Break Free The Night (Book 1) (29 page)

             
“
I think you broke him
,”
Emma whispered to her sister. Kaylee glared at her.

              Anna was laughing again, looking from Andrew to the faces of both girls
.“
Good plan, Nick
,”
she chuckled
.“
But I think they heard it all anyway
.
”

              Nick scowled up at his daughters as Andrew picked up his walkie-talkie from the workbench and threw it to him. He shook his head and spoke very clearly into the receiver
.“
You have chores. If you do
n’
t need sleep, best get to them
.
”

              Kaylee rolled her eyes and Emma groaned.

             
“
Does this mean w
e’
re going
?”
she yelled, once again leaning dangerously out of the opening. Kaylee was already reaching for her belt to pull her back over the lip. Every eye turned to Nick.

             
“
W
e’
re going
,”
he said through a grimace.

              Jac
k’
s smile reached ear to ear.

Chapter Twelve

             
“
H
e’
ll be fine
,”
Emma assured for the third time. Kaylee bit her lip and shook her head.

             
“
You do
n’
t get it Em
,”
she countered
.“
H
e’
s asked me,
pleaded
with me,
I’
ve turned him down each time
.
”

             
“
Then he should
n’
t be so surprised
,”
Emma sniffed, her tone a bit colder than before.

              It had been three days since the decision was made to leave. Three days since Andrew had last spoken to Kaylee. And Kaylee felt absolutely wretched about it.

              He was
n’
t being very mature about it all, but then again neither had she. She should have told him. Outright and honestly
told him
that she and Jack were together. She had
n’
t and instead it had come out in the worst possible way: a group announcement. And it was only belatedly that Kaylee realized that Andrew deserved more than that. Anna and Emma had teased her for not telling them, her father had grunted at her, but it was Andrew who had needed to hear it from her first of all.

              And mixed with the guilt was a twinge of irritation. Jack could have warned her. He knew Andrew would be listening, did he honestly think that was the best way to tell him? He knew how Andrew felt, encouraged it even at one point. It was either heartless or careless of him and Kaylee could
n’
t decide which one.

              But Jack at least had apologized. When she confronted him, later that day, he had look repentant.

             
“I’
m sorry
,”
he said, frowning
.“
Yo
u’
re right, that probably was
n’
t the best way to handle it
.
”

             
“
Probably not, no
,”
Kaylee answered, her eyes on the door Andrew had just exited from. He had left them both alone in the living room as soon as Kaylee had entered.

             
“
But, h
e’
ll be okay
,”
Jack rushed to add, looking hopeful. Kaylee had bit her lip and hummed, having difficulty moving her eyes from where she had last seen Andrew.

             
“
And anyway
,”
Emma continued, wrenching Kaylee from her thoughts
.“
I
t’
s not as though yo
u’
re the last girl on earth
.”
Kaylee shot her sister an exasperated look. Because though yes, technically that was the truth, after all Anna and Emma did count, she was completely off the point with that comment. Anna held absolutely no interest for Andrew and Emm
a
…

              Well, it was complicated with Emma.

             
“
Just forget it
,”
Kaylee muttered, grabbing the basket of dirty laundry from her siste
r’
s hands
.“I’
ll take care of this, you get to the pantry and start cleaning it out
.
”

             
“
I meant in Alaska
,”
Emma muttered, her hands falling limply to her sides. Kaylee stopped, her foot already poised on the first step to the roof.

             
“
I know
,”
Kaylee whispered, not knowing what else to say as Emm
a’
s face fell. There was rarely a crack in the cheerful mask she forced on everyday; when one happened, it was heartbreaking.

              The scattered stars shone clear and bright and Kaylee needed no lantern to wash and hang the laundry that night. Everyone had been working around the clock, taking on chores individually that were normally done in groups. Now that the decision to leave was made, it seemed everyone wanted to get going as soon as possible. But it would have been stupid to scamper off without scavenging every last bit of usable material from the city.

              Quinton and Jack had spent the nights collecting gasoline. Unknown to Kaylee, they had a tanker truck that they had left somewhere on the outskirts of the city. Apparently when they drove across the country, Jack drove the Hummer and Quinton the tanker truck. Jack explained that the Hummer did better in the crowded cities and also, with their special reinforcements, was
n’
t bad at clearing some of the highways where vehicles had been abandoned. The tanker truck had been less than a quarter filled when they had arrived. They were hoping to remedy that.

              Anna spent time organizing and packing her medical supplies. Quinton was impressed when she began to lay them all out. Vials and packets and syringes and gauze all sat in neat little piles around the room. Names that Kaylee did
n’
t recognize and could barely pronounce marked the contents.

