Promise Me Darkness (16 page)

He slowly lowered his mouth to mine and kissed me with a tenderness that made me ache.

My tears dried up as he leaned into me. I was almost naked and he was between my legs. There was nowhere better I wanted to be.

Eva cleared her throat from behind Ryder, reminding us that we were not alone. I blushed from my head to the tips of my bare toes as Ryder broke off our kiss.

“Her ribs need to be wrapped,” Eva said, handing the bandage to Ryder. After he took it from her, she left, leaving the flickering candle behind.

Without a word, Ryder started to wrap my ribs. His hand followed the bandage around me, below my bra, across my bare skin.

“I need you with me, Maddie,” he whispered, making another sweep around me with the bandage. This time his hand moved even slower.

“I need the girl who isn’t afraid of anything. The one that will put me in my place when I need it. You’re the only one that can do that to me. Just you.”

With one touch, he took away my fear and left desire in its place. My tears were now completely gone. The pain from my injuries was still there but somehow seemed more bearable. He did that to me. He just made everything better.

“We’re doing this together,” he said, standing up and gently pulling me to my feet. "I’m not leaving without you."

Leading me to my room, he pulled a pair of shorts and a t–shirt from my closet. I tried to protest when he started to help me put the shorts on but he insisted despite my embarrassment. Next came the shirt. His fingers seemed to linger a bit too long on me but I didn’t complain.

“Where’s your backpack?” he asked after sternly telling me to sit on the bed.

I pointed to the corner of the room.

He emptied all the paper and pens from the bag. In my closet, he took clothes off of hangers and stuffed them in the backpack. I had no doubt that Ryder would know what I needed.

“What if we can’t come back?” I asked.

Ryder stopped to look down at me. Despite the events of the evening, he still looked good in his jeans and shirt. Very unruffled and sexy.

“You can’t think that way, Maddie. We won’t get through this unless we stay focused and believe things will be fine. If we give up, the terrorists win.”

Walking over to my dresser, he yanked open drawers and started pulling out underwear and bras, stuffing them into the backpack.

“You stay here. I’m going to get stuff from the bathroom,” he said, his eyes moving over me once before leaving.

After struggling to pull on a pair of socks and running shoes with only one hand, I sat in silence and looked around my room. I was leaving stuff here, pictures and history. Things that couldn’t be replaced.

I carefully walked over to my dresser and picked up a picture of my dad. I prayed that he was safe at home, untouched by this nightmare.

I sat the picture back down when Ryder walked in with my backpack slung over his shoulder. He glanced at the bed before looking at me. I blushed, remembering what we did under those twisted, wrinkled sheets. I wondered if he was thinking the same thing.

“Let’s go home, Maddie,” he said, his voice sounding rough in the darkness of the room.

It was time to leave. I couldn’t look back as we shut and locked the door. I didn’t want to say goodbye.

We remained silent as we left the city behind. Each of us was lost in our own thoughts, trying to come to terms with what was happening. Our worlds had just changed. We were confused and scared. Frightened.

As I watched out the windshield, a sense of foreboding filled me. I knew I would never return here. I was now going home for good.

Looking over at Eva, I was glad that she was with me. She had fallen asleep almost immediately. I envied her for that. Now that the medicine was making my pain tolerable, I was too terrified to close my eyes. Too haunted by the situation to sleep.

We were now on the four–lane highway that would lead us further from the city. Cars sat abandoned on the road but no people lingered. If the EMP had hit during the day, chances were slim that we would have been able to leave town so easily. The roads would have been blocked with stalled cars. Panicked people would have been gathering everywhere, making traversing the city a problem if not impossible.

For miles, Ryder kept his eyes on the road and both hands on the wheel. I felt his urgency to get home. We had food and water but not enough to last for days. If, for some reason, we couldn’t make it home, we would have a problem. Thirst and hunger would make traveling almost impossible if not deadly.

Ryder looked down at me with worry etched around his eyes. “You okay? Are you in pain?”

“I’m better. The medicine is helping,” I said. I felt the gash on my head and winced. It was a good–sized cut that would scar.

“I should have been waiting for you outside the bathroom,” Ryder said with self–loathing.

