The trees have thinned out, but we find a drainage ditch with some scrub brush covering it. It’s not perfect, but it’ll have to do. I only hope we took cover quickly enough before anybody saw us. We’re lucky Aiden has such good hearing and detected the cars quickly.
We both lie flat on our stomachs in the dirt. The sound of tires on gravel is now clear. The cold steel of the rifle in my hand is ready if the vehicles stop near us.
I push myself up enough to see several large trucks with enormous wheels speeding our way, kicking up a massive cloud of dust in their wake. Flags mounted on the rear of the trucks flap furiously in the wind. They’re all black, with a golden image of a snake wrapping itself around a rifle.
As I hunker back down, my pulse quickens as the sound of the trucks gets louder. Aiden looks over at me, clearly alarmed by my reaction. His look of worry is making it worse. My throat constricts, and I’m finding it hard to breathe.
The trucks are driving right by us now, the engine sounds loud and throaty. Tires kick up the gravel, flying all over us, and we’re blanketed with a cloud of dust.
I’m overwhelmed with the sudden urge to run, certain they will find us. I move to get up, wanting to get away as quickly as possible. Aiden puts a hand on my chest. I lurch from it, but he holds me down gently but firmly and whispers in my ear.
“It’s going to be okay, Zach.”
His touch and voice combined are enough to calm me and let me catch my breath. I inhale deeply, slowing my pulse.
And then they pass.
The sound of engines and gravel gets quieter. I exhale, relief flooding over me. My panic dissipates quickly.
Aiden looks me in the eye. “You okay?”
I nod. “Yeah. Thanks. Sorry I freaked out.”
We lie there, unmoving and quiet, until the dust settles and the sound of the trucks has long faded.
“That was the flag of the Freedom Liberation Army.” Aiden’s eyebrows draw together. “They might have been the ones at the camp too. We can’t assume these roads are safe anymore. Let’s keep our guard up.”
My fear from earlier is turning into low-grade anger. Anger for being chased and for not knowing why. And from being kept in the dark.
I turn to Aiden, my whole body tense. “I need to know more about what we’re up against. My life is in danger, and I don’t have a clue as to why. I barely know the first thing about you.”
“I told you, Zach. It’s for your own good.”
“That’s bullshit. You have to give me something.”
Aiden stands there, his jaws clenched. He breathes in deeply a few times. “Okay. If we start walking again, I’ll fill you in. But I’m going to start at the beginning.”
Chapter Fourteen
The Great Collapse
AIDEN
After that close call, emotions are running high, and we’re both on edge. But the promise of hearing more calms Zach enough to get us moving again. So we continue heading down the path.
I’m frustrated by Zach’s insistence about digging into my past. I guess he has a right to know some of it. But I’m not willing to tell him about certain things. Things that are too important andmustbe kept secret. And things that are too emotionally raw for me to bring up. But there are some details Icanshare. Maybe it will be enough to satisfy him for now.
“Let me start at the beginning. I lived with my family in Brookline, a suburb of Boston. My mom and dad were visiting my abuelita in Chicago, and my brother was at college in California. I had the house to myself, so Marcus practically lived there. Then the Great Collapse happened.”
Zach cuts in. “You know, I never really knew much about the Great Collapse. Power and Internet went out and stayed out. Stores went empty, and people started dying. That’s all I know.”
“Oh, shit. Really?”
“Really.”
I feel a little stunned. “So you don’t know about the earthquake?”
“What earthquake?”
