Divided

by Kimberly Montague

  He put his hand on top of my hands, which were wrapped around his chest. "Hold on, we need to get back to my house fast."

  As he helped me off Boomerang, he spoke quickly. "Call Gabriel and tell him we're throwing a congratulations party for you guys for selling the house. Tell him to come over when he gets back. I'll call Sonya."

  With our phone calls made, he pulled me into the kitchen where his mom was doing the dishes. "Hey, Mom. So I thought Evie could come over early and help with the party tonight."

  Her wide eyes at Gary almost made me laugh since I knew she made that face way too often at the crazy things Gary said and did. But when she looked at my face, and I pointed to the prepaid phone in my hand, she nodded. "Walter!" she shouted, but kept eye contact with me.

  Gary's dad came running into the kitchen. "What is it? Is everything o—"

  Gary's mom put her finger to her lip. "Evie's here to help with the party tonight. Gabriel and Evelyn will be here soon, can you grab the steaks from the freezer?"

  He looked confused, a thin line formed between his eyebrows just like Gary when he was confused. I held up my prepaid phone and pointed to it. His eyes widened for just a moment. "Steaks, I'm on it. Gary, did you take the horses for a run today? You neglected them yesterday, and I've told you about that."

  "I just picked up Evie on Boomerang, but I haven't taken Lady out."

  Gary's mom put her hand on Gary's shoulder. "We've got everything under control here, why don't you take Evie out on Lady. Take her down past the Vaughn's stream. You know how Lady loves that area."

  Gary's eyes lit up, and he nodded. "Sure thing. Come on, Evie."

  I took his hand, and we were off again. He pulled the saddle off Boomerang and started getting Lady ready while I followed his instructions for brushing down Boomerang. It didn't take us long before we were riding toward Dev's house.

  "I hope Brian's out in the stable," Gary said loudly so he could be heard over the pounding of Lady's hooves. "It'd be pretty obvious if I knock on the door."

  "Do you think they've tapped our houses? Do you think they've gone that far?"

  His shoulders lifted in a shrug. "There's no way of knowing really. Better to be safe than sorry, I guess."

  I nodded as we rode slowly past Dev's barn. Thankfully, the other horses noticed us, which sent Brian out from the stables to see what the commotion was about. Gary signaled him away from the building.

  "Gary? I didn't expect to see you here. Evie? It's good to see you again."

  I waved and smiled.

  "She heard from Vaughn. He said we're all being watched, and we need to get out of here. The infection will spread through here again in a month. If you aren't busy, could you and Elizabeth ride over for dinner? We're calling it a celebration for The Cadenas, who sold their house recently."

  "Yeah, we'll head over as soon as we can. Dev—is he okay?"

  I nodded. "He's sick of fighting, but he's okay."

  The relief on his face made me want to hug him and made me so angry at the same time. The military had no right to keep Dev from me and from his family. It just wasn't fair.

  Gary steered us back to the house. By the time we finished seeing to the horse's needs for the night, Sonya came running into the stables.

  She threw herself into Gary's arms. "What's going on?" she asked, panic clear in her voice.

  Gary held her away from him and gave her an incredibly stern head shake before putting his finger to his lips.

  "What's going on is that Gary's learned to keep a secret." I gave a forced laugh. "Can you believe he was able to keep this surprise congratulations party from us for a whole week? He'd really matured, Sonya."

  She nodded at me and let out a completely fake laugh. "I never thought I'd see the day."

  We headed outside to the fire pit. Gary pointed around where we were standing and looked at me questioningly.

  I shrugged. "I think this is okay." In truth, I had no idea whether anything was tapped, so I looked to Gabriel, who was standing with Gary's dad at the grill. "Gabriel!" I called and waved him over.

  "Yes, child," he called back as he slowly walked to us.

  When he reached my side, he put his arm around my shoulders and squeezed. "What did he say, Evie?" he whispered.

  "He just said we're all being watched and we needed to be careful. I don't know if that means everything's tapped—I don't know."

  He was quiet for a minute as he rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I think we can't be too careful. Gary, how often do you sit out here?"

