I made my way back to the room I’d slept in the previous night. Even though there weren’t many in the room with me, I could hear the voices asking all the questions again.
I had to go.
I had to get out of this noisy place before I forgot the answers to the questions.
No more excuses. In the morning, I’d be back on my way.
7
I looked up at the sky to confirm the direction I want to travel. Ryder methodically walked around the area scanning the snow for footprints.
“Are you sure about this?” Ryder asked just before he got down on his knee to look closer at something on the ground.
“Positive,” I said, hoping my tone would convey that I desperately wanted him to stop asking. Everything they had was very nice, and it was actually kind of good to be with others, but my mind was made up. I didn’t want to be part of the war, and I wanted to finish what I set out to do.
Ryder stepped in front of me and looked down into my eyes. Warmth filled my cheeks.
“I guess this is goodbye then,” he said.
“I guess so.” I forced a smile. “Thanks again for everything. Especially the whole saving me thing.”
“Yeah, of course,” he said swallowing hard. “I just hate the thought of you out there. Next time I won’t be there to save you.”
“Try not to think about it,” I said without blinking.
Ryder looked down at his feet. “That’s going to be hard to do.”
“You’ll manage.”
Ryder gazed into my eyes as if he was looking for something. He sucked in a deep breath and stuck out his hand.
I took off my glove and shook his hand. I wasn’t sure if it was the human contact or the burst of cold air against my skin that made me shiver.
“Take care out there,” Ryder said, still holding my hand.
“I will,” I said, unable to look away from his eyes. “Be safe. I won’t be around to help you either, you know, the next time you fight with one of those marked-up guys.”
He grinned and shook his head slowly. I’d miss his smile. “I’ll definitely be more careful. I doubt there are any other beautiful women out there lurking in the shadows waiting to rescue me.”
I could feel the heat pump out of my chest and up to my cheeks at his compliment. My mouth felt dry. I’d be lying if I said Ryder wasn’t extremely gorgeous because he was. There probably wouldn’t be anyone else like him out there, but it didn’t matter.
If I didn’t make my feet move at that moment, I wasn’t sure if I ever would. I dropped Ryder’s hand, and my fingers instantly felt cold.
My breath was icy in my chest, but I stepped away from him, waved, and forced my feet to move. I put my glove back on, and I didn’t turn back.
I walked.
I hadn’t made it more than roughly a quarter mile before I heard a voice behind me. Fear kept me from looking over my shoulder.
I could tell by the increasing volume of their voices that they were getting closer. The sounds were cheery. If someone had been sneaking up on me to do me harm, they would have been quiet and not so… obvious.
“Emmmmm-mmmmery,” A voice from behind me sang out.
I glanced back, narrowing my eyes when I saw them approaching. What the hell?
Eli and Logan were walking just slightly behind Charlie who was casually swinging her club back and forth. Ryder was leading the way wearing a half-smile.
“What are you doing?” I called out to them.
Charlie turned to Eli and mumbled something I couldn’t make out at my distance. Ryder’s head jerked to the side, and I could only imagine the look he’d flashed her.
“We couldn’t let you go alone,” Ryder said.
I sighed and paused to let them catch up. Why were they doing this? I had to send them back.
“Keep moving,” Ryder said, stepping up next to me. “Don’t want to slow you down.”
I shook my head. “I don’t understand… did something happen?”
Ryder kept his eyes forward. “I told Jacob I needed to go with you. He wished me well, and of course, these yahoos saw me leaving and wanted to tag along. How could I say no to those faces?”
“You guys should go back,” I blurted out.
“Told you,” Charlie said, turning on her heel. Logan grabbed her arm and spun her back around.
“Listen to her,” I said mostly through my teeth. Apparently, the dislike had become mutual.
Ryder grabbed my arm and yanked me to a stop. He placed his hands on my shoulders and looked into my eyes.
“Do you really think we want to die in the war?” Ryder asked. “We have just as much of a right to take our chances out here as you do.”
“But you can do that on your own. You don’t need to follow me. I have no idea what I’m doing out here. You’re better off staying with Jacob or going off on your own. I don’t want to feel responsible for what happens to any of you.” I shrugged my shoulders to break free of his hold.
“Let her go, Ryder,” Charlie said as I walked away. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes even though my back was to them. “She doesn’t care about you, or anyone else for that matter.”
I heard footsteps moving quickly behind me. Ryder popped up at my side in an instant, startling me even though I knew someone was coming.
“We can help each other,” Ryder said. “Our chances are better together. Once you get where you’re going, we can leave you, but let’s travel together until we get there.”
It was just talk. I didn’t understand why he was so adamant about traveling with me. It wasn’t like they were any safer with me.
“Your chances will be better back there with Jacob.”
I wanted to tell him that I didn’t care what happened to me, but that I didn’t want anything to happen to them. If I should die in my travels so be it.
I could see Ryder shaking his head out of the corner of my eye. “That’s simply not true. We’re outnumbered. I believe everything Jacob is fighting for, but I don’t want to die, and I definitely don’t want to end up doing God knows what for The Evolved. Please. Let us come with you.” Ryder forced a smile as he blinked his eyes. “We can make our own way in this world, just us.”
