The Valuable

Chapter 6

Thorns scratch at my legs and feet as I dash through the overgrowth at the beginning of the forest. I can no longer hear The Leader behind me, but knowing that she has lived in hiding for the past 60 years, I'm positive that she is very sneaky. No matter what, all I can think about is Anastasia. I know that I made her promise we'd see each other again, but knowing the reality of life, I'm not so sure. Blinking back my tears, I duck behind some large rocks to catch my breath. I wait a few minutes and still don't hear her, so I sit down and finally get a chance to see what Anastasia packed for me. I pull out a bag of food consisting of carrots, bread, and cooked chicken. Along with that, I grab a large canteen of water out of the pack. The rest of the bag was filled with a blanket, a bar of soap, her brothers old pair of work boots, a pocket knife, and a warm hat. I slide on the boots and take a sip of the water. As I am stuffing everything back into the place, I notice a shimmer at the very bottom of the bag. Reaching in a pull out a locket, Anastasia's locket. I'd know this necklace anywhere. Ever since I first met Anastasia in the town's vegetable fields, she's worn it. It's a dusty gold colour, though it's worn and rusted with age, and it's got beautiful engravings all over the front. I stick my thumbnail in between the front and back of the locket, and push the pieces apart. Inside she had replaced the picture of her brother Christian with a picture of her. I smile noticing that her picture is one that I took. I can see the glimmer in her eyes and how her blonde hair shines in the sun. I already miss her. I tuck the locket into the pocket of my jacket, and stand up. It's that moment that I see The Leader hovering over me.

Crap.
I leap up, digging my fingertips into a crevice in the largest rock in my hideout. I scramble trying to propel myself upwards and away from the leader.
"Foolish child", The Leader snickers.
I look just in time to see a group of tough looking men and women surrounding me. The next thing I know, one of the women has stepped forward and punched me square in the jaw. I stumble backwards, trying to recollect myself when a man tackles me to the ground. I look at his face above mine and watch his angry expression. It takes me a minute, but I eventually realize that this man is the same guy who said he was working with The Leader in the cafeteria a few days ago. I can here The Leader speaking in her headset a few feet away.
"We should have him back in no time. He's as weak as I thought he was, giving up already", she laughs.
I bare my teeth, angry that she thinks these things about me. I can't take it anymore, I can't take her.
"You think I'm weak? I fight to survive everyday and you basically sit on a pile of luxuries getting everything handed to you! You think that you're so superior to all of us, but you're really just some stuck-up snob who was lucky enough to be born into a rich family.", I growl. In that moment, I felt unstoppable. I shove the man off of me and jump over a small dip in the rocks. When The Leader's troop follows me, I launch small pebbles at them which causes their balance to be lost. Thinking fast, I start a fire with two sticks and place it in front of me so that The Leader and her sidekicks can't follow me. I take one last look at The Leader's surprised face, and take off into the woods.