The Last Bastion of the Living (The Last Bastion #1)(11)

The storm raged over the city, sheets of rain falling in great bands. Maria peeked out of the window and saw that most of the streets were empty. Lightning sliced across the sky as thunder rumbled.

“It’s right over us now,” Dwayne noted.

The buildings of the military complex rose higher than the rest of the city. They were ugly, dreary buildings, with black windows on only a few floors. The complex hugged the high wall and occupied a good portion of the southern part of the city. The government buildings nestled closer to the center were more impressive with sleek glass faces and more ornate styling. The capital building strongly resembled an elongated pyramid. The only ornamental garden in the city surrounded the capital. All the other parks or gardens that had been part of the original design of The Bastion had long been turned into housing complexes after the gate failed and the survivors from the valley had taken refuge inside the walls. As the train swept past the only part of the city Maria found even remotely attractive, she turned her gaze away. The building only reminded her of the president’s speech full of empty promises.

“We’re both in a mood this morning,” Dwayne mused.

“It’s the storm,” Maria answered, even though they both knew it was much more than the weather causing them concern. The Constabulary was going to be hard pressed to bring the President’s speech into reality. No president of The Bastion had ever made such bold promises before.

Dwayne gave her a slight smile that made her want to press kisses to his lips, but she fought the urge by looking at her wristlet. Just a few more minutes and she would be on the wall.

There was a sharp inhalation of breath from nearby, and then several people let out gasps of surprise.

“Look!” a man exclaimed, pointing out the window.

The commuters flooded to the sides of the car, faces and hands pressing to the glass. Being taller than most of the people on the train, Maria simply had to stand on tiptoes to peer over their heads.

“Dwayne!” she gasped.

“I see it.”

A tiltrotor was swooping low over the city heading toward the capital building. The last tiltrotor Maria had witnessed in the air was the one that had rescued her a year before. Soon after, all the aircraft had been grounded due to lack of fuel. Her heart sped up at the sight of the black shape moving across the sky, its rotors repositioning to land.

Several people clapped just before the train swept into the main terminal of the city. Excited conversation filled the air. Quite a few of the commuters were already tapping away on their wristlets with great excitement.

“What does it mean?” Maria wondered aloud.

“I’m not sure,” Dwayne answered, the lines in his face deepening.

The monorail train slid to a stop and Maria reluctantly started toward the doors. Dwayne dared to lightly press his hand against the small of her back as they shuffled along at the rear of the crowd. The mood in the train had been muted until the appearance of the aircraft and now the ecstatic expressions and joyful chatter seemed oddly out of place on such a dreary morning.

as she was about slip through the doorway, Dwayne whispered in her ear that he loved her. She smiled at the familiar words of endearment, then joined the throng of people moving through the long glass tunnel to the main terminal. Glancing back, she saw Dwayne heading in the opposite direction.

The main terminal was not nearly as busy as it had once been when all the trains had been running and had been open to the general public, but it was still fairly crowded. She quickly wove her way through the rush of people, avoiding the drably dressed professionals hurrying to the government facilities. Joining a group of other soldiers, she spotted a familiar face.

“Another day, another credit,” Lindsey joked, falling in step beside Maria. Heavily favoring one leg, she leaned on her cane as she walked. The blond soldier had been terribly wounded in the last assault on the Scourge and now manned communications. Before the fall of humanity, her injury would have been easily repaired, but with resources low, she was disabled for life.

“It never ends, huh?” Maria answered.

“Nope. Day after day, same old, same old. Though, according to the president, things sound like they’re looking up,” Lindsey answered with a wink.

“The biggest load of bullshit I’ve heard in a long time,” Maria groused.

“I almost believed him,” Lindsey admitted, shrugging. “Then I remembered what I hear every day when I’m on duty and I stopped being a dumb ass.”

“Something’s gotta give soon. They have to figure something out,” Maria said, her dark eyes scanning the crowd thoughtfully.

“They’ve been saying that ever since the first Scrag outbreak,” Lindsey reminded her with a shrug of her shoulders.

“True. And the last time they got a great idea on how to push the Scrags out of the valley Ryan died.”

Lindsey pressed her lips together, her eyes lowering. It was difficult for her to talk about Ryan. “They’re talking about shutting down another train. I also heard a rumor about mandatory blackouts at sunset.”

Maria shook her head. “Then why did President Cabot make all those promises?”

“Maybe he knows something we don’t?” Lindsey shrugged again. “We can hope.”

“Hope is all we got,” Maria decided. “But I did see something weird on the train on the way here.”