Sky of Dust: The Last Weapon (3 page)

Casey and I tried supporting Peter between us
,
but we realized very
quickly
that Casey
would be
doing all the lifting.

We wiped the blood from Peters
face
,
and Casey and I
helped
him to his feet. Peter would stand
,
but he would not open his eyes
. He mostly just groaned and tilted forward
. Casey had to do a sort of a squat in order for Peter’s arms to get around his neck. In normal situations
,
I would have found this funny. I supported Peter
’
s other side
, but there was very little weight that I was responsible for thanks to Casey
.

Miss Curtis
s
stepped out into the hallway cautiously and looked down the hall.

“
It looks clear
;
come on
,
”
Miss Curtiss said i
n a hushed voice. She had straightened
her wig and attempted to fit her crooked spectacles on her nose.

“
I will go on ahead to make sure
it is clear
,
”
Abigail suggested.

“
Good idea. Meet us by the tree at the fork in the road before we get to my house
,
”
Miss Curtiss said.
“
And be careful.
”

Abigail nodded. She glanced at
u
s
,
and I kn
e
w she was wondering if we were worth it or not.

Abigail tightened her watch and quietly ran down the hallway
, vanishing
around a corner.

We waited a minute then started walking towards Miss Curtiss’s house.

“
Miss Curtiss…umm…what does any of this have to do with my dad?
”
I asked.

“
Really Dalyn, this is not the place to have this discussion. If we are caught
,
we are all dead!
”
Miss Curtiss said
,
looking over her shoulder.

I started to ask why we would die but decided not push the subject. I felt like she meant it
,
and that’s what matter
ed
.

The streets were
surprisingly empty for a Sunday
, especially
with such decent weather. Luckily we took a shortcut through the woods and bypassed part of the town
,
which helped I suppose.

We dropped Peter a few times face first in the mud. We could not help but laugh when we plucked him from the mud
:
he would gasp and open his eyes wide
,
then pass out again.

We stumbled across a few young kids playing near the overgrown road
,
but they did not pay us any mind. They were too busy watching a turtle cross the road.

As we got closer to the fork in the road
,
I saw Abigail’s figure pacing at the foot of the tree. A tinge of guilt and regret flowed through me. The closest I
had ever
gotten to her and what did I do? Slammed a door into her and shot her.

I sighed out loud.

Casey looked over and knew what was on my mind.

“
Man, you did what you had to. We thought we were dead
,
”
h
e tried to assure me.
“
And you should have seen the way she threw you across the room like you were nothing. She only had a few feet of momentum too.
”

“
That’s not funny
,
”
I said. I could feel my face get red with embarrassment. Being thrown like a ragdoll by the girl of your dreams is not exactly romantic or manly.

“
No, I am serious
,
”
Casey said.
“
That’
s not natural. And how did you move so fast? I mean, the door opened
,
then all I saw was you jerk
before
bodies a
nd guns went
flying. It
was
like you kn
e
w what was about to happen or something.
”

“
Yeah,
”
I mumbled
,
“
or s
omething.
”

“
Don’t feel bad
,
Dalyn. Abigail is special. Like you and Peter
,
”
Miss Curtiss said thoughtfully.

“
And what about me?
”
Casey asked.

“
You are an accident. An interesting accident
,
”
Miss Curtis seemed to think out loud.

Casey looked down like he was hurt.

When we reached the tree
,
Abigail came to meet us. She had washed off her wound and placed a bandage over it. She had ripped up her green shirt so it now resembled a tank top
,
which exposed most of her arms and shoulders. At the sight of her up close
,
I felt my stomach starting to choke me.

“
I was so worried. I have been waiting for an hour
,
”
Abigail said in a relieved voice.

“
Oh, everything was al
l
right
;
it was just that Peter decided to take a nap a few times
,
”
Miss Curtiss said
,
waving
to
Peter who was plastered in a crust of brown mud.

Peter went limp
,
and it was almost impossible to keep him supported
,
so Casey threw him over his shoulder.

“
I got him
,
”
Casey said and turned to Miss Curtiss.
“
How much f
u
rther?
”

“
It is just another mile or so down this way
,
”
s
he said as she started to head down the road on the right.

We passed a few barriers that had warning signs not to pass.

“
These signs say
d
o not pass
,“ I
said.

“
Wow, you can read!
”
Abigail shot sarcastically.

I could feel my face go
red
,
so I slowed down so she would not see it.

“
Bah, they are just to scare the townsfolk. When I came
,
they had no other houses left
,
so they put me out here. I suppose they
thought
it was harsh to put me all the way out here by my lonesome
,
but they were wrong. Ha-
h
a
,
”
Miss Curtis said in surprisingly high spirits.

I thought for a second.

“
Wait, you showed up last year
,
didn’t you?
”
I started.
“
Around
same time Abigail showed up.
”

“
See Abigail, he is not as thick as you made him out to be
,
”
Miss Curtis said with amusement.

I felt like being rammed in the gut by…well
,
Abigail.
I mean, what would make her think I was stupid?

“
We’ll see
,
”
s
he said with little confidence.

I
could
never catch a
break
.

“
Miss Curtiss, how did…
”
I began to ask
,
but Miss Curtiss interrupted.

“
Stop calling me Miss Curtiss
;
it makes me sound so old. I am only twenty-
seven;
don't
let my disguise fool you! You can call me Mary while we are out of class.
”

“
Twenty-seven
is
old
,
”
Casey said in wonderment.

I knew what he meant. He meant that twenty-seven was old for most people to reach. You did not
see many old people around
. Most of the kids left in their mid to late teens to go into the Guards
,
so it was kind of understandable. We were told that
,
once the Guards
were
no longer fit for service
,
they live
d
in their own community
, which was
supposed to be top notch. They do not have to worry about food, or work,
or
getting sick. Supposedly.

Miss Curtiss turned her head and glared at Casey. It was amazing how she could turn her head
that much and still walk straight
.

Abigail chuckled then went back to looking serious. Maybe there
was
a person in that pretty shell after all.

“
Sorry, I didn'
t mean…
”
Casey started but trailed off.

We arrived at a modest sized house at the base of a small mountain. Rocks had slid down and partially crushed the garage
,
and there were a few broken windows
,
but it actually looked cozy. Plenty of space for a family
,
let alone a single wom
a
n.

As we approached the door
,
I caught a glimpse of the curtain to the right of the door move. Casey must
have seen
it too because he stopped and was looking in that direction.

“
I thought you lived alone?
”
I asked Mary.

“
Don’t worry; he is just a house guest that showed up last year. He is harmless
,
”
Mary
replied as she turned the
doorknob
.

She waived us in.

I stopped before I entered.
“
But if we go through the door
,
we can be tracked!
”

Mary’s mouth opened in a white toothy grin.
“
I deactivated it.
”

“
Really?
”
I hesitated
.
“
You can do that?
”

“
Try and see
,
”
s
he urged.

I walked through the door and looked at the small screen near the entrance. Sure enough
,
my name was not recorded as entering.

“
Amazing
,
”
I said.

“
Not amazing. Well
,
I am amazing, but it is really old technology
,
”
s
he said as she tied to navigate Casey and Peter through the door so Peter
’
s head would not hit the door.

A few minutes later and a few more bumps on Peter
’
s head
,
and we were sitting on
soft couches. The one Casey, Peter
,
and I
sat
on was missing the legs
on one side
,
so I made sure I was on the high part. Peter was still out of it
,
so we placed him on the bottom.

Ab
igail sat in a chair by herself. Mary went to
“
freshen up
,
”
which seemed like forever.