Lights Out (Book 4): New Frontier Read online

  “We’ve decided to make camp,” he said, taking their stuff from the car. They think it’s better than going any further right now.

  It was still pretty early in the evening, but she didn’t argue. Emma wearily helped the others put some tents out and dish out some food. She was a little worried by the increase in their number and how long the food would last, but she didn’t say anything. Chase sat beside her, looking worried.

  “What’s on your mind?” she asked quietly, looking around to make sure no one else was close enough to hear.

  They hadn’t had much time to talk, just the two of them alone since before they went out on their failed attack on Brassville, and she had a feeling they wouldn’t for some time.

  “I’m worried about food shortage. There are too many of us and the food we have... we took everything, so it’s a lot, but it still won’t last long.” He sighed, then looked down at her with a slight frown. “How are you holding up?”

  She ached her eyebrows at him. She could have told him she had the same worries he did, she could tell him about the last thing she’d seen before Carol made the decision for them to run away. She could have told him a lot of things. Instead, she knocked her shoulder into his and quirked her lips into a mockery of a smile.

  “That’s a stupid question, Chase,” she said bluntly.

  He smiled back and wrapped an arm around her shoulder, and she let him pull her close, feeding on his warmth.

  The group was quiet and withdrawn, and Emma decided pretty quickly to go to bed. She had enough on her mind, just sitting in such a somber group could only be worse for her mood. She clambered into a tent with Merry and Chase following behind her, wondering if that’s all their lives would be from then on—waiting for life to improve.

  Chapter Two:

  Emma woke up with a hungry stomach.

  In the night, she’d moved so she was sleeping on her back. The position was uncomfortable, pressing the back of her head to the hard ground, and when she shifted so she was lying on her back, there was a low ache in her head, too. Not bad, though, just something she figured would annoy her for some time.

  She could always ask Carol for some painkillers later. Emma wasn’t too positive, but she was pretty sure the other woman, being the good nurse that she was, would have thought ahead and packed her stuff with a few medical supplies. Well, the few that weren’t lost to their attackers when they came to the hospital one time and took everything.

  Her stomach growls, and she fights back a groan, remembering she’s not alone in the tent. She doesn’t want to wake the other two up yet, but closing her eyes and trying to force herself back to sleep wasn’t doing anything at all. After a few minutes that felt like they lasted way too long, her eyes popped open again and she scowled at the wall of the tent.

  She was actually having a good time sleeping, even if it was on the ground. She had her two most important people with her, and thought she hadn't tried to cuddle with Chase, knowing her sister was right there next to them, just knowing he was close by set her at ease, as usual

  But then hunger ruined it.

  It can't be helped, she thought to herself.

  Food was scarce as it was. If her family had had the option of remaining at home and in one piece, they could have lived with a feast every day for a few months, before their food stores ran out. They had been keeping it quiet from the rest of the town, even knowing they were negotiating food with other towns as a result to feed everybody. Emma had even been a part of it, in her earlier volunteer work with the police, though she lost their deal, because the man she dealt with was a cheat.

  Only, there was no way they could have shared their food. If they shared with the whole town, it wouldn’t have lasted days, and honestly, as much as she’d tried to hide behind excuses, Emma didn’t mind keeping it to themselves, because then it meant she wouldn’t have to worry about their family. And it was thanks to her sister, Merry, that they all had the food in the first place.

  But with the need to leave home in a hurry, there was no way they would have left the food there for their attackers to go and find at their leisure. They packed it all up into the cars, most of it going into the vehicle with the most space. Her own car didn’t have all that much, but as long as they stuck in a group, it would be fine.

  Her stomach growling again, and feeling like it was going to cave in on itself, had her curling into a fetal possession as she grit her teeth not to groan. Even with all the food her family had, to stretch it as far as possible, they’d been taking rations. She’d thought they would be in their town for years, not a few months, though back then, she’s still held out some home that their world could return to ‘normal’ if something could be done to reverse whatever the attack did.

  But Emma gave up on that a long time ago.

  Now that they were on the road, their rations were a lot less, considering they only took short breaks every now and then so everyone could relieve themselves, or stretch out their legs after hours sitting in a cramped car. She didn’t get to eat much during the trip, since most of the food had been left in the trunk for the space, and they tried not to eat a lot when they weren’t all together so everyone could get their fair share.

  If anyone had been surprised when all the food was brought in from Emma’s house, she wouldn’t have known, but what she did know was several of them were relieved. Food at home was hard enough to come by—food on the road would have been a pain.

  But the ache in her stomach isn’t dying down like she wants it to.

  Just give it another hour, she almost pleads. Minutes?

  Exhaustion is pulling at her, even as her stomach growls again. Though she does realize part of that is because of the reduced amount of food she was taking in, when it had been low to begin with.

  Well, I guess I can't put it off. She was growing used to low portions, but just lying there wasn’t going to help her any. Only, she moved to push herself up, only her arms trembled slightly, and she stopped almost immediately.

