by Dawn Chapman
“Does it taste as bad as they say?”
I swallowed, remembering the first time I’d been handed this for pain relief. I grimaced at the memory. “Yes, it’s really awful stuff.”
“But your hip?”
“I need it, yes. It’s addictive to some and has killed many. But I restrict the use, gotta keep my mind clear and my body healing.”
“Then I won’t ever touch it. Unless I’m in dire straits. Any water in there?”
I pulled out a bottle, handing it over. Our hands touched for the briefest moment. “You’re engaged?”
“A little personal for our first day on the road, no?” I seemed to like drawing out his embarrassment and smiled, trying not to be the harsh woman I knew most guys thought I was. “Yesterday, my ex decided he didn’t want to lose me ever again, so he gave it to me.”
“You accepted his proposal though, right?”
I guess I did. I’d said I would marry him on my safe return, so I just nodded. “You? Do you have a someone back home?”
He shied away. I for once wasn’t sure on getting an answer. “Can we leave my home life out of this?”
I slid past him, deciding myself not to part with any more personal information. “Sure, if that’s what you want.” He may be good looking, but he was an ass.
The passenger side of the Hog was more comfortable for my hip than driving. I quickly ran through the instructions with Alex. Soon, he was slowly pulling away with a grin on his face. “I’ll be fine, just tell me which direction. I’ll stick to it.”
I flicked the side panel viewer towards him so he could see it better and traced a new red line down the side of the screen. “The little blue image, which is us, is here. Keep following the line, and you’ll be okay. Sound good?”
He nodded. “I can do that. Rest your eyes. If you really need to take over later on, you’ll feel better.”
I wasn’t sure if this was a genuine concern of his that I was actually fit enough to drive him, or if it was his need to complete this quest. Maybe a little of both.
I eased back in the seat, drank some water, and closed my eyes. The driving had calmed my thoughts. We were already making some real progress. I had everything we could ever need, so sleep took me. Driving and the rocking motion always made me feel better, I loved being on the road like this. Flitting memories of being with Dail swept through me, turning to dreams.
It was a little while later I noticed the movement of the Hog had slowed somewhat. I opened my eyes, glancing out at the road.
“Welcome back,” Alex said. “I was just going to try waking you.”
“What’s going on?” I asked, noticing the droves of people walking towards us from up ahead.
“I don’t know, but it doesn’t look so good. Should we move off the road?”
I nodded, pointing towards an open grassy area. I checked the map. “You haven’t deviated at all?”
“No, followed the plan the map directed me on. It seemed easy enough, but getting here, there were more and more people about. Then I saw those ahead.”
The number of people was what worried me the most. Hanson’s estate had a lot of workers, but not this many. These looked to be refugees by the amount of gear they had strapped to their backs, and the small carts of children they tried their best to push onwards.
“I need to go ahead and ask someone what’s going on. Will you stay with the Hog? Do you have any weapons or know how to use them?”
Alex loosened his jacket. I could see two daggers, probably one of which he had at my back earlier. I nodded. “Good. If anyone approaches, don’t speak to them, don’t say anything about where we’re going, or what we’re doing. We’ve no idea who they are, or where they’re from, I don’t suddenly want us being mobbed on the roadside.”
“Is the Hog sturdy enough to stand on?”
“Yes. We modified it a while back. There’s a harpoon we’ll need to set up later before the plains. It’s seen as a threat in the cities. I keep it under the seat until I need it.”
“I’ll watch you from the rooftop,” he said, moving to climb out.
I made sure the Hog was totally secured, and he was safe where he was. I walked to where the nearest approachable person was sitting with her small children.
No sooner had I approached the woman had she grabbed her kids, pulling them to her. I made sure my hands were visible in a gesture to show I meant no harm.
“Hello there,” I said. “Mind if I ask what happened? Why are so many people on the road?”
“Henson refused to put the cattle out early this year. The Tromoal are restless. They started to come in. There was no food for them, so they turned onto the estate.”
“What? Why would he be so foolish?”
The smallest of the children started to cry, and the woman hugged her tighter. “I don’t know. He’d been going on for months about us not pulling our weight, making us work longer hours for less pay. He’d said there wasn’t enough money to buy the extra food for them. When the first Tromoal came looking for dinner, he attacked the nearest farmstead with cattle. Their owners all died in the initial wave. We’re not sticking around if he can’t provide the food for them, as we would become their food.”
A shiver ran through me. This was awful news. “When was the attack?” I knew by the distance we’d travelled it must have been a while ago, but I needed confirmation.
“Two days ago. We’ve been looking for somewhere to go ever since.”
I glanced back at the Hog, worried for Alex, but he was okay, just watching me like he said he would.
“There’s not much on this road for miles,” I said. “You’re better taking the kids and turning east, going across the land into the forest. There are some decent towns out there. Maybe you’ll find refuge. But if the Tromoal aren’t getting fed, they’ll come looking either way. I’m not sure anyone in this region is safe.”
The woman looked at her two kids, a girl and her older brother who stood listening. “You can’t take them with you, can you?”
