I yelped in pain. “Oh, for the love of god, spare mesomedignity!”
Eventually the swarm thinned. I stumbled into a small clearing, panting, hair plastered to my forehead, arms blotched with poison ivy and my skin welted with stings.
The forest around me was alive with rustles and chirps and distant creaking noises.
A mosquito landed on the end of my nose.
I swatted it and missed, slamming myself in the face.
And just like that, my bravado cracked. I wasn’t a diamond forged under pressure. I was a book that had been shoved in the wrong category.
Worse still…
I had no idea how to get home.
CODY
I leftBea’s bar feeling raw, her words rattling around in my skull.Home is the bravest thing you can hope for.I wasn’t sure if she’d meant it as advice or a dare. Either way, I needed to see Brooks.
The sky was already edging into late afternoon as I reached the Nook. But instead of Brooks behind the counter or fussing with his bow ties, I found a Closed sign on the door and Milton perched on the doorstep, nose buried deep in his dragon book, backpack leaning against his knees.
“Hey, Milton,” I said, frowning at the darkened windows. “Why’s the store closed?”
He glanced up, pushing his glasses into place. “Mr. Beresford went for a stroll.”
“A stroll?” I repeated. “Where?”
Milton pointed toward the ridge. “He went into the woods.”
My jaw dropped. “The woods?”
Milton simply nodded. “Alone.”
This time my stomach dropped.
“Are you sure?”
“Uh-huh. I hope he doesn’t come across any dragons out there. According to this book, some of them a darn scary.”
My pulse thundered. The trees at the edge of town already looked like they were swallowing the last of the light. “Milton, you should head home. Right now.”
His eyes widened. “Is something wrong?”
“Not if I can help it.”
Before I knew it, I was running.
I bolted to the edge of town and headed for the woods, heart in my throat. The trees loomed large, shadows stretching long and black.
“Brooks!” I shouted, plunging into the undergrowth. “Brooks, where are you?”
The only answer was the rush of leaves and the crunch of my own boots on the dirt. I called out again, louder. “Brooks!”
Branches slashed across my arms as I pushed deeper, eyes straining against the gloom. The trail vanished under my feet, the dim light blotted out by thickening trees.
“Brooks!”
Nothing.
