Snow & Ash: Endless Winter Read online

“Matty, hey, hey squirt! Listen, listen to me!” I yell over his cries until he calms down to just hitching sons. “It’s ok, buddy. We’re going to get out of here. I need you to calm down and work with me. We can do this but we have to work together. Ok, ok Matty? See if you can slide around the tree a bit. Try and work your way closer to me!”

  I feel the ropes bite into my arms and chest as he struggles to move but I know he’s not going anywhere with how tight the rope is against us. It doesn’t take long for him to give up and his tiny lost voice breaks something in me.

  “Rex, I’m cold and, and I’m scared! Why’d those guys leave us here Rex?”

  My head drops forward in resignation. I’m not going to win this one. I failed. After so many years of working to survive and keep Matty safe, I’ve failed and we’re going to die. Man, I’m tired. I feel like I’ve been fighting for so long and maybe now it’s time to rest. I lean my head back against the cold bark of the tree and close my eyes to better remember.

  “Hey Matty, did I ever tell you that you have Mom’s laugh? It was so awesome. When she laughed it came from her whole body and you couldn’t not smile it was so great, just like yours. She would have laughed a lot with you.”

  I paused and remembered how pretty she was. How her green eyes looked just like mine and Matty’s and how they sparkled when she was happy. Even after all these years I miss her so badly. Matty echoes my thoughts when his sad little voice speaks.

  “I miss her, Rex, even though I can’t remember her or what she looks like. I miss her. I wish she was here.”

  I swallowed the tears that want to choke me. “She’s here Matty! She’s been with us every day, watching over us. She…she’s waiting for us buddy.”

  A muffled sob that doesn’t come from Matty has my head whipping up and to my right. What was that? Someone, someone’s here…where, where did that come from? I’m about to call out, beg whoever’s out there to help us when I hear something I haven’t heard in seven years. An alarm screams through the forest, an electronic one.

  Chapter Nineteen-Skylar

  What the frack? Who does that, who leaves a couple of kids tied up in a dead forest to die?

  I had lain perfectly still listening to the two men tie those kids up and what they had said in disbelief. Is the world out here so messed up that this is normal? When I hear them start to walk away, I carefully raise myself up onto my elbows and slide my rifle up to my shoulder and take aim at their backs. I focus on the big one and line up my shot. These animals don’t deserve to live. I see the hole in Dad’s back and wonder if one of these guys was the one who shot him. I give my head a tiny shake, doesn’t matter, they’re guilty for what they did today. My finger tightens on the trigger as I watch the big guy’s back move further and further away until he’s out of sight and I slump back down.

  I couldn’t do it. They deserved to be shot but I just couldn’t pull the trigger. It’s not my business anyway. I’ve got Ben to think about. His safety depends on no one knowing we’re here. I can’t get involved so I just lie there and the minutes tick by as I listen to the little boy’s cries. He sounds so young; I can’t help but think of Ben crying like that. When the older one starts trying to calm him down and tells him to try and move I nod to myself. They’ll get free and go on their way and never know I was here. But then they don’t and the older voice starts talking about their Mom who must be dead from the way he talks about her, and my Mom flashes before my eyes. Her face filled with horror and sadness as we drove past those other boys on the road and a sob of grief and loss slips out. She’d want me to help them.

  I will!

  I’ll cut them loose and lead them away from my door and back towards town. I’ll walk them in circles so they won’t be able to find their way back to my area or tell anyone where they saw me. It’s the right thing to do, except just as I’m about to push myself up and stand, the alarm goes off. I slap my gloved hand down onto it and yank it from my belt. I’m just thinking, what the frack? I shut the volume off, when AIRIA’s voice comes blasting out of it.

  “Skylar, volume override. Satellite in range has detected a large front pushing into your region. Sensors indicate a rapid drop in temperature as well as increased levels of radiation. Return to shelter immediately. This looks like a doozey!”

