Horde (Razorland #3)(35)

“This is as good as it gets,” I said, surveying the dusty space.

My muscles trembled with weariness. In hindsight, I had no idea how Fade and I had functioned down below on so little food. No wonder my people died young.

“At least we have a roof and four walls. More than we had last night.”

But last night we had kissing.

That didn’t seem like a worthwhile protest, however. I sank down to the dirty floor, one hand on my knives. If the Freaks proved as relentless as they had been all day, they would be here soon. I didn’t suggest sleep for obvious reasons. Fade sat down near me and we listened.

He heard it first and crept to the window with me close at his heels. Through the smudged and filthy glass, I glimpsed a cluster of Freaks doggedly tracking us toward the house. I counted at least ten, a large party for the two of us. But if they had taken to traveling in small war bands, then we were lucky there weren’t more of them.

“I don’t know if I can take five of them,” I admitted in a whisper. “Is this how aging goes? First you feel incredibly tired, you weaken, and then your reactions slow—”

Fade was laughing softly. “You’re ridiculous. You’re not getting old, Deuce. It’s just been a rough run, and you got precious little rest, helping Tegan. You’re also recovering from multiple injuries, and we had an exhausting trip to Soldier’s Pond.”

Put that way, it had been a tough month. “If a straight fight is out, what should we do?”

“I have an idea,” he said.

The Freaks were at the door downstairs now. I heard them snarling in the yard, then the front door banged open. Their claws rasped on the wood floor as they prowled below us. Despite my faith in Fade’s cleverness, a chill raced through me.

“Make some noise,” he said, as he piled things up in the center of the room: broken bits of furniture and rags that might’ve been curtains, ages ago.

That seemed like a bad plan, but I trusted him enough not to argue. I stomped my feet, walking in circles, then I heard the monsters scramble up the stairs. The first body hit the door and the bar bowed with the pressure; it wasn’t strong enough to keep them out indefinitely. A snarling discussion followed, as if they were debating their options.

I understood when Fade touched his father’s lighter to the rags and dry wood. The flames curled up immediately, spreading to the floor that was riddled with dry rot. He ran over to the window and slid the sash up. With an impatient gesture, he beckoned.

“We need to get out of here and set a couple more fires downstairs. With any luck, these Freaks aren’t part of the group that burned Salvation, so they won’t understand the danger until it’s too late.”


He intends to burn them alive.

Without further hesitation, I scrambled over the sill and dangled by my fingertips. There was no tree branch to swing onto as there had been at the Oakses’ place so I dropped and hoped for the best. I landed hard, but I didn’t break anything. Fade came down more gracefully and tugged me to my feet. Time was critical. We gathered more rubbish to serve as kindling and lit the house up at both doors, front and back. The fire spread quickly, fanned by the breeze blowing through. Soon the whole building was engulfed in orange flames, creating a huge glow against the night sky. This might cause more problems for us down the line if the blaze attracted more enemies, but we wouldn’t be here to see it. I lingered only long enough to hear the monsters screaming as they burned, then I ran after Fade, who was already on the move.

“They won’t bother us again,” he said with certainty.

Still, to be safe, we traveled through the night and didn’t stop until we had a full eight hours of distance between that hunting party and us. At last I collapsed, winded, and I couldn’t go on. Fade was right there with me, his face flagged with windburn. He leaned against me, seeming not to realize how easy the gesture was, and I didn’t remind him.

“We won’t make Winterville without a break,” I panted.

“You sleep. I’ll keep watch.”

Before, he’d said we could afford to rest at the same time. His caution had to mean he thought there were more Freaks in the area. I didn’t hear or smell them, but Fade had better instincts for such things, no doubt honed by his years alone down below, where his survival depended on knowing where the monsters were before they found him.

“Just an hour or two, then you. And we’ll press on.”

He neither agreed nor argued, and I lay down. Fade rested his hand on my hair. I expected to be so conscious of him close by that I couldn’t sleep, but I underrated my exhaustion. When he jostled me a few hours later, I couldn’t believe how soundly I’d gone out.

“Any problems?”

“A few squirrels threw nuts at you.”

“That’s not the kind of problem I meant.”

He smiled. “I know, but things were quiet. Your watch?”

“I’m on it.”

Luck held long enough for Fade to catch a nap, and I had food ready—such as it was—when I woke him. We drank and ate in silence. I hoped we reached Winterville soon; and to that end, I checked the map, comparing Longshot’s notes with where we were. Sometimes it was hard to judge since he kept mostly to wagon routes whereas Fade and I ran cross-country, taking the most direct route. But near as I could tell, the Freaks had only driven us a little off course. Longshot and I hadn’t spoken much about the other settlements, so I was glad he’d written memos along the edges of his maps. It was like receiving his advice when I needed it most.