by Ruth Silver
"I should hope so." I joked tiredly at Joshua. "I'd hate to think I was driving in my sleep."
"Pull over." He gestured. “I’ll drive.” I stopped the car – no point in actually pulling over – we were all alone out here. We switched seats and I stretched out, instantly closing my eyes. "Going to sleep already?" Joshua teased.
"I'm beat," a yawn slipped past my lips as I watched him buckle his seatbelt. "You can talk. I may listen." My eyes closed, but I knew he heard me.
Joshua laughed. "Gee, thanks." He hit the gas, taking off faster than it seemed I'd driven earlier. Perhaps the sudden stop to start made it feel that way. I moaned softly, missing my bed already. I hoped it wouldn't be long until we reached the town where Joshua intended to take us. In a matter of seconds, I drifted towards oblivion.
I felt the cold metal steel beneath me. I tried to move but was trapped in place, my arms bound to the table. No amount of struggling would loosen the restraints of my arms or legs. "Please!" I cried out, trying to survey the room. I recognized no one – merely eyes as white surgical masks covered their faces.
I tried to sit up, tried to move, but it was no use. The binds on my arms chafed my skin and though I continued to try and work my way free, it seemed impossible. "Joshua," I whispered, gasping as my eyes darted around, trying to find him.
A strange voice answered me, an older female who seemed familiar, but I couldn't quite place her. "This is for your own good, Olivia, and for the good of mankind."
"I don't want this!" I screamed as loud as I could. My voice seemed to echo but no one came for me. The other doctors watched me with a strange curiosity. "Help me," My voice begged as I whispered up at the woman, begging for her to release me.
"We are helping you," she assured me. "Helping everyone. You have a gift we want to share with the world," she explained. "You are special, Olivia, but you don't have to be. You can be like everyone else if you let us study you."
"Do I get a choice?" Did I have any other options?
She stared at me, pausing for a moment contemplating how to answer me. "No," she was honest and I closed my eyes, feeling a single tear slide down my cheek.
"Please," I begged. "Please save me."
"We're saving humanity," she assured me. "Is that not worth fighting for?"
"Not at the stake of killing a life!" I shouted at her.
The woman smiled at me, walking over toward the table reaching for a scalpel. "We're not killing you, darling."
My eyes widened in horror as I realized what she intended to do. "Please, no. I'll do anything. Anything but let you cut me open!" I wasn't an animal to be dissected or an experiment. I was human. Could they not see that?
"Just like you did for Joshua?" She narrowed her eyes.
"What do you mean?" I didn't understand. I shook my head violently trying to break free. "Tell me! What did you do with him? Where is he? Joshua!" I screamed as loud as my voice could take, cracking and I felt myself breaking down. I tried not to cry, wanted to be strong but my resolve was quickly crumbling.
"You did it to him," she remarked, slowly removing her mask to show me her face. I gasped in horror, recognizing the woman as I jolted awake.
"You okay?" Joshua glanced at me. Sweat caked my body. I shivered from the reminder of my dream, relieved to see him sitting beside me. It had felt so incredibly real.
"Just glad to be awake." I shifted uncomfortably beside him, not wanting to talk about my dream.
"That bad?" He guessed, shooting me a sideways glance as he continued to drive. I turned toward the window beside me, seeing dry ground and cacti surrounding us. Earlier in our trek I’d felt we had been in the middle of nowhere. This was truly it. "Do you remember the first time we met?" he asked.
I was grateful for the sudden change of subject. "We were five, right?" I glanced at him as he focused on the road.
Joshua shook his head. "We met at school when we were five and became friends, but that wasn't the first time you and I met."
That surprised me. I knew our parents had been friends, but I didn't remember meeting him before our first year in school together. "I guess I don't," I confessed. Much of my childhood felt like a blur. After my father died, I tried to memorize every detail of every part of my life. So much when I was younger faded.
Joshua smiled. "Then I'll remind you," he said. "My mom had taken me to the park to play. It was supposed to be for the older kids who attended school there, but she insisted I have some time outside of the house," Joshua paused. "I remember I was three because she was pregnant with Jacqueline. It's the only memory I have of my sister," he admitted.
