Essem poked lazily at the campfire they’d made. He watched as the various members of the settlement, this Shade’s Rest as it was called, walked past and stared. It was almost as if they’d never seen other people before. Essem knew this wasn’t true of course, but it made him feel as if he was on display. Runner sat nearby. She snuggled under Essem’s jacket and sat closer to the fire. Essem had to admit the night was a little cooler than usual.

The small bit of Shade’s Rest that Essem had been able to see since they got inside the gate told him that this settlement had to have been less than a year old. There was still plenty of work to be done. The majority of the people he saw were still living in tents, yet there were plenty of houses and other structures around.

“They’re probably not cleaned out or are in need of repair,” he told Runner.

She nodded. “We never lived in houses with the Rotars. We always were in tents or in a thing with a slanted roof.”

“A lean-to,” Essem answered.

“A what?”

“Lean-to. It’s a shelter where there is only a one-sided roof.”

Runner nodded again. “I think I lived in a house when I was younger. I don’t remember for sure. I remember something with rooms and walls. But that was before we joined the Rotars.”

Essem poked at the fire with his stick. “When did you and your sister join the Rotars?”

Runner turned to look at him. “Maple’s not my sister.”

“Oh.”

“I don’t have a sister. Or a mom or a dad. They all died a few years ago. That’s what I was told anyway.”

Essem paused, letting his gaze sink into the crackling flames. “You don’t remember them at all?”

Runner just shook her head.

A trio of residents from Shade’s Rest strode by, keeping their eyes on the pair the entire time. Essem stared back, his face expressionless.

“They keep staring at us.” Runner mumbled.

“I know.”

“Why are they doing that? Is there something wrong with us?”

Essem shook his head. “No. I don’t think they get a lot of visitors.”

Runner chewed on that thought for a moment. “They shouldn’t do that. They can at least say ‘hi.’ Maple says that sometimes people aren’t very nice though.”

Essem nodded. “My dad says that too.”

*  *  *

James watched as Bruce paced around the room. He could tell the leader of this settlement wasn’t very happy with the situation James was putting him in. At first, Bruce didn’t buy their story, or that Tim was their captive. He seemed suspicious and suspected that Tim was just a plant or something other than what was being claimed. He only started to soften his stance when Maple broke down in tears over what she had gone through and shown Bruce the bruises.

Though he had softened, he still wasn’t one hundred percent on board with the idea of taking in a prisoner.

Bruce turned toward Maple. “I’m not saying he didn’t hurt you, or at least not guilty of something, but that’s the problem… I don’t know. He didn’t commit a crime on our lands. We’re not in the business of taking in other’s prisoners.”

Maple started to protest, but James held up a hand to cut her off. “No, you’re right. I can’t ask you to dispense justice when you’ve got no reason to.” James stood and moved to the door. “He’s our problem and we’ll deal with him. Let’s go, Maple.” James placed a hand on the knob then was struck with a thought. He turned back toward Bruce.

“You know if we take him out of your settlement, we’ll just end up killing him, right?”

Bruce nodded. “I know how road justice works.”

“True. But what if he had some value to you?”

Bruce shook his head. “No. I’m sure he’d put in a good day’s work, but I’d need at least one man to guard him, so it’d be a wash.”

“I wasn’t thinking about him being a laborer.” James stepped forward. “What if you traded him back to his gang?”

Maple shot James a glare. “You can’t be serious!”

“I’m not partial to killing if I don’t have to. Frankly, I’m not partial to it at all.” He looked at Maple. “And with all due respect, miss, I know you’re angry, but I don’t think you have it in you. You’ve never killed before have you?”

Maple met his gaze with a glare, but its strength quickly faded. She lowered her head.

James turned back to Bruce. “How about it? Gangers always need their people. If you traded him back, you’d probably stay on their good side. At least for a while.”

Bruce weighed the options. James could tell he was making sense, but he wasn’t sure if Bruce wanted to play that game. “If I traded him away, you know they’d be asking about you.”

James nodded. “I know. But I don’t plan to stay long. By the time this all goes down, my son and I would be long gone.”

Maple looked at him. “What about me and Runner?”

James didn’t answer her.

Bruce shook his head. “It’s tempting. He could be worth a lot, but I’m afraid the answer is ‘no.’ It’s just too risky. Better to wash my hands of all of you now.”

James sighed. “Fair enough.” He was angry. He didn’t like the idea of even more baggage to watch out for on the trail. He could tell that this subject was closed. It was time to change things. “I noticed on the way in, that you’re still in need of plenty of work here. My son and I can do carpentry. We’d be more than happy to work our keep, meals and some supplies over the next few days if you’d agree to it.”

Bruce nodded. “I’ll give you a day to prove yourselves then barter for the next three. We’ll see where we’re at then. What about your captive?”

James looked at Maple. Her face was a mixture of anger, confusion and sadness. “We’ll cover half of his fee to keep him locked up. She can cover the other half.”

Bruce looked toward Maple. “Agreed. And what can you do?”

Maple looked toward James, then toward Bruce. She sighed. “Where’s your kitchen?”

Alex kept his eyes to the floor as he spoke. “Tim had the girl, Maple and was trying to leave, but those two road haggers had him surrounded. He was using her as a shield, and just trying to get out of there, and that’s when the kid attacked.”

“The kid,” answered a voice.

Alex nodded. “Yeah, the kid. She charged out from behind a bush or something. She was so small I didn’t even see her. She ran at Tim with a stick. Tim tried to catch her, but that’s when Maple broke free. Then the shooting started.”

“Shooting. Did anyone get hit?”

Alex nodded again. “The old guy. But it didn’t look too bad. He was up and walking around.”

Alex lifted his eyes and watched as the man across from him stood. He was just under two meters tall, and though he bore a somewhat scrawny appearance, Alex knew better. Kohl was the leader of the Rotars for a reason. His close-cropped hair sat atop an intimidating face. Alex also knew that Kohl was a rough and dirty fighter. His leathers and the machete sheathed at his side only backed up that reputation. Alex swallowed nervously as Kohl approached.

“So, Dan got shot because he couldn’t keep his mouth shut in front of some old guy with a gun. Tim got distracted by a kid and beat by a woman.” Alex opened his mouth to correct Kohl’s assessment but quickly thought better of it. “And you got away.” Kohl chuckled. “Alex, sounds like you made the best choices of anyone there.”

Alex was surprised. He hadn’t expected that reaction from Kohl. The last man to have failed Kohl ended up having his hands cut off. Kohl made the sickening comment about people coming back “empty handed” after that incident. That fear had started to build in Alex before Kohl made his comment. Alex stammered his reply. “Uh, th-thanks, Kohl.”

Kohl placed a hand on each of Alex’s shoulders. “Oh, don’t think for one minute I’m happy with this. I’ve got one dead soldier, an officer that’s been captured, and two missing workers.” He squeezed Alex’s shoulders harder. “This isn’t good, Alex. This is the third disappearance this month, and the second where my men have come back with nothing to show for it.” Kohl squeezed even more and leaned in closer to Alex’s face.

