The Divide: Origins (13 page)

“Are
they here?”

“Yeah,
and there are a lot of them. We don’t have a choice other than to leave. Come
on,” Max said and led her out the back.

They made their way behind buildings
until they were out of the town square. Then they cut across to the school. Max
instructed Zoe to get Rebecca and Liam while he warned the others. He had
noticed that a group of cars was just outside. He had to find a way to get the
keys to one of them.

“They’re
here, and there are a lot of them,” Max said to Mack once he made it upstairs.

“How
many? Can we take them?”

“A
few hundred, and I don’t know. I do know one thing. If we’re going to keep the
sick and injured alive, we’ve got to lead them away from here.”

“What
do you suggest?”

“There
are cars out front. We can gather all able-bodied men and drive to the other
side of town. Then we can attack them from that side. If we take the fight to
them, there will be no reason for them to go to the school, and maybe we can
win this fight before they even get a chance to.”

“I
like it. How long do I have to gather everyone?”

“Not
long. I need some keys and four guns. My group will fight. Liam will just have to
get over his problems quickly.”

“What
about Rebecca? Do you actually think she can fight with that wound to her leg?”

“She’s
getting better, and she’s the best shot in our group. We’ll need her. Trust me
on this. I’ve already dealt with these people once. We’ll need everyone who can
hold a gun.”

“All
right, you’ve got it,” Mack said and retrieved a set of keys and four guns for
him.

It had all been too easy. Max felt a
little bad about leaving these people, but it was to protect the people who
meant the most to him. It had to be done. Once he was downstairs, he found Zoe
and the others in the hallway. Rebecca was able to walk slowly now, but it
looked painful. He offered to carry her, but she said she was fine. They walked
right out the door without anyone noticing that they were being deserted. When
they made it to the car, Liam did something that complicated Max’s plans.

“I’m
staying,” Liam said and stepped away from the car.

“The
hell you are! Get in or you’ll die,” Zoe said.

“There
are worse ways to die than defending innocent people. I think you guys should
run. You’re still looking for a way out of this crazy reality, and from what
I’ve
heard,
you might just find it in Texas. I’ve made
my choice, though. This is
my
way
out.”

“You’re
really going to do this, aren’t you? It can get better, Liam.”

Max
normally would have considered letting Liam make his own decision about this.
After all, in a world with so little control, being able to decide how you died
was a luxury, and it should have been his choice. Max couldn’t let him make
that choice on Zoe’s birthday, though. He walked over to Liam and hit him in
the back of the head with the butt of his gun. Liam hit the ground, and Max
picked him up and threw him into the car.

Once
they were on the road, Max let out a sigh of relief. Even if it hadn’t been
easy, they were safe now. That might have been the wrong word to use, though.
The snow and ice was falling at a rapid pace, and the wind was picking up. The
roads were anything but safe. Still, this was better than staying to fight a
war.

“Where
are we going to stay? We can’t drive in this all night,” Rebecca whispered.

“We’ll
find a place to hunker down a few miles down the road. For now, we just need to
get some distance from that place.”

“You’re
a coward,” Liam said as the cobwebs cleared from his mind.

“I
just saved your life. You were grief-stricken, and you weren’t going to come
unless I knocked you out,” Max said.

“You’re
going to turn this car around and take me back there. I’m not running away from
a fight or what might be death,” Liam said as he reached up and grabbed the
wheel.

Zoe
pulled him back, but the damage had been done. The car went into a slide and ran
off the road into a tree. It was freezing, they were three miles from the town,
the car wasn’t going to crank, and Max had no idea where they could find
shelter. In his attempt to meet his maker, Liam might just have decided all of
their fates.

Chapter 13

Decisions

“Shit,”
Zoe said as she got out holding her head.

Max
wasn’t much happier than her. As he helped Rebecca out of the car, he thought
about how he wanted to wring Liam’s neck. They were probably going to freeze to
death. No one would blame him if he killed Liam.

“What
the hell were you thinking back there?” Max yelled at him.

“What
does it matter? We’re fine,” Liam said.

“Does
this look fine to you? We have two choices now. We can walk back to the town
and either be killed by the army or the people we deserted, or we can wander
down the road and slowly freeze to death. No matter what we do, we’re dead, and
it’s all thanks to you.”

“So
what? We were going to die anyway.”

At
that moment, Zoe slapped him. Then she walked to the car and reached inside to
get her gun. Afterward, she handed it to him.

“I
would give anything for my family or even a friend of mine to be alive, and I
know they didn’t want to die. They were brave, and they wouldn’t have checked
out early. You’re a coward, though, and you’re going to end up getting all of
us killed. If you want to die, then quit talking about it, and make it happen.
Put the gun to your head, and pull the trigger,” Zoe said.

“Are
you serious?” Liam asked.

“I
wouldn’t joke about something like this. If you’re going to do it, then go
ahead. No one is stopping you.”

