Tyler watched Tack and Jase for a moment before speaking. “Okay, by morning, the Lady Amore shouldn’t be more than thirty miles or so south of here. You are both going, but under no conditions are you to board the Lady Amore. You drop Sorenson’s daughter and his men in a raft and double-time it out of there. I’ll write a note to make sure he knows the truth. It’s our only shot at keeping our trade agreement. Whatever you do, don’t let them get a bead on you. That’s Sorenson’s daughter lying on the bottom of Number Three. I don’t trust him to be rational when he sees her. You drop the package and run. Got it?”
“Yes, sir,” they both replied.
“You-you can’t just dump us in the water,” Philip said. “There are zeds in the water. If it’s shallow at all—”
“You should’ve thought of that before you tried to steal from us,” Tyler interrupted. “The only reason I’m allowing you to return to the Lady Amore—instead of staying on the Aurora for trial—is because of our trade agreement.”
“Just let us go,” Bill cried out. “We’ll tell the Captain the truth. I mean it. You don’t have to worry about anything. Please. Just let us go. Nothing will happen. I swear!”
Tyler ignored Bill’s pleas and instead looked at the scouts holding the thieves. “Get these two out of my sight. Put them in the galley for tonight and keep at least four armed scouts on them at all times.” He then looked to all of us. “I need volunteers to prep Sorenson’s daughter for the trip in the morning.”
Deb, one of the Fox survivors who volunteered for everything, unsurprisingly stepped forward. “I’ll take care of it.”
“I’ll help,” Tack said in a rush.
Deb gave him a sweet smile. “Okay. Thank you.”
As the two headed into the barge, I couldn’t help but grin. Deb may have been ten years his senior, but Tack didn’t seem to care. The two had hit it off the moment she’d arrived at the park, and even though they thought they were hiding their relationship, everyone knew about it.
The crowd dissipated.
“I’m going to hit the sack,” Jase said, sounding utterly exhausted. “I’m guessing Tyler is going to want us to get those guys off the Aurora at the crack of dawn.
“Listen, Jase,” Clutch said. “If you want me to go, if you want an extra gun—”
“Relax. No worries. Tack and I’ve got it.” Jase patted Clutch’s shoulder. “Like Tyler said, we just toss them into a raft and bust out of there. Trust me, I don’t plan on getting anywhere near Sorenson.” With that, he turned and started walking away.
Jase spoke the words so nonchalantly, yet I had a hard time believing that an accidental death wasn’t tearing him up inside. He’d seen so much death that he’d built quite the mask. So good that I couldn’t even tell anymore if something was bothering him.
“Good night,” I said, watching him. “I’ll be in soon.”
Clutch sat down in his chair and set his crutches across his lap.
The edge around the barge and deck had mostly cleared. Lanterns and flashlights blinked off one by one. I looked out over the river, the water peacefully reflecting the moonlight. In the far distance, wolves bayed. While people and domesticated animals had been devastated by the outbreak, some wild animals had flourished. Packs of wolves had become a new risk to scouting runs. I took in a deep breath of cool air. “Well, isn’t this is a mess.”
“I don’t have Tyler’s optimism,” he said. “Any hope for a trade agreement is lying dead at the bottom of the barge.”
“With the grain, we have enough food. We don’t need a trade agreement,” I said, pushing his chair. “So we’re on our own. Then again, we’ve always been on our own.”
“Yeah, but you’re assuming Sorenson is going to let us be.”
WRATH
The Third Deadly Sin
Chapter XV
Mid-afternoon, the following day
“You’re getting a sunburn. It could slow your healing,” Clutch said.
I touched my cheek where Doc had taken out the stitches a couple hours earlier. The bright sun warmed my skin. I looked down at Clutch. “What’s taking them so long? They should’ve been back hours ago.”
“Maybe the Lady Amore was farther out then Tyler thought.”
“The herds could be showing up as early as today.”
He shook his head. “The latest recon to the north shows them at least two days out, longer if they stop along the way. Jase will make it back okay.”
Clutch didn’t leave my side, so I knew he was as concerned about Jase as I was.
Just before the sun had crested this morning, we’d watched Jase and Tack disappear around the bend of the island. They’d been in the fastest deck boat we had, tugging behind it a large yellow tube containing the trio from the riverboat. Before the outbreak, the tube would have carried squealing kids as they bounced over the waves. Today’s passengers were far more somber, especially considering one was dead.
Since Jase and Tack had left, Clutch and I had circled the deck countless times, taking breaks only for food and when Doc came for me. My anxious nerves were making it impossible to focus on anything. At noon, Griz begged Tyler to let him take a small crew out to find Tack and Jase. We all hoped that the reason they weren’t back yet was because they’d had trouble finding Sorenson’s boat. Any other alternative meant something had gone seriously wrong. I tried to focus on the positive, but as the day went on, horrible imaginings began to cycle through my mind.
I shaded my eyes against the sun and looked out over the river for any sign of either boat. Even with sunglasses, the glare off the water gave me a headache. An engine noise to my right pulled my gaze to find Kurt returning on a Jet Ski from his scouting run in the north. The Jet Ski, which we’d found at a dock a few miles upriver, had extra plastic fuel tanks strapped on both sides, and Kurt wore a large backpack. He’d had enough fuel and food for a three-day trip, but he’d been gone only two days. “I wonder how close the herds are now,” I said.
Clutch wrapped his gloved hand around my mine. “Come on. Let’s head back to the galley and grab a snack. There’s nothing we can do out here except wear holes in the deck.”
I looked to the south another time, still seeing nothing. “I guess you’re right.”
I moped as we headed back toward the galley. Clutch rolled slowly over the deck boards. After several feet, he came to an abrupt stop, peeled off his worn gloves, and picked at a blister on his hand, grumbling under his breath.
I picked his gloves off his lap and rubbed at the soft leather with holes and slashes. “Wow. These are worthless. You really need a new pair.”
“That’s not going to happen. I can’t find any more. What I need is to get rid of this chair and back on my feet.”
I wanted to snap back at his infuriating refusal to give his body time to heal. Instead, I dropped his gloves with a smack on his lap and gripped his shoulder. “A week ago you couldn’t even stand. Just be patient.”
“It’s hard to be patient when we’ve got a shit storm of zeds heading this way.”
Good point. I left my hand on his shoulder while I looked to the north. I forced a smile. “The zeds aren’t here yet. So you can be patient a little longer.”
“Hmph,” he replied.
As I turned to look back down at Clutch, something in the distance caught my eye. I stepped back and lifted my rifle to look through the scope. Off the edge of the island, a deck boat with several people in it came jetting around the corner. I quickly made out Jase’s sandy, shaggy hair.