Part 17 (1/2)

She scratched her wrist absentmindedly as worry p.r.i.c.ked at her brain. Soon. It'd been past soon four hours ago, and it was starting to get late in the day. Had something happened to him? What if he'd met up with a band of Others? Or, heck, anything-who knew what else was lurking in the towns below, hovering in the shadows?

She should have never let him go alone. But someone had to watch the children and he'd acted so sure of himself. And she knew if she'd volunteered to go in his stead, he'd take it as an insult. Just more proof that she thought him incapable of taking care of himself. Of their little group. He'd been so insistent after the hurricane incident. Going above and beyond to prove he was worthy of her trust. It was kind of sweet and so, against her better judgment, she forced herself to relax and let him take the lead. Besides, it had been nice, in a way. She was so tired these days...

But had it been a mistake? Was he in trouble now? Should she go look for him?

She shook her head, trying to free her mind from the dark thoughts that kept invading. Chase was strong and fast. He'd given up the drugs cold turkey. And maybe he wasn't addicted in the first place; maybe she'd just been projecting her mother's problem onto him. Painkillers weren't necessarily a bad thing. And she had cut his face pretty good. Maybe he just misjudged his dose that night. After all, as far as she could tell, he hadn't touched anything since. Not even aspirin.

”When's soon?” Darla whined.

”I don't know!” Peyton retorted angrily before she could stop herself. Darla stared, wide-eyed, then burst into tears, running across the makes.h.i.+ft campsite and into the arms of Starr. Peyton could felt the thirteen-year-old's reproachful glare burn into her backside.

She felt bad for snapping. After all, it wasn't Darla's fault. She was just stressed and scared. But there was no need to take it out on the children.

She rose to her feet and walked over to the kids. ”I'm sorry,” she said, feeling awkward. ”I guess I'm a little worried about him, too. He should be back by now.”

”D'you think the Others got him?” Starr asked. She looked like she'd swallowed something sharp and it was cutting through her guts.

”No!” Peyton said, perhaps a bit too vehemently. ”He probably just hasn't found any food yet. You know how determined he is. There's no way he'd come back empty-handed.”

”I think we should go look for him,” Torn suggested. She hadn't realized he was nearby. But then, he and Starr had become nearly inseparable. It reminded Peyton of how she and Chase had been, back in the day. Their closeness made her loneliness feel twice as strong.

”It's been too long. He must be in trouble,” Torn added.

Peyton glanced around and realized all the kids had gathered, concerned looks on their faces. ”Okay,” she said. ”There's no use denying it. You're right, and we need to check it out. Torn and Starr, you watch the kids. I'll go out and look for him.”

”Shouldn't we all go?” Starr asked.

”Yeah, if there's Others I want to be able to fight!” Torn growled. He was probably fifteen. Which now seemed so young. It was weird to think that when the Super Flu hit, Peyton and Chase had been his age. They'd felt grown up then, too.

”No,” Peyton replied. ”I need you and Starr to look after the little ones and the horses,” she said. ”I'll be back as soon as I'm able.” The children huddled together, looking like lost puppies. She threw them her bravest smile. ”Don't worry,” she added. ”I'm sure he just found a toy store and is stocking up for you all or something.”

But that's not what she really thought at all.

Chase groaned as he swam back to consciousness. How long had he been out? Opening one eye, then the other, he tried to ascertain his surroundings. It appeared he was in some sort of jail. Lying on a stained mattress with a threadbare blanket.

Everything came back to him: His shameful desperation in the pharmacy. Meeting up with Luke. The drugged drink. Him cras.h.i.+ng to the floor.

This was not good.

”You're awake.”

He whirled around, realizing for the first time that there were two cots in the cell. On the second sat a skinny blond guy in a white tank top and jeans. He had ugly welts all over his arms and a cast on his leg.

”Yeah,” Chase replied. Was this guy another prisoner who'd had a run-in with Luke, too? ”Where am I?”

”Welcome to the Thunderdome.”

Chase c.o.c.ked his head. His fellow prisoner laughed.

”The thunder...?”

”Well, that's what they like to call it. I hear it's an allusion to some old film. Mad Mack or something.”

Chase scratched his head, trying to make sense of what the other man was saying. ”I was drugged. By a guy...”

”One of their scouts, I'm sure. They hire guys around the city to bring in new recruits. Offer them protection and extra goods in exchange for the service. When people come through town the scouts offer to help them out, get them something they need. That's how they trap 'em.”

Chase thought of his encounter with Luke and his own particular, rather embarra.s.sing need, and his face burned. He leapt off the bed and headed over to the door, wrapping his hands around the metal bars. They felt solid. Unmovable.

”No use, man,” his cellmate said. ”You're stuck until it's your turn in the ring.”

Panic flooded Chase. This couldn't be happening. He couldn't be trapped like this. Not while Peyton had no idea where he was. Not while she was caring for the children he'd sworn to protect. He imagined them sitting back at the campsite as the sun slipped below the horizon. Would they come looking for him? And what if they ran into Luke or another scout when they did?

He walked back to his cot and sank down, buried his head in his hands. What an idiot he'd been. Following Luke into his home like that. He'd just so desperately wanted to trust his fellow man, he realized in hindsight. To believe that the human race was inherently good-and willing to help one another out, especially in this time of need. But no-in this brave new world, it was every man for himself. And Chase had been played a fool.

He should have gone back right away, once he'd seen the footprint. They could have stopped in the next town, the next empty town. Then he could have presented Peyton with her music box. He would have been a hero. Instead, he was a prisoner. And he didn't have a single person to blame but himself.

”I'm Bowie, by the way,” his companion said. ”Well, my real name's Mike, but I like going by Bowie now. Like the old Twentieth Century musician. He was great. G.o.d, I miss music.”

Chase couldn't believe this guy was babbling like nothing was wrong. His life was over, and this guy was about to launch into a convo about the nice weather they'd been having.

”What's your name?” Bowie asked.

”Chase. Chase Parker.”

”Chase Parker.” Bowie appeared to consider. ”I like that. Good fighting name. You should tell them. Maybe they'll let you keep it.”

”Keep it?”

”Sure. If you have a boring name they'll change it. They need to impress the crowd, after all. Can't draw people who aren't interested. Can't interest people with stupid names. Herbie MacMillan versus Beauregard Goldblum! Lawlz. Hardly going to get a crowd with that.”

”What?” Chase was getting a worse feeling than ever.

”You don't get it, do you?” Bowie said. ”You're a gladiator now.”

Chase's stomach roiled. ”You mean they're going to make me fight...?”

”Duh. That's what they do here. The town is run by this ex-wrestler named Brutus. He's a bit crazy-obviously. I think he must have been hit in the head a few too many times. But he brought a bunch of survivors together and formed a makes.h.i.+ft government. It's safer here than a lot of places. And every other Friday-if anyone really knows when Friday is these days-they have 'sports.'”

Sports. Great. Bowie likely wasn't talking about reestablis.h.i.+ng the Carolina Panthers. ”So they recruit fighters for the ring?”

”Yup. Well, recruit is maybe stretching things a bit. They grab people pa.s.sing through and make them fight for their lives.”

But that's barbaric, Chase wanted to protest, but knew it would do no good. ”And we fight other people?” he asked.

Bowie laughed. ”No. You fight the Knights of the Living Dead. You know, the changed people. Brutus figures people from outta town brought them down on us; they should be the ones to do the fighting.”

Chase cringed. Knights of the Living Dead. Others. The crazy people of this town wanted him to fight Others in a ring. With screaming fans watching. Stellar.