Runner Series (Book 1): Runner 3 (12 page)

“There’s the small theater that plays a movie every night I told you about when you first got here. I don’t know what they’re playing today.” Audrey stood up and checked the time, “If you want to go we could take my bicycle and we’d probably make it on time.”

“Let’s go to a movie then,” Lincoln stood up and stretched his shoulders.

“Stay here,” she said and ran into the house. A moment later the rickety white garage door started squeaking while rising off the ground.

Lincoln rushed to help Audrey lift it, “So, this a yes to going on an actual date?”

“If you grab my bicycle, then yes. It’s in the corner under the small window,” she pointed to the corner of the garage.

Lincoln grabbed the bike and hurried out of the garage under the door. Audrey let the door drop and brushed dirt and a spider web off her hands.

Lincoln was already on the seat when she turned to him, “Ready when you are.”

She hopped onto the handle bars and making their way down Main Street.

Audrey took a deep breath of the crisp evening air. It was relaxing to feel the wind rushing passed her face and through her hair. She closed her eyes and pretended it was a regular summer evening for a second.

There was a long line at the doors to the theater when they arrived. The queue said the movie for the week was an old animated movie the theater had probably owned the reel to since the early 1990s.

“I think I saw this when I was visiting my grandma back in the day as a kid,” Lincoln reminisced.

They made their way through the line slowly and kept each other entertained with stories about themselves from their younger years.

“I kid you not,” Lincoln laughed as he told her a story. “Every single time I threw the bowling ball it either went straight in the gutter or into another lane. My mom ended up asking for the barriers they put up for little kids.”

“That’s hilarious,” Audrey snickered. “I wish I could have seen it.”

“I’m glad you didn’t,” Lincoln protested. “The most embarrassing thing at twelve years old would have been the girl I like seeing me suck at a sport like bowling.”

They bought their tickets for fifty cents each and walked into the theater. They carefully sidled past people into two empty seats in the middle of the packed row of chairs.

“I guess people really want things to be the way they were before, huh?” Audrey asked him. “I haven’t been to a movie since before the infection.”

“Seems that way. On a plus side, we don’t have to worry about cell phones being annoying,” Lincoln looked at the audience. “There are a lot more little kids here than there were in Artesia.”

“I think it’s because we have a bigger population than Artesia. I hear there are still schools that are going to running again in Albuquerque,” Audrey informed him.

“That’s great to hear,” Lincoln stretched his legs out in front of him and sank into his chair. “I think I’d like kids someday.”

“Even with everything that’s happened?” Audrey snorted.

“I know the world will be different than when I was a kid, but I don’t think that’s a bad thing,” Lincoln said rationally.

The theater lights dimmed and the trailer reel started. Lincoln lifted the arm rest that separated them and put his arm around Audrey’s shoulders.

He watched the screen enthusiastically, acting as if he’d never seen or heard of the movies coming out.

“Did you see that movie coming this Christmas? I guess I know what I’ll be doing!” he said excitedly.

Audrey slapped his knee playfully, “Knock it off! You’re going to get us kicked out.”

“What? I can’t be excited about a new animated feature coming out soon?” Lincoln smiled down at her.

“We need to be quiet so people can enjoy the movie,” Audrey crossed her legs so she wouldn’t be tempted to put her feet on the back of the chair in front of her. “Be nice.”

“Can do, ma’am!” Lincoln said quietly.

She leaned into his side and pulled his arm farther around her shoulders. He was warm and smelled faintly of a rich cologne that he might have put on earlier in the day. She had a hard time paying attention to the screen when he started tracing circles on her shoulder.

The absent-minded touch gave her goosebumps, so she put her hand on his to stop the movement.

“Watch the movie,” she gently chided him.

He pulled her closer to him and rested the back of his head on his chair, stretching his legs out, “Alright, but you need to be quiet, Miss.”

Audrey poked him in the side a few times in protest, but kept it up when he tried to wriggle away from her.

