Mana

Brandon's Birthday

Chapter 11

"Happy birthday, big boy!" I cheered quietly. He had just gotten up and had the potential to be grumpy all day. Not today, it was gonna be his special day. "Mana has a surprise for you!"

"Suhpwise?!" He looked around the empty hotel room, until he spotted the bag on the counter. "Mana! Mana! I wan' my suhpwise!" I carried him over and gave him the plastic bag containing his toy plane. He loved it. "Tank you, Mana!" I felt a wet kiss on my cheek, then sat him down and let him play while I folded up his crib. Mason came in and helped me fold it up.

"Can't believe we're moving again."

"I know, g. But I wanna keep you all safe. We don't know what these guys are capable of, and I don't want to know."

"I understand." His crib was folded, and that was the last thing to be packed into the truck.

"C'mon, Brandon. We gotta go buh-bye. Come put your boots on." He came over, clutching his toy, and I plopped him onto the counter to get him ready. As I did, I looked around the room. It served us well, but of course we'd have to move on some day. It's just that none of us expected it to be so soon.

I slid my own shoes on and picked him up again. Mason had came back up and took him from me.

"Ari, you haven't been sleeping much. I've heard you pacing since this past Thursday."

"I'm just a little nervous, that's all. Let's get out of here."

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Mason drove, I sat next to Cam in the front. Mason had been right: I've lost two nights of sleep over pure worrying. Worrying about what the future holds. Worrying about what would happen if we run into the Band of Survivors. Worrying about Brandon and how he's going to develop. I held my head and curled up into Cam's side. His arms came around me, and he told me to rest. I did; this was the least worried I'd been in three days.

¤¤¤

I must've drifted off. But when I woke up, Cam's left hand had covered my head from oncoming bullets.

"What the fuck is this?!"

"Ambush!" The car swerved, and I sprang into action. I scrambled into the back seat and covered Brandon. He was crying and reaching for me.

"It's okay, Brandon. Mana's here." I heard glass breaking to my left. I balled up around Brandon to shield him. I felt a horrible, shooting pain in my hip. "Mason, drive these motherfuckers off the road! Someone get the med kit, I'm shot!" Damion took my place. I was laid on the floor, and Katie and Chi began operating. I took an Advil and waited for it to kick in while Chi added pressure. Katie injected what little anestetic we had to my side.

"Ariana, you're gonna be alright. Hold my hand, please." Cameron's voice. I reached up and let him grab my hand. I looked over at Katie; she had the tweezers deep in the wound. I didn't feel it exit, but I might've felt it lodge itself somewhere.

"Katie, the bullet might've lodged itself somewhere... but it can't be--"

"Got it! I got it!" She pulled out a bullet as large as the upper half of my thumb. I could tell, I had a nice dent in my hip bone now. "It was halfway in your hip bone. Lemme do some cutting to make sure nothing's broken." I frantically grabbed at something to bite. I grabbed Brandon's diaper bag and bit the strap just as I felt the knife begin to slice.

"Fuck, I'm gonna die!!"

"You're not dying on me! One second, then I'll start stitching you up!" My eyes rolled up when I felt my skin being parted. After a dreadful, drawn-out minute, she decreed that I had nothing broken. She began suturing the cuts and the hole. Cameron cried out in pain from my gripping his hand too tight. I let go and grabbed at the rug of the truck. It took ten minutes for her to carefully sew me up.

"Done!"

"Someone get me the gun." I was handed our only AR-15 and climbed back into the front. Cam rolled the window down. When everyone's ears were covered, bullets flew from my window. Four men in black fell on the spot, and the ones remaining were on the other side. Mason let me get under his arms, and down went two of the three. The last one tried to get ahead of us, but Mason ran them over. When they were all down, he swerved to a stop. I fell out of the truck, AR in hand.

"If any of you motherfuckers are still alive, speak up before you get pumped with lead!" I got up and wiped myself down. I limped around the three that had been next to us. Dead. I circled the four that were on the other side of us. Dead. All seven were without a pulse. But, they had some nice hot rods.Had.

But there was one left.

¤¤¤

"When hes old enough, this is gonna be his. But for now, I'll ride it. Ill ride in front." Katie protested, saying that my hip still needed to be bandaged up, but I already ripped my undershirt up and made some makeshift bandages. I didn't really care about my safety at the moment. If I hadn't been there to cover Brandon, that could've been his leg or his hand. I think I would've gone ballistic if it were his head or chest.

"Ariana, listen to me--"

"Katie, please. I just undergone surgery for a gunshot, I'm still drowsy from the Advil, just get in the truck. I dont feel like arguing." She huffed and returned to the truck. I made sure the AR was safely strapped to my back, then turned the key. I prayed this was nothing like riding a bike; I didn't know how to ride a bike, and still don't. I revved the engine, gently stepped on the gas, and started to go forward. I miraculously maneuvered in front of the truck.

"Lookin' sexy, Ari!"

"Shut the hell up, fucking degenerate!" I jerked forward,  keeping the speed at an easy 35. The truck was only a few feet behind.

I realized that our initial plan was to return to Massachusetts and scope out The Resistance, but I swerved right at the next intersection, away from Mass. I chose to chicken out. God knows what would await us there. But at the same time, what awaited us beyond New England?