Joshua moved the stick into ‘D’ “Drive!” he exclaimed and I hit the gas hard, maneuvering the wheel as we hit the gate and busted through toward freedom.
CHAPTER 11
I coughed and gasped for air, grateful we’d made it out of Haven alive. We’d left behind so many less fortunate than us. I tried not to think about the child shot on the street or how Scarlet had burned and then been executed. So much destruction had followed us to Haven. I couldn’t do that again to innocent people.
I shifted uncomfortably in the seat, eyeing the rearview mirror, watching as smoke billowed in the distance behind us. No one followed us – at least, not yet.
“Why do you think they attacked Haven?” I asked Joshua. The town had remained untouched at least twenty years. Why now did the government seek retribution? I already knew the answer. I hoped Joshua could see another reason, and be the optimist in all of this.
“I would guess it has something to do with your escape from Genesis.” Joshua kept glancing back. “Wow! Haven is really burning.”
The smoke swelled higher into the atmosphere. “Maybe they’ll think we’re dead?” I hoped the government would leave us alone. I’d had enough adventure for a lifetime.
He grabbed my pack and dug into it for the map. “That would be nice. We should come up with a plan and figure out where we have to go until we can fuel up.”
“Lucky for us we won’t need fuel,” I smiled pointing at the car noticing the dashboard with an energy symbol. Some things had been worth reading about in the textbooks. “Sunlight on this thing will power it. We picked a good car to take.” I reminded him, “We can share the driving. Tell me which way?” We were driving on unmarked roads as it was. The dirt showed through the grass from all the years of travel. “Where are we going, another rebel town?” I wasn’t crazy about heading to Torv or Spade. After what Haven expected of me, the thought of going to any city terrified me.
“No,” Joshua shook his head. “We can’t take a chance their allies are compromised, too.”
“So, what then? We’ll need food and someplace to sleep.” I was anxious as I hit the gas harder, driving further into nothingness. “Won’t the drones see a single vehicle in the middle of nowhere?” I asked.
“It’s possible, but we don’t have another choice. If we can get enough distance between us and Haven, we should be in the clear,” Joshua offered. I hoped he was right. “We’re going to drive west for a few days,” he insisted. “As far as I can tell there’s a city four days west of here. Remember how I told you about the city missing from the map in the museum?” I didn’t know if that was good news or not, but after what we’d endured, I was willing to go almost anywhere. “We’ll try and gather what food and supplies we can on the way. I suspect we will run through some ghost towns. We should try and get whatever’s been left behind.”
I hoped he was right. I hoped we would be able to find food and water while heading west. I could see absolutely nothing on the horizon and had seen nothing on our way from Genesis. This is why they called it the Gravelands. We’d already driven an hour into nothingness, and it only seemed to stretch further.
We took turns driving, but the heat exhausted us when the sun was out. The night air was just as brutal. My stomach refused to stop grumbling, and I knew Joshua had to be just as hungry. We hadn’t come across any sign of food on the way. I didn’t expect a garden filled with vegetables, but I hoped we’d find some remnants of an old civilization, but to no avail.
My head pounded from lack of food and water. Although I tried to sleep so I could drive for a while, Joshua did most of the driving. I felt bad that I couldn’t keep up with him.
“What’s that?” I mumbled, staring off into the distance, unsure if I imagined what I saw.
Joshua held up a hand shielding his eyes from the blazing sun. “Looks like smoke.” He veered off our current route and headed up the trail. I felt my ears instantly pop as we climbed a seemingly endless mountain. The trees and vegetation around us were beautiful, but I didn’t know what plants were edible and doubted Joshua knew any more than I did. “How about we ask for help,” he breathed through parched lips glancing at me. “It’s worth a shot.” I knew we had limited options. We’d die of dehydration if we didn’t try to find water soon. We headed toward the smoke at the peak of the mountain, and I wondered who would choose to live here, in the absolute middle of nowhere. Then again, maybe these people had the right idea.
“Are you sure they’re not part of the government?” I didn’t want to fall into a trap after how far we’d come. We wouldn’t make it anywhere without water. We hadn’t had any since we’d left Haven.
“The only government towns are on the map back east from where we came. The government has labeled everyone else as a rebel,” he assured me. “Besides I can’t take anymore driving without something to eat and drink.” I knew he was right. We’d endured a brutal trip. I was just grateful we had a vehicle and weren’t trying to escape on foot.
I nudged him with my arm as we slowly approached the end of the road and saw a home situated a hundred feet from it. “We walk the rest of the way?” I guessed. I just hoped no one would steal our vehicle if we left it.
Joshua turned off the car and tossed the keys into his pocket. “Seems like the only way to get up there,” he gestured at the closed off road. We walked past the brush into the forest, through trees and thicket toward the approaching house. The closer we got, the more the smoke seemed to swell higher in the backyard, reaching the clouds. They definitely had a fire out back. I could smell the smoke and a hint of something else, meat perhaps. My mouth instantly watered as I trudged to the front door.
“Come on.” Joshua took my hand, leading me to the porch. I couldn’t help but feel nervous, unsure of what awaited us on the other side. Whatever it was, we could deal with it. Turning around and heading down the mountain without food wasn’t an option. I just had no idea how friendly these people would be. Could they be worse than Haven?
Joshua gave a rapid steady knock. “Hello? Is anyone home?” he called, his voice echoing in the woods.
Slowly, the wooden door creaked open, a pistol drawn at us, and I groaned as my stomach ached with a roaring pain. I clutched my stomach with a grimace. “Please, help us,” I breathed, my eyelids heavy with hunger, thirst and exhaustion.
“What do you want?” The voice on the other side demanded. He sounded like an older gentleman, and he didn’t budge from the door.
“The government attacked Haven,” Joshua explained. “We need food and water. We’re starving.”
The man sized us up curiously. “Why should I help you?”
“Please,” I begged as my hands shook. I struggled to stay upright, the pain in my stomach becoming unbearable. “We’re heading west. We won’t stay long, but we haven’t eaten in days.” I couldn’t remember the last time I’d eaten. Sunrise and sunset had become a blur with each day, as Joshua had driven as much as he could handle.
The older man studied us both curiously. He tilted his head. “Come in, come in,” he answered with a resigned sigh. He opened the screen door and stepped aside. Joshua walked in first. I hesitated. My stomach grumbled loudly, and the older man turned around hearing it. “I’ll get you some food.”
“Thank you,” I tried to be polite, hiding the fear coursing through my veins. My eyes surveyed the home. Nothing looked weird or creepy, but I still felt more than mildly uncomfortable – perhaps because this guy lived in a cabin in the middle of the woods without anyone in hundreds of miles, or perhaps because we’d nearly been killed, and I was still on edge.