“What are people going to start thinking if they see that they can make a break for it and get away with it? Where will that leave us?”

Alex started to answer, but Kohl cut him off before he could begin. “Not in a good place. And that’s what it’s about here. That’s why the Rotars have been successful and been able to survive as long as we have. Everyone knows their place.” Kohl sighed. “Or at least they did. And now because I’m losing men, some of the others might get the idea that we’re weak.” Kohl began to rock Alex back and forth slowly, matching the cadence and emphasis of each word. “And that is something we cannot have, Alex. We can’t.”

Kohl released the man from his grip and started to move toward the exit of his tent. “They need to be reminded of who is in charge, and why it’s important that they stay.” Kohl flipped the flap to the side and stepped out. Alex hurried after him.

By the time he caught up, Kohl had already gotten his other officers and soldiers to gather up the entire camp. Kohl made his way to the camp center.

The Rotars’ camp was circular in design, with a central square for meetings and other large gatherings. The worker’s tents, along with any livestock and other structures encircled the square, while Kohl and his soldiers kept their lodgings, as well as the food stores around the workers. All the camp’s vehicles formed the final defensive perimeter keeping intruders out and everyone else in.

Slowly, the workers filtered in. Alex watched their faces as they started to bunch up in the center square. Most seemed understandably nervous. Alex expected that. Kohl rarely called for such gatherings unless he planned to have the camp uproot, or make an example of someone.

Alex knew there were no plans to go anywhere.

Finally, everyone had gathered. Kohl had fetched himself a crate and jumped up on it. He raised his hands to quiet the few murmurs that remained.

“I want to apologize first to you all for interrupting your workday. I know you’re all working very hard, and I wanted to say, ‘Thank You.’ I think I don’t say that often enough.”

Alex studied their faces. He could see some expressions stay just as nervous. Others softened a bit while some of the others gave a glimpse of skeptcism. One group started to shift a bit, their ankle shackles clinking loud in the breeze.

Kohl continued. “But then again, I find myself asking the question, ‘why?’ Why do I need to thank you at all? I mean, from where I stand, we all seem to understand the arrangement we have here. Your job is to work for the betterment of the camp, while my job and that of my men is to keep the camp safe. We protect you.” Kohl began to raise his voice. “And just a few days ago, our protection was repaid how? One of your group ran away, taking another with her. She did not respect the arrangement. She thought it was unfair. She was unhappy here!”

Alex continued to scan the crowd. Many of the faces were starting to look to the ground, doing whatever they could to avoid eye contact. He was beginning to wonder himself where Kohl was going with this.

Kohl lowered his voice a bit. “And to be honest, this hurts me. These are not easy times we live in. Some of you were born before the Fall, but most of us here were not. We’ve known nothing but this hard life we live. We’ve tried to make things easier, but it’s never really happened. This is the life we know. This arrangement is what works for us. This arrangement keeps us alive!” Kohl pointed toward the workers. “And when some of you decide you’ve had enough, and leave, that ends up hurting everyone else left behind. I had to commit several men to try and find this runaway, and they couldn’t do it. But that’s not the point. While they were gone looking for her, what would have happened to all of us if we’d been attacked?” Kohl threw his hands up in the air in exasperation.

“It wouldn’t have been pretty, that’s for sure. And it would have been her fault. She would have effectively signed your death warrants.” Kohl brought his tone lower. “And that’s selfish. Something that just shouldn’t exist today.”

Kohl jumped down off the crate. “But all this has made me think. Made me think that if there are more of you that don’t want to be part of what we’ve built here, then we don’t want you here. And I don’t want to waste resources going after you. So I want to know now. If there is anyone who wants to go, you are free to do so. I promise you we will not come after you.”

Alex felt a twinge in his stomach. He couldn’t believe what he was hearing. Was Kohl serious? He never would have done something like this a month ago. Alex watched the crowd of workers. None seemed willing to move.

Kohl urged them on. “Yes, I’m serious. If you want to leave, now is your one and only chance.”

A group of three men broke from the group and raised their hands. “We would like to go.”

Kohl nodded. “Are you sure?”

All three men nodded.

Kohl signaled to one of his men to loosen the shackles. They hesitated at first, but quickly complied when Kohl gave a second gesture. The chains fell to the ground and the men looked up at Kohl.

“Go.” Kohl encouraged.

The men started to leave the circle.

“Now,” Kohl began.

Alex went on alert. Here it comes.

The Rotars’ leader continued as the men slowed their pace. “Now that you are leaving the camp, this means you are no longer a part of this camp. You’ve left the protection of the Rotars. You’ve left my protection. You are out on your own. And now you’re competing for the same resources we are. In my eyes, that makes you my enemy.“

Alex watched as Kohl drew his pistol and shot the lead man. The gun blast echoed loudly and nearly everyone jumped, including Alex. The slug struck the man in the neck, and he fell lifeless to the ground.

The other two men stopped and turned toward Kohl. Slowly they raised their hands in surrender.

Kohl regarded them with a strange look. “Is there something you want? We don’t know you. You’re a stranger to our camp. Your friend there proved to be our enemy. I should regard the two of you the same way.” Kohl paused, and lowered his gun slowly. “Unless you’d like to join our camp and be part of our mutual survival.”

Both men looked at the Rotars’ leader and nodded their heads.

Kohl smiled, and opened his arms in a welcoming gesture. “Well then, welcome to our camp!”

Bruce walked down the middle of the street. He took careful note at how clean it was compared to how it looked three months ago when he first walked it. Debris, dirt, and other refuse had made the street almost impassable in spots. Now it sat clean and this made him very happy. Despite the rough shape of the road back then and even some of the structures, there was enough about this grouping of houses and other small buildings that made it viable to use as a settlement. Several sturdy structures (some even new), a river, and land that could be farmed. Best of all, it was defensible. There was a wall around this community. Someone had lived here before, but they appeared long gone, and judging from the damage done to the wall and structures, their final days likely were not pretty.

Now it had become a new home for him and his followers.

Followers. Watch it, Bruce. They follow you by choice, not by command. He corrected himself. Citizens. That’s better. Bruce was their leader, but chosen by vote, not by anything else. Bruce felt he’d served everyone well enough, but he always had doubts. This group had moved. A lot. Too many times for Bruce’s tastes.

Now, on this once overgrown street, they’d found a new place to stake their claim. Bruce hoped it would be the last time they would ever have to move.

A voice off the side of the street brought the man out of his thoughts, and he turned toward it. A woman emerged from her home. She was in her forties, like Bruce. She strolled across the lawn toward him. He smiled.

“Good afternoon, Linda. How’s the house coming?”

