“What the hell, Lydia?” I said sucking in a breath.
“Should have guessed that was you,” a deep-voiced boomed as a beam of light was slapped on Lydia’s face.
“It’s not what you think,” Lydia said waving her hands.
The light flashed to me. “Who’s this?”
“No one,” I replied.
“Must be the new girl,” another man’s voice said. I hadn’t seen anyone else standing there except for the man holding the flashlight.
There were probably others that I couldn’t see but that didn’t stop me. I dipped to the side out of the light and dashed away into the shadows.
The light danced around. I jumped and ducked but the light was faster and so was the man chasing me.
He grabbed my arm and jerked me to a stop. “You’re going to be punished for this.”
I swung but he anticipated my move. He ducked and laughed. His fingertips dug into my arm.
“I know all about you,” he whispered. “We’ve all been warned you like to fight back. Won’t be long until they beat that out of you.”
My jaw tensed. I loosened the instant I saw the fear in Lydia’s eyes.
“This was my idea,” I said. “Let her go.”
“That’s not how this works,” the guy said.
Without another word, we were whisked back to the houses. We weren’t brought to the house we’d been locked up in. We were brought to Zachary’s house.
They didn’t say much. Zachary sat in a soft, tall-backed chair with his arms crossed.
“I’m very disappointed in you both,” he said. It was the only full sentence I could recall having heard before the beatings started.
I bit my cheek as I was smacked around. There were words but they faded in and out. I wasn’t even sure if I’d heard them.
Obedience.
Rules.
Consequences.
I was flat on the floor with my cheek pressed against the floorboards when Lydia crashed down next to me. Her eyes were wide open.
She stared at me. Her lips moved but only for a second before the life left her.
Lydia was gone. And even though I tried not to… I cried.
I was beaten. Broken.
There were cuts on my skin that burned. Bruises that were so deep it felt as though they’d never heal.
It took two of them to drag me back to my prison house, not because I fought back but because I wouldn’t even get to my feet. They were forced to carry me.
I kept my eyes closed until I heard the door lock. The others looked at me with concern and worry.
“Where’s Lydia?” Melinda asked.
“It’s my fault,” I mumbled.
“What’s your fault?” Tami asked holding onto Abigail.
I sniffed so hard it felt like something was stabbing my brain. “She’s dead. They beat us. They went too far.”
“That’s not your fault,” Melinda said as rage filled her eyes.
“She wouldn’t have left if it hadn’t been for me,” I said.
Melinda took my hand into hers and I winced. “It was her choice to go. You didn’t force her.”
“I told her we’d get out of here,” I said. “I failed her in so many ways. It’s my fault.”
“You tried to help her,” Lydia said. She was only trying to make me feel better.
I pulled my hand away and painfully rolled on my other side, turning my back to all of them. It was over. I’d lost.
There wasn’t anything left I could and there was no way I was going to risk losing anyone else. I’d done enough damage.
I guess it had worked. They beat everything I was out of me. They’d won.
25
Joss
I held up both hands. “Allie. Calm down. We’ll leave, okay? We don’t have to stay here. If you want to leave, we’ll leave.”
Allie stared at me as if trying to make sense of my words. After a long moment, she let her hand fall to her side. The knife clanked when it hit the floor.
She drew in a breath and picked it up, quickly tucking it into the bag as if she were trying to hide it.
“I’m sorry,” she said bursting into tears. Allie crouched down, sobbing as she hugged her knees. “I’m so sorry. I’m such a mess.”
Cal started crying. Either he was hungry again or Allie’s outburst had frightened him. Maybe, and there was a good chance, it was both.
“It’s okay,” I said. “Just a quick break so Jenna can feed Cal. Is that okay?”
Allie sucked in a breath and nodded. “It’s okay. I’m fine now. I panicked. It happens sometimes now. I never had these attacks before but I get them now.”
“That smell will kill us. We can’t stay here anyway,” Jenna said taking a seat on the sofa. Cal was calmly having his feast. He couldn’t have cared less about our surroundings.
We checked for food but the place had been cleared out. We each had a quick snack and some water from our bags before we headed back out into the rain. I worried that we wouldn’t find another place to stop before nightfall. And by the way Jenna’s eyes moved around, I knew she was thinking the same thing.
What I really wanted, more than anything, was to find another house we could stay safely inside for a long time. Something with lots of food. And something far away from other places. A place where we’d be safe.
Of course, I wasn’t foolish enough to believe that a safe place existed. We were walking to our graves and I think on some level, we all knew it.
Maybe we were all ready in our own way. I was almost certain I was.
I missed Robby fiercely. It wasn’t the same without him. It wasn’t the same without Caleb either. Sure, I was with Jenna and Allie too, but that didn’t help me feel any less empty.
We’d walked for miles. Our pace, slow and defeated.
In the distance, there was what appeared to be the remains of a gas station. It wouldn’t be the safest place to stop but it would have to suffice.
I peeked into the cracked glass of the front window before we entered. The bell connected to the door jingled loudly.
“Geez,” I said pressing my palm to my chest.
