He pushed himself up from the table and started for the door.
“Wait,” Mia said.
She had let Andrew storm off because she didn’t think she could help him, but maybe Carter could.
“Will you try talking with him?” Mia asked. “I mean, the two of you went through something together. Maybe he needs someone to talk with. I don’t have a clue what you guys went through or how you’re feeling.”
“You’re right,” Carter said. “You don’t.”
He shook his head and turned around, leaving a stunned Mia standing alone.
“Men,” Sarah said. “They think we’re the fragile ones.”
“Something is off about the two of them,” Mia said.
“Well they were held hostage and tortured,” Sarah said.
“It’s something else,” Mia said. “Like they’re bothered by different things.”
“Let them blow off some steam,” Sarah said. “We have something fun planned for you now anyway.”
Mia spun around to face Sarah. Zack stood up from the table and walked over to the girls.
“I thought you might want to take us for a drive,” Zack said.
“Really?” Mia asked. “Isn’t it getting late?”
“Not far,” Zack said. “We have a couple hours of sunlight left. I want to see your accident site anyway. Rex said he left his truck there and maybe some supplies we can use.”
Mia was worried about Carter and Andrew, but they were safe here and she didn’t think either would try to leave. She did want to get behind the wheel again. The smile she was holding in came to her face and she nodded her head.
Zack had a vehicle ready down by the entrance to the camp. They stopped by the welcome building first and he went inside.
“Do you drive?” Mia asked.
“No,” Sarah said. “Never felt the urge to learn. I’m sure I could figure it out though.”
“It’s not too hard,” Mia said.
Zack came back from the building. He wore a holster over his arm with a handgun tucked inside. He tossed Sarah a matching belt.
“Sorry,” Zack said. “You don’t get one tonight.”
“I don’t want one,” Mia said. Her experience with guns wasn’t pleasant. “Why do we need those anyway?”
“Protocol,” Zack said. “We always leave the camp armed.”
“Do you think someone is going to attack you?” Mia asked.
“Guatemala is a pretty civilized country,” Zack said. “But there aren’t really laws or law enforcement here. We’ve run into trouble with people trying to rob us before. Think of it more as a formality.”
“Just don’t shoot me,” Mia said.
“All members are trained in arms,” Sarah said. “There’s a shooting range on the other side of the camp. It can be pretty fun, letting off some steam.”
“Have you ever shot anyone before?” Mia asked.
Sarah laughed and shook her head. Mia bet that if she had, her attitude about guns would be a bit different. Sarah went into the backseat and Zack jumped in the passenger side. Mia climbed in the driver’s seat.
“Show us what you got,” Zack said.
“It’s not fingerprint coded?” Mia asked.
Zack shook his head.
“Too many people here,” he said. “Any finger will start it. That’s why someone always waits by the car when we take them out—no solo trips.”
Mia pressed her finger down and the engine came to life. It was a quiet hum.
“Is there backup fuel in here?” Mia asked.
“Don’t need it,” Zack said. “This is the wave of the future. Totally electric cars. This guy can run for five hours before the battery dies out, and we have a battery pack in the back to give it a recharge.”
Mia hit the buttons and they started down the drive.
“I’m surprised you know about that,” Zack said. “In America the cars are strictly gas.”
“Why is that?” Mia asked.
“America still has access to oil,” Zack said. “They’re the number one oil-producing country in the world. The electric vehicle is one of the few inventions that didn’t come out of America. They have no need for them there.”
“Before the Great War almost all cars were gas,” Sarah said. “Most of the oil came from the Middle East.”
Middle East. That rang a bell. Mia remembered seeing a headline on the Internet about America brokering peace there.
“Did the Middle East run out of oil?” Mia asked.
Zack and Sarah were quiet.
“I’m sure it’s still there,” Sarah said. “But not worth the risk of trying to recover it. Heavy radiation out there.”
“What do you mean?” Mia asked.
“That’s ground zero for the Great War,” Sarah said. “It was actually over oil.”
“But I read America brought peace there,” Mia said.
“Don’t believe anything you ever read in America,” Zack said. “The Middle East is a barren wasteland. After the war the radiation went south, taking out Africa, which was pretty destroyed from the war too.”
“Is that what happened to the rest of the regions?” Mia asked. “The ones the kids were talking about today?”
“With the exception of Antarctica,” Sarah said.
“What started the war? Which countries? Over oil?” Mia asked.
“Let’s focus on your driving,” Zack said. “You have the rest of your life to learn world history.”
Mia realized she was driving slowly. Being behind the wheel did bring a level of comfort. She pressed her foot down on the accelerator and felt her ponytail fly behind her in the wind. The simple act gave her some peace of mind as she drove them back down the mountain.
Chapter 57
We should never be afraid of foreigners; they should be afraid of us.
—American Gazette
It took longer for Andrew to walk back to the infirmary than he thought it would. He spent the time rehearsing what he was going to say to Dr. Drum. Now that he had made it here, he forgot everything he’d planned. Andrew swung the front door open and was surprised to see Dr. Drum sitting on a couch in the front room and Rex sitting next to her. Both of them stood up.