Linda looked back at the structure. The exterior wasn’t much to look at. Though all the weeds and overgrowth had been cleared, the siding was still dirt covered and fraying. The windows and door frames showed obvious signs of work. “It doesn’t look like it on the outside, but the inside is finally shaping up. The rot in all the rooms has been fixed, and the living rooms had all the holes patched, and we’ve made access for a fireplace. There’s still some issues with the basement, but if we can get a decent ration from the next supply mission, we should be able to fix that.” She smiled devilishly at Bruce.

Bruce held up his hands and feigned innocence. “Hey, there’s nothing I can do about it. I’m just the leader here. You have to talk to Fred about supplies. He’s in charge there.”

Linda gently punched his arm. “Aw, c’mon! What good is it to have your brother in charge of this entire town, if you can’t get a favor or two?”

Bruce mockingly rubbed his arm as he looked at the house. “How many families are staying in this one?”

Linda’s tone turned all business. “We’ll have three. One for each room. Once we get the basement repaired, we can house one more.”

Bruce looked down the block at the other houses. He could tell immediately that the neighboring house was a complete loss, but the others looked viable. “What’s the status on these structures?”

“They’re coming along, but this one here is the best on the block.”

Bruce crunched some numbers in his head. “Well, you’re actually doing better than some of the other blocks, save for Alpha. But they’re ready to have the last of their tents moved to their final spots.” Bruce sighed. “I’ll see what I can do. But you’re the Block Boss, you need to make your case for your share of supplies.” Bruce looked further down the road and at the house beyond repair. “You’ve still got some messy street here, and this house could be torn down and turned into a garden. Why haven’t you scavenged supplies from that yet?”

Linda pointed toward the roof. “It’s actually the tallest house on the block. The interior is trashed, yes, but the vantage points from that height for snipers are too good to pass up.”

Bruce exhaled through his teeth. He didn’t like to think about those kinds of things, but he knew Linda was right. He studied the house closely. “Makes sense. Make sure you add to your list a few traps on the inside of the building so we don’t leave the sniper undefended. Might also be worth it to build a bridge between it and another house.”

Linda nodded. “You got it, Mister Mayor. I’ll get that stuff pulled out of my ass right away,” she mocked.

Bruce smiled back. “You don’t need to be the Block Boss you know. There are still some outhouses that need digging.”

Linda was about to respond when they both noticed someone come charging up the street. He was headed directly toward the pair. He slowed and stopped in front of them, huffing.

“Catch your breath, Kim. What’s going on?”

Kim heaved a few more times, spitting out words between each breath. “Visitors… they… have… a prisoner. They want… to leave him… here.”

Bruce looked at Linda, took off his wide-brimmed hat and ran a hand through his thinning hair. “Well this is new. Let’s go have a look. Are they still outside the gate?”

Kim nodded.

*  *  *

Bruce climbed up the ladder and stepped up on the platform that ran around the length of the wall. He peered over the edge at the group of five below. He quickly saw that one of them was bound, and was being carefully watched by a woman with a spear.

“What’s your business?” Bruce shouted down.

The older man answered. “Hello there. We’re looking for shelter for a few days, and we have a prisoner we were hoping you could take off our hands.”

“A prisoner? From where? And what has he done?”

“He and his men were trying to capture these girls, to take them back to their camp. We intervened.”

Bruce cocked his head. “How do you know they aren’t the criminals? Maybe that man and his men are the law from their camp.” Bruce watched as the bound man turned back toward the woman and said something. She responded by a quick slap to his face with her shaft from her spear. The younger of the two men moved quickly to stop the situation from escalating.

The older man continued to speak, gesturing toward the younger girl. “She’s not much younger than twelve. I doubt there’s anything they could steal or any serious crime she could have done.“

“I dunno, old man. The other one seems more than ready to use her spear.” That comment brought chuckles from the guards stationed along the wall. “What happened to the men he was with?”

“One escaped, and the other was killed,” the older man answered flatly.

Bruce took his hat off, and leaned on the wall, in between the spikes at the top of each post. “I’ll tell you what. I’ll let you in, and you can secure him, but I’ll have to think about your request.”

The older man’s shoulders sunk. “Fair enough.”

“Are you armed?”

He nodded.

“We don’t take kindly to weapons here. You’ll have to check them in.”

The man nodded again.

Bruce signaled for the gate to be opened. “Welcome to Shade’s Rest, my friends.”

Runner looked down at the container in her hands. It was a glass jar with a metal clamp of sorts on the top, keeping the lid sealed tight. Wax ran around the seam where the top met the bottom. Runner smiled a devilish grin as she held the jar up inches from her face. She didn’t care about what the jar was made of. She was more concerned with what was in it.

Pickles. She’d had one only once when she was younger. All she remembered was the salty, tangy taste. She carefully pried the lever on the back of the canister forward, and heard the slight air ‘pop’ as the seal broke. She took the top off and stuffed it in the bag she had tied around her waist. The emerald juice in the canister sloshed back and forth, causing the four pickles inside to swirl in a slow motion dance. Wiping her hand on her pants one last time to clear away any remaining dirt, she thrust her hand in and grasped the topmost one.

The crunch, salt and tang filled her mouth and she felt her lips purse a bit as she gleefully chewed the vegetable, adding more bites along the way.

“How are they?” Essem asked her as he walked along by her side.

Runner mumbled something in reply, but she could tell by Essem’s expression that he had no idea what she had said. She swallowed the last bits of pickle in her mouth. “They are so good,” she repeated, as her hand fished inside the jar for another.

“Make sure you drink the juice after you eat them all.” Essem pointed toward the jar.

Runner looked at the green liquid. “Really? Why?”

“Because it’s good. That’s why.”

Runner scrunched up her face as she sniffed the glass. “But it smells so sour.”

Essem shrugged. “Well if you don’t want it, I’ll take it.”

Runner nodded as she bit into another pickle. The sun broke through the clouds above and its warm beams caressed her face, warming it instantly. Between the warmth and the pickles, she felt a smile break across her face.

From what Runner could tell, the deals they made with the trader Barris had gone well. She certainly was happy. A jar of pickles just for herself. The only thing that would have made it better would have been some eggs, or maybe some pig. She noted that James was happy. He’d gotten some more bullets and some food. All of the stuff they’d gotten had come from the boots and other items taken from Dan, the guy James had shot and Essem had “salvaged.” She was beginning to understand how this all worked.

Now they were on their way to the settlement Barris spoke about. They’d been walking toward it all day, and Runner had been told they would be there before the sun went down. Barris said there were quite a few people there, and that they might be able to do something with Tim. This made James happy.

Runner turned and looked at Tim. He was being pulled along by Essem once again, with Maple right behind. His face didn’t look happy. He seemed to be walking along with no real expression on his face at all. Runner slowed herself down and pulled alongside Tim. He didn’t seem to pay any attention to her.

“We’re almost to the settlement.”

No response.

“Are you worried about what will happen when we get there?” Runner looked at Tim.

