Any hope Dusti had of warning her sister died when Drantos settled down crossed-legged right next to her. Only inches separated her hip from his knee. It was probably intentional, to remind her of the warning.
He shook his head. “We live in Alaska and were raised not too far from here. We know what we’re doing. It’s not unusual for us to hunt at night and nothing out there can hurt Kraven. Trust me on that one. He’ll be back within the hour and have something for us to eat.”
“I couldn’t even find a real knife, just plastic ones.” Bat carefully sat down on a cushion and tucked her skirt neatly around her legs. “How will he skin it? I guess he could try to tear off part of the plane. Some of it is pretty jagged and sharp.”
Dusti wanted to scream in frustration. They were in danger but her sister seemed fixated on how someone would get them food. Bat didn’t realize missing dinner was the least of their worries. They may have survived a plane crash, only to become victims of two men who had something against their biological grandfather. It just wasn’t fair or right.
Drantos reached inside his boot and pulled out an impressively large folded switchblade. “He’s got one of these.”
“But those are illegal to take on planes,” Bat sputtered. “How did you get that past security to smuggle it onboard?”
He arched a dark eyebrow. “We have our ways, and the smaller airports are more lax about rules up here. It’s common to carry weapons when you’re flying in and out of smaller airports. It’s life in Alaska. Don’t worry about it.” He shoved the knife back inside his boot. “He’ll be fine. He’s going to bring back something tasty to eat and then we’ll all get some shuteye.”
Bat turned her head to peer at Dusti. “Help will find us tomorrow. I bet they’re already putting together a huge search party to look for us as soon as the sun rises. We’ll be rescued in no time and will arrive at our grandfather’s house by tomorrow night.”
Dusti noticed Drantos tense up next to her. Her heart raced but she said nothing, afraid he might hurt Bat if she did. He and his brother looked like real badass thugs with their muscular bodies and dark looks…and they did dress as though they were bikers. They kept switchblades inside their boots, for cripes’ sake. Nice guys didn’t do that.
Then she noticed something else when she studied his handsome features.
“Your cut is gone.” She stared hard at his once-injured cheek.
He frowned. “I washed my face. The blood wasn’t mine. I’m assuming it splattered on me from someone else in the crash.”
Confusion had Dusti shaking her head. “It was cut. I saw it myself.”
“Do you see it now?” He cocked his head toward the firelight to show her that side of his face better. “It was just blood, not even mine. It wiped right off.”
Dusti let it go. She’d been traumatized at the time and must have just assumed he’d been cut when she’d seen the blood. He obviously didn’t have a mar on his skin.#p#分页标题#e#
Bat sighed. “I’m really sorry I dragged you along, Dusti. You’d be safe inside your apartment right now, watching one of those lame shows you love so much if it wasn’t for me. I…I manipulated you into taking this trip. I knew you’d insist on coming with me as soon as I told you who I was planning to visit. I didn’t want to go alone, and I thought it would be nice to spend some time together since this is technically my vacation.”
“It’s not your fault. You didn’t know this would happen. No one could have. I did insist on coming, remember? We know each other well. I’ve manipulated you a few times into doing what I wanted. We’ve never kept track before. Stop beating yourself up. Shit happens.”
“You made me go watch a few movies with you.” Bat teared up. “Big difference. I might have been bored but we were always safe.”
“The neighborhoods weren’t the greatest,” Dusti reminded her. “You were always pointing out that we could get mugged, carjacked, or murdered when I took you out. Flying is supposed to be safer than driving.”
Drantos cleared his throat. “You were on your way to visit your grandfather?”
Bat seemed to get her emotions under control. “Thanks, Dusti.” She turned her attention to Drantos. “Our grandfather is terminally ill and he wanted me to come say goodbye to him. He’s a mean old bastard but he’s the only family we have left. He and Dusti never got along, so he didn’t bother to invite her, but I told her I was going to see him. I’d hoped she could make her peace with him before he dies.”