  I’m on my feet in seconds. I’m not wearing a containment suit anymore so I’m not protected at all. I have to get back inside. I practically fall from the hunting stand as I slide down the tree. I take two running steps when a voice rings out from behind me causing me to stumble to a stop. I don’t turn around, I just stand there thinking. What do I do? I can cut them loose but they’ll never survive out here if the temperature drops enough, never mind the radiation. I would be saving them just to let them die.

  “Please, help us! My brother’s only eight years old!”

  It’s the older one's voice that rings out and fills me with guilt. The only way to really help them is to take them inside with me. I can’t do that! That goes against everything Dad’s ever said! I have my own little boy I have to protect!

  “Please, he’s just a little boy!”

  “FRACK!”

  I spin around and lunge towards the tree they’re tied to. The knife from the sheath strapped to my leg is out in one swift move and held in front of me as I pound towards them. His face is almost completely covered by his toque and scarf but his eyes are visible and they flare wide in fear as he sees the knife in my hand.

  “No, NO NO!” he yells as I reach them and swipe.

  The rope barely has a nick in it so I drop to my knees and start sawing at it. I don’t look at those big green eyes again but they echo in front of my face again and again as I grunt with effort to part the rope. AIRIA’s voice blasts out from my waist again.

  “Skylar, GPS location shows you are not returning to shelter. Return to shelter immediately. Cutting it a little close, you are!”

  There’s something surreal about a computer voice trying to mimic Yoda as I’m fighting to save our lives. I’m going to have to rethink this whole humor thing with her.

  The rope finally parts and drops away so I surge back to my feet and grab the kid and pull him up with me. His eyes are just as green as the other ones, but they’re terrified.

  “Get up! We have to run!” I yell at the older boy who’s rolling on the ground trying to stand.

  “I can’t! I busted up my knee!” He yells back at me. I want to screech in frustration but there’s no time so I just grab him and with the help of his little brother get him on his feet. I get his arm around my neck and let him use me as a crutch as I lead them both towards the hidden door to my home and safety.

  “Who are you?” He grunts out as we hobble along.

  “No talking, more walking! We don’t have much time!” I huff out, out of breath from practically carrying the guy. I start to hear creaking from the trees behind me as the cold deepens and then a loud crack as branches start to break.

  “COME ON!”

  I scream in fear and start moving even faster. I have to give the guy credit, even with a busted leg he picks up the pace and a quick glance at his face shows it to be bone white with pain but he doesn’t make a sound.

  Every second that ticks away is like a gong going off in my head. Will I feel it? Will I feel the radiation or is it already in me slowly killing away all the healthy cells in my body?

  There! There’s the hidden door. I wrench the fake rock covering from the keypad so hard that one of the hinges snaps leaving it dangling open. Don’t care, code in, door whooshing open to the side and I’m shoving him off my shoulder and into the airlock before grabbing the kid and pulling him in with me.

  “AIRIA, CLOSE THE DOOR!”

  The door slides shut and I drop to my knees panting for breath. The light changes to red causing the boys to gasp but I don’t bother looking up. I just wait for the scan and the results.

  “Scanning for radiation and other environmental impurities. Scan complete. St
erilization commencing.”

  The light changes again and the kid gives a short scream but again I just ignore them and wait and wait until my head is going to burst and I scream out,

  “AIRIA!”

  Causing the two boys to flinch and slide further away from me.

  “Skylar, trace amounts of radiation found to be at non-life threatening levels. Recommend removal and disposal of outer clothing.”

  The breath I had been holding gushes out of me and I start unwinding my scarf and unzipping my snow suit. The boy’s just sit huddled against the wall staring at me so I bark out at them.

  “OFF, take your snow suits off!” When they don’t move I yell, “NOW or you can go back out there!” Fear has made me mean but they start moving so I just look away in shame.

  I get all my outer gear off but keep my gloves on until I gather all the clothing from the floor and stuff it into a compartment in one of the walls, then throw my gloves in last. I take a deep breath and think before turning around to face the two boys I’ve broken every rule for.

  “AIRIA, Scan again.”

  “Repeating scan… Scan complete. Sterilization commencing.”

