"What?" The boy studied Winter with dread. "Say that again."

She paused, her eyes glued to outside. "It's... a man."

"What?"

With an exasperated sigh, she faced her brother, frowning. "Go, tell everyone!"

Before he could snap back to reality, however, Autumn was already downstairs and warning the others. Within seconds, a wave of panic had begun and they were all gathering their weapons.

Forest blinked hard, his eyes on Winter. "W-what does he look like?"

"See for yourself," she muttered, gesturing to the window. "He's a strange one." Wasting no more time, she too hurried down the ladder, leaving her brother by himself.

On shaky feet, the boy stepped closer to the glass and gasped when he saw the stranger. Wearing pink pants, his shirt was white, with the exception of the black words that said 'Oops, sorry about that.' It wasn't just his clothing choice that was odd, but also his hair; it went down to his lower back. Only when the man was stepping onto the porch could Forest see his rifle.

A chill ran down his spine.

Looking at the gun in the corner of the room, he finally picked it up and joined everyone downstairs. He didn't have time to be picky.

"Is he with anyone?" Skylar questioned. She was waiting beside the front door, her handgun held high. "Is he a real threat?"

"I didn't see anyone else, but I bet there are others nearby. No one's that foolish," Winter answered, her voice grave.

"Autumn, go upstairs!" Jett whispered urgently. "Tell us when he's here."

And that was when they heard a single knock. And then another.

They all tiptoed next to the door, their weapons raised. A moment of heavy silence filled the scene, no one daring to talk.

After a long pause, Skylar's gaze flickered over everyone, making a silent agreement. Reaching for the knob, she took a sharp breath and swung the door wide open.

"Please, wait! I'm not ba-" His voice was unbelievably rough.

"Shut it," Skylar barked, cutting him off. As she looked him up and down, her face turned sour. "What are you wearing?!"

"What do you mean?" he asked, tossing the gun aside. But once his eyes fell, the man stiffly shrugged. "I wasn't really thinking..."

"I can see that," she said, stealing a glance behind her. "Come inside, but leave your weapon. We have some questions." Her tone was dark.

Before he could, however, a pair of puppies greeted him at the door, more than pleased. As quick as they came, Winter picked them up.

"Put them upstairs, maybe," Skylar said, eyes trained on the stranger. "Put something in the way so that they won't fall down the ladder."

With a nod, she obeyed.

"Now," Skylar continued, "come in, or I'll make sure you will never walk another step."

After the hesitant man left the porch, Jett peeked beyond the farmhouse before closing the door. "I don't see anyone else."

"Keep looking." Only when he obeyed did Skylar give the couch a salty nod. "Okay, get over there. Now."

Forest watched the man as he wandered over to the sofa, his head down. It was only when he looked up that the boy noticed a ragged scar over his right cheek. The wound appeared to have been from a set of fingernails. A rush of pity overcame the boy and he shifted on his feet.

"Okay, let's start with an easy one," Skylar said, standing in front of him. Her gun was still on the stranger.

"Stop," Jade pleaded, "don't go so hard on him! Put the gun down. I doubt he'll try anything."

"You see the scar and you feel bad for him?" she asked, irritated. "It's a wonder you've survived this long."

More than hurt, Jade sighed, avoiding her gaze. "It's not right to assume. That's all I'm saying."

"Winter's been through worse. Just look at her arm!"

Jett stepped over and put a hand on her shoulder. "Don't worry, Jade. Don't worry."

She only shook her head, defeated.

"So," Skylar said, her hard eyes once again on him, "what's your name?"

"I'm Galant Langlois," he answered, squinting. "You may be wondering why I have such a weird name, right? Well, I'll tell you. It's because I'm French" -he smiled softly- "and, in case you were wondering, I'm thirty-nine. There, that's gotta be all the information you need, right? Now let me tell you why I'm here."

"Why would I want to know your age?" she asked, her frown deepening. "And why are you squinting at me?"

"Oh, I always do. Some think it's weird, but I've always been like that. Also, in case you were wondering-"

"Stop talking!" Skylar ordered, finally lowering her weapon. "Your voice sounds like a drill. You sound like you've smoked all your life, and why do you keep rambling?"

"Oh, I do that too," he replied, his voice small. "You seem... a little annoyed."

"I imagine many often are with you," she said, giving a humorless laugh. "Now, I'm gonna ask why you're here, and you're gonna give me a direct answer."

"It's about Holly. I know where she is."

"What?" Jade cried, desperate. "Is she okay? Where is she?!"

"Depends by what you mean by 'okay'," Galant said and ran a hand down his face. "She's been captured again. That's why she's not here. Now, I know that-"

"Wait, you're from those people that took us?" Winter demanded, stepping closer. "You're one of them?"

"Easy there. I may be with them, sure, but I'm not one of them," he replied, locking his eyes with hers. "Are we on the same page?"

"Same page? We're on a whole different book!" Skylar scoffed, crossing her arms.

"Wait, my sister and I were there too, so why don't we recognize you?" Autumn asked, tilting her head.

"You're Autumn, right?" When she froze, flustered, Galant waved her off. "I saw you and your twin more than once, but neither of you saw me. Sometimes, I wonder if I'm invisible." He suddenly looked bitter.

Winter and Autumn shared an uneasy look from opposite sides of the room.

