Dawnland (Book 2): Hella Kills Page 18

  “You’ll figure it out,” Sivan said. “And for your question, Lily, my dear.” Sivan turned to Lily. “I saw the plane, and am very familiar with it. It’s owned by a great friend of mine who lives in Pittsboro. His name is Hipslow.”

  I stiffened and Lily gave me a shocked look, but we said nothing.

  “Yes, I understand you are acquainted with him,” Sivan said, giving me a knowing glance.

  I regarded Broder who was out of hearing range and wondered if he had told Sivan what happened. Broder who didn’t speak maybe only spoke to her. Sivan stopped in her tracks and turned to us with a serious yet graceful expression.

  “Hipslow had a lot of trouble over the winter. Some men stole a helicopter of his, a large old one, it looked like a bug.”

  “The hind,” I said.

  “Yes,” Sivan said. “I know you didn’t steal it. He knows who did. A very bad man named Mace Duce.”

  “You know Mace Duce?” I asked. Sivan watched my expression turn to horror.

  “Yes, dear,” Sivan said. She put a hand on each of my shoulders. Her grip was strong for an old lady and I found myself cringing under her fingers. “I’m telling you because you told me about your virus. If he ever finds out what you can do, how you can kill the living dead, he will find you. He will never give up until he finds you and he’ll use you until you are dead. You have to get to him first. You must destroy him.”

  “He has my friend,” I mumbled. “I just want to rescue her.”

  “You’re going to do more than that,” Sivan said, examining me closer. “I can see it in your eyes.” We had reached the fork in the road that would take Lily and me back to the mansion and Sivan back to the stables. Before she left, she hugged me. “Use your strength to kill him. Use your ability to kill him. You will catch him off guard, but before you go—heal yourself and your friends.” She kissed me on the cheek and walked away, leaving me staring after her.

  “Wow, heavy,” Lily said.

  “Yea,” I said.

  “Come on, grasshopper, let’s go back to the homestead.”

  Lily and I walked back to the mansion and entered through the front door. We traipsing through the living room where the pristine white sofas already showed dirt and the floors already showed mud. It was impossible to keep anything clean with almost a dozen people were living under the same roof, especially without running water or electricity.

  We found the rest of the gang in the kitchen laughing and joking with Huck.

  “Huck, what are you doing up?” I asked. Sivan’s words still echoed in my head, so much that I had trouble focusing.

  “I was starving,” Huck said. He looked pale and weak, but managed to give me a smile. “Sivan said I could come out and join you guys for a while until I get too tired to sit and then it’s back to bed for me. She also said it would take me more than a week, maybe two, to be able to walk normally again.” Huck showed me his leg, which was all bandaged up. “Avoided gangrene though.”’

  “She didn’t have to amputate?” I gasped. The others laughed.

  “No, no,” Huck said. “It’s all still there, it’s just impossible to put any weight on it right now. You better not get any ideas to go anywhere without me, you hear?” Huck said. He grabbed my hand and pulled me to him.

  “I hear,” I said. That was it. We were stranded here for weeks. I wouldn’t be able to rescue Saudah for weeks. Mace was out there and he was dangerous, Sivan assured me of that. I thought about going to Durham on my own, or asking Broder to go with me, but realized that I needed to heal too. My arm was still sore and my feet still wounded. It would be best for Saudah if we came in to rescue her when we were healthy. Sivan was right. I would let Zeke teach me how to ride.

  CHAPTER 20

  It took me a few days to get up enough nerve to venture out to the stables for my first riding lesson. Zeke and Zora had been working with Sivan on keeping the horses tame, riding the more docile ones every morning. I spent my time walking in increasingly larger circles around our home base, in order to kill all the zeroes. In the afternoon, we would split up into teams and search the subdivisions for food and other useful items.

  I teamed up with Lily and Broder most of the time, and sometimes even Ana came with us. I had begun a collection of keys to houses again, but this time I stayed away from the wallets and if I ever did see a body, I avoided their pockets completely. This time, the keys were collected purely for survival.

