I thought he meant deer or wild boars moving from land to land through the swamps, but I heard something else. The roaring rattle of a motorboat that sounded almost like a wild grunt in the distance. Suddenly, a voice emerged from the blind mixture of fog and darkness. “Willa? Nathaniel?”
“Ian,” Nathan whispered. There was a sudden glint in his eyes and he grabbed his headlamp and put it on. “I don’t want to go back to the others yet, do you?”
I shook my head, my veins tingling.He doesn’t want to go back. He wants to be alone with me.
He quietly adjusted the oars and dipped them gently into the dark water. There was hardly a sound as the boat glided through the swamp, but the motorboat came closer. For a few seconds, I thought Isaac might have found us and that Icarus was trying to warn us. Then, I remembered Nathan’s words. Isaac didn’t know this place, and without exact coordinates, no one could find it.
Nathan rounded another narrow strip of land and headed into a new floating forest where the silver moss glowed like lanterns in the headlamp light. He had to weave us through with an oar, but eventually, he stopped on a bank and motioned for me to climb out of the boat. When he got out, we pulled the small boat into the thick undergrowth by the water.
“He won’t be able to get here quickly with the motorboat,” Nathan said quietly and I thought I heard a smile in his voice. “Come on!” As he dimmed the headlamp, he hurried ahead as if he knew the destination. Only a narrow strip of light fell at his feet, illuminating a path. I stopped for a moment and listened to see if I could still hear the motorboat, but there was something else. Something raced over branches and trees, sounding like an uncontrolled gallop of riders charging through the underbrush on their horses before an eerie grunt pierced the night.
“Wild boars. A whole pack!” Nathan gasped. “Quickly!”
Our hands automatically found each other as we ran along the path, not knowing if the herd was in front or behind us. With one hand, Nathan turned off the headlamp and the sudden darkness enveloped us. Shadows flew past: trees, stumps, webs like giant spiderwebs, and the pale shimmer of the moon. I followed Nathan as if blind. The ground was uneven and we stumbled over dead wood but didn’t fall, just held on tighter. I could no longer tell if the noise was coming from the wild boars or us. I didn’t even know how dangerous they could be.
“Faster!” Nathan shouted, and at that moment, I heard them behind me and glanced over my shoulder. My heart skipped a beat. With glowing eyes, they rushed forward, not ten yards behind us, a wild jumble of grunting, snorting, and cracking branches. Nathan pulled me onward, and when I thought I could feel the pigs breathing down my neck, he yelled, “To the right!” There was a brief jolt as he let go of my hand and grabbed my arm as we both fell onto the porch of a wooden hut. I was half lying on Nathan when I saw the herd running past the hut. They didn’t take the slightest notice of us as if they were following a silent order. Perhaps they hadn’t been chasing us at all but had just been startled. Baffled, I watched them go and Nathan started laughing loudly. He laughed so hard, his whole body shook. I slid off him. I realized that I had never heard or seen him laugh before. It made him young. And so normal, not dangerous or angry, that the longing inside me grew so great that it could catch fire in the blackness. I joined in, and at the same time, I wanted him to kiss me and rip the summer dress off my body.
“Oh, Will! You should have seen your face.” He was out of breath from our flight and laughing. The beads of sweat on his forehead shone like silver in the faint moonlight and his black hair that had come loose from his ponytail fell wildly and boldly across his face. A dark pirate.
I stared at him, my heart pounding so longingly in my chest that I thought I would lose my mind if he didn’t finally touch me. I needed to feel his hands on me to extinguish the burning inside me. The burning that had crept into my body like a fever over the last few weeks.
Without thinking, I stood and grabbed the hem of my dress.
Nathan suddenly became serious. “What are you doing?” he whispered roughly. He was still lying on the porch, his weight supported on his forearms.
In one movement, I pulled the summer dress over my head. Then, I stood before him wearing only worn boots, underpants, and sweaty, bare skin.
Chapter 6
Nathan swallowed as his gaze slid down my face.
The pale green light of the swamp forest danced like a sparkle in his eyes, which had turned jet black. I felt the damp night air on me like a cool coat, but it was Nathan’s gaze that made me tremble. No man had ever looked at me like that.
He rose and stood completely still as if he was no longer able to do anything else but look at me. The struggle for self-control marked his features. His eyes flickered and his lips were hard and thin as if he was not allowed to give in to his desire, as if it was something forbidden that he was denying himself.
I reached out my hands to him invitingly, partly because I felt I needed to hold on to him. What was between us was like a blue fire burning in the darkness, new and exciting.
He came closer, so close that he almost touched me. “Willa.” I felt his breath on my lips and a sweet shiver ran through my body. He hesitated for a moment and then carefully ran his index finger over my face as if something dark was threatening him, lurking in the darkness that he would have to hide from at any second.
Suddenly, I was afraid he would pull away again. “I want you,” I heard myself whisper, not knowing where I found the courage. Maybe because we cremated Sparta today or maybe because life was too short and too precious to postpone feelings. I took the hand he had used to touch me and placed it on my breast. His fingers were cool and rough, a hot-cold glow against my heated skin. He squeezed gently and a longing sound emerged from my throat. My heart was pounding faster and faster. I was dazed by the desire to feel him. Reflexively, without being able to do anything else, I wrapped my arms around his neck. This time, I kissed him. I stifled his resistance with my tongue, and when my teeth brushed his lips, he gasped.
Perhaps it was the sound of his own voice that startled him.
He pulled abruptly away and took a step back. “I only sleep with whores, you know that,” he said quietly but firmly.
It was like a slap in the face. For a few seconds, I stood there completely dumbfounded.
“Then pay me,” I whispered back, half mockingly, half hurt when I found my words again.
“So, how much do you charge per night? Maybe I can’t afford it?” It was pure provocation and he was driving me crazy with it.
“You brought me here. You said you didn’t want to go back to the others yet,” I said. His rejection tightened my throat, but by God, I wasn’t going to start crying. Instead, I bent down and wordlessly unlaced my boots. I took them off as well as the socks, which I stuffed into my shoes. Then I grabbed the boots with trembling hands. “If you’re done with me, I’ll just go back. Don’t fret, you don’t have to worry about me. I’ll find my way through water, swamp, and land.”
Obviously, I was taking a risk. Naturally, it was a lie. Barefoot and with my head held high, I walked away, goose bumps spreading across my arms and legs. I prayed that no coral snakes were lurking in the bushes.
I felt Nathan’s piercing gaze on my back. “Will! Get back here now!” he shouted. “And put on the damn shoes!”
I didn’t answer and stubbornly continued onward.