He grabbed her fingers, “Stop it. That tickles.”

She looked up at him her, eyes lingering on his mouth, “Okay.”

He smiled wide and small wrinkles appear at the sides of his warm brown eyes. His gaze locked with hers and he put his finger under her chin. Her skin tingled at his touch and she opened her mouth to take a quick breath. He lifted her mouth up and leaned down so her lips met his in a soft kiss.

She pulled back and studied his face for a minute, “We should watch the movie.”

“Yeah,” he whispered, but didn’t look away from her.

She broke the stare when the trailers finished and the movie started, but she rested her arm across Lincoln’s stomach and wondered what the kiss meant to him.

Dean did not attend the first week of practices after Lincoln joined the Runners and everyone noticed. They had barely gotten back to having ten people and he was skipping training.

Audrey quickly took over in Dean’s place during training and met with the Council for the daily assignments so she could make the schedules for the others. She made sure they knew who would be in charge of clearing out dregs near the hospital and set up the pairs for the week while she was scheduling everything.

Max, who was Runner Eight, helped her train Lincoln with weapon use during the practices so she could run the drills with the others, but during the off days she and Lincoln were paired together so she could help him as much as she could his first week.

True to form, he was a natural at everything physical she required of him and he didn’t have to do much extra training.

“Man, you really picked this up quickly,” Max was impressed with him after their third day of training. “Are you sure you weren’t a Runner somewhere else?”

“I think it’s because I was in JROTC and had gone through my first boot camp for the army,” Lincoln shifted on his feet nervously and twisted the ax handle in his hands.

“I heard how you took out that Howler that almost took a bite out of Dean,” Max continued. “Even with training that’s pretty beast, dude.”

“I was just trying to keep everyone safe,” Lincoln brushed it off deftly. “Any of you would have done the same.”

“It’s our job, so yeah, we would have,” Max acknowledged. “You weren’t technically a Runner yet. You could have high-tailed it out of there like that other kid did and no one would have said boo.”

“That wouldn’t have been cool,” Lincoln laughed. “Especially since it would have left Audrey to deal with clean up on her own. The Howler had a decent sized crowd of dregs following it.”

“Yeah, but all of us already know how hardcore Audrey is,” Max said with a shrug. “She goes down and tracks mutants in Carlsbad. No one else wants to do something that crazy.”

Lincoln planted the ax on the ground and leaned on it, “Why does she do it?”

“I don’t know why she still goes down, but she’s the one who told us about mutants. There haven’t been any new kinds of them down there for a while, so I don’t think she’ll still be able to go down now that security is being tightened while we get rid of the dregs close to the community,” Max mused.

“I don’t know. I guess it depends on what the Council and Dean have to say about it,” Audrey put her machete in her sheath and walked into the conversation.

She was stacking the cones they used for agility drills and shouted a goodbye to a few of the other Runners as they left the field so they could go do their errands for the Council.

“That sucks,” Max responded quickly and followed her to the supply shed with Lincoln at his heels. “Dean never wants you to do anything but stay around Roswell. He pretty much throws a moody tantrum every month when you’ve gone down south.”

Audrey sighed. She was aware of the fact that Dean didn’t like her going to Carlsbad—he’d never kept that a secret—but she had always assumed that he would just move on with everything that needed to be done while she was gone, like they had when Peter was injured.

She put the cones away and opened the safe the Runner’s guns were put in, “Dean will have to get over it.”

“Where has he been this week?” Marcella inquired as she and the three other Runners joined them at the edge of the field.

“Honestly, I don’t know,” Audrey answered the small group around her. “I think almost being killed last week might have pushed him too far, especially since it was so close to when Peter died. Maybe he’s just taking a bit of a well-earned break this week.”

“We all know he and Pete were pretty much joined at the hip, but he’s been acting so erratic lately,” Marcella cleared her throat. “Um, a lot of us—”

“All of us,” Greg, who was Runner Six, added.

