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Griffin laughs at that, but he doesn’t say anything I know he’s burning to say.
Leaning in, I kiss the corner of her mouth. Only the corner, though, because any more and we wouldn’t make it into that school and my new hostage would get a show. “That’s fine. I’ll kill everyone for you.”
Before she can respond, I pull her hood back up to shadow her face and walk beside her, following the rest of the group.
“Gregory?” One guard greets my hostage.
Oh, Gregory, that’s right. I remember him saying his name now. That’s a shame. I don’t normally care to know the names of people I’m doing to kill.
“We’re back.” Gregory doesn’t even bother explaining the four strangers with him and the absence of his four friends. Not to mention the one-eyed dog trotting happily by our side that wasn’t with him before. How ignorant are these guards? If Griffin follows through with turning our new town into a colony, these guys will not be guarding it.
“Welcome back.” The second guard pushes open the gate to the school property. Well, this is interesting. We could have killed him earlier and masqueraded as him and no one would have ever known, because these people don’t even recognize anyone who comes and goes. Hindsight and all that. Oh well, next time.
Our small group walks by and I let Emily go in front of me. To keep an eye on her, and not only for the view.
When we enter the building, there’s a small group of people huddled off in a corner. I can’t make any of them out and I can’t hear what they’re saying, but something feels off. Something tells me I should grab Emily and make a run for it. The medicine be damned. The others can find the insulin for her, but we shouldn’t be here.
My heart races and a thin layer of perspiration coats my skin. I don’t understand it.
The feeling hits me like a pair of nun chucks, but I shake it off. Which is odd, because I haven’t felt this level of unease in months. Looking over at Emily, she seems fine. Everyone else seems fine. I don’t know what my reservation is, but she needs this more than I need to run out of here, so I’ll do everything in my power to make sure this goes smoothly. For her.
Debbie might not drink tonight, but I’ll feed her tomorrow. Even if I have to come back here and face this unease alone.
24
EMILY
My nerves are electric. I’m afraid to get my hopes up in case I get let down again, but Gregory said he’s certain there’s insulin here, so I want to trust that he’s telling the truth and not leading us into a trap.
We have no clue what kind of people these are. We don’t know if they’re dangerous dregs, or normal survivors forming a colony. I’ve kept my head down in case they’re the former, but curiosity keeps me wanting to look up.
We stop moving, and I glance up enough to see Gregory turning white when we reach another group of people. My fingers close around the small knife in my pocket. William moves closer to me, his arm brushing against mine.
“Gregory? Didn’t think we’d see you again. You brought visitors?” There’s hesitation in the woman’s voice, but she looks kind. I breathe out a small sigh of relief. This is a sign that they’re not like any dregs we’ve encountered before. That type never has kindness.
“Claire, yes, I came across this group of people. We might have something that they desperately need,” Gregory says.
“Like what?”
“A friend of theirs has diabetes and needs insulin. I remembered someone recently coming in with some, enough to share.”
I tilt my head back and allow the hood to fall down enough to reveal my face with my pleading eyes. “Please,” I say. “Zoey doesn’t have much time left. We’ve done everything to prolong her needing more, but it’s only a temporary patch. We’ve been traveling around, searching everywhere.”
She holds my eye contact for a minute before she gives a small smile and nods. “We have some in the nurse’s station. We can spare a few vials, enough to get through another two weeks. If your friend is still in need later on and you haven’t found any more, bring her here.”
Relief floods through me with such force that I nearly drown in it. William wraps an arm around my waist to keep me from crumpling to the floor in tears. Finally, my search is ending. Zoey will be able alright. A few vials won’t be much, but it’s more than zero. It’ll buy her time, and I will find more. I’ll never stop searching.
“However,” Claire continues, “I’ll need to trade it for something of value.”
“What exactly do you mean by ‘something of value’?” Griffin asks.
“It’s subjective, so whatever is important to you, I’ll accept. Whatever you deem worthy of the trade.”
“Here.” Max unloads weapons that were hidden on him. “Take any of these.”
“We have enough weapons already. I’ll actually give you some of our knives for free. We have so many.”
“But these are important to me,” Max says, his face twisted with confusion.
