The Colony

by Kathleen Groger

  Thank goodness, she had snapped out of her funk. Otherwise, we’d never get out of this mountain of horrors.

  I grabbed onto the ledge and hauled myself up. My boot slipped. I took three deep breaths and regained control. We worked our way up the rock face by following Megan’s lead and placing our hands and feet where she did. She was about three stories up when she stopped and transitioned to what must have been a tiny ledge. She methodically slid to the left for a few car lengths before she turned her body and disappeared behind the rocks.

  What the hell? She just vanished. Bethany followed Megan’s movements and—poof—gone.

  “Megan?” Adam turned to me. His foot slipped. Pebbles rained down. His back straightened. He held on. “Shit. That was close.”

  “Come on. It’s okay.” Megan’s voice echoed.

  Yeah. Sure it was.

  Adam mumbled something, then disappeared.

  My turn. Crap. My heartbeat thundered in my ears. I placed a boot on the itty-bitty ledge and inched my way along, praying my backpack wouldn’t throw me off balance.

  With precise and careful steps, I managed to not kill myself. I turned and sidestepped into a stone room about the size of a one-car garage. The air smelled stale and dusty, but not wet and musty. I exhaled a long breath, then pointed at the brown tarp covering something in the space. “What’s under there?”

  Megan grabbed a corner of the tarp and yanked. The plastic flew toward her, revealing two ATVs.

  “Do they work?” Adam walked closer to inspect the black four-wheelers.

  “They should, and we have extra gas for both.” Megan patted a storage compartment on one ATV. She took a waist pack that was hanging on the wall and strapped it on.

  “How do we get out of here?” I searched the rock walls, but couldn’t make out an exit.

  Megan walked to the far rock wall and pushed. The wall opened up and glaring sunlight stung my eyes. I slid my sunglasses on. Holy crap, John had been a true prepper. He’d thought of everything.

  “Let’s get the hell out of here before any more Raspers find us.” I hopped on the closest four-wheeler. The fact that two different Raspers had called my name haunted my thoughts.

  Adam ran a hand through his hair, making it stick up a little. “Do you know how one of these works?”

  “No. How hard can it be? Gas, steer, brake.” I turned the key and the engine roared to life.

  “I know how to drive one.” Megan straddled the other vehicle. “Bethany, hop on.”

  “I can drive it.” Adam gave me a pleading look.

  “I got it. Come on, get on.” I patted the seat behind me. He had driven the dirt bike. It was my turn. I needed this. Needed to be in control.

  He climbed on and growled low in his throat. “Give me your bag before it takes my head off.”

  I slipped my backpack off my shoulders and handed it to him.

  “Don’t worry. I won’t lose it.”

  “You’d better not.”

  I revved the ATV. Adam slid in closer. His thighs wrapped around my butt, his arms around my waist. I couldn’t breathe. It felt like hundreds of feathers swirled in my stomach. He inched nearer and tightened his grip. My heart stopped.

  Megan hit the gas and shot forward. I followed behind, trying not to wreck the metal beast. It took a few minutes before I was comfortable handling the machine. Adam’s strong presence behind me might have helped. But, damn, I couldn’t focus on how close our bodies were when all I could think about was the Raspers.

  A second one knew my name. They were a collective. But they didn’t call to anyone else. Just me. How did it work? Did they only know stuff if they learned, or could they somehow absorb memories from humans? Fear wrapped my veins in a tourniquet of alarm. If they could do that, they would know how to get past the stone rock face. They would know about the ATVs. They would know we were alive.

  We had to go faster.

  11

  The ATV bounced over the rocky terrain, and wind cut into my cheeks like shards of glass. I shivered despite Adam’s extra heat warming my back. When had it gotten so damn cold? It was as if Jack Frost snapped his fingers and we were plunged into the dead of winter.

  We cut through the woods, dodging the trees that flew past. I hoped Megan knew where she was going. Another gust whipped the tips of my hair across my face. The skin on my hands felt frozen to the handlebars.

