by Brant, Jason
“Got it.” Brandon jabbed at the map with his index finger. “We’re pretty far out from where Emily said the next camp probably was. If we walk all day, we might make it by nightfall. Maybe.”
“Shit.” Lance slammed his hand down on the counter. “We don’t have time for this.”
“We don’t have time to sit around here and mope either.” Eifort started for the door. “Brandon, bring the map with you and look for areas we can use as shortcuts. We don’t need to follow the roads the entire time, so any fields or forests we can cut through will help.”
“Okay.”
The group followed Eifort outside and up the road again. Lance feared how exhausted they would be after traveling on foot all day. It wasn’t like they’d gotten much sleep the past two nights either. Would they have any energy left to fight for their friends? He didn’t want to camp out another night, but didn’t see how they would have any other option.
That was assuming they even made it there on time.
And they had other issues to worry about if they were stuck outside another night. Namely the walking, talking vampires Lance had just encountered.
“Guys, we need to talk about what happened back there,” Lance said.
“About their pact with the Vladdies?” Eifort asked.
“That and more.”
“I don’t understand how they could make a deal with the demons.” Brandon shook his head. “It doesn’t make any sense.”
“They got protection out of it, and the Vladdies got fresh people to infect,” Eifort said.
“I get that, as crazy as it is. I mean, how were they able to even make the deal?” Brandon spun around and walked backward in front of them. “It’s not like you can call a demon, err, Vladdie, on the phone, you know? How did that King dude even approach the things, let alone actually get them to understand what he was saying?”
“That’s what I need to tell you about.” Lance frowned. “When I was untying Adam, one of the Vladdies spoke to me.”
Eifort stopped in the middle of the road, eyes widening and mouth dropping “What?”
“It literally spoke to me. Twice.”
“You’re joking.” Brandon’s expression was a mix of disbelief and awe. “What did it say?”
“Something about me being food. It wasn’t the most complex conversation I’ve ever had, but it was clearly taunting me.” Lance blew out a breath. “I thought maybe I’d imagined it, but Adam heard it, too.”
Greg finally joined their conversation. “So they’re able to talk now?”
“At least one of them can,” Lance said. “And that scares the shit out of me.”
“That King bro is out there making deals with talking vampires.” Greg clenched his fists. “He’s sacrificing people to tell them. Tried to sacrifice us.”
“If they can speak, then they’re way smarter than we thought,” Eifort said. “Which means they won’t forget what we did to them last night. They might be out looking for us again tonight.”
“I need to tell everyone back at The Light.” Brandon started forward again. “This changes everything.”
Lance followed behind the group, struggling with the fear overtaking him. They’d come ashore in Baltimore for safe harbor.
For food.
Shelter.
Instead, they’d stumbled face-first into a hornet’s nest.
29
The guards escorted Cass and Emmett across the campsite. They passed a lot of RVs and campers, most with people milling around them, performing some kind of task. Many chopped wood; others carried supplies between the temporary houses.
Cass thought about what Paul had said, paying attention to the male-to-female ratio. Though they hadn’t explored all, or even most of the campgrounds, she had to admit he was right so far. There were a lot of women, but few men.
Most of the males appeared to be guards.
A few others carried heavy objects around, following women who gave them orders.
That was about it.
One of the guards gestured ahead, and Cass saw a large RV surrounded by several people. The head guard she’d met yesterday, Bill, paced around the front of the vehicle. When he spotted Cass and Emmett approaching, he quickly loped toward them.
“You’re a doctor, right?” he asked Emmett.
“I am.”
“We need your help. Someone fell down and—”
“No.” Cass crossed her arms over her chest. “We aren’t helping you.”
Bill’s head snapped in her direction as if she’d struck him. “What?”
“We were kidnapped and delivered here against our will.” Cass glared at him. “I wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire.”
“But we didn’t kidnap—”
“Not gonna happen.”
Bill squared his large shoulders, face tight. “You—”
“Bill?” Valerie stuck her head out the door of the RV, glancing around. “Oh, you have them here already. Doctor Brown, we need you in here.”
“They said they won’t help,” Bill called over his shoulder.
Emmett side-eyed Cass, his expression asking, What are you doing?
Cass didn’t look back. “We aren’t helping you. Period.”
“Why?” Valerie descended a few stairs, then strode toward them. “We saved you yesterday. You’re alive because of us.”
“Fine, then let us go.”
Valerie’s eyes narrowed as she glowered at Cass.
Anger boiled inside her baby blues.
“What do you want?” she asked after a lengthy pause.
“Lots of things.”
Emmett shifted his weight beside her, his discomfort more pronounced by the second. Cass knew he would help whoever needed his aid regardless of their situation, but she wanted to guide their situation into a direction that would work for them. She hoped he wouldn’t break ranks before she could get something from Valerie.
“Fine. I’ll hear your demands.” Valerie ground her teeth. “Take a walk with me while he works his magic.”
“You think I should trust you?” Cass asked. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”
“You have my word.” Valerie held her gaze.
