Broken World (Book 6): Forgotten World (19 page)

“A lot of good that does us now,” I mutter, not stopping.

I look over my shoulder as Axl and I lead Ginny down the driveway. Joshua is at our backs, and behind him, Parvarti and Jim walk, smoking as they head toward the house. Even Parv shoots Dax a look that is more than a little hostile. Angus is the only one still standing next to the truck, but I don’t know why. He can’t be on Dax’s side.

“You can keep on walkin’ if you like,” Angus says. “But that ain’ what we’re doin’. We’re goin’ down there and we’re gonna rest, and we’re gonna do what Axl and me decide is best for the group. I’m offerin’ up my life here, which is fine with me, but ‘til I step through the gates of Atlanta, nobody has a say in what I do with that life but me. Least of all you.”

Angus spits, then turns and heads after us, leaving Dax by himself.

I turn back so I can focus on the house in front of us. A part of me wishes Dax would head back to Hope Springs and leave the rest of us alone. We’re all committed to getting Angus to Atlanta, but that isn’t our only goal. If we all die, there will be no one left to help keep Angus alive, let alone have his back or get him to the CDC. Dax doesn’t seem to understand the big picture here: we need to work together.

We’re halfway down the drive when Ginny grunts and stops moving. She bends over with her arms wrapped around her stomach, and my own gut clenches.

“What’s wrong?” I ask, leaning down so I can see her face. “What happened? Are you okay?”

Axl and Parv and Jim are suddenly surrounding us, the expressions on their faces just as full of concern as my own.

“She in labor?” Angus asks as he jogs up to join us.

“I’m fine.” Ginny shakes her head, but the grimace on her face tells a different story. “Cramps. That’s all.”

“Shit,” Joshua says. “We have to get you inside.”

We’ve still got a ways to walk, and the second Ginny’s pain lets up, we start moving again, trying to urge her forward as fast as she can wobble. I’ve had a baby, so I know what’s happening without even asking, but I can’t stop thinking it through. Thirty-four weeks, that’s six weeks early. Viable, but still premature and small. How small, though? It’s tough to tell. Four pounds, possibly a little bigger.

Axl, Jim, and Parvarti jog ahead to check out the house while Angus hangs back. Joshua and I keep Ginny moving, and thankfully no other pains hit her before we make it to the porch.

We wait outside for the others to come back and tell us the place is clear. Ginny sits on the steps, wincing like every move is uncomfortable—after the last couple days we’ve had, they probably are. Angus hovers over her with his knife out and ready as if something is going to jump out at any second, while Joshua wrings his hands like a worried old lady. In the distance, I can just make out Dax’s outline as he heads down the driveway after us.

When Axl finally reappears and confirms that the house is clear, we move inside. It’s dark and dusty, but nicer than a lot of the other places we’ve taken shelter in over the last few months. When you’re on the road, you can’t be picky. At least this place has beds and couches.

“Upstairs,” Joshua says, urging Ginny forward.

We climb, the two of us supporting Ginny as she huffs. I can’t help noticing how much more she’s wobbling than she did before. Once we make it to the bedroom and I get a good look at her, I know why. Her stomach is visibly lower. The baby has dropped.

“Bed,” Joshua says, looking around frantically. “We need gloves and hot water and soap. I need to wash my hands.”

He’s shaking, and his eyes are so big he looks like a madman. It’s been four years since I went through this myself, and even though I can help Ginny out, I can’t deliver a baby. Not the way he can. We need him, and we need him calm.

“Joshua,” I say quietly. His eyes snap toward me, and I take his hand in mine. “Relax. We don’t even know what’s going on yet. It could be false labor. Right?”

He nods slowly as he blows out through his mouth. “Yeah. It’s early, so it could be false labor.”

As if on cue, Ginny lets out a moan. The sound is so strained and full of hurt that it pierces through me, settling in my stomach and weighing me down. This isn’t false labor, and we all know it.

“Okay,” Joshua says, then inhales slowly. “Right. I’m going to take a look around and see what, if anything, I can find to help out. I want to see if she’d dilated, but there are things I need to do to prepare first. Mainly getting clean. Stay with her. Hold her hand and keep her calm.”

“Okay,” I whisper, watching my friend’s face contort in pain.

Having a baby out here where we have no running water or supplies is going to be rough. This baby already had a slim chance of making it, but add a premature delivery on top of all the other worries, and it seems like impossible odds.

Joshua heads toward the door just as Ginny relaxes.

“You okay?” I ask, patting her hand.

“Yeah.” She nods, but I can tell she’s putting on a brave face. She looks like she’s utterly terrified, and she should be.

“I’ll be right back.” I give Ginny’s hand a squeeze before hopping to my feet, hurrying after Joshua. I catch him just as he’s reached the stairs and grab his arm so he turns to face me. “What are the odds of this turning out good? The baby is six weeks early. How big will it be? Will there be complications?”

Joshua’s Adam’s apple bobs when he swallows. “It’s hard to say. At this stage, the baby should be between four and five pounds, but some babies are five pounds at full term, so we have no way of knowing for sure. It could struggle to breathe if the lungs aren’t fully developed, but again, that varies. Some babies are born at this age and they’re perfectly healthy. Others…”

He doesn’t need to say any more. The unspoken words are written all over his face. But the truth is, if this baby dies, we’ll have no way of knowing if it was from a premature birth or if the virus caused it.

“Go,” I say, dropping Joshua’s arm. “I’ll sit with Ginny.”

Ginny lets out a groan and clutches the sheets when another contraction rolls over her.

“You need to breathe,” I remind her.

