The Breaking, page 16
part #2 of The Reckoning of Anecor Series
When can we meet? Where? I have something I need to tell you, too.
I can be free in an hour. Can you meet me at the ranch? Where Remy parks the truck.
Sure. See you in an hour.
See you then.
Bryn gathered up the notebooks. She transferred her own notes from her computer to a data storage device. She shoved everything in her pack and left her house without being noticed by the chattering group of siblings sitting in the living room. They were too engrossed in their conversation to see her slip by. Good thing, since it would probably take her nearly an hour to reach the ranch.
CHAPTER 24
C
A 5349 opened his eyes. He was lying on a platform made from metal. He still wore the same uniform he had had on the day before. And the day before that. And the day before that. Though CA 5349 was completely unaware of this fact. His eyes opened to a view of the gray planks above him that made up the ceiling of the temporary barracks where he and the 299 others just like him stayed. The cold metal of the platform caused the physiological response of goosebumps on his skin, but CA 5349 did not feel the cold, just as he had not felt the warmth of the sun on previous days. The unit sat up in unison. CA 5349 was facing the CA Individual just in front of him. A flicker of recognition flashed in his eyes. And then it was gone
CHAPTER 25
D
avi held Lucash firmly while walking him towards the group. Lucash knew better than to fight against Davi; 7 against 1 were not good odds. Davi was not rough with Lucash. Not like the guard. But still Lucash stumbled over the uneven surface, as Davi’s hold kept him just a little off balance. The group stood staring at him, bodies tense, eyes alert to any move he might make.
“Who are you?” asked the one who had been driving the truck.
“I could ask you the same.”
“You could, but you won’t get an answer. You, on the other hand, might not like it if you don’t provide us with an answer.”
“What are you doing out here?” asked Rebecca, more gently than Remy. “By yourself,” she added. They were looking for two people, not one, and two people who had been injected with the virus. This was one guy, and he looked perfectly healthy.
“Who says I’m alone? Maybe I’m with the Guard.” Lucash knew that was a stupid response as soon as the words left his mouth. Of course, he wasn’t the Guard. A member of the Guard would be wearing a uniform.
Cassidi laughed, “Yeah, right. If you aren’t alone, your…uh…friends…must not care too much what happens to you.”
“I didn’t say they were right here with me, now did I?” Lucash replied, buying a little time.
“Well, then, I’d say they aren’t doing you much good, now, are they?” Cassidi shot back.
“We all split up,” Lucash said.
“Why would you do that?” Rebecca asked.
“That still doesn’t tell us what you’re doing out here,” Remy said at the same time.
“We’re lookin’ for someone. Two people, actually. Told you I’m with the Guard,” Lucash added, trying to sound confident.
The others all looked at one another. Could he be telling the truth? Was it possible he was with the Guard?
Remy opened his mouth to say something, just as a vehicle came into view on the road, heading in the direction of BRO. One look at Lucash’s face told the others what they needed to know as they all scurried for cover, Davi keeping a tight hold on Lucash. There was no need. Lucash was just as eager as the others to be behind the boulders.
They all heard the vehicle come to a stop on the road. Doors opened.
“They saw us! I think they saw us. What do we do?” asked Mel.
“We have to make a run for it. Now.” Selby said. “We gotta head right up this mountain and hope they can’t climb as fast as us.”
“He’s right. Stay low. Go up as quickly as possible,” Remy added.
“And spread out. It’s what my folks taught me. If someone’s after you, ya gotta spread out. Makes it harder for them to catch everyone.”
“We have to go. NOW!” Remy said in a low and urgent voice. “I’m sticking with you, so don’t get any ideas,” he said to Lucash, pulling him from Davi’s grasp and giving him a nudge in the direction he expected Lucash to go.
Lucash’s response was to take off through the boulders, looking back once to be sure Remy was with him, though it was unnecessary since Remy was right on his heels. The only thoughts running through Lucash’s mind right then were that these guys were all as afraid of the Guard as he was and sticking with them was his best chance in leading the Guard away from Juniper. Rather than feeling threatened by Remy’s presence at his back, he felt a little reassured. Just a little.
Rebecca dashed low through the boulders, unaware of any more than getting away from the men now heading in their direction. They would be across the distance between the road and the boulder field in no time. She was not about to get caught. Not now. Weaving her way at an angle she hoped was out of their direct line of site, she glanced behind her to see if she could see them. Instead, she saw Daniel rounding the boulder just behind her.
“Keep moving,” he whispered. “We’ll stick together. You lead the way.”
Rebecca gave a nod as she turned around and started moving again. The boulders would provide cover until partway up the slope. From there, they’d be in the trees for at least a little while, before trees gave way to rocky terrain once again.
Selby waited for the others to disperse. He had a single taser on him. He’d brought it just in case. His parents had insisted. No doubt the four men heading in their direction were armed with something, but at least with the taser, Selby had some chance of holding them off if they got too close to the group. Selby had no intention of waiting around for them to reach him, but he did want to be sure everyone else was on their way and that he was bringing up the rear.
