The Dark and Hollow Places by Carrie Ryan

Author:Carrie Ryan
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, pdf
Tags: Romance, Fantasy, Horror, Young Adult, Science Fiction
ISBN: 9780375895593
Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Published: 2011-03-01T00:00:00+00:00

Over the next few days my sister and I continue to search all the buildings we can sneak into. We find nothing: no hint of a tunnel access or other inspiration for finding a way off the island.

During this time I don’t see Catcher—not up close. Every now and then I may glimpse him unloading supplies from the cable car and then heading back into the Dark City. He looks more exhausted and worn with each trip.

I miss him.

My sister and I find a few odds and ends while scavenging through the abandoned buildings. She’s collected a mound of old blankets and clothes she’s been cutting up and arranging into a quilt, and after watching her for an afternoon, I’ve joined in, though it’s clear I’m not skilled or detail-oriented enough to be any good.

Elias has been spending much more time at home with us, which means our movements have become limited—he hates the idea of us going outside and possibly stirring up Recruiter ire. While my sister seems content to sit and sew day after day, I’m not used to being cooped up inside. I can only stitch so much binding, and finally I tell them I’m headed to the roof for fresh air.

Our building is the tallest in the Sanctuary, so I have an unobstructed view of the world. It’s close to evening, the clouds still belching snow while a clear strip of sky on the horizon burns a muted orange. It’s a subdued cold, one so prevalent that it envelops me, slowly leaching the residual body heat from my clothes.

I stare across the river at the City. The fires in the Neverlands have mostly burned out, although several piles of rubble are still smoldering. In the Dark City itself a few buildings glow with life: people hunkered down against the horde. I wonder how long they’ll survive—if this is what the City was like after the Return, a few sparks of life scattered like embers ready to burn again if only given the chance.

I wonder if they’ll ever catch or just slowly shimmer out as winter and the horde march on.

Even from here I can hear the Unconsecrated, their collective moans drifting across the river on the frigid wind. Generally, cold weather should slow them down, but the City’s always warmer than other places, retaining ambient heat trapped in narrow streets. And while the plague rats may be slower, they’ll still overwhelm a human. There are just too many.

I lean against the wall of the structure enclosing the stairwell, letting it break the worst of the cold air blowing from the river. From here all I can see are the tops of the old skyscrapers in the City, and I blur my eyes, trying to visualize how it once must have been. Not naked steel but gleaming towers bursting with life.

The City must have held such promise then. So many hopes.

I’m yanked from these thoughts when the door from the stairwell opens and a figure moves out into the snow.

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