Authors: Norma Hinkens
I turn and make my way steadily over to the embankment, Tucker close to my heel. Visibility is not much better from this angle. Some of the wolves have slipped back between the pines and reappeared in other positions, and I can’t be sure which ones I’ve already counted. I wipe the sweat off my forehead and begin over.
Ten … twelve?
Tucker growls again, the sound vibrating at the back of his throat like a generator running rough. He strains to get away from me. A moment later a bloodcurdling shriek cuts through the air.
A
rod
of fear shoots up my spine. I swivel and watch in horror as Panju is slammed to the ground and pinned beneath a snarling wolf. Tucker wrenches free of my grip and bolts toward them.
I take aim, praying I don’t miss, but before I can pull the trigger a single shot rings out. The wolf’s body convulses and flatlines. Startled, I break into a panicked run, my mind churning with confusion. Who took that shot? It didn’t come from one of our positions; it came from the far side of the trail. Blade flashes briefly to mind, but I dismiss the disturbing thought and focus on reaching Panju.
“Mark the wolves on the slope,” I yell back to Trout. “And Izzy!”
I leap over a gnarled tree root in my path, but before I can cover the last few feet to where Panju lies motionless beneath the wolf’s carcass, a figure sprints out from behind a spruce tree and dashes in front of me.
I slow to a halt and stare in disbelief. “Jakob!” I gasp.
His eyes skim over me before he drops to his knees at Panju's side.
I heave in a hot breath, my brain turning to mush.
What is Jakob doing here?
He puts his shoulder to the grisly carcass and rolls it off Panju. Another bone-chilling scream kicks me back into gear, and I lurch forward to help him. Tucker paces back and forth, as if to eliminate the possibility of any other threat approaching.
Panju writhes around in agony, clutching her right arm, half-cleaved through from the wolf’s jaws.
“Keep her still,” Jakob snaps.
I throw myself to the ground and grab her shoulders. “It’s okay, Panju,” I gasp. “It’s gonna be okay.”
She stares at me flatly before her eyes roll back in her head, and she flops unnaturally to one side.
Jakob glances at me, his face rigid. “Her arm’s hanging on by a tendon. She’s gonna lose it, that’s if she doesn’t bleed to death first.”
“Then do something! You know how to stop it!” I brush my trembling palm across her smooth forehead.
Don’t die! Please don’t die!
Wordlessly Jakob digs around in his pack and pulls out a threadbare shirt.
I glance over at the dead wolf’s parted jaws, fangs daubed with fresh blood. A shiver crosses my shoulders. I’d rather take a bullet any day than be torn apart by one of these beasts.
Jakob swiftly rips the shirt in two and fashions a makeshift tourniquet around Panju's arm. She groans weakly, but doesn’t open her eyes.
“Someone’s gonna have to amputate it,” Jakob mutters in my ear.
My stomach rolls. “We can’t do that. We’re not doctors.”
Jakob grimaces. “It’s mostly taken care of. The wolf’s bitten clean through the bone and muscle.”
I force myself to take a closer look at Panju's mangled arm. The bones in her forearm are crushed, the muscles pulverized beyond hope of saving. Jakob’s right. The only question now is whether we can keep her alive. I take a shaky breath. “Are you sure about this?”
“We have no choice.” A sober look settles on his face. “Best get it over with now before she regains consciousness. I’ll tie her off. One of us needs to—”
“I know,” I say, getting to my feet. “I’ll get the knife.”
I
n the end
it’s Sven who does the deed, and Jakob who stitches a flap of skin over the wound afterward. Trout keeps his distance—supposedly he’s watching Izzy and our hostages, but I can’t help thinking of his one-knuckled finger. I’m pretty sure he has a disturbing memory of his own he doesn’t want to be reminded of.
It takes all the improvised bandages we have between us, including Panju’s leftover gauze, to pad the stump, and several socks strung together to hold it all in place. After we’ve covered Panju with a couple of coats to keep her warm, we bury her forearm and drag a heavy boulder over the spot to deter the wolves from digging it up. Sven says the pack took off when they heard the shot, but they may have just retreated for now.
“I’ll check in with the others, see if there are any updates on the pack’s movements,” Sven says, when we’ve finished doing what we can to make Panju comfortable.
Jakob waits until Sven’s out of earshot and then reaches for my hand. “I was worried sick about you when the Council members came back. Jett said you were planning on joining up with an Undergrounder militia and didn’t need them. Something seemed off. I didn’t trust him.” His voice trembles. “I wasn’t even sure you were still alive.”
