“What are you talking about, Pop?”
He pulled out the small flask and shook it. Elna heard liquid sloshing around inside. “I made this while they were loading up the cart.”
“Whiskey?” Malin asked.
“Wine,” he replied quietly, “with a generous amount of my sleeping medicine mixed in. Let’s say, more than the recommended dose by a significant degree. If I can get them distracted and drowsy, can you make your move?”
“Do it soon,” Elna said. “Before nightfall.”
“We shouldn’t go together,” Malin said. “Too obvious. I’ll take the cart and try to round up supplies. Elna, you lead the others a different direction. We’ll meet up at the causeway and get that first drawbridge raised.”
“Are you sure about that?” Elna asked.
Malin nodded. “Yep, the cart is a big visual object. If I’m spotted and they stop me, you’ll have a chance to keep going. I can buy you some time and make my escape later.”
“I’m not comfortable with that plan,” she said. “Too much risk on your part.”
He reached over and gently grabbed both of her shoulders, giving her a sad smile. “It’s a risk I’m going to take. We’re getting you back to your island. Mr. Pasqualee, let’s move fast on this while we still can.”
For a second, Elna had the strange notion that Malin was going to lean in and kiss her, and she realized that if he did, she wouldn’t refuse. If anything, she would meet him halfway. But he didn’t. He let go of her shoulders and turned away, leaving her standing there with her heart pounding.
“You guys are nuts,” Garret said. “You’re running away from a better life to go live like exiles on a deserted island. Well, I’ve made up my mind. Leave me out of it.”
“You can do what you want, Garret,” Malin said. “Nobody will stand in your way. Please don’t stand in ours.”
“Do whatever you’re going to do,” Garret said. “Personally, I plan to lie here until they bring dinner and another round of pain meds.”
Elna had to push through the awkwardness stirred by Malin’s moment of closeness. She gestured vaguely at her father, then began furiously chewing on her thumbnail. Pop moved to the tent flap, adjusted his grip on the whiskey flask, and stepped outside. Elna held her breath, trying to listen.
“Hey there, fellas,” he said.
“Do you need something, sir?” one of the soldiers asked.
“Did you get a chance to enjoy any of the wine I brought back?”
“Not yet,” the other soldier said. “Is there a bottle going around?”
Elna moved closer to the tent flap, waving the others over. Malin, Selene, and Norman gathered behind her. Selene was anxiously petting Sniffy to keep the dog quiet, and for the moment it seemed to be working. It helped that the dog was full of beef jerky from the ration bag.
“I’ve got something better than a bottle,” Pop said. “Want a sip? This is the good stuff here.”
One of the soldiers made a sound that suggested he wasn’t sure about it, so Pop immediately went into one of his old stories. George Pasqualee had a handful of stories that he liked to tell guests on the island. Elna had heard them a thousand times, and she knew darn well they were all exaggerated. This time, he went with the shipwreck story.
“Did you guys know pirates tried to visit the island about a hundred and fifty years ago?” he said. “In fact, their shipwreck is the reason for the lighthouse.”
“They leave any gold behind?” one of the soldiers asked.
“I’ve seen their ship with my own eyes,” he replied. “Oh yeah, it’s stuck in the rocks about ten feet below on the ocean side. Let me tell you all about it. I didn’t find any gold down there, but I found some weird things.”
“Really? Like what?” one of the soldiers said.
They’re hooked, Elna thought. Pop’s got them.
As he launched into the story, which she knew was a good fifteen-to-thirty-minute yarn, depending on Pop’s mood, she signaled the others to get ready. Norman picked up the bag of rations, while Malin put some of the tools back onto the bicycle cart. Elna retrieved a long screwdriver from among the tools and slipped it under her belt.
You never know, she thought.
Then it was just a waiting game. As Pop rambled on in the background, the minutes slipped by, afternoon light growing heavier along the bottom of the tent flap.
“This is ridiculous,” Garret offered, more than once. “Rushing back to that island is lunacy. Sentiment over survival.”