Still no response.

“What do you think will happen to you once we get there?”

Tim continued to look ahead. “They’ll probably hang me.”

Runner saw Tim jump as Maple poked him in the back with her makeshift spear. “Don’t talk to her like that,” she barked.

Tim looked back at her. “You want me to lie about it, sweetheart?”

Maple lifted her spear to threaten him again, but Runner interjected. “Would they do that because you hurt Maple?”

Tim looked at her and shook his head, then gestured with it toward Maple. “No. They’ll do it because she’s going to tell them about what life is like in our camp. She’s going to cry, and say all kinds of things. Then she’ll point at you and say that she res–AHHHH!” Maple’s spear cracked the side of Tim’s head, cutting off his sentence.

“That’s enough.” Maple looked at Runner and jerked her thumb backward. “Runner, get away from him.”

She complied, watching Tim the whole time. He turned his gaze away and continued marching forward. Runner looked at Maple. “Is that true? Is that what you’re going to say?”

Maple didn’t answer, keeping her eyes locked on the road ahead.

Runner pressed again. “I know they were bad, Maple. I know the Rotars did bad things. But is that what is really going to happen?”

Maple looked down at the younger girl. She stared at her for some time, saying nothing. Runner stared back, trying to puzzle out the look on Maple’s face. Maple glanced toward Tim, then back to Runner. Her expression softened slightly. “I don’t know. But I know that it’ll be okay. Everything is going to be okay.”

Runner smiled. She knew that was what Maple would say when she didn’t know what else to say. She wasn’t really worried about anything. Her excitement over seeing another settlement overshadowed any sort of fear she might have been feeling. Still, she couldn’t stop wondering what was going to happen to Tim.

She dropped back away from Maple toward the end of their line and fell in step with James. The older man smiled at her, his dark-toned skin lighting up from the grin on his face.

“How are the pickles?”

“They’re good. Thank you.”

James patted her shoulder. “I’d say you earned it. I never told you, but you were pretty brave back there in the woods, when you charged in to save Maple.”

Runner shrugged. “I didn’t want to see her get hurt.”

James nodded. “I understand.” His toned turned flat and all happiness left his voice. “But don’t ever do it again. You were one lucky little girl. Brave yes, but also lucky. You may not be so lucky next time. I would hate to see you dead.”

Runner swallowed hard, and she felt her face get very warm. She felt bad that James was upset with her, so she simply nodded.

She said nothing for the next hour as they continued to walk. Finally, the shame she felt had passed enough for her to speak up. “What is going to to happen to Tim?”

James looked at her, then toward the ganger. “Well, I don’t know.” He sighed. “I guess we’ll find out soon enough though. Take a look.” James pointed toward the horizon.

Runner followed the line from his finger. In the distance, she could see the black dots that were shaping into buildings and smoke rising into the sky that she knew were from campfires.

They’d made it.

“Huh?” Essem asked.

“I said we don’t bite. However, if you decide you want to use that weapon, then we might have to shoot you and the rest of your little group.”

Essem looked around. He didn’t even think that there might be snipers hiding out.I can’t even see where they are, but they can’t be too far away.

The man spoke again. “Really, man. It would do you some good to just stand up. It will make my men feel better, and make me feel better, and maybe, eventually make you feel better.”

“How can I trust you?” Essem shot back as he crept forward to find the source of the voice.

“Well, naturally you can’t, but I wouldn’t be much of a trader if I wasn’t a little trustworthy. Look at it this way: if I wanted to kill you, I could have already.”

A thought triggered in Essem’s head. There’s no snipers out there. “You’re bluffing.”

The man’s tone changed, turning much more serious. “I don’t bluff. Not on this.” Essem saw the man stand. He was seated next to the transport, concealed by a tarp that blended near perfect with the surrounding grass and scrub. The man opened his arms wide, and brought his tone back to the more pleasant sound. “Will this make you feel better? I’m taking the first step here. Now, how about you follow suit? We might have lots to talk about. Or even trade.”

Essem could feel his heart pounding. Is this how Dad feels when he takes the lead? He took one deep breath and got to his feet, keeping his eyes trained on the man the entire time. Though he held it low, Essem kept his father’s shotgun trained on the man.

“That wasn’t so hard now, was it? I don’t have a weapon drawn. You want to lower that shooter?”

Essem turned back toward his father and the rest of the group, then back toward the man. He slowly lowered the shotgun. The man smiled in return and began to move toward him.

“Good! My name is Barney, but you can call me Barris if you like. Most people do.” Barris stood about the same height as Essem. He appeared lean except for the bulge showing around his waist. His dirty blonde hair was long and pulled back in a ponytail. He wore rugged clothes, but Essem could tell they were better made than what he wore. As he came out of the ditch, Essem could see that he was armed, a holstered pistol on his left thigh. He smiled again at Essem as he extended his hand. “How about a proper greeting now?”

Essem was slow to react, but stuck out his hand and shook Barris’. Now able to get a close look at the man’s face, he could see a small earpiece with a connecting microphone running along his right cheek.

Barris caught the look and tapped the small headset. “Told you I don’t bluff about that.” Barris looked past Essem and waved toward James and the rest. “Why don’t you call the rest of your group over? It’ll be dark soon. We should camp together.”

Essem turned hesitantly, but waved his father in.

*  *  *

James knelt down by the stream flowing through the culvert. The water babbled quickly past. Methodically he removed his bandages followed by his jacket and multiple shirts he wore. The chill of the night’s air wrapped around his exposed skin, bringing forth goose bumps all over his body.

Carefully, James scooped up water in a cupped hand and splashed it gently over his wound. It still seeped red from blood and the water made crimson rivulets that ran down his arm. The water was colder than the air and James hissed at the chill. He continued to splash at the wound, doing his best to rinse it clean. Eventually he leaned down and placed his shoulder in the water. It wasn’t the most comfortable pose, but the coolness of the running water made quick and better work than what his hands were able to do.

“That’s a nasty would you have there, sir.” Barris spoke, looking toward James. “Were you shot?”

James nodded. “Grazed. I’ll be fine.”

Barris chuckled. “Fine he says. You were shot and you walked away. That’s more than fine in my book.” He gestured toward Tim. “Did this one do it to you?”

James nodded again.

“And you let him live?” Barris scoffed as he looked toward Tim. “He’s done you a great favor, sir. You’d best respect that.”

“I wouldn’t have let him live.” Maple spoke flatly as she stared into the crackling fire that rested in the center of where all of them, save James sat.

Barris nodded toward Maple. “I take it he’s hurt you in some way?”

Maple was about to answer but James cut her off. “It’s not important. He’s our prisoner now.”

“But what do you plan to do with him? Surely you can’t take him with you forever.”

James stood. Taking his inner shirt, he gently dabbed the wound. “We don’t plan to. We’ll find the nearest settlement and have them deal with him.”

