Page 16 of Spoils of war
A jagged line split beneath his feet, and no one moved. I should’ve stopped Aran. Should’ve shoved him. Screamed. Done anything. But it happened so fast.
Then came the sound. A low, groaning wail, like the whole lake was straining to hold itself together. Like it was a living breathing thing, and we’d wounded it. Cut it open.
A cold sweat slid down my spine, and I knew what would happen before it did. The crack snaked toward Will, his boots right in its path. He looked at me—confused, just for a second. Then the ice gave out.
And he was gone.
I couldn’t even scream. I just stood there, heart pounding so hard it hurt. Licia grabbed my arm and yanked me back just as more cracks split the ice where I’d been standing.
“Will?” Aran’s voice exploded. “WILL!”
He fell to his knees, crawling toward the hole, searching for his friend.
“HE’S GONE!” he cried.
Licia dropped to the ground, pressing her palms against the ice.
“He’s not coming up. He’s not—”
She didn’t finish. Instead, she kicked off her other skate and flung it aside, then closed her eyes.
I could only stare at her. It was such a strange reaction. She looked like she was listening to something only she could hear, and when she opened her eyes again, she fixed them on Aran.
“Go get someone!” she shouted. “Now!”
He didn’t argue. He turned and ran, slipping once before disappearing into the trees.
Licia got to her feet and stepped onto the ice, careful and focused. She crossed without a word and dropped to her knees near the far side.
“He’s here!” she called.
I didn’t ask how she knew. I just believed her. I tore off my skates and ran across the lake, the ice groaning beneath me as my feet slapped against it. Licia was already striking the ice with her skate, so I dropped beside her, grabbed mine, and joined in. I raised the skate high and slammed it down. Again. Raised it. Slammed it down.Again.
Finally, the ice cracked. We kept going, widening the hole with each strike until the water opened up before us, a pitch-black mouth, gaping like something from a nightmare.
”You sure he’s there?” I asked.
Licia nodded, her eyes glassy. ”Yes."
That was all I needed. I tore off my coat and jumped in. The cold hit me like a wall, stealing the air from my lungs in a single breath and wrapping around me like chains. My mind screamed at me to get out, but I didn’t listen. I couldn’t. I had to find him.
I dove deeper, hands out, eyes wide. My fingers scraped rocks and silt—and then fabric. Will. His body was limp, and I kicked hard, using all my strength to drag him with me. My limbs felt like stone, and my lungs cried as I swam back toward the opening. The world above blurred into a shimmer of light as I forced us upward. My head broke through and I gasped, choking on the air.
“Help me!” I screamed.
Licia grabbed his arms and I helped push him up with everything I had, before hauling myself out, crawling onto the ice the way my father had taught me. Flat. Slow. Don’t stand. Don’t stop. But he never warned me about the currents. Never said that the lake could pull you under, away from the crack, and trapped beneath it.
I crawled toward Will, grabbed his shoulders and shook him. “Will!” I shouted. “Come on!”
Nothing.
I pulled him into my arms, held him tight against me. Shut my eyes and pictured him laughing. Breathing. Alive. He had to wake up. Hehadto.
Then—
Something stirred.
It wasn’t the cold. It wasn’t the wind. It was inside me.