Each time, Elna or Malin tried to encourage him to do what he wanted. The last thing they needed was to get Garret riled up.
Finally, after what felt like almost an hour, Pop pulled the tent flap open. He stood there beaming, the overturned flask in one hand. A single drop fell from the hinged lid and landed in the dust at his feet. Nearby, the two soldiers sat together, their backs against a wooden crate, their mouths hanging open and their eyes closed.
“Worked like a charm,” he said. “Maybe a little too good. Hopefully, the boys here will be okay. Better get moving folks.”
Malin went first, standing between the bicycles so he could hold both handles and direct them. As he slipped outside, Elna wanted very badly to run over and give him a big hug.
This is madness, she thought. He won’t get twenty yards before the guards stop to question him. I shouldn’t let him do this.
What if he never made it out of the camp? What if she never saw him again? But she was just so damned awkward at these things. Instead, she lamely called his name, and he paused, looking at her over his shoulder.
“Be safe,” she said.
“I will,” he said, beaming at her. “If I get caught, I’ll tell them I’m running an errand for the guards, maybe rounding up some food or wine or something. Trust me. I promise I’ll see you again at the causeway. Count on it, Elna.” He nodded and resumed pushing the bikes, awkwardly turning them as he headed off into the camp.
Garret grunted in disgust, but the two old friends didn’t exchange so much as a goodbye. Elna tried to rectify this.
“Garret, I wish you well,” she said. “Good luck with everything.”
He shook his head in disgust. “Sentiment over survival,” he said again. “You guys are ruining a good thing. What for? Just to get back to that island where we barely had any food left?”
“It’s not true,” Elna said. “I told you, we’ve got it all figured out.”
“And I told you, of course you do,” Garret replied, and rolled away from her on the cot. “Shut up and let me sleep. Hurry and do whatever stupid thing you’re going to do so I can relax.”
Pop, Selene, and Norman followed Elna as she rushed out of the tent.
“Try to look like you’re going about your business,” she told them over her shoulder. “Don’t act suspicious.”
“How do I manage that?” Selene said. “I feel like I’m going to throw up.”
“I feel like we’re a little ill-prepared,” Norman said. “Are you sure there’s not a sneakier way to do this?”
Afternoon had given way to evening, and the shadows were growing thick all around them. As Elna stared at the rows and rows of tents, at all the people moving about, the armed soldiers keeping watch at every corner, she realized she didn’t have an answer.
The guards are sleeping. People in the camp seem mostly distracted. It’s now or never, she thought.
28
Elna immediately made a left turn, moving through a narrow gap between tents where the evening gloom lay heaviest. Ahead, she saw a clearing where they seemed to have stored some barrels beneath a canopy. There were no people in the immediate vicinity, so she kept moving in that direction, waving the others on. She wanted to crouch and move in some kind of ninja pose, but she resisted the urge. Acting like criminals would only make them stand out if they were spotted.
Fighting nerves, she forced herself to stand up straight and walk as she stepped out from between the tents and moved th
rough the rows of barrels. As soon as she was out in the open, she realized an old man in the filthiest t-shirt she’d ever seen was working nearby, trying to pry the lid off a barrel with a small crowbar. Their eyes met, and it took every ounce of will for Elna not to gasp and scramble out of sight.
Instead, she managed to say, “Good evening,” and continue walking.
“Evening,” he replied.
Behind her, Selene wasn’t quite as successful. She made a strange little snort, and Elna quickly waved her on. If the old man was suspicious, he didn’t say anything, and Elna didn’t dare look back to see how he reacted.
Beyond the barrels, a dozen or so narrow tents in gray canvas were set side by side in a long row. Elna moved to the end of the row to circle around them, trying to follow the setting sun, which would lead her home.
“No more snorting,” she said over her shoulder, as soon as they were out of earshot of the old man. “We’re just going about our business, okay?”
“Couldn’t help it,” Selene said, hugging Sniffy tightly. “He looked right at me.”
