When Night Falls (15 page)

Mac and Kiera stood where she’d left them when she exited the washroom. Both glanced up when she walked out. Mac inclined his head before ducking into the room and shutting the door behind him. Ignoring the blonde, Scarlett went to Hunter.

“God, that felt good.” 

“Yeah, you looked crazy scary when you first arrived. Kind of like that weird movie you like on the holo discs. The one with that girl and the school…”

“
Carrie
,” she supplied. “And it’s not weird. It was written by one of the greatest literary authors of that era,
Stephen King
.”

Hunter rolled his eyes. “Only you would know that.”

“Well, you would too if you would bother opening a history—”

“Pass.”

Scarlett kicked him playfully, then dropped into the seat next to him. “So tell me about this Silos guy. What’s his story?”

Hunter shrugged. “You know about as much as I do. The guy’s okay. He calmed everyone down that first night. It was total chaos here. I mean, people were freaking out everywhere. But he just walked right in, told everyone what needed to be done and that was it. They listen to him.”

She’d already guessed as much from the little she’d seen of their host.

“Did he say how we’re able to be here? In an abandoned red zone?”

“Only that the chemicals must have cleared.” He jerked his shoulders again. “No reason not to believe him. I mean, we’re all here.”

“Yeah,” she mumbled

“What?” He shouldered her lightly. “I know that tone.”

She shook her head. “Nothing. I’m just tired.”

Silos appeared in the opening between the bathroom and the doorway. “You will be given time to rest, but first, we must talk.”

Chapter
Fifteen

They were taken to the kitchen area and told to sit around a long, wooden table. A woman of about thirty with round hips and a kind smile set bowls of stew in front of them from the food dispenser built into the corner wall. The tantalizing scent of meat, carrots, and potatoes nearly had Scarlett drooling into her soup. She had to restrain herself into taking human-sized bites and not dive face first into the bowl while Silos spoke.

“Tell me what’s out there? Is there anything left?”

It took Scarlett a moment to realize she was the only one who could answer. Mac couldn’t and Kiera didn’t seem interested as she asked the woman serving them if the meat was soy.

Grudgingly, she set her spoon down and forced herself not to growl her answers. “There’s nothing out there,” she said. “Most of the decks, as far as I know, are clear, except for deck ten. There was a couple with us, but they lost their lives when the vendor level was overtaken and we were forced to flee into the stairways. Aside from our group, they were the only other survivors we’d seen since this started.”

Silos nodded slowly. “And your group. How many were there?”

Scarlett frowned. “There
are
seven, including Hunter. We lost one the first night. Wheat.”

The man’s head tipped ever so slightly to the side. “You speak as though you believe your friends to still be alive.”

Across from Scarlett, Mac dropped his spoon with a resounding clang into his bowl. Soup splashed over the rim, creating puddles on the table. His narrowed brown eyes fixed hard on Silos.

“They
are
alive,” Scarlett said for them both. “You don’t know Rolf. He’d never let those things stop him from coming back.”

“To you?” Silos questioned, eyebrow raised.

Realizing her mistake, Scarlett dropped her gaze to her bowl, but she could feel the eyes on her, burning into her.

“If your friends are as fierce as you claim, then I have no doubt they will be joining us soon, but in the meantime, it’s usually best to prepare for the worst.” He folded his hands on the table. “What were your plans? The pods, I presume?”

Collecting herself and being very careful not to look at anyone but Silos, Scarlett replied, “Yes.”

Silos nodded. “That was our plan as well. Unfortunately, our fearless captain miscalculated the wisdom of her decision to contain the infected in the boiler room.”

“The boiler room is the only place to contain—”

“There were other methods she could have used. She chose to be noble.”

Scarlett narrowed her eyes. “You mean shoot them into space.”

Silos splayed his hands open, palms up. “Is that so wrong?”

“The captain was hoping to find a cure!” she argued. “Those things were once people.”

“Once, but no longer.” He said it with such ease. “Now look at where we are. I doubt this was the type of future your parents were hoping for you.”

Scarlett stiffened.

“Hey, that’s low!” Hunter snapped.