  The last thing we wanted was for any helicopters or planes to fly overhead and see the dead bodies lying around, so the evenings were reserved for cleanup. We all took to walking around the subdivision at sunset clearing the roads of the obvious corpses, all of us except Trevan who had found the liquor cabinet and spent most evenings with a bottle. We managed to find some of the ingredients for Mancha Manteles, which Ana and I made for everyone one night. Ana and I had fun together. She practiced her English on me and I was learning Spanish.

  “You ready?” Zeke asked as I walked out of the front door. He was leaning against an old oak tree wearing a fresh white shirt, clean blue jeans that fit him perfectly and was chewing on a blade of grass. Zora must have found a battery powered trimmer, because he had a buzz cut and his face was freshly shaven.

  “Not really,” I said. “Can we practice shooting? I found a new gun.” I showed him the small gun. It had a silver barrel and a pink case matching my other pink gun nicely.

  Zeke laughed and shook his head. “What’s the matter? A girl who can kill a thousand zombies with her mere presence is scared of getting on a horse?”

  I looked away from his inquisitive eyes as we walked across the golf course and around to the pond to get to the stables. We didn’t talk anymore as we walked, but there wasn’t an awkward silence between us, it was more like a mutual admiration of our natural environment. As we walked, Zeke would touch my shoulder to point out a particularly beautiful bird or I would grab his arm to show him a rabbit hopping under the bushes.

  We arrived at the stables and Zeke made a gesture to allow me in first. Entering the quiet, dark stables was like entering another world in another century, our new world and also one that was before my time. We were greeted by the soft whinnying and stamping feet of the horses who were not running around in the wild. The horses stuck their heads out of their stalls as we walked by. I made sure to say hello and let each one nuzzle my hand, getting a whiff of hay and manure as I passed by.

  “Sivan is not here?” I asked, my voice quavering. It made me more nervous to be alone with Zeke.

  “She had an errand to run,” Zeke said. His eyes covered me with an uncomfortable heat and then looked quickly away. He walked over to a horse I recognized.

  “Is that Trouble?” I asked.

  “Yea,” Zeke said. Trouble nuzzled Zeke’s hand, looking for something to eat. “Trouble’s a great horse, Zora’s favorite.”

  I walked over next to him and saw that the stall had a silver name plate, with Trouble’s name stamped in it. I traced the letters with my fingers. I heard Zeke’s breath catch in his throat and turned around. He was looking at me with that same expression, one that made me very uncomfortable, so I moved to the next stall. Tramp was stamped in the name plate of this stall and when I peaked in I saw Trouble’s best friend.

  “Did she make these?” I asked as I touched the metal name plate.

  “I know she does,” Zeke said. Tramp came forward to say hello and I pet him on the neck. “I’ve seen her. She has the equipment stashed in the tack stall.”

  Suddenly Tramp let out a shriek and turned and kicked the door, sending vibrations through my body. I screamed and jumped back in such a fright, that I landed in Zeke’s arms. He quickly pushed me away and chuckled under his breath.

  “Whoa, girl,” Zeke said.

  “You talking to me or the horse?” I asked, still flustered from the contact with Zeke or the horse, I wasn’t sure which.

  “I’m talking to you and the horse,” Zeke said.

 
“I am never going to be able to do this,” I said.

  “You’ll be fine,” Zeke said taking a step toward me. “You learn fast. You learned how to kill, and not just with your virus”

  “What a skill to have. I can kill, great.” I folded my arms around my chest in a hug.

  “Come on,” Zeke said. He took my arm. “Walk with me. Sivan picked you out a horse, a very tame and friendly beast.”

  We walked farther into the stables and stopped at a majestic beauty, a white horse I hadn’t seen out before. I stopped and she greeted me with a whinny and a headshake.

  “Love sneaks up on you,” Zeke said.

  “What?” I said, startled by his exclamation. I turned toward him and he was right behind me. I looked up and into his eyes to read what was going on in there. They revealed humor.

  “The name of the horse,” Zeke said, pointing to the plaque in the stall. “Love Sneaks Up On You. What did you think I was talking about?”

