Chapter 15
Within a few hours of bumping along the dusty back roads that wound through the Berkshire Hills, we’d made good progress toward reaching our destination. Sticking to the back roads made the journey longer and was tougher on the vehicles and the passengers, but it was far safer than traveling on the turnpike. Much to my relief, the caravan came to a lurching halt in front of a diner and rest stop.
I climbed to my feet, stiff from the ride, and jumped down from the trailer, followed by Will, who seemed to move with much less difficulty than I did.
“I need to hit the wash room. I’ll meet you back here in five,” I said, noting that Will was watching everyone file into the restaurant and keeping his eyes glued on Josh and Luke who were pushing each other and plowing through people to get through the door first.
“I’ll be here.”
I was about to ask if he needed anything when Garnet rushed over and threw her arms around my neck.
“I’m so glad to be out of that stupid van! It’s been ages since I’ve seen you. What have…” Her voice trailed off and her eyes grew wide when she noticed Will. “Are you going to introduce me?”
I made introductions and despite Will’s obviously distracted state, Garnet glommed onto him like he was the last piece of bread at a food shelter.
“It’s so nice of you to keep Lily company on the road. There’s enough room in the van if you’d rather ride with us the rest of the way.” She darted a glance from me to Will and back, her eager expression an obvious indication that she wanted to get to know Will better.
I couldn’t blame her for being captivated by his amiable smile or his hauntingly beautiful eyes, given that she probably hadn’t met anyone new to town since her and her father moved to Stanton. As much as Garnet complained about missing city life in Albany, she’d adapted to country living far better than her dad, who didn’t seem to be much of a farmer. She’d said the only reason they’d left Albany was that her father thought the city was getting more dangerous every day. There was also talk that the new government would eventually take over completely and that anyone living in Albany would be subject to encoding. Someone like Mr. Perkins would likely be put in charge of a work camp outside of city limits and forced to dole out harsh punishments to prisoners, a fate he was clearly not cut out for. I glanced over to see him dabbing sweat from his face with a white towel as he slumped against the van.
I took Garnet’s hand and led her away from Will. “Someone needs to stay with the cargo. Why don’t you and I go inside and let Will stretch his legs for a bit?”
Reluctantly, my friend followed, but she kept turning back and smiling until Will disappeared from our view. “He is so cute,” Garnet gushed. I forced a smile, but she knew me well enough to see through it. “Are you two, like, dating?”
“No! Of course not. We only met three days ago. I’m just helping him to get to Albany to find his dad.” We made our way through the now crowded diner and waited our turn in the small wash room. Garnet raked her fingers through her hair as she stared in the mirror and checked her teeth, which were startlingly white and straight. Deep brown eyes and seemingly endless lashes gave her an exotic and mysterious gypsy look. She’d filled out some since last fall, her shirt tight across her chest showing more curves than I could ever hope to have.
“Well, that’s good. I mean, if you aren’t dating him or anything, I might see if he wants to hit a show when we get into the city. You should come too, of course,” she added, as if I was an afterthought. She continued to ramble on about all there was to see in Albany, how she could show me and Will around, and how she could get us tickets into the Stadium.
Garnet’s father spoiled her rotten trying to make up for the fact that her mom was dead, a circumstance that had bonded us as friends almost instantly. But where I had learned that being without parents meant that I had to step up and take more responsibility, Garnet seemed to think it meant that she was entitled to more than her share of what the world could offer. Part of me envied her carefree spirit, while the other part of me resented how easily life seemed to come to her.
My stomach clamped down, and I suddenly wished I was anywhere but here and that she would just stop talking about Will. She was still rattling on when I interrupted. “Will is set on searching for his dad and I have a lot of supplies to shop for. I think we’ll be too busy for a show.”
“That’s too bad,” she said, sounding disappointed but undeterred. “There’s a Howler concert going on at the Stadium. I wonder if Will has ever been to a live show.”
I ignored the question and changed the subject, asking how things were going on the farm. Garnet and her dad had survived their first winter thanks to Sam’s help building a greenhouse system and hooking them up with self-sustaining wind and solar power. Mr. Perkins had a law degree which had absolutely no value in the town of Stanton, but he did have connections in the city and was able to get things that no one else seemed to have access to. Coin money, he had plenty of, and he did his part in adding to our local economy by spreading it around in town.
We finished up in the wash room, and I left Garnet ordering a turkey burger to go, watching her slap a silver coin on the counter. A sweet but flirtatious grin lit her face as she batted her eyes at the guy behind the register.
I made my way back out to the caravan which was already preparing to depart. Will was nowhere in sight and my stomach gave another queasy roll. He must have wandered off to check out the little town of Claverack, which was even smaller than Stanton, its most notable feature the diner and a biodiesel filling station. A huge water tower and a hydrogen fuel cell recharging terminal made the town a natural stop for travelers on their way into the city. It wasn’t far from the Hudson River, and the stables offered alternate transportation to those who couldn’t afford to drive. The local hotel had a NO VACANCY sign out front.
I gave the cargo a quick once over, checking on the McKinley sisters’ crates of canni-butter in the freezer truck. Everything seemed to be in order.
I’d just closed the freezer doors when Josh Johnson startled me with a deep rumble of a laugh. “You know one of those crates is going to end up on our truck by the end of this trip, don’t you?”
My heart pounded in my chest and I squared my shoulders trying not to take a step back. “What makes you say that?”
His lips curved up and he laid a hand on the door inches from my ear. “You’re going to owe me a favor for not rearranging that grifter’s face for him. I can’t believe you invited him to come with you. Did you think he was going to be some kind of protection for you, now that your little monster of a brother isn’t with you?”
I took a slow breath, calming my nerves despite my urge to push him back a step or two. “Will is with me because he has business in the city. He’s just a friend,” I said, unsure why I found the need to justify our relationship.
“Is that what we are too? Just friends? ‘Cause you know it could be so much more.” He whispered against my hair, and I pressed my back against the freezer truck door. His dark eyes bore down on me. I turned my head away to escape his hot breath.
I forced my head back and fought to stare him down. “Get this straight. I am not interested in having any kind of relationship with you. Not a friendship, not a courtship, nada. Leave me alone.”
His eyes narrowed and he ran a finger along my cheek, pushing my bangs out of my eyes. “Hiding those pretty green eyes, Lily? You’re forgetting what I know about you and your brother. It would be a shame if those government dudes figured out who and what you are. You might want to reconsider being my friend.”
I slapped his hand away from my cheek, clenched my teeth, and curled my hands into fists. “Threatening somebody only works if they are afraid of you…and I’m not. Those same government “dudes” as you call them, might be just as interested in you and your brothers.”
“So you’re still on that kick, huh? You think you know something about me?” He leaned in an in
ch closer, his voice lowering to just above a whisper. “You don’t want to find out what I can do…”
“Is there a problem?” Will’s voice broke the tension, and my heart nearly leapt out of my throat. I half expected Josh to turn and pounce, but when he stood upright and backed away, I could see past him to Will, flanked by Pappy and Bo. A low growl sounded from the general direction of the wolves, but I couldn’t be certain it hadn’t actually come from Will.