“I get the food, but the noise?”
“Yeah. I grew up in the city and fell asleep every night listening to horns beeping and people shouting. Sometimes it’s too quiet now. But at least you can see the stars.”
“What foods do you miss?”
“Chocolate.” He sighed. “And pineapple. The real tropical kind, not what we’ve started to grow here. It’s not the same. What I wouldn’t give to have those again. My mouth is watering just thinking about them.”
“I wish I could try real chocolate. Just once.”
“Maybe someday you will. Someday we’ll get the world connected again. You’ll see.”
“You’re so optimistic.”
“Can’t afford not to be when everything looks so grim.” He settled a hand on her shoulder and changed the topic abruptly. “I miss him, too.”
“I know.”
“If you ever need anything, you come to me.”
“I will,” she said. “Thank you.”
Graham turned to leave. She heard the creaking of the boards as he walked to the ladder leading down to the fifth floor.
“Graham?” she called out. He turned and looked at her, an eyebrow raised. “You loved Dad. Why didn’t you get married?”
For the first time in her life, she saw tears in Graham’s eyes, and it was unsettling. Graham was calm. He was the quiet to Dad’s constant chatter. The logic to Dad’s fantasy.
“There was no need to rush. We always thought we had all the time in the world,” he said quietly, his words hanging between them. “I guess we were fools. When you get the chance, Peyton, you have to take life and live it, before it gets away. Don’t make the mistakes we did. Don’t live your life to have regrets.”
CHAPTER FOUR
“I can’t believe we’re doing this tonight,” Nixie whispered. Her lips pressed to Ranger’s ear, trying to be as quiet as possible in case guards were out in the woods around them.
They lay prone on the ground in dense foliage. Ranger’s darker complexion made it easier for him to hide in the shadows, but Nixie’s pale skin and hair had to be covered with an extra layer of clothing. The hat covering her head made her sweat in the heat, and she shifted slightly to swipe at a drop rolling down her cheek.
“Faulkner wants a status report. He thinks they won’t be expecting anything so soon after that guard’s death, and…I’m inclined to think he’s right,” he muttered reluctantly. “For once.”
The Settlers’ compound sat before them at the base of the hill. The grounds were quiet and dark, with just a few solar lights indicating the path into the building, like a beacon of welcome.
Nixie knew better. If she were to waltz up to their door and ask for help, she’d be turned away. For as much as the Settlers claimed to help others, the claim was false. She had experienced firsthand their cruelty when her mother was sick and needed shelter. The settlement had turned them away, and her mother had died because of it.
The large square tower before them rose above the building proper. Through the open windows a pair of silhouettes paced. Were they guards? She checked the shadows but didn’t see any weapons. Maybe not. Nixie nudged Ranger and gestured toward the tower with her head. He glanced in that direction and held up two fingers and then spread his hand wide, palm up.
Had she seen just the two of them?
She indicated that was all she had seen, and together they watched as the taller silhouette retreated.
The moon rose slowly above them, shifting shadows and revealing details. Nixie’s eyes started to droop at the utter stillness. Reconnaissance had never been her strong point, at least not compared to her dowsing, and she wondered why Faulkner had insisted she accompany Ranger. The Settlers’ water situation was just as desperate as theirs. She’d allowed her sense to expand and felt the trickle of the cool stream. But it was just that. A trickle.
It didn’t take someone with dowsing abilities to figure that out, though. The lack of rain was proof enough. No water supply could keep up indefinitely without being replenished.
Ranger nudged her and jerked his head to the side. He’d gotten enough information and they were finally leaving. Once they made it back to camp and they gave their report to Faulkner, she would be able to sleep and recharge her energy before he sent her out for another dowsing.
Inching backward along the ground, the two of them untangled themselves from the brush. Once behind a tree and out of direct line with the building, Nixie stood.
“They had just the one guard, it seems.”
“They’re definitely complacent,” Ranger replied. “The death might have thrown them off balance, but they don’t expect anything else to happen. I almost feel bad for them.” He chuckled.
“You feel bad for them?”
“I said almost.”
Nixie followed behind Ranger, letting him navigate their way. She watched his feet as they picked over bared roots and large rocks. Doing her best to avoid them, she only tripped once.
“Careful,” Ranger warned. “Don’t need you to break anything.”
“A little fall isn’t going to break a bone,” she said indignantly once they had crested the hill.
They remained silent the rest of the trip back to camp. By the time they arrived, the sky had begun to lighten. The camp was still, though, with the gentle sounds of sleep coming from each tent and shack. Fires had died down to a few coals. One dog picked up its head as they passed and huffed, blowing out his large jowls.
Faulkner was the only one awake. He sat outside on a raggedy strip of carpet staring into a crackling fire. Had he been awake the whole time they’d been gone? He didn’t give them a chance to greet him. As soon as they were close enough, he motioned for them to sit and barked out a terse, “Report.”
“They didn’t have any extra guards out. Just saw one sitting in a tower.” Ranger left out the other one they had seen initially while he drew out a map of the complex in the dirt and pointed to where they had seen the silhouettes.
