Thicker than Blood (43 page)

“I always knew you were a big, fluffy
marshmallow, Alex,” Evelyn said, attempting to ease the tension.
“Big and strong on the outside, but all ooey-gooey in the middle.”
Her hand touched her stitches subconsciously as she forced a pained
smile.

Alex slanted his eyes toward Evelyn. “Are you
calling me fat?”

“Yes,” she replied, smirking. “Now, get
going, fatty.”

• • •

As was planned, so as not to cause any suspicions on
where the three of us were heading with all of our belongings in
tow, Alex left first. I was to be next, followed closely by Evelyn.
Each of us had our own separate route, but the same
destination.

“You know where to go?” Evelyn asked me for
what seemed like the hundredth time. “Remember, don’t go through
the market place, there’s too many eyes watching. Too many people
we can’t trust.”

Sighing, I nodded. Though I was anxious, I
was more determined than anything else. I was stronger than I had
been in years.

“Stop worrying about me,” I said. “I can do
this.” To further prove my point, I patted the weapons belt slung
low on my hips, heavy with both a handgun and a blade.

“I’ll always worry about you,” she said, her
bloodshot eyes glossing over. “Always, Lei.” She sounded so
defeated, and it hurt to see her so broken.

Biting down on my bottom lip so as not to
cry, I reached for her hand and shook my head. “It doesn’t matter
what happens. You made good on your promise to Thomas.”

“But I didn’t,” she whispered. “I didn’t do
nearly enough.”

“I’m still here, aren’t I?” I countered,
squeezing her hand. “I’m alive, Eve, and that’s about the best any
of us can ask for anymore.”

Her tears spilled over, and despite knowing I
had to get moving, I pulled her in for a quick hug, squeezing her
tightly to me. “You made me strong, Eve,” I whispered, pressing a
kiss to her cheek. “You made me want to keep going.”

Before my own tears could fall, I pulled out
of our hug and turned away, slipping quickly out the door and into
the hallway. While trying to keep from looking in a hurry, I kept
an agile, yet energetic pace, hoping I didn’t seem as anxious as I
felt. My bag was slung over my shoulder, some of the clothing that
Alex had gotten me and some food all thrown in haphazardly. The bag
was heavy, but I acted as if it weighed nothing, not wanting to
draw attention to it.

There were only a few people moving about in
the building this early in the morning, and those that were around
barely gave me a second look as they either entered or exited their
own apartments. The stairs were clear as I descended, as was the
exit, and then I was outside, making an immediate left, and headed
away from the marketplace.

“Leisel! Sweetheart!”

I stopped walking, closing my eyes, sucking
in a breath of calming air before turning around. Grannie was
hurrying down the pathway, her wide hips shaking back and forth as
she waved excitedly in my direction.

“I was hoping to find you before you went to
work tonight!” she said breathlessly, coming to a stop before me.
Reaching out, she placed her hand on my shoulder and took several
deep breaths. “The end of the world isn’t meant for old women. It’s
a wonder I’ve made it this long!”

I tried to smile at her to hide the spike in
my nerves, yet my eyes continued darting left and right as I hoped
that no one else of importance had spotted me.

“I have the perfect dress for you to wear
tonight,” she continued. Straightening up, she smoothed her hands
down the front of her shirt. “An old sequined number from the
eighties that I’ve spruced up a bit. Imagine how you’ll look up
there dancing, the lights catching the sequins!” Letting out a tiny
shriek, she clapped her hands together, obviously pleased with
herself.

I tried again to smile at her, yet could feel
nothing but disgust. Despite her having been kind to us, treating
us to clean clothing and such, she was no better than anyone else
in Purgatory. She was thriving here, her sewing skills a necessity,
so she wasn’t subjected to the same sort of cruelty the younger
women were. Yet it was that very cruelty she depended on. She
enjoyed the fights, made a killing off betting, all while happily
supplying ridiculous getups for the dancers and hookers, only
ensuring that this ludicrous way of life would continue.

She was part of the problem.

“Thank you,” I muttered. “Can’t wait to see
it.”

“No, no!” she exclaimed, reaching for me.
“You must come now! I can’t wait to show you!”