  He scrunched his face up and looked at Sonya. "Maybe once a month."

  "I think you're safe out here, just keep your voices low."

  I nodded and sat down on the bench beside Sonya. Gabriel stared toward Dev's house as Brian and Elizabeth rode over to us. Evelyn and Gary's parents came out just a minute later with folding camp chairs for everyone. When we were all seated, they looked to me.

  Planning a New Beginning

  I stared at my lap and took a deep breath. "Okay, well I had him tracked to either Memphis or Wichita, but—"

  "Whoa." Brian put his hand up and scooted forward. "What do you mean you had him 'tracked?'" The disapproval in his voice made me want to hide. He turned to look at Gabriel like he'd grown a second head. "You can't tell me you're letting her track him down!"

  "'Letting her' isn't exactly how I would put it, but yes, she wants to go after him—"

  "No! Are you insane? She'll get herself killed." His anger and frustration and fear made me cringe. "My boy would never agree to this."

  Gary looked at me before jumping into the fight. "With all due respect, Brian. He's not here to tell her no."

  "Well I am," he shouted at Gary before turning to me. "No. You will not go after him. He would kill me if I let you do this. And you can't possibly think you'll just walk in there and save him. No."

  I'd heard enough. Disapproval was tough for me to deal with, but being told what to do never sat well with me, especially when I knew that what I was doing was right. I stood up, and if fireballs could shoot from my eyes, they would have. No one was going to stop me from getting Dev away from the military. "I will do whatever I choose to do. I'm not some lovesick teenager who thinks she's gonna run off and save the day. I know more about this damn Infection than any three of you put together. I've breathed it the last several months. I will not leave him and my brother there to die like slaves sent out to be slaughtered." I pulled in a deep breath and tried to let go of the vicious tone my voice had taken on.

  When I felt a tiny bit more in control, I looked back at Brian. "I respect you." I glanced at everyone in the circle. "I respect all of you. But I am fully capable of making my own decisions. You can try to protect me and pretend I'm some little girl in need of shelter, but it's ultimately my life and my call."

  Brian got up and paced behind the circle of chairs shaking his head. A moment later, he stopped and faced me again. "You are a young girl. Dev would never allow this." He looked angrily at Gabriel again. "I can't believe you're letting her—"

  "Why do you keep talking to him like he has some control over me? Why do you think you have some control over me?" I shook my head and looked back at Sonya and Gary. "In fact, why am I continuing this conversation at all?" Gary shrugged and gave me a small smile. Sonya pursed her lips and shook her head. They were clearly wondering the same thing. I turned back to Brian, my voice even, but as firm as I could make it. "I make my own decisions, Brian. I'd like to keep you informed of my plans, but if you challenge me on this again, I won't include you at all."

  Brian seemed taken aback. He stayed outside our little circle looking angry, but Elizabeth scooted forward in her seat. "I trust your judgment, Evie. Whatever you have planned, I'll support. Please, what did my son say?"

  I nodded once and sat back down next to Sonya. Rolling my shoulders back, I tried to let the tension go. "He wants me to get everyone out of here. He said the projections show that the infection will hit Northern
California in a month and sweep down through Bishop again. We need to head for Montana, which is the least populated area. He said the Infecteds are drawn to people—killing people. So that's what we're here to discuss. All of you need to head for Montana. I'll go after Dev and meet you up there."

  Brian was still pacing outside our circle, but stopped to fold his arms across his chest and shake his head. "It's not like you're just going to drive by and pick him up, you know?"

  Elizabeth closed her eyes, and in a very terse voice said, "Brian, shut up."

  I ignored Brian and turned back to everyone else. "So we're packed up and ready to go, but the rest of you need to do the same. We have one large moving van only half full. I was thinking we can come by at night and pick up the furniture you really want to keep. Gary, I know you've got that small trailer you can put your necessities in. Elizabeth, do you have a trailer you could use to transport the things you really need?"

  She nodded. "Our horse trailer has storage in the front. Do we have someplace to go? I mean, you said Montana, but where?"

  "I have to research that and see what we can find." I looked to Gabriel. Planning strategy was one thing, but things like money and property were beyond my limited, barely-legal level of knowledge.

