Beyond the Horizon

23. Frigid

Nezumi and Shion arrived at a small cabin nearly two days after leaving the Yoshidas. The SUV made quick work of the journey, and the high-ground clearance allowed Nezumi to easily slip down the rocky backroads.

          When dusk fell exactly twenty-four hours after they abandoned the sedan, Nezumi eased the vehicle down another long, dirt road. A heavy copse of trees and brush stood on both sides of the road, left untamed for years. The weeds snarled and twisted out into the path.

          For much of the journey, they hadn't come across many other cars. Nezumi stuck to the shadows, eyes eternally searching for tell-tale signs of the Lab.

          Neither of them had slept since the theft at the gas station. The heater from the SUV rumbled pleasantly, but when it began to make both of them dangerously drowsy, Nezumi cranked on the AC until the windshield fogged up and their teeth chattered. He would then slowly ease the heat back up, just enough to keep them mildly uncomfortable.

          They stopped a few times for gas, but only when it became absolutely necessary. Nezumi filled up quickly, paid even quicker, and then they were gone before anyone could hope to remember what they looked like.

          Hunger gnawed at the edges of Shion's stomach, but the gray haze overshadowed it. He watched out the window as they drove. Shion watched the sun rise, watched the buildings fade as they coasted through small towns, watched the world turn as if he and Nezumi were nothing more than a speck adrift in an ocean of black asphalt.

          Neither of them spoke through the duration of the drive. Nezumi made a few sounds now and then, usually when the car ran low on gas. Shion was exhausted, but sleep evaded him. The thought of dropping back into darkness frightened him.

          There was no anger behind Nezumi's actions. The few times he looked at Shion, his gaze was gentle and concerned. When Shion got out of the SUV at one of the gas stations to go relieve himself in the public restroom―out of desperation rather than desire, as his hips had begun to hurt―Nezumi gave his hand a squeeze before Shion went into the shop.

          They passed through a few small towns before Nezumi brought them to a long road surrounded by thick woods on both sides. They'd left civilization behind more than twenty miles back, the SUV's tank half-full with gas.

          As the sun sank beneath the tops of the trees, shadows bleeding across the SUV, Nezumi suddenly slowed and turned off the main road. He went onto a narrow dirt road marked NO TRESPASSING ― PRIVATE PROPERTY.

          Nezumi exhaled as if something inside him had come unraveled, and the sudden sound loosened Shion from his mental haze.

          "Nezumi?"

          "It's nothing," Nezumi said, much too quickly.

          Shion didn't press.

          They drove slowly down the dirt road, pockmarked with potholes and debris. The pitch-black forest swallowed the SUV as Nezumi eased the vehicle steadily down the road. Long branches brushed the metal roof, the headlights slicing through the darkness so that Shion could see only what appeared directly in front of them.

          After nearly two miles of slow driving, the dirt road branched off in two directions. A thick metal chain hung across the left road, along with a heavy padlock. From the chain hung a rusty, yellowing sign warning against trespassing.

          Shion's stomach clenched as Nezumi drew the front of the SUV up until its blunt nose kissed the padlock. There were scrapes in the metal sign from years of weather damage, but it looked as if it had been abandoned for years.