Joe stared at the numbers on the houses to either side. 19055. 19059. Damn it. In between sat the burned-out shell, charred and broken, that had held his hope.
“Joe, I don’t think you should...”
Devin’s words didn’t matter. Joe was already on the move. He reached the melted door and shouldered it open. He had to check. The upper floor had burned away, leaving the lower level unprotected from the elements. Joe kicked and shifted the debris. No bones. Thank God. He dropped to his knees next to the skeleton of the stairs and prayed. A hand brushed his hair, and he didn’t need to look up to know it was Devin.
Joe appreciated the touch, but he didn’t acknowledge it. He made the sign of the cross, then kept his head down and scanned the floor. A few scraps of wood that might have been furniture jutted from the mess. On top of the remnants of the fire, shards of glass littered the floor. The fire had spared the kitchen, where Marcus and Peter moved, checking the cabinets.
“Flix?” Peter’s call was so quiet, barely loud enough to be heard.
Feet shuffled behind Joe, then the hand left his hair. He glanced up to see Devin and Flix whispering to each other. Devin nodded at something and plucked a sheet of paper from Flix’s hand. He squatted next to Joe and handed him the paper.
“Peter found this.”
A note was handwritten over a faded, tattered page from Aguirre’s Shock Constant. Joe had loved the book. So had Lil, when he’d read it to her.
J,
Safe. Find us in Purcell, Oklahoma.
Te amo,
L
Joe’s eyes flooded. Thank God they were safe.
“Is this meant for you?” Devin’s eyes were so blue, like lightning around the edges, and they shone with concern. Joe loved him so much.
He leaned forward and kissed Devin, dug his knees into the blackened mess below him and cupped the back of Devin’s head so he could push hard. He let go and wiped his eyes. “They’re alive and so are we. God, Devin, I swear I’ll always keep you safe.”
Devin chuckled and nodded. “I don’t know what brought that on, but okay, as long as it goes both ways.” He motioned toward the paper. “This L, he’s not some old boyfriend I need to worry about, is he?”
“She. And no. She’s a friend.” Joe stood and brushed the soot from his knees. “And she’s expecting me. Flix, how far away is Purcell, Oklahoma?”
FIVE
Dallas sucked.
That was an objective fact, not Devin’s opinion. No one would like the place. First of all, the highway system twisted and turned and wrapped around itself so much that even Flix couldn’t keep it straight. Second, half the highways they could figure out had fallen in at overpasses. Third, the place was enormous, with bigger buildings than Devin had ever imagined, skyscrapers so tall they obscured the moon and stars. Last and worst, more people than Devin had ever seen crawled out of every crevice and dark alley.
Devin threw out a hand and caught Marcus by the chest. “This one’s fallen in, too.” Five feet in front of them in the dark, the highway fell away, and a drop twice as tall as a man loomed. “Jesus. What’d they build these roads out of?”
“It’s not what they were built out of,” Joe said. “It’s how long ago and how much they’ve had to endure.” He stood to Devin’s right and flicked on a small light as he and Flix examined the map. He pointed at the paper. “What if we tried this way?”
Flix shook his head. “This is taking us so far out of the way. Why can’t we —”
“We’re going to Purcell, Flix.” Joe put the light between his teeth and spread the map on the ground. “Quit trying to get me to change my mind.”
Flix rolled his eyes, easy for Devin to see with the Nightsight on his vision shields, and crouched next to Joe. So close together, with matching expressions of frustration on their faces, Flix and Joe almost looked like brothers, too. Their curly black hair and slight frames, their smart eyes. Joe’s lips were fuller, Flix’s skin darker. Flix’s rounded face still belonged to a boy while Joe was all sharp angles. Flix was cute. Joe was gorgeous. But close enough. All four of Devin’s companions could be family, they looked so much alike. A pang of longing hit. Tanner had shared Devin’s hair and eyes. He’d been a bit leaner, but if anyone had ever seen them, it would have been obvious they were brothers.
Flix swatted at the map. “But we could save time if we didn’t veer west.”
Devin had never heard Flix disagree with Joe before. A big part of him agreed. Heading out of their way to find some mystery friend who may or may not be alive sounded like a colossally stupid idea, especially when they were already so short of food that Joe and Devin had eaten little more than crumbs today. But Devin didn’t know how to read a map, and he’d put his faith in Joe a long time ago.
“You don’t know that.” Joe moved Flix’s hand out of the way. “If you don’t like it, you can go the other way. I’m going to Purcell.”
“Damn.” Devin hadn’t meant to say it out loud, but well, damn.
Joe sighed. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean that. Look, making sure my friends are okay is important to me.” He glanced at Devin, Marcus, and Peter before returning his attention to Flix. “All of you, I think they could help us. I can’t force you to come with me. It’s your choice. But I’m going, unless Devin —”
Kissing