I knew this might be an issue. I could see it in her eyes. “I’m crossing the plains. They’d be no better coming with me. Get them east.”
I turned, walking back to the Hog, my mind heavy with the worry of our next few days.
Alex hopped down in front of me, his eyes full of concern. “What is it?”
“There’s no food for the Tromoal.”
I saw his face drop. I moved to the side of the Hog to rest my aching hip on its backdoor.
“What can we do?” I felt the weight of his body ease against the metal work, and I looked out to the horde of people heading our way.
“Our quest doesn’t change. We can’t do anything for them. I sure can’t find food for a thousand Tromoal. We’ll drive through them and just keep on going.”
“There’s no food at all?”
I shrugged. “The woman didn’t seem to know, but once the local villages started getting attacked, they thought it best to run.”
“Seems odd, don’t you think, that there’s nothing to give them, with the number of years he’s held onto this land?”
“I couldn’t agree more. But we don’t have time to figure any of it out. I need to get you to Port Troli.”
Alex nodded, but his lips curled down. “I wish there was something we could do. There are whole families on the roadside.”
I couldn’t help it and snapped. “Why the hell do you care? They’re no one to you. Just food to keep the Tromoal from biting your ass.”
He looked shocked, red rising up the sides of his neck.
I tried to retract it. “Sorry, I didn’t mean it. I—”
“Look, Maddie, I don’t know what bad experience you’ve had before with my people, but I promise you, I’m really not like that.”
With swift reflexes, Alex opened the back door. He pulled out the package he’d brought with him. The package and virtually nothing but the clothes on his back was all he had with him. “You never asked me what
was in the box,” he said, handing it to me.
Taking it, I could tell it didn’t weight much. I opened it carefully. Inside was a note, a cuddly handcrafted toy, and a jar. Written on the front of the jar was the word Mytoxoloth. “This is a potion for a sick child?”
Alex took the box back from me. “I met her when I first entered Troli. It was my starting city.”
I felt my hand shaking, holding onto it with the other. I was really not sure if I wanted to hear any more. My experience with visitors was so vastly different than this. He couldn’t be this nice a guy, he just couldn’t.
“You didn’t need to do this, did you? Take her the potions?”
Alex shrugged. “I was out of my depth. Melee’s older sister, Jenni, helped me. I owed her something. When I heard Melee was sick, what she needed and that I was heading back to Troli anyway, I had to pick it up.”
“It’s expensive,” was all I could manage to fumble out. These potions were vastly more costly than the addictive ones I passed about, or even the one I drank daily.
“I know. It doesn’t take away how important to Melee and Jenni they are though, does it?”
I watched him put the box back in the Hog. “Come on,” he motioned. “We’ve a long way to go yet.”
Chapter 5
I drove steadily through the growing tide of people who were leaving Hanson’s estate.
There were such vast differences in the appearance of some of them that I wondered what the living conditions were like. Half of them looked starved. How could a guy with his amount of money and power grow so desperate to not feed his staff?
About an hour later, after we’d passed the last of the fleeing workers, I noticed the ground had changed colour. Not so green anymore. Was there a reason things had taken a turn for the worse? Had no one noticed or offered support to Hanson?
Without seeing anything untoward, Alex placed a hand on mine, easing it back from the steering wheel. “You’ll injure yourself if you grip it any tighter.”
I saw the lack of blood flow as he massaged it gently with his own. I pulled away from him and jerked the wheel to the left. “I’ve got to go see ole man Hanson. I promise it won’t add any time to the journey at all, and then I’ll message Dail.”
“Dail?”
I tapped the ring on my finger, watching as Alex turned to look out the window.
A moment later, I pulled into the long driveway of the Hanson estate. I’d no idea what I might find or where Hanson might be. Had he abandoned the place like his workers?
I opened the door and was about to get out. “Want some backup?” Alex asked.
I leaned back. “If you let me do the talking.”
After he opened his door, getting out, I locked the Hog. We walked together up to the estate’s main door, finding it open. I placed my palm on the panel, either way, just to see if anyone answered the call. Nothing.
“His office is on the fourth floor.” I stepped inside. “Just keep your eyes open. Maybe we’ll find some answers.
The answers I hoped for were strewn around the hallway. Discarded remnants of food jars, pans, even cutlery. This stuff was still worth a fair bit on the trade market.
I edged closer to the stairs. It was eerily quiet. I didn’t like it. I took one step up at a time. A beautiful double-edged stairway stretched into one smaller hallway. Then led up three more flights. It had been a while since my last visit, but I knew the layout to his office well enough. My heart rate was rising with the staircase. Coming to the fourth floor, we realised we’d not seen a soul or heard a sound.
The large wooden office door loomed ahead, allowing light into the hall, dust motes floating in it. I loved this home. I’d been here many times crossing the desert. Spent some good days in his bath spars and of course his bars.
Forward I went one step at a time, my hand ready to flick out my blades if anything ran at us. When I got to the door, Alex stopped me. I watched as he took the lead. He stepped inside the room and then popped his head back out. “Maddie, you don’t need to see this. I’ll go to the desk. There’s an envelope on it.”