"Enough feeling sorry for yourself," Skylar said, disgusted. "We need to know about Holly."

"When you three were locked up, all we wanted was to know where this place was to take it over. I, however, didn't want any harm done. When you all escaped, I saw you, and... I may have followed. Evidently, you two got back, but, well, not Holly. I saw when she was taken."

"Holly was captured again?" Autumn demanded, stepped forward. "She's with them again?"

"I'm sorry," Galant said, eyeing her with grief. "I'm sorry, but yes, she's back there. I regret telling you-"

"Get on with it." Skylar tapped her foot, impatient. "What are they doing to her?"

"Do you think she's okay?" Winter asked, uneasy. She narrowed her eyes when he remained silent. "Answer me!"

"Those people - they're animals. Sure, a few of them still have a good heart, but the majority are evil."

"We save Holly and then blow them up. That's what I say," Winter mumbled, frustrated.

"I'm not so sure you'd manage such a task. There are more than thirty of us, but either way, you shouldn't try. Two of our people are pregnant."

"Pregnant?" Forest blurted out, his eyebrows ceased. When Galant nodded, the boy could only stare in awe.

"I know. It's uncommon, these days," he went on, words heavy, "so I understand your shock. It wouldn't be right to kill them."

"Wait, do you have any children, besides the unborn?" Jett asked, slowing crossing his arms. "We can't kill them either."

"Yes," he said, and gave a soft sigh. "One. His name's River and he's just five."

"So, Galant, you came here and warned us. It seems like you care. Why don't you just free Holly yourself?" Skylar's words were skeptical.

"If I get caught, they'll kill me," he answered, still squinting. "I cared enough to tell you all, but this is as far as I go. It's up to you now; not me. I did my part, so now it's time for you to do yours. I just ask that you don't kill River or the pregnant women. That's all I ask. Now, if you get in trouble and die, then I'm sorry. Just know that it's not on me."

Jade looked around the room as she pinched the bridge of her nose. After a long moment, she faced Galant and offered a smile that didn't reach her eyes. "Supper will be ready very soon. You might as well stay."

"No, that's not his, J-" Skylar tried.

She cut her off. "Yes. He gave us information, so this is the least we can do. In the morning, we'll leave."

"His people will get suspicious if he's gone this long," Jett said, frowning. "For all I know, they might even kill him."

"No, I'd love to stay!" Galant exclaimed, suddenly unable to sit still. "I'm sometimes gone days at a time, plus I haven't eaten since yesterday."

Forest studied the others when the pause only grew. With the exception of Jade, there was an unspoken hesitance in the air. If it were up to the boy, he wouldn't mind the company; Galant was a very interesting man. However, it looked like this was a losing battle.

So when Jett finally spoke up, he was more than surprised.

"Sure." His tone was low, but gentle. "We'll be ready in a few minutes, give or take."

With a grin, Galant quickly nodded. "So..."

"What?" Winter questioned, irritated.

"What are we eating?"

"Deer."

"Oh." Galant let out a long breath and ran a hand through his hair. "I'm... I'm allergic to deer meat." He paused. "And I'm also a vegetarian, so this simply won't work."

Forest gave the man a double-take. He really was interesting. "Sorry, what?"

He waved the boy off as he leaned back against the couch. "I'm okay, I-I guess."

Forest shared a side-glance with Winter, each shocked. "I... I'm sorry?"

"The apology... is accepted." His voice held great sadness.

Reluctant, the boy stared into space as he tried to comprehend what just happened. And that was when he heard Galant laugh and slap his leg. "What?"

"Yeah, what's so funny? Skylar demanded, coming into view.

"I was only messing with you! I'm not allergic and I love deer."

While Galant continued to laugh to himself, everyone else looked at one another, stunned. This went on for a good minute.

"Will you stop?" Skylar pleaded, voicing her annoyance. "Another joke and you leave right now. Got that?"

His smile immediately faded. "Yes, ma'am."

"Let's go. I'll start a fire." Jade was already carrying the plates of raw meat outside.

The boy followed closely behind Autumn, gun still in hand. He didn't want to risk anything, just in case his judgement was wrong. For all he knew, Galant could try something at any moment.

When all was said and done, they ate on lawn chairs in the dead of night. As they did so, their eyes were on the stranger, no one saying a word. It was only when he scoffed that someone spoke up.

"What?" It was Skylar.

"You guys still think I'm bad; like I'm about to pull out a gun," he said matter-of-factly. Scoffing once more, he set down his empty plate and observed the others. "I'm not, though, and I'm asking for you to trust me."

Guilty, Forest flashed a look at the handgun sitting just beside him. The one that revealed his wariness.

"We've only just met," she said, eyes narrowed. "Just be thankful she's here" -Skylar gave Jade a sharp nod- "because I really want you gone."

"I'm more than a little uncertain about you as well," the boy said after a long moment. "You came here less than half an hour ago, but I wanna give you a chance. You deserve one."

Galant clapped, smiling. "Good, so I've got one on my side. Any others?"

"You seem pretty... okay," Autumn added, her eyes averted.

His smile widened.

"Why do you care so much? You're leaving tomorrow," Winter said, trapped him in her gaze.

He paused, considering. "I'm been thinking... and I want to help you people get Holly back."