 
### Ravenous

Erica Stevens

Copyright 2012 Erica Stevens

(Smashwords edition)

This eBook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This eBook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you're reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author. Thank you for downloading this eBook. This is the copyrighted property of the author, and may not be reproduced, copied and distributed for commercial or non-commercial purposes. If you enjoyed this book, please encourage your friends to download their own copy.

# Also from the author

### Books written under the penname Erica Stevens

### The Captive Series

Captured (Book 1)

Renegade (Book 2)

Refugee (Book 3)

Salvation (Book 4)

Redemption (Book 5)

Broken (The Captive Series Prequel)

Vengeance (Book 6)

Unbound (Book 7)

### The Coven Series

Nightmares (Book 1)

The Maze (Book 2)

Dream Walker (Book 3)

### The Fire & Ice Series

Frost Burn (Book 1)

Arctic Fire (Book 2)

Scorched Ice (Book 3)

### The Kindred Series

Kindred (Book 1)

Ashes (Book 2)

Kindled (Book 3)

Inferno (Book 4)

Phoenix Rising (Book 5)

### The Ravening Series

Ravenous (Book 1)

Taken Over (Book 2)

Reclamation (Book 3)

### The Survivor Chronicles

Book 1: The Upheaval

Book 2: The Divide

Book 3: The Forsaken

Book 4: The Risen

### Books written under the penname Brenda K. Davies

### The Alliance Series

Eternally Bound (Book 1)

Bound by Vengeance (Book 2)

Bound by Darkness (Book 3)

Bound by Passion (Book 4)

Bound by Torment (Book 5) Coming spring 2020

### Hell on Earth Series

Hell on Earth (Book 1)

Into the Abyss (Book 2)

Kiss of Death (Book 3)

The Edge of the Darkness (Book 4) Coming 2020

### The Road to Hell Series

Good Intentions (Book 1)

Carved (Book 2)

The Road (Book 3)

Into Hell (Book 4)

### The Vampire Awakenings Series

Awakened (Book 1)

Destined (Book 2)

Untamed (Book 3)

Enraptured (Book 4)

Undone (Book 5)

Fractured (Book 6)

Ravaged (Book 7)

Consumed (Book 8)

Unforeseen (Book 9)

Forsaken (Book 10) Coming 1/15/20

Relentless (Book 11) Coming 2020

### Historical Romance

A Stolen Heart

# .

Special thanks to my husband and best friend, and

my parents, siblings, nieces and nephews who make life more interesting and fun.

# Table of Contents

Other Works

Dedication and Thanks

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Chapter 27

Where to Find The Author

About The Author

# CHAPTER 1

Frozen.

Completely and utterly _freaking_ _frozen_.

One second ago the woman was speaking to me. She had been half way through the word nice from the phrase "have a nice day" when she suddenly and completely stopped moving. Her face still held the same expression, her hand was frozen in mid air; she just stood there like some sort of strange mannequin-like statue standing behind the counter.

She stared at me unerringly, but it seemed as if she couldn't see me as I watched her unblinking, vacant brown eyes. I kept waiting for her to come back to life, to finish her sentence, to hand me my change, but as the seconds ticked into minutes, I began to realize she wasn't going to move. That she wasn't playing some sort of sick, demented trick on me.

She had _instantaneously_ been struck completely immobile.

It was the most unnerving thing I'd ever seen and all I could do was gape at her. I continued to stand there, not because I wanted to, no one in their right mind would _want_ to keep standing there, but simply because I was shocked into immobility. I hadn't suddenly been struck inert like the woman across from me, but I was entirely unable to move as I gazed back at her. I finally managed to close my mouth. Not because I was recovering from the astonishment still gripping me so tightly I couldn't bring myself to move, but because a little bit of drool had started to form at the corners of my mouth, and my jaw actually hurt from gawking at her for so long.

Though I managed to make the small movement of closing my mouth, I couldn't make any others. I couldn't drop the arm extended across the counter. I couldn't close the open hand still waiting in expectation of _my_ change clasped within the woman's hand. I had absolutely no intention of touching the woman in order to retrieve it either.

I didn't care how scarce money was nowadays, I was _not_ going to touch her and if I was going to get my money back I would have to make contact with her frozen hand. I would actually have to pry open her clasped fingers in order to retrieve what was mine, because it was becoming extremely obvious the woman was not going to move again anytime soon if she moved again at all.

I shuddered at the thought as the hair on the back of my neck stood on end. I knew no one was there, but I couldn't shake the feeling there was someone standing just behind me, breathing down my neck. I didn't know what the woman's hand would feel like; it was probably still warm because she had only frozen minutes ago. Even though she was still on her feet, even though I didn't know if she really _was_ dead, in my mind her hand would feel as cold and clammy as a corpse's.

A small spasm jerked through my extended arm, causing it to jump a little. It wasn't the aching pain in my rigid arm that finally caused me to pull it back, but the fact the small twitch had almost caused me to _touch_ her. The mere thought made my stomach feel as if it had a hundred worms crawling through it. My arm fell limply back to my side, my mouth parted again.

For the first time in awhile, I blinked. Then, I closed my watering eyes, as I prayed everything would be normal. When I opened them once more, it was not.

Slowly I raised my hand and waved it in front of her unblinking, unseeing eyes. She remained as blank as a slate. I thought perhaps I should hit her, maybe pinch her, but that brought me back to the having to touch her aspect. Throw something at her? I glanced at the gum stacked before the counter. It was a soft projectile but hard enough it would get someone's attention. Maybe it would wake her up, but I didn't think it would work, and I couldn't bring myself to heave something at the defenseless woman. It seemed as bad as stealing candy from a child.

I took a small step back, swallowing heavily as I looked around the store. Though it hadn't been crowded, it was easy to pick out every person amongst the racks of souvenir clothes (clothes that didn't sell much anymore, at least not to tourists, as we had few of them now) and candy counters. Mainly because they were all as still as stone too. I doubted throwing something at them would work either.

It was eerily quiet within the store. I didn't hear any movement on the street outside either. Driving had been banned a month ago (I now realized why), but I didn't even hear the hum of bicycle tires or the thumping footsteps of the passing crowd. The muted murmur of conversations had vanished. The street sounded just as dead as the store now appeared. The hum of the store's air conditioner made my hair stand up even more as it seemed unnaturally loud in the unnerving hush.

I turned toward the door but the blinds had been drawn over the window to block out the summer sunlight. It was impossible to see if the rest of the world had been as affected as the store. I tried to believe it hadn't, that this store was an isolated incident, but I knew it wasn't. A cold chill, that had nothing to do with the A/C unit, raced down my spine. The room swam and blurred before me as fear threatened to choke me.

The store was cool, but I was sweating profusely. I could barely breathe as I tried to gasp in air, but my lungs didn't want to cooperate. Nausea coiled through me, it burned its way up my throat. My mouth was flooded with saliva and I felt like I'd been sucking on copper pennies, but I was somehow able to keep it down. This was the creepiest, most _terrifying_ thing I'd experienced in years, but I could _not_ throw up in this store. The act of doing so somehow seemed even more wrong and degrading than the situation surrounding me now.

I was hyperventilating though. I knew that. I couldn't breathe and yet the more I panted for air, the less I was able to get into my lungs. I needed fresh air; I needed _out_ of this store. My bag was still on the counter, but I was reluctant to grasp hold of it. I was sure my mom would forgive me for not bringing the milk home.

My mom!

My heart was beating with the force of a jackhammer as my chest constricted. Nausea rose swiftly through me again. I managed to take a stumbling, awkward step back. Was my mom like these people? Was she one of _them_ now, or was she like me? Was there _anyone_ else like me? Was I the _only_ one? And why was I still able to move while they couldn't? What had happened to them, would it happen to me?

That thought caused my adrenaline to kick so fiercely I was shaking from the effects of it. I glanced over the people again. They remained frozen. Not a one of them had moved in the past five minutes. I hadn't even seen them take a breath, but they had to be breathing, didn't they? Were they dead? Would they _ever_ move again?

The questions rolled through my mind rapidly; my head began to spin. The questions kept hitting me, but I didn't have answers to any of them. I couldn't even begin to fathom the answers to any of them. Though I didn't feel like going anywhere near the woman again, I knew I had to grab the bag. If my mom wasn't like this, then I suddenly _had_ to deliver that milk to her. And if she was...

I shut the thought down; it was too much to handle right now. This situation was awful enough without adding to it. Darting forward, I snagged hold of the bag and ripped it off the counter. The rustle of the plastic set my teeth on edge. I ground my jaw, fighting back a scream as I took an abrupt step back. The woman remained unmoving, her hand still extended with my change. Her warm brown eyes didn't even flicker as I waved a hand in front of her face. I was tempted to see if she was still breathing, if she had a pulse, but try as I might I could _not_ bring myself to touch her. I was ashamed of my cowardice but the thought was completely revolting.

Keeping my eyes on the human statues, I cautiously edged toward the door. I didn't know what they would be like if they came to life again. Images of every zombie movie I'd ever seen flooded my mind. I pictured them coming back to life to tear me to shreds as they tried to get at my brains and organs. A shudder tore through me.

Reaching the door, I pulled down on the blinds in order to peek out at the seemingly peaceful day. People were frozen in mid-stride or leaning against storefronts. Some were stopped in mid conversation with their hands in the air or with their heads tilted back to peer at the sky. A man and woman had been riding their bikes down the road when the strange freezing had occurred. They were now sprawled out on the street, their feet tangled awkwardly in the toppled bikes. The wheels still spinning slowly were the only movement in the otherwise still day. Neither of them had attempted to break their fall, they had simply face planted into the asphalt. Blood had trickled from the man's nose and formed a small puddle beneath him. The woman's face was obscured by the brown hair tumbling around her shoulders.

Swallowing heavily, I tried to gather my courage to step onto the deserted, desolate street. Was there no one else who could still move? I _couldn't_ be the only one. That thought was almost as terrifying as becoming one of the frozen people.

If I was frozen at least I wouldn't be alone, and perhaps I wouldn't even know what had happened to me. Or perhaps, chillingly, I would.

I removed my trembling hand from the blind. I couldn't stay here; I had to move. I had to get to my family, to see if they were safe. Gradually, I eased the door open. The small bell above it was a mellow sound that was piercingly shrill in the hushed day. I winced at the noise, scrunching up like a turtle as I waited for something to attack me. Everything remained still.

Involuntarily my gaze went to the sky. A cold trickle crept through me as I spotted the ship hovering over Boston. It was a good sixty miles away but its ominous presence was felt just as strongly as if it had been directly overhead. I shuddered at the reminder of it, shuddered at the realization that though they had spouted peace, they had finally revealed themselves to be anything but peaceful. Something I had suspected since their arrival, though I had never suspected anything like _this_.

Who could have?

I slipped from the store, closing the door silently behind me. It took me a moment to realize not even the birds were singing. I glanced around, but I didn't see animal bodies littered amongst the people in the streets. They may have been affected also, but I didn't think so. There would be some birds lying amongst the people if that was the case. Apparently the birds had even been scared off by the sudden pall hanging over the world.

My heart was thumping loudly in my chest as I crept through the still streets, trying not to burst into tears as I warily studied the alien ship. It wasn't coming toward our town, it didn't appear to be moving, but I knew it was only a matter of time before they appeared in the streets, before they came to take everyone. Somehow I knew that was exactly what they intended to do.

The thought of what they were going to _do_ with everyone after they came frightened me most.

I slipped down another street, keeping my eye on the hovering spacecraft in the distance. Bret had once told me he thought they had eyes everywhere and knew our every move. I could only pray he'd been wrong. Their technology was far superior to ours, that was an undisputed fact, but I had to cling to the hope they hadn't mastered the ability to know where _every_ person was at all times.

Please let that be true, I pleaded frantically. Please. I was nobody of importance, there was no reason they would monitor my movements.

I turned another corner, slinking through the shadows as I moved toward the center of town. I didn't know if it was possible for the inside of a ribcage to become bruised, but I was almost certain mine was due to the drumbeat of my heart.

People were scattered about the streets in different positions and different situations. One couple was kissing and another was holding hands on a bench. A family getting their picture taken by the old mill, and a group of children were frozen in the middle of a game of tag. I stopped to study the children. Goose pimples broke out on my flesh, even in the hot summer sun I was chilled by the sight of them. They were the creepiest things I had come across so far, so innocent yet spine chilling and unnerving in their frozen state.

I forced myself to turn away from them before I started screaming hysterically and didn't stop until the aliens were drawn by my screams. I slipped into an alley, leaning against the cold wall as I struggled to catch my breath. I closed my eyes, trying not to fall apart as I fought not to completely freak out. I was still over a mile from my house and wasn't sure I was going to make it.

I tilted my head back as I scanned the roofs in search of cameras. I saw none, but that didn't matter. For all I knew they didn't even have to have cameras to spy on us. For all I knew, they were omniscient. The thought didn't seem entirely farfetched, not anymore. They could apparently freeze people in an instant after all, why wouldn't they know where we were at all times? Taking another deep breath, I attempted to gather my waning courage.

I felt like a criminal as I stealthily crept down the alley. I glanced quickly away from the man leaning against the brick building at the end. He'd been in the act of relieving himself, urine stained the bricks and formed a puddle before him, but no urine still came out. Slipping onto another main road, I dashed down the sidewalk quickly, dodging the frozen people with every other step.

Lifting my arm, I used the back of my hand to wipe the sweat from my forehead as it dripped into one of my eyes. I slid into another alley and bent over as I was gripped by the sudden urge to curl into a ball and let my sanity go. I thought the world might be a better place if I did. At least I wouldn't be alone anymore. For a minute I was consumed by the urge to just give up, to wait here until they found me, but I had never quit before and I wasn't about to start now. Not when I didn't know what had become of my family, maybe after, if they were gone...

I let the thought trail off; there was no use in dwelling on it. Not until I knew.

I pushed off the wall, breaking into a brisk jog as I hurried down the alley. Turning a corner, I began to move faster, nearly sprinting as I raced down the sidewalk. I was breathing so rapidly I almost didn't hear the distant rumbling noise until it was too late. As it was, it just barely caught my attention in time.

I pressed flat to the wall, my fingers curled into the wood as the ground beneath my feet began to tremble. My head rapidly bounced back and forth as I searched for the cause of the strange sensation and noise. Creeping forward, I kept my hand pressed against the glass window of a store. The noise grew louder, the quaking increased as the sidewalk beneath my feet began to tremble even more.

I didn't know where to go or what to do. My throat was clogged; my body thrummed with tension. I continued to creep forward, but I had to get off the street. I had to find a place to hide. My hand slipped into nothingness, I nearly fell sideways as someone grabbed hold of my arm. A startled cry started to escape me, but a hand slammed over my mouth as I was yanked against a solid chest.

# CHAPTER 2

"Shh Bethany," someone hissed in my ear.

My struggles eased at the sound of my name. The grip on my arm loosened; the hand fell away from my mouth. I turned quickly, my eyes widened on the person who had grabbed me. Cade stared back at me, his midnight eyes hooded and his black hair falling across his sculpted face. His full mouth was compressed into a firm line.

We'd gone to high school together, but those two words were the most I'd heard from him in over a year. Though, there were times I'd caught him staring at me questioningly, or watching me with an intensity that never failed to steal my breath and cause my pulse to race. With just one look, Cade could make my skin tingle and my toes curl in a way no one else had ever been able to. Though I knew he had no interest in me romantically, there had been a time when I'd harbored a crush on him. I was sure nearly every girl in school had.

He was a year older than me, having just finished his senior year, but that wasn't the reason I hadn't talked to him in awhile. The main reason was I'd been too intimidated by his brooding nature, striking looks and rumors that had run rampant through the school about him. The gossip claimed that he was involved in everything from gangs to Satan worshipping and even the mob. I didn't believe the rumors, but Cade did nothing to disprove them, and at times I thought he enjoyed letting them spin wildly out of control.

He placed a long finger against my lips, gesturing for me to stay quiet as his hand slipped into mine. I stared at his strong fingers, amazed by the way our hands seemed to fit together seamlessly. I was losing my freaking mind. The world was falling apart around me and I was marveling over the fact our hands were a perfect fit, and he was actually holding _my_ hand.

He bent over me, a shiver raced down my spine as his full lips brushed against my ear. "This way."

My fingers tightened around his. I wasn't alone anymore and judging by the set of Cade's jaw, and the determination in his eyes, he had a plan, which was much more than I'd had just seconds ago. He tugged me down an alley, moving with a grace both astonishing and captivating. I was nowhere near as graceful, a fact I was acutely aware of, as I made sure not to trip over my two left feet.

I wanted to ask him where we were going, but I didn't speak as he led me down another street. The rumbling sound became distant, but I knew we wouldn't escape it for long. It _would_ find us, and I was terrified of the consequences of what would happen when it did. Cade held a hand behind him, halting me at the edge of an alley. He held up a finger as he peeked around the corner of the building. His fingers unfolded from mine as he stepped out of the shadows.

My heart kicked harder as he disappeared from view. He was the only person I'd discovered; I couldn't lose him now. I was getting ready to follow him when he reappeared. His eyes, black as onyx and cold as ice, flickered briefly over me. I felt the force of his gaze all the way to the tips of my toes. I thought I would see disapproval flicker over his features as he was a calm and reassuring presence, while I was a trembling mess, but there was none.

His fingers entwined within mine again. Turning away, he began to pull me down the street again. I nearly collided with him as he turned suddenly and tugged me into the shadowed doorway of a store. My legs shook as the rumbling noise grew closer again. I could feel vibrations in the stoop beneath my feet. Whatever was hunting us, whatever was out there, it was getting closer.

A sense of urgency filled me as Cade opened the door and slid noiselessly into the antique store. I followed behind, biting on my lower lip as I fought back the scream welling within my throat. Cade slid the door shut; the faint click of the lock was barely audible over the growing noise outside.

He turned toward the shaded windows and pulled down a slat to peer out. Even his profile was perfect, I realized as I stared at his square jaw and sculpted nose. His teeth clenched as he pulled me back a step. Seeing and hearing him now, I was struck by the memory of the last time we'd spoken nearly a year ago.

I'd been standing on the street, watching alongside my mom and little sister as one of the massive alien ships first arrived. It slid over top of us as it moved toward the city, blocking out the sun, and emitting a low humming noise that had been barely discernible over the normal sounds of the day. I had clung to my mom and sister, my heart hammering, awe and apprehension filling me as we watched it.

In the movies, UFO's were usually depicted as silver and shiny, this was not. It was pitch black, dull, and cold in appearance. It was only later we would learn it was black because it was powered by solar energy and the black captured the powerful rays of the sun better. The ship was tubular in design with two large engines attached to each side of it. Though there was a hazy disturbance trailing from the engines, it was clear enough the sky beyond could be seen through the fumes. The ship was so quiet it seemed impossible the sizeable engines attached to it were actually powering it forward.

Twenty-five alien ships had arrived that day to encircle the earth. Five settled over the U.S., three over Canada, and four throughout central and South America. Five more moved in over Europe, five more over Asia, two over Africa, and one hovered above Australia. Their arrival had signaled a short period of chaos and uncertainty. But over time, things had settled down as no imminent threat emerged to kill us, and the aliens repeatedly proclaimed peace.

As time passed this claim seemed more and more acceptable, especially once they began to share their greater technology and vastly superior medical advances with us. Incurable cancers were cured; diseases were brought under control, if not eradicated. They taught us to harvest solar power in new and far more effective ways. They drastically reduced our reliance on fossil fuels and nearly eradicated air pollution. They introduced a new form of irrigation that allowed us to grow food even in the most arid of deserts, including Antarctica. Millions of starving people were suddenly fed, people were healthier, happier, and starting to rely upon the advances the aliens gave to us. Everything they did for us was an improvement; life became radically better for everyone throughout those first nine months.

But on that strange, frightening first day, Cade had been in my neighborhood. I never knew why, as he didn't live close to us, but suddenly his car was stopping before me. He'd leaned across the front seat of his beater car, his arm on the passenger side window as he leaned toward us. Toward _me_. He had been thinner then and gangly, but never awkward. Cade had miraculously managed to skip all of the awkward stages involved with being a teenager and always been gorgeous, heartbreakingly so.

His midnight eyes appeared even darker as the sun disappeared behind the ship and he pinned me with his unerring, fathomless gaze. I was unnerved, and yet strangely enchanted by his forceful stare, a stare that didn't leave me, not even to watch the extraordinary new arrivals as they slid across the sky. I had to force my gaze away from his as I turned my attention back to our suddenly bizarre sky. Then the ship had moved past us. The sun had reappeared as the ship left the rural areas behind for Boston.

"Are you ok?"

My attention had been drawn back to Cade as he uttered the question. I couldn't find words for him; I didn't have any right now. I was terrified, fascinated, and completely astonished to realize aliens actually _did_ exist. And they were _here_. I didn't know if I was ok, I didn't know if any of us would ever be ok again. Clenching my jaw, feeling like an idiot in the face of his confident aura, I had managed a small nod.

There had been a strange gleam in his eyes as he studied me attentively. He'd appeared strangely torn about leaving us there, but that made no sense, we barely knew each other, and we certainly weren't friends. At least we weren't friends _anymore_ ; we hadn't been for years. Finally he had returned my nod, sat back in the driver's seat, and drove away. I'd watched him go until he took a left and disappeared. We hadn't spoken since.

I blinked as I was torn from the memory by the shaking of the building. A strange thrill of excitement ran through me as I studied Cade with a growing sense of wonder and curiosity.

Then, the quaking increased and I forgot all about him as my terror spiked again. The glass in the windows began to rattle in the frames, vibrating with the force of whatever was coming toward us. I took an instinctive step back. Cade's hand briefly slid against my back, stopping me from moving before his touch slipped away.

I watched in fascination, and dread, as he moved back toward the window. I almost grabbed him and told him to stop, but I was unable to move. He eased down a slat on the blinds, barely moving it as he peered out the window. Drawn by curiosity, I crept toward him. Pressing against his back, I leaned forward to peer over his shoulder. He shot me a look but didn't try to stop me.

The shaking increased, the noise level escalated as it echoed throughout the store. I searched for the source of the sound, but I couldn't pinpoint it through the small gap in the blinds. I jumped as a large _thing_ suddenly loomed before us. And _thing_ was the only word which could be used to describe it. I had no idea what it was; I'd never seen anything like it. But it was awful, disgusting, gross in ways I'd never begun to imagine gross.

Cade grabbed hold of my shoulder, holding me still as I instinctively took a frightened step back from the monstrosity outside. I nearly collided with a table containing fragile figurines that would have shattered on impact. The saying bull in a china shop flashed through my mind, and I knew I would have to be careful. I was about as graceful as a bull. There were far too many fragile things within this store, and too many hideous things outside we had to avoid.

The thing was smaller than a Mac truck but something about it reminded me of a semi without its trailer. It crept forward on numerous legs that were arachnid in appearance, but swollen, red, and bloated like an overfed tick. The legs seemed to pulse and vibrate with some strange life force. I was completely unable to understand what it was doing, unable to comprehend what it could possibly _be_. My mind simply couldn't wrap around the hideousness of this atrocity before us.

It stopped next to a few of the frozen bodies, hovering above them as it lowered to get closer to the people. I watched in repulsed fascination as one of those legs curled up before snaking out from the revolting creature. The tentacle-like appendage moved with an uncanny, rapid grace I found almost as captivating as it was disgusting. I found myself entranced by its snakelike movements. The tentacle was clear as it slithered over the ground before snagging hold of a man holding hands with a woman.

My mouth dropped and a scream tore up my throat. Before I could utter a sound, Cade slid his hand over my mouth. He pulled me against him, pressing my back to his chest as he held me close. My knees buckled and I found myself barely able to remain standing. Cade helped keep me up, but I could feel a tremor in his taut, lean muscles.

The tentacle thingy slithered up the man's leg and up to his chest. It pulled back when it reached the man's face and hovered before him like a cobra ready to strike. It remained there for a few seconds before attacking with deadly, and startling, velocity. It sank into the man's throat and drove forward as it buried itself deep within his body. The tentacle was clearly visible as it slithered beneath the man's skin and rapidly made its way through his body. The clear tentacle began to fill with pulsating blood as the man suddenly, and violently, came back to life. Vomit rolled through me, and it was only the mortifying thought of throwing up on Cade's hand that helped me suppress it.

The poor man thrashed against the thing moving through him, his arms flailed crazily against the brutal assault being waged on his body. He grasped at the woman beside him, but she remained still as stone, oblivious to his agony. The man's fingers tore at the invader, trying to pull it free, but his efforts were useless and only caused more blood to spill from his already brutalized throat. I gagged, choked, nearly fell as every muscle in my body collapsed.

This time Cade was barely able to keep me up. A small shudder ran through his body as he held me. He took his hand away from my mouth and wrapped his arms around my waist as he pulled me away from the window. I didn't fight against him, there was no fight left within me.

Cade hastily led me through the store. He dodged the shelves, and delicate artifacts, with a graceful ease that even through my strange numbness, I was able to admire. We passed by the counter. A gray haired man stood behind it, a duster was clasped in the hand above his head as he faced the shelves behind the register. His spectacles gleamed in the glow of the lamps dangling from the ceiling above him. I moved toward him to do something, to try and wake him if I could. I had to get him out of here before that awful _thing_ came for him.

Cade's hand squeezed mine; he shook his head at me as he continued to pull me forward. I was tempted to fight against him, but I was ashamed to admit I was too terrified to offer much of a protest. Cade opened a door in the back of the store and pulled me into the darkened stairwell. Closing the door behind us, he pulled the string to turn on a dim bulb. Light filled the narrow, steep stairway, but it didn't reveal the bottom of the steps.

I glanced up at him, he was a good three inches taller than me at around five eleven. Cade bent close to me, pressing his lips against my ear again. "Stay," he said so low I barely heard him over the loud rush of blood filling my ears.

I remained where I was simply because I wasn't certain I'd be able to walk anyway. A strange, uncontrollable shaking was starting to take hold of my body. My knees were trembling; I couldn't hold my hands still no matter how much I tried. I wrapped my arms around myself, but it did nothing to ease the chill creeping into my quaking bones.

Even in this stairwell, away from the street, I could still feel the vibrations the thing caused within the building. I could vividly recall the man struggling against the awful creature greedily pulling the blood from his body.

Another dim light clicked on below. Cade was silhouetted within the shadows as he reappeared at the bottom of the stairs. He moved with unfailing silence back to me. His hand was gentle upon my elbow as he turned the light off and guided me down the steps. I was oddly and painfully aware of the fact that he moved silently but I didn't.

He led me through the basement, guiding me through the clutter of boxes. I kept expecting to walk through a cobweb but the basement was surprisingly free of spiders and dust. Amongst the boxes were unpacked antiques set out in preparation for their move upstairs. Others had been stored away until their new owners could pick them up, something they would never do now. Cade led me to the back wall. I stood staring at it as he pushed on something I couldn't see. I frowned at him, and then at the wall as it began to creek and groan. In my hypersensitive, over stimulated state, I was barely able to keep myself from screaming.

My nose wrinkled as he led me into the small, musty smelling room revealed by the hidden door in the back wall. I was having troubling breathing, I couldn't see the walls surrounding me, but I could feel their nearness along my skin. I almost turned and bolted from the room, but I somehow managed to keep myself under control. Mainly because Cade's hand was strong and reassuring on my elbow and I couldn't humiliate myself in front of him.

He pulled the door most of the way shut before tugging on another string. Light flooded into the room, which was about twelve by twelve feet wide. There were only a few boxes within it, one of which was taller than me and nearly twice as wide. I couldn't help but speculate about what treasures were hidden within these boxes and stashed away in this secret room.

"Stay here."

I whirled as Cade released me. "Wait!" I gasped, lunging for him. I could maybe stay in this room if he was here, but by myself...

By myself I would go crazy.

His grasp on my shoulders was surprisingly tender as he held me back and shook his head at me. "I have to get him. I can't leave him up there."

I couldn't form words to argue with him. He was right, the poor man couldn't be left up there to be drained dry by that awful, bloodthirsty thing. But I couldn't be left here either. I despised being trapped within closed confines. The phobia had taken hold of me years ago, and it had never let me go. I didn't think it ever would.

He was already shaking his head as I spoke again. "I'll help you."

"No, Bethany. Stay here."

"Cade..."

"It will be better if I go alone, quicker. Quieter."

I wanted to protest and tell him I was just as terrified of this room as I was of that damn thing out there. I didn't do anything though. He was right, the man required help and I couldn't bring myself to look like a sniveling coward in front of him. _Never_ in front of Cade.

I didn't know what it was, but I'd always found myself having to appear less childlike, and more confident around him. But then again, my childhood had been cruelly ripped away from me years ago.

We had lived in this town together almost our entire lives, but we barely knew each other, and yet he gave me a sense of strength I'd never known before. Even when we passed in the hallways, not speaking, not touching, I'd always felt a strange sense of comfort just from knowing he was there. There had always been a connection to him I had neither understood nor tried to develop. I considered my feelings for him a silly crush, one that was inappropriately rearing back to life right now. All hell was breaking lose above us, and yet I found myself strangely lost to the magnificent force of his smoldering gaze.

He most certainly didn't feel anything for me, a dull, clumsy girl who was as far off his radar as the Planet Jupiter. Though he was intimidating and aloof, girls had flocked to him. They'd been drawn in by his alluring good looks and the air of mystery enshrouding him. However, I'd never seen him with any of those girls, and as far as I knew he wasn't dating anyone. I didn't even know if he ever _had_ dated anyone, no matter what the rumors said.

But even with his distant attitude, and seeming disinterest in everything and everyone, I had still found him watching me within the halls, or on the street. Sometimes I would look up and he would be staring at me with an intensity that never failed to make me quiver inside. Staring at me in a way that made me feel he knew me better than anyone else, maybe even knew me better than I knew myself.

I knew his attention didn't mean anything, I just _yearned_ for it to, but whenever I found him watching me it always left me rattled and longing for something more. Something I couldn't begin to understand but knew I craved desperately. Those were the few times I actually did feel like a silly child again, because there was no way Cade Marshall could ever see anything even remotely interesting or special in me.

I was feeling that strange connection to him again now, and it was giving me an odd sense of security and warmth. I couldn't turn into a blathering idiot in front of him. I just couldn't. No matter how much I didn't want to stay in this cramped room by myself.

My hand fell back to my side, my lips pinched together as I managed to give him a brisk nod. He continued to study me, but I kept my face impassive and tried to keep my fear hidden from him. I wasn't sure it was working though.

Finally, he turned away from me and slipped out the door. It wasn't until I heard the lock click into place I realized I didn't know how I would escape this room if he didn't come back.

# CHAPTER 3

I was shaking, close to tearing my hair out, and on the verge of screaming hysterically by the time Cade returned. He hadn't been gone long, minutes only, but I was sweating so badly my clothes were soaked and I was horrified by the realization I was probably starting to smell worse than the dank room surrounding me. Though I tried to hide my distress from him, tried to put on a brave front and prove I wasn't a weak idiot, I knew I failed miserably.

He closed the door behind him. "The man?" I managed to choke out.

Cade raised a black eyebrow, his head cocked to the side as he watched me. My shaking had eased now he was back, but my throat was still clogged. I was humiliated by the fact I was on the verge of tears. When I needed to be at my strongest, I was so close to completely falling apart, and all because of four stupid walls and a door.

"In the basement. He's fine, or as fine as he can be, considering." I managed a nod. My hand fluttered nervously up to push my dampened hair back. "Are you ok?"

"Fine," I croaked. "Just fine."

"Are you claustrophobic?"

I started to shake my head to deny it. I had never admitted it to anyone, even if there were times when I couldn't hide it. I hadn't even truly admitted it to _myself_. I was too ashamed that cramped spaces tended to upset and frighten me, too ashamed of the weakness. My family knew about it though, as I went out of my way to avoid tight enclosures, including cars for extended periods of time. "Maybe a little," I hedged.