I reached out, found his hand and gave it a squeeze. "When did you see me?" I was curious.
Joshua smiled. "I was playing in the sand, making a mess. I remember glancing up at the time and you were walking with your mom on the outskirts of the park. You kept peeking over at me. It looked like you were jealous, like you wanted to play. Your mom took your hand and wouldn't let you come over."
I shook my head in disagreement. "You may have seen me, but that's not the first time we met," I reminded him.
"Not true," Joshua smiled. "You don't remember?" He was perplexed. "I suppose we were both young." He didn't dwell on it. "You broke free of your mom's grasp and came running over to the sandbox. I remember you asked me if we could play together."
"I did?" I tried to remember, but I couldn't. It sounded like something I would do.
Joshua laughed. "We built a sandcastle together at the playground. Though it looked more like an ant hill." His eyes twinkled. "I realized in that moment that you were the most beautiful girl I had ever seen."
"You were three!" I laughed rolling my eyes. "You're making that up! Besides," I smirked, "In your first three years you hadn't seen that many girls."
Joshua smiled. "Well. it hasn't changed. You're still the most beautiful."
My heart fluttered, and already I felt slightly better. The dream began to fade. I was grateful Joshua knew how to take my mind off painful moments.
He squeezed my hand. "You want to tell me about that nightmare you had?"
He always had a way of getting things out of me. I shifted anxiously in my seat. "I dreamt the doctors wanted to cut me open and study me." I felt my stomach lurch just thinking about it. "The worst part of all of it, the woman doing it was my mother."
Joshua paused for a second thinking over what I said. "You know, it was just a dream. Your mother would never intentionally hurt you," Joshua reminded me. "Everything she's done, even lying to you, was to protect you."
I nodded faintly, not saying anything at first. "I know," I breathed, staring out the window beside me. "It just hurts. Knowing I'll never see her again and then that dream.” I sighed. “I guess I’m still mad at her.” It was an honest answer. She had lied to me all my life about where I came from. I knew she thought she’d done so in my best interest, but clearly it hadn’t been.
"Maybe your mind is trying to tell you something," he suggested, trying to rationalize what I'd dreamt.
"Probably. Like I'm afraid of losing you," I muttered beneath my breath.
Joshua glanced at me briefly, before he focused his attention on the road. "What's that?"
"Nothing," I couldn't voice it again. I felt like we’d been on such rocky ground last week. Things were better now, okay in fact. I didn't want to risk it. "It's just a little frightening to think someone might want to cut me open or study me because I'm different."
"You know I won't let that happen." I knew he'd do anything in his power to protect me. I also knew I would do anything I could to stop those from hurting Joshua as well. "Olivia?"
"I know." I reached for his hand and grasped it in mine. A moment later I dropped his hold, resting my hands in my lap. "How much longer until we reach the next town?" I hoped our arrival wouldn't cause any trouble, but I knew if anyone discovered our identities, the same thing could happen that had in Haven.
"Not sure." He gestured toward
the backseat. "The map is in the pack. Can you grab it?"
I reached behind me, pulling the pack in the front seat, and unzipped it. Careful not to let it fly away, I grabbed the map and reviewed it intently. "I'd say with the rate we're going, maybe another eight hours?" It felt like an eternity, but I knew it'd pass too quickly. The calm and tranquil moments we felt would be fleeting as we faced the rebel city.
CHAPTER 13
We left the desert hours ago and as we drove I felt the faintest hint of a smile at the trees and vegetation when they came into view. Everything here was still alive, just as it had been on the drive up the mountain. Most of the Gravelands consisted of dry rocky ground or grassy fields. I felt like life flourished out here farther from Genesis and the governments’ reach.
Joshua pulled the car off the road as he spotted a stream to our right. "We don't have any towels or a change of clothes," he remarked. "But I think we should try and clean up a little."
I stepped out of the car and stretched. My legs were sore from sitting for so long. Joshua dug through the backseat, finding the bottle of red dye tossing it to me.
"You want help?" he offered.