Silos put his hands up. “You’re right. I overstepped. I apologize.”

Appetite gone, Scarlett nudged back her bowl, noticing that Mac had done the same. Kiera was the only one who seemed oblivious to the discussion and the tense turn it had taken.

“I think it’s time for us to go,” Scarlett said. “We need to find our friends—”

“You cannot leave,” Silos said calmly, but it sent a chill down Scarlett’s spine.

She exchanged a glance with Mac, relieved to see the wary glint in his eyes mirroring hers.

“What do you mean?”

“Well, what do you think?” Silos rose from his chair at the head of the table and stood before them. “Those things are still out there. You won’t make it out alive. This is the only safe place left on the ship.”

“But we can’t stay here forever,” she argued. “Eventually the
food dispenser will run dry and—”

“I am not saying forever. I am saying there is a certain safety in numbers.”

Scarlett got to her feet. Across from her, Mac did the same.

“As I said, our friends are out there.”

“And what if they’re dead? What good will leaving do you?”

Mac rapped on the table with his knuckles to get everyone’s attention. In a handful of harsh gestures, he signed something. Scarlett had no idea what, but from the venomous glower on his face, she could only guess.

When finished, he kicked back his chair and stalked to where he’d dumped his pack. He swung it on.

Scarlett gave Silos’s confused features one final glance before following Mac. Kiera, finally noticing that something was happening, glanced up.

“What’s going on? Are we leaving?”

No one bothered answering her question.

“Thank you for allowing us to use your washroom,” Scarlett said, manners her parents had drummed into her surfacing despite her desire to flip the guy off. She threw the straps of her bag over her shoulders. A movement from the corner of her eye had her glancing in the direction of the doorway. A pair of blue eyes blinked back at her from a small, round face. She inwardly cursed before turning back to Silos. “We’ll come back for you if we’re able to find a way out.”

Mac made a snorting sound, then caught sight of the boy peeking at them from the doorway and groaned. He grumbled and nodded.

“But I don’t want to go!” Kiera whined. “It’s safe here.”

“We have to go,” Scarlett growled at her. “We have to find the others and regroup.”

Kiera glowered at her. “Who died and made you in charge?”

Scarlett yanked on the adjusters on her bag, shortening the straps. “Fine, you stay. We’re going.”

Hunter leapt out of his chair and scrambled around the table. “Wait for me!” he shouted as he jogged past them and disappeared through the doorway.

“I’m asking you to reconsider,” Silos said calmly. “There is nothing out there for you but a very painful death.”

Mac signed something that involved a lot of loud slapping sounds.

Scarlett nodded as though she’d understood and agreed with whatever he was saying. She glanced at the woman who had served them and inclined her head in thanks before snapping on her heels and marching out. There was no need to glance back to see if Mac was following. She could hear the hard thumps of his boots.

People glanced up as they passed. There were so many, she thought, thinking back to her promise. How were they going to get that many people out? First things first, she told herself. They needed to find Rolf and the others. Then they would think of a plan.

Near the stairway doors, Hunter caught up to them. His hands were empty so Scarlett wasn’t sure what he’d gone to get. She opened her mouth to ask when something thumped against the door only a stone throw away from them. The room behind them gasped. A child wailed and was quickly shushed.

Another thump, louder and with more force. Scarlett fell a step back. Mac unholstered his weapon and trained it on the door. Scuffles from behind them had her glancing back and she watched as no less than six men, marshals judging from their brown uniforms, formed a half circle with their weapons drawn.

Scarlett had but a half second to wonder where they’d come from when the thumps grew into bangs. It sounded like there was a war going on, on the other side.

“Keep watch.” Silos marched into their midst. “I want all exits guarded at all times.” Cool, brown eyes met Scarlett’s as the marshals hurried to follow his orders. “It doesn’t look like you’ll be going anywhere for a while.”