"I can open the door again if it will help, but we won't be able to talk."

My gaze flitted longingly to the closed door. I was certain the air out there was much fresher than the air in here. I would like to be able to speak to him though, and the last thing I wanted was that hideous thing slithering into this room. "No, I'm fine." It wasn't a complete lie, I did feel better with him here, and I was certain my fear would lessen the more I was exposed to, and forced to acknowledge it. Though he didn't look as if he believed me, he didn't reopen the door. "Will he be ok out there?"

"I think so. They seem to only be going for the people on the street right now."

"Why?"

His jaw clenched, a muscle in his cheek jumped. "I think they're trying to clear it."

I wanted to vehemently deny his words, but the second I heard them I knew he was right. Those things were focusing on the streets because they had to clear them, and the frozen people were obstacles right now. I hadn't been sick to my stomach since I was a kid, but I was fairly certain by the end of today I would end up losing my breakfast, if not my life.

A chill raced down my spine. The hair on my neck and arms stood on end. There was a very good chance that I, that _we_ , would not survive this day. This attack was methodical, well planned, deliberate, and brutal. The aliens wouldn't care for survivors, they wouldn't tolerate them, and that is exactly what Cade and I were.

I wrapped my arms around myself as I tried to ease the numbness slipping through my body. "I can't stay here," I whispered. "My family. I have to get to them."

Cade nodded. "We have to wait a little bit."

"My sister..."

"We'll get to them Bethany. I promise we _will_ get to them."

I found I believed him. I didn't know why I did, or why I felt he would do whatever he could to help me, but I knew he would. My head bowed, tears of frustration and anger burned my eyes. I wouldn't shed them though; I hadn't cried in years, I wouldn't cry now.

"Why are we still moving while everyone else is, well..."

My question trailed off, I didn't know how to describe the state of these people right now. Frozen? Mannequins? Corpses? The living dead? Whatever they were, and no matter what they were called, they were the freakiest things I had ever seen. "I don't know. I imagine we were all given something, whether through food or water, medicine or surgery, or even simply the air we breathe. It doesn't seem to have worked on us."

"Not yet."

Cade's eyes were hooded as he tilted his head to study me. I swallowed heavily, hating the words I'd just uttered, but we both knew they were true. Just because we weren't statues now didn't mean we weren't going to become statues later. At any moment we could freeze and become trapped within the confines of our own bodies. The thought did nothing to ease the constriction in my chest being within this room had started. In fact, it took all I had not to completely fall apart. Took all I had to keep on breathing even though it was suddenly very difficult. I didn't know if those people were consciously aware they were frozen and about to be killed, but I preferred to think they weren't. I couldn't bear the thought they knew they were stuck like that and about to be devoured. If they did know...

I abruptly shut the thought off. It was too awful to begin to contemplate. I couldn't take it if it were to happen to me. I'd rather die first.

"They may simply be taking us in stages," he agreed. "Or it may never happen to us. We are all different; we are all made of different DNA. There is no way _everyone_ would react in the same way to whatever it was they gave us. I'm sure we'll be fine Bethany."

I liked to believe we wouldn't be struck immobile any minute now. I had a feeling if the aliens discovered whatever they had done hadn't worked on us, the consequences for us would be even worse than what the people on the street were going through. They wouldn't be happy to learn they weren't perfect, and things hadn't gone exactly as they'd planned. We would be punished.

_Horribly_.

I swallowed heavily, frightened by the realization. We couldn't get caught. But what were we supposed to do? Where were we supposed to go? I labored to keep my mounting panic contained. First things first, I had to get out of this room and find my family. I prayed they were safe.

"I never trusted them," I whispered.

"I know."

My attention turned back to Cade. He had moved deeper into the room, his midnight hair blended seamlessly with the shadows hugging him. The black tank top he wore emphasized the corded muscles of his arms as it blended in with the dark. The summer sun had deepened his already olive complexion to a bronzed hue I was envious of and would never be able to achieve. My summer color tended to be red if I spent too much time in the sun.

He was examining a few of the boxes, but he didn't try to open them, and he didn't appear to be truly interested in their contents. I had the feeling that even if he wasn't looking at me, his concentration was still solely focused upon me. "How did you know that?"

He lifted a large box with surprising ease and placed it on top of another. "It's been written all over your face for the past year."

Though I had caught him watching me, I hadn't realized he'd been scrutinizing me so closely, but apparently he must have been watching a little more keenly than I'd realized. "Oh."

"You don't hide things very well."

"I see." Though I didn't see, and I was more than a little confused by this conversation. I decided to change the topic. "How did you know about this room?"

"I've been working for Peter for two years now."

"Peter?"

"The man outside." I frowned, my hands clenched more firmly on my arms. I hadn't known that. In fact there wasn't a whole lot I did know about him anymore, other than rumors. The girls at school called him the black devil due to his cold demeanor, midnight hair and coal colored eyes. I had never given much thought to the nickname, I'd thought it was silly and they were absurd for saying it. Standing in his presence now I completely understood it, and couldn't shake it from my mind. "He keeps the most valuable things secured in here."

I just nodded. I didn't know what else to say. I wasn't sure if I was reading too much into this conversation, or if I was completely missing something. Either way, I was beginning to feel like an idiot.

I hadn't been expecting any of this when I'd woken up this morning. But then, it could be worse, I could be one of those people in the street. I was lucky to still be moving, I was lucky to have someone else with me now. Especially Cade, as he seemed remarkably calm and competent considering the way our lives had been abruptly turned upside down.

I had to pull myself together if I was going to survive. "Sit."

My attention was drawn back to Cade. He had settled himself onto one of the boxes; his arm was draped over his bent leg as he watched me. I didn't intend to move away from the door though. I was _not_ going any deeper into this room. The very idea of it was enough to make my heartbeat excel and my skin crawl. I shook my head.

He climbed to his feet and carried one of the boxes over to me. "Sit Bethany, relax. I have a feeling we won't be getting many more opportunities to do that anytime soon. We had better take advantage of it now."

I stared up at him, momentarily lost as he gazed at me. I had always tried not to let how attractive he was effect me but it was impossible. We were completely different people and he was way out of my league. He'd always been a fascinating enigma that was nearly impossible to solve. He could have any girl he desired, probably most women too. And I was... well I was just _me,_ but nothing overly remarkable either.

But now Cade was only inches from me and his presence was overwhelming in the small room. I felt like a fool, but I couldn't stop myself from admiring the sheer magnificence of him as he leaned close enough for me to see the stubble lining his jaw. He smelled like an enticing combination of spices and crisp fresh air. I shifted self-consciously. I didn't want to move away from him, but I didn't want him paying too close of attention to me either. He could see I was a mess, but he didn't have to smell me on top of it.

I didn't think I could relax, but I limply slid onto the box because I didn't know what else to do. He watched me for a minute before moving back to his own box. We didn't speak as the bulb cast shadows around the room. It shook from the vibrations of the thing making its way down the street, draining its victims.

Draining _people_.

# CHAPTER 4

We slipped through the shadows of the buildings, Cade moving with an easy grace I found astonishing. I wasn't silent or graceful, but at least I wasn't a blundering idiot. Not this time anyway. I followed him as we made our way through the streets. I didn't feel the rumbling approach of those monstrous things, but I kept alert for any sign of their return, or any sign of something _else_ coming for us.

The streets weren't as cluttered with people now. I didn't know what they did with the bodies when they were done with them, but thankfully they didn't leave them behind. Guilt filled me for feeling relieved about the disappearance of the frozen people, but I couldn't handle seeing their broken remains cluttering the street. Not on top of everything else.

Cade slipped around a corner; my heart picked up a beat as he disappeared from view. He was waiting for me when I turned the corner, his hand stretched behind him to hold me back.

I stopped, my breath trapped within me as I strained to hear anything out of the ordinary. It was unnaturally still in the fading light of day. I wondered if the aliens had retreated to their ships for the night, or if they would be returning soon to start collecting the people still within their homes and stores.

Cade moved forward again. We made our way out of the center of town, slipping into backyards, staying to the woods as we swept through the shadows with more speed. Excitement and trepidation hammered through me as we neared my house. I didn't know what to expect, I tried not to get my hopes up too much, but it was impossible.

I almost broke into a run when my house finally came into view, but Cade held me back, his arm encircling my waist as he kept a firm grip on me. "Getting yourself killed won't do you or your family any good."

I nodded, biting on my bottom lip as I ignored the strange sensations his touch aroused in me. Or at least tried to ignore them, but it was impossible. My body tingled with unfamiliar currents of electricity when his fingers brushed over the bare skin exposed by the slight uplifting of my t-shirt. His breath was warm as it increased against my ear.

I forced myself to focus on something other than him, now was most certainly not the time to be thinking about this stuff. My house looked ominous in the growing night. It appeared empty, cold, and dark. My home was _never_ dark. Abigail was forever turning on lights, but she always forgot to turn them off. It wasn't unusual to come home and find every light in the house spilling from the windows, lighting the night like a homing beacon.

My mother and Aiden were constantly lecturing Abby to turn the lights back off; I remained silent on the matter. Though I never said it, I secretly liked the welcoming warmth of the lights when I came home. There had been enough darkness in our lives, I wasn't about to tell Abby she should keep the house dark too.

The complete absence of them now was enough to make my eyes burn.

"Cade," I croaked, choked by the lump in my throat.

"They wouldn't turn the lights on Bethany, not tonight." I tried to find solace in his words, but there was none. "Come."

He entwined his fingers with mine and led me through the trees. We moved quickly across the street before darting around to the back. For the first time I realized just how rundown my home had become. Paint was peeling off in flakes; the back porch sagged beneath the weight of years gone by and the weather.

I winced as the stairs creaked beneath my feet. My heart hammered as I twisted the knob and cautiously pushed the door open. The hinges squeaked, the kitchen floor groaned as I stepped inside. The familiar scent of my mom's perfume, food, and scented candles washed over me. In the dim illumination, I could make out the tidy kitchen counters and the outline of pictures, report cards, and magnets covering the fridge. Plants hung in the window over the sink, dishes were stacked neatly in the dish drain.

It was my home, and for the first time it felt cold and lonely. Vacant.

I carefully made my way through the kitchen. Though there was enough light to guide me, I moved mostly on instinct through the rooms. Cade followed silently as I crept up the stairs. "Mom?" I was afraid to speak too loud in the foreboding silence. "Mom?"

I heard the choked tears in my voice. I swallowed heavily, forcing myself to speak louder as we reached the top of the steps. "Mom?"

"Bethany." I jumped a little, startled by the response. I had truly believed I wouldn't receive one. Cade placed a hand in the small of my back, steadying me before I crashed into the banister. "Bethy?"

"Abby?"

There was a faint shuffling noise and then my little sister appeared in the doorway of our mom's bedroom. Relief filled me; a small cry escaped my lips as my knees nearly gave out. And then I was moving, running, fighting back tears of joy as I grasped hold of her. At fifteen, she was only two years younger than me, but she seemed much younger. Maybe it was her petite, and delicate build, but I felt it had more to do with her innocent air. She was nowhere near as jaded as I was.

Her small arms wrapped around me as she sobbed against my shirt. "Oh Bethy I was so scared! I didn't know what to do, I couldn't leave her," she moaned.

I closed my eyes, my heart breaking as Abby confirmed our mother hadn't been as lucky as us. I could barely breathe, but holding Abby gave me a sense of strength I hadn't experienced until right now. I had to be strong for her; I had to keep her safe. No matter what, I _had_ to make sure she survived. "Aiden?"

Her coffee colored hair fell about her shoulders in a tumbling mass of long curls as she shook her head. "I don't know, he went to see Bret earlier but he hasn't come back."

My hands clenched on her shoulders as I took solace in the fact she was still moving, still ok. If Aiden was able to move he would come back here as soon as he could. Bret's house was farther away than the antique store though. If he wasn't still moving then I would find him at Bret's, but I was in no hurry to rush out of here. Not until I saw my mom.

"Where is she?"

Abby nodded toward our mother's bedroom, but it was obvious she wasn't ready to go back into it. She was shaking, and unlike me there were tears rapidly coursing down her face. I ached for her, she had probably spent the entire day standing guard over our mother, terrified and confused, and completely alone. I didn't blame her for not wanting to return, she'd done enough already.

"Stay here," I said as I squeezed her shoulder.

I moved past her as I crept into my mom's room. The room was dark, but I saw her instantly. She was sitting on the bed with her head bowed over the papers spread out before her. Her reading glasses were in place, a pen was clasped between her lips. Her chocolate hair had been pulled into a lose bun that hung against her slender neck. The resemblance between her and Abby was unmistakable. They both had elfin features, dark hair, and a petite physique. Abby and my mother had always reminded me of delicate faeries. I often felt awkward and out of place around them due to my clumsiness and slightly larger build, a part of me was convinced I would accidentally knock them over one day. I was slender like them, but taller and my skin was fairer. Aiden and I had inherited our dad's height and honey blond hair.

"Mom," I whispered, even though I knew it wouldn't do any good. She didn't respond, didn't even blink. I moved closer to her, shoving aside the papers as I slid onto the bed. I had seen her in this exact same position many times before, but this was the first time I'd ever felt out of place and frightened. I touched her cheek lightly, her skin was still warm, but it was cooler than it should have been. That man had still been alive, she had to be also, I hoped. "Oh, mom."

I bowed my head to hers, resting my forehead against her bent head. I was struggling not to lose complete control, not to turn into a sobbing mess, but I wasn't sure I could keep my sanity through this whole catastrophe. I felt Cade's presence in the room, sensed his gaze upon me before I saw him.

My hand lingered upon my mother's cheek as I turned to him. "What do we do?" I asked.

"We survive." They were cold words, and yet the tone accompanying them wasn't. It was understanding and sympathetic. It was also resilient and unwavering. "Because we have to, because it is what she would _want_ you to do."

"I can't leave her here."

"I know." I turned away from him, unable to form words or opinions right now. "We won't. I have to go somewhere right now though."

My head snapped around, my mouth dropped open in shock. I released my mom's still hand as I limply slid off the bed and took a step toward him. "Where?" I managed to choke out.

"I have to go to my house. There are some things I have to do."

I was confused by this sudden turn of events. I hadn't expected him to leave us here, but of course there would be things he'd have to do, things he'd have to check on at his own home. I didn't know where he lived anymore, or who he lived with, if anyone. He was most likely on his own now; he was eighteen after all. "Of course."

"I'll be back." I barely managed a nod. "Soon."

"We... we could come with you."

He shook his head. "No, I'll move faster by myself and Aiden could still return. You have to stay here."

"But..."

He broke off my protest. "You have to stay with your mother Bethany, and you have to see if your brother returns. You'll never forgive yourself if you don't. My place is only half a mile from here. I'll be safe in the woods."

I was surprised to learn he lived so close. Cade had bounced around so much over the years that it had been difficult to keep track of where he was living at any given time. "What if you don't come back?" I whispered. "What if something happens to you and I could have helped to stop it? Abby can wait for Aiden." Even as I said the words, I knew I couldn't leave her again.

"There are more of those things out there than there is of us now Bethany. Their technology is better, they planned this, and they have the upper hand. I don't think there's anything either of us could do to stop them right now. Besides, you don't want to leave your sister again."

"You're not safe out there Cade, you can't go alone."

He'd moved steadily closer throughout the conversation and was before me now. I had to tilt my head back to take all of him in. His eyes and hair blended in with the night around us, giving the sinister impression he was a part of the darkness and far more at home in it than any other person would be. His handsome features were half hidden in shadow, his full mouth pinched. I was breathless as he pushed the hair back from my shoulders. His fingers stroked over my cheek, leaving a trail of heat in their wake. My mouth parted in amazement, my face tilted instinctively into his caress. I didn't know what was going on, what he had in mind, until his lips pressed against mine.

And then, I just didn't care anymore.

# CHAPTER 5

In the beginning his lips were warm, supple yet firm, as they pressed against mine. But his mouth became steadily more demanding, and his hand became more forceful upon me as he pulled me closer to him. I was caught up in the warmth and pleasure of his kiss, ensnared within the whirlwind of emotions and passion that sprang forth. Engulfed by the tempest his exquisite, desperate kiss created as his tongue entwined with mine.

I didn't know what he was desperate for, but I sensed the full force of his desperation beneath the rolling joy and passion swirling rapidly between us, escalating higher and higher until I was certain it was going to consume us both. I found I didn't care if it did. I only wanted to ease the passionate need I sensed simmering so fiercely beneath his calm facade.

Why he would need or desire me, I didn't know and I didn't care. Not right now. I was too entangled in the astonishing sensations encompassing me to care. His arm encircled my waist as he lifted me against him and held me firm against his chest. I had never felt like this before, never experienced something so fantastic, and joyous, and right. And it was so very _right_ ; it was as if everything in the world, no matter how awful and horrible it was, would be ok. I had found a place to belong, a place of safety within his arms. As long as I was here, and he was here, I would survive. _We_ would survive.

Then something else began to happen. Something within my mind began to unravel, opening before me like a morning glory to daybreak. Memories spilled forth, engulfing me as they spiraled rapidly beyond my control. Memories I'd buried years ago, because that was where I preferred them. Memories of that _horrible_ day. A day that, until this one, I had never thought could be topped as far as terror and devastation went.

I had been trapped, upside down, pinned by the twisted metal of the car. Stuck within the backseat I could do nothing more than stare at the broken body of my father in front of me. In the beginning he'd been awake, he'd asked about me and tried to calm me, but as time dragged on, and more blood was lost, he'd stopped speaking.

It had been awful, horrendous. So awful I'd been too numb to cry, too engulfed by melancholy to understand what was going on. I was only nine, the most I knew of death was the small ceremonies we'd held to bury our pets in the backyard. I didn't know much of death, but I knew the exact instant when my father left me. I knew the man I loved more than anything was not coming back to me, and I still didn't cry. I'd been trapped within the wreck for hours, unable to break free no matter how hard I tried before they found us.

It had taken another hour for the rescuers to free me from the car. During that hour they'd draped a sheet over my father, not to protect me from seeing him, it was too late for that. They'd done it because they were unable to handle the sight of his ruined body, especially in front of his eerily composed and somewhat unnerving young daughter.

I didn't cry that day, or the following three. I didn't speak either. I didn't talk about what I had seen, what it had been like to be imprisoned, unable to break free, while I listened to the sound of my father's blood dripping against the roof. I didn't talk about the how his small moans of suffering, moans he'd tried to stifle from me, haunted my every moment.

I didn't mention the awful silence and desolation that had engulfed me when those moans had stopped. I was left with only the endlessly dripping blood, and the horrifying realization my father was gone. I had been unable to tell him I loved him just once more before he left me. I told no one about any of it, not even my mother, who even through her own grief was more concerned about my wellbeing than her own.

That was the main reason I didn't cry. I didn't want her to know how badly I was damaged, how haunted and tormented I was. I wanted her to believe I was strong; I would be ok. I wanted her to believe that no matter what had happened she wouldn't have to worry about me too. I was fine. I was brave. I would survive, no matter how distraught and broken I really was.

It wasn't until the day of the funeral that I finally cried, and thankfully my mother hadn't been there to see it. But Cade had.

The funeral had been over but I was still wearing the small black dress my mother had picked out for me. Abby and Aiden, also dressed in black, hadn't been as stoic as me throughout the ceremony. They had wept openly. My lack of crying wasn't missed by the people and at the reception after I was the main topic of conversation. Though they whispered, and thought they were keeping their words from me, I wasn't as gone as they seemed to think.

I didn't catch it all, but I caught enough to know their hushed words weren't truly heartfelt, but merely more gossip for them to banter about. Was there something wrong with me? Had the accident ruined me? Had I always been a cold child? Had they somehow managed to miss my oddness until now, when it was so blatantly obvious?

I'd slipped out of the house, eager to escape the oppressive heat of our home and their phony concern. There was a large, beautiful garden to the right of the house that my mom had been forced to sell the following year. The garden had been my mother's pride and joy, filled with flowers, strange plants, and the enticing scent of roses and lavender. In the far back corner there had been a wooden bench tucked beneath the drooping boughs of a giant willow. I made my way to that bench.

I sat there for hours, my hands folded before me as I watched bees buzzing lazily about, and butterflies flitting from here to there. I tried not to think about anything, tried not to break under the weight of my mourning as it threatened to consume me. I don't know how long I sat there before I felt the presence of someone else. I lifted my head, blinking against the sun drifting lower in the sky. It took a few seconds to spot the young boy who had wandered into the garden; astonishment filled me when I recognized Cade.

Up until a couple of years ago, Cade had been good friends with Aiden and I had always liked him. Unlike Aiden's other friends he had never tried to push me away, never called me names, and had not found me annoying, or tried to ditch me. He'd always invited me to play with them, always been kind and gentle. He'd exhibited endless patience with me, even when he'd taught me how to fish and I had insisted on throwing them all back. Aiden had vehemently protested it. Cade had simply done as I'd asked without a word of complaint and an understanding smile that had melted my young heart.

Then, when I was seven and Cade was eight, his parent's were killed in a home robbery gone wrong. Cade had been fortunate enough to be at a friend's house when the murders occurred. He was placed into foster care after, and though he still lived in our town, he didn't live near us anymore. His friendship with Aiden ended abruptly after, and he'd stopped coming to our house nearly every day. He became distant and unfriendly toward us as he took to moving callously, and methodically, through his life. At his parent's funeral the caring friend I'd known, and loved, had ignored me when I tried to convey my sympathy over his awful loss. I'd tried to speak to him twice after, but he'd walked right past me. Rejected and confused, I had given up trying to reach out to him.

And then, two years later, Cade with two parents gone and me with one, he was suddenly standing before me again. He was taller than the last time he'd been at my house, lankier, and already becoming one of the most handsome and sought after boys in school. Yet, that wasn't the person standing before me in the garden. This person was different. This person wasn't just a mere boy, not anymore. I now understood that though Cade still looked like a boy, he'd already stopped being one. He had become a man two years ago when his parents were so viciously taken away from him. Fate had seen fit to spare him, but longing and sorrow remained in his surprisingly wise eyes.

For the first time I understood why Cade didn't smile, laugh, talk and play with us anymore. I understood that though I may do those things again someday, I would never do them in the same way I'd done them just four days ago. For the first time, I understood that though Abby and Aiden had also lost a parent, they didn't share what Cade and I did. They didn't have to live with the burden of having been spared, when they should have died.

My siblings would never wish they'd been home too, so maybe they could have done something to stop it like Cade did. They would never wish they had been able to warn our dad about the deer sooner, before it had been too late to stop the car. They would never feel guilt over being the ones to survive, when they shouldn't have. When _we_ shouldn't have.

Cade sat beside me in the fading light of what had been a beautiful early summer day. We didn't speak as an hour, and then two, slipped by. The sunset lit up the sky with a myriad of beautiful colors that should have been uplifting, but somehow only made me sadder. My father would never see such a beautiful sunset again. _I_ shouldn't have been there to see it, but I was.

Seeming to sense my growing distress, Cade's fingers slid into mine and something began to ease inside of me. I felt at home, I didn't feel so ashamed and devastated with him beside me, holding me. For the first time in days I didn't feel guilty, I wasn't consumed by self-hatred. I didn't close my eyes and see the broken body of my father. The nightmares causing me to wake, screaming soundlessly every night, didn't even seem so bad right now. With him holding my hand I didn't feel like I was going to fall apart, shattering like a dropped piece of glass if I moved the wrong way. For the first time, I almost felt a small measure of peace again.

"It's ok to cry." His voice was soft as the sun slipped beyond the horizon.

And for the first and last time, I did. I didn't sob loudly or completely fall apart. I didn't scream and rail against the heavens, or fate, as I had worried every second of the past few days I would. Instead, I wept soundlessly as all the anguish and shame steadily poured from my broken heart. He wrapped his arm around me and pulled me against his side. Cradling my head, he didn't tell me to stop, didn't tell me it would all be all right, didn't offer me the same false words everyone else had over the past few days. He simply held and comforted me in a way I'd never been held, or comforted, before.

It was nightfall before my tears finally subsided and I lay spent against him. I could feel the rigid press of his ribs against my cheek; hear the solid beat of his heart. The crickets were out, an owl hooted somewhere in the distance, and though it was growing cooler neither of us moved. I needed him and his understanding. I had to know I wasn't as hated as I felt. In those moments, I needed him more than I had ever needed anything in my life. I was _not_ going to be the first one to pull away.

It was another hour before my front door opened and light spilled across the large front porch. People had been steadily leaving all day, but no one had noticed us under the shelter of the willow tree. There were still a few cars in the drive, but I knew it wasn't one of their owners stepping outside now.

"Bethany! Bethy are you out here?" I longed to stay hidden away and remain secure in Cade's arms all night. The last thing I felt like doing was returning to that house, with all of its loving memories, and reminders of things lost, with all of the enclosed spaces that seemed menacing to me after the car accident. "Bethany where are you?"

The edge of hysteria in her voice roused me from my cocoon of understanding and support. She had just lost her husband, and she was terrified she was losing me. I hadn't understood it at the time, but my mother had known I was standing on a thin precipice about to crumble from beneath me. She had worried she would lose me forever, and she hadn't known how to stop it from happening. Only Cade had.

"Bethany!" Her voice broke, the 'any' part of my name came out as more of a sob then a shout.

"Here mom!" I called, unable to bear the thought of her crying again, at least not over me. Though, she had already cried plenty of times for me. "I'm right here!"

"Where?"

"The garden. I'll be right in!"

She didn't call for me again, but she didn't go inside either. She stood in the doorway, waiting patiently for her wayward, broken child. Cade squeezed my hand; I sensed the loss filling him, the regret and sadness holding him captive. He wrapped his hand around the back of my head. Pulling me to him, he kissed my forehead with a note of goodbye that caused the last of my tears to fall.

"One day Bethany the nightmares will not plague you, the hurt will not be all encompassing, and you will be able to breathe again. It does get better, I can promise you that much."

I nodded; he was the first person who had told me this that I actually believed. I put faith in his words because he _knew_ ; he understood how I felt more than anyone else possibly could. Over time, through the therapy my mom forced me into, and because of the enduring love of my family, friends, and my own growing understanding of the world and myself, things _had_ gotten better. Just as he had promised they would. But back then, his promise was the only thing I had to count on in those early hours, days, and weeks. The only thing I had to cling to in order to keep some grip on the world surrounding me, in order to keep on breathing.

"Bethany!" my mom called again, impatience and anxiety evident in her voice.

"I have to go." He nodded, pulled me close to him and kissed me ever so tenderly again but this time on the mouth. I stared at him in awe; my lips trembled as I was jolted by the impact of his warm lips upon mine. I had just received my first kiss, and it had been so delightfully sweet and uplifting. It had been everything I'd ever dreamed it would be, even on that hideously bleak night, and it had been with _him_. "Goodnight Cade."

He managed a small smile; his black eyes gleamed in the increasing moonlight as he released me. My legs were shaking from his lingering effect on me as I made my way out from under the tree. "Goodbye Bethany," I thought I heard him whisper.

When I glanced back I could just barely make him out on the bench, watching me as I walked to the house. Over the next few weeks I kept expecting him to reappear, I would even go to the garden and wait for him, but he never did. I would see him in school, but I was too shy to approach him after being rebuked before, and he didn't approach me. Then, as time slipped by, and the normal routine of life once again took hold, I stopped waiting for him to reappear, and eventually forgot about that night.

Until now.

Now I was swarmed by the memory, the emotions, the loss, and the peace he'd given me on that long ago night. And once again, I was crying.

# CHAPTER 6

"It's ok Bethany." I heard him whisper through the haze of memories assaulting me. "It's ok to cry."

Those hauntingly familiar words wrenched a muted sob from me. I bowed my head before him as he soothingly stroked my cheeks. I think he knew where my mind had gone, what memories haunted me now. "You didn't come back after that night. You didn't come back _then_."

His forehead rested on mine as his hands pressed against my cheeks. "I couldn't." I understood. My fresh grief had reopened his barely healed wounds. That night he had come to offer me what comfort he could, but he had been unable to handle giving me anymore. "This time, no matter what, I will come back for you Bethany, I promise. I will always come back for you. But you must stay here, with your sister and your mother."

I was tempted to argue his decision, but I couldn't. He pressed something into my hand and closed my fingers around it. "I locked the store when we left. If I'm not back in three hours, you and Abby are going to have to get your mother back to the room. Bring enough supplies for a week. Yes Bethany, you _must_ do this." He emphasized in response to my rapid head shaking.

"I can't. That room."

He lifted my face and took a step closer to me. "It's the safest place for now. You have to find something to help you get your mother over there, and you _will_ be ok in there. It's not the car, Bethany."

I recoiled from his words, shrinking before him as he struck straight at the heart of the matter. I tried to pull my face free of his grasp but he refused to release me. "If they find us we will be trapped in there, cornered like rats." I managed to stammer in my defense.

"They won't find you."

"You can't know that!" I shot back, struggling to hide my upset behind my anger.

"No," he murmured. "I can't know that, but it is the safest place for all of you right now. I will meet you there, if I can't get back here in time."

"Cade..."

He kissed me again, putting an end to my protest with his lips. I sighed against him, letting go of my indignation as relief and pleasure swamped me. I slid my fingers into his thick hair, pulling him closer as I opened my mouth to his again. This was wonderful, _he_ was wonderful, and I never wanted it to end. But it had to. I didn't know what any of this meant, but I did know I couldn't keep him here.

This time I was the one who pulled away. I rested my hands over his strong ones, squeezing them before moving away. He had to go; we both knew that. What neither of us knew was what was going to happen if he did return, or if he didn't. But he had to leave now, before I couldn't let him.

"I _will_ come back Bethany," he vowed.

I nodded as I managed a weak smile. I watched him move out of the room until he disappeared. I felt a piece of my heart go with him. Abby moved into the doorway, her doe brown eyes were as round as baseballs as she gazed at me. "Well, one thing's for sure," she said after a lengthy silence.

I licked my lips nervously. My body thrilled at the realization I could still taste him on me as my toes curled. Swallowing heavily, I tried to wet my parched throat. He had to come back; he just had too. "What's that?" I managed to croak out.

"If Bret isn't frozen, he's going to be pretty pissed if we find him."

My mouth parted, I inhaled sharply as shock rocked me back on my heels. It was the first time I'd thought about Bret, my sweet and loving _boyfriend_ who was nothing but kind and unfailingly faithful to me, in a while. How could I possibly have forgotten about him? Guilt and dismay filled me as I slumped onto the bed. I had forgotten about Bret, but if he was still moving, I knew he had _not_ forgotten about me. Not even for one small second would he have forgotten about me. In fact, if he was still moving I was certain he would be arriving here as soon as he could, with his best friend, my brother.

***

Abby and I struggled to move our mother onto the piece of plywood I had uncovered from behind our sagging shed. Originally we'd planned to transport her in our old red wagon, but there was no way for us to maneuver it rapidly and quietly through the woods. I had to pause repeatedly to wipe the sweat from my brow as I fought to maneuver our immobile mother onto the small board. I hoped Abby would be able to hold up her end; she was strong for her size, but not used to physical labor.

It was going to be a tiring walk back to the antique store if we didn't have help.

Tears slid down Abby's face as she briefly stroked our mother's hair. I was captivated by the striking similarities between them. Even if our mother was gone forever (something I couldn't even consider right now), she would live on in Abby far more than she would in Aiden or I.

For as long as I could keep Abby alive, anyway, I realized with a pang of longing. Abby was my responsibility now, and I had to keep her safe, no matter what happened.

I moved to the window and cautiously pulled back the curtain. The streetlights, on a timer, had come to life a couple of hours ago. Almost all of the houses on the street were dark. A few owners had accidentally forgotten to turn off lights on their way out the door this morning, or perhaps they had left them on in preparation for their late return home tonight. A home none of them appeared to have come back to. If there were other people out there still moving about, they were keeping their presence as secret as we were.

