Summer Lane - Day One

About time . Bravo hung his tongue out, tired and thirsty. Elle offered him a quick drink of water. Humans move slow .

“Don’t antagonize me, I’m not in the mood.”

I’m just stating a fact. Don’t be so touchy .

Elle ignored Bravo and began her descent down the mountain. Bravo seemed to roll his eyes before following, allowing her to lead the way. Elle reached the bottom of the big hill at nearly the same time as the kids. They hadn’t yet looked behind them. They moved ahead, never stopping, never waiting.

“You know,” Elle commented, jogging. “We came all this way to rescue them and they didn’t even stop to see if the two of us were still alive. They just ran.”

What else did you expect ? Bravo pointed out. They’re just children .

“So am I!”

You were born older, Elle. We both were .

Elle pondered this.

“Still,” she said. “It would have been nice.”

Yes , Bravo agreed. It would have been very nice .

Niceness was for losers and dead people in the apocalypse. Only the tough survived. At least, that was Elle’s humble opinion.

At last, Elle and Bravo caught up with the kids.

“Hey,” Elle called. “Wait!”

Jay turned around. Georgia and Flash whipped their heads backward. Flash stumbled and fell on his face. Elle couldn’t help it what she did next.

She laughed. She laughed long and hard, clutching her stomach.

“You guys are still so green,” she giggled.

“Shortstack!” Georgia cried. “Thank God, you’re alive!”

She rushed toward Elle and threw her arms around her neck. Elle stayed still, unsure what she should do with her arms. So she just stood there, arms at her sides, until Georgia pulled away.

“What happened to your face ?” Georgia gasped.

Elle shrugged.

“We thought you were dead,” Jay said, shaking his head. “What happened back there? We just ran. We figured if you were alive you’d find us.”

They were right about that, at least.

“Oh, I just fell off a cliff,” Elle replied. “No big deal. Right, Bravo?”

“Whoa, you got a dog while we were gone?” Jay exclaimed.

“Hey, he’s not just a dog. His name is Bravo and he’s with us now.” Elle touched Bravo’s head. “He was a bomb dog. He can track, and he can fight.”

“He’s cute,” Georgia commented. “I mean, I’m not a huge dog person, but you know… I could be one, I guess.”

“You guys okay?” Elle asked. She looked at Flash as she said this. The boy was incredibly silent, never opening his mouth to say so much as a single word. “Flash?”

He nodded.

“He doesn’t talk much these days,” Georgia said, almost in a whisper. “Ever since… well, you know.” She paused. “It’s been tough.”

“Sorry.” Elle touched Flash’s cheek with her finger. “It’ll be okay.”

“How did you find us?” Jay asked.

“Followed the bread crumbs,” Elle replied.

He raised an eyebrow.

“Just be glad I found you at all,” she said, glancing behind her. “Come on, let’s keep walking. The Slavers will be looking for you guys for a while.”

“I can’t believe you came back for us,” Georgia said. “I mean, after everything. The argument and all that.”

“Believe it.” Elle looked at her. “So what happened, anyway? I showed up at the Jeep and there were Omega men dead, and you guys were gone. Pix was…” Elle stopped herself. “What’s the story?”

“Not long after you left,” Jay explained, “an Omega patrol from the city rolled in. They came out of nowhere. We were asleep. I didn’t even hear them coming.” He looked embarrassed to admit this. “They had us all at gunpoint. They were the ones who killed Pix — not the Slavers.”

Elle frowned.

“Then what?”

“The militia came,” Georgia picked up. “At least, we thought it was the militia. They killed the troopers. We thought we were saved, but it was a lie. It was the Slavers. They took us in a truck. There were some other people, some kids. We went for a long drive, then they dumped us in the mountains in a barbed-wire cage.” Georgia spread her arms. “It’s kind of simple, actually.”

“Okay, but here’s my question,” Elle said. “What are the Slavers actually using their prisoners for? Hard labor? What?”

“We couldn’t figure it out either,” Jay replied. “At least for the first couple of days. The guards up above on the cliff — the ones with the hoods. They’re mercenaries, hired by the Slavers. The Slavers take their prisoners and hold them before selling them to Omega to do hard labor.”

“Wow, supply and demand,” Elle remarked, disgusted. “Omega is actually purchasing slaves?”

“That’s the conclusion we came to,” Georgia confirmed.

“But if the Slavers and Omega are in this together… why would they kill the troops who shot Pix?” Elle asked.

At the mention of his dead sister’s name, Flash flinched.

“I don’t know,” Jay admitted. “Maybe because Omega was going to kill us, and the Slavers wanted the chance to sell us back to Omega. The Slavers have no rules. They’re organized, but they’re barbaric. Some of the crap we saw in San Jacinto was pretty harsh.”

Elle didn’t doubt it.

“Well, it’s about time we got our butts to Sacramento,” Elle stated. “I’m sick of running around the state, rescuing you guys.” She cracked a dry smile.

“We don’t know that’s what’s in Sacramento for sure,” Jay pointed out.

“It’s our best shot.”

He didn’t argue with that.

They faced the desert. Elle looked at Bravo. She felt a twinge of disappointment… of hurt . She had expected one of them to at least say thank you for braving the desert, for nearly getting killed by the Slavers, for everything she had done to extract them from the confines of imprisonment.

But they had said nothing.

Elle shook herself. This wasn’t about getting glory. This was about doing the right thing. She had done it. It was over now. She could get back to business. Her mind would rest easy — she hadn’t left them to die. She had saved their lives, and she could live with herself now.

Jay looked at Elle for a long moment.

“Elle…?” he said.

He opened his mouth and closed it. Elle walked a little faster.

She didn’t want him to see the bitter disappointment in her face.

The wind swept across the barren desert.

“Are we kidding ourselves?” Jay said. His lips were chapped. Dust stuck to every inch of his body, making him look like a pale ghost. “We can’t make it across this thing. It’s too far. We don’t have any water. We don’t have any food.”

“We’re all going to die,” Georgia replied dramatically. Her curly hair was matted. Her long, tall frame had become bony. The sparkle of her big, green eyes had been dulled. “Might as well find a nice place to lie down and call our grave.”

Flash said nothing. He only stood in one spot, staring at the desert with a baleful expression on his face. The horizon was marred by the dust storm. A blanket of dirt covered the sky, giving everything a brownish hue.

“We’re not going to go grave-shopping,” Elle answered. “Pull yourselves together, will you? Let’s focus on one thing at a time.”

“Like what ?” Jay demanded. He spread his arms wide. “We’re in the middle of nowhere! There’s no food, no water. The Slavers are behind us. The desert is in front of us. We’re screwed.”

There was a wild light in his eyes.

“Fine. Stay here and die,” Elle snapped. “Don’t expect me to come back and bury your bodies.”