by Shade Owens
Proxy parted her lips, which I knew meant, May I say something else?
Raising both eyebrows at her, I waited.
“You shouldn’t be doing any digging, Brone.”
What did she mean by that? I was perfectly capable of digging out a bit of dirt.
“Unless you dig on a daily basis, you’ll be utilizing muscles such as your quadriceps, hamstrings, abs, lower back—”
“So what?” I said.
“You’re our number one Archer,” Proxy said, matter-of-factly.
I was a bit taken aback by the sound of my old title, Archer. Not a single person had referred to me as an Archer since the war. But I’d never stopped shooting—every day, I made my way to the Working Grounds to practice with other women, and every time, I surprised everyone with my unbeatable accuracy.
“Did you not say you’ll be the one to take out BlueVolt?” she asked.
“Yeah—”
“Then I strongly suggest you preserve your energy for that. If you weaken your muscles through an activity your body is unaccustomed to, you may end up with shaking muscles, causing your aim to be off.”
Not once had I ever thought to conserve energy. My mentality had always been to give it all I had, but Proxy was right—why dispense energy digging when other women could do it for me? Wasn’t that my role as leader of the Village? To assign tasks and delegate responsibilities?
Planting a hand on Proxy’s bony shoulder, I said, “Thank you,” and she flinched.
It was obvious that Proxy didn’t like being touched, but it was important she knew how valuable she was to our society.
“Why don’t you join the others?” I asked. “Let them fill you in on what’s going on. I’m sure you’ll have some ideas on how to beat the other bastards.”
“There are others?” she asked.
I nodded and my eyes rolled toward Rocket, who, like me, knew how much danger we were in. “Yeah, and if we plan on eliminating them, we need to strategize.”
Nodding hard, Proxy twirled on her heels and marched out of the Tools tent.
The moment she stepped out, Rocket shook her head and smirked. “I know she’s a bit weird, but that girl’s got one hell of a brain.” She grabbed the other shovel out of my hands and said, “I’ll get us some diggers and meet you at the gate.”
* * *
“I want everyone to keep their eyes open,” I said, taking the time to look every woman in the eye. We all know what it’s like out there without the trees. We’ll be moving targets. Let’s dig as fast as possible so we can get to the other side.”
Rocket handed her shovel to the strongest-looking woman of the bunch—Baldwin if I recalled correctly. She grabbed the shovel, gave me a firm nod, and waited for further instruction.
“Rocket, take them around the back, right over there.” I pointed behind the Village, where half a burned tree stump lay across the jungle floor. “Dig beside that log so we remember where the hole is. When you’re done, come get me. No one crosses over until I say so.”
The women followed Rocket around the curved wooden barrier and to the back of the Village.
“Baldwin, right?” I said.
Baldwin nodded again, lips sealed tightly. I’d only ever seen Baldwin smile once, and when it had happened, she’d thrown her hand over her mouth to cover the rotten mess. I couldn’t even begin to imagine how much pain she was in daily with all of that decay.
“As soon are your arms or your back starts to burn, rotate with—” I hesitated, staring at the two other women standing behind Baldwin.
“Lex,” the taller of the two said, and the other one cleared her throat and said, “Penny.”
“Okay,” I said. “Lex, Penny, you got this?”
Lex stared at me, her eyes cold and empty. Penny, on the other hand, stretched her neck and wiggled her fingers as if preparing to play the piano.
“You okay?” I asked Lex.
She gave me a phony a smile, and said, “Of course. You’re the boss.”
Who was this woman, and why had Rocket picked her to dig with us? Was it because of her size and broad shoulders? She looked like she could handle herself, but the way she was staring at me made it seem as though she wanted to handle me.
Was this about Mason? Hadn’t I already dealt with this? Even if the whole Mason situation hadn’t happened, this wasn’t the first time a woman gave me attitude for being the leader. For the most part, women respected me and appreciated that I was in power. But every once in a while, I received backlash or attitude, mostly from newer drops who didn’t believe in my methods or who wanted to take my place. Maybe the whole Mason situation had sparked something.
