“In the city?”
“No. On the mountain.”
He shrugged. “Never counted, but there’s a lot. Women, children, fighters. If that’s where you’re headed, you’ll never make it. You’ll be picked off before you get close.”
I glanced at Fawke. Was it possible a large group of people could thrive outside of Soriah? Was that the threat to our president? I motioned for Fawke to join me off to the side.
“What does President Cane expect us to do against an entire community?”
“Maybe we’re only to locate them. Confirm they exist.”
“Then what?” I frowned. “Continue the wasteful job of fighting Malignants? That’s a battle we’ll win. We’ll never rid the world of those things.” It didn’t make sense. “What if we’re disposable after finding this group of survivors?”
A stricken look crossed his face. “I hadn’t thought of that.”
“So, it’s a possibility?”
“With Soriah, anything is possible.”
I glanced at the rest of my group. All people unlucky enough to be sent here. Until we’d started seeing other people, I really did think our job was to fight Malignants until the end of our time here. Now, I wasn’t so sure. Neither was I in a hurry to reach the mountain anymore.
I stepped away from the others and stared at the mountain rising in the distance. Trees dotted the landscape. Not as thick as I’d seen in some pictures, but some variant had struggled and survived. What other resources were there?
Was my life back in Soriah, on the mountain, or would I die in this city? Forbidden tears blurred my vision as confusion and fear clouded my mind. I swiped the back of my hand across my face and turned back to the prisoner.
“Where’s you camp?”
“I can’t tell you that. You’ll attack.”
“What are you doing in the city?”
“Looking for supplies.”
“After all these years?” I frowned.
He shrugged. “The scavengers for that city you’re from finds things.”
“What do you need with luxuries?”
“We can use them to trade when Soriah comes.”
I stared down at him. His community knew President Cane was searching for them. Would the president eradicate them all? Something about this man’s people frightened those on the hill. I needed to find out what that fear was. It could be the leverage we needed in order not to be expendable.
“Everyone get some rest. We move out at dark.” As usual, I took first watch, not caring who joined me. Of course, it was Fawke since he refused to relinquish his role as my protector. “Who’s going to watch over me when you’re gone?” I tilted my head.
“I’m sure Sharon will appoint someone else.”
“What makes me so special?”
“Every group of people needs a leader.” He gave a crooked smile. “Otherwise, chaos reigns.”
I snorted. “I could have been the world’s worst choice for a leader.”
“We got lucky.”
We laughed and sat on some cement blocks, watching for signs of Malignants or humans. “What do we do with Rob?” I asked. “With a thriving community free from Soriah’s eye, I doubt he’ll want to join us.”
“He won’t be chipped, most likely.”
I glanced at my right forearm. What would happen if I were to cut the chip out? Would Sharon think me dead? Did I want that? Without it, no supplies would be dropped. I doubted I’d survive the city without Soriah’s help. I sighed and lowered my arm.
“What Rob has sounds enticing, doesn’t it?”
I nodded. “I’ve never questioned the way the president ran things until now. It’s the way it’s been for a hundred years. Now, I question everything.”
“That’s because you have a good head on your shoulders.” He put his arm around me, pulling me close.
Strange how right the gesture felt. His presence made me feel safe like nothing else could. I relaxed and leaned my head against him, giving into the pleasure of his touch for a moment.
“Hey, boss.” Jolt joined us. “Rob is gone.”
I bolted to my feet. “How is that possible? Was no one watching him?”
“Lara was supposed to be. She left him alone to go fix dinner. He rubbed his bindings against the wagon wheel.” He held up the tattered remnants of a rope.
“Someone should have relieved Lara.” I gritted my teeth and glanced at the wagon.
Rob could only have ducked into the nearest building. He wouldn’t still be there. Now, we might not ever find his camp.
“What’s the plan now?” Ezra crossed his arms. “We still heading to the mountain?”
“What choice do we have? If we don’t do what we’re told, there’ll be no more supplies.” I slumped against the wagon.
“What you’re saying is that we keep on with this ridiculous quest.” Gage smirked. “Endlessly walking and fighting until Rob’s people, or the Malignants, kill us off.”
“We’ll come up with a plan.” Fawke’s tone left no room for argument. “For now, we keep moving forward.”
Gage’s face darkened. Scowling, she marched to the sleeping wagon and climbed into the tent.
“I’m with her,” Dante said. “This aimless wandering is driving me nuts.”
“It wasn’t aimless until now,” I said.
“Our mission was to find out if there were survivors. We’ve done that.” His brow furrowed. “Why not inform Sharon? Maybe they’ll let us all go home.”
“Idiot.” Ezra bopped him in the back of the head. “Do you really think they will? Not a chance. When we’re no longer needed, Soriah will execute us all. I say we keep our mouth shut for now.”
“I agree.” The less those on the hill know, the better it is for us.
17
One of the wagon wheels started shaking halfway through the night. I found a cleared path between two buildings and told the others we’d camp there long enough to fix the wheel. I stepped through first, before Fawke could