They were given three cots in the corner with a lumpy pillow and a thin blanket. Hunter dragged his bedding over to join them, but no one else seemed enthused to meet the newcomers. Most, she noticed, didn’t even have cots, but makeshift beds on the floor. Several feet away from her, a woman, heavily pregnant from the looks of her, was sitting cross legged on a mound of blankets next to a toddler of about three. Scarlett couldn’t fathom how she’d managed to make the rush, but there she was. Scarlett offered up her cot in exchange for the blankets. The woman had smiled and told her she didn’t mind the floor. Scarlett insisted until the woman succumbed and took the cot.

Scarlett dragged her pile of blankets over to her corner and laid them out. It wasn’t much, but it kept the cold of the floor from seeping into her while she slept. Hunter tried to give her his cot, but she turned him down.

“You’re not getting my blankets,” she teased
him.

He rolled his eyes, grinning. “You’re such a loser.”

That night, after the lights had been switched off and the chamber was filled with the soft sound of breathing and the occasional snore, Scarlett stayed awake, staring into the darkness in the direction of the door. Every second that passed, she prayed it would fly open and Rolf would come charging through, but every second passed and nothing happened. It remained firmly shut. Her heart ached until all she could do was curl up onto her side and press her knees into her chest. Horrific images of him lying torn and bloody at the bottom of those stairs chased her every time she closed her eyes and they would fly open, a sob perched on her lips.

Shaking and nauseous, she sat up, grinding the heels of her hands into her eyes. They came away wet.

God, please don’t let him be dead,
she prayed, hugging her knees to her chest and rocking. She closed her eyes and pressed them into her kneecaps.

Then it all came out in a flood that soaked through the fabric. She stuffed the end of a blanket into her mouth to muffle the gut wrenching sounds she couldn’t seem to stop. But it wasn’t all for Rolf. She cried for Grams and her home on earth. At one point, the tears were even for finding Hunter well and whole again. There was nothing that she didn’t cry for. It was like someone had torn the top off her emotions and everything was just spilling everywhere. It was almost a relief when exhaustion finally won over and she tumbled into a sleep riddled with images of corpses, monsters, and Rolf in a dark hole, unable to climb out as skinless hands tore out of the ground and tried to pull him under.

Chapter
Sixteen

She stayed on her bed the next morning. Hunter brought her toast and a bowl of cereal. He sat with her as she watched the flakes dissolve in the milk.

“So are you going to tell me?”

She poked at a flake with the tip of her spoon. “What?”

“Why you look like your best friend just died.”

She raised her gaze to his. “That’s crazy. You’re right here.”

“I know, which is why I’m so concerned.” He nudged her lightly with his elbow. “Not thinking of offing me, are you?”

Despite the heaviness in her chest, Scarlett chuckled. “I’m thinking about Rolf and the others. They should have been back by now. I want to check.” She glanced at the door, guarded by no less than four marshals. “I want to check,” she said again. “And I don’t, too. What if…”

“Hey.” He took the bowl from her and set it aside. “He knew what he was doing.”

“Did he?” She pitched aside a corner of the blanket that had draped over her lap. “How could he? I doubt they trained him on how to kill the undead.”

“No…” Hunter drew out slowly. “But he’ll come back.”

She searched her friend’s green eyes. “How can you be sure?”

He looked away at the door then dropped his gaze to his lap. “Because you’re here. He’ll come back for you.” His head lifted and he met her eye. “What’s going on with you two, Red?”

It was her turn to drop her gaze. Shame and guilt hollowed the pit of her stomach until she was sure she’d double over from the pain.

“Hunter…”

“I know there’s something you’re not telling me,” he pressed when she faltered.

She rubbed a hand over her face, her mind a muted void of all the things she knew she should tell him, but didn’t have the courage to. His quiet patience only worsened the situation so she had no choice but to tell him something.

“Do you remember the morning Marcus told us the news?” She grimaced. “Of course you do. That’s stupid.”

Hunter ignored her last comment and said, “Yeah, I remember.”

She wiped the sweat from her palms off on her pants. “I know you … and Grams … I wanted to … I tried…”

“You’re leaving out words, Red.” It was teasing, but there was no humor on his face.