I blink, suddenly overwhelmed by the emotion in his voice, coupled with the cold brutality of everything that’s just happened. “I’m glad you came,” I say, squeezing his hand. “You saved Panju's life.”
He studies me for a moment, a wounded look in his eyes.
I know he wants me to say I’m glad he came for me. Truth is, as badly as we need his help, I’m not sure how I feel about having Jakob here. I pull my hand free from his grasp. “Is Big Ed okay?”
“He’s fine. I didn’t tell him I was cutting out to look for you though.”
I frown. Knowing Big Ed, he’ll set out after Jakob. After all, I made him promise to keep an eye on him. “I hope he doesn’t come searching for you,” I say, in a disapproving tone. “There are Rogues in the area.”
Jakob twists his lips. “Then come back to the base. There aren’t enough of you left to protect yourselves. And Panju won’t make it to the wilderness. She needs medical attention, antibiotics.”
I whistle for Tucker and get to my feet. “We’re going to Shoshane City first. We’ll get what she needs there.”
Jakob rumples his forehead. “
Shoshane City?
What for?”
“It’s a long story.” I sigh, too exhausted to have to defend my decision again to divert the mission for an abandoned child. “Let’s just say we have a delivery to make, and you have a few more stitches to take care of.”
T
ucker
and I make our way back over to Trout who’s still hunkered down in position monitoring the hillside, Izzy tucked in at his side. I throw myself down beside her and ruffle her hair. Tucker licks her chin and snuggles in between us.
“Did a bad dog hurt Panju?” she asks, a solemn look on her pale face.
I give an uncertain nod. “It’s a good thing you listened to me and stayed in the tree until Trout came and got you.”
She sucks on her thumb forcibly for a moment or two as if something’s suddenly occurred to her. “I miss my mama,” she announces.
I smile sadly at her. “Me too, Izzy.”
Trout and I exchange a knowing look.
“So the wolves have definitely gone?” I ask, peering into the shadows.
“No sign of them since Jakob took that shot,” Trout says. “Might be a good time for us to move out.” He bites his bottom lip. “That’s if Panju can handle it.”
I hesitate when I see the pain in his expression. Trout keeps his cards tight to his chest, but I have a sneaking suspicion Panju is a little more than just a friend to him. I can’t lie to him about her chances though. He’s always been brutally honest with me. “She’s not going to make it unless we get her to the city soon,” I say. “We’ll have to carry her, and that will slow us down considerably.”
“Sven and I can handle it and keep up the pace. It won’t be a problem,” he says, in the kind of tone that tells me he’ll die trying.
I gesture at the vacant hillside. “There’s a good chance the wolves will get back on our trail with the scent of more blood to lure them. If we keep going, we can’t afford to let down our guard for one minute.”
Trout jerks his head in Jakob's direction. “What’s going on with him? Mutiny at the base?”
“He was worried when the Council members arrived back. Jett told him we were joining up with an Undergrounder militia, but Jakob has a sixth sense for when someone’s lying. I think he was half afraid they might have killed us.”
Trout hikes an eyebrow at me. “Us? Or
you
?”
I throw him an indignant look.
Trout laughs. “You know he was just waiting for an excuse to come after you like a hero. That’s how he rolls.”
I shift uncomfortably. “All I can tell you is that Panju wouldn’t be alive right now if he hadn’t come.”
“And
you
wouldn’t be alive if he hadn’t persuaded the Council to infiltrate the Craniopolis. Jakob’s a good guy.”
“He does have a knack for saving lives.” I give a flippant laugh. “And charming kids. Izzy bonded with him right away. Must be a Septite thing.”
I’m downplaying Jakob’s contributions because it makes me uncomfortable to be indebted to him, especially when I know he has feelings for me that I don’t have for him anymore. But Trout’s right. The Council wouldn’t even have attempted to rescue me if Jakob hadn’t forced their hand. I glance over at him, still seated at Panju's side. I made a vow to myself in the bunkers that I would lay down my life for Jakob Miller if it ever came to that, but so far he’s the one who’s stuck out his neck for me every time. Which is more than I can say for those lame, lying Council members Owen recruited. Inadvertently, I’ve whittled them down to the few good Undergrounders among them, and we’re all the better for it. Maybe Jakob belongs here after all.
