The Dead Zone (Book One)

Chapter 16

 Paige pulled out an old T-shirt, along with the same bottle of alcohol she'd used to clean Bryson's wounds a few weeks back when he'd been in a knife fight with one of the men who'd tried to kill her. Tearing the shirt into long strips, she soaked it in alcohol before handing it off to Bryson with shaking hands. The siren had just cut off in the distance, making her edgy.

 Please, let this work. 

 Their plan was rough, to say the least, but they simply couldn't wait any longer, especially not after what they'd just witnessed. As they'd watched the unnerving brutality of these people, they knew they couldn't leave Zach at their mercy any longer. These people were monsters.

 Bryson wrapped the sopping strip around the tip of an arrow, tying it tightly into place. He pulled the bow back, giving her a curt nod. It was time. With a flick of her thumb, Paige watched the small flame of the lighter as it sparked to life, quickly igniting the arrow. 

 A flaming arrow, that, at Bryson's discretion, soared high into the air, well over the wall and landed right on the roof of the mess hall. They repeated the process, Paige holding her breath the entire time as she flicked the lighter and Bryson quickly released the arrow before the glow of the fire could give away their position. This arrow, as well, flew way over the wall, smashing into one of the windows, the sound of shattering glass reaching their ears even from their spot in the distance.

Unfortunately, it caught the attention of the guards, too, as many stood up straighter, raising their guns to attention. It would be a lot harder from now on. They had to make sure not to give away their position, or else their plan was useless. They waited a few moments, holding their breath in anticipation, and before long, clouds of smoke began to pour out of the broken window. 

 This was actually working! Shouts began to ring out, breaking the unnerving silence that the sirens had left behind. Several guards abandoned their post on the wall to run to their burning food supply. 

 "Get back here you idiots!" One of the guards yelled from the wall, looking flustered. There were only five guards left of the wall that they needed to breach. With a nod, Paige scurried down the tree, watching in silence as Bryson quietly picked off the remaining guards. 

The burning building had caused enough commotion that none of them even saw the deadly volley until it was too late. When the last guard fell, she ran. The wall was huge; she'd have to guess it was at least ten or fifteen feet tall, made from sharpened tree trunks. Cedar trees, maybe? It was her job to scale it, without a rope, or any help. Just her. 

 She didn't stop to think about what she was doing. She couldn't allow herself to or she knew instinctively logic and fear would cripple her. Instead, she drew out her knife, sinking it into the wood above her head with a thunk. 

Do it for Zach. Bryson won't let anything happen to you. Get in and get out.

 She found footholds in the strangest of places; the nub where a sawed off limb used to be, or by wedging her feet painfully in the cracks between logs, her sneakers grappling for traction. She pulled the knife out when she found a sturdy spot to hold on with her other hand, sinking it into the wall again; this time, even higher above her head, slowly pulling the weight of her body up. She had just reached the top, stretching her hand out to grab it, when a large boot came down on her fingers with a crunch, extracting a cry of pain from her. 

One of the guards! Why wasn't Bryson covering her?! Had they seen his hiding spot? She hadn't heard any gunshots fired, but that didn't mean they didn't have an archer somewhere that they'd failed to see. She worried more about Bryson's well being than her own.