“I hope we’re going the right way still,” she said. “I’m not good at directions.”
“The jungle looks the same everywhere,” Deidre agreed. “But I think this is right. It’s still easterly. I think.”
More thunder boomed. Katie wondered what other kinds of storms the underworld might have. Would it rain something other than black water? With her luck, it’d rain bugs, like the beetle nest she skirted.
“Watch out. These things will probably take a leg off,” she said, pointing to the nest.
Deidre paused beside the bubbling nest of beetles the size of her hand. Katie watched as she picked up one, peered at it and then flung it. Deidre giggled.
“We call those beetle bombs where I’m from,” she admitted. “I guess that’s the kind of thing you do when you’re bored.”
Katie smiled, amused despite the rain, thunder and bugs. The woman was as unique as she’d claimed to be, at once easily entertained and melancholy. Katie couldn’t quite keep up with Deidre’s odd mixture of emotions, but she pitied the woman, who seemed more lost in her own world than anything.
The sound of something screaming wiped the smile from Deidre’s face. Katie turned to face the direction from which the sound came. It wasn’t a bird, and it wasn’t human. The single voice was joined by several, and Katie grabbed Deidre’s hand.
“We have to keep going,” she said, hurrying forward. “I don’t know what that is, but it’s close.”
“Demons,” Deidre whispered.
“Don’t let all my talk scare you. Let’s just um, run for awhile!” Katie said and took off.
Deidre was close on her heels. They navigated the jungle as fast as they could, catching themselves against trees as they slid through slippery piles of leaves and over fallen branches. Katie ran until she was breathless. Deidre kept on running, and Katie pushed her body forward.
Suddenly, someone launched from the trees. Deidre stopped. Katie smashed into her and knocked them both to the ground. Katie rolled and pushed herself up, missing the look exchanged between Deidre and the newcomer.
“Toby!” Katie exclaimed. “What’re you doing here?”
The young angel’s face was streaked with blood from where branches had struck him. He was pale and terrified – and staring in shock at Deidre.