“The word of someone who purchases people…” Cass allowed several beats pass as she let her point sink in. She knew that haggling was a balancing act, and she didn’t want to go too far, too fast. “You’ll negotiate in good faith?”
Valerie nodded.
“I’ll meet you back here,” Cass said to Emmett. “Good luck.”
“Be careful.” Emmett turned to the RV, letting a guard guide him inside.
Cass followed Valerie down the road until she cut into the surrounding woods along a well-worn trail. Bill and another guard followed. They stayed silent for a bit, Valerie’s gait rigid and frustrated. Cass couldn’t help but wonder what kind of things a pissed-off Valerie might do to them. She didn’t know the woman yet, but could sense the absolute control she had over everyone in her camp.
That kind of power didn’t come without the spilled blood and pain of others.
Lance was viewed as the leader of their little group, but he didn’t control any of them. They followed him because of what he offered them, not out of fear. No one was forced to do anything.
When they’d left the island, quite a few of members of their little group had stayed behind to give it another go when the storms passed. Fights had broken out over their decision to stay, especially since there were several children with them, but ultimately no one was willing to force their position upon others.
Cass still wondered what had happened to them.
They’d promised to radio back to the island after they found a new home and Paul managed to find high-powered communication equipment. Instead, Cass was following a crazy lady through the woods.
“What do you want?” Valerie asked, steering Cass off Memory Lane. “You’re proving quite difficult already.”
“You haven’t seen anything yet.”
>
“I reunited you with your son. Saved you from those monsters.” Valerie stopped in the middle of the trail “You’re safe here. Your people are safe. And you’re completely ungrateful.”
Cass fought against the flash of anger that reddened her face. “I want answers.”
“You haven’t asked any questions yet.”
“I want my friends back.”
“But they’re already—”
“I want my fucking husband back.”
Valerie’s mouth snapped shut, teeth clacking. She scowled at Cass for a second before turning and continuing up the trail. “I’m listening.”
“I told you yesterday Higgins left my husband and friend for dead. I want to go back for them.”
“You said they were abandoned in the middle of Baltimore at nightfall—I hate to tell you this, but they’re gone. I thought you assumed as much last night.”
“Last night, I needed to be with my boy. Today, I need to find my man.”
“They’re dead, Cassandra. I’m sorry, but there is no chance they’ve survived.”
“You don’t know Lance.”
Valerie shook her head. “Even if I agreed to let you go on a suicide mission down there, and he somehow survived, how would you ever find him?”
“I’ll figure that out when I get there.”
“And your child? What about him?”
“He’ll come with me, along with any of my friends who want to leave as well. I’m sure some will want to stay here, though, assuming this place is as safe as you say.” Cass winced as she said it, knowing that asking a favor of this woman would come back to bite her. Then again, what other choice did she have? “When I come back with Lance, I’ll cooperate with whatever you want from us.”
“You couldn’t possibly make it back to Baltimore before the end of the day.” Valerie arched her eyebrows. “I’m guessing you want a vehicle and some supplies for your little expedition?”
“I know it’s asking a lot, but—”
Valerie scoffed, but didn’t reply right away. They crossed a road in silence, continuing along the trail on the other side. Valerie considered the trees around them as she thought.
“You mentioned wanting your friends back. I’m assuming you’re talking about the men sold off to another settlement?” she finally asked.
“I have to go after them, too.”
“We know a little about that other place. I doubt they’ll give up your people willingly.”
“Then I’ll take them back.”
“And risk leaving your child without a mother?”
Cass nearly growled. It felt as if this woman read her mind. The Cass of old would have already made a jailbreak out of this place and gone after everyone. But she had others to think about now, and she constantly struggled against her nature. Having to negotiate with Valerie was very against her nature.
Going after Lance would be difficult.
Getting Adam and Greg back could be tougher.
Assuming she could even find them. Because she’d been gagged and blindfolded, she didn’t have much of an idea where they’d been dropped off.
She decided to ignore Valerie’s question. “You’ve heard of this other place… any idea where it is?”
“Somewhere in Maryland. We’ve heard whispers about a town named Street, but I’m not entirely sure.” Stopping, Valerie pointed ahead. “You asked about our safety here. This should answer any questions you might have.”
Cass noted Valerie’s deflection. They bought survivors from the same assholes as the other camp, but didn’t know much about them? Cass found that extremely unlikely.
When she faced where Valerie pointed, she spotted a massive fence ahead. Concrete pillars stood at least twenty-feet high. Metal cables ran between them about a foot and a half apart. The wall stretched far to the left and right, its ends hidden beyond the forest on either side.
“You built a wall? That’s it?”
Valerie smirked and moved toward it. “A wall couldn’t keep a man out, let alone one of those demons. This, Cassandra, is an electrified fence.”
“You’re shitting me.”
They entered a small clearing in front of it, stopping ten feet away. Cass marveled at it, impressed at the quality of the construction. Whoever had built it for them had known what they were doing.