I’d spoken to Murk about this, and she’d told me that no matter what I did, I’d never please everyone—especially not a crowd full of convicted murderers. She’d explained to me that newer drops were even more difficult to manage since they knew nothing about our ways or our history. It was easy to maintain the respect of women who wouldn’t be alive had it not been for me. But new drops… they had a mind of their own, and while most of them shut their traps to survive the island, there were always a few odd ones who spoke out or acted out.
Since the war, I’d banished six women in total, and four of them were new drops. The other two, having once been slaves to the Northers, had uncontrolled rage problems that almost led to the death of several of my people. If there was one person I’d have expected to banish, it was Snow Face. But, since we’d defeated our enemies, she’d changed entirely. Most days, she sat in the Working Grounds, building toys and dolls for the children to play with.
When Baldwin handed Lex the shovel, I took a step back, my hand hovering over my knife. Was I being paranoid? Something was off about her, and I wasn’t going to waste my energy worrying about being attacked when I had the entire Village to worry about.
“Lex,” I said, “hand Penny the shovel.”
She turned around, sweat dripping off the tip of her nose. “What? Why?”
“Because I said so,” I said.
With nostrils flared, she jabbed the shovel’s head into the dirt and used the handle to stand up straight.
“Not satisfied with my work?” she asked.
This was the kind of attitude that made me want to punch a woman in the face. But being the leader of the Village, it was my duty to remain fair and professional with everyone.
“You seem bothered,” I said. “Why don’t you go take it easy for a bit. Thank you for your help.”
She wiped her nose with the back of her hand—another gesture full of attitude. “I’m not bothered.”
Without saying anything, I arched both eyebrows at the shovel as a way of saying, I’m not asking.
“Just give Penny the damn shovel,” Baldwin said, two veiny hands on her waist. “You’re wasting our time.”
Lex scoffed, pulled the shovel out of the dirt, and walked toward Penny. But as she extended the shove with her right hand, a sour scowl replaced the cocky smile on her face. Without warning, she gripped the handle of the shovel with both hands and swung her body full circle, the metallic end coming straight for my face.
Everything happened so fast that I didn’t even realize what was happening. All I knew was that Lex was shouting something and I was about to get pummeled in the face with hard steel. I tried to step back, but I was too slow to pull away. Suddenly, a swift breeze tickled my face as the shovel’s head grazed the tip of my nose.
I blinked, trying to understand what had happened, when I caught Lex stumbling backward with Baldwin pulling her by the shirt. The shovel came crashing into the dirt as Lex fought to catch her fall, but what she didn’t realize was that she wasn’t falling—Baldwin was pushing her. With muscles bulging, Baldwin growled, and with the weight of her body, she pushed Lex straight into the electrical fence.
A blinding blue light exploded behind Lex, and flames burst out all around her. On instinct, I covered my face with my arm and turned away as sparks flew toward me. Heart p
ounding, I lowered my arm and found that neither Lex nor Baldwin were anywhere to be seen.
“Where are they?” I shouted.
Penny stood still, her mouth wide open and her eyes bulging. She was likely too traumatized by what she’d seen to react. Behind me, footsteps approached and I swung around to find Rocket and one of her diggers jogging toward me.
“What the fuck happened?” Rocket said, her eyes twice their usual size.
I opened my mouth to explain the altercation when something caught my attention. Against the Village’s wooden barrier smoke drifted into the air.
Curious, I stepped toward it.
Where was it coming from?
Then, I saw them—Lex’s and Baldwin’s bodies, both of which were stuck together and scorched beyond recognition.
CHAPTER 8
“Oh my God,” said one of Rocket’s diggers.
She covered her mouth and turned away as I swept a hand through the air, trying to clear the smoke coming off their bodies.
