Redaction: The Meltdown Part II (24 page)

They would help him and they didn’t know it.

Shunning the warmth of the fire, Trent led them into the night. Across the river, lights twinkled off and on, like the fireflies he’d caught as a child and kept in a jar until they died.

Good times.

“God, why didn’t He get rid of the screeching old bats?” Benedict folded his arms across his massive chest.

Gary nodded, but the brothers stared at the ground. The fools thought they had to protect women. That would change once they got a taste of what true power could offer and he would show it to them.

Tucking the Bible under his arm, he rubbed his hands together. “Gentlemen, I think it is time we decided how we’re going to take back our freedom.”

Chapter Eighteen

“Wake-up, Princess.” Eddie’s words accompanied a pinching and wiggling of her big toe.

Audra jerked it free but her sock stayed behind. Cold air washed over her arch as she curled up on the bus seat. Goodness, it felt like she’d just nodded off. Grit scratched her eyes as she blinked herself awake.

“You should let her sleep.” Stuart straightened in the seat behind Eddie. “She’s done a lot today and needs to rest.”

Eddie sat up in the driver’s seat then draped her stolen sock across his muscular thigh. His gas mask dangled from his tattooed neck. “She’s our leader. I’m sure she’ll want to be awake to hand us over to the soldiers.”

“Soldiers.” Clawing at the seat, she pulled herself up. Her heart raced. She definitely wanted to be awake at the moment of her liberation. “Where are they?”

She pressed her nose against the glass, cold quickly leached the warmth from her skin. Night crowded the windows and rain drummed on the metal roof. Thunder rolled overhead followed quickly by lightning hurling golden forks at the darkness. Joints popped and muscles ached. She checked her wristwatch. Good heavens, they’d been on the road for nearly twenty-four hours.

“We’re not there yet.” Stuart tore off a piece of bread, squished it into a ball between his index finger and thumb then tossed it in his mouth. An empty hamburger bun sleeve fluttered on the floor.

Her stomach growled. Damn it. That was her bread. She swiped at the drool pooling in the corners of her mouth. The first time in nearly half a year that real bread was within her reach and someone stole it while she slept. And he’d no doubt eaten the other bag as well. Forget manners, next time she found bread, she’d stuff her face until a button popped off her pants.

“But I thought…” Her waistband cut into her stomach when she leaned forward. A jacket rolled down her chest. She detected the faint scent of sweat, rain and Old Spice. Eddie. She caught the brown leather before it touched the floor and hung it on her bent knees.

“Relax, Princess.” Dangling her sock from his middle finger, he angled his arm back toward her. “We’re almost there.”

She swiped the sock up and stuffed her foot inside. No doubt he waneted to make fun of the pink monkeys on the white striped fabric. “We’ve been almost there since lunchtime.”

And they’d used all the fuel they’d gathered at Burgers in a Basket. Soon they’d be burning their reserves. The soldiers had better be there.

The Hawaiian dancer tattoo danced on Eddie’s bicep. “Don’t blame me. Prince Charming here is the one who gave us the directions.”

Stuart chomped on the last bit of bread. “The name is Stuart.”

Two syllables. Emphasis on both. Eddie must have been working his magic on the newcomer. Not that the bread thief didn’t deserve it. She sincerely hoped the man got a belly ache. “Gentlemen.”

“Don’t get your panties in a twist, Stuie.” Eddie’s lips twitched. “Princess Audra will protect you.”

She closed her eyes. One. Two. Stuart may deserve it but she’d done nothing to warrant the migraine that accompanied the soundtrack. Five. Opening her eyes, she looked out the windshield. Water slid in sheets down the glass, parting here and there on bug bodies, then joining up again.

The bus’s headlamps shot cones of light across a muddy road. On the right, white capped black water ran through a deep ditch. “Where are we?”

“Following the canal.” Turning his head, Eddie winked at her then concentrated once more on the road. “Someone who’s actually been to the Polytech Campus said that this canal will take us right by the school.”

Licking his finger, Stuart blotted up the crumbs on his jacket. “I never said I’d actually been to the campus.”

He’d never said he hadn’t either. Ergo their nine mile trip had instead serpentined over half the east valley when they followed his directions. The soldiers had better not have left.

Stuart leaned down and scooped up the empty bag. Brown and white crumbs slid along the crease on the bottom. Tossing back his head, he funneled them into his mouth.

