Cheating Time (19 page)

Gran wasn't an emotional man. He was a man
of science, a man who understood the physiology behind life and
death. His love for us was the kind that didn't need to be talked
to death. He'd been with us my whole life, and there wasn't a day
when I didn't remember him being there for me.

It was almost as if he'd been appointed as
the guardian angel no one would ever expect because he was so
quiet, approachable, and unassuming. No one would ever imagine him
risking his life for Tawney or me, but I knew he would without
giving it the first thought.

I kissed him on his soft cheek and said,
"We'll make it, Gran."

Putting way more faith in me than I was
putting in myself, he patted my arm and said, "I know, little one.
I know."

While Jayden got Tawney tucked in, I found
the tree closest to his tent, leaned against it, and sank down to
the ground. I may have ignored Jayden's orders last night, but I
was prepared to do what was asked of me tonight.

Minutes later, Jayden was sitting next to me
and offering me the jerky I'd refused earlier.

"Eat," he demanded.

My instincts were to do anything but what he
ordered me to do. The problem was I just didn't have the
wherewithal to do anything but take the meat from him and chew.

"We're making good time," he explained after
we'd eaten and drunk our fill.

"Yeah. According to Gran, we don't have a
day to spare. Let's keep up the same pace tomorrow. Okay?" I
asked.

Jayden nodded. "We'll keep going like this
as long as we can."

Before the words left his mouth, the sky
opened up. The rain that had been drizzling all day was coming down
in sheets and drenching us.

Jayden grabbed my hand and pulled me into
his tent with him. His was a little larger than mine. In fact, it
was big enough for two people, and I was instantly jealous.

"Good lord, Jayden. Your tent is way roomier
than mine," I said, studying it and making a mental note of all the
things Jayden prized enough to keep with him even while
surviving
.

I couldn't have been more surprised when I
saw he had a Bible next to his sleeping bag. My stare bounced his
way the instant I saw it.

"You read the Bible?"

He shrugged. Without asking for his
permission, I dove toward the extremely worn and dog-eared book.
Jayden was quicker than me, but I was closer, meaning his attempts
at grabbing the book before I had a chance fell flat.

Giggling, I had it in hand and tucked
underneath my T-shirt before he could stop me.

"You think I wouldn't go in after that if I
truly wanted it?" he asked, bobbing his head toward the Bible's
hiding place.

My shoulders bounced. "Maybe, but I don't
understand why you care. Lots of people read the Bible. They're not
ashamed of it."

"I'm not ashamed. I just don't trust that
you won't make fun of me about it," he said, and something about
that hurt me.

Feeling guilty that I'd behaved in such a
way in my life that Jayden questioned my integrity, I gulped,
pulled the Bible from under my shirt, and handed it to him.

"I'll take first shift," I mumbled as I
moved toward the door of the tent, deciding soaking in the rain
would be better than sitting in a dry tent with someone who didn't
even trust me.

Jayden grabbed my arm. "There's no reason
for you to be out there in the rain."

"I'll be fine. Get some rest," I said,
trying to pull my arm away from his grip.

"No. No, you won't, and you'll probably end
up with pneumonia so bad the MicroPharm won't be able to cure you.
You getting sick could cost us a day," he said.

Like Jayden, I knew none of us could do
anything that might put this trip at risk.

"I'll go to my tent, then."

Again, I tried to scoot away from him and
toward the door, but he didn't let go.

"You need to stay right here. I'll sleep for
an hour or so. Then you can sleep the rest of the night. If you go
to your tent, I'll have to go out in the rain to switch out with
you. This way… no one gets any wetter than necessary."

"Whatever," I said, turning my back on
Jayden and sitting as close to the door as possible. The thunder,
lightning, and pouring rain kept me from seeing anything more than
six inches out, but I sat studying the area like I could see for
miles.

"Genesis 1:1,
In the
beginning, God created the heavens and the earth
,"
Jayden began, and his words were those of a man praying rather than
a man reading, a man reminding himself that there is something more
to the universe than that we've seen.

Shocked that he was sharing something that
was obviously so personal to him—his spiritual journey—I turned my
head and looked over my shoulder at the only man in the world with
the power to really hurt me, a power no one else possessed.

Timid as he allowed me a glimpse into his
deepest secret, Jayden's brows were furrowed and he was biting his
lip.

"
The earth was formless
and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the
Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the
waters
…" He continued.

I'd never read the Bible so I wasn't sure
how far along he was when he stopped. I do know he read until a
giant yawn interrupted him. His words and the melody of his voice
were so soothing and comforting that I missed them the moment he
closed the book for the night.

"That was nice. Thanks," I said.

"I was enjoying it myself. I'd keep going if
I weren't so tired," he said, turning off his solar light.

"Good night, Jayden," I mumbled, listening
as he situated himself on top of his sleeping bag.

After he finished squirming, he was a lot
closer to me than was necessary, and his face was at the end of the
tent where I sat. It may have been my imagination, but it seemed
like I could feel his breath on my back where my shirt had ridden
up above my jeans. It made chills shoot from the top of my head to
the tips of my toes.

A few minutes later, his breathing was the
long, deep kind that signified sleep. At least, I assumed he was
asleep until he murmured, "Carlie…."

I twisted around and was about to ask Jayden
what he needed when he said, "Don't leave. Don't leave me
again."

There was a sob with his words and a
desperation that scared me. I wanted to know what he'd been going
through. For the millionth time, I wondered why he hadn't come with
us.