  Gabriel scooted forward. "Okay, let's talk money. We just sold the house. The money's ours on Thursday, which I plan to put in an off-shore account where Evie's money is located."

  I looked at him, my forehead wrinkled in confusion. "My money?"

  He nodded. "About six months ago, Harm put me in charge of your estate. You're parents' life insurance, your college fund, and the money from the sale of the house in San Jose are all yours. Harm has his own account he's built up with his salary from the military. He had your parent's financial advisor set it up and sent the message for me not to tell you about it until it was necessary. He knew you'd worry."

  Damn right I'd worry. The only reason he'd pass the job off to Gabriel would be if he thought he might not make it back to me. It made me feel the urgency of getting to Harm and Dev all the more. "We have to move fast. I have to get them out of there."

  Gabriel let his head fall to his chest. "That's exactly why he didn't want you to know." At my angry eyes, he waved his hands in front of his face. "I'm not arguing. I agree with you. I was just pointing out fact."

  "We have twenty thousand in savings we can pull out," Elizabeth offered. "I think we can cash in our retirement account, but I don't know how long that would take."

  "We have forty thousand we can pull," Gary's dad added. "It takes at least a week to get money from an IRA and that's after you've sent in all the necessary forms. We did that last month, just in case."

  I got up and walked over to Gabriel. Leaning close, I asked, "How much do I have?"

  His eyes widened. He put his arm around me and pulled me away from the group. "You've never been an extravagant kid, Evie. Harm knew you'd feel a little uncomfortable about the money, which is another reason I know he kept it from you. Are you sure you want to know now?"

  He was right, I wasn't good with money. I mean, I was great with handling my own money. I was an awesome saver. I bought things I needed, but unless I had a real use for something, I didn't throw my money around. I'd learned all that from Harm and my parents though, so I was pretty sure the amount in the bank would be high.

  I wasn't sure how I felt about having a lot of money. Money made people crazy and greedy. When my parents died, there were several family members who harassed Harm and me for handouts. It was really ugly and left a bad taste in my mouth when it came to money. But I had to know everything. I couldn't hide behind Gabriel. Squaring my shoulders, I looked back up at him. "It's time I take on the responsibility."

  He gave me that proud smile that made me feel a little more grown up. "A little over 613,000."

  My jaw literally dropped open. Gabriel chuckled at me and pulled me back toward the circle. $613,000. I could hardly comprehend the amount. Sitting back down next to Sonya, my brain whirled around. The others were talking about their own finances. Brian had taken a seat next to Elizabeth and was talking quietly to her. Gary leaned over, talking to his parents.

  "You okay?" Sonya asked, looping her arm through mine.

  "I—I think so. I just—I have a lot of money, Sonya. I don't know how to—"

  She laughed lightly. "Money doesn't make everyone a jerk, you know? Some people can handle having a sister with money, brains, strategic ability, and enough guts to take on every testosterone-filled, you're-just-a-girl-in-need-of-protection male. Money doesn't change you, it just sits behind you, backing you up when you need it. Think of it as another best friend in your corner."

  I turned to look her directly in the eye. "613,000 best friends, Sonya."

  Her eyes widened. "Wow. Okay, I see what you mean. That's—wow. That's a powerful best friend." She laughed again and squeezed my arm. "Stop obsessing over it and get back into the planning here. The fossils are breaking off into their own units when they need to be uniting under your leadership."

  I huffed. "They don't want me to be their leader, and I don't know that I have the energy to fight them."

  "Dev didn't want you to be his leader either, remember? He had to learn the hard way that you know your shit. So shut up and get back in there." She pulled her arm from mine and nudged me.

  Straightening my shoulders again, I let my voice project as much as I could. "Let's get back to the plan." Thankfully, everyone stopped talking and stared back at me. "So pull together what money you can." I pointed to Gary, Sonya, and myself. "We'll start researching a location. Pack up, but be sneaky about it. Don't make it obvious what you're doing. Make it look like everything is normal. Dev said they're watching us. I don't know exactly what he meant by that, but let's not take any chances. Don't talk in your houses, watch your phone and email conversations. Gabriel, we need to look like we're bumbling around on that message board, but don't know what we're doing exactly."

