“Do you want me to ask this time?”
The fact that he felt the need to whisper frightened her. Something in her gut told her that she couldn’t trust their apparent saviors and Jacob’s hesitation only heightened her concerns. If he knew something specific about the soldiers, he hadn't yet shared it. The smile slipped from her face, and she shook her head. Her father believed in her and she meant to honor him.
“I’ll do it.”
The soldiers were spread out around the survivors in a loose circle. They’d relayed a few instructions but little else in the way of directions or information about their destination. There was no sign of the city or the tall grass boundary now far behind them. Moonlight shone down on an endless scene of rolling hills ahead of the group. Mia had hoped the soldiers would stop for the night, but she was beginning to think that a stronger approach might be the best course of action. She sped up until her stride brought her directly behind the soldier who’d identified himself.
“Connor.”
He didn’t turn around.
“We’re stopping.”
The declaration was enough to get him to look over his shoulder. “Not here.”
Mia came to a complete stop. “I said we’re stopping.” She jabbed the tip of her sword into the ground and rested her hands on her hips. “Now.”
The entire group came to a halt. All eyes went to Connor. He spun around and sighed in frustration. He slipped his rife over his shoulder and looked around at their faces before settling on Mia.
“We have a schedule to keep,” he said.
Mia didn’t move. “We have to help the injured,” she said. “And some of these elders can't continue without rest and food.” She glanced at Jacob.
“Don’t look at me,” he said.
Connor’s face hardened as Mia pressed the issue.
“Are we your prisoners?” she asked.
He stepped toward her and his hands became animated. “We saved you,” he said, obviously louder than he’d intended. “And I’m still trying to save you.”
He stopped a few feet from her, close enough for Mia to see his tough exterior fall away for a brief moment. The break was enough for her to get a glance at the young man underneath. The sight inexplicably reminded Mia of Rowan and it shook her resolve.
“I know that,” she said, “and we’re very grateful for you. I’m very grateful.” She wasn’t sure why she added the last part, but it was too late to take it back. Connor’s brow rose despite an attempt to hide his surprise. “We won’t make it if we continue at this pace.”
Connor pursed his lips and then finally nodded. He motioned for one of the other soldiers.
“We’ll stop here for the night,” he said. “Set up a watch rotation and gather supplies so we can hand out rations.”
Mia smiled. “Thank you,” she said.
“I’ll have one of my men look at your wounded.”
Mia nodded.
“We have about a day’s march,” he said before turning back to his tasks. “We’ll start again at sun up.”
Most of the tribe’s survivors sat down wherever they stopped. Mia walked through the crowd speaking with each of them as she handed out small portions of the food Connor gave her. She made a mental note of each of the survivor’s condition as she tried to figure out what they were up against. She knew each of their names and for the first time in the past few days she felt a true connection with the tribe.
Mia sat down at the edge of the group next to Jacob. His eyes were on their escorts. A pair of soldiers started out on a patrol; the remainder settled in a small circle beyond the survivors. Connor relayed their decision to someone over his radio. The voice on the other end confirmed the information and then went silent.
“What’s a matter?” Mia asked, quietly.
“No one helps people for nothing,” he said.
“You did.”
He started to respond and then hesitated. “That’s different.” He turned his attention on her. “I want to know where we’re going.”
“So ask them.”
“I’m not sure the answer would matter,” he said and then took a bite of a piece of dried meat he pulled out of his belt pouch. “How would we know they were telling the truth?”
“Why are you so worried?”
“I already told you,” he paused mid-chew, “no one helps people for nothing.”
“What could they possibly want with us?” Mia asked and then poked at the sliced fruit and cheese she received for her portion of the supplies.
Jacob continued chewing his food. “That’s what I want to know.”
♦
“Jonah!”
The boy slammed into Rowan with such force that both of them hit the dirt and Jonah continued into a roll. They ended up lying on the ground head to head, and then both of them scrambled to their feet. Rowan tried to get Jonah to keep running, but he didn’t have time to get the words out before he wrapped his arms around him and squeezed with all his might.
“I knew you wouldn’t leave me.”
Rowan wasn’t sure how to respond nor did he have the time to figure it out. “Run now.”
The direction was enough to snap the boy back to the moment. They were running a second later, hand in hand, deeper into the woods. A plethora of sounds flooded the space beneath the canopy all around them. Thunderous steps rose over the dreadful groans of the dead. Screams pierced the chasing stomps of the infected as survivors cried out for help. A woman’s frantic pleas brought Rowan to an abrupt halt.
“Where’s Mia?”
Jonah’s feet kept moving even after his hand slipped from Rowan’s.
“I thought she was with you.” The terror on the boy’s face was nearly complete. “She snuck out,” he explained. “I told her not to go, but she said she was going to find you.”
“She didn’t come back?” Rowan asked, his own fear ever-present in his voice. “Not before the infected attacked?”
Jonah shook his head. Rowan knew they should keep running, but his mind was lost. He’d convinced himself that Mia was with Jonah. The realization that she wasn’t with her brother filled him with indecision.