"Make sure I don't miss a spot on the back of my head." I didn't have a mirror and knew I would be going blindly at it. I sat at the edge of the bank, getting ready to pour the contents on the back of my scalp.
"Wait!" Joshua screamed. My heart leapt into my throat.
"What's wrong?" I looked around, afraid a wild animal was preparing to attack.
"Your clothes," He gestured with a laugh. "How are you going to get into the water and wash your hair without getting dye on your dress?"
I muttered under my breath realizing he was right. "Okay. Just don't look." I narrowed my eyes as I removed my outfit.
"That's better." he smiled eyeing me in my bra and underwear.
"Quit staring!" I grumbled. "Get undressed and help me." I sat at the edge of the bank, pouring the bottle over my roots at the center, trying to work my way down, careful not to miss any. Feeling around was easy enough, but making sure I’d left no dry spots proved challenging.
Joshua stripped down to his underwear, leaving his clothes with mine before coming toward me. "Here," Joshua offered standing over me. He grabbed the bottle from my hands and knelt down to my level. Carefully, he squeezed and worked the dye through my hair, making sure every inch was covered. "I really hope this stuff washes off my hands." He laughed showing me his bright red palms.
I grimaced knowing my own hands looked just as red. "No chance you brought any soap with you, too?"
"None." Joshua shook his head. "There's a plant we could use as soap." His eyes glanced around our surroundings at the vegetation. "Or was it tree bark to make soap?" He frowned unable to remember. "We'll make do. Stay in here all night if we have to."
"Funny." I rolled my eyes. "I wasn't planning on sleeping in the river."
Joshua laughed. "At least you don't have dye all over your clothes."
"Yeah, that would have been a mess. Thanks for stopping me." I didn't want to imagine what I would have had to wear into town. The last thing I wanted to do is raise suspicion. We needed to fit in.
"Anytime." He nudged my shoulder. "Whoops!" Joshua laughed watching as a small drop of color splashed my shoulder. "I guess it's good I'm smart." He grinned working his hands through the back of my hair and underneath where it was still dry. He poured more dye into my hair, trying to get every bit covered.
"Smart? Sometimes I think you just like being a major pain," I joked. I closed my eyes enjoying his touch for the briefest of moments. A smile spread across my lips as my hands found the ground beside me and he worked his fingers through my scalp.
"Oh, come on!" Joshua teased nudging my arm and leaving a red palm print on my skin. "You're glad to have me here."
I didn't answer, but felt my cheeks redden. He was right. I did appreciate having him here. I also appreciated that he sat behind me and couldn’t see my skin flush. I tried to think of anything else, not wanting to imagine him half-naked, but he didn't help matters when he stepped around to stand in front of me, clad only in his boxers. I took in a sharp breath.
"What's wrong?" He frowned, checking me over to make sure I wasn't hurt or upset about something. He always put others before himself.
"Just anxious to get this stuff off," I lied.
Joshua smiled. "You're not planning on wearing that into the water, are you?" He laughed, pointing at my attire. "You'll be sitting in wet clothes the rest of the trip.”
I groaned in protest, and immediately Joshua turned toward the river, his back to me. It had grown dark and I smiled as the last bit of light had set and the moon showed off his features. He walked by the edge of the stream, dipping his hands in first. I didn't say anything, just watched as he shucked his boxers and jumped right into the stream. "Stay there and watch my clothes," Joshua called back to me.
"Where else am I going to go?" I smiled feeling a little more at ease.
Joshua dove beneath the surface of the stream. He turned around to face me. "Just don't come in yet. Milo and Uma suggested the dye had to set a little while. Give it a few minutes."
"I know. I was there," I reminded him. I stood and walked to the edge of the bank, shoving my hands in. There was no sense in letting the dye linger any longer. Same for the marks he'd left on my shoulder. I did my best to scrub the red dye from my skin, but waited to strip down and jump in. I sat down on the bank and watched Joshua swim in the stream, ducking beneath the surface and breaking free repeatedly. "How's the water?"
"Pretty warm." Joshua smiled, staring back at me. The moon had risen and gave off a warm glow as he swam from bank-to-bank. "Come on in!" he shouted at me.