“Lex tried to attack me,” I said, “and Baldwin saved me.”
No one said anything. How could they? We were staring at two electrocuted bodies so charred they smelled like fried meat. Their clothing was burned, and in some areas, missing entirely. The back of Lex’s neck, where the wire had clearly touched, had melted through skin and muscle, revealing her spinal cord.
“Are they—” Rocket tried.
Pushing a finger up underneath my nostrils to block the smell, I nodded.
As the other diggers approached, Rocket yelled at them to turn around.
“No, it’s okay,” I said. “We need help finishing our hole. Penny, go back inside, and everyone else, split up evenly and keep digging.”
Two of Rocket’s diggers brushed past her and made their way over to my trench. As they walked, they couldn’t keep their eyes off the bodies.
“Let this be a lesson,” I said. “Our enemies are extremely dangerous. If we don’t shut this thing down, everyone in the Village is going to end up looking like this.”
As I said that, three thick droplets of water landed on my head. Both Rocket and I looked at each other, and before I could say anything, she said, “I’m gonna go to get more help, and I’ll get our fighters ready. As soon as those holes are dug out, we need to move.”
Nodding, I turned away and watched as my two new diggers started pulling dirt out, their bodies tilted as far away as possible from the lowest wire. The stance was so awkward it was a wonder how they managed to do any digging at all, but every time one of them pulled back on their shovel, the hole got deeper.
* * *
The women stood silently, weapons in their hands and eyes darting toward the burned bodies.
“It’s simple,” I whispered, pointing at the dug-up hole. “You crawl underneath, careful not to touch the wire above it. If you have weapons on your belts, I suggest you take them off. You don’t want any added bulk as you cross over. I’ll lead the way. All I need is for you all to watch my back. I’m hoping to take BlueVolt out with one shot, but the other two could be out there, waiting. Keep your eyes peeled and get ready to fight. And if anything happens out there, I don’t want you all running here in a panic. You saw what happens if you touch the metal.” I shot a glance toward Baldwin and Lex, or at least, what remained of them. “The last thing we need is for you guys to start shoving each other to try to get back into the Village. Does everyone understand?”
With grimy faces, they nodded, and I pulled my bow off my back. Bending forward in front of the trench, I threw it on the other side, along with my quiver full of arrows. Empty-handed, I dropped to my stomach and crawled underneath.
When I reached the other side, I picked up my weapons, pressed a firm finger over my lips, and signaled the rest of the women to follow. Both Rocket and I had already warned everyone that once we crossed over, no one was to speak a word. Being that we were moving around in the Dead Zone, we weren’t protected by full trees or curtains of vines. Any noise we made would travel quickly, alerting the enemy.
I hoped to God that BlueVolt, or the source panel, wasn’t anywhere near the back wall of the Village. Rocket and I had inspected the space before digging the trenches and there had been no sign of him.
“Hey,” Rocket mouthed, walking toward me from the other trench. Behind her, women followed with axes, spears, and even a few bows. Hopefully, they knew how to use the weapons. I’d seen several women practice archery in the Working Grounds, but how well would they do in battle? Practice shooting and firing at a moving enemy full of adrenaline were two very different things.
Jerking my head sideways, I moved forward, leading my people around the Village’s perimeter. We moved so quietly I had to turn around every few seconds to ensure they were all still following. As instructed, everyone searched the forest around us, their eyes darting from side to side.
It was a relief to know I had several dozen eyes looking out for me. Had I done this alone, I could have easily been blindsided. With two fingers, I pointed at my eyes and then at the fence’s metal wiring. As I’d explained to the women before—and as Player 1 had explained to me—the source of the power was coming from somewhere, which meant we had to keep our eyes open for a wire running from the fence and out into the jungle.
How far had BlueVolt positioned the source panel? Had he taken every precaution necessary and remained as far away from the Village as possible? I searched the ground, sliding dirt out of the way with the tip of my boot. It had to be here somewhere.