“Liam,
you don’t have
to . . .
” Rebecca said before Zoe cut
her off.

“Just
let him make his choice. It’s only my birthday. I really wanted to see my first
kiss blow his brains out today,” she said sarcastically.

Liam
put the gun to his head and clicked the safety off. Death was within reach, and
it was something he thought would be so easy, but pulling that trigger was the hardest
thing in the world. Even if he wanted to, his body just wouldn’t act. After he
had stood there for a few seconds, Zoe walked over and snatched the gun away
from him.

“If
you don’t really want to die, then shut the hell up about it, and help us find
a way to survive. We’ve all lost people. Sadness and depression aren’t exclusive
to you. Maybe you could actually try getting with the program and helping us
out a little. It might give you some purpose.”

“I’m
. . . I’m sorry,” Liam said.

“Don’t
be sorry. Give us a way not to freeze to death because we’re
not
going back to that town.”

“I
guess we have to walk and hope for the best. There has to be a house somewhere
close.”

“Lead
the way then,” Zoe said and motioned for him to go.

She
lagged a little behind him and Rebecca because she wanted to get her laptop
from the crash. Thankfully, it wasn’t hurt. She didn’t imagine that the subzero
temperatures were going to be good for it, but there was still a chance that
her birthday wasn’t going to be a complete bust. She had her gift, Liam was
actually helping for once, and somehow she just knew this wasn’t the end for
them. They would find a place to stay.

“That
was pretty impressive. How did you know he wouldn’t shoot himself?” Max asked
as she stepped beside him.

“I
didn’t. I killed a boy before we got here because I thought he would be a
threat to us. I know Liam’s a threat, and I would’ve put a bullet in him myself
if I didn’t like him. It’s getting harder to have any feelings for him, by the
way. I’m glad he didn’t shoot himself, though. Maybe now that he knows he can’t
kill himself, he’ll be helpful.”

“I
think he will be. That’s
some
way to
teach a lesson, though. Remind me to never get on your bad side,” Max joked.

“I
wouldn’t ever let
you
kill yourself. Do
you think we’re going to find somewhere to stay?”

“I don’t
know.”

“What
kind of answer is that? Aren’t you supposed to tell the kid that everything’s
going to be okay?”

“I
think you grew up a few days ago when that comet hit. Even if you look like one
to me, you’re definitely not a kid anymore. A few minutes ago proved that. Why
don’t you go talk to him? He learned a lesson, and now he could probably use a
friend.”

“Are
you sure that’s a good idea?”

“I
know it is. Now go ahead. Rebecca and I will hang back a little so you two can
talk privately. I think she’s having a hard time keeping up with him anyway.”

They
caught up with the others, and Max put his hand in Rebecca’s. They slowed their
pace until they were several yards behind them.

“How’s
your leg doing?” Max asked her.

“Terrible.
What I’m more concerned with is
them
. I think Liam’s
going crazy. What Zoe just did wasn’t exactly sane either. I can’t believe she
told him to kill himself.”

“I
know. I’m worried, too. They’re supposed to be kids, but I think Zoe’s becoming
more of an adult than even I feel like. I could’ve never told that kid to kill
himself.”

“Why
did she?”

“He
was a threat. He almost killed us back there. I think she figured that he would
either have a moment of clarity and decide to get on board with what we’re
doing, or he wouldn’t be a problem anymore.”

“I’m
glad it worked. What we should really be concerned with is the fact that we’re
freezing to death out here. Are we going to die, Max, because I think we are.
”

“No.
We’re going to be fine.”

“You
don’t really believe that. You can be straight with me.”

“Okay.
I think we’re probably going to walk and walk without finding a place to stay
until we freeze to death. I hope we don’t, but I don’t remember seeing any
houses for miles. Do you?”

“I
don’t. This isn’t how I pictured it ending. I can barely walk, I’m freezing to
death, and a fourteen-year-old boy is the reason I’m going to die. I figured
maybe a bullet or a storm would get me, but not this.”

“I
can help with one of those,” he said and picked her up.

As
he held her in his arms, she asked him a difficult question.

“We’ve
only known each other for a little while, and we probably never would’ve gotten
close if it wasn’t for all of this, but what do you think would have happened
if we had met under different circumstances?”

“What
do you mean?”

“Like
before Ira hit.”

“You
probably would’ve thought I was an evil murderer and never given me the time of
day. Then again, the only way you could’ve met me was if you were in prison,
too, so maybe you wouldn’t be able to judge,” Max joked to try to get out of
answering the question.

“I’m
being serious. If I met you outside of prison and I could understand why you
killed your wife, would we have been interested in each other at all? It’s not
like we’re that close now, but under different circumstances, could you have
loved someone like me?”

Max
knew what she was doing. Rebecca had never been in a meaningful relationship,
and she wanted to know that someone could have loved her if things had gone a
little differently. She had to know that, if she was about to die.

