A Shade of Doubt (A Shade of Vampire #12)(19)

Nothing like a pile of crap to spoil the mood.

I rolled onto my back, staring up at the leaves blowing gently in the wind. I doubted she’d try anything else with Caleb tonight. Inhaling deeply, I supposed I ought to try to get some sleep. The plant potion I’d applied earlier seemed to be working. I hadn’t noticed a single mosquito or other insect land on me since I’d been lying here.

Caleb let out a deep sigh beneath me. What I wouldn’t give to be lying in his arms right now…

I turned onto my stomach again and peered down at him. I supposed I had at least a few minutes while Annora bathed before she returned and caused a distraction.

I slid off my bed and climbed down toward Caleb. He lay on his back, his arms behind his head, his eyes wide open. His eyes followed me as I crept toward him.

Unlike Annora, I didn’t try to climb onto his bed. He sat up, staring at me and raising an eyebrow.

I was relieved when he broke the silence and said in a deep voice, “You were trying to ask me something earlier.”

“Yes.” I swallowed hard. “Caleb, I—”

I froze. A wave of screams pierced the night air.

Caleb jumped out of his bed and rushed down to the ground. I went to follow him, but he looked back up over his shoulder and hissed, “No. You stay where you are.”

I moved about in the tree, swinging from branch to branch as I tried to get a better of view of what the hell was going on. I’d hoped at first that something awful had happened to Annora. But the screams were from more than one person. How could that be?

I climbed to the edge of the tree where I could get a clear view of the lake. I spotted Annora standing on the bank, clutching her chest and shivering. Caleb arrived by her side a second later, shaking her shoulders. Then he left her and sprinted away into the jungle.

I waited with bated breath for Caleb to return. I had no idea how long I’d have to wait. Annora returned in the meantime. Soaking wet, she climbed onto her bunk. I ignored her, keeping my eyes fixed on the spot where I’d seen Caleb disappear into the jungle.

My heart pounded in my chest. A second wave of screams washed through the jungle. And then a third. A fourth.

The screams were loud, but they’d come from the distance somewhere.

I looked down at Annora. “Do you have any idea what that is?” I called.

She scowled at me and turned over on her side, her back facing me.

I kept waiting for a fifth wave of screams, but there wasn’t one. They’d stopped. The quiet sounds of the jungle returned. I breathed out in relief as Caleb finally appeared at the foot of our tree and swung himself back up.

“What happened?”

He was panting. His hair was disheveled and his arms were covered with scratches.

“I have no idea. I ran to the source of the noise, or at least where I thought the source was. I couldn’t see anyone. I even shouted out. Nobody replied.”

I shuddered.

Perhaps we’re not as alone as we thought.

Chapter 11: Rose

Those screams still ringing in my ears, I was too scared to fall asleep. I drifted in and out of consciousness throughout the night, tossing and turning in my bunk.

As the early-morning hours approached, I rolled back onto my stomach and looked down. I was surprised to see Caleb’s bed empty. Perhaps he couldn’t sleep either and had decided to go for a walk. I looked past Caleb’s platform toward Annora. Her eyes were closed, her mouth slightly open as her chest heaved gently.

I might as well do something useful with my time…

Considering Annora had tried to burn me alive, there were still a few lessons I needed to teach her. Swinging my legs off my bed, I lowered myself onto the branch below as quietly as I could.

I scanned the branches surrounding me once again for anything that could assist me in my endeavor. There were a few more empty nests nearby that probably contained more muck, but she needed a worse surprise now. I was about to start climbing down the tree in hope of finding something in the jungle below when I was met with a sight that sent goosebumps running along my skin. A red spider the size of my hand swayed on a branch about four feet away from me. Its dewy web gave off an eerie glow in the moonlight.

Now I needed to figure out how to get it off the branch without it biting me. I leaned forward and reached out to see how easily broken the spider’s branch was. It wasn’t thick and wouldn’t be hard to snap. I just had to make sure that the creature didn’t go boomeranging to its death… or onto my face.

The closer I got to it, the more disgusted I was. I’d never seen such a vile spider. Its red body was covered with patches of brown fur, and its pincers looked long enough—perhaps even sharp enough—to be nail clippers.

As I was seconds from snapping off the branch, I stopped. Its bright red color led me to believe that it was poisonous. Although it was no time to start having moral quandaries, I couldn’t help but think that my mother wouldn’t have approved of this.

What if its venom is deadly? Do I really want to become a murderer?

The part of me that was closer to my father brushed the thought aside. Eh. Maybe it’s deadly, maybe it isn’t…

As soon as I snapped off the branch, the alarmed spider scrambled upward, its fat body quivering. I was relieved that it stopped where it did—a safe three feet away. Brandishing the branch in front of me, I made my way down toward Annora’s bed. I prayed that she would remain sleeping soundly and wouldn’t sense my presence. She must have been tired, because she didn’t. Not even when I placed the branch between her legs.