Total pages in book: 114
Estimated words: 110757 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 554(@200wpm)___ 443(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 110757 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 554(@200wpm)___ 443(@250wpm)___ 369(@300wpm)
The women applaud as she steps down. That damn shampoo she blends is the reason Briar always smells so good. I should cancel everyone’s days off while we regroup from today’s events and tighten security, but I’m not going to.
Without any fun and relaxation, things would deteriorate fast. It’s going to be hard work building our farm and gardens back to the levels they were at; things like Amira’s spa are more important than ever.
Jun ends the song he’s playing and people clap. I take that as my cue to leave, because being this close to Briar won’t lead anywhere good.
After sheathing my knife and stowing it in the canvas bag resting against my hip, I get up and leave for my room, careful not to look back.
Darkness still shrouds camp when the guards let me into the Sub the next morning. I slept a few hours, which was enough. After a shower, I’m ready to get going.
Ellison was moved from a treatment room to a recovery room, and when I crack the door to peek inside, I can barely make out the outline of her sleeping form in the darkness. Nova is hunched over in a chair beside the bed, sleeping, and McClain is asleep on a cot pushed up against the wall.
Satisfied she’s doing okay, I go back out to the Sub entrance. I’m planning to find whoever’s in charge of security for the night shift, but then I see Olin jogging by.
“Hey, man, everything okay?” I ask.
His grin is sheepish. “Yeah. That run back here yesterday humbled me. I thought I’d get in some extra conditioning.”
“Good. Can you give Nova and Stella a message for me when they’re up?”
“Sure.”
“Tell them I’m going to look for the Tiders who left their camp. I won’t be gone more than a few days, and I’ve got my radio.”
“Yeah, I’ll tell them.”
“Thanks.”
“Do you, uh ... want any help?”
I’m realizing Briar was right about Olin. He’s a nice kid, and I’m pretty sure he thinks he’s in love with her. I can’t blame him there.
“Nah, I’m good.”
“Okay. Good luck.”
I put my heavy backpack on and head out of camp, relieved and tense over it at the same time. It’s not a good time for the leader to leave, but I won’t be far enough away that I can’t get back here quickly if they need me.
I have to put some space between me and Briar. Much as I hate to do it, I know it’s necessary. Seeing her every day and not telling her how I really feel is slowly destroying me.
It’s impossible for me to get over her, but I need to find a way to function again. Everyone in camp is relying on me to make the right decisions. I can’t do that when I’m thinking about Briar more than anything else.
Every step I take should make me feel calmer. Steadier. But instead, I sense the slight tremble of the ground many feet beneath. The surface of the ground isn’t physically moving, but just like with my wolves, I sense the movement. It’s deep below the surface, a vibration I can feel deep inside.
Having control of the very ground beneath us is too much. It’s too risky. But I can’t stop it. All I can do is try to dull my emotions and keep them locked away when they try to rise to the surface.
Flavius is near. Just like with the ground, I sense his movement. Feel the pacing of his feet as he gets closer to me.
I’m glad he’s here. He’s the only one I trust myself around right now.
11
“It’s extraordinary. Humanity will never be the same, and every scientist on our team is awestruck. History will remember us for this.” – Excerpt from the journal of Ingrid Voss, leader of Island Three
Briar
When she’s well enough, Ellison has some celebrating to do.
After all these years, we finally have a dentist in camp. As the only healthcare provider, Ellison has done her best to handle toothaches and other dental issues that arise, but she has no dental training.
“How many years were you a dentist?” Nova asks Wendell Dade, one of the prisoners who came on the last boat.
“Let’s see.” Wendell pushes up his glasses, which are missing a lens. “Before the virus, seventeen years. And since the virus, I’ve done what I can for people.”
“And what was your crime against New America?” I ask.
He stiffens. “Their soldiers captured two of my friends. I helped rescue them.”
“Tell us more about the two friends.”
“Shayla and Brynn. They joined our group, I don’t know, like a year before they got captured. We were just passing through and we were going around Atlanta, but they got us anyway.” His gaze lands on the black X inked onto the back of one of my hands. “Brynn was marked. We knew they’d kill her if we couldn’t get her out.”