It was so lonely, so gloomy and frightening out there. I shuddered as I tried to keep my apprehension hidden from Abby. "It's been an hour," Abby whispered.

"He'll come back." I replied more for my benefit than for hers. "Stay here Abby."

She bolted from the bed and staggered toward me. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to pack some things. Just stay away from the windows."

"Bethany..."

I left the room before she could protest further. I felt bad leaving her there, but I had to have some time alone to think and attempt to sort this whole mess out. Not like _that_ was going to be possible. I hurried to the bedroom Abby and I shared. Whereas I was a complete neat freak, Abby was the exact opposite. It was difficult to make out the mess of clothes on the floor by her bed, or avoid tripping over them. I hadn't seen or heard any movement for hours, but I felt as if the most minuscule noise would be heard all the way to the moon if I made it.

I dug out my school backpack and dumped the contents on the bed. For the first time I didn't bother to place them neatly. There was no need; I didn't think I would be returning either here, or to school. I quickly gathered my clothes and shoved them into the backpack along with shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, and toothbrushes. I would like to pack more, but I had to keep things as light as possible, especially without being able to drive anywhere. I grabbed Abby's backpack and began to shove clothes inside for her. Abby would have preferred to pack her own things, but she would have taken an excruciatingly long time to do so. I was nipping that little problem in the bud right now.

I carried both backpacks, with their meager contents, out to the hall where I placed them by the door for later. I moved carefully downstairs, feeling my way forward as I tried not to trip over my own feet. Creeping into the kitchen, I pulled a trash bag from beneath the sink. I packed only a few perishables. We would have to eat them right away, but I was determined to bring as much food as possible and there wasn't much in the way of canned goods. I topped the bag off with paper plates, spoons, and forks before tossing in a can opener. From the pantry I pulled a case of water out before grabbing some of Aiden's Gatorade and a few sodas. In the end, I put the sodas back, Abby would want them, but they would only weigh the plywood down more.

I placed the bag by the backdoor. Pressing my hand against the glass, I stared out at the night. Thankfully the moon wasn't bright tonight, but the stars twinkled in the sky. I allowed myself to recall the time before the aliens had come, a time when I had looked to the sky and dreamed of the possibility of something else out there.

I wished the question had never been answered.

At first they'd seemed peaceful, eager to help us, happy to impart their wisdom. But after the beginning peace and shared advances, things began to change. It started gradually, with a few rights stripped away here and there. It had been so gradual we hadn't truly noticed the losses until it had been too late. Weapons were barred to promote peace amongst us all. The aliens claimed they didn't possess weapons, or at least not ones they were willing to show us. It was obvious now their weapons were far more twisted and deadly than anything we ever could have imagined, or possessed.

Then our cell phones were done away with. It was odd not to have the device strapped to me all the time, but the towers were taken down because the aliens claimed they did cause cancer and other health problems. Our government had believed them; apparently there had been evidence to support the alien's claim.

Airplanes were banned next; their threat to the alien spacecrafts, and to human life, was the explanation behind that one. We travelled in alien space crafts when it was necessary, but it wasn't often they allowed humans on board. It was mostly government officials, powerful businessmen, certain wealthy, and some famous people allowed onto the smaller alien ships.

The transition was eagerly accepted by some, but a growing dissent had started to move throughout the world over the past couple of months. However, it had been too late to stop the rapid acceleration taking place. The internet was next; they didn't offer a reason for this. There was no need to anymore as they had already methodically taken almost everything over and shut it down. Vehicles and driving had been banned last week, and finally people began to realize we were now separated from the rest of the world, cut off from the towns next to us.

It was too late by then. We had nothing left, they had taken it all, and we had allowed them to do it. Now they had come for our lives. They were sweeping through our streets, literally sucking the life from people. I shuddered, my hand pressed flatter against the glass. I wanted Cade back; I had to know he was ok. I wished Aiden were here, that I knew if my brother was safe.

I needed Bret also, what I had done with Cade was awful, but I _did_ love Bret. He was impossible not to love. He was so honest and caring there were times when I thought he was too good to be true, but he was. Times when I felt like less of a person because I knew I wasn't as good as he was, and I never could be. I was withdrawn, adrift in the world with little idea of where I planned to go, even before all of this had occurred, and I could be extremely cynical. I knew the world was a cold, cruel place just waiting to strike down the ones we loved. But Bret didn't see it that way. He saw it as something good and wondrous, something beautiful. He saw it as something to be treasured and enjoyed every day.

Bret was an amazing man who I couldn't begin to fathom, and wasn't entirely sure I wanted to. Someone like Bret shouldn't be figured out; he should only be enjoyed and cherished. And I _did_ cherish him, even if his kisses didn't cause the same heart stopping physical yearning Cade's did. Even if I had never felt completely understood and accepted by Bret. At least not in the same strange way Cade seemed to understand and accept me.

Bret thought I could be better; he tried in subtle and not so subtle ways to change my reserved nature. It was strange to realize Cade seemed to accept me for me, seemed to believe I was already stronger and more capable than I believed myself to be. He had more faith in me than anyone I had ever known before and it humbled and awed me.

An aching sadness began to fill me. If Bret was frozen then there was a good possibility his light would be taken from this world. That would be one of the greatest losses this planet would ever know. Yet, if he wasn't frozen, there was the distinct possibility he wouldn't emerge from this the same; his inherent goodness would be tarnished by the evil threatening us now. If he knew about my feelings for Cade, and what had just passed between us, a part of him would be broken.

He trusted me completely and loved me with an open honesty I hadn't been sure I deserved even before I kissed Cade. Now I was certain I didn't deserve it. Bret could never know; I could _never_ hurt him in such a way, or allow him to be hurt so badly. I'd always known I wasn't the great person Bret believed me to be, but he didn't have to know just how awful I really was, not yet anyway. He would find out soon enough, if he still moved. Bret would finally acknowledge I wasn't the perfect person he thought I was. I just hoped it didn't destroy him.

I moved away from the window. I hated the stars now, despised their mocking brilliance. The stars _had_ held their own secrets, but they'd been horrible secrets they'd spewed upon us in waves of hatred and death. I wondered if the rest of the world was sharing in this horrendous experience, or if the aliens were moving around the planet at a leisurely pace. Perhaps they were methodically taking over the world one town at a time until it was completely theirs. I felt it was more than likely it was the whole world at once. They wouldn't take the chance of others finding out what was going on, and finding some way to stop them.

If there _was_ any way to stop them.

There was no way to know what was going on elsewhere though, no way for us to establish contact outside of this town, without leaving it. I had no idea how we would get our mother that far if it ended up just being Abigail and I. I'd tackle that problem if we came to it.

Moving through the kitchen, I avoided the table as I made my way back to the hall. I had just stepped out of the room when a light flashed over the back door. I froze, my heart hammering, my adrenaline pulsing rapidly through my body as I stood breathless and shaking. The light moved rapidly over the backdoor and bounced around the room. At first I thought it was the beam from a flashlight, that either the aliens or some idiot was making their way through the woods behind our home. Then I realized it was one of the smaller spaceships I'd seen only twice before.

They were usually docked within the larger ships, hidden away. But when they had emerged they'd flitted about with the easy grace of a firefly. The smaller ships had been purposely brought forth in order to show the government, and the people, the dexterity and speed they possessed. They had been brought out as a way to gain trust, as a promise of more hopeful futures for all of us, promises that had turned out to be nothing but lies.

Now one of them was on the move again, but this time it wasn't whimsical and fascinating. Nothing good could come from its sudden appearance. I slipped further into the shadow of the stairs, uncertain how to handle this sudden development. I didn't think they were moving on already. Instinctively I knew they wouldn't leave until they made sure they had all of the people, and blood, they could gather.

The lights danced around the room, flashing off the countertops, floor, and table. It seemed as if they were trying to search for us within the house. But that was crazy. There was no way they could know we were here. They couldn't. Or could they?

I shuddered at the thought, my heart pounded as my throat went dry. Cade was out there somewhere, unprotected and vulnerable to the searching lights. I took another step back and then froze as I realized the lights were also bouncing across the front windows, filling the living room and hall. I couldn't move, there was nowhere for me to go, no way to escape the increasingly frantic bounce and sway of the beams.

I could hear the frantic staccato of my heart as it hammered against my ribs. I didn't breathe, I wasn't sure I could draw air into my constricted chest. I stared at the roof above me as I prayed Abby was away from the lights, that she didn't attempt to go near a window. I loved her dearly, but sometimes she didn't think through the consequences of her actions. I hoped this wasn't one of those times.

I remained still as stone as the lights flashed over the house and me. The ships were moving far slower than they had during their exhibition. What the _hell_ were they doing?

And then, the screaming began.

# CHAPTER 7

I bolted forward, racing down the hall as adrenaline spurted through me. I completely forgot about the lights, completely forgot about my own safety as concern for Abby consumed me. I grasped hold of the banister and leapt up the stairs two at a time. My foot caught one of the steps wrong, I nearly face planted as I fell in an awkward direction. My fingers scrambled to keep hold of the banister; it was the only thing keeping me from tumbling down the stairs. Pain lanced through my knees and hands as they smacked off the stairs, but Abby's endless screams heedlessly drove me back to my feet.

"Abby! Abby!" I raced down the hall, blinking against the blinding radiance flashing rapidly over my brutalized eyes. I felt like I was in a hideously bad horror movie as I lifted my hands to try and fend off some of the dazzling beams. Abby's screams rose and fell as her terror pulsated throughout the house. I plunged down the hall, no longer caring about the noise I made as I ran. It didn't matter anyway; they already knew we were here.

I slammed off of a table in the hallway, knocking it over with a clattering bang. It skidded a few feet away and I had to jump over it as it tumbled down the hall. Abby's cries abruptly broke off and I found the ensuing hush far worse than her screams had been. Light flooded my mother's room as I burst through the doorway. I stumbled, fell, lurched back to my feet before stumbling back again and slamming into the bedroom wall.

I flattened against the wall; my heart was in my throat as I took in the awful spectacle before me. It wasn't _us_ the aliens were looking for, but our mother. That thing, that awful tentacle _thing_ was in the room. It was moving up and down in a searching pattern as it slid across the floor toward where our mother still sat upon the plywood.

Abby was on the bed, her mouth gaping, her hands grasping either side of her head as she watched the thing slithering forward. It had broken the window; glass littered the floor around it and gleamed in the illumination filling the room. "Oh," Abby moaned.

I didn't know what to do, how to react. Then that thing reached our mother. Images of what had happened to the man on the street flooded my mind. There was no way I was going to allow that to happen to _her_. I scurried forward and fell to my knees as I grabbed a piece of glass from the floor. I ignored the sting from my sliced palms and knees as the glass bit into my flesh. Adrenaline propelled me as I lifted the glass over my head and drove down with the full force of my might.

Blood exploded over me, but I instinctively knew it wasn't that _things_ blood. It pulsed out of the tentacle in spraying waves that coated me, and the walls. I thought it was Abby's screams filling the room and it took me a minute to realize it was actually the _thing_ screaming. It screeched as it jerked and flopped over the floor, twisting and withering violently as it reared up high before slamming down again.

I staggered back to my feet and scrambled to get out of the way as it whipped toward me. It slammed into my back, knocking me to my hands and knees with a blow forceful enough to knock the air from my lungs. Choking, gasping for breath, I attempted to crawl away as it came at me again. The end of the tentacle opened to reveal piercing, needlelike teeth crammed into a hideous, six-inch wide mouth.

A gurgled cry of alarm tore from me. I was shaking, and my shirt was plastered to me with sweat and blood. I was half-afraid I was going to have a heart attack. I may not be frozen like the others, but that thing was still completely capable of killing me, even if I had maimed it. Its howling cries grew louder as it zipped at me. It sliced across my cheek and spilled more of my blood. Suddenly its screams weren't all about agony, but also excitement and hunger as it tasted me.

I dodged its attack as it searched for the source of fresh blood. I rapidly crab crawled backwards as it lunged at me again. This time I wasn't fast enough though.

It wrapped around my middle and wound toward my throat with the speed of a cobra. I clawed at it, trying to grasp it as it neared my throat with deadly velocity. "No, no, no," I found myself uselessly panting out the word, even as the thing continued to ensnare me.

"Bethany!" Abby screamed.

Then it was there, in front of my face, floating before my eyes. Those thousands of needlelike teeth clicked as they rippled over like dandelions blowing in a summer wind. Though it had no discernible eyes I knew it was staring at me, judging me, sizing me up; tormenting me before it delivered its killing blow.

The thing screamed as it reared back. I recoiled as I waited for the deathblow to be delivered, but it didn't come. I winced as it constricted upon me, nearly cracking my ribs with its intense pressure. The thing dropped suddenly, hissing and screaming as it plummeted out of my line of vision. Inhaling deeply, I was finally able to draw a full breath as its crushing embrace on my lungs eased.

My gaze found Abby across the way, sitting over the creature. The piece of glass within her hands had been driven through my original impact area, severing the thing in half. She was shaking as she stared back at me with blood-splattered cheeks. Gratitude filled me; I pulled the limp thing away from me and dropped it onto the floor as I shakily rose to my feet.

I had only a moment of relief. All of the beams abruptly stopped flashing and became focused solely upon our house. They blazed dazzlingly, lighting the room far more than even the sun would. I lifted my hand in an attempt to block the blinding light from my burning retinas. "Abby, get away from the window," I commanded.

"Bethany?"

"Get away from the window!" I ordered more sternly, my teeth clenching as my body thrummed with a sense of impending doom.

Abby crawled toward me; carefully avoiding the thing sprawled on the floor. "Hurry Abby, hurry!" I urged.

She was almost to me when another window shattered. Glass sprayed inward, showering the room with its jagged slivers. It cut across my arms, sliced my flesh, and one shard imbedded in my raised right forearm. A cry escaped me as I grabbed hold of the glass and tore it from my skin. Blood surged forth but I had no time to try and staunch the flow. Abby was curled into the fetal position, her hands wrapped protectively around her head. Her screams were piercing as they reverberated throughout the room.

We had to get out of here. _Now_.

I tossed the glass aside as I ran toward Abby. "Get up Abby! Get up!" I grabbed hold of her shoulders and pulled her toward me. "Abby get up!"

She was still screaming as she stumbled to her feet. Her cheek had been cut, glass was in her hair, but thankfully she seemed to have weathered the exploding window better than I had. "Grab the plywood. Abby, grab the plywood!"

Shock was evident in her slack features and glazed eyes. The courage she had just recently displayed seemed to have vanished before this fresh onslaught of brutality. I thought maybe I should slap her, that's what they did in movies after all, but I felt the last thing Abby needed was any more physical trauma right now. "Abby please, you have to help me. I can't do this alone."

She was moving with me to the plywood when a burst of motion caught my attention. I wouldn't have been more surprised to see a talking squirrel sitting in the window as I was to see at least twenty of those things crammed into it now. They moved, dodged and darted as gracefully as sparrows as they swarmed toward us.

"Move!" I cried.

I grabbed hold of the plywood and lifted my mom swiftly off the bed. Abby was sobbing as she grabbed the other end. "Hurry Abby, hurry." The tears streaking down her face cleansed some of the blood coating her. "Go," I urged.

Abby choked on her sobs as she moved toward the door. My arms were already aching from the weight of the plywood, and our mother. We couldn't move fast enough, couldn't get out of this room in time. I found myself wordlessly praying, desperate to run, desperate to move faster. Desperate to _survive_ as all of my survival instincts kicked into high gear and the fight or flight response consumed me.

"Bethany," Abby moaned.

She was near the door, almost completely out of it, but I wasn't close enough. I wasn't nearly close enough, and Abby could see those things. She knew where they were, I didn't. "I'm sorry," I breathed.

She opened her mouth to say something but I shoved forward, thrusting the plywood, and our mother, forcefully at her. Abby cried out and staggered into the hall before she disappeared beneath the weight of the plywood, and our mother's frozen form. I dove through the door, rolling as I dodged the snapping tentacles close on my heels.

# CHAPTER 8

I scrambled back over top of the plywood, not feeling at all sorry when I knocked my immobile mother out of the way. I knew she'd forgive me, and understand. I lunged forward and grabbed the bottom of the bedroom door as one of those things rushed at me with deadly purpose. I yanked the door toward me, slamming it shut with a resounding thud.

I fell back, my rapid pants loud in my ears as I tried to catch my breath. One of the things slammed into the door, rattling it in its frame. The old wood held up beneath the onslaught, for now. "Abby get up! Abby up, _up_!"

Abby was trying to get to her feet, but she struggled beneath the weight of the plywood lying half on top of her. I tugged impatiently at it as I helped to pull it off of her. The things were banging against the door with more urgency now. They would break through it soon enough. Finally freeing Abby, I threw the plywood back down and began to awkwardly roll our mom onto it.

"Bethany," Abby whispered. "Bethany, we have to go."

"I know, I know," I replied impatiently as I finally managed to shove my mom haphazardly onto the wood. Light suddenly filled the upper hallway. The hair on the nape of my neck stood on end as I lifted my head. The window at the end of the hall was now ablaze, the room behind me had become eerily silent. "Oh."

Abby grasped hold of my arm, her grip bruising and harsh. "Bethy."

I raised slowly, my heart hammering, and my whole body trembling. "Get the other end of the plywood Abby."

"Bethy..."

"Now Abby, get it _now_!"

She released me and crawled to the other end of the board. It wasn't the beams blazing in on us that unnerved me most, but the sudden, ensuing, _horrendous_ quiet. The only sound was the faint scrape of Abby's shoe against the floor as she bent to pick up the other side.

They were toying with us, and they were enjoying every minute of it. For the first time I became certain we wouldn't escape this house alive. I ignored the bite the weight of the plywood caused my injured palms as I gripped it firmly. Shuffling forward, I kicked aside the broken bits of the table I had knocked over earlier. There may be no chance we were going to escape this, but I wasn't going to give up easily.

"Go Abby." Her deep brown eyes rolled toward me as she stared at me with a trembling bottom lip. "Move."

Abby kept her eyes on the window, but she began to edge her way down the hall toward the stairs. There was no sound as she turned into the stairwell and made her way backwards down the steps. Tears brimmed in her eyes, but she didn't complain and she didn't cry. She made it to the bottom of the stairs and turned the corner. Light was still blazing through the windows, illuminating our way as we shuffled through the downstairs hallway.

"What are they doing?" Abby whispered. I shook my head; I had no answer for her. "They're going to kill us."

I agreed. I just wasn't going to tell her that. We were almost to the kitchen when the backdoor flew open. I accidentally slammed the board into Abby, nearly knocking her over, as she stopped abruptly. My heart lurched in my chest, instantly my throat went dry. I was certain this was the end; we were going to die. I wanted to grab Abby and shove her behind me to try and keep her safe, but I couldn't reach her with the plywood between us.

Someone stepped into the kitchen. I blinked rapidly, trying to get my eyes to focus on the person highlighted by the harsh glow of light. Abby was shaking so severely that the board was rattling. Was it one of the aliens? Had they actually come down in order to start retrieving us? "Abby?"

"Aiden?" she croaked. My whole body sagged with relief. "Aiden?"

He stepped further into the room, coming into better view as he moved. "Mom?" he whispered.

"You shouldn't have come Aiden," I breathed. Heartbreak filled me as I realized he was now trapped with us.

"Bethany..."

"You shouldn't have come Aiden," I repeated fighting to get the words out around the lump of tears clogging my throat.

"I had to."

"We're going to die."

I had feared it might be true, but saying the words aloud made it a completely devastating reality. It _was_ true. The three of us wouldn't make it out of this house alive. "Bethy..."

My gaze slid past Aiden, my heart plummeted even further as Bret stepped into the room behind him. "Oh Bret," I whispered, despair filling me. Not Bret too, I didn't think I could handle it. He was a part of our family; he was a part of _me_. He was Aiden's best friend, Abby's second brother, and he was here because he loved me with everything he had. He was going to die because of me, and I had kissed another man just an hour ago. I had never hated myself more. "You shouldn't have come."

He frowned at me as his head tilted to the side. Like Aiden and I, he was fair, but his hair was a darker blond than ours. "I had to," he said simply, and it _was_ that simple for him. The acid in my stomach churned like I'd just eaten bad chicken. Guilt churned within me as self-hatred swamped me. I was suddenly grateful I wouldn't have much longer to despise myself.

"Hurry," Aiden urged.

I didn't say it didn't matter if we hurried or not. I'd already expressed my opinion on this whole situation. I wasn't going to bring them down any further with my pessimism. "What is going on?" Bret's gaze flitted toward the fully aglow front of the house.

"We pissed them off," I answered. "And now they're toying with us."

Aiden came forward and nudged Abby aside as he grabbed the plywood. His gaze locked on our mother, tears shimmered in his eyes as his head tilted to the side. "Mom," he murmured. The heartache in his voice was almost more than I could bear.

"Aiden please, we have to move. Abby by the door there are some bags of food, you have to grab them." I didn't think we would make it far, but we would need food if we did, and we had to do something other than stand here. I _had_ to think about something other than our impending demise.

"Why are you covered in blood?" Aiden demanded.

I shook my head; I wasn't ready to get into all of the gory details right now. There was no reason to. If Aiden hadn't seen those awful sucking tentacles yet, he was about to. "Go Abby, please," I pleaded.

She nodded as she released the plywood to Aiden. His gaze was back on our mom, kicked puppies looked better than he did. Abby grabbed the bags by the door and turned back to us expectantly. Bret came to me, but thankfully I couldn't release the plywood to hug him. I could barely stand the small kiss he dropped on my cheek. It just made me feel even more disloyal and hideous.

I had known for a few years how he felt about me, but up until this year I'd warded off his advances. I loved him, deeply, but I'd never been sure if it was as anything more than a friend. Four months ago I finally relented to his pursuit. I'd reasoned that the only way I could ever know how I truly felt about him was to stop pushing him away, and treating him like a brother. Perhaps I could fall in love with him then.

Things were good between us, sweet and caring, and simple. We never fought, never even bickered. But our relationship didn't possess any of the passion, or rightness, I felt with Cade. It was rare when we kissed, and I still found it awkward and uncomfortable. Bret was patient with me, certain I would eventually come to feel more for him, and it was impossible not to put faith in anything Bret said. Where Cade was an enigma, always had been, and always would be, Bret was an open book of honesty, hope, and love.

Bret's hand lingered on my cheek, brushing aside some of the drying blood clinging to me. "Are you ok?"

"No," I answered honestly. "I am not ok. We have to get out of here, now."

"Yes." His hand brushed briefly against mine as he took the plywood from me. He was bigger than Cade, taller and broader through the shoulders. He was exceptionally handsome in a lively, unguarded way that was the exact opposite of Cade's dark splendor. Bret had been the quarterback on the football team, the star athlete. He could have had a full ride to any college he chose but that hope had been squashed by the aliens. People didn't travel anywhere anymore, never mind to college in order to better themselves. The aliens had claimed under their rule everyone would be equal, and higher education wasn't necessary. There would be no more starvation, no more illness and premature death, and far less crime. It had never surprised me so many people had fallen for their lies; it was easy to believe in something if someone was desperate enough.

Bret had been mister popularity, the golden boy the girls had chased around, and yet, for some reason he had chosen to pursue me. I should have been flattered by this; all of my friends had told me so. They'd been jealous when he'd started asking me out. They'd also been extremely incredulous, and angry, when I had continued to turn him down. They hadn't been any happier when I finally relented and said yes to him. They simply hadn't understood how I felt about Bret; they still didn't, and in all honesty, neither did I.

"Bethy." I turned my head toward him, trying to keep my face impassive as I met his gaze. "I'll keep you safe."

I winced involuntarily, mentally kicking myself even harder. If, by some miracle, we did survive this I was officially going to consider myself the worst human being ever.

"We have to be quick, move through the woods, down the trail. We can lose them once we get into the thick areas." Aiden's tone was hopeful, but we all knew that was highly unlikely. They were airborne after all. "Abby, get the door."

Abby glanced nervously at all of us as her hands clenched on the bag she held. Taking a deep breath, she managed a firm nod before hastily pulling the door open. My heart leapt in my chest, but Abby was already rushing outside. I almost screamed at her to wait, to come back, but we were no safer in here than we were out there.

"Stay close," Bret ordered as we rushed out the door behind Abby.

I was tempted to argue with him and tell him I could take care of myself, but what was the point? I couldn't take care of myself in this situation. _No_ one could.

The light was far more vivid outside; it blazed across the sky with the force of a million bulbs. It blared against my eyes, causing me to stumble and nearly fall as I bumbled blindly behind the plywood. A rumbling filled the air and shook the ground. I was dismayed to recognize it as the same awful sensation that had accompanied the arrival of the hideous thing earlier.

I didn't look back to see what was coming at us, I knew what was back there, and I didn't want to see it again. Bret's breathing was heavy beside me, I strained to make out Abby, but I couldn't see her through the glare pounding against my irises. I was going to be blind by the time this was over.

I felt more than heard or saw the impending attack, simply because those two senses were almost completely useless right now. I knew it was coming, that something was hunting us, and it was close. I wasn't ready, I was too young for this, and I certainly had never thought I'd go out this way.

An image of my father flashed before my eyes. I was grateful he'd never had to know this, had never had to see his family hunted and slaughtered like rodents. I was glad that, as of right now, my mother seemed to have no idea she was being pursued, and her children were so close to death. Unfortunately she would wake up, just as the man had, but by then it would be too late, and death would follow shortly after. She would never have to know the loss of her children.

I was glad for all of these things, and I was especially glad I seemed to be the first one they were going to take down. I couldn't stand to watch as they took my siblings, and Bret. I was tempted to let go of the board and bolt in a different direction, but I knew it wouldn't do me any good, and I wasn't about to go down like a coward.

No, I was going to die brave, or at least make an attempt at it.

# CHAPTER 9

A loud bang rang out, causing me to jump as Abby let out a startled scream. I ducked low as another bang shattered the air and the weird, echoing screams of the creatures filled the night. They hissed and screeched as another reverberating bang erupted. I was finally able to place the source of the loud, startling explosions, as gunshots.

I looked rapidly around, but though the vivid illumination had faded somewhat with the start of the gunshots, it was still tough to make anything out. Another shot thundered through the air. Bret cursed loudly; he was half bent over the plywood as we continued to rush forward. I caught a brief glimpse of Abby as she dashed off the trail and disappeared into the woods. My shoulders slumped, at least Abby was safer.

The strange screaming intensified as another shot rang out. We were almost to the end of the path, almost to the thicker woods when my eyes finally detected the source of the gunshots. Cade stood at the edge of the woods, a shotgun leveled against his shoulder, his gaze focused on something beyond us. I was finally able to breathe easy again as the constriction in my chest loosened. I didn't know where he'd gotten the gun, and I didn't care as he fired another shot.

His black eyes briefly met mine before he dropped the gun and rapidly reloaded it. "Hurry!" Abby called from the woods. "Please hurry!"

Cade raised the gun again and fired another shot that caused the odd, hissing type of scream to explode in a torrent of rage and pain that made my eardrums throb. "This way!" someone else shouted from the woods.

Aiden left the trail and plunged deeper into the forest. Cade slipped into the shadows, disappearing as he blended in with the night. We slipped through the forest, unnaturally loud as we crashed through the trees, and underbrush, desperate to escape the monsters following us. I didn't see Cade again until he appeared as suddenly as a ghost beside me.

"Give it to me," His hand was against mine as he tried to take the plywood from me. "Let go Bethany."

"No, my mom..."

"I'll keep her safe, just get ahead of us."

"Cade..."

"Go."

The brief caress of his fingers against mine sent a firestorm of sensations throughout me. I stared at him as I tried to understand what exactly was going on, but I failed miserably. "Listen to him Bethy," Bret urged. I fought against the guilt filling me as I relinquished my hold on the plywood. "Stay with Abby."

I turned from them, unable to meet either of their gazes as I ran from them. I ran from the two of them right now, not the aliens.

For the first time I chanced a glance over my shoulder to see what pursued us. It was one of the smaller ships, a little larger than a bus as it hovered over the forest. The lights had been toned down, but there were five of them still bouncing over the top of the trees as it relentlessly searched for us. It wasn't that far away, but I sensed it might be heading in the wrong direction. The creature that had followed us into the woods, the one eager for blood, was _not_ going the wrong way though.

I could hear it crashing through the trees, stalking us, scenting our blood as it trailed us. Then I realized what was happening. The ship was moving off because it knew we wouldn't escape. It wasn't worried about us evading the creature it had left to destroy us. It was off to hunt other prey while it left one of its monsters to hunt us. And it _was_ a monster. I could see it now, not clearly, but it was there. I sensed it was different than the one I'd seen earlier.

It seemed larger, but it moved with startling speed for its massive size and cumbersome build. It wasn't so much tall as it was wide. It skittered through the woods, shaking the trees as it roughly bumped against them and rattled the leaves in their bowers. Though the tentacles made it appear as if it were an octopus on dry land, its flattened head quickly squashed any octopus resemblance. Two giant pinchers extended from what I could only assume was its mouth. They were about three feet long and made a nail on chalkboard kind of noise as they clicked eagerly together.

_A tick maybe_? I thought wildly. _Was it a giant tick_? But no, it wasn't even like that, not with its pulsating red color that was nearly translucent at times.

Then, ever so slowly, I began to realize the red trickling through it was not its normal hue. The red color in it was blood, _human_ blood, and this thing was not full yet. Its normal color was the nearly opalescent shade rippling throughout the creature, flowing with its movements. An opalescent shade that made it appear jellyfish-like, but other than the color it looked nothing like a jellyfish either.

For a second I couldn't move, I could only stare at one of the monstrosities the aliens had unleashed upon us. It didn't appear to have eyes, at least not any I could make out from here. But it knew where we were as it hunted us like dogs on the scent of a rabbit.

I dimly acknowledged that had the aliens shown us these things upon first arriving we would have known instantly they had _not_ come in peace. We would have known what they'd intended all along. We would have been prepared for this betrayal. Whatever they had done to make people freeze had to have been a lengthy process. That had to be the reason they'd pretended peace for as long as they had. They just hadn't known some of us would survive their silent attack.

Before this had happened, we'd only seen the friendly versions of the aliens, versions who looked very similar to us, and induced trust. They didn't have bug eyes, a giant head, and small bodies like so many movies had led us to believe. Instead they were of average height, the tallest one I had seen was only six feet and he appeared to be a rarity. They had light olive to dark complexions, dark eyes, and dark hair. This fact had led many people to believe that whatever galaxy they'd come from, their planet was closer to a sun, or suns, than ours was.

Beside the fact their coloring was not as varied as ours, there were other differences between them and us. It was rumored they were physically stronger and faster than us, that they could see and hear better. I had never seen a display of these statements, but there had been a few news reports speculating on it, and claiming to have witnesses before the news had been shut down.

None of the aliens wore glasses, and it had been rumored they could possibly see at night. It was even rumored they healed more rapidly. I didn't know if these rumors were true, I had never seen proof of them, but I didn't discount them either. I didn't discount _any_ thing about the invaders anymore. For all I knew they could fly and I wouldn't be surprised to see them do so.

I didn't know what these things were the aliens had unleashed upon us. Maybe they were the alien's own messed up creations or their pets even, but I didn't believe they were the aliens themselves. I didn't for a moment think the face the aliens had shown us was some kind of disguise. There was no way they could have been hiding this hideous, massive creature beneath their outer skin.

But where had these creatures come from? It didn't seem as if they would be easily leashed and kept under wraps, not for almost a year anyway.

I was baffled by the strange twist these awful things represented. But there was no time for deciphering what they were now. Not when one of them was closing in on us, skittering through the woods as rapidly as a squirrel through a tree. If we didn't do something, it would be on top of us in a matter of minutes.

