by V. L. Dreyer
"Not since before we left," I answered, shaking my head.
"Well, we have a slight problem, then." Skye glanced back over her shoulder, then looked at me. "She's gone."
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
"What do you mean, she's gone?" I demanded, leaping up to my feet. "Where did she go?"
"I have no idea," Skye said with a shrug. "I put her to bed with the other kids about an hour ago, but she's not there anymore. I checked all the bathrooms in the building, but I can't find her anywhere."
I muttered a few choice words beneath my breath, and slammed my fist down on the table in an attempt to vent my distress physically. "She must have gone off looking for those kids again. I'm going to kill her."
"Calm down, honey," Michael said, in his most soothing voice. He put his hands on my shoulders, and turned me to face him. "She took care of herself for ten years before we found her. She can take care of herself for an hour or two."
"But what if she doesn't come back?" I asked, my gut twisting itself into all kinds of unpleasant shapes. "What if she decides to go with them instead of us?"
Michael just smiled, and drew me into a hug. "I doubt that she will. She loves you. She knows where we are; when she's ready to come home, she will."
"This is what it feels like to be a parent, Sandy," Anahera said sympathetically. "Every time your child leaves your sight, you worry that they won't come home. Usually, they do. Sometimes, they don't."
"I don't like this feeling," I admitted. "I'm torn between losing my marbles and bawling until she comes home, or storming off in search of her. Someone decide for me."
All of them laughed at that. Suddenly, I found myself in the middle of a group hug, with both Anahera and Skylar adding their arms to Michael's.
"How about we take the first watch?" Michael suggested. "That way, you can keep an eye out for her. I know you have trouble sleeping when you're worried."
"Good plan," I agreed immediately, relieved to have the decision taken away from me for a change. Although I was usually perfectly comfortable with being in command, there were some moments when I wanted the choice removed so that I couldn't blame myself if it was the wrong decision. I sighed heavily, and extracted myself from the web of arms. "We should start shutting up shop. Who's been fed so far?"
"Just you lot and the children," Anahera replied. She went over to stir her cook pot, which still simmered on the stove. "Dinner's ready, though. Time to feed the rest of the monsters. Someone needs to go call them in."
"Michael and I will go," I volunteered, then I glanced at Skye. "Can you see if you can get some food down Lily? I imagine she's probably starving, but her stomach will be a bit sensitive."
Skye nodded her agreement. "I'll try her on some broth, and if that doesn't work then I'll figure something else out."
"Thank you." I smiled and touched my sister's arm. "Be gentle, though. That kid's had a rough time."
"Of course." Skye put her hand over mine, and squeezed it gently. "Don't worry, I'll take good care of her. Besides, if I don't then I'm pretty sure honey-guy will kick my butt."
"Actually…" I paused for a moment, turning her words over in my head. "Get a bit of that honey off Doc, and mix it in with some warm water. That'll give her some vital calories, and she's probably more likely to drink it. It should also help her immune system, and hopefully help with the pain."
"Okies!" Skye agreed brightly, then she punched my arm lightly. It took me a second to realise that she was mimicking Priya's favourite phrase, just to tease me. I laughed in response, and gave her a playful shove. Skye took it as a running start, and dashed out of the room giggling like a schoolgirl.
Once she was gone, I glanced at the others and shrugged. "Sometimes, I worry about her. But, you were right, Ana. She's tougher than I ever gave her credit for."
"Of course I'm right," she answered dryly. "I'm Mum, remember? Mum is always right."
"Not always," I said. "But mums do tend to have more life experience than their kids give them credit for." I sighed heavily, and looked at Michael. Suddenly aching for a moment of closeness, I reached out and threaded my fingers through his. "Come on. Let's go herd the monsters."
Michael just smiled and nodded, apparently sensing my needs the way he so often did. I gave him a shy smile in return, then waved goodbye to Anahera and led him out of the kitchen. Happy with silent companionship, we made our way back to the door we'd come in through. There, I spotted a group of wet, bedraggled folks standing on the other side of the glass, hugging themselves and bouncing from foot to foot to keep the cold at bay.
