by E S Richards
Linda swallowed back a sob that threatened to escape from her throat, her eyes now watering for another reason. Mia’s words truly touched her, and she forced them to sink in, processing them and believing them. Her daughter was right. Jerry may be dead, but there were still other people she loved who were worth fighting for. She couldn’t just give up now and let her sorrow consume her. Linda had to keep fighting and make sure that no one else in her family went the same way as her husband.
“Thank you,” she mouthed to Mia, appreciating the kind words.
Mia returned her mother’s smile, bringing her to the end of the short eulogy and the close of the little ceremony. Turning her head to Blake and the others standing by the grave, Mia nodded in their direction and those of them with shovels all solemnly swiveled and started to shovel dirt back into the grave. Jerry’s body was slowly covered by the earth, returning the small patch of yard to a relatively normal appearance. None of them would ever be able to forget who was buried there though. They planned to erect a gravestone in the coming days. For now, the raised mound of dirt was evidence enough. There lay Jerry Clarke, husband, father, grandfather, and hero.
As the family and friends made their way back inside, Chase hung back to enter the house again with Leo, Vic, and Marcus who brought up the rear. The non-family members had all volunteered for their part in Jerry’s burial, happy to help out and make the process easier for everyone else. Still, Chase saw it as his responsibility to thank them. His grandfather was dead now, just like his father. By default, that made him the man of the house, and even though he was only sixteen, Chase was determined to act appropriately.
“Thank you.” He bowed his head graciously to the three of them as they stomped the snow from their boots and entered through the kitchen door. “I really appreciate your help, guys. I know Mia and my grandma do as well.”
“Please don’t thank us, my friend,” Vic replied with a shake of his head. “It is an honor to be a part of your family’s goodbye. We are all just happy we could make the process a little easier on the four of you.”
“Yeah, don’t mention it,” Leo added, his response slightly less eloquent while bearing the same exact message. “We’re here for you, man, anything we can do to help.”
“Anything,” Marcus echoed, not as close to Chase as the other two were and so taking the three shovels and returning them to the mudroom while everyone else went into the front room to warm up by the fire.
“Do you want me to brew a pot of coffee, Grandma?” Chase asked, concerned about the chill that had likely sunk into the old woman’s bones from standing in the snow.
“Good idea,” Mia replied to him. “I’ll give you a hand.”
While everyone else found a seat in the front room—though leaving the area where Pop used to lie untouched—Mia and Chase worked beside each other in silence in the kitchen, brewing some coffee and finding some food for the ten of them to eat. The pantry was growing scarcer by the day, their limited food rations not going unnoticed by anyone. Pretty soon something was going to have to change, or they were going to have to find more food from somewhere.
“We’ve got some things in the Jeep that can be brought in,” Mia remarked, she and the three college boys having stopped off several times when the saw appropriate places they could stock up from on the drive over. “Though I imagine they’ll need a fair bit of it for their journey up to Philly.”
“When are they planning to go?”
“I’m not sure,” Mia shrugged. “Jesse’s shoulder is still pretty bad, so I think they’ll rest up here for a couple of days first. I’d like them to, at least. They’re all good guys, Chase. They can help us out here.”
“I know,” Chase nodded. “And we need all the help we can get. I’m not sure how we’re all going to survive this, Mia.”
Mia regarded the sixteen-year-old boy in front of her with a cautious gaze. She had yet to catch up with the kids or her mother about what had happened to them during the time she’d been away, though she had quickly learned that her family hadn’t been together the whole time. She needed to gather more information about that time, but Jerry’s death had quite rightly taken precedence. Thankfully, they now had nothing except time to talk and grow closer as a family. It was time Mia had been waiting for and time that she was determined to make the most of.
“We will,” she replied confidently. “Think of everything we’ve been through Chase; think of everything we’ve all accomplished. If we can do that apart, there’s no reason why we can’t do even better together.”
“Yeah, you’re right,” Chase decided. “Man, I’m glad you’re back, Mia. I really missed you.”
“I missed you too, kiddo. Every single day.” Wrapping her arms around Chase, Mia squeezed him tight and hoped that she was offering some level of comfort to the boy. She meant exactly what she’d said to him: there was no reason why her family couldn’t get through whatever was thrown at them now. As a unit, they were already very well equipped to deal with loss following the death of Brogan and Lauren. Losing Jerry was never going to be easy, but Mia knew they could all take it in stride and not let it hold them back.
“Sorry there’s not much,” Mia declared to the room as she and Chase entered the front room a few minutes later and put down the pot of coffee and small pan of pasta and canned tomatoes that they’d cooked up. “That pantry has definitely seen better days.”
“It’s cool, Mia,” Jadon replied with a smile. “I’ll go out to the Jeep in a bit and get the stuff out of there. That should help for a few days.”
Mia smiled at her friend, knowing how sorry she would be to eventually see him and the others leave. “Thanks,” she replied, “you guys will need most of it for your drive though., We can’t take too much. Speaking of, how’s your shoulder, Jesse? Do you need any more painkillers?”
