Chapter 21
“What the hell are you
doing here?” Malcolm seethed through clenched teeth
“I wanted to help,” Emma
replied defiantly, “I know I can, if you guys would just give me a chance”
“How is hiding in our
boot going to help us?”
“I was going to come
out when you got here and help scavenge, but then those other guys showed up so
I hid,” Emma seemed genuinely scared, “Malcolm, what’s happening?”
“These people are from
another group, a resistance of over 100 people, Todd, Connor, and Brooke are
inside negotiating right now,” Malcolm answered, and the both of them glanced
towards the station. “It’s frustrating, I have no way of knowing if things are
going well, If it’s a trap, or they think we’re too dangerous…” his voice
trailed away.
The two of them were
relatively new to the group, but in days like these, when your forced to rely
on others so much, you form bonds easily. Malcolm trusted and relied on us more
than he’d admit, after he was injured we took care of him, if it wasn’t for our
efforts he would be dead. And a part of him knew that other groups might not
have wasted the time and resources it took to nurse him back to health.
Emma trusted us, but
she was determined not to rely on us too much. Instead she wanted us to rely on
her. In these situations the best way to ensure that is to be useful, and
killing zombies and scavenging supplies is the only useful thing she knew how
to do. But we still treated her as a child, and it infuriated her. She could be
useful, she knew it, and she would prove it to us. “I’ll go check, see if I can
see anything,” she said eagerly and darted off towards the station, hiding
behind cars to stay out of sight. “Emma!” Malcolm hissed again, but it was too
late, she was gone, for a moment he considered following, but Pete’s voice
stopped him
“What are you doing
over there?” he called, suspicious
“Nothing, I’m- nothing,”
Malcolm glanced over to where Emma was as she disappeared into the station,
then swore under his breath, and sat back in his previous position.
…
We were rattled, that’s
for sure, but Brooke put her hand on my shoulder and I regained my composure,
these negotiations were too important to risk everything just for a chance to
get rid of Anthony. Although the thought was tempting. I glanced at Connor, and
he looked confused, and then I remembered that he wasn’t with us during our
first encounter with the marauders, and he had no idea of who or what had
startled us. “Are you alright?” Jacobs asked, slightly concerned
“Fine we’re just”-
“We’re just happy you
trust us,” Brooke interrupted
“I never said that,”
Jacobs responded slyly, “remember that I still have five men outside with guns
all pointed at your friends, this negotiation isn’t over yet”
“Why?” I asked, still a little thrown, and I made sure
to keep an eye on Anthony, I still had no idea what he was doing here, with
them, “we have something you can use, you have something we can use, we should
join forces"
“Well let’s say I trusted you completely and you
trusted me, we still have a lot to talk about, for example,” she leant forward,
hands on the table like mine, “where would we go, is your base large enough to
handle so many people? Is my base as defendable? And it would obviously be much
easier to move your group than move mine”
I opened my mouth to answer, but I realised any
information I give her about our home I was also giving Anthony, and that’s a
risk I couldn’t take
“Hmm, see? You don’t trust me yet either,” she smiled
smugly, and I swore internally.
What was he doing here? We knew he escaped the fate of
the other marauders but how did he end up with the resistance? I must have
underestimated him if he managed to convince Jacobs that he could be trusted,
hell she even picked him to be a part of the negotiations. And now his very
presence is derailing this talk, and any hope I had of controlling these
negotiations had gone out the window. But that was before Brooke spoke.
“We may not be able to give you information about our
base, but we do have other information, information you might find very interesting,” as she spoke she
looked Anthony right in the eye, and I instantly realised what she meant. If we
assume that the resistance is in any way morally good, then Anthony’s actions
and history is enough to get him kicked out, if he’s lucky. But would they take
our word for it? We had to have proof. Then things clicked, and I knew how we
could prove it, Emma’s brother’s necklace, if Emma recognised it it would prove
her story, and condemn Anthony. “What
kind of information?” Jacobs asked curiously.
Once again I opened my mouth to speak but once again
nothing came out, but this time it was because Anthony, hiding behind Greg and Jacobs’
backs, was holding a side arm, and it was pointed straight at Jacobs’ head. And
that wasn’t the only thing I saw that left me speechless.