  I wait with my back to them until the UV light changes back to the fluorescents and AIRIA speaks.

  “Sterilization completed. Recommend…thorough scrubbing with soap and water for your two guests. Voice imprint of guest will be required for access.”

  I let my shoulders slump. Ok, we made it, we’re fine. I slowly turn around and take a good look at the two people I risked my life and maybe Ben’s for.

  The older one is at least a half a foot taller than me with dark brown matted curly hair. He’s probably close to my age and his green eyes are studying me just as closely as I'm studying him, making me uncomfortable, so I look away to his little brother. And here’s cuteness in a can. He has the same hair and eyes as the older one but he tries to give me a tentative smile, popping a pair of matching dimples in his cheeks. My lips tug up in return and I think he’s around the same age as Benny.

  BENNY! My eyes flash back to the older boy.

  “Are you sick? Are either of you sick with anything?” My heart starts pounding again in fear. Benny, who was born inside away from the regular and scary germs and diseases that the real world holds, might not be able to handle germs. He’s never even had a cold. Does he have an immune system? Can I take that chance?

  “We’re not sick! There’s nothing wrong with us!” the older boy says sharply before asking, “Who are you? What is this place? Who’s that talking through the speakers?”

  I totally ignore him cuz before I can even think about letting them in, I need to know that Benny will be safe.

  “AIRIA, will Benny get sick if he’s exposed to these people?”

  “Skylar, bodily fluids will need to be tested to determine if they are carrying any internal viruses that may infect Benjamin or you. Benjamin has been vaccinated for all childhood illnesses but will require the booster shots that are suggested when a child reaches the age of five. Shots, you did not give!”

  What? What shots? Dad must have given them to Benny when he was a baby. I’ll have to find out where they are and give him the booster shots, but right now I have to deal with these two.

  “Screw you! We’re not giving you any bodily fluids!” The older kid snarls while he takes a step towards me.

  The gun I have in a holster against my back is in my hand in a split second and pointing at his face. I always wear it under my snow suit when I go out in case my rifle jams. I’m always prepared out there after what happened to Dad.

  His face freezes and he takes a slow step back pulling his brother behind him. The little scared face that peeks out reminds me that they’re just as scared and confused as I am, so I holster it and hold up my hand asking for patience.

  “Ok, let’s just take a breath here. My name is Skylar. I have a little brother inside that’s just a bit younger than yours. He’s never been outside in his whole life and he’s never seen anyone but me and my dad. He’s never even had a cold. I’m just worried his immune system won’t be able to handle anything you might bring in.”

  He looks down at his brother and then back at me before nodding. “Ok, I get that. I’m always worried about my brother too. But, what is this place and what’s inside? I mean, thank you for saving us and for getting us to shelter but where are we?”

  I let out a sigh. There’s no point standing out here while I try to explain so instead of answering, I ask, “What’s your names?”

  “I’m Rex, this is Matty.”

  I nod and give a half smile.

  “Hi Rex. Hi Matty. Matty, can you say your name and how old you are please.”

  Rex gives me a weird look but nudges his brother out from behind his back. Matty looks at me with uncertain eyes before looking all around the room and then up at the ceiling.

  “I’m Matty and I’m eight and a half years old. Where’s the other lady hiding?”

  It takes me a second to get what he’s asking but then I understand that this boy would have been a baby when the bombs dropped and he probably has never seen or heard of a computer before. I can’t help but smile, he’s so cute.

  “AIRIA, did you voice imprint Rex and Matty? Authorization level Red.”

  “Skylar, voice imprints and authorization recorded. Are you going to stand there all day? Benjamin is aware that you are in the airlock and is voicing his displeasure that you are taking so long and ignoring his calls.”

  I frown and look around for my communicator that I dropped when I took off my gear. I spot it in the corner and snag it. Right, the volume is still muted from before. AIRIA must have just overridden it for the alarm. I turn the volume up and sure enough, there’s Benny squawking my name over and over. I hit the send button and try not to laugh when Matty’s eyes go huge at the sound of Ben’s voice.

