Aether (The Shadowmark Series Book 2)

by T. M. Catron

  “. . . she was there too. They could have grabbed her!”

  “Doyle said no. He has other plans.”

  Lincoln sat up. “Who?” he asked, working to keep the anger out of his voice.

  To his surprise, Halston responded, “Not your friend—what’s her name?”

  “Alvarez,” answered Baker.

  “I already told you: we know where she is.” Halston sat down to pick his teeth with his knife.

  “Then what are we doing here?” Lincoln asked.

  “Still got to have those plans.” He pointed the knife at Lincoln. “And you’re going to help us with that.”

  “Listen.” Lincoln straightened. “Why all of this now? Why didn’t you get them before the attack? Why didn’t Baker make us hand them over?” Lincoln paused. When neither answered, he asked, “Furthermore, why did you let the Army go as far as it did if you didn’t want people poking around in there? Why not attack sooner?”

  Halston arched an eyebrow. “You think we can control the invaders?”

  Lincoln stared at him. They weren’t going to let him go, anyway. “Why not?”

  Halston shook his head as the valley went dark. “I did try to stop you, remember? You were supposed to die in that tunnel. I don’t mind telling you I regret not shooting you all before I ran off, but let’s just say I wasn’t in my right mind.”

  Lincoln’s mouth went dry. “And now?”

  “Up to you. Cooperate, and we’ll let you go.”

  Lincoln doubted that very much. He’d guessed too much already, and even though he had no idea what the plans were for and why they were so important, if the silo was worth killing for once, it would be again.

  Day 102

  MINA HAD ONLY BEEN BACK in the woods forty-eight hours, yet she already felt more at home sleeping under the trees than sleeping in her tent at the lodge. Mostly she felt crowded living near so many people. In spite of the horrors she had witnessed in it, the forest offered its own kind of comfort.

  Avoiding the road, Mina crept along above it as best she could. She was going to start looking for Lincoln at the bunker. Alvarez, Nelson, and Carter had said this parkway would lead to the mine although Mina had used a different route herself. But she wasn’t sure she could find it again by cutting through the woods.

  Keeping the road on her right, she picked her way over the rough ground above it. So far Mina hadn’t seen anyone. But she remained on edge as she watched the surrounding woods. If hybrids wandered these mountains, they would spot her before she found them. But they had no reason to bother her, right?

  Lincoln was with a hybrid. What would she do if he was still with Baker when Mina found him? One thing at a time.

  Midday heat coated the mountain in a close haze. The air moved little. Thirty feet below, the road stretched away in a winding ribbon down into the valley. The heat radiated off the dark gray pavement. Mina paused to rest. She took a swig of water and eased to the edge of the drop-off. A squirrel scurried away from her to the nearest tree, scrambling up to a low branch.

  “Don’t worry,” said Mina. “I don’t have time to set a trap for you.” The squirrel sat still, watching her. She sighed and glanced down once more, just in time to see a person rounding a bend. She squinted. A woman in a dress, walking the road from the direction Mina had come. She carried a blanket over her shoulder. Emily. What was she doing all the way out here?

  Reaching the road from her position proved tricky. Mina wasn’t a great climber, and after she swung herself over the ledge to climb down to the road, she regretted not looking for a better way. Small rocks crumbled and gave way. Mina gripped the rock, her fingers turning white as she lowered herself down one bit at a time. She still hung ten feet above the pavement when Emily said in her child-like voice, “The rocks are dangerous, Mina.”

  Mina panted, her hands slippery with sweat. “Yes.” Five more feet. She couldn’t find any more footholds. She would need to jump. She took a breath and let go, her momentum carrying her backwards when she hit the road, and she fell back onto her pack.

  Emily stood there with her drooping right arm and dirty quilt over her left, watching Mina catch her breath. Emily was barefoot, but her calloused feet seemed comfortable even on the hot asphalt. She wouldn’t be able to travel above the road. Nervous about being on the road, Mina stood and looked down the opposite side, over the valley. Yes, they could hike down, instead of climb.