“What do we do?” Jonah pleaded.
The stomping drew nearer, and Rowan gasped as he realized he was holding his breath.
“Just run.”
They started off again, this time with Rowan edging to the north. He kept the boundary of the woods in sight, hoping to get out in front of the pursuing horde. They didn’t stop running until Jonah collapsed. Rowan leaned over the boy, his hands on his knees, his breaths deep. His thumping heartbeat lightened enough for him to notice that the sounds of the infected were now behind them.
“We have to keep moving,” he said. “I think we’ll break out of the woods up ahead.”
Jonah managed to sit up. “Where are we going?”
Rowan didn’t have an answer. “Let’s get somewhere safe and we’ll figure everything else out then.”
He reached for the boy’s arm and helped him to his feet. They jogged to the edge of the woods, where Rowan held short until he was satisfied with the stillness out in the open. The moon sat high in the dark sky and provided enough light to see that the meadow had turned into a wide, hilly landscape.
Rowan was satisfied to keep moving north. They were too far out in the open to turn back when the first sign of trouble reached them. The shifting figures ran toward them from the east. Rowan knew he and Jonah couldn’t reach the first row of hills before the new arrivals would cross their path.
“Get down.”
Rowan’s whisper opened Jonah’s eyes as wide as they could go. Rowan crouched down and Jonah followed by getting on his hands and knees and closing in behind him. Rowan slid his knife into his belt and slipped his bow over his head. He readied one of the last two remaining arrows and waited.
“Are they coming to get us?” Jonah’s voice shook as he spoke. “Don’t let them eat me.”
The shadows shifted as
the figures moved across the field. The grass was much shorter than it had been closer to the city. It wasn’t long before the approaching pair became clear under the moonlight. They were too fast to be zombies and their movements too fluid to be infected. Rowan put his bow down and stood up.
“Here,” he said, waving his hands over his head.
The sudden break in silence startled the approachers. It took them a moment to realize the utterance meant the owner wasn’t hunting them. Their direction shifted and they slowed, now on a direct path toward the signaler. Jonah got to his feet and waited, refusing to step out from behind Rowan. Garret’s voice reached them before the light showed his face.
“I didn’t think I’d ever see you again.”
Jonah poked his head out around Rowan’s arm.
“You either,” Garret added. “Look who I bumped into.”
Rowan recognized her as the woman from the Denver Tribe. Her face was covered in dirt and sweat. Garret’s limp grew clearer the closer they came. He had one arm around Erin as she bore some of his weight.
“We ran into each other after all the chaos,” Garret explained.
Erin muttered something to herself before blurting out to the group. “I got turned around,” she said. “I could hear them coming.”
“She says there’s more of them.”
“More of who?” Rowan asked.
Garret shrugged. “The dead, the infected, all of them.”
Erin pulled Garret’s arm from around her neck and then wiped her hands over her face.
“They took the entire city in a few days,” she said in short, erratic utterances. “They were everywhere.” She looked out at the hills. “We were on the run for weeks.”
“From Denver?” Rowan asked. “That can’t be, we saw where this…army came from.” He was only loosely familiar with what the word army meant, but he thought it was a reasonable depiction of the mass of undead and infected he’d seen. “They were gathering on the edge of the outlands, west of Cheyenne.”
Erin shook her head frantically.
“They’re everywhere,” she said. “They came from the south and another horde from the west…” She paused before correcting herself. “I mean, they are coming.”
Rowan’s eyes narrowed. “More?” The question was simple enough, but Erin struggled for a response. Once she finally found the description she was searching for, none of them cared to hear it again.
“More than you could possibly imagine.”
Rowan felt Jonah shake.
“Mia wasn’t with them,” he said it more for himself than anyone else. “I’m sure she would have tried to make it back to me if she could have.”
“I don’t know if anyone could have made it out of the city if they weren’t ahead of us already,” Garret said, alluding to the fate of his family.
Rowan didn’t want to admit that he agreed, but he found himself nodding. The sound of Jonah fighting back tears weighed on his mind as he tried to ignore his own feelings and figure out what they were going to do next.
“We can’t go back,” he announced. “If there is another horde coming this way, the city will be a death trap for anyone caught inside.” He looked around at their motley crew. “We have to keep moving and find some place to hole up.”
Garret reached his hand out and Rowan took it.
“Let’s get to it then.”
17
Mia’s eyes parted slightly and then slammed shut. The morning light was unexpected. She shook off the haze of her dream and sat up. Most of the tribe was still asleep. Jacob gave her a wave as he brushed his teeth with his finger and a small cup of water.
“I thought you said you wouldn’t be able to sleep,” he said.
Mia stretched and got to her feet. “I’m surprised I did.” She felt rested and better than she thought she should under the circumstances. “What about you?”
He shrugged. “I did all right.”
Mia’s attention was pulled toward Connor as he approached her from the soldier’s group. The rest of his men began spreading out around the area.
“You feeling better?” he asked.