  “Benny, chill out! I’m here and I brought you a surprise!”

  I shut the power off and drop it into its charger in the closet before he can start calling me again and turn to the two boys.

  “So, we should go in. Umm, welcome to my home.”

  I palm the door control and watch as their eyes go even wider in surprise when it opens. I walk through but have to turn and beckon them forward when they just stand there. They both jump a bit when the door slides closed behind them.

  Benny’s eyes are glued to the game he’s playing on the TV but he’s talking nonstop.

  “Hey, Sky! What took you so long? You were out there forever this time! What kind of surprise did you bring me? Is it something from storage? Is it new food or a new game?”

  When I don’t answer him, he shoots a look over his shoulder before looking back to his game and then the controller drops from his hands and he’s turning in slow motion with his sweet lips in a perfect circle of surprise. His eyes hesitate on Rex before sliding down to Matty. His eyes are huge with astonishment when he whispers.

  “Sky, you brought me a boy?” Then increasingly louder, “You brought me a BOY? Oh man, oh, man, whoooo hoooo! You brought me a boy!” He scoots around the back of the couch and comes charging over to us with the biggest grin on his face.

  “Hi, hi, I’m Ben, what’s your name? Do you like video games? Do you want to help me build a fort? Sky’s gonna make pizza! Do you want to see my room? Do you…”

  As scared as I was a few minutes ago is how happy I am right now seeing the pure joy on my baby’s face. I look over at Rex who is also smiling and wham! He’s got a pair of dimples to match his brother’s except his aren’t cute, his are like weapons that punch me straight in the gut. Holy crap! Where did that come from? Forget it, deal with motor mouth.

  “Whoa, Benny! Back off a bit. Take a breath little man. This is Matty and this is his brother Rex. They’re going to be here for a little while until some bad weather clears up outside.”

  Benny beams all the joy in the world from his eyes and claps his hands in excitement. “Can Matty have a sle
ep over? We can build a fort and sleep in it and use flashlights and…what’s that smell?”

  My face goes red in embarrassment. The boys don't really smell bad, but they don’t smell great either. I try and stop Benny from saying anything else by cutting him off.

  “Oh, I’m all sweaty! We had to run for the door and Rex hurt his leg so I had to help him so I really worked up a sweat! We should all have showers and get cleaned up before you guys go play and I start on dinner. Rex, can you manage on that leg? I have some fresh clothing I can lend you guys if you want?”

  I bite my lip and feel like an idiot when Rex’s face turns bright red and he looks away with a nod but it’s too late now and really they probably would feel better if they got cleaned up. I discreetly look their clothes over as they hobble to the bathroom that I pointed out. They’re not dirty or stained but they are worn and have a few patches here and there.

  All of a sudden I’m nervous. I don’t know why, except no one’s ever been here before and I don’t quite know what to do. Before the bathroom door closes behind them I catch a glimpse of Rex’s stormy face. Oh my God, I totally embarrassed him! Oh no, what if he’s mad at me? What if he doesn’t like…WAIT! What the frack was that? I start to shake my head, how did that happen? Two minutes with a boy that has amazing dimples and I start acting like, like…urrrggg…like a teenage girl!

  Chapter Twenty-Rex

  I close the bathroom door and lean my back against it to take the weight off of my leg. My head is spinning with all that’s happened in a very short time. I need a minute to process the fact that Matty and I were just about to die in that dead forest, and now we’re in a place that was never touched by the bombs. Right, let’s not forget the gorgeous super hero girl that swooped in and rescued us and took us to her bat cave. I need a minute, but Matty’s caught the other boy’s question bug and he’s rattling them off a mile a minute, so I push off the door and hop over to the shower stall that’s stands beside a huge soaker tub.

  “Why do all the lights work here? What’s a shower? Is it like a taking a bath? Where do we get the buckets of water? Will the water be cold or can we heat it up, cuz I'm still really cold. Who’s that boy, Ben? Can he be my friend? Rex, Rex, what’s pizza?”