Moirai (7 page)

“Don't tell me you're cold.” Cate shot me a glare before
she returned her attention on the road.

“It's the middle of January and you have the window
open.” I shivered as I pushed the vents towards me. If she wanted to freeze
herself to death, that was her business.

Cate rolled her eyes. “It's the desert.”

“Doesn't make it any less cold in winter,” I retorted.

“Actually it does.” She pushed the middle vent that had
been pointed towards her away. I relished the additional heat as I cranked it
up further. Maybe it wasn't as cold as Genesis in winter, but with the window
down while driving, I was freezing.

“Whatever,” I mumbled beneath my breath. There was no
pleasing Cate.

“Do you mind?” Cate shot me another glare. “I can hear
you when you mutter under your breath.”

I didn't answer her. There was no point in giving her the
satisfaction. She wanted a fight and I wouldn't give her one.

I ignored the clock, paying little attention to what time
we left Shadow. The awkward silence stretched on for minutes.

“So your family lives in Thena?” I asked, trying my best
to kill the tension. I knew she must have been stressed thinking about them.

“Yeah.” Cate's answer was short and curt.

“Both of your parents?” I asked, trying to ease it out of
her.

She shot me a look before turning her attention back to
the road. “And my baby sister.”

I opened my mouth to ask how she had a sister and then
shut it. Things weren't the same in the rebel cities. Families could have more
than one child but they were never their own biological children. Both of the
girls had to have been taken from a Genesis city at some time in their lives.
“How old is your sister?” I asked.

“Do you actually care?” Cate retorted.

“I wouldn't ask if I didn't,” I admitted.

Cate sighed, waiting a long moment before finally
deciding to answer. “The last time I saw her she was six. She'd be nine now.”

“You've been in Shadow for three years?” Maybe we shared
some things in common, being away from our home and the people we grew up
around.

Cate sighed, her hands tensely griping the steering wheel
as we grew closer to Thena. “Yeah, sounds about right. I always planned on coming
home to visit but you know the rules,” she huffed. “Collins never saw a reason
for me to go home back to Thena. Mason on the other hand, he could go back
whenever he liked.” Her words were laced with anger and hatred. “He got to go
home so we could trade but no, not me.” Her cheeks reddened. “It's not fair!”
She slammed her fist angrily on the steering wheel.

“No,” I whispered, “it's not.” I didn't know what else to
say to Cate. We'd be in Thena soon enough. Hopefully her family and her sister
were still alive.

We crested the hill and I could see the ruins of what was
once the town. Fragments of broken stone lay strewn along the path as we drove
closer. I gasped in astonishment. This was new for me—when Joshua and I had
escaped Haven, we'd never witnessed what remained.

“Hang on,” Cate instructed as she drove us into Thena
past the rubble and through the destruction. The streets were a mess, littered
with debris. I felt the vehicle jolt as she entered town, pulling to an abrupt
stop. Not a single building remained standing. The smoke had cleared but the
damage hadn't vanished. I stepped out from the van, glancing around, unsure
where to start. “This way,” she told me as we climbed across the street through
the devastation. I glanced down, realizing that what we were pushing aside to
get through town was parts of homes and buildings. It was unsettling.

“Hello?” I called out, listening for survivors. I wasn't
sure how to find anyone in this mess. Cate led me further into town. Her
destination: her family. I couldn't blame her. I'd do the same thing. Perhaps
Cate had more of a heart than I originally thought.

“Come on, Olivia. We don't have much time and a lot of
area to cover.” Wearing jeans and a gray t-shirt, I climbed through the street
and followed Cate until she stood in the middle of what was once her home.
“Mom! Dad!” she called, searching through broken cement and stone.

I pushed aside what I could, digging beneath the surface.
“Hello? Anyone?” I called, hoping if someone was alive I'd hear them answer me.
I moved around from what used to be house to house as Cate continued to pull
off the debris from her home and search for her family. I gasped as I found a
female body, her skin pale and blue. She was ice cold. I felt for a pulse but
it was much too late to help her. I didn't tell Cate. I glanced back as I saw
her crying from a distance. There was no sense in upsetting her further.

