The core principles of Affinity are trust, respect, and equality.
—Internal memorandum from Affinity
Nobody said a word as the three were marched down the road. There was no way to escape these people. Carter dropped his gun as soon as the men came out of the bushes and Mia didn’t even have a shoe to hit them with. Mia was scared they were Joseph’s men, another convoy sent to take revenge. She looked over at Carter; his eyes were hard and his chin pointed upward. She couldn’t imagine the pain he was feeling.
Her attention switched to Andrew. He looked like he was in a different type of pain. His skin was pale, except for the dried blood. He was having trouble lifting his legs off the ground. Then it was too much for him. Mia gasped and tried to catch him, but he was too heavy for her.
“Andrew!” she screamed.
She starting patting his face. He wasn’t waking up. The men aimed their guns at the two of them.
“He needs help,” Mia said. “A doctor.”
The men stared at her.
“Please,” Mia said. “I’m not lying.”
She tried to pat Andrew’s face again, hoping he would come to. It was stupid to think he was unhurt after the car crash.
“We have another man with us too,” Carter said. “Back at our car. He’s been shot.”
Mia cringed; she’d forgotten about Grant’s henchman. Now if he died it would be doubly her fault. But Andrew still took priority.
“Please wake up,” she said.
She turned her attention to the men.
“My name is Mia Morrissey,” she said. “I’m an American. I made contact with someone called S. She told me to come to Guatemala. We’re all Americans. Please, help us.”
Someone pushed her aside. She was shaking.
“What happened to him?” the man asked.
“A car accident,” Mia said. “He was unconscious for a few minutes, but he came to. Please help him.”
The man held his fingers to Andrew’s neck. He pulled open each of his eyes and slapped Andrew’s face. There was no reaction.
“He has a pulse,” the man said. “It’s slow, but it’s there. Get Dr. Drum.”
One of the men took off running. The one examining Andrew started to speak.
“Turn their car back on,” he said. “Reset the thumbprint key.”
“Who are you talking to?” Mia asked.
The man knelt next to Andrew but looked at one of his counterparts.
“Run down to their vehicle, drive it up here,” he said.
Another one of the soldiers took off running.
Time felt like it was standing still. A jeep came speeding down the road. It stopped and two people jumped out. They were dressed in beige linen clothing. One brought a small kit with her.
“Move back,” the woman said.
One of the guards held his arms out and moved Mia away from Andrew.
“What’s happening?” Mia asked.
She stood on her tiptoes and looked down to see the woman waving something under Andrew’s nose. His eyes shot open and he started coughing.
“Move him into the back,” she said.
Two guards hoisted a disoriented Andrew up and placed him in the back of the jeep. Mia watched his eyes start to shut again. His two helpers climbed in the vehicle and drove off.
“Wait,” Mia yelled. “I can’t leave him.”
Her protests were unanswered as the car zoomed off. Mia was having a hard time breathing. She had lost him again. It was too much to handle. Her chest hurt as she exhaled. She stumbled back and one of the guards grabbed her wrist.
“You need to breathe,” he said.
“Where are you taking him?” Mia asked.
She struggled against the guard’s grip on her, but he only tightened his grasp. Their car came driving down the road. It didn’t slow down but followed the car Andrew was in.
“Andrew,” Mia yelled again.
“They’re going to help him,” the guard said.
He used his free hand to swing his rifle around his back.
“You’re having a panic attack,” he said. “Breathe like I do. Watch my mouth.”
He started taking big breaths and Mia tried her best to mimic him. Once her breathing returned to normal he smiled.
“Who are you?” Mia asked. “What’s going on?”
“My name is Zack,” he said.
“Why are you kidnapping us?”
“We’re not kidnapping anyone,” Zack said. “Why are you driving through our space?”
“You jumped out at us with guns,” Mia said. “Then you took my friend away.”
“We saw your car,” Zack said. “This is private property. One of your friends is dressed like a combatant, the other is shirtless with a gun, and you look like you’re ready for a ball. We’re just protecting ourselves. We took your friend to get medical attention. Did you think we were going to treat him on the side of the road?”
Mia looked at Zack’s face. His blond hair was poking out from his helmet. He had crystal-blue eyes and must have been about thirty. She didn’t think he was lying to her.
