Lost Memories

Chapter Twelve

My hand slips from my face, and I almost fall off the chair I am sitting on. I snap awake, and realize that I had fallen asleep. Instantly my eyes dart around the room, looking for Mason and the little girl. She is gone. Mason is sitting up, looking at me. I meet his eyes for not even a second, then look away.

"Please tell me you didn't see that." I hope he didn't see me.

"I could tell you that, but it would be a lie." He smiles, only showing a part of his perfect teeth.

Why does he do that? His teeth are perfect. White, straight, just perfect. Why does he hide it?

"Where is she?" I ask.

"She told me she was going to go get food for us."

"She told you? You mean she talked?"

"Not exactly."

"Then how did she tell you?"

"She drew it in the dirt." He responds, pointing at lines carved in the ground.

I walked over to see them, and there were little pieces of fruit and vegetables along with a small person holding some of them. An arrow was drawn to the person, and I pictured her in my mind pointing to herself and Mason nodding his head.

"You realize you just let a four year old girl run into a monster-infested town to find fruit, which probably doesn't even grow now because of the sun being inactive."

"Well," Mason ponders. "She seems to know her way around a lot better than I do, and she's survived this long right?"

I start to tense up. "Yes, but why would you just let her go like that? She's barely five years old!"

"She's smarter than she looks, Valora."

"I know she is, but Mason, you might have just sent a toddler to die finding food that isn't even real."

"Or," Mason finishes my sentence. "I might have just sent a little girl with the knowledge of where to find food that hasn't been scorched or covered in blood to get some for us because one of us doesn't have the ability to move, and the other one wouldn't leave the other to find it anyway."

It surprised me that Mason had such a quick ability to respond to something that seems clearly reasonable from my side. He has the ability to take his side of the argument and fight for it in a way that makes sense. that's something I admire, but slightly less in this situation.

I sigh. "Mason..."

"I didn't want to make that decision, but I had to. We are completely out of food that we can actually eat and she offered to go get it. I can't move because of my back being scorched, and I know you wouldn't be okay with going to find some because you have no idea and you wouldn't leave me to fend for myself. I know that." He rubs his bony fingers over his temples as if trying to relieve the pressure from him head. "If you were in my situation, what would you have done?"

I stare at him. I don't know what I would have done. It does make sense that we would need that food in order to make it the rest of the way to the Romanda, especially since I have no idea how much we would have to travel to get there.

"I don't know!" I scoff. "I just don't think it's wise. She could be killed! We wouldn't even know."

Mason looks at me. His brown eyes staring into mine. I am the first to look away, and I can feel him still looking at me.

"What?"

"You sound like a mom." He laughs.

I turn around, and look at him. How could I ever be mad at him?