“Who’s that?” I ask. “What is this place?”
“Stellan’s mothers live here. Margaret and Jess. They’re the best mechanics, only second to their son. They’re the ones who got me in touch with Perri and Stellan, which led me to live for a time on the Traveling Market.”
He opens the door and exits slowly, hands raised. “Margaret, it’s me!” he shouts.
The woman, Margaret, lowers her gun immediately. “You son of a bitch, Jude. Where did you get a beast like that?” She’s talking about theFirefly.
“Long story.”
“Well, get it inside, away from prying eyes, and you can tell us everything over a drink.”
Once we’re landed in the wide courtyard among the other vehicles, the other woman rushes out of one of the mobile homes. Jess, I’m guessing. She’s black, with short hair and a softer countenance than the other woman. Both embrace Jude affectionately. But Margaret’s attention never strays far away from me, still sitting in theFirefly.
They exchange quick words, certainly about me, because moments later, Margaret follows Jude to me.
I raise a hand to stop them. “Let me try to walk.”
I’m fucking tired of being carried like luggage. I jump down from theFireflyand my legs buckle under my weight. My knees hit the ground hard, and I grind my teeth against the pain echoing through my bones. After a pause, I manage to stand again. But two steps later, I have to concede and let them help me inside. The indignity of it all leaves me wanting to kill someone. Possibly Jude. Luckily, I can feel the electricity nesting in my core, ready to burst out at any moment. A little longer, and I’ll be able to burn him to a crisp.
The shackles and chain around my feet drag in the dust, making it impossible to forget that I’m a prisoner. Jess watches me with something akin to pity and disgust, and I hate it.
Two mobile homes and an RV have been put together to create a spacious home. They grow a few plants indoors and the air inside smells so different from the wastelands. Green and fresh.
They drop me on an old chair. My back and ass get swallowed by the cushions. This chair will be a bitch to get up from.
Jess offers a glass of something that looks like beer to Jude, and surprisingly, she gives me one, too. From the way Margaret watches, I think she disapproves. She’s obviously Stellan’s biological mother. Not only because of her looks, but because she’s as grumpy and suspicious as her son.
“Thank you,” I say to Jess with a smile.
Jude raises an eyebrow at me, as if surprised I can actually be polite. I glare at him. I’m a killer, not a douchebag.
“How are the boys?” Jude asks. “We had to…leave the market in a hurry again.”
Margaret lets out a guffaw. “You have balls to even go back there. If the King got his hands on you…”
Jude shrugs. “To put his hands on me, he needs to catch me first.”
She shakes her head.
“The boys are okay,” says Jess. “You know they have the King’s favor. But try not to be the reason why that changes.” She gives him a pointed look.
Jude looks a little ashamed. “I really needed a hacker, and Perri is the only one I trust with this job. I need the aircraft’s AI to obey my command. It’s dumb as fuck and only obeys…him.” He points at me.
A sudden realization hits me.
“What’s my name?” I ask him.
“Sparky?”
He tried to kill me in Bunkertown. Then he dragged me to the aircraft, and we’ve been traveling for almost a week now, and he doesn’t know my name. I’ll fucking kill him.
“Oliver,” I say between clenched teeth. “My name is Oliver.”
Jude grins. “What a boring name for a mutant.”
Margaret and Jess tense. Oh, so he didn’t tell them who I am exactly.
“They named us in alphabetical order,” I say. “I was born to be the letter O, and they couldn’t think of something more original.”
