Beyond This Life: Beyond Series Book Two by Mary Kate L

Author:Mary, Kate L.
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Twisted Press, LLC
Published: 2021-05-13T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Fifteen

Drea

I do my best not to think about Jerrick as the truck bumps along the road, which is pitted with holes and overgrown with weeds in most areas. Hopefully, he takes the next few days to think about how he acted and comes to his senses. As much as I wish I’d woken him before leaving, I’m not delusional about how selfish he was being. He was wrong, and I won’t let him get away with it.

Although my melancholy mood tries to hang on, it begins to ebb after less than twenty minutes on the road. I’ve waited too long for this moment to let it be ruined by a stupid disagreement, and I plan on enjoying every second.

Everything is new to me. A lake with sparkling water that seems to stretch out for miles – and is a million times more beautiful than the muddy river we came across on our way here. A group of deer running through a field of yellow and green, their white tails twitching as they jump. Ruins of old buildings so overgrown and dilapidated it’s impossible to distinguish what they once were. Hills. Mountains in the distance. The bones of old vehicles. Animals that scurry for cover at the sound of our engines, too fast for me to identify most of them.

“How far away is the city?” I ask as we pass what looks like the ruins of a small town, now little more than concrete foundations and a couple chimneys.

“Three hours,” Rick says. “Maybe more.”

“More?” Reed leans forward so he can look around me. “I didn’t realize it would be so far.”

“Wouldn’t be if the roads were better.”

As if to prove Rick’s point, the truck’s tires roll over something, and we bounce in our seats.

We only had a handful of trucks in Antares, and all of them were reserved for Protectors. Normal citizens had no use for them since the colony wasn’t very big. I could walk from my house to the Teen Center or gardens in about fifteen minutes – and that was at a leisurely pace. Which means I’ve only been in a truck one other time before – on the ride to the rebel colony. That wasn’t nearly as long as this one will be, and three hours seems like forever to be crammed in this truck. It will be worth it, though.

We chat as the hours pass, Reed and me asking questions about the other places Rick’s been, who answers us with less enthusiasm than I would think possible considering the dozens of ruined cities he’s seen.

“It’s a bit like visiting a graveyard most of the time,” he tells us. “Deathly silent and full of ghosts.”

It’s something I hadn’t thought about before, but I realize he’s right, and the thought makes me shudder.

We lapse into silence, and Reed, who must have gotten bored, rests his head against the window and closes his eyes. A few minutes later, his breathing changes, becoming deep and rhythmic, telling me he’s asleep.

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