  I blushed, and tried to look away from Zeke’s stare, which had become much more serious. He reached forward and touched my jaw, turning my face up, before pulling his hand away.

  “Zeke, don’t,” I said.

  “Don’t what?” He asked. “Don’t get the wrong idea. I didn’t mean anything like that. It’s just a name, Sivan being clever.” Zeke reached over the stable door and patted the horse. “Let me make it up to you. I’ll teach you how to ride in five easy lessons.”

  “As long as it’s not five easy pieces.” I smiled.

  “Ha, ha, ha,” he said. “Come on, let me open the stall.” He touched my back and I bristled, moving away from him as he opened the door.

  “I can’t get up on that thing without a saddle,” I said. Zeke’s nearness was scaring me, I was afraid he would accidentally push me into the horse.

  “Huck is sick,” I blurted out.

  “Yea I know,” Zeke said. “Ana’s taking care of him. Does that bother you?” he asked as he opened the horse’s stable door.

  “No, why should it?” I asked. My shoulder somehow found its way under Zeke’s armpit as he held the door to the stall open.

  “She seems to like him,” Zeke said, nudging me gently into the stall.

  “Maybe love is sneaking up on them,” I said, at once regretting my words because they came with more heat than I had intended. I forced myself to pet the horse who was now disturbingly close.

  “Let me help you,” Zeke said, moving over and taking the reins from a hook in the stall. “We’ll ride together.”

  “I think I’d like that,” I said, happy that Zeke was momentarily distracted by the horse. I watched as he simultaneously calmed the horse, whispering to it and put on the bridle. He was gentle and caressing, his big hands expertly working with the reins, and his steel blue eyes flittering over its neck. Once he was done, he handed me the reins.

  “You want to lead her out?” he asked.

  The horse nuzzled my pocket, making me gasp and snicker. “I think I’ll call her sneaky for short.”

  I took the reins and led her out of the stables. She seemed to take to me at once, playfully walking with me, pulling me forward. She was excited to go outside, but restrained and had no trouble obeying my tugs on the thin leather straps.

  “Doesn’t she need a saddle?” I asked.

  “Nope,” Zeke said. “My father said the best way to learn how to ride a horse is bareback.”

  “Well, I’m not getting up there by myself,” I said. Sneaky snorted at me. “I’m sorry, Sneaky, I’m just not.”

  “You are already talking to her,” Zeke said.

  “She was talking to me,” I said.

  “I’ll ride with you, but just this first time,” Zeke said.

  Zeke helped me get up on the horses back, and then he mounted her behind me. He took the reins from my hands and clicked her forward. Zeke’s back was warm and his muscles were hard against my skin. I regretted wearing only a tank top, as his arms wrapped around mine causing me to feel things that I hadn’t felt in a long time, that I was only supposed to feel with Huck.

  “Take the reins,” Zeke whispered in my ear.

  “No, I can’t,” I said. “I’m not ready.”

  “Sure you are,” he said. He molded the reins into my hands and let go, placing his arms around my waist and clasping his fingers together around me. I felt small in his big frame, his muscled arms encircling me, his hot sweet breath coming down on my cheek. It wasn’t meant to feel like this with him.

  I leaned my head backwards and sideways to look up at Zeke. “I can’t do this,” I said again.

  “Hold on,” Zeke said. “We’ll see how you feel after a gallop around the golf course.”

  Zeke flicked the reins and made a clicking sound and Sneaky responded by trotting forward. He did the same motions and soon we were galloping through the fields that were once a well-manicured course. He was right. Instantly I felt like I belonged on a horse, like I never wanted to get down. The feeling of the animal beneath my legs and the wind in my hair was almost too exhilarating to bear. I felt tears sting my eyes as I blinked against them in the wind.

  After the first lesson, Zeke and I practiced riding every morning. I rode Sneaky, while Zeke rode Midnight. After another week, I had mastered the basics of horseback riding, bareback and saddle. Zeke thought I should try shooting and riding at the same time, but just as I was about to mount Sneaky, Lily ran up to us.

  “Hella,” she said when she reached the stables. “Have you seen Trevan?”

  “We saw him last night,” I said as I held onto Sneaky’s reins.

