Waterproof (4 page)

Vee screamed from somewhere behind me and dread burst through my heart. Vee never screamed. Something must be
terribly wrong.

“If you hurt him, it will be the last thing you do,” she yelled. At first I thought she was protecting me but then I heard Hunter’s voice.

“Zach, help us!”

I knew I couldn’t let them die. The man holding the large hunting knife to my throat looked down at me with arrogance and hate. These must be the group of deserters I’d stolen from. As if confirming my assumption the man leaned over me and raised his eyebrows.

“You kill us, we kill you.” His breath smelled like rot and spittle dripped from his mouth, getting caught on his wiry beard. He seemed malnourished and sickly, but from the look in his eyes, I knew he intended to follow through with the threat.

I
slid my arms down to the side, still pinned to the ground by an angry deserter and his lethal knife. The scuffling and shouting behind me grew almost too distracting for me to accomplish my goal.

“Looking for these?” The man held up two knives
; my knives that had been resting by my head like a security blanket. He smiled again, which showed me that most of his teeth were missing along with any personal hygiene routine. Face filled with satisfaction, I didn’t dare tell him that it wasn’t the knives I’d been looking for.

With one quick move, I reached to the side and grabbed
Vee’s sword. She always slept on top of it, protecting it like a precious commodity. Before the man could register his defeat, I swiped the blade over the top of me and cut partway into his neck. Blood sprayed, he dropped the knife from my throat, and I marveled at Vee’s ability to decapitate. Apparently it took a lot of force.

I pushed the man off of me and jumped to my feet in a matter of seconds. The first thing I noticed was the rest of my group fighting ferociously with our attackers. They hadn’t just come for me, yet this was
all my fault. Thoughts to be dealt with at another time.

Hunter lay sprawled at an awkward angle a few feet behind me, his attacker now helping the man
who had Vee pinned to the ground. Ignoring my need to protect her, I ran to Hunter and dropped down beside him. I pressed my fingers to his neck, looking for a wound and also checking for a pulse. It was there, strong and steady. They must have knocked him out to focus on the real threat.

Vee screamed again, and terror filled the air. Or maybe it was just my head. Either way, I knew she needed me. I ran toward her only to be body slammed back into the ground before taking two complete steps. The man that crushed me had hurt himself in the process, and I used that to my advantage. With a swift kick to the face, he went still.

I headed after Vee’s two captors. The largest man held her against the ground, straddled on top of her in a position I’d been in just a few hours ago. But where my intentions were playful, this man meant to harm her. Actually, I think he meant to do more than harm her.

A raging fury swept through me, and I charged
at full speed. The second man, whose only job appeared to be holding her feet to the side, saw me a second before I attacked. Although spritely, he’d been well trained. With a fast roll to the side, the man avoided my kick and grabbed my leg mid-roll. His momentum brought me down, nearly twisting my knee in a dangerous way.

I caught a glimpse of Vee and froze with shock. The man forced kisses all over her face and kept trying to rip her clothes away. But each time
he’d let up on her arm, she’d swing a punch. He spit in her face and laughed when she cringed. Continuing his abuse, he punched her in the stomach, forcing her still.

That man had to die, but first I needed to deal with the one in front of me.

A steel toed boot slammed into my jaw, knocking me sideways and causing me to see stars. Blood filled my mouth but it only fueled my rage. I screamed my own war cry, aware that I made fun of a man earlier for doing the same thing. But I couldn’t hold it in.

A glint of silver sparkled against the light of the fire when the man stepped closer to me. I smiled
, knowing he’d be out of my way very soon.

“Does this amuse you?” He gestured toward Vee and her intended rapist before his eyes glanced their way.

I leapt up and grabbed the silver knife from his waist sheath, plunging it into his chest before he even knew what happened. His gurgling words and calls for help went unnoticed as I only had eyes for one man now.

As soon as I reached Vee and her attacker, the man flew backward and nearly hit me. Stunned, I looked at Vee who pulled herself to standing. Her ripped shirt hung open from her
chest down, and I thought I saw her belt dangling by her side. Blood dripped from her nose and down her chin. Without hesitation, she jumped on top of the man, stunning him into submission. With his back flat against the ground and the amount of rage pulsing from Vee, I knew he didn’t stand a chance.

His large arms flayed in the air, trying to land a hit. Vee slammed her
forehead into his nose and he yelped like a little girl.

