Casey
"But Seb, I need some more," Andrea whined.
I assumed the kitchen was empty, but I was wrong. Derek and Andrea were sitting at the kitchen table."No. We're almost out. You had your cup of water earlier. You can have another one later." Derek whispered."It's not fair. She got four yesterday. I want four too." Andrea was complaining about how much water I drank yesterday.I wanted to laugh. She was the reason we had to deal with such strict water conservation. I'd had four cups of water, but my body needed it. I was healing.Fighting the urge to turn around and go back to my room, I continued limping toward the kitchen with Mindy in my arms. I just needed to grab the food, and then Mindy and I could sit on the couch for a little while.Coming home was fantastic, but being locked inside for forty-eight hours straight was brutal, especially after sitting in a closet for oveEarly the next morning, I sat on the couch with Mindy and Suzie anxiously waiting as everyone prepared to go looting.I hated that I couldn't go. My injury was still painfully healing, but I understood, and there were a lot of things we needed, especially water. I would just have to sit this one out.Everyone was still in their rooms getting ready when Thomas stopped in front of us to say goodbye.He picked Mindy up and held her above his head for their famous slobber kiss.Suzie and I laughed."Be good for Sissy and Momma, Munchkin." Thomas kissed her head and handed her back to Suzie. "You need to help your sister, Squirt. She's still in bad shape."Suzie quirked her head to the side and frowned. "Who do you think you're talking to? I'm not a little kid. I know what to do."Thomas gave her a crooked grin. "I know. I'm just making sure."Suzie shook her head. "Whatever."Grant sat down next to Suzie to tie his shoes.Suzie watched G
SuzieHuddled beneath a blanket with Mindy, I tried to listen to what was going on above us. We were hiding at the far end of the trailer on a tarp that held all the extra supplies Thomas and Casey stored down here.Aside from the night my parents died, this was probably the worst I'd felt in my whole life. This entire situation scared me to death.Hating that Casey was all alone, I did my best to cover Mindy's ears with the thick blanket so she wouldn't cry from any loud sounds. Mindy was my number one priority. I had to make sure she stayed safe.Casey yelled at the men until I heard gunshots. Crap. Did she get shot?I heard footsteps run to the back of the trailer as I let out a deep breath. Casey was okay.Was she going to run? I probably would if I was her. These men sounded awful.No. Casey wouldn't do that. She was the strongest person in the world. She would never leave us.Trut
CaseyMy head was pounding, and my tongue was sandpaper against the roof of my mouth. Why was I so achy? My back burned as I wiggled, realizing my hands were tied behind my back."Piggy? You awakey?" That high-pitched voice hurt my ears.Where was I?My fingers trembled behind my back as my head pounded harder. I wanted to move to protect myself better, but I knew something wasn't right, so I did my best not to move, which was a difficult task since I was positioned awkwardly on my side against a solid cold floor."Little Piggy?" He poked my shoulder."Leave her alone, Waldo." A gruff voice interjected."But she's shaking. I'm pretty sure she's awake." Waldo replied in a normal male voice.That's when it all came back to me. These were the men that blew up the trailer door. Somehow I'd been knocked out from the explosion.Suzie and Mindy had been under the trailer. Did they make
Thomas"None of us have slept in days, Dude. Don't you think we should get some sleep before we head out?" Derek eyed me warily, the dark circles under his eyes mirroring mine. "I want to get Casey back just as bad as you do—""Do you?" I yelled as I sifted through our haul, searching for the military container full of tear gas, explosives, and gas masks. "Because if you did, then you wouldn't be asking such a stupid question.""You really love her, don't you?" Derek pointed at the box hidden under the massive bag of baby supplies as he set a box on the ground."Of course, I fucking do. I can't believe you're asking me that right now!" My brow knotted as I threw an evil glare at Derek. It took every bit of my self-control to force back the raging need to punch him in the face.Derek grabbed a box, angrily yanking it out of my way. "I knew you liked Casey, but I thought she was just another one o
CaseyAs we made our way across the school, one thing became clear as day—the high school was trashed.What had once been a reasonably clean establishment was now a huge trash bin. Among the random boxes and trash that littered the floor, plastic chairs, desks, tables, and shelving haphazardly lined the halls. Each classroom appeared to be occupied, but I couldn't be sure since someone covered the small rectangular windows.Jordon's thick muscles tightened around me as I tried a little too hard to see into the only open door. The room in question used to be the computer lab, but now it resembled a control room of sorts. There were dozens of thick cables covering the floor."What's in there?" I fought the need to ask him to turn back so I could see what was inside."Don't ask questions like that." Jordon's words were cold and resolute.What a dick.How in the hell was I supposed to get any informat
There's something to be said about getting what you want. It's not all it's cracked up to be. For the last two months, I prayed for a tub of water and I finally got it.Someone answered my prayers, just not in the way I imagined. What was once a dream was now a nightmare.While Jordon waited for me to get started, I stood, perplexed with my current situation.Someone had set everything up for me in front of the girls' showers. Two large buckets of water waited alongside a small tray containing a towel, a washcloth, soap, shampoo, conditioner, and a razor.If I was with my family, I would've been in heaven. Unfortunately, I knew I was being prepared for my horrible destiny in Braxton's bed tonight."Where are the shower curtains?" I glanced around the room hoping to find a pile of discarded curtains to block one stall from the rest of the room."The guys took them down." Jordon, noticing my obvious discomfort, and turned his back to me. "Go ahead. I won'
As the sun fell below the horizon, the abandoned cafeteria dimmed considerably. A mouthwatering aroma wafted from the kitchen. Someone was using an oven, which was something I'd longed to do.I couldn't stop thinking about Mindy and Suzie. Were they okay? Did they make it through the explosion? If they did, were they injured? Maybe just one of them lived.Oh my God. I hadn't even thought of that. What if Suzie was alive and Mindy was dead? Or what if Suzie died and Mindy was all alone out there?Shit. I had to get out of here tonight. I had no choice. I was still hoping that Thomas somehow returned to the trailer, but I would never know the truth if I stayed here.I had to get to that gun tonight and kill Braxton. I would kill him with my knife if I had to. It would be messy, but I didn't care. After I slit his throat, I would get the guns and kill anyone who stood in my way except Jordon.Jordon would understand if I killed Braxton, wouldn't he?I had
Thomas held my trembling body close. "I'm so damn happy you're okay, Sweetheart."Having his strong arms around me brought me all the comfort I would ever need.Suddenly, Jordon yelled from across the room. "My hands are up!"I glanced in his direction. Someone was about to shoot Jordon. "Don't hurt him! He helped me."Thomas spun. "Let that one live."I wiped my eyes again as my vision finally cleared. There were six more people in gas masks. Who were they?Danielle wasn't with Jordon. I could only imagine she was somewhere around here fighting off the tear gas like the rest of us."What about me?" Waldo was seated beside Jordon.Jordon's eyes met with mine as he scrubbed his red eyes. "Waldo's weird and stupid, but he's not a killer, and he's never laid one finger on these girls. He's all talk."The guy in the gas mask didn't take his eyes off me as he waited for my answer."He's alright." I didn't want everyone to die. I knew Wald