She suddenly stopped, out of breath.
"Kit, please…I need to rest. I feel weak and tired."
She looked at me with terror in her eyes.
"We aren't going to make it, are we?"
Her voice was shaky, and she was shivering.
I put on my best smile for her benefit. It's anyone's guess what we may encounter out here in the desert. I kept my tone positive, not wanting to terrify her more than she already was.
"Becca, look at me."
Her blue eyes stared into mine. I saw the fear in them. I squeezed her hand tightly, reassuring her the best I could.
"We are going to make it. We have to make it. You and I didn't come this far just to give up. I need you to keep walking with me. Let's see if we can find shelter somewhere until morning so we can rest."
She nodded. "OK, Kit, but I don't know how far I can go. My leg is killing me, and I feel nauseous."
I felt sick to my stomach, too. We were both starving. It had to be past midnight by now. I put my arm around Beck's waist to ease some of the weight off her leg.
If we run into a person out here in east butt-fuck land, I can only imagine what they will think of seeing two women in bathrobes, winter boots, and collars locked around their necks. They'd probably think we'd just escaped from prison.
Shit! A thought just hit me.
I wonder if they have trackers in these fucking chokers. My pulse raced, and my hands turned clammy. I hid my emotions from Becca so she wouldn't freak out.
God dammit!
There has to be a way we can remove these fucking shitty collars!!! Grabbing onto Becca's waist again, we continued to walk deeper into the shadows.
I don't know what types of bugs and animals they have in Mexico. I just prayed that we wouldn't get chewed up by super-sized insects or eaten by some fucking wild dog.
It didn't help that it was almost pitch-black outside. The moon cast a slight glow in the sky, but that didn't make things easier for Becca and me.
We could barely see two feet in front of us. Continuing for what seemed like an eternity, we kept trekking along, taking tiny sips of water every twenty minutes or so. We had to be careful because we had very little of the precious liquid left.
Thankfully, we had our boots on, because there were a lot of rocks out here in the desert. They weren't like the rocks we had back home. Some of them looked like small boulders. We would never have made it this far barefoot.
Both of us were getting tired fast. Beck's head drooped forward, limp and weak. My poor friend was completely drained, and her leg hurt like hell.
She didn't complain about it, but I knew it was the reason for her slow gait. The brush became denser as we continued on our lost journey. When I almost gave up and suggested we sleep on the ground for the rest of the night, I spotted a dim light ahead. I couldn't contain my excitement.
"Beck, look!” I said, pointing forward. “Do yousee that?"
She lifted her chin, gazing toward the glow. Taking a deep breath, she replied happily.
"Oh, my God, Kit, yes. Do you think it's a house?"
I let go of her waist and grabbed her hand, feeling elated.
"I hope it is. Let's keep our fingers crossed and hope God answers our prayers."
I pulled Becca along, both of us taking bigger strides toward our freedom. We were close enough to see that it wasn't just one house, but multiple homes.
They were all one-story cottages made of crumbling, dingy white cement, shaped like blocks. There was trash strewn around the properties—no porches, no grass; nothing pleasant and homey. I knew immediately that we were in the poorest part of the country. It reeked of despair and misery.
A few rusty old vans were parked along the dirt road connecting the houses in the small area. I was deflated, uninterested in knocking on one of the dilapidated wooden doors that led into each of the decaying buildings.