Cassidi turned to make her run for it, hoping she would see Rebecca, but she was already out of sight. She did see Selby, but when she started heading in his direction, he motioned her on, showing her his taser as he did so. Cassidi understood that he meant to stay behind until he knew the others were safe. She shook her head no with a scowl of disapproval and headed towards him anyway. If he was staying behind, so was she.
“Cass, you have to go. Run.”
“No. I’m sticking with you.”
“You’re wastin’ time, man. I’m comin’ right behind you, but you gotta go. Can’t keep an eye on you and these guys. Now go. They’re gonna be here any minute now.”
“Selby, I’m not going. You need me here. You don’t have a phone.” Cassidi saw the realization hit him and smiled triumphantly.
“Seriously? You’re smilin’ right now?”
“Yep.”
Selby rolled his eyes. “Stay quiet and stay behind me. Everyone else is gone. I’m gonna peak around the boulder one last time to see where they are, then we’re gonna start making our way slowly up the hill.”
Mel headed straight for the trees running up the column of boulders, wanting the cover of the forest, even if it meant that she wouldn’t climb upwards as quickly. She felt safer there, like there were more places to hide. Davi followed her.
๛ ๛ ๛
Once Rebecca started moving again through the boulders, she didn’t look back to see if Daniel was still with her. She knew he was. She was afraid to stop, afraid that if she slowed down at all, they’d lose the distance between them and the men now hunting them down. The Guard would have no idea who they were, but a group of people out in the Borderlands would be sufficient cause for pursuit, regardless of the orders they’d been given. They had to get clear of the danger, and then find out who it was they had picked up along the way.
The slope was growing steeper, but the boulders provided the leverage needed to climb quickly. They were still large enough that they could weave their way in between them and remain hidden as long as they kept low. Now, however, the danger came in the possibility of loose boulders that could be sent crashing down from the weight of a person.
Rebecca looked up above her at the distance she still had to cover. The image of the tremendous rock fall that had to have occurred to create this boulder field flashed through her mind. Her heart skipped a beat. Or two. And she felt her stomach drop as heavily as one of these giant rocks would if she sent it, and herself, sliding even further down the mountain.
Rebecca stopped moving.
“You okay?” asked Daniel, his hand on her back to steady her.
“Yeah. I’m good.” Rebecca shook her head to clear it and started moving. She determined she would not look up again.
They reached the trees with no indication that anyone was right behind them. With 8 of them out there, they had a better chance of confusing the Guard and eluding them, but any one of them could end up with the Guard at their heels, too. She darted into the trees and onto the backside of a large oak. Rebecca stopped and leaned back against the tree, catching her breath.
“Let’s just stop a sec. See if we can hear anything,” Rebecca said.
“And catch our breath,” Daniel added, gasping for air.
“Right.”
Rebecca looked around the tree to see if she could catch sight of any movement below.
Nothing.
Except the sound of some small rocks being sent downhill.
“How far away do you think that was?” Rebecca asked.
“Not far enough, if it’s the Guard. Too far, if it’s one of us,” Daniel replied.
“Nice answer.”
“Thanks.”
“Any time. Ready to go again?”
“Yeah. I don’t think we should stop for long. I don’t know how long these guys will chase us, but I bet they won’t be stopping any time soon,” said Rebecca.
“I bet you’re right. Which way?”
Rebecca looked at the terrain and the trees. The terrain was rugged, and the trees were growing sparse up here. It wouldn’t take much to get through them. She wanted their protection for as long as possible. She pointed a path up through the trees.
“Let’s go that way. Angle away from the rocks.”
“Good plan. After you.”
Rebecca led the way, moving quickly but quietly. They’d been moving for a few minutes when the sound of a breaking branch and a flash of movement caught their attention. Daniel grabbed her arm to stop her, though it was unnecessary. They looked in the direction of the sound and the movement. In between the trees, a man in a guard uniform was moving in their direction. He was downslope a good distance, but moving fast, and with a purpose that suggested that even though they could not tell if he was looking at them, they had a feeling he knew they were there.
No words were necessary, Rebecca and Daniel took off at a run, no longer trying to be quiet. Just fast. Branches hit Rebecca in the face, but she paid no attention to the blood running down her forehead. She could not hear the footsteps of the guard downhill from them, but she knew that he would have picked up his pace as well. She hoped that he was not used to climbing on this terrain.
Daniel was right on her heels, making sure that there was no chance they’d be separated. She heard him slip on a loose pile of leaves and turned back to make sure he was alright. He was already up and running again, like nothing happened.
“I’m okay,” he said, “Just keep moving. Don’t worry about me, I’ll keep up.”
She paused for the briefest moment to see if she could catch sight of the guard. Yep. He was still there and seeming to have little trouble climbing this hill.
“He’s closing in,” she said as she turned and started running.
“I know. We can’t slow down.”
Rebecca’s lungs were burning with the effort and the thin air, and her muscles were aching, but she picked up her pace. They scrambled over roots and rocks until the trees dwindled to granite and tundra. Sticking to the rocks as much as possible, the two of them climbed higher. The guard was still behind them. They could now hear his movements as he sent loose rocks tumbling down the mountain and slipped over the surface of moss and lichen. Still they did not slow or turn around.