When she reached the other side of the row of tents, Elna was surprised to see that they were all open in the front, tent flaps pulled up and tied at the top corners. She was more surprised to see that inside each tent was a large cage, approximately eight feet by eight feet. The large space in front of the tents created a broad path leading much closer to the edge of camp. Elna spotted a guard in the distance, but he was standing at the far end of the cages and facing away from her. Currently, he seemed to be embroiled in conversation with a woman in a headscarf.
The sun had almost disappeared beneath the horizon, its last rays casting faint orange light down the broad path, as if beckoning them. Elna signaled the others and stepped out from behind the tent, trying to hurry down the path without appearing to be in a hurry. She dared a glance over her shoulder and saw Pop right behind her, then Norman—he was doing the best job of looking like nothing was wrong—and finally Selene and Sniffy.
Suddenly, Sniffy perked up in Selene’s arm, raised his head as if he’d smelled something bad. He let out a loud bark.
“Keep him quiet,” Elna said. “Give him something to chew on. Please, Selene!”
“I’m trying,” Selene.
But it was too late. The guard who’d been chatting up the girl in the headscarf suddenly waved her off and turned around. It felt like Elna’s stomach dropped right out of her body and hit the ground. The long, lean face of the soldier was looking rough. He had two black eyes, a swollen upper lip, scratches all over his cheeks and chin, and his hair was a greasy tangle. His spiderweb tattoo was speckled with dried blood. But he wore a camouflage shirt and pants just like the other soldiers.
“Well, look who it is,” he said, coming toward them. “Where you guys going? You getting out of here?”
“No, we’re on our way to dinner,” Elna said—the first lie that came to mind. “I mean, we’re supposed to pick up some rations.”
She waved the others past her. Pop and Norman moved quick, passing Elna but keeping well clear of Dominic. Selene hesitated, Sniffy thrashing in her arms as he tried to get loose.
“What do you think, babe?” Dominic said, looking at Selene and gesturing at the uniform.
“Did you take that off a soldier?” she asked. “After you’d strangled him or something?”
He scowled. “No, I agreed to serve the camp, and they let me right out of my cage.” He patted his shoulder. “Haven’t earned a gun yet, but that’ll come with time.”
Pop and Norman had moved past him, but when Elna tried to do the same, he stepped in the way.
“It’s a good look,” Elna said, trying not to let the sarcasm come through. “Rod has got quite an operation here. Now, if you’ll excuse us, we have business to attend to.”
She started to go right, faked him out, and stepped to the left, getting around him, as Selene shuffled along behind her.
“I’m not stupid, you know,” he said. “I can see what you’re doing. Trying to give me the slip. Head back to the island while I’m busy here.”
He had a bit of trouble talking, thanks to the busted lip, and all of his injuries seemed to have slowed him down. Still, he stalked toward them as they walked away. Elna glanced at Selene and made a helpless gesture with her hands. Could she placate Dominic somehow just so they could leave? Selene read the gesture and turned to Dominic.
“Dominic, you were mean to me,” she said. “You said you would never do that again. After the last time, you promised you would stop, and then you were mean again.”
“Well, you get in my head,” he replied, tapping the side of his head with a finger. “I’ve told you not to mess with my mind. Why do you do that?”
“I’m sorry,” she said. “We were both scared after the EMP. I don’t think we were ourselves, either of us.” Sniffy was practically writhing in her arms. She started to reach toward Dominic, as if to gently touch his face, but she had to grab hold of the dog with both hands. “Forget about what happened on the island. Think about our good times. Think about our week in Kauai, that little Japanese café in Hanapepe. We ate there, what, ten times? It was so nice. We were getting along, and we hardly fought at all. Don’t you remember what it was like?”
When Sniffy settled down, she tried to reach for him again. He had a weird dreamy look on his face, but he batted her hand aside.
“Stop it,” he growled. “You’re just like her.” He made a broad gesture at Elna. “A liar. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Isn’t that what they say? You guys are trying to sneak out of camp. You’ve probably stolen stuff. I can see the guilt in your eyes. You won’t get in my head again.”
