Rocky Horror steps closer to Jamie. “Jamie, what’s going on?”
“Hannah!” Denton is still focused on her instead of me.
“He’s the one who shot me!” Jamie says. That’s enough for Rocky Horror, and he turns, stepping in front of Jamie, but still keeps his weapon on his shoulder. His eyes drift over to me, and I nod.
Denton stands upright and frowns. “I did not shoot you.”
Jamie pulls up his shirt, showing the pink scar on the right side of his stomach. “What’s that, then?”
“No, no.” He shakes his head. “Iwas not the one who did that.”
“Technicalities aren’t going to settle this, dude,” Rocky Horror says.
“He’s the sheriff of Fort Caroline,” I say. “He and a whole militia came after the three of us. First they sent people out to find and kill us—that was Harvey Rosewood and his friend.”
Jamie jumps in. “But before they could hurt Andrew, I shot them.”
Rocky Horror speaks out of the corner of his mouth. “Okay, sayingyoushot first isn’t helping here, Han Solo.”
Jamie flicks his head toward the Nomads. “This is a trap. They brought us here.”
Cal’s eyes go wide, and Kevin looks over at him with his good eye, also seemingly confused.
“Jamie, what are you talking about?” I ask.
“Look in my pack,” he says. I slowly step behind him. “There’s a piece of paper in the front pouch. Look at it.”
I unzip the pouch and find the paper he’s talking about. There’s black ink stamped on it, bleeding blue a little around the messy edges from getting wet. But when I unfold it, the words on the front catchmy attention more than the little map stamped on the back.
WANTED. ALIVE.And Jamison’s name. My heartbeat quickens.
“Where did you get this?” I ask.
“I found it on a body when we were getting warm clothes for the kids.”
The Dick’s Sporting Goods. He went off somewhere and was quiet for so long. He must have... He found this and didn’t tell me.
Why the hell would he keep something like this from me?
I hold it out to Cara, who takes it, her eyes wide. Denton reads it over her shoulder, and he seems just as surprised.
“They brought us here,” Jamie says. “The Nomads. They knew we’d sense something was up when they took us near Fort Caroline, so they set us up to meet somewhere else. Because look who’s here to bring me back and pay their reward.”
“That’s not true,” Cal says. But I’m not sure I believe him.
“There was no universal convergence,” Jamie says. That phrase again. “You were outlookingfor us. That’s why the Keys haven’t caught up with us. This is your settlement, isn’t it? You let Cara get us this far so you could have Fort Caroline waiting here for us.”
“Jamison, stop!” Denton yells. Cara’s eyes haven’t left the wanted poster in her hands. “This isn’t some big conspiracy.”
“We’re just as confused as you,” Cal says, stepping around so he can see Jamie. He also gives me a look, and I’m starting to believe him. Maybe Jamie is, too, because he looks away from Denton for a second to lock eyes with Cal, who nods slowly. “Just tell us what’s going on. How do you know these people?”
“Just him,” Jamie says. “He’s from a settlement that tried to killAndrew and me. They said they were going to kill Andrew and make me watch.”
“That was not what we sent them to do,” Denton says. “And, Hannah, I told you already to put the damn gun away.” She looks over at him, then back at Jamie, before putting her gun back in the holster. But she leaves her hand on it.
“Jamie,” Cara says, taking the same tone of voice as Denton. “Put the gun down. I know Grover, he’s telling the truth.” Jamie doesn’t move. Using a voice I’ve never heard her use—and one she probably hasn’t used herself very often based on how shaky it is—Cara addresses everyone else. “Everyone.Guns. Down!”
Cal glances at Jamie one last time, then holsters his gun.
