World After (Penryn & the End of Days 2)

For a second, they manage to brush fingertips.

Then our group moves past theirs, breaking their touch. The woman starts sobbing, her hand still reaching for him.

Another group gets shoved in front of Brian and he disappears into the crowd, still reaching for her.

THE BOAT is two stories high and has seen better days. The paint is so scraped that I’m convinced the boat must have been lying on its side on the roof of a ruined building before the bad guys put it to use. Somehow, it still manages to float. And it still sports the words “Captain Jake’s Alcatraz Tours” in blue, although with all the scratches, it looks more like “Alcatraz ours. ”

The engine starts and we’re treated to a dark plume of exhaust. The smell of gas pollutes the air almost immediately. A human minion must be running the boat. I kind of hope it’s not Captain Jake.

Everyone gets jostled and shoved toward the boat. Scorpions begin releasing us from the nets. We have no place to run, of course, not if we want to live a few more minutes.

As the first captives begin boarding, I manage to get close enough to Mom and Clara for us to shuffle together. Mom hands me the stuffed bear like she’s been keeping it safe for me.

I slip the bear onto my sword, disguising it again. I have wild hopes of being able to take it with me and maybe using my fledgling skills to get us out of this mess.

My hopes are dashed when I see that weapons are being taken from prisoners as they board. There’s a growing pile of stuff on the dock by the boat ramp. Axes, spiked bats, tire irons, machetes, knives, and even a few guns. I would still have hope if the pile only had weapons but it also includes purses, backpacks, dolls, and yes, even stuffed animals.

There are grim-faced people—humans—taking these things from the prisoners. They don’t talk and they don’t look anyone in the eye. They just grab whatever is semi-visible on the prisoners and toss the objects onto the pile.

I stroke my bear, wondering if this is my best chance at escape. Even if I couldn’t get away, maybe I could cause enough of a distraction so that Mom and Clara could. We’re in the brief window of time when I still have my sword and we’re no longer trapped in a net so it’s now or never.

A gunshot explodes so close that we all duck.

A man who apparently didn’t want to give up his gun holds it still pointed at one of the women minions who is now bleeding on the ramp. He is instantly surrounded by scorpions with their stingers. Their fangs are so close to his face that I’m sure he can smell their breath.

He trembles so badly that he actually drops his gun and a spreading wetness stains the front of his pants.

The scorpions don’t attack the shooter, though. It’s as if they’re waiting for something.

“Here, take her knife,” says another human minion. His face is lined with grief, his eyes half-dead and shell-shocked. He grabs a kitchen knife out of a prisoner’s hand and gives it to the shooter. “Now, toss it into that pile. ”

The shooter’s arm spastically jerks the knife onto the pile. He looks so frightened that he probably never considered stabbing one of the scorpions with it.

The scorpions hiss and back off, moving to patrol the crowd again.

We were all so riveted by the drama that none of us thought to escape while it was happening. So much for causing a distraction to let Mom and Clara get away.

The shooter replaces the minion that he shot as he takes weapons and bags from the other prisoners. He doesn’t make eye contact and he doesn’t say a word. He does occasionally sneak a glance at the woman he shot who is dying at his feet.

After that, there are no more incidents as everyone gets on the boat.

When one of the minions reaches for my bear-disguised sword, I have to force myself to lift the strap over my shoulder and place it on the pile myself. It takes all my willpower to do it, since a part of me wants to yank it out and chop up a few scorpions. But there must be twenty, maybe thirty of them here.

I slip the scabbard into the bottom of the pile, trying to hide as much of it as possible. Someone will eventually find it. What happens after that is anyone’s guess.

Mom and Clara pull me up and along with them. I guess I looked like I didn’t want to leave it behind. I glance back at the silly teddy bear partially buried under a pile of weapons and bags and can’t help but think that maybe I’ll never see Raffe or his sword again.

Behind me, the woman who reached for her lover cries softly.

Chpater 34

THE WATER slaps onto the boat’s side while the deck rolls back and forth. We shuffle onto the ship, and before long, we’re gliding through the dark waters.

Alcatraz is legendary for being the most inescapable jail of all time. Just the sight of it in the dim light makes me want to run away. I think about diving into the water with Mom and Clara and taking our chances, but others beat me to it.

A couple runs for it. It’s Brian and Lisa, the couple who had been separated by the nets. My heart races with hope that they’ll make it. We’re not so far off that they can’t swim to the other side, freezing or not.

But the scorpions are fast.

So fast that three of them zap their stingers to tag the couple on their way out the doors.

They don’t chase them though. They just let the pair make their own choices. It takes time to become paralyzed, but I know the excruciating pain and stiffness starts immediately. By the time the couple reaches the edge of the boat, they’re dragging their feet.

It would be suicide to jump. They’ll be paralyzed long before they can reach shore.