Pure adrenaline fueled Rebecca’s movements, just as it had on her first climb up the mountain at the edge of Daniel’s family’s ranch so many months ago. A lifetime ago. There was no room in her thoughts to notice the heights she was climbing, no chance to look either down or up. Just moving on instinct and fear with no choice but to trust her footing.
Until they reached the top.
Suddenly, the world opened up in front of her eyes. The great expanse laid out in every direction, with no place to avert her eyes from the abyss just a few feet in front of her. She pulled up short and swayed from the immediate wave of dizziness that engulfed her head, causing the world two swirl and tilt. Daniel was right there. He caught her in his arms as her knees began to buckle underneath her.
“Becs, look at me. Look right at me. Nowhere else,” he panted out the words as he turned her towards him. “You can do this. We have to keep moving.”
“I…I don’t know if I can. Everything is spinning. You go. I’ll…I’ll hide…somewhere…” She replied, not sure where she could hide, and not even wanting to look away from Daniel to find a spot.
“No. No way. We’re in this together. I won’t let anything happen to you. I know you can do this. I’ll go in front; you hold onto me…keep your eyes on the back of my head. Do not look away. Okay?”
Rebecca didn’t respond, feeling frozen to the spot where she now stood, unsure if her feet would move, no matter how much she wanted them to.
“Rebecca. Listen to me. We. Have. To. Move. You don’t have any other choice now. Jonathan is counting on you. So am I. So is everyone in this town. You are the strongest and bravest person I know.” He leaned in just then and gently placed his lips against hers. Briefly. Lightly. When he pulled back, his eyes were locked on hers so that she knew how he felt. He believed everything he had just said.
The guard could be heard again below, getting ever closer, though not as quickly as he had in the trees. Apparently, his skill in climbing through forests did not translate to this new terrain. It had bought them a little bit of much needed time, but that time was now running out.
“Now,” Daniel said, without looking away. Rebecca nodded her head. Just barely. But when Daniel turned, she grabbed his pack and found her feet moving forward, matching his every step.
๛ ๛ ๛
Selby and Cassidi had watched as the four men heading in their direction split off in four different directions. They were now helpless in being able to protect the gang. Without knowing which direction everyone went, there was no way of being able to determine where they would be most useful.
“What should we do?” asked Cassidi. “Call your parents? Would they be able to help?”
“No. Nothin’ they could do now. It’d take ’em forever to get here, first of all. An’ we have no way of knowin’ where anyone will end up. Nope. Best thing we can do is get movin’ ourselves.”
“Guess so. Okay.”
“You lead the way…I’ll be right behind. You know, just in case someone sneaks up behind us. I got your back.”
“Haha.”
“Seriously. Least there’s someone I can make sure doesn’t get hurt in all this.”
“Well. Thanks, then,” Cassidi said, taken aback a little at Selby’s protectiveness. This wasn’t bravado. He was really serious about it. And she believed he would protect her, if the need arose. This wasn’t a drill. This was the real thing. And Selby was willing to do what no one else she knew would do for her. Besides Becs, of course. Before now, Rebecca had been the only person in her world she thought she could count on. Really count on. She felt suddenly lighter than she had felt for a long time. Selby. Huh. Who’d have thought?
Cassidi smiled, in spite of their current predicament, and the very real danger they were in.
“Uh. Cass? What’s the grin about?”
Cassidi’s face grew serious as she erased the smile, self-conscious now. Her face grew a little warm, so she turned from him quickly to avoid him noticing that too. Geez, Cassidi, what’s gotten into you? You really that desperate for someone to care about you?
Aloud she stuttered, “Um, nothing. Just picturing you trying to defend me against four men. We’d both be dead.”
Maybe not desperate, but still…
“Wouldn’t be all four, but even if it were, I’m better at this than you think,” Selby said, his tone indicated that her comment had hurt.
Cassidi then stopped moving and turned around to look at Selby, who’d almost bumped into her because he’d been watching his step rather than her.
Cassidi, regretting her words, reached a hand out and placed it on his arm, “Sorry, Selby. Just not used to anyone sticking up for me beside Becs. Thanks. And I know you’re good. I’ve seen you in training, remember?”
Selby’s face transformed. He grew serious. Stood a little taller. Ready to follow through on his promise. Cassidi shot him a wide, disarming grin, before turning back up the mountain and heading through the boulder field, veering to the right at an angle that would keep them in the boulders for as long as possible.
They’d reached the trees and then the top without seeing any trace of any of the men hunting all of them down. They stopped then, taking a look around for signs of any of the others or of the men. Cassidi couldn’t help but feel exhilarated by the view. She could see forever up here! Mountains to the north, south, and west. To the east, she could see to where the land flattened out into the plains. This was a view she’d never seen before. She had had no idea, actually, exactly what lay east of Montrose. They were surrounded by mountains in their little valley. Even hiking at the outskirts of the recreational areas did not afford her these views. None of the trails went up high enough to see. But here? Here they were obviously on the edge of it all, and it made Cassidi feel a freedom she didn’t know she could feel.
“Wish I could fly,” she said, without realizing she’d actually spoken the words aloud.