“Dominic,” she said, in a plaintive tone. “Don’t be that way. Can’t we be nice to each other?”
He planted a hand against her face and shoved her backward. She stumbled and fell against Elna. Sniffy yelped.
“We’re just out for a walk,” Elna said, wrapping her arms around Selene. “Why are you hurting her?”
“Young man, there’s no need for this,” Pop said.
“Stay out of it, old man,” Dominic replied.
He clenched both fists and stood up straight, glaring down at Selene with those lightless eyes. In the dim evening light, with the last flickering sunset light on his cheek and temple, he looked demonic.
“You’re not leaving,” he said. He pointed at Pop and Norman, who had been slowly creeping farther away. “Don’t take another step, any of you. I’m letting the guards sort this out.”
“Dominic, no,” Selene cried. “Please!”
This made him smile, but it was a humorless smile.
“I’m wise to you,” he said. “Your tricks won’t work anymore. I’m calling the guards, and they’re going to decide what to do with you guys.”
Cupping a hand beside his mouth, he turned toward the camp. Elna heard him take a deep breath, as if preparing to give the biggest shout of his life.
29
Selene shoved Sniffy into Elna’s arms and rushed at Dominic. Elna barely managed to grab hold of the dog, getting her fingers under his collar just in time to stop him from leaping free. As she wrestled with Sniffy, Selene threw her arms around Dominic and hugged him tight. He went rigid, pulling his arms in against his body, but he shut his mouth without shouting.
“Please,” she cried. “Don’t do it.”
At first, as if acting on instinct, Dominic returned the embrace, but Elna thought there was something almost violent in the way he pressed his hands against her back and crushed her body against his chest. The little dog growled and thrashed in Elna’s arms.
“This one time,” Selene said, her voice strained. “This one time, give me what I ask of you. Don’t call the guards. Just let us walk away. You can follow if you want, I swear. You can do anything, Dominic. Just don’t call the guards.”
Elna glanced at Pop and Norman. Pop was staring back with a helpless expression on his face, but N
orman was looking around anxiously, teeth bared. They’d already drawn the attention of people in the camp, though they were civilians who were mostly, for the moment, just watching.
“Please, do it for me,” Selene said. She managed to wriggle one of her arms free, and she reached up, gently placing her hand over his mouth. “Just this one time.”
“Oh, stop it,” Dominic said, pushing Selene away. “Just stop all your whining, Selene.”
“So you won’t do it, then?” Selene asked. “You won’t call the guards?”
But at that moment, a hoarse cry filled the air. Startled, Elna stumbled backward and bumped up against one of the support poles of a tent behind her. Pop covered his ears. Strangely, the shouting seemed to be coming from off to their right, back the way they’d come.
“We got some people trying to escape! Hey, we could use a little help over here!”
She turned and saw a figure stepping out from behind the row of tents. He shambled like a creature slightly less than human, shoulders hunched, back bent, his right arm hanging in a crude cloth sling.
“Garret, what’s wrong with you?” Elna said.
“I made up my mind. You’re not going to ruin this for me,” Garret said. And then, tipping his head back, he shouted again, “Hey, can we get some guards over here? We’ve got people trying to escape!”
“Damn you, Garret,” Pop hissed.
“Someone shut him up,” Norman said.
And then, chaos erupted. Garret rushed toward them, and Dominic lunged for Selene, grabbing at her with both hands. She lashed out with her foot, kicking him in the shin, which knocked his feet out from under him. As his momentum carried him forward, she stepped aside, planted a hand against his back, and shoved him. He hit the ground on his chest and belly, his face bouncing off the dirt. An explosive breath left his mouth, and his teeth loudly clacked together.
Garret was closing in behind Selene, so Elna dropped Sniffy and rushed in between them. The dog went for Dominic, barking and growling and biting at his legs.
Island Refuge EMP Box Set | Books 1-3 Page 21