Chapter 838 Chapter 838
Uri was almost regretting saying he could carry more, but he stuck it out and followed her. In some areas, the snow was melting, and they sunk up almost to their waists walking through it. She barely paused, hardly spoke, and just kept moving. He didn’t know what to expect, but considering the children’s products and items they’d packed, there was at least one child wherever it was she was hurrying to get to. How long had she been gone? She said she’d been on a supply run, so did she set out before dawn and book it back before dark. He tried to recall where the closest town was, and he had to give her credit; that was one hell of a hike in one day.
She paused and turned around and looked at him. “You need a rest?”
He shook his head. He did, but he’d worked hard to get her to take a chance on him, so he didn’t want to piss her off now. “Maybe a drink.”
She nodded. “Yeah. Sounds good.” She pulled the juice bottle out of her pocket and opened it.
He looked at the straps over his chest and realized how hard it was going to be to get it all off to get to a drink.
“Turn around.” She came back toward him.
He turned and heard her unzipping his backpack that he was wearing on top of the duffle.
“Here.”
Turning around, he accepted the bottle she held out.
“Thanks for not whining the whole time.” She almost smiled, but not quite.
He took a drink and then shrugged. “Keeping it all in my head.”
She snorted. “Yeah. I’m not going to miss the snow when it’s gone.”
He looked around. “How much further?”
Her expression was closed off quickly. “Not far.”
He tried to give her a playful grin. “Good, because I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t ready for a nap.”
She glanced at his shoulder. “Is it good?” She capped the juice. “I hate waiting out injuries. It sucks and feels like it takes forever.”
His shoulder was throbbing like someone was beating on a drum. “It’s not bad. It’s just been a day.”
She snorted again. “Every day is.” Turning, she started walking. “I need to get back. That storm last night held me up, and I hate being late.”
Uri’s heart thudded in his chest. He capped the bottle as he walked and jammed it in his pocket. Adrenaline overrode the ache in his shoulder, and the urgency in her tone would keep him motivated enough to do this last stretch at a jog if need be.
A short while later, she stopped and stood there in the trees, looking around. “Hang on.” She was whispering.
Uri stood beside her and looked in the direction she was. He didn’t see anything but more trees.
Oryn put two fingers in her mouth and made a loud whistle and then two short chirps. She dropped her hands and stood there. From the left of where they stood, there were two short chirps in answer. She turned and looked the other way. He was pretty sure she was holding her breath. She had been because she let it out when there were two short chirps to the right of them. “Let’s go.”
She started walking quickly.
That’s when Uri noticed they were walking between cleared trees. He glanced around. It was probably a trail or road used in the summer. They went over a small knoll, and then he saw a one-story building that had several doors.
“It’s some kind of summer camp.” She said like she’d heard his thoughts.
She stopped and stood there.
“Shit.” A boy was walking out of the trees on the right. Uri pegged him at around sixteen. “Crap, sorry.” He grinned, and then it left his face when he looked at him.
“He’s okay, Ben.” Oryn nodded.
“You’re back.” Another boy around the same age came out of the trees on their left. “I thought that storm got you.” He didn’t even bother looking at Uri.
“How’s Mila?”
Ben pulled this worn beanie off and rubbed his dark hair. “She coughed all night.” He glanced at the other boy. “Dylan has it now.”
Oryn pulled the large duffel off her back. “Keep watch.” She dropped in on the ground and squatted and opened it. “I just want to check on them and then you can have a break.”
Uri stood there and watched her pull out the juice, chips, and meat sticks and hand them to each boy.
“Shit—” Oryn looked at Ben. “Sorry. This is awesome. Thanks, Oryn.” He turned on his heel and jogged back into the trees.
“Are you doing okay, Wyatt?” She zipped up the bag and stood up.
He shrugged. “Yeah.” He looked down. “My boot fell apart, so I tied it like you showed me.”
Oryn put her hand on her shoulder. “We’ll get you some brand new ones soon, okay?”
He grinned. “Okay.” He turned and ran back the way he came.
She gave Uri a hard look. “I better not have just lied to him.”
Uri realized she was talking about the boots. “They'll get entire wardrobes.”
She gave him a cautious look, then picked up the duffle and jogged toward the building.
“Shit.” He whispered and then looked in the direction Ben had gone. She had a bunch of kids hidden away. He started after her. Why? For how long had they been here? He glanced around. He better have a signal up here because he was calling in the Calvery as soon as she agreed to it.
She had left the door open, so he went inside. One look and he knew there was no power here, so he closed it behind him. Following her wet boot prints, he went through an area with couches and benches and down a hallway. He heard them before he saw which room they were in.
He stopped at the door. There were three beds, all shoved together to almost fill the room with beds. Sitting, laying, or perched on it were six other kids. He glanced at each. The oldest was probably fourteen or fifteen, and the one Oryn had cradled in her arms had to be around five years old. Shrugging out of the straps, he put the duffle and his bag on the floor and dropped to his knees. Opening the duffle, he dug around in it until he found the medication for colds. He grabbed the pain one and stomach ache too. He looked at the bed and saw two of the youngest were girls, so he pulled out two of the stuffed bears, Oryn had tossed in. A little boy not much older than the one she held started coughing. Uri looked at the bag and found the third stuffed bear and then stood up.