I kept walking further across the street as I searched
every home that once stood. It seemed an impossible task to find anyone left
alive. It'd only been twenty-four hours. I'd gone longer without food and water
when Joshua and I had driven across the Gravelands. This was worse. These
people had died from what the government had purposefully done. It wasn't from
starvation. I pulled my sweatshirt tighter and zipped it. If anyone had
survived I wasn't sure how. It was a cool morning and it had been an even
chillier night.

Pushing aside rubble, I heard the faintest whimper.
“Hello?” I called aloud, digging deeper for the sound. My fingers carefully
pushed aside the broken glass panel from a window along with two pieces of
heavy stone as I listened for the soft sound again. It was someone crying. “I'm
coming for you.” I answered. “Cate!” I called, hoping she'd hear me and would
come help.

My eyes widened in shock as I unburied and saw a small
space, where I found a little girl still alive. She shook and cried but was
physically unharmed, which was surprising, given the circumstances. “It's
okay,” I assured her, lifting her into my arms. “Cate!” I called, feeling the
little girl shiver. I unzipped my sweatshirt, then wrapped it around her body
as Cate came towards me. Her face looked red but she hid her tears.

Cate cleared her throat. “Let me look her over.” She held
out her arms but the little girl tightened her hold, shaking her head no
defiantly.

“Okay, okay.” I rubbed her back. “We're just going to
take you to the van. Get you something to eat and drink,” I assured her. We
walked the half-mile back to the vehicle over the rubble. Once inside I sat her
down and grabbed a bottle of water, opening it for her. Cate grabbed some snack
food while I left the little girl momentarily alone. “There could be other
survivors,” I told Cate. “We need to keep searching. You should stay with her
though.”

Cate gave me a look. “What if you need help?” I knew she
was right, but I couldn't fathom leaving the little girl alone for even a few
minutes. She was young.

Cate walked back into the van, bending down to the girl’s
height. “What's your name?” she asked. I stood by the door, seeing her wide
blue eyes staring past Cate towards me. She pointed at me and then sipped her
water quietly.

Cate sighed, stepping out of the van as I climbed into
the seat beside the little girl. “Are they good?” I asked watching as she ate
some crackers. She nodded enthusiastically. She handed me a cracker, offering
me one.

“Thanks.” I took it from her fingers and popped it into
my mouth. “I'm Olivia,” I told her. She handed me her empty water bottle and I
grabbed another from the bag behind me, opening it. I offered it to her,
watching as she drank another sip. Already she looked better.

“I'm Adelaide,” she told me with bright eyes.

“How old are you?” I asked as she played with the hem of
my sweatshirt she wore.

“Six,” she whispered. She was small for her age but
incredibly bright. I could see that already.

“That's Cate.” I pointed towards the window. “We're both
going to search and see if we can find more people buried under the rubble. Can
you promise me you'll stay in the van?”

Adelaide nodded as she sipped her water. “I promise.”

“Are you hurt at all?” I asked her, knowing it should
have been the first question, but other than looking dirty she seemed unharmed.
Adelaide shook her head no. “Okay good.” I smiled reassuringly, giving her a
hug. “We'll be back soon. You stay here.” I grabbed another bag of crackers.
“If you get hungry,” I said, handing them to her, “these are for you.”

“Thanks, Olivia.” Adelaide answered.

I climbed out of the van, heading with Cate as we
searched the rest of the streets through Thena, hoping Adelaide wasn't the last
survivor.

Cate and I headed back to Shadow with Adelaide in the
backseat. Behind her lay two other survivors, barely breathing. Cate managed to
stabilize them to get them back to town. I didn’t know how long they'd last. I
hadn't even gotten their names. We'd been careful to distract Adelaide and not
to let her see the badly injured bodies we transported. The last thing I wanted
was to give the child nightmares.

The five-hour drive felt like an eternity. We reached
Shadow at night and though I was worried about barreling into town with our
headlights glaring, I also knew we had little choice.

The moment we crested into town, everyone came outside to
see us, including Taron. A part of me hoped that he was Adelaide's father but I
knew the chances were slim. Cate would have mentioned it, if that had been the
case. We stopped in front of the medical center and Sydney came rushing
outside. “You're back already?” I wasn't sure what she expected. How long were
we supposed to be gone?

