“You’re not making any sense to me right now,” Malachi said.
“Some ramblings are of crazy people but Tree Man is interesting. Listen.” Abel pulled out an old-school tape recorder and pushed a button on the top.
“It’s coming. It’s going to get big. People will rise up. It’s growing. Has to get stronger. Infect the host. Kill the host. Take over the host. Make an army.”
Tree Man let out a scream at the end, and the rambling stopped.
“You think that means something?”
“His words are rather particular, Malachi. This is important. Where did you find him?”
“I told you. He found us in the woods,” Malachi said. He shook his head again and pulled at his restraints.
“He doesn’t look sick because he isn’t. But he is a host. He’s a vessel for the virus, which means if you’re not immune then you’re dead because of him.”
Malachi’s heart raced. “Take me to the girls. Now.” Malachi didn’t want to think about Tree Man being infected … being a carrier.
Tree Man was infected. He didn’t know how that was possible.
None of this made any real sense to him.
Before he tried to think of what Tree Man and all that crap meant, he had to see his woman.
It was all he could think about.
Chapter Fifty-Two
The truth is stranger than fiction
Sasha couldn’t stop bouncing her leg. Lucy had fallen asleep on the cot pushed up against the wall, Millie was leaning against the window, a window that had bars across it, like they were some kind of prisoners, and here Sasha was, sitting behind a long table, not knowing what was going on, or what would happen.
She hadn’t heard anything about Tree Man or Malachi. Were they okay? Did something happen?
It had been hours since everyone been taken at the front gate, and after an extensive health check, one which was humiliating given the fact they’d had to undress and be examined like they were cattle, they had all been given a set of clean clothes and placed in this room.
And it felt like they’d been in here for hours.
But just then the sound of people approaching came through and she sat up straighter. She looked over at Millie, who was now focused on the door, a worried but expectant look on her face.
Sasha stood and walked over to where Lucy was, standing in front of her sister. It was a protective measure, one that was automatic.
The door opened and the air left her when she saw Malachi standing there. When he spotted her, she swore she saw this intense relief cover his face. Without thinking, she launched herself at him, and when her chest slammed into his, he wrapped his arms around her body and lifted her off the ground to embrace her.
He held her tightly, and she was very aware of everyone watching, but she didn’t care. It seemed like an eternity before they pulled apart. She loved him, that was clear by the way her heart had felt when he’d been taken away. The pain had resonated through every single part of her body.
When he finally set her back on the ground and she took a step away, she was very aware that he kept his arm wrapped around her waist, keeping her close.
“You were gone for so long. What happened? Where is Tree Man?” She looked around Malachi’s shoulder, seeing two other men standing behind him, neither of them the man in question.
She looked back at Malachi and saw a concerned expression on his face. “We need to talk, baby. It’s about Tree Man.” The tension in his expression intensified and she swallowed roughly before nodding and moving away.
Lucy got up at this point, giving Malachi a hug, telling him how much she’d missed him. After a moment, when they were all seated behind the table, she recognized Trevor, but another man she’d never seen before sat beside him. They had a folder in front of them, and without saying anything, they opened it up and pushed it toward her.
She looked down at the graph and numbers, things she had no way of deciphering. She looked up at Malachi, then at the other two men, shaking her head. “Is this supposed to mean something to me?” She wasn’t trying to be an asshole, but was just being honest because she had no idea what this meant or why they were showing her.
“Baby,” Malachi said and she looked over at him, seeing the concern on his face, hearing it in his voice, which in turn made her nervous. “That’s about Tree Man.”
She swallowed, her throat tight. When she nodded, she looked back at the men, then back at Malachi. “Okay?”
Malachi exhaled slowly and she saw the way he looked at them before turning his attention back to her.
“Tree Man is a carrier for the virus.”