“You bitch!”

I saw his feet move a second before I pounced. Diving behind Vee, I landed on his legs, pinning him to the ground. She spared a quick glance at me and what I saw told me she was pissed. But I didn’t care. I’d let her kill this man, but if I could help immobilize him, I would.

I heard the smack of fist against skin as Vee punched his already broken nose. She might be deadly with a sword, but Vee didn’t need one in her hand to be effec
tive. The man groaned again and stopped fighting back. At least for the moment.

Vee leaned over the man’s face and came back with a large rock in her hand. I couldn’t see her expression, but knew it would be frightening. She lifted both hands above her head, and yelled out as the rock c
ame down and smashed against her would-be-rapist’s face. Over and over she hit him. I thought the first blow had done its job, but after what just happened to her, I let her be.

A full minute passed before she dropped the rock to her side
and slumped back against me. Her sobs consumed her, and she shook with each one. I wrapped my arms tightly around her, holding her head against my chest and rocking slowly back and forth.

I don’t know how long we stayed like that, hours
or mere minutes, but when a dark shadow appeared in front of us, I knew the time for comfort was over.

“Are they gone?” The shadow asked. It sounded like Max’s voice, but my ears still hummed with the sound of
Vee’s cries.

“I believe so,” I said.

Max nodded. “We need you over there,” he said, jerking his head toward the fire.

“Can you grab Hunter? He’s been knocked out.” I stood, pulling Vee with me. Max didn’t say a word as I stepped over three dead bodies,
and carried one broken girl away from the scene.

FOUR

Vivienne

“Alicia’s dead,” Max stated before we reached the rest of our group.

“What?” cried
Hunter. Max carried him over one shoulder, but now set him gently on the ground. “That can’t be true.”

“I’m sorry, but it is. They must have attacked her and
Daric first. He’s in bad shape.” Max stopped walking and examined Hunter from top to bottom. “How’s your head?”

He rubbed his temple and winced. “I’m fine. I can’t believe Alicia’s gone.” Hunter hung his head but not before I saw tears in his eyes. “I’m going to find
Daric.”

Before Max could protest, Hunter disappeared in the dark shadows flanking our group tonight. Zach’s arm around my waist tightened and I suddenly became aware of how close we were. I also realized that my ordeal had been irrelevant in the grand scheme of things. Alicia had lost her life.

“This is all my fault,” Zach whispered.

Knowing where his thoughts were headed, I stepped in front of him. His pained face pierced my heart, tears starting to appear again without my permission. I wrapped my arms around him and squeezed.

“This is how life is now.” I couldn’t think of anything else to say. Did Zach’s actions encourage that group of deserters to attack us? Yeah, probably. But that made me just as guilty.

“How?”
Zach asked Max.

He knew what Zach meant.
“Her throat.” I felt Zach tense underneath my arms. He’d wear this on his consciousness for years to come.

“And
Daric?” Zach continued to torture himself.

“He has a bad cut on his neck,
but it looks like they took Alicia out first. She didn’t even scream.” For the first time, Max’s voice quivered. Usually emotionless and all business, tonight’s attack had left Max feeling the pain too. This wasn’t the first time we’d lost someone in our group, but it didn’t ever get any easier.

“Max?” Sasha’s voice cut through our wallowing. Her form appeared
from the light, pistol hanging in her hand by her side. I hadn’t even heard the gunshots. My focus had been on not letting that disgusting pig rape me. I shivered and Zach squeezed me tighter.

“Vivienne, are you okay?” Sasha walked directly to me, gently placing her hand on my shoulder. I nodded. “And you
, Zach?” she asked.

“I’m fine.”

“Good.” Sasha looked at me a few seconds longer than necessary. It felt like she could read my mind and the terrible, fearful thoughts racing through it right now. “I need your help cleaning up. Daric’s out right now and his injuries are pretty severe. But we need to be ready to move in the morning.”

“What about Alicia?” Zach asked, barely able to get the words out.

“Hunter and Carrie are taking care of that.” I couldn’t tell if her clipped response was aimed at Zach or just the situation in general.

“What do you need?” Max asked, diverting Sasha’s attention from Zach.

“Gather what we can. In the morning, we’ll head south. Hopefully there weren’t any mercenaries nearby to hear this tonight.”

