“You’ve got things all wrong,” June says to Sarah. “My sister has killed many, many Urthmen. In fact, I’d bet there isn’t an Urthman on this planet that could beat her.”
Sarah looks doubtful. “Come on.” She lowers her chin and angles her head to one side in disbelief.
“It’s true.” I’m surprised to hear Will’s voice, especially when he supports what’s been said about me. “We’ve all killed Urthmen. Not all of us have killed as many as Avery,” he’s quick to qualify. “And we’ve all lived our entire lives free.”
Silence reigns for several seconds. Sarah’s lips are parted, her gaze distant as she tries to process what she’s heard. When finally a question comes to her, she asks, “How? How is that possible? And how did you get this vehicle?” She folds her arms across her chest and looks satisfied with herself, as if she’s about to expose some great truth.
“I rebuilt it,” Sully says. “I found it abandoned in the woods and repaired pretty much every working part of it.”
Sarah’s expression melts, transforming from haughty to coy in the blink of an eye. She turns her upper body toward him. “Wow, that’s amazing,” she croons. For reasons I don’t understand, I feel slightly annoyed. “Where are you taking this vehicle you’ve repaired pretty much every working part of?”
Smiling uneasily, Sully says, “We’re going to New Washington, the underground city.”
“Underground city?” she pouts prettily. I wonder what I look like when I pout. I’m sure I don’t look like her. “What’s that?”
Sully leans back and scrubs his face with his hands. He lowers them and folds his arms over his chest, but doesn’t answer right away.
“It’s a place where thousands of humans live in peace,” Will replies for him.
Holding up a hand, Sully says, “Let’s not talk about it like it’s some idyllic paradise.”
“Compared to a life of slavery it is,” Will counters.
“I guess.” Sully bobs one shoulder.
Sarah looks to him then to Will. “This is a real place? You’re not joking?”
“I’ve never been there,” Will splays a hand at the center of his broad chest. “But he has.” He nods to Sully.
“Is that true?” Her head whipsaws between them.
“Yup,” Sully says, his tone almost disinterested. “I grew up there.”
“You did?” Sarah’s green eyes sparkle with enthusiasm. “And what about Jericho? Did he grow up there to?” She nods toward Jericho’s hulking form behind the steering wheel.
“No. We met up here, on the surface when I left the underground city.”
“Wait a second, you were born in a safe city, hidden from danger, and you left?” Sarah’s lashes flutter and she leans in toward Sully.
Leaning back, he answers, “I did.”
She pauses a moment, her lips parted and confusion scrawled across her brow. After a few seconds, she shrugs and her features smooth, as if she’s worked out whatever uncertainty or misgivings that were plaguing her. “And now you’re taking me and my brother with you to this place where humans live in peace, free?” Excitement bubbles from her.
“Yes,” Sully says.
“Oh my gosh!” Sarah covers her mouth with both hands and bounces. “I can’t believe it! It’s too wonderful to be true!”
Will and Oliver are so rapt by the bobbling of her ample bosom, they don’t notice when Tom rouses. His head pokes up and he casts bleary eyes our way.
“Uh, guys, it looks like Tom is waking.” I point to our new travel companion whose hands are bandaged and resemble oversized paws. Sully was kind enough to share a shirt and pants with him so he is no longer nude.
Sully stands. “I’d better get over there and check those wounds.” He gives the back of my neck a gentle squeeze as he passes. Will seems pleased he’s going.
Sully turns to go to the bench-like cushion atop which Tom rests, but unexpectedly, Sarah clasps his wrist. With large, tear-filled eyes, she looks at him and speaks; her voice just above a whisper. “Thank you for all that you’re doing for my brother, and for me.”
I want to gag. Sully withdraws, a sight that surprises me given all the attention Sarah has been garnering, and Will looks as though he’s just tasted something sour. “You’re, uh, you’re welcome.” He rakes a hand through his hair. As soon as she releases his forearm, he goes to Tom.
“How’s it going, buddy?” he says amicably as he sets about loosening the bandages and inspecting the wounds.
“Tired, a little out of it, but okay I guess,” Tom replies.
