The Hunting: Ch 13

Instructions

“This is a jail?” I ask. “This is not a jail,” Onyx declares. “A jail has bars. And stone floors. And terrible living conditions. This is a hotel room.” “Come along, now,” Jupiter says. SLAM. Nadia tries the door. “It’s locked. I guess we’re stuck here for the next five hours.” “Stuck in a luxury hotel room!” Onyx flops down on the bed. “Ooh, it’s bouncy! And there’s a cheese plate on the nightstand!” “What kind of jail has a cheese plate?” Winter groans. “Ugh. Zara. I hate her so much.” “No you don’t,” Onyx says cheerfully. “You’re in loooooove, Winter. Something my soul will never comprehend.” “Not anymore.” “Then why are you blushing?” “I’m not blushing!” Winter snaps, turning an even deeper shade of pink. “Calm down, everybody,” Nadia says. “This isn’t too bad. Zara will help us. Whether or not Winter is attracted to her.” Winter snorts. “Yeah, right. Here’s my question: Why is she the only person in her ‘Nest’ who’s coming with us? There are at least a hundred people here. She could command them to help us.” “It’s not a good idea,” Camile says quietly. “Why not?” Winter growls, and Camile flinches. “What I mean is-there are hundreds, maybe thousands, of hunters. Even if Zara had brought all of her subjects they wouldn’t be enough.” “They would still be helpful!” “But what if we’re not going to fight them outright!” I gulp as Winter turns to me. I feel awkward in a room of people who already know each other, like I’m intruding on someone else’s conversation. “What if Zara is thinking, more like sabotage?” Winter sighs. “I don’t know what's going on in Zara’s head. I could never tell.” I spend the rest of the afternoon bored out of my mind. Onyx is getting hyper and won’t stop bouncing on the bed. Winter is sulking in the corner, Camile won’t stop pacing, and Amos is rearranging the items in the drawer again and again. When the sun starts to set, I hear the sound of footsteps padding closer and closer. “Guys! Someone’s coming!” I hiss. Zara opens the door, followed by Jupiter. “Winter, you’re coming with me.” “What?” Winter protests. “Ugh, fine.” He follows Zara out, and Jupiter locks the door behind them. Twenty minutes later, Winter storms back in, followed by Zara. She smirks for a second, and then shuts and locks the door form the outside. “What happened?” I ask, noticing Winter’s angry face and hollow eyes. “I don’t want to talk about it.”