“I thought you said you were going to go off on your own once I reached my destination?”
“Whatever you want. Please?”
I sucked in a deep breath and stopped walking. It was probably going to be a huge mistake, but there really wasn’t much I could do to stop them. They could just follow me for as long as they wanted and there wouldn’t be a damn thing I could do about it. I might as well, just suck it up and agree to let them come with.
My dad would not have approved, but maybe being with them was better than the life of solitude I was heading for. Perhaps he would have understood.
“She doesn’t even want to be here,” I said with a groan.
“Deep down she does, or she wouldn’t have come with.”
“She’d do whatever you do. They all probably are,” I said lowering my voice.
Ryder shook his head. “We’d talked about leaving before. Going off on our own. Seeing you doing it struck a nerve. Jealous maybe. Instead of sitting around wondering, we want to go with you.”
“If anything happens to any of you, it’ll be because of me.”
“This is one hundred percent our choice.” The corner of Ryder’s mouth was curving slightly. He could tell he’d already won. “Pretty please?”
I sighed and kicked the snow. “It’s a terrible, terrible idea.”
“That’s a yes then, right?”
My shoulders dropped down. “I can’t stop you, can I?”
Ryder waved back at his friends to follow and leaned closer. “Not really.”
Together, as a big group, we started walking south. For the most part, they were quiet, leaving me a lot of time to reflect on my thoughts and choices.
I could hear my dad’s voice in my head telling me I was making a mistake. Trust n
o one, his words echoed over and over in my mind.
If this was how I met my end, then at least I would be with my parents again. The others would probably get bored soon and go back in no time. Maybe they just had to get it out of their system. They’d probably felt trapped living underground for as long as they had. A little adventure and before long, they’d head back to Jacob.
“So, how far are we going?” Eli asked. I saw Ryder’s head jerk back toward him. “Not that it matters of course, I was just wondering.”
“As far south as I need to. You guys are welcome to stop whenever you want,” I said without turning around.
Charlie chuckled. “She doesn’t even know where she’s going.”
My head whipped back sharply. “I never said I did. I told you to go back. You don’t have to follow me. I’m definitely not making you.”
“Geez, he was just asking,” Charlie said shifting her eyes away. She blinked several times as if her long lashes were trying to wave me away.
“I’ll know it when I get there,” I said, but it wasn’t loud enough for anyone to hear. Maybe I’d only said it for my sake.
We walked for several hours before my calves were burning. I couldn’t tell them though. Charlie would make some comment that would annoy me, and I definitely wasn’t in the mood.
Ryder looked at me and then down at my legs. His eyes focused on mine for a few seconds as if he was trying to read my mind.
“When can we stop for a rest? Maybe eat a little something?” Ryder asked.
Maybe he had read my mind. Or maybe the way I was lifting my legs as if they were made out of metal had been a dead giveaway.
“Whenever you guys need,” I said, but the slow blink that followed my words was filled with obvious pain. Anyone looking at me would have been able to tell how uncomfortable I was. Thankfully, the only one looking at me had been Ryder.
“I need one,” he said. “How about over there? We can build a little shelter with some of that debris.”
I nodded. I couldn’t even speak because if I had, everyone would know, how weak I was.
8
Charlie sat in the snow about ten feet away from me watching the guys build a little shelter with whatever they could find. It wouldn’t be warm, but we’d build a fire which would help to some extent.
There weren’t any houses or secret underground rooms where we were. Ryder and his friends were doing the best they could with what was at our disposal.
They’d gathered up boards, twigs, and branches that were scattered about. One of them tied up their blanket to the top of their structure to act as our roof.
My calves were buried in the snow, but it didn’t seem to be helping my sore muscles. Even though I hadn’t had a choice, I wasn’t ready for all of this. My body couldn’t take it, and I didn’t think I’d even traveled all that far from home.
Ten miles?
Fifteen?
Maybe twenty at best.
If I had stayed at home, I would have eventually run out of food. I would have died from the cold. I listened to my mother and headed south… but maybe I shouldn’t have.
“Come on over. Give it a try,” Ryder said waving his hand at me.
Eli and Logan were on their knees trying to get a fire going. Charlie hopped up and quickly made her way over to the shelter. She plopped down inside, staking her claim on the spot in the far left corner.
“Need help?” I asked, glancing at Eli.
“We’ll get it, thanks.”
“OK, but that wood looks a little too wet.” If there was one thing I could do well, it was start a fire. My dad had me practice all the time.
Logan turned his head slowly and looked up at me. I bit my lip as he stared.
“Want to give it a shot?” Logan asked, saying each word slowly. It was almost as if it were a challenge.
“Sure,” I said reaching into my front pocket. I clicked the lighter several times before the flame started to glow. It took a few seconds, but when the small branch caught fire, I smiled. “There you go.”
“Well, that’s cheating,” Logan said smiling mostly with his eyes.
My grin quickly turned into a frown when I tucked the lighter back into my pocket. “It’s not going to last much longer. The fluid is running out.”
Logan nodded. “That’s why it’s good to know how to do it the old-fashioned way.”
