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She watched as Derek readied his weapon, counted his ammo, and studied his pack near the left exit. His intention to leave was still very apparent. Luke, John, and Sarah would follow him; they had been trained to do so, but Krieger, not so much. She could see by his stiff stance, the tight set of his jaw, and his lack of pack that he had no design of moving from this tunnel.
Did Derek appoint Krieger to stay with her? It was obvious they didn’t get along, and Derek had known the other members of the crew a lot longer. He would pick them over Krieger to fight next to in a heartbeat.
She lifted herself into an upright position and felt a stab in her shoulder. Her gasp caught the attention of all in the tunnel.
Krieger turned. “You’re awake.”
Her hand went to her shoulder. Gauze had been applied over the wound, but even now, it was soaked in blood. She needed stitches or worse . . .
She nodded, then muttered, “I need to speak to Derek. Alone.”
Krieger’s brow furrowed. He didn’t like it, but that was tough shit. With her out of commission, Derek was in command.
He stood as he glanced in Derek’s direction. Sarah and John moved to wait outside the tunnel with weapons in hand as Derek smiled at Krieger, then crouched by Eva’s side.
She waited to speak until Krieger had exited. “You know where the Skyline Sanctuary outpost is, correct?”
He nodded.
She reached into her bag with her good arm and removed the letter her father had given her and then rested her head up against the cool, slimy concrete. “I’ll give you a week. Krieger and I will stay here and wait for your return. I should be able to travel by then. If, for some reason, you don’t return in a week’s time, Krieger and I will head for Everwood and send a search team for you. Keep tabs on weather patterns you see, and we will do the same.”
“Understood, but we shouldn’t have any trouble. I-I’m sorry, Eva.”
She shifted her weight, but no position would be comfortable, not with a hard slab of concrete under her backside. “Don’t be. I’d be doing the same in your shoes. Protect them.”
He reached for her hand, but she jerked away. He grimaced and said, “You going to be okay with him? He doesn’t—”
“I’ll be fine. The bullet went straight through. This is a safe-ish spot. Just get done what we set out to do so we can go home.”
Derek straightened and started to turn but stopped halfway. “Just watch him, okay? Sleep with your gun if you have—”
She shook her head. “That’s not necessary. He’s a good guy.”
His fists clenched at his sides. “How do you know that? He’s an outsider, Eva, you don’t know him. Remember that.”
Why was he so angry and concerned? She could take care of herself. Had she not proven that time and time again?
“I’ve spent enough time with him to know he’s not a threat to us.”
His eyes darkened as he took a step toward her. “You trust him, then?”
“Yes!” The word flew from her mouth, but did she really? And why was her temper rising at Derek’s suspicion of Krieger?
“Fine. See you in a week.” He turned from her and walked to the round opening at the end of the tunnel.
Words were exchanged outside, but she couldn’t hear them. Derek walked past the open hole with John, Luke, and Sarah in tow.
The fire still burned, and she watched the flames as she waited for Krieger to come back in. She could trust him... couldn’t she?
If he was a threat to them at all, they’d have known it by now, right? He had ample opportunity to attack them, yet he hadn’t.
He seemed interested in their lifestyle and had made an effort at fitting in. Sure, she didn’t know where he came from or his past history, but neither did he. Right now, he was working off instinct, which seemed to be genuine and true.
As he walked back in, the smell of sunlight came with him, but he wouldn’t meet her eyes as he settled across from her and searched his pack.
Had he overheard the conversation she had with Derek, or did he say something to Krieger to upset him?
She closed her eyes. Why did she even care? She had bigger things to worry about. Getting well and getting the hell out of here was at the top of that list.
