Hunting Human - Amanda E. Alvarez [38]
Rachel choked against a laugh.
I’ll take it. Anything is better than the sobbing.
“That worked out, right?”
“Yeah.” Rachel sniffed through a watery nose and pressed her head against Liz’s shoulder.
“Right. So we stick together and we don’t panic. Okay?”
Silence fell between them and, for a moment, Liz was afraid that Rachel was going to slide back into hysteria. Instead, Rachel took a deep breath beside her and murmured, “Okay.”
“Good. And Rach?”
“Yeah?”
“You better not be snotting all over my shoulder.”
“You could use new clothes.”
“True. But this is your sweater, remember?”
They shared a secret smile as the van rumbled to a stop. The two men in the front stepped out, slamming the doors behind them. Liz seized one last opportunity to bolster Rachel. “Remember, no matter what, we stick together. Don’t panic. Okay?” The side door squealed open and Liz bumped Rachel with her shoulder. “Okay?”
Clear eyes met hers and Rachel nodded. “Okay.”
A rough hand grabbed Liz’s bound wrists and dragged her out of the van. She barely managed to get her legs beneath her before she hit the ground. As she gained her feet, she heard Rachel being pulled out of the van behind her.
A rough shove propelled her forward. “Get moving.”
Liz stumbled forward into the morning air and felt a solid lump of despair settle at the bottom of her stomach. They’d driven into a small clearing, every side flanked by trees so tall they completely blocked the morning sun. There were no buildings, and even in the early quiet of the morning, Liz couldn’t hear any traffic to indicate a main road nearby.
We’re in the middle of nowhere.
There was another van parked parallel with the one they’d arrived in, and several other people were being hoisted out of the back and herded toward the clearing.
“That’s far enough.” Markko’s fingers dug into her arm until she stopped. Rachel stepped up next to her, pressing close to her side, glancing around with wide eyes. “Lizzy?”
“I don’t know. Stay close.”
Markko stood behind her and the guy from the street, the one Markko had addressed as Alek, stood behind Rachel. The young man Liz recognized from earlier that night and an unknown fourth made up the points of a rough square, boxing in several people Liz didn’t recognize. An older couple, probably in their mid-fifties, huddled together next to Rachel. The man pressed his eyes closed and leaned into the woman’s side, whispering into her ear. The woman tightened her hand around the man’s forearm, her wedding band glinting with the movement. How long had they been married? Would they see another anniversary?
Overwhelmed, Liz looked away to a woman in a flimsy halter and a short pair of cutoffs. She’d already lost her shoes. Fine tremors racked her body as she stared through her surroundings, a silent mantra spilling from her lips.
Two young men stood to Liz’s left, one of them wearing a University of Texas sweatshirt. University students? They didn’t seem to know each other. Would their friends and family, wherever they were, notice they were missing? How long would it take for her own family to start to worry? She and Rachel had called home less than twenty-four hours ago—days could pass before anyone realized they were missing.
Beyond the young men a lone woman stood, feet planted, hands curled into fists. She looked to be in her early twenties, maybe younger. Of all of them, she seemed the most composed. She stood her ground, a guarded expression watching everything. When their eyes met, she briefly inclined her head, as if to say hey.
For a long moment, only the sounds of the wind rustling the trees and early morning birdcalls filled the air. Finally, as Liz began to wonder if any of the men were ever going to say anything, the kid in the University of Texas sweatshirt spoke up.
“Why the hell are we here?” His tone wavered between angry and frightened. “What the fuck do you