Carrier (20 page)

I inched my hand over the metal tray and found his, giving it a squeeze. ‘I don't care.'

‘Make sure you take care of them.' I knew he meant his brothers. But I didn't like the fact that he'd accepted his fate so easily.

‘You're not going to die, Patrick. You won't,' I said in a strained voice.

He squeezed my hand back.

‘But it might not be all bad, Lena. Luke himself said they might turn out to be peaceful visitors — with the antidote.'

‘I hope so. But if they aren't, then you need the glasses so you can at least fight.'

I slid the glasses up the bridge of his nose, hooking the arms behind his ears and then let my fingers trail down the sides of his face. He inhaled sharply, then winced as though in pain.

‘Thanks. But I won't leave Markus' side, no matter what.' Behind the lenses, his greenish-blue eyes shone with unshed tears.

The neighbouring trucks started their engines.

This could not be happening. I couldn't be losing Patrick after only just finding him.

‘Run away with Markus. When the truck stops, just run,' I said, leaning in close so that the others couldn't hear. ‘There are still things I need to tell you, Patrick — important things.'

The truck started up and jerked forward, separating our joined hands.

‘I'm glad I met you, Lena,' Patrick called out as the truck moved away, his eyes never leaving my face. ‘Thanks for being my beautiful friend.'

‘You're the best friend I've ever had!' I shouted through my tears while I ran after the truck. ‘Don't leave me, Patrick!'

When I got to the gates somebody seized me from behind and wrapped their hard, muscled arms around my torso, lifting me off my feet. I screamed and punched at Mattie, shouting, ‘Let me go!'

But he wouldn't release his hold and all I could do was watch as the long line of Terra's Army's trucks drove from the barracks and into the shimmering horizon.

I'm sorry, Patrick. I'm so sorry I never told you about your dad.

Mattie released me and I fell to the ground, pounding at the earth with my fists as tears streamed down my face.

A deafening boom sounded overhead, followed by several others, and I looked up to see the four planes that had flown over the barracks only minutes ago simultaneously explode into flames.

What the hell? Why on earth would the enemy be shooting at each other?

Streak ran outside, his feet skidding in the gravel as he stared up at the sky.

‘We've got to get the kids out of here,' he shouted. ‘We'll all be blown to dust if we stay.'

Mattie let me go and the two of us ran over to Streak.

‘Where do you plan on going?' Mattie asked the cook.

‘What about the cave? The one Patrick and I stayed in the night before you guys got us?' I suggested, my heart hammering my chest.

Mattie shook his head. ‘We don't wanna go south. That's in the same direction as the planes and the boys. We need to get as far away from them as possible.'

I drew Patrick's map from my pocket and showed it to Streak and Mattie.

‘This is a house, in the north,' I said, indication the square Patrick had drawn, ‘…and there are six little boys there without parents.'

Streak and Mattie shared a look.

‘I'm heading there anyway,' I called over my shoulder before marching up the garden path towards the house. ‘Come on, we need to get some supplies, then grab the kids and just go.'

‘I'll get food and water,' said Streak. ‘Will I load a truck?'

Mattie scratched the back of his neck. ‘We could take one but we'd be easy pickings so I say we walk. I'll get two rifles and extra ammunition.'

Streak and I nodded before rushing up the veranda steps and bursting through the front door of the house.

After stuffing my pack with a change of clothes for the kids, I approached them in the lounge room where they sat playing with a stack of multi-coloured blocks with the alphabet printed on the sides. I told them we were going on an adventure.

‘Like Peter Rabbit?' asked Sammy, his eyes wide.

‘Yes!' I smiled. ‘Like Peter, we are going to sneak out and explore the world.'

Petra eyed me with suspicion, but Sammy squeezed his soft bear to his chest in enthusiasm.

No more planes exploded as we left the barracks, for which I was grateful, as I wasn't certain how I'd calm the kids if they saw something like that. Behind us, narrow streams of black smoke rose up from the horizon, most likely from the shot planes.

