Page 56 of Marked for Extinction
Amir looked between us both but didn’t say a word, following Carson.
“There we are. Seems your little nurse patched you up, hmm?”
“What the fuck do you want, Leonard.”
My brother sneered and shoved his face into mine. “The Leonard you knew is dead, Brother. There only be Otis here. Since your little disappearance I stumbled upon this encampment as luck would have it. It was a good thing they were in need of a doctor since I just happened to know enough to contribute to good ‘ol Black Hollow.” He smiled but there was no light in his eyes. “Rumor has it, the last one had a problem keeping people alive.”
I lunged but both Carson and Amir blocked me.
“Come on. Leave the doctor to his hut. We need to talk,” Amir cut in before sharply looking at my Brother,Otis, and looking away.
Carson glared at Otis before making room for me to drag Inny out of there. I didn’t like the aura he left behind. I needed to find out why he was he, why he sought me out. Of all the human camps out there, why this one? It wasn’t like huts were that appealing to a man who apparently had survived this long topside.
Without his wife.
I didn’t miss the fact that he was here alone and that there was a wildness behind his eyes that weren’t there before.
Carson and Amir walked with us side by side but of course, our return underground wouldn’t be that easy.
“Inés!” the young man from earlier called out.
We all turned to see him stiffly holding his weapon as he looked between all of us with suspicion.
“Inés, let me help you settle in,” he continued.
If he keeps talking, I would help him lose his damn arms so he wouldn’t be able to wave his little weapon around thinking he was a big man.
“Thank you, but I’m going to have to decline,” she answered boldly.
Good girl.
I squeezed her hand to return her attention to me and continued to pull her along toward the southern ground entrance.
“Vik, things have changed—”
I cut Amir off. “It’s Reaper now. And hand me my weapon.”
Amir did as I commanded but I didn’t miss the way the men looked at me curiously.
“Whatever. Look. Things have changed. More people have joined us and residency has been switched around to accommodate the increase.”
I frowned as I pulled the hatch to open the door, waiting for them to continue to catch me up. Their voices droned in the back the moment the old engraving of the wordhopestared at me.I rubbed the depression of the letters and punched the metal door.
“Vik! What the fuck?”
“Hope is obsolete! These lies we tell ourselves. The lies we tell the people!”
Inny rubbed my arm and I groaned in frustration as visions of our tortures played behind my eyelids. The darkness, the blood, the wounds, the smell of infection and her stupid whistling.
My heart raced as the cogwheels of my mind took another turn.
Otis whistled the same fucking tune.
What did this mean? WHAT DID THIS MEAN?
ChapterTwenty
With thoughts racingthrough my head, I descended the metal rung ladder, calling for Inés to stay beside me. She did as commanded and the other two followed after her.
