The transformation that overcomes Gail has everyone in the room taking a half step back. Her perfect face cracks into one of rage showing every bit of the damage the last seven years has caused on her once beautiful face. She grabs two handfuls of her skirt material and rips at it while screaming.
“I will not be embarrassed by you in front of our guests! I need time to look my best before they arrive!”
Jerod holds up his hands in a calming movement. “Of course, of course, darling. But I don’t know how you could improve upon perfection!”
I’m completely floored by the switches in this woman and her next words confirm to me that she’s bat guano crazy. Her face reverts to perfection and a blush even colours her cheeks.
“Oh Jerod, you’re such a sweet talker! But I need a new dress! Whatever am I going to wear? Be a doll and have the boutique send over a few samples for me to choose from while my hair is being styled, pretty please.” She bats her fake eyelashes at him before spinning on her heel and leaving the room.
Everyone is frozen in place at her display of insanity until the door closes behind her and then Jerod slowly turns towards us. For a fraction of a second, I feel sorry for this man when I see the pain in his eyes. He must really love the woman she once was and be broken by what she’s turned into but then I remember what was being cooked in the fire outside and all traces of sympathy are washed away.
He waves us away with a weary dismissive half wave of his arm. “Put them in the pantry for now. I’ll deal with them later.”
As we get shoved back down the way we came in I hear one of our guards mutter under his breath.
“What a nutter!”
I try and start up a conversation with the guy but he just slams me between the shoulder blades with his rifle causing me to almost fall down the stairs we’re descending. I try and wrack my brain for a way to use Gail’s insanity to our benefit but all I can really think about is what’s going to happen to us next.
When we reach the front lobby doors and emerge into the courtyard, I gag at overpowering the smell of roasting meat. I’m so disgusted when my mouth fills with saliva that I spit it out on the pavement in front of me, causing one of the guards to bark out a grim laugh and give me another shove.
“Don’t sweat it, kid. You get used to it or well, I guess you won’t be around long enough to.”
I ignore the man and spit again. I wish Sasha would get it together a bit. She’s pretty much done nothing except cry since we were captured. I know she’s just a kid and we’ve kept her mostly away from what life’s like since the bombs dropped, but I’m going to need her help if I can come up with an escape plan.
I’m pulled to a stop when we reach a large white cargo van and I watch closely as the guard uses a key that’s on a string around his neck to open a padlock. When the door is rolled up, a different smell waffles out. It’s one of human waste and rot and I’ve got no control over the instant gag reflex that overcomes me. This time the blow is against my head when I empty the contents of my stomach on the guard’s boots.
I’m still reeling from the hit when I’m half lifted, half pushed up into the back of the van. My ears are ringing and Sasha has amped up her crying to wailing making it even worse. Once my head clears, I’m surprised that I can see my surroundings. I look up to find the light source and see that long four inch high slits have been roughly cut into the metal all the way around the ceiling. The lowering sun is shining directly into one side of the truck giving plenty of light. I guess they don’t want their food stock suffocating.
When I go to push myself up to my feet, my hand lands on a rancid damp blanket that’s no better than a shredded rag. I wipe my sticky hand off on my pants and try not to think about what’s on it. Sasha sits on her knees with her arms wrapped around her head while she rocks herself back and forth with every wail. I crouch back down beside her and pull her against me.
“Stop, stop, Sasha! I’ve got you. It’s going to be ok. Come on, take a deep breath. We’re going to get out of here. I promise!”
Her wailing slows to down to a soft whimper as I rub her back and as I wait for her to calm down I scan the interior of the cargo area over her head. My eyes meet another’s and I realize that we aren’t alone in here. The man staring back at me is covered in filth but I think I’ve seen him before. In his arms is a woman that I’m not sure is even alive. Her eyes are so blank that it’s not until she moves slightly that I see she’s just in deep shock.
He nods his head slightly at me. “There’s no way out, son. We’ve been here for five days and my son and I tried everything before they…took him.”
His voice prompts my memory of where I know him from. He, his wife and adult son had been living in the basement of the town’s recreation center and my group had done some trading with them over the years. They had a decent set up with gardens growing along the pool’s edges. Belle would exchange clippings and sprouts with them to expand both of our varieties of vegetables that we grew.
“Mr. Chapman? Is that you?” At his startled look, I remind him of who I am. “My group use to trade with your family! Ethan, the doctor, treated your son when he got that gash in his leg infected. Belle and your wife use to exchange seeds for our gardens. Don’t you remember me?”
He doesn’t nod, just looks even sadder and leans over to kiss the top of his wife’s head before speaking.
“You were good people, people we could trust. Did the rest of your group get caught by these animals too?”
I shake my head. “No, just Sasha and I so I’m hoping they’ll be on the way to get us out of here! We have a safe place to go so your family can come with us when we get free.”
His expression is so empty it hurts to look at and his next words are heartbreaking.
“Thank you for the offer young man but we won’t be leaving here alive. They took our son and we know what they did to him. Neither of us wants to live in a world like that. We fought hard for years to stay alive. Now, we just want to be with our son.” He looks away from me and rests his head on top of his wife’s before gently lowering her limp body down to the bed of the van. It’s when he slides down next to her and takes her limp hand in his that I see what they’ve done and understand. They both have jagged rips across their wrists and the blood that flows out of them is just a trickle as their lives slip away.