             
“
Wha
t’
s this
?”
Kaylee had asked, picking up a packet of vials marked Diphenhydramine.

             
“
I
t’
s just Benedryl
,”
Anna answered
.“
But i
t’
s good for anaphylaxis
.
”

              Kaylee had given up after that.

              The sounds of night surrounded her, lending a soothing, quiet music. She had never enjoyed the sound of nature before, the croaking tree frogs and crickets that just missed an attempt at rhythm usually annoyed her. But they did
n’
t annoy her tonight. Maybe she was getting used to it. She siphoned out some cold rainwater from the large collection container in the corner before she set to work washing the clothes. It was easy, mindless work and she was glad for it. Her thoughts drifted, as they often seemed to these past few nights, into uneasy territory.

              Excitement mingled with fear. Apprehension. It surged in her belly, roiled and pitched. And tainting it only slightly was guilt.

             
If anything went wron
g
…

              If anything happened to any one of them as a result of this decision to leave it would be her fault. Because it was her fault they were leaving. Jack would
n’
t leave her and Quinton could
n’
t leave him and so, by means of half-deceits and careful wording, they would all be leaving together.

              And no matter how they had gotten her father to believe Emma was the answer for the cure, no matter how much Kaylee wished it to be true, there was some part of her, some nagging little part that squirmed uncomfortably, that whispered and taunte
d
…

             
I
t’
s not true.

              It was
n’
t. Emma may be fine and she may stay that way forever, in a sense. She would never be fine in some ways. Sh
e’
d never share utensils again. Even now Bill insisted that she have her own set and use only those. But that was fine, just like she had the flu or something. There were worse things, things Kaylee was only starting to think of.

              Sh
e’
d never be kissed. Sh
e’
d never have children. How could she? Who could get that close without fear of infection? And even if someone was willing to try, how could Emma let them, knowing that the person she loved may be lost forever at her touch?

              And it was only now, now that the chance was ripped forever from her sister that Kaylee saw what Anna meant when she had said that someday soon, Kaylee might not mind having children.

              The door to the roof slammed open, knocking into the brick wall. The sound reverberated through the night, startling Kaylee and making her jerk away from the cold, soapy water. She stumbled to the side, knocking the large basket of dirty clothes over. Bill stood framed in the low light of the door.

             
“
Sorry
,”
he grunted, nodding towards the clothing spilling out all over the rooftop. Kaylee nodded towards him, keeping her eyes averted. She had never felt overly comfortable with Andre
w’
s father. They did
n’
t have much in common and he was never very warm towards her. His recent actions, and hers, could only serve to drive them further apart. After all, he was willing to shoot and kill her sister and she had rejected his son.

             
“
I
t’
s fine
,”
Kaylee answered automatically, bending to pick the clothing up. She was surprised when Bil
l’
s weathered hand offered a pair of jeans
.“
Thanks
.
”

             
“
Ther
e’
s going to be a meeting later
,”
he barked out, looking uncomfortable. He was shifting his weight from foot to foot and his eyes darted from the spilled laundry to the horizon and then, very reluctantly, to Kaylee herself
.“
Your Dad does
n’
t wan
t
—”

             
“
Us to know
?”
she cut in, tiredly
.“
Yeah,
I’
m sure
.
”

             
“
But you should know
,”
he continued
.“
You should be there
.
”

              Kaylee felt her eyebrows quirk in question.

             
“
I never agreed with his stance to keep you girls out of it. It forced my hand with Andrew on more than one occasion. You are old enough to understand the concerns about re-population and to make your own choices there. You should be allowed to hear wha
t’
s being said and to offer opinions, i
t’
s only fair
.”
Bill spoke with a fierce edge of conviction that surprised Kaylee. She had always assumed he wanted to shield Emma and she just as much as their father did. Now she could see it was really only ever Nick. Anna gave information freely, so long as one asked the right questions. And now Bill was encouraging her to meet with the adults and offer her opinion. The world was certainly shifting.

             
“
Where and when
?”
Kaylee asked, her jaw set in determination. The time was long past for her to act like the adult she was growing to be.

             
“
Your room, two hours
,”
Bill said, the hint of a smile playing at the corners of his mouth. It was the strongest emotion other than irritation that Kaylee had noticed in quite a while
.“
I think yo
u’
re supposed to be getting the dehydrated fruit then? I suggest you wait until after
.
”

             
“
I agree
,”
Kaylee answered, grinning. Her father had set her and her siste
r’
s timelines for that evening very rigidly. Emma would supposedly be taking inventory in the kitchen.