“All of us,” Marcella amended with wave of her hand. “We’ve been talking and we think you should take over as Director.”

Audrey’s mouth dropped open as she looked at the faces of the Runners who were still there and wondered why they would want that. There were members of the group who were in better shape than her physically. The fact that she was the youngest of the Runners made her feel suddenly more inadequate.

“I appreciate that and everything, but I really don’t know what to say,” Audrey muttered. “I don’t think it’s up to us though.”

“We’ve already talked to the Council,” Cecil, who was Runner Ten, said from the back of the group with a bright smile. “They know you’re young—we all know it, but we all believe you have a strong sense of self and are confident you know what you’re doing.”

“Thanks Grandpa,” she affectionately called him by the nickname the group had given him as the oldest member. “What about Dean?”

She knew Dean was upset because of Lincoln and she didn’t want to do anything that might hurt Dean more whether or not she meant to. The group was quiet with a few murmurs popping out.

Marcella spoke up again, “The Council thinks it’s best to talk to you about taking on the title of Director and then let
you
decide what to do about Dean.”

“When do I talk to them?” Audrey questioned.

Marcella pointed behind her and Audrey turned to see Mr. Davies, Mr. Ruthers, and Mrs. Jimenez waiting at the edge of Runner’s Field.

She looked back at the rest of the Runners and hesitantly ran to where the Council was patiently waiting for her.

“Good Afternoon, Audrey,” Mr. Davies said kindly as she approached them. “It’s been a busy few weeks for us all, don’t you think?”

Audrey nodded. She wasn’t sure what to say to Mr. Davies, but he didn’t wait for her.

“Well, I take it Marcella has told you the news?”

Audrey squeaked out an affirmation, “She did. I-I’m honored that you would consider me.”

“The Runners approached us about it. I can’t say we haven’t been impressed with your leadership lately. Do you think it’s a position you’d be interested in?” Mr. Davies queried.

“I think it would be great, but—”

“You’re worried about how Dean will take it?” Mr. Davies guessed correctly. “I think you should know that he hasn’t been to practice this week because I have asked him to take time to clear his thoughts and gather himself.”

“I see,” Audrey replied.

She knew Mr. Davies just wanted the best for his son, but it was odd that he would ask him to stay away from people who needed him and who could help him.

“He lost his best friend and then was almost killed himself,” Mr. Davies continued. “That can take a lot out of a person.”

“Do you think he will be upset that he’s being demoted?”

“I’ve talked to him a few times when he’s allowed me to this last week,” Mr. Davies sighed and scratched the back of his head. “I think he understands that we can’t have someone who is acting as unpredictably as he has been leading such an important group of people.”

“There are other people who could do a better job,” Audrey protested. “People who are more qualified.”

“You are young, but you’ve been trained just as long as the others have since Roswell was able to stabilize itself,” Mr. Davies started.

“You know the ins and outs of being a Runner and the others already respect you enough that they unanimously asked for you to lead them,” Mrs. Jimenez added happily.

“I think I agree with them,” Mr. Ruthers grunted. “As much as I don’t care for the Runners, we need you right now and you are more responsible than some of the people out there who are twice your age.”

“We think you’d do well as Director,” Mr. Davies concluded.

Audrey was flattered that so many people held her in such high esteem, but she couldn’t shake the feeling that she wasn’t good enough for what they were asking of her, “Do I need to answer now?”

“No,” Mr. Davies replied with a slight frown that caused a crease in his forehead. “We would like you to let us know by the end of the week though. We’ll name you interim Director and go from there. How does that sound?”

Audrey nodded. Maybe if she tried it out for a while she’d be more comfortable taking on the responsibility of having the position permanently, “Yeah that sounds good to me.”

“Who do you want to be your Assistant Director for the time being?” Mrs. Jimenez asked her. “I want to make sure I know what to record back at the office.”

“I think I’ll ask Marcella for now. She’s always been reliable and trustworthy,” Audrey answered and looked back at the other girl with a smile and a small wave.