“It’s okay,” Jesse replied with a brave face, not letting on how much helping with the burial proceedings outside had hurt his arm. The cold had numbed it somewhat, but now that he was back inside it was really starting to sting. “I’ll go out and get some in a bit. Don’t worry about me.”
“All right,” Mia nodded to herself, unable to stop from looking around the room and checking up on everyone. As it always had been, her way of dealing with her emotions was to deflect her attention to other people. To avoid being sad and breaking down over the death of her father—and more predominantly, the fact that she hadn’t been able to say goodbye—she focused on looking after everyone else. It made her feel like she was being useful, like she wasn’t just an additional mouth to feed.
“Well everyone, help yourself to some food,” she continued, reaching out and picking up a bowl and the large serving spoon. “There should still be enough to go around. Mom? Do you want some?”
Linda hadn’t said anything since they returned to the house, sitting quietly in front of the fire as she warmed her hands and allowed the tears to dry on her cheeks. Looking at her daughter, Linda understood what Mia was trying to do. It was the same as after Brogan had died; she kept herself busy every second of the day so there wasn’t time to stop and grieve. Currently, Linda just wasn’t up to dealing with it. With a small shake of her head she declined her daughter’s offer and merely pulled her clothes closer around her body, longing for the warmth to come from her husband’s arms instead.
Mia furrowed her brow, worried about her mother and how she was holding up. Her grieving process didn’t let her slow down though, handing the bowl of pasta to Riley and serving up another one for whoever was next.
“Ah, no thank you,” Blake shook his head politely when Mia offered him a bowl. “We don’t want to take up your rations.”
“Eat, please,” Mia encouraged. “There’s plenty to go around.”
Blake looked over to Vic awkwardly, before finally accepting the bowl. “All right, thank you. But following this, we should really be going on our way.”
“What?” Chase exclaimed, surprised by Blake’s statement.
“Already?”
“The roof is almost fixed, my friend,” Vic replied to the teenager. “There isn’t much more to do and now that you have even more mouths to feed here, we should return to the city and get out of your way.”
“We’ll stay until dawn tomorrow,” Blake continued, “and make sure that everything is sorted in that bedroom. Vic is right—we shouldn’t stay here and use up your resources when there’s plenty waiting for us back in Houston.”
“Are you sure?” Chase argued, suddenly not wanting Blake and Vic to return to Houston, even though that had always been the original plan. After losing his grandfather, he felt like he wanted more men around who he could look up to. He was happy to be the man of the house, except inside he knew he was still only sixteen and there was still a lot more that he had to learn. “I’m sure you can stay for a bit longer if you want. It’s not like we’re running out of food already.”
“I know,” Blake replied. “Nevertheless, two mouths make all the difference. And besides, we are needed back in the city. The Authority isn’t going to back down without a fight.”
“The Authority?” Mia interjected, surprised to hear those words being spoken as her companions discussed Houston. “What do you know of them?”
“That’s the group that basically kidnapped us in the city,” Chase explained quickly, not focusing on the matter. He and Mia had yet to catch up in detail so he hadn’t told her everything that had happened to him and Riley in Houston—there just hadn’t been the right time for it, both of them focusing on more pressing matters. “The people that these guys,” he nodded to Blake and Vic, “rescued us from.”
Mia’s mouth dropped open slightly, realizing that meant that the people who had tried to stop them at the border were also part of the same group that had taken control of Houston. The Authority seemed much more widespread than she originally could’ve imagined and there was definitely more of a conversation that needed to be held on that. Putting a pin in it in her mind, Mia backed down in the conversation again, allowing Chase to continue speaking to his companions.
“I’m sure Jackson is managing fine without you,” Chase continued. “No offense, but it’s not like the Authority was banging down the doors when we left.”
“I know,” Blake tried to reason with Chase. “We’re still needed more there than we are here now. We said we’d get you home safely and we’ve done that. Now it’s time for us to leave.”
“I’ll miss you.”
Everyone in the room turned to look at Riley, the young girl having been silent for most of the afternoon. Originally, she had been suspicious of both Blake and Vic, but after spending several days with them both and learning more about them, she had grown not only to trust them but to like them both as well. Granted, she still preferred Vic to Blake, but she knew that both had been a great help to her family since meeting them and she couldn’t deny that they would be missed.
“We’ll miss you too, my friend,” Vic beamed at her. “And don’t worry. We’ll get your old room fixed up properly before we go.”
“Aha, thanks,” Riley laughed. “Make sure you say hi to Hazel for me when you get back too. Tell her I miss her.”
“I will,” Vic confirmed, knowing that he would be sad to say goodbye. He had grown fond of the children over the past few days and he could see that life at the farmhouse wasn’t going to be easy. They were all dealing incredibly well with Jerry’s death so far, although Vic had seen this sort of thing happen before. It was very likely the family were all still in a stage of shock. Soon the reality of it all would hit them, and that would be when the pain would come.