She nods as she exhales, blowing air out through her nose. I wipe her sweaty face with a washcloth, hoping to ease some of her discomfort. The water isn’t exactly cold, but it’s better than nothing.

“How much longer?” Ginny moans after the contraction has resided.

I look up and meet Joshua’s worried gaze. “It’s hard to say. You’re at six centimeters, so it could be another four hours, or it could be less. With the way you’re progressing, I’d say less.”

Ginny nods, and a few strands of hair fall across her face. The sun has set, and as far as I know, everyone else is downstairs. Parvarti came up once to check on us but was back out the door the second Ginny started moaning. The men haven’t set foot upstairs as far as I know, and I haven’t left the room.

“Your contractions are still five minutes or so apart,” Joshua says.

“It’s a miracle you found a watch that still works.” Ginny says, forcing out a smile.

Joshua pats her leg. “There are a lot of miracles going around these days, and I wouldn’t be surprised if we had another one here soon.”

“Don’t hold your breath.” Ginny winces and exhales slowly through her nose. She looks exhausted, but oddly peaceful, which doesn’t match her words.

“You’re going to be okay,” I say, taking her hand. “And the baby will, too.”

“No one knows that for sure.” Her eyes dart toward Joshua before settling back on me. “I wanted to talk to you about something. I know my timing’s bad, but since it might be our only chance, I figured I should just go for it.”

I pat her hand. “You have plenty of time.”

Ginny nods but looks toward Joshua again.

He stands and stretches his arms over his head, letting out a yawn. “I’m going to grab a bite to eat before things get crazy. I think my stomach is trying to eat itself.”

“Sounds good,” I say.

Ginny’s gaze follows him across the room, and I get the impression she’s avoiding looking at me. My stomach tenses in anticipation, but I’m not sure what I’m nervous about. I knew she wanted to talk to me about whatever happened with her and Axl, but there’s nothing that should concern me. Right?

“What is it?” I say the second Joshua’s footsteps have started to fade away.

Ginny’s green eyes finally meet mine, and I hold my breath. Still she doesn’t talk, so I start counting. Thirty seconds pass, and I’m still waiting.

“Ginny,” I say softly.

“I kissed Axl,” she finally blurts out.

Every muscle in my body coils into a tight ball, making it impossible to move. I blink, waiting for a punch line or for her to laugh or
something.
But she just stares at me.

“What?” I finally manage to say. There’s no way I heard her right.

“It was back when we were at the hot springs. I was so…angry. At Jon and that asshole in Vegas and the whole damn world, if I’m being honest. I was hurting, and I don’t really know what happened, but I found myself standing in front of Axl thinking about how lucky you were. Because you found someone who would take care of not only you but anything else that might come along. I was pretty sure I was pregnant and the future seemed so shitty and I was just…mad.”

“You said that already.” It’s all I manage to get out.

“I know. I’m just trying to explain.”

Thinking back to that last day before she and Jon disappeared, how angry she was at Axl and how he wouldn’t even look at her. Now it makes sense. She kissed him and he told her to get lost, and then she was so embarrassed she couldn’t wait to get away. But why didn’t Axl tell me? And why the hell would she betray me like that?

“So you were jealous?” I mumble, trying to make sense of it all.

“No. I mean yes, but not like that. I don’t know what I was exactly, only that I was miserable and I wanted to feel something else for a change. To feel like I was someone else. But it was stupid and I knew it the second it happened, and every day since then I’ve regretted it. I’ve been trying to figure out how to tell you. How to explain. Axl told me he never brought it up, but I knew I couldn’t just let it go unsaid forever. Vivian, you’re the best friend I’ve ever had, and I want to make sure I fix this. I want you to know how sorry I am.”

She reaches for my hand, but I jerk away and jump to my feet. “You were jealous, so you kissed Axl. To take him away from me?” She shakes her head and opens her mouth, but I don’t want to hear her say anything else. There’s nothing she could tell me that would make this okay. Not right now. I back away, holding my hand up to stop her from talking. “It doesn’t matter. I just—I can’t be here right now. This is too messed up.”

I turn away, heading for the stairs so fast I’m surprised I don’t trip over my own two feet.

“Vivian!” Ginny calls from behind me.

I don’t stop. I take the stairs two at a time, hanging onto the banister so I don’t fall. Just as I reach the first floor, Joshua rounds the corner. He’s in the middle of chewing, so he can’t say anything, which is just fine with me. I don’t want to talk to him or anyone else right now. My brain is already so full it’s on the verge of exploding.

I shove past him, and when I reach the front door, I push it open and stumble outside.

“Hey!” Dax says, jumping off the porch swing as I run by.

I ignore him and run down the steps. Across the driveway. Not stopping until I reach the field lining the property. What it used to be, I’m not sure, but at the moment it’s mostly weeds. They prick at my legs through my jeans when I sink down, but I’m gasping for breath and trying to blink back tears, so I don’t care. My thoughts are already so jumbled it makes my head ache. I can’t worry about a few weeds.

Ginny— No, not Ginny. Hadley Lucas. She’s the one who kissed Axl, but somehow I’m supposed to overlook that. I know I should. It’s the end of the world and there are so few people left and I care about her more than anyone I knew before this thing started. But she did something I can’t even comprehend. I knew she wasn’t in a great place before, and Lord knows I can’t blame her, but there isn’t a single part of me that doesn’t hurt when I think about what she did. I can picture it, too. Hadley and Axl talking, and out of nowhere she throws herself at him. The images flash through my mind, her arms wrapping around his neck as she presses her body against his. Her lips moving against his mouth. He even kisses her back for a brief second before he realizes what’s happening, and then he pushes her way. Just like every movie I’ve ever seen. That’s how it always happens, isn’t it?