The nerve of some people. She stomped into her boots. Her heels thudded hollowly along the bus floor. “Have you even been to Mesa?”

Behind her, people yawned and muttered.

“Sure.” Stuart licked the residue off his lips. “There’s a couple of really good restaurants here—spicy Italian, mouth watering Thai…” he snapped his fingers, “and once I went to a concert at the performing arts center in downtown Mesa.”

Her stomach growled. Did he have to mention food? Besides, he’d probably used a GPS system to guide him. They hadn’t been so lucky and it had cost them time and fuel. “You led me to believe that you were familiar with the area.”

His breath fogged the bag as he blew into it. The plastic puffed up; he clamped the opening closed. “I used to drive the Santan freeway everyday on my way to Scottsdale when the Redaction hit. I’d seen the signs for the school. I didn’t think it would be that hard to find.”

Her fingers curled into fists. “The roads had been clogged with broken down cars and decomposing bodies.” She wouldn’t have asked the bread-stealing twit how to get to the campus otherwise. “You said you knew another route.”

“I did.” Stuart twisted the opening, holding it in one hand. He sidled closer to the edge of his seat. “It wasn’t my fault that way was blocked too.”

Audra blinked. He wouldn’t. It was too juvenile to consider.

Stuart clapped his hands together. Caught in the middle, the bag exploded with a pop. It echoed like a shot around the metal interior.

A baby’s wail rose on the ringing silence.

“Son of a bitch!” Eddie half rose from the driver’s seat; his fist punched the space behind him, missing Stuart’s arm by inches. He swung again.

Chuckling, Stuart waved the flaccid bag, brushing Eddie’s fingers.

Someone moaned; others peppered the air with one word questions.

The bus veered toward the canal.

She leaped from her seat. “Eddie, please!”

His jacket rolled down her legs, tangled with her feet. Pitching forward, she slammed against the pole. The impact of metal against her temple rattled her. Bile rose in her mouth, coating her tongue with bitterness.

Eddie maneuvered the vehicle into the center of the dirt road while steadying her with a hand on her hip. “Control your pet, Princess.”

With a shake of her head, she turned her attention to Stuart. The world tilted slightly when she released the pole and held out her hand. “Give. Me. That. Bag.”

Stuart’s thin lips bloated in a pout but he slapped her open palm with the plastic. “You don’t know what he’s been like these last few hours.”

“I’m a light sleeper.” Besides, she’d practically lived with the man for the last six months. An elementary school auditorium wasn’t very big when you crammed a hundred people into it. Wadding up the plastic, she tucked it into her jeans pocket. “Now, either behave or you’ll have to go to the back of the bus.”

With the slops pot.

Sliding back in his seat until he hit the side of the bus, Stuart crossed his arms. “It was just a bit of fun.”

Good Lord, she had students who knew better. “We’re on a dirt road running next to a canal. I don’t particularly want to go swimming in the dark, do you?”

“Geez, Eddie’s right, you are uptight.”

Heat flared in her cheeks. Guess, she’d slept a little more soundly than she thought if she missed them talking about her. Raking Eddie’s jacket off the floor, she folded it in half then slapped his arm with it. “Thanks for the use of your coat.”

The metal button on the cuff thudded against his wrist bone. “Ouch!” He pushed the jacket back at her. “Keep it. It’s getting cold out.”

Her fingers dug into the fleece collar. “I’ll be fine.”

“Then set it on the seat next to you.” In the rearview mirror, Eddie’s brown eyes locked with hers. “And I never said you were uptight. I said you need to relax and unwind.”

Folding the coat, she sank onto her seat. The cushion sighed as it adjusted to her weight. “That’s hardly much better.”

Eddie shrugged. “Despite Stuie’s behavior, we are a little more mature than twelve-year-olds. Delegate a little.”

“I can help you with that.” Stuart smoothed his jacket. “I have an MBA and two years of management experience.”

What was she, Human Resources?

“Two whole years, huh?” A muscle flexed in Eddie’s jaw. “Wow, I didn’t think you were that old.”

She pinched the bridge of her nose. They weren’t much more mature than twelve. “Soon, it won’t matter. We’ll be with the soldiers.”

And they’ll be giving orders.

They’ll be responsible for everyone.

And she would be free to relax.

