“We really should be going,” Hauk groused again.

While Sumi continued to deal with the surly, stubborn attack beast, Thia searched through the pack for water and the zip stove and cooking cup so that she could start boiling the root to soften it and release the juices they needed for an antidote.

Hauk was torn between the pain of his body that begged him to lie down and the need he had to keep his family safe. “Where’s Darice?”

“He went to the bathroom,” Thia answered.

“And Illyse?”

Thia’s eyes widened as she set the root into the water, while it warmed. “I haven’t seen her in a while. And now that I think about it, Darice should have been back before we were.”

That cleared his head immediately. “Sumi?”

She already had her weapon drawn. Thia pulled in to stand on his six.

“Illyse!” he shouted.

Normally, the lorina would have come running immediately. But there was no sign of her.

“Stay together,” he said under his breath. “Hands on, flank guard.” Which meant they walked backwards with one hand on his body to let him know where they were. It was a tight formation normally used for narrow, low-light situations. But with his senses dulled, it kept him focused on only one thing.

Whatever was in front of them. And it allowed him to know that so long as they touched him, they were all right while they scanned for attackers coming at their rear.

The downside was that it lined them up for easy targeting.

Willing to chance it, he started forward. “Darice!”

No one answered. Hauk cursed under his breath. Why hadn’t he noticed Darice’s absence sooner?

Because he felt like utter shit. Even now, he feared he’d vomit and fall.

You’ve been through worse, Hauk… and under heavy fire.

Still, his heart was in his throat as visions of past missions and bodies played through his mind. He’d seen too many teens die over the years in battle. Darice was a major pain in the ass, but if something had happened to him because of his inattention, Hauk would never forgive himself.

And with every step he took, the past slashed into him with vicious claws.

Over and over, his mind tortured him with the sight of Keris laughing at him while they climbed, and Hauk hesitated to put his hands, cams, and feet into crevices because of the hidden charges Keris had set on the mountain to “up the ante” of their mission.

“Stop being a pussy, Dancer. What are you going to do in battle when you find an XD or someone lobs a grenade at you? Deal with it and move forward.”