I pointed the machete at him. “You said you had work to do. Why don’t you get going?”
He grinned outright. “You’re trying to relocate me. Just so you know, it’s useless. Predators always come back.”
“Is that what you are?” I demanded. “A predator?”
“I’ll tell you what I’m not, silky, and that’s a pack mule.” He pointed to my messenger bag. “Grab it and let’s go.”
“Go where?”
He zipped up his knapsack. “You wanted me to take you to Moline, right? Well, quit burning daylight.” He strolled past me, gear in hand, and headed north — toward Moline.
I shook off my surprise, snatched up my bag, and raced to join him. I wasn’t putting the machete away anytime soon, however. “What changed your mind?”
“I didn’t want to get cut.”
“Right. You were trembling in fear,” I scoffed. “You knew I wouldn’t do anything.”
“Sure about that? The Feral Zone has a way of bringing out the animal in people.”
I should drop the issue. Now I didn’t have to make the trek alone, and as far as escorts went, having a hunter along was about as good as it got. Still … “Seriously, why did you change your mind? Just tell me.”
“ ’Cause Mack wouldn’t want his daughter wandering around the Feral Zone alone.”
I stumbled to a stop. “What?”
“In fact,” he paused, eyeing me, “I know that he doesn’t want you here at all. Ever. So why are you here? Is Mack in trouble?”
“How — how do you know my dad?”
“He’s a popular guy over here.”
“Okay … but how do you know who I am?”
He raised a brow as if the answer was obvious. He gestured to the machete. “That’s Mack’s and so’s the bag. Doesn’t take a genius IQ to guess that you’re his daughter. We don’t get a lot of silkies popping over. Especially one as clean and shiny as you.” He swept his hand, indicating me from head to toe. “It’s like you just broke your seal and slipped out of your plastic wrap.”
“Why does everything you say sound obscene?”
“You look like a doll that’s never been played with. That’s all I’m saying. I can’t help it if you have a dirty mind.”
“I don’t have —”
“I answered the question, Delaney. Now, spill it. What’s going on?”
“Lane,” I corrected. I couldn’t think of a reason not to tell him. It wasn’t like he could march up to the line patrol and turn my dad in for being a fetch — not when he was wanted for stabbing someone. “You know it’s illegal for people in the West to come over here, right? Unless you’re a line guard.”
“Kind of figured that went along with the giant wall.”
“Well, if someone does get caught coming over here or if there’s evidence proving —”
“He’s executed by firing squad. Are you saying they have something on Mack?”
I nodded. “But he can fix it if he does a fetch for an official.”
“Nice to know that people are the same no matter which side of the wall they’re from.” Rafe’s smile was bitter. “Okay, let’s go. If Mack is in Moline, I know where he’ll be.”
He set off down the road, moving at such a quick pace that I had to race-walk to keep up with him. Between breaths, I gave him the details of Director Spurling’s offer. When I mentioned where my dad had to go for the fetch, Rafe made a face. “What?” I asked. “Are there a lot of ferals in Chicago?”
“Yeah, but I hear the humans are worse.”
“Keep your eyes open,” Rafe said as we entered the outskirts of Moline. “There are mongrels all over the place.” He gestured to the empty buildings that lined the shattered street. Several doors bore remnants of yellow quarantine tape. “And I guarantee they’re sniffing us out right now, trying to decide if we’re easy pickings.”
I scanned the trees and other plants that poked through window frames and spilled out of gutters. In some cases, woody vines and ivy cloaked entire houses, obliterating them from view. It was as if the buildings themselves had gone feral. When we came to a whole block of scorched rubble, I asked, “Was Moline firebombed during the epidemic?”
“Nope. Gas leaks did it,” Rafe said cheerfully. “Least that’s what I’ve heard. Houses are always blowing up because of the paint and chemicals stored in them.”
I glanced in the broken window of a store as we passed. The darkness inside seemed to shift and writhe. I veered toward the other side of the street where dead leaves swirled past rusting cars and an overturned school bus.
“Don’t get so close to the cars,” Rafe warned. “Things nest in them.”
I snapped back to the center of the road. “What about the feral people? Where do they live?”
“They’re around and they’ll bite if you get close. Other than that, they’re as dangerous as the animal they’re infected with. For example, a guy infected with tiger — very dangerous.”
“He’s still part human,” I pointed out.
“So?”
“So humans can control their impulses.”
He cocked a brow at me. “What humans have you been hanging around with?”
I knew I should let it go, but for the tiger-man’s sake I didn’t. “His name is Chorda and he didn’t act dangerous. He was very polite and —”
“Polite how?” Rafe demanded, stopping short.
“He thanked me and introduced himself.”
“And you understood him?”
“Perfectly.”
Rafe frowned. “He didn’t say anything to me.”
“Maybe because you were hitting him with a crowbar!”
“So what?” Rafe started walking again. “There’ve been other ferals that could talk.”
Well, that didn’t sound defensive at all. I caught up with him. “Are you saying most ferals can’t talk?”
“How should I know? I don’t go around chatting them up.”
I hooked his elbow and got him to face me. “You’re mad because you know I was right to stop you.”
“Yeah, I’ll toss and turn all night, crying over that grupped-up beast.” He snorted, amused at his own joke, and then pulled free of my hold to jog up the nearest stoop. “We’re here.”
“Where?” It looked like every other five-story building we’d passed.
“We’re making a quick stop.”
“No, I have to find my dad as soon as possible.”
“Okay, follow the road until you hit a wall of cars. The compound’s inside.” He pointed at the top floor of the building. “I’ll be up there in case you change your mind.”
Despite how much I hated giving in to the smug jerk and despite the tick-tick-ticking in my brain, I said, “Fine. I’m coming.”
He didn’t even glance back as he headed in. “Figured as much.”
Dirt and rubble covered the ancient lobby floor, black mold climbed the walls, and the elevator door opened onto an echoing darkness. What were we doing puttering around in a crumbling firetrap?
Many of the doors to the apartments stood open, revealing rooms littered with furniture, books, clothing, and other personal possessions. During the exodus, people brought only what they could carry, since they had to go through the checkpoint on foot. Everything else got left behind.
A coyote stood inside one doorway, watching us climb the stairs. Rafe barely gave it a glance. I, however, kept my eyes on the coyote until we reached the top floor. I don’t know what I expected it to do, but I wasn’t taking any chances. It was a wild animal after all.
Rafe stopped at the first door on the landing, turned the knob, and entered. No knock. No “anybody home?” Was that typical in the Feral Zone? Probably. If he was anything to go by, civilized behavior was a thing of the past. I followed him in. The apartment was vintage, with high ceilings, but the floors were practically buckling from the weight of all the furniture. Jewelry was piled on every surface, and we were standing ankle deep in cash. The old kind — pre-exodus — which was worthless in the West.