"Why are they standing out there?" I asked, confused.
Suddenly, Michael laughed. "Gavin locked the door on the way out, didn't he?"
"Oh." I paused for a second, then burst out laughing as well. "Oh! Of course!"
I raced over to the door and undid the latch that locked it from the inside. The group turned around, and I immediately recognised them as Hemi, Ryan, and a bunch of the other blokes. As soon as I pulled open the door, they all bundled inside.
"Aw mate, am I glad to see you," Hemi greeted us; I could almost hear his teeth chattering. "We knocked and knocked, but no one heard us."
"Sorry," I apologised, feeling more than a little bit guilty. "We didn't hear you. You go on up and talk to your mum; she's got some nice, hot soup to warm you up."
"Brilliant." The young man grinned, showing the straight, white teeth that he'd inherited from his mother. He turned to leave, then suddenly seemed to remember something and turned back to us. "Oh, Mike. Your dog's still sitting in the truck. We tried to get him to come in, but he just wanted to sit there."
"We'll go get him," Michael replied. He took the car keys from Hemi's outstretched hand, and tilted his head in my direction. "What about Sandy's kitten?"
"She went inside with Maddy, I think." Hemi shrugged, glancing around at the others. They all looked just as uncertain.
"It's all good, I'll find her later." I smiled and waved them off. "Go on, before you catch a cold."
"Speaking of which – put your coat on before you go out there," Hemi told me. "There's a southerly rolling in, and it started getting cold as soon as the sun went down."
"Thanks." I nodded and did just that, unfolding my coat from over my arm and pulling it around my shoulders. I was still sopping wet, but at least the coat would keep the wind at bay. By the time I finished doing up the buttons, they were gone and I was alone with Michael again. I gave him a long, sideways look, followed by a playful grin. "I thought you hated being called 'Mike'?"
"I do," he said with a shrug. "But, you know me. I'm a fish. I just go with the flow."
I laughed and nodded. He put his arm around me, a gesture that was so simple and natural that it made both of us smile – but the second that the wind hit us, I was really, really glad it was there.
"Cripes, he wasn't kidding!" I gasped, snuggling in against Michael's side. What had been a dreary day had turned into a truly miserable night, and the driving rain had a bite to it that chilled me to the core. "Brrr! Let's go get everyone in before this gets much worse. Where'd they park the truck?"
"They said around the corner, so I'm guessing…" Michael trailed off, peering around in the gloom. Suddenly, his expression brightened. "Oh, it's right over there!"
"Convenient." I put my arm around his waist so that I could tuck my hand in the pocket of his coat, and guided him off towards the truck. Alfie saw us coming before either of us noticed him, and let out a happy yelp of greeting.
"Hey, buddy," Michael greeted his canine friend, juggling the keys with his free hand until he managed to get the door unlocked. As soon as it was open, Alfie jumped out and bounded around him, barking happily. Michael laughed, and reached down to ruffle the dog's ears. "That's a good boy. You didn't poop in the Hilux, did you?"
Alfie let out a high-pitched yelp that sounded for all the world like a vehement denial. We both laughed and looked at one another.
"Well, that's
one monster," I said, tugging my hood down to protect my eyes from the stinging rain. "Who else are we missing?"
"It's getting hard to keep track, isn't it?" Michael paused to think about it, then rattled off a list of names. "Just the Yousefis, the Merrits, and Richard, I think."
"They're probably still working on the radio," I surmised. Michael nodded his agreement, and we set off together.
We found the back door to the radio station still locked, so we ducked through the overgrown courtyard to the street front. Sure enough, there was light glowing through the remains of the front window. As soon as we crossed the threshold, we found ourselves face-to-face with two very alert guards: Elly and Rebecca, both armed, both rational and calm. As soon as they recognised us, they smiled and lowered their weapons.
"Time to call it a night?" Elly asked, slipping her gun back into its holster. "I hope Anahera and Skye do not mind that I was not there to help with dinner. I worry about leaving Zane alone."
"I'm sure she understands," I answered. "Yes, it's time to turn in. Ana's got some hot soup waiting for you. Grab the blokes and head inside; we'll be back tomorrow to work on this."