"Turn around!" I called towards him, so he couldn't watch me undress. Although he swam around, I didn't trust he wouldn't stop when I dropped my clothes on the ground.
"Do I have to?" Joshua whined, jokingly. He turned his back and I quickly tossed my bra and panties onto our pile of clothes before jumping right into the stream with a splash.
"Oh!" I squealed. It was colder than he'd let on. I tipped my head back, rubbing at the dye trying to get the extra coloring out of my hair.
"You want a hand?" he offered.
Thankfully, the water was deep enough that my body was fully submerged without him seeing anything. Joshua swam over towards me. "Can you see if my skin is red from the dye?"
"I can't really see much," he confessed, swimming closer. I felt his warm hands in my hair and his body brush against mine beneath the surface. "Dip your head back," he said, watching as my hair fanned out in the water. He ran his fingers through, watching the dye slowly seep away. "Yeah, I can see it's working."
"Is my hair still red?"
Joshua laughed. "It's hard to tell, but it looks different." He nodded. "Makes you look hotter," he teased. I slapped his shoulder hard, and he moaned and grimaced in protest. "Oww!"
"I'm your sister now!" I remarked, "You don't say something like that to your sister."
Joshua laughed shaking his head, "That’s a disturbing thought, but if you're Jacqueline then I'm Adam." He smirked, leaning in, stealing a kiss and swimming away. “No longer are we related.” Joshua beamed proudly.
"Hey now!" I called after him.
"Come and get me!" Joshua teased, waving towards me.
"I would, but I'm trying to get out all the dye."
He watched as I went under a few times, breaking the surface only to repeat the gesture. "What are you smiling about?" I retorted as I swam my way towards him.
"The dye's been out for a while." Joshua laughed, swimming backwards. "Can't get me!" He taunted, moving further away and then turning back toward the direction we came from. I quickly swam after him.
"Says you." I reached out as I swam, trying to grab Joshua only to see him slip from my grasp. "Get back here!" I demanded, finally grabbing ahold of his waist with a smile.
Joshua wrapped his arms around me and I leaned
in taking a taste of his lips, drinking him in. "We should get out before we turn into prunes," he kissed me one last time before we swam to the edge of the stream.
Joshua hoisted himself onto the bank and I enjoyed the view as the crest of moonlight showed off his backside. Maybe I shouldn't have looked but I did. He didn't turn around. He'd never know I peeked. "Leave my clothes by the bank!" I called waiting until he’d put on his boxers, pretending I hadn't been watching all this time. He tossed my clothes along the river's edge. From the darkened stream I could see Joshua. He slid his shirt on first and then his pants. "Don't look!" I shouted back at him.
"I won't. Tell me when you're done," he answered.
I pulled myself out of the river, struggling for only a moment as the spot I'd chosen had been steeper than where I'd come in. I slipped on my clothes, glancing around. "Josh do you see our shoes anywhere?"
"Are you decent?" He laughed, turning around the smile faltered with wide-eyes. "Look out!" He screamed pointing behind me.
I felt the sharp blade of a knife against my throat. "Give me the keys," a husky male voice whispered into my ear. With one hand on the blade the other moved over and across my waist, making me feel sick.
"Get off me!" I shouted trying to break free. I had no weapon and absolutely no training. Terrified didn't even begin to explain the feeling racing through me.
"Now, why would I do that?" His laughter echoed through the open expanse of land. "As soon as your boyfriend gives me the keys, you and me, we'll get out of here. I could use a girl like you," his breath tickled my ear and forced a horrible shudder down my spine. "Imagine all the things I could do with you." His hand loosened on my stomach as he petted my hair. This was who they'd warned us about in the Gravelands – outlaws.
"Leave me alone!" I pushed back, feeling the slight nick of the blade against my throat. I swept my foot back and kicked the thief hard. Joshua came barreling at us full speed dropping the man to the ground. The knife fell from the outlaw's hands, lodging in Joshua's foot. His eyes went wide as he swallowed the scream before it emitted from his lungs. Joshua no longer had the upper hand.