Reboot (21 page)

“They should be.”

The lights at the edge of town appeared and I stopped and checked the map. The houses had thinned out and then disappeared completely. There wasn’t much on the south side of Rosa. HARC was to the west, the worst part of the slums to the east. The trees were scarcer as well, leaving nothing but flat dirt dotted with grass in front of us. HARC had no doubt cleared it out so there would be no way to sneak out of the city. The whole area was lit up brighter than daylight.

“Leb didn’t give us an area with much cover,” I said, ducking behind a tree and gesturing for Callum to follow.

“I doubt any section has cover,” Callum said. He moved closer to me until both our bodies were hidden behind the tree trunk.

He was probably right, unfortunately. Leb had drawn the star directly in between two of the tall metal watchtowers, which he must have thought was the safest route. The watchtowers were spaced several hundred yards apart. I peeked out from behind our hiding spot to see an officer strolling up and down in front of the fence, a massive gun at his waist.

“Let’s just run,” he said. “What do we have to lose?” He took a step forward, like he was going to take off right away.

“Our heads,” I said in annoyance, tugging him back to me by the arm. “They’re going to have sharpshooters up there.”

“What else are we going to do?” He knocked on his helmet. “Besides, we have these.”

He was right, but I still felt a burst of irritation at his disregard for his own life. Again.

“Those helmets don’t hold up forever,” I said. “I didn’t save you from getting shot on the inside so you could die one day later out here. At least pretend that you care about dying.” I looked down at the map again. “This can’t be the best place. It seems so stupid.”

He looked at me in surprise. “I care if I die.”

“You don’t act like it.”

“I already died once. Turned out all right.” He smiled at me.

“That’s not funny. You’ll be dead for real this time. And then what? I’m supposed to go to this stupid Reboot reservation by myself? I never would have left if it weren’t for you.”

“I didn’t ask you to do that,” he said. “And what do you mean, you never would have left? You were fine with it? Being a prisoner?”

“Yes. It was better than my human life.”

“But they made you kill people.”

“I don’t—” I wrapped my arms around my waist and stopped myself. I couldn’t tell him that.

“You don’t care?” he guessed. “You don’t feel guilt? Sadness?”

“No,” I said, looking at the ground. “I did at first. But now . . . no.”

I stole a glance up at him to see a heartbreakingly crestfallen look on his face.

“I don’t know why you keep saying that,” he said.

“Because it’s true.”

“No, it’s not. I saw your face when they took those kids away. You feel everything, just like the rest of us.” He paused, considering me before a mischievous glint sparkled in his eyes. “And you totally have the hots for me.”

A surprised laugh escaped my mouth.

“What? You do.”

I couldn’t argue with that, so I just smiled. He grabbed my hand and tugged me to him, planting a soft kiss on my lips.

“Leb wanted us to get out,” he said. “We can’t rescue his daughter if we’re dead. He must have thought this was the best way.”

“Yeah,” I admitted, tucking the map into my pocket. “I’d just prefer it if our heads didn’t explode.”

“Let’s run fast, then.” He lifted his eyebrows, looking at me for approval.

I nodded. “Start going in a zigzag pattern when they spot us. Should make it harder for them to hit us.”

“Got it.”

I took one more glance around before ducking out from behind the tree and heading for the open field.

We had taken only a few steps when the siren sounded. It was louder here, screeching from one of the towers. I felt the bullets before I heard them.

They pelted my shoulders and knocked against my helmet. My feet flew over the dirt, Callum at my side even as I picked up speed and began running in a crooked line.

The world was white suddenly, the ground rumbling as I fell against it. A second blast, closer, threw me across the dirt and sent a searing pain up my leg.

I couldn’t hear. I couldn’t see. I scrambled to my feet only to have the world shake again, the blast so intense I landed several feet away.

A bullet clipped my ear as I jumped up. They whizzed by, hitting the dirt like heavy drops.

Callum. I couldn’t see him.

“Callum!” I ran into the smoke and directly into a hard chest.

I couldn’t make out a face, but he lifted a gun to my head. I ducked, smashing my fist into his gut and knocking his knees out from under him. I snatched the gun from his hand and smashed the barrel against his head.