Eddie rolled his shoulders. “And speaking of soldiers, I think that is their camp on the left side.”

Scooting to the edge of her seat, she tucked the jacket in her lap and leaned forward. Beyond the shine of the headlamps, she couldn’t see anything but darkness. “Where?”

Fabric rustled between a few coughs. Those on the right side, knelt on their seats to peer through the left bank of windows.

“Wait for the lightning.” Eddie slowed the bus. “You’ll see it then.”

Audra’s stomach cramped. The camp wasn’t ablaze with lights? Sure, the electricity was out, but the military had plenty of fuel to keep the generators running. Setting his coat on the seat, she pushed to her feet. Her sweat-slicked palm squeaked on the metal pole when she grabbed it. Bracing her feet apart, she stood next to Eddie.

“You don’t think they’ve left, do you?” She pitched her voice low so as not to be overheard above the engine’s growl but didn’t take her eyes off the view. If this was the soldier’s camp, she didn’t want to miss the first opportunity to see it.

Eddie twisted his hand on the steering wheel. “We are a bit late getting here.”

And they hadn’t known they were coming. In Tucson, the soldiers had just said to prepare to evacuate the city. They’d left for Phoenix within two hours, hoping to beat the rush. Maybe if they’d have listened to the message they would have known all the cities were being abandoned.

Maybe she wouldn’t have wasted their precious fuel driving to the Valley.

Eddie skimmed a knuckle down her forearm. “It’s not so bad, is it? Being stuck with us for a while longer?”

Guilt itched like a thousand ants along her skin. Her needing to be alone was a bit selfish. Especially since following her had cost Eddie’s brother his life. She squeezed his shoulder. And he’d never once blamed her for the execution. “Some of you aren’t so bad.”

Tilting his head back, he winked at her. “‘Bout killed you to admit it, didn’t it?”

“Hush now, and drive.”

Stuart huffed. “I don’t see the camp. Perhaps you’re lost.”

Muscles bunched under her palm. Eddie stopped the bus. “Then so is the sign.”

Headlamps spotlighted a large green street sign. Someone had spelled
camp
under the Williams Field Road. Black water shimmered over the cracked asphalt road. Well, shoot. The camp was dark. But that didn’t mean it was deserted. They could be out of fuel or sleeping.

Please, God, just don’t let it be deserted
.

“Brace yourself, Princess.” He slapped on the left hand blinker. As he cranked the wheel, the bus coasted forward.

Gravel sprayed the wheel wells as they shifted onto the pavement.

“Alright everyone,” she leaned against the pole and into the turn, “please take your seats. If you have your ration books or any identification, please have them ready. For those who’ve been with us since Tucson, don’t worry. We have everything you need.”

They drifted through the chain link fence. A big white sign with a black arrow pointed the way to the checkpoint.

So far, so good. Another turn and they faced the direction they’d just come from. The bus’s headlights swept over the craggy peaks of tents. Lightning rippled along the clouds, illuminating the camp. Wind toyed with untied flaps. Water pooled on bowed white tables. Run-off sucked at the tires of vehicles perched half on the road and half in a ditch. Glowing eyes tracked their progress. Rat tails slithered through piles of garbage. Rain rippled through the puddles in chaos.

A coyote loped across the road and ducked through an open wooden door into a large tent.

No person shooed the scavenger out, or greeted them.

Her knees shook. “That can’t be good.”

Night blanketed the camp just as thunder rolled.

“Where is everyone?” Stuart’s words fogged the glass. The headlamps from the buses behind them swept over the camp.

“I don’t know.” She locked her trembling legs. This was not the time for timidity. “But I intend to find out.”

“Not by yourself.” Eddie parked next to a wooden sign painted with the words
check-in
in neon green. He killed the engine but kept the lights on.

Stuart scooted to the edge of his seat. “What’s the plan?”

She shook out her handkerchief and tied it over her face. “I need a flashlight.”

Stuart pulled the penlight from his pocket and twisted the barrel. A round of light encircled her belly button. “I’ll go with you.”

Eddie yanked the keys from the ignition. “I’ll go with her. Prince Charming’s job is to ride to the rescue.”

Stuart’s blue eyes narrowed. “It’s my light.”

Audra sneezed. Testosterone was a bit like day-old fish in the Arizona summer; both stank. “You’ll both go with me.”