Swallowing hard, I took a step away from her.
“I…um…I can’t right now. I have to meet…someone…”

God, I was the absolute worst liar left alive
today. Somehow, even surrounded by them, I still couldn’t manage to
pull it off. And Grannie, despite her penchant for seeming
carefree, picked up on this immediately.

“What do you mean?” she asked, her voice
hushed, her eyes comically wide. “Someone like…another man?”

“No,” I said quickly, bringing my backpack
forward, showing her the overstuffed bags. “I’m trading is
all.”

“Ah,” she said, sighing in relief. “Good God,
sweetheart, you nearly gave me a heart attack! You’ve got a good
one, you know. Wouldn’t want to see him cut you loose and have you
end up in the Cave…or worse!”

Yes, I thought dryly, wouldn’t want that.

“Give me an hour,” I said, slinging my bag
back up over my arm. “And I’ll come get the dress.” Smiling as wide
as I could manage, I reached out and touched her hand. “I’m sure
it’s beautiful.”

“All right then,” she said, grinning again.
Then she lowered her voice to a dramatic whisper. “Happy
trading!”

I waited where I was, watching as she walked
back in the direction she’d come, her hips swinging as she hummed
an out-of-tune melody that I couldn’t place. When she was little
more than a dark outline in the distance, I turned away, a relieved
sigh escaping my lungs as I continued on.

Doing as Evelyn had instructed, I stayed deep
within the living quarters, walking between buildings instead of
around them, keeping out of the sight line of any of the main
buildings. The entire complex was a maze of walkways and buildings,
bigger and more labyrinthine than it had seemed when standing on
the opposite side of the gates. Several times, I found myself
confused and a bit turned around, only to eventually run into old
metal signs with arrows directing to the north and south parking
lots, from back when the factory had still been in use.

Eventually the shadows thrown by the
buildings surrounding me gave way to sunlight. Beyond a widespread
lawn, overgrown with wildflowers, weeds, and grass nearly to my
knees, was the south parking lot.

Looking left and right, seeing no one other
than an elderly man strolling leisurely through the tall grass, I
headed out across the lawn. He paid me little mind, busying himself
with watching the swarms of bugs hovering over the grass, and
smiling to himself.

Once I’d reached the edge of the parking lot,
I paused, scanning the rows of vehicles for either Alex or a dark
blue Jeep. I found neither, noting that most of the cars in this
lot were either missing wheels or windows or both, some having been
stripped of their engines and seating compartments. Just as my
stomach began to churn with worry, thinking that either I’d gotten
myself lost again, or we’d been purposely misled, I thought I
spotted someone far off in the distance. Shielding my eyes from the
sun, I squinted across the lot, but was unable to be certain who it
was without getting closer.

Shouldering my backpack, I hurried forward,
quickly weaving around the metal shells until finally I was able to
see clearly. And what I saw stopped me cold in my tracks. The
frantic beating of my heart skipped, the world around me now frozen
as I looked on at the scene unfolding before me with horror.

“No!” I screamed, clasping a hand over my
mouth. “NO!”

Evelyn

Leisel’s screams echoed through the maze of
buildings, easily reaching me. My heart stuttered as her cries were
abruptly cut off. I dropped my backpack and my feet pounded the
ground, the surrounding buildings nothing more than a blur as I
sped past them.

Turning the final corner, the dark shadows of
the buildings giving way to sunlight and lush grass, I stopped when
I saw Leisel off in the distance. This was all my fault, I thought,
looking on at the scene before me, my steps now slow and
cautious.

Several armed men stood in a circle around my
friends. Alex, his arms wrenched backward and secured behind him
was being held by one man, while another held a gun to his temple.
Leisel had been shoved belly first up against the hood of the Jeep,
while the man holding her there was blatantly groping her, grinding
his hips against her backside and grinning. And standing in the
center of it all, was E.

Slowly, he turned toward me, his gaze finding
mine, the grin on his face growing wider with every step I took.
Anger and hatred burned hot and thick through my veins, causing my
blood to pump furiously, the sound of it beating a fast and heavy
tempo in my ears. Pulling my gun from my pants, I brought it
forward, ready to shoot my way out of there if I had to.

I stared at E, ignoring Leisel’s whimpers,
ignoring the gun held to Alex, ignoring everyone until our
surroundings seemed to disappear, leaving only E and me.

