Cage

The Race Continues

"Todd please!"

Todd persisted. He carried on no matter what. He hadn't stopped in two days, his Mother looked at him with weariness and exasperation - he was dead on his feet.

As was she.

"Please Todd! You need rest" still no response, she ran to keep up with his quickening pace, "Why will you not listen to me?"

"Mum, if you're tired have some water."

"You know that's not what we need. Sleep, Todd! Sleep!" she gasped.

He stiffened.

"Todd?"

"Mum, we have to get there. If we don't get to the allies base then we may be too late." he whispered.

"That's not as important as sleep." Andria shot back.

 "The information I had may be out of date but we still need to get there! It's not an option! I want to get to Zoe! People are dying Mum and there is nothing we can do unless we are at the base! How can the Rebels do anything if there aren't any in the first place?" He raged "How?"

He stepped closer with every pause he made, quite obviously agitated. His eyes were bloodshot, he hadn't slept for too long. He wanted to be needed. So long stowed away and cooped up in that sorry little house, now he was out he didn't stop. But soon he would run out of batteries and all Andria wanted to do was get a few hours of charge. 'Quite a good metaphor for someone so old school', she thought. 

"Zoe Appron - "

"Keep your voice down, young man!" Andria hissed "I am tired enough! We are run off our feet but that is nothing to the government if we are captured! You just used the name of an important member of our... group. Do you know how dangerous that is?"

"No one knows better than me Mum." He sighed.

As he let out a lungful of breath his mother peered over his face. Dark circles ringed his eyes, his dark curls mussed up. His face looked older than it did before his father got taken away... he wasn't her baby anymore. His eyes focused on hers and he shook his head like he was disappointed with a student. His eyes were flat, black, disks.

He noticed her probing glance and shook his head defiantly. "Nobody knows better than me!"

"That's what your Dad said and look what he got himself into!" His mother threw her hands up in the air in agitation.

"He was doing something terrible! Unspeakable! Even I agreed with the government on what they did! and I don't do that often!" This otherwise secretive conversation was getting dangeroulsy loud. They stopped and spoke in loud whispers.

Andria gasped. She took in a long intake of breath through pursed lips. "That was over the line, Todd! They put the poor man to death!" And with that she stormed off to her left. "How could you wish for your own father to die?" she muttered to herself. But she knew what Todd really meant. He didn't believe they had used the death penalty. He believed that Nathaniel Adams, her husband for 20 years, could be saved. How naive he was.

A salty tear rolled down her cheek and she licked it off her pale lips. Her dark hair had strands of grey in the mix now, she should be stronger than this, but she knew she was just too old. This was killing her.

"Mum, it's to the right. We have to go West."

She turned around, trying to keep some dignity intact and almost ran over to the other side, ducking behind the trees as she did so. She didn't want to be seen on the road.

"Alright." He shook his head "We'll sleep but we have to get further away from the road and climb into the trees or something. No fires!" he sighed. He hated when his mother was upset with him, she was all he had. He still wouldn't change his mind though. If it were anyone else an arguement could turn into a feud and a childish grudge would be positioned on their shoulders until they crumbled. He didn't forgive easily... not unless it was Mum...