The Offering

by E. R. Arroyo

  If this room was mine … but I’m alive and I’m fine… Whose blood is on the bed? Maybe if I can remember more I could piece it together. I try, but I get nothing else. Only more questions. But I know for sure that I was here. I wasn’t born topside or even raised there. I was raised right here. Until … something must have happened causing us to leave. I wonder, then, did my mother leave with us? Or was she already gone? And why didn’t I remember this place until now?

  Maybe my memories of labs and medical beds weren’t all from Antius.

  “Anthony knew what the Burkes were up to before the bombs ever hit, but he didn’t know they had built bunkers. He stole two doses of an inoculation he thought was made to protect people… One for himself and one for his wife. The stuff was made at a different lab, a secret one out toward the mountains, and he snagged the doses when he was doing a security detail there. When the bombs started falling that lab was among the first places destroyed. Meaning he walked out with the only two doses that survived the war.”

  “Okay…” I shake my head, not getting it.

  “They used them. And he didn’t tell anyone. But Nathan found the two of them wandering around topside. Nathan was wearing a big plastic suit from head to toe. Your mom and pops were just up there like nothin’ happened, breathing the air that killed billions of people.”

  If Tyce’s theory is correct, the Burkes manufactured the weapons that ended the world, but they had created something to protect themselves. It doesn’t seem like they had time to get it ready before the war started or else they all would’ve taken it too.

  “What else?” I ask, eager to know more.

  “They came here where they stayed for years. They were tested and had medical checkups by Cornelius’s elite people. After a while, they just went on about their underground lives. Your dad manned the security cameras that watched over the lab workers. Eventually your mom got pregnant.” I look up at the camera in the corner, remembering now why I smiled when it followed me around. My dad was on the other end.

  “And I was born here.”

  “Anthony thought you were born with the immunities he and your mom had gotten from the shots.”

  I wish Dylan were hearing all this because surely he could make better sense of it.

  “So, I’m the only remaining trace of whatever that stuff was?”

  “Yeah. And when your pops figured out Cornelius had ordered Nathan to take you to Antius for more studying, he broke you out of here.”

  I sit down in a chair, lean back, and take a deep breath. Drag my hand down my face. “Wow.”

  I get lost in my thoughts, staring at nothing in particular on the ceiling. Tyce places a hand on my shoulder and squeezes gently.

  “We should go.”

  “Did the journal say what happened in the lab? The one with the explosion?” I take Tyce’s extended hand. He gives me a light tug to pull my tired bones from the chair.

  “Yeah. He said they’d found a formula on the computer and they were trying to make it but it exploded and gassed the whole place. He was surprised everybody lived.”

  I stop moving at the door, my hand on Tyce’s chest. “Wait,” I say, putting the thoughts together in my head. “You said the people in the labs were the savages.”

  “Yeah…” He shrugs, shaking his flashlight to keep his hand busy.

  “If they didn’t die, maybe they were immune to the atmosphere too. Just not as much as me.”

  “Um. Okay?” Hard to imagine me being the smart one for once. I almost grin. Too bad it isn’t funny.

  “What if the formula they were trying to make was the inoculation my dad stole? The explosion would’ve exposed them all to it. It would explain why they didn’t die when they were forced to go topside.”

  “Even if it’s true, they were messed up pretty bad. Thus the lovely nickname.” A nickname I’ve come to hate.

  “So they didn’t get it quite right but they still survived,” I say.

  And I’m sure, more now than ever, that Antius is trying to find someone like me in The City.

  Chapter Ten

  Tyce and I step out of the stairwell onto the main floor, right where we started, and instantly we both freeze, the hairs on the back of my neck standing up.

  “Someone’s been here,” he whispers, grabbing for his knife with one hand and my wrist with the other, holding me still—as if I weren’t already. He motions toward the front desk where a wooden half-door is slightly open.

  “One of us?”

  He shakes his head, his eyes roaming every inch of this space. “I’m the only one with a key.”

