Liberty's Hope (Perseverance Book 2)

by Amanda Washington

  Boom stood and looked at Connor. “Noke’s alive.”

  The captain always could read Connor. For Ashley’s sake, Connor nodded in answer. “He’s lost a lot of blood. Magee’s with him now.

  Boom set his cards on the table and addressed the children sitting around him. “Thank you for the game, but we should all get some sleep now. Braden, Kylee, a tent has been prepared for the two of you. Private James will take you to it.” He gestured toward the soldier standing by the door.

  Connor walked to the table, bent down, and scooped up Ashley. She protested for an instant, and then dropped her cards on the table and leaned into him.

  “Fine. I was losing anyway. See you tomorrow, Boom and Kylee.” Then she glared at Braden. “You too, cheater.”

  Connor clutched her to him, appreciating her fresh, clean scent. For all her ferocity and bravery, Ashley had an innocence and purity about her he’d do anything in his power to protect. He squeezed her tightly as they walked by Wallace’s old tent, which would now serve as Braden and Kylee’s temporary home. Connor bowed his head and took a moment to remember the soldier who had a slight lisp and a shaky right hand. Thankful for the people still alive, he kissed the top of Ashley’s head.

  CHAPTER NINE

  Liberty

  THE STENCH OF rot enveloped me. It tugged at the contents of my stomach, drawing me further into the nightmare with each rancid breath. I stood atop a narrow, broken stone path wedged between two fences. The fence on my right opened to an inviting meadow, full of beautiful people sitting on white patio furniture. They talked and laughed, and I immediately wanted to be a part of them.

  I took a few steps toward the crowd, and the stench worsened. It made me gag. I covered my nose, watching the people and wondering how they could stomach the stink. They continued to celebrate, seemingly unaffected. But I couldn’t handle it, and turned away.

  Desperate to escape the foul odor, I ran along the stone path, away from the crowd and toward a familiar wooden door. It stood splintered, faded, and without a handle. Curious, I continued on. The door creaked opened as I drew near.

  Beyond the door, a sinister darkness waited for me, watching me. Fear sped my heart, warning me not to enter, but I had to. Light flickered in the distance, calling to me like a shiny trinket lying in the sand. Ignoring my fears and reservations, I stepped through the door, and the darkness embraced me. The slick floor, however, did not. My legs shot out from under me. I reached out, attempting to catch myself, but felt nothing. I fell. Expecting the inevitable, I closed my eyes and…

  SMACK!

  My backside hurt. I was lying in my sleeping bag, staring through the darkness to the roof of my tent.

  A dream. Just a dream.

  I rubbed my sore bottom. The pain felt pretty real for a dream, but I wrote it off to sleeping on the lumpy forest floor. I yawned and tried to stretch, but the tent was cramped and Ashley’s sleeping bag lay across my calves. The girl seemed to do gymnastics in her sleep, always flipping and turning and kicking.

  “What’s wrong?” Connor asked. His husky, sleep-laden voice did weird things to my stomach. Stupid things, even.

  “Just some crazy dream,” I replied and snuggled back down in my sleeping bag.

  Wait, Connor?

  I threw back my sleeping bag and sat back up to make sure I wasn’t having another crazy dream. “What are you doing in here?”

  He slept smushed against the side of our two-man tent with Ashley’s head against his chest. He had no mat, nor sleeping bag, and looked incredibly uncomfortable.

  “You were already passed out when I brought Ashley in. She asked me to stay until she fell asleep. I must have drifted off.” He shifted, gently pushing Ashley away. “I should probably get going.”

  “You don’t have to.”

  I could feel him watching me in the darkness. Realizing I wore only a thin tank top, I covered up and lay back down. “But I should get back to sleep.”

  Connor left.

  The next time I awoke, I thought I heard my name. I sat up and looked around. Connor was gone and Ashley snored from the bag now scrunched up at my feet. I took some time to wonder—not for the first time—how she managed to get any rest when she seemed to move all night long. The tent was still dark and cool with the chill of night, and I discounted the noise I’d heard for a dream. Closing my eyes, I tried to drift back to sleep. I heard my name again, I pulled a sweatshirt over my tank top and unzipped the flap to peek outside.