“What are you doing here?” Zack asked.
“I was coming to meet S,” Mia said.
“S?”
“Someone I met online,” Mia said. “I responded to an ad for The Guatemalan Way.”
“A response that led the RAG agents to my house and got my dad killed,” Carter said.
Mia looked over at him. He was leaning against a tree and the two other escorts lowered their weapons as well. The threat of danger was gone for now.
“Not possible,” Zack said. “All our online correspondents are untraceable. We put a lot of work into that.”
“So this is the right place?” Mia asked.
Her heart rose.
“Not yet,” Zack said. “Why were you driving here? The instructions are to cross over the border and wait until we find you.”
“I met someone in Mexico,” Mia said. “She drew me a map to here.”
Zack’s eyes widened at this comment.
“She’s a strategist for the Irish government,” Mia said. “Her name is Riley.”
“Great,” Zack said. “Another confirmed country that knows of our location.”
“You’re hiding?” Mia asked.
“Not exactly,” Zack said. “But we like to stay under the radar.”
“Where’s Andrew?” Mia asked.
“The doctor took him,” Zack said. “I’d assume to the infirmary. If he’s bad she’ll transport him down the mountain to the hospital. Shouldn’t you be more concerned about the man with the gunshot wound?”
The doctor was a female. Mia’s eyes went wide for a moment, but before she could focus on that she needed to make sure Andrew was safe.
“Take me to him,” Mia said. “I can’t leave him.”
“No,” Zack said. “Sitting by his bedside isn’t going to help him, and your story needs verification.”
“You can’t keep me from him,” Mia said.
“Fine,” Zack said. “Don’t listen to me. Just stay here on this side of the road in a fancy dress with no shoes.”
Zack started up the hill. His comrades followed him. They weren’t so interested in guarding Mia and Carter anymore. She walked up to her friend.
“I am sorry for everything that happened to you,” Mia said. “If I could change it I would.”
“I want to hear his voice,” Carter said. “I’d do anything to hear his voice.”
Carter turned and wrapped his arms around Mia, burying his head in her shoulder. She ran her hand up and down his back, trying her best to comfort him. Mia moved her head to the side and saw that Zack and the other two guards hadn’t stopped walking. Following them was the only way for Mia to get back to Andrew.
“I know this is hard,” Mia said. “But your dad wouldn’t want you to give up. He’d tell you to keep moving forward. We have to stick with these guys or we’ll never get Andrew back.”
“I have no one left,” Carter said.
“You do,” Mia said. “You have me and Andrew. We’re your family now.”
Carter lifted his head and let go of Mia. He didn’t make eye contact with her but started nodding his head. The two walked fast to keep up with the guards.
Soon Zack turned off the dirt road and onto a path. Carter and Mia continued to follow Zack and his gang farther into the jungle. Mia heard strange noises coming from the trees and grabbed on to Carter’s arm. He laughed a little; it was a pleasant sound to Mia’s ears. Zack stopped walking. He was standing in front of a small cabin. It was surrounded by trees and Mia would have walked right past it. Zack pushed open the door and waved his arm for Mia and Carter to head inside.
There was nothing to the place. There was a desk with a couch in front of it. A few other chairs were against the walls and a small window was at the back. Mia noticed a closed door but thought it might lead to more impressive surroundings. Someone stood at the window. It was a woman. Her back was to them but Mia saw her brown hair was in a bun. She wore the same tan-colored clothing as the doctor who had assisted Andrew.
“Please,” she said. “Have a seat.”
Mia and Carter sat down on the couch. The woman spun around to face them and Mia let out a small gasp. She was older, the oldest woman Mia had ever seen in person. Her face had lines and her skin crinkled up at the corners of her brown eyes. Aging wasn’t something Mia ever thought about, but seeing it face-to-face she felt overwhelmed by this woman’s beauty. She looked determined and proud. More graceful than Mia could ever think of becoming.
“My name is Dina,” she said. “Zack filled me in on your story. I’m waiting on confirmation from S right now.”
“How?” Mia asked. Zack had been with her the whole time.
“We may live in the jungle, but that doesn’t make us primitive,” Dina said. “In other words, he sent the information over a radio. We’re not used to recruits showing up on our doorstep.”