  That means it’s one of them. Another spy sent from Antius. “What do we do?” I grip my own knife and suddenly wonder why I stopped carrying my dad’s gun. If an Antius spy is here, he’s no doubt packing more than a blade.

  “Play it cool,” he mumbles, then releases my arm. He moves toward the building’s front doors strolling as though nothing at all is wrong. Taking his lead, I struggle to keep casual, scanning the room from the corner of my eye.

  I follow Tyce all the way out of the building and around the block. As soon as we turn right and Burke Enterprises is out of sight, he doubles back and we end up sneaking into the building across the street from where we started.

  From a second floor window that’s mostly broken out, Tyce crouches and watches for the perpetrator. But we don’t see him. “We’ll keep waiting,” he says.

  And we stay until nightfall, watching.

  “Maybe he was gone before we ever came upstairs.” I’m flat on my belly, lying on a desk with my head propped in my hands. I have a perfect view of the front door.

  “Yeah,” he mumbles.

  “So, what do we do?” I ask.

  “Let’s have a chat with Flex and the boys.”

  It’s the middle of the night when we meet up with the guys at the place they’re keeping Eli, and I can’t wait to see him. We push through the door and the women aren’t as hostile when they see me this time. I’m thrilled to see Eli on his feet. Or foot, I should say.

  “What’s wrong?”

  Eli lights up with a smile when he sees me. “Rolled my ankle, I think.” With his hand in Nat’s, he hops over to his pallet on the floor. I love how well these girls are taking care of him. He eases himself down and I sit beside him.

  “You look good, brother. How you feeling?”

  “Not bad,” he laughs. “I’m alive.”

  His hand drifts to the bandage over his stab wound. He isn’t wearing a shirt and I realize he doesn’t have any tattoos like all the others.

  I glance over my shoulder as Tyce pulls Flex aside. I’m struck by how much their roles have changed over the last few weeks. Tyce is still Tyce, but a big part of him is missing—a part I intend to get back. I haven’t told him yet. And I don’t know how I’m going to do it.

  “Hey, Cori…?” Tyce cocks his head toward Flex.

  I smile at Eli, pat his shoulder, then join Flex and Tyce.

  “I filled him in,” Tyce says.

  “We’ll beef up the lookouts,” Flex says. “We’ll do it in shifts. It’ll take guys away from hunting, but we’ll make do.”

  “What about all the bird meat? Can we still send it out on trades?” I ask.

  “Should we?” Flex looks to Tyce, showing a rare lack of confidence.

  Hands on his hips, Tyce tips his head back, searching for answers somewhere on the ceiling tiles. “Let’s pull the guys off scavenge and put them on watch. Send the trades but send them light. We need our guys here. We’ll do eight lookout spots—two men on each.”

  “Okay, we’ll cover the border good as we can and throw a few across the river.” Flex mirrors Tyce’s authority, his hands firmly on his hips. But it amazes me that they don’t seem to be competing. Their respect for one another blows me away.

  “We’ll keep hunting in teams. No one goes anywhere alone.” Tyce adds.

  When we finally make it back to my apartment, I’m drained.
Not only from the increasing danger the Antius spies are creating for us, but because of where Tyce took me and what he showed me. I’ve finally opened the door to my grief, and while the moments we shared were nothing short of a breakthrough, I realize it was only the beginning of my healing. I think I’m ready to look through the rest of my dad’s photographs.

  “I think I need to be alone,” I tell Tyce at the door.

  “That a good idea, doll?” He tucks my long bangs behind my ear.

  I shrug, my bottom lip quivering and my eyes beginning to water. “Please don’t hassle me right now.”

  “I won’t. But I can’t leave you alone—it’s not safe. I’ll stay right here though.” He motions to the stairs. “Give you some privacy.”

  I nod. “Thank you … for today.”

  Tyce pauses for a moment, chewing on his bottom lip. After a heavy exhale, he slowly pulls me into an embrace. He takes a deep breath before he speaks. “I thought you should know where you came from.” He squeezes me a little tighter. “See, I was right … you are like us.” It’s an attempt at humor, but neither of us laughs.

