Arc surveyed the landscape as the last of the light faded. All seemed quiet and there were no fresh tracks in the dirt as far as he could tell, so the small alcove in the cliff would be the best that he, Jack, and Julie could do for the night. He limped over to it, silently beckoning the twins to follow, which they did unquestioningly.

  “We’ll rest here until we can travel by daylight again,” he said.

  “No arguments here,” said Jack, walking over to the alcove, but Arc held out his arm to stop him.

  “Not too hasty, lad. We’ve got some prep work to do before we settle down for the night. Do you normally sleep out in the open when you’re not in a settlement?”

  “We try and find a cliff that we can climb to, but sometimes we just camp out under the stars.”

  “Do you spend much time outside of towns and villages?” asked Arc.

  Julie shook her head. “Not if we can help it. We tend to move along every couple of months. We ran into you when we were on the move again.”

  “The move to where?”

  “We hadn’t decided yet,” said Jack.

  Julie hastily added. “Only because we didn’t know where else was within easy walking distance. It wasn’t a planned relocation.”

  “Understandable,” said Arc.

  The bounty hunter pulled a tattered brown sheet out from his pack along with four rusty iron pegs and a hammer so well-used that it had dents and scratches all over. The battered hammer prompted raised eyebrows from Jack and Julie.

  “You’re not going to murder us with that thing, are you?” asked Jack quietly.

  Arc let out a dry laugh. “You think I would have gone to so much trouble saving you, almost dying in the process, only to murder you with pegs and a hammer?”

  The twins looked at each other and Julie couldn’t help but laugh as Jack’s brow furrowed and his mouth pulled to one side.

  “No…no, I do not,” the young man muttered. “Sorry for even suggesting it.”

  “Don’t stress over it,” said Arc. “Now, give me a hand with this thing.”

  Arc got the twins to hold the top of the sheet to the stone and he hammered two pegs into the top of it, pinning it to the cliff face. He then hammered two more pegs through the bottom of the sheet, fixing it to the ground with just enough slack that it was easy to slip behind while hiding them from anything that would follow their path.

  “It won’t protect us from anything with a good nose, but it’ll keep us out of sight. I’d say that gives us good odds of seeing tomorrow, eh?”

  The twins didn’t answer, unsure if he was joking or not, and simply exchanged glances as they often did.

  The three ducked behind the sheet and moved into the alcove. There was just enough room for each of them to spread out and have somewhere to lay their heads. It would not be comfortable, that was a certainty, but it was shelter. As they each took off their packs, they took a swig of water from their canteens before nestling themselves on the hard ground.

  Arc sat much more slowly, grunting as he slumped down, still very sore after being caught in both the explosion in the pass and taking a severe beating from the unrelenting horde of goblins. He continually repeated to himself that a good night’s sleep was all he needed to be back to normal; he believed that more every time he whispered it under his breath, although Julie was not convinced.

  The walk from the cave the twins had held him captive in was exhausting, not least of all because of his injuries, but because he had been on the road for days already. He had heard from a reliable source that Colt the Scourge would be making his way towards Pembroke and, separated from the bulk of his forces, he was a much easier target. Arc had been right but, unfortunately, he had failed to glean beforehand that Colt was also a spellslinger. That knowledge would have changed everything.

  “Now,” he said after propping up his pack and leaning against it to lessen the impact of the rough wall on his bruises, “that conversation I mentioned an hour ago, Jack.”

  “Yes,” said Jack with a heavy sigh. “I shouldn’t have held back the revolver ammo or the spell cartridges.”

  “I don’t care that you held them back at first,” said Arc, “that was understandable when you knew nothing about me, but the fact that neither of you said anything when it was clear that I was going to stand and fight…that’s disappointing.”

  “We’re sorry,” said Julie as Jack nodded along.

  “That’s all I wanted to hear,” said Arc, leaning forward and extending a hand for Jack to shake.

  The young man was baffled, but he accepted the handshake. Arc then turned to Julie and offered his hand to her and she too shook it.

  “Now, we’re all good,” he said.

  “That easy?” asked Jack, expecting a catch.

  “You came through in the end,” replied Arc. “You risked your life for me. You had no guarantee that I could save you, yet you took that chance. That’s a level of honour I can respect. I wouldn’t call that easy penance at all.”

  “Honestly, Mr Hawk,” said Julie, looking uneasy. “We still know nothing about you. Yet here we are travelling with you.”

  “Mr Hawk isn’t necessary,” said the spellslinger. “You can just call me Arc. So, you want to know more about me? Ask away. I’ll answer what I deem a fair and appropriate question.”

  Jack and Julie initially said nothing, each expecting the other to raise the first question, but neither could think of one. Julie opted to break the silence, asking the only question she could dig up and hoping the rest would flow from there.

  “Is Arc the Hawk your real name?”

  “Arc is a shortened version of my real name, which I will not tell you because I don’t like it much, and Hawk is a nickname I earned from some old friends for my shooting accuracy.”

  “And how old are you?”