‘What's that over there?' Petra asked, hands on her narrow hips. ‘And how is Dad going to find us if we're off on an adventure?'

It was a good question, one I didn't have an answer for, so I distracted her with song. We began with
My Highland Goat.

While they sang along with Streak, I slowed down and matched my pace with Mattie, who guarded us from behind, rifle at the ready.

‘Who do you think shot the planes down?'

Dried leaves and sticks cracked beneath our feet while we walked.

‘It doesn't make sense,' said Mattie, before taking a drag from a rolled leaf. He coughed, then ground the last inch of the smoke into the earth with the heel of his boot. ‘Unless there are two nations here — one trying to help us and the other trying to finish us off. That's the only explanation I can think of.'

‘But where are the other nation's planes? When the four went down there weren't any other planes in the sky.'

Mattie licked his bottom lip and increased his pace so that he was slightly ahead of me. ‘Christ. Stop asking questions I can't answer, woman.'

We kept north until we reached the old rusted out frame of a car, just like Patrick had drawn, and then turned slightly west. Mattie and Streak popped the kids onto their backs so they could rest their little legs.

‘Maybe they'll fall asleep and stop with the freaking questions,' said Streak. ‘I don't think I have any more general knowledge left to draw from. I don't know why the sky is blue and I have no idea why sand is called sand.' He sighed. Mattie and I shared a grin.

We walked quietly after that. The entire time my mind was split between Patrick and Mum.

What was she doing right now? She'd be worried sick and was probably already out looking for me.

Patrick, on the other hand, was either dead or getting ready to die. After so many years apart from Markus, he was going to die with him.

Patrick must have known all along that he was going to be used as a human shield. It was probably why he had sent Jonny with the note.

When the sun set on our aching bodies, and the children started to whimper for their dad, Mattie stopped in his tracks and pointed to a rusted rainwater tank. Beyond the tank, the edge of a tin roof could be seen behind a bunch of trees.

‘This is it!' I nearly shouted, before putting a hand to my lips.

Streak let out a small whoop, silencing the kids' cries for a moment. They each stared over Mattie and Streak's shoulders at the rainwater tank with red, bleary eyes.

Mattie shushed me and Streak. ‘We have to make sure we're not walking blind into some kind of danger.'

I nodded. ‘They've probably got guns, and they'd be pretty scared by now without Patrick.'

‘Are we going to visit somebody?' Petra asked me, her eyes now brighter at the prospect of meeting other people. ‘Do they have kids like us?'

I nodded and smiled. ‘Yes. Six of them! You're going to make some new friends.'

Sammy's bottom lip started to wobble. ‘I don't want new friends. I've got Peter Rabbit and Petra!' he said, starting to wail.

‘Shush, damn it,' said Mattie, scowling at the kids and me. ‘Now wait here.'

I set Petra down, who immediately ran to cling to Sammy.

‘No way,
I'm
going.' I was about to say that I knew these kids, but the truth was I didn't. I would be as strange to them as Mattie and Streak.

‘Patrick would want me to go in first. I know it. They're only boys. They'll be scared if they see you. I'll whistle if there are any dramas.'

Mattie growled with frustration, but Streak nodded at me before turning to Mattie.

‘We'll stay here and guard Lukey's kids. That's most important, mate.' He swallowed thickly, his Adam's apple sliding up and down his throat. ‘He'd want us to.'

‘Whistle when the coast is clear, or if you're in danger. Either way I'll come,' said Mattie. He nodded at Streak. ‘I'll wait near the gate. You stay here with the kids until I give you a signal. Give them something to eat and keep them quiet.'

He passed over what looked like a small, black gun. Streak shoved it in his back pocket before opening his backpack.

‘Look at what we've got here, kids,' he whispered. The kids shuffled towards him and then plonked themselves down on the dried grass.

I pulled my hair into a knot and drew the hood of Luke's dead wife's jacket over my head. As I walked through the rusted front gate that squeaked, I could hear Streak saying, ‘One for you, and one for you and two for me,' at which Petra and Sammy giggled.