Behind me, half of the women stared at the ground as they moved, their heads bowed and their backs rounded. The other half kept their attention aimed at the Dead Zone around us.
The ground was moist but not wet—at least, not yet. Every few seconds, several droplets of water landed on my head, and every time I looked up, I expected to be blinded with pouring rain, but instead, the quickly forming clouds taunted me.
How long did we have?
As I walked, I kept tapping the earth with my foot. Sooner or later, I’d find something that didn’t feel quite right—a bulge, soft earth, or something hard. BlueVolt was obviously a professional, as Player 1 had indicated, which meant his setup wouldn’t be amateur. Without a doubt, he had covered his source wire quite well.
Where was this son of a bitch? How far out had he gone? We continued our way around the Village’s perimeter, passing the front gates and crossing the path that led to the Working Grounds. I kept my bow up in front of me, my metal arrowhead swaying from side to side as I searched the trees.
Suddenly, a sound caught my attention and I instinctively pulled on the elastic of my bow.
But the second I found the source of the sound, I realized we weren’t in any danger. Next to one of the dead tree’s roots was a white-striped squirrel, its fluffy tail whipping the air behind its body. It leaned forward, it’s little round butt aimed at the sky, and dug into the dirt as if trying to find a long-lost acorn.
I stopped moving and raised a clenched fist—a signal that meant, Don’t move.
The squirrel kept digging as hard as it could, coming up for air every few seconds. Jerking my head sideways, I moved toward it. Its ears twitched at the sound of my footsteps and it darted straight up into the nearest tree.
When we got to its digging spot, I saw it. Underneath the dirt, where the squirrel had dug a small hole, was a black, rubberlike tube. I bent down, and with my finger pushed aside a bit more dirt. The tube was long and seemed to lead from the fence and out into the forest.
“Got you, you son of a bitch,” I mouthed.
CHAPTER 9
BlueVolt had covered up his wire with leaves, dirt, and branches, making it almost impossible to keep track of it. Every few feet, we were forced to scratch away a patch of dirt to ensure we were going the right way.
Rocket pointed at the ground, ordering some of her Hunters to track the wire. As we continued, the wire led us across the Working Grounds’ path and around the Village’s wooden barr
ier.
He couldn’t be too far, could he? With my bow still held up in front of me, I led the way, searching the trees. Where could he be hiding? It wasn’t like there was much to hide behind in the Dead Zone.
As we passed by the Working Grounds, I cringed at the thought of all the dead bodies we had yet to recover. There was a good chance that prey animals had gotten to them first, and as much as it made me sick to my stomach to imagine one of my women being crunched by some wildcat, I couldn’t focus on that. After Player 1’s massacre, we’d been forced to retreat within the safety of our Village walls. Burials were something we would have to consider once all of this was over… if there was anything left to bury.
Suddenly, a crack of a branch pulled my attention away from the Working Grounds. It had come from up ahead, and although I didn’t see anyone, I was certain something was there.
An animal?
Or, was it BlueVolt?
I swung around to find Rocket nodding fiercely, her wide-open eyes aimed ahead of us.
She’d heard it too, and by the way my women were tightening their fists around their weapons, it was obvious they’d also heard it.
Bright blue light flashed overhead, followed by cracking thunder—it hit so hard that I felt the vibrations in my bow. A cold droplet of water exploded on the tip of my nose, and then another, and another. I glanced up into the leafless trees, squinting in time to avoid rainwater from landing in my eyes. The few droplets that had fallen had been nothing more than a warning. Rain exploded from the clouds overhead, drenching me in an instant.
We’d run out of time.
Jerking my head sideways as a way of saying, Let’s hurry, I darted forward, launching myself into a silent jog. Sneaking around was no longer an option. If BlueVolt was anywhere nearby, we needed to get to him before he attacked any women inside the walls.