“I’m ten, but maybe a bit older. It’s hard to keep track down south without the seasons, and that’s the last birthday I had, not that we could have had any more with the troubles. I am short for my age you know, so people assume I’m younger, rather than older. So ten I guess, let’s say ten. You’re older of course?” The girls continued to giggle.
“A bit older,” Tawny said as she looked at the little blond boy before her, his pale blue eyes bulging from his thin face, his clothes hanging off his emaciated body.
“Do you have any food? I’m so hungry. The food down south is not so good. We’ll there isn’t any, and the berries here are a bit bitter. I can’t keep them down. They make my guts ache so bad like there're waves of cramp running through my tummy. I throw them up, and the funny thing is, if you can laugh at such a thing, they look the same as before I ate them.”
“We have some meat,” Tawny interrupted.
“You’re so pale,” Dawlis added.
“Meat, you have meat? Not from dead people. No, I guess not. You don’t look the type to eat the dead. Not like back home, the bandits like their meat, like their dead. Plenty to go around if there’s any left on them.”
“Stop! Stop Jeff, you’re not making any sense!” Tawny said.
“Your rambling, come,” Dawlis said with a wave of her arm, “It’s a mixture of rabbit and deer, you’ll be glad to hear.”
“Meat, I think I could eat some rabbit, deer, whatever. It’s been so long.”
“What you doing up here on your little own anyway?” Tawny asked with a perplexed look.
“There were three of us. The other two, I don’t know, one didn’t wake, but her eyes were open, her pupils were white, staring straight up at the Sun. The other, the other gave up, too tired she said to go on.” He looked to the ground, sadness and guilt filling his face.
There was a long pause as they walked back up to the hut, through the wet grass before he spoke again.
“You think I’m bad for leaving them? She said to go. She wished me happiness. The look on her face, she was so tired, so tired as she pushed me away. I had to go, her face scared me, like a living ghost, it scared the hell out of me.” He pointed at their feet.
“No shoes,” he continued, shaking his head, “but they’re coming, right behind us. They’re not boyfriend material, not boyfriend material at all.”
“Who’s coming, Jeff?” Dawlis asked with a worried look. “You’re scaring us!”
“The bandits of course, and everyone else. They’re all coming north. The chaos of the south is coming here. Many are coming!”
“Many, how many?” Tawny asked.
“All of them. They're coming up through the storms. There is no hope back south. There is nothing but sand. Those that stay will be buried in it, if not already.”
Tawny went inside the hut and grabbed a bucket of salted meat and a jug of water.
“Here eat,” she said.
The girls watched as Jeff eagerly ate the meat.
“Slow Jeff, chew it, or you will choke,” Tawny said. Jeff tried to chew as he piled more meat into his mouth than he could consume, coughing some back up.”
“Slow Jeff, slow it down,” Tawny remarked as she poured him a glass of water.
“Here, drink,” she said. He grabbed the glass, his hands shaking, pouring it down his throat, his mouth still full of meat, spilling it all over his face. Dawlis shook her head and smiled at Tawny.
“Some appetite you have there for such a small boy,” Dawlis laughed.
He stared across at the horizon as if in a daze from exhaustion.
“The Sun is so big and red,” Jeff remarked, taking a breath from his meal.
“Yes, it is,” Tawny said. “It barely gets over the horizon, and only for a few hours a day. There are no seasons, the same as you say down south, not like before the heavens split when there were summers and winters.
“We have a nice, long night,” Dawlis added. “Some of us need it more than others.” She smiled as Jeff finished his meal and water.
“Wow, everyone is going to love this place!” Jeff suddenly exclaimed, trying to get his breath back. “Not trying to frighten you, but they will, they sure will!”
Grand Theft Auto
“Surely, one day, we’ll all wake up blind,” Hayley said as they struggled back to their ship through the raging storm. The day had been unproductive in their search for food and water, and all three were becoming doubtful about their future. Daniel had decided to stay put with his SUV, convinced he would eventually fix it, fearing the land ship not suitable for the trip north.
Maybe he’s right, Kyla thought despondently. See you later, he had said, as if it were that simple.