“Lazy bastards. But that’s good for us. We can move on this tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?” Nixie asked, her eyes widening.
“We need the equipment. They won’t be expecting us so soon. The guard’s body is barely cold in the ground, so now’s the time to do it.”
Nixie glanced at Ranger. He kept his eyes firmly on Faulkner, not betraying a single thought through his emotions.
“The two of you will go, and take four others with you.”
“Just six?” Nixie gasped. “To raid the entire compound? We don’t even know where they keep anything!”
“When you get there, create a distraction. I don’t care what. Nixie, I want you in that building. Use your talents to find the equipment.”
“But it doesn’t work like that! I can only find—”
“Water will be left on that equipment. Do whatever you do to find it.”
Nixie turned to Ranger for help. “But that’s not how it works!” she insisted. “I can’t just focus on a small remnant of water. It’s…it’s just not how it’s done.”
“I don’t need to tell you how important this equipment is to us.” Faulkner’s eyes narrowed as he focused on her. “Figure it out. You leave at sundown.”
CHAPTER FIVE
Old Joe delivered the news to Peyton the next morning. She had officially been chosen as the next head of security.
“Your father would be proud of you,” he said with a gentle smile. “Never doubt your ability to lead.”
The first thing she did was meet with the heads of the foraging and hunting groups to discuss the maps her father had kept, but there had been no need. Her father’s maps were actually copies of their maps that he kept updated.
“Why?” she asked the two men.
“Need to know where you guys’ll be escorting us,” one responded with a shrug.
I hadn’t thought of that. Dad would have figured that one out. Scowling, she pushed her way out of the building and ran into Jasper. He leaned a
gainst the railing of the bridge, surveying the farmers working in the closest lot. His blond hair hung in his eyes, desperate for a trim.
“How goes it, great leader?” His face split into a grin.
“Don’t call me that.”
“Someone’s in a mood.”
A mood? Probably. So much had been handed to her overnight—things she didn’t want, wasn’t ready for. She could have said no, but that would have left Ryan in charge, and that just wasn’t an option. “I didn’t sleep well,” she admitted. She hadn’t slept soundly since Enrique died and probably wouldn’t for a while, either. Everywhere she turned, memories of him haunted her.
“Well you better snap out of it or Ryan’s going to be on you like flies on honey. And not in a good way, if you know what I mean.”
She rolled her eyes. “Knock it off. Where’s Willow?”
“Probably out flirting with that guy that moved here from crosstown last month. He is pretty cute, isn’t he?”
“I wouldn’t know.”
“Oh, that’s right. Because you can’t take the time to look. Looking doesn’t hurt, you know.” Jasper followed after her like a puppy as she strode across the bridge. Her longer legs left him jogging to keep up, though he kept his hands shoved in the pockets of his baggy jeans. Peyton gave him a sidelong glance and realized he looked thinner. He’d lost weight again. She’d have to talk to the kitchen to get him extra protein.
“I adjusted the schedule for the next three days. I’ll be covering most of Enrique’s work detail, but Graham is covering the rest until I get the mess sorted out.”
“You’ll have to talk to Lynda. Find out when she’s sending her gnomes out foraging again so you can assign a detail to them.”
Peyton paused and looked at him. “Don’t let Lynda know you’re calling her foragers gnomes. She’ll have your balls.”
“Well, she can’t have them. I’m saving them for someone special.”
Peyton felt the laughter bubble up from her chest and burst out. It was hard not to laugh around Jasper. He had a gift for saying just the right thing at the right time to get himself out of trouble. Always had. Graham called it a silver tongue once, and after that, Jasper had walked around for a week straight trying to convince people he really did have a silver tongue. He had even gone so far as to invite the boys to see it for themselves.
They found Willow helping some of the farmers irrigate the crops. The water level of the river had gotten dangerously low in the last few weeks, and Peyton chewed at her lip. She’d heard some of the farmers telling Old Joe they didn’t know what they’d do if the water ran out. She glanced to the bridge they’d just crossed and could barely see the water. What used to be freely flowing now trickled sluggishly past, barely covering the tops of the rocks.
If the water really did run out, they’d have to rely on whatever the foragers found, and what was kept in storage. But could they find enough to feed nearly 150 people? And what would they do without something to drink? Graham told her the human body couldn’t last much more than three days without liquid.
They needed rain, and they needed it to last a long time.
“How’s it going?” she asked when Willow stopped her work and ambled over to them.
“It’s going,” she said, wiping the sweat off her brow. “The water level is too low for the pumps to work.”
“I guess we’re going to have to save our dirty water and use it to water plants, huh?” Jasper said, making a face.
“Well, if we have to, they’ll let you know. But it might be a good idea.”
“I figured we’d find you with that new guy.”
“Christopher? Why?”
“Because you’re in love,” Jasper said, batting his eyes. Willow gave him a playful shove and he nearly lost his balance but grabbed her arm and regained it. “For that I’ll tell him you’re abusive. Maybe he’ll cozy up to me instead.”
“Sorry, Jazz, but I don’t think he swings that way.”
He sighed heavily and shook his head. “I’m starting to think no one does. I’ll have to go crosstown or something.”