“About my friend Andrew . . . ,” Mia said.
“He is with the doctor now,” Dina said. “I’ll fill you in on any developments.”
Dina paused and touched her ear.
“Yes,” she said.
“Yes,” she said again.
Mia looked at Carter, who shrugged. This woman was talking to herself.
“Perfect,” she said. Then she directed her words to Mia. “S confirmed your conversations.”
“When?” Mia asked.
“Just now,” Dina said. She turned her head and Mia saw the clear earpiece. “So let’s hear your story.”
Mia remembered Riley’s instructions.
“I didn’t want to get married so I ran away. Andrew helped me, and Carter and his father took us in. My husband tracked down our location but the three of us were able to make it into Mexico. We were held up for about a month when Andrew and Carter were forced into a militia and I needed to pose as a woman willing to sell my body in order to rescue them. We drove here and had a car accident. Andrew injured himself in the process and our car ran out of gas.”
“That is quite the story,” Dina said. “And the man with the gunshot wound?”
“A friend,” Carter said. “He helped us, got shot in the process.”
Mia frowned and looked over at Carter; these people had a right to know how dangerous he was. Before Mia could correct Carter’s story Dina moved her hand back to her ear.
“Yes,” Dina said.
“Good,” she said.
Her attention reverted to Mia and Carter.
“Andrew was severely dehydrated. He suffered a small concussion from the bump on his head and needed stitches. There was another injury that went unnoticed. He had a cut on the back of his knee where the blood didn’t clot. It was the loss of blood that caused the blackouts.”
Mia’s mouth hung open. She shook her head, unable to believe she hadn’t noticed the pain Andrew must have felt.
“He’s resting now and expected to make a full recovery,” Dina said. “You can visit him later.”
Mia closed her eyes and felt the breath rush out of her body. She felt the tears well up.
“Thank you,” she said.
Dina gave a pinched smile.
“Your other friend is being treated right now,” Dina said. “He refused to have medical attention at first, even though his wound is much more severe. Why is that?”
“He’s a selfless man,” Carter said.
If Carter was looking for a surrogate father, Grant’s bodyguard wasn’t it. Mia didn’t understand why Carter was covering for him. Still, Mia didn’t want to volunteer the fact that she was the one who had shot him.
“We’ll wait here for a moment,” Dina said. “Then your orientation will begin.”
“What orientation?” Mia asked.
“Into Affinity,” Dina said. “That’s why you’re here. To join our revolution against America?”
“Revolution?” Carter asked.
“Our main priorities are to close the Registry and stop mandatory service,” Dina said. “Take the government out of the picture and put the country back into the people’s hands.”
Riley had made some mention of these people being rebels. Mia hadn’t realized they were this serious or well organized though.
“So you want us to join another army?” Carter asked.
“We are no army,” Dina said. “You’ll see once we start the tour.”
There was something off about the way the woman discussed a revolt so casually.
“Everything here is voluntary,” Dina said. “If you want to leave tomorrow, we’ll let you.”
“Why not now?” Mia asked.
“Do you? Want to leave now?”
Mia paused.
“No,” she said.
Dina smiled again, never showing her teeth. Zack spoke up.
“Don’t let her intimidate you,” Zack said. “You’re welcome to stay or leave, either way. That’s my call to make these days.”
“Are you in charge?” Mia asked.
“We have a system here,” Zack said. “Nobody is in charge of everything. I run basic in-house decisions. Security, new members, anything that affects this spot right here.”
“Yes, but this is a big area; you still have a lot to learn,” Dina said.
Zack gave her the same pressed-lipped smile. He spoke to Mia and Carter without looking away from Dina.
“I was recently promoted,” Zack said. “Dina here used to run things. She’s sticking around to help with the transition.”
“He’ll escort you to the restrooms,” Dina said. “I’m sure both of you would like a shower and a fresh change of clothes. Some shoes too.”
Mia and Carter stood up and started toward the door. Whatever politics were going on here, Mia didn’t want any part of them. She had enough of her own drama to deal with.
“I don’t have a good feeling about this,” Carter said.
“They helped Andrew,” Mia said. “Right now what other choice do we have?”
Carter looked down at her. His eyes, one brown and one green, were vacant. He was floundering. Mia wished she could help but was at a loss.