Emotions in the front room were tense as everyone looked around, understanding that their group of ten would soon be down to eight. It wasn’t unsurprising, it was simply a stark reminder of how fleeting everything was in the new world. If Jerry’s death wasn’t enough to signify that, this was.
Mia acknowledged each person in turn, proud of how Chase and Riley were dealing with everything, grateful for the support of their friends, and worried about her mother. The next few days were going to be anything but easy, but as she had said to Chase in the kitchen, she knew there was nothing that could be thrown at them that they wouldn’t be able to deal with. This was her life now and she was determined to make the most of it.
Chapter 13
Mike paced along a corridor inside the pit, hurrying to get back to his room before he was spotted. Things were very different this time around, despite the Authority still maintaining a strict regime and set of rules. If he was found deliberately breaking them, he would be in serious trouble and that was the last thing he needed. Several officials were already suspicious of him and Mike needed to keep a low profile if his mission was going to be a success.
It was his job to rally support for his father’s rebel faction, while at the same time gathering information on what the Authority was really up to and where they had come from. There were other people from the faction working undercover for the Authority or as refugees—his cousin Gemma among them—but Mike was the only one who was under twenty-one and therefore a part of what the Authority had set up in the first place. Rumors of the breeding program still floated around the pit, but since the Authority had been forced to open its doors to adults as well, things had certainly changed.
Mike was still housed in a theater designed only for children—except instead of being segmented by age now, he was living with boys of all ages. The thing that grouped them together was that none of them had any family to speak of. From what he had learned so far, there was one area for unattended boys, one for girls, and then also family areas where the adult refugees had been taken with their children—if they had any. He had only managed to speak to Gemma once about the other sections within the pit, learning the life she had seemed very different from the one he was leading. The Authority still controlled the orphaned children and they made sure that they were aware of it too.
Thankfully, they weren’t locked in cells overnight anymore. That was the key advantage that Mike had, the spy using the darkness of night to creep around the pit and gather information where he could. Time was quickly running out before the morning rounds began though, and he needed to get back to his room before a familiar and unlikeable guard—Scarface—found him out of bed again. It had already happened once and now Mike swore that Scarface started his morning rounds earlier and earlier just in the hope of catching Mike out.
“Out for an early morning stroll again, Jessop?”
Mike swore under his breath. He couldn’t believe it. Scarface was literally standing outside the door to his room, waiting for Mike to return. The guards of the Authority had taken to calling the boys by their last names, in an attempt to belittle them or make them feel like they were losing their identity. Mike didn’t mind it so much though; he was much more concerned about what was going to happen to him next rather than what Scarface called him. How long had the guard been there? Based on the smirk on his face, Mike guessed it was quite some time. Scarface was probably aware that Mike’s bed had been vacant for the last hour at least.
“You know me,” Mike replied confidently, acting like he’d done nothing wrong and like Scarface couldn’t ruin his life in a heartbeat. “I’m an early bird.”
Scarface wasn’t in the mood for playfulness, snapping into action in a flash and pinning Mike up against the wall, his beefy forearm pressed against his throat. “I’m on to you, Jessop,” he snarled. “Don’t think I don’t know what you’re up to.”
“Oh yeah?” Mike taunted Scarface, struggling to get the words out because of the pressure the guard was exerting on his windpipe, the bigger man holding him in such a way that Mike’s feet only just touched the ground. Just like he’d said to his father back at the office facility, Mike wasn’t a confrontational boy nor was he an aggressive one, but when someone challenged him, he refused to back down without a fight. He was incredibly proud of himself and his family and he wouldn’t let anyone belittle him i
f he could help it. “What’s that?”
Scarface literally growled at Mike, pressing even harder against his throat in an attempt to silence the boy. It angered him that Mike had questioned him, finding the young boy insubordinate and disrespectful. In truth, he had no idea what Mike had been up to, but the teenager didn’t need to know that. All that mattered was that Scarface was in charge and he could make Mike do what he wanted. He refused to be talked down to by the child.
“You’ve got nothing,” Mike teased the guard, pushing himself up onto his tiptoes to try and be less at his mercy. He knew he was taking a risk goading Scarface the way he was, yet Mike couldn’t resist. Four long days had passed since he had turned himself back in to the Authority and he was getting fed up of having to live by their rules again. He wanted his father to act soon and take them down. He just wanted it all to be over.
Scarface looked at him like he was considering putting an end to Mike once and for all. Mike maintained eye contact with his rival and dared him to do it, narrowing his eyelids until he was practically glaring at the older man. Scarface’s fist closed in response, cutting off Mike’s airflow completely and slowly suffocating the boy until right at the last second he dropped him, leaving Mike gasping for air on the ground like an injured animal.
“You’re pathetic,” Scarface spat down at him, kicking Mike in the leg before starting to walk away down the corridor. “I’ll catch you eventually, just you wait.”
From his position on the ground, Mike turned his head and laughed, watching the guard walk away. “Yeah,” he sneered, “right. I won’t hold my breath.”