His breathing was ragged. Between it and his
periodic moans, I decided to wake him. Not so he could take over
for me, but so he could be freed from the nightmare that was
affecting him so terribly.

I stretched out next to him and was about to
whisper his name—wake him—when he wrapped his arms around me and
pulled me into his chest. It was only then that Jayden's breathing
smoothed out and his moans turned into a quiet contented hum. Since
my only goal had been that of pulling him out of his dream so he
could rest, I decided not to say anything.

It won't hurt me one bit
to let him use me as his pillow until it's time for him to take
over guard duty.

That was what I planned to do. That was what
I'd assumed I'd do. That was not what I did. At some point, my eyes
started bobbing. I knew I was tired, but I thought I could hold out
a few more minutes. I wanted Jayden to get as much sleep as
possible.

The next thing I knew, I was tucked deep
into his chest, listening to the thunder and catching the periodic
flashes of lightning and… eventually sleeping.

* * *

I didn't awaken until the arms holding me
close and keeping me safe were snatched out from around me.

"What the hell, Carlie?" Jayden asked.

The door to his tent was open and there was
no mistaking the sun rising up over the horizon.

I jerked up with as much surprise as Jayden
so clearly had.

"I-I must have fallen asleep. Oh my God! I
can't believe I did that," I groaned.

"Me either," Jayden barked, crawling out of
the tent.

He was disappointed and angry that I'd let
him down.

I followed him. I could tell by the
stiffness of his back and the grip of his fists that he'd been met
by something unexpected. As quick as a flash, I was standing next
to him and preparing to fight anyone who'd invaded our camp while
we slept.

There was no amount of preparation that
could have readied me for what we found, who we found sitting next
to the very tree we'd huddled up next to before the rain.

Gran.

He was bright-eyed and bushy-tailed and
looking like he'd been waiting for hours for us to get up.

In unison, Jayden and I both asked, "Where's
Tawney?"

Gran put his fingers to his lips. "She
was
still asleep," he said,
insinuating that our big mouths might have awakened her.

Jayden's face and neck were as red as my
cheeks as Gran leveled a knowing stare on the two of us.

"I'm sorry, sir. I fell asleep," he
confessed.

I stepped around him and toward Gran.
"That's not true. Jayden would never do anything like that. This is
all my fault. Last night when it began raining the worst, we took
refuge in his tent because it was the biggest one. He only agreed
to go to sleep if I stood watch… which is exactly what I was
supposed to be doing.

"At some point, I-I fell asleep. I'm the one
who fell down on the job. Not Jayden," I confessed.

Gran's head bobbed. "Not to worry, little
one. I've been watching over the camp. The two of you have been
doing too much, carrying too much of the weight, expecting too much
of yourselves. The best advice I can give is to set realistic
expectations of yourselves and each other. While the safe house is
the end of the journey for Tawney and me… for now, it is just the
beginning for the two of you. I'll tell you more about what I know
once we arrive. Right now, you need to know that we'll soon be
separated."

One glance Jayden's way told me this was as
much news to him as it was to me.

"Gran, we're not leaving either of you.
We've already had to separate from Mom and Dad. We aren't going to
separate our family any more than that," I said, only barely
keeping my voice down.

Patient as ever, Gran smiled. "I understand,
little one, but this is something you must do. Tawney and I have
our own journey, one that must be taken. After we're at the safe
house, the two of you will continue on. There'll be people who'll
pick you up and take you down the path you're destined to follow.
It's not one Selma or Sam knows about. At least, they don't know
yet. In fact, I'm only just learning of these plans myself."

This time Jayden intervened. "Sir, I'm
taking all of you to the safe house just like I was ordered to do.
From there, I'm going to wait for additional orders. No one'll
leave that safe house until Sam approves it."

"Surrogate, I know Barone. I've seen his
work in action. He's notorious for preying on my kindhearted
granddaughter's emotions and my grandson-in-law's soldier loyalty.
Barone tells your mother what she wants to hear, gets her to do
things she'd never do otherwise, and then uses her hard work to
send our nation deeper into the bowels of hell than we've already
traveled."

Bobbing his forehead my way, he continued.
"Selma thinks Barone will leave Carlie alone if she resumes her
work in his labs. Sam thinks he'll honor his word. The fact is…
Barone'll never leave Carlie alone. He has plans for her.
Experiments he can't perform with anyone else or on anyone
else."

Jayden shook his head and closed his eyes as
if it were up to him to enlighten my grandfather. "Sir, neither Sam
nor Selma would let him do that. If they aren't around, I'll
prevent it."

"You'll prevent it." Gran laughed. "You… a
Surrogate. The only person a Surrogate has power over is a Genetic
Anomaly. If Barone doesn't kill you first, he'll have you chained,
shackled, and prisoned. You won't be able to stop him or his plans
for my great granddaughter. No one will if you don't do what I tell
you to do."

Neither Jayden nor I had ever seen this side
of my great-grandfather. He was unusually cruel in the way he spoke
to Jayden and completely determined that we hear his message.

"She's the original MicroPharm first
generation and the only person alive whose life expectancy will top
two hundred years. Carlie, in Barone's eyes, is the modern day
Eve
, the woman from which all
future generations will be bred.

"You have to understand that he's been
quoted as
a man searching for someone with the
genes that will allow him to make this a nation of eternal youth,
absolute strength, superior intelligence, and unfathomable
riches
.