The Land After Tomorrow (Completed)

Chapter 25: The Truth

"Drew?" the voice called, "Drew, can you hear me?"

Drew looked up briefly from the ground that lied before him. From the blurs between his eyes, he saw a figure towering over him. Gaining into focus, he saw the familiar dark green eyes that stared upon his tortured body. He pulled back Drew's bloodied and coated shirt that pulled against his open cuts.

"Ryder," Drew managed with a whisper. Ryder looked up drawing his eyes away from the boy's tortured back. "Can we go home?" he managed.

Ryder managed a smile, "You bet." Drew felt Ryder's fingers inching alongside his open cuts making Drew jump in pain. Ryder pulled Drew's shirt nicely down onto his bloodied back. Ryder then helped lift Drew off the ground by lifting his shoulders. Drew tried catching his weight on his feet but stumbled from weakness. Ryder caught him before he fell once again to the ground below. Ryder supported Drew's weight by having Drew's arm wrapped around his neck. He hunched over so that he was at the same level of Drew's height to help carry him through the depths of the woods.

"Thank you," Drew whispered.

Ryder looked at Drew's pale-dirtied face, "For?"

"Caring," Drew responded hoarsely.

"We all care Drew," Ryder replied between his heavy breaths from carrying Drew.

Drew looked towards him, "I know."

Ryder nodded in agreement. His breaths were gaining deeper while Drew's breaths grew out of control. The coughing started and then his chest tightened constricting the air through him. Ryder saw the opening to the camp in between two oak trees. The sun was shining through and it beamed into an opening of light.

Ryder pushed them into a ray of blinding light. "Help!" he screamed, "Help!"

Jacob stood at the gate instantly rushing over to help support Drew on the other side. "What happened?" he asked taking Drew's other side.

Ryder shook his head panting in exhaustion, "I don't know."

"It was him," Drew wheezed.

Ryder and Jacob both looked at each other in agreement of whom "him" was. "Don't talk," Jacob urged.

They rushed him into the cabin barging through the door. "Put him on his stomach," Ryder ordered. Blair stood at the foot of her bed staring in confusion and worry. "Where's his inhaler?" he yelled towards her.

"In his bag," she tensed moving towards the bag that lied underneath his bed. Her heart raced in fear of losing another brother. She searched panickily through his bag searching for the inhaler. "Here!" she screamed in rejoice taking the inhaler out from the bag. She handed it to Ryder who then shook it. He let it slide into Drew's hand. Drew moved the inhaler towards the touch of his lips pushing down the cylinder that encased the medication. Drew inhaled it feeling its bitter taste through his mouth then hitting his lungs. He felt his lungs escape from its confinement. Air started to flow through his lungs as his breathing started to become under control.

Blair examined Drew's bloodied shirt that lied over his wounded back. She stared at it in concern, "What happened to his back?"

"Your father," Ryder replied moving Drew's shirt up towards his shoulders.

"He's not - my father," Blair defended.

"Call him what you want, but I need water and a rag," he spat back.

Blair stood in her place with words hanging from her mouth. She sighed letting them drown inside her.

Ryder turned to Jacob, "Go get Ian." Jacob nodded in reply. The door slammed behind him and the door oscillated back and forth hitting the wooden frame. Blair came back with the water and a clean rag.