…
Emma crept silently
through the broken halls of the police station, careful to make as little noise
as possible. She wished she had asked Malcolm which room they were in, but she
wondered if he even knew, but eventually she heard noises from a room just
ahead, “What kind of information?” she heard a woman say, Emma assumed it was
the resistance leader. Silently and slowly she moved towards the room, she
could see the back of two men’s heads, she could tell they weren’t Connor and I,
so she could assume her friends sat on the other side of the room. Unable to
resist looking she raised her head slowly, peeking into the room, and making
eye contact with me almost instantly.
…
I froze, the situation
unfolding in front of me was a nightmare. A tense negotiation, the leader of a
large resistance, Anthony with a gun, and Emma, far away from safety, almost
inches away from the man who ruined her life, and had the potential to ruin so
much more. I had to think quickly, I had to do something, anything to stop what
was about to happen, but I didn’t have much time.
“Well?” Jacobs replied
confused, “what is this important information?”
I search for words, and
then an idea came to me, “Connor,” I blurted out
“Eh?” Connor actually
managed to tear his eyes away from Anthony’s gun in shock
“He’s a police officer,
he was there when the army took everyone away, he knows things, useful things,”
I glanced up at him, trying to convince him with my eyes
“Uh… yeah, yeah sure, I’m
know about other stations, places that can be built up for defence”-
“We already have a
policemen in our ranks,” Jacobs replied unimpressed, “several actually, so,
what were you really going to tell me?” she caught on to my bluff. I couldn’t
focus, my eyes kept flying between Jacobs, Emma, and Anthony, trying to figure
out how to fix this, when once again something went wrong.
“What are you looking
at?” Greg asked confused and turned around just as Emma ducked under the
window, but it was too late “there’s someone out there,” he told Jacobs, and he
marched through the door as Anthony hid the gun quickly out of sight, but not
completely away.
Internally I was
screaming, I couldn’t think, I could act, I couldn’t imagine what would happen
next. I wanted to dive for one of the rifles, but I knew that I was out
numbered, and if I acted rashly it could cost the lives of everyone outside,
not just mine. I wished Jade was here. I wish Will and Nicole were here, they’d
know what to do. I glanced at Brooke, she gestured for me to breath, but she
looked just as concerned as I did.
Greg came back into the
room, dragging Emma with him, “this one of yours I take it?” he asked grimly
I wondered if I could
deny it, but I didn’t want to risk Emma’s life, “yes, but I didn’t bring her
with me I swear, and if I had I wouldn’t have asked her to spy on”-
“Quiet,” Jacobs said sternly,
and I could see the fury in her eyes, “Kyle, take this one outside and shoot
her as an example.” My heart stopped as Anthony stepped forward, clearly he had
taken the name of the man he had left for dead. I had to save Emma. I was ready
to leap for the rifle, when finally Emma looked up at the man walking towards
her, “you!” I could hear the pain in
her voice
“Kyle do you know her?”
Greg asked struggling to keep a hold of Emma as she tried to reach for him, her
hands curled into claws
“No I”-
“You bastard, I’ll kill
you!” I understood what she had gone through, but the ferocity in her voice
scared even me, “you took everything from me, give it back! Give him back!”
“Emma calm down!” I
tried to stop her, she didn’t know Anthony had a gun, and neither did Jacobs
“Quiet, now tell me
what did he take?” Jacobs moved closer to Anthony, suspicious
“Everything,” she
seethed
“Her brother’s
necklace,” Connor said trying to help, but it didn’t.
Jacobs quickly grabbed
at Anthony’s neck, and came away with a necklace made out of a shark’s tooth. “Give
it,”- Emma began, but Anthony reacted first, in a quick motion he threw out an
elbow, and hit Jacobs’ head, sending her to the floor, and with the other hand
we pointed his gun at Emma. We reacted almost instantly Brooke leapt for Anthony
while I ran for Emma, and Connor made for the rifles. But we were too slow and
Anthony fired, just as Greg threw Emma to the floor, then he took the bullet
meant for her right in his neck. As he fell Brooke reached Anthony and grabbed
his gun, trying to pull it away from him, but all she did was pull the barrel towards
her as he pulled the trigger again, firing two bullets straight into Brooke’s
chest.
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