“Andrew,” she said. “You’re back. Do you feel all right?”
“Are you two alone here?” Andrew asked.
“I sent the technicians back to the group,” Katie said. “I thought I would keep Rex company.”
Andrew didn’t like that. He was giving Rex some freedom, but leaving him alone with the doctor wasn’t on his list.
“You shouldn’t be alone with her,” Andrew said.
“It’s better that I let her stay by herself in an empty building away from everyone else?” Rex asked.
“Wow,” Katie said. “You two have some strange ideas. I might be female, but remember, we’re not in America. I’m capable of anything either of you are. I don’t need someone to tell me what I can and cannot do.”
Rex’s face did not relax. Andrew kept his eyes glued to the large man.
“Is that what you came all the way out here for?” Katie asked. “To check on me?”
“No,” Andrew said. “Can we talk in private?”
“I was going up to my room anyway,” Rex said. “I never went to sleep today and I could really use some. Good night, Katie.”
Andrew cringed at the way he said her name. He couldn’t lose focus though. He did have a reason for coming here tonight.
“Please,” Katie said. “Sit down.”
Andrew walked over to the couch and had a seat.
“I want you to give me something,” Andrew said. “I was thinking . . . if drugs did this to me, maybe there’s something that can fix me. Reverse everything that happened.”
“Back up,” Katie said. “What makes you think you need fixing?”
“I’ve been having flashbacks,” Andrew said. “To my time with the militia.”
“What are you remembering?”
“They played noise, loud,” Andrew said. “Then they would check on me and inject me with medications, leave me a small piece of food for when I woke up, but I was always hungry. It felt like I never slept.”
“Sleep and food deprivation, manipulation of your senses,” Katie said. “I have to say it’s a good sign this is coming back to you.”
“No,” Andrew said. “It’s not. I feel like I’m slipping into another reality when it happens.”
“I was concerned you weren’t going to be able to form new long-term memories,” Katie said. “This is positive. If your old ones are coming back, that means your new ones aren’t in jeopardy.”
“Can’t you give me something to speed this up?” Andrew said.
“It’s a natural process,” Katie said.
“I don’t want to hurt anyone,” Andrew said.
“What makes you think you will?”
“Just a feeling,” Andrew said. “I go back to that spot. I react like I wanted to then. If I’m alone with the wrong person I might attack . . .”
“The odds of that happening are slim to none.”
“But they still exist,” Andrew said. “Please, you must be able to give me something.”
“I want to tell you a story first,” she said.
Andrew was willing to listen to anything if she made the flashbacks stop.
“During the Great War, a lot of people lost their lives. North America was the only continent that didn’t see battles,” Katie said. “A lot of Americans died fighting, but the ones who made it home returned to a horrible surprise.”
“What?” Andrew asked.
“The same thing they saw overseas,” Katie said. “Death and destruction. The world was in ruins, so nobody paid much attention. They had their own countries to fix. Rumors fly around about what happened.”
“So nobody knows?” Andrew asked.
“I didn’t say that,” she said. “America was on the forefront of modern technology. They always have been; the refrigerator was an American invention, along with countless others. The brilliant minds left at home during the war were trying to create a superweapon. Do you know what biological warfare is?”
Andrew shook his head.
“Countries used to think about releasing a disease on their enemies, one that had no cure and would take out the whole population.”
“So America released one at home by accident?” Andrew asked.
“Even way back then the world knew this was too dangerous,” she said. “What if it spread and took out the whole planet? But all is fair in war, so America was trying to prepare for an attack like that. You know how people receive vaccines? Shots you probably got when you were young and some boosters along the way?”
Andrew nodded.
“It was that,” she said. “A single dose of medicine that wards off fevers, infections, viruses, and bacteria. You can still get sick, but nothing like people in the past were scared of. Back then the flu could kill you.”
The flu. Andrew was familiar with that term. The government had found a cure. Now most diseases were hereditary and didn’t strike until old age. If someone got an infection, all it took was some medicine to clear it up. Katie continued with the story.
“America developed a cure. One shot and biological warfare wouldn’t be a threat. It passed with flying colors. They sent it out to everyone who was at home first, in case America was attacked. People were lining up at clinics everywhere. But the scientists were under such pressure to do this quickly that the drug wasn’t well tested.
“Your leg got a scratch and the blood wouldn’t clot because of a drug in your system,” Katie said. “Now it’s a minor side effect, but before this medicine actually made blot clotting impossible. Anyone who had received a shot was in grave danger of bleeding to death even from minor injuries. There was no cure.”
“So what happened?” Andrew asked.
“People died,” Katie said. “Others went crazy with fear and locked themselves inside. Nobody wanted to have children because it meant a sure death for the mother. There was a fear the population would disappear. America would be no more.”
“How did they stop it?” Andrew asked.
“They didn’t,” Katie said. “All those affected were gone and it wasn’t communicable.
