{"id":1342,"date":"2012-08-06T00:00:46","date_gmt":"2012-08-06T04:00:46","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=1342"},"modified":"2012-08-05T14:33:32","modified_gmt":"2012-08-05T18:33:32","slug":"winter-chapter-18-02","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/?p=1342","title":{"rendered":"Winter – Chapter 18 – 02"},"content":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Without a doubt, something wasn\u2019t right with the world.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>J.T. could feel it in a tightness across his shoulders that just wouldn\u2019t go away, no matter how hard anyone kneeded the muscles.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>His expression locked into a grimace, shakes barely contained, he crossed the snowy, muddy ground toward where Thom and Matt were inspecting the forge roof.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cI guess the real test will be the first bad storm we get,\u201d Thom was saying to Matt.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cIt looks okay to me, but there\u2019s no way to really be sure.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cI need to talk to you,\u201d J.T. interrupted.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cBoth of you, I guess.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>His tone must have sounded strange, based on the expression on Thom\u2019s face as he turned.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cWe need people on the roofs,\u201d J.T. said. <\/span>\u00a0<\/span>\u201cAnd they need to be armed when they go up there and they need to watch the road as much as they\u2019re watching their work.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Is there any way we can get the watchtowers up?\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cWhoa, whoa,\u201d Thom said, holding up his hands, blue eyes widening.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cSlow down and back up.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>What the hell is going on?<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Did Mar just see something and send you up here?\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cShe wouldn\u2019t send him if she was able to come herself,\u201d Matt said, scrubbing a smudge of something off his cheekbone as he stared at J.T.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cAnd he\u2019s too damned calm for something to have happened to her.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>This is calm?\u00a0 <\/span>Fuck me sideways.<\/span><\/em>\u00a0 <\/span>J.T. grit his teeth.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cSomething\u2019s going to go sideways if not today, then <\/span>soon<\/span><\/em>, but we\u2019ve got to be ready for anything that might be coming\u2014anything.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cAll right,\u201d Thom said.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cI get that part.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>He started walking back toward the tents and the rows of sheds, the walls below.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cWe\u2019ll walk and talk.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I don\u2019t think we can get those watchtowers up today, but maybe we\u2019ll be able to handle one of them.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>What\u2019s got you spooked, Jay?<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Phelan feel something?<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Carolyn\u2019s fairies?\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Damn, I should have had her scatter them along the road to give us early warning.<\/em>\u00a0 <\/span>He always forgot about them\u2014usually because he tried not to think about them in the first place.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Bad news her tiny friends brought to them was something he couldn\u2019t protect her from.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cNo, none of those,\u201d J.T. said.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cConstance found me last night and warned me.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Thom slowed and looked at him, his eyes growing flinty.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cThe ghosts are back?<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I thought that\u2019s why you guys went out to the burial three weeks ago.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cIt was.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>I thought they were gone, too.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>He knuckled his eyes.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cBut she was there, in the room with Carolyn and I.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Woke me up out of a dead sleep to warn me that danger was coming.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>She said they couldn\u2019t protect us this time.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cDid she say <\/span>what<\/span><\/em> was coming?\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Matt asked.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>J.T. was surprised not to hear even the barest trace of doubt in his voice.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 I guess we\u2019re all turning from doubting Thomases into true believers.<\/em>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cPeople.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Both men walking with him stopped dead in their tracks.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cPeople?\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Matt finally echoed after a moment of shocked silence spent staring at J.T.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>J.T. turned back toward them and nodded grimly.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cYes, people.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Not the good kind, either.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>She wouldn\u2019t have warned me like that if she didn\u2019t think they were a threat to us.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cWhen?\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Thom demanded, already starting to move again.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>J.T. spun and fell into step with him, leaving Matt jogging a few steps to catch up with both of them.