“Here.” He went over and held out the cough meds.
Oryn looked up at him and then took it without a word. “Mila, " she said in a soft voice. “I brought some medicine to help you feel better.”
The biggest, roundest, innocent eyes he’d ever seen looked up at him. “Okay.” She said in a hoarse voice.
He remembered the bears and held one out to her. Those eyes got even rounder as she grabbed it and hugged it. He’d heard the expression about something shattering your heart, but until this moment, he hadn’t understood it. His own was in a thousand pieces right now. He stepped around to the other side of the bed and knelt beside it and held the bear out to the other girl. “My name is Uri.”
She looked at the bear, took it slowly, and then hugged it. “I’m Emma.”
He smiled. “Pleased to meet you, Emma.”
The boy who was coughing sat up and looked at the bear Uri still held. He held it out to him. He took it, started coughing, and then sucked in a breath. “I’m Dylan.”
Uri stood up. “We’ll get you something for that cough, Dylan.” He looked at the bag. “Anyone want some juice.”
“You have juice?” The biggest one bounced off the bed and went toward the bag Uri had gotten the bears out of. He stopped and looked at Uri.
“Help yourself. Share with the others.”
The kid grinned and then poked a finger in his chest. “Adam.”
“Pleased to meet you.”
“I’m just going to put you down so I can give Dylan some, okay, Mila.” Oryn stood up and placed the girl back on the bed and pulled a blanket around her. She glanced at Uri, and he could see the emotions in her eyes.
Uri sucked in a breath and then hurried over to the big duffle bag Oryn had carried. He picked it up and went to the old, worn dresser and began to pull things out of it.
One of the boys came over and watched him.
Uri held out a packet of cheese and crackers. The boy’s eyes looked at it like it was the best thing ever. He took it and smiled.
“Say thank you, Tony,” Oryn said softly.
He looked up at Uri. “Thank you.”
Uri nodded. “You're welcome.”
Adam handed Tony a bottle of juice, and the boy went back over to the far side of the room and sat on the edge of the bed.
“You have a snack, and then go out and let one of the guys come in for some, Adam.” Oryn tucked a blanket around Dylan and straightened up.
“I will. Two out, one in, we did it right while you were gone.”
Oryn smiled at him and came over and mussed up his dark red hair. “You guys are great.” She turned around and looked at the dark-haired girl sitting on the corner of the bed against the wall. “How are you feeling, Charlotte?”
“I’m okay.” The girl replied, but Uri didn’t believe her.
Oryn looked at the duffle bag Uri still held and then at the dresser. She grabbed one of the boxes. “I got something for tummy aches.”
Charlotte gave Oryn the kind of look a child would give their hero. “Will it help?”
Oryn glanced at Uri as she stepped by him and nodded. “It sure will. I have some crackers too and there’s clean water, so you can try those after and see if it helps this time.”
Uri pulled the blankets out of the bottom of the duffle bag and then dropped it to the floor. How long had this child had a stomach ache? “Maybe some of the painkiller liquid, too?” He suggested, hoping she didn't think he was butting in.
She looked over her shoulder and nodded. “Yeah, we’ll try that too.”
Adam jammed half a meat stick in his mouth. “I’ll go let Wyatt come in.” He went over and picked up a very worn jacket and put it on. He grabbed some cheese and crackers and a package of cookies and stuffed them in his pocket. He turned and then looked at Uri. “Thanks.” He nodded and then walked out of the room.
Uri had about a million questions, but all he could do right now was stand there and watch Oryn move from child to child and address what need they had. Turning around, he went over to his pack and the other duffle bag and started taking things out. He’d already decided he was willing to go back down and bring up more, but again, he couldn’t do that without Oryn okaying it. Now, he understood her mistrust a lot more than he had earlier.
“Did Oryn save you too?” Emma stood beside him. “She saved us.”
He glanced to see Oryn watching him like a mother would if their child was around a stranger. He squatted down and looked at the girl. “She did. I would have drowned if she hadn’t.”
She frowned at him. “It’s too cold to go swimming.” She said it like she had been told that too often by someone else. Before he could say anything else, she grabbed his face and stared at him. “He’s okay, Oryn, right? I can see the white of his eyes, so he’s okay.” She released his face and nodded and then went back and sat on the bed. “Oryn says a bad person won’t look at you, so if you can’t see the white of their eyes, to run.” She nodded.
Uri stood up. “Oryn is right. That’s good to know.”
Emma nodded and then hugged the stuffed bear.
Uri tossed the duffel bag on top of the other one and then looked around. No heat. No hydro or running water, he figured. He caught Oryn looking at him. “I’m just going to—” He motioned to the door. “Call of nature.” He said quietly.
She nodded.
“What’s a call of nature?” Emma asked.
“He’s going to go pee,” Tony told her.
“Oh.” She opened the package of cheese and crackers. “I don’t have to call nature right now.” She looked at Uri and smiled.