Barris nodded, and slowly rubbed his chin. “They might. We just came from one.”

Runner’s head perked up. “Another settlement? Where?”

Barris gestured over his shoulder. “Back that way. Probably take you almost a day to reach it.”

James could see Runner’s eyes light up. He looked back at Barris. The man was starting to ask too many questions for James’ taste. The last thing he wanted was any more attention. Attention bred strange stories that would be told to others. Others who still might be looking for some runaways. Time to get this merchant’s mind elsewhere.

“So you’re a trader. Well, what have you got to trade?”

Barris turned his attention toward James. A smile spread across his face. The firelight revealed a mouth with both missing and gold covered teeth.

“Let’s take a look, shall we?”

James could feel his feet getting heavy. His arm burned and he was sweating. The shot he took from Tim had only grazed his shoulder but it hurt like hell and bled quite a bit before he and Maple had been able to get it bandaged up. James was worried about that as well. The rags he’d fashioned weren’t the cleanest, and he was worried about infection. They’d need to find a river or stream to clean the wound and bandages. And rest. James knew that last part wasn’t going to happen soon. He and Essem had two new people to keep an eye on as well as a prisoner. James still wasn’t sure what to do about the ganger. He wasn’t fond of letting him go, but he didn’t like the idea of dispensing any “road justice” this time, especially after the confrontation he and Essem had just had.

James looked at his son. He was walking lead with Runner by his side. Essem carried a length of rope in his hand, pulling the ganger Tim behind. Maple walked behind them, a makeshift spear in her hands. She made sure Tim kept moving and kept his mouth shut. James figured she’d be perfect for that job. He was right. Anytime Tim spoke up, a poke to the back or a good tap on the side of his head made him stop right quick.

James brought up the rear. He carried a full satchel over his shoulder. After capturing Tim and an unsuccessful search of the area for the other ganger, Alex, the group made their way back to James and Essem’s camp. There Essem completed his salvage of the dead ganger. Boots, clothes, a few bits of food and a decent knife was about all he carried. James was a little surprised that no one asked about burial for the dead ganger. So it was James that had brought it up.

“I suppose we should bury him.”

“Why?” Maple had spoken in a lifeless tone.

James looked at her. “Because he’s dead.”

Maple met his gaze then shot a glare toward Tim. “Burial is for those with souls.” After that, she walked away from the scene and sat by a tree, waiting.

James looked over at Runner, who was standing next to Essem. Runner spokesoftly before pointing at the dead body. “Maple said that Dan hit her a lot. More than Tim or Alex did.”

Essem shrugged and pulled out his spade. He set about scooping several shovelfuls of dirt on the body. James watched for a bit then made his way over to the tree they had tied Tim to. Tim looked at Essem’s efforts, then toward James. “Thanks, old man.” He spoke with no emotion.

James looked toward Maple, then back toward Tim. “You can thank me if you survive the night.” He then looked back toward the burial scene. “Personally, I think he made out better than you will.”

It was about eight hours later, and the group found some fortune in the form of what appeared to be a well traveled road. This road, another relic from the Time Before, looked like it was probably used as a main artery between settlements. Essem knew they shouldn’t be traveling directly on any roads. His father hated the idea, but with an injury and a prisoner, hiking parallel to any traffic route was going to be too difficult to manage. Plus Essem had argued that their chances of coming across any other road travelers, or even another settlement would be much better. James had reluctantly agreed with him.

Essem scanned the horizon as he plodded along, Runner at his side. He didn’t mind the girl being next to him so much, but he did find that her questions were becoming a bit irritating. It didn’t take him long to figure out that she had never been beyond the borders of whatever gang or camp she’d been kept in. Most of her questions were about him and James and where they’d been and what they’d seen. He did his best to answer at first, but as the hours wore on, his responses grew shorter.

“So,” Runner began, looking back to James. “Why did you take all Dan’s stuff?”

Essem wassurprised by this question. He thought for a moment. “Salvage.”

“What’s salvage?”

“Dad also calls it money. It used to be different when Dad was a kid, but now when you want something, you trade for it. We could get food or ammo for those boots and clothes.”

Runner scrunched up her mouth, thinking. “So does that mean you kill a lot of people to take their stuff?”

Essem smiled and shook his head. “No. Sometimes we find things that we can trade, and when we have time, we’ll do work for things or make things to trade.”

Runner looked at him eagerly. “What do you make?”

“Dad can build things out of wood. I can too, but I’m better at making fishing nets.”

Runner held out her arm. “I can make things too. Maple taught me how to craft bracelets and baskets. She knows how to do that. She can also cook food.”

“Everyone knows how to cook food.”

“Not like Maple. She’s really good.”

Essem nodded. The sun was getting low in the sky over his right shoulder and he knew they’d have to camp soon. Finding a place to safely camp was going to be tricky. The woods had thinned considerably, and the grass here wasn’t too high. A fire was likely out of the question. Still moving, Essem scrutinized the horizon. Then he cocked his head. What’s that? He held up an arm, stopping their convoy and making sure everyone stayed silent.

James slowly moved closer. “What is it, son?”

“I hear a stream. It’s got to be up ahead somewhere,” Essem whispered back. He turned and faced his father, looking at his injured shoulder. “Let me go check it out.”

James knew what his son really meant. There wasn’t going to be much argument this time. He extended his shotgun, and dug in his pocket, fishing out his last four shells. James looked him sternly in the eye. “This is it. Be careful.”

James took the group off of the road as Essem trotted forward. Keeping to the shoulder of the battered road, he moved closer to the sound he knew for sure was a stream.

Then he saw it.

A vehicle of some sort was down in the ditch, covered by a patchwork of grass. Essem looked around for signs of life. Seeing none, he crept ahead, his father’s shotgun leading the way. Essem dropped down and began to crawl slowly toward the vehicle. He was only a half dozen meters away at most. It didn’t look right to Essem. He could tell the vehicle had been put there recently, but he saw no one. He could hear the rushing water right next to the transport, but could see none of it. Must be by an overgrown culvert.

Essem crept forward a bit.

“There’s no need to be so paranoid. We don’t bite,” came a voice. 

Tim turned and looked toward the woods behind him. He couldn’t see the source of the gunshot or the shouting, but he knew whoever said it was there. He turned the rest of his body around, forcing Maple in front to act as a shield just in case.

“You’re pretty brave when you can’t be seen. Care to tell me who you are?” Tim glanced toward Alex, who was frantically scanning the woods for the source as well. He gestured with a tip of his head for the ganger to start making his way to a better position.

“I just want the girl,” came the shout back.

“She’s not yours to have. You’ve got no claim to her. Do yourself a favor and just back down. You’re just going to end up hurt, or dead. And for what? Someone you don’t even know? It’s not worth it, friend.”

“I’m not your friend.”