The gun was draped over Cade's shoulder; he wouldn't be able to get to it in time. I don't know what came over me, what possessed me, but I darted back to him. "Give me the gun."

He blinked at me. "What?"

"The gun Cade, give me the gun," I insisted impatiently.

"Bethany..."

"It's useless on your back, and we're going to need it."

He didn't shrug out of the shotgun strapped to his back, but somehow managed to juggle the plywood as he reached under his shirt and pulled out what I assumed was a revolver. It looked like the ones I'd seen on TV anyway. "Do you know how to use that?"

"I'll figure it out," I muttered, turning it in my hand as we jogged onward. I didn't point it anywhere near me, or anyone else. It was the first time I'd ever handled a gun, and if the shaking of my hand was any indication, I wasn't to be trusted with it.

I felt stronger with the gun in my hand though. Safer, even though I knew that it was only a false sense of security. None of us were safe right now; we probably never would be again. "You shouldn't have done that!" Bret growled at Cade.

I knew he loved me, but Bret seemed to think I needed his protection at all times and I couldn't take care of myself. Though, I supposed my tendencies toward being a loner and incessantly clumsy helped perpetuate his belief. It didn't annoy me all that often, and I hadn't felt like arguing about it so I had allowed it to continue. It had been the wrong thing to do, because it was irritating me right now.

"She'll be fine," Cade told him.

"Bethany doesn't know how to handle a gun, if she shoots herself..."

"She'll be fine!" Cade interrupted briskly. I kept hold of the revolver as I jogged away from the elevated testosterone.

The thing was still stalking us, but it wasn't ready to launch its attack yet. I caught up with Abby; she was still carrying the bag of food over her shoulder. Jenna Howe was toting another bag I could only assume held more food, or perhaps weapons.

My mouth dropped as I spotted Jenna. Everything had been so hectic, frantic, and terrifying when we fled the house I hadn't noticed her until now. I didn't know where she had come from, but I suddenly recalled the other voice I'd heard calling to us from the woods. This was the most disheveled I'd ever seen Jenna look, yet I was certain she still looked ten thousand times better than I did right now. Like Abigail, she was slender and delicate, with a fragile air that made me wary of breaking her in my awkwardness. Her skin was as smooth as porcelain, and her eyes a striking emerald green. Her rosebud mouth trembled with the force of her exhales, her pale cheeks were flushed with exertion, and her strawberry colored hair was a disheveled mess around her heart shaped face.

Though we were the same age, Jenna and I were not friends. We never had been. We didn't run in the same circles at school. Jenna was popular, perfect, and wealthy. She was always immaculately dressed in expensive clothes and her makeup and nails were flawless.

Jenna and Bret had dated a few years ago, and most people thought they were the ones who belonged together, including Jenna. She'd never made it a secret she still wanted him; she'd never tried to hide her flirtatious behavior with him, or her animosity toward me. I'd never really known how to react to her so I tended to ignore her, which was easy enough most of the time.

However, there were times when she was impossible to ignore, and so was her overt behavior. Times when even I had to acknowledge she would do anything to get Bret back. I honestly couldn't understand why he wasn't with her still, why he had broken up with her in the first place, or why he continued to choose me over her.

"Where are we going?" Jenna asked. It was probably the first time she'd talked to me in three months. I was fine with that. I had few friends and I liked it that way. I tried not to think of them now, or the fact I may never see them again. It would be ok, I told myself. I would survive their loss, I had survived worse before, but I still ached for them. I hoped if they weren't frozen they were able to get away, and if they _were_ frozen their deaths were as quick and painless as possible. I wished there was some way I could go to them, some way to help them, but there wasn't. My family had to come first, maybe later...

Maybe later I would be able to see them again, but I didn't hold out much hope for that. This was no longer the world I had always known, I was gripped by the knowledge everything I had always known was now gone. Nothing would ever be the same again and there would be a lot more loss before all of this was over.

"The antique shop."

"Where Cade works?" Jenna squeaked.

I blinked in surprise. Even Jenna had known Cade worked at the antique store. But of course she had, she may have her sights set on Bret, but Jenna was one of the people that would know where everyone she considered of importance worked, hung out, or lived. "Yes."

"Why?"

I didn't answer the question. I wasn't entirely sure I knew why we were going there. I glanced behind me, but the encompassing shadows of the night were closing in on us. The ship was fading into the distance; only the persistent slithering sounds alerted me that we were still being toyed with.

"I don't know where my parents are," Jenna whispered. "They were going out to do some shopping. They wouldn't have gone far though. My mom hates the fact we have to walk everywhere now, but I didn't see them anywhere near our house after this happened. I don't know where they are. I waited for hours, and then I ran into Cade..."

I glanced back at Bret, frowning as he met my gaze. Where were his parents? I wondered. My heart ached as I thought about the families that had been, and would continue to be, destroyed by everything happening today.

Including my own.

I looked to my immobile mother. We still had her, and there was still hope she would come back to us, but was there really a chance? Even if there wasn't, there was _no_ way I was going to let those things get a hold of her.

"I waited, but they didn't come back." My attention was drawn back to Jenna. It didn't appear as if she were talking to me anymore. Instead, she seemed to be trying to work through her guilt and distress. I wanted to comfort her, to assure her she hadn't done anything wrong, but my words would do little good and I knew it. She would blame herself until the bitter end. "I looked for them, but I was afraid to go far. I left them a note. Maybe I should go back."

"There's nothing you could do Jenna," I finally managed to assure her. "We can't go back now, that thing is right behind us."

Her vivid eyes drifted behind us. "I left a note..."

"They'll find it."

"Will they find _me_?"

My heart was breaking for her. "I hope so," I answered honestly.

"Are we going to survive?" Jenna asked tremulously.

There was no answer to her question; I didn't even know why she had asked it. "Go left," Cade ordered from behind us.

I veered to the left, pushing Jenna and Abby with me, forcing them deeper into the trees. It was grueling enough for us to make our way through the thick underbrush; the three guys holding our mother were having an even tougher time. I doubled back, slipping behind them as I searched the woods. I was trying not to lose my control, struggling not to give into the panic clamoring against my skull, and pounding through my veins. But I was frightened I was going to crack and fall apart. I had held up through my father's death, but this...

Well, this was Hell on earth.

"Bethany!" Bret whispered harshly. I ignored him as I slipped a few feet deeper into the woods. That thing was out there, somewhere. "Bethany get back here!"

I bristled over his commanding tone, but I didn't obey him, I didn't know why he thought I would. There was some commotion, and then someone was grabbing hold of my arm, trying to pull me back through the trees. "Bethany," Bret whispered in my ear. "Come on, we have to get out of here."

"I know." I tried to tug my arm free, but he refused to relinquish me. "Bret!" I hissed, impatience tearing through me. He didn't release me as he pulled me forward, tugging me behind the others. There was no way we were going to be able to outrun that thing, it was impossible. If we didn't stop it, it would only follow us to the store. "We have to stop it, it won't go away!" I panted. "We can't outrun it Bret, it will only catch us." It was true; we were already wearing down. Other than Bret, none of us were exactly athletes, though Cade was in a lot better shape than I'd thought possible for someone I'd never seen in gym class.

"Finally!" I shouted when he continued to pull me along, ignoring my protests. "We have to _finally_ stand up for ourselves! Bret, stop!"

My voice was bordering on shrill, and I could barely breathe, but I was right. If we didn't make a stand we were going to die. There was no way for us to outrun it, no way for us to escape its ruthless approach. "This is it Bret," I whispered. "This is it."

His eyes were shadowed in the night, but I knew their clear green color well. I also knew that stubborn set of his chin, and the muscle twitching in his cheek. He was torn, annoyed, but beneath it all I could sense his concern for me, for himself, for all of us. "Bret."

He turned away from me. "Do you have any more guns?" he demanded of Cade.

They had stopped running with us and the plywood sat on the ground between him and Aiden. I couldn't see Abby and Jenna but I sensed them in the night, waiting breathlessly for us to join them. Cade's eyes were hooded, his upper lip curled as he studied Bret. A trickle of sweat slid down my spine, but even so I was chilled.

"Cade?" I inquired, hoping to divert his attention from Bret.

The sneer slid from his lips as he briefly glanced at me. He pulled his bulky duffle bag forward, tugged open the zipper and tossed something to Bret. It was only when the dim radiance of the moon flashed across it that I realized it was another gun. I was tempted to ask him where he'd acquired the weapons, but now wasn't the time. He pulled the shotgun from his shoulder while Aiden motioned Abby and Jenna forward.

I dug the key from my pocket; my hand shook as I handed it back to Cade. "Take mom." Aiden had a hold of Abby's shoulders as Cade handed the key to Jenna and explained how to get into the room. Jenna was pale and shaking, Abby looked about ready to cry as she tremulously hugged Aiden, and then me.

"Come with us Bethany," she pleaded.

"I can't. Go on now Abby, get to safety."

"I think you should go Bethy," Aiden said.

I shook my head, refusing to relent, refusing to cower and hide. I had been hiding for years, slinking silently through my life, trying to remain unseen in the world. I wouldn't be silent tonight, and I would do anything I could to keep my little sister safe. I _had_ to. If we couldn't all escape, I was at least going to buy Abby enough time to get to relative safety.

I hugged Abby, turned her away, and nudged her toward the plywood still holding our mother. I couldn't watch her walk away. The two of them would struggle with our mother, but they would get her there. Abby was one of the most stubborn people I'd ever met, she wouldn't fail.

"Bethany..."

"I'm fine Bret."

"I love you."

My mouth dropped, my heart plummeted in much the same manner. I knew how he felt about me, knew he dreamed of things I never had, mainly because I rarely dreamed of anything. Life was too precarious for dreams that may never come true. But he had never said those words to me before, let alone announced them in front of my brother, and Cade.

I could feel the smoldering heat of Cade's gaze on my back. I didn't know what to say, what to do, and thankfully I didn't have time to worry about it. The snakelike tentacles burst free of the woods, proving the creature had excellent timing along with its violent urge to murder.

It felt good to squeeze the trigger on the gun, to finally take a stand. The gun recoiled fiercely, I had prepared myself for this, but it still knocked me back at least a foot. The guns cracked loudly as bullets whizzed through the woods. I steadied myself, holding the gun tighter and bracing my legs further apart in order to take the kickback better.

The second shot didn't hit the creature, but it didn't almost knock me over either. I adjusted myself, aiming a little more to the left and slightly higher. I fired again and had an instant of feeling like the cat that ate the canary; I thought I'd hit the monster, but it was tough to tell as Cade, Aiden, and Bret continued to fire upon the thing. They seemed to be doing better with their shots, but the _thing_ was still coming toward us rapidly, skittering forward with a rush of momentum I thought would never stop.

I was seized by the urge to turn and run screaming into the woods. However, I was many things, but a coward wasn't one of them. I wouldn't abandon them right now, no matter how much my survival instincts were telling me to do so. If they decided to retreat...

Well, I'd be running with them like the hounds of Hell were after me. Looking at this thing, I was certain they just might be.

It was getting closer, only fifteen feet away now. It barreled through the woods at us. It snapped smaller trees in half and darted with an almost mesmerizing grace around the larger ones. I found myself almost as entranced and impressed by this thing, as I was repulsed by it.

I was taking time with my shots, I didn't know how many bullets the gun possessed and I didn't know how to reload it. I had to make sure that when the thing was on top of us, and it would be soon, I at least had some bullets left in my gun.

It was a good thing Cade was an excellent shot. He was the only one who hadn't missed yet, the only one doing consistent damage to it. Damage that was scarcely making a dent.

Ten feet, I fired another shot. Eight feet, I could feel my heart jump all the way into my throat. Six feet, I was half-worried I was going to piss myself. Four feet, I fired off another shot as a tentacle lashed out.

I never saw the thing until it slammed against the side of my face. My head whipped around, my teeth clamped down on my tongue so hard blood spurted into my mouth. I cried out, as I stumbled back from the force of the blow. My vision swam, stars burst over my eyes as blackness threatened to consume me.

Someone shouted my name, I didn't know who. I couldn't make out the voice over the loud ringing in my ears. Arms encircled me, pulling me back as something wrapped around my leg. A strangled scream escaped as I fought against the unconsciousness trying to claim me. "Kill it! Kill it!"

Bret's frightened cries were muffled in my ears, but I knew now it was him holding me. It was him trying to keep me from the clutches of that hideous thing. Bret's arms clenched around me as the creature tried to pull me away. I knew he would never let me go. Aiden appeared beside us, a knife in his hand. I held my breath and closed my eyes as I braced myself. I knew what these things did when they were stabbed, and it wasn't pretty.

A loud, ear splitting shriek rent the air. My hands slammed over my ears, an answering scream almost ripped from me but I managed to suppress it in time. Bret's breath was warm against my neck as he ducked over me. My fingers dug into the rigid muscles of his arm as another shot rang through the air. The awful screeching grew louder, blood sprayed over us as the broken tentacle whipped through the air. More blood sprayed from the bullet holes as Cade fired two more shots.

The screaming ended abruptly.

Bret's breath was ragged in my ears now; I could feel the frantic beat of his heart against my cheek. The thing wrapped around my leg went slack, but it didn't release me. I wanted to close my eyes, click my heels together, and go back to a year to when things hadn't been easy but they had been far better than this never-ending nightmare.

"Bethany?"

"I'm fine."

"Then why are you shaking?" I almost asked Bret why _he_ was shaking, but I realized he actually _wasn't_ shaking; it was the force of my tremors rocking him. It was unnerving to know this, but I couldn't stop myself. "It's ok, we're safe for now."

I bit on my lip as I managed a brief nod. It was Cade that un-wrapped the remains of the tentacle from my leg. Bret helped me to my feet, for a second I was terrified my wobbling legs wouldn't hold me. Bret rubbed my arms as he held me before him. "The thing?" I managed to croak out.

"Dead." Cade was beside us, my revolver in his hand. He slid a bullet into it, spun the cylinder, and slammed it shut before handing it to me again. "Are you going to be ok with this?"

"Maybe she shouldn't have it," Bret protested instantly.

"Bethany?" Cade inquired.

I swallowed heavily and forced myself to nod. "Yes."

"Beth..."

"I need something to help protect us Bret."

"We're fine for right now," he protested.

"For right _now_ ," I emphasized.

I could see the concern in his soft green eyes, but I could also see the love. His fingers were as wispy as butterfly wings against my cheek as he took a step toward me. Cade thrust the revolver in between us and smiled grimly. Bret shook his head but didn't protest further as I took the gun from Cade again.

# CHAPTER 10

I staggered through the door of the antique shop. My stomach heaved as I slumped to the floor. I could barely catch my breath; my lungs were on fire as I strained to keep control of my shaking body. I jumped when hands seized hold of me. "It's ok Bethy."

It wasn't ok, both Aiden and I knew that, but I wasn't about to protest. He hauled me to my feet, pulling me beside him as he led me through the store. It was a good thing Aiden was more graceful than I was, I would have knocked everything in the store over if he hadn't been leading me. My stomach rolled again, bile burned the back of my throat but I refused to vomit, I would not lose the meager contents of my stomach here.

"Stairs Bethy, where are the stairs?" he breathed in my ear.

I managed to raise a tremulous arm and point in the direction of where the stairs were. He took an abrupt right as he headed for the door. Holding me up, he pulled the door open. The stairs were hidden amongst the shadows but neither Aiden nor I turned on the light. We strained not to fall down the steep steps as we felt our way along the wall. We were halfway down when I vomited.

I simply couldn't hold it in anymore. The awful screams, sights, and sounds haunted my every movement.

Aiden leaned against the wall as he held me against his chest and rubbed my hair. I was shaking, on the verge of vomiting again when Bret stepped into the stairwell followed rapidly by Cade. I pulled away from Aiden as I leapt forward, scrambling to try and get back out as Cade started to close the door. "No, wait!" I stumbled up a few steps before tripping and falling to my knees. "Wait!"

"Bethy."

"Let go of me!" I nearly screeched when Aiden wrapped his arms around my waist and pulled me toward him. "I can't be here! Aiden, let _go_ of me!"

He didn't let me go; instead, he pulled me further down the stairs. Bret and Cade followed behind as I tussled within Aiden's grasp and then went limp. Cade found the cord and pulled the switch on the light. I ducked my head, unable to look; my eyes were still wounded from the harsh light of earlier. I blinked rapidly as I tried to focus my gaze.

I was covered in blood; some of it was mine. Most of it wasn't. Not all of it was from the creature either. I wanted to deny that fact, but I couldn't. I knew deep in my heart most of the blood was from my neighbors, my friends. That thing had been stuffed like a fat tick, ripe with all the blood of the people we knew.

"Where is the room?" Bret asked.

Cade strode toward the back wall. There was a harshness to him I hadn't noticed before, a coldness that left me almost as shaken as the bloodbath we'd just witnessed. I thought I might throw up again.

My head was spinning; I was going to vomit again. I wondered briefly if the blow to my head had been worse than I'd thought. I heard Abby's gasp of fear, relief filled me as unconsciousness descended over me.

***

I didn't know what time it was when I woke up. All I knew was everyone else in the room was sound asleep, and I had to get out of here. My head throbbed dully but the nausea had subsided and I felt much better than I had before passing out.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I found the switch for the door and pushed it open. I stumbled out and managed to catch myself before I crashed into something. I turned back to the people within the room. Abby was curled against Aiden; she looked even younger and far more vulnerable in her sleep. Jenna was in a ball; her head rested on one of the old blankets that had been draped over a crate. Cade was the farthest away, sitting with his back against the wall and his chin on his chest. Bret was close to where I'd been sleeping, I think he had been even closer to me, but had rolled away in his sleep.

I took one last look at them before I slid the door carefully closed. I crept up the stairs, being far stealthier than I had ever thought I could be. But then again, there was a lot I'd done this day I hadn't thought I ever would, or could, do. I had never dreamed I would fire a gun, let alone help to kill something with it.

Opening the door a sliver, I stuck my eye against the crack as I strained to see anything. My ears strained as I searched for noise. I felt brave enough, and secure enough, to open the door a little further before slipping completely out of the cellar. Sunlight filtered through the blinds, another day had risen; at least the world hadn't completely frozen overnight.

The first thing I looked for was the bathroom, which I found in a small room behind the counter. I was horrified by the blood streaking my face. My blue eyes were shadowed by dark circles; my long blonde hair was a tangled mess and I thought I might have to cut it off. There was a bruise forming on one side of my face, it took up most of my cheek. The freckles speckling my face appeared to have disappeared beneath the bruise so I was only half-freckled now. It was a disconcerting effect, but one I found fascinating.

Beneath the bruise was a jagged slice about three inches in length. I touched it tenderly, wincing as pain lanced through the area where the creature had struck me. It was ugly looking but it wouldn't leave a scar and it was far better than the alternative. Even with the bruise I wasn't completely hideous, I wasn't stunning or perfectly manicured like Jenna, but I wasn't awful either. My features weren't elfin like Abby's but they were proportioned well enough for my face.

If I was better at placing my feet, I probably wouldn't feel as awkward as I always did. My mother had always assured me I would grow into my body, but it hadn't happened yet.

I turned the water on, and to the best of my ability, scrubbed the blood from my face and arms before ducking my head to wash as much of the blood out of my hair as I could. The water ran red and the sink was a mess by the time I was done. My lip curled as I washed the blood splatters from the basin.

I felt marginally better afterwards, but not much. I yearned for the backpacks full of toothpaste and clothes we'd abandoned at my house. I would have killed for a hairbrush and conditioner as I worked to remove the tangles with my fingers. It took awhile, and I ripped out a lot of hair in the process, but I finally managed to get most of it unknotted.

I made my way to the front of the store. The blinds were still drawn, but the sun crept in around the edges of them. I inhaled deeply, taking a moment to enjoy its soothing warmth, and reassuring presence. The world continued to turn and some form of life would go on, even if it wasn't human.

My hand trembled as I pulled one of the slats on the blinds down. I cautiously peered out at the unnaturally still street. Even creepier were the things left behind. Bicycles, papers, coffee cups, wallets, purses, and even shoes were scattered about the street, with other possessions, like discarded causalities of war. There were no bodies out there though, there were no people left at all.

I shuddered as I stared at the desolate scene. It almost seemed as if it might be safe to go outside again. I knew it wasn't. I may not be able to see them right now, but they were out there. Somewhere. But we couldn't stay here forever either. We would eventually have to move, they would find us if we didn't.

Or maybe they wouldn't...

"Bethany." I jumped at the harsh whisper. Releasing the blind I turned as Cade stepped out of the cellar. His eyes narrowed in displeasure, his full lips compressed into a severe line. The blood that had coated him last night was gone, and now that I thought of it, I realized they had all been cleaner than me. "What are you doing?"

"All of the people are gone."

"If you don't take better care of yourself you'll be gone too," he muttered so quietly I almost didn't catch it all.

"I've been taking care of myself for awhile now," I retorted, trying not to lose my patience. I'd thought he was different from Bret, that he had a little more confidence in me. Apparently I was wrong.

His midnight eyes raked me as his black eyebrows furrowed. Then, his face relaxed and a small smile pulled at the corners of his mouth as he moved toward me. It was so rare to see him smile that I'd forgotten how sweet and melting it could be. Stretching behind me, he pulled the blind apart to peer outside. My heart kicked up a beat; I could feel the blood rushing through my ears. His arm was near my head, the heat of his body pressed against me as he took a step closer.

His gaze came back to me as he released the blind. I stared up at him, hoping he wouldn't kiss me again and praying he would. "I know you can take care of yourself, but wandering around alone isn't safe. For _anyone_."

I swallowed heavily and managed a nod. "I didn't want to be in the room."

"I know."

It unnerved me just how much he seemed to understand me. "Where did you get the guns?"

Those raven colored eyes gleamed beautifully in the dim illumination as they focused on me again. "I've been collecting them for awhile now."

I swallowed heavily as I nodded slowly. I'd hated driving in cars after my father was killed; it had been torture for me. Cade's parents had been killed in a home invasion; it seemed he had been trying to make sure nothing like that ever happened again. I'd dealt with my aversion to cars by exposing myself to short rides that had gradually extended over time. I'd never grown completely comfortable with them, but at least I was able to stay in them for a half an hour or so now. Cade had dealt with the aftermath of his trauma by stockpiling guns.

"How did you get them?"

His mouth quirked. "You can get anything you want if you have enough money, and know the right people."

"And you know the right people?" I retorted.

"Yes. Or at least I did."

Of course he did. That's who he was after all. Rumors of dangerous and illegal activities ran rampant about him; apparently at least some of them had been true.

"But the aliens..." I started.

"Can't take what they can't find."

"That's why you had to go back to your house?"

"Yes."

I didn't know what to say to him or what to do. I was out of words and he was so tantalizingly close to me. My fingers twitched, I ached to rest them against his solid chest and feel the muscles I knew ran under his shirt. My skin tingled with the anticipation of the possibility of his kiss, but Bret's words echoed in my ears. He loved me, and Cade was a puzzle I didn't understand.

Then Cade was closer to me, over me. He was all I could see or think about as his eyes filled my vision. His hand was on my cheek, in my wet hair as it slid around to the back of my head. My mouth parted involuntarily. My head was telling me this was a bad idea, that this was wrong. My heart didn't care. All I craved was to feel his lips against mine again. His scent engulfed me. It was more pungent than it had been yesterday, his natural odor more potent and his cologne not as strong, but it was still alluring. I swayed toward him as his fingers caressed the back of my head. His lips were just a breath away, so tantalizingly close...

# CHAPTER 11

A creak on the stairs caused him to pull away. Disappointment filled me, I felt lost as Cade's hand slid away from me and he took a step back. The moment was broken but my body still pulsed with unfulfilled desire.

The door opened and Bret stepped out from the cellar, he glanced questioningly at Cade before focusing his attention on me. "Are you ok?"

I smiled wanly at him as I nodded. "Fine."

His gaze traveled back to Cade before returning to the window. "Are they out there?"

"Not right now," Cade responded. "But they will be."

"They'll come in here."

"Yes."

I shuddered, my hands dug into my arms. "We should figure out a plan then."

Cade said nothing. What was there to say? Bret came forward and wrapped his arms around me. Though there wasn't a whole lot of excitement in his arms, there was a sense of comfort and rightness that was undeniable. Bret loved me; I loved him. Maybe I didn't love him the same way he loved me, but it was still love. Or maybe I did love him in the same way, and this strange attraction toward Cade was just clouding my judgment.

Either way, I didn't have the time to figure it out and wasn't entirely sure I cared to. There were more important things to worry about now. "Where are your parents?" I tilted my head back to look up at Bret.

His jaw clenched, his eyes became sad as he shook his head. "My father is one of the lost. I thought..." He swallowed heavily and cleared his throat. "I thought we'd be able to get back to him after we checked on you and Abby. I didn't know; I would have brought him."

I rested a comforting hand over his. I could already sense his inner light growing dimmer and I hated it. "It's not your fault," I assured him.

He nodded. "My mother wasn't home, but I assume she's probably like them also. It seems most people are." He said the words, but there was hope still within his gaze. "I should have left a note or something just in case, I really thought we'd be able to make it back."

There were no reassurances I could give him. "The others are awake, we should go back down," Cade said.

I stiffened as Bret tried to lead me toward the stairs. Like a stubborn child, I could feel my heels digging into the floor in an attempt to stop his forward momentum. "Wait." He stopped, frowning as he looked down at me. "We should stay up here, we're trapped down there."

"We're trapped up here too. They might not be able to find us down there, and you should eat."

"We won't know if they come in and we're down there!" I protested hotly. I hated the unreasonable dread already beginning to build in my chest at the mere thought of going down there again. I cursed this weakness and my susceptibility to it.

"It will be fine Bethany, we'll leave the door to the room open so we can hear them if they come in."

I was frantic, desperate not to return to those awful, gloomy depths, but I had to. I couldn't stay up here, it was too risky, and I _was_ starving. I also didn't want anyone else to know about my weakness. Certainly not Bret, he already thought I was fragile, already thought I was someone who always needed to be protected, even when I didn't.

I tried to choke back my alarm, but I had very little strength and courage left to draw upon. Those resources seemed to be quickly drying up. I clung to my pride as I relented enough to be pulled back down the stairs. I didn't look at Cade again, I couldn't. I didn't want to see the displeasure over being interrupted, or the pity I was certain was burning within his eyes.

He knew, no matter how much I tried to hide it, he knew about my phobia and he pitied me for it. I kept my attention focused on my feet and concentrated on simply breathing in and out as Cade closed the door behind us.

We stepped off the steps and into the shadows. Someone had been waiting for us as the bulb immediately clicked on at the bottom. Aiden stood beneath the dangling bulb, string in hand as he surveyed the three of us. His clear mahogany eyes, so similar to Abby's, were still swollen from sleep, but he was alert.

"What's going on up there?" he asked.

"It's quiet, for now," Cade responded.

Aiden nodded, his hand slid off the string. The door to the secret room creaked open and Abby poked her head out. "Can we eat now?"

"I told them to wait until everyone was here," Aiden explained. "Yes."

Abby went back into the room and reemerged with the bag of food. My stomach felt empty, I needed nourishment, but my appetite was gone. "Is there any change in them?" I inquired while nodding at Peter and our mom.

"No."

Abby handed me a package of peanut butter crackers. "Will they ever wake up?" she asked.

My gaze drifted toward Cade as thoughts of the man from the street flashed through my mind. He had woken up. _He_ had come back to life, either because the pain had been so excruciating, or because there was something about those suckers that reawakened their victims. Or maybe it was the aliens themselves somehow triggering a reawakening in their victims. Maybe the aliens enjoyed watching people suffer before they died such an awful death.

I shuddered, the crackers crunched in my clenched hand. "Bethany," Abby scolded.

"We saw one wake up," Cade said guardedly.

"When? What? _How_?" Jenna squeaked.

Cade held my gaze, but I wasn't going to explain about the man's reawakening. I couldn't. He turned away from me. He told them what we had seen, and how the man had come back to life. And then he told about the man's death.

The silence that followed his statement was thick and heavy. No one made a sound, no one moved, I was fairly certain no one even breathed.

"So extreme pain, or those creatures, maybe even the aliens themselves, can wake people up," Aiden pondered as he tapped his chin thoughtfully. I could almost see the wheels in his curious mind spinning as he tried to solve the mystery. He would have made an outstanding doctor or scientist if the aliens hadn't arrived to rob him of his dreams.

"It could have just been that one man who was able to wake up again," Bret pointed out.

I tossed the crushed crackers back to Abby. We couldn't afford to waste any food, no matter how destroyed it was, and I wasn't going to eat it. "Well how do we find out which one it is?" Jenna asked.

The answer was obvious but no one could voice it. "The old man..." Aiden's voice trailed off when Cade bristled at the suggestion.

"What would we do to him?" Jenna asked breathlessly.

A muscle in Cade's cheek jumped but he didn't offer any protest. "I don't know," Bret responded.

" _Who_ would do it?" Abby demanded.

No one answered. We would have to deliberately harm Peter, deliberately be cruel to him in order to see if he would come back to life. The intentions were good, but carrying them out wouldn't be. I already knew who would be the one to do it.

Cade wouldn't look at me now as he stared into the hidden corner of the cellar with his jaw clenched. I wanted to tell him it didn't have to be him, but I knew it would do me little good. I couldn't lie to him either, I couldn't offer him false words; everything inside of me was against doing such a thing.

"I won't be long," he muttered.

I took a step toward him, hating the haunted look on his face and the pinched set of his mouth, but he had already disappeared into the hidden room. Bret tried to stop me as I turned away, but I shrugged his hands off. Biting on my bottom lip I strained to keep my tears from spilling over. I didn't hear anything from the room, I didn't know what Cade was doing to him, but the smell of burnt hair drifted toward me.

I cringed, my hands dug into my arms to the point of bruising. I didn't hear a yelp, or a burst of motion like the man outside had shown. My heart sank. I didn't turn back around when Cade reemerged, I wasn't disgusted with him; I was disgusted with all of us.

"Nothing."

The simple word was like a dagger to my chest. What had we done? What had we stood by and allowed to happen?

What were we _going_ to do?

"How long can they stay like that before they die?" No one answered Abby's question. "They can't stay like that for long, can they? I mean they have to eat, they have to drink; they have to go to the _bathroom_ for crying out loud! Don't they?"

Still no one responded to her. "Don't they?" she demanded.

"We don't know Abby," Aiden said calmly.

A low sob escaped Abby. I didn't know the answers to her questions either, but I could at least give her some sense of comfort. I moved to my little sister and wrapped my arms around her as I took comfort in her warm body, and small arms. I still had Abby; I still had Aiden. I was more fortunate than most.

_Far_ more fortunate.

I couldn't feel pity for myself; I couldn't cower in here, trapped and cornered. We had to survive, somehow. _Abby_ had to survive, no matter what happened.

"What are we going to do?" Jenna's voice was smaller than usual.

"Not stay here," I answered.

"Bethany, how are we going to get mom somewhere else?" Abby whispered.

I looked toward Cade, but Aiden answered. "We don't Abigail."

I closed my eyes as anguish tore at my heart, shredding it and turning me into something I wasn't. I wasn't cold, I wasn't uncaring, but I could feel something creeping over me, through me, that left me frozen.

"No!" Abby nearly screeched. I slammed my hand over her mouth, cringing as my gaze shot to the door at the top of the stairs. We all stood motionless, breathless as we waited to see if Hell would descend upon us. I moved my hand cautiously away from her mouth when it appeared we were still safe.

I held onto her, but I barely felt her anymore, not through the ice encasing me. Aiden sighed as he ran a hand through his hair, Jenna's eyes were rolling in her head, and Bret wouldn't meet my gaze. Only Cade stared at me head on. His eyes burned with the intense desire to make me understand, to make me _see_ , but I already understood, I _already_ saw the situation for what it was. I just didn't like what I saw.

We couldn't stay here.

It would only slow us down to bring her with us.