“There’s enough electricity running through those wires to fry an entire army of the damned.” Valerie beamed up at it. “Outside of living on the moon, this is the safest place your family could possibly be.”
“How? How is this possible?”
“We run it on hydroelectricity with an extensive system of gas-powered generators as backups. Our fuel comes from a trade agreement with another camp in the south that has an oil refinery up and running.”
Cass cocked her head at Valerie. “That’s how you have fuel for the vehicles? Some nut managed to get a refinery going? What’s next? Are we going to Netflix and chill tonight?”
“I think we’re a little ways off from that.” Valerie laughed. “You’ve been on that island far too long, Cassandra. We’re piecing the world back together. The demons will only hold us down for so long. You should be a part of our rebirth.”
“I’m not interested in trying to fix the world.” The wonderment slid from Cass’ face. “I want to keep my family safe, not play politics. You think you can put civilization back together with those damned things waiting outside the walls? If men with bombs and tanks and fucking drones couldn’t beat them, then neither can you.”
“Men? Men did this to us.” Valerie sneered. “You’re right about one thing—men can’t beat them. But we can.”
Cass had been waiting for the crazy to drop from Valerie, and now thought she’d just heard it smash on the ground. “Say what now?”
“You’re not stupid. I know you’ve seen the number of men versus women here. That isn’t an accident.” Valerie swept her hand at the open field outside the fence. “Do you think it was a woman who created the Xavier Virus? Of course not. It was some beer-bellied idiot too busy measuring his dick to stop and realize the consequences of his actions. All of us paid the price for it. Women don’t start wars. Women don’t kill. They used to call us the fairer sex, but now we know we’re just the smarter one.”
Cass tried to understand how dick measuring and the Xavier Virus were connected, but couldn’t quite get there.
Valerie lifted her chin in defiance, said, “We’re going to run things from now on, and the world will be better for it. This place is proof of that. Men are too consumed by greed, sex, and power to run things effectively. But you, me, our minds are clear—focused.”
“But you have men protecting you. All the guards around here are men.” Cass tried to keep her voice even despite the fact she wanted to slap the nuttiness out of Valerie. But losing her cool wouldn’t help her negotiate her way out of there. “And I saw some men moving dirt or something back there.”
“I’m not some man-hating idiot, Cassandra.” Valerie’s features softened. “Men have their place, of course. They’re bigger and stronger. More able to fight off invaders or carry heavy objects. I love men, believe me. They should be defending our walls and building our homes. In our beds. Men have their place, just not at the head of the table. They aren’t clever enough to run things properly.”
Cass couldn’t help but wonder how someone so obviously unstable had managed to build a settlement so well defended and organized. She seemed completely unhinged.
“Huh.” Cass didn’t know how to respond to Valerie’s little monologue. She settled with, “So, girl power?”
“Girl power,” Valerie replied with a grin. “As you can see, it’s working quite well.”
Cass studied the wall again. “This circles the entire camp?”
“Less than half. Maybe a quarter. The reservoir that powers this place protects the other sides. The demons can’t swim, so we only have to guard the water from other humans.”
“Must have taken
a long time to get this place up and running like this.”
“Years. Literally. But now that we’re safe, we’re taking in more people, and we’re working on expanding the fence out. That’s why we were dealing with the idiots who brought you here. They were supposed to bring us survivors who needed a place to live, not kidnap the unwilling. We have big plans here, Cassandra, and I want you to help us.”
Cass continued inspecting the fence. Sure, she thought Valerie’s elevator didn’t go all the way to the penthouse, but she had managed to construct something impressive nonetheless.
These people had power.
Homes.
Security.
Their children put on plays, for God’s sake.
If only her ideas about leadership and men weren’t so damned kooky. People had accused Cass of being an angry, bitchy, nut job over the years, and she’d earned a lot of that hate, but she’d never outright denigrated half the population in one fell swoop. She preferred to denigrate everyone equally.
How could she trust her son around a woman who hated men? What about the other guys in her group? Would they be in danger if they stayed? Were they already in danger?
Cass wished she had more time to mull things over.
A radio squawked behind them.
A guard turned his back to them and answered, his voice muffled.
Cass eyed a series of massive lights sitting atop the fence. They appeared to be high wattage. Any Vladdie caught in their beam would no doubt feel it. The camp definitely appeared secure.
Still, she just couldn’t shake the feeling that Valerie wasn’t being entirely truthful.
“Ma’am?” a guard asked as he stepped closer. “Someone is on the radio for you.”
“Who?” Valerie’s mouth pinched, eyes narrowing. “I’m busy.”
“Says its Meyers from down South.”
“What does he want?”
“Don’t know, ma’am. Says he’ll only talk to you. Want me to tell him to piss off?”
Valerie chewed on her lower lip for a moment. “No, I better talk to him.”
“Meyers?” Cass asked.
“He runs the refinery. Kind of important for us to work with him if we want to keep our vehicles running.” Valerie held her hand out.