“We brought three survivors with us. A young girl and two
patients in critical condition,” I told Sydney. I helped a sleeping Adelaide
out as Chancellor Collins and Sydney worked to get the two injured into the
infirmary.

“Olivia?” I heard Joshua's voice through the crowd and
saw as he moved to the front, coming to wrap his arms around me. He stopped,
seeing the small girl in my arms. “Is she…okay?”

“She's fine. Just asleep,” I assured him. “She got
lucky.” I felt her shift in my arms. “Shhh, go back to sleep.” I patted her
back. I glanced around; everyone was dispersing. Collins had gone into the
infirmary to help Sydney.

“Come on, it's late. We'll take her back with us,” Joshua
offered, freeing up my arms as he carried her home for me. “In the morning
we'll figure out what to do.” She didn't wake up again. I nodded, knowing he
was right. She deserved a family—her family—if they remained alive. I opened
the front door and Joshua carried Adelaide upstairs and into the spare bedroom.
I was thankful for the twin-size mattress. Though the room was rather plain of
decoration, it was perfect. Joshua laid her down in bed and I tucked her in as
well. Tomorrow, Adelaide would need a shower and fresh change of clothes, but
at least she'd be well rested and cared for.

I closed her door, heading for our bedroom. “How was it?”
Joshua asked me as I shut the door and stripped down for bed. I didn't care
that Joshua watched as I changed into my pajamas. I was much too tired to care
or to walk into another room. At least the lights were off and the darkness hid
my curves.

“Tiring,” I breathed, finding the mattress and lying
down, closing my eyes. “I searched for hours and we only found three people.”

Joshua knew as much by the van we'd brought back from
Thena. “At least you found three people. Three who wouldn't have survived
without you being there,” he reminded me, trying to be the optimist he always
was.

I nodded weakly. “I'm not sure the two adults even have
much of a chance of making it through to morning.”

Joshua stripped down to his boxers, climbing into bed
beside me. “You remember the medical center: their technology is superior to
anything I've ever seen.” I knew he was right. I'd seen what they did to us and
what they'd done for Joshua's injured foot. “If these people have any chance,
you gave it to them,” he assured me. “Besides, you saved that little girl.”

“Adelaide,” I told him. “Her name. I saved Adelaide.”

I felt his breath as he kissed my cheek. “You saved
Adelaide.” He affirmed, wrapping an arm around my waist. “You did amazing,
Olive.”

Waking up early the next morning, I heard the soft patter
of footsteps against the floorboards. “Olivia?” The sweetest and softest voice
pulled me from slumber as I rolled onto my back, glancing at the open bedroom
door.

Adelaide stood in the doorjamb watching me with bright,
curious eyes. “Hey sweetie.” I smiled, sitting up in bed. I glanced at Joshua
and climbed off the mattress, careful not to wake him. “How about we get you
some breakfast?” I whispered, reaching out for her hand as I led her out of the
bedroom.

Together we descended the stairs and walked into the
kitchen. I wasn't sure what we had to eat. Most days Josh and I ate in the
cafeteria with the other members of town. It wasn't that we couldn't make our
own meals, it was just easier. The new home we had acquired had been stocked
full of groceries but I'd hardly spent any time cooking. I wasn't entirely sure
how. Besides, we were busy with training. If not for the cafeteria we'd
probably miss a day or two of eating. I glanced through the fridge, found some
yogurt, and grabbed a few berries, mixing it together in a cup for Adelaide to
eat. I didn’t know what she liked but I figured I'd find out soon enough.
Adelaide climbed onto the chair, though she was scooted out much too far.
Walking over, I pushed her chair in. “I'm hungry,” Adelaide announced.

“Good, because I made you some yogurt.” Adelaide grimaced
as I pushed the cup in front of her along with a spoon. She dipped the spoon
in, watching the milky liquid fall back into the cup. “This looks gross. It
looks like snot!” She giggled.

I glanced back towards the stairs, wondering if Joshua
would have any better an idea of what to feed Adelaide. “How about we get you
showered, changed, and to the cafeteria where you can pick out whatever you
want to eat for breakfast?”