The Girl He Marked by Laila Callaway novel Chapter 1

Chapter 28 

Saweetie/Diamanté Harper as Alena x 

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Alena‘s POV. 

‘Well, you look stupid, I snort and try to hide my laugh as Aria steps out of the house. She is wearing a large rain–mac, a bucket hat, hiking boots and thick socks that are tucked into her waterproof trousers. 

‘Are you going on some expedition I don‘t know about?‘ | ask and cover my mouth with my hand, at tempting to mask my amusement. Aria lifts her chin and walks past me, over to her huge bag which is sat on the lawn. 

“Excuse me for being prepared, tell me what protection your tiny shorts will provide should it rain?‘ Aria retorts, placing her hands on her hips and raising an eyebrow. I glance down at my small shorts and shrug. 

Whilst Aria locks up her house, I check I have everything and lace up my trainers. As I look up, I notice Aria‘s neighbor, Mrs. Allen, watching me with confusion from her front lawn. I straighten up and come over to see her. 

‘Morning, we‘re off on a camping trip,‘ I greet her, gesturing towards the woods. Hopefully now she’ll get why we‘re all carrying big backpacks. She looks at the dense trees standing proudly behind both her and Aria‘s houses and turns back to me with a frown on her aged, wrinkled face. 

‘You be careful girls, there are wolves in the woods, she warns me, her shaking hand grips my own tightly and I open my mouth to ask her about it. 

‘Alena, you ready?‘ Aria calls out and I glance over my shoulder at her. 

‘Be safe,’ Mrs. Allen warns and I only manage to nod and mumble a thank you. I walk back over to her and swing my heavy backpack onto my shoulders. 

‘What did she say? Aria asks me as we leave the safety of her back garden and enter the forest. 

‘She wanted to warn us about wolves being in the forest, I tell her, glancing over my shoulder to see Mrs. Allen shaking her head at us in the distance. 

‘Ignore her, she‘s nuts, Aria laughs and I nod in agreement, but I watch Aria carefully, she glances around anxiously, and I wonder if she‘s scared of wolves. I look around as well, whilst we push through the foliage and bracken, seeing if I catch a glimpse of anything sinister. 

‘Perhaps we should sing to keep up the pace?‘ Aria suggests and I smile at the idea. Only a few mo ments later, the once quiet forest filled only with sounds of bird song, is now echoing with the beautifully harmonizing voices of myself and Aria. 

There is no clear path, making me think that this wood is not inhabited and rarely visited. Aria says she doesn‘t know who owns it, and as there is no perimeter fence or signs then it must be open to the public. It was Aria‘s idea for this camping trip, she and Seb have just moved into this quaint, old house on the out skirts of the town near Myra‘s. 

We push our way through all the shrubbery, I regret wearing shorts as the branches snag and scratch at my legs. It is surprisingly tiring marching through the forest, fighting against branches and dodging rough terrain. 

I‘m not sure why I thought this would be a fun thing to do, Aria contemplates out loud as she swats bugs around her head. I smirk and look back down at my feet, eyeing roots suspiciously in case they try 

and trip me up. 

‘Come on, you know you‘re having fun,‘ I tease, and she huffs in response. 

We sing a little more as we enter further and deeper into the forest. I become slightly alarmed that we could struggle to get back out seeing as there are no paths or maps, but Aria assures me that she gets sig nal out here and she can use the compass and map apps on her phone to guide us home tomorrow. 

‘This was a good idea Aria, I‘m glad you suggested it, I say as we walk next to each other. 

‘Thanks, but let‘s see if you still think that tonight, she nudges me, and I consider it for a moment. Per haps I won‘t be enjoying this so much later on, when it gets dark and cold, and I have to put a tent‘ up. 

We chat about everything that is going on in our lives as we delve further into the forest, Myra has re cently become official with Jayce, and since then they‘ve been spending all of their time together. 

We have been walking.for a few hours now, this wood is never–ending. I chug my water and wipe the thin layer of moisture off my forehead, I‘ve had to tie my thick hair up because it was sticking to my clam my skin. The sun beats down on us and I realize we‘re probably going to have awkward tan lines from our backpack tomorrow. 

“How much further?‘ I whine and Aria rolls her eyes at me. 

‘I don‘t know, we don‘t even know where we‘re going, we‘re just looking for a good spot to camp, she replies, but as she is speaking, the trees start to thin out and a large, dark blue lake comes into view. 

‘Thank God!‘ I call out and run over to the edge of the lake, throwing my backpack on the floor. I kick off my trainers, pull off my socks and wade up to my knees in the water, 

‘Oh my god it‘s so cold, I love it,‘ I groan and run my hands through the still water. It‘s beautiful but freezing. Thank God we‘re not skinny dipping, our nips would drop off. I step further in until I‘m up to my thighs and I feel instantly refreshed. Aria wades around me, through the water. 

‘This is so nice, she comments as she leans down and scoops handfuls of water and pours them over her arms. 

We stay in the water a while, the sun is still shining down on us, making the still lake look like a giant sheet of glass. Aria decides to see whether she can skip rocks on the surface of the lake, I watch amusedly for a bit and then step out of the water. I sit down on the smooth, hard pebbles and close my eyes, basking in the warm rays of sunlight drying me out. 

I peek my eyes open as I hear a squeal come from Aria, she wobbles and almost falls back into the wa ter.