"You had no idea something was going to happen.”

He put a hand on my bare leg and stroked his fingers over my skin in a gesture that spoke of more than just friendship.

I studied his profile in the darkness. His eyes remained on the road while his hand stayed on me. Feeling a tiny bit brave, I ran my hand down to his. Without a word, his fingers intertwined through mine, holding my hand.

The wind whipped through the open windows, chasing away the nighttime heat. I saw nothing but darkness outside the windshield. Homes were dark, businesses were dark, even the sky was void of stars tonight. It felt as if we were the only four people left in the world.

Brody broke the silence, asking a question that never occurred to me. "What are we going to do about gasoline? The gas pumps are powered by electricity and since this old truck is a gas guzzler, we’ll have to refuel soon.”

Ryder let go of my hand to grip the steering wheel.

“We’ll have to find a hose and suction gas out of an abandoned car,” he said. “It’s either that or walk home so I would rather steal the gas.”

The thought of walking home made me shudder. We would either fry in this heat or die of dehydration. No, walking wasn’t an option.

My stomach growled with hunger as we past a stalled eighteen–wheeler. The picture of a huge hamburger and fries stared back at me along with the world famous McDonald’s logo. I thought of all the food inside that would rot in a few days, causing an awful smell. If power wasn’t restored quickly, all food would become a commodity, a bargaining chip, a new form of money. And we were passing a truckload of it.

Ryder’s deep voice rumbled beside me, dragging my attention away from the hunger. “Why don’t you try to get some sleep, Maddie?”