“We’re going to need more water,” Zach said and I elbowed him in the side. Now was not the time to
discuss another run.

But Sasha surprised me with her answer. “Yes, I know. They destroyed some of our supply during the attack…” he
r voice trailed off.

“A small group of us can go. The water truck is still there.
We can fill up what we can carry.” Zach pushed forward, against my nudges encouraging him to stop.

“Yes, we’ll do that. But now I need you in camp packing up what’s left.” She grabbed Max’s hand and led him away.

Zach and I continued walking toward the now sputtering fire. No one spoke and everyone had a job to do. Zach grabbed one of the towels sitting near the fire and brushed it lightly against my face. I cringed with the pain of my swollen cheek and bloody nose. Another reminder of what almost happened to me tonight. I suspected those visions would haunt me for a while. But then I thought about Alicia and scolded myself for feeling so selfish.

“You need this more than me,” I said to Zach,
snatching the towel from his hand. His chin had a nasty cut on it that had stopped bleeding, but looked pretty deep. As soon as I touched it, blood began seeping again. “Let me get you a bandage.”

Before Zach could protest, I headed toward Trevor’s area. He was the one in charge of medical supplies.  With each step, I took an inventory of my surroundings. Max and Jackson worked together to pack up what was left of the food and water. Hunter and Carrie
busied themselves with wrapping Alicia’s body in pieces of animal skin and dead leaves. With limited clothing available, it didn’t make sense to leave all of hers behind. They spoke in hushed tones, and when I listened closer, I realized they were praying.

Sasha seemed to walk around without intent. After losing one of our own, she always distanced herself from the group.  It was her way of coping and everyone accepted it as such. I imagined it must be hard to feel responsible for the safety of so many.

Trevor’s voice interrupted my thoughts. “Are you okay?”

I looked down to focus on his concerned eyes staring back up on me. He
lifted his hand to touch my cheek, but I lightly brushed him away. “I need a bandage for Zach.”

Trevor huffed.
“Too bad. I need them for Daric.”

“Trevor,” I sighed. “Now is not the time to be a dick.” I pus
hed around him to grab the material myself.

He quickly stepped in front of me and snatched the bag of supplies. “
Daric needs them more and if Zach would have listened to Sasha, those deserters wouldn’t have come here at all.”

His words stung, but again, I held myself just as responsible. “I’m the one that killed two of them. You should blame me more than Zach.”

“I do,” he snapped. “Alicia is gone and I doubt Daric will make it through the night.

My gaze drifted over to the man lying on the ground. Even in the limited light, his pale face and unnatural stillness permeated
the evening. Trevor had fashioned pieces of ripped sweatshirts around his neck, but the dark stains leaked through like death taking hold with bony fingers. Daric wouldn’t make it through the night. I felt tears slide down my face and didn’t bother wiping them away.

Swallowing hard, I held out my hand and begged. “Please, Trevor.
Just one piece.” He shook his head. “I don’t want to fight with you tonight.”

Maybe he heard the defeat in my voice, or maybe he’d finally learned when to pick his battles, but after another moment of hesitation, he finally agreed. Sifting through the duffle bag, he handed me
a neatly wrapped bundle. “This is all I can spare.”

“Thank you,” I said, not knowing if it would be enough but deciding not to argue. Before leaving, I knelt down next to
Daric. His breathing sounded shallow and irregular, and the fresh scent of blood made my stomach turn. “I’m so sorry,” I whispered into his ear. With my hand resting lightly on his chest, I hung my head and wished for him to be at peace. Perhaps waking up would be worse for him. Daric and Alicia loved each other very much, and I doubted he’d be able to cope with such a loss.

My chest tightened at the thought of losing Zach like that.
I knew I wouldn’t want to live without him. Trevor knelt down next to me and felt for a pulse in Daric’s wrist. I didn’t want to watch him die, so I stood and made my way back to Zach.

He’d moved to the center of camp where he collected all of the useable water bottles we had left. With hands on his hips, he shook his head when he saw me. “We’re going to need a lot more.”

I looked down at the tiny pile. “How many did they destroy?”

“Over half of them.”
Bottles, glass or plastic, have been hard to come by since the draft went into effect. Those that ran took what they could, and the government collected what remained with the help of the mercenaries. Their strategy? We would all come crawling back begging for water. That’s why it was so unusual for Zach to find a water truck. Someone must have had a connection to a government insider.