“Wren.” I heard Callum’s voice, quiet, but when I looked up he was right next to me, yelling. His helmet was half-gone, the left side of his head totally exposed. I took his hand and we sprinted for the fence.

His eyes were wide with fear as he turned to look behind us. I whipped my head around to see a massive group of HARC officers hot on our trail.

I lowered my chin into my chest as they fired, dropping Callum’s hand so I could run faster.

The fence was so close I could see it clearly now. It wasn’t terribly high—fifteen feet or so.

But it was electrified.

I could hear the buzz as we approached. We were going to have to hold on to it for several seconds to be able to get up and over it, but the force of the shock might knock us off right away.

Callum hit the fence a second before I did. I saw the jolt go through his body as his fingers wrapped around the wire, but he held on, his face determined.

I grabbed the wire and gasped as my insides lit on fire. The shock was so intense I almost screamed, almost broke my own rule.

I hauled ass up the fence as fast as I could, my hands black by the time I reached the top and hurled myself over.

The twitching was so intense it was hard to stand, let alone run. But I heard the buzz stop as they turned the fence off for the HARC officers. They’d catch us if we didn’t move. Callum’s body jerked as badly as mine so I grabbed him around the waist and turned him in the direction of the trees.

We needed to go north, and panic flashed through my brain as I struggled to remember which direction that was. Austin was south, but I didn’t want HARC to see us headed there. If they knew where we were going, they’d be waiting for us.

A shuttle roared through the sky, bringing a fresh round of bullets with it. I heard the crack, then felt the blast against my head.

The remains of my helmet toppled to the ground.

Right. North was right.

My brain didn’t want to run but my legs carried me anyway, floating over the dirt and grass faster than a human could keep up with.

We were in the trees, the beautiful trees, slapping against branches as our feet pounded the dirt. My insides jiggled around, unsettled, but I pressed on until the officers’ voices grew distant.

I came to a sudden stop, looking up as the shuttle zoomed by. I gestured for Callum to follow me as I darted farther into the trees and hid behind a thick one. I couldn’t see them anymore, but I could hear officers running and yelling from several directions.

I looked over at Callum to see the twitching gone, his fingers wrapped around the trunk of the tree as his eyes scanned the area. The rest of his helmet was gone, too, probably lost and shattered somewhere like mine.

“You all right?” I asked, breathing heavily.

“Yes. I can keep going.”

I glanced up at the sky as another shuttle flew overhead, and hesitantly took a step out from behind the tree. Nearby, boots crunched against leaves and I squinted in the darkness. They weren’t using flashlights, which was smart. Easier to sneak up on us that way.

I nodded at Callum, putting a finger to my lips as I took a careful step to the west. He followed my lead, and I wanted to hug him for his quiet footsteps. I eased past a fallen tree branch and glanced over my shoulder.

We crept through the trees until I couldn’t hear our pursuers anymore. It was quiet, the only sounds the breeze rustling the leaves and the distant hum of a shuttle engine.

“Run?” I whispered to Callum, turning to face south.

He nodded in agreement, his eyes serious when they met mine, but a hint of a smile starting to form on his lips.

I let myself smile, too, just for a moment. And then we ran.

THE QUIET SWIRLED AROUND ME. I’D NEVER EXPERIENCED such quiet before. I knew the sounds of the city, or the sounds of the shuttles, or the sounds of Ever’s breathing as she tried to sleep, but this type of quiet was entirely foreign. I felt like an intruder in this world. We were still just outside Rosa, but I was on a new planet, one where there was nothing but Callum and a breeze blowing softly against my skin.

The trees provided solid cover, but the ground was uneven, littered with leaves and holes and fallen branches. I hopped and dodged and stumbled but my breathing steadied as I healed, matching Callum’s as our feet hit the ground.

The healing provided only momentary relief, and I slowed as my stomach turned over in protest. We’d only run about four miles, but my face was hot and my legs were unsteady. Callum glanced in my direction, his eyebrows knitting together. He slowed, pulling on my hand to stop me.

“Are you all right?” he asked.