“Let’s
see. You’re beautiful, intelligent, and I do like talking to you. I know I would’ve
liked you. I might even have loved you. I don’t know how you would’ve felt
about me, but I think a lot of good things could have been possible. Maybe they
still are. You never know,” he said and set her down. Then he kissed her.

It
had been what she wanted to hear, and not all of it was a lie. Max didn’t think
there was a possibility of them living through the night and loving each other,
but he did know that he could have loved Rebecca. As far as he was concerned,
just about any man should have been able to.

Up
ahead, Zoe and Liam had been walking in silence. Something needed to be said,
but neither of them knew what to do. Liam had caused them so much trouble, and
he was embarrassed. Zoe, on the other hand, had told him to kill himself and
even given him the gun to do it with. How do you have a conversation with
someone after you do that?

“I’m
sorry,” Liam said.

“Me,
too,” Zoe said.

“You
have
nothing
to be sorry about. This
is my fault. I’ve made this all about me, as if everyone else doesn’t have
enough problems. It won’t happen again. Thank you for making me
see
that I don’t really want to die, even if you had to do
it the hard way.”

“No
problem. If I had known putting a gun to your head would solve everything, I
would’ve done it yesterday,” she joked.

“So
this is your birthday. You told me it was today when we first met, but I forgot
with everything that’s happened. I’m sorry.”

“It’s
fine.
That’s
understandable. Trying
to kill us in the car was the crazy part.”

“All
right, I get it. Let me ask you something, though. Did I really give you your
first kiss?”

“Yeah,
it was my first kiss. I’m really glad you didn’t kill yourself. How does a
person get over telling their first kiss to kill themselves and then them
actually doing it?”

“You
won’t ever have to worry about that again. I promise. Hopefully there will be a
second kiss, too.”

“I
don’t see any other options for kisses around here, so I’m sure there will be
one,” Zoe said before seeing something interesting in the distance.

She
pointed to the woods. In the corner of the trees there was a house. A dirt
driveway led to it, and a light could clearly be seen shining from inside.

“Are
we actually going to live through this?” Liam asked.

“I
think so. Come on, guys. We found a place to stay,” Zoe called back to Max and
Rebecca.

They
made their way to the house and knocked. They could hear people talking inside,
but no one came to the door.

“Please,
help us. We’re freezing to death out here,” Max called out.

Still,
no one came to the door. He tried opening it, but it was locked. Everyone
called out again and again, but it did no good. Just when he was about to kick
the door in, he heard a man’s voice.

“Go
away. We can’t help you,” a man said from inside.

“We’re
going to die if you don’t,” Rebecca said.

“That’s
not my problem. If you don’t leave, we’ll shoot you,” he said and stepped away
from the door.

Max
knew what had to be done. He clutched his gun and gave the others some
instructions.

“I’m
going around back to break in. You three need to stay here. If anyone steps out
that door
who
isn’t me, don’t hesitate to shoot them.
Do you understand?”

“You’re
not going by yourself,” Rebecca said.

“I
agree,” Zoe said.

“You
can’t even walk well, Rebecca, so you can’t come with me. Zoe, I don’t want to
endanger you either.”

“What
about me?” Liam asked.

“I
need you to stay here in case Zoe and Rebecca need some help. There’s a chance
they’ll try to flee out the front once I’m inside. If they do, they could be a
threat. You’re the one I’m trusting to pull the trigger when that door opens.”

“Why
would you trust me after everything I’ve done tonight?”

“Call
it a leap of faith. If you don’t get it done, I know Zoe and Rebecca will, but
it’s time for you to earn your keep. I know you can,” Max said and walked
around back.

Once
he found the back door, he didn’t hesitate to kick it in. He ran inside and
into the living room where he saw two teenagers sitting by a gas heater. The
boy pulled a pistol. Max acted on instinct and pulled the trigger. The bullet
ripped through the kid’s skull. Before he could even process what had happened,
the girl dove for the boy’s gun. Max scowled. He knew what had to be done, but
he hated doing it. At the last second, he pulled the trigger, and a bullet
ripped through her chest. As she gasped for air, he put one more bullet through
her head. There was so much blood, and these kids didn’t look like they were
that much older than Zoe and Liam. What had they been to each other? Had Max
just killed a brother and sister, or maybe they were in a relationship.
Regardless, he had just taken two people’s lives
who
had banded together to try to survive the end of the world. Even if Max had no
choice, he hated himself for it.

Some things needed to be done before he could
let the others in. He grabbed the bodies and dragged them outside. Then he
walked to the front and unlocked the door.

“It’s just me, so don’t shoot,” Max said
as he opened it.

“Thank God you’re all right,” Zoe said
and hugged him.

“We heard shots. What happened?” Rebecca
asked as they came inside.

“They were armed. I had to deal with
them. There’s heat here, though, so we’re going to be safe for now. That’s the
only thing that matters,” he said and led them to the heater.