“May as well be, can’t see sod all anyway,” Demelza tittered miserably as she held her hand out to shield her eyes from the sandy air, feeling the power of the bracing wind.
“I think I already am,” Kyla said tiredly.
“Shit! Look!” she suddenly exclaimed, pointing towards their ship.
“What? I thought you said you were blind?” Hayley said, startled by the outburst.
“Stop! Stop! Get down!” Kyla insisted. “Quick, down behind this dune,” pulling on their blouses in the direction of cover. They ran behind the dune, all three eagerly peeking over the top, looking hard through the swirling dust and sand, eager to see what Kyla had.
“I see something too,” Hayley exclaimed.
“Where, where?” Demelza asked, frantically scouring the desert.
“There, just there, it must be parked in front of the ship,” Kyla said, “A car.”
“No, a buggy,” Demelza said. “I see a buggy.”
“What the fuck are they doing by our ship,” Hayley asked, beginning to panic.
“Has to be them; Cain and Carla,” Kyla said apologetically. “They have come in search of me; to take me back.”
“Really! No! It would be too quick,” Demelza said with astonishment.
“Cain would go to the four corners of the Earth in the blink of an eye, for me, sadly enough,” Kyla replied as pulsing gusts of wind whistled across the plains. They dispersed violently in front of them, turning the muddy air into streaming bands of sand, allowing glimpses of their ship.
“Did you see them?” Kyla exclaimed. “Fuck!”
“Yes, two people; a man and woman!” Demelza whispered loudly as she stared at a silhouette of a man leaning against the deck rails. There was a woman also, her skirt and hair flapping in the wind, standing right behind him.
“Yes, and standing proudly on the deck of our fucking ship! Hayley finally said with horror, grabbing Kyla’s hand for comfort.
“Has to be them, a man and a woman, Cain and Carla,” Kyla said again, regretfully.
“Shit! Now, what?” Demelza asked, shaking her head.
“Let’s wait?” Hayley said.
“Wait?” Kyla asked.
“To see if they will leave,” Hayley replied.
“Or stay,” Kyla added, looking across worriedly at Hayley and Demelza. “There’s plenty of homely supplies for them.”
They all focused hard through the streaming bands of sand, watching and waiting as the two figures appeared to be in a heated discussion, the man gesticulating wildly with his hands as the female looked on, her arms folded across her chest.
“Definitely them,” Kyla said. “I can tell by the way they interact.”
“Not the happiest couple I have ever seen,” Hayley said.
“Looks like he’s about to lamp her one,” Demelza added.
Kyla laughed, “He would certainly like to, but Carla has sharp claws!” She clenched her fists like a cat about to pounce while Hayley and Demelza watched and giggled.
“Hiss,” they all said in unison, staring wildly at each other.
“Even if they leave, they would still look for me, and the ship. If we went back, the ship would be no match for the buggy. They would find me one way or another,” Kyla said anxiously, her brows f
rowning.
“Why don’t we just take the buggy? Remember what Daniel had said,” Hayley suggested, giving Kyla a hug. “It's going to be faster and more fun. We'll be up north in days. We just bide our time and wait for the right moment.”
“Exactly what I was thinking,” Demelza said, slowly and deliberately, giving Kyla a gentle pat on the head.
“Too risky,” Kyla said. “How we going to take it?”
“Kyla, you must know how this buggy works?” Hayley asked.
“We should take it now, under the cover of the storm, before the Sun starts to set,” Demelza added, smiling at Kyla.
“Me?” Kyla asked, pointing her two hands at herself as she worriedly searched the faces of Hayley and Demelza. The girls both nodded keenly, also pointing at her with begging smiles. “Shit, shit,” she continued, falling to her knees, looking back away from Demelza and Hayley, too weak to look at their pleading faces.
“Ok, this is my mess,” she said with trepidation, “I’ll go,” her face breaking out in nervy spasms. She did the sign of the cross over her chest, remembering it was what her mum did before she did something adventurous.