"Good." Elly paused, and glanced back over her shoulder. "I fear that success is coming slowly. None of them really know what they're doing."
Suddenly, a new voice entered the conversation, from the gloom behind us. "Then count yourselves lucky that I'm around."
I almost jumped out of my skin, and had my weapon halfway to the firing position before I recognised the voice. "Damn, Gavin. You scared me half to death."
"Sorry." He stepped into the light, though his hood was pulled so far forward that I could barely see his face. "Old habits, you know?"
"Better than most." I smiled, then turned back to introduce him to the others. "Gavin, this is Elly and Rebecca. That's Zane just coming out of the office up the back – oh, and there's Richard and Jim. Guys, this is Gavin. He's an old friend. Please don't shoot him."
"She's kidding, Jazz," Gavin said, glancing back at the shadows behind him. "No one's shooting anyone."
I followed his line of sight, and could just barely make out a human outline hiding amongst the bushes. If I hadn't known where to look, I never would have seen her.
"Hello again, Jasmine," I said gently, making my voice as soft as possible. "We found your sister. She's a bit beaten up, but she's okay. Would you like me to take you to her?"
I heard a faint rustling sound, but beyond that there was no answer. Gavin heaved a sigh and looked at me. "That was a yes. She's feeling a bit non-verbal at the moment."
"So I noticed," I answered dryly, but I gave the girl another smile anyway. "I can't say I blame her. There are a lot of bad things out there that want to hurt girls like us, aren't there Jasmine?"
This time, I heard a faint reply from her dark hiding spot, a single word of agreement: "Yeah."
"It's okay, I totally get it." I pushed my gun as far back over my shoulder as it would go, and held my hands up to show her that they were empty. "I have no intention of hurting you, and I won't let anyone else lay a finger on you, either."
"These folks are okay, Jazzy," Gavin added, holding his arms out to the girl. "Come on. They've got a doctor looking after her right now, and I'll make sure you're safe."
There was a long minute of silence, then the girl dashed out of the bushes, and fled into Gavin's arms. She hid her face against his chest and peeked warily at me over his arm. Gavin just hugged her, and made gentle, paternal sounds of comfort.
To my surprise, I found tears gathering in my eyes. I glanced at Michael, and realised that he was no less affected by the sight. He glanced at me, and his hand silently tightened around mine. I knew in some guttural, instinctive way that he longed to have that kind of bond with a child again. What we had together was one thing, but the love between father and child was a whole other experience. He'd had it with Sophie, and we had something similar growing with Priyanka, but would it ever be the same as having a child that was truly ours?
Suddenly, I realised that everyone was watching me. I took a deep breath and brushed away the tears that threatened to bring my emotional dam crashing down. Now was not the time for that, so I pushed my feelings down and focused on the present.
"Okay, let's head back," I said, gesturing to the members of my group. "You guys go first. We'll bring Jasmine and Gavin up once you're settled in. We don't want to scare her."
The others nodded and filed out past us, heading back to the office block. We waited while they filed away, and in the meantime I looked at Gavin.
"I don't suppose you've seen my foster daughter, have you?" I asked, cuddling in against Michael's side for warmth. "She's an Indian girl, a little older than the twins."
"Wearing bright pink, with a buzz cut?" he asked. I nodded. "Yeah, she somehow managed to follow me home. She stayed behind with Melody and Solomon. Melody seems to have taken a shine to her, so don't worry about anything bad happening to her. Anyone that messes with Melody is just asking for trouble."
"You know, I actually can't wait to meet this girl." I grinned and beckoned for them to follow me. "Come on. The others should have cleared off by now, so let's get out of the cold. I'm sure Lily wants to see Jazz, too."
Gavin nodded his agreement. He released Jasmine from his embrace and made as though to follow me, but Jasmine didn't. She straightened up, threw her shoulders back, and gave me a dark look. "You're not allowed to call me that."
I lifted an eyebrow, a little surprised by her vehemence. Somehow, I sensed that my response to her defiance would count for a lot more than it would in any normal conversation. It was something I understood, though. Names were power, and they could also bring pain if used incorrectly.