  My mind wandered back to the Raspers and how they knew my name. Why me? What did they want? Were they tracking me? Why not anyone else? Adam pounded on my shoulder. I stopped focusing on the damn mutants just in time—I’d nearly run into the back of the other ATV. Stupid. I cut the engine. Adam climbed off and the icy blast tore through my clothes.

  “Why are we stopping?” I rubbed my hands across my arms in a pathetic attempt to warm myself.

  “It’s freezing. I need a jacket.” Bethany jumped off and huddled into herself, dropping five years off how old she looked.

  Megan dug in the side compartment of the ATV. She pulled out two brown camouflage jackets, two black hats, and two pairs of black ski-type gloves. “There should be another set in your left-side compartment.” Megan and Bethany both slipped on their jackets, hats, and gloves.

  I checked the side bin and pulled out a similar coat, two hats, and two pairs of gloves. We were a coat short. “Well, crap. There’s only one coat.” I held it up.

  “Go ahead. You take it.” Adam grabbed a hat and gloves.

  “It’s okay. I have an extra sweatshirt.” I was being nice, but I really wanted the coat for myself.

  “No, you take it. I have the leather jacket. Besides, I’m warmer than you. You block a lot of the wind.”

  My cheeks burned. I prayed he didn’t see how red my face was. I shoved my arms into the too-big-for-me coat and zipped it up.

  “Damn, it got cold.” Bethany’s teeth chattered and her body twitched with waves of shivers.

  “Well, it is officially winter. The Not-So-Great Discovery threw the seasons out of whack. Hope this cold spell doesn’t last, but it could be worse.” Megan tugged her hat down over her eyebrows.

  “How?”

  “There’s normally a few inches of snow on the ground in February.”

  Snow. Yeah, Megan was right. It could be worse. I hadn’t even thought about snow. The temperatures had been so warm since that day. I yanked the band out of my hair, let my mop of hair fall, and then shoved the hat on my head.

  “Where are we?” Adam ground up a ball of dirt with his well-worn sneakers.

  “On the east side of Miller’s Mountain, following the logging roads. The seminary is probably twenty miles or so away.”

  Twenty miles. “Do we have enough gas to get there on these?”

  “Each machine started with a full tank of gas and they both have the extra tank. We’ll make it there. But not before dark.”

  Adam and I both glanced up. Anxiety coiled in my stomach like a venomous python waiting to strike. There was no way to beat the darkness.

  “We have to keep going until we find a spot to hide.” I tugged on the gloves, then rubbed my hands back and forth.

  “If we follow this road, we should be safe until we find a secure spot to camp for the night.” Megan pointed forward.

  “Are you serious?” She thought we should camp outside? “That’s insane.”

  “Why don’t we crash in a house?” Bethany channeled my thoughts.

  Megan pinched the bridge of her freckled nose. “Uncle John told me there isn’t a house on this side of the mountain until we hit the town of Little Creek, and that’s right before the seminary.”

  Perfect. We were officially in the middle of nowhere. We all climbed back on the four-wheelers. Had the Raspers gotten out of the mountain? Were they tailing me?

  We had ridden for about another hour when Megan stopped in a small clearing. I idled the ATV, careful not to glance at Adam’s arms wrapped around my waist. But I wanted to.

  “This should be a good spo
t.” Megan said.

  “A good spot for what?” I glanced around. The logging road continued out in front of us and trees surrounded the dirt clearing.

  “To camp for the night.”

  She had lost her mind.

  “We are so not spending the night out in the open. We need to find a cave or something.” I cut the engine.

  Adam let go of me and everyone got off the vehicles.

  “There’s a two-person tent in the right compartment of your ATV.” Megan inclined her head toward my vehicle.

  I rubbed my arms. Stay outside in the night. Exposed. “There’s no protection from the Raspers here.”

  “There aren’t any Raspers here.” Megan rubbed her palms together and blew on her gloved hands.

  No Raspers that you know of. “I don’t like it.”

  “Val, I think we should be okay. It’s only one night.” Adam touched my shoulder for a fraction of a second, then let go.

