Seth took the buckets and emptied them into the pond. “I need more.”
“More?” Rogue asked, disheartened.
She trudged back to the pump, eyeing the piece of equipment with loathing. After struggling for several minutes to wrestle water into the buckets, she became aware of onlookers.
Rogue looked up through eyes stinging from sweat and spotted Brittany’s friends. Aret and Sandi giggled behind raised palms, while David and Paul watched from the sidelines. Brittany was nowhere to be seen, and she guessed the girl was with her injured mother. “Can I help you with something?”
Aret shook her head, her black curls bouncing over her shoulders. “Nope. It looks like you’ve got it all under control.”
The group broke into peals of laughter, all except David, who remained silent.
Rogue straightened up. “Don’t you lot have anything better to do? Like throw stones at dinosaurs.”
The laughter ceased abruptly, and an undefined emotion rippled through the group. To Rogue, it looked a lot like guilt, and she decided to push harder. Maybe they’ll confess. That will get Seth and me off the hook.
“We don’t know what you’re talking about,” Aret said, folding her arms across her chest.
“Don’t you?” Rogue asked, raising an eyebrow. “Perhaps, I could jog your memory.”
“You don’t know anything,” Sandi said, her cheeks pale.
“As I recall, you disappeared shortly before the first stone was thrown, Sandi,” Rogue mused. “Was it you who did it?”
“You’re talking nonsense,” Aret interrupted, her expression fierce. “Sandi would never do such a thing.”
“Wouldn’t she? Because it sounds like exactly the kind of thing you lot would do,” Rogue said, her hands balling into fists. “Make fun of the two Primes, embarrass them in front of everybody, that sort of thing.”
“We didn’t do it,” Aret said, her voice strained. “You’re responsible for the stampede.”
“So you say,” Rogue said. “But I distinctly remember there being two stones. What happened, Sandi? Did you miss? Is that why you hit the Zuniceratops that gored Jamie, Brittany’s mom?”
“That’s not true,” Sandi cried. She leaned into Paul’s side, and he looped a protective arm around her shoulders.
“I bet Brittany hates your guts now, doesn’t she?” Rogue said, goading the group.
“She said she didn’t do it,” Paul said, his jaw working. “Now, back off.”
“Back off? You’re the ones who came here to gloat,” Rogue said. “Is the truth too hard to bear, Sandi?”
“Just shut up, okay!” Sandi said, burying her face in Paul’s jacket.
“The real truth is you got what you deserved. You both did,” Aret said with a sneer.
“Why? Because we’re Primes?” Rogue asked, aware that Seth had moved up behind her, lending his silent support. “That’s funny because to me, you’re the bad guys in this scenario.”
Aret stamped her foot. “You filthy, Prime spy.”
“What’s going on here?” a voice boomed, cutting her off mid-sentence.
All eyes turned toward the approaching Ric, his strides long and his shoulders broad.
“Er, um,” Aret sputtered, caught off guard. Then she pointed an accusing finger at Rogue and Seth. “They’re harassing us.”
“Are they?” Ric asked, his eyes flicking from one group to the other. “Because I distinctly heard you calling them filthy Prime spies, Aret.”
“It’s true, they were threatening us,” Sandi interrupted, her eyes wide and tearful.
Paul nodded. “They’re pissed because we told on them.”
David said nothing, his dark eyes somber.
Rogue snorted with disgust. “What a bunch of lying—”
“That’s enough,” Ric growled.
Rogue pressed her lips together, seething with helpless rage. Seth gripped her elbow, and she focused on his touch. It calmed her, and she was able to concentrate on that instead of her anger.
“I don’t appreciate being lied to, Aret,” Ric said. “I heard enough to know you started this fight, not Rogue and Seth. And that was after I told you to leave them alone. You were not to approach them under any circumstances.”
Rogue sucked in a surprised breath, shocked to the core. He’s backing us?
“As your punishment, you’ll share their sentence starting tomorrow morning,” Ric said. “Maybe, if you all work together, you’ll learn to get along.”
“What? No,” Rogue cried. “I’d rather do this on my own, thanks. I do not want to work with them.”
“Perhaps, but this is a community. None of us stand alone, and we cannot allow division within the ranks. We’ve only survived this long because we stick together,” Ric said.
“This isn’t fair,” Aret said, her cheeks flushed.
“You can’t do this to us,” Sandi protested. “I’ll tell my mother. She’ll never allow this.”
“You are welcome to complain to your parents, but my decision stands,” Ric said. “You will all report to me for duty tomorrow morning at dawn, or else.”
David nodded. “Come on, guys. Let’s go.”
He herded the group away, and Ric turned to Rogue and Seth. “In light of what happened, I’m giving you the rest of the day off.”
“Really?” Rogue asked.
“Pack up and go home,” Ric said.
“What about the animals?” Seth said. “They need water and food.”
“I’ll get someone else to finish the job. Now leave before I change my mind,” Ric said.
“Thanks,” Rogue mumbled, though she wasn’t at all happy at the prospect of working with the enemy. Still, Ric had sided with them for once. Perhaps, he wasn’t such a bad guy after all.
Chapter 12
“Do you feel like taking a walk?” Seth asked once they had packed all the equipment away.
“Sure, why not?” Rogue replied.
“I’d like to see more of this place, and I can’t think of anyone better to keep me company,” he said.
“Well, you’re right about that,” she said with a grin. “I’m a brilliant conversationalist. You won’t find anyone finer on this side of the timeline.”
Seth laughed. “You don’t say?”
“Oh, but I do,” Rogue said, picking up her backpack.
She fell in next to Seth on the cobbled path. They walked in silence while she wracked her brain for something to say. No such luck. She kept hitting a blank, her stomach filled with butterflies. What’s going on