“What about that guy who came through last year? He wasn’t so bad. He seemed to think pretty highly of you, anyway.” Willow laughed.
Jasper scowled and spat into the dirt. “Those people are nearly as bad as the Scavengers.” He paused then squinted up at the sky as if considering. “Besides. Then I’d have to leave the settlement and travel. I’m not cut out for that stuff. I want to stay in one place. Plus,” he added as Peyton and Willow started to walk away from him, “you would miss me too much!”
“What I wouldn’t do to shut him up,” Willow muttered.
“Next time a foraging group is going crosstown, I’ll put him on the detail,” Peyton whispered.
“Thank you.”
Willow returned to aid the farmers in getting the crops water while Jasper joined her for a scout around the perimeter of the Mill. By the time they returned, the sun was fading from the sky. An idea that had worked its way into Peyton’s mind was out of her mouth before she could stop it. “I want to go after the Scavengers. Take them out before they can get any more of us.”
Jasper stopped walking, forcing her to stop as well. His eyes narrowed. “What do you mean?”
“I want to get rid of them.”
“You mean, like, push them out of the area?” When Peyton didn’t answer, Jasper jerked his head back. “Are you fucking crazy? We can’t do that! We’d be just as bad as them.”
“They’re not going to stop,” Peyton said.
“Maybe not, but we make it harder for them. Look, I know you’re upset about your dad—”
“Upset?” Peyton barked out a laugh.
“Okay, you’re hurt. You want to kill. I get that. But you can’t. You couldn’t do it alone, and someone else could get killed. We don’t even know how many there are.”
“Five.”
“Five when Enrique was killed. That doesn’t mean that’s all there are. We don’t know what we’ll be walking into.” Jasper grabbed her arm. “I’m worried about you.”
Peyton jerked her arm out of his grasp. “He deserved better.”
“I know. But there’s nothing we can do.”
“That’s not good enough!”
Jasper winced. “Maybe not, but think. Would your dad want us to risk our lives to get back at them?”
As much as she didn’t want to admit it, Jasper was right. Enrique would never have encouraged revenge. A breeze rustled the leaves around them, and Peyton thought she heard the familiar voice she’d never hear again whispering Let it go, Peyton. But how could she?
“Where’s the justice?” Peyton whispered before she could bury the words.
*
The shrill alarm pierced the night air and jerked Peyton from sleep. She launched out of bed and shoved her feet into her shoes without a thought as she made for the hallway. Outside, chaos ensued. People stumbled out of their homes, confused by the noise.
“What’s happening?”
“Is it a fire?”
“Mommy, I’m scared!”
“Where’s Julian?”
Voices rose as the hall filled and panic set in.
“Out of my way!” Peyton yelled, pushing her way to the stairs. She needed to get down to the security office, figure out what was going on.
She didn’t go far before someone called for her by the stairwell.
“What’s happening?” she asked Julian.
“Scavengers! They broke through the perimeter and made it into one of the storerooms!”
Peyton cursed loudly and followed Julian’s tall frame through the path he made. At the mention of Scavengers, murmurs rose through the crowd and they parted to let Peyton through.
“How did they get in?” she demanded as they took the stairs down two at a time. “What did they take?”
He shrugged. “We just know they got into the storerooms. Ryan and Bill caught them as they were leaving.”
&n
bsp; “Where are they now?”
“I don’t know. Ryan went after them. Sent Bill to get me.”
Peyton followed him as quickly as she could, thankful the other residents pressed against the sides of the hallways as they sprinted down the corridors. They rounded a corner and caught up with Bill, who pointed them in the right direction. “Are they armed?”
“Couldn’t tell.”
Peyton followed just behind Julian. She had no weapon with her, and there wasn’t time to go back and get one. Together they exited the building, hopped the low fence, and followed the broken branches. Someone had fled through there in a hurry and hadn’t bothered to cover their trail. Peyton heard shouts to her left and she changed direction, with Julian almost glued to her side. The sounds grew closer. Peyton pumped her legs harder, overtaking Julian as she rounded the bend and came upon the river just as she heard one last shout and a splash.
Ryan stood on the bank holding a shotgun. If the situation hadn’t been so desperate, Peyton would have chewed him out for having a restricted weapon, but at the moment, she had bigger fish to fry—namely the Scavenger glaring up at her from the riverbed.
CHAPTER SIX
Everything had gone so well until Nixie tripped on an exposed pipe as they were leaving the compound. The noise had attracted the attention of the guards, and then everything went to hell. Ranger had grabbed her arm and pulled her to her feet, but she was slower than the rest. It wasn’t long before she’d fallen behind and had the Settler at her heels. She changed direction, hoping to throw her pursuer off Ranger’s trail.
Faulkner had wanted a distraction, hadn’t he?
She didn’t know she was at the river until it was too late. Her momentum carried her forward and she’d tumbled headfirst into the shallow water. Her knee wrenched and she bit back the scream of pain. When her vision cleared, the Settler stood over her and she was looking down a long barrel. The others were long gone. She hoped they’d made it out with the equipment.
The First Twenty Page 3