Tim laughed. “No, I guess you’re not.” Tim smiled and made a welcoming gesture with his free hand. “Tell you what. You could be if you wanted.” He looked toward Alex. The ganger was still moving, and searching. “Clearly you’re good in a fight. Not that Dan was much of a threat to anyone but himself. But you showed me that you’ve got the guts to kill. Or was that your partner?”

Tim waited for a response, but got none.

“Nothing to say to that, huh?” He looked again to Alex. His partner gave a curt nod of his head. Tim took the cue. Alex must have found him. “Fair enough.” He paused on the word. “Friend.” Tim started to move. “We’re going to go now. Like I said, do yourself a favor, and stay out of it. She’s ours. If you’ve got the young one, keep her. Or bring her back to our camp and trade her in for a bounty. You’re bound to get one.” Tim began to march Maple away from where Alex had indicated the voice was coming from.

The rock whizzed high over his head, but Tim knew it was meant for him. It was followed by a shout.

“Maple!”

Tim turned toward the sound. He saw the little girl, Runner charging toward him, a large stick in her hands. “Alex, get her!” he commanded.

Alex lunged for the girl, but he was a step too slow and his fingers slipped over the back of her shirt. Overextended, the man stumbled forward, struggling to keep his balance. Sonofabitch! Tim adjusted his stance to better intercept the charging girl. He loosened his grip on Maple’s hair.

She didn’t hesitate. Putting both hands on Tim’s chest, Maple pushed him away with a scream. Tim maintained his grip, but he felt Maple slip and begin to fall. He let go and she fell to the ground. Moving quickly, he stepped toward Runner. In his peripheral vision, he saw a shape emerge from the woods where he’d been watching. Then he noticed a second coming from the other side. Tim heard gunshots coming from one side, and also from Alex’s direction. He felt his control of the situation quickly fade away. He knew he had only one chance to get it back.

*  *  *

James flinched instinctively as he saw Alex and Essem trading pistol fire. Thankfully, Alex was a bad shot on the run. James wanted to chase the ganger down, but he had another, more immediate goal. He watched as Runner pulled back on the stick, ready to strike the other ganger. She seemed oblivious to the gunfire around her. That damn kid. It’s like Essem all over again. The makeshift staff hit the ganger ineffectually, not even breaking his stride. He scooped up the girl and turned toward James. Instinctively, he raised his shotgun.

The ganger fired first. James felt a hot sting tear into his shoulder. It was followed by a biting pain that made him stumble and drop his gun. He let out a shout in pain and clutched his shoulder. James turned his gaze back to the ganger and saw that he still had the gun pointed at him.

Maple leapt on to the ganger’s back, and began swinging and punching furiously. He wasn’t ready for the extra weight or momentum. He failed to stay upright and hit the ground. Maple continued to swing away at the man. James saw Runner squirm free from underneath. The ganger finally regained his composure and struck back at Maple, forcing her off. He made to get to his feet, but Essem was on him quickly. He pointed the pistol square in the ganger’s face.

“Hey, friend.“

The man’s efforts deflated, and relaxed his pose.

Then James saw Runner.

She had the man’s gun, and also had it pointed at him.

“Runner, no!” Maple shouted. “Put the gun down. We’ve got him. Tim can’t hurt us now.”

Runner was shaking. “But he was hurting you.”

James could see the fear in the ganger’s face. He wasn’t sure he was going to survive this. James slowly moved toward Runner.

“But he’s not hurting me anymore.” Maple moved toward the girl. “You saved me. You. Saved Me.”

James added in. “You did good, Runner. But now we need to put the gun down.” He stepped up right next to her and extended his hand. “Give me the gun, girl.”

Runner’s arms slowly lowered, and tears formed in her eyes. She dropped the pistol and ran toward Maple, crying. James scooped up the gun and looked at his son. “Get him tied up.”

*  *  *

Alex squinted to make out the details. He could see one of the men tying Tim up. He was binding his hands behind his back, and taking away all his weapons. He saw Maple looking at the older man’s shoulder. He knew there was no way he was going to be able to rescue Tim or get the girls back.

He hunched down in his hiding space. Kohl is going to be pissed.

James moved through the woods as fast as he could. The little girl kept darting in front of him, and he had to keep calling her back. She only listened a handful of times. He could tell that she was still upset. Her sobs sounded more like desperation than sadness. She wanted to get back to her friend, this ‘Maple’ girl.

James had left Essem back at their camp, telling him to scavenge what he could first off the dead man then catch up. James didn’t want to lose any good salvage, and he also wanted to keep Essem back far enough for James to get a good assessment of the situation before having to deal with Essem’s bullheadedness again. James could tell that these men, were more dangerous than the last group they had tangled with. Both were armed, and the only reason the other ran was because James had the drop on him but hesitated.

James heard a shout up ahead. He knew they were close. He stopped and hissed atthe girl. She hesitated. “Stop moving. We go slow from here.”

“Why? They’re right up there.” She pointed toward James’ shotgun. “You can get them. There’s only two of them.”

James shook his head. “We’ll get them. Don’t you worry about that. But we have to do it carefully.”

“But there’s only two of them!” Runner insisted.

“Do you know what they have?” James shook his gun. “The man I shot probably had a pistol, but I don’t know what the other two have. Do you?”

Runner hesitated. Her shoulders sank. “No.”

“Then we do it slow. Don’t worry, we’ll get your friend back.” James could hear Essem charging through the woods, rapidly approaching behind them. He let out a high whistle when he spied Essem and saw his son change course. Within moments, he was crouched down next to James and Runner.

“We need to work quickly. There’s only two, but I don’t know what they’re going to do or what they’re armed with.”

Essem jumped in, looking at Runner. “Did you see them have anything big like this?” he pointed toward his father’s gun. Runner shook her head.

James pointed past a group of trees. “I think they’re up there, just past that thick patch of trees on that rise. I don’t think they plan on sticking around very long, but we can cut them off. Circle around left, but keep your distance. They’re armed.”

Essem smiled as he held up a newly found pistol. “Yeah, but so am I.”

“But mine hurts more.” James made a gesture with his shotgun. He looked at Runner. “What is your name, girl?”

“Everybody just calls me Runner.”

Essem smiled. “Runner? What the hell kind of name is that?”

She looked back at him defiantly. “It’s mine.”

Essem chuckled as he stood up and started to move away. James watched him. “I’ll give you five minutes then I’m going in. Do not go in there yourself. You got damn lucky last time. This won’t be the same.”

Essem nodded then trotted off into the woods.

“Five minutes!? They’ll be gone by then.” Runner made to move.

James placed a heavy hand on her shoulder. “Where do you think you’re going?” He applied more strength to keep her in place. She resisted at first then relaxed. “I’m going to guess that you and this Maple girl have escaped from somewhere, and that these three have been out looking for you, to bring both of you back. Since they don’t have you, I’m thinking they don’t want to go away very far. They’ll wait for us to come and rescue her. They’re going to hope to kill me and my son, so they can catch you and take you back.”