  Boom smiled and held a steaming cup of coffee toward me. “Mornin’.”

  “Coffee delivery? A girl could get used to this,” I said, smiling at Boom as I accepted the cup. “Is everything okay?”

  “I was hoping you could spare a few minutes to talk.”

  I knuckled the sleep out of my eyes. “Now? Uh… sure. Give me a sec.” I handed the cup back to Boom and ducked into the tent to slip out of my pajama bottoms and into jeans. Then I stuffed my unruly curls into a baseball cap and joined Boom in front of the tent.

  The morning felt crisp and clean. Dew brightened the grass, glistening in the dawn, and the forest animals sang and chattered in the distance. Several soldiers moved around the camp.

  “What’s going on?” I asked. “Wait, where’s Connor? If he’s run off and done something stupid without me, I’m going to kill him.”

  Boom chuckled. “Nothing that exciting, I’m afraid. He’s in the main tent, trying his tactics on the kids.” He started walking, and motioned for me to follow him.

  We got a few steps from the tent before I woke up enough to understand the meaning behind Boom’s words. “He’s questioning the kids? Is there a problem?”

  “Their reactions are… inconsistent with their story. Connor has a way of… well, he was hoping that after a full night’s sleep, they’d be more pliable.”

  I froze. “You guys won’t hurt them, will you?”

  Boom considered my question for a moment too long before responding. “No point in it unless we’re sure they’re withholding information. If they are Progression soldiers, they’re not following protocol.”

  “Protocol? Do they have a special handshake or something?”

  Boom chuckled. “Something like that.”

  “But you won’t tell me what it is?”

  “It’s classified. Army personnel only. Are you ready to enlist?”

  I held up a hand. “Save it. I don’t want to know that bad.”

  “Ah, well, it was worth a try. Regardless, we enjoy having you and Ashley with us. Speaking of Ashley, she seems to be adjusting to camp life pretty well.”

  “Yep. She’s a trooper.” I turned to face him. “But something tells me this conversation wasn’t supposed to be about secret handshakes and Ashley’s well-being.”

  Boom took a deep breath. He seemed to wrestle with words in his head, which was odd. When Boom opened his mouth, either orders or wisdom spilled out. He normally didn’t struggle with getting his point across.

  “Libby, you need to understand something about us. We are trained to see the bigger picture. Yes, individual lives and freedoms are important, but not when they have the potential to destroy what we fight for. I do not believe that Braden and Kylee are working with the Progression, but still, we cannot trust them. They are an unknown.”

  I nodded. “So am I, though. I could just as easily be working with the Progression. I mean, what do any of you really know about me?”

  The sides of his lips twitched. “More than you know about yourself, apparently.”

  Since I couldn’t tell whether he meant that as a compliment or an insult, I chose not to reply.

  “I understand your affinity for children, but most of our attackers are under the age of sixteen. Regardless, we do not want to hurt Braden and Kylee. Or any children for that matter. I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about our previous conversation and I would like you to try to talk to the Braden and Kylee as well.”

  My brow scrunched up. “Like question them?”


  “Not necessarily.” Boom rubbed his chin. “Actually, I’m not sure what I mean. Something different, perhaps?”

  I sighed. “That’s all the detail you’re gonna give me, isn’t it?”

  Boom chuckled, nodding.

  “Fine. I’ll see what I can do. Any news about Noke?”

  “He’s stable,” Boom assured me. “The bullet was wedged between muscle and bone. Magee removed it, and as long as the wound doesn’t get infected he should recover. It’ll be a long time before he can run a marathon, though.”

  “I’d imagine. And the other guy?”

  “Osberg,” Boom replied. “He’s our main medic.”

  “Man, that sucks.”

  “Indeed. His wounds are a little more complicated. We need to get him back to Fort Lewis for surgery.”

