Wonderful. I was stuck working with Croq, the one that had kept the Dark Walkers on me but I didn’t have a choice.
I waited until the soldier’s attention waned, and whispered, “We have to make a move before they get us in the new truck that’s coming.”
“I know.” He shifted about as best he could beside me, but the ropes didn’t have much give.
The years I’d spent as their prisoner left a scar that would never fade. “Whatever the cost.”
“You mean that?” he asked.
“Without hesitation.” Not without one hell of a fight, though. The guards had taken the knife at my hip, but I could feel the one at my ankle. “How many can you take?”
“I can’t take ten all at once,” he said in a tone of voice that declared us screwed and me useless.
I ignored the insult. “Can you take five?”
“What good is that going to do? I take out five and there’s still five left and we’re dead.”
“I can handle the other half.”
I could see him trying to get a good look at me before he said, “No way.”
“I don’t bullshit. If I say I can do something, I can do it.”
We both stopped whispering as one of the guards looked over at us. He stared for a few seconds and then went back to his conversation.
“Why are they staying so far away from us?” Croq said.
“I think it’s me. They know Zarrod needs me for something, but they don’t know what. They’re scared of what I can do.”
“They’re scared of you?” Croq said.
“Yes.”
I pulled my knees up even farther until they were tight against my chest and I could twist just enough to raise my pants and grab the knife. I moved my legs out slightly but kept my knees bent enough to provide coverage.
I put the hilt of the knife in between my legs and started sawing away, stopping every time I thought someone was looking. I sawed through the inside of my ankle ropes until there were only a few strands holding the binds together.
I slipped the knife over to him. “Cut yourself almost through. We’ll break the ropes at the same time when you’re ready.”
He started cutting through, stopping like I had when someone looked our way.
“Pick your five. I need to know ahead of time.”
“You’re crazy. We should just run for it,” he said.
“No. We take them out and then lie in wait for the truck. Otherwise they’ll just give chase anyway.” Running wasn’t my forte. I knew I should’ve worked on my cardio.
“No. We get away from here and hide, then we travel at night. These humans have shit vision,” he said, as if he weren’t speaking to one.
“No. I don’t want to wait.” The clock was already ticking. What if Dax was lying bleeding somewhere right now? “And give me my knife back,” I said as I saw him finish.
He angled his knees closer to me to hide the blade as he passed it back. “If it’s about your boy, he’s probably already dead. You should save yourself.”
“Shut your mouth. He’s not dead.”
“You two, stop talking,” one of the guards said, and started walking over to us, but stopped before he got too close.
I nudged Croq with my elbow. I caught the slight shake of his head out of the corner of my eye. And then the guard was standing in front of me. “What were you two talking about?”
Neither of us spoke, but he’d lost interest in what we were saying, his gaze dropping to my ankles. I followed his line of sight and realized I’d cut the rope too well. One of the ends of the rope was visible with its frayed end on the ground.
This was it. I either took him out in the next second or lost any edge we’d get from the surprise.
“Now,” I said, throwing off the ropes and attacking the guard in front of me. I hated killing humans who might be following orders, but there wasn’t anything to be done. If it were me or them, they were dead. Still, I stabbed him in the shoulder and then the thigh, hoping to put him out of commission for a few days and not eternity.
He fell to the ground, and the other nine soldiers were all staring at me and taking my measure while I stood and did the same to them, knife in hand.
“Croq, you take the four on the right,” I told him as I located targets on the five. “Croq?”
When I didn’t get an answer, I risked looking over for a split second.
All I saw was a glimpse of his back as he leapt over a log in the distance.
He ran. The fucking bastard ran. Fuck!
I pushed my annoyance to the side as I watched the soldiers fan out so they could surround me. They thought they were cutting off my path to escape. They didn’t realize that wasn’t my goal. The odds weren’t good, but I couldn’t run. I needed the truck that was coming to get to Dax.
I reorganized targets and locked in. Knock out the smaller guys first, because they’d be easier and get the numbers down. There were two smaller ones standing next to each other to my right, with a larger gap in between them and the next guy.
I had to move quickly before they came at me all at once. Knife gripped in one hand, I reached down and picked up a branch in the other.
“Put the knife and branch down,” the one who had a slightly different uniform said. “You’re going to get yourself killed.”
“You won’t kill me. Your leader needs me.”
“My leader isn’t here. You cause a problem, and I will kill you. I’m sick of waiting for some little twit to stroll across the border once a week. We’d all happily let you die if you give us a reason.”
I lifted my arms up, calling their bluff. “Then shoot me now. You have guns.”
“You think we’re stupid enough to not make it look like an accident? Now put down your weapons and we’ll deliver you over nice and easy. That or you die.”
They weren’t going to deliver me. This guy wanted me dead. He just wanted to make sure it looked like an accident. That changed things.
I looked back to my original targets. I’d planned on going for their legs, but I shifted my aim upward and swung into action. In a movement that was as smooth as a dolphin gliding through the ocean, I let my knife fly until it hit the middle of one man’s chest, while swinging my branch like a bat into the other’s skull. My chest was burning, and I’d moved quicker than I’d thought possible. I was yanking my knife out of the first victim’s chest before the others had taken more than two steps toward me.
