She jumped off the ground and then we were airborne. Glancing out over Dawn’s shoulder, I saw the breeder staring at me wide-eyed.
‘Kit okay?’ Dawnasked.
I surprisingly was. ‘Yeah. Thankyou.’
I’d fought the breeder, without weapons, and had made her nose bleed. I didthat.
Maybe Iwasa weapon like Jeremysaid.
It was nearly an hour’s flight back to sky home, and the entire time I clutched the file folder box like my life depended on it. Itdiddepend on it. I wanted to rip it open and chug the water inside, but I was afraid if I did so midflight, the contents would spill out everywhere and I’d be screwed. So instead, I spent the hour thinking about how quickly I’d devour the cookie packet and the chips. Not to mention chugging two full bottles of water. Screw rationing, I was absolutely famished and dying of thirst. I’d lost count of how many hours I’d been there. Twelve, maybefifteen.
Once Dawn landed near sky home, it was dark outside and I hoped Maxine and the crew would be dropping in again soon. I’d never been in the Dream Wars this long, and I was absolutely freakingout.
I hopped off Dawn and she bid me farewell, said she had to meet with her council, and would be back later if she felt Maxine. I ran hastily to my den, clutching my little box as my stomach growled. I rushed by a few pregnant females, who nodded as I passed, and I tried not to look like a crazed woman but I probably failed. The thirst hit me full throttle, and I felt my heart pounding in my chest hard. Ronnie would probably say I was mildlydehydrated.
Getting into my little den, I threw myself dramatically onto my sleeping bag and opened the box. Grabbing the first bottle I could find, I cracked the lid, tipping my head back, and chugging it like a beer on my twenty-first birthday. Hunger I could handle, but I didn’t ever want to go without water again. After finishing the bottle, I decided a few cookies would do megood.
Reaching in for the bag, I noticed the manila file folders crushed at the bottom of the box. I opened a baggie of chocolate chip cookies and started to leaf through some of the material. At first, I wasn’t sure what the hell I was reading, just random names of people in other countries and information about them. Suddenly, with dread, I realized it was a file on various citizens over the years who had tried to make a device that would take out the ghouls. A sixteen-year-old kid, in Taiwan, and a fifty-six-year-old ex-Army dude, in San Diego, stood out. These people were all over the world, and they all had one word after their name and weaponinformation.
‘Terminated.’
Holyshit.
I was only half-surprised when I saw Damien’s name at the bottom of the list with the description of his plasmacuff.
No.
It didn’t say ‘terminated,’ but it showed the Bisbee mine location and had the word next to that instead. But Damien’s course of action was blank. My heart was in my throat, but I forced myself to keep reading. Tears rolled down my face with everyword.
The United States wasn’t the only one in on it. Nearly every major country had banded together and signed an accord with the US to allow the complete terraforming of the human race. In return, they were each allowed one hundred people who were ‘safe,’ and barrels and barrels of the green stuff. They were planning a new world once the riffraff of humanity was gone. It was going to be full of population control, curfews, job assignments at birth, and so many other horrors that I could barely bring myself to skimover.
The final file was the location of where they stored the green stuff. It was some loading dock in Boston before transporting it to their top-secret location in Nevada. I committed the Boston address tomemory.
‘Damien.’I reached out frantically through the Dream Wars, hoping to speak withhim.
Nothing.
I settled my mind, taking a few deep breaths. ‘Damien.’
‘I’m here.’ His response was immediate thattime.
‘You’re in danger on Earth. You need to hire a security team to watch over you day and night. Protect your body while sleeping. Jeremy’s too.’I rushed the words out in case our connection was broken at any moment. I needed him to know the government had a plan for him, and his life had an expirationdate.
His energy bristled. ‘Why? What happened. Are youokay?’
How the hell do I explain something likethis?
‘I’m fine. I found a government building and some secret documents. I just need you to trust me. Don’t go to sleep tonight without a team guarding your body. Do youpromise?’
There was a pause. ‘I promise. I know aguy.’
I relaxed a little. The thought of anything happening to him or Jeremy made mesick.
‘Hey, Kit. Master Aki is on his way to Vancouver,’hesaid.
My head shot back.‘What?’
‘Yeah, Ronnie called him and… umm… well, Jeremy’s been getting live readings from yourhat.’
