Page 140 of Juniper Unraveling

I gather it up into my arms, staring down at it. I’ve disguised myself once before to get inside Calico.

I’ll do it again.

* * *

They say David carried five stones to fight Goliath.

I plan to defeat the giant with three bullets, a prayer, and an offer I’m hoping he won’t refuse.

Papa didn’t intend to hand the antibody over to anyone, for fear of the power it would bestow. I’m hoping that greedy yearning for power is enough save the only person left on this planet that I love.

I pad across the open desert, toward the garage where all of the vehicles are stored.

Glancing back, I catch Hawkeye, pacing with his gun propped at his hip, and I wave back at him, hoping the guy doesn’t shoot me in the back.

He waves back, but crouches to watch me, undoubtedly curious as to what I’m doing. The Legion uniform and the gun sit tucked inside my satchel, and I reach into the bag, pulling out Papa’s journal from inside. I figure I’ve got about ten minutes before the others come pouring out of the cave.

Leaning against the building, I flip open the book, as if to read while the others gather up their belongings for the journey to Ceniza.

Hawkeye resumes his pacing, and the moment his back is to me, I slip inside the building.

Many of the bikes have cleared out, leaving only the few belonging to Ratchet, Hawkeye, and three other bikers I don’t know by name. Three green Calico trucks sit at the end, and I opt for the smaller one closest to the exit—easiest to drive out. Between the two bigger trucks and the bikes, there’s plenty of vehicles left to get everyone safely evacuated.

I fire it up and hammer the gas, tearing out of the garage, and the moment I hit the road, the tires squeal on the hot pavement. Pings hit the undercarriage, and I look over to see Hawkeye aiming his gun, no doubt looking to take out the tires. Two more pings, and I’m out of his shooting range.

I don’t look back as I take off down the road.

A highway that leads straight to hell.

* * *

A half hour passes, without a single sign of them anywhere. The truck teeters on the quarter-full mark, which means, either way, there’s no going back.

A figure ahead catches my eye, and I let up off the gas, tugging the gun from my bag that I set across my lap.

At a hundred yards, or so, I stop the truck, trying to decide what to do, while anger pulses like flames through my blood.

Sliding out of the front seat, I tuck the gun into my back pocket, and Lea breaks into a sob, running toward me.

“Jesus, Wren, I thought you were more of them.” Stopped just short of me, she rubs a trembling, bloody hand across her forehead, and I scan down to her dirty, torn shirt and the blood on her jeans.

“What happened?”

“Rhys, Rigs, Tinker and Tripp came. They were ambushed. An army of Legion soldiers. I managed to get away, but they took them. All of them.”

“And how did Damian get loose?”

“I don’t know. I was … out having a smoke, and … he just came out of nowhere. Dragged me off like a Rager.”

“He stole Tripp’s bike. What are the odds?”

Her brow twitches with a frown. “What do you mean?”

I pull the gun from my jeans and point it at her. “I’ve got three bullets. And I’m a damn good shot myself. So, unless you want one carved into your skull, you better tell me the truth.”

Her nostrils flare with the tears gathering in her eyes. She licks her lips and glances away. “I wanted a safe place. For me, Trinity, and Tripp.”

“And what was Tripp’s role in all of this?”