The Ruins Of Tomorrow

35. Enemy

I saw my brother first on the other side of the gate. I was relieved to see his smile as he ran up to me and gave me a hug. Dean and the others unloaded the vehicles as the guards helped them organize the items we got. It was going to be enough to last us for the winter at the very least.

"How is Benjamin doing?" I asked first.

He gestured his thumb at the clinic. "He is doing better. He has a scar on the side of his belly. I told him it makes him look more like a badass and that made him laugh a little. I'm glad that he's eating more as well. Benjamin wasn't taking good care of himself and I had to remind him that Lia would worry if he didn't try to eat a little bit at least."

My hands went up to his head as I tussled with his soft, dark hair. He quickly shooed my hand away as I couldn't help but smile a little. "I'm glad that he has you by his side."

"Not just me," Thomas added. "That one girl Amy with her baby stopped by to see him and so did Kate. I helped them out in the garden yesterday. They grew some more potatoes, so maybe we can have mashed potatoes for my birthday. What do you think?"

I smiled again. "I don't think I've had mashed potatoes in a long time. That sounds really good."

Thomas pulled at my arm, taking me towards the garden where I saw Kate. She was chatting with Liam as she giggled about something. The back of my brain clicked when I made the connection. The two of them acted alike, but also slightly different. Kate was Liam's sister. They had the same brown hair, light freckles, and big eyes. They were almost identical. Kate noticed us and waved her hand, patting away the soil on her jeans.

"I apologize if my brother was a nuisance to you," she said. "He can be a handful whenever he wants to be." She rolled her eyes at that.

Liam let out a sigh. "That's not true. You were the one always getting into trouble even in middle school."

He was nudged roughly on the arm as Kate looked back at us. "We were all worried since the snowstorm hit us pretty bad. We had to fix part of the wall early this morning because some of the planks were loose. But we pulled through."

Thomas exchanged a weird look at me as I turned around to see what it was. Noah came along with Dean as they pulled me to the side in private. "We need you to take a took at something with us," Dean said in a low tone. 

I left Thomas with Kate and followed them towards the back of a building. Dean removed his hat and ran a hand through his black hair. He kicked over a stack of crates when I saw what the problem was. I remembered he had mentioned it before that the getaway hole got repaired by the guards a while back. The planks that were hammered in the walls were gone. Someone else must have taken them off.

I saw Dean's hand twitch. "I would have thought it was the storm that took them down, but then I found a lost pocket knife on the ground and a note with our location. I think whoever is inside didn't notice they had dropped it."

"We need to find who is inside our walls before Hunter continues with whatever plans he has," he concluded. He pinched the bridge of his nose as he appeared frustrated about the matter.

I gripped the side of my jacket and swallowed hard. "The Novas are after me," I said out loud. "Everything that's happened is because of me. If I wasn't here, then maybe Hunter wouldn't try to fight you guys and take over Terrenceville."

I saw Noah shake his head in the corner of my view. "I don't think you get it," he said coldly. "He's after all of us. Whether he wants us dead or part of his crew to gain more power, he isn't going to leave us alone. He probably just wants to destroy Terrenceville and take over. You can only do so much if you're not alone. Hunter has everything and probably a lot more than what we know personally."