  She didn’t feel like waking up at all. But now realizing how weak she’s gotten, she realized she needed the energy for what was to come ahead. Life on the road wasn’t going to be a picnic, and if she was going to be alert for as long as possible, she needed to eat better, even if it’s just by a little bit. Once everyone was awake and they took everything down, they would be on the road again for who knew how long.

  She did wish that they could all just come together and talk, but she didn’t personally know some of the people they were even going with. After the failed attack, when they got back home to find their own home under threat, she wasn’t going to be standing up and giving opinions any time soon. She’d just have to depend on the others to do that much. Besides, with everything that was going on, she really would like some time just to herself where she didn’t have to make so many large decisions.

  Her grandmother was dead, they had no roof over their heads now, and they couldn’t exactly live on the road forever. Eventually, they would need more food, or more fuel for their vehicles. The question was whether or not that was possible before they were struck by another disaster. Everything had been uncertain before but somehow, away from home, it’s only gotten worse.

  She glanced around at her best friend and her sister. They were both still asleep, and she didn’t find any need to wake them. She couldn’t hear much activity from outside, so there probably weren’t that many others awake yet, or they weren’t making a lot of noise. She wanted to avoid other people, frankly, but she headed out of the tent.

  Like she’d suspected, there wasn’t anyone outside that she could see. But then she moved a little and did see someone. They were at one of the cars, and she was about to turn away and mind her own business, when she noticed them coming out of the car with food in hand. She frowned. Someone was stealing food.

  Her first reaction was anger. It wasn’t someone she recognized, but the least they could have done was be grateful they had received any help at
all. She knew it was one of the people they picked on their way out of town the second time, and she was striding forward before she could think about the actions she needed to take. Because of course she was going to call them out for being an asshole.

  “Hey,” she yelled when she was a few feet away. “What do you think you’re doing? Leave it alone!”

  They froze, not even bothering to turn around. She scowled and hastened her steps. They must have heard her getting nearer, because suddenly they were shoving food back inside. When they came back out, she saw it was a man, one she hadn’t seen or met before. It worried her, having so many people she didn’t know with them, and this action didn’t make that worry any easier. If any of them really wanted to, they could pick a car, load it with stuff and drive off. Emma was only vaguely sure of her family, Brian’s and Carol’s sticking with together, but not so sure about the others.

  “I’m sorry,” he tried to say, “I was just hungry and I wanted to take some food—”

  But Emma wasn’t hearing it. She was hungry too, she’d intended to get something to eat as well. A part of her was a little possessive, most of the stuff they had did belong to her family. But she was ok with sharing, and she wouldn’t just take for herself, not the amount of food he’d intended to take.

  “I get that you’re hungry,” she said, trying to keep her tone civil, because she could guess what they were all going through wasn’t so different from herself. “But you can stand to wait just a little. The food has to be rationed, and equally. I’m hungry, too, but you can eat when everyone else wakes up so it’s fair.”

  He just nodded, his eyes shifting, looking anywhere but at her. She sighed and moved away from them, showing the conversation was over. He scurried away, back to his tent, and Emma watched him go with narrowed eyes.

  Emma thought about the selfishness of people and how they would do anything to put themselves in more comfort. He probably hadn’t been thinking of the long term and the problems they would all have to face if they ended up without enough food with such a large crowd and children in the mix. She remembered doing the same herself, hiding food in their shed while other people had to struggle.

  But it wasn’t like she stole it. The food had been theirs, and she hadn't shared it, but she’d volunteered to do work for the town. While many probably wouldn’t view it as enough to pay them back for what she was doing, it was the best compromise she came up with.

  But just taking... or worse yet, doing it forcibly just because you want something, is just completely annoying.

  She vowed never to do anything like that, to put her own comforts first, to her friends and family. The world was going to hell and all they had was each other. She wondered how long it would take for some of the people in their group to forget this first, and it worried her how she didn’t think it would take long.

  The campers started waking up not long after, and the food was shared, as promised. The guy she caught stealing shot her looks, like he feared she would say something about it. Maybe she should have, but they had bigger problems at the moment. Pretty soon they were clearing up and packing their things.

  Emma went to Merry, who was standing near Carol and Chase, looking after Karen’s and Brian and Kellen’s children.

  “Hey, Merry,” she murmured to her sister, sending a smile Chase’s way as she watched him bouncing two young girls in his arms, then shaking away the image it brought to mind.

  Chase, as a dad; the both of them married. With the world as it was, building a family was the last thing on her mind when she was having a tough time looking after the family she had left.

  “How are you?” she asked, shifting her eyes to Merry.

  She’d packed her sister’s medication, but there wasn’t much of it left, and now they didn’t even have the option of refilling, unless they could find a place that hadn’t been looted already on the road. She didn’t think they’d be so lucky, though, even though everything had been okay so far.