I have to look away as they take their final breaths and the roar of rage and helplessness fills my chest. To have fought so long and finally see the world start to heal only for their lives to end like this makes me furious. As I smother the scream in my throat and pull Sasha closer, I make a vow. We will survive this and when we get free, I will do everything possible to destroy every single one of these monsters!
Chapter Twenty-Eight … Skylar
I feel like throwing up with the ball of nerves in my stomach as I watch for Lance and Marsh to come back out of the door that they entered ten minutes ago. It feels like it’s been an hour since they slipped into the hotel and every minute is agonizing.
We had all breathed a sigh of relief when full dark fell and no lights could be seen in the wing where we wanted to start the fire. I find myself chanting “Come on. Come on.” Until Ethan silences me with a hand on my arm. A quick look at his drawn face shows me he’s just as anxious as me for his family to get out of there safely.
A flicker catches my attention in one of the windows and it’s soon followed by others as window after window shows flames shining behind the glass. I tear my gaze from the fires and zero back in on the exit door, praying it’ll pop open any second but nothing happens. My legs are trembling and I’m about to stand up from my crouched position to run out of the hair salon, across the street to look for them when it finally happens. The door opens and slams back against the brick wall as Lance and Marsh come flying out.
Lance has an arm around Marsh’s waist and he’s half supporting him as they cross the parking lot and then the street. I hear Ethan suck in a breath when they get clos
e enough for us to see Marsh’s face. He has a waterfall of blood pouring out of a cut above one eye that’s making half his face look solid red. Ethan’s already pulling the small med kit he brought with us out of his pocket. He insisted on having it in case Rex or Sasha needed patching up. Now he’ll be using it on his son instead.
I rush to hold the glass door open and Marsh drops to the floor as soon as they make it inside. Ethan’s mopping his face with gauze in seconds.
“What happened? Is he injured anywhere else?” he asks while he works.
Lance drops down beside him and shakes his head before chugging back half a canteen of water. Marsh must not be too injured because he reaches over and snatches it from him. He pushes Ethan’s hands away for a minute while he drains the rest of it. The minute it comes down from his lips, Ethan’s back at work.
“This needs stitches but it’s a straight clean cut. Knife?”
Lance leans over and peers at the wound for a second before settling back.
“Yeah, there was a couple we surprised in one of the rooms. He got a swing at Marsh before I was able to take him down.”
Before he can say anything else, we’re all jolted by the sound of cracking and popping as the windows start to burst out from the spreading fires. Lance turns away from the window and pulls a flashlight out and shines it on his son’s face.
“You good to go? We need to make our move.”
Marsh tries to nod but Ethan hisses at him to stay still as he adds another butterfly bandage to the four he’s already put on to seal the cut for now. Stitches will have to wait. Ethan does one more swipe with an alcohol wipe to clear as much blood from Marsh’s face as he can before stuffing the contents back into the kit and jamming it back into his pocket.
“Skylar, Sky…Hey SKYLAR!”
I can’t stop staring at the blood that’s stained all down Marsh’s throat and jacket but his harsh tone snaps me out of it and I tear my eyes from it and meet his.
“I asked if you’re ready to go! Seriously, are you up for this because Rex and Sasha need us now?”
“Yes! Of course, we should get moving. All eyes should be on the fire by now.”
He stares at me hard for another second before nodding and pushing to his feet. He’s right, I need to be ready for what comes next. We all might end up bloodied by the time this night’s over and freezing up isn’t an option if we want to succeed. I need to keep it together.
We slip out of the back door of the salon and use the abandoned buildings for cover as we make our way to down the street closer to the front of the hotel across from where Rex and Sasha are being held. We line up behind Lance as he peeks around the corner of a sandwich shop that’s directly across the street from the front lobby of the hotel. Again, it feels like we’re waiting forever before he gives the signal for us to run across the street. I try and keep my eyes ahead of me to the car barricade we are running to but I can’t help but look over at the wing that’s being devoured by fire. There’s plenty of people over in that direction and the light from the fire shows a lot of them standing around watching it but also many that are treating it like a bonfire dance. As we hit a smashed up minivan and crouch down behind it, I wonder if these idiots get that the fire’s not going to just stay in that wing. It won’t be long before it moves to the main hotel that they’ve all been calling home.
We rest for a few minutes while Lance moves up and down the line of cars, scouting what’s between us and the cargo van our people are in. I crouch down even lower when I hear shouting and the sound of running footsteps. As soon as they fade, Lance is waving us forward.
Climbing over the hoods of a few cars only takes seconds and we are in the courtyard. The fire has provided plenty of light to show us that there’s no one between us and the van. Lance has told us it’s best to walk quickly rather than run so we might pass as part of the gang, but it’s almost impossible for me not to bolt as fast as I can to where I know Rex is waiting.
