by Fitch, E. M.
"It's okay. I love you."
"Get her to her feet," Quinton said. Kaylee had forgotten he was there, that he saved her. She stumbled to her feet, arms still clinging to her sister. "We're not out of it yet. They could come back to check on this one. What about the others? Do we need to worry about them?"
Kaylee pulled herself out of Emma's embrace, though she grasped her hand, twining her fingers with her and clamping tightly.
"That one's mother is with the group. And besides Marsden, their leader, there's three others. Paul, Tyler and Maggie. I don't think they'd side with Marsden or against him. Rose isn't going to be thrilled though, not with her daughter..." Emma trailed off, gesturing towards Cynthia's body.
Quinton nodded. "I have Andrew taking out the electric fences right now. We should get the others and get out of here. If we leave now, maybe one of us can come back, check the situation. This may be an ideal location for us, if we can work this all out."
"Not with Marsden here," Emma said, shaking her head. "He won't stand for it."
"No, I agree. We'd have to take care of that."
Kaylee's stomach roiled and it was beyond her control. Cynthia's blood was still clotting on the concrete floor, the air saturated by the scent. And they were already discussing murdering Marsden next. She retched, bringing her hand to her mouth. She pushed past Emma and then Quinton, throwing the door to the shed open before she lost the contents of her stomach in the grass.
The bile forced it's way through her throat as she vomited, her stomach emptying and still she was retching. Dry heaves that racked her chest.
The smell of the blood followed her even into the sharp, cool air of early morning.
"What's wrong with you?" It was Andrew's panicked voice. He was racing towards her. Her stomach calmed and she sucked in heavy breaths.
"Nothing, she's fine," came Emma's reproach. Andrew gasped Emma's name and he moved forward, wrapping her in his arms. Emma gripped him back.
"I'm fine, I'm fine," she whispered. Andrew let out a long breath.
Kaylee straightened, her hands shaky as she wiped the sick from her mouth.
"Are you okay?" Andrew asked from over Emma's shoulder, his eyes were wide with concern. Kaylee didn't know how to answer that. No, she wasn't. Not on the inside. But that wasn't what Andrew was really asking. She was vomiting and slick with blood, she had almost been killed as a bullet grazed her shoulder. But physically she would be fine. She wasn't injured in any way that wouldn't heal. This is what Andrew was really asking, so she nodded.
"The rest of the fences?" Quinton asked, joining the girls outside and pulling the door to the shed shut behind him.
"They're out," Andrew confirmed.
"Dad? Anna?" Emma asked.
"They're okay, locked up but not hurt. Maggie, Paul, the rest of them, I don't think they know."
"How..." Kaylee rasped, but she couldn't choke the rest of her question out. She still felt nauseous.
"Cynthia drugged them. She may have drugged more, Maggie or Rose maybe. I'm not sure. When we got back they told us you and Cynthia were out at the greenhouses, that you'd be back in an hour. Everyone was starving and started to eat. But I was a mess, decided to take a quick shower first. When I came back to the room, everyone was passing out. I didn't eat when I saw that."
"Smart kid," Quinton said gruffly. He wiped the handle of Danny's rifle clean on his shirt and handed it to Andrew. "He ran to the fence, signaled me. I got in here as quickly as I could."
"Took me a while to find the right wires for the fence. I cut them. Couldn't cut power to the whole place though or Marsden would know."
"Speaking of, we have to move."
Where they were, outside the shed, they were sheltered from sight. The door that Kaylee had rushed through to vomit opened to the fence. In the light slanting from the shed's doorway, Kaylee could see the openings in the chain link fence from where Quinton had cut his way through.
Quinton was edging around the shack now, peering past the dam to the main building of the power plant. Kaylee swiped at her mouth, spitting on the ground, before she joined him. The dam was still and silent, a vast body of water nearly twenty feet below the lip of the concrete barrier a pale purple in the hazy predawn light.
"He said he would be back," Emma said, her voice now low as she joined her sister and Quinton.
"Why did he leave?"