I doubted that I would be able to sleep but it would help me escape reality for a short period of time. With sleep, the pain and fear of the unknown would disappear and when I woke up, we would be all that much closer to home. So I leaned my head back against the seat and closed my eyes, praying for a respite from this hell.

~~~~

The next thing I knew, Ryder was shaking me awake gently.

Sitting up, I winced with pain. My body felt battered and bruised. My broken rib was killing me, my head was pounding, and my finger throbbed with each beat of my heart.

The early morning sun glared through the windshield, making the pavement in front of us shine and shimmer as if it was a liquid river. The lonely stretch of highway loomed ahead, vast and unending. Only pastures and farmland surrounded us. Not a house or person could be seen for miles. We were alone.

Ryder handed me a pain pill and a warm bottle of water. I couldn’t help but notice the stubble on his jaw and the exhaustion around his eyes.

“We’re taking a break. You want to get out?” he asked, his mouth set in a grim line.

"Sure," I said, with a scratchy voice. "What time is it?" I asked, slowly following him out of the truck.

“Seven maybe? We’re trying to avoid towns but it’s adding onto our time,” he said, rubbing a hand across his face.

In the bright sunlight, I stretched carefully, mindful of my aching body. Ryder leaned against the truck near me, making me acutely aware that he wasn’t leaving my side. Crossing his arms over his chest, he stared off into the distance. He seemed relaxed but I knew he would be ready to pounce if danger appeared.

I pushed away from the hot metal of the truck and walked further onto the road, needing to stretch my legs. The blacktop beneath my tennis shoes was hot despite the early morning hour. A slight breeze lifted strands of my hair but it wasn’t enough to cool me down. I knew that in a few short hours, the heat would be almost unbearable, making Texas feel like hell on earth.

Ryder was watching me, staring at me with his blue eyes.

“Get out of the street, Maddie,” he said in a deep, commanding voice.

Earlier he had been gentle and caring but now he seemed hard and dangerous. This was his don’t–fuck–with–me attitude, the one he presented to most people. The one that annoyed me.

"Why should I move? There’s no one around," I said, spreading my arms wide and looking around me. "No one’s going to drive by and and run me over."

"Maddie."

He said my name as a warning, an ultimatum. I heard it. I believed the unspoken threat. I took a few steps closer to the truck and was instantly angry.
Since when did I obey him?

“Happy?” I snapped, crossing my arms over my chest.

“Always with you, baby.”

I sucked in a breath and felt my body leap to attention.

Ryder’s gaze lingered on me a moment longer before he turned to Eva, dismissing me.

“You have a map in this thing?” he asked her.

“Yep, in the glove box. Another thing my old–fashioned dad insisted I have. Thank God for over–protective parents,” Eva said.

Ryder sauntered over to the passenger side of the truck, his hips rolling with ease. Opening up the glove box, he pulled out a neatly folded map of Texas. Walking to the back of the truck, he lowered the tailgate and spread the map out. Brody joined him, both of them studying the map for the safest way home.

“Let’s look at your fingers, Maddie,” Eva said when she noticed me holding my injured hand against my chest.

Reluctantly, I climbed into the driver’s seat, glancing back at Ryder one more time. Eva slowly began to remove the bandage from my hand. I held back a cry, wondering how much pain one person could take.

She gasped when the bandage was completely off. My fingers looked terrible. No longer were they a healthy skin–toned color. Instead, each finger was covered in black and blue bruises. The worst was my ring finger. It was swollen and at an odd angle. It didn’t resemble my finger at all.

“Lord, Maddie, this is not good," Eva said, clearly worried. She took a deep breath. "Okay. I’m going to touch them."

I nodded, understanding this needed to be done. Sweat broke out on my upper lip and my stomach roiled with pain.

“Try not to move.”

I tensed as she felt along my black and blue fingers. When she touched the broken one, I cried out and yanked my hand away.

Immediately, Ryder was standing outside the truck door.

“What’s wrong?” he asked.

Eva sighed heavily. “Her fingers are a mess.”

When Ryder looked down at my fingers, all the blood drained from his face. “Oh, hell, Maddie.”

“Let’s just leave them alone,” I pleaded. The pain was too awful. I couldn’t handle Eva touching them again.

“That’s not an option. You know that broken one won’t heal correctly if it’s not fixed,” Eva said.

I saw her mind working as she studied my fingers.

“I’m going to have to do this the old fashioned way,” she muttered to herself.

“No, Eva,” I whispered in fright.

“What’s the old way?” Ryder asked, looking back and forth between us.

“Brody! Find me a stick that is around three inches long. And straight!” Eva yelled, not answering Ryder.

I felt queasy, knowing what was about to happen. In seconds, Brody handed her a small stick about the length of my finger.

“Ryder, sit behind her in the truck,” Eva instructed.

He climbed into the truck, scooting across the bench seat to sit behind me.

“Put your arms around her and hold her tight. Don’t let her move, no matter how much she pulls away,” Eva said.

I knew that this was for my own good but I shook my head in denial anyway. Ryder put his arms around me, making me feel like a child being held down for a shot.

Eva started applying light pressure on each finger. A whimper escaped me when severe pain hit. Instinctively, I tried pulling away but Ryder held me firmly.

“It will be okay,” he said. “Just breathe.”

Eva continued to poke around on my fingers, feeling along the bone for any breaks or dislocated joints. The pain was awful. I bit my lip to keep from crying out until the coppery taste of blood filled my mouth.

“You almost done?” Ryder snapped.

“No. Hold her tight,” Eva answered.

After pushing around on my wrist, she gently laid my hand down.

“It looks like three of your fingers are out of socket, Maddie. One is broken.” She gave me a questioning look. “How did three of your fingers get pulled out of socket? I thought you said you were trampled.”

I froze, remembering what happened before the lights went out.

"Maddie? Someone stepping on your fingers couldn’t have pulled them out of the socket. What happened?" Eva asked again, suspiciously.

When I answered, my voice cracked with fear. “Ben was waiting for me outside the bathroom. We struggled. That’s when I felt them pop out of the socket.”

“Asshole!” Ryder growled, tightening his arms around me. “If I see him again, I’m putting him in the ground.”

“Not if I get to him first,” Eva spit, angry. “The guy deserves to be beaten within an inch of his life for hurting her." She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. When she opened them, the anger was gone. "For now, let’s take care of her.”

“Just do your thing. I’ve got her.”

I should have been mad that they were talking about me like I wasn’t there but I just wanted to get this over with.

“I’m going to pop them back in place and it’s gonna hurt like a sonofabitch,” Eva said, glancing up at me. “You can handle this, Maddie.”