  “Come on, Emily, the road’s not safe.”

  “The rocks aren’t safe, Mina.”

  “I know.” They slid over the side into the trees. Despite her handicap, Emily nimbly used her good arm to catch herself going down.

  “What are you doing out here?” Mina asked.

  “I followed you, Mina.”

  “Why?”

  “The radiance which was once so bright be now forever taken from my sight.”

  Mina doubted Emily was talking about her. “Where did you learn that poem?”

  “A book.”

  “What book?”

  “Lost it.”

  “Okay. Which poem is it?”

  “Don’t remember.”

  “But you remember the lines—all of them?”

  Emily stopped and looked around at the trees. The stifling air closed in on them. “Yes, I remember all of them.” Her voice was softer, more womanly, her words more lucid than Mina had ever heard. But her eyes were glassy and her thoughts far away, locked in some other woman’s mind. Unwilling to interrupt and trigger an episode, Mina walked on. Emily followed in silence.

  By the end of the afternoon, Emily visibly tired. She slowed, slipping more than once on loose earth. Her bare feet tread heavily behind Mina, and she gazed ahead dully. Mina halted. “You need to go back to the lodge, Emily.”

  “Don’t want to,” she whined.

  “It’s not safe out here.”

  “You’re out here.”

  “Yes.”

  “You can protect me.”

  “What? No, Emily, I can’t. You need to go home.”

  “Home is gone.”

  “Did something happen at the lodge?”

  “No.” Emily wasn’t talking about the lodge. That wasn’t home. “Mina?”

  “Yes?”

  “Have you seen Eve?”

  Mina looked carefully at Emily. The woman’s eyes weren’t focusing, and she stood with her shoulders slumped. She must be very tired, Mina thought with a pang of guilt. She shouldn’t have let her follow. But Mina didn’t want to go back. She needed to find Lincoln.

  “Have you seen Eve, Mina?” Emily’s voice rose in panic, but she sat down with her knees drawn to her chin, rocking slightly.

  Mina sat beside her and put an arm around her frail body. “Eve’s doing just fine, Emily. I’m worried about you.”

  Emily continued rocking. “I’m okay,” she whispered.

  “How about we stay here tonight? I have some food.”

  “Not hungry.”

  “Please eat?”

  Emily didn’t respond even after Mina pulled food from her bag—mushrooms she had gathered and cooked yesterday—and offered it to Emily. She wouldn’t take it.

  They spent the evening there. Mina hiked down the mountain and found a spring. When she returned, Emily slept curled up on her side with her knees pulled to her chin, using the quilt as a pillow.

  Three hours of daylight left, and Mina regretted losing them. She watched over Emily a while, listening to the forest. Satisfied they were alone, she went searching for more food, leaving her pack next to Emily as a way to tell her she would return. Mina searched for berries and greens, glad that summer meant more food. She still hadn’t touched the stuff Doyle had packed for her. It was a last resort. Maybe she wouldn’t need it till winter. She hoped the food wouldn’t spoil—did alien food expire?

  Mina had given a great deal of thought to her food supply. Even though they camped in the South, winter would bring enough cold weather and snow to the mountains to be life-th
reatening. She estimated the weather could turn cold in three months. Anyone living outdoors risked exposure, and Mina’s thin clothing and meager tent would not keep her warm. Weather was a concern, but not having enough food was the most pressing danger. Once the growing season ended, she would have to rely on stored food. Pioneers used to salt meat and can vegetables to last the winter, but she had no vegetables to can and no place to store the meat.

  Lost in thought, Mina continued searching until a twig snapped below her. She froze, looking around. A large flying insect buzzed by, a woodpecker bored a hole in a nearby tree, and . . . nothing. Still, she’d been gone awhile, and the light was fading. She turned back to find Emily.

  When she arrived, Emily was in distress. The woman stood clutching her quilt, looking into the trees and turning in a circle.

  “What’s wrong, Emily?”

  Emily pivoted twice more before answering. “There was a man.”

  “Where?”

  “In the trees.”