Or maybe we _could_ stay here. Maybe this would all blow over. We had food; we had water, a bathroom, and weapons. We had a secure hiding place; we could make a stand for a while. It may even be better if we stayed. Why did everyone think it best to leave then, including me? Well, I wanted to leave because I hated to be trapped anywhere. For my mom though, I knew I could suck this up and stay in that room for however long I had to.

We could all stay here. It would be fine, they wouldn't find us, we would be safe until someone saved us, and of course someone would save us. We still had military, or at least I thought we still had a military, at the very least some military personnel. We'd been shut off from the world for so long I wasn't sure we had a military anymore. For all I knew the aliens had taken them out first. In fact, they probably _had_ been the first target, even ahead of the government.

Although every part of me screamed against leaving our mother in the tiny room, a place I never wanted to return to myself, I wasn't sure there was anything else we could do. There had to be some members of the military left, but I doubted there were enough of them to launch much of an attack. More than half, if not almost all of them, were probably frozen.

Vehicles may still work, but no one could drive them without being spotted instantly in the deadened streets. That was if cars _would_ even work anymore. No one I knew had tried to drive a car in weeks. Never mind planes and helicopters, or tanks. There was no way to know if we could even attempt to mount any sort of defense against these monsters.

There was no one coming to help us, no one out there to rescue us. The realization wasn't gradual in coming. Yes, it had taken me awhile to get to the train of thought because I hadn't had time to go there yet, but the realization slammed me with sudden, horrifying intensity. I was cold, choked with an agonizing sense of despair and yet oddly accepting of the unraveling of our fates.

There was no one coming. There was no help out there for us anymore.

We couldn't stay. To hole up in here and cower was to admit defeat. To hole up in here and cower was to die. With no rescue coming the food would run out, the water would dry up. Maybe, just maybe, the aliens would move on from here before all of that happened, but there was no guarantee of that. They could stay out there forever, waiting for us to emerge like a cat looking to pounce upon a mouse slipping from a hole. We could stay here for a little bit, but eventually we would have to leave. We would _have_ to.

When the time came, we wouldn't be able to take our mother with us.

Maybe we could stay for a bit, maybe we could wait, and we could hope, but eventually reality would catch up with us. It was better to face it now, rather than wait and see. It would be better if we broke free while the aliens were distracted with the remaining people, than to wait for them to come to us. Better to leave here before they came inside and discovered us.

"Oh," I breathed.

"Bethy..."

I shook my head, holding up my hand to stop Aiden's words. I couldn't hear them, not right now. I understood them, but I couldn't hear them spoken aloud. Bret rested his hand on my shoulder; I didn't shrug him off. He was a good man, strong, and I needed his comfort and strength right now. "We'll stay today," Cade offered.

"No, we _have_ to wait a few more days," Abby protested.

"They haven't started going through the inside of buildings in this part of town yet, the longer we wait the more likely they are to come here. No matter how many of them there are, it will still take them awhile to go through all of the houses. We have to get out of here before they reach us, and we should leave under cover of night," Cade said.

"You don't even know if they're going through all of the houses and buildings!"

"What do you think they were doing last night at our home?" Aiden asked. My mind was spinning, running through everything I did, and didn't, know. Abby would have to go on. Aiden would take care of her; protect her with his life. "We have to carry as little as possible. It will be difficult at night but it will offer us cover."

"Wait," Abby's words were choked. "We can't."

"It will be ok Abby," I assured her as I hugged her. "It will be ok, you'll see."

"But we can't leave her here all alone. We can't."

"We won't," I promised.

"Bethy," Bret protested.

I shook my head, hugged my sister close again and released her. It would be ok I told myself, knowing full well it wouldn't be.

# CHAPTER 12

Nightfall seemed to arrive faster than I had anticipated. It wasn't until I crept back upstairs to peer out the window that I realized it wasn't true nightfall. The larger ship had moved above us now, blocking out the radiance of the sun.

"We should move soon," Bret said.

I said nothing as there was nothing to say. The bag of food was by the backdoor. Tears were rolling down Abby's youthful cheeks. Aiden couldn't bring himself to look at either of us, I knew what he was thinking, but it wasn't going to happen. He was the stronger one of us; he would have to be the one who stayed with Abby.

"I'm not going."

I spun toward Cade, my mouth dropped as he uttered those words. Those were supposed to be _my_ words; that was what _I_ was supposed to be saying, not _him_. He was _not_ going to be the one who stayed. "No."

"It's not going to be you Bethy." I continued to gape at him. His eyes were shards of black ice as they locked on mine. "No matter what you may think."

"You don't know what I think!" I retorted.

"Yes, I do, and it is _not_ going to be you."

"She is our mother!"

"Peter has been very kind to me, I will not leave him," Cade said.

"Then I'll stay with you."

"No."

"No! You can't tell me no!" I took a deep breath and managed to gain a little more control of myself before I continued to speak. "You can't make my choices for me."

"Bethany," Abby whimpered.

I glanced helplessly at the others gathered within the room. Even if I hadn't told anyone else about it, they seemed to have guessed I planned to stay. They all knew me well, yet I felt Cade had been the first to discern I'd decided to stay with my mother.

I read the truth In Cade's relentless stare. He wasn't going to budge on his decision. It had been all right when I'd decided I would stay. I had been in control, I had been accepting of the fact I would be alone. But the thought of Cade staying here was terrifying to me. I couldn't leave him here. I would never be able to live with myself if I did.

"It has been decided," Cade said firmly.

"By who? When?" Jenna asked as her eyes flitted around the room.

"By us," Bret answered. He took hold of my hand, clinging to it when I tried to pull free. "Last night when you were asleep."

"You knew last night you were going to do this?" I breathed, unable to tear my gaze away from Cade's.

I had just found him, I barely knew him, but I couldn't lose him. I simply _couldn't_. I would be empty without him, I didn't know how I knew that, but I did. I would be hollow, broken, a shell of myself without him. It startled me how certain I was of this when just yesterday I hadn't spoken to him in a year. But a lot had changed in twenty-four hours. He'd reawakened memories and feelings I'd buried over the years. Feelings I couldn't bury again now, no matter how hard I tried. I may have been too young to realize it at the time, but Cade had owned a piece of my heart as a child and I'd never gotten the piece back. Perhaps he'd even owned my whole heart, and that was why I'd never been able to feel anything more than friendship for another man.

Cade Marshall had stolen my heart when I was five but I was only just realizing it now.

"Yes," Aiden answered. "We have to go now Bethany."

"No. I'm not leaving."

"Please Bethy, please," Abby pleaded. "Don't leave me." I opened my mouth to protest. I was astonished by the revelations rolling through me. It was more than just Peter, I knew Cade was doing this for me, to keep _me_ safe, and I couldn't let it happen. "Bethany." Abby's hand tightened on my arm to the point it left a bruise. "Bethy please," she whispered.

"Abigail..."

"Don't leave me. We can't leave mom, and you, behind. Please Bethany I can't lose you both."

I closed my eyes, groaning inwardly at her heartfelt plea. I bit on my bottom lip as I fought against the tears burning my eyes. This was awful, just awful.

"Bethany..." Aiden's voice trailed off. He hadn't stopped because he didn't know what to say, but because a low rattle had begun to shake the store. Abby pressed closer to me as she started to tremble. The ground beneath my feet vibrated; the merchandise on the shelves started to clink together.

I held my breath as my heart pounded deafeningly in my ears. A thumping bang shook the store and caused me to stumble a little. A sob tore from Abby as her nails dug into my arm. The windows shook within their panes as the glass rattled more forcefully. Somewhere within the store something slid off a shelf. I jumped and bit back a scream when it shattered upon the ground.

Abby buried her face against my chest as something else fell to the floor and broke on impact. I barely managed to bite back a scream as the entire store lurched violently. Jenna wasn't able to do the same as her startled cry rang out. Cade slid his hand over her mouth, pulling her against his chest as the store shook and heaved again. We waited breathlessly to see if Jenna's scream had been heard over the growing noise.

The earth beneath my feet seemed to disappear for a second as the floor rolled. I staggered to the side as boards began to splinter from the powerful upheaval. The front windows shattered and glass splayed inward. I ducked over Abby, covering her with my body as I tried to protect her from the cutting shards. Bret grabbed hold of us, pulling us back as another forceful thump knocked shelves over, and caused one of the light fixtures to fall. Abby sobbed loudly as a cry escaped her.

"Shh Abby," I whispered frantically. "Please be quiet, please."

Beams flashed over the windows and danced over the broken frames before moving on. "What's going on?" Jenna squeaked.

"Quiet!" Cade commanded.

Another rattling bang shuddered through the building swaying us all back and forth. Though I had never experienced an earthquake, I imagined this was what it felt like. There was a heaving, rolling, sensation that caused me to stagger sideways. The world was completely unstable beneath my feet, and the ground felt like it was going to plummet out from under me at any minute.

A loud twisting screech filled the air. I cringed, clutching Abby as the noise grew in intensity and pierced the night with its shrill sound. Abby's moan was drowned out by the growing din. Bret pushed us back, keeping us behind him as light flared through the store once more. A twisting, heaving, drop caused the floor to fall out beneath us and more boards to splinter and crack. This time I couldn't bite back my startled cry as we lurched to the side. I staggered, struggling to keep hold of Abby as I fought to keep my balance on the rocking floor.

"We have to get out of here!" Bret hissed.

He pulled me back as more windows shattered and the shelves at the front of the store began to tumble like dominoes. The whole store was going to come down on our heads if we stayed in here. The crashing shelf behind me caught the back of my leg. I stumbled forward awkwardly, nearly dragging Abby down with me as my legs gave out. Bret and Abby managed to keep me on my feet, but just barely.

"We have to go! We have to go!" Jenna screamed.

Cade was pulling her toward us, his jaw locked and his nostrils flaring as another rousing crash shook the building. It wouldn't be long before the whole thing toppled in on us. This wasn't the west coast; this building wasn't built to survive the shaking jolts it was receiving. It wasn't built to survive anything more than a moderate hurricane, if even that.

Aiden hurried toward us, his arm raised protectively over his head as bits of ceiling began to rain down. "Mom!" Abby was yelling. "What about mom?"

"Backdoor!" Cade shouted as he pointed behind us. "Head for the backdoor!"

No one tried to be cautious anymore. There was no reason to be. If the aliens could hear us over the screeching, tortuous racket echoing outside they deserved to get us. There was no way we would ever be able to elude their grasp if they were that much more advanced than us, if they were _that_ superior to us.

Abby was tugging at me, Bret was pulling me, and I was desperately trying to dodge the merchandise that had gone from being inane to deadly in a matter of seconds. I thrust Abby at Bret before we made it to the backdoor. "Mom!" Abby was still yelling but I could barely hear her over the crashing bangs echoing throughout the store.

"I know."

I stumbled forward as I struggled to get back to our mother, fought to keep my balance in a rapidly unraveling world. Aiden grabbed hold of my arm as a resounding crash rocked the store. We tumbled to the side and bounced off a set of rattling shelves. A silver elephant toppled off the shelf and struck Aiden in the shoulder. He winced and scurried away from the shelf as it began to treacherously rock back and forth. The shelf was massive, if it fell on us we would be trapped, pinned within this store and at the mercy of the monsters outside.

I became frozen as my terror over being trapped anywhere burst to hot, vivid life.

Aiden threw himself away from the shelf. He wrapped his arm around my waist as he dove forward. We fell to the floor in a tumbled heap; the breath was knocked out of me, my tailbone screamed in protest as we bounced away from the shelf. The shelf spilled its aged contents upon the floor as it toppled over. I was able to breathe again, but not very well.

A huge crack fissured across the ceiling, an enormous bang rocked every wall of the building. Debris began to rain down on us; plaster coated the floor, covered our clothes and stuck to our hair and skin. Hands seized hold of me and Bret hauled me to my feet as the front of the store suddenly crumpled. Wood and nails snapped as if they were no more than toothpicks.

Bret pulled me toward the open backdoor. Aiden was behind us, limping a little as we stumbled forward. Cade appeared amongst the rubble and purposely strode toward us through the collapsing store. He took hold of my other arm and hurried me forward as we fell into the muggy night air. I inhaled the fresh air greedily, struggling not to cry as I rapidly spun back around. I pulled free of Bret's grasp and stumbled back toward the store. Peter! My mother!

Beams flashed throughout the night, illuminating the crumbling buildings around us. The awful screeching noise seemed to be moving away, but the building continued to fall apart before us. Two by fours cracked, heavy roof beams caved like a house of cards. My heart plummeted; I limply fell to my knees as I gazed at the back wall, the only piece of the store that remained.

How could we possibly dig them out of there?

I knew the answer to that question before I even answered it. We couldn't. We simply couldn't.

My whole body was trembling, shaking. Broken. I was so broken. My father had died because I had failed to get out of the car, because I had failed _him_. Now my mother was dead because I had failed once again. I had left her in there, and she was gone.

Aiden shushed Abby as she began to weep loudly. I turned to look at my siblings and saw the answering hopelessness in Aiden's eyes. In his gaze I saw the truth. We were now orphans.

# CHAPTER 13

Abby was crying soundlessly, her head bowed and her hair falling around her slender shoulders. I couldn't comfort her, not now, that job had fallen to Jenna. She had her arm around Abby's shoulders; her head was bent over Abby as she tried to ease her sorrow. It was impossible; we all knew that. Jenna herself was struggling with the likelihood she would never see her parents again. The only difference was Jenna hadn't received the cruel confirmation they were dead like we just had.

Even Aiden had shed a few tears, he'd tried to keep them hidden from us, but I'd seen them. I hadn't cried. I was certain I wouldn't cry, not now, not in front of my siblings. Someone had to stay strong, and just like with my father, it would be me. I didn't meet Cade's gaze, I could feel it burning into my back but I wouldn't look at him. Bret kept his arm around me, seeking to give me comfort even though I didn't like it. He didn't seem to understand that though, and I'd given up shrugging his arm off. What was the point?

"Why did the building collapse?" Abby moaned. "What caused it?"

A muscle in my cheek jumped, my jaw ached from clenching it so tightly. I didn't know what had caused it, but whatever it was had had been big, it had been brutal, and it was going to come for us. Of that much I was certain. It would continue to hunt for survivors. It would be unrelenting and ruthless in its pursuit. It apparently hadn't known we were in the store, but I was certain if it got a bead on us, it wasn't going to stop in its determination to drain us dry.

I closed my eyes, my hands fisted at my sides. Whatever the aliens were doing, whatever they were intent on accomplishing, they were really beginning to piss me off!

"Bethany." I forced my eyes open. Bret was watching me with wide-eyed apprehension. "Are you ok?"

I wanted to be a better person for him, to be the person he thought I was. I wanted to be kinder, more understanding, and more faithful. I wanted to show some sort of emotion, other than fury right now, but I couldn't. I hated to disappoint him, but I didn't know how to be anything different. I had tried to be a better person for him for the past few months, I truly had, but it was impossible for me. I thought if he understood me better things could be different between us, but he didn't, and they weren't.

I knew he wouldn't want anything to do with the person I truly was, because he was just too good to understand that person. I was a survivor, I was a fighter, and I was _hard_. It was the first time I admitted that to myself, but it was true. I'd thought the death of my father had caused me to be this way, but I was beginning to realize I'd been wrong. Jenna had more than likely lost her family, yet she was comforting Abby. Bret had more than likely lost his parents and yet he was still caring and good.

Yes, I had watched my father die. Yes, I had been young and defenseless. But we were defenseless now, and yet I still sensed more humanity in them than I did in myself. Perhaps it was shock but I didn't think so. What was _wrong_ with me? Why couldn't I be like them?

For the first time I was able to look at Cade again. The duffel bag with the guns was slung over his shoulder, his hand rested against the strap. Cade was a wealth of mystery and confusion to me I wasn't sure I'd ever understand. Yet, as his compelling eyes landed upon me, I knew with unfailing certainty he understood me completely. He saw inside of me and _knew_ what kind of person I was.

He saw my many flaws, and for some strange reason he didn't mind them. He saw the depths of my imperfections, the intensity of my coldness, and he understood it. I was suddenly struck by the realization I didn't know what was worse. Being completely understood and accepted for my many defects, or constantly trying to prove I didn't have them.

Was it better to be accepted for being an awful human being, or to have someone believe I was something better than I was?

Cade's eyes narrowed, his head tilted to the side. Displeasure flashed across his features, his hand clenched on the strap around his chest. The beams of moonlight hit his onyx eyes nearly turning them blue. I had the disconcerting feeling he knew what I was thinking, or at least the direction of my thoughts, and he didn't like them.

"Bethany?"

"I'm fine," I responded as I turned my attention back to Bret.

"Maybe we should stop."

"We have to keep moving."

"Keep moving where?" Jenna's voice was faint and forlorn.

"Somewhere." Though I had no idea where. I just knew we couldn't sit still. If we stopped we were sitting ducks.

"Somewhere is _not_ an answer!" she retorted. "We have to have somewhere to go; just roaming aimlessly around is doing nothing for any of us! We should find somewhere safe to hide!"

"Since you know where all of those places are, why don't you just tell us where to go?" I snapped back.

Jenna glared at me, her delicate jaw clenched as her teeth grated back and forth. "Ok, easy, we should probably come up with some kind of plan," Bret interjected calmly. "We have to find shelter."

"I'm not going inside again," I responded at once.

They all looked at me like I'd sprung another head, even Cade seemed somewhat taken aback. "Bethy..."

"No Aiden. If you guys would like to find shelter that's fine, but there is no way I'm going inside again. Not right now anyway," I amended when I saw their distraught faces.

"Well we have to find some place to hide!"

Jenna's whining tone was grating on my last nerve. I understood she was frightened, but I'd never had a vast storage of patience (yet another fault of mine), and I found I had even less now. My nerve endings felt as if someone was constantly taking a match to them. I was hurt, I was frightened too, but most of all I was angry and she was enflaming that anger right now.

"And we will." Cade touched Jenna's arm briefly, reassuringly. "But for now, we have to keep moving."

"The old lighthouse, only teens go there anymore. It will be safe," Jenna said.

"Nothing is safe anymore," Abby whispered.

Jenna's lower lip trembled, her arm tightened around Abby's shoulder. "It will be safer than the woods."

"You really believe a lighthouse, used to call in ships, set out on a Jetty that can be seen across the bay, is safer than the woods?" I asked incredulously.

"I don't hear you coming up with any ideas!" she practically wailed.

"Our old tree house."

We all turned to Aiden. "What?" Bret asked.

"Our old tree house," Aiden's brown eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. "Our old house is on Cranberry Isle, the area has been built up over the past few years, but it's still relatively private. Even more private is the tree house Bethy and I built with our father when we were younger..."

"You intend for us to hide in a tree house?" Jenna nearly screeched.

I sighed as I rolled my eyes. She was going to be the undoing of my temper, I was certain of it. "It's a little bit more than a tree house," Aiden told her.

"I'm not dying in a tree house," Jenna retorted.

"We spent a lot of time on it; it's more than a tree house," Aiden insisted. "It's actually pretty well equipped for a tree house."

"We haven't been there in years Aiden, you can't possibly know what condition it's still in," I reminded him.

He shifted uncomfortably. "I've been there recently."

I started as my mouth parted. Aiden and I didn't tell each other _every_ thing, but we shared more, and were closer than most siblings. We looked out for, loved, and protected Abby, but the two of us were closer in age, bonded by more shared experiences, and truly liked each other now that we were older. Going to the tree house didn't sound like something Aiden would do, he wasn't a nostalgic person, and it definitely seemed like something he would have told me about.

I didn't know if I was more stunned, or more upset, he hadn't. I didn't ask when, or why, and he didn't seem to feel like elaborating.

"It will be a good place to hide out for a bit. We can come up with a better plan then."

"Cranberry Isle is a good three miles away," Jenna grumbled.

"Then we had better get moving," Bret said as he slipped his hand into mine and squeezed it.

# CHAPTER 14

It was a tree house, and I still refused to go inside it. I sat against the tree with my knees drawn up to my chest, surrounded only by the forest. There was a small stream about thirty feet away, I couldn't see it, but I knew its location from childhood memories. The sound of running water was like mellow music in the oddly still woods. Birds weren't singing; there were no squirrels running amongst the trees. I was terrified the alien's magic ability to freeze things had somehow extended to the animals. How could we stop them if they were able to pull off such a colossal attack?

I could only hope our presence had scared the animals away, or maybe they still hadn't awakened in the early morning hours. I rested my forehead on my knees, trying not to think about it, trying to block everything out but it was almost impossible. Aiden had been right; the tree house was in good shape, excellent even. I didn't think the new homeowners had kept it in such good condition. Aiden and I hadn't disclosed its location when we moved from Cranberry Isle. This was _our_ tree house; neither of us could stand the thought of anyone else playing amongst its walls.

Abby had been too young for the tree house at the time, she had come out here with us once, but I highly doubted she would have remembered how to get here on her own. Abby was many things, but adventurous and handy were not amongst her vast list of attributes. That left only Aiden to keep up the maintenance, and he had done a fantastic job of it. I couldn't believe he'd kept it from me all of these years, but I'd kept plenty from him too.

I lifted my head to gaze up at the wooden structure thirty feet above me. It was nestled in the crook of four large branches of a massive maple. There were three ways to escape the tree house, and two ways to enter it. A metal ladder stretched from the ground up to a hole against the trunk of the tree. The hole was usually left open, but it could be closed and the ladder thrown away if it was necessary.

A rope ladder hung from the other side of the tree, the one closest to the stream. It could be pulled up rapidly, and had been many times when we were younger and under the attack of trolls and other nefarious creatures. The third and final exit was a metal pole that had rusted over the years, but still appeared stable. It had always been my favorite way to exit the fort when in a rush to escape from the imaginary fiends breaching our security. The exits had been for fun when we were kids, now I was glad we had decided to build so many emergency escapes.

I stared at the bottom of the fort but I sensed no movement up there. They must all be asleep. Even Bret had climbed into the leafy bowers, curious about the elaborate fort. I had told him to stay up there for a while. I was amazed he'd actually listened to me. He was terrified for me, I could see that, but he seemed to understand my need for solitude.

I had no doubt he'd return soon though. I rose to my feet and stretched my back as I walked to the edge of the small clearing. Years ago we'd cut the woods back, creating a large area to play in, and a nice path to traverse through the forest. The woods had reclaimed most of the path. Just as the wilderness would reclaim everything that was going to be abandoned, and forgotten when this was over. The world would change; it _had_ changed already. Houses may very well be a thing of the past; the forest would regain the land it had lost over the years, animals would be the new residents of homes. I shuddered at the thought; there would be much for the wilderness to reclaim when this was all done. Maybe even our bodies.

I hated my morose thoughts, but they wouldn't go away. Neither would the heart wrenching anguish of losing my mom. Now that we were stopped and I was alone, I couldn't stop the flood of loss and memories surging through me. Tears didn't streak my face, but hollow, dry sobs racked through my chest and hunched my shoulders as I hugged myself. She had gone fast; they hadn't gotten a hold of her. I kept telling myself this, kept trying to reassure myself with those thoughts, but it didn't ease the knot of anguish searing my chest.

This wasn't the trauma of my father's death. Losing my mother had been shocking, and yes this whole thing was traumatizing, but I hadn't been with her at the instant of death. I hadn't seen the suffering and fear. I hadn't seen the worry for me, for her family. I hadn't seen death clouding my mother's gaze, as I had with my father.

I sharply veered away from those thoughts; they would only lead to places I never wanted to travel to again. Dark places, and an even gloomier and despondent version of me than I ever wanted to know again. I paced to the edge of the clearing, tugging at my hair as I wrapped it around my finger. The honey color of it was nearly brown with dirt, sweat, and residue from the antique store. I would have given anything for a shower as I could barely stand the smell of myself anymore.

My last memory of the stream as a child told me it was small. I imagined it would seem even smaller as an adult, but at least it was something. I glanced back at the tree house. The small shutters had been drawn over the three windows, blocking out the sun so they could make an attempt at sleep.

I slipped through the forest, shoving aside bull briar, grape vine, and branches as I made my way to the stream. I was bleeding and sweating even more by the time I broke free of the woods and stumbled upon the stream. It _was_ smaller than I remembered, but also one of the most wonderful things I'd seen in awhile.

I hastily kicked off my sneakers and socks and shed my filthy clothes. The stream was a little above my knees as I waded in and dropped down to sit upon the rocky bottom. The cold water washed deliciously over my heated, filthy skin. Closing my eyes I fell back in the stream, allowing it to engulf me. I opened my eyes to stare out at the world through the blurry haze of water above me. It was beautiful; the sky was as pristine and clear as the water trickling over my head. My lungs began to burn, but I stayed under, trying to pretend the world was as perfect as it seemed from beneath the surface.

Unfortunately, I didn't have gills. I burst free of the water, gasping for air as I tried to fill my lungs. I wasn't safe here, I knew that, but I couldn't drag myself from the cool stream. It was the only sliver of peace I'd found in a while. Pulling my knees against my chest, I rested my chin upon them and closed my eyes.

***

It was falling over in the water that jolted me awake. I was disoriented and confused by my surroundings. Bolting upright, I splashed and crashed about in the water as I wiped the wet hair from my face. Blinking away the water clinging to my lashes I swiftly looked around the darkening woods. I didn't know how long I'd been sitting in the stream, but the sun was lower, and I was freezing and starting to resemble a raisin. My skin was covered with at least fifty red welts from the mosquito's dancing over the water.

I shakily rose to my feet, wincing as the softened pads of them landed upon the rocks. I made my way out of the stream, teetering like a newborn foal as I tried to avoid the more jagged looking rocks. I rang my hair out when I reached the shore. The last thing I felt like doing was putting my filthy clothes back on. Unfortunately I didn't have any other options.

I slipped the smelly clothing back on and shuddered at the feel of it against my skin. Now that my skin was clean, the smell of them was even more repulsive as it engulfed me. I didn't care if it was wrong or not, as soon as night fell I was going to search out some clean clothes. I was certain the owners of them would understand; if they were still alive they were probably looking for the same thing.

I groaned in disgust as I slipped the dirty socks back on and shoved my feet into my sneakers. "Feel better?"

I stumbled backwards and nearly fell over as the voice came from the edge of the woods. It took me some time to find Cade half hidden within the shadows of the day. "How long have you been there?" I demanded, trying to control the accelerated beat of my heart as I thought about what he might have seen.

He shrugged, which was a highly annoying gesture that caused my jaw to clench. "Not long." His voice was causal, his posture almost indolent as his eyes perused me. He moved with the stealthy grace of a hunting tiger as he came toward me. I clung to my annoyance, even as my pulse began to escalate and a strange tingling filtered into my fingertips. Even dirty and disheveled he was gorgeous and a little overwhelming. I took a step back, struggling to breathe normally as he approached.

"I didn't see anything if that's what you're worried about."

It seemed he was taking pity on me as he uttered these words. I didn't want his pity, and I didn't want him looking at me like I was a child. I already got enough of that from Bret. "Good."

"Bethany..."

"We should get back. It's getting late."

I turned away as I tried to retain my remaining shreds of dignity. He grabbed hold of my hand and pulled me back. A small cry escaped me but it was buried beneath the press of his lips. Even though I was frozen in place, my instant physical reaction to him was startling in its intensity. I knew I should pull away, this was completely wrong, but I couldn't find the strength to do so. He cradled my cheeks as he pulled me closer to him. For the first time I began to feel safe, for the first time I didn't hurt and I wasn't terrified. In his arms I felt as if there was no one else in the world, but us.

His lips brushed against mine, just a butterfly caress, before he reluctantly pulled away. His forehead rested against mine, his fingers stroked my cheeks. I didn't want the moment to ever end, didn't ever want to part from him, but I had to. _We_ had to.

"Why are you doing this?" I whispered.

His eyes deliberately surveyed my face. "Isn't it obvious?" I shook my head. He sighed as his lips brushed over mine again. Heat pooled through me once more, my heart beat a rapid staccato I was sure he could hear. "It should be."

"But, Bret..." He didn't move away from me, as I'd thought he would at the reminder of my boyfriend. "Bret's a good person."

"He is."

"He loves me."

"This has nothing to do with him Bethany."

"But it does." I closed my eyes, unable to meet the stark candor of his gaze.

"I'll tell him if you want."

My mouth dropped as my eyes flew open. "That's not what I want!" I blurted. I didn't want Bret to know anything about this. It would be such a huge weight off my chest, such a giant burden taken from me to tell him about my infidelity. However, I wasn't going to upset Bret simply to ease my conscious. A part of me yearned to let this out so badly I almost wept at the joyous thought of it.

"Then what do you want? I'll give you anything you ask for, just tell me." His voice was raspy with desire.

My throat was clogged with tears for him, for Bret. I didn't intend to hurt Cade either, but I knew I was. "I don't know Cade. I don't even know what this _is_. I don't even know if we're still going to be alive tomorrow morning. I know that I don't want to hurt Bret, I just can't, he deserves better. We, _all_ of us, are all we have right now. We have to trust each other in order to survive. Bret is a good guy, he loves me, and I can't betray his trust anymore than I already have."

"He does love you." I hadn't expected Cade to say that he loved me too, but I hadn't expected such a nonchalant confirmation like the one he gave.

"He deserves better."

Cade frowned at me. "Than you?"

I licked my lips as my anxious gaze darted toward the trees. His fingers slid over my face again. "Yes, he deserves far better than me. I'm so confused."

"I'm not. There is nothing better than you."

Before I could protest his statement he kissed me again. His arms were around me and I was no longer confused, I suddenly _knew_ where I belonged. It was the oddest, most bewildering, and breathtaking feeling I'd ever experienced. How could I feel like this for someone I barely knew? How could this feel so right and good, when it would only hurt people?

It was the sound of Cade's name being called that tore me away from him again. I was so ensnared in a cocoon of warmth and pleasure that thoughts weren't properly coalescing in my brain, but Cade was quick to recover. My eyes widened as a thunderous expression crossed his face. He cursed as he released me and stalked toward the forest as my name was called.

"Jenna!" he snarled. "Jenna be quiet!"

"Where are you? Is Bethany with you?" His eyes smoldered as they met mine again. I felt as if I was just seeing him for the first time, who was this person so undeniably angry over such a small thing? "Cade!"

"Quiet!" he hissed, but it was too late. I heard the loud crunch of underbrush at the same time he did. I stared at Cade in horror, uncertain what to do. I wanted to bolt in a million different directions at once, but I didn't know which way was the safest one. "Run Jenna!"

Then Cade was in front of me, grasping hold of my arms as he pulled me toward the woods. "Cade," I breathed.

"Run Bethany. _Run_."

I had picked my way carefully through all of the thorns on my way to the stream, now I dove into them with reckless abandon. I was scratched, bloodied and bruised but I didn't care as I shoved my way through the trees and vegetation. I thought I should try to go with a little more ease, but I was too terrified to slow down right now.

I could hear Cade behind me, and although we were both traveling through the same crap, I was certain he was a thousand times quieter than me. My foot became entangled in a mess of briars, tripping me up. I cried out as I tumbled to the ground in an ungraceful heap. Thorns tore into my flesh and dug into my palms.

Cade grabbed hold of me and lifted me up swiftly. I turned to run again, but he held me back. Before I knew what was happening he was pushing me against a tree. "Climb," he breathed in my ear.

I drew on all the things I had learned as a child as I pulled myself up the tree. I glanced back at Cade; he was rapidly scurrying up behind me as I moved higher and higher into the limbs of the giant oak. Then he was next to me, pressing me against the trunk of the tree. His breathing was loud in my ear; I could feel his heartbeat as he pressed flat against me.

"Stay perfectly still."

That was easier said than done as every part of my body was trembling from apprehension and exertion. I was frightened of what was coming, afraid of the unknown, and consumed with terror for my brother and sister. Cade wrapped his arms around me and flattened himself against me. I didn't know where Jenna had gone; I prayed she was safe, that she'd heard the approaching danger also.