“Great, that’s great.” Sully examines his hands. “The bleeding’s almost stopped. That’s good news. You’re going to live, but you’re not going to have much use of your hands. Eating will be a chore.”
Resignation slumps his shoulders. He smiles tightly and nods in acceptance of the news. “At least I’m alive.” Tom attempts a smile.
“I’ll help you, brother,” Sarah says and closes the space between them, brushing past Sully so that their chests touch as she does. Fire sizzles through my veins. “And just wait until I tell you the wonderful news.”
“Wonderful news?” his gaze is searching as he looks among us. “What wonderful news?”
The world in which we live seldom, if ever, holds wonderful news of any kind. Given that he was nailed to a billboard on the side of the road and left to die, I gather that wonderful is a word he’s unfamiliar with.
She licks her lips and smiles. “We’re going to a place where humans live with each other and no Urthmen are there.”
“Packs of stray humans living together? Without anyone watching them?” He looks at her incredulously.
I have had about as much as I can take. Packs? Strays? Is he serious? He refers to our species as I would boarts, or worse, Lurkers. “You two need to get it in your heads that humans aren’t strays, okay?” It’s an effort to keep my tone even, to stop myself from grabbing both of them by their shoulders and shaking them. “This was our planet once. Urthmen used to be humans hundreds of years ago, but chemical warfare warped them and made them into what they are now: hideous, unintelligent creatures that are only capable of hurting. We’re better than they are; smarter, better looking, better at everything. The only advantage they have is that they outnumber us.” My body trembles and my heart races. I’m more worked up than I’ve been in a while. Outwardly, I seem calm and in control. Inside, however, I’m a mess.
I look at Tom to gauge his reaction, to see if I’ve gotten through to him. Surely, I have.
“That’s not true,” Tom says with the same condescension, the same overconfidence with which his sister spoke earlier.
Feeling my frustration swell past a threshold at which I am capable of controlling it, I realize I need to walk away, fast. I shove my hands in my pockets and close my eyes, pressing my lips together. Sarah and Tom are not at fault. They believe the lies they were fed since birth. They don’t know any better. And from what I can tell, they’re not interested in swallowing anything new.
I open my eyes and excuse myself, making a beeline to the front of the camper. I slide into the passenger seat next to Jericho. He turns and looks at me. His fathomless, dark eyes are the night sky, glittering with profound wonders, and peace. He never has much to say, but when he does, his words are worth hearing. Right about now, I doubt I could handle hearing anymore nonsense. I’m full in that regard. I tell him as much, conveying my message with my gaze alone. I swear he receives it, for a mysterious expression flickers briefly before a small smile tilts the corners of his mouth. He doesn’t say a word. I am grateful for his silence, for the calm he exudes. I remain where I am as the road rolls out before us. All the while, my mind spins like the tires on the camper. If Sarah and Tom continue to spout nonsense and refuse to open their minds to the reality of our place in this world, I fear they will drive me to a dark and lonely place.
Chapter 10
The sun is an eager ball of fire cresting the horizon. De
ep orange pales to salmon and stretches, melding with breadths of lavender and periwinkle. The sky is bursting with colors, rich and vibrant as it contrasts the monochromatic earth below it.
Desert sand, interrupted only by tufts of dry growth that spring from barren-looking earth and rust-colored rock formations, extends indefinitely. Looking out the window, all that carves the beige landscape is the span of asphalt we travel upon.
Sitting beside Sully in the passenger seat with my head tilted away from him, I listen to the engine whir and the sound of the tires racing along. We are the only two awake at the moment. June, Will, Oliver, Riley, Sarah and Tom are asleep in back. Even Jericho is still sleeping.
“You okay?” Jumping slightly, Sully’s voice startles me. He hasn’t spoken in some time. I assumed he either didn’t want to or thought I fell asleep. Either way, I didn’t expect to hear him. “Whoa, sorry, didn’t mean to scare you.”