My pulse zipped along so fast I couldn't discern a beat, just an overall whoosh. Every muscle in my body felt taut and ready to spring into action as I took careful, slow steps towards the faded old federation style house. I kept my hands by my side, my hands flexing in and out of fists as I eyed the peeling front door.

A window slid open, and I dropped to the ground beneath a shrub, my palms in the air.

Through foliage, I watched as the end of a shotgun slid out of the window to rest against the sill.

‘Don't shoot!' I shouted, my voice echoing across the dusky silence. A bird twittered in response. I bracing myself, eyes closed for the shot, and slowly got to my feet. ‘I'm a friend of Patrick's.'

There was a scuffle, then footsteps, as somebody hurried across wooden floorboards.

The front door swung open.

‘Lena!'

‘Mum?' I put my hands to my head and shook it from side to side. ‘What are you doing here?'

My mother passed the shotgun to somebody standing in the shadows behind her and stepped out onto the veranda.

So she had known Patrick's father well. There was no other explanation for her being here.

We stared each other out for what seemed like forever before she came down the veranda steps and walked the brick path towards me.

‘I've been worried sick, Lena. You could have gotten yourself killed and I wouldn't have known,' she said, hesitating about a metre in front of me, as though waiting for me to come to her.

I remained rooted to the ground, unable to bring myself to take that extra step.

‘Are the boys okay?' I asked. ‘I'm here to look after them until Patrick gets back.'
If
he gets back, my brain screamed. ‘What are you doing here?'

‘You're alone?' she asked, without bothering to explain how or why she came to be at Patrick's house.

‘No. I'm not alone. Patrick isn't here, but I have two children and two men with me.'

Mum narrowed her gaze and scanned the trees behind me. ‘Where are they?'

‘Waiting for my signal,' I said.

‘What sort of cowardly men sent you out here first?' I didn't like the way she emphasised ‘you' as though I wasn't worthy of the task I'd been set.

‘Mum. I'm not here to argue with you. I'm here to check on Patrick's brothers.'

She sighed and stared at my face for a long time.

‘So where is Patrick? And how do you know him?'

‘You should know, seeing as you know the family so well,' I said, unable to keep my voice from trembling.

I checked over her shoulders to make sure nobody was behind her and motioned with my hand for her to come away from the house. She must have seen the look on my face and guessed what I was going to say because she quickly moved to my side.

‘Patrick came to our house looking for his
father,
who went missing the night you shot that man…' I paused to swallow. ‘I met him at the fence and we agreed to meet again. He asked me to help look for his dad.'

Mum's eyes darkened and her face paled. With trembling hands she wiped a stray lock of dark hair out of her eyes and started pacing.

‘Gerald. It was Gerald,' she said, pausing to stare into space, her voice soft in memory. ‘He was the man I shot that night.'

Tears pooled in her eyes and she wiped them away and continued pacing up and down the garden path.

‘I know, Mum. It was easy to put two and two together.'

For a long moment we said nothing, each of us silently acknowledging the dark and ugly truth. But I needed answers.

‘Why did you kill him?' I finally asked.

Mum stopped pacing and rubbed at her eyes.

‘He'd been attacked that night.' She sniffed and wiped her nose against her forearm. ‘Beaten up badly, but he was still alive. He said the men who'd beaten him were Carriers and that their blood and his had mixed.' Her face screwed up, but she sucked in a deep breath through her nose and continued. ‘He asked me to help him. I was about to drop my gun and run for the first aid kit, but he didn't want that sort of help.'

An icy chill seeped into my bones. I knew what she was about to say and suddenly I didn't want to know the gory details.

‘Mum…' I said, glancing towards the house, worried the kids might hear, but she cut me off.

‘You need to hear this, Lena. You need to know what sort of sacrifices people make in this life for the ones they love.'

I sucked in a deep breath of cool air, my eyes never leaving Mum's.

‘He wanted me to shoot him. So that he didn't infect his sons — or me or you. Gerald was a good man. He sacrificed himself for his children and for us.'

I blinked back tears and shook my head. Patrick and Markus were probably dead by now.