"To check on the others," Kaylee answered, "that's what he said."
She was suddenly uneasy. Marsden had been gone too long. It should have taken no more than ten minutes to check the rest of their group, make sure they were locked in securely. He should have been back long before now.
"Maybe he decided to skip it, send Danny instead," Emma suggested.
"He did send Danny instead, but probably because he noticed I was missing. He's looking for me now, or waiting for me to turn up, guaranteed." Andrew's voice was low and steady. Kaylee didn't doubt his reasoning.
"No one noticed you were missing before?"
Andrew shrugged. "It was Danny who locked the rest in, I guess he's the only one who did the head count. He's kinda slow. Maybe no one knew until Marsden checked."
"So we wait here. It'll be better for everyone if we handle him here, away from the rest." As Quinton spoke, Kaylee saw him take his handgun from his holster. He pulled back the slide and chambered a round. Her stomached roiled again.
"We're going to kill him." It wasn't a question so she didn't pose it as one. But she noted with at least some relief the despondency in her tone. As least she was human enough to still register disgust at the act. She wasn't refusing to do it, because, given the chance, Marsden would bleed her sister dry. He might kill her too, because she murdered Cynthia. And he wasn't above poisoning her friends and family. If Marsden was coming after them, then yes, he would have to die.
But relief spiked through her when Quinton spoke. "Not yet," he said. Emma's jaw dropped in anger and Andrew sputtered but Quinton held firm. "We're not snipers, we're not taking him out from here without warning."
"He tried to kill me!" Emma protested. "We can't stay here with him!"
"We're not executioners either, Emma," Quinton answered calmly. "He won't hurt you again, I promise you, but we will take him into custody and talk as a group before we decide anything."
"That's better, Em, that's right," Kaylee said softly. Her unhelpful mind forced flashes of memory at her, the axe striking Cynthia, the way the dull blade coursed through her flesh. She winced and held back a shiver. "Give him a chance to talk, a last trial."
"He didn't give me one," she argued, her teeth grit. Kaylee felt her sister wanted to say more, wanted to accuse her of hypocrisy, because Kaylee hadn't given Cynthia any last words either.
But that was different. She had a gun. It was pointed at me. I had no choice.
But she knew she was lying to herself, here in the cold dawn air. Because there is always a choice. Kaylee had just chosen her own life over Cynthia's.
Silence stretched as they waited, watching the doors and windows of the power plant. There was no life, no movement. Kaylee couldn't see in the windows, the rising sun was splashing orange rays over the grass and pavement of the yard, casting the windows in brilliant, glowing light. It made it impossible to see through them.
"He's not coming, he's waiting for me," Andrew spoke.
"Ten more minutes," Quinton suggested, leaning on the side of the building, his eyes still trained forward.
Chapter Ten
Kaylee shifted impatiently. Her hands were just the slightest shade of pink, leftover blood that still stained her skin from after she had wiped the rest on her jeans. Her chest was smeared red from when Danny had slammed her to the concrete next to Cynthia's lifeless body, she was sure her face was as well. The bruises and bumps were starting to throb, now that she was standing still and the adrenaline was fading. Her neck itched and when Kaylee brought her hand to her skin, she found and remembered the bloody trails that Cynthia's
nails had left on her cheek and neck. They itched and burned now, the blood already dried in long streaks.
The smell was disorienting, the metallic, rusty odor of blood. It felt like she couldn't get out of the shed, couldn't get away from what she had done, like it would follow her, taunting her forever. Bile beat up her throat again but she swallowed it down. A surge of anger swept through her. She was so sick and tired of feeling ill. So sick of this world and the death and rotting and blood all around her.
It wasn't until Emma reached out and stroked her forearm that she realized her hands were clenched into fists. She looked up from where she was staring, the patch of grass she had gotten sick in, and locked eyes with Emma.
She was worried. It was easy to read in the tightening around her eyes, they way she seemed to be searching Kaylee for something.
For what? Proof that I'm still here, that her sister wasn't lost in the shed at the same moment that Cynthia was?