  I grin even though he can’t see it. I relax into him a little more.

  He whispers into my ear, “You belong here, doll.”

  I think I’m starting to agree.

  “You should see yourself,” he says. “When you hunt. The way you are with Eli. Hell, even Flex likes you and he hates everybody. You come alive here. And that bird hunt … anybody else would’ve been terrified.”

  “I was terrified,” I laugh against his chest. Shaking my head, I try to keep myself from thinking too much about Tyce holding me this way. So casually. Like it’s a perfectly normal thing to do.

  “You were amazing. And don’t get me started on that stunt you pulled to save Eli. You could’ve died.” He unwraps his arms from my back, places his hands on my face, staring into my eyes. So intense all of a sudden. “Dunno what I would’ve done if I’d lost you. I can’t…” He lays his forehead against mine, his eyes closed. He clears his throat, takes a deep breath. His eyes are glassy when he opens them and suddenly I’m overwhelmed, overcome with emotion. Stunned by how quickly something shifted between us.

  This situation is getting dangerous. “Tyce,” I put my hand on his chest, ready to push him away.

  “Please don’t,” he says. “I won’t do anything. I won’t kiss you. I won’t, just don’t shut me out right now. Not after you’ve finally shown me what you did today. Your heart, your grief… It’s beautiful. I need that right now.” He drags his fingers roughly over my hair in what’s probably the most tender gesture he’s capable of. “It gives me hope,” he whispers.

  I close my eyes, stunned by his words. That he feels this way. That he’s opening up to me. Finally. He’s showing me something nobody else gets to see.

  I don’t want him to stop. But I don’t know what to do. Don’t know how to be a friend to Tyce, how to comfort him. How to touch him.

  I press my palms against his chest, slowly letting myself acclimate to the idea of showing affection toward someone other than Dylan. Affection comes naturally to Tyce but not to me.

  I take a deep breath. There’s so much emotion pent up in my chest and I can no longer bear the tension. So I do something neither of us expects. I seize him by the nape of his neck and crush my lips against his. His response is instant. Pressing his hands into my lower back, he draws me closer and the entire world shrinks to just the space we occupy. The moment is a thousand times more intense than our first kiss. Shared grief burns between us—a terrible reason to wade into these waters, but I can’t stop. Because the pain I’ve carried since my father died is slowly releasing me and I have Tyce to thank for that.

  I break free from the kiss and wrap my arms tightly around him, savoring his embrace. He finds my neck with his lips and I know he’s feeling the same things I’m feeling. It isn’t long before he connects with my lips again, his kiss becoming urgent. This time unable to get enough of me. He slides his hands up my sides and lifts me up. I wrap my legs around his hips. He trails kisses across my jaw until his warm, panting breath meets my ear.

  I think he’s going to speak, but he doesn’t. Only the sound of our breathing fills the air. Chests pressed together, our hearts beat wildly. As if they could beat together. He pushes my hair away to press his cheek against mine. It’s easy being with him. Easy being here. Living for the day to day. I’m beginning to think Tyce is right—that maybe I won’t go back to Mercy at all.

  “I’m not a fool. I know what this is,” he breathes on my neck.

  “What is it?” I kiss his jaw. I want to kiss his lips again. I’m about to, but then he answers.

  “A mistake.” He pulls back a little, enough to look in my eyes. “A mistake you’re going to regret.” He kisses me again, but his lips don’t feel the same as before. “Right now you need me, but in another day, maybe a week … you won’t anymore.”

  “Tyce—”

  “Don’t say anything. Not tonight.”

  A little stunned, I slide off him, my cheeks burning. Steady on my feet, I hug his waist, laying my head briefly against his chest where his heart thuds against my ear. Then I go upstairs and he does not.

  When the door lock clicks, I crumple to the floor, gripping both sides of my head with trembling hands. I care about Tyce. His passion for his City and his people, his killer instinct, his intuition. All those things have appealed to me from the start. Since losing Emma his zeal has faded considerably, but he’s funny and rude and he accepts me as I am.