  “Twenty-three. How about you?”

  “We’re thirteen.”

  “I thought so,” said Arc, nodding. “I was tempted to guess twelve, but thirteen made more sense in my gut. Although Jack’s naked chin suggests he’s maturing slowly.”

  “Hey!” squealed the young man.

  “Shush,” said Arc, nodding towards the sheet. “The point of hiding here is to remain undetected.”

  Julie pursed her lips as she contemplated her next question. “What do you hate more than anything in the world?”

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  “Vampires,” said Arc, making Julie laugh, but when she saw the look in his eyes, she fell silent.

  “Vampires?” asked Jack. “Care to elaborate on that?”

  Arc tightened his scarf. “No,” he said bluntly. “Now, it’s my turn. I have a question for the pair of you that I want you to think carefully about.”

  “Shoot,” said Jack.

  Arc made two guns with his fingers and pretended to fire, making Julie giggle but Jack didn’t react. “Not funny?” asked Arc. “Fair enough.”

  “What’s your question?” asked Jack.

  “What did you see when you found me?”

  “Dead bodies and burning vehicles. They were all pickup trucks, as best as I could tell.”

  “How many dead bodies?”

  “I’m not sure. We didn’t stay there long enough to check.”

  “Why not?”

  “We panicked when one of the cars exploded again and spat glass all over the road. Some of it nearly hit us and we were worried it would happen again. After that, we dragged you away before things could get any worse. We didn’t even get the chance to take too much in.”

  “How many cars did you see in total? Blown up or otherwise.”

  “Four.”

  Arc looked at the ground and smiled. “That slippery son of a bitch,” he said in amusement while shaking his head slowly. He pulled out the Golden Hawk and twirled it around. “You found Colt’s spell cartridges, but was there a spellcaster lying around? It would have looked like a long copper rod with a small handle and a trigger; very different from my model.”

  “If it’s different from your model, why are you showing us yours?”

  Arc shrugged. “Because I think it’s cool and I wanted to show it off.”

  “No, I don’t believe I saw another spellcaster,” said Julie. “What colour was it?”

  “Copper.”

  She shook her head. “Doesn’t ring a bell, sorry. I only found the cartridges. They were beneath one of the cars along with a small box of revolver rounds; the same ones we gave you.”

  “Alright, that’s good enough for me,” said Arc. “I’ll chalk that up to Colt or his last lackey dropping the ammo as they made a hasty retreat. That’s my questioning over. If you have any more of your own, go wild.”

  “Where are you from?” Julie asked, cocking her head to the side.

  Jack nudged Julie and shook his head. “You’re not asking the important questions, sis,” he said before turning to Arc. “You were hunting a man named Colt the Scourge, right? Stands to reason that you’re a bounty hunter by trade and you certainly have the skills for it considering how many people and goblins you killed today. Do you hunt solely for money?”

  “What are you getting at?” asked Arc. “What are the limits of which bounties I’ll accept?”

  “Something like that, yes.”

  Arc scratched his blonde stubble, reached inside his jacket pocket and then pulled out Colt’s bounty notice. He cleared his throat and then flipped the paper around for Jack and Julie to see, but it was almost impossible to make anything out in the low light.

  “The man who posted this bounty is called Rodney Millar. He has a daughter named Carolyn Millar, or I should say that he had a daughter named Carolyn Millar. Now, I’m sure you’ve worked out where Colt comes into this, but I assure you that the time between Colt and his men taking Carolyn and her final moments were not pleasant. What happened to her is something I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy, and I’ve had a few worst enemies in my time.

  “Colt has had bounties on his head before, but he tends to make sure that those who placed them are dead and unable to pay up should anyone be daring enough to try and kill him. That’s just the way he operates. It’s smart on his part, no denying that, but it shows you that he is a man who has no qualms about cold-blooded murder to save his own skin.

  “To answer your question, Jack, I don’t take bounties just for the sake of it, at least not unless I’m days away from starvation. I take bounties that remove a small patch of rot from this decaying corpse of a world because I can’t stand the fact that we’re in a constant state of decline with no sign of things getting any better.”

  Jack and Julie sat in silence, avoiding eye contact with Arc, who was watching the pair intently. After two minutes of silence, he took another swig of water from his canteen before removing his jacket and folding it into a rectangle. He took a deep breath and held it as he shifted himself into a lying position before letting himself exhale.

  “That was unpleasant,” he said through gritted teeth. He shifted his jacket underneath his head to use as a pillow while moving the trail of his orange scarf over his eyes to shut out the faint moonlight that reached in through the small holes in the sheet.

  “Is there anything we can do for your injuries?” asked Julie, genuinely concerned for the stranger.

  “Nah, I’m good,” said Arc as he stifled a yawn. “Goodnight, you two. Don’t stay up too late because we’ve got a lot of walking to do tomorrow. If you go outside, make sure you’re not seen and do not rip my sheet. It’s kept me concealed in crevices like this for almost a year and I’ve grown to like it. I don’t much fancy buying a new one.”