“The reason I wanted to tell you this story is because sometimes a quick fix isn’t the best answer,” Katie said. “If you want help getting through this, drugs aren’t a solution.”
“What is?” Andrew asked.
“Talking,” Katie said. “You can come see me and we can work through your memories together.”
“Why isn’t this happening to Carter?” Andrew asked.
“Maybe it is,” she said. “Did you try asking him?”
Andrew shook his head.
“People react to trauma in different ways,” Katie said. “But talking it through always helps. We can start tonight if you want.”
It was hard for Andrew to admit he wanted the doctor’s help, but that concern wasn’t as large as his fear that he risked hurting Mia. He nodded his head.
“Tell me everything that you can remember,” she said. “Once you get to a point where your head starts to ache and the noise comes back, we will stop. I promise, nothing bad will happen to you here.”
Andrew took a deep breath before starting in on his story.
Chapter 58
There shall be no strict rules or code of conduct displayed on any Affinity properties. Our members are here by choice.
—Internal memorandum from Affinity
Mia slowed the vehicle down. She didn’t stop completely but was sure they were coming up on the break in the trees. She tried to look at the ground ahead for the broken auto-drive.
“Affinity doesn’t use the auto-drive feature?” Mia asked.
“That uses satellites,” Zack said. “A lot of these roads are unmarked; it wouldn’t do much good up here.”
Mia had no clue what a satellite was but felt like she had learned enough new information for today. Then she spotted the broken piece of equipment in the road. She looked to her left and saw the break in the jungle.
“It’s up there,” Mia said.
She pulled the car over to the side and killed the engine.
“Sarah, you guard the car,” Zack said.
All three stepped out. Sarah stayed by the vehicle and Mia walked Zack toward the trees. The sun was starting to set, lighting the greens with an iridescent glow. Mia walked down the path and it wasn’t long before Rex’s truck came into view, or at least what was left of it.
The windows were smashed in, pieces of paneling were missing, the hood was popped open, and the insides were gone. It was destroyed.
“Someone beat us here,” Zack said.
Mia ignored him. She walked over toward the cliff; the tire tracks were still visible. She closed her eyes and saw Rex crouched down and the militiaman reaching for his gun. Mia heard a weapon cock. Her eyes flew open. That was a real sound. She turned to see Zack holding his hands in the air, backing away from the truck. Three men came out from the trees; they were wearing a familiar uniform.
“Where is our vehicle?” the man asked.
Zack stood next to Mia now.
“Wherever you left it,” Zack said.
The three men were far more interested in Zack; no eyes were on her. The men kept moving closer and Mia stopped backing up. One was right next to her now. She knew this was her chance. She took a moment and worked out a strategy, like Riley had trained her to do.
Mia leaned forward and stomped on the back of the man’s heel. He let out a wail and Mia jumped behind him. Some gunshots went off and she felt his body move, like he was a human shield. Zack got his chance and Mia saw him bring out his gun and fire two quick shots.
“Run!” Zack said.
Mia let the man’s body drop to the ground and didn’t look back to see whether the other two were dead. Zack moved fast and Mia struggled to keep up. Sarah was st
anding in the back of her car with her gun drawn. Zack ran to the passenger side.
“You want me to drive?” Mia yelled.
“You’re unarmed,” he said. “There might be more of them.”
Mia turned the car on and started back toward Affinity. She didn’t waste any time driving slow. They sped up the hills, but one glance in the rearview mirror showed a car coming up to the spot they had just left.
“Sarah, stay down,” Zack said.
He stood up and aimed his gun behind them. More death was coming. Mia felt her fingers going numb. These people chasing her had gone through the same training as Carter and Andrew; she didn’t think they deserved to die.
“Are you going to kill them?” Mia yelled.
“Not unless I have to,” Zack said.
Mia tried to look in her mirror, but the car wasn’t behind them yet. She pushed the accelerator down and they started going faster.
“Don’t let us fall off the road,” Sarah said.
“I know what I’m doing,” Mia said.
She hoped she could outrun whoever was trying to tail them. It didn’t take long until they were on the main road back toward Affinity. She couldn’t hear anything over the wind. Zack turned around and sat back down. He didn’t put his gun away.
“Did we lose them?” Mia asked.
“I’m not sure they were ever after us,” Zack said. “That was a poor job of keeping up.”
“Did you kill those men?” Mia asked.
Zack didn’t respond. Mia took that as a yes.
“Slow down,” Zack said. “Pull over.”
Mia slammed on the brakes and they all went forward. Then the car was still. Her fingernails were digging into the bottom of her palm from gripping the wheel too hard.
“Friends of yours?” Zack asked. “They had matching uniforms.”
“The militia,” Mia said. “What were they doing there?”
“It looked like a trap to me,” he said. “Waiting for someone to come back for Rex’s belongings.”
“Are you two all right?” Sarah asked.
Mia nodded.
“That was an impressive move,” Zack said. “Where did you learn how to do that? And how did you know I’d fire?”
“You’re a trained gunman,” Mia said. “I knew you needed a window.”
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