I nodded, jittery and out of sorts. This was the reason we’d hid in our basement so many days and nights with few provisions, because of people with guns coming to rape and kill us, maybe eat us too. The cannibalistic boogeyman of our worst nightmares.
“Deep breaths, everyone,” Artemis said, looking pointedly at me, maybe because of my asthma, maybe because I was obviously terrified. Cipher disappeared into the woods again, and we continued along the path, though slightly more cautious. My movements were jerky and uncoordinated, and I had to remind myself that they’d been doing this for months now, surviving in the wild.
Just as I caught a glimpse of the river up ahead, we were approached by three men with guns—big ones. They weren’t pointing their weapons at us, but they were holding them as if they might. Their clothing was camouflaged but there was nothing else to signify them as military or police. They looked weathered, hard, and ruthless.
“Good day, gentlemen,” Macon said, forcing a cheerful expression. Holding his axe aloft, he was the only one of us with an obvious weapon.
“Hello, stranger,” said the one in front with a cruel sneer. “I’m afraid it’s not going to be a good day for you.”
“Oh no? Why is that?” Macon asked.
“Well, you see, we’ve claimed this river as our own, and in order for you to pass, you’ll have to pay a toll.”
“How about we just back up and go the long way around?” Macon said.
“That’s not going to be possible, partner. You’ve entered into our territory, and now you’ll have to pay.”
“What’s the toll?”
The man assessed our group. His gaze crawled across my skin like maggots and sized me up like a cut of meat. I had the urge to stab him in the gut like I had that Rabid.
“We want your women,” he said.
The forest was silent–it seemed even the birds had stopped chirping–but inside, my brain was a riot of panic and confusion. Maybe I’d heard him wrong.
“No can do,” Macon said. “You can have our packs and our weapons, but the women stay with us.”
The man laughed, a deep raspy chuckle. Another joined in. The third glowered at us with bad intentions and licked his lips like he was preparing for his next meal.
“We’re not negotiating with you, pretty boy. We have the guns, and you have…” He scanned us again with scorn. “A wheelbarrow of junk, an axe, and a cat?”
“We will not be pleasant company,” Artemis said to him coldly.
The man strolled over to her and dragged his grubby fingers along her face. She stared back at him with hatred, not flinching. “I’m going to enjoy breaking you in, Black Beauty,” he said.
“Fuck you,” she snarled.
He grabbed her arm and tried to yank her away from the group while another one made a move toward Teresa. Teresa let loose a blood-curdling scream, momentarily stunning everyone. Her scream went on and on without end, piercing my fog of terror like an ice pick to the brain. Artemis took advantage of their confusion and shoved her attacker away. Macon lunged after him, axe raised, as one of the men dropped to the ground, then the other. I heard the gunshots afterward, echoes sounding through the forest. With another sickening thud from Macon’s axe, all three men were lying there dead, two with a single bullet hole in their heads, and the third with Macon’s axe blade embedded in his skull. Blood ran out of their wounds in rivers of red and mixed with the dead leaves littering the forest floor. For the final act, I doubled over and puked my breakfast onto the ground.
“It’s okay,” Artemis said, one hand on my shoulder. “You’re okay.”
By the time I stood up again, Teresa had come over and taken hold of my hand.
We waited there, me in shocked silence, for more of them to arrive, for footsteps to come crashing through the forest. I wiped my mouth. I didn’t know how much time had passed before Cipher finally returned, somber and silent. He glanced briefly at the bodies on the ground and said, “Everyone all right?” His discerning gaze assessed everyone in turn, until his eyes landed on me. “What’s wrong with you? Are you hurt?”
He checked me over for injuries as I was shaking and crying and having a hard time breathing. “I’m just… scared,” I bawled, not even caring that I sounded like a baby. That shit was terrifying. I was lucky I hadn’t peed my pants.
Cipher took hold of my shoulders and dragged me to him, wrapped me tightly in his arms. “Deep breaths” he said, rubbing slow circles on my back. “Come on, Kitten, just breathe. I know you can do it.”
I shook my head, trying to speak while gasping for breath. My head was spinning, and I couldn’t stop wheezing. “It happened so fast. They were going to take Artemis and Teresa and… and now they’re… they’re dead.”
“I know. I’m sorry you had to witness that, but you know what they would have done if Macon and I hadn’t acted, right?”
I nodded. Some part of me didn’t want to believe people would be so cruel, but I saw it in their eyes. They would have done terrible things to Artemis and Teresa, and maybe killed the rest of us too.
“Will you get in trouble for it?” I asked.
“Maybe. Maybe not. The military patrols the roads and the police keep order in the cities, but out here it’s everyone for themselves, which is why we have situations like these.” He swept his hand over the three dead men and said to Macon, “Check their guns, would you?”
