The Burn (24 page)

The Burn is exactly how my dad told me it would be.
Vicious, violent, full of blood. I will always have those
nightmares. But there are things he couldn’t have foreseen. Things
no one could guess at. The healing love that spreads here among
good people; the friendships; the acceptance. These are things I
never found in the colony. These are the things engraved in my
heart.

I had lived in the water all my life. Now for some of
the most terrifying, blissful, heart-rending weeks, I’ve lived on
the land. I feel more alive than ever before.

I reach into my pocket and pull out the metal
cylinder. I walk ankle deep into the cold water. It bites at my
toes. I reach back and hurl the poison as far as I can. I see a
faint splash where it hits the water. I am lighter now without that
burden on me. I feel as if I could ride this wind. The world opens
up before me.

I take a sip from my canteen and continue southwest,
away from the water and the city across the sound. Then a voice
calls out.

“Hey, wait up!”

I look behind me and Jack jogs toward me, his pack
heavy on his back, a canteen strapped to his belt. His cheeks flush
and the wind blows his brown hair into a halo. I didn’t anticipate
this.

“I’ll go with you, you know.”

I shake my head. He can’t. I grab his hand
roughly.

They need you more than I do. Who will be their
doctor? Who will take care of them?

“They managed without me before I came. They can
manage now. I’ve already talked to them about it.”

He grabs his pack straps and looks at the ground
where our feet disappear in the grass.

“I’m not like them, Terra. The supply drops, the
hunting, the guns—I just can’t do it.”

I know what he means. It’s almost a relief to be away
from it. He grabs my hand. Not tenderly, but familiarly. We’re
alike.

“I’ll go with you. I may not be what you’re looking
for right now, but you’ll need a friend. I’ll come with you.”

And those magical words bring the first true smile to
my lips in several days.

We turn and walk through the long grass
together.

* * * *

About the Author

Away from her writing, Annie is the mother of the two
most adorable girls in the world, has the best husband in the
world, and lives in the hottest place in the world (not really, but
Phoenix sure feels like it). She loves to cook, sing, and play the
piano.

She is also the author of
Dragon Sister
.

Visit Annie online:

www.annieoldham.com