She looked across to the buggy and ship, feeling a strange calm and focus wash over her as she crawled over the dune, the hot sands scraping her thighs and knees. The air was thick again; the ship and buggy barely visible. She got to her feet and started a fast walk, crouched downwards through the wailing, sandy air. Hayley and Demelza looked on from behind the dune, holding on tightly to each other’s hands. She disappeared from view as the sands lashed down thicker than ever. Kyla crouched down further, catching her breath in the suffocating air, her heart pounding in her chest. She crawled onwards, too petrified to stand.
Where are they? Maybe they have gone into the living quarters? she thought as she struggled to see through her gritty eyes.
“Hope she’s alright,” Hayley said, looking worriedly at Demelza.
“Yes, let’s hope so. Maybe we should call her back?” Demelza asked, squeezing her grip on Hayley.
“No, it’s too late. She's too far gone. Let us pray in our minds for her,” Demelza added. They both did the sign of the cross over their hearts as Kyla had done so. Then Hayley blew out a kiss into the desert, out in Kyla’s direction.
“The buggy, I see the buggy,” Kyla whispered to herself as she saw its dark frame, now protecting her from being seen from the ship. She quickened her pace, getting to her feet again as her confidence grew, knowing she was out of plain sight. She was nearly there, catching a glimpse of Cain as she got ever closer, his back turned towards her as he argued with Carla. She could hear his deep voice drifting through the streaming air.
“I can’t bear this,” Hayley said, looking across at Demelza’s guilty face, “why did we just let her go like that?” Kyla looked at Carla’s face, shocked at the deep lines around her eyes and mouth.
How tired you look, my Queen, she thought, how defeated. The sands of time are surely running low for you.” She was nearly there as she crawled ever forward, wanting to cough, to clear her throat of the dust and sand. She stopped, covering her mouth, the itch too great as she buried her face deep into the sand, holding her head down tightly with her hands to muffle the sound, coughing and spitting phlegm into the ground and back over her face. Fuck, she thought, looking up to see if they had heard her, but there was no reaction from neither Cain or Carla. She crawled further forwards, slowly but surely, keeping an eye on them as they gesticulated frantically at each other. Then Carla looked out across the desert, towards the buggy.
“Shit! No!” she whimpered, convinced that Carla had seen her. She lay as low as possible, feeling her heart beat in her chest, thundering into the hot, dry sands below. She looked up again, immediately paralysed with fear, a chill spreading through her body as her eyes meet Carla’s icy blue eyes, head on.
Fuck! No! she thought, wanting to cry as Carla followed her movements, narrowing her eyes as she crawled into the buggy. Carla continued to argue with Cain as Kyla slid into the driver’s seat, slowly but surely. Carla smiled, then winked at Kyla, saying nothing. Kyla tried to engage the engine, her hands shaking violently from adrenaline, her blood pounding through her head with pulses of pain. Cain suddenly looked over his shoulder as the engine exploded into life, a burst of sound that vibrated through its frame and into Kyla’s body. Cain looked stunned, his hands clenched tightly on the ship's rails as he watched in vain as a trail of sand spewed high into the air, the buggy speeding away until it was invisible from his sight.
Oh my God, oh my God, Kyla thought as she drove quickly back towards the dune, back towards Demelza and Hayley. The throbbing in her head got louder until the sound of the howling wind dissolved in its presence, everything appearing silently as if in slow motion, her guts turning over with fear. Like a rabbit bolting from the big bad wolf, she thought.
“Hear that!” Hayley exclaimed.
“Look!” Demelza said excitedly, pointing towards the buggy that was quickly advancing through the haze towards them.
“Has to be her, has to,” Hayley said, holding the palm of her hands tightly in Demelza’s with a smile of anticipation.
Why did she not react? Kyla thought. Why did Carla not say anything, but I guess I already know, have always known why, even before today. Kyla sped frantically over the dunes, stopping hard as Hayley and Demelza suddenly came into view, the buggies tyres skidding across the sand as it came to rest, pushing sand over the girl’s feet. Hayley and Demelza clapped their hands with joy as they saw Kyla’s wet and sandy face, her smiling eyes peering at them through the vibrating frame of the buggy like sparkling jewels.