“I, uh.” She dampened her lips. “I left that night. Originally it was to clear my head. I went to the observatory. I guess I was hoping to see … something. I don’t know. I was just standing there, looking at the stars and thinking how … pointless everything was now. How lost we were and how we would die because no one would save us. I saw the disposal hatch…”

“Jesus Christ, Scarlett!” His snarl made her wince. “Why didn’t you come to me? Why didn’t you—”

“And tell you what?” she snapped back.

“Anything!” he growled. “Goddamn it! I lost my family, too. You’re all I had left, Red!”

“I know!” She mashed her face into her hands. “That’s why I couldn’t do it. I thought of you and Grams and how I couldn’t hurt you guys more than you were already hurting and—”

He threw his hands up in aggravation. “Well, how kind of you to finally think of us before casting yourself off into space. How thoughtful.”

“Damn it, Hunter. This is why I didn’t want to tell you!”

He shook his head. “What does this have to do with Gray?”

“He was there. He kept me company.”

Hunter’s eyes narrowed. “You went to him, but not me?”

“No! He showed up. I didn’t ask—”

“You didn’t have to, Red. You talked to him. You let him in. That was my job. You should have come to me.” He looked away from her, head rocking slowly from side to side. “What happened next? Did you sleep with him?”

“Oh my God, Hunter!”

“What? I feel like I don’t know you anymore. I have no idea what you’re capable of.”

“I’m still me! And no, I didn’t sleep with him. We didn’t do anything. We just sat there.”

He turned his head and arched a brow at her. “The whole night?”

Scarlett nodded.

“And that’s it?”

She nodded again. “We didn’t even talk.”

“That’s it?” He shrugged his shoulders. “You just sat there the whole night in silence?”

“Yeah, pretty much.”

“And I couldn’t have done that for you?”

“Damn it, Hunter! I didn’t plan that.”

He bit his lip and looked away. “What then?”

“Nothing. That’s it.”

“And that’s all it took for you to fall in love with him? That one night of magical silence?”

It took all her effort not to roll her eyes at the sarcasm in his voice. “It wasn’t just that once.”

Eyes wide with disbelief, Hunter stared at her. “How many times did you go to him?”

“I didn’t
go
to him! We just … met up.”

“How many times?” He pressed.

She fidgeted, unable to meet his gaze. “Just on that night, when I…” She bit her lip, mentally kicking herself for the stupid slip.

Hunter caught it. The fire blazed behind his eyes. “Only when you need someone to talk to … or not talk to? When you need a shoulder, a
friend
to be there for you? Is that when?”

“Hunter…”

“He’s a stranger, Red!” Red splotches appeared on his face. “We, you and I, we grew up together. We shared everything. You know everything about me. I never once hid anything from you. Not once! I sure as hell
never
kept something this huge from you. When something’s bothering me, I go to you. When I shit in the morning and my stomach hurts, you’re the one who knows about it. Why? Because you’re my best friend!”

“Hunter, I’m sorry!”

Shaking off the hand she put on his arm, he shot to his feet. “You know what. I hope he’s dead.”

“Hunter!”

He stormed off before she could stop him.

Hunter didn’t return to patch things up and went out of his way to avoid her when she tried to talk to him. It hurt, which she supposed was the point. She’d known from the beginning that Hunter would be furious. It was the reason she’d kept her meetings with Rolf a secret. It wasn’t to hurt him. It had been because Rolf made her feel safe in a way that was different from the safety Hunter offered. Or maybe it was because she’d secretly wanted to be alone with Rolf since he returned her ribbon and those nights were the only way she could have that. Who knew? All she did know was that she’d hurt her best friend. Rolf was still missing and the ship was overtaken by monsters. The universe really hated her.

She found Hunter standing against a wall in the kitchen area, the furthest place he could get away from her without leaving. He stood with his arms folded and a threatening glare on his face.

“We need to talk!” She marched up to him.

“Why? There’s plenty of random strangers here for you to pick.”

“Hunter, stop it!”

“No, you stop it. You broke the friend code.”

“It wasn’t like I went out of my way to hurt you, Hunter. It just happened.”

“But with
him
?” Hunter waved his arm as though Rolf stood next to them. “The guy is taken, Scarlett. You’re better than that.”

“It’s complicated,” she mumbled.