"I think he's waiting for us to come to him," Quinton's voice broke through Kaylee's thoughts. She looked away from Emma and the pile of sick in the grass and turned to Quinton.
"So, what's our move?" The confidence in her voice surprised her. But it was there, she sounded strong and ready, not at all scared. Though by every right she should be.
"We only have two guns." Quinton nodded at the rifle in Andrew's hand, the one they had taken from an unconscious Danny. He checked his own clip and chambered a round. "Andrew and I will take point. You two stay right behind us. When we get to the others, unlock the door and wake them up."
"Sternal rub if they're not responsive," Emma said, looking at Kaylee. She brought her fist to Kaylee's chest and rubbed her knuckles lightly over her breastbone. "Just like this over the sternum, but hard. That'll wake them." Kaylee nodded her understanding.
"We'll be sitting ducks over that dam," Andrew said, nodding forward. The top of the dam stretched before them, as long as a football field, a thick expanse that would provide no coverage. Was Marsden waiting for them to try to make it across, would he shoot as soon as they tried?
"It's harder than you think to hit a moving target. And the sun isn't up yet. We have time. Keep low, move quickly," Quinton said, gesturing them forward, his arm outstretched before him, gun low but pointing the way. They dart from shed to shed before stealing quickly across the concrete stretch of the dam, the steel gray sky of predawn yawning above them. Quinton moved in a low crouch, a practiced military styled advance.
It was distracting, the water lapping at the concrete around her. The gentle rhythms, the light breeze, it belayed the urgency, the craziness of their situation. On one side, the water was only a couple feet below the lip of the dam, the other was a twenty foot drop at least. But she moved quickly, tried to keep low and move stealthily across the dam. She may not have been entirely successful, not as good as Quinton was, but they weren't shot at as they reached the grass either.
Quinton crossed the lawn and opened the door, moving in first. The moment he slid from view, Kaylee knew something wasn't right.
Music, static, sobbing, laughing, and gunfire. Bursts of sounds and light and faces and faraway places. It all flashed at them from every corner of the great room. Every television and stereo, even the game systems and the ancient arcades, were on, the volume low, not overwhelming but a constant buzz.
"He's expecting us," Andrew murmured.
"Ignore it," Quinton advised, "he's trying to distract us."
"Or provide cover," Emma whispered.
"So, keep your eyes open then."
There were shadows, cast from the light of the flickering televisions and monitors. They caught Kaylee's eye more than once as she stole across the large room, headed towards the stairs. But it was only shadows, no Marsden, no Maggie or Paul or Rose.
After the low buzz of the televisions and radios, the silence in the stairwell was eerie. Footsteps echoed and Kaylee could hear her breathing clearly in the closed space. It was dark, there were no windows in the stairwell. If not for Quinton doing a quick sweep while Emma held the door open for him, Kaylee would have been more worried that Marsden was hiding in these denser shadows, waiting for them. But by the time they reached the top and the door of the room they had all once been locked in, Kaylee was more worried about the silence then the shadows.
"Get it opened," Quinton said, nodding to the door as he turned his back on it. He and Andrew positioned themselves facing towards the long hall and the stairwell, both remained empty.
Emma was the first through the door, Kaylee on her heels. Their group was sleeping, it looked so innocent. And small. Without the two girls, Andrew, and Quinton, it was only four bodies. Only four. Kaylee knew theirs wasn't a huge group, but it felt large, felt like they could do anything together, felt like survival. It wasn't so promising when you took any of the others out of the equation. It would be so easy for the group size to shrink. It almost had already. Emma should be dead by now, so should Kaylee. She wondered if any of those sleeping would have even suspected that they had been drugged, had it not been for Andrew sneaking out and back to them. They were tucked into their beds, curled up under the rough wool blankets. Emma was already at the end of the room shaking Anna, quietly hissing for her to wake. Kaylee saw the stirring and she went to the closest bed, the one right next to the door.
"Jack," she whispered, shaking his shoulder. He was lightly snoring, peaceful. Kaylee thought for a moment she should try the sternal rub and she ripped his blankets down to expose his chest. But before she could put her knuckles to him, his eyes flew open.