"Jenna," I whispered.

Cade rested his head in the hollow of my neck. "You're the only one who matters Bethy." My mouth dropped, he lifted his head to meet my disbelieving stare. The words were harsh, almost cruel in their detachment, but there was something heartwarming and reassuring in them that left me trembling and weak. "You've always been the _only_ one who matters."

Now how did I respond to that? How did _any_ one respond to that? I thought I should protest. I should tell him of course other people mattered, and always would. I thought these things, but I didn't say them, mainly because I was unreasonably pleased by the conviction behind his fervent words. My breath was robbed from me, I wasn't certain I was ever going to breathe right again.

I thought he was going to kiss me, but his eyes slid away. The noise of the forest was getting closer; it seemed as if a herd of deer were tromping their way through. For a moment relief filled me, maybe it wasn't the aliens, maybe the wildlife was starting to move around again.

Cade pressed me back when I tried to move away from the trunk of the tree. He shot me a look, his jaw clenched as he shook his head briskly. The muscles in his lean arms bulged as they constricted around me. Even now, terrified, bloody, and cornered, I felt myself reacting to him. He must have sensed a change in my breathing, or in my body, as his gaze slid back to me. Those eyes were dazzling, liquid pools of onyx that gleamed in the light filtering through the leaves.

He leaned close to me, his lips pressed against my ear. I reveled in the feel of him, of the breath whispering over my skin. "I'm not confused Bethany," he whispered so softly I barely heard him. "I never have been."

I shivered in response as the woods suddenly erupted with motion.

# CHAPTER 15

I gawked at the sight beneath us, too startled to react at first. "Cade..."

"I see," he murmured.

I blinked as I tried to convince myself that what I was seeing was real. "They're human."

"Yes."

I followed him back down the tree. The group of ten people spun toward us, drawing out the weapons they possessed as we landed on the ground. "Easy," Cade said, using his arm to push me back from them as he shielded me with his body. I frowned at his back but he wouldn't let me out as he kept his arm pressed against my chest.

They studied us skeptically before lowering their spears and one rifle. "What are you doing here?" a tall burly man demanded.

"The same as you I suppose," Cade responded with more nonchalance than I would have managed under the circumstances.

The man eyed us warily. I was staggered by the hostility radiating from them; we weren't their enemy. "Are _they_ out here?" a woman asked tremulously.

"Not yet, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time. Where did you come from?" Cade inquired.

"Mashpee." The man responded, indicating the town next to ours. "We're making our way to the bridges."

"Are you going to attempt to cross them?" I blurted.

"We can't stay on this side, we're trapped here."

I glanced at Cade; I wasn't at all sure how I felt about that. It was true, on this side we were cut off from the world, separated from the mainland by the canal. The bridges were the only way off the manmade island, but nothing had crossed over them in awhile, car or person. The thought of attempting to cross them on foot seemed like a suicide mission to me. We would be out in the open, high up in the air and easily spotted from above. I would rather jump in the canal and take my chances with the deadly current and cool water, rather than try and run across either bridge.

"They're just gonna herd the survivors into smaller and smaller pieces of land, until they can't herd us anymore. Until there is nowhere left for us to go. We have to get off this island," the man continued.

I shuddered as I realized the man was right. They would continue to push us where they chose, but the bridges were _not_ an option, at least not to me. Neither was swimming across, and a boat would be an easy target on the open sea, or in the canal. We were trapped here, stuck, and at the mercy of the aliens hunting us. "Have you met many other survivors?" I inquired tremulously.

"I met up with three others near the Sandwich line and we've picked up two others along the way."

They hadn't walked an overly long distance, but I thought they should have discovered more people in the area they'd covered. "We'll walk with you," Cade said.

"Cade," I whispered as dread filled me at the thought. They were the first people we'd seen since all of this started, I should be ecstatic to see them, and yet their plan terrified me. I didn't even like _driving_ over the bridges, never mind running across the damn things.

"We'll go with you for a little while," Cade amended as he squeezed my arm. "If that's ok?"

They exchanged quick glances. "Strength in numbers," the man agreed.

"Yes." My heart was hammering as my skin became coated with a thin sheen of sweat. "There are others of us nearby." Cade turned to me clasped hold of my shoulders. "I have to find Jenna; there is no way to know how far she ran. Wait for us."

"Cade..."

He was disappearing into the woods before I could offer a full protest though. I marveled over his grace and ability to move with such speed and ease before focusing my attention back on the group. They looked as beaten and terrified as I felt. I found my defenses crumpling and I managed a small smile for them. It was only halfheartedly returned. "This way," I said.

***

It had taken Cade nearly a half an hour to find Jenna and bring her back to the tree house, by that time it was almost dusk. The group was divided on if it would be best to keep moving, or wait until daybreak. A majority vote had us packing up our meager supplies and moving on. I preferred to keep moving, we had stayed here too long and I felt we would be pushing our luck if we continued to do so.

Bret worried over me as he cleaned my cuts with some of the water we had left. One of the members of the other group had bandages. I wanted to tell Bret to stop and not to worry about me. I was certain if he knew the truth about me, the last thing in the world he'd choose to do was touch me. I wouldn't blame him in the least.

I forced myself not to turn away from him, none of this was his fault, it was all mine. I felt like a mummy with my hands wrapped up, but apparently my dive into the thorns had done more damage than I'd realized. "You have to be more careful," Bret muttered as he finished tying the bandage.

He looked at me in amusement. We both knew that was a near impossibility. After all, I was the girl who had tripped over her own feet and sprained an ankle last year. A fact that, until all of this happened, Aiden and Bret had found highly amusing. "I'm fine Bret," I assured him.

His clear green eyes were warm and caring as he squeezed my hand. "You're a train wreck, but I love you."

Guilt coiled through me, I shied away from the words. I wished he would stop saying them. It took all I had not to jerk away when he bent to kiss my cheek. I could feel Cade's gaze burning into me from across the clearing, but I couldn't bring myself to look at him. I felt like the lowest of life forms, and I wasn't ready to deal with the realization I was now a cheater. Ok well maybe I wasn't a full-blown adulteress, it had only been a couple of kisses, but I was still a horrible person and I knew it.

I just wished Cade wasn't so damn irresistible, or I wasn't so damn weak.

I went to grab the bag of food but Bret beat me to it. "Let your hands heal."

I wasn't going to argue, there was no need. I fell into line beside Abby; she slid her hand through my arm. "I'm glad we've found others."

"Yes, me too."

Though I still wasn't certain how all of this was going to work out. Heading toward the bridges meant heading toward more populated areas with a higher concentration of frozen people, and aliens. And crossing the bridges? We couldn't, we simply couldn't. Unfortunately, I knew some people were determined to do just that, and I was a little scared Jenna was completely for it. She was nearly hysterical after Cade had brought her back and was hell bent on getting off of Cape Cod.

I didn't realize I was staring at her, and Cade, until I caught him staring back at me. My face colored and I ducked my head. Abby giggled beside me. "I think he likes you."

"He's just a friend," I responded quickly, perhaps a little too quickly.

She had only been teasing but my reaction to her, and my focus on Cade, hadn't escaped her attention. Abby might have written off the kiss she had witnessed earlier as the heat of the moment, or temporary insanity, but I could see a dawning realization in her gaze. "Bethy..." she whispered.

"How are you doing?" I asked as a way to change the conversation.

"Bethany _what_ are you doing?"

"Nothing Abby. How are you holding up?"

I could tell she was tempted to say more, but eventually she decided to go with my change of subject. "Surviving, just like everyone else."

I wondered how we were surviving at all. How we were still moving and carrying on through all of this. I could barely stand to think of our mother, I was frightened I would turn into a sobbing mess if I did. We were all exhausted, hungry, and terrified, and yet we continued to fight for our lives no matter how uncomfortable and uncertain we had become. Abby leaned against my side and rested her head on my arm. She was strong, but I knew she wouldn't be able to take much more. I wasn't so sure any of us could.

"We are going to survive this though," she muttered.

I turned my attention back to Abby and forced a smile. "Yes we are."

I hoped I wasn't lying to her, but deep down I felt I was. We moved through the woods, skirting the roads and staying within the shadows. As we approached the Sagamore Bridge, I was surprised to see all of its lights were still on, and blazing vibrantly. I stopped to stare as I recalled all the times I had seen the bridge lit up like this. It was a beautiful, sweeping, glowing beacon against the night. Yet, even though it looked much the same, it was completely different.

It was the middle of summer and the bridge was completely deserted. Last summer the bridge had been packed with traffic, the sound of cars had filled the night as tourists came and went at a snail's pace. Now there was nothing there except for the lights, and almost certain death.

"The lights are on," Jenna muttered. "We can't go across if the lights are on. They'll spot us instantly if we do."

"We'll try the Bourne Bridge," one of the members of the other group said.

"The lights will be on there too," I told them.

"You can't know that," a woman retorted brusquely.

No, I couldn't know it for sure, but it was more than likely true. They just didn't want to believe it, yet.

"We'll go to the other bridge," Cade said reasonably. "It's not that far. If we stick to the edge of the woods and move quickly, we can get there before daybreak."

We hadn't discussed if we were going to attempt the crossing. I knew Jenna was for it, but what did everyone else feel? I looked to Aiden, but he was conversing with one of the other men.

I thought of the other bridge, and then remembered something we were all forgetting about. "What about the military base?" I asked. They all frowned as they stared at me in the night. Their eyes were eerily aglow in the moonlight filtering through the trees. "I know it's closed. I know the aliens kicked everyone off of it, but it's big, and it's wooded. There are a lot of places to hide there, a lot of buildings we can sneak into, and there might be weapons still there or maybe even food."

"I don't know the base very well," one man said.

"The aliens could be out there," another woman replied. "Wouldn't it make sense for them to take it over and use it as their own?"

I couldn't argue with that, it _would_ make sense, but I doubted the aliens were on the base. I didn't think they would take up any sort of permanent residence down here. They hated us; they thought nothing of us and hunted us like rabid animals who had to be put down. Now that I'd thought about the base, I wasn't ready to let it go. There could be weapons out there still; there _would_ be places to hide. There may even be places we could make a stand, places from which we could defend ourselves. We couldn't run forever, we wouldn't survive doing that. Our supplies were limited.

But as much as the base was taking root in my mind, I could tell they were dead set against it. "We have to get to the mainland," another man in the group said.

I sighed in resignation, Abby's hand tightened on my arm. There was no reasoning with them, no arguing with them. They had their minds set. I looked toward Aiden, but he wasn't going to argue, I could see that on his face. He felt the mainland was the best option also. A shiver rolled down my spine, those people were going to get themselves killed, and they were going to take me and my friends and family with them.

# CHAPTER 16

I didn't argue as we fell into step with them. Though it was almost five miles, we arrived at the Bourne Bridge far faster than I would have liked. I stared at the impressive metal structure arching gracefully over the canal; it was the twin in many ways to the Sagamore. I kept waiting for the Twilight Zone music to start playing, kept waiting for _something_ to happen. I couldn't shake the feeling we were the only people left on earth, that we'd been sucked into some kind of time loop or perhaps were even being punked. I kept waiting for someone to jump out and yell, 'Gotcha!'

Neither of those things happened.

The roadway leading to the bridge was as clear as day to me. It almost seemed as if the lights were trying to lure us onto the soaring structure like a mouse to cheese. I was certain we would be snatched up the minute we stepped out of the shadows of the forest.

Abby stood on her tiptoes and pulled me closer to her. "I don't want to cross it."

I pressed my finger against my lips for her to keep quiet. The others gathered to talk amongst themselves. Abby and I stayed back. I was against separating, it was the _last_ thing I wanted to do, but I wasn't going to cross the bridge, and I wasn't going to let them make Abby cross it either. I didn't know what we would do if we were left behind, but I was willing to take my chances on this side rather than step onto that death trap.

I couldn't hear what they were saying, but Cade was shaking his head firmly with his arms crossed over his chest. There were small tremors running through Abby's petite frame. Jenna was behind Cade, nodding as he shook his head. Aiden was hanging back, looking unsure of either option while Bret was raptly listening to each argument, trying to decipher which course of action he felt would be best.

"You have to stay here Abby."

I tried to free myself from her grip, but she only held on tighter. "No."

"Abby..."

But it didn't matter; the group was beginning to break apart. Aiden was coming toward us. I could tell by the set of his shoulders, and the determination in his eyes, I wasn't going to like what he had to say.

"We're going to go over in groups," he told me.

"I'm not going over," I told him.

"Bethany..."

"No Aiden, I am _not_ crossing the bridge. It's suicide."

"It's suicide to stay here," he said.

"Crossing that bridge is _instantaneous_ suicide and you know it. We still have a chance over here; we can come up with a different plan if we just think about it reasonably."

"The aliens might not have considered the bridges."

The sheer stupidity of his statement caused my mouth to drop as I gaped at him. They somehow had the technology to navigate galaxies with ease, and freeze a good chunk of the population, but they wouldn't have the foresight to monitor the only two ways off of Cape Cod? I had no idea what anyone was thinking, but they weren't using their brains, that much was clear. "Aiden..."

"We can't stay here Bethany."

"There has to be another way," I insisted.

"What way?"

I didn't know how to answer him. The canal was known for its treacherous currents, and to swim it would be almost as obvious as running across the bridge, but even that seemed a better option to me than this. And then I knew. I knew exactly how we could get to the other side. "What if I have a better plan Aiden?" I asked.

He stared unblinkingly at me. "What is it?"

"If we find some diving gear, we could use it to swim across. We could stay under water, stay out of view. It could work."

Aiden became silent; Abby stared up at me, while Cade seemed to be thinking it over. "None of us know how to use scuba gear, and where would we even get it?" Aiden finally asked.

I didn't care if none of us could scuba dive or not. I was far more willing to take my chances with it than I was with the bridge. "Someone here might know how, and there's a rental place a few miles away. They have all kinds of beach supplies in there; they may have something we could use."

The other group had moved closer to us, but none of them spoke out when I mentioned scuba diving. "We can figure it out," I whispered.

"It's not something you just figure out Bethany."

I glowered ferociously at him. "I would rather take my chances with that instead of running across something over a hundred feet in the freaking air Aiden!" I snapped, unsure why he was stubbornly clinging to this crazy notion. He was one of the smartest people I knew, but he was being adamantly stupid right now. My idea wasn't without risk, and possibly death, but it was still better than this _absolute_ insanity.

"She has a point," Cade said. "We can swim around the canal, avoiding the currents, and come up somewhere more sheltered on the other side."

"We don't know how to use scuba gear," one of the other group insisted firmly. "We would never be able to do it."

"I know how to scuba dive." My attention was drawn to a young woman in her late teens or early twenties. Her long reddish hair, so dark it was nearly brown, hung in thick curls to the middle of her back. Her cat green eyes were intense as she surveyed the group. "My father and I used to go lobster diving. I'm not an expert, but I do well enough with it. I could help."

I eagerly looked to Aiden, but his jaw was clenched and I could tell he was still against it. "We don't know for sure the store will have rental gear."

"It's worth a shot," Abby said.

"There may not even be enough for all of us, and then what?" another woman in the group inquired.

My patience was reaching the end of its short rope. "Then we come back here tomorrow night, but at least we would have tried," I stridently stated.

"You can stand here and debate this all you want. I'm not waiting anymore. The closer it gets to dawn, the less likely our chances of getting across are going to become," a man amongst the group insisted. "And we may not have another night. This may be our _only_ chance to escape, and I'm not going to blow it."

"But this isn't a chance, this is _death_!" I insisted. "Please don't do this. It's foolish."

I didn't understand their absolute insistence upon this course of action. Was it because it was the only plan they believed in? Was it because they believed the other side of the bridge was magically better? Or was it simply because they finally had something to do, something to cling to other than fear and uncertainty?

Whatever it was, I knew I wasn't going to be able to stop them, and I was terrified I wouldn't be able to talk sense into Aiden either. Would he leave Abby and I here just to do this? Just to prove a point?

"You'll see Bethy, when we get to the other side, you can join us."

My heart was hammering. Abby was shaking even more as her fingers dug into my arm. "Aiden don't," she pleaded.

He looked at her as if he didn't know who she was; apparently he'd thought she would be eager to cross too. "Why don't we just think over what Bethany is saying," Cade suggested.

"What is there to think about?" The burly man shoved his way through the group to us. He hoisted his spear higher as he swung his pack onto his back. "This _is_ the plan."

My heart was hammering; my mouth had gone completely dry. There didn't seem to be any way to stop this. "At least stay with us," I urged Aiden. "If they make it to the other side then maybe we'll consider going."

Aiden looked torn; he glanced back at the group of four starting to gather near the road. "We're in the third group, we'll go then."

I'd already been divided without my knowledge, or approval. "Why are we even splitting up?" Abby inquired.

"Smaller groups will be less noticeable," Aiden explained.

"Yeah, that's gonna help," I retorted.

"You know I love you Bethy, but optimism has never been one of your stronger qualities," Aiden said.

I glared at him, fighting to keep control of my rising temper as my hands fisted at my sides. He may be my brother, and one of my best friends, but there were times when our personalities completely clashed. Unfortunately this was one of those times, and his stubborn insistence may very well get us killed. No matter how much I was against crossing the bridge, I knew that I wouldn't let him go alone. I couldn't. "Realism is not the same as pessimism. You're being foolish Aiden; you're not even listening to reason."

"This is a good plan."

I bit my lip, arguing with him was getting me nowhere. I looked toward Cade, but his attention was focused upon the people already leaving the woods. I closed my eyes, made a plea for their safety, and then forced myself to watch. I couldn't keep my eyes closed against this; I had to know what was going to happen no matter how awful it might be.

"No, it's not," I whispered.

Bret stepped closer to me and slid his hand into mine. "I'll keep you safe."

I managed a tremulous smile for him, but we both knew it would be nearly impossible for anyone to stop the kind of murderous intent we had seen earlier. His hand was warm and strong in mine. I knew every callous and every small scar marking it. Yet as I held his hand, I didn't feel the strong pull, the strong _need_ that tore at me whenever Cade was near.

The next group stepped forward, entering the street as the first group reached the far side of the rotary. They were only five feet from the beginning of the bridge, just passing the entrance of the IHOP. They stepped onto the bridge, moving cautiously as they began the climb up. They weren't quite over the water yet, but still above the concrete walkway and jagged rocks marking the side of the canal. I shuddered at the thought of something happening to the bridge now, not like falling into the canal would save them, but it seemed somewhat more pleasant than concrete and rocks.

"Ok, let's go."

Bret took a step forward; apparently he was in our group while the other man and woman would be the last ones to go with Jenna and Cade. "Wait!" Abby said anxiously as Cade stepped toward us.

My heart was hammering, I could barely breathe as my hand clenched around Bret's. The second group was almost at the beginning of the bridge. The first was just cresting the middle of it; if not for the lights they would no longer be visible. I could sense Aiden's growing excitement; he really believed this was going to be ok. I wanted him to be right, they had gotten further than I'd expected, but I was still unable to accept it.

"We have to go Abby, it's the plan." Aiden seemed agitated by the fact we weren't adhering strictly to the plan. I understood his need to control something, to feel like he ruled his own life again. I just would have preferred if he had chosen something a little less deadly, like our food supplies maybe.

"Just wait until the second group gets a little further Aiden, please," Abby whispered.

I decided to let her try to persuade Aiden, he had a harder time saying no to her than he did to me. He looked hesitant but he waited until the second group was already on the bridge and the first group was beginning to fade from sight. Then, without further speaking to us, Aiden began to move from the woods. I franticly glanced back at Cade.

Cade's jaw was locked as he came toward us. The determination in his gaze was a sign of impending trouble. "Aiden wait," he commanded crisply.

Aiden spun back toward him, but the other two members of Cade's group were also coming forward. One of them was the girl who had claimed to know how to scuba dive. "Molly." She thrust her small hand forward to shake Aiden's. I took hold of her hand, surprised by the strength in her firm grip as I introduced myself.

"We'll go now instead. You'll see, we'll all be fine," the man said. He gave Abby and I a sympathetic look that set my teeth on edge.

"Fine," Aiden said. "Let's go Bret."

"Wait," Bret protested instantly. "Bethany..."

"It's ok Bret, I'll be fine," I assured him. "I would like to stay with Abby."

"Cade can go over with Aiden."

Hope sparked in Jenna's eyes at the idea of being with Bret. Abby looked franticly back and forth between the two groups. I was ashamed by the spurt of disappointment that shot through me at the thought of being separated from Cade. "Let's just go," Aiden said impatiently.

"I'd prefer not to leave you here," Bret said to me.

"Bret come on," Aiden interjected, practically bouncing on his toes in his eagerness to move.

"Bethany?" Bret asked.

I forced down the lump in my throat. "I'll be fine."

"Would you like me to stay?" he inquired.

I wanted them all to stay, but my opinion didn't seem to matter right now. "Its fine," I managed to choke out.

He smiled at me tremulously, squeezed my hand, and kissed me tenderly on the lips. I didn't recoil from him and didn't push him away. I kissed him back because I believed I would never see him again, and I _did_ love him. He hurried to join Aiden and Cade swiftly took Bret's place at my side. I stared morosely up at Cade, struggling not to cry as Abby began to sob quietly.

The first group made it to the other side of the bridge; I could almost feel their relief. They weren't out of the woods yet, they were still completely exposed and out in the open, but they'd made it much further than I had thought they were going to. Hope began to fill me as I realized that perhaps I'd been wrong after all, perhaps we were all going to make it across. Perhaps the bridges _were_ the answer.

I was seized by the urge to run across the bridge, race over to the other side and kiss the ground of the mainland. I glanced eagerly at Cade, Abby's tears began to dry up, and Jenna looked like she was about to start jumping for joy. The second group was more than halfway there; Aiden was almost to the IHOP. "Let's go," Jenna said eagerly.

I managed a wan smile for Cade when he turned toward me. Jenna stepped out of the shadows and made her way toward the road. I swallowed nervously, gathered my courage, and followed Jenna. Abby had stopped crying as she moved with us. Cade stayed close to my side, little shivers of pleasure shot through me every time his arm brushed against mine. I didn't feel so awful about us right now, I couldn't. I needed him.

It was just that simple.

Aiden was at the foot of the bridge. The second group was almost safely to the other side when intense light blazed forth. For a minute I was blinded, and completely confused. I thought something had happened with the lights on the bridge. Perhaps a power surge had somehow caused them to blaze even brighter.

Then, I heard the screams.

# CHAPTER 17

I didn't stop to think. I shoved Abby back and pushed her towards the woods. "Run!" I yelled at her. She turned beneath my shoving hands and stumbled toward the forest. I turned and plunged in the opposite direction. "Aiden!"

I couldn't see him over the glare burning my irises, couldn't hear him above the screams shredding the night. "Aiden!"

I was running toward the blinding light and certain death that made it impossible to see the bridge anymore. I had no idea where I was or where I was running. I stumbled, tripped, and sprawled onto grass. I had somehow managed to make it into the rotary, where exactly in the rotary I was though, I didn't know. I could be closer to the bridge; I could be on the complete opposite side. I struggled back to my feet.

"Aiden! Bret!" I screamed, terror for their lives clawed at me and left me nearly breathless. Not my brother, I pleaded. Please not my brother, please not Bret. Please. Please. Please.

The bushed I crashed through tore at my skin and clothes before I plowed into another bush that halted me abruptly. I thought I was somewhere near the Cape Cod spelled out with yews in the center of the rotary. I couldn't be certain though, but I thought I might have hit the C of Cape. That meant I had at least approached the bridge side of the rotary in my heedless rush, and I wasn't running aimlessly in the wrong direction. I just didn't know where to go from here, which direction was the right one.

Arms wrapped around me and pulled me back. A terrified scream escaped me; I clawed savagely at the arms, certain death had just locked me within its lasting embrace. "It's me Bethany," a voice whispered in my ear. I slumped as I recognized Cade's voice, but I couldn't see his arms around my waist against the harshness of the glow surrounding us. "We have to go back Bethy, we have to go _back_."

Cade was pulling me away, dragging me toward something. I didn't know which way we were going, what was happening anymore. More screams echoed out of the light bringing to mind a wounded mountain lion. I'd never heard such awful, _agonizing_ sounds in my entire life. I wanted to clasp my hands over my ears and attempt to drown out the suffering echoing within those shrieks. I would never get that sound out of my head.

Aiden. Bret. My heart was shattering. This was it; I couldn't take anymore. _This_ was my breaking point. It would soon be over, for all of us, and I didn't even care anymore.

Cade kept his arm locked around my waist as he pulled me to the ground. "Move Bethany!" he grated in my ear.

I didn't care to move, I didn't truly care to do anything ever again. When I remained limp beneath him, he began to half push and half drag me into the center of a bunch of bushes. They were scratchy and caused my skin to burn. Whatever the bushes were, they weren't friendly. Cade cursed as he followed behind me, struggling against the low hung branches of the plant.

I didn't care about the bushes, or the pain. The only thing I cared about right now was I could finally cover my ears. Curling into the fetal position, I clamped my hands over my ears, but it did little to drown out the awful sounds. Cade wrapped himself around me, using his body to cover mine.

"Shh, Bethy, shh love." I didn't realize a low keening sound had been escaping from me. I was shaking, but no tears spilled free. I was too horrified, to shocked to cry.

"Cade," I moaned.

His body was warm and strong as he enfolded me within his embrace. His cheek was against mine, his hand wrapped around my head and forehead as he tried to shelter me. There was nothing sexual about his embrace right now. There was only a desperate need to protect me, to shield me from the horror and death surrounding us. His mouth pressed against my cheek; his breath was warm and ragged on my skin.

My eyes remained closed but the light burned against my eyelids, I thought it would be seared permanently into my irises. "My sweet Bethany."

He kissed my cheek gently. That was when I became certain we were going to die, and he knew it as well as I did. I found that to be an even worse realization. Cade had been stoic throughout this whole thing, even somewhat playful. I sensed the regret and longing radiating from those three words.

The glow was briefly more intense and I became aware that the screams had stopped. The silence, either from the lack of noise or from the suffocating quality of the light, was profound. I shivered, Cade held me closer as the luminosity faded.

I remained frozen, too stunned to move. I didn't open my eyes; I wasn't ready to see anything. I strained to hear something, but there was nothing to hear. Not anymore. It was nearing dawn, but the birds didn't chirp. I couldn't even hear Cade's breath anymore, couldn't hear the fierce beat of his heart. The peace was unnerving in the wake of all the noise and light.

I couldn't take it anymore; my eyes flew open. Gradually they began to adjust to the early morning dawn enough I could make out the plant wrapped around us. I couldn't identify it immediately, but its size, look, and smell made me think of juniper.

Cade gradually unraveled from me. I froze, unwilling to move as he crept forward. The bush was large, but not large enough to keep him hidden for much longer. Sound flooded in like high tide on a full moon. The world came to life again as he lifted some of the lower branches and peered out. I winced against the abrasive sound of the plant as the branches grated against each other.

I couldn't see anything, but I caught the small slump of his shoulders. "I think it's safe."

His voice was surprisingly soothing against the stark clamor pulsating in my eardrums. "Think?" I winced; my voice was nowhere near as calming. He nodded. "They also thought the bridge was safe."

"You didn't." No I hadn't, but that didn't do anybody any good right now. Especially not Aiden and Bret. A twinge tugged at my heart as a lump lodged in my throat. "I think the bridge was booby trapped somehow. I don't believe the aliens are around here right now. But if I'm right, what just happened is going to bring them here, in droves."

He continued when I looked at him questioningly. "I saw no ship; there were none of those creatures around. Nothing happened until the first group made it off the bridge and onto the highway. I think the trap was set to lure in as many people as possible before it was released, just in case an escape was attempted in groups."

I was appalled and sickened by the endless depths of cruelty the aliens possessed. "We either go now, or we wait until morning Bethany. When it's light out."

Translation, when they would be able to see us better. "Now is good."

I barely caught the brief flash of his gaze as he turned back to me. I was more than just impressed by his resilience; I was awed by it. He had lost so much in his life, endured so much, and yet he wasn't going to quit. Not even now, when things seemed far bleaker than they had only ten minutes ago. There was a good chunk of me completely ready to cave.

I had lost too much in these past couple of days; my mother, my brother, my boyfriend, it was too much. Maybe Cade was able to carry so stalwartly on because he hadn't suffered such harsh losses as recently as I had, but I knew that wasn't the reason behind his determination. Cade had lost a lot in his life; maybe not as much as I had, but he'd also experienced great loss and sorrow. He was just as confused as I was, just as frightened, but he was going to forge on.

The only difference between us, I realized now, was he truly believed we were going to survive all of this. I didn't. The realization was a little depressing, and yet a little reassuring. He believed we were going to survive, and I believed in Cade. I may not have faith we would make it through this, but I had faith he would do everything in his power to ensure we did.

"Come on Bethany."

His fingers were strong in mine as he pulled me out from under the bush. "Abby?"

"She made it into the woods," he assured me.

I glanced around, but we were on the backside of the rotary and I couldn't see the bridge from here. Cade was bent over as he darted into the middle of the road with me in tow. I felt exposed here, vulnerable. I held my breath as I waited for the awful light to blaze forth, for our death to come, but it remained still in the early dawn. Cade held firm to me as we plunged into the woods. I took my first easy breath as relief rushed through me, but I knew we weren't in the clear yet. We had to find somewhere safe before full daylight set in.

Cade continued to pull me forward, but I had to look. I had to know. I pulled my hand free of his. "Bethany!" he hissed.

I scrambled through the woods, tearing at the leaves and dirt as I stumbled back up the embankment we had just plunged down. I nearly fell over as I skidded to a halt near the road. I had expected to find desiccated remnants of the once proud bridge. Instead, I was struck by the fact it looked the same. The lights were still on, but in the growing day they were far dimmer.

I didn't see human body parts or guts like I'd expected, but I thought if I crept closer I would find some blood. Of course there would be blood, there _had_ to be. Humans had once stood there, and now they were completely gone. There had to be some remaining evidence they'd existed.

However, I saw no sign of them in the dawning day. My brother had completely disappeared. My heart struggled to pump the blood through my veins, but it was having great difficulty with the simple task.

"Bethany." I turned back to Cade. Abby and Jenna were behind him. Abby was crying; tears ran down her dirt-streaked face. The sight of my sister, my only living relative, helped to ease the constriction in my chest a little. "We have to go Bethy."

I bit on my bottom lip as I nodded to him. I knew we had to go, but I didn't want to. I didn't even know where we were going to go, or what we were going to do. I wasn't ready to leave Aiden and Bret behind, even if they were already gone. I glanced back at the hated bridge. Our lives were rapidly unraveling, but for now, at least we were still alive.

Motion to the right caught my attention. My eyes narrowed on the IHOP restaurant. There were woods behind the building, and in the shadows of those woods, there was movement. I took a step forward as I strained to see what was moving around over there. Aiden suddenly appeared at the edge, his hair was tussled and standing on end, he looked beaten, but he was _there_.

"Aiden," I breathed.

"What?" Cade demanded.

Abby, Cade, and Jenna hurried to my side as Bret appeared. Relief swamped me and I found myself able to breathe again. "Oh!" Abby cried, she went to run out of the woods but Cade grabbed hold of her arm and pulled her back.

"You can't go out there," he admonished.

Abby looked like she was going to protest but she remained silent. Molly appeared behind Bret. It seemed she'd taken the worst of whatever had happened to them. Her clothes were torn; her reddish hair was a frizzy, crazed mess around her dirt-streaked face.

I didn't see the man who had been with their group. I didn't know if he was choosing to remain hidden, or if he'd been lost like the others. Aiden pointed behind the building, toward the road running under the bridge. He began to make motions like he was doing something, but I couldn't quite figure out what it was. "Is he pumping gas?" Jenna asked in confusion.

