…” Behind her, I heard a branch crack. She jumped, her body tensing. “Just don’t get on the raft. They know about the plan. They know everything.”

“How do they know? Are they watching us? How are they finding out so much? What do they want from us?”

Her eyes widened, and she shook her head. “I’m sorry… I can’t—” Another branch snapped. This time, it sounded closer. She took a step backward, and I moved forward.

“Wait! Please don’t go. Please help us.”

“I can’t,” she said, lowering her voice even more. “Just…don’t build the raft. They’ll kill anyone who tries to escape. Be careful. And please, don’t tell anyone I was here…”

“But what—”

“I have to go. I’m sorry. Don’t tell anyone you saw me.” She jutted her head toward the water, toward my friends. “You can’t trust them.”

“Who?”

“Anyone,” she said firmly. She turned from me then, without another word, and I felt my heart sinking as I watched her hurry away, the bright white of her hair, skin, and clothes disappearing into the dark abyss of the woods.

“Please! Wait!” I called in a hushed tone, but it was no use. She was gone, and I was alone again, with nothing more than her ominous warning to guide me. I felt a shiver run over me and backed away from the woods, suddenly feeling like I was being watched. What had she heard in the woods? Who was coming for us? Why had they brought her here? Why had they brought us here? What did she know?

I walked back toward the ocean, watching the waves attack the shore like angry claws, pulling in bits of sand and shells with every touch. It was peaceful at night, dark and steady, a roar so defined I could hear it even when I was back near the falls. I could hear it in my sleep.

I’d been to the beach so many times back home, but never at night, and never in such an uninhabited place. It was different here.

I sank onto the sand next to Noah, watching him stir a bit at my disturbance, but he didn’t wake. Among the many things we’d learned on the island, sleeping through every noise and bump in the night was one of the most important. Between the animal noises, the cracks and snaps of the trees, the thuds of coconuts falling, and the roar of the ocean, we were surrounded by a constant stream of noise unlike what we were used to in our lives back home.

I glanced behind me, checking the tree line to make sure no one was making their way toward me. The woman’s appearance had shaken me, but not enough to follow her. I wouldn’t go into the woods at night alone, and her warning about not trusting anyone had left me on edge. I wished I knew who she meant.

Surely not Noah. Ava, perhaps. Her coldness today had shaken me. But I truly believed she was scared, not malicious. And James, as doting toward Ava as he was, was kind at heart. I had never returned to our circle, and they hadn’t pressed the issue, but once, when I glanced over at them from my place on the sand, he’d met my eye, a small, apologetic smile on his lips. He wasn’t evil; he was in love. I couldn’t believe any of them intended me harm.

But then what else could she have meant? I wrapped my arms around myself as the wind howled, cooling my skin. Noah stirred again, and I scooted down so I was lying beside him, keeping our bodies a safe distance apart. I couldn’t bear the thought of disturbing him. I didn’t want to talk. There was no way I could without saying something about my encounter with the woman.

Noah and I had a pact—protect each other above all others. Did that include telling him about this? I’d keep him from participating in any escape plans, and I had to hope that would be enough.

I checked the tree line again, knowing there’d be no more sleeping tonight. I was too paranoid, too sure someone was just beyond the tree line with an eye on me. I looked over at Noah, then at Ava and James, and for half a second, I could swear I saw Ava’s head lifted off the sand, her face turned toward me, as if she were watching me.

How long had she been like that?

I blinked again, and her head was back down. Had I imagined that?

Chapter Twenty-Three

To my great relief, the next day there was no further mention of the raft. The fight, but not the pain of it, seemed all but forgotten as we sat around the fire and ate a few of the berries Ava had picked for breakfast. It seemed as if another storm would be blowing in soon—the air felt heavier, smelled different than usual, and the tide was stronger.

“I’m going to the falls,” James said almost abruptly, interrupting the silence and my thoughts as he stood up and adjusted his shorts. “I need a shower. You coming?”

Ava nodded, tossing a few of the berries from her hand back into the pile, and together they headed toward the forest without