I nodded. “Yeah. I’m just hungry, I think.” I hadn’t eaten a real meal in more than twenty-four hours, and my body did not appreciate the long run on so little fuel. My body didn’t appreciate so little fuel at all, actually. It was used to being fed well, and regularly, for the past five years.

I felt worse standing still, and I winced as I reached for my left shoulder. I could feel the hard lump just behind my shoulder, from a bullet lodged there. My skin had closed up over it.

I tried to push the pain away, but it was harder when I was weak. It throbbed, refusing to be ignored, and I frowned. How annoying.

“What?” Callum asked, reaching for my shoulder.

I shrugged him off, turning my face away. It was embarrassing for someone to be able to read the emotions on my face. I didn’t think anyone had ever been able to do that, even when I was a human.

“It’s nothing,” I mumbled. “There’s a bullet in there.”

He reached for me again, and I let him press his hand to my jacket, his fingers finding the spot. “Want me to get it out for you?”

I hesitated, glancing around. It was dark, deserted. We were still quite a ways from Austin and far enough outside of Rosa to have lost any shuttles or officers. A breeze tugged a few escaped strands of hair from my ponytail into my face, and I batted them away. “Maybe we should just keep going.”

Callum smirked as he held his hand out. “Just give me the knife.”

I pulled it from my pants and handed it over. I felt a little burst of relief that he hadn’t agreed to keep running. It was the last thing I wanted to do.

“Probably easiest if you sit,” he said as I shrugged off my jacket.

I glanced around one last time before slowly sliding down onto the dirt and crossing my legs. I closed my eyes briefly as everything in me collapsed in a heap of exhaustion. Callum’s fingers brushed my arms as he sat down behind me and I shivered at his touch. His fingers found the hole the bullet had made in my shirt and when he spoke I could feel his breath on my neck.

“You need to take this one off,” he said.

I pulled my arms through the shirtsleeves and let it hang around my neck over my undershirt.

“Um, do I just dig in there with the knife?” he asked, holding my shoulder steady with one hand.

“Yes. You don’t have to be careful. Quick would be best.”

“Okay.” He exhaled slowly and I felt the tip of the knife poke my skin. I shut my eyes as he pressed harder. It was easier to block out the pain with his breath on my neck and the warmth of him behind me.

The bullet hit the ground with a thud, and Callum set the knife to the side, his hands sliding down my arms. He leaned forward until his cheek brushed my face, the slight stubble tickling my skin. He laced his fingers through mine, turning his head so his lips brushed against my temple.

“That’s the grossest thing I’ve ever done,” he whispered, a trace of amusement in his voice.

I laughed and he squeezed my hand, his lips forming into a smile against my skin. I turned and our eyes met, then our lips for the briefest moment. He was the one who pulled away, the concerned look back on his face.

“Do you want to try to find food?” he asked. “You look exhausted.”

I scooted away from him, sticking my arms back into my shirt. “I’m fine. Let’s just keep going.”

He looked like he might argue, but when I pulled my jacket on and started walking he followed without a word. I briefly considered trying to catch an animal, but I saw none, and we couldn’t build a fire to cook it anyway. HARC might see the smoke.

It was different going without food as a Reboot. As a human, it had been uncomfortable, painful, consuming. The hunger took over until I could think of nothing else.

My mind was clearer as a Reboot. I could focus on other things, but the gnawing in my stomach was worse. It felt like a monster was eating me from the inside.

Food hadn’t occurred to me when I was planning our escape. I hadn’t considered so many things, like where we would sleep or find water and fresh clothes. In my panic to get Callum out I hadn’t stopped to think that maybe we would be worse off outside. Maybe HARC had been right, and they were doing us a kindness by sheltering us and feeding us. Yes, we were technically their slaves, but maybe that was better than what we would face out here.

I’m sorry
. Ever’s voice rang through my ears, as clear as the day she’d died. She wouldn’t have been worse off on the outside. In fact, if I’d paid closer attention, if I’d worked harder to escape when I first discovered it was possible, she might still be alive.

I closed my eyes against the guilt pushing at my chest. She would have liked it out here, hungry or not.

“The reservation is that way, right?” Callum asked, pulling me from my thoughts. He was looking up at the black sky and pointing north.