“Alright, thanks for the chat, Interim Director,” Mr. Davies grinned and held his hand out.

She shook his hand firmly and turned around. She headed back to where the small group of cheering Runners waited.

~~~

All ten Runners were standing between the north gate and Runner’s Field. They had started meeting at the gate the day after Audrey was made Interim Director. They all enjoyed the short jog to the field and used it as a time to bond with each other.

“Today we’re going to the hospital instead of the field,” Audrey told them. “The Council is pushing to annex the hospital today.”

She was immediately bombarded by protests.

“Are you serious? What if there’s another Howler?” Cecil’s voice cracked slightly. “I really don’t think it’s safe to go in there after one was found
in
the building.”

“That’s a risk we have to accept. We’re going together to clear out the rest of the dregs that are around the area. Max,” she said turning to the other man. “I need you to stay near the baseball diamond with a radio so you can stay in contact with the people who will be setting the new fence up around the perimeter of the hospital.”

“Will they be fast enough if it takes longer than they estimate it will take to set the fence?” Max asked with an eyebrow raised.

“This last week a few of us have been marking places where posts will go during the daily sweeps around the hospital,” Audrey explained. “There will be seventy-five men waiting close by with all of the posts and coils of fencing.”

“Have there been any signs of another Howler?” Greg, who was Runner Six, shuddered. “There have been a lot more of them around here lately.”

“We haven’t noticed any activity during the day out of the usual with the dregs aside from the incident with Dean. As soon as the workers get the all clear from us they’ll start setting everything up,” Audrey could see the hesitation in the Runners’ eyes and hoped they would be willing to go through with the plan. “Everyone will be there to take out any of the dregs that come out trying to get to anyone who is unarmed.”

There was murmuring among the Runners, but Audrey didn’t let up on trying to convince them, “I know this seems terribly unsafe, and to be completely honest it probably isn’t, but Dr. Searle is insisting that he needs proper facilities and Mr. Ruthers has insisted we ‘do our jobs’ for once.”

“Easy for him to say when he’s safe behind the walls,” Max complained.

Audrey pursed her lips and continued, “We all need the facilities and until we can clear enough of the dregs out of the surrounding area to take the wall down we need to annex the hospital.”

The group was quiet before Max asked, “So, should we gear up and get ready to go?”

Audrey nodded and the group disbanded so they could get to the field and gather what they needed out of the supply shed. Marcella and Lincoln stayed behind with Audrey.

“We need make sure everyone is alert today,” Audrey said to them. “We’re going to have to split the three of us up and have one or two of us go inside with a small group and have whoever is left stay outside and instruct the Runners who are on the outside with the workers.”

“I’ll go inside,” Lincoln volunteered. “I’m fast and can help with Howlers if there are any others in there.”

Audrey nodded and turned to Marcella, “Do you think you could handle everyone outside alone?”

“Absolutely,” she nodded.

Audrey opened her mouth to say something, but quickly shut it and glared over Marcella’s shoulder, “What are you doing here?”

Dean walked through the Commons and straight through the north gate towards her, “I came to help. My dad told me what the plans the Runners had made for today and I know you guys could use an extra hand.”

It was hard for Audrey to stay mad at Dean for very long. She knew he needed time to recover from everything he’d been through, but she was still upset with how he had acted the last time they were at the hospital.

“Do you really think we need you messing this up?” Marcella snipped at him. “We’re going to have enough to deal with today. We don’t need anyone throwing us off.”

“I understand why you guys are mad at me,” Dean held his hands up defensively. “I’ve been less than reliable, but I really want to help. Plus, I’m still a Runner.”

Audrey stared at him and then rolled her eyes. She knew the other Runners weren’t going to be pleased, but she knew the extra help would minimize the danger to the workers.

“Gear up and stay near the edges of the field when we get to the hospital,” Audrey said coolly. Dean smiled and ran to the supply shed where the rest of the group was already gathered and getting ready.