  It was a bad idea. And he was siding with Megan. I opened the other bin on the vehicle and pulled out the nylon pouch wedged in the space. A white fabric swatch proclaimed the package as the easiest two-person tent to set up. Two-person. The words cut into me. How convenient. Adam and I would have to split watch duty. I bet Megan would partner with Adam. A part of me wanted to check in the right compartment of her four-wheeler to see if there was another tent she purposely wasn’t mentioning.

  “Uncle John was paranoid, but he knew how to prepare. He was the ultimate prepper.” Her eyes grew shiny and she looked around at the woods. “I need to find a private tree.” Megan dashed off into the woods, wiping her face as she went.

  “Here, I’ll set up the tent.” Adam took the bundle from my arms and handed me my bag.

  “Do you really think this is safe?” I barely whispered the words.

  “I don’t think anything is safe anymore, but we should be okay tonight.” He gave my arm another small squeeze.

  Heat radiated from my arm to my cheeks. I turned to hide it and checked my water inventory. Six bottles left. I pulled one out. I wanted to gulp it down, but forced myself to take small sips.

  “I’m going to check the perimeter.” I left before anyone responded. I needed to clear my head, and make sure this wasn’t the stupidest plan ever.

  I walked into the woods surrounding the clearing. Dusk lit the sky in a combination of reds and pinks.

  I still hadn’t processed my enhanced abilities. I didn’t feel any different physically, but who knew what was happening inside my body? I ran my gloved hand across my cheeks. My head throbbed and dragged my eyelids to half-mast. Exhaustion wrapped its tentacles around me.

  Counting aloud to keep myself alert, I continued walking and found nothing out of the ordinary. No Raspers, Bugs, or rabid animals. The breeze kicked up a pile of leaves and swirled them around. I tracked the leaves until they blew away. When I got back to the clearing, Adam had set up the tent.

  “That didn’t take long.” I came up beside him in front of the blue nylon tent. “Do you think Frank was right? That the address is a safe community?”

  “I hope so. I’m not big on camping.”

  “My parents took me camping one summer in the Smoky Mountains. It was okay, but I liked having my TV and running water.” I let out a laugh and surveyed the makeshift campsite, the ATVs, the survival gear. The emptiness of the woods. My world had imploded and changed in less time than a normal school day. “Maybe they should have taken me camping more.”

  “Hey, guys, can you help?” Megan called.

  Adam and I turned. Bethany and Megan dragged tree branches into the clearing. We grabbed part of their load.

  “We should start a fire. It’s getting pretty cold.” Megan rubbed her arms.

  “Don’t you think it will be a beacon, showing the Raspers where we are?”

  “We’ll freeze if we don’t start one. And Raspers aren’t the only things to worry about out here.”

  She did have a point. We’d escaped the dogs before. I didn’t want a pack of wolves surrounding us. “Fine. I’ll do it.” I grabbed a pile of twigs and built a tepee-shaped tower.

  Bethany handed me a pile of leaves that I shoved under my structure. I lit the leaves with my lighter.

  “Here.” Adam handed me a few branches.

  Minutes later, I had a fire roaring. Dad would have been proud. He had spent forever teaching me how to start a fire on that one camping trip. If I had known, I would have listened to him more. Told him I loved him more. Said I was sorry.

  My mother’s face flashed before me like a video on fast forward. I choked down a ball of grief that threatened to release. Would I forget what she looked like? My heart broke into even smaller pieces. I hoped not. I didn’t want my memories to become shadows of the past.

  Darkness dropped around us, the shadows hiding the emotions overwhelming me. We sat on logs we had pulled from the woods and stared into the fire, no one saying a word. What were they thinking? Megan and Bethany were probably mourning the loss of their family. And Adam—I had no idea what he was thinking.

  Then it hit me. John had been Megan’s uncle. Bethany was her cousin. Oh, I had been an ass.

  “Bethany?”

  “Hmm?” Her gaze focused on the flames.

  “Was John your dad?”

  She gave a barely-there head shake. Her hair fell and hid her face. “No, he was my uncle too. My mom was Frank and John’s sister.”

  She didn’t say anymore. I really couldn’t ask about her parents without being rude. I didn’t want to talk about my parents, so asking about hers wasn’t an option. I pulled out four granola bars. “Anyone want one?”