Runner studied him intently.

“So that’s why you need to stay here, Runner. Essem and I are going to get Maple. But you need to hide here, and wait for us to come back.”

James stood and started to move toward the thick patch of trees.

“It hasn’t been five minutes yet.”

James nodded. “I know.”

“Why did you tell him that, then?”

James smiled. “Because Essem is a lot like you. He likes to charge in without thinking. I need to get there before he does so he doesn’t get himself killed.”

Runner nodded. “Wait.”

James turned to face her again. “What?”

“You never told me your name.”

James smiled. “It’s James. Just James.”

*  *  *

James moved carefully through the trees. He was doing his best to stay quiet, but the branches and undergrowth were making that difficult. Thankfully there was enough aural cover from the birds and other wildlife to mask most of the noise.

At least that was what James was telling himself each time he snapped a twig.

He could hear voices up ahead. Two men and a woman. The woman was scared. And crying, most likely. James knew he was close, so he dropped down on his belly and slowly crawled to the base of a large pine.

Peering around, he saw them. Just as Runner had said, there were two men. The one who had fled stood watch, checking the trees, most likely looking for James or Essem. The other was arguing with the woman. She stoodhunched over. Her face was dirty and her clothes torn. He could see the dirt on her face was streaked, most likely from tears and a small trail of blood that ran from her nose and the corner of her mouth.

“You’re gonna call for her, and get her to come back here!” one of the men shouted.

The woman spat. “Go to hell!”

The man wasted no time and backhanded her. Her head snapped to the side and she spun to the ground.

James felt his hands tense around his shotgun. He wanted to spring into action, but that might just as quickly get the woman killed.

James started scanning the area around for Essem. He knew his son had to be there somewhere. He just needed to find him.

“Get up!” the man shouted.

The woman rolled a bit on the ground, struggling to get to her feet.

The man reached down and grab a handful of her hair and heaved her to her feet. She screamed and clutched at his hand.

James wasn’t sure what to do. From this distance, his shotgun wasn’t going to be effective to take one of them down. He couldn’t find Essem, and wasn’t sure if he was even in position yet.

“Now, let’s go! And you will call to her.” The man started to drag Maple by her hair towards where James was hiding. James slid back down. This could work. Just keep coming, you bastards.

Then the gunshot went off. And James heard another voice. It was Essem.

“You let her go, or you’ll be dead where you stand!”

Damnit.

Runner felt the cool morning air wash over her face as she darted through the woods. Her hair waved uncontrollably behind her. She could hear the crunch of the leaves and loam underneath her feet. It was a feeling of freedom for the young girl. She was so much faster than the other kids. A memory flashed in her mind of the other times she’d felt such freedom and even happiness. The images in her head flashed back to when she would play tag and other games with those same kids in the Rotars’ camp. Even though she had to work hard, and the Rotars would sometimes scare her, those were fun times.

This was not.

The shouts from behind her were mixed. She could hear Maple’s voice screaming at her to keep running and to not stop for anything. She could also hear the men, Dan, Tim and Alex. All were hollering. She couldn’t hear what they were saying. All she knew was that their voices sounded scary. And angry. That scared Runner the most.

Maple was close behind her, she could tell that. The men were further back, but catching up to Maple, despite the head start the two had gotten. Runner could feel herself pulling away, but couldn’t bring herself to look back to see. She was too scared.

“To the right!” Maple barked from behind, her breath heavy from sprinting. Runner looked. The trees grew thicker in that direction. She wasn’t sure why, maybe Maple wanted them to climb to freedom, or maybe find another hiding place. She didn’t take time to think. She just acted. A cut to the right and a small vault allowed her to clear a small patch of branches. She could hear Maple protest as she had to plow through the same patch. “Don’t stop!” Maple yelled.

The shouts from the men continued, but were getting muffled as the trees began to thicken. Runner had to slow as she ducked and jerked around the claws of branches that sprouted from the trees. Fear would only allow her to slow so much. She felt stings as some limbs scratched and cut across her face, arms and legs.

She heard Maple scream somewhere behind her. It didn’t sound good, and she choked out a cry of her own as she felt her eyes water up. Her legs continued to pound forward. She heard a deep grunt and another scream from Maple. “Runner!”

Panic overtook the young girl as the fear spiked inside of her. Her mind locked up and she felt her legs begin to move even faster. Her body, confused by the terror she felt, let out a scream and forced her to steal a look behind. Her eyes barely made out the detail of the trees before she felt something hard hit her foot. As she whipped her head back around, Runner culd tell it was caught, and she was forced to the ground with a rough thud.

Runner let out another cry as she hurridly freed her foot and scrambled up. Her right foot hurt. More shouts and the snapping of wood grew very close. Runner’s eyes focused behind her; her heart leapt as she saw Maple burst through the trees. Half of her shirt was ripped away. The fear returned like a punch to the gut as she saw all three men right behind Maple.

She didn’t wait.

She turned and ran. She ducked under branches and jumped over downed logs and stumps. The ground also tried to hide rocks that poked through the earth, causing her sprint to turn more into a strange dance at times.

Runner could hear the men’s shouts. She forced herself faster. The shouts faded just a bit.

Then she heard Maple scream again. This time she only heard her say, “NO!” Then nothing. Runner could feel her breathing speed up. Her head was getting hot, and her chest was starting to hurt. Her foot still ached, and she could tell it was slowing her down.

The shouts were getting closer, but Runner could tell there was one less voice. Someone had caught Maple. The tears started to return.

More sunlight began to hit her face. Runner could tell the woods were getting thinner. There would be no place to hide. She didn’t know what she would do now. Maple was gone. She always knew what to do. Runner had never been beyond the Rotars’ camp. She’d never been alone. A seed of anger sprouted inside her. She was mad at Maple for bringing her away from the camp. Why did she do that? Why did she take me away? I don’t want to get caught. They’ll hurt me!

Runner darted around a tree, ducking a bit to avoid a low branch. She thought she caught a glimpse of a person just beyond the trees, but she was moving too fast to be sure.

Then suddenly the ground vanished beneath her and she felt herself fall.

Runner hit the ground hard. When she stopped rolling, her eyes focused on the two men standing over her. One was young, and the other looked really old. Both looked surprised.

*  *  *

Essem looked down at the young girl, then to his father. James lifted his shotgun and pointed it toward the trees just above their camp.

“Here they come.”

Essem lifted his club and moved a bit to the left, around the body of the girl lying on the ground.

A pair of men broke through the trees, catching themselves before falling from the drop-off.

“That’s far enough.” James said flatly.

The men were gasping and sucking for air. They looked surprised and confused.

“What the hell is going on here?” Essem asked the men.

One of the men took a big breath and stood taller. James could tell he was trying to look tougher. To James’ eyes, his heavy breathing destroyed any attempts to make that happen. “Nothing of your concern. Best put down that gun, old man,” he barked toward James.

