Withered by Layton DC & Kraus Mike

Author:Layton, DC & Kraus, Mike
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Muonic Press Inc
Published: 2022-12-30T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY

Eugenia "Jen" McCreedy. Flagstaff, Arizona

Surrounded and outnumbered by the mob, Aaron raised his hands. “Okay, okay, just wait a minute. We have injured, so let us get a few things, and you can have the truck.”

“Leave the food. Move it!” The man waved the gun in Aaron’s face.

He should have run them all over. Jen’s cheeks heated, but she couldn’t decide if it was anger or shame. She slid out of the truck, the drop sending lances of pain through both legs, but she hobbled away from the press of the crowd. The back door opened and Robin, the pup, and Doc emerged.

“Hang on to me, Robin.” Little hands grasped the back of her scrubs, almost pulling them off.

Three men were already in the back of the truck, grabbing boxes and running, and more joined them. Aaron climbed into the back with the rest of the looters, thrusting a crutch at Jen, and a bag at Doc, before taking one more and jumping out.

Pushing and shoving, Aaron carved a path through the throng. Jen stumbled in Aaron’s wake and didn’t stop even when the pup yipped. Ladybug would have to care for herself. Jen had to get Robin to safety and away from these insane people before they took what little they had left. The truck’s engine roared, tires squealed and people screamed, but Jen kept going.

When the crush thinned, Aaron glanced back. “Jen, turn right at the next corner, then go five more blocks, then another right. I’ll make sure no one follows us.”

She shuffled forward despite the searing pain of her wounds. Doc moved up next to her, the three of them forming a triangle around Robin while the pup danced circles around her herd, snapping at anyone who dared to come near. Ladybug had learned a sad lesson—she had to defend herself and her pack from strangers.

The sounds of the mob faded, and Jen’s panting grew. Aaron rejoined them and they trudged past businesses, every window broken, some fire damaged, and more nothing but piles of rubble from the unending earthquakes. Gradually, they limped into a residential area, also heavily damaged by earthquakes and looting. The stench of sewage and rotting food grew. Then they entered a blackened, devastated wasteland, the scorched chimneys standing as the only gravestones the former residents would have. At least it didn’t stink.

Jen slowed as the day wore on, and they rested more and more often as the sun rose higher. Despite the smoky skies, the heat was brutal, not made easier by the need to ration what little water they had. She collapsed in the scant shade of a dying pine.

Robin thudded down next to her. “My feet hurt.”

“I know. Mine do too.” Aaron handed her the water bottle.

After Robin had drunk her fill, the three of them traded sips until the bottle was empty. They didn’t have to talk about how precarious their situation was; discussing it would only terrify Robin.

Doc lowered himself to the ground by Jen’s feet, putting his head on the bag of supplies he carried, his body in the long shadow of the tree.

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