I sniffed the air as though I was expecting the mind-numbing scent of the dead but all I smelled was the faint odor of overcooked hot dogs. It was either my imagination or the smell was ingrained into the walls.
“Let’s check for food,” I said. “We won’t be able to heat anything up here but pack it in the hopes we can at some point in the near future. We need to keep everything we find that could be of use.”
“We know, Joss,” Jenna said.
There were a few items on the shelves but nothing significant. Jenna started clapping her hands.
“You guys! Look at this!” Jenna squealed.
I ran to her, hoping to see a fresh cheeseburger and a large side of fries. Instead, there was a box of baby wipes and a small bag of diapers.
“I struck gold!” Jenna clapped her hands again.
“We don’t have room for that entire box of wipes,” I said.
“I know,” Jenna said. “What we can’t take, we use. We can clean up. A baby wipes bath.”
I opened my mouth but snapped it shut. “That’s not a bad idea.”
“We’ll take turns in the bathroom,” Jenna said. “I’ll go first because I found them.”
“It’s not going to last,” I said. “That gross, dusty, sticky feeling will be back the second we step back out into the rain.”
“Still, it will be nice while it lasts,” Jenna said with a shrug.
The bell over the door jingled and we all turned. A man with a black vest stepped into the gas station and closed the door behind him.
“What’s this about?” he asked. His eyes darted for a second toward the door behind the counter. “Terrance?”
The door popped open and another guy stepped out. He covered his yawn.
“Sorry, Randy. Ned and Vince fell asleep,” Terrance said.
“Seems as though maybe you
did too,” Randy said jerking his thumb toward us. “We have visitors.”
“Whoa-ho-ho!” Terrance said as he waddled around the front counter. “They look young.”
I dared a quick glance at Allie. Her breaths were coming quickly. She was frozen with fear.
I pulled the knife out of her backpack and held it out in front of us. The muscles in my jaw were stiff and tight. Painful.
“Stay back,” I said.
Jenna and Allie were behind me. There was no other way out besides the front door. Unless, of course, there was a way to break the glass of the cracked front window.
There was no doubt in my mind that the men in front of us were some of the men that Allie had warned us about. I didn’t like the way the two guys were looking at us.
But then it wasn’t just us they were looking at. It was something even more terrifying. They were eyeing Cal.
The guy in front, Randy, pulled a gun. “Get the other two.”
“Ned, Vince, get out here,” Terrance called. “Randy’s back.”
“That’s not what I meant,” Randy muttered.
Terrance shrugged as the other two came out. They stretched and yawned but their eyes widened when they spotted us.
“You brought us back a treat?” Ned asked with a laugh.
Randy grimaced. “They were already here when I arrived. You idiots had one job and you blew it. Boss isn’t going to be happy to hear about this.”
“He won’t care when he sees what we bring back for him,” Ned said. “Three more helpers and a baby. We’ve found the needle in the haystack.”
“Three needles,” the one they’d called Vince said with a laugh.
Allie started screaming. “I won’t go back! I won’t! I’d rather die.
“That can be arranged,” Randy said stomping forward.
I swung the knife but missed. Randy pushed me aside, knocking both Allie and me over like a pair of dominoes.
He grabbed Jenna and pulled her away from us. She kicked and punched at him with her free hand.
“Let me go, asshole!” Jenna shouted. “You’ll hurt my baby!”
Ned reached toward her and peeled Cal away from her. Jenna opened her mouth and released her pain with a scream.
“Nooooo!” she threw her tightly closed fists at Randy as she squirmed to break free. “Give him back! You’ll hurt him!”
Tears burned the back of my eyeballs. I thought my knees were going to give out but they didn’t. Adrenaline surged through my veins. I lunged forward, slicing Randy’s arm with the sharp edge of the knife.
“Jesus,” he said turning to look at his arm. He didn’t let go of Jenna, even though blood poured out of his forearm. “Get her! And the other one too!”
“No, no, no,” Allie shouted as she covered her ears and kicked her legs.
Before Terrance could get to me, I swung the knife at Randy again. I cut the same arm again… this time, the back of his hand. He dropped his gun to the floor.
Allie scrambled forward and picked it up. She didn’t hesitate to stand and shoot.
Randy touched his neck. His body vibrated and he let go of Jenna.
“You bitch,” he said. He took a step and dropped heavily to the ground.
“Randy!” Terrance yelled before a shot rang out.
My eyes darted around, making sure Allie and Jenna were both fine. Cal was still in Ned’s arms.
He’d missed.
Allie sucked in a sharp breath. She turned slightly, firing the gun again.
Terrance gurgled nonsense before blood dripped out of his mouth. He took a step back into the wall and slumped down to the floor. His head was tilted and his eyes blankly stared forward.
Vince raised his gun. His hands were shaking wildly.
“Shoot them!” Ned said.
“I can’t! They’re just… they’re just kids. I can’t do it,” he said shaking his head.
Ned swallowed hard. “You know what the boss will do if you don’t.”
“I know,” Vince said. He turned the gun on himself and pulled the trigger. Blood sprinkled out, splattering the wall behind him.