  Mina visually searched the area but saw nothing unusual. She put a hand on her gun for reassurance. “Did he touch you?”

  Emily shook her head. Mina peered at her more closely, but the woman looked more refreshed than she had a couple of hours ago.

  “Are you sure it wasn’t a dream?”

  “No! He was there!” Emily pointed to the place where she had been sleeping. Mina looked and shuddered.

  Her pack had disappeared.

  “Have you seen my pack?” She rushed over to search the undergrowth.

  Emily looked puzzled, opening her hands. “I don’t have a pack.” Of course, she’d been sleeping. She didn't know Mina had left it.

  Someone had walked right up to Emily while she was sleeping and stolen Mina’s pack. Bears would steal backpacks for food. But Emily had seen a man.

  Mina checked the ground for prints, but vegetation covered most of it. And she had trampled the entire area with her own boots. Distinguishing others would be difficult. Mina searched anyway. No pack. The loss was devastating. She had lost everything but what she carried with her—gun, a cloth food bag, a small knife, and a water bottle. Her blanket, the alien food, a fishing net, water hydration pack, sweatshirt, ammunition, everything, gone.

  She paused to calm herself, hating she’d lost another pack. Emily seemed unhurt, merely shaken, and for that Mina was grateful. The thief had only wanted the supplies. But Mina had put her friend in danger, and a sour taste rose in her mouth. They needed to go back to the lodge.

  “Keep close,” Mina said. “We’re going to hike awhile.”

  They trudged through the woods until Mina was blind in the dark. They didn’t go near the road. Exposure was more dangerous than ever. So they camped in the middle of a thick stand of young trees. Usually, Mina avoided them because of bugs and snakes, but she needed to feel covered from prying eyes. A hybrid would be able to spot them unless they were sheltered completely.

  Emily spread out her quilt backside-up, preparing to sleep. The bright patterns on the outside would attract attention when Emily rolled up in it. Mina took the blanket and turned it over so she would be covered by the gray underside.

  “No, Mina, it’s the wrong way.” Emily tugged it out of Mina's hands and tried to turn it over.

  “Emily, we have to hide.”

  “No!”

  Her sharp voice carried through the trees, and Mina shushed her. “Do you want that man to come back?”

  Emily whimpered and said, “Has to be this way.”

  “Please let me fix it,” Mina whispered.

  Emily began wailing, her cries echoing in the quiet night air.

  Mina panicked. “Okay! I won’t touch it. Shh.” Emily still sobbed. They were going to have to move again if she didn’t get quiet. Except Mina couldn’t see to find something else. “Emily, please. It’s okay. I’m sorry!”

  Emily’s weeping faded to a whimper. She sniffed loudly as she fixed the quilt like she wanted it and lay down. Relieved, but concerned someone had heard them, Mina sat down facing Emily with her back against a tree, and drew her gun. She kept her hand on it, its weight reassuring in the darkness. When had she become so comfortable with it?

  She sat awake the remainder of the night, jumping at every sound. When the first rays of light allowed her to see their surroundings, she woke Emily and led her out. Mina intended on going straight back to the lodge. She pushed Emily as fast as she dared, watching her grow tired and listless once again as the day wore on. She hasn’t eaten anything, Mina thought. She doesn’t have the energy to do this.

  Mina halted mid-afternoon, exhausted and frustrated at their slow progress. At this rate, they would need twice as long to get back to the lodge. She thought about the parkway. It had been empty before except for Emily. And Emily had used it without trouble.

  Mina weighed her fear of being followed against her fear of running into someone on the road. In the end, she decided to take Emily up to there that evening. They could rest in the afternoon and walk the road at night. If someone saw them, well, Mina couldn’t do much about it at this point. Quickly hiding herself was one thing, hiding Emily on short notice quite another.

  That evening, Emily hummed as they walked, her voice soft and soothing. Mina glanced back often as they made their way along the road. If necessary, they would walk all night to get back to the lodge. Emily was silent except for the humming, and Mina watched her closely for signs of fatigue. But they stopped little, the ease of traveling on the road a pleasure walk compared to fighting their way through the woods.