  He gave me a half smile. "I can put up a few stupid posts and start some arguments with other members who'll shoot me down and make fun of me."

  "Good." I turned to Elizabeth. "Let's say in two days, we'll bring the moving van around in the middle of the night and load up your things. We'll store the van back here where it has been the last two weeks. When we leave, Gabriel can drive the van, and—"

  "Nope," Gabriel said firmly. "I'm staying with you, kid."

  I shook my head emphatically. "I don't want any of you putting yourselves at risk. It's my decision to go after Dev and Harm. I don't need you following out of some misguided attempt to protect me."

  Brian spoke very clearly and, surprisingly, without anger. "He's my son, Evie. I'm going with you." He actually sounded really sad and definitely tired. "I won't fight you anymore unless you refuse to let me come with you."

  "Evie?" Gary called to me. "Look at me." His eyes were so sad, so worried, but so resolved. I knew the strong set of his jaw and knew he wouldn't back down from what I could guess he was going to say. "I'm coming with you."

  I nodded slowly at Gabriel, Gary, and Brian. Just as it was my decision, it was also theirs. I had to allow that. "Okay," I said quietly.

  Gary turned to his dad. "You can drive the moving van, right Dad?"

  His face was pained, and I felt really badly for him. "I can't—Gary, I can't let you go without me."

  Gary leaned over and put his hand on his dad's shoulder. "Mom and Miranda need you, Dad. I'm a big boy. I can take care of myself. I know you don't like the idea, but I need to know there's someone strong with Mom and Miranda and Sonya and the others, helping to keep them safe."

  Gary's dad let his head fall forward in defeat. We all looked a little defeated.

  "Are you sure Montana is the best option?" Gabriel asked me in an inquisitive way that, thankfully, wasn't the least bit confrontational. "Why not Canada or Alaska?"

  I thought about it a minute. It had been Dev's suggestion, but I was pretty sure Harm had
a hand in the location choice. "Well," I thought out loud. "In the limited amount of time we have and with the possibility that the military will try to prevent Dev and the others from leaving the country, I think this is our best option. We don't have to stay there if we don't want to, but it seems like the best place to hide for now."

  No one argued, which was a step in the right direction. "So," I continued, "we just need to find the property and figure out how to buy it without attaching our names to it."

  Gary's mom stood up. "I think it's time to get some food in our systems and open a couple bottles of wine. We can come back to this when we've had a moment to digest?" She looked to me with her question, and I loved her for the small show of support she gave me as the somewhat leader of our group.

  I nodded and smiled at her. She patted my shoulder as she walked back toward the house. Elizabeth and Evelyn followed. I stood up to stretch my legs and wasn't surprised to see Sonya and Gary following me. We walked quietly to the four-beam fence that formed a circle around the barn.

  "Well that was intense," Gary said as he put his arms around Sonya.

  I put my arms up on the top beam of the fence and rested my head on them. The sun was starting to set, making the sky glow. I wondered where Dev was and if he was fighting at that very moment.

  "Evie," Sonya said seriously. "I want to come too."

  I let out a loud sigh. I knew she'd want to stay with Gary and me. "I love you Sonya, and you're amazing. You know I know how amazing you are." At her eye-roll, I continued. "But Sonya, you can't fight, and you aren't a really great shooter. I'd worry about you, and that might be more dangerous for Gary and for me."

  She nodded sadly. "I know. I'm a liability. I just…" She stared at the horizon for several minutes before she quietly added, "I'm afraid to be away from you guys."

  I put my arms around her, and Gary put his big arms around both of us. "I'm scared too," I admitted. "But it'll all work out. I'm determined to make it work. Besides, it's not just me against the military like the adults seem to think. Harm is on that end and Dev. You know Harm and I think on the same wavelength when it comes to strategy. Dev will have told him what I'm up to, and I'm sure he'll have that factored into whatever he has planned on his end. We'll be okay, and we'll be together again in Montana."