"The gas station, down by the beach," Cade said with a note of dawning realization in his tone as Aiden began to make swimming motions.

"Near the rental place," I whispered.

Cade gave him the thumbs up sign. Aiden hesitated before nodding and slipping into the woods. Molly followed behind him but Bret remained for a moment before blowing me a kiss and fading away. "Thank God," I whispered.

Cade squeezed my shoulder and pulled me away from the roadway. I didn't miss the questioning look Jenna shot me. Though it seemed silly to even think about such things now, I knew she would reveal anything that happened between Cade and I to Bret. Even now, after all of this, she still wanted him. Or maybe it was because all of this, she wanted him even more. We had few loved ones left, it only made sense we would search out more loved ones to rely and depend on.

I looked toward Cade. From the outside looking in, someone might say that was what I was doing with him, and what he was doing with me. But as his midnight gaze met mine, I _knew_ better. I knew no matter how badly I didn't want Bret to be hurt, he would be. There was no way to stop that, because in Cade's eyes I could see my future, my home.

It was the strangest, most exciting, confusing, and comforting feeling I'd ever experienced and I savored in it. Cade's carved features softened; his eyes gleamed with understanding as a secretive smile curved his full mouth. A connection sizzled between us, a bond I felt in every cell of my body as my toes curled. His hand seemed to burn into my skin, searing through my flesh as it flooded me with a heat the likes of which I'd never felt before. A heat I'd never even imagined could exist until Cade.

"What are we going to do now?" Jenna inquired.

Though our attention was diverted to her, I could still feel the strange connection pulsating between us. I was unreasonably certain the strange bond couldn't be broken, that it never would be. Not even by death.

I thought I should be terrified of these emotions; I'd never wanted to be this vulnerable and exposed. But I was vulnerable, I _was_ exposed, and I was at the complete mercy of my feelings for Cade. I'd vowed I would never feel this helpless again after my father's death, but I failed miserably.

If he didn't feel the same way about me... But he did. I was illogically certain of that.

I slid a sideways glance toward him as he walked beside me. His shoulders were tense, his gaze slid over the woods as he seemed to search everywhere at once. His words from the tree whispered back over me, 'you will always be the only one who matters.' They had been true, I knew that instinctively; knew it with everything I was and always would be.

He had meant those words, because for some strange reason Cade desired me, and cared for me far more than I had ever realized. We were bonded by similar experiences and grief, but even more than that Cade saw _all_ of me. Saw everything I was, and always would be, and he understood it in a way no one else could. I think he understood me better than I did. It was frightening but also exhilarating and wondrously comforting.

If something were to happen to him...

I abruptly broke that thought off. I couldn't go there; I couldn't even begin to go there. I couldn't bring myself to face the realization I was more than likely going to lose more loved ones before this was over. It was likely we wouldn't all survive, that _none_ of us may survive.

"Find a good place to lay low for the day, and get some rest. We can't get to the gas station without running across the highway; we're better off doing that at night, and we can't keep going without some rest," Cade finally answered.

We slipped further into the woods and moved quickly through the underbrush. "I'm so relieved," Abby said as she looped her arm through mine.

"Me too," I agreed, though it felt odd to be happy in this horrible situation. People had just died, many other lives had been lost, but we still had Aiden and Bret. We began to climb as the woods started sweeping upward. It was full morning now and sweat was already beginning to bead along my forehead and trickle down my back. I longed to sit for a little bit, maybe even close my eyes. Recently my main mode of transportation had been my feet, as had many other people's, but I wasn't prepared for this much walking, and running. My blisters were growing blisters.

Cade stopped as we came across an old rock wall splitting the hill in half. "If we keep going we're going to come across the paintball course," I said.

Cade nodded as he studied the wall, and then the woods. Then, slowly, his head tilted back. My heart seemed to stop; I stiffened as my heart leapt into my throat. Before I could tilt my head back to see what had caught his attention, he grabbed hold of me and shoved me against the rough bark of a locust tree. My breath was momentarily knocked from me.

"Stay," he ordered.

I was too astonished to move anyway. He'd been so fast, so rapid, I watched in amazement as he grabbed hold of Abby and Jenna. He pulled them back, sheltering them beneath the leafy bowers of a large oak. The three of them flattened against the trunk of the tree as the small ship that had somehow caught Cade's attention, moved across the sky over a hundred yards away.

I could feel the boogeyman breathing down my neck as my thoughts turned to the others. Aiden, Bret, and Molly had been lucky before, I could only hope our luck would hold out. They were sitting ducks if they didn't find some sort of shelter. Even if it was just a tree.

"Bethany!" I turned at Cade's harsh whisper. He'd stepped from the shadows of the tree; his hand was outstretched to me. My attention was drawn back to the ship as it settled over the area of the bridge; I waited, breathlessly to see what it was going to do. "Bethany, we have to go!"

A door in the bottom of the ship slid open. My heart started playing the drums as something dropped out of the ship. It was small and round. At first I had the insane notion it was a cannonball, but right before it dropped below the tree line, legs unfolded. Another one dropped from the ship as the first one disappeared. They were the size of a grown dog, perhaps a Shepherd, but it was impossible to tell from this distance.

What were they?

# CHAPTER 18

I nearly jumped out of my skin as Cade grasped hold of my arm. "We have to go!"

"What are they?" I breathed. He stared relentlessly at me. Knowledge trickled through me as my toes curled in my shoes. "Those things drain people, but they're so small."

"That means they're probably faster."

"They come in different sizes?" I squeaked.

"They haven't fed yet."

I was going to deny his words, but he was _right_. I knew it the minute he said it, he was telling the truth. They were small because they weren't bloated with the blood of people. As they fed, they would get bigger.

_We_ may be what they fed on.

"We have to run Bethany. Now."

His hand slid into mine as he pulled me up the hill. We slipped and slid as we frantically climbed upward. I grasped hold of the thin vegetation, pulling myself up with straggling bayberries, rhododendrons, and seedlings. Cade released my hand to help Abby as she floundered up a steep section. Though I knew it wasn't true, I thought I could hear them scurrying through the trees behind us, gaining on us.

But perhaps I was right.

I chanced a glance over my shoulder. The twisting movement caused my foot to land awkwardly; I was thrown off balance as my ankle turned out from under me. A startled cry escaped me as I pitched forward and slipped back down the hill. Cade snagged hold of my wrist before I fell too far. His eyes blazed into mine as my mouth parted.

"You're clumsy," he muttered.

"You're fast," I retorted as he helped pull me back to my feet.

Abby and Jenna had stopped to wait for us but as we started up the hill again they turned and fled again. Panic filled me as my sister disappeared over top of the hill, but then Cade pulled me to the top and over the brink. It was briefly downhill before the ground leveled out and we became enclosed by the paintball course.

We raced past walls covered in myriad colors of paint. Cade took the lead, dodging tires, sacks of sand, and ramshackle buildings with ease. My legs were beginning to burn, Jenna was starting to lag, and Abby was struggling to keep up. The three of us were winded but Cade seemed as if he could go for miles, even with the guns strapped to his back. I hadn't thought he was much of an athlete but I'd been completely wrong.

He disappeared around a corner before quickly reappearing. I stopped before him, laboring for breath as I bent over to rest my hands on my knees. "We have to keep moving."

I took a deep breath and forced myself to move. Abby's hair was matted to her face with sweat and grime; her doe eyes were red rimmed and swollen as she panted for breath. I thought Jenna was going to complain but she remained unspoken as she wiped the tangled hair from her face and continued on.

Cade pulled a gun from the waistband of his pants. His black eyes were intense as he handed it to me. My hand trembled with exhaustion as I took the same gun I'd used before from him. "Do not fire unless it becomes absolutely necessary." I frowned as my attention turned from the deadly weapon, to him. "It will only bring more of them."

"More?" I breathed as Abby stepped closer to me. His attention turned toward the woods. A shiver crept up my spine, the hair on my neck rose as I turned to survey the hushed forest. They were out there. My skin crawled with the realization as I took an involuntary step back. Cade seized hold of my hand and wrapped it around the gun as he squeezed it in order to infuse me with his unwavering strength.

"This way," he whispered.

We followed him as he moved with relative ease through the course. A sign, painted in different colors, read JUNGLE COURSE and had an arrow pointing down a path. This area of the woods had been transformed into a forest not from the northeast. Moss draped from the trees; I brushed it out of my way as it enshrouded the path with an air of mystery. Vines hung from limbs and crawled over the trees lining the small path. Some of them were as thick as my calf; others were small and thin. Ivy grew over the pathway and covered the dirt before disappearing into the woods.

Fake birds and monkeys were propped up in the trees; I spotted a couple of jaguars, a few boas and other snakes hidden within the landscape. I had never been here before, but I was fascinated by the atmosphere they had created. I probably would have been shot instantly if I had played as I would have been far more preoccupied with trying to find the things hidden along the pathway, and in the woods.

Cade suddenly stepped off the trail and plunged into the woods. He pushed aside vines and moss as he moved. We followed behind, trying to stay as quiet as possible as we moved as swiftly through the dense woods as we could. Cade stopped near a large locust tree; his eyes narrowed as he surveyed the woods. I didn't know what he was doing, but he seemed certain of something as he turned to the right and started walking again.

A twig snapped behind me. I jumped, instinctively raising my gun as I spun toward the source of the sound. I saw nothing amongst the vegetation and trees, but something was there, I knew it. I could feel it in the marrow of my bones as every primitive instinct I had screamed at me to run. Cade was at my side, his hand tender on my arm as he pushed it down. He placed a finger against his lips as he gestured for me to remain silent.

He led me forward, searching the forest as we moved. He halted me at the base of three intersecting pines that had nearly grown together in the dense woods. He bent; grabbed hold of something and lifted it up. I watched in amazement as he pulled the forest floor into the air. It took me a second to realize he was actually holding a large piece of plywood that had been convincingly covered with dirt, leaves, pine needles, and sticks.

"In," he whispered gesturing to Abby.

She stared at him in disbelief before bending low and climbing into the small hole the plywood had covered. Jenna followed but I hesitated, unwilling to climb under the wood. Cade shook his head at me when I took a step forward.

"Stay in here until I come for you." He noiselessly lowered the wood over their hiding place. Turning to me, his jaw clenched as he pointed at the tree behind me. I glanced at the large maple, understanding what it was he would like me to do.

'You?' I mouthed.

He shook his head and pulled a honed, wicked looking knife from the holster at his side. I remained unmoving, uncertain. I shook my head as he pointed at the tree again. I couldn't leave him down here, unprotected, vulnerable to the things hunting us in the shadows of the forest. He was beside me suddenly, his hand on my waist as he pushed me toward the tree. "Climb."

"You can't stay down here."

He grasped hold of my hips and lifted me up. I didn't have time to protest or fight him. "Climb Bethany. Now."

I swallowed heavily as I grabbed hold of the tree and began to pull myself up. I looked back to find Cade watching me from the ground before he turned away. I almost jumped back out of the tree, almost threw myself from its leafy bowers, but I grasped hold of the limb and pulled myself up. I would have a better shot from up here anyway if I had to take it.

Halfway up the tree I shimmied out to the end of a thick branch and flattened myself against it in order to blend in with the thick foliage surrounding me. I searched rapidly for Cade but he seemed to have vanished within the thick "jungle" surrounding us. My heart hammered, my head spun, where had he gone? How had he disappeared so rapidly and soundlessly into the wilderness surrounding us?

I was about to move forward when that thing crept into the clearing. Bark bit under my fingernails as my fingers curled into the limb. Horror and fear tore through me in equal waves that left me shaken and on the edge of falling out of the tree. It was a combination of every nightmare I'd ever had.

It was not overbearing and cumbersome like its bigger brothers. No this was the size of a small Great Dane. It was oval in shape, its legs arachnid in appearance as it crept forward cautiously before taking a small step back. It's chelicerae like mouth clicked as it took another step forward. Unlike its older brothers, it didn't look like a bloated tick and it was opaque in color. But it wasn't opaque enough that I couldn't see the throbbing pulse of what I assumed was the hideous creature's heart. Strange, twisted things were wrapped in circles close to the monstrosity's hideous mouth. They contained a black, viscous material that seemed to sift and flow within the vein-like circles but didn't move out through its body.

It made me sick to look at it but I couldn't tear my eyes away either.

It seemed to be looking everywhere at once but I didn't know where its eyes were actually focusing. Perhaps it didn't have any, perhaps it could only smell me, or even hear the rapid beat of my heart. It somehow seemed to know we were close as it edged closer to where Jenna and Abby were hiding. My hand tensed on the gun, I aimed it at the thing. I knew Cade was right, firing the gun would only bring more of them here, but I would destroy the thing before it ever got a hold of my sister.

That was when I saw Cade. He was kneeling at the edge of the woods, the knife clasped within his right hand as he pressed it against the ground. Shadows played over him, making him nearly imperceptible in the shade of the trees. An unnerving air of calmness surrounded him and I was reminded a lion before they pounced. I was mesmerized by him; I couldn't look away as he rose and disappeared from view.

I blinked as I searched for him, but he was no longer visible in the shadows. My attention was drawn back to the thing still creeping toward where Jenna and Abby were hidden. Cade reemerged like a ghost from a wall. He moved with startling speed as he raced from the woods. A scream rose in my throat, I choked on it as the creature spun toward him. It took a startled step back before raising on its hind legs in preparation of Cade's attack.

A strange squeal escaped the monster as Cade slammed into it. Dread flooded me, I couldn't stay here; I couldn't remain useless. I scurried back, moving as quickly as I could down the tree as I was filled with the driving urgency to get to Cade, to help him. He couldn't take on that thing by himself, he simply couldn't. I leapt out of the tree when I was still ten feet from the ground. My ankles protested the action but I didn't care as I raced through the forest to him. I didn't know what I was going to do against it but I didn't care.

I had lost sight of Cade when I dropped out of the tree, but as I plunged through some thick underbrush, he came into view again. I was nearly brought up short by the spectacle that greeted me. The battle had become oddly hushed after the initial squeal. It had also become far more violent and bloody. I stumbled forward and nearly fell as Cade lifted the knife over his head and plunged it into the already staggering creature.

The awful bluish black blood covering Cade, and the creature, didn't cause me to halt. Or even the tentacle emerging from the underbelly of the beast and flopping on the ground that froze me. It was the utter calm façade Cade still possessed. He didn't seem winded, didn't even seem fazed as the creature crumpled beneath him. He ripped the knife free and wiped the blackened blade on a handful of leaves he snagged from the ground.

I remained unmoving, my breath trapped in my chest as he finally lifted his gaze to me. He was as still as stone as he watched me. I didn't know what to do, what to say. I didn't know what I had just witnessed and I was uncertain as to who exactly this person standing across from me was. I'd known him nearly my whole life, even when we hadn't spoken he'd always been a presence in my world. Now he was standing there, covered in blood and staring at me with a look that both broke my heart and terrified me.

He looked as vulnerable as a child, looked as if he desperately needed me to understand what had just happened, but I didn't know how to. He was primitive and untamed, and I was filled with the certainty this wouldn't be the last time he killed with such force and brutality.

But then, it was a necessity of our lives now. I was just amazed by how fast he had accepted this and how well he had taken to it.

"Are you ok?" I managed to croak out in a tremulous voice. He nodded as he used his forearm to wipe some of the blood from his face. I found myself able to move and breathe again as I spotted the gash on his upper arm. He had won the battle, but he hadn't walked away unscathed. "You're injured."

"I'm fine."

"You don't know what kind of germs those things carry."

He turned his arm over and frowned at the blood seeping from it. "It's a shallow cut Bethany."

He used his good arm to keep me back. I frowned at him, shoving aside his good arm as I seized hold of his hand. "Don't be a baby, let me see."

He sighed but relented to me as I pushed him toward a rock. He settled upon it as I gathered the meager stash of supplies we had left. There were no bandages but there was a small thing of antibiotic cream and I ripped up a shirt to use as a makeshift bandage. I felt his eyes watching me as I knelt before him. He didn't flinch, didn't move away from my touch as I gently used the rag to clean the blood from the injury. He was right, it was shallow, but I still slathered cream on it in the hopes it would prevent infection and kill any alien germs.

"You're good at that."

I managed a wan smile. "When you're as clumsy as I am you learn a few tricks."

His low chuckle was a sound I found I liked immeasurably. I grinned as I sat back on my heels to admire his rare and fleeting smile. "I thought perhaps you were considering becoming a doctor."

"No, that's Aiden."

My amusement faded with the stark reminder of everything we'd lost. Cade's smile slipped away, a muscle in his cheek jumped. "I see, and what did you dream of doing?"

My gaze drifted toward the forest line as I thought over his question. I'd never really known what I'd wanted to do, what I would become. I'd assumed I'd go to college, I'd even considered going away, but I'd never truly thought about what I would study there. I would never have the opportunity to find out either.

"I don't know," I admitted as I wiped the excess cream and remaining blood from his arm.

"Whatever it was I'm sure you would have been good at it."

I glanced at him from under lowered lashes as I tried to discern if he was kidding with me or not. He didn't appear to be. "What about you? Were you going to go to college?"

He shrugged absently as I tied the torn piece of shirt around his arm. I had to force myself not to linger over his supple skin, and rigid muscles. Had to force myself not to notice the flush the feel of his skin brought to my face and body.

"Eventually," he finally responded.

"Where would you have gone, and for what?"

Those heart-stopping eyes flickered briefly over my face. "I hadn't decided yet."

I sat back on my heels as I studied him. I had the feeling he wasn't telling me something. I didn't have a chance to question him further though as Jenna and Abby appeared.

"Are you ok?" Jenna blurted.

Cade pulled the sleeve of his shirt down to cover half of the rag. "Fine," he muttered.

Abby gaped at the dead creature just feet away. I couldn't bring myself to look at the ruined remains. "How did you know about that hiding place?" Jenna asked.

Cade's hand clasped briefly around mine before he rose to his feet. "I spent a lot of time up here." I was taken aback by the revelation. I didn't exactly pin Cade as a paintball kinda guy, but then there were a lot of things I'd never pictured him as but was beginning to realize he was. "I know the course extremely well."

"Thankfully," Abby muttered.

"Why?" I inquired.

He shrugged as he rolled his shoulders and stretched his back. "Target practice." He flashed a smile, but his gaze drifted away from all of us to search the woods. "We should get moving."

I wasn't going to argue. I wrapped my arms around Abby's shoulders and forcefully turned her away from the creature she was still gawking at. "It's awful."

"It is," I agreed.

# CHAPTER 19

"This is as good a spot as any," Cade declared.

I dropped the small bag on the ground and slid down. Our main food source had gone with Aiden, and I wasn't even sure he still had it. However, my stomach rumbled eagerly as I recalled the meager food supplies placed into Cade's duffel bag of guns before we'd left the tree house. It had seemed smarter to have the food and water spread out between us, and I was extremely relieved it had been. I was starving, but I was going to pass out before I got the chance to eat. I was tempted to take my sneakers off, but decided against it. I didn't want to see the mess I knew my feet had to be, and I wasn't going to be caught unawares in bare feet.

Cade was digging through the bag when I lay down on the ground, propped my head on my hands and passed out cold.

***

It was mid afternoon when I woke again. Cade was the only other one awake, I was beginning to suspect he didn't sleep at all, and it was more than a little daunting. Did he have any weaknesses?

I yawned, stretching as I lifted myself up. Cade's eyes were hooded as he watched me, he may not sleep but it was more than apparent he had to get some rest. There were circles under his eyes, bags were beginning to form, and they had become bloodshot.

His tanned complexion was paler than normal, and the pinched look around his mouth made it seem as if he were in pain. Uneasiness filled me as I watched him, the lack of sleep or hunger was starting to get to him. Or perhaps his wound was starting to become infected with some strange alien parasite.

"You should rest." I tried to keep my tone cheerful, but the worried tension in it was obvious.

"Not tired."

"Liar."

His full mouth curved into a small smile, he shifted as he draped his arm over his knee and watched me. "You have to eat."

I nodded. "I do, and you should sleep."

His fingers played idly with a stick. "I got an hour or so."

It was more than I'd thought he'd received, and I knew it was all he'd give into for now. I dug into the bag and pulled out a thing of peanut butter crackers. I should probably eat more, but I didn't know how long it would take us to rejoin the others, and I had to make sure Abby had enough food. I could go hungry; she wasn't going to though. My belly rumbled as I nibbled on the crackers and tried to trick my stomach into thinking it was receiving more than it was.

I watched Abby as she slept; she looked so peaceful and content. It was hard to believe every waking moment of her life had become such a constant battle, and from here on out it would continue to be so. I was so entrenched in my thoughts I didn't realize I was on my last cracker, until it was gone. I wiped my hands on my legs as I tried to ignore the gnawing hunger in my stomach. I pulled my knees up against my chest and wrapped my arms around them.

"We have to get moving soon," Cade said.

I nodded my agreement, my fingers clenched as I fought the urge to retrieve more food from the bag. I was eager to move again, eager to get to the gas station, to be doing something once more. Now that I was awake again, I felt vulnerable out in the open and exposed here. A faint rustling drew my attention back to Cade as he dug amongst the bag. I closed my eyes and turned away from him.

"Bethany." Cade was kneeling before me when I opened my eyes. He held a granola bar, an apple, and a bottle of water out to me. I shook my head as my gaze went to Abby's slumbering form. "We all ate earlier, you should eat more."

"I'm fine."

"There's enough to last a couple of days if we're careful. Hopefully, by then, we'll have found some more food, or rejoined the others."

"And if we don't?"

"Then we will cross that bridge when we get to it." I shot him an angry look, nowhere near as amused by his words as he was. He grinned at me, his eyes danced with the merriment filling them. "You can't keep her safe if you don't have the energy to do so."

I could have continued to protest, but his sound reasoning and the loud rumbling of my stomach were my undoing. I offered a grateful smile as I took the food from him. He rose to his feet to study the forest as he stretched. "I'm going to scope out the area, see if I can decide the best way to go." My eyes shot to him, I paused with the apple halfway to my mouth. "I won't be long, but now that you're awake..."

His voice trailed off. All I could do was stare at him. Finally, I swallowed heavily and managed a small nod. We would be fine, he would be fine, but I couldn't stop the overwhelming vulnerability suffusing me. "Of course. Yeah, I'll keep watch. Stay safe."

He flashed his charming, damn near heart stopping grin. "Always."

Worry filled me as he slipped from sight amongst the trees. He would be fine, I repeatedly told myself as I munched down the food and took a drink of water. It was warm, but it still quenched my thirst. I stood and walked a little further away. I peered into the trees as two squirrels leapt eagerly through the branches. I smiled as I watched them jump and play, it was such a normal, everyday display, and yet it meant so very much to me right now. I inhaled deeply as I savored in this moment; relieved to see the return of the wildlife.

When I turned back around, I was startled to discover Cade had returned. He moved with such stealth that I hadn't heard or sensed his approach. In the hour or so he'd been gone, he seemed to have regained some of his vigor. The color was back in his face and his mouth wasn't as pinched. Perhaps I had merely imagined the exhaustion and tension enveloping him earlier. I had just woken up after all; I'd still been groggy. I didn't think that was the case, but whatever he'd discovered while he'd been gone had definitely put some life back into him.

His expression which was usually tough, and composed, was neither of those things as he watched me. Now it was lax with a longing that left me breathless and trembling. I didn't understand how just one look from him could have such a profound effect on me, but it did. I found it was enough to make me feel almost normal again. His smile was warming and so beautiful I couldn't help but return it.

My attention was torn away from him as Abby began to stir. She moaned as she stretched her arms and back. I sighed in resignation, not at all looking forward to the next leg of our journey, but knowing we had to go. Abby sat up as Cade strode over and began to shake Jenna awake.

# CHAPTER 20

We labored over top of the hill. As much physical activity as I'd been doing lately, I was still panting for breath, and my legs were shaking by the time we made it to the top. I rose to my full height to survey the slope of the hill as it fell sharply toward the highway. I was struggling to breathe through my mouth. It wasn't working though, the scent of garbage and rot was revolting and inescapable in the heat of the hot sun. Waves of heat and methane drifted into the air, distorting it before us.

None of us had been eager to make our way through the dump to the highway; unfortunately it had seemed like the safest option, and we could move through the day instead of having to stop again. The awful stench of the trash would mask our scents, and make it difficult to follow us, if they did happen to track by scent. There were also numerous places to hide amongst the heaping mounds of awful refuse.

I had thought I was filthy and smelly before, it was nothing compared to now. Not to mention the gut wrenching, horrific bugs we discovered amongst the overwhelming mounds of waste. What little food had been in my stomach was now gone. I continued to dry heave, but there was nothing left in me to lose. Abby had been crying softly, but she was now eerily silent. We weren't so fortunate when it came to Jenna. She hadn't stopped complaining since the second we'd scaled the fence into the dump.

"I want to go home. I can't... I can't. I just want to go home."

"You have to Jenna. There is no home to go to anymore," Cade said, and not for the first time.

I wanted to scream at her. I wanted to break down and beg to go home too. I wanted to flee down the mound of trash, bolt out of the dump, and inhale greedy gulps of fresh air again but I didn't. Though I was certain I was never going to get the stench scrubbed off of me, or rid myself of the squishy, crawly, creepy feeling of bugs climbing and slithering over me. I shuddered as my gaze traveled down the massive mound.

At least it was downhill from here.

Jenna began to cry again. "My parents," she whimpered. I tore my attention away from the endless garbage. It was the first time she'd mentioned them in awhile. There was so much sorrow in her voice, so much misery in her small body. Sadness ripped through my heart, my throat burned with tears. "They're probably dead."

We had also lost our mother but Abby, Aiden, and I had survived such a loss before. It didn't make the loss any easier, but we were better prepared to deal with it than Jenna or Bret. Now Jenna's shock over this whole situation was wearing off, and in the middle of a massive pile of crap she was beginning to fall apart. She was starting to accept reality, and her grief was threatening to consume her. Unfortunately her breakdown threatened all of our lives.

"Shh Jenna, shush now, it's ok," Cade comforted.

"It's not ok!" she wailed. "It will never be ok again!"

I gave Cade credit for not arguing with Jenna. He didn't try to lie to her and tell her it would be ok. Instead, he continued to calm her as we waded through the sucking, heaping, rotten mess beneath us. Abby made her way over to me and slid her hand into mine. Jenna was weeping, her head buried against Cade's chest as they made their way forward. He looked about as happy with this fact as he would to drink lemon juice, but he didn't push her away.

I missed our mother and wished we'd been able to save her. I wished we would have the chance to lay her to rest, and grieve for her the way we'd been able to grieve for our father. I couldn't think about her being trapped beneath the rubble forever; it was too painful. But even more, I wished Jenna didn't have to know what it felt like to be tossed about in the sea of mourning and anguish she felt now. We had never really liked each other, but the sorrow she was going through now wasn't something I would wish on my most hated enemy, if I ever had one.

"One day Jenna, it will not hurt so bad." Cade's eyes met mine over top of Jenna's head. They were not the same words he'd uttered to me on that long ago day, but they were along the same lines. "One day the agony will not be so consuming."

The words were true, but they didn't hint at the gaping hole the loss would leave behind.

I tried to use my shirt to cover my nose, it helped a little but the annoyance it caused wasn't worth the little aid it provided. "Awful," Abby whispered.

I completely agreed but I felt the word "awful" didn't quite describe this dismal experience. The pile began to even out, leveling across the ground. The end to the sea of crap seemed to be in view, though I was certain we would never escape the smell. I could taste its awfulness on my tongue. This place would haunt my memories until the end of my days. I shuddered and drew strength from Abby's slender frame as we picked our way through the smaller layer of trash.

I glanced toward the sky, surprised by the lack of seagulls and crows in the air. They always circled the dump, cawing and diving for food. We'd trudged through a veritable mountain of waste, but we hadn't encountered any creatures. No birds, no rodents, not even a few stray cats or dogs were hanging around looking to be fed.

I froze as I scanned rapidly over the heaping mounds stretching around us. The birds had been singing this morning, and now...

And now there was nothing again.

I pulled Abby back, stopping her before she continued onward. "Bethany!" she hissed.

I shook my head at her as I scanned the pristine sky again. It was hot; maybe the animals were seeking the sanctuary of the shade. But all of them? It seemed not only unlikely but nearly impossible.

"Bethy come on, I want to get out of here!"

"Shh Abby!"

Cade and Jenna had stopped walking; they were staring at me with confusion and impatience. "Come on Bethany."

"Something's not right," I muttered.

"No kidding!" Jenna retorted.

I didn't rise to her snippy attitude; instead I released Abby and headed back the way we had come. "Bethany!"

I held up a hand to forestall Cade's words. One of the greatest things I had experienced in the past day was finally making the descent down this veritable mountain of crap, and now I was crazily clawing my way back up it. The trash skidded and slipped out from underneath me, making the climb even more difficult. My legs ached, my lungs were beginning to burn again, but finally I made it to a small peak in the rubble.

I rose slowly as I scanned over the hills spanning out before me. I glanced back toward the sky, but there was still nothing there. Across the tons of trash I spotted movement on the far side of the heap. I strained my eyes to make out what was across the way. The heat, and waves of decomposition rising off of the pile, made whatever it was blurry and difficult to discern. It could be anything, it could be the missing animals, it could be more people, but a crushing sense of impending doom began to descend over me.

Trepidation worked its way through my body; I didn't have to see what was coming to know it wasn't going to be good. I slipped and slid, skidded and tripped through the disgusting mess as I fled back down the heap. My feet skidded out from under me, I cried out as I lost complete control of my body. I plummeted, rolled, and bounced jarringly through the filth.

Hands grasped hold of my arms, rescuing me from being buried within the mound as they pulled me from the filth cascading upon me. Crap was pulled off of me, brushed away, thrown to the ground in a useless attempt to clean me a little. "What is it?" Cade demanded his hands surprisingly gentle on my skin as his gaze trailed back up the mountain. "Bethany, what is it?"

"I don't know," I panted, trying not to think about the filth and bugs I'd just rolled and squished through. "It's not good though. I think they're still tracking us."

Cade grabbed hold of my arm, running and jumping through the trash as we tried to move as quickly as we could through the pile of calf high rubbish. We reached Abby and Jenna but Cade didn't release me as he continued to drag me forward. I seized hold of Abby's hand, tugging her along with me. My heart was racing faster than a NASCAR car as the garbage seemed to suck and pull at us even more than it had before. We were never going to escape; the refuse was never going to let us go. It was going to mire us down until those things were upon us, until we were nothing more than useless bodies added to the decomposing debris scattered around us.

Rationally I knew the trash heap didn't have thoughts, and wasn't actually on the side of the aliens, but right now it seemed as much of an enemy to me as the monsters stalking us. I was convinced it was doing everything it could to make sure we remained here to nourish it.

The garbage released us so suddenly I nearly fell to my knees as the waste gave out and pavement rushed up to meet us. "This way," Cade ordered as he released me and dashed toward the right.

I didn't know where we were going; I'd never been here before and I did _not_ want my final resting place to be in the dump. A giant warehouse loomed in front of us; one of the massive garage doors was open revealing the gloomy interior. I balked against going inside as Cade plunged into the darkness. The last thing I wanted was to be trapped and killed amongst the giant walls.

"Bethy," Abby breathed when I hesitated. "Bethany _please_."

Fear of imminent death outweighed my fear of being trapped within the cavernous building. I ran through the open doorway as Cade began to pull some ropes, rapidly lowering the massive garage door. "Wait!" I gasped.

"It has to be done." His jaw was clenched, a muscle jumped in his cheek as his face became florid. He'd been lowering the door so rapidly I hadn't realized it was heavy and he was struggling not to let it crash down. It settled into place with only a small clatter of metal on pavement. "This way."

"How do you know where we're going?" Abby inquired.

"I don't," he responded bluntly.