“We’ll just have to gather what we can tomorrow.” I walked over to Zach and forced him to sit on the ground. Cleaning his wound the best I could, I finished with a little ointment. “Trevor didn’t have any bandages to spare, so just try not to bump it.”

“Sure he didn’t,” Zach grumbled. He sighed and dropped his head into his hands. “How’s Daric?”

“He’ll be fine,” I lied.

Zach snorted. “No he won’t. I can hear it in your voice.” We simply knew each other too well. “Why do I do this?”

I grabbed his hands. “What? Collect water, find food,
protect Hunter? For every one questionable decision you make, there are a hundred more good ones that allow all of us to survive a little longer. Don’t do this to yourself.”

He managed a smile and I leaned in to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. With that, I continued helping around the camp until the first glimmer of sunrise filtered through the trees. The
rest of the night had passed in silence, and everyone was ready to move on. Well, almost everyone. Daric had died not long after I saw him, so we now gathered around a shallow grave with our two friends lying side by side.

Sasha recited some poem, but my ears wouldn’t allow me to hear. Instead, I focused on the inner turmoil ripping through me. I’d know
n Daric and Alicia for a couple of years, but felt numbed by their passing. Knowing I played a role in their deaths didn’t help, and even though I’d given that speech to Zach a few hours ago, the words felt empty to me. It would be hard to forgive myself.

When the last of the dirt fell onto the grave, Sasha forced us into action. “Vivienne, Zach,
and Jackson, collect what you can carry and head out with Max. The rest of us will be nearby and meet up with you in a couple of hours.”

The four of us would do our best to steal water from the deserters that had attacked us last night. With empty bottles hanging all around me and my sword wrapped along my back, I followed closely behind Zach. The trip to the camp seemed shorter than last time, perhaps because I dreaded the type of resistance we might face. Not
all of their group returned home the night before and I suspected they were as angry and desperate as us.

Just as the rusty cargo container walls came into view, Zach stopped moving and turned to face us. “I saw the truck on the far side of camp. We should cross over through the woods and then try to break in from there.”

“Was there an entrance?” Max asked.

“There’s got to be.”
Zach, always an optimist even when there was no reason to be.

Max nodded and
we all headed off at a light jog around the perimeter. Aside from my breathing and Zach’s heavy feet crunching underneath, the forest sounded surprisingly quiet. Ever since the nuclear wars, the wildlife seemed to disappear too. For many years, it had been a great risk to eat wild game for fear of getting radiation poisoning. But once we started observing offspring, we figured it would be okay to hunt. That happened a couple of years ago, and even though the meat seemed safe, the prey kept getting harder to find.

Every once and a while a sparrow would call out in the early morning dawn. I guess I should be thankful that they wouldn’t give up our position,
but a part of me still missed the life we had before the wars.

Once we reached the far side of the camp, Zach signaled us to the ground. We looked around at our surroundings and listened intently for any sounds of human life. Not one deserter patrolled the perimeter. Zach shrugged and began moving out from the cover of the trees and up the same incline to the closest cargo container.

I crept behind him, slowly sliding my sword out of its sheath. Jackson had his crossbow raised, moving it side to side looking for a target. When we reached the top, each of us pressed tightly against the container. There was a small space for us to pass, but Max waved us back until he could check it out. Like Sasha, he’d taken on a kind of parental role and always insisted on clearing our safety first.

Max disappeared into the crack, Sasha’s pistol pointing in front of him. Unusual for Max to use a gun, I felt better knowing he had some range. A few moments later, Max’s head
reappeared and he waved all of us inside.

Once I broke through the narrow tunnel, I saw a large space filled with dilapidated cars and other pieces of unidentifiable metal.
I could barely make out the perimeter on the far side of the camp, but when I saw the water truck, nothing else mattered. Zach had been right.

Moving like a team of navy seals, we hustled together toward the trucks. With backs facing the interior, we each held our weapons out in front
in case of an attack. We quickly reached the truck with no resistance and no sign of human life.

“Where is everyone?
” I whispered.

“I don’t know,” Zach said. “But let’s take advantage.”
Then he swore. “Someone sabotaged the truck.” He pointed to the four flat tires and a mosaic of gunshot holes near the bottom of the black plastic reservoir. But pushing against the side, he smiled again. “There’s still enough left for us.”