Endurance by Aguirre Ann

Author:Aguirre, Ann [Aguirre, Ann]
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub
Publisher: Macmillan
Published: 2012-08-11T07:00:00+00:00

Nine

Thimble awoke to snuffling growls and muffled thumps beyond the door. Her heart thudded in her ears. No telling how many Freaks were out there, but they knew they’d trapped their prey. She felt sure she could outsmart them again, but escape would involve fighting as well. She leaned over to wake Stone, but he was already alert.

So was Boy23. Judging by the food smeared on his face, Stone had managed to get some mushroom paste into him. She’d worried about what the brat would eat, as he didn’t even have all his teeth. They could chew meat for him, of course, but he needed milk, too, and she wasn’t a Breeder.

But they had more pressing worries at the moment.

“We need a plan,” she whispered in his ear.

He didn’t move, just listened while she outlined her strategy. After a curt nod, he leaned over and brushed his lips against her cheek as he had once before. Because this moment might never come again and because she wanted no regrets later, she tangled her fingers in his hair and pulled his face to hers. It was a blind kiss, born of silent, hopeless longing.

His breath caught, and then he kissed her back, properly, because he knew how—of course he did—and she would’ve hated the why of it, except that his mouth was hot and fierce and sweet as clean water. She touched her mouth with wondering fingers as he pushed to his feet. In accordance with the master plan, she wedged herself at the back of the small room with Boy23 in her arms, out of range of Freak fangs, out of range of his weapon, even on the backswing.

His breathing sounded unnaturally loud in the confined space; she could hear his fear as clearly as the claws scrabbling against the metal. The door handle rattled. Beyond, the banging increased; they must be able to hear movement. Good ears, then. Probably good noses as well.

You can do it, she told Stone silently, and as if in response to her urging, he took his position, then unlocked and flung open the door. She couldn’t see how many there were, but he killed one cleanly, as if he had been practicing the movements in his head. Just as he’d said the night before: pierce, pull, pierce. His motions were economical, and he went for eyes and throats. Not fancy, as he’d said, but effective. Once Stone blinded them by slashing sideways across their faces, they frenzied, turning on one another in howling rage—and because they couldn’t see what they were attacking. Then he killed them out of mercy, not fear, no rage in his motions, but instead with an awful tenderness, as if these were creatures worthy of his pity. At the back of the pack, one Freak turned and ran, as if it sensed there was something different about its prey.

That behavior puzzled her. Thimble had never heard of self-preservation in a Freak before. Stone took a step.

“Let it go,” she said.

They couldn’t permit themselves to be drawn into a trap.

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