“No one’s ever escaped the Colonies.” I whisper, feeling my heart leap into my throat as the silence drags out.
When Vin looks over at me the pull of his electric green eyes forces me to look back. He grins, his face fierce.
“There’s a first time for everything.” He reaches out his hand, offering it to shake. To make a deal.
There’s a screech of metal again, then another yawn, this time from the front of the van. We lurch forward. We’re passing through something. We’re entering their compound. This is real.
I hesitate only a moment before slipping my hand into his. I’m surprised to feel cold metal pressed between our palms and when I take my hand away I see that he’s slipped a small, sharpened scrap of metal into it. It’s not much, not even enough to call a knife. It won’t kill but it will hurt.
“They’re going to separate me from you girls.” Vin tells me hurriedly as we roll quickly over surprising smooth ground. “Keep them safe and I’ll work on our escape. Deal?”
The van stops. Doors are opened and slammed. Footsteps approach from both sides to meet at the back door.
“Do we have a deal?” Vin demands.
The door flies open. Bright afternoon light spills in, blinding us all. I hear footsteps thunder across the metal floor then harsh hands lift me up and pull me away. Breanne screams. I hear Vin’s deep, calm voice telling her to cool it. That it’ll be alright. More feet, more hands, then cold air.
“Kitten!” Vin calls. I can hear him struggling in the back of the van. “Do we have a deal?!”
“Couple hours with her and you’re already trying to pimp her?” a guy asks from beside me. “We don’t play that way here. You’re out of a job, buddy.”
I’ve never made a deal with a Lost Boy before, certainly not a member of The Hive. I don’t know that it’s a smart thing to do. Saving Ryan has caused me a world of trouble. It’s a mistake I really shouldn’t repeat. It’ll be easier to sneak myself out alone than try to get Vin, Breanne and Nats out with me. As far as anyone knows, no one has ever escaped the Colonies before but maybe that’s not entirely true. Maybe people like me have. Loners who found a way and slipped back into the wild with no one to tell the tale to. No one to welcome us home. No one to care if we lived or died.
“Joss!”
“Yes!” I shout back, surprising myself. My eyes are evening out, becoming adjusted to the light. I can see Vin’s face now. He’s being hauled out by three guys but he’s staring straight at me, his eyes focused hard on mine.
“Yeah, Vin.” I repeat calmly, slipping the shiv up into my sleeve as I step closer to his girls. “We have a deal.”
Chapter Eleven
I have no idea where we are other than beside the water. In front of us is a huge white building with faded blue trim. It looks like a warehouse that was once dressed up to serve a grander purpose. Kind of like a train station or library. It squats on the upper left corner of a large lot full of green space that is being used for planting. The even rows suggest fields, though any crop is far out of season at the moment. I shiver against the cold, missing my jacket and hating being this close to the water. It surrounds the lot on all sides but one; the south side where we entered. When I look back at it I can see a row of multicolored, weathered shipping containers stacked two high. The line of them runs from shore to shore. Most containers are lined up end to end except for two right in the middle. They’re running the opposite direction so that they can be opened and vehicles, like ours, are allowed to pass through. Now they stand locked up tight, an impassible barrier for zombies and Lost Boys. And us.
They take Vin away immediately, leading him through a side door and out of sight. He goes quietly once I’ve made my promise, but I can see the tension in his shoulders. The tightness in his step. They’d be wise to keep an eye on him.
Breanne, Nats and I are left standing out in the cold surrounded by three men on guard. I don’t know what month it is but judging by the briskness in the air, I’d say it’s almost December.
Christmas time.
The thought pisses me off almost more than being taken prisoner. Almost.
“Can we go inside yet?” Nats asks a guard, glaring at him. “It’s kind of cold out here.”
The guy with the gentle hands shakes his head apologetically. “We have to wait for the women to come get you. They’ll take you to the showers.”
“Hot showers?” Breanne asks hopefully. She’s clinging to Nats’ arm the way she was clinging to Vin before and I find myself getting annoyed with her. It’d be brilliant if it was all an act, making herself look meek and afraid only to throw them off, but I’m pretty sure this is her 100%. I’m already regretting taking on the role of babysitter.
“Hot showers.” gentle guy says with a small smile.
“What then?” I ask, my voice hard. “What do you do with us then?”
“Then we’ll get you something to eat.” He smiles at Breanne again. “Something hot. After that you’ll get a tour and you’ll be assigned a bed. Then we’ll help you get acclimated, start helping you find the right job.”
“What if I don’t want a job?”
His smile fades. “We all work. You’ll need to contribute to stay here.”
“I don’t want to stay here. I don’t want to contribute. So if you’ll just show me the door…”
“You’ll learn.”
“Learn what? To like prison? No thank you.”
“This is for your own good.” another guy tells me, his eyes pitying. “You can’t survive out there alone. We’re here to save you.”
I glare at him. “I’ve survived out there alone for the better part of a decade. I don’t need you or your protection.”
He shakes his head sadly. “You’ll learn.”
I’m certain I don’t want to know what they plan to teach me here.
A door swings open on creaking hinges, drawing all of our stares. Three women come out one by one in a line, all of them perfectly clean and groomed. Their soft, shining hair catches the sunlight and a small breeze, rippling like silk. They all look to be about late 20s or early 30s and they’re all beautiful. I feel especially grimy just looking at them and I realize that with the chill in the air lately I haven’t risked a full washing in almost a month. It’s too cold to have wet hair this time of year.
A blond walks up to us smiling brightly as she fakes a shiver. “Ooh, it’s cold out, isn’t it? Let’s make this quick! Ladies and—oh, I thought we had ourselves a gentleman as well?” she says, looking questioningly at the men guarding us.
“He’s already been taken in.”
She blinks once long and hard but her smile never fails. It’s the creepiest thing I’ve ever seen and, as you can imagine, I’ve seen some seriously creepy things in my day.
“No matter. At any rate, ladies, welcome to the MOHAI!”
We all stare at her blankly.
“As you may not know,” she continues happily. “The MOHAI was, and some of us feel still is, the Seattle Museum of History and Industry. It’s a beautiful building with very exciting exhibits inside. Now, admittedly, we’ve taken a lot of them down and disposed of them due to space issues but there’s still some fun stuff to see.”
I look sideways at Nats. I’m relieved to see my confusion mirrored on her face.
What the hell is happening here?
“Now,” says Tour Guide Barbie, turning serious. “We are so excited to have you here and we can’t wait to show you just everything but first things first. We have to get you cleaned up. So, if you’ll follow me I’ll take you straight to the showers.”
As she turns her back, I look her and the other women up and down, searching for weapons. The men who have been standing guard all have utility belts on with knives, sharp screwdrivers and either a hammer or a heavy wrench. One even looks like he might have a Taser, something I’ve been eyeing since we left the van.