Dark Paths: Apocalypse Riders (17 page)

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Lia found her waiting for Preacher in the apartment they shared, despite all her claims that she wanted her own place. She slammed her fists against the door until the blond girl answered. Her eyes went wide and she asked, “What happened?” as soon as she saw the expression on Lia’s face.

“Is Preacher here with you?”

“No. He’s been out for a few days. Is that what those alarms were about? Is he okay?”

“I-”

“I’m here.” The red-bearded biker appeared, striding down the hallway. “Come on in.”

His apartment was very similar to Call’s - just a converted office filled with whatever vaguely clean and comfortable furniture he was able to get his hands on. It looks like Sunny had tried to decorate - she had some wildflowers hanging to dry in the windows.

Lia took a seat across from Preacher at the computer desk they were using as a table, and Sunny sat on the edge of their bed. She bounced on the mattress and smiled her spacey smile at Preacher. “Glad you’re back. What happened? What’d I miss?”

“Call and Dray were taken prisoner,” he grumbled. Her face fell and she stopped bouncing.

“That’s why I’m here,” Lia said, “I want to help with the rescue.” Preacher looked between the two girls. Before he could say anything, Lia went on, “I heard you lost a few men out there. And that Satan’s Remains have been recruiting and outnumber you now. I can help. It sounds like you need all the help you can get.”

He sighed heavily, his breath stirring his beard.
He hasn’t outright refused,
she thought, wringing her hands.

“Assuming we can even get to him and get him out, what the fuck do you think my damn president is gonna say when he sees me putting his girl in danger?” He barked out a bitter laugh. “What the fuck would he say if you got
shot?
”

His girl. They think of me as his girl.
“I don’t know,” Lia said.
That wasn’t a “no.”

“She shoots better than I do,” Sunny piped up. “And you’ve seen me.”

He nodded.

“And she loves him.” Preacher raised an eyebrow. The blond girl grinned at her. “You do. Don’t look so surprised.” She didn’t even know what to say - if she wanted to protest, or agree, or just burst out crying.
I can’t think about it. I can’t sort that out yet. We just have to get him home.

Preacher sighed. “Listen, honey, fact is you can do what you want. This ain’t a prison and we ain’t in the habit of telling people what to do. If you happened to find a copy of the keys to the parking garage hidden where you live, and then if you just happened to make your way to the second floor and found that the cars to the right of the stairs were all fueled up with the keys inside, and if maybe you somehow drove that car down and out the gate when we were all leaving, who would stop you?” He showed his palms. “Not I.”

“So they’d let me come?” she asked.

“He’s saying not to worry about them
letting
you, Lia,” Sunny said, as if it was obvious, “He’s saying just
go.
”

Go? Without permission? That wasn’t something she would ever do. It was sneaking around and practically stealing a car.

Think of Call.
She stood. “Thanks for having me over, guys. Enjoy your evening.” She had a key to find.

Two bullets ready in the shotgun. Six more in the top right pocket.
She patted the side of her cargo pants where the bullets resided, visibly bulging below her hip.
17 in the pistol. Extra magazine in the top left pocket. 13 more bullets.
She patted that pocket again.
Revolvers full. Six each for twelve. Four more bullets in the left knee pocket, five more on the right.
She touched both of those pockets as well. She had even more in her backpack - it sat on the passenger seat next to her, filled with all her usual evacuation supplies - more ammunition, canteens, enough food for a couple days, clean socks, matches, and so on. Her knife was in her boot. Her dark hair was in braids. She was as ready as it was possible for her to be. She wasn’t nervous at all. This was the sort of thing that Father Speer had rigorously trained her and the other girls for.

She’d visited him one last time the night before, after finding Call’s keys in a coffee can near his extra pair of boots. The minister was unshaven, tired, but clean and well-fed. The girls were gone, back with their assigned families for the night. It was just the two of them.

The lamplight was dim. He hadn’t faced her at all.

“I just wanted to thank you,” she said. “In case I don’t make it back. In case I don’t see you again.”

“Should you die, you’ll burn for what you’ve done,” he’d said. “I can only offer absolution if you atone.”

“No,” she said, “Not anymore.” His disapproving words didn’t hurt as they once had; they barely touched her. Something had changed with Call’s return.
And thanks to Sunny.
She didn’t need Father Speer anymore. “All I wanted to do was thank you for teaching me to survive. I would have died back at the farm if you hadn’t. I think we all would have.”

“It is beneficial to the whole family if each member is able to defend themselves and the person next to them,” he said, “It was logic and good strategy, it wasn’t a favor.”

“Well. That’s all I wanted to say.”

She turned to leave, but he’d called out to her, “Don’t lose count.” He mumbled, then, as if speaking to himself but loud enough for her to hear, “Some of you girls just fire away and don’t bother counting. Then you’re empty and then…”

“I know. I’ll count.”

She rubbed her eyes as she left the building. Part of him did care. Part of him was still human.

The boys who watched over the parking garage were nowhere to be seen, though she heard whispers and snickers echoing down the alley near the door. Moving quickly, she passed without being spotted and let herself in.

She chose a jeep, figuring the lack of a door would give her freer range to aim and shoot. It would also leave her more open to getting shot herself but she didn’t plan on getting very close to the action. She didn’t need to. Once her bullets were counted for the fourth time, she closed her eyes and waited for sunrise.