“You didn’t scare me, not really. I was just zoning out.” I turn to face him. His eyes are concentrating on the road ahead, though with the uneventfulness of the last ten days of our journey, his concentration seems almost unnecessary. The camper could probably drive itself along the flat, straight run. After finding Sarah and Tom, the rain stopped, and conditions remained consistently sunny and dry. Even the landscape has varied little. During the day, blue skies dominate overhead, and taupe governs the ground.
“Yeah, it’s easy to do that I guess.” He gestures to the windshield, to the sandy land beyond.
“It all looks the same. It almost feels like we haven’t moved.” I try to articulate how I feel, that after hours of seeing what looks like the exact same landscape rolling out before us, it feels as if we’re frozen in time.
“I know what you’re saying.” He nods and smiles. The rising sun highlights his profile. When he grins, the single dimple in his right cheek deepens. “I feel like the wheels on this thing are spinning but the world around us isn’t moving.”
He gets it. He gets exactly what’s inside my head. “Yes,” I agree. I don’t bother to hide the hint of enthusiasm I feel at learning he feels exactly as I do. “I thought it was just me, that I’m going crazy or something.”
Chuckling, he glances my way. “You? Never!”
“I don’t know. I wouldn’t be so sure if I were you.”
He shakes his head. “Avery, you’re the last person I would worry about in that way. You’re about as levelheaded as a person can get.”
I’m unsure whether to take what he’s said as a compliment or an insult, especially after spending the last ten days with Sarah and Tom. Their inexperience and innocence is so pronounced it borders on naiveté. I fear I’m hardened by comparison. “Hmm,” is all I say.
“I meant that in a good way.” He leans my way and looks at me. I swear at times he reads my mind. “I know I can count on you, that you can fight and see crazy stuff and not fall apart.”
My cheeks warm. “Thanks,” I say quietly.
“You’re very welcome.” Taking one hand off the steering wheel, he rubs his forehead. “I’m starving. We’re out of food, aren’t we?”
Since I’ve met Sully, I’ve never heard him complain about hunger. This is a first. At his underground hideout, meals were regular. Will and I hunted. He had traps set up. And he had strange pouches of food that tasted dry and flavorless but were surprisingly filling. Those three sources meant we ate every day. When we loaded the camper in anticipation of our journey, we packed what we thought was plenty of dried meat, tubs of water we’d gathered from the river, and stacks of those food packets. We had what we thought was enough food to last us until we got to the underground city. We’d also thought we’d hunt along the way. We’d been wrong on both counts.
“Yep, we ran out last night. And we’re low on water, too.”
“Nothing but good news this morning, huh?” He rolls his eyes. “We used the last of the fuel last night, ate the last of our food supply, and now the water is almost gone. Great.” His sarcasm is neither overly bitter nor aimed at me. “What’s next, another roadblock with Urthmen?”
“Don’t even joke like that.” I know we’d have a clear view of any barricade set up in the distance and plenty of time to turn around, but after going for so many days without the slightest hint of their foul presence, the thought of a run-in unsettles me more than ever. I strain my eyes to look as far ahead of us as possible.
“Are you seriously looking for one?” He catches me with my face practically pressed to the glass and my eyes squinted.
“Um, yes,” I say in a small voice.
He laughs at my response. “Avery, even Urthmen can’t survive out here in the middle of nowhere. Look around.” He gestures with one hand in all directions. “There’s no place to live, no lakes or rivers, and there aren’t any animals, at least not any that I’ve seen. I guess now that we’re out of food, we’ll find out for sure.”
“I guess so,” I murmur under my breath. A small tremor of panic vibrates through my body. Life seems absent on the stretch of land we travel. Plants are scarce, and I haven’t seen a single animal. And forget about water. Water is nonexistent. All I see is sand, rocks and hostile-looking growth dotting the landscape.
“I don’t mean to sound like a jerk here,” Sully says and keeps me from sinking into a downward spiral of panic-filled despair. “But adding Sarah and Tom really cut into our food supply.”
He’s right. And I doubt anyone else would take what he’s said as exactly what it is: the truth. But I do. Adding two adult mouths to feed to our group has changed how food is rationed. It’s the reason that there isn’t any left.
