Us Against The World

Chapter 38

"Farrah." my eyes slowly open and I feel Jexton shaking my arm. "Farrah, wake up." he whispers and I sit up and stretch. He brings his index finger to his lips and I look around frantically. "Someone's in here and it's not the people who own the house." he whispers and worry consumes me. My heart begins to pound and Jexton tells me not to move or speak.

I watch as he stands as quietly as possible and peeks around the corner. He jerks back and presses his back against the wall. He purses his lips telling me to stay quiet and to get down. 

I grab the blanket I had slept with, and slowly scoot toward the wall next to the one Jexton is leaning up against. I lie down and, as quietly as possible, cover myself with the blanket. I look over at Jexton and he nods.

What did he mean that whoever is here are not the people that own the house? If it's not them, who could it be? The thought takes over my mind and when I finally get the idea, fear floods my entire body.

Soldiers.

Since this house was empty of all life when Jexton and I found it, I inferred that the soldiers had taken the people and either imprisoned them or killed them. Jexton added that none of the doors were locked, meaning that the house hadn't been checked yet. Now it's being checked and Jexton and I are trapped.

If the soldiers find Jexton and I in here, they will take us away or kill us on sight because they are already looking for us.

I try not to sob, but my pounding heart has forced tears out of my eyes and I can tell that Jexton is scared too. I can see that by the look in each of our eyes, we are thinking the same thing: we will either find our way out of here smoothly and safely, or we will both be shot to death. This will either be another obsticle that we will get through together, or the last time we will see each other alive.

This morning I had planned on talking to Jexton about everything that Ander had told me yesterday. All of the things that I did not want to believe I pushed to the back of my mind because I believed that being in Jexton's presence meant more to me than being lied to again.

However, the longer Jexton and I walked in silence, the more I thought about it. I just never got the courage to bring it up, and all the times that I did, Jexton either said something to get my mind off the topic, or he was pointing something out that made me forget what I wanted to say. 

I know that sometimes I worry about things more than I need to, but of everything Jexton has done to me or put me through, I still find myself asking if I can trust him. Sometimes I ask myself why I stay with him and wonder why I cannot go on without him, but I can never find the answer. It seems that every time he does something that hurts me or breaks down my trust little by little, it draws me closer and closer to him.

But everything that I wanted to talk to Jexton about, everything I wanted to go over and everything I want to know is once again pushed back because of the soldiers intruding our temporary home.

It seems as if everywhere I go with Jexton and every place we find that seems to be safe we get forced out of. I can't help but wonder if this would still happen if I was on my own. I don't feel safe with Jexton, but he's my only form if security.

...

Jexton places his index finger to his lips again when I sigh. I nod and squeeze my eyes shut. I begin to shake and look around to make sure there is nothing within in kicking distance. When I lift my head from the ground, Jexton's eyes widen and he waves his hand: a gesture telling me to get back down and stay down until he says otherwise.

My breath catches and I hold everything when two men enter the bedroom that Jexton and I are in. Out of instinct, I turn my face downward at the floor and stay as still as possible. My heart races faster as the heavy boots inch closer to me. I'm hoping Jexton was able to slip behind or under something, because if the soldiers so much as turn around, they will see him. And in that instance, I can do nothing for him.

"Empty. There's nothing here. Let's go." one of the men say. My anxiety kicks in, and my breathing picks up. I will burst if they don't leave soon. 

"Hold on a minute." the other man says and walks toward me. I stay frozen in hopes that it is not the lump covered by blanket on the floor he is concerned about. I hear his knees pop as he squats and I know my spot has been given away. I'm done for. I might as well reveal myself right now.

Just as I am about to move, something falls on the floor from where Jexton was standing and I hear footsteps run out of the room. "Hey!" the man in front of me yells and stands. When the heavy boots trot out of the room, I uncover myself and sit up against the wall. I breathe in and out heavily. Beads of sweat roll down the sides of my head and I forget about Jexton for a moment. I snap my head to the doorway and stand up as quickly as possible.

I press my back against the wall Jexton had once stood, and peek over and into the hall way. There are no signs of life around me, but I can hear the voices of both soldiers calling for Jexton. I know it's a bad idea, but I need to get out of here and I need to find Jexton. We need to get out of here. 

I cautiously step out into the hallway and look in both directions, deciding which way I should take. I draw in a deep breath, then stomp continuously for a few moments before running down the hallway and into another bedroom.

"Who the hell is here?" one of the men's voices call. "There's two of them!" the other one yells. I shut the door as quietly and as slowly as possible and swallow hard. I look around the room frantically, hoping there is another way out. 

Jexton put himself in danger to get me out, now I'm doing the same for him.

I notice a window in the room and sigh of relief. As the heavy footsteps pace the hallway, I push myself off of the wall I'm leaning against and pry open the rusty window. It slides up and hits the latches with a loud snap and my heart stops. I push half of my body out of the window and am glad to see that there is a roof just a few feet below the window. 

Without looking back, I crawl out of the window and jump onto the roof. When I land, I look up at the open window, then down at the ground. It is about a five foot drop. I look for any other possible ways of safely landing on the ground, but there are none and I'm running out of time.

"Hey, there's one!" one of the soldier's yell and my adrenaline forces me off of the small roof. I land on the ground side first and all of my breath is forced from my lungs. As I gasp for air, I feel arms pull me up from my sides. "Come on!" Jexton's voice sends relief through me and I run though I cannot breathe correctly.

Jexton and I dive behind a tree a couple yards away from the house and watch for the soldiers. "Did they see your face?" he asks and I shake my head. His expression worries me and for a moment, I wonder why he is asking me, but then I remember that we are being looked for. 

I shake my head and try to catch my breath. "They saw mine." he says and my eyes widen. 

Since they saw Jexton, they probably inferred that the girl he is with is Farrah; the one who is wanted as well. And now that they know where we are, we have to get out of here.

Jexton frantically pats his chest and thighs. He looks at me with wide eyes and I look at him as if to ask "What's the matter with you?" 

"The tracker tablet. . .I dropped it. I lost it, I-I don't have it." he says.