“You did not just use that bullshit excuse, Red. Come on.”

With a resigned sigh, Scarlett slumped into the wall next to him. “Don’t you think I don’t already feel like shit?”

“Then what the hell are you doing?”

“I don’t know!” she exclaimed. “I’m not doing anything. We haven’t done anything.”

“Red, you’re doing loads! You’re ogling another chick’s man.”

“I am not ogling…” she trailed off at the dry glance he shot her. “Okay, fine, but that’s all I did and there’s no crime in that. Half the girls on this ship have—”

“You’re not half the girls on this ship,” he argued. “You deserve better and if buddy doesn’t think you’re good enough to leave his girlfriend for, he needs my boot stamped on his face.”

“Will you stop?” She forked her fingers back through his hair. “Look, Rolf and I have never done anything more than share a strip of space together, okay?”

“And the fact that you want to deep fry him in your love juices—”

“Oh my God, you’re disgusting!” She gave him a shove. “So, anyway, now you know everything.”

“Not everything.” He turned his body so they were facing each other, their shoulders against the wall. “You still haven’t told me why you didn’t talk to me.”

She studied the straight lines of his navy-blue jacket, too much of a coward to look into his eyes. “The first night you were sleeping. I didn’t want to wake you.”

“And all the other times?”

She’d been hoping he wouldn’t ask, but knew he would. Nevertheless, she wasn’t ready with an answer.

“I don’t know, Hunter. Wait.” She grabbed his arm when he started pulling away. “I mean it. I just … I guess I liked being with him. I know that sounds wrong, but…” She trailed off with a shrug. “Plus I knew you would tell me I was being stupid.”

“You were being stupid,” he grumbled, but there was no edge to his tone. “I love you, Red. You’re everything to me and I mean that in the most non sexual way possible. You’re my family. I’d do anything for you.”

Feeling the slow crack in the ice dividing them, she placed a hand on his arm and squeezed.

“Me too. You know it’s true, Hunt.”

He sighed. “Is there anything else?”

She shook her head. “Nope. You officially know all my deep, dark secrets.”

He searched her eyes for a second before giving a slight, satisfied nod. “Okay, but I still don’t like the guy.”

Scarlett exhaled, slumping back, letting the coolness of the wall soak through her shirt and along her spine. Scarlett opened her mouth to comment when Silos rounded the corner and spotted her.

“I’ve been searching for you,” he said. “Can I have a moment of your time?”

Scarlett, after exchanging glances with Hunter, nodded. “Sure. Everything okay?”

Rather than answer her, Silos motioned for her to follow him. With a second curious glance between them, Hunter and Scarlett followed.

He led them to the front and stopped in front of the transporters. Scarlett stopped next to him and studied the machine but saw nothing worth concerning themselves.

“There’s been activity on the higher levels,” Silos told them. He pointed to the numbers above the door. “We’ve been hearing the transporters go between levels since last night.”

Scarlett tipped her head back and studied the numbers. They were blank. “Maybe it’s just a faulty wire?” She had no idea how the whole thing worked, but it made no sense why they would work and then not work only hours later.

“As operator of this ship, I can assure you that the only way those transporters would work in the event of an emergency is if someone in the control room has overridden the safety.”

Scarlett frowned. “Why would someone do that?”

Silos shrugged. “That’s the question. The only people with access to the controls are the operators and the captain.”

“Maybe it’s the captain,” she guessed.

“Not unless she inexplicably memorized an entire coding system. It has to be an operator.”

“Maybe there are other survivors and they’re trying to—”

Impatience sparked behind Silos’ brown eyes, triggering Scarlett’s own. Why wasn’t he just telling her what he wanted her to know? She was no good at guessing games.

“In the event of an emergency, all the floors below the training facility on deck sixteen are automatically locked down to keep from whatever’s happening contained from spreading to the control room. Do you know why the emergency stairways are scanner protected?” He didn’t wait for a response. “Because in the event of an emergency, each level is secured. It was what saved everyone on the ships during the riots and all those chemical spills. Had the emergency triggers not set off, we would all have died. But that safety net is what keeps each individual level protected.”

It was slowly piecing together now.