by Belle Harper
He shrugged. “I’m sorry, I wish we could afford something nicer for you, Nova.”
I smiled and patted his shoulder. “It’s fine. Lets gets some rest. My feet are hurting, and I’m just so happy that I won’t be sleeping under the stars tonight,” I told him and lay down on the mattress trying to ignore the stains. “Not that I hate it. Don’t get me wrong. I love being out with you guys, but I’m not big on finding bugs in my clothes every morning.”
Ezra laughed.
I slapped him playfully on his arm. “Shut up,” I said as I rolled over to Noah who was laying next to me now, his hands behind his head. I looked over to his face and he had a big grin. “It wasn’t funny.” I growled playfully at him. But I remembered back to the second night out, when I woke up to a centipede crawling around in my pants, and I couldn’t get it out without stripping them off. Then Colton had to shake the stupid thing out of my pants, because it wouldn’t leave. That will give me nightmares for a while.
“It was a little bit funny,” Noah commented as he tried to hold in a laugh. I tickled his side and he laughed loud. He dropped his arms to defend himself against me.
Ezra joined in, and then the three of us heard a sound. We stopped straightaway. Fuck, Colton would be so mad already. We were supposed to be quiet, and already we are making a ton of noise.
“No more,” Ezra boomed loudly. “Get some sleep, boys,” he said with emphasis as if we were all male in here, and not two men with a female. When we heard no other sounds, we relaxed again. Must have been the house settling in for the night.
“Hey, sweetheart, we are moving out now,” Colton whispered into my ear. “I found a weak spot in the fence further up and we will just slip though there.”
I nodded gradually, rising from where I was lying. Noah was sleeping with his back against the wall, and Ezra was sitting and watching. He had last watch. I told them I would take a shift, but they wouldn’t let me, said I needed the sleep.
Colton helped me wrap my hair and face up. Noah gave me a big hug, as he did every morning. And Ezra held my hand and kissed my forehead.
When we exited onto the street, the sun had just come up over the horizon, and the cool morning air was fresh. I took a deep breath and steadied my nerves. It was quiet out on the street, no one was around as we started walking in the direction where Colton had found the weakness in the fence. That’s when I heard the first man yell. Then another, and eventually there was a crowd of men following us up the street. My head started pounding, I felt like I was going to fall over. Noah grabbed my arm and held me close as the guys boxed me in tighter. We started walking faster.
“Give us the girl,” one man called out. That started all the rest up and they ran toward us. We picked up speed and we ran as fast as I could. Ezra picked me up, my stomach rolling with the movement as he ran through small side streets following Colton and Noah behind us.
“Fuck,” Noah hissed as he almost slammed into us. “Run,” he shouted at Colton. We took a few different streets and found a few buildings. Colton and Noah tried all the doors, they were looked. Ezra tried the door closest to us. It was unlocked, so we all jumped inside. It looked like it was a garage at one point; a car was in the middle, and it was stacked to the brim with goods. Colton closed the door, and darkness surrounded us. The only window on the building was long gone and boarded up. The click of the lock sounded.
“Put me down, Ezra.” I whispered as I tried wiggling down but he held on tighter.
“Shhh…” Colton hissed at us. I couldn’t see a first, my eyes slowly adjusting to the dark.
I finally got Ezra to drop me, and I rounded the car. I crouched down low next to its large tire. I could hear the boys walking around looking at what was in here. This would last us a long time if we could get this car to work. Imagine having a car. We could go so much farther with one. I hadn’t seen a car in this condition in years. There were some people out there that did have working ones. Like the Red Raiders. They had cars, trucks, and semi’s. I didn’t know how they made them work, though.
“Nova,” I heard Noah call to me. I looked up and saw the three of them looking at the back of the building.
“Stay here and stay down. We are going to look for another exit. The door is locked. Just stay hidden.” Colton whispered.
I nodded and sank back to the cold floor.