  Around midnight, they rounded a turn in the road and saw four people in the faint moonlight. Mina grabbed Emily and scooted her against the rock wall. Emily’s eyes grew wide when she saw the strangers. Although difficult to see in the gloom, the band looked like they were walking away. In another moment, Mina was sure that’s what they were doing.

  “Did they see us?” Emily whispered. Her hand trembled as she touched Mina’s arm.

  “I don’t think so.”

  The women waited beneath the road, giving the group time to draw farther away. Emily even dozed sitting against a tree. Mina could not be so comfortable.

  Morning dawned golden and bright. When they reached the lodge, Mina headed straight for her old tent. Nelson sat boiling water in a tin can. Carter slept inside the tent, his every breath a jarring, hoarse grunt of pain. Although the tent was zipped close, flies buzzed around the mesh windows, clinging to it, attracted by the smell. Emily hung back at the sight of Nelson. Mina explained the last three days in five minutes. She left out the part where her pack was stolen.

  “Who’s Emily?” Nelson asked, pulling the can off the fire with a wire hanger.

  Mina turned to introduce them, but Emily had left. She frowned and looked around the campsites. “Maybe she went to see Helen. Where’s Alvarez?”

  “She’s in the lobby with Solomon. There’s a game going on.”

  “First thing in the morning?”

  Nelson shrugged. “A bunch of them are in there.”

  Mina didn’t know what he meant by them until she walked in a few moments later. Three tables had been pushed together for one large card game. Eight people sat around them. Solomon, Marty, Iverson, two men, and three women. One man was another lodger Mina recognized by his wide-brimmed hat. She didn’t know his name. Four strangers then, armed with rifles and sidearms.

  The atmosphere, usually good-natured and cheerful, hung tense and somber. Evan stood against the wall behind Iverson, watching intently. Other lodgers watched, too. Alvarez stood behind Solomon, her knuckles white on the back of his chair. A variety of items lay in the middle of the players—a knife, a handgun, two pairs of boots, and even a sleeping bag, among other things. Mina recognized the knife as Marty’s.

  “Fold,” said one of the strangers, a brown-haired man with a crooked nose. He placed his cards on the table and sat back, intending to watch the rest of the game.

  Another man placed a box of .40-caliber a
mmunition on the table. One by one, the players laid down their cards. One of the women won with four queens. She gathered her winnings as the game broke up. People left the room in twos and threes, with a little whispering and many serious looks exchanged. Solomon motioned to Evan, saw Mina, and raised his eyebrows at her. She led them out.

  “I’m guessing you didn’t find your brother,” Solomon said when they went outside.

  “Just Emily. I had to bring her back. What’s going on?”

  He motioned for Mina and Alvarez to follow him to his campsite. His small tent was open. It looked a bit empty.

  “Was that your sleeping bag you lost? Why did you gamble that? You’ll need it!” she said.

  “Keep your voice down,” Alvarez snapped. “He didn’t have a choice.”

  Mina looked at both of them. “What’s going on?” she asked again.

  “Everything’s okay, Mina.” Solomon turned his puffy eyes on her. “The others joined the game late last night. We let them because they had some good things they were willing to put up—a portable propane tank, a jacket. They won the first few rounds, and then Marty and I were working to get our stuff back, and Jake got a little carried away.”

  “Jake—the other lodger. What’d he lose?”

  Solomon sat down near their tent. “His hotel room.”

  “Why would he put that up?”

  “He wanted his boots back.”

  Mina’s mouth opened in shock.

  “Decent people wouldn’t have let him bet on his boots,” Alvarez said, shaking her head.

  “Did the same person win everything?” asked Mina.

  Solomon took a swig of water. “No, but Iverson or those other four won everything. I didn’t win a hand at all, and neither did Marty or Jake.”

  “What’s Jake going to do?” asked Mina. No boots and no shelter. Then she thought of something. “Doesn’t he share his room?” None of Springwater Creek’s rooms had less than two people. Most had four, some five. The rooms were too precious not to fill to capacity.