“I know how, but it would have taken you guys hours with that wood. Speaking of, is that even enough?” I asked.
Eli looked down at the fire, and Logan shook his head. Neither of them looked pleased with the amount of wood that had been gathered.
“I’ll go out and look for more,” Logan said.
Hopefully, he’d be able to find more wood we could use, but the storms had ripped out most of the trees and plants. Even where there might be something we could use, we wouldn’t know it because it would be hidden by all the snow.
Thanks to the cold, long winter, nothing had a chance to grow back. The world around us was mostly empty. I didn’t even know if anything would grow again if it ever did warm back up. Maybe the cold had already killed everything, and it would eventually get us too.
I sat down inside the little shelter on the opposite side Charlie picked. The fire crackled and popped as it grew, sufficiently warming the area.
Ryder adjusted the top of the shelter before sitting down next to me. “Not too shabby, huh?”
“Nope, not bad at all.”
“It’s actually quite awesome,” Charlie said stretching her gloveless palms toward the fire. “You guys did a really amazing job.”
Ryder grinned as he looked at every inch of the oval-shaped shelter. There were some holes the cold air seeped in through, but with the fire going, it was plenty warm. However, if there was a strong wind, the whole thing would probably blow down, but I kept that to myself.
I crossed my arms and leaned back using my backpack as a backrest. Ryder looked over his shoulder at me.
“Do you think we should stay here until morning?” he asked.
There was enough daylight left that we could travel a few more miles before nightfall, but my legs were killing me. They desperately needed a break.
“Well, you went to all the trouble to set this up, and the fire is quite nice. If everyone is good with stopping for the day, it’s OK with me too,” I said, and no one objected. I closed my eyes and tried not to think about the tightness in my muscles.
“How safe are we out here in the open like this?” Charlie asked, looking around. You could see for miles with the light from the sun, and there wasn’t anything in sight. If anyone were approaching, they’d be easy to spot.
“Safe enough I think,” Ryder said, rubbing his hands together.
I turned to Ryder. “How come you didn’t see that guy coming?”
“What guy?” He squeezed his eyebrows together.
“When I first saw you. He attacked you.”
“Oh! That guy,” Ryder said wrapping his arm around his bent knee. “I saw him and ran. Trying to lead him away from Jacob’s various hideouts. I tripped, fell, and he eventually caught up.”
I glanced at Ryder’s face where he’d been hit. It already looked as though it was healing.
“It wasn’t the first time they caught me,” Ryder said with a small laugh.
“You’re lucky to be alive,” Charlie said, as Logan leaned several pieces of wood against one another to form a pyramid over the fire.
Ryder looked down at his dirty fingernails with a sheepish grin on his face. It seemed as though he had liked the chase… the excitement. Although I was pretty sure he hadn’t liked getting caught.
“Why put yourself at risk like that?” I asked looking at my own fingernails.
He shook his head. “I don’t know. I guess it reminds me that I’m still alive.”
“It’s dumb that’s what it is,” Logan grunted as he sat down between Eli and Ryder.
“Bah,” Ryder leaned forward and scanned the horiz
on. “You’re all just jealous.”
I drew in a slow breath. “I’m definitely not jealous.”
“Yeah, that’s because you're already out here. Danger is your middle name,” Ryder said bumping me lightly with his elbow.
I loudly puffed out air between my lips. “That’s not even close to accurate.”
“Well, what’s your story then?” Eli asked.
“I don’t have a story,” I said pressing my lips together tightly. Talking about what had happened was pretty much the last thing I wanted to do. These strangers didn’t need to know about me, and I definitely wasn’t about to tell them.
“Aw, come on,” Eli said. “You know all about us, but we know nothing about you.”
Ryder cleared his throat. It was a signal to his friends to stop asking me questions. He’d known what happened with my parents, and clearly he could tell it wasn’t something I wanted to talk about.
It wasn’t like they needed know. Knowing about my past wouldn’t change anything.
They talked on and off until it was dark. Mostly they talked about things that were going on with Jacob and his army. The plans he’d made. His occasional mistakes.
Eli and Logan talked about how they were glad to be out of there. They liked it, but they knew they were fighting a losing battle. Charlie and Ryder didn’t say much.
All I did was rub my calves every five minutes, listening to their various conversations. I was trying to massage away the stinging pins and needles sensation that hadn’t stopped pecking at my legs since we quit walking.
“You’re not used to a lot of traveling, are you?” Ryder whispered during a heated discussion between Eli and Logan about whether or not we’d actually find warmer weather.
I bit my cheek not wanting to admit the truth. He’d probably laugh at me. Then again, why should I even care if he did? He could just turn around and take his friends back to Jacob for all I cared.
“I’m not,” I said wincing when I pushed down on a particularly sore spot.
“Here,” Ryder grabbed my leg and pulled it onto his lap, “maybe I can help.”
My eyes darted over to the others, but they were too engrossed in their conversation to even notice where my leg was. Charlie, who I would have assumed to have made a commotion if she’d noticed, appeared to be sleeping.
Ravaged Land: Divided Series - A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller Books 1-3 Page 5