“You’re quiet. You think I’m a jerk, don’t you?”
“No, not at all, in fact. I thought the same thing, but was too afraid to say it to anyone.”
“Not even me?”
“I didn’t get a chance to tell you. You took the words right out of my mouth before I got a chance to say them.” I look over my shoulder and smile at him.
Sully beams as if he and I share a secret connection no one else knows about. In some ways, he’d be right if that were what was going through his mind.
“Come on, you were thinking that, too?” He looks at me disbelievingly.
“Actually, yeah, I was.”
I want to add, “And not because every time Sarah is around I feel as if my head will pop off my shoulders,” but don’t. In truth, my initial feelings about her have changed over the last week. She’s beautiful and garners attention. And she makes comments I find ignorant, but there’s nothing I can do about it. She is what she is. My goal is to get June to New Washington, and that’s exactly what’s happening now.
“Good, so you don’t think I’m a jerk?”
“No,” I reply and wonder why he’s so concerned about what I think of him.
“I don’t regret stopping and helping them, not one bit. Tom would’ve died.”
“I know. You don’t have to explain it to me. You don’t have to justify the facts about the food. More people means the food is going to go faster. Period.”
“I’m glad they’re safe and will get a chance at an Urthman-free life, even if it means living under the thumb of the President of New Washington.”
He says the word “President” with obvious disdain. I want to ask why, but another question nags at the back of my brain. I know I must proceed cautiously, and that if phrased the wrong way, my question might come across as rude. “Um, Sully,” I start then clear my throat, stalling. “More than once, you’ve hinted that the President of New Washington is strict. If he’s as bad as you make him out to be, what makes you so sure he’ll let us in?”
Sully’s lips press together tightly. For a moment, I’m sure I’ve insulted him. He doesn’t look my way, and he doesn’t talk for several moments. I’m about to apologize and try to retract what I’ve said when he speaks. “President John Sullivan is practically a dictator. He calls himself a president and holds elections, but he always wins in a landslide
even though I never knew anyone who voted for him.”
A wave of panic sweeps over me. Sully is supporting my worries, confirming my fears.
“What?” I gasp. Then it occurs to me that the President could have stepped down, died even. No matter the cause, he might not be in power any longer. “You haven’t been there in years, right?”
“That’s right.”
“So who’s to say he’s even in charge anymore?”
“Oh he’s in charge. Make no mistake about that. And he’ll let us in.” Sully speaks with such certainty, such confidence.
“What makes you so sure?” I ask, but before he has a chance to answer, the engine of the camper splutters and bucks.
“Oh no,” Sully mumbles as we decelerate. “Come on! No!” he says and hits the steering wheel. An odd knocking echoes from the front end of the camper. “Dammit! We’re coasting now!”
“Coasting?” I ask, though I’m pretty sure I know what’s happened.
“The engine conked out. We’re out of gas.”
The camper rolls to a stop after a minute or so. Sully twists the key in the ignition and tries to restart it. The engine cranks and cranks but doesn’t turn over. “Dammit!” he shouts again and pounds both fists against the steering wheel. “You’ve got to be kidding me!” His nostrils flare and a crazed laugh I’ve never heard from him before passes through his lips.
Heavy footsteps rush up the aisle from the rear of the camper. “What happened?” Will asks as soon as he reaches the back of the driver’s seat.
“We’re out of gas! And food! And apparently the water’s almost gone, too!” Sully erupts uncharacteristically. He shakes his head before taking it in his hands and muttering swearwords.
“What do we do now?” Will asks quietly.
I half-expect Sully to explode. He doesn’t, though. Instead, he’s still for several moments, his head still bowed, but only one hand rubs his forehead. “We have only one choice.” He looks up from Will’s face to mine. “We have to walk.”
Jericho, Oliver, June, Riley, Sarah and Tom make their way toward Sully and me, and crowd around our seats. Jericho and Sully exchange a knowing look. June looks from Sully to Will to me. “What’s wrong?” she asks immediately. A small groove forms between her brows.
The Underground City (Book 3): Planet Urth, no. 3 Page 10