  We ate our gourmet dinner in silence. When I was done, I tossed my wrapper into the flames and watched it curl and burn. The branches popped and sizzled. I pulled out one of my knives and dug the blade into the log.

  “You’re left-handed.” Megan crumpled up her wrapper.

  The fire lit her face. She was pretty, almost beautiful. Her blonde hair hung past her shoulders and the flames danced in her brown eyes.

  “Yeah, so what?” I cut a chunk out of the log.

  “Well, my dad noticed you both were left-handed when you were upstairs in the cabin.”

  “You mean when you were spying on us?” Another chunk.

  “Yes, but you were in our house.”

  True.

  “What’s the big deal with being left-handed? I think like ten percent of the population is. Or was.” I had no idea how many people survived. I dug out another hunk of bark. It had been stupid of me to think I was the only one.

  Megan sighed and her shoulders sagged. “I’m not sure, but he commented on it and became very interested in you guys after that.”

  Adam sat up straighter. “Interested how?”

  “He became animated like he does—did—when he was working on a project for the university. Like it was a big deal or something.”

  “He didn’t mention anything.” Adam said.

  “No. No, he didn’t to you.” Megan rubbed her hands down her jeans. “He was like that.”

  “He was a teacher?” I stopped carving and twirled the knife in my hand.

  “A professor of history at University of Louisville.”

  “What did he say?” Adam shot me a look then turned to Megan.

  She seemed to shrink back from him. “Just that you were both lefties and my age.”

  “Are you left-handed too?”

  “No.”

  I held up the knife. The flames reflected along the blade. Frank had to have had a point in noting Adam and I were both lefties, but I had no clue what it was.

  “Well, we should probably try to sleep a little.” Adam stood and stretched.

  “I think three of us can fit into the tent if we squeeze,” Megan said.

  I stifled a yawn. “I can take first watch. I don’t sleep much anyway.”

  “You sure?” Adam stretched his arms over his head and rolled his neck.

  “Yeah,
I’m good. I’ll wake you when I get tired.”

  Megan and Bethany ducked into the tent, Adam right behind. Into the tent. The small tent.

  My heart flipped over and buried itself deep inside.

  Anger—okay, jealousy—burned in my chest like a severe case of indigestion. I walked around the edge of the clearing to get away from the tent. Images of Adam and Megan snuggling in the confined space had me wishing for antacids. I shouldn’t be this upset. He wasn’t my boyfriend. I didn’t even like him. But the voice that belonged to my heart whispered, Yes, you do. I told my heart to shut up and focused on the woods.

  Arctic air sliced through my jacket and broke up my thoughts of Adam. I looked around. With my new ability to see better in the dark, I could make out individual leaves on the trees. I couldn’t do that before the sting. It was cool, but creepy. Did I have teeny tiny little Bugs zooming through my blood stream? The image was enough to make me want to vomit my granola bar.

  I made my way over to the ATVs. I spared one glance at the tent. No movements. No voices. Hopefully, they were asleep. I pictured Adam stroking Megan’s hair.

  I slammed my butt on the four-wheeler, my back to the tent. An ache thrummed behind my eyes. Exhaustion threatened to knock me out, but I had to stay awake. Had to stay alert. The wind howled—or was it a coyote? Crap. I pulled my hat lower to cover my ears.

  I was in the middle of nowhere violating Rules One and Two. Trusting people and being out in the open at night. What was I doing? I dropped my face into my gloved hand. Look what had happened after I trusted Adam. The damn Rasper stung me and now I had super powers that were most likely going to kill me.

  I lifted my head. White particles dropped down all around. No. It couldn’t be. I held out my hand. Snow.

  Tiny flakes dotted the material of my glove. Great. We were so unprepared for snow. I pulled my legs up and hugged my knees, mesmerized by the falling flakes.

  Crunch.

  The sound brought me back to reality. Something—or someone—was out there, about thirty feet away. I dropped my legs, pulled out my gun, and sat straight up. All my senses were hyper-alert. Tight. Focused.