I almost pushed past him but decided to trust his judgment, catching a whiff of the stench that breezed into the hall. Whatever was in that office was dead and had been for quite some time.
Alex returned a moment later with the opened envelope.
It wasn’t addressed to anyone, but it was in Hanson’s writing.
I took out the letter, reading it.
“The farm’s being poisoned. The cattle are all dying. There’s nothing I can do to stop it. We’ll all be dead by spring, if not when the Tromoal arrive. There’s nothing left. I’ve tried. I’m sorry.”
“He committed suicide. Looks like he took his family with him.”
I felt burning at the back of my throat. “He had three daughters and several grandchildren?”
Alex swallowed then shivered. “I hope I never see anything like this ever again. Let’s get back on the road. There’s really nothing we can do here.”
I followed him back down. Numb. The stairs seemed steeper than usual. I felt Alex’s hand on my back when I wobbled, nearly losing my footing. He helped me into the passenger seat of the Hog, and I strapped myself in tight. Memories flooded my mind, eating with Hanson’s family, laughing, drinking. If he could do that to those he loved… I couldn’t process it, at all.
I slipped off my ring, instantly feeling the drop in energy and buffs. I placed it on the dashboard. If someone could murder his whole family, then what chance of real love did I have? I was better off without the ring and without Dail. I reached for the only other thing that might ease my pain. Alcohol.
Alex didn’t stop me. He started the engine, driving us off the estate, following the alighted path once again, even though it had begun to get dark. I offered him the bottle. “It’s fine. You drink. I’ll drive for a few more hours, then we’ll stop. Sleep.”
I took one more swig and put the bottle away. I couldn’t get that drunk, or I wouldn’t be able to defend us if the situation arose.
I tapped the screen, changing our heading. “Follow this route. It will be even closer to the mountain range, but with the Tromoal looking further inland for food, we’ll be safer.”
“Their loss is our gain.” He sighed, and it was his fingers that gripped the steering wheel this time. I took the plunge and reached for his hand, tugging it off the wheel.
“Neither of us can lose our focus,” I said. “We’ll get to Troli, I promise you. Melee will have her potions. The quest will be completed.”
Alex focused on the road. I let go of his hand. Reaching inside my mind, I called my screen up. I ran through the small list of people I had in my contacts for Dail’s personal number. I tapped it with a thought, and it popped open.
I typed the message I wanted to send him, calling off our engagement. Then I deleted it, and I typed: There’s no food at Hanson’s estate, everyone there is dead. The workers have abandoned the fields and are heading inland. There’s nothing to feed the Tromoal. Get everyone you know to a safe haven, out of the runner’s quarters. Stay safe. I’ll be there as soon as I can.
When I hit send, I shivered and reached for the blanket.
I saw Alex shiver too. “Pull over there.” I pointed to a small copse of trees. “We’ll stop for a while. We’ll eat then we’ll get some rest. When we’re both feeling better, we can drive on.”
Alex eased the Hog off the road, under the tree line. I rummaged in the back and found some dry rations. Handing him some of the packs, I opened one myself. It had been a long day.
“Thanks,” he said, when I passed him a water flask.
“No, thank you. I think I’d have lost the plot if I had gone in Hanson’s office.”
“Did you know them well?”
“I’ve been running through his estate through to Trox for many years. His daughters were about my age. We’d had some fun. The fact he took their lives as well as his own, I can’t...”
“I
’m sorry,” was all he could muster. “Do you have any idea why?”
“I think it’s down to shame. He couldn’t provide for any of them. He tried, but couldn’t. Pride, money and loss, they were all too much. I’m just glad he didn’t poison the whole estate. At least when the workers found him, they fled, and then word spread with the attack on the outer fields. It seems this has been going on for some time. There had been some attempt to cover it up. But no amount of that would ever take away the fact the place here was dying.”
“A neighbour trying to start a war? Maybe?” he asked then retracted it. “No, I think that would just mean the Tromoal would make the choices. After all, what are they going to do now?”
“They’ll still find food. There’s plenty about, just further out of their zones.”
“Exactly.”
When Alex quieted down, I passed him over half the blanket and the bottle of booze. He took another swig, and I followed with some pain relief.
Sleeping in the Hog had never bothered me mostly because I kept the drugs at hand. Had I ever considered I was an addict? Of course. At the earliest stages of my treatment, I was supping it like water. Now, it was barely every few hours, and so there was only a dull ache instead of that constant nagging and the urge to hit someone.
A ping in the side of my vision alerted me to a message.
“Was that an internal message?”
I nodded, not knowing how he knew that and opened the message: Maddie, what the hell’s going on out there? Hanson’s dead, his whole family? I can’t believe it. Are you okay? Sod taking that damned package. Head back here, now. The Tromoal will be one hundred times more likely to go for the Hog without a food supply.
“What’s he saying?”
I noted the turn in Alex’s face. “He wants me to head home, not to follow on with the drop.”