The Aftermath

What Ryant had been referring to that they were planning was for us to go on our rescue mission at exactly twelve pm the next day. The morning was dedicated to gather weapons, assembling groups of people who could actually fight, and deciding who would stay which happened.

“Alright! Everyone shut up!” Riley shouted, hair sticking to her forehead where the seat rested. “Go time is in half an hour! Now we need to cover a few things!”

Riley stood on top of a chair. Damien, Ryant, Rodney, Alex, and I stood on all sides of her.

“Altogether we will be taking about sixty of us to fight and that is not including the snipers. So the rest of you that will be staying you guys will need to be prepared for anything.” She reached into a pocket on the back of her cargo pants and took out a machete. “We have left some sort of knife or blade for all of us. Don’t go being sissies and not use them if the time comes. That means if zombies happen to attack this town don’t just run! Those things are fast and it takes a fight to bring them down!”

Riley stepped down from the chair and Damien stood on it next. Lots of people looked honestly scared at the prospect of being left without their leader.

“That being said, we are not leaving you completely defenseless. We have a number of fighters that we left behind and they know intel in case there is another aid on this town. You guys will be evacuated in a fashion that will be explained to you after we leave. We can’t have a wild goose chase like last time. Be smart.”

Damien looked around to all of us and smiled. Cece and Ashley were off at the trucks doing inventory with a few other people.

“You guys ready to kick some ass?” Damien asked.

Alex twirled a gun on his hand and slung an arm over my shoulder. “If that means getting her uncle, dad, and Kyle back then yes. We’re ready to kick some serious ass.”

Everyone started walking for the array of trucks.

“But how are we going to be sure where they keep all those people?” Ryant asked.

Damien chuckled. “Don’t worry. It’ll be beyond obvious when we get there. Who are you driving with?”

Ryant nudged me in the side as Alex’s arm weight down on my shoulder. “With Jasmine, Rodney, Alex, my dad, the usual.”

“Why don’t you ride with me?” Damien suggested. “I have my own car. It’s a Corvette, fixed it up a while back.”

“Wait, Damien how old are you?” I pressed.

“I’m nineteen. I turn twenty in a couple of weeks.”

“Ah, birthday boy.” Ryant joked.

I pulled him closer from where he stood next to me, whispering. “Ryant, isn’t he too old for you? He’s an adult! He’s over an adult! And what is your dad gonna think?”

“My dad will be fine with it.” Ryant said back, trying to force a smile at Damien at the same time. “He loves same sex couples.”

I rolled my eyes. “That’s not what I mean though. Does your dad know how old he is?”

He sort of looked at me like I’m crazy. “Does it matter? I’m seventeen. I can make my own choices.” He separated himself then, running after Damien who had strutted a few feet ahead.

“So now you have a problem with age?” Alex pressed, arm still over my shoulder. I guess he’d been listening to my exchange with Ryant and there was definitely no easy way to answer his question.

“Well from a dad’s point of view it could be hazardous. I don’t want Ryant getting hurt either.”

He stopped, looking out into space for a bit. “So, your dad doesn’t like me because I’m too old?”

My eyes squinted, hand going to the back of my neck. “That’s not the only reason…”

I started walking again, sneakers kicking dust against the ground.

“So your dad hasn’t liked me this entire time? What about all the times I came over for dinner? He loved me!”

I laughed. “Alex, half of those times you just showed up at the door and he had to spend another half an hour in the kitchen cooking more food. Remember that lasagna he made that you said tasted weird?”

“Yeah.”

“He might’ve tried to poison you considering lasagna takes a while to make.”

“Dear God.”

I chuckled again once we finally reached the array of vehicles. Lion rested in the front seat of the white truck. He honked the horn and herded us.

“You guys ready to get the hell out of this town!” Lion cheered.

Cece in the passenger seat clapped. “Hell yes. The water in this town has been dirty. My boyfriend got stolen and the leader here is a bitch. Let’s move out.”

Everyone in the car choked on the laughter as the tires took on dust, everyone except for Rodney who sat next to me.

“Are you okay?”

Just then a large engine sounded and a heavy looking car sped by, showering our white one with dust. Ryant could be heard in the window shouting.

“Is that my son in that car?”

“And he’s in with a unattractive twenty year old.” Rodney gritted.

Ashley ogled from the backseat. “Damien’s not unattractive. Half of the girls in the town want to date him. They’re actually jealous he pays so much attention to Ryant.”

“Well I don’t trust him and neither should Lion.” Rodney snapped, arms pinned shut in front of him.

Cece looked back at him from the front seat once the vehicle hit a series of bumps. “Rodney, are you seriously crushing that hard on Ryant? Because I can put a word in.”

My eyes snapped to the rearview at Lion’s expression.