“What are you doing?” I gritted out between
clenched teeth, angry at myself for trusting him.

Chuckling, E spread his arms out wide. “I’ve
changed my mind, Wildcat.” He shook his head. “After last night, I
know what kind of man you need, and it ain’t that.” He jerked his
chin in Alex’s direction.

My fingers jerked around my weapon, and E’s
eyes flickered to my hand. Lifting his gaze, his grin turned
menacing. “You won’t be needing that,” he said, holding out his
hand. “Not if you want your friends to live.”

He spoke so nonchalantly, as if he were
asking me to share my lunch with him. Not hand over my weapon, the
only thing standing between Alex and Leisel either living or
dying.

“You bastard,” I spat, holding the gun out in
offering.

Taking it from me, he shrugged once before
tossing it to a man standing behind him. The man caught it with
ease and tucked it into his pants.

“We had a deal,” I said, my breaths coming in
quick, short bursts as I struggled to contain my rage.

“Deals change all the time,” he said, his
arrogant tone matter-of-fact. “And I have a much better one in
mind.”

“Fuck him, Eve!” Leisel suddenly screamed,
rearing up from beneath her captor. “Fuck him and fuck this whole
place!” The man holding her grabbed a fistful of her hair, using it
to slam her back down against the hood.

Ignoring her, E continued to watch me. “I
think you’ll like it,” he said. “It benefits everyone. I’ll let
your friends go, but you’re staying here with me.” Looking smug, E
raised his brow.

“No!” Leisel screamed, the terror in her
voice ripping at my heart.

“No, Eve!” Alex shouted.

“And what if I say no?” I asked carefully,
keeping my eyes on E.

“Then I kill your man,” he replied easily.
“Let me make it easy for you, Wildcat. You don’t really have a
choice here, just the illusion of one. So take my deal—stay with me
and your friends can go free.”

Placing a hand on my arm, E roughly turned me
to face the Jeep. Inside, I could make out several stacks of boxes,
though I couldn’t see what was in them. “Everything I promised you,
they can have,” he said.

“Eve, no!” Leisel continued to scream. “You
promised! You fucking promised me! We do this together, always
together!”

Squeezing my eyes shut, my thoughts drowned
out the sound of her cries as I thought back to Thomas—Leisel’s
husband—and the night that he died. Lying on the floor of my living
room, Leisel gripped tightly to his hand, tears streaking down her
face while Shawn and I stood solemnly by. Candles flickered all
around us, the warm scents of vanilla floating up from them. But
even they couldn’t hide the scent of Thomas’s death that was so
close.

He’d looked up to me and Shawn, his bloodshot
eyes pleading with us. “Keep her safe,” he’d whispered hoarsely.
“Promise me, you’ll keep her safe for me.”

I’d sobbed loudly, my tears streaking down my
cheeks. Gripping Shawn’s hand tightly, I’d nodded. “I promise,” I’d
whispered.

“No matter what?”

“No matter what, Thomas, I promise. I’ll
protect her with my own life.”

“It won’t ever come to that,” Shawn had said,
his grief palpable. “I’ll protect them both.”

Seemingly satisfied, Thomas had turned his
gaze back to his wife, whispering things to her that I couldn’t
make out. Only moments later, his eyes began to cloud over, a gray
fog blanketing them. His lungs rattled loudly in his chest as he
blinked sluggishly. His grip on Leisel’s hand loosened, and as she
gasped, clutching him tighter, his eyes rolled back in his
head.

“No!” Leisel had sobbed, shaking his arm.
“No, Thomas, no!”

While Shawn had pried her off his body, I’d
stood there, able to do little more than sob. I had cried for the
loss of my friend, for Leisel’s devastating loss, for how bleak our
futures seemed in that one moment…and every moment that had
followed since.

Turning back to E, I swallowed back the lump
in my throat and looked him squarely in the eyes. “I’ll do it,” I
said firmly, thinking only of Leisel and Thomas, and of my promise
to them.

Despite Leisel’s answering sobs, E was
smiling, the first genuine smile I’d seen on him, giving me a
glimpse of perhaps the man he’d once been. Reaching out to touch my
cheek, E ran his fingertips down the side of my face in an almost
romantic gesture.