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I slammed my foot to the pedal and watched in the rearview as Barbara ran after her husband, yelling behind him while he chased us out of the driveway.
“Faster!” Garnet shouted.
“I’m going as fast as I can.” I maneuvered around debris and sand traps, darted up another side street, and made for the nearest on-ramp heading east. The faster we could get out of Amarillo, the better. Apparently, word of our value to the Industry was out. Once we reached the main highway, the road cleared and the land opened up to desert all the way to the horizon.
“Oklahoma City is only a few hours away,” Garnet said as she examined the map and handed it to Tyler, who continued peering over his shoulder.
“We can’t go there,” he protested as he grabbed the map. “Didn’t you hear what the man said? The city has been destroyed.”
“Are you really going to believe the ranting of a drunk?” Garnet scoffed, as she broke pieces of bread off for Tyler and me and then handed us each a hunk of cheese. She settled back in her seat, smug satisfaction oozing from her pores. “No need to thank me for breakfast, by the way.”
Grateful for her initiative, I took the food and didn’t call her an idiot for giving Barbara’s husband another reason for pursuit. I glanced in the mirror, nothing but dust in my wake. We had escaped once more and though it wasn’t a feast, we had food and water to last us to our next stop—as long as we found a safe place before the next zenith.
“I can’t risk driving through Oklahoma,” I said. The thought of 170 mph winds and facing the death and destruction in Oklahoma City were enough reason for me to consider a change of course.
Tyler studied the map from the backseat. “If we head south toward Dallas and then east, we can go up through Arkansas and still get to Tennessee in a day.”
Garnet countered. “But then we might have to deal with the wetlands, and you heard Barbara. Dallas is next on the Industry’s list. Who knows if the place isn’t already overrun with Guardians?” Her face twisted into a grimace and she shuddered. “I don’t even want to think about what kind of slithering beasts live in the Southern Swamps.”
“Why do you think we have a vehicle with pontoons built in?” asked Tyler, giving Garnet a “duh” look that made me smile at him in the mirror.
I cut into the conversation before Garnet instigated a verbal sparring match with Tyler. “I was hoping not to have to use the pontoon feature.”
It seemed no matter what route we decided to take, there were dangers lurking at every turn. I checked the rearview one last time. At least no one had followed us. The road was clear behind and ahead, inviting us to enjoy a minute of security. But as I took the exit south toward Dallas, a gnawing in my gut told me I’d better enjoy the moment, because it wasn’t likely to last long.
∞∞∞
Warm wind blew through the vehicle, ruffling my hair around my face and giving me an opportunity to take in the beauty and vastness of the desert. The morning sun seeped over the horizon, a huge ball of orange that set the sand ablaze. A crimson and peach skyline stretched out ahead. Dotting the roadway, occasional cactus patches cropped up.
We drove for several hours, passing the remnants of small towns, most obliterated by drought, sandstorms, and tornadoes—nothing left but debris and devastation. The sky had clouded over, offering relief from the heat of direct sunlight, but the color of the clouds to the north sent cold chills across my skin. The zenith was coming on fast and we’d just passed a sign that said Dallas, Fort Worth, twenty miles. I pushed the pedal to the floor and sped up to maximum speed.
“I’m cooking,” Garnet sighed, fanning herself with the map. “We need to find shelter.”
As we approached the city, I noticed the red haze hovering in the sky above. My pulse shot up. It meant shelter from the solar radiation lay ahead, but it also meant the Industry had a hold on Dallas and there were no guarantees the streets weren’t crawling with Guardians and agents. We had no choice. We’d have to risk it.
We passed an old football stadium, several decaying buildings that once housed a university, and a strip mall with a few open stores. Oil refineries and factories chugged along, spewing thick black smoke into the air. As we entered the city, signs of rebuilding sprang up everywhere. Giant water tanks towered amid office buildings, and a garden park—thriving with vegetation—entertained families out to collect food.
“Vegetables,” said Garnet. “We should stop and get some.”
Two Industry agents lingered in the periphery as I drove past. “We can’t stop here.”
“The last thing we need is Industry agents knowing we’re here.” Electric and solar cars zipped past and surveillance drones hovered overhead. My nerves fired upon entering the throng of traffic. “We need to drive straight through and get out of Dallas as quickly as possible. There must be a convenience station coming up.” I dodged into the next lane and attempted to get off the main highway, but cars to my right refused to let me in.
“I’ve never seen so many cars,” said Tyler, staring out at the encroaching vehicles, all seeming to rush in the same direction but at different speeds.
“This many cars on one road is nerve-racking.” Garnet clung to the roll bar handle. “We stick out like a skunk at a picnic,” she said as I swerved to miss a truck that flew into my lane. “Geez, Lily, you’re giving me a heart attack.”
“I can’t help it.” Then I noticed a government vehicle two cars back. Paranoia spurred me to act. “Hold on!” With a few daring maneuvers, I managed to nudge through the crowd, pull off the main road, and cut toward the outskirts. No one followed. I released a tight breath. “Let’s find a place to grab some food, restock our water, and get out of this state.” I’d been driving for hours and my eyes burned from the strain. The Louisiana border wasn’t much further, but I couldn’t drive another mile.
A fuel station up ahead caught my attention. I pulled in and parked around the side of the building. No sense taking chances on being seen. Garnet had a point. Amid the newer, compact cars we’d seen on the road, and with the damage from gunfire, the buggy stood out. When Garnet and I headed into the store, she reminded me about my iris covers.
“Don’t you think you should hide your eyes?” She wasn’t trying to be unkind and I knew she was probably right, but I couldn’t bring myself to put in the worn contact lenses that turned my eyes from a bright, iridescent green to a muddy brown. Aside from the painful grittiness they caused—sure to aggravate my already irritated eyes—I was tired of hiding.
“I can’t worry about that now,” I said, ignoring the sting to my pride that always came when someone pointed out my differentness.
Happy to stay in the vehicle, Tyler closed his eyes as Garnet and I got out. He hated being around people. I couldn’t blame him once I thought about what it would be like to be in other people’s heads all the time and not be able to shut off the voices. I considered, for the first time, that maybe my gift might be easier to live with.
A spike of fear rose up and I surveyed the empty parking lot, my senses on high alert. There were no vehicles at the pumps—which appeared to have hydrogen fuel cell stations as well as diesel gasoline and a plug-in for the electric vehicles. Dallas appeared to be thriving. Entering the store, Garnet and I made short work of filling our water containers at the hydration pump and picking up snacks for the road. I laid my purchases onto the counter and pulled out a few government bills.
The cashier, a young woman with pink, shaved hair and a ring in her nose, stared at my eyes with interest but took the bills, stuffed the items in a box, and pushed the groceries toward us. “Y’all aren’t from around here, are ya?”
I flashed a brief smile, determined to seem friendly and less nervous. “We’re only passing through.”
The woman shook her head. “Those Governmenters are all over the place. You better take care.”
Nodding my thanks, I led Garnet through the front door and around the side of the building. The uneasy feeling I’d had a few minutes before escalated to new heights.
Not ten feet away, surrounding the vehicle, were two car loads of agents and an enormous robotic Guardian. Its eight spider-like legs were poised to spring, and its clawed upper extremities were loaded with weapons. Garnet and I froze.
Tyler was nowhere to be seen. Before Garnet and I could run, the uniformed men parted and Agent Graves stalked through, dragging Tyler by the arm and aiming a gun at his head.
“Lose something?” Graves’s dark eyes pierced through me and my pulse exploded in my ears. Tyler was bound and gagged, his eyes wide with fright. But behind the fear lay a seething hatred for the man beside him—the man who had killed his brother.