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cShe couldn\u2019t tell me that.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>She couldn\u2019t even tell me how many.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>They\u2019re coming from the south.\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>J.T. scrubbed both hands roughly over his face.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cAnd she seemed to think they weren\u2019t going to be nice.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Thom shook his head.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cGreat,\u201d he muttered.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cJust great.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cHow do we know if your ghosts are right or not?\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Matt asked as he caught up.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cThey might be friendly, right?\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>We don\u2019t know that they\u2019re right.\u00a0 <\/span>But we\u2019ve got to err on the side of caution.<\/span><\/em>\u00a0 <\/span>J.T. swallowed and shook his head.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cWe\u2019ve got to prepare for the worst and hope for the best.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>That\u2019s all I can say and all we can do.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Thom outpaced them both, yelling at both Rory and Davon to join them as he made a beeline for where they\u2019d staked out a spot for one of their watchtowers.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>J.T. exhaled a breath he hadn\u2019t realized he was holding.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 It\u2019s something, at least.<\/em><\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Hammers echoed from the rooftops of the sheds, where Jack and a few of the others were up top, building a lattice of two-by-fours to lay plywood and additional roofing over.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>It was slow, careful work, but they were making progress.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Hopefully they\u2019d have covered walkways by winter solstice.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>By the time the time offered by the Shadow Man was up.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Hopefully.\u00a0 <\/span>Of course, that\u2019s not going to matter if we get ourselves killed before then.<\/span><\/em>\u00a0 <\/span>J.T.\u2019s lips thinned as shivers shot down his spine again.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Did he know?\u00a0 <\/span>Is this all part of some kind of cosmic plan we\u2019re not privy to?<\/span><\/em>\u00a0 <\/span>His stomach twisted at the thought.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Matt clapped him on the shoulder.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cYou\u2019re right,\u201d the younger man said.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cThat\u2019s all we can do.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Be ready for anything, right?\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Yeah.\u00a0 <\/span>Ready for anything. <\/span><\/em>\u00a0<\/span>J.T. took a deep breath and exhaled it slowly, forcing himself to steady.<\/span> \u00a0<\/span><\/em>\u201cThat\u2019s right.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>There\u2019s nothing else we can do beyond that.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cThen we\u2019ll be ready,\u201d<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>Matt said firmly.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>J.T. wished he had half his confidence.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Confidence, hubris, or hope?<\/em>\u00a0 <\/span>At the end of the day, it didn\u2019t really matter, so long as they were, in fact, ready for whatever came their way.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>That was the only reason J.T. had spoken up, he realized.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>If I hadn\u2019t said anything, we might not be ready for a threat that may or may not come.\u00a0 <\/span>If it never comes, at least we\u2019ll be ready for the <\/span><\/em>next<\/span> threat.\u00a0 <\/span>If it does, we\u2019ll be able to face it head-on and hopefully not get ourselves killed in the process.<\/span><\/em><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Hopefully.<\/span><\/span><\/em>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cC\u2019mon over here, Jay, we need your back to help us with the post-digging.\u201d<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>\u201cOn my way,\u201d he said.<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>At least working with his hands would get his<\/span>\u00a0 <\/span>mind off seeing ghosts.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Or so he hoped.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Hope\u2019s all I\u2019ve got.<\/em><\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>Nearby, just out of the corner of his eye, he saw the shade of Constance Baile smile.<\/span><\/span>
\n\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 <\/span>He shivered and got to work.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Without a doubt, something wasn\u2019t right with the world.\u00a0 J.T. could feel it in a tightness across his shoulders that just wouldn\u2019t go away, no matter how hard anyone kneeded the muscles.\u00a0 His expression locked into a grimace, shakes … Continue reading →<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[35,57,52,39],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1342","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-book-2","category-chapter-18","category-winter","category-year-one"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p1EBlN-lE","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1342","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1342"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1342\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1344,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1342\/revisions\/1344"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1342"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1342"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/awakenings.embklitzke.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1342"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}