There’s a layer of cold sweat covering my body when we make it to the van. Ethan, Marsh and I turn our backs to it and hold our weapons ready in case anyone comes near while Lance goes to work on cutting off the padlock. All I want to do is spin around to see if he’s ok when I hear the door being rolled up but I keep my eyes scanning in every direction for any possible threat.
“Rex, Sasha come on. We’ve got move quickly!” I hear Lance say in a low voice before I hear two sets of feet hit the ground.
“I knew you’d come for us!” Rex says behind my back.
“Of course we did! Now let’s get…”
Lance doesn’t get to finish his sentence because just then the lobby doors are thrown open and out runs a group of six people. Four of them have rifles and they are already pointed at us. The other two are a very well dressed couple. The man has a handgun in one hand and a roller suitcase in the other. It only takes him a split second to have it pointed at us as well. The woman has a fur coat thrown over one arm and is chattering away like we aren’t even here.
“Jerod, be sure to tip the bell boy so he doesn’t damage my luggage! Last time there was a terrible scuff on one!”
My shock at her oblivious words doesn’t distract me from aiming my rifle right back at them.
Four rifles pointed at four rifles and a handgun - stalemate. Everyone’s frozen for a minute until Marsh throws out, “Well, this is a big bucket of suck isn’t it?”
The man with the handgun looks us all over closely before nodding.
“So, came to get your friends did you? That works in my favour. We were just about to take our leave from this sad, rundown establishment and relocate to your area. Why don’t you all lead the way?”
I can see Lance step between me and Marsh out of the corner of my eye and his expression is hard.
“Do you honestly think we’d let you anywhere near the rest of our people?” He asks while nudging me to move slightly to the side. I get what he wants and the others must too because we all take a step sideways so we aren’t so close to each other.
This is going to be a shootout and most of us aren’t going to make it out of here alive. The thought is strangely calming to me. Ben’s safe and he’s got people to take care of him. If I’ve got to die, at least it will be while ridding the world of this filth.
My finger comes away from the guard and settles on the trigger. I’m ready for what comes next…until I’m not.
Red fireflies start dancing in front of me until each of the people pointing weapons at us has one centered on their chests. I know what they are but my brain’s slow to put the pieces together so I risk turning my head to look at the others. Lance, Marsh, and Ethan are in my line of site and I see the same red light on them as well. My head moves in slow motion as I drop my chin and look down. There in the center of my own chest is a solid red light and that’s when my brain catches up. Laser sights. We are being targeted! My head snaps up and starts scanning for where it’s coming from when a loud screech of feedback followed by a booming voice blasts into the night.
“LOWER YOUR WEAPONS IMMEDIATELY! YOU ARE SURROUNDED AND SHOOT TO KILL ORDERS HAVE BEEN GIVEN FOR ANYONE NOT COMPLYING!”
Confusion and fear surge up inside me but at the same time, a vague sense of comfort also comes over me. I don’t know what the frack is going on so I turn to look at Lance. He’s as pale as I’ve ever seen him but I follow his lead as he slowly starts lowering his rifle to the ground. I see the others in my group doing the same but I keep my finger on the trigger because none of the gang are lowering theirs.
All my people are crouched down when the leader, Jerod, starts pointing his gun all around him and shouting into the night.
“Who the hell are you? Show yourselves!”
His answer is swift as gunfire shatters the night. All of us dive to the ground and stay there as bullet after bullet tears through the people facing us. My hand leaves the rifle to grope at my waist for my communicator. I bring it up in front of my face which is inches from the pavement a
nd tap the screen to light it up. If AIRIA has any satellites in range then maybe she can tell me how many people are surrounding us and if we have any shot of getting out of here.
“AIRIA? AIRIA, I need help!”
I repeat her name again and again but there’s no response. I’m so distracted by getting an answer from her that I don’t even realize that the gunfire has stopped until hands grab the back of my jacket and haul me to my feet.
The communicator is ripped from my hands and I follow it with my eyes as it’s passed to someone who’s just walked up.
“I’m sorry, Skylar. AIRIA is no longer under your control. She belongs to me now.”
The words hit me like a Mack truck. No, no that’s not possible. AIRIA’s mine! She’s my mom and my dad and all I have left of them. No one can take her from me! Who the frack does this guy think he is?
I lift my eyes from the unresponsive communicator in his hands up to his face and stagger back a step.
“Uncle Bill?”
He’s older and his face is harder than I remember, but it’s him.
He gives a sharp nod. “Hello, Skylar. I was sorry to hear that your father is no longer with us. He would understand what will happen now. I’ve brought my people to take back what I loaned him so long ago. AIRIA is now under my complete control. Your authorization has been reduced to a red level but you don’t have to worry, I will continue to shelter you for the sake of my friendship with your father. You just won’t have any more authority in my bunker.”
I should be happy to have a small part of my family show up but I don’t know this man. All I know is that he’s just taken away the only real parent I have left.
Sun & Smoke
Book Three - Endless Winter
Chapter One … Skylar
“AIRIA? AIRIA, I need help!”
I repeat her name again and again but there’s no response. I’m so focused on getting an answer from her that I don’t even realize that the gunfire has stopped until hands grab the back of my jacket and haul me to my feet.
Endless Winter Box Set: Books 1 - 4 Page 34