Fury Rising (21 page)

“I will,” she said. “I have no intentions of ever losing you. That’s a promise.”

              The moment she slid open the showroom door, she knew she’d made the right decision to go alone. The smell of death and decay hit her nose, forcing her to pause and reconsider. She couldn’t see a thing.

             
It’s the grocery store all over again. And I don’t even have a flashlight, Heath. I dropped mine during the attack. How am I going to do this? I can’t go in there. It’s too much. I can’t go through that again. I wish you were here, brother. You were never afraid of dark spaces.

              She let the door close and sat down on the curb, trying to consider her next move.

              They had to get a car. That wasn’t even up for debate. The little ones simply couldn’t walk the entire way. It would take days. They were due back in a few hours. If they didn’t show up by morning, Aries might do something foolish like send out a search party. Clementine couldn’t take the chance of any of them accidently stumbling into the mall.

              She looked out at the street. There weren’t a lot of abandoned cars on Lougheed Highway, but they might have better luck if they strayed off into the residential neighborhoods. Picking up a vehicle wasn’t the problem. Finding one with a set of keys attached was the challenge. Clementine had no idea how to hotwire a car, neither had any of the others. Raj had said he might be able to do it, but he’d never tried. They’d all relied on car dealerships and rental places. Clementine knew that each dealership usually had a room where all the keys were stored. Usually they were hanging on hooks or stored in drawers. But each place was different and without a flashlight, she’d be stumbling around blindly, going from room to room until she got lucky.

              Judging from the smell inside the display room, there were other things she didn’t want to find.  

             
If I go into that darkness, I’m going to remember. I’m going to relive it over and over until I go mad.

              Even sitting on the curb, she could feel the Bagger’s teeth tearing into her shoulder. She could remember stabbing blindly in the darkness with Janey’s knife, trying to find and kill the Bagger before it finished her off.

             
I stabbed two Baggers. I remember that much. The blade sunk into flesh. You don’t ever forget that sort of thing. Two times. One was random. The second was the Bagger as it tried to kill me.

              Two stabs.

              One Bagger?

              Was it me? Was I the one who stabbed Michael?

              No. Stop it. It wasn’t true. There had been two of them, she’d seen them. Killed them. Clementine got up off the curb and turned to face the store. Maybe she couldn’t go inside and that was fine. They’d find another place. There were millions of cars spread out around the lower mainland. They’d find one with keys.

              She’d get those children back to camp one way or another.

Aries

              They buried Eve at dusk. Aside from Aries, Raj, and Mason, no one else bothered to come.  Many people had already cleared out of camp, refusing to spend the night after the Bagger attack. Only a few chose to stick around. In a matter of hours, Lighthouse Park had become a ghost town. Marvin and Betsy decided to stay, but many of the adults left in groups to take safety in other hideouts. No one wanted to take any chances.

              Aries couldn’t fault the others. Jack had been too preoccupied with Joy. She’d eaten something earlier and had been sick for the past few hours. Jack finally convinced her to go to one of the other safe houses with him. With everything that happened, Aries agreed.

              “Just because I’m pregnant doesn’t mean I’m going to break apart. I’m not going to bend over and suddenly have the baby pop right out. You’re all making a fuss over nothing.”

              Maybe so, but no one wanted to take that chance. Finally Joy agreed and Jack led her off after promising to be back first thing in the morning. It would be good for them to spend some quiet time alone. And they’d be safe. Aries wouldn’t have to worry about neither of them for the next little while.

              With Clementine and Michael still in transit, the group of people who had known and cared about Eve grew steadily smaller. Larissa was swamped with people showing up at the nurse’s station. Bumps and scratches needed to be healed and covered with her dwindling supply of bandages. She couldn’t exactly walk away from them. And who knew where Daniel disappeared to with that new kid, Jordan?

              Raj gave a speech that Aries barely heard and then Mason and him filled in the grave while Cleopuptra, the dog, barked cheerfully. Aries sat on the grass and stared at the ocean. Everything about the entire situation felt wrong. How could one girl’s life mean so little to everyone around her? How long would it take before everyone at camp completely forgot the shy girl who couldn’t move on after losing her brother?

              Aries found herself thinking about the fallen log in Stanley Park. They’d all carved their names into the tree a lifetime ago, back when they’d all first met. Back when they were still full of hope and determination.

             
Aries
.
Daniel.
Jack.
Clementine.
Colin.
Joy.
Nathan.
Eve.
Michael. Mason.

             
Ten names. Two of which were already gone. Colin betrayed them by going over to the other side. How many more times would Aries have to watch someone die before it happened to her? Who would come to her funeral? Who would be left?

             
I’m sorry we took you for granted, Eve. Especially me. I should have been there for you. Regardless of how busy I’ve been, or how selfish, I made a mistake and you had to die for it. Just like your brother. I will make it up to you the only way I know how. As long as I’m alive, I’ll never let another one go unnoticed. I won’t let anyone else feel like they’re alone in this world.

             
No matter what happened, Aries wouldn’t leave until Clementine and Michael came back with the children.

                                                        *              *              *

              She couldn’t sleep. What else was new? Insomnia had become her brand name. The thing she did. While everyone else dreamed, Aries watched over them. Of course that night there weren’t many people asleep. The few remaining were either on guard duty or sitting around the fire, too intimidated and worried to close their eyes. No one wanted to make the mistake of letting the Baggers slip back in.

Tonight she sat on a pile of rocks, the soft breeze brushing against her face as she stared out into the ocean. From across the bay, she could see the faint glow of light from the downtown core. How lucky for the Baggers to have electricity, especially on such a cool evening. What other luxuries did Leon hide away in his penthouse condo? Washing machine? Hot tub? Video game console for some Grand Theft Auto? Aries couldn’t even remember the last time she’d seen a television. The very idea of staring at a screen for several hours as entertainment, seemed unreal and a million lifelines ago.

