Blackout • NH

Chapter 50 (Part 2)

I can't help but feel like something is missing.

We take our time heading back to the treehouse. Not wanting to get the horses going fast because the bouncing could cause Niall to fall off. We took it slow and steady.

We were limited on horses so everyone had to share with someone. Me and Niall have a horse, Liam and Ellen, Louis and Harry, and Marion and Aiden. Wait.

"Hey guys! Stop for a minute." I say, confused.

We all come to a stop and Louis speaks up.

"What's wrong?" He asks, concerned.

"Where's Aiden?"

Silence. Nobody says a thing.

"What is it? What happened?" I ask more concerned. I look towards Marion and she's looking down at her hands.

"Jodie..." Liam starts, his voice losing its strength.

"Aiden died." He breathes out.

"What?" I say, shocked and confused. My heart dropped to my stomach.

"What do you mean? What happened?" I say. My voice getting louder.

"We tried to save him but it was too strong for us to fight." His voice getting soft.

"Save him from what? What did you fight?" I ask, completely losing it. Harry speaks up.

"Sound waves. Sounds crazy right? We found a hydroelectric power plant with power. But something set the sound waves off causing you to fall to your feet when hit by them. Sounds impossible but these were super seismic waves. Usually seen in space. I studied this in astronomy back in university."

I stare at him confused.

"Aiden went ahead of us to check to see if the coast was clear because we came upon a large opening along the river. But he was hit by a sound wave, knocking him off the horse and the horse came tumbling down onto him. He landed onto an old beaver dam. He was impaled by a branch and we weren't strong enough to move the horse. Niall tried his best to save him. He was really upset."

All of a sudden I start to cry.

"This is all my fault. I should have never left." I break down.

"Jodie this is not your fault. Whether you left or not. Everything happens for a reason. We may not understand why, but in the end we will. Aiden wanted us to go on without him. He wanted us to find you. He left Niall in charge of the group and niall promised Aiden he'd find you and lead the group to Uninhabited" Louis said.

I stay silent. Tears streaming down my face. I sniffle a bit and give my horse a good kick, getting him moving. Nobody says anything but they follow behind. We come upon the treehouse about 15 minutes later. We hoisted Niall carefully in and settled in for the night. My thoughts all scrambled after the news.