“Son, I’ve never bothered to take orders from wastes of space like yourself, and I don’t intend to start now.”

Essem saw the girl scramble to her feet. He moved like a flash toward her and caught her arm before she could get away. She struggled, but he held her fast.

The man shouted at Essem. “You let her go. She’s ours. We own her fair and square!”

“Own?” Essem cocked his head.

James poked the gun in the direction of the men. “I don’t think so. Nobody owns people.” His expression darkened. “I was going to ask your business with the girl, but I know all I need to now.” James gestured with his shotgun back toward the woods the men came from. “I think it’s time for you to get the hell out of here.”

The talking man reached behind his back.

James didn’t hesitate.

The shotgun blast caught the man square in the chest, knocking him back and to the ground. It echoed loudly around the trees.

The second man turned and raced back into the cover of the trees, his panicked sounds quickly fading away.

Essem turned and looked at the girl. She had tears in her eyes and looked terrified.

James approached her. “It’s okay, now. They won’t bother you again.”

The girl pointed toward where both she and the men had come from. She spoke through sobs and gasps. “Maple. We have to save Maple!”

Maple was shivering. She couldn’t tell if it was from the cold of the night or that her former captors were so close by. The flame from their campfire crackled brightly, but Maple knew that she and Runner would be seen at any moment. The pair was hidden in a patch of brush, but the darkness of night was part of that camouflage. As soon as any light was pointed in their direction, they would be found out.

In Maple’s mind, it was only a matter of time.

She couldn’t let them be found. They were too close to freedom.

Runner tugged nervously at Maple’s shirt. She whispered in panic, “Maple? What are we going to do?”

“Shhh,” Maple cautioned. “We can’t do anything yet. We have to wait until they go to sleep. If we try to get out now, we’ll make too much noise.”

“But they’re so close. They’re going to catch us.”

Maple shook her head, refusing to believe. “No. They won’t catch us. They won’t catch you. You’re too fast.” She stroked Runner’s dirty, matted hair. “Just stay still and stay quiet. I’ll tell you when we can go.”

Satisfied, Maple turned her gaze back toward the trio of men who had been chasing them down. It was too dark to recognize who was who, but she knew the names. Dan, Alex and Tim. Dan and Alex were idiots, thugs who did little more than follow orders and beat those who didn’t listen. Tim wasn’t like that though. He was smarter. He wasn’t the leader of the Rotars, the gang that had taken Maple captive, but he knew the leader and was one of his lieutenants. Tim was cruel. He’d beaten Maple many times in the past. He’d taken her when he wanted. But he wasn’t the only one. There were plenty in the Rotars Maple didn’t want to see again, or if she did, wanted to see them dead. Maple worried that if these three did find them, she might not even make it back to the Rotars’ camp. Tim might rape her then kill her right here in the woods.

One of the gangers moved away from the campsite, heading straight towards their hiding place. Maple’s eyes widened and her insides turned to ice. She placed a hand over Runner’s mouth as she felt the girl stir. “Shhhh.” she said as softly as possible, learning in towards Runner’s ear.

Maple could feel Runner squirm in fear as the man stopped just over two meters from where they crouched. Maple made her words deliberate and almost imperceptible. “If they find us, we’re in trouble. Just. Sit. Still.”

The man’s belt clinked as he undid it and dropped his pants. Maple watched in disgust as the man squatted down and let out a few grunts. A thought raced through her head about making a break for freedom at that moment, but she quickly dismissed it. Though this man was preoccupied, the other two wouldn’t be, and they’d be in quick pursuit. Maple suddenly found herself smiling over the situation. The ganger had come over here for some privacy, but was getting something else entirely. The smile was quickly replaced, when the man stood back up and buckled his belt. The odor of his business wafted through the clump of bushes hiding the pair. Maple felt Runner’s hands go over the one she held over the younger girl’s mouth, trying to block the scent. Maple followed suit, covering her own nose and mouth, but allowed herself a chuckle on the inside over what had just happened.

Maple gave a sigh of relief after the ganger made his way back to camp. If this area had become their impromptu latrine, that meant that they’d be steering clear unless they had to relieve themselves. The  odor was a steep cost to pay but Maple suddenly felt much safer.

It was clear Runner didn’t like the idea. In the fractured moonlight, Maple could see her fanning the air in front of her face. A few ‘shushes’ kept the younger girl in line. Maple now focused on making sure that her charge got some sleep, while she figured out when and how they were going to escape.

Maple figured their best chance at getting away from the Rotars’ camp was just before dawn. There would be enough light so they could avoid the natural hazards of the forest floor, but dark enough where they might get enough of a head start. Plus, at least two of them would still be sleeping.

Satisfied, she kept her eyes focused on the makeshift camp. Their fire crackled with warmth, something Maple certainly didn’t have. Even with Runner snuggled in close, the chill of the air passed through their threadbare clothes like it wasn’t even there. The shivering helped Maple in her fight to stay awake, but that, coupled with frequent head shaking, wasn’t enough. The fatigue and hunger from the past two days of running finally caught up with the young woman, and she drifted off.

Maple’s eyes snapped open with a start, and she let a small gasp escape her lips. Her stomach tightened with fear as her eyes darted around, desperate to catch her bearings.

She was still hunkered down in the cluster of bushes and shrubs. Runner was curled up tight against her side, and still asleep. Maple took a few deep breaths to calm herself. Then she remembered who she was hiding from.

And that the sun had already come up.

She looked over at the camp.

All three gangers were asleep. Someone fell asleep on their watch.

Maple felt herself begin to panic again. Their window of escape was wide open. They had to move and move now.

She placed a hand over Runner’s mouth,  nudged and whispered her awake.

“Wake up Runner. We have to go. We have to go now.”

The young girl let out a whimper as she stirred.

“Shhhh. Now listen to me, honey.” Maple glanced toward the camp. They all still slept. She looked back in the opposite direction. “You’re going to go first. Just ease out slowly. Try not to disturb too many branches. Once we’re out of these bushes we can run, understand?”

Runner nodded.

Maple gave her a gentle nudge to get her moving. Runner’s small frame started to twist and writhe as she did her best to escape the cover of the shrubs as quietly as possible. Maple kept close watch on the camp. It seemed to take forever for Runner to clear. The men in the camp stirred.

She looked back and saw that Runner was free. Maple’s body ached and protested as she moved to navigate the branches and brambles. Too many hours in the same pose made her sore and stiff. Each time she moved a hand or foot to a new place it sounded like she was breaking glass. Maple’s breathing quickened and she could feel her heart pounding hard in her chest.

Slowly, deliberately, she emerged out of the bushes. Joy shot through her body as she saw freedom once again in her grasp. She took a quick look at Runner and smiled. Runner didn’t return the look. Her eyes were transfixed behind Maple.

The joy vanished as Runner let out a scream.