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The man’s grin widens. “I see. So are you also with the other two men hiding almost out of sight with their weapons drawn? One behind the tree to my left, and the other beside the building to my right.”
I’ve never heard a man growl before, but it’s the only way I can describe the sound that comes out of Griffin. Even his body vibrates.
“Relax, man, we mean no harm. I have no interest in any of you. Your men can come out now. You clearly have us outnumbered.”
Max is the first to reach us, swinging his morning star around with his maniacal grin. William has his gun lowered by his thigh, but I know he can take them both out in a blink if needed. These two strangers don’t scare me because I’m surrounded by the three most fearsome men I know. If anything, I feel sorry for the two newcomers. I relax against Griffin and he squeezes my hip in response.
“What type of supplies are up there at the school?” I ask. If we’re going into a building full of possibly dangerous people, I need to make sure it’s worth it first. Find out how much this guy knows. I learned my lesson at the last dreg hideout about rushing into these things.
The man with the gum tilts his head to the side. “Is there something specific you’re looking for?”
“Insulin.”
“Yeah, I believe there might be some newly acquired insulin. I haven’t laid eyes on it myself, only heard about it, but we’ll have to ask the guy who brought it in. He’s protective of his things, but it’s worth a shot.”
Hope rises within me. Finally, the answer I’ve been looking for. The insulin for Zoey is practically within my grasp. “Take me there.”
Griffin growls out his words. “We’ll all go.”
The man grins. “Of course. And maybe you four could keep an eye out for our missing buddies along the way. Remember, three assholes. Hard to miss.”
“Three assholes. Got it.” I keep my face passive and swallow hard. They seem like decent enough guys. I don’t enjoy lying to them in order to get something out of them, but I don’t have much of a choice. Having humanity at the end of the world is a real inconvenience. “We’ll help where we can.”
It doesn’t take long to pack up our things, considering that we really didn’t have that much. Most of our belongings are still in the car…at least, I think they are. As long as no one else came along and scavenged it. At that thought, I reach up and grasp the compass that’s resting beneath my shirt, grateful that William got it back for me. I can’t imagine if I would have lost it forever. It’s my last link to my family.
“Should we put out the fires? Rotters might come in if we do,” William asks.
Griffin makes sure the two men are out of earshot before answering. “We’ll be back. They’re already low. They might burn out while we’re gone, anyway. The school is only a few miles’ walk.”
“We’re really going to trust these guys?” Max asks, watching the two men in question like a hawk.
“Of course not,” Griffin says. “But they can lead us to what we need and get us inside without a fight. We’ll figure out the rest along the way, but right now, they’re our best bet. Doesn’t mean we should let down our guard.”
William checks to make sure the magazine is full before loading it back into his gun. “Absolutely not.”
“Please don’t kill them until we at least get inside,” I plead.
Max kisses my cheek and then walks away without a word.
“Max?”
He checks on his myriad of weapons.
“Damnit Max, promise me.”
He turns around with a grin. “Nah.”
“Hey, isn’t that Garret’s boot?” The man who isn’t chewing gum walks over to a dark object on the ground and picks it up. “Yeah, that’s the burn mark on the toe from when you pushed him into the fire.”
Max glances at me before gripping his morning star and facing the two men. “Yeah, that’s not a promise I can make, pet. Ever.”
The man chewing the gum turns an angry look on us. “Thought you only saw our friends on the way out.”
“We did. On their way out of life, that is. Guess one of them lost a shoe when I was dragging their bodies out to deal with them.”
“Max,” I say through gritted teeth, but it’s too late. He’s made it so much worse.
The man pulls out a gun and Griffin pushes me back behind him.