“Quick!” she shouted, waving her hands as she pumped the throttle, making sure the engine didn’t stall. “Jump in!” Hayley jumped into the passenger seat and dragged Demelza with her until she was safely on her lap. Kyla dipped the clutch, engaged the gears, flooring the accelerator as hard as she could, sending the buggy blindly forward through the dense, sandy air, its body sliding as its tyres tried to grip the sand, the growl of its engine loud and deafening above the howling wind. She made one last nervous glance across her shoulder, but she knew deep down they were safe.
“This is turning into a beautiful day!” Kyla shouted triumphantly as she quickly went up through the gears until they were nudging 60 mph, the wind gushing through their dishevelled hair. Torrents of sand lashed into their excited faces as the buggy danced elegantly across the undulating desert, the girls enjoying the lively ride.
Hayley smiled, shouting ecstatically, “Only the good die young!” She waved a fist in the air, her other hand holding on tightly to Demelza’s blouse. “So we must be so, so bad, huh!” kissing Demelza hard on the cheek. All three laughed, eating away the nervous tension that had been building up to critical levels in them all.
“Well done, Kyla!” Hayley shouted over the din of the engine.
“Thanks to Carla!” Kyla shouted back.
“Really! Why?” Hayley asked, surprised.
“She saw, she smiled, and she winked goodbye!
“Really?” Hayley said again, looking intrigued.
“She never wanted me around in the first place, so now, I guess, I’m out of her dirty, blonde hair forever!”
“And Cain? Demelza asked.
Kyla put her fingers to her lips as if to say Ssssshh, “Cain never even saw me!”
“But what was that, with Carla?” Hayley tried to clarify. “You said she saw you.”
“Yes, she saw me plain and clear, but like I said, it’s not in her interest to tell Cain it was me,” Kyla replied. “She even appeared glad to see me go! And with the buggy!”
There was a brief silence as all three gathered their breaths, the exhilaration getting too much before Kyla spoke with a scornful look in her eyes, “I guess we won’t be seeing Cain for a while, or his miserable Queen.” Hayley and Demelza smiled gleefully in agreement as the buggy disappeared into the haze of the raging storm.
S
pooks
“Wakey, wakey! Rise and shine! The day is short, and we should make haste if we are to grab it by the horns,” Jeff exclaimed as he peered through the door of the hut with a big smile.
“Oh, fuck off,” Dawlis said jokingly as she squirmed in her blanket giving Jeff the finger. Tawny just moaned and covered her eyes as the blinding morning Sun streamed into the hut. Jeff laughed and shut the door, looking back out across the snowy plains, glad to feel alive again. He looked up at the Sun, savouring its warmth as it beamed through the cold air.
It was only a few weeks back when things weren’t looking so good; not good at all, he thought. He still felt guilty about Callee and Laren. Such good friends, to see them like that. The image of Laren lying on the ground, looking up lifeless at the watery Sun haunted him; her body still, her breathing gone, that ever happy smile of hers dead. All gone forever. Callee beside her, pushing him away, telling him to go on without her. The sound of her voice was awful like her lungs were full of sand, hollow and whispery. Why did he leave her? He could have carried her, carried them both. That face, it was so white, like she was gone, and all that was left was a ghostly shell, her eyes dark and lifeless. He didn’t want to remember then both like that, it was not them, but the thoughts, the emotions, all were way too powerful to hold back. He suddenly snapped out of his grieving, focusing out again onto the snowy plains.
“That sound in the distance, it's the sound of bikes and cars surely,” he said, knocking on the door for the girls to hurry. He looked hard but could see nothing, apart from the snow melting in the morning Sun forming an endless glistening lake that reached out as far as the hills. Jeff rushed into the hut and slammed the door behind him.
“Jeff! Tawny shouted. “What are you doing, we’re grown girls!”
“You look like a startled guard dog,” Dawlis added, holding her blanket close to her body.
“I heard them!” Jeff exclaimed, holding his hands on his cheeks looking terrified.
The Sands of Borrowed Time Page 21
