Apocalypsis: Book 2 (Warpaint) (35 page)
Read Apocalypsis: Book 2 (Warpaint) Online
Authors: Elle Casey
We laid down for the rest of the trip home and did our best not to slam our faces on the top of the car every time Rob drove over a bump in the road. None of us spoke on the way back to the swamp. All I could do was worry about Bodo and hope I’d just missed seeing him in the truck.
We reached the turnoff to the canoe rental place, and I banged on the roof to be let off.
Rob stopped, and Winky and I got down from the roof, using the rear bumper as our step-ladder to the ground. I waved when we were both down, and the rest of them continued on, the truck tires crunching over the gravel and sending up clouds of dry dust into the air around us.
“Sorry, Winky, I just couldn’t do any more bumps,” I said, holding my injured forearm in front of me with my other hand.
“I understand. Anything I can do?”
“I’m going to jump in the swamp and get this shit off me. You could make sure no gators eat me in the process.” We walked down the dirt road, my feet dragging.
“No problem. Just call me your friendly neighborhood gator wrestler.”
I tried to smile, but it was too painful. It felt too wrong to find humor in our world right now.
“What happened back there? Is everyone okay?” I asked.
Winky shook her head. “I’m not exactly sure what happened with everyone. Fohi and Rob blew up the front of the house and got a few of the canners inside with it. The canners had a lot of gas and stuff stored in there, so the place just started exploding once the grenade went off. The place is going up in flames right now.” She reached up, twisting her hair into a bun and then letting it drop, keeping her eyes on the ground as we walked. “I poisoned those dogs, but only after I saw them rip into some kid. I think it was that Sean guy. They left him for the poisoned meat, and he ran off. I don’t know where he went, but he’s not with us.”
“What about Bodo?” I was almost afraid to hear her answer, but I had to know. My heart was spasming in pain.
“I saw Bodo fighting with another guy, but I had to leave because two others were chasing me and Jason. Kowi got into it too and took a slice to the gut. Everyone has knife wounds except Paci, who you saw get shot in the leg. I think he’s going to be okay if he doesn’t get an infection. It didn’t hit an artery or anything.”
“So Bodo’s not in the truck?”
Winky looked at me sadly. “No. He’s not.”
“Is he … ?”
She looked back down at the ground and shrugged. “I don’t know. He didn’t show up at the truck. We couldn’t wait for him anymore. Some of the canners got away and they have those spies … ”
I shook my head, dismissing her unspoken apologies. “I know, I know …” I couldn’t even wrap my head around the idea that Bodo wasn’t with us. He had to be okay.
He just has to be.
I refused to accept the idea that he could be dead.
“Did anyone look for him? Maybe he’s injured and that’s why he couldn’t get back.”
“Yeah. We looked where we last saw him. He wasn’t there. If he ran back into the house, well …” She didn’t finish her sentence, but her meaning was becoming all too clear to me.
“When did they blow the place up?” I asked, praying she’d say it was before she saw Bodo fighting.
She answered me in a quiet voice. “After the last time anyone saw Bodo.” She reached into her pocket and held something out to me.
“What’s that?” I said, knowing exactly what it was when I saw the shiny silver surface but not wanting to believe it.
“It’s Bodo’s harmonica. I found it in the grass when I went back to look for him. It must have fallen out of his pocket when he was fighting the canners.”
I started to cry, almost not wanting to touch it. I stopped walking. “Was he winning? When you saw him? Was he winning the fight?”
Winky stopped too, turning to look at me. “He was doing okay. Yeah, he was doing pretty well.”
I reached out and took the harmonica from her, running my fingers over the etched scrolls on the side that had faded in places from being handled so much. I put it up to my lips but then quickly took it away again. No way in hell was I going to blow on it. It was Bodo’s, and he was going to come back and blow it himself.
He just has to.
I shoved it in my back pocket and strode away wiping tears angrily from my face, leaving Winky behind.
CLIFFHANGERS
Do they make you crazy?
If you are not a fan of cliffhanger endings (so sorry all my books have them - I can’t seem to help myself), you can go to the next book in the series on
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Elle Casey
is an American writer who lives in Southern France with her husband, three kids, Hercules the wonder poodle and Monie the Bouvier. In her spare time she writes women’s fiction and young adult novels (you can find her Women’s Fiction work under the pen name
Kat Lee
.)
A personal note from Elle …
If you enjoyed this book, please,
please
consider leaving positive feedback on
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Other Books by Elle Casey
War of the Fae: Book One, The Changelings -
FREE!
War of the Fae: Book Two, Call to Arms
War of the Fae: Book Three, Darkness & Light
War of the Fae: Book Four, New World Order
Clash of the Otherworlds: Book 1, After the Fall
Clash of the Otherworlds: Book 2, Between the Realms
Clash of the Otherworlds: Book 3, Portal Guardians
Apocalypsis: Book 1, Kahayatle
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
I always acknowledge my readers first. It’s for you that I write, and without you, I’m not sure if I could technically even be a writer. So, thank you for making my wonderful life as an author not only possible, but incredibly fulfilling. Your emails, posts, comments, and tweets keep me going, even when I’m not in the mood to go.
To my writer friends who are always there with a quick joke, a shoulder to cry on, an ear to bitch into … thank you! Jason “Muskrat Head” Brant, Dalya Moon, Samantha Young, Kary English and many others.
To the book bloggers and readers who take the extra time to review my books and share those reviews with the world. Thank you!
To my readers who make an effort to tell their friends and family about my work, thank you! I am well aware of the huge compliment that is, and I appreciate what you do for me very much.
To my Facebook friends and “likers”, thank you! I love our little community we’ve built there, where you all come by for visits and laughs, to share thoughts on my books and others, and to play my goofy games. Interacting with you guys is something I look forward to every single day.
To the talented musician, Sarah Jarosz. Your music is incredibly inspiring. I listened to it the entire time I was writing this book. I hope I can see you perform live someday.
To my beta readers and editors: Maggie, Theresa, Aidan, and Craig … you guys are the you-know-what. You have no idea what a great team you are, even though you toil alone, in the dark as to what the others are doing. You each find something different that needs fixing. You’re my superheros. All of my happy readers need to know what a crucial role you play in making me look good.
Last, but oh so very not least, to Aidan, superfan extraordinaire from Down Under, who made the cover of this book. Now, that might seem cool in and of itself. But what you don’t know, that I’m going to tell you now, is that he learned how to use Adobe Photoshop
just so he could make me a cover
. For months, he toiled over his computer, while also working full time, taking care of a 2-year-old who doesn’t like to sleep much, and a pregnant wife. Now THAT, is dedication. Love you, Aybee!!! Stay away from the snail wiener porridge!