Revolution (Collide, #4)(40)

"Ditto," I grumbled. In fact, that gave me a thought.

Baby? I feel a little déjà vu here, but I wanted to tell you we were coming to get you. If you can hear me either hurry so we don't have a wasted trip, or hold tight. If someone hurt you, I'll…make them pay for that dearly. I love you more than life. Please stay with me and be all right.

I looked to Jeff, who had heard my entire plea to Sherry, and nodded my head. "Let's go get my girl."

"Yeah," Danny agreed.

"After you," Jeff said.

"Get a wriggle on!" Miguel barked as we waited by the elevator. We all turned to look at him in confusion. "What?" The doors opened with a ding and he pushed us inside. "It means hurry up. Now come off it, you buggers!"

We all turned before the doors closed. Celeste was biting her lip and waved to Danny. He mouthed something to her and I looked away so I couldn't see what she mouthed back. Marissa was there with Lily on her hip. Even Rylee turned out for the farewell. I waved to my little blonde angel and she waved back before laying her head on Marissa's shoulder.

It was like she understood that no one wanted to do these things, they just had to be done.

"Keep the place clean, why don't ya, ginger?" Miguel goaded. He was rewarded with a finger gesture that would have made Rylee's father angry, but she also smiled while she did it. Progress…of sorts.

And then they were gone. The adrenaline pumped into my veins in rapid form and I welcomed the jitters that came. I was ready for action, whatever it may be.

I just wanted to find my Sherry alive.

Come in Gold Leader



Chapter 18


Cain



"You are so gonna pay if you don't let me out of this van, pronto, buddy."

"We saved your backside back there!" the one driving yelled at me. "And this is how you thank us?"

"I didn't need saving!" I yelled back. I thought about blasting them with my hands, but I'd blow us all up if I did that. "And you left my friend back there." I continued to look at the gun that was pointed at me so I didn't do something to make them stop. "Just let me jump out. You don't even have to slow down."

"Not gonna happen," the armed one said. "Maybe you're one of them green backs."

"Green backs?"

"Enforcers!" He sighed like he had a decision to make. "Now we've got to shoot you. You pretended you didn't know what they were. And we all know they work for them."

"I do know," I told him calmly, "but never called them green backs before. In the military we called green backs Benjamins."

"Benjamins?" he asked.

"See?" I grinned and crossed my arms. "What kind of idiot doesn't know what a Benjamin is?"

"What the heck is he talking about, Earl?" he leaned over and asked the driver.

Earl balked and yelled, "No real names!" He slapped the steering wheel with his palms. "Dang it! You're supposed to call me Red Leader, remember?"

Oh, boy. What a bunch of idiots. "Let me guess," I ventured and looked back at the one with the gun. "You're Gold Leader?"

"How did he know?" the driver hissed.

I rolled my eyes and glared at the one holding me hostage. The other one was quiet in the corner. Maybe even asleep. I looked them over. They looked like hell warmed over, eaten on a little and then put back in the microwave.

They all had a four week beard going, a head that needed a haircut like, months ago, their clothes must've been attacked by moths in their sleep and don't get me started on the smell…

"So," I drawled and leaned back, throwing my legs forward and crossing them, getting real comfortable. Or at least looking like that's what I was doing. "You're into killing innocent people, huh? Seems like a stupid move when we're all being killed off by the aliens anyway."

"You know about the aliens?" he asked and cocked a suspicious eyebrow.

"Yep, ran into a few of them. They're a little chatty, if you ask me."

"How did you escape?"

"Well," I thought and said, "for one, I didn't use code names from Star Wars. I mean really? It's not like we have technology anymore. Who cares if they hear your name or not?"

"See, Earl! Told you it wouldn't matter," the one with the gun said out of the side of his mouth. He refused to take his eyes off of me. Dang.

"We have a whole bunch of us. We have a bunker where we stay with our families," I said and tried not to think about L.

"What were you doing at the Need warehouse?"

I cocked my head and said sarcastically, "Getting food?"

"Yeah, duh," he agreed. "And that girl you left-"

"That girl you left?" I corrected angrily.

"Yeah, her," he continued, un-phased. "She sure was pretty. That your girl?"

"No. My girl's at home, but she was my friend. And now I've got to find a long way back to her whenever you idiots finally run out of gas or stop for another killing spree."

"Them people ain't right no more," the driver commented and then spit out the window. The tobacco missed and dripped down the half way up window. I muttered a "Gross, man" but he kept going. "They all messed up in the heads. Them aliens probed their brains or something."