“Much,” she said. “I haven’t slept through the night in a while.” Mia watched him hesitate, looking around at the other soldiers before his shoulders relaxed.
“It looks like you’ve all gone through a difficult time.”
His change in approach surprised her. She felt a hint of empathy. “We’ve lost a lot,” she said and flashed a sorrowful smile. “Life was pretty normal a few days ago.” She laughed at herself and tried not to tear up.
Connor nodded, noticeably unsure of what to say.
“It would mean a lot to us if you could let us know where we’re going,” she said.
“It’s hard to explain.”
Mia saw Jacob slide in next to her from the corner of her eye.
“Give it a shot,” he said.
Connor took a deep breath and then swept his eyes around the group before coming back to Mia. “I’m not supposed to talk about Canaan—”
“Is that where we’re going?” Jacob cut in. “Never heard of it.”
“You wouldn’t,” Connor said as his demeanor hardened. “No one gets inside Canaan unless they’re invited.”
“Is that where you live?” Mia asked.
Connor nodded.
“Is it like Cheyenne?”
“No,” he said, bluntly. “It was originally a military base. It’s been there since the beginning.”
“Since the beginning of what?” Jacob asked.
“The infection.”
“Wait, what?” Jacob tripped over his words. “You’ve been there since before this all started?”
Connor backed away. “I’ve already said too much. Let’s get going.”
He started to turn when Mia tried to put his mind at ease. “Will my tribe be safe there?”
Connor stopped. He looked at her for a long time with something brewing behind his eyes. He finally nodded and then spun around and walked away.
Jacob cleared his throat. “Well, I guess that’s the best we’re going to get.” He picked his gear up off the ground. “Come on, let’s get everyone up and moving.”
The heat came early, bringing with it an uncomfortable humidity. The wind from the past few days was nowhere to be found. The rising temperature made the morning trek difficult. Supplies were low and the much-needed water had to be rationed.
Mia spent her time moving among the survivors, trying to ensure them that their destination wasn’t that far away. Connor made no more attempts to talk to her. Something in his parting nod stuck in her mind. He appeared to want to help them, but he was hiding something. Mia wasn’t certain although Jacob’s growing distrust heightened her suspicions.
The soldiers stopped near mid-day. The food portions were a pitiful sight, but the survivors thanked their saviors for every morsel. They started again at a painfully slow pace. The soldiers’ facial expressions hinted at their patience wearing thin. It was late afternoon when Connor left his forward position and came back to the group.
“You’re going to have to wait here.”
Mia sent a cautious glance to Jacob. “Why?” she asked.
“No one gets across the approaching field without permission,” Connor explained. “We’ll set up on that hill and you can wait there.” Jacob tried to cut in, but Connor continued to talk over him. “We’ll leave the rest of our supplies with you. I don’t know how long it will take.”
He didn’t wait for questions. They pushed up the final hill and the view beyond brought everyone to a complete stop. Canaan was a compound of sorts, protected on all four sides by high walls. Towers sat in watch positions along the perimeter, each one housing figures looking out over the approach. Mia’s attention fell to the wide-open field leading up to the compound or more specifically the countless bodies littering the grass. It was difficult to tell from the distance if the bodies were zombies, infected, or survivors who hadn’t obeyed the
strict approaching rules. She did her best to pull everyone’s attention from the field to her.
“All right everyone, we’re going to hold up here.” She put on a well-placed smile for the soldier who handed her a bag containing the rest of the rations. “Try and find somewhere to get comfortable and we’ll give you some food.” She gave the bag to Sara and then glanced at the soldiers as they started down the other side of the hill.
She was relieved when Connor looked back.
“I’ll be back for you.”
Mia smiled.
“Don’t get too attached.”
She heard Jacob, but she kept her eyes on Connor. “What do you mean?”
“Tell me you don’t feel it,” he said.
She looked over the survivors and discovered Sara had enlisted two of the children as helpers. Mia was surprised to find a number of smiles mixed among the group as they sat down and started to eat.
“Feel what?” she asked.
“Don’t be a fool.” Jacob grabbed her wrist and forced her to turn around and face the compound. “Something’s going on in there.”
“You don’t know that,” she said and jerked her arm away. “You don’t know anything.” She regretted it the moment the words left her mouth. “Jacob…I didn’t—”
He held his hand up. “You don’t owe me anything.” He coughed for the first time in a while. Mia studied his face as he stared down at the vast field below them. His skin was pale and his breathing shallow. He wiped something from his mouth with the rag he kept in his pocket.
“Did their medic look at you?”
Jacob brushed her concern away with a dismissive exhale. “Nothing they can do for me.”
Mia bit her lip. “I do feel it,” she admitted. “I’m not sure why or what it is, but I think Connor’s hiding something.”
“No one does something for nothing.”
“What am I supposed to do then?” she asked. “We need to find somewhere safe to go. Do we just keep walking?” She sat down facing Canaan and laid her sword on the ground beside her. “I can’t let these people down, they’re all I have left.”
The Decaying World Saga Box Set [Prequel #1-#2 & Books #1-#2] Page 58