  “So we’ll be leaving for the fort soon?” I asked.

  “Yes. Preparations are being made now.”

  We stood in silence for an awkward moment, and I got the feeling he wanted to say more. “Is there something else I can help you with?” I asked.

  “Actually, there is. With Osberg out of commission, Magee could really use an assistant.”

  Curious, I leaned forward. “What would that entail, exactly?”

  “A difficult question, since we never know what may happen.”

  “Come on, Boom, you have to give me more information than that. Will I be getting him coffee and handing him the scalpel, or will I be doing stuff like holding his sleeves up while he’s performing surgery?”

  Boom patted me on the shoulder. “Don’t worry. Mostly he’ll be showing you how to do things like clean and dress wounds. Maybe he’ll even teach you how to stitch someone up using dental floss and tampons.”

  “What? You can do that?”

  He chuckled. “Yes, but I’m sure we have more sutures and gauze than we do floss and tampons.”

  “Yeah, I can see where tampons especially would be an issue.”

  Boom patted my shoulder. “Libby, none of us can do everything, but we all must do something. Don’t worry about what you don’t know. Magee will train you.”

  The idea did have appeal. I could be of assistance without actually shooting anyone. “I’m not promising anything, but I will talk to Magee about it.”

  Boom smiled. “I knew you would. He’s expecting you.”

  “You think you’re so smart, don’t you?”

  “Mostly, yes.” He grinned.

  CHAPTER TEN

  Connor

  CONNOR PAUSED OUTSIDE the main tent long enough to stretch his sore muscles. After yesterday’s action, spending the night crowded into the girls’ two-person tent hadn’t been his wisest decision. But, in hindsight, he would have done the same thing over again, and the reasons why waited for him in the main tent.

  He peeked into the entrance and saw Braden and Kylee sitting on chairs in the far corner of the tent. Just as Connor had requested, they sat away from the tables and up against the divider that separated the eating area from Boom’s temporary office. They looked every bit like the outsiders they were as they watched the soldiers eat and talk at the tables.

  Perfect.

  After letting the kids stew in discomfort a little longer, Connor wiped any remaining sleep from his eyes, straightened his back, and marched into the tent. He went through the second entrance and over to the pot hanging above the fire. He served up three bowls of oatmeal, and carried them over to the kids.

  “Eat,” Connor directed, handing them each a bowl and sitting in front of the third.

  Braden picked up his spoon and dug right in, but Kylee eyed her oatmeal suspiciously.

  “What’s your name?” she asked.

  Connor ignored her question, leaned back in his chair, and ate a spoonful of oatmeal. He chewed, swallowed, and said, “Not bad. You should eat up while it’s hot.”

  Braden slurped down hot cereal like it was the first meal he’d eaten in weeks. Kylee watched her brother for a moment before tasting the hot cereal. Determining it wouldn’t kill her, she devoured her breakfast with the same intensity as her brother.

  Once they finished, Connor took their bowls and stacked them on top of his own. Then he leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. “Tell me what happened. From the beginning.”

  Braden sighed. “We already told that other guy everything there is to tell.”

  “Which other guy?” Connor asked.

  “I don’t remember his name.” Braden shook his head. “The Mexican.”

  Connor kept his expression neutral, not buying the kid’s ignorance. “Captain Ortega?”

  “Yeah, that’s him. We already told him everything.”

  “Cool. Then it’ll be fresh in your mind and you should have no trouble repeating it to me.”

  Braden looked like he wanted to argue, but Kylee patted his arm, silencing his protests.

  “Why were you at the house?” Connor asked.

  Kylee eyed him. “It was our house. Mom’s, Brae’s, and mine.”

  “Just the three of you?”

  She nodded.

  Wondering how a one-parent home managed to maintain what looked to be a decent sized farm, Connor rubbed the stubble on his chin. “How many acres did your family own?”

  “Six,” she replied. “The buildings and yard, and then five acres that we leased out to our uncle to hay.”