“Do you like my son?” The entire car went silent and Rodney stared out the window.
“Because if you did, it would be very unfortunate if this entire time he feels as if you’re using him and you don’t let anything you feel be known.”

In other words, grow the balls to tell my son before it’s too late.

“Yeah. Yeah.” Rodney muttered.

The drive went quietly for the longest while then until Alex spoke to me.

“When Riley had that gun and she was threatening us, what was the name that she called you?”

My mind removed the smog it was when his breath washed over my face. He was so close.

“Um, well,…” It took me a while to think. “She called me Christie. I-I think it’s her sister’s name or something.”

Alex seemed taken aback now. “So she has a sister?”

“Had a sister.” I corrected. “Why so curious? Got a crush on her?”

“No, but Alexis told me that she’s been really weird ever since someone died. I’m thinking it may be her.” He frowned at the expression on my face. “Sorry I mentioned her.”

I sighed. “It’s… okay. I shouldn’t be worrying about her. It’s us we need to worry about.”

I took the time to nestle my head into his chest. Outside the surroundings were taking on an array of sunset browns as we neared a misting of canyons.

“I’m sorry if I’m not being as good a boyfriend as I should be. I must be disappointing.”

I felt his heart beat in his chest. It was becoming erratic and hair brained. That meant he felt his own words were the truth and at the same time part of me couldn’t argue.

“I just want to know that we’re on the same page.” I whispered. “I can’t have us running around, fighting for our lives and I don’t know you’re really with me. It hurts.”

His arm went around my shoulder and pulled me in.

“I know. I’m sorry.”

My heart fluttered. Things would get better for us. I felt it in my bones.

“Five more minutes and we’re there!” Lion announced, glancing back on us. Damien’s car happened to be trailing along the edge of ours.

“Where is this place anyway?” Ashley asked. She was holding a map in the backseat, nearly stumbling with all of the rocks in the road.

“You’ll see.”

And we did. Eventually the line of cars pulled off the rough road and onto unmarked paths. Everything bumped and hit various things as we stopped just at a hill of rocks in a vast valley of canyons.

“Don’t tell me we’re at the Grand Canyon. I forgot my camera.” Cece shaded her eyes with her hands and Lion laughed at her joke.

“No. We’re in an offset of canyons in Idaho, not many people travel here because of the fluctuations in temperatures and the coyotes.”

My jaw dropped.

“Coyotes?” I turned back for the car. “That’s it! I’m waiting in the car!”

Alex’s hand caught the collar of my shirt. “Our friends and all those other innocent people are in there? What happened to us being heroes?”

I rolled my eyes. “Fine. Hand me a gun.”

People began to pour out of all the other vans, carrying their guns as well. Everyone poured around to see Riley. I didn’t see Ryant or Damien yet. They must still be driving or in the car. Riley held out a map of canyons.

“Alright. This is where we are.”

Riley pointed readily to map. It showed the current valley of canyons that we were in. Both of them were expansive on both sides and showed many underground tunnels. Off the canyon to our right which showed a gaping cave, it showed a series of interlinking tunnels as well.

“We need to enter into this cave. The main tunnel has a series of off branches that we can take to. Once we’re inside we’ll need to take the tunnel that is at our third left. This tunnel leads into a three way lead. The only thing is that two of these tunnels lead into an underground tavern of water.” She looked to all of us. “That tavern of water sinks eighty feet down and leads out to a series of rocks in a plug at the bottom.”

Ashley stared at her like she had three heads. “And how in the world are we going to test that? That’s a sixty six percent chance of us drowning.”

Riley shook her head. “Damien knows these areas. A few years ago in the paper it mentioned a man who wandered into these caves and fell into one of those underground taverns. He was able to wash up onto one of the under level shores and find his way out.”

My face nearly fell to my hands. This sounded like pure death.

“Well who’s going to test it?” I snapped. “You’re just going to have half of us die.”

Riley looked to me now, crossing her arms. “This was your idea, remember? Me and my crew have done everything we can to make it happen. If anyone dies, it you and that boy’s shoulders.”

I stepped forward. “That boy has a name and it’s Alex. You call him anything else I’ll punch your teeth in.”

She snorted. “Try it? See how long you last without me. You and him, can fall off a ditch for all I care. You and everyone you brought with you.”

I reeled my fist back and it was just about ready to crack her face open when a hand caught.

“Jasmine, calm down.”

I glared at Riley, past the shade of Ryant’s figure while he held my fist.

“Just remember the next time you have one of your hallucinations and call me out of my name, I’ll be sure to call your Christie out of hers.”

Her hand went for her gun, but Damien’s hand stopped her mid motion.

“Calm down. You’re going to make a scene.” I’d like to see that bitch try me. Damien glared to all of us. “Let’s go. Now.”

Time to get this over with.