Trout and I put our heads together and come up with a makeshift stretcher fashioned out of Jakob’s one-man tent and some sturdy branches lashed with nylon to transport Panju. When Sven lifts her onto it, she moans, a pitiful bleat with little conviction. It scares me how quickly she’s fading. Her eyes roll around for a moment or two, unfocused and glistening, and then she closes them again like a newborn too weak to participate in what’s happening around her.
Jakob tucks the coats tightly around her trembling body. “She’s in shock. If we don’t make it to Shoshane City before infection sets in, she has no chance.”
I reach for my pack and buckle the straps. “I need you to stay by her side. I’ll lead the way. Sven can take up the rear with Rummy and Won. We’ll keep Panju between us so we can better protect her if we come under attack.” I watch as Buck and Elijah reach for the stretcher. Owen’s harrowing trek to Fort Lewis on the Rogues’ combat stretcher flashes to mind. I’ll never forgive Rummy for what he put my brother through. No matter how hard he works to redeem himself.
O
ur pace is frustratingly slow
. Rummy and Won complain constantly about anything and everything, which increasingly grates on everyone’s nerves. Between Izzy and Panju, we’re forced to stop too many times to have any hope of making it to Shoshane City by nightfall. And Tucker’s not great at long distances either now that he’s older.
“It’ll be dark out soon,” Jakob says, gesturing at the faint red of the waning day striping the horizon.
“We have to push on,” I say. “Panju’s deteriorating by the minute.”
“She needs antibiotics,” Jakob says, throwing me a rattled look. “And what if there’s no one in Shoshane City after all? We’ve nothing but the word of a six-year-old that the Undergrounders are even fleeing there.”
I trace my fingers across my forehead. “They’re fleeing somewhere. Our camp, Frank’s. Izzy’s. Other bunkers too. Where did they all go?”
Jakob throws me a curious look. “I wonder if my parents are there.”
I avert my eyes. “Maybe.”
Truth is, I’m not sure I want them to be. The Millers were none too fond of me before, and they certainly won’t approve of me now. Not that I need their blessing anymore.
T
he hills are
flush with dawn, the morning crisp and overcast, when we reach the outskirts of Shoshane City. We huddle wearily just inside the tree line, staring through the foliage in utter disbelief at the sprawling canvas of devastation. Shoshane City was once a cool place to live. Not anymore. I peer through Trout’s binoculars at the acres of rubble and debris piled high from one end of the city to the other. Tangled steel girders and metal signage jettisoned all over like instruments of war. Carcasses of buildings with shattered glass fronts, burnt out vehicles strewn like discarded casings from the awful savagery that went through here. A once proud city shelled and shaken.
A light wind kicks up a thick cloud of swirling dust over the gutted remnants of concrete buildings. The few still standing are heavily cracked, sagging like giant sacks of wheat.
I shiver at the awful memories of tales told by bunker light of flames whipping hundreds of feet into the air, the sky bleeding for weeks. I swallow hard, hoping Ma didn’t suffer too much.
The lucky ones, or unlucky ones—only time will tell—made it to the bunkers before the air became too thick to breathe. It was a year before we saw the outside world again. But it wasn’t the one we had left.
I slowly pan the grisly scene. A sinking feeling drags me down like wet sand. There’s no indication at all that there are any Undergrounders living here. This isn’t what we’d hoped to find. I throw an anxious glance at Panju. She’s ashen and sweating profusely. If she doesn’t get antibiotics and fluids in the next hour or two, she won’t survive another night out here.
“It doesn’t look very promising,” I say, passing the binoculars to Trout.
He peers intently into them for several minutes and then sucks in a breath. “I see someone!”
My heart pounds like a leaden weight against my ribs. “Is it Undergrounders?”
Trout shakes his head. “I can’t tell from here. I only see one person.”
“Where?”
“Tall building to the far left with the window frames ripped out, top floor, just inside the doorway.”
I take the binoculars from his outstretched hand and focus in on the building he’s pointing to. At first I don’t see anyone, but then a shadowy movement catches my eye. A tall figure comes into view, a gun dangling from his shoulder. “I see him! He’s armed.”
“I’m guessing he’s the sentry,” Trout says. “He’s got a bird’s eye view of anyone approaching or leaving the city from up there.”
“Then he’ll be an ace shot. We’ll have to find a more indirect route in.”
I feel a sudden tug on my sleeve and look down to see Izzy peering up at me. “I wanna see my brother!”
I lean down and squeeze her bony shoulder. “You will, I promise. Just be patient a little longer.”
She jams her thumb between her lips and saunters over to pet Tucker, who’s keeping a watchful eye on Rummy and Won.