SEVEN

~Adrian~

            Adrian drove until his eyes started to ache from exhaustion. His vice-like grip on the steering wheel loosened. Richelle was passed out in the passenger seat next to him. Jake was sleeping in the backseat. There was no relief for his tiredness. Slowing the car down he pulled off onto the shoulder and locked the doors. Yawning he pulled his beanie over his eyes and leaned against the window.

~Jake~

            Yawning she stretched out. Her legs ached from being folded up for so long. She looked around. They were stopped. Adrian was lounging in the front seat, his head resting against the window. His black beanie was pulled down over his eyes. Usually the black hat attempted to cover his shaggy red hair. His long legs were shoved painfully under the steering wheel. He was maybe 6’8” or so. He seemed well muscled but he wore a plaid zip-up sweatshirt with a black shirt and blue jeans. His usually guarded face was peaceful in unconsciousness. He definitely seemed uncomfortable.

            Jake moved around across the three back seats and looked at Richelle in the passenger seat. She, too, was asleep. Jake gave a small smile and sat back against the door. And for the second time that day her heart dropped into her stomach. Moving slowly towards the car was a huge hoard of returned.

            “Uh-oh,” she gulped. Franticly she reached under the seat, searching for the gun that Adrian had when he found her. Her hands hit something hard. She pulled the gun from under the seat and threw it in Adrian’s lap.

            “Wake up!” she shouted. Adrian and Richelle jerked awake staring at her. At a loss for words she pointed out the side window. Seeing the hoard quickly approaching they sprung into action. Adrian rolled down Jake and Richelle’s window and hit the gas. Thrown back against the seat Jake straightened up and pulled her own gun out of her boot and aimed out the window. Adrian threw Richelle the gun that Jake had thrown at him; she leaped over the middle consol and joined Jake in the back seat. Together they took down returned after returned. The fell next to the speeding car.

            “You’re good,” laughed Richelle as Jake hit three returned in a row in the forehead.

            “Thank you. You’re not too bad yourself.” Jake chuckled.

            “Yeah your both incredible. Enough with the compliments keep shooting,” growled Adrian. He rolled up the passenger window and maneuvered his way along the long highway. With the back seat suddenly bombarded with people, Hielo bounded up and took the spot Richelle previously occupied. Jake kept firing, frowning as returned continued to fall.

            Jake glanced at the speedometer over Adrian’s shoulder. They were just edging past 85. She nodded and went back to shooting. She and Richelle took turns firing. While Richelle reloaded, Jake would shoot and vice versa. It was a nice system until the returned started to fall out of range. Jake could feel Adrian speeding up and settled back in the seat.

            “What was that? How were there so many of them all at once?” asked Richelle.

            “It was a hoard. Since we’re close to the Sanctuary,” she paused and took a shaky breath. “I think it was people that tried to escape the fire or people that survived the fire.” She said, looking at her shoes.

            “Yeah and they got what they deserve. They should have kept to the contract. For every Sanctuary there is a contract that applies to every person. You get protect in return for service. It also says what should happen in the case of a failure. Your duty is to the Sanctuary. You did your best to protect the town and if there was no hope left for the town, the town was to be burned and everybody and everything in it to keep from spreading the disease and to make way for another Sanctuary to be built.” Adrian recited like from a book. His voice was emotionless and cold. Tears stung Jake’s eyes as she thought of her parents. Jake pressed her lips together and stared out the window, away from Adrian’s cruel glare.

            Richelle stared to reach a gentle hand out to Jake but was stopped by a shriveling stare from Adrian. Her hand flopped next to her and she rolled the window back up. She curled herself into a ball against the window and shut her eyes. Jake held back tears and watched the land whip past their truck. She could hear Hielo growling quietly in the front seat. Reaching a hand through around the seat she rested a hand on Hielo’s head and his growling stopped.

            “Why do you keep this mutt? You just make twice the work. Twice the food to find,” Adrian asked.

            “First of all, he is not a mutt. He is a Doberman and I don’t care. Hielo is the only family I have left. I’ll do whatever it takes to keep him with me,” she replied.

            “I still think it’s a stupid idea,” he grumbled.

            “I don’t care what you think,” she snapped back. His mouth clamped shut, cutting off any argument he had built up. They drove in silence. Richelle’s quiet breathing was the only noise made besides Hielo’s occasional huffs and puffs. Seeing no other option, Jake closed her eyes and rested her head against the window and drifted off.

~Adrian~

            He felt like, well, like an a*s. He didn’t mean to be so cruel to Jake, he couldn’t help it. Cameron had really hurt his sister and he wasn’t about to let it happen again. He could already see how attached Richelle was getting to Jake. Even if Jake didn’t leave them, if she got hurt or turned and he had to shoot her, Richelle would become depressed again.

            Swallowing dry air, he stared hard at the road. He avoided looking at Jake. The car was deathly silent. The tension and frustration was palpable, easily cut with a knife. His fingers twitched on the steering wheel. Nothing good was going to come of Jake being there and he knew it. He could feel Richelle pushing against the back of his chair, moving in her sleep. He sighed and eased up on the gas, he drove fast when he was angry. Something he picked up from his father.