I watch the boy crawl under his sleeping blanket and deliberately put his back to me. I knew he was a milky heel. His last comment was totally uncalled for, but what was I expecting from a white boy?

I put as much distance between me and him as I can, while staying within the light and warmth of the fire.

Did Rene and Nick make it to wherever they were planning okay? They didn't tell me anything about their backgrounds, but I gathered that they were used to crossing states through the woods and back alleys. If they could do it, so can I.

The night animals and Zeke's steady breathing are the only sounds in the world—at least that's how it feels. My eyelids are heavy and I keep having to force them wide to keep myself from drifting off to sleep.

I'm used to labor, but as slaves we had strict lights out, which was unavoidable for the field masters due to the fact our bodies left us with no choice but to pass out at the end of a long day.

I remember last summer the temperature reached the high nineties in the fields and we were forced to keep working through the heat wave. A boy only a few feet away from me, collapsed onto the ground. The field master noticed a group trying to revive him, he had ordered them back to work and screamed at the boy to get up. It hadn't worked and the boy died from heatstroke later that day.

The warmth from the fire reminds me of the heat of the sun. I can feel the heat creeping up on my skin, arms, and face.

A noise wakes me up, jolting the shock of alertness up my spine. When did I fall asleep? My shoulder blades ache from being pressed against the bark of the tree. I shift, rubbing the back of my sore neck.

I must have been asleep for a while. The embers in the fire are low, almost dead. Zeke is still asleep, but he's rolled over facing me now. I stand up, using the back of the tree as leverage.

Raking my hair out of my eyes, I try to peer through the darkness. Nocturnal animal life is still the loudest noise in the woods, but I hear something else. Rustling, whimpers, and a bark. It's distant and low, but it's definitely real, not a remnant of a dream.

I move quietly over the dry leaves on the ground. I'm forced to walk slowly around the trees as my vision adjusts to the dim moonlight. The noise grows louder the farther I walk. Low lights appear among the trees. The glow of lantern fire weaves through the sea of dark air like a firefly. Dogs yip and whimper as their paws crunch over the leaves. Heavy human footsteps follow close behind. Pressing my front to a large oak tree I lean from behind it as far as I dare, looking out at the group of men and dogs on leashes parading through the forest only a few hundred feet away from me.

They could be slave hunters or the law or just an early morning hunting party. Either way, it's trouble for me and the boy. Pushing away from the tree I turn away and retrace the path I followed minutes ago.

After reaching the campsite, I squint looking around for my boots. I spot them and drop to my knees, pushing my feet into the shoes and lacing them before standing up. I rush over to the faintly orange fire, it dies for good after I quietly stomp it out.

"Hey. Hey, you. Wake up," I hiss at the sleeping boy, but he doesn't stir. What would happen if I just disappear into the dark and leave him here?

You might never make it over the state line, my mind answers. Breath escapes my lips in another hissing snarl. I shake Zeke's shoulder. "Wake up, you idiot. We have to go."

He mumbles something without opening his eyes.

"Come on. We don't have time for this." I bring back my hand and slap his face. Judging from the sound smack that follows I hit him too hard, but it does the trick.

His eyes fly open and he scrambles away from me. "What the?" His mouth hangs open and he touches his fingers to the bright mark on his cheek. His blonde hair falls into his eyes and he reminds me of a disoriented child waking up from a nap.

"Did you just hit me?" he asks incredulously.

"I was trying to wake you up," I defend. "Consider it payback for all the times you hurt me." I stand up. "Grab your stuff, we have to move."

He stares up at me, still obviously half asleep and confused. "Why?"

"Some men are in the woods. I don't know if they're looking for us or not, but either way we have to go."

He gets to his feet and starts to push stuff into his pack, but without swiftness or urgency.

"Are you coming?" I ask. "Or do you need me to help wake you up again? Hurry up."

"I'm coming, I'm coming," he grumbles.

Great. Faced with a road full of free or capture situations and I get stuck with someone who isn't a morning person.

