SOJOURNER (III): tmr gally

15: I should leave

Michelle 15

"Are we seriously going in there?" Joan asks. Shuck, her voice is so annoying. "We barely have anything to protect us."

I mean, she does have a pick axe. That is certainly something. She's been complaining about how heavy it is for like thirty minutes. Honestly, I'd rather we have nothing to protect us than listen to her whine again.

The building we've been assigned to is three stories high. It will be the third we've searched in the grueling heat. My hair is sticking to my neck with sweat. Though my jacket is covering my arms, my face is tingling from the hot sun.

"Quit complaining," Hilde groans, staring the building down.

"If I knew you never shut the stuck up, I wouldn't have suggested you run," Flore rolls her eyes. It's the first thing I've heard her say since we started looking for Ella. Every other comment has been whispered to Joan or to Hilde.

Joan huffs. "You're just mad because I ran the section better than you."

"You both ran it like a load," Hilde tightens her grip on her knife. I honestly can't tell how she puts up with those two. She took out some Cranks with her hatchet in a flash a ways back. Rather than hang out with these slintheads, Hilde would be better suited to Rose. "Can we just go?"

"Do you have a problem with me?" Flore demands, turning towards Joan.

I get the feeling they intend to continue with their dumb fight. This is not what I signed up for. I never thought I would want to be with the boys, but anything is better than watching this.

"Yeah, I do," Joan walks over, until her chest is practically against Flore's.

I take this as my cue to leave. The two girls start yelling at each other, with Hilde trying to separate them. I didn't think either of them had it in them to fight, since Joan is a whiner and Flore is constantly kissing up to Hilde. If I thought their fight would be interesting, I would stick around and watch it.

I duck around the building, turning a corner. This search for Ella is useless. She has either been eaten or doesn't want to be found. Teresa is all pissed with me for voting against her, but whatever. Honestly, I don't know what my plan is. It's not a great idea to just go off on my own. Not only do I lack food and water, but Teresa would be angry enough to hunt me down.

I am surprised Teresa kept voting against Ella. She set up a crazy target for herself. I'd like to know the dirt that Ella has on her. It's got to be good.

I walk around the corner and stop.

Gally is in front of me, staring straight forward. His chest heaves up and down unevenly, underneath his torn shirt. His face is red, both from the healing scrapes along his temple and from the blood pumping harshly through him. His eyes, blood shot and blackened, scan me, but never meet my eyes.

Gally sways with the wind.

He runs away. My feet move before my brain has time to register that he is here, and he is moving. He is heaving, coughing as he runs forward. It's retched and harsh. He ducks through the alley, knocking over garbage cans and boxes as I run towards him.

It takes much more energy to leap over them then I thought it would. I don't think I've drank anything in hours. I'm dizzy. My foot clips the metal, echoing through the skinny alley. He turns left, so I follow him further down. He is stuck in the corner of an alleyway.