OUTSIDE - a post-apocalyptic novel (Outside Series Book 1) by Shalini Boland

Author:Shalini Boland [Boland, Shalini]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Adrenalin Books
Published: 2013-12-27T22:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twenty Five

Riley

*

‘Tricked? I say. ‘Tricked how?

Luc shakes his head slowly, a scowl on his face.

‘Luc, tell me what’s happened.’

He steps closer and starts talking in a fast whisper. ‘Our first night here, I climbed up on the roof to get an idea of the layout of the place. I didn’t see anybody. No security guards or anything. There’s another courtyard round the back and there was a vehicle in there. It was parked under some trees.’

‘A vehicle?’ I say with a growing feeling of dread. I think I know where this is heading.

‘Riley, it was our AV.’

‘Are you sure?’

‘Hundred percent.’

Fred and Jessie were supposed to be waiting a mile away in their jeep with our AV parked close by. They were going wait there for us and if we didn’t show up after ten days they would drive to our Perimeter in Bournemouth and alert our parents who would send in help.

But if our AV was now in Grey’s Close, something had gone very wrong.

‘There wasn’t a lot I could do from up on the roof,’ Luc continued. ‘I had to get back and try to find out what it meant.’

‘So they must’ve caught Fred and Jessie,’ I say. ‘What shall we do? We’ll have to find them. Get them out as well as their kids.’

‘Hang on, Riley. I haven’t told you the rest.’

As I wait for him to continue, I hear footsteps coming down the stairs.

‘Quick,’ I hiss, yanking open the broom cupboard and dragging him inside with me. I pull the door closed behind us, hoping whoever’s coming doesn’t open the door and discover us.

The footsteps get louder and then they stop. We’re in total darkness and there’s a strong smell of wood and disinfectant. Luc’s body is pressed up close to mine. He takes my hand. My heart is crashing against my ribs.

Any minute now, I expect the door to open. We’ll be hauled out and turned over to James Grey. I hold my breath and squeeze Luc’s hand. And then the footsteps continue on, moving further away until I no longer hear them.

Luc inches open the door and peers out. ‘All clear.’

We step out of the cupboard and give each other a look which says it all.

‘God, we need to get out of this place,’ I say.

‘Yeah, might be harder than we thought,’ Luc replies. ‘I found out some other stuff which you’re not going to like.’

I wait for him to go on.

‘The next day, after I’d spotted our AV, I planned to try and get some sense out of somebody. There was this boy a bit younger than me - Michael. I told him about Fred and Jessie’s kids being kidnapped. Hoped he might know who they were.’

‘Was that such a good idea?’

‘I was running out of options. I couldn’t wait around for answers to fall into my lap. Anyway, get this - Michael doesn’t know Fred and Jessie’s kids, but he does know Fred and Jessie.’

‘He knows Fred and Jessie?’

‘Yes.’

‘That can’t be right,’ I say.

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