  That would make sense, but it brought up another question. “Where’s your uncle now?”

  “Don’t know. He disappeared a few weeks ago.”

  “So the three of you have just been staying at the house this whole time? Nobody’s bothered you?” Connor asked.

  Braden started to say something, but Kylee jumped in again, cutting him off.

  “There’s a crawl space under the house,” she said. “It has a hidden door. We’ve spent a lot of time down there.”

  Connor nodded, wishing he could check the house out and verify her story. For being so young, she seemed surprisingly composed and quick with her responses. He turned toward her brother and asked, “Braden, what did you guys eat?”

  Braden glanced at Kylee for a second before answering. “Mom liked to can food, so we had a lot stored up in the pantry. When we ran out, I started hunting.”

  Ah-ha. Connor had found a hole in their story. “What did you hunt with?”

  “Mom’s twenty-two.”

  Connor’s brow scrunched up as he leaned forward, resting his elbows on his legs. “If you had a rifle, why didn’t you use it against them?”

  “I tried, but there were too many. They took it when they found us.”

  “The Progression?” Connor asked. When Braden nodded he continued. “How did they find you?”

  Again, Braden looked to his sister.

  “Braden?” Connor prompted.

  “They were waiting right outside the house when I left to go hunting. I didn’t know they were there and practically walked right into them.”

  “Sloppy,” Connor observed. “It’s amazing you stayed alive this long.”

  Braden bared his teeth at Connor.

  “Or… it could be that you’re Progression agents who were planted in that house with this bogus story to get inside our camp.”

  “Why would we want to do that?” Kylee asked.

  Connor leaned back in his chair and studied her. “You tell me.”

  Boom entered the tent and pulled up a chair beside Connor. “How’s it going?” he asked.

  Connor shook his head.

  “This is stupid,” Braden answered. “We told you everything we know. A group of soldiers showed up at our house and took our mom. Then they told us you’d be along shortly, and if we kept you at the house for a while we’d get our mom back.”

  Braden sounded as frustrated and worn out as Connor felt.

  “Why are you guys just sitting here on your butts talking to us?” the boy asked. “Shouldn’t you be out there finding our mom?”

  Connor considered the story ag
ain. Sure, the Progression could very well have busted into their home and taken their mom, demanding that the kids keep Connor and his team busy, but why leave both of them? It made more sense to leave only one child behind to detain the Army. They’d be much more desperate to comply and get their loved ones back if they were completely alone.

  “Why’d they leave Kylee?” Connor asked.

  Braden shook his head. “What?”

  Kylee sat up. “They didn’t know about me. I was hidden, remember?”

  The girl seemed to have an answer for everything. Either she told the truth—which Connor doubted—or she was a very good liar.

  “Mom hid me.” Kylee looked away for a moment, and when she refocused on Connor her eyes were moist with unshed tears. “She heard them talking to Braden outside, and knew we wouldn’t get to the crawl space entrance in time, so she hid me. She stuffed me in that coffee table and she… she just gave herself up.”

  Braden draped an arm over his sister. “We’ll get her back. These guys will help us, right?” He looked from Connor to Boom.

  Neither of them replied.

  “Right? Can’t you take one of ‘em captive and torture them until they tell you where our mom is?”

  Braden’s simplistic plan grated on Connor’s nerves. Before he could respond, Boom intervened, saying, “Thank you for your advice.”

  In truth, the Army had captured multiple Progression soldiers, but every single one of them poisoned themselves before they could be questioned. Apparently, signing on with the Progression came with all sorts of benefits. Besides the ability to loot and plunder their captives, Progression soldiers were equipped with weapons, gear, and a potassium chloride pill in case they found themselves in situation they couldn’t escape from. The Army couldn’t figure out how the Progression had convinced all of their soldiers to commit suicide upon capture, but the scary fact remained, they had. Since neither Braden nor Kylee had a potassium chloride pill on them and were still alive, either the game had changed or they weren’t with the Progression at all.