How did those guys know I was a girl? Did I do something wrong last night? I know we messed around and were a little loud, but we stopped. Plus, it shouldn’t have taken those guys until morning to come find me. Shit.
At least I had my guys here. I felt safe with them. I worried about them so much. But they were doing everything they could. They had been gone about five minutes, when I heard a sound next to my head. I turned to see myself looking down the barrel of a shotgun.
“Don’t do anything stupid, boy. Slowly get up and show me your hands,” the deep voice said. He sounded calm. But the edge to his voice told me he was serious.
I felt shaky as I slowly got my legs to move. I stood up and held my hands up. I looked away from the man so he couldn’t see my face.
“What are you doing in my garage, kid?” he asked. I shook my head. Shit, where are the guys? Can they hear this man? I wanted to call out to them, but I didn’t want this guy to find out I was a woman.
“Answer me, or I will shoot you for trespassing,” he said. I turned to him and looked up. He was tall, like Noah. His dark hair had smatterings of salt and pepper and was slicked back. He had a beard that matched. He was attractive for an older guy. His arms were covered in tattoos, and he even had one on his neck.
“Take that shit off your face.” He jerked the shotgun at me. And I froze. Looking to where the guys had gone, I silently prayed they would be back. I felt a tug on my head. By the time I realized what had happened, I had lost my head covering and my hair was out. Freely flowing around my face and chest. The man gasped and dropped his shotgun. The sound was loud in the quiet space.
“What the fuck?”
I stood there frozen. I didn’t know what to do. Where was Colton? Ezra? Noah said they would be back fast.
“You’re… How… What are…”
I heard a throat clear. I turned to where I had last seen my guys, and Colton was standing there with his pistol drawn. The man turned and went to grab his shotgun, but he wasn’t quick enough; Ezra was there and was now pointing it at him. He raised his hands above his head and looked between them both.
“It’s a woman,” he stated. As if they didn’t already know. Colton slowly came forward until he was right next to the man, he never looked at me, he kept his eyes on the man. When he reached me, he held his hand out and I took it. He tugged on my hand and pushed me behind him fast. Noah came out of nowhere and held me tightly. Shielding me. Protecting me.
“Don’t hurt her,” the man said. I looked out from under Noah’s arm to see the man holding his hands out toward me.
“We won’t hurt her. We just need someplace to hide until we can leave,” Colton growled out to him, Colton was in . Ezra nudged the guy with his own shotgun and told him to walk. Noah followed them into the room they just came from. There was a small kitchenette and table with three chairs. A window high up let in light, it was warm in here. Like he had a heater on.
“Sit down,” Ezra told the man. He kept his hands up in surrender and took a seat at the table. His back was straight, his hands rested on the table palms down.
“Tell us how to get out of the wall from here. Where does the fence start and end?” The man just kept looking at me, his eyes never breaking from mine. Noah didn’t like it, so he pulled me to the other side of the room and sat me down on the floor. He sat down facing me, and acting as a shield. He was shaking. I pulled him in and kissed him softly, and he relaxed into me wrapping his arms around my shoulders.
“I thought... I was so scared, Nova,” Noah whispered into my neck.
“Hey,” I heard Colt yell. “Eyes here. Don’t you look at her.�
� He slammed his hand down on the table. And it made me jump.
28
Ryker
The long-haired blond guy in front of me slammed his hand down on my kitchen table. Mine. In my house. How the hell did they get in here? Fucking asshole.
“What are you doing with a woman?” I gritted my teeth. I looked him dead in the eye, not breaking eye contact. He got really close to my face and asked me again where the fence ended.
I glanced to the man behind me, who had my shotgun. As if this wasn’t a joke. How in the hell did I end up a hostage in my own house? His dark skin shone with sweat, and he had one blue eye. My guess was that would be from NEX. Like the woman, who had the longest white hair and biggest brown eyes. She peeked around the big guy on the floor with her and looked at me. When she saw me looking, she hid herself again.
“Are you here with them of your own free will?” I called out to her. The asshole in front of me growled.
