She glanced at her watch. “How far is Dunbar?”
“Probably four more hours of walking.”
“‘Probably’?”
“I’ve never actually walked there. If we pick it up, maybe three hours?”
“So let’s try to pick it up.”
She stood up and started off, but this time made sure to angle left for a bit until they had put more space between them and the lake. Milly and Peter followed as best they could, the girl already looking as if she was struggling with her pack. That didn’t surprise Gaby. The thirteen-year-old was painfully thin, even though she and Peter had been living in L15, according to them, for over two months now.
They’ve had it too easy. Got soft. Meanwhile, I was in the woods with Will and Danny eating bugs and sleeping on dirt.
She sneaked a look back at them. They were moving too slowly, hampering her pace. Every now and then, she had to fight the urge to run off and leave them behind.
They saved your life. You owe them a little bit of patience.
For now…
Hillman’s Lake had ended about an hour back, and they were now walking alongside a two-lane state highway somewhere at the outskirts of the Dunbar city limit. They had passed a dozen or so farm houses along the way, with old structures that appeared barren from the road. Most of the city was still ahead, but at the moment there were just the walls of trees to the left and right of them.
Milly’s pace had flagged even further and the girl was straining, both hands hooked around the straps of her backpack. The heat, simmering against the hot concrete road, didn’t do them any favors, and they were all soaked from head to toe in their own sweat. It was October in Louisiana. When the hell was it going to get cold? She couldn’t wait, though she was starting to wonder if she would actually live long enough to see the seasons change. What she wouldn’t give to be able to wear a jacket these days…
Peter was doing better than Milly, but that was probably because he wasn’t always a cook in a nondescript town in the middle of nowhere. For a former Human Resources manager (whatever that was), he kept up with her well enough that Gaby stopped worrying about him. As he walked beside her, she couldn’t help but think about Nate and that day in Sandwhite Wildlife State Park as they fled the men in Level B hazmat suits.
Are you still alive out there, Nate? Or are you one of them now?
“Was he a friend of yours?” Peter asked, his voice intruding on her thoughts.
“Who?” she said, though she already knew the answer.
“Nate. The man you were looking for. He was a friend of yours?”
“He is.”
Was. He’s dead. Why can’t you accept it?
“Why?” she asked.
“I was just wondering,” Peter said. “I’m sorry. I wish I could have told you more about what happened to him.”
“It’s okay. I don’t even know if—” he survived “—they brought him back to the same town as me. They might have split us up.”
Now you’re lying to a stranger about Nate? Someone’s delusions have gone into overdrive.
“When was the last time you saw him?” Peter asked.
“I don’t know,” she said. “I don’t even know exactly know how long I’ve been in your town. The days are a little fuzzy.”
“Maybe he’s out there somewhere. You never know.” He shrugged. “Look at me and Milly. Who would think we’d still be around? So many people have died, and we somehow managed to keep going.”
“There’s an island,” Gaby said. “Down south. Have you ever heard of Beaufont Lake?”
“I’ve heard of it, but I didn’t know there was an island on it.”
“There is. I have friends there. After we spend the night in Dunbar and gather some supplies, that’s where I’m going. You and Milly are welcome to tag along.”
“Okay,” Peter said quickly.
“That’s it? You’re not going to ask me any more about it?”
He grinned. “Gaby, you seemed to know a hell of a lot more about what’s going on out here than I do. And you’re damn well more prepared than I am to survive it. If you say this island is preferable to staying out here, then yeah, I’ll take you at your word.”
She shrugged. “Your funeral.”
“Whose funeral?” Milly said behind them.
“Nothing,” Peter said, smiling back at her. “It’s just a figure of speech.” He looked over at Gaby. “Right?”
“Right,” Gaby nodded, but thought, Maybe…
“See?” Peter said.
Milly didn’t look convinced.
“You never told me why the two of you decided to run,” Gaby said, hoping to steer the conversation away from less depressing subjects.
“I was wondering when you were going to ask,” Peter said. “What took you so long?”
“There were more pressing matters until now. Like staying alive.”
He didn’t answer right away. Finally, he said, “Things weren’t what we thought they were. Back in town.”
“What did you think it was?”
“Don’t get me wrong. We went there with our eyes wide open. We accepted the contract with those ghouls, as you call them. But then people started disappearing.”
“Disappearing?”
“Men, mostly. Guys who were more — I guess you would say — opinionated than most.”
“I don’t know what that means.”
“They asked questions. Too many questions, as it turned out.”
“Troublemakers?”
“Yeah, I guess you could call them that.”
“Just the guys?”
“Just the guys,” Peter nodded. “One day they’re there, the next they’re gone. Whenever anyone asked, the guards just said they were moved to another town. It wasn’t like anyone could verify it. We were allowed to leave whenever we wanted — or so they said — but you know what’s out there, so no one ever did. Plus, they never told us where these ‘other towns’ were.”
“So you decided to run because some loudmouths were going missing?”
“No, it wasn’t until someone I knew disappeared. A guy named Jake. He was a cop from New Orleans. Milly and I met him in one of those camps. Good guy, tough.”
“How big was the camp?”
“What?”
“The camp you were in.”
“Oh. Pretty big.”
“How many people were there?” Gaby asked, remembering the size of the one at Sandwhite Wildlife State Park. All those people in one place, like rats looking for salvation from a sinking ship. Thinking about it always made her angry and sad at the same time.
“A few thousand, probably,” Peter said.
She nodded. “So what happened to Jake?”
“He disappeared one night. Milly saw it happen.”
Gaby glanced back at the girl, who confirmed it with a solemn nod. “What did you see?” Gaby asked her.
“The soldiers took him,” Milly said.
“She has trouble sleeping,” Peter said. “It’s all those nights we spent running after everything happened. It still gives her nightmares sometimes.”
Milly looked away, apparently no longer interested in the topic. Or trying her best to avoid it. In so many ways, she wasn’t even close to being as tough as Lara’s Elise, or Carly’s little sister Vera. Thirteen or not, Milly didn’t have either of those girls’ survival instincts.
“What happened to Jake?” Gaby asked Peter.
“I don’t know, exactly. I asked around — as discreetly as possible — but no one could tell me where they took him. The closest thing to an answer I got was from Howard. He’s one of the guards. A good guy, as far as guards go.”