Half of me was relieved not to see Riley among them, but the other half was terrified that his lifeless body was in the pile on level one, waiting to be fed to Chomper. Other horrible scenarios danced through my tired mind. His body hadn’t been discovered yet. He clung to life in level four’s infirmary. He was trapped, pinned under a heavy piece of machinery.
I reached for another glass, but my tray was empty. Staring at the ripple pattern on the metal, I tried to remember what I should do as I swayed. Strong hands grabbed my shoulders from behind and guided me to my room. The bed had been cleared and the hands encouraged me to lie down.
My weak protests were ignored. Unable to resist, I collapsed onto the mattress and through a slit in my heavy eyelids, I saw Doctor Lamont. She pulled a blanket over me. And the touch of her lips on my forehead was my last memory.
Familiar voices woke me. They argued. I tried to produce the energy to care, failed, and rolled over to return to sleep. But my mind wouldn’t cooperate. It mulled and tugged until it plucked the proper memory from the depths, exposing it in a series of images. The Big Shake. The injured. Beds filled with people. Blood everywhere.
I lurched to my feet and ran from my room. My sudden exit surprised the two people on the other side of my door. Not caring that I almost knocked Lamont down, I flung myself into Riley’s arms.
He squeezed me as I clung to him. Questions poured from my mouth. “Are you alright? Where have you been? What happened?”
“I’m fine. I’ve been helping Doctor Sanchia. Logan?—”
I pulled back. “Is he…” The word stuck in my throat.
“He’ll be all right.” Riley swept my sleep-tousled hair from my eyes. “He looks better than you.” He rubbed his thumb lightly over the cut on my forehead. “This needs a few stitches. Want me to sew you up?”
I studied his face and realized he was half serious. “Doctor Sanchia let you suture wounds?”
“He didn’t have much choice. We were swamped with people.” Riley feigned nonchalance, waving a hand dismissively. “It’s just a needle and thread. I’ve repaired rips in Sheepy before so I was more than qualified.” Humor sparked in his blue eyes.
My mouth formed an automatic smile whenever I thought of Sheepy and his mother. The stuffed animal family had a special place in my heart. “I hope Sheepy and Mama Sheepy weren’t damaged.”
“They’re fine. I checked on them before coming here. I do have my priorities straight,” he teased.
I swatted him on the shoulder and he winced. Yanking his collar down, I exposed a fist-sized purple bruise.
He peeled my fingers from his shirt. “It’s okay. No broken bones.”
“How did you get hurt?” I asked.
“I was inspecting the wiring on level five with Logan and the floor just heaved, tossing us across the room. He hit his head, but it’s a minor concussion.”
“Heaved?”
“An explosion happened in the power plant and we stood directly above it,” he said.
“Does anyone know what set it off?”
“No. That’s for another week.” He straightened his shirt and smoothed his black hair. Since the rebellion, Riley had let it grow. It smelled of shampoo. “Right now attending to the wounded and finding missing people is the main concern.”
“Have you slept?”
He nodded to the couch. “I arrived just after you went to bed. I didn’t want to wake you, so I showered and slept here. I’ve been helping Doctor Lamont since I woke up.”
Which reminded me. I stepped away from him, glancing around, but Lamont had left. “I should…”
Riley stared at me in horror. Not my face, but my clothes. Dried blood stained almost all the white fabric, which had stiffened.
“Relax, it’s not mine.”
He pointed to a wet patch on my forearm. “And that?”
“Just a cut. I need to shower and?—”
Unwinding the tattered bandage, he exposed the gash. I hissed in pain when he touched it.
“Come on.” He grabbed my hand and pulled me from the apartment.