"Kay?" It was the wonder and hope in his voice that nearly buckled her. But it turned quickly to fear and horror. "What's going on, are you okay?"
He jumped up from his bed, staring at her in horror. He was already reaching for his holster, growling when he saw it was empty. He was still fully clothed, dirty from the day they spent cleaning the lines. Whatever they drugged them with, it incapacitated them. They never even cleaned up before climbing into their beds.
"I'm fine," was all she managed to choke out before turning to rouse her father.
For a infinitesimal moment, she had forgotten she was covered in blood. Nick rose easier than Jack, he always was a light sleeper, and immediately reached for Kaylee.
"What happened to you? Where were you?" he demanded.
"I'm fine," she whispered again. She hugged him quickly, pulling back to tell him to grab his boots and jacket. Everyone moved very quickly, the group was assembled in moments. There was little need for explanation other than that they were drugged, Marsden almost killed Emma, everyone was fine, and they needed to leave. There were no arguments, once everyone got a look at Kaylee, they hurried right along without complaint.
"Guns out everyone," Quinton murmured, sticking his head in the room.
"Can't," Jack said through clenched teeth. Quinton nodded once as if expecting it before gesturing for the group to follow them. They filed past Kaylee, Anna's eyes wide, searching her for the source of so much blood. Kaylee could see her eyes quickly tracing her injuries, seeking for some large cut or wound that would explain the amount that saturated her clothing. She offered a quick shake of her head.
Later.
Anna nodded and gave her arm a brief squeeze.
The hallway was still the same uncanny quiet, but it was better now that the rest of the group was with them. Even without guns, there was a lot of them. And really, Kaylee thought it was only Marsden that stood between them and safety.
They stole as quietly as a large group could through the hall and down the stairs, Kaylee could hear the buzz of the televisions, computers, and radios. Her hands felt empty and the feeling scared her. It was too easy to remember the ease of holding the axe and she didn't want that feeling to be easy. But she felt vulnerable now and she found her eyes seeking out nearby objects that could be used as weapons. There was nothing in the stairwell, but as soon as she came through the door she spotted a screwdriver laying on an old Pac Man a
rcade game and picked it up. It wouldn't do much against a gun. But she felt better gripping something that could be used for defense.
"Where is everyone?" Anna whispered, looking around confused. "Maggie, Rose, Marsden, Cynthia, they're all usually up by now. What the hell happened last night, this morning?"
Quinton ignored the question, his focus forward and out of the power house. Kaylee cringed as Anna listed everyone off. Cynthia wouldn't be joining them now or ever again. Her grip convulsed around the screwdriver.
"They were drugged with dinner, you all were," Andrew answered simply, leaving Cynthia out of it entirely.
"They weren't all drugged."
Kaylee whipped her head around, looking for the source of the soft, rasping voice. The entire group tensed, initially drawing closer together. But Quinton shushed them, told them to spread out. They did, they spread in one long line, each an arm length away from the other. Jack was on Kaylee's left, closer to the center of the line than she was, his eyes flickered around the room but came back to her quickly.
"You must be Marsden," Quinton called out, his gaze searching, as everyone's was, around the cavernous room. Kaylee's eyes flit from the flickering screens to the crane suspended from the ceiling and back to the walls.
"Cynthia wasn't drugged." Marsden's voice was closer now, but from a different part of the room. He was moving, shifting towards them from behind the large televisions and video games. The shadows there were deep and dark, the surfaces of the screens lit both with images and an orange glow from the sun that was steadily rising and visible from the high windows.
"Was she, Kaylee?" She saw movement, just a flickering of the shadows really, and caught his eye as his head ducked back behind the metal shelves full of DVDs.
"Who cares if Cynthia was drugged!" Nick roared. "You told me my daughter ran away! You had her locked up! And now my other daughter is covered in blood! I want answers. Now!"
Marsden laughed. It was high pitched and ringing. "You're not worried who's blood it is?"