Summary

In Chapter Twenty-Eight, Nik and his foraging party rowed their canoes down the river and towards the city where Sheena and Crystal had discovered a hidden shed on a small island that they hoped was full of supplies. Nik noticed Thaddeus was scratching his arms often. Nik had a bad feeling about the whole situation, and tried to dissuade everyone from going in, but Thaddeus convinced everyone that Nik was being paranoid.

In Chapter Twenty-Nine, the group approached the shed, but then Skin Stealers, hiding in the river and breathing through reeds, ambushed the group. Crystal’s dog was shot, and then she was captured. Nik shot Crystal with his bow and arrow to prevent her from being skinned alive. Thaddeus and his dog were captured. Nik escaped with the others, but then he was shot in the back with a spear and...