Ned clutched Cal to his chest and charged forward. He pushed Jenna with his palm, just above the center of his chest.
She fell to the ground, cracking her head against the bottom of one of the shelves. Her eyes rolled back in her head.
The bell above the door jingled. Allie kept trying to fire but the gun was empty.
Ned was getting away with Cal.
26
Adam
I felt uncomfortable creeping through the house. I wasn’t entirely sure what I was doing or what I was even looking for.
There wasn’t anything unusual in the living room, dining room, or in the bathroom. The kitchen was the last room to go through unless, of course, I wanted to make my way to the bunker.
I opened the first cupboard and then the second. All that was inside were plates, bowls, and some plastic storage containers. Everything was neatly organized. The next had the cups, glasses, and mugs.
It was an ordinary kitchen that was until I got to the last cupboard door. The hinge squealed as I pulled it open. I froze in place, worried the sound had been too loud.
My body was stiff as I listened for sounds of someone coming but there wasn’t anything except for the rain hitting the roof and windows.
Inside the cupboard was a locked metal box. But there was no key nearby that I could see.
I opened the drawers one by one, desperately searching for the key. Each one was perfectly organized and none of them contained a key or even anything I could use to attempt to pick open the lock. Not that I would even know how to do such a thing.
My fingers gripped the edge of the counter. I pressed my hands to my face, muffling my groan.
The locked box was likely where Eli stored his valuables. With how paranoid he seemed, a locked box didn’t seem that out of place. That didn’t stop me from wanting to know what was inside.
Unfortunately, I wasn’t going to find out. I grabbed the candle and headed back to the bedroom.
I stopped when I saw Eli’s jacket hanging on the hook at the front door. My eyes glanced toward his room. It was just me, the rain, and his jacket.
I placed each step carefully. The rough feel of the fabric of his coat felt scratchy against my hand.
I hesitated when I felt the metal against my fingertips. The acrid taste at the back of my throat threatened to choke me.
My hand squeezed around the keys as I slowly pulled them from Eli’s coat pocket. There were several different keys on the ring but of course, there was a chance none of them would open the metal box.
It was like something had control over me as I walked back to the kitchen. My eyes were focused on Eli’s bedroom door. I wasn’t sure what he’d do if he caught me and I definitely didn’t want to find out.
There was only one key that appeared small enough that it would fit into the lock. I wasn’t sure it would fit but after jiggling it, the key slipped into place.
My breaths hit me quickly as I turned the key and opened the small door. I raised the candle, illuminating the various amber bottles, some with pharmacy labels, some with other labels. The one that caught my eye had a warning label.
I took it out and almost dropped it when I saw the word printed under the warning. Arsenic.
I shoved it back into the metal box and closed the door. My fingers fumbled the keys as I tried to lock the box.
“Come on,” I whispered. Sucking in a breath when I felt the key turn.
I raced back to the coat hook and shoved Eli’s keys back into his coat pocket. Once I was back in the bedroom, I closed the door and grabbed our things, setting them into a pile.
“Shit!” I said remembering that Eli had taken our guns.
I’d get Leah ready, then we’d get the guns. The important thing was to get far away from Eli before he woke.
I didn’t know how I was going to help Leah. After seeing the poison in the kitch
en, I instantly knew that Leah wasn’t suffering from an infection. She’d been poisoned. And so had I. I hoped to hell that once we got away, things would improve.
“Leah,” I said shaking her lightly. “You need to wake up.”
She didn’t respond. Her body moved with my shaking from side to side.
I reached around her, helping her sit up. Her body was heavy even though she was so thin.
In the dim light, I could see more hair had fallen out onto her pillow. I chewed my lip and shook her again.
“Leah. Wake up,” I said.
She started to fall forward but I caught her. I straightened her as best as I could but it was like posing a doll. She wouldn’t stay in place.
I touched her forehead and gasped. The coldness of her body was shocking. I lowered her back down on the bed carefully and tried to wake her again.
“Leah, please,” I begged. “I need you to wake up.”
I got off the bed and grabbed the candle from the nightstand. The muscles in her face were slack and there was a blueish tinge to her lips.
“Oh, God. Leah, no,” I said sniffing hard as a tear stung my eye.
I grabbed her wrist but I couldn’t find a pulse. I probably couldn’t have found a pulse either way.
I set down the candle and dropped my head down to her chest. Nothing.
I pressed down repeatedly, trying to pump the life back into her but her body just flopped lifelessly on the bed.
I had no idea how much time had passed before I stood and started to pace. My hand shook as I ran them through my hair over and over again.
“What should I do?” I asked if Leah would somehow be able to tell me.
I couldn’t leave her like this but if I stayed, I’d certainly die. Eli would suspect something when I refused to eat and drink his food.
How could I have been so stupid? I sat down next to Leah again, holding my hand next to her nose, desperately hoping to feel her breath.
I couldn’t do this on my own.
She would want me to go. Eva was still in the corner of the room laughing but Leah was in the other corner yelling at me to get the hell out of there.
The Reset Series | Book 6 | Striking Page 12