  Does any of that mean love? Does it in any way compare to what I’ve felt for Dylan? I can’t say that it does. It was horrible of me to pretend it did, even if only for a few moments while I needed someone to be close to.

  * * *

  Gavin scouted locations for the lookouts this morning and we’ve already started manning them. It’s a good system—but no one has spotted any more spies since Tyce and I were at Burke Enterprises.

  “Eli says hello,” Tyce says as he jogs to catch up to me. We’re on our way to meet up with Flex and Gavin to hunt. “He misses you.”

  Things have been different since I kissed Tyce last night—mostly because I won’t look him in the eye despite him trying constantly to lighten the mood. “I miss him too.”

  I made my mind up last night that no matter what’s going on between Dylan and me, I owe it to Tyce not to lead him on. That doesn’t mean it didn’t hurt my pride that he rejected me after kissing me and making me feel the way he did—raw and desperate. And even though I shouldn’t be, I’m kind of mad.

  “That stings a little,” he attempts to joke.

  I roll my eyes even though the daytime is fading and he can’t fully appreciate the gesture. I do smirk, though.

  “Wait a sec.” Tyce grabs my elbow and stops my momentum.

  “What?” I look down the road in the direction we’re headed.

  “Listen … I didn’t want to say what I did last night. I wanted to keep pretending as much as you did—probably more than you did—but you’re not yourself right now.”

  So, now Tyce is noble?

  “You know, I’m getting tired of being told what I am.” I put my hands on my hips.

  “Trust me, I’d be more than happy to have you use me any way you like, but I’m tryin’ to do you right.” His brows furrow, his blue eyes burning with intensity.

  “And why’s that, Tyce?”

  “Because I want you to stay,” he says sincerely, effectively deflating my rising anger.

  “I know,” I mumble, ducking my head and walking toward the hunt again. I was worried that kiss would have encouraged him to try harder and that he would think I was his now. It seems we’re on the same page so why am I so defensive about this?

  “If we went down that path, doll, we both know you’d run off.”

  I take a deep breath. “Can we please drop it?”

  “Sure.” He grabs my wrist and gets in my face, aligning his mouth with
mine only a few inches away. I turn my head away. “I thought so,” he mutters.

  “What are you getting at? You’re the most confusing and inconsistent person I’ve ever met.”

  “At least I’m bein’ honest. You can’t say the same.”

  I don’t know what comes over me but I push him away, hard, and consider throwing a punch. My fingers are already tucked into a fist and he sees it.

  “Like I said, you can use me all you want. You wanna hit me? Do it. You wanna kiss me? My pleasure. But you’re not fooling anyone. Your heart ain’t in it.”

  “What do you want from me then?” I ask, throwing my hands in the air, exasperated and motioning like a crazy person.

  “I want your heart to be in it.” He steps closer again and I move back, keeping distance between us.

  “That’s not going to happen.” I tilt my chin up and steady my resolve, having agonized over this throughout last night. I square my shoulders, drop my hands to my sides. “I’m sorry,” I say, matter of fact.

  “Huh?” He shoots me a puzzled look.

  “I crossed a line last night, Tyce. I get that and I’m sorry. Whatever it was, however brief, we’re over it now. Right?” Tyce is my friend. I need my friend. I don’t need last night to screw this up.

  He pauses. Too long, and I almost speak again but he interrupts me. “I’ll never be over it.”

  “You’re impossible.” I march around him, knocking into him with my shoulder.

  “You too, doll face. You too.”

  * * *

  After our hunt, we eat and crash with the others, barely speaking to one another. In the morning, I meet up with Eli who insists on being a lookout since he can’t hunt. At first I let him throw his arm over my shoulder for support, then eventually I tell him to hop on my back. I carry him the rest of the way to the west lookout to relieve the night watch.

  The day passes slowly and several long boring hours into our shift, I sharpen my knife to keep myself awake.

  Eli clears his throat. When I keep working, he taps my shoulder. “Take a look.” He hands me the binoculars. I look up finally and follow his gaze to the large, dark figure moving toward the bridge on our right. “I’ll alert the others,” he announces.