I leaned in, meeting his gaze in the afternoon sun. There was something in his voice that worried me. Did he know I intended to escape? His eyes flashed and I felt, again, he was trying to warn me of something. Before I could guess what, the light shifted and the feeling faded. I sat back, chafing my hands along the crescent-moon scars on my arms. Hosea returned to his work. By late afternoon, William had yet to appear.

The Scorpion

THE SCORPION

Hours later, Hosea served my supper on a crude plate. He ordered me to sit then walked beyond the scope of the firelight. I heard him talking to someone in the distance, but I stayed put. I figured he was testing me, watching from the trees to see if I could be trusted.

“Don’t worry. I’ll be right here—for now,” I whispered. I’d jittered with impatience all day, but I’d made great strides toward my escape. I’d followed him as he foraged for edible leaves. Then, at my insistence, he let me wash them. I memorized their particulars so I could find them again when I was on my own. When he’d ordered me away as he chopped the leaves and mixed them with oil to make a green paste, I watched from afar so I could repeat the process.

Imagining his eyes on me, I stuffed my mouth full of noodles slathered in the green paste. I picked up my pack and moved to my bedroll, to analyze my situation as I ate.

During the journey from Cobane I’d been blindfolded, but I faintly recalled the direction of the sun on my face each day. If my memory could be trusted, we were far north, east of Cobane, close to the Kongo border.

I took a bite and chewed slowly. From my studies, I knew the only destination northeast of Cobane was the Obi Forest, the verboten land. By my calculation, Hosea had been headed there before the gust. I frowned. The Obi Forest had a murky history.

After the Last War, tens of thousands died of famine as the remains of the Earth could not produce food without innovative help. To develop a solution, the Compromise delegates commissioned a team of scientists to bolster advancement in the area of agriculture.

Months later, a solution emerged. Using hydroplane irrigation technology and a cocktail of synthetic minerals, the super-team set forth a plan to nourish the land. They tested multiple versions of the synthetic mineral mixture on a strip of the Kongo, dubbed the Obi Forest. The land ran the length of the northern Kongo border, providing a barrier between the Kongo and Clayskin territory.