I just nodded to her simply, accepting her choice without protest. "Well, I'll just have to try and earn the privilege, won't I?"
The girl jerked back a little, surprise written across her young face. I just gave her a smile, then I turned and walked away, with Michael at my side. A few seconds later, I heard footsteps following me, but I didn't look back until we reached the door to the office building. There, I found Skylar waiting for us, looking anxious.
"Jasmine," I said pointedly, glancing back at the girl. "This is my sister, Skylar. She's been looking after your sister since we got her back."
"Actually, about that," Skylar interrupted, hugging her cardigan around her to combat the wind. "There's another problem."
"Oh, God." I heaved a long-suffering sigh. "What is it this time?"
"Well, Lily's awake," Skye answered, backing up a few paces so that I could herd my group inside. Michael and Gavin went willingly, but Jasmine skidded to a halt, glaring at Skylar from beneath her messy tangle of hair. Skye stared back at her, obviously surprised. "Oh, they're twins." She glanced at me and opened her mouth to say something else, but her comment was interrupted by a screech from upstairs, followed by the sound of shattering pottery. Skylar flinched, and gave me a helpless look. "And that's the problem. She's freaking out, but she's still pretty out of it and doesn't seem to understand what we're saying."
I muttered a few choice words beneath my breath and looked at our guests. "Well, guys, it sounds like Lily needs you. This way!"
I hurried past my sister and raced up the stairs, taking them two and three at a time. At the top, I glanced back and found Jasmine just a couple of steps behind me, with Gavin right behind her. As soon as they'd caught up, I rushed off again, hurrying down the maze of passages towards Lily's screams. The sound of them put me on edge, even though I knew instinctively that they were screams of rage and fear, rather than pain. Somehow, that was no better.
I rounded the last corner at full speed, and almost bowled Doctor Cross right off his feet. He shot me a shocked look, and I gave him one in return; his glasses were missing, and a set of vivid red welts tarnished his cheek from where someone had obviously tried to take his eyes out with her fingernails.
"Sandy!" he gasped, in an obvious mix of re
lief and surprise. "Help me! I'm not sure how long I can keep this door shut."
"Is it the infection?" I asked urgently, suddenly terrified that the worst had happened. Had the virus mutated enough to infect the immune? If so, then we were all screwed.
"No, no, nothing like that," Doc replied. "It's some kind of reaction to the cocktail of drugs and booze that man gave her—" Suddenly, he let out a terribly unmanly shriek. "Look out! She's behind you!"
"Huh?" I jumped and looked back, only to find Jasmine and Gavin skidding to a halt right behind me. "Oh, no. That's Jasmine, her twin sister."
"What's wrong with my sister?" Jasmine demanded, her little hands balled into fists at her side. "Let her out!"
"We're going to, I promise," I said, struggling to keep my voice calm and even. "Jasmine, she needs your help. The man that took her – the farmer – he drugged her. We're trying to help her, but she's angry and afraid. Can you calm her down?"
Jasmine gave me another dark look, and put her hands on her hips. "Open. The door. Now."
I glanced back at Doc and nodded. He swallowed hard, then released the door handle and jumped back with a degree of dexterity that I'd never seen from him before. A second later, the door popped open, and Lily exploded out, shrieking in a language that I didn't understand.
Jasmine leapt on her sister without a moment of hesitation, sending both of them tumbling back into the room. I heard the doctor protesting behind me, but there was nothing that either of us could do. The twins wrestled for a few minutes, until finally Jasmine got on top of her sister and managed to pin her to the ground.
"She doesn't recognise me," Jasmine shouted to us. "Why? What did he do to her?"
"It's the drugs," Doc called back to her. "She's… she's drunk, for lack of a better word. Just hold her for a moment; I'll give her something to make her sleep. And for the love of God, be gentle! The poor child has internal injuries."
Jasmine grunted something that sounded like a wordless agreement, but she was obviously having trouble holding her sister down. Lily thrashed beneath her, kicking and screaming with all her might, and even trying to bite her sister. I watched for a moment, then made a snap decision.