I had a knife held to one soldier’s throat as I lifted his gun from his holster. A twig snapped as one of the men approached, but I knew there were two at my back I couldn’t see.
“You come at me, you’re going to die like the rest of your friends,” I said even, as I felt the burning in my chest start to flicker out. That was when I realized that even though Bitters’ potion had kept me going, it had merely disguised my weakness. I was sputtering out. I was running out of time.
They must have sensed something faltering in me, because the two soldiers at my back rushed me. I sliced my knife across the neck of the one I was holding. I took his gun, swung on the other two, and turned, pushing with everything I had. A knife flew into one chest as I aimed the gun at the other and backed up so I could get everybody in my vision.
“How badly do you want me dead? Because you’re going to have to shoot me.”
I watched the leader think it over, weighing the consequences of getting rid of me.
He didn’t have as much time to think it over as he thought. Ten beasts burst into the clearing, and I watched as Dax in his beast form ripped the leader apart.
I slumped against the nearest tree as I watched the bloodbath unfold. There were fewer men alive than beasts, and one beast alone would’ve made quick work of the six men left standing.
Dax’s beast started toward me, and I watched him shift back to human as he did. His skin was covered in dirt and grime, and I couldn’t stop from reaching out and touching him, checking him for wounds and seeing bruising all
over his torso.
“What happened?”
“After the crash, they boxed me in with gunfire.” he said, combing his hand through my hair. “They got a couple of lucky shots in before they showed up, and then it was game over, but you were gone by then.”
“How’d did they all get here?”
“Bart knew where I was going today. Some of them took it upon themselves to be nearby in case they were needed.” His hand wrapped around mine. “We’ve got to get back to the farm. They’re going to be coming. Zarrod won’t let what happened today go unanswered.”
He tugged me along as if he wanted to round everyone up and head out right then.
“No. I know a better way. There’s a truck on its way here. We’ve got to hide the bodies. Get them all back in human form and get into the soldiers’ uniforms.”
He nodded and gave the order. The beasts were shifting to human form, and I heard the word “truck” repeated a few times. Seemed most of them were embracing the idea of not having to run the whole way back. I knew I was. I’d make it, but it would be from sheer force of will, not because I had anything left in the gas tank.
The soldiers that had salvageable uniforms were stripped before they were dragged off behind some bushes.
It took a little positioning, but with the light fading, you couldn’t see all the bloodstains at first glance.
I sat against the trunk I’d been at before and Dax wrapped the rope around me, giving me the ends to hold it all in place.
“Keep your hands in your lap. They won’t see anything until it’s too late.”
* * *
I was sitting against the tree, ropes around me as we waited, and I was so grateful for the trunk at my back. Dax and the rest of them were all sitting in a circle waiting for the truck that was supposed to arrive. Dax looked over at me and gave a slight nod. I heard the sound of the truck rumbling five minutes later.
It weaved its way into the only clear path it could fit into. Two guys. That was all there were in the truck—probably all they thought they needed.
Dax stood up casually as the truck pulled in. Another one of the beasts in man form stood slowly after Dax was already walking toward the driver’s side. The man in the driver’s seat stepped out of the truck as if nothing was out of order, and Dax had him knocked to the ground and unconscious before he took his second step. Bart reached into the passenger side and dragged the other soldier out of the window.
I stood, trying to keep it together until I got into the truck. The beasts jumped in back as Dax took the wheel and we were driving home.
He lifted an arm, and I collapsed along his side.
“Rest. I’ve got you.”
Chapter 35
“How much wire do we have left?” Dax asked as we stood on the front lawn the next morning. I hadn’t slept more than a couple hours before I’d gotten up and started on the wall. Dax hadn’t even gotten that before he’d left to go try and round up as many more guns as he could.
“Not much, but I went over the fence and I think we’re as good as we’re going to get.” I watched as people moved around the farm. Some were setting up half-wall barricades while others seemed to be packing up horses, getting ready to leave. Dax had told them the second we got back, if they couldn’t fight, they’d better leave, because the Newco army was about to descend on us.
I folded my arms in front of me as the nearly frantic energy bubbled all around, and I tried to hold on to my calm. “They’ve got to get out of here soon. Zarrod won’t wait long.”
“They don’t have many options. A lot of places were wiped out with the last outbreak.”
There was only one place I could think of that might be safe, at least for them. “Send them to Rocky.”
Dax had one hand resting on the porch post as he turned his head toward me. “Dal, he knows what’s been going on, and we haven’t heard a word from him.” The set of his jaw told me all I needed to know about his opinion on that.
“He’ll do this. We saved his life. Send someone with a note that he owes us. He’ll take them in.” He’d better, or when this was done, I was going to head down there myself and kick Rocky’s ass.
“I’ll leave it up to them,” he said, and then he turned his head slightly toward the east.