She made a small sound and then called out to me. “Yes, they are my family.” Her voice was soft and sweet. Holy shit, I missed the sound of females. She peered at me again, her lips pink and full. Her cheeks a little flush from the warmth of the house. It was always hot in here. But those eyes. Fuck. The big browns peering up at me though her long lashes.
Is she real? Or is this a dream.
“Stop looking at her.” The one holding my shotgun spoke for the first time. He was getting agitated and with him holding my shotgun, I didn’t want to test him. He seemed to be getting upset with me looking at the young woman so I looked away.
“Where is the fence from here?” the blond-haired guy asked again. I turned to him and tried my best to explain how to get there. Where the weak points were. The thing was, I lived in the centre of Fort Esko, so they were shit out of luck. They can’t just walk out of here without getting noticed.
I could hear some noises outside getting louder. I looked to all the men in the room, and they were looking at each other. Wordlessly plotting their next plan. One that I wished I now was a part of.
“Hey, if you take me with you, I will show you where. But you have to take me with you.” All eyes turned on me and they didn’t look friendly. Except for the pair of browns peeking at me again. The large guy shifted to stop her from looking at me. I could just make out what he was whispering to her. Something about not to look at me. I couldn’t help the hint of a smile on my face when she peeked at me again, and this time she smiled softly at me.
Oh yeah, she was real.
The long-haired guy started pacing in front of me. He seemed like the one in charge and when I tried to move, he pointed his pistol at me again. I put my hands up.
“Look, if you take me with you, I can bring supplies. I have heaps of stuff in my Jeep.” I gestured with my thumb to the garage behind me. I wasn’t going to tell him my Jeep worked off solar and was slow as fuck. But it was better than being on foot.
He motioned to the guy behind him, and they pointed their weapons at me as they walked over to the woman. She looked young, maybe early twenty’s. But you could see in her eyes she had lived a long time. An old soul.
They started talking and I heard her almost yell a few times, my lip twitched at that. I liked her fire. The long-haired guy came back over to me.
“Give us your supplies, you tell us where the fence is, and we will let you live.”
I couldn’t believe this bullshit. I have lived here for twenty years and never once in that time had I been threatened in my own home. I threw my hand up in the air and stood.
“No, fuck this. You take me with you. For fuck’s sake you have a woman in your group. A real woman. I’m not asking for anything but to join you, and I can help you all. I don’t want her in this town any more than you do. That outside… That’s fucked up is what it is. We don’t have any women living here. And that’s why. It’s not safe here. We need to take her someplace, anywhere from here.”
It was quiet for a few moments before she stood up. She wasn’t very tall, just a few inches over five feet. She had the most amazing eyes and lips, I was drawn to her, like a moth to a flame. She slowly approached me and stood next to the leader of the group. She looked up at him.
“Colton, I say he comes. He can’t do anything to me with you three. But if he can get us out, then I say he comes with us.” The other two guys snorted and made sounds of disagreement. And the guy Colton just looked at me unblinking, I could see his jaw ticking. She touched his check, and I could see him ease into her touch. Ah, so he must be her lover. Lucky son of a bitch.
“Please,” she pleaded until he blinked and looked down to her. He kissed the top of her head, not taking his eyes from me. But he lowered his pistol.
“Get the shit.” He waved for me to go.
29
Ezra
“I don’t trust this guy,” I whispered to Noah as we followed him out into the dark garage. I didn’t know him, and for all I knew, he would lead us into a trap and take our girl. Our Nova.
Noah nodded and watched him like a hawk as he kept glancing back at Nova. The guy wasn’t blind; he could see how beautiful she was. No way he wanted to just be a friend. Dirty old bastard looked old as fuck. He could keep away from her. She is our girlfriend.
My nails bit into my palms. Nova either didn’t notice the way the guy was staring, or she was trying to ignore it. Shit, did we look at her like that when we first met her. No. He was a creepy old fucker.