  Merry frowned, but she answered, “I’m doing all right, but I can’t say I’m great. I really wish we didn’t have to leave home at all.”

  Emma felt her heart clench. She didn’t want to leave either, especially considering they had buried their grandmother’s body in their backyard not that long ago.

  “I know what you mean, but it wasn’t safe there. To be honest... I wanted to stay back, too.”

  Merry crossed her arms over her chest and looked down. “But something happened, right? The reason why we couldn’t stay. You’re sure that it was dangerous?”

  “Merry,” Emma started, only to stop because she didn’t know how to continue—she didn’t want to continue. It wasn’t exactly a happy story, and maybe if she could push it out of her mind, she wouldn’t have the thoughts popping in her mind randomly. “Just trust me when I say you wouldn’t have wanted to see. I regret leaving Janice behind, too, you know that.”

  She bit her lip, but eventually sighed and nodded, looking up. “You’re right. You’re better at recognizing threats than me, I guess. I just wish we would have had some time to pick up some of her stuff to take with us.”

  “We were in a hurry,” Emma said quietly. “I can swear to you, Merry, that our lives depended on it. Or I would have taken some stuff along as well.”

  “I trust you,” Merry commented, sounding completely sincere.

  Emma smiled, because she couldn’t not to.

  Her relationship hadn't exactly been the best recently. She could almost remember the time when they were younger, before things changed, when Merry acted like a proper big sister and Emma could actually rely on her. But ever since she was fifteen, Merry had stopped being the strong, outgoing older sister she’d known up to that point.

  There had been instances most recently when Emma thought she might have gotten her sister back, not quite as she was before, but close enough that she wouldn’t have minded. But it didn’t last long, so Emma had stopped being optimistic by it. Ashe was still grateful for the closeness they shared now that Merry was willing to let her in.

  It was most of the grief still left over from their grandmother’s death, but she would take anything she could get it. And this time, she planned to share the grief and not let Merry take it all on her own. Even Chase, who had been there with them to bury their grandmother, would join in without question.

  Somehow, it happened without Emma even realizing it, but their grandmother had wormed into Chase’s heart. She already knew he had a big heart, but he’d said things when they went to bury Janice that had nearly left Emma in tears.

  “If you’re sure you’re feeling all right,” Emma said, “would you mind coming to sit at the front with me?”

  Her sister’s eyebrows shoot up in confusion. “Why?”

  “So we can talk, silly,” Emma teased lightly. “Or if you’d like, you can just sleep there. The extra space makes a difference, though it’s still a bit uncomfortable depending how you’re seated. The others don’t really mind where they get to sleep, as long as they actually get to sleep, so they’re okay with the back.”

  “But... I haven’t done anything. There are others more deserving of the seat, right? Have one of them sit there.”

  Emma just rolled my eyes. Merry trying to be nice was still something new, but she was glad, and it was something she could get used to. But this time, it was misplaced. Chase would probably like the free space, being the only guy and the largest person in the back seat wasn’t comfortable. But if Emma mentioned to him that she wanted to put Merry in the front seat, he wouldn’t hesitate.

  She wasn’t one to make friends, but she would never stop celebrating the day she decided to keep him around, because it turned out to be the best decision of her life. Instinctively turning to watch him as her thoughts strayed to him, she saw he was standing up with a child around his shoulders and two more in each arm. Emma appreciated the view and smiled. Having children with them just complicated things, but Emma wouldn’t have left them behind and their
parents, for all the help she’d received from them all at one point or another.

  Then she turned back to her sister, her face serious. She didn’t just want her sister up there for her comfort, and to get to speak to her as Emma said. Her reasoning was partially personal.

  Emma just wanted her sister close. Having two of her friends, Carol who she’d only met more recently but was definitely growing on her, and Chase who she’d known for years, was all great but there was her sister, too. Emma couldn’t even remember the last time they spent time together just the two of them. She remembered the last time the family gathered, Janice included, was because Janice had been the one to bring it up.

  But the point was, even if they ended up not saying words to each other, Emma would feel glad to just look at the side and see her sister. Merry, who looked a lot cleaner today than she had in years with her hair combed, though still looking a little rough. But the paleness wasn’t gone, or the bags under her eyes, or how absolutely skinny she was, Emma feared she could get blown off by the wind.

  “Merry,” she said seriously, holding her sister’s gaze with her own intense one. “I want to ride with you at the front of the group, if that’s all right?”

  She didn’t protest this time, and Emma counted that for a win before she even spoke. Merry nodded, smiling slightly, sadly. “Sure, Emma.”

  Emma smiled back, and directed her next words to the others around them. “We should be getting back on the road soon! Can I drive again for the first shift?”

  No one had any objections, and people began to pile into cars, following Emma’s lead. She waited until everyone had gotten into a vehicle before starting theirs and they drove off.