  Seconds later, Arc was lightly snoring, leaving Jack and Julie astounded at how quickly he could fall asleep. The twins stared at the bounty hunter for a moment before Jack climbed to his feet He grabbed Julie’s hand and pulled her along, keeping low as they slipped outside into the cool night. As Arc had asked, the twins were careful not to tear his precious sheet but it was tattered enough that it probably didn’t have more than a few months left.

  “So, what do you make of him?” asked Jack, voicing the question he’d wanted to ask since he’d first spoken to Arc in the cave.

  “I like him,” said Julie. “And I believe him.”

  “About what?”

  “About everything he’s told us. Even that weird comment about vampires seemed sincere.”

  “What’s weird about hating vampires?”

  “Nothing, it was how deadly serious his tone was. Did you see the look he gave me?”

  “Yes, I did, but I’d now say that I hate goblins more than I knew was possible after today.”

  “Yes, that’s true. What do you think about him then, dear brother?” asked Julie, prodding Jack in the arm.

  Jack nodded as he looked to the stars dotting the sky above. “I believe him too, but I think we’ll be far better off once we’re in Pembroke and away from everything out here trying to kill us. If it’s a nice town, maybe we can find something to do there and actually thrive for a change.”

  “Please don’t get caught stealing again,” pleaded Julie. “Or fighting. We can’t get thrown out of another town. We’re running out of places that’ll take us and the road between them is longer each time.”

  “I know,” sighed Jack, looking despondent. “You’re right, but if it means keeping us fed then I may just have to take that risk again. I’m telling you this to be honest, alright? It’s not something I want to do, but I promised Dad I’d keep you safe and I’ll do whatever it takes to keep my word.”

  “Can we not ask Arc if we can help him out? Maybe we can earn some money that way?”

  Jack was so taken aback that he snorted. “You’re not serious, are you?”

  “Of course, I am.”

  “Honest as his intentions may be, the man is dangerous to be around. Need I remind you, Jule, that we found him surrounded by the bodies of men he killed? Bad men or not, he sought them out and almost died. Not only that, he caused so much destruction to those cars that the smoke drew in a pack of goblins. The last thing I want is for us to get caught in the crossfire and up with our brains splattered across the soil.”

  “That’s an unpleasant image that I don’t want to think about,” said Julie with a frown.

  “I’m serious, and the last thing I want is for that unpleasant image to become reality. The man is a trouble magnet and that should be obvious.”

  “I know he’s dangerous, but…he kept us alive against the odds. If we hadn’t been holding out on him, he might have been able to kill all of the goblins before they reached him.”

  “I’m not denying the man’s talent, Jule. But being able to look after yourself is not the same as being able to look after yourself and others.”

  “Maybe you’re right…”

  “I am right.”

  Julie folded her arms and looked back towards the concealed alcove a few feet behind her. “Can we sleep now? It’s been a long day.”

  “Sure,” said Jack, pulling up the sheet just enough to let her slink underneath. After a wistful look across the barren land, the young man followed.

  Neither of the siblings fell asleep at the speed of Arc, but they were out cold in minutes.

  *

  “Keep it moving, kids,” said Arc as he marched along the side of the road. “We can take a pitstop soon and fill up our water. It’s only a couple of hours until we reach Purdue and then we can take a real rest.”

  “Purdue?” asked Jack. “I thought we were going to Pembroke?”

  “Pembroke is still days away. Purdue is just a place we can take a breather while earning some coin.”

  “And we can’t stay there instead of going all the way to Pembroke?”

  “Purdue is an abandoned town,” said Arc. “You might find a few coyotes or racoons to keep you company, but you’ll not find any people. At least not any living ones.”

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” scoffed Jack. “It’s a literal ghost town?”

  Arc stopped and cocked his head to the side. “Yes, that’s a succinct way of putting it.”

  Julie ran in front of him and held up her hands. “You’re taking us somewhere plagued by ghosts?”

  “Plagued seems a bit excessive. There are plenty of haunted places across the land that are far worse than Purdue. Even young’uns like you pair ought to know that.”

  Jack shook his head furiously. “That may or may not be the case—"

  “It is the case,” said Arc.

  “—but that doesn’t mean we should go waltzing into haunted ground. What if the ghosts don’t like us and decide to attack? What can we do against beings that we can’t even touch, but can still harm us?”

  Julie’s expression was one of utter terror. “Or worse, what if we run away and they follow us out of town, never letting us have a moment’s peace for the rest of our lives?”

  “Don’t worry that little head of yours,” said Arc, patting her on the crown. “The ghosts only come out at night, Julie, and we’ll be long gone by then. Even if we run a little off schedule, the ghosts won’t be a problem.”

  The twins looked at each other, unable to believe what they were hearing.

  “Enlighten us, wise one,” said Jack, rolling his eyes. “Why will the ghosts not be a problem for us?”

  “Because we’re going to make sure that they never awaken again,” said Arc nonchalantly as he continued to march.