“What?” I knew he was catching the sound of something I wouldn’t hear for minutes.
He listened for another few seconds before answering. “It sounds like a single rider coming in fast.”
“You think it’s one of Zarrod’s?”
“No. They wouldn’t be so obvious—or alone.” Dax raised his hand in a signal, and the guard opened the gate.
I heard the hoof beats myself right before a horse and rider came galloping across the lawn. They kept racing forward until they circled to a stop feet from the front porch. It was one of the younger women who was stationed along the watch Dax had set up a while ago. Her name was Brit, and she was about as quick as you got on a horse.
“They’re coming!” she shouted breathlessly, as if she’d raced the entire way here, which she probably had.
“How far out?” Dax asked as he stepped forward while Brit leapt down from her horse.
“They’ll be here by tomorrow. The pirates couldn’t cross them over the bay even if they wanted to. They’ve got trucks, so they’ll have to go the long way around.”
“How many?” I asked, as I came to stand beside Dax.
“At least a thousand.”
I pushed the hair back from my face and then knotted it into a bun. “They’re sending everything they’ve got for us.”
Dax nodded.
I’d feared this day for a long time. I’d sat on the back porch my first morning I returned here and tried to prepare for it. Now that it was here, there was only one thing that coursed through me, and it was pure terror.
Bookie came over, and with a nod from me, he knew the Newco forces were on their way. Then Tank, Bitters, and Lucy were there, along with Fudge.
Bitters pulled a funny cigarette out of his shirt pocket and lit it up. He was still holding back the drag he’d taken when he handed it to Tank.
“They’re going to wish they’d never set foot in the Wilds,” Tank said after taking his own drag.
“Too bad I can’t just tell them you’ll spread cooties in their room while they’re sleeping,” Lucy said.
All eyes swung to Lucy.
Hand on my hip, I asked, “You told people I spread cooties?”
“The rumor didn’t spread itself,” she said.
It seemed to take her a while to realize I was still staring at her.
“What? It’s not like I’m expecting you to thank me or anything.” Her head tilted back, as if she was trying to figure out why Bitters’ cigarette smelled so funny.
“Thank you?” I asked.
I saw her decide she didn’t want any part of Bitters’ weird cigarette and turn her full attention back to me. “Well, some people would thank me. I had to have something prepared in case you came back alive. Kept hearing about people dropping like flies everywhere, and I know how weird people get,” she said, seeming to forget she’d once been one of them. “Figured if I did that, they’d be afraid to mess with you.”
Holy shit. In Lucy’s warped brain, she’d been protecting me. Maybe not warped, since it probably had worked.
“Thanks.” I lightly bumped my shoulder into her. It was about as close to a hug me and Lucy would ever get.
“Don’t go getting all mushy on me now. I’ve got enough of that to handle with Bart,” she said. “Speak of the devil, looks like he needs me again.”
I watched her head over to where Bart had been helping work on a barricade, seemingly oblivious to Lucy until she was throwing her arms around him. A weaker man probably would’ve tumbled to the ground. Bart just held on and carried her off to his tent.
Our group slowly dispersed to go back to work.
I took a step toward the barricades, knowing there was only so much we c
ould do, but I was going down fighting. A hand on my arm stopped me, and I turned to find out what Dax wanted.
“Where you going?” he asked, the heat he was throwing off nearly boiling me where I stood.
“Upstairs?” I asked, hoping I was right.
His smile told me I was.
* * *
Dax was organizing the group that would leave for the Rock while I hefted more sandbags onto the barricades we’d formed.
I leaned back on the stack to look up as they boarded up the windows on the farm, leaving small slits to shoot out of. I walked around to the other side of the barricade to take my break, hating the image of what it was becoming.
I was taking a swig of water from my canteen when I spotted Tiffy heading toward the gate. I wasn’t stupid enough this time to think the guard was going to stop her. I didn’t know how she pulled it off, but I knew, just as she got there, that the guard would be distracted by something else.
Damn that kid. She was supposed to be getting ready to leave for the Rock. I screwed the cap back onto my canteen as I took off after her.
“Let me through,” I said as I was stopped by the gate.
“You aren’t supposed to leave the farm. Orders from Dax.”
“I can take you out. You know I can. So, you either let me leave now or you let me leave after you’re lying in the mud.”
I leaned a hip against the fence beside the gate and watched him like a hawk with a field mouse.
“Fine, but I didn’t see you.”
“Whatever, dude.”
I walked through the gate and took off in the direction I thought I’d seen Tiffy walking before the gate had closed on her.
When I saw her red hair in the distance, I yelled after her, but she kept walking.
“Tiffy!” I repeated, nearly tripping in the dark.
“Dal, don’t follow me,” she yelled back.
I was going to strangle her once I got my hands on her.
I chased after her, getting deeper into the forest until the moon couldn’t even be seen because of the tree canopy. Caught one last glimpse of her hair and then decided I couldn’t chance losing her, not now with the Newco army on its way. I used what strength I’d gotten back to lock on to her right before she disappeared.
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