Emboldened by the lightening mood, Daekwon, his every muscle suddenly tense with a chilly, throbbing anxiety, inched a little closer to Paola as they walked, until he was able to reach down and gently offer his hand to her. For a heart-stopping moment she froze, and her hand tensed up … but then the dozens of tiny muscles therein slackened, and she curled her fingers around his. Daekwon drew in a sharp breath, almost as if electricity had sparked from her skin to his, but the initial jolt gave way to a slow-spreading sensation of warm bliss.
‘You f-, feelin’ any better, Paola?’ he asked shyly.
The corners of her mouth inched upward as sparkling delight, long absent from her eyes, made a triumphant return, its glittery brightness enhanced by the low rays of the late afternoon sun that blazed their tawny fire through gaps in the living pillars.
‘A little,’ she murmured, staring straight ahead but giving his hand a quick, playful squeeze. ‘Thank you for gettin’ me outta that room, I appreciate it. I really do. I was, like, losin’ my mind in there.’
‘It wasn’t d-, doin’ you no good, I could see that.’
‘I know. But … with everything that’s happened to us, I just couldn’t do nothin’ else. The whole country thinks we’re terrorists an’ school shooters. My own family must think that about me. An’, an’ I just can’t handle the thought a’ that. I miss ‘em, Daekwon, I miss ‘em so damn much, so damn much … an’ these people tell me I can’t never see ‘em again. I … I…’
Grief came rushing back in, hissing with the vociferousness of air from a punctured balloon. Paola stumbled and almost fell, and great, heaving sobs began to rip through her body in violent spurts and spasms.
‘It’s gon’ be okay,’ Daekwon said, frozen in mid-movement, unsure as to whether he should embrace her gently or step back and give her some space. ‘I d-, don’ know how, but it’s g-, gon’ be okay. We got these guys on our side, they like … they like a-, a-, angels or somethin’.’
‘I, I know,’ Paola managed to murmur between sobs. ‘I know, an’ I’m happy we got ‘em on our side.’
Encouraged by the fact that he seemed to be making progress, Daekwon persisted with this line of conversation, hoping that his enthusiasm would be infectious enough to pull Paola out of this slump.
‘They, they special, they real special, I mean, you s-, saw how Lightnin’ Bird healed Jun, how he b-, b-, brought him back from the edge a’ d-, death when he got shot! An’ how he d-, did that wid’ William too, an’ Zakaria. An’ the s-, stories Zakaria been tellin’ me, damn! I can’ even begin ta’ tell ya how, how c-, crazy it all is. He been alive fo’ over a th-, thousand years! But he ain’t even the oldest a’ these b-, beastwalkers. Hell, he told me many a’ them lived longer’n f-, five thousand years, some even longer’n that! Just think a’ that, Paola, think a’ that. Yeah, we g-, got these rich asshole Huntsmen fools on our asses, but look who we g-, got on our side! We got these amazin’, these, these g-, godlike beings helpin’ us! I’m sorry you feelin’ so sad, an’ I g-, get it, seriously, I get it, but just r, remember that not err’thing is as bad as it seems. There is a light at the end a’ this t-, tunnel.’
Paola looked up at him, her lower lip quivering and the deep fire of the setting sun flashing beads of orange and red in the tears running down her cheeks. She could not yet speak, but she nodded, and then threw herself into his arms. Caught momentarily by surprise, all Daekwon could do was stand stock still, his arms thrown out to the sides like those of a crucified man, but, regaining his composure, he wrapped them around her and held her tight, a strange cocktail of fierce arousal and gentle empathy heating the blood in his veins.
They stood like this for some time, simply holding each other, providing the ancient, universal comfort and security of an embrace. Time seemed to slow down as they held each other in their arms, the moments trickling by like sap oozing from primeval trees. Eventually, though, they parted, and both took a few long, somewhat awkward sips of water from their glass bottles.
‘Thank you,’ Paola murmured, reaching down and curling her hands around Daekwon’s. ‘I needed that.’
‘I did too,’ he said, sincerity bolstering every breath. ‘I did too.’
‘Where’s the waterfall from here?’
‘You just g-, go all the way down this trail to the left here,’ Daekwon said, pointing to a path that forked off the main trail a couple of yards away. ‘It’s about a -, m-, mile. Come on, I’ll show ya.’
‘Um, is it okay if I go there by myself? I, um, I just want a few moments alone.’
‘Yeah, sure. You uh, you w-, want me to wait here?’
‘If you down with that.’
‘I’m down wid’ it.’
‘Thank you,’ Paola said, and she leaned forward and gave him another quick, tight hug before setting off down the trail. The passage was narrow and winding, and very overgrown, as so few people came out to this remote place. Nonetheless, it was easy enough for Paola to find and follow the path, and soon enough she found herself emerging from the trees onto a rocky ledge that overlooked the huge waterfall, which was both broad and tall. A cloud of fine mist hovered in the air, the late afternoon sun giving the billions of miniscule droplets an almost metallic shimmer; floating gold dust that glinted in places with a rainbow sheen. The deep, booming thunder of the tumbling water was a ceaseless roar that seemed to shake the very ground