              Wrong. Everything was wrong. Why hadn’t the Baggers killed any of them earlier? They’d had the advantage, catching the entire camp by surprise. There’d been no shortage of panic. The Baggers could have easily taken out several of them and evened out the numbers.

Even hours after the weird attack, there were people still unaccounted for. Juan didn’t think the Baggers snatched anyone; the people had simply run for the safe houses in the city. Aries agreed. Earlier they sent out a bunch of volunteers to try and track everyone down. If they wouldn’t return back to camp, Martin, Betsy, and Aries agreed not to make a big deal out of it, even if it meant weakening the group by losing numbers. You couldn’t consider a hideout to be a safe haven anymore, especially when the enemy knew the exact location. Leon had managed to win without lifting a single finger. He had them disorganized and separated within hours. Aries couldn’t fault a single person either. She didn’t try and convince anyone to stay or go. She let them decide on their own. Just like Colin. She should have set him free a long time ago.

              She’d known Colin would one day pose a problem. He’d threatened her once, telling her if she ever tried forcing him away, he’d go straight to the Baggers. He’d belittled her around others, refused to do anything helpful, and pretty much caused conflict with every single person at camp. Even Aries, who had once defended him vigorously, couldn’t be bothered anymore. Now she couldn’t think of a single reason why she tried in the first place. It wasn’t just because he had been Sara’s boyfriend. Her loyalties to her dead best friend only went so far.

              No, she had defended him because no matter how much of a jerk he was, no matter how badly he got on everyone’s nerves and refused to help out, he’d still been human. A dying breed. Each and every one of them was precious. And if Aries could be the kind of person who would send someone out to fend and possibly die on their own, it made her no better than the Baggers they fought against.

              There it was. She’d tried to do the right thing and it had backfired on her. She’d tried to see the good in Colin and in return, he’d sold her out.

              But yet the Baggers hadn’t really attacked. Leon was up to something and she needed to figure it out before he came back for round two.

              “Can I join you? Or are you going to hit me again?”

              Aries didn’t look up. She’d been waiting for him. Now that he was back, she’d known he’d come. Daniel was different than Mason, who would have waited for Aries to go to him instead.

              “I won’t hit you,” she said.

              Daniel sat down next to her on the rock. Not that long ago she would have been thrilled to be spending time with him. Now she was such a mixed bag of emotions, she didn’t know how to feel. Part of her really did want to smack him, but a stronger section of her brain made her want to throw her arms around him and hold him tightly.

              Never let go.

              “It’s good to see you again,” Daniel finally said.

              She didn’t say anything.

              “I’ve been keeping to myself mostly,” he said. “Laying low. I’ve been good. Real good. Haven’t been changing. Staying under control. I’m probably jinxing myself by telling you, but I think I might be able to beat it.”

              “Excellent,” she said.

              “Maybe eventually I’ll be able to be around people again,” Daniel continued. “For good.”

              Something rustled in the bushes close to them. Probably a rat. There’d been a rise in rodents the past few months. All the more reason to get out of the city. If only the group could take in some cats. But aside from Raj’s newfound pup, there was a real shortage on furry friends. Most of them had gone feral and disappeared into the ruins. Every now and then Aries would catch a glimpse of fur, but they always ran off the moment they spotted her. It would be a long time before house pets came back into fashion.

              “Are you going to even bother to talk to me?” Daniel asked. “I’m trying Aries. I really am. But I need you.”

              “I’m happy for you,” she said.

              “No, you’re not. I’m sorry I’m not the guy you wanted me to be. I can’t be like Mason. I can’t chase you around and keep you safe. I’m not a white knight.”

              “That’s not fair. Don’t you dare say that about Mason.”

              “It’s not an insult,” Daniel said. “Mason would stay with you until the end of the earth. He’s the most loyal guy I know and he cares for you. It’s the main difference between us. I can’t follow wherever you go.”

              “But you have been,” she snapped. “Following me. All this time. You’ve known exactly where I was. What I’m doing. You knew about the safe house on the hill. You sent Jordan there. You even drew him a map! And you gave me that big lecture how it wasn’t safe for me. How I was better being away from you. But all this time. You knew. You lied to me.”

              “Yes, but…”

              “You knew,” she repeated. “And did you bother to come? No. You stayed away. Left me alone, I had no idea if you were dead or alive. I needed you, Daniel. But you don’t need me. You’ve made that perfectly clear.”

              “That’s not fair,” Daniel said. “You know I can’t be around humans.”

              “Bullshit,” she snapped, much louder than intended. She looked back over her shoulder, but saw nothing. They were far enough away from the remains of the camp. Even if by some miracle people were actually sleeping, she doubted they’d hear.

              “I’m one of them,” Daniel said. “Don’t ever forget it.”

              “Seriously?”

              “Yes. Sarcasm aside, you have to accept it.”

              “You knew where I was all this time. If you wanted me dead, you could have done it a thousand times. You could have walked right in and I would have thrown myself into your arms. Dumb little me, happy to finally have you all to myself. I would have been your perfect willing victim.”

              “That’s not fair.”

              He was right about that. Nothing was fair anymore.

              “Everyone knows where I am now,” she said. “It’s no longer a secret anyway. Might as well welcome you all in with a big smile and a six pack of beer.”

              “So you’re staying here?” Daniel looked away, determined to hide any expressions he might have. “That’s a bad idea.”

              “Yeah, well, you don’t get a say in it.”

              “I did. Once upon a time.” Daniel smiled. “You trusted me. Remember? Back on the bus? The night of the earthquake. You put your trust in a complete stranger and let him lead you off into an abandoned school. What happened to that girl?”