The motorcycle engines were her alarm to wake up. She started the car as she rubbed the sleep from her eyes, alert within moments.
It’s time to get Call.
Maybe she was being foolish; maybe she was going to just get herself killed, and what good would that do anybody? She had no idea what sort of situation she was driving into, where they were going, how many enemies, and these enemies weren’t like the dead, these would
shoot back
. Dizziness made her pause with her hand on the key.
What the hell am I doing?

“Lia!” And then there was Sunny, running across the parking garage in a jacket with more pockets than she could count, a tiny pair of shorts, little white sneakers, and a shotgun in each hand. “I kept both somehow,” she said breathlessly, settling into the passenger seat.

“Sunny, I can’t take you with me!” The horror of imagining the girl getting hurt was more than Lia could handle. “Get out of here!”

“Oh, I’m coming,” she said, “The only thing more dangerous than you is you plus me!” She was way too chipper for such a morning. But that was Sunny.

“Sunny, please-”

“Nuh uh. Preacher didn’t tell you what to do, so you aren’t telling me what to do. If you seriously kick me out then I’ll just get in another car, and it’s better if one of us can fire while we’re driving.” She observed the jeep and nodded appreciatively. “Good choice. Nice and open.”

There was no time left to argue. She could hear the roar of the engines revving. Leaving. Lia closed her eyes tight for a moment before turning the key. “Are you sure?” she asked. “If you get killed, I’ll never forgive myself.”

“If Preacher gets killed then I’ll never get to have his baby,” she said, determination drawing hard lines on her face that Lia had never seen.

“Okay,” Lia sighed. She steered the car down the exit ramp. “I didn’t realize you liked him that much.”

“That red beard grew on me,” she said, smiling. It quickly transformed into a frown. “Shame the radio doesn’t work.”

Lia couldn’t help but laugh.

They could see the last bike drive through the gate as they exited the garage. She stepped on the gas, giving them no time to shut it on her before she could barrel through and join the line of a dozen men roaring away from the compound. Hand signals passed amongst them, and before the gate had even disappeared in her rearview mirror, a bike was forcing her to pull over.

Sheedy the VP himself climbed down and approached her side of the car. “Dare I speculate just what the fuck you two are up to? Who told you that you could take this vehicle?”

Sunny spoke up first, shouting past Lia, “I have more guns than you!”

“I do, too,” Lia said, “I have four. I can take thirty-one shots before I need to reload.”

He cursed and looked ahead up the road.

“Let us help, Sheedy. We’re good shots. We’ll hang back, I swear it.”

He gave them one last look, his lip curled with anger. “I ought to just slash the fucking tires.”

“She’ll have thirty shots left after shooting you for trying, Sheedy!” Sunny declared. She sounded downright gleeful.

She could see the defeat on his face before he said it and internally rejoiced. “Only because we might need the guns. But you better fucking hang back. I’ll shoot your gas tank if that’s what it takes, understand?”

Lia nodded. “Got it, VP. We’ll follow orders.”

He walked away muttering under his breath.

They drove without stopping straight through the morning and well into the afternoon. Some of the landscape looked familiar while some places she was sure she’d never seen before. All she knew was they were heading northeast. She kept track of their route, and she was sure Sunny did as well. There was always a chance the group could be split up and she’d need to get back to the compound on her own.

The sun was high and bright in the sky when the long line of bikers slowed and pulled to a stop on the side of the road. “What do you think’s happening?” Sunny asked, leaning out the side of the jeep and peering up the row.

“Lunch break?”

One of the younger bikers finally approached the car. Lark, if she remembered correctly. His smile was friendly enough as he came up on Sunny’s side. “Ladies,” he greeted them, “They’re clearing some dead corpses off the road ahead. Might be a bit if you want to stretch your legs.”

“Does that mean they were here?” Lia asked as she climbed out. “Satan’s Remains, I mean. Do you think we’re catching up?”

“It’s possible.”

“What do you think they want with him?” Lia asked. She was a little afraid of the answer. There were lots of reasons she could think of for them to take the president of their rivals hostage - but there were also plenty of reasons to just kill him outright.

“They want to know where we’re hiding our tanker.” Lia’s eyebrows went up, and Lark chuckled. “These bikes ain’t running on wishes, lady. That’s how we know we can give chase, too - they’re running out of gas. We just have to catch them before-” He stopped and coughed. “Before Call tells them where to steal it. They’re running out and getting desperate.”

An image of Call bound and beaten intruded her thoughts, and she tasted bile.
No. Don’t think about that. We’re going to rescue him. We are!
Engines roared up ahead of them. “Ahh. Didn’t take so long.” He gave them a little salute before returning to his bike.

“Let me drive for a bit,” Sunny said, shifting herself behind the steering wheel. “You’re a better shot anyway.”

Lia silently obliged her. She needed to focus on the task ahead. Not on what might happen. Not on what could be happening. Only on what she had to do.
Focus like you were taught,
she told herself.
Focus!

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Lia was just beginning to worry that they’d be out on the road at night when she spotted smoke rising ahead of them. “What the heck…” The area around them wasn’t nearly as empty and quiet as their early trip had been. Corpses shambled alone or in small groups around gutted storefronts as they roared passed. She could see them lurching behind the jeep, attracted by the smell and the noise - they’d have to be dealt with at some point. The dead wouldn’t give up their trail unless stopped or distracted by something else to chase down and eat.