“What’s your name?” she asked him. Colton had his body between her and the old guy at all times. He was shielding her at all times. It made me feel a bit better.
He smiled down to her and put his hand out to shake.
“Name is Ryker Jones.”
My heart hammered and I instinctively stepped up closer. He wasn’t going to touch her. No way. Then I saw he was not looking at Nova, but at Colton. Who took looked down at it for a heartbeat then shook it.
“I’m Colton.” I he practically spat out. Turning to us, he pointed “Ezra and Noah.”
He didn’t tell him Nova’s name. Good. I’m glad. Except for one little problem… Nova liked to talk.
“I’m Nova. It’s nice to meet you, Ryker.” Colton’s shoulders stiffened slightly and his fists curled as she spoke. Noah started to chuckle next to me. I shoved him with my shoulder. He looked to me and shrugged. I rolled my eyes.
“That woman will be the death of me,” I hissed out.
After a good ten minutes of Ryker grabbing stuff off his shelves and telling us what they were for, I was getting restless. We needed to leave already. And there was no way we could take half this shit. We had to get away first and this was too much. We could carry a tent, but not the rest of this shit. When he opened the door to his Jeep, he started shuffling things around in there.
“So, I assume they saw you all out there, yeah?” Ryker asked. No one said anything. “All right, so look, I am going out on a limb here to trust you all. And I hope you don’t fuck me over. Especially since I’m your best bet of getting out of here alive and with Nova in one piece. But once a month, I go trade at Eagle point. I trade shit for others too.”
“That’s like five days walk from here,” Colton said. Ryker nodded and pointed to his Jeep.
“Yeah but I don’t walk anywhere. I drive.”
The room went silent as the words seeped in.
Nova was the first to break it. “Oh, my God, yes. I hoped it worked. Can we drive it out? Can I drive it?” Noah laughed now, what is with these two. I rolled my eyes again and Colton narrowed his eyes at Nova. She playfully tapped his forehead where it creased.
“Look, I can hide you in here, say I’m going to trade when I leave. They like to know I’m coming back you see. I’m not due to leave until next Friday, but it’s not like they are keeping count of the days. Fuck, after doing this for the last ten years, everything blends in together. I’m sure they have no idea what day of the week it is.”
Oh, of course, I was stuck in the boot with Noah. A heap o
f stuff lying on me while Colton was in the back seat with Nova. They were hiding under a bunch of stuff too. I knew Colton was trying to keep the weight of stuff off Nova, and we were slowly driving down the main street to the front gate. The car wasn’t fast, that was for sure, but it worked. This guy was a genesis. I gave him that. It was fully solar-powered. But I guessed with all the weight it was not going to go screaming out the lot.
“Hey, man.”
I heard Ryker greet the guard at the gate. I held my breath, my heartbeat rising every second we were in this shit town Fort Esko. Come on, guy, let us out. I heard some talking and Ryker laughed.
“Shit, you don’t say? Well if it’s true, then I will believe it when they catch her.”
Fuck. Come on, go, you old bastard. A few slaps on the side of the Jeep, and we were moving again. I let out a deep breath and Noah looked to me.
“Shit, man that was close. You hear him?” he whispered. I nodded and I hate to admit it, but I was grateful to Ryker for getting us out. But I still didn’t trust the old guy.
The car slowed down to a stop. “Okay we passed the rise. It’s a lot slower going because I guess I have never really had four extra people in here, but you can all sit down on the seats if you want to be more comfortable,” Ryker announced. I couldn’t wait to get this shit off me. I was hot and it was stuffy under all this, especially next to Noah.
“I’ll sit up front,” I heard a small voice say. And in unison Noah, Colt, and I said, “No.” It made her giggle.
“I think it’s best if Colton sits up front. And you can sit in the back with your friends. Just help me move some stuff around, and we will be on our way. But don’t get any ideas of booting me out, all right? Trust here needs to go both ways.”
Noah grumbled and I agreed. At least I got to be next to Nova.