I start jogging through the woods. The crisp early morning air much cooler than what it will be in only a few hours. I'm thankful for it as sweat beads around my hairline. I wasted too much time getting sleeping beauty up. It was more than possible that the party in the woods was going to come upon our resting site any moment and with the way we were both clumsily crashing through the leaves and sliding down weedy embankments we will be easy to track.

We come out of the trees onto a hill in the ground that elevates us above the swiftly moving river. Zeke lags behind me as we follow it. The farther we go, the faster the dark waters run.

Something hits the ground from behind, and I glance over my shoulder to see Zeke sprawled out on the dirt. The barks from the dogs grow louder.

"Are you kidding me?" I growl. I back track over to him, grab his arm and try to pull him to his feet. It's a pretty useless attempt since he's half a foot taller and got almost a hundred pounds on me.

"Get up. Now."

He struggles to his feet. I think the moron is still half asleep. Loud voices drift over the wind and out from among the trees. "The dogs got something. Let them go."

My heart slams against my ribcage. Zeke is on his feet again and I dig my fingernails into his skin. "Now. Go, go." He shakes my fingers off his arm, and to my astonishment slips his hand around mine.

"Hey--" I try to rip my hand away, but his grip is too tight and he pulls me forward across the hill. His strides are large and I can barely keep my feet on the ground. We run until the hill drops off into the air and the river below. Zeke and I skitter to a stop. A path of rocks and ledge offers a way down, but I wouldn't risk it in the dark.

More shouts and howls. The dogs have picked up our scents. It'll only be a few more minutes before they're right on top of us.

I turn to Zeke. "We have to jump."

He looks to me, his eyes wide. "Are you crazy?"

It's really not that far a jump. Maybe a dozen feet into the black waters. We don't have much a choice. I'd rather take my chances in a moving body of water than risk it with men who won't think twice about taking me into custody.

"It's not far," I tell him. "It's flowing upstream. If we swim with the current, it'll put a far enough distance between us and them. The dogs will lose our trail too. Come on."

I can't understand why, but he shakes his head. "I—I don't think so."

"What? You got a better idea?"

A loud crash pulls our attention to the edge of the forest. A large foxhound appears in the dull moonlight, it's silhouette pausing as it sniffs the air pinpointing out our scent. It's canine head swivels in our direction and a moment later takes off towards us.

Now or never. I shove Zeke over the drop off from the hill and he yells as his arms and legs touch air. I don't think foxhounds generally attack humans, but he's bounding towards me with such animalistic determination I wonder if he may have been bred to hunt black slaves by scent.

I don't have to steel myself much to give my body up to the air and plunge the distance into the river. I fall feet first like a bullet, or so I imagine. My feet split the water and I'm submerged. I can't hear anything, see anything, or feel anything besides the heaviness of my wet surroundings.

My head breaks the surface of the water. I open my mouth, choking in air and rubbing my nose to get the sting out. Above me I hear the excited yelps from several foxhounds. The hill is too far from the river to be lit by lanterns, so we should be safe from view. The river isn't moving as fast as it appeared and I'm able to tread water without much problem.

When I realize that I don't hear anyone else swimming beside me, I look around for Zeke. I don't see him anywhere. I turn in all four directions. Had he already swum to shore? No, it's too far off for him to do it that quickly. I wipe water from my eyes and shiver as the lukewarm water clings to my body and plasters my wet ends to my face.

Where is the idiot? It's dark, but I should be able to see him if he was swimming nearby. Unless...no. He could swim, right? The idiot couldn't be drowning.

Had I even asked him if he could swim? I can't remember. He had hesitated, in fact he hadn't wanted to jump into the river at all. Have I killed him? The men might not be able to see me, but if I call out his name they'll probably hear.

I try to peer beneath the surface of the waves, but it's impossible. At night, the water is like a dark mirror; reflecting nothing but shifting blackness.

His death is on me.

~

A/N: Vote and comment please! See ya :)