"Well, I don't know about you but I'm going to have a shower and change my clothes," said Jesse. "This stuff's all cold and slimy."
"Good idea," said Steve. "I'll keep watch while you shower."
Luckily the tent fire had not got as far as the bedrooms before it was extinguished and so both Jesse and Steve's clothes and belongings were intact. Jesse went to the shower while Steve sat in a chair a few feet away keeping guard. The sun was just beginning to come over the tops of the mountains and he could see quite a way in front. There came the sound of running water from the shower and suddenly Jesse gave a yell. Steve was up out of his seat in a second.
"Jesse? What is it?" he called, concerned.
"The water's freezing!"
"Oh, thank god. I thought you were being attacked. I was just about to rush in there."
"No need, no need," said Jesse hurriedly. This was followed by a lot of shivering sounds and intakes of breath. Grinning, Steve went back to his seat. Jesse soon emerged with a towel wrapped round his chest.
"Your turn."
"That's okay," said Steve. "I'll just wash my hands asI didn't get quite so…messy as you." Jesse gave him a look and went inside to dress. When he emerged he looked almost back to his old self. He took a tentative glance around as he sat down next to Steve.
"I think we should head off. I feel like a sitting duck out here, just waiting to be shot at. I don't want to end up like those rabbits."
"You know, I'm not so sure that's this guy's intention."
"Huh? How do you mean?"
"He appears to be toying with us. Nothing he has done so far has been serious enough to kill us."
"Ok, so he just wants to see us loose a couple of limbs and get burnt to death," said Jesse. "What's next? Flaming boulders? Poisonous snakes? I don't intend sticking around to find out."
"I think you're right," said Steve. "We should see what provisions we can take with us and set off. Back the way we came if possible."
"Why? That track went on for miles, it will take us ages to get back to the main road. We are in the middle of nowhere."
"Precisely," said Steve. "We don't know how far these mountains and wooded terrain goes on. If we go further in, we are more likely to get lost. We should head back in the general direction we came from. At least we know there is something over there."
"Alright, I suppose it makes sense," said Jesse. "Let's just hurry up and go."
"Okay. You get your rucksack. Leave most of the things you brought with you behind. We can get them later. Just take the bare essentials and leave room for some food and water." Jesse nodded and hurried back inside the tent. Steve followed shortly afterwards having had another look around but seeing no one. They packed quickly and then met in the little kitchen area to divide up the food. They had four apples, a loaf of bread, some dry cured ham, eggs, biscuits, pasta, a bag of mixed salad and an assortment of tins.
"Leave the pasta, but we'll take the rest," said Steve. "And don't forget the tin opener."
"What about the water?"
"We'll just have to try and take as much as we can carry," said Steve. "It's a shame it's so heavy."
"Actually that's not going to be a problem," said Jesse, looking worried.
"How do you mean?"
"Well I've just looked and we only have four litres left."
"What? How is that possible?" asked Steve in alarm.
"It seems we used most of it last night putting out the fire. You realise we only really have enough water for 1 day each."
"Ok, we'll just have to ration it," said Steve looking serious. "Let's worry about that when we need to. The quicker we leave the better."
Jesse nodded. "Got your gun?"
"Yes," said Steve. "Got your medi kit? Good then let's go, but let's be careful, we still don't know who's out there."
They shouldered their bags and left, walking back past the car and up a steep stony slope. The sun had fully risen and it looked like being a bright sunny day. However the two friends hardly noticed as they were too intent on listening to the sounds around them. Their footsteps seemed unusually loud as their shoes crunched over the stones and they were very aware of the rustling trees moving in the wind. They walked in silence, both tense and alert. Jesse felt a prickle go down his spine. He shivered and looked over his shoulder.
"Steve, do you ever get the feeling…"
"…that we're being watched? Yes."
Jesse glanced at Steve and saw his face looked grave and that he had one hand resting on the hilt of his gun.
"Just keep walking," he said out the side of his mouth. "I'm sure when he wants us to know he's there he will act, until then just keep going."
As they carried on, the trees began to close in around them and the terrain became even steeper. At one point Jesse stumbled and began to slide backwards but Steve grabbed his arm and hauled him upwards until they were resting on a flat outcrop of rock.
"I don't remember it being this steep," said Jesse panting from the effort of climbing.
"It's a lot easier in a car and we were going downhill last time," said Steve. "Come on, I can see a fork ahead and I think it gets flatter."
X X X
When they reached the fork they found that the left hand side was where they had come from and that it was quite flat. The road was lined on either side with trees. To the right was a steep muddy slope and thick forest.
"I'll just check the phone for a signal now it's a bit clearer," said Steve and held up the phone. "No, still nothing. Come on, we need to go left."
"At last some flat terrain," said Jesse. "I was…" Just then there was a swishing sound and an arrow embedded itself in the tree right by Jesse's head. He paled and both he and Steve froze. There was another swishing sound and another arrow appeared as if from nowhere, this time embedding itself in the ground by Steve's foot.
"Move!" yelled Steve and grabbing Jesse's arm sprinted into the trees on the right. As they did so another arrow hit a tree just behind them. Steve pushed Jesse to the ground behind a bush and drew his gun, scanning the area fervently. All was quiet apart from the rustling of the vegetation. His heart was beating fast and he found his hands were trembling slightly. He took a deep breath and told himself to get a grip. He looked at Jesse, crouched on the ground beside him and made a hand gesture to go further back.
Jesse nodded silently and warily stood up and took a step backwards. Almost instantly there was another swishing sound and Jesse broke into a downhill run as an arrow hit the ground. He heard another swish and looked back fearfully. As he did so the slope suddenly became steeper and he tripped. He hit the earth and tumbled crazily down the hill. The branches of fallen trees and brambles scratched at him as he fell. He came to a halt near the base of the slope feeling utterly bruised and bewildered. He sat up and spat mud out of his mouth and wiped him muddy hands on his shirt. His right arm stung and he saw that it was bleeding, although not badly.
"Jesse? Jesse? Are you alright?" Steve called.
"Yeah. Yeah, I think I'm okay," Jesse replied. He looked towards the sound of Steve's voice and saw him outlined against the trees.
"Our shooter seems to have gone," said Steve. "Hang on. I'll come down to you." Steve began to make him way cautiously down, trying to find the most level bits of ground to walk on. He was just walking between two trees when a loud cracking sound filled the air. Steve seemed to stumble and then with a cry of surprise he disappeared from view.
"Steve!" Jesse called in alarm. "STEVE!" He waited for Steve's reply but he got no answer.
Thanks for all the input back about differences between British and American uses of English. Most of those things I am aware of (like torch vs flashlight, defence vs defense) but I just use them without thinking! Guess there's no hiding the fact that I'm British, not that I was trying to but I didn't think it was that obvious when you are reading text.
The most surprising differences are the things that CindyT63 said. I use both versions of each example you gave interchangeably – I would never have guessed that one way sounds more British than the other! We even use both yards and metres. Maybe it's all the American influence over here. But interesting.
Keep reviewing please!