  “He didn’t come to bed last night,” Lily said. “And Stan is gone too.”

  I glanced at Zeke, who dismounted from Midnight. Lily held out a letter in shaking hands. I recognized the handwriting immediately, it was from Stan. I read the letter aloud:

  Dear Hella,

  I can’t wait any longer.

  I need to get Saudah.

  I’m going to Durham.

  Trevan thinks he can get me in.

  He says one of the guy’s trusts him.

  We are going to go get Saudah.

  Wait here for us.

  We don’t want you to follow.

  It is dangerous.

  Love Always

  Stan

  I put down the letter and looked at Lily’s. I let Saudah down. I should be the one rescuing her. We were almost ready to go. It had been two weeks since we arrived. It was already May. It was time to go get Saudah.

  “I have to go after them,” I said.

  “You’re not going alone,” Zeke said. “I’m coming with you, for backup.” There was no question in his voice that I was going to go after them and that he was going to be my backup, not in charge, my backup. At the same time I felt compassion toward Zeke, I felt resentment towards Huck. Huck would have immediately wanted to argue with me and he wouldn’t have let me make any of the decisions on my own.

  “I’m going too,” Lily said. “We have to find them before Trevan gets them both killed.”

  “And before they get Saudah killed,” I added.

  Sivan, who had been in the stables, walked out to greet Lily. “What’s wrong here?” she asked.

  “Trevan and Stan went to rescue my friend,” I said.

  “They went after Mace Duce?” Sivan asked. Her face was covered with worry. “Then you must take the horses and go after them. There’s no time, get your friends. I’ll go with you as far as I can and then I’ll bring the horses back here.” She took Sneaky and Midnight’s reins. The horses seemed nervous and confused to be taken away from Zeke and myself. Sivan calmed them down while insisting we leave.

  “I’ll get the other horses ready,” Sivan said.

  Lily, Zeke and I raced back to the house. Huck was feeling much better and had even been jogging with Ana every morning while Zeke and I rode horses. They had just walked in from their run when we entered the house. Lily updated Huck on the situation and handed him the letter as she led
us to the kitchen where everyone else was waiting.

  “Who is with us?” I asked after Lily explained we were going after them.

  “I can’t go,” Zora said. I noticed that Boa was not downstairs. “I have to protect my sister. I just got her back.”

  “I understand, Zora,” I said. Zora was one of our strongest shots, it would be a shame not to have her. “Is Boa feeling better?” I asked.

  “She’s still sick. She wouldn’t make it,” Zora said. She came over and gave me a big hug. “But I know you can, Hella. You’re going to be just fine.”

  I gulped down the sting in my throat.

  “Broder, get the packs ready,” Zeke said after everyone else agreed to go.

  “You have packs?” I asked.

  “Yea, Hella,” Zeke said. “It’s not like we didn’t know you were going to want to go eventually.”

  “You were all waiting for me to make a decision?”

  “No,” Huck said. “They were all waiting for me to get better.”

  “Are you better?” I asked.

  “Better than to try and stop you,” Huck said.

  “Now you’re learning,” Zeke said.

  Everyone went in opposite directions, preparing to leave. Huck and Ana went to wash up and change, a curiosity pinged my heart as he left his hand on her shoulder for an extra amount of time. It hadn’t occurred to me that he wasn’t mine anymore, and that they may be a couple, but the truth was that I had taken to sleeping on the couch in the living room so that I wouldn’t disturb him in the guest room.

  Over the last week, every time Huck and I wound up alone, both of us made some excuse to find others. I felt like there was something we needed to talk about, but neither one of us wanted to broach the subject. Our conversation would have to wait until we returned with Saudah, Stan and Trevan, which suited me just fine.

  CHAPTER 21

  The six of us, Zeke, Huck, Broder, Ana, Lily and myself, walked over to the stables. We brought along some of the things we had collected over the last few weeks. We all had picked out our favorite weapons and each brought a small compass and a pair of binoculars. We decided not to carry that much food, because the plan was to get in and get out, but we brought canteens of water and as much ammunition as possible.