I shuddered at Cade's words but followed behind as he led us through the building. There were small windows up high in the lofty walls, but they didn't illuminate much of the cavernous structure. The stench of decomposing trash lingered, but I saw no sign of it within the building. The four of us had brought that scent with us, a scent that would be easily traceable within these walls. If I thought it would help to rid ourselves of our clothes, I would have gladly stripped from the offending garments, but the revolting odor had sunk into our skin and hair by now.

There was an area with steel piping around five gaping holes in the ground. I leaned over the pipe railing to peer into the shadowy depths. Something glinted within the sunlight, but I couldn't quite make out what it was. "Recyclables," Cade explained.

That was why this building didn't reek, I realized. Unfortunately, the fact this was where the recyclables were brought did little to aid our cause. Cade moved past the bins and toward the back wall. Abby's grip was nearly bone cracking as Cade vanished. Jenna followed behind and then Abby and I slipped into the small back room.

It appeared to be the worker's break room as there were two tables with five chairs crammed around them. A microwave, TV and radio, and four different vending machines were against the wall. Cade stopped, his head tilted to the side as he studied the machines. Moving swiftly he tugged his shirt over his head and rapidly wrapped it around his hand. It was the worst time possible, but even so I couldn't help but admire the flex and play of his lean muscles, and ridged abdomen, as he stalked toward the glass fronted machine.

I didn't quite process what he intended until he began to knock out the glass. I winced as glass trickled to the ground. It sounded as loud as gunshots to me, but I tried to assure myself it wasn't nearly as loud as I thought.

He grabbed hold of the bag of guns and dragged it toward him. Releasing Abby's hand, I hurried to help him as he unzipped the bag and began to stuff it full of chips, cookies, and candies. It wasn't the healthiest assortment, but it was much better than starvation.

Cade zipped the bag closed and sat back. I knew I should stop admiring the smooth flex and play of skin over his lean muscles, but I couldn't tear my gaze away. There was no smug male pride in his gaze as he caught me admiring him. Instead, a fierce hunger blazed to life with such intensity I found I couldn't breathe.

The feel of Jenna's gaze on me finally tore my attention from Cade. I didn't look at her as I ducked my head and turned back toward the doorway we had come through. I had to force my thoughts away from him as I strained to hear anything, but it was alarmingly quiet in the large building. Too quiet.

Maybe I had only imagined something was moving toward us over the garbage heap, but I didn't think so. I knew what I'd seen, and the complete lack of animals was impossible to ignore. Animals knew things we didn't and had instincts far more honed than ours. I was beginning to suspect the aliens had the same effect upon them that an earthquake would, and they were fleeing before we even knew the monsters were near. I wasn't about to ignore their more finely honed instincts in favor of my less than perfect ones.

"Bethy."

Abby's whisper alerted me that we were ready to move on. Thankfully, Cade had donned his shirt again and was now toting the bag. Jenna had disappeared from the room, but Abby and Cade were impatiently waiting for me by another door. Cade quickly ushered me into the room. The room was thrown into complete darkness as he closed the door behind us. Terror erupted through me like a bursting dam; I took a stumbling step back as the overwhelming urge to flee encompassed me. I could feel the walls closing in on me, crushing against my sides and robbing the air from my lungs.

# CHAPTER 21

"Easy." Cade's breath was warm against my ear as he whispered the word. His reassuring presence gave me a small measure of comfort. I was at least able to keep myself from screaming or running away as I ripped my hair out. Then, to my dismay and relief, illumination flooded the room. Abby was standing by the door, her hand on the switch.

"Abby..."

"It's ok; there are no windows in this room," Cade assured me.

I glanced rapidly around the room, not feeling at all relieved as I took in the cramped, dreary space. It was a small bathroom with a urinal and a toilet. The yellowed sink and toilet didn't look as if they had been cleaned since the seventies. I was certain our stench was the only thing blocking the stench of this room. For some reason, I didn't even want to begin to fathom, there was a large drain in the center of the room.

"It's like we're stuck in an unending dirty, stinky hell," Jenna muttered.

I silently agreed.

"We can't stay in here. It's a dead end," Cade said.

Cade was grabbing for the knob when the ground beneath our feet began to shake. My breath froze, a scream strangled in my throat as sweat beaded my forehead. Cade pushed Abby's hand down on the switch. It didn't matter if there were no windows in this room; it was a relief to be plunged into darkness again. At least for _them_ it was, it gave them a false sense of security. It gave _me_ almost instantaneous heart palpitations. With the lights out, it felt as if the walls were creeping steadily closer to me once more. No matter how irrational the thought was, I couldn't shake it.

The water in the toilet began to splash against the sides as the ground shook with a forceful, wrenching motion. A scream would have erupted from me if Cade hadn't slammed his hand over my mouth to stifle it. "Stay calm Bethy. It's only going to get worse, and you are going to have to handle it if you are going to survive, if your _sister_ is going to survive."

I managed a small nod. I thought he was going to release me right away but his arms remained strong and secure around me. It was the first time I sensed his uncertainty as to whether or not we would make it out of this alive. If we were going to die, he was going to hug me one more time, and I was going to return it. I didn't feel guilt as I took solace in his strong embrace.

He reluctantly released me as a loud crash rebounded through the building and shook it on its foundation. It sounded as if something had just smashed into the large garage door. "They know we're in here," Abby whispered.

"Maybe, maybe not," Cade responded. "They may have picked up our scent recently, but they would have caught up to us already if they'd been tracking us since yesterday. Either way, we can't stay here."

"What are we going to do?" Jenna squeaked.

I was thinking the same exact thing as a small light flared into the tiny room. Cade was kneeling down, a penlight in his hand as he examined the drain. My heart plummeted, my head spun, and for a frightening moment I actually thought I might pass out. Instead, I remained standing, my legs trembling as I struggled not to vomit.

Cade placed the penlight between his teeth as he started to feel around the edges of the drain. "Are you out of your mind?" Jenna inquired shakily. "We don't even know where it goes. I'm not crawling through sewage."

Cade lifted the beam to something I hadn't noticed before. There was a showerhead sticking out of the wall with two knobs beneath it. I forgot all about the danger we faced as my fingers itched to turn on the water and plunge beneath the refreshing spray. I didn't care if it was freezing cold, it would be heaven. There was a dwindling bar of blue soap settled onto a metal dish. I craved it as badly as an alcoholic craved alcohol.

"It's a water drain. It's not sewage," Cade stated.

"You don't know that," Jenna breathed.

"I know that if we stay here, we're dead." As if to reinforce his words, the sound of twisting metal echoed through the air. I was sure the garage doors were starting to give out. "This is a town facility, there's a possibility it might lead straight to the water treatment center."

"You don't know if it leads anywhere at all. You don't know if it just dead-ends. You don't know if it doesn't become so narrow somewhere we can't fit through it." Jenna was becoming somewhat hysterical and her rushed words were doing nothing to ease my rising panic.

"No, I don't, but I do know we have to try."

I agreed we had to try, or at least _they_ did, but I didn't think I could go in that awful thing. Cade grabbed hold of the grate and pulled it free with surprising ease. It rattled as he placed it on the ground. Cade shone the beam into the hole as he leaned forward to peer into it. I wrapped my arms around myself, but I failed to ease the shaking overtaking me.

A wrenching screech echoed throughout the building. I half expected something to come barging through the door as I glanced behind me nervously. I didn't have to see them to know the bay doors had just given way. Those things were now in the building, and it wouldn't take them long to make their way here. "It goes straight down about ten feet before making a turn. Jenna..."

"No," she whispered.

Cade lifted his head to stare at her. The lack of empathy in his gaze left me rattled and numb. "Then you will stay here and die. The choice is yours, but we will _not_ stay here with you."

Abby's mouth dropped. Jenna's bottom lip trembled; tears brimmed in her eyes. She turned toward me but I couldn't meet her gaze. Instead, I remained focused upon the hole, that _thing_ that I was dreading crawling into too. I thought I might fracture like broken glass and go crazy if I did.

"I'll go first."

Cade and Abby's eyebrows shot into their hairlines as they turned to me. I was also shocked those words had just popped out of _my_ mouth. But I knew if I didn't jump into there and get it over and done with, I never would. If I was in between two people, I would feel even more trapped, and I couldn't handle that. Not right now anyway. If I didn't get in there right now I'd be dead, and so would Abby as she wouldn't leave me here.

Cade might though. I shuddered at the thought, but I'd seen the ferociousness in his gaze, the callousness he'd directed at Jenna. I didn't want that turned on me; I couldn't deal with his scorn right now. I had to do this; it was the only way. I had to stop being a coward, even if it drove me mad.

"Bethany..."

"It's ok Abby, I'll be fine, but I have to go first. I _have_ to."

I stepped up to the hole. It had a three foot diameter, but it looked about the same as three inches would to me right now. I didn't realize I was shaking uncontrollably until my teeth began to chatter. I clenched my jaw as I tried to make them stop, but a trembling was working its way through every bone in my body. I didn't think it was going to stop until I made it to the end of the pipe, or simply went bonkers. I didn't which one would happen first.

"Can I take the light?" I inquired tremulously.

Another loud crash resounded from outside of the room. They were getting closer. Cade's raven colored eyes were caring and warm as he handed the light over. I wondered if he _would_ have left me behind if I'd refused to do this. For some reason I didn't think he would have, but I wasn't going to ask.

Taking a deep breath, I dropped to my knees. Cade seized hold of my arm, I blinked as I tried to bring him into focus. His eyes blazed into mine, I could feel the determination he was trying to instill in me. His thumb stroked over my skin before he finally released me.

"You can do this."

I shuddered as I tore my attention away from him, put my hands out, and squirmed into the hole before I couldn't. I instantly wanted to start screaming, instantly balked against the horrendous sensation immediately encompassing me. There was about six inches above me as I squirmed, crawled, and slithered down the pipe but it felt as if it were crushing my back and squeezing the air from my lungs.

The air within the pipe was cool and musty like an old stone cellar on a humid day. The small beam revealed a glistening layer of gunk, mold, and something I couldn't identify coating the walls. I fought against screaming and squirming my way backwards when I felt someone enter the pipe behind me. The crushing sensation of being buried alive encompassed me; it was becoming increasingly difficult to breathe. I was going to die, not from being trapped in the pipe but because I felt as if my lungs were starting to shut down.

I reached a turn, and after a little bit of maneuvering, managed to twist my way into the curve. It didn't feel as if the pipe was getting smaller, but I was certain it was. I couldn't let myself think about being trapped in here, couldn't let myself think there might be no way out. I would become useless if I did, and everyone else would be trapped behind me.

"Bethany?"

"I'm fine," I managed to choke out to Abby though we both knew I was lying.

I'd made it another twenty feet when a rocking bang from above caused the pipe to shudder. A creaking, groaning noise echoed throughout the system. A low whimper escaped me as I froze. If there had been enough room in the pipe I might have curled into a ball and screamed like a baby.

"Faster Bethy, faster."

Cade didn't have to say it twice. I was suddenly frantic to be free of this world of unending torture and madness within these crushing confines. I wasn't entirely against death as an option anymore, not if it meant escaping this convoluted pipe. I was either going to find the end of this tunnel, or I was going to die in it, and I didn't care anymore which one came first.

Using my elbows and feet, I squirmed my way forward like an earthworm at a more rapid pace. The beam bounced over the walls, flashing over the slime and sludge that had been there for longer than I'd probably been alive. The stink of the refuse had been bad; this forgotten mix of hair, dead skin, waste, and gunk was almost as bad. It coated me and permeated everything as it pressed against my lips, and slid up my nose.

I was tempted to vomit, but then I would also have to crawl through that too. Though, at this point, it might be cleaner than the mess I was already struggling through.

The pipe took a sharp turn down. I used the light to peer into it. The dim glow bounced off of the slush infested network that twisted somewhere out of sight about fifteen feet down. Where did the damn thing go, and would we be able to get through it?

"Bethany?" Abby asked.

"It drops again," I warned in a strangled voice I barely recognized and was more than a little ashamed of.

I pulled myself into the void.

# CHAPTER 22

There was light at the end of the tunnel. I had to turn off the flashlight to make sure, but there it was, a bright beacon against the darkness enshrouding me. Hope surged through me; I continued forward at a more rapid pace. Tears flooded my eyes and clogged my throat.

I didn't care what was at the end of this tunnel, didn't care if it dumped into raw sewage or a nest full of aliens. I didn't care if I was scooped up and eaten as soon as I broke free. I only cared about escaping this cramped enclosure and breathing fresh air once again. I heard a gasp from Abby as I made it to the end and heedlessly plunged out of the pipe.

It was a further drop than I'd anticipated; I hit the muddied, wet ground with a loud grunt. Pain shot through my bruised tailbone and elbow. The air was forcefully knocked out of me, and then it blessedly rushed back in. I clawed at the watery ground as I pulled myself clear of the pipe exit. I blinked against the harsh glare of the day burning my eyes.

Though it was wet beneath me, I wasn't in a puddle. I couldn't see yet but I got the sensation of open space and couldn't feel walls around me anymore. Hands seized hold of my arms; I blinked, trying to clear away the tears blurring my vision. I realized then that the sun wasn't the reason I couldn't see, it was the tears streaking down my face and clogging my eyes. "Are you ok?" Cade demanded.

I tried to reassure him I was dazed, but completely fine. Only a groan escaped though as a sob ripped free of me. I was shaken, torn, and very close to coming completely undone. I had managed to keep it together in the awful pipe, but it had been too much. I could feel a shattering forming inside of me and I was afraid it might just destroy me.

Cade wrapped me up in his arms and pulled me against him. He buried my head in his neck to muffle the sounds of my tears with his body. I clung to him as all of the pent up horror of the pipe, and everything else that had occurred, boiled out of me.

"Bethany, Bethy hush. You're out now; you made it. You're free, it's over, and you did great. You did great," Cade whispered against my ear. His hands entangled in my snarled and filthy hair as he held me closer.

I clawed at his skin and clothes as I tried to get closer to him, though it was nearly impossible to do so. It was impossible to be any closer but I had to be, I needed more. I needed him _, all_ of him. The absolute certainty of that was soul shaking, it nearly ripped me in two as I held him, oblivious to anyone outside of the two of us. No one else existed in this world of warm sanctuary within Cade's strong embrace. I wasn't aware my sobs had subsided until I felt the stroke of his hands over my hair, soothing me as I began to tremble. Not from fear this time, or relief, but from the sheer wonder of his tender touch.

I didn't care we were both covered with slime and stunk to high heaven. I didn't even care there were two other people watching us. I didn't ever want to let go. I could hear his answering response to me in the excited beat of his heart, and his ragged breathing.

"Bethany," he whispered, his lips against my ear, his hands in my hair. "My brave Bethany."

I didn't feel so brave today. I felt like a coward, drained and nearly defeated. If it hadn't been for his subtle strength, and unwavering faith in me, I wasn't sure I would have made it this far. I wasn't sure I deserved his faith, especially not after the breakdown I'd just experienced. Jenna may complain about everything, but at least she was keeping it together. I was unraveling faster than a yo-yo. If there had been any aliens in the area, I could have just killed us because I had a problem with small spaces.

"I'm sorry," I breathed.

He didn't tell me it was ok, didn't say anything but simply brushed a comforting kiss over my temple. He may have forced Jenna into that pipe, he may have even left her behind, but I knew he wouldn't have forced me. He never would have left me. He would have done everything he could to keep me safe, even if it meant him dying. I almost started crying again at the realization, but this time I managed to keep my tears at bay. What was this astonishing, horrible, confusing situation I'd been sucked into?

Just days ago life hadn't been perfect, but it had been peaceful. I'd had a home, and a mom. I'd known my siblings were safe, and I would be seeing them again. I'd had a nice, loving boyfriend. I'd been certain that if enough time passed I would come to love him one day, because who wouldn't love Bret? Every other girl in the school loved him, except for me.

Wrapped within Cade's arms I began to understand why I'd never been in love with Bret. Even though I hadn't known it, and might never have recognized it if it hadn't been for the events of today, I understood it now. Ever since those days of fishing and playing, of kind words and small smiles, ever since that night in the garden, Cade had owned my heart, and always would.

What I didn't know was why he'd chosen me, and chosen me he had. Years ago. I was certain of it. Before his parents had been killed, before my father's death, he had chosen _me_. I recalled the first time Aiden had brought him home. He'd been six at the time, young, reserved, and new to town. I'd been five.

Even at that young age there'd been a strange wisdom in his onyx eyes. A wisdom that had pierced me and held me entranced. He'd been beautiful and perplexing as he studied me in a way I'd never been studied before. There had been confusion in his gaze, disbelief, and a strange yearning I hadn't understood at the time. I understood it now. Just as I understood he would always be a part of me. He had been since that first moment.

I may have forgotten about those earlier days in the aftermath of my father's death, and the subsequent years of being studiously avoided by Cade, but I was acutely reminded of that little boy now, and the unexpected link that had ensnared us. My heart lumbered with the memories, and the love surging through me. I could see the little boy perfectly, standing in our doorway for the first time, his face slack with amazement and his eyes wide as he watched me.

Then, ever so slowly, he had smiled at me. The striking and rare smile had warmed the black ice of his gaze, and caused me to smile enthusiastically in return. He'd been Aiden's friend, but he was far more to me. We'd been together nearly every day of the two years that followed. He'd been my everything then, and though I'd been too young to understand relationships, or recognize I was helplessly in love with him, I knew now I had been. And I still was.

But in one awful night that had all changed. I wondered what it would have been like between us if his parents hadn't been killed. What our lives would have been if we hadn't been separated by hideous chance. I knew there never would have been a relationship with Bret. As much as I cared for Bret, it would have been Cade and I this entire time. There never would have been anyone else. Fate hadn't worked that way, and though we'd been separated then, I knew we wouldn't be separated again, not willingly anyway.

He pulled back from me. His hands cradled my face as his thumbs rubbed over my cheeks. I knew I had to be filthy, he was filthy, we were _all_ filthy, but he didn't care, and neither did I. His breath was warm against my mouth as his lips brushed over mine. My heart leapt, plummeted, and then soared high again. A sigh of pleasure, and awe, escaped me. I leaned into him, savoring the heat of his mouth, and the pleasure flooding my body as his tongue flickered over mine. My fingers curled into his back, my toes curled in my battered sneakers as his hand clenched on the back of my head.

Briefly, I allowed myself to be lost to him as passion blazed hotter between us and he jerked me more firmly against his rigid body.

I panted for breath as I pulled away and blinked his dirt smeared face into focus. I thought he was going to kiss me again, but he regained control of himself as he moved a little further back to put some distance between our bodies. I smiled as I traced my fingers over the striking angles of his face. "We have to go."

"We do." His voice was strained and harsh.

For some reason his simple words caused my smile to grow. I was pleased by the answering spark of merriment I saw in his midnight eyes. It was rare to see any joy in his gaze, but right now it was beaming out at me radiantly. He swiftly kissed me again before rising gracefully. He held his hand out to help me to my feet. I was shaky but my legs somehow managed to keep me up.

Taking a deep breath, I forced myself to look at Jenna and Abby. Jenna stared at me with a haughty expression that set my teeth on edge as she smirked at me. I knew she would tell Bret as soon as she saw him, but there was no way to avoid that anymore. There was no stopping this thing between Cade and I, and I didn't want to try to anymore. It had to come from me though; I had to tell Bret about it, not her. This wasn't Bret's fault and I needed him to understand that, I also needed him to understand I _did_ love him. I just didn't love him like this.

Abby had moved away from us; she was studying the area where we had landed. Cade took hold of my hand as Abby turned back to us. She was unable to stop the flicker of relief that filtered over her face at seeing Cade and I apart. "This can't be legal," she muttered.

I frowned as I took in our surroundings for the first time. We were standing in a soppy bowl in the ground. Grass and weeds sprouted up here and there, but the outside of the area we stood in the plants were burnt from the harsh August sun. I looked at the pipe we had tumbled out of and realized it was broken. Five feet to my right, the rest of the pipe was jutting three feet out of the ground. The broken pieces lay in a jumbled heap around us.

"Don't think they knew about it," Cade said.

He released my hand. Climbing up the small hole we were in, he lay flat against the grassy hillside as he scanned the horizon. He turned over to look in the other direction before scurrying back down to us. "The dump is about a mile away. I don't see anything coming this way."

"Where are we?" Jenna asked.

Cade shook his head. "I don't know, but we have to get moving. If they discovered that pipe then they'll know where we went. Let's go."

I refused to look at Jenna as we fell into line behind Cade. The copse of trees we headed toward didn't appear nearly thick enough for my liking.

# CHAPTER 23

I was relieved, and exhausted, when we finally came across the highway. The sun was beginning to set; we wouldn't have much of a break before we were forced to try the inevitable crossing. I hadn't allowed my thoughts to turn to Aiden and Bret since we'd been separated. For the first time I wondered if they were ok, if those things had chased them too, or if they had made it to the gas station already as they'd had a much easier and closer route than us.

I numbly accepted the bag of chips and half-full bottle of water Cade handed to me. I was starving, so hungry my head hurt, yet I leisurely ate the chips and barely tasted them. "We'll have to move quickly," Cade said.

I studied the two-lane highway. We would have to dash across it before making it to the median, which was dotted with trees and scrub brush. The median would offer ten feet of refuge before we would have to run across two more lanes in order to reach the safety of more woods. Though those woods were nowhere near as thick as some of the ones we'd traversed earlier.

Cade handed me the duffel bag containing our supplies. I frowned at him as he turned away and made his way to the edge of the tree line. I snapped out of my strange stupor to hurry after him. "What are you doing?" I demanded.

"I'm going to go out there first. Make sure it's safe."

"Like hell!" I retorted.

His face was half hidden in the shadows as he knelt to study the road. "Would you like another replay of the bridge?"

I swallowed heavily as I glanced back at the open expanse of highway. Unlike the bridge there were no lights to illuminate the road, but after the events at the dump I could almost feel the aliens lying in wait, hovering over us, and setting a trap to take us down. "We'll find another way."

"There is no other way."

"I'll go with you," I offered.

He shook his head as his gaze drifted to Abby. "You can't leave her alone."

"Stop using her against me!"

He ran a hand through his tussled hair. "I'm not using her against you; I just need you to stay here Bethany. I'll be back. I promise."

I tried to find solace in his words, I couldn't. "You can't promise that."

"No, I can't." I frowned at him. I had expected some kind of reassurance, some false promises even. I was slightly taken aback by his blunt admission. "But if you come with me, and something happens, these two will be left alone. They need someone to lead them."

I glanced over my shoulder to make sure I was out of earshot. "I'm the one who has completely collapsed in this situation Cade, not them. They're holding up far better than me."

He rose to his full height and moved subtly closer to me. The heat of his body radiated against mine even though he remained a foot away. "That may be true, but you are still stronger than them Bethany. You reached a breaking point today, but many would have reached theirs years ago if they'd carried the same burdens as you. You will not break again, I know that..."

"You can't know that," I interrupted.

"Of course I can, I know _you_. You'll get them through this because you have to. If they lose us both, they won't make it."

I bit my bottom lip as I continued to frown at him. I wanted to believe him, but a part of me believed he was just feeding me a line of bull in order to get me to stay behind while he tested the waters. I could almost see the gears turning in his head, the thoughts bouncing rapidly through his brain as he tried to think of some other way to dissuade me.

"Without you?"

"What?" He was thrown off by my questioning him instead of arguing further.

"Do you honestly believe I will be able to keep it together without you?"

He shifted nervously, I could tell he was hesitant to say his next words, but say them he did. "You kept it together after your father died, _until_ me. You kept it together today, _until_ me. I'm the reason you fall apart Bethany."

"That's not true!" I protested vehemently.

He glanced over my shoulder; his jaw clenched as a muscle jumped in his cheek. "It _is_ true, without me you will make it through this..."

"That's awful of you to say! Especially after everything that has happened!" I snapped, growing infuriated with his words and the absolute belief he had in them. "How could you believe I'm stronger _without_ you?"

He grabbed hold of my shoulders and pulled my rigid form a step closer to him. "I _never_ said that. When I'm not around you bury your emotions because you don't trust anyone else with them, but..."

"But for some reason I trust you."

A small smile quirked the corner of his full mouth as his eyes twinkled mischievously. "Yes, for some reason you trust the devil."

I started in surprise as he mentioned his nickname from school. "You knew they called you the dark devil?"

His grin widened. "The devil knows all."

"You're not funny," I muttered.

"I'm not trying to be." He kissed me softly on the forehead before releasing me and taking a step back. "You will get them through this Bethany. No matter what, I know you will."

Though I appreciated his unwavering faith in me, I wanted to grab hold of him and plead with him to stay. I wanted to tell him I loved him but the words stuck in my throat. It was obvious he was set on this course of action, and I wasn't going to be able to stop him.

"Be safe."

He flashed a cocky grin that caused my heart to melt and my toes to curl. "Always."

Before I could say another word he darted away from me, bolted across the road, and disappeared into the shelter of the median with startling speed and grace. I was left gaping after him, my heart hammering as a cold sweat broke out on my body. I'd never seen anyone move like him. I took a small step after him, torn between the urge to follow, and the need to stay with my sister.

My gaze slid back to Abby. She and Jenna had crept closer to me, but still hung back a good five feet. I could see the fear in their faces, a fear that caused me to straighten my shoulders and tilt my chin up. Cade was right, I would find some way to get them out of this. No matter what it took, I would get them out of here, even if I had to do it without him.

A faint rustle of the leaves was the only thing alerting me to the fact Cade was making his way across the other side of the highway. I held my breath as I counted to myself. I thought he should at least be back in the median by the time I made it to a hundred. At two hundred, I began to panic. At three hundred, I could barely breathe through the constriction encircling my chest.

At five hundred, my throat began to burn and I was barely breathing anymore. Five fifty...

I didn't know how long we should stay here for. How long we should wait for him to return. I wasn't sure I would be able to get my feet to move away from here if the time came. There was no dazzling light, no crashing bangs echoing throughout the forest signaling the creature's arrival, but when I hit eight hundred I became increasingly certain Cade wasn't going to return.

We didn't know what other kinds of weapons these aliens possessed, didn't know what they were capable of. Just because they'd always announced their arrival with noise and light before didn't mean they always had to. The noise and lights could just be a scare tactic, one that worked really well as far as I was concerned. Maybe they had taken Cade. Maybe they knew we were here and were just waiting for us to expose ourselves.

I took a step back from the roadside, losing count as I began to search the night around us. Were they out there? Hunting us, stalking us? Were they closing in on us even now? I hadn't planned to leave Cade, but he'd been gone far longer than he should have been. He had faith in me that I would continue on and get them to safety.

"Bethany..." Abby started.

"Five more minutes," I whispered.

"But he's been gone..."

"Five more minutes, Abby."

"Look, I get you don't want to leave your lover behind, but they could be closing in on us even now," Jenna grumbled.

I shot Jenna a furious look, my hands fisted at my sides. "Five more minutes!" I snarled.

She glared at me as she shifted her stance. I turned back to the road and started to count again. One more time to two hundred, and then we would have to go. We would _have_ to. Fifty-six... fifty-seven... fifty-ei... Movement rustled the trees in the median.

My breath froze; I took a quick step forward as hope exploded through me. Everything went still again and then Cade emerged from the shadows. My legs shook as relief flooded me; I was able to take my first real breath since he'd left. Cade knelt by the side of the road, his hand rested on the ground as he searched for us. I stepped forward enough to expose myself to him in the dim moonlight illuminating the road. He lifted his hand and gestured for us to come over.

"Let's go," I breathed.

"Wait!" Jenna blurted.

"We have to go now, while it's still safe."

"Out there?" she croaked.

I decided to take a page from Cade's book. "Then stay here. Let's go Abby, now."

Jenna's frantic gaze flitted around, but she offered no further protest as Abby came toward me. I bowed beneath the weight of the duffel bag as I heaved it onto my shoulder. It was far heavier than I had expected it to be considering the ease with which Cade carried it. I straightened my shoulders and burst onto the road with Abby close at my heels and Jenna following behind reluctantly.

# CHAPTER 24

We trudged through the woods with our heads bent and our shoulders slumped. I had more bug bites on me than freckles now and I'd given up on trying slapping them away. We had managed to get some sleep, but not much. Jenna had been bitchier than usual for the first hour of our walk. She had finally, and thankfully, grown silent.

"How much further do you think it is?" Abby asked.

"Mile, maybe two," Cade answered absently.

It's not far, I kept telling myself. An hour at the most, and that was only _if_ the terrain became rough, which I didn't think it would. Or I hoped it wouldn't anyway. There weren't any dumps between us and the gas station at least. I kept my head down, my feet throbbed, my legs were weak but I could make it. We all could.

Though the trees mostly blocked the sun, the heat of the day had grown oppressive. I was beginning to feel like a wilted dandelion even though a sea breeze stirred the leaves in the trees.

I was so focused on my misery that I didn't notice Cade had stopped until I bumped into him. He pushed me behind him with his arm as he studied the woods. His body was as taut as a bowstring as it vibrated with tension. I frowned as I glanced around. There were a couple of squirrels sitting in the trees so I didn't think the aliens were near, but something had caught Cade's attention.

The distinct crack of a twig caused me to jump. Jenna and Abby huddled closer to us. A squirrel dashed through the branches of a tree, creating a small raucous as it leapt into another one before disappearing into the woods. Was it fleeing from approaching aliens or from some other unseen thing?

"Abby? Bethany?"

I spun in the direction the voice had come from. "Aiden?" I croaked.

He stared at us like we were a band of circus performers out for a Sunday stroll in our underwear. I knew we looked awful. Our clothes were caked with muck; Abby's delicate features were streaked with dirt and slime. Her coffee brown hair was now black, and a tangled rats nest. Jenna's strawberry hair was also far darker; she'd placed it into a braid before going into the dump so it wasn't the tangled mess mine and Abby's was. My own honey hued hair was now a snarled, filthy brown.

No wonder Aiden was having a tough time recognizing us beneath the layers of grime.

I couldn't stop the smile spreading over my face at the blessed sight of him. He still appeared a little singed, or shocked, from whatever had happened to him on the bridge. His fair hair was standing on end, and burn marks marred the pale skin of his arms, neck and face. But he was cleaner than we were, and I was certain he smelled far better.

Abby let out a delighted cry and raced toward him. Aiden grinned as he held out his arms to receive her. I followed behind her, but by the time I got to them Aiden's nose was already wrinkled and his lip curled as he pulled back. "Holy crap Abby you smell awful!" he cried.

I halted in mid-stride, unable to stop my burst of laughter. He turned toward me and held his arms out. "I don't smell any better," I assured him.

"I don't care."

My laughter ceased as I stepped into his welcoming embrace. Though he was brave enough to hug me, it didn't last long, and Abby and I left a sludge mark on the front of his shirt. "Are you ok?" I asked.

"Yes."

"Bret, Molly?" My voice squeaked, I could barely breathe as I awaited his answer.

Aiden grinned at me. "They're fine," he assured me. "Bret's on the road across from the gas station, Molly's on the road next to it keeping watch for you guys."

Cade and Jenna had edged closer, but remained behind us. "What happened?" Jenna asked.

Aiden's eyes darkened as sadness crept over his features. "I don't really know; we were almost to the bridge when it all just went to shit." His gaze moved away from us, he seemed to be focusing on something neither of us could see. "The guy who was with us, he was in the front. When that light hit him..." Aiden's voice grew taut; a small tremor shimmered through him. "The edges of the light seemed to set him on fire, from the inside out."

My mouth had gone dry as he uttered the words inside out. Instinctively I sought out Cade and took hold of his hand. "The fire actually came from his mouth." Aiden shuddered; his eyes came back to us. "I could feel it creeping up inside of me. I could feel it licking against my organs, burning its way through me. Thankfully, whereas the others had been trapped by the light, we weren't far enough in to be completely caught up by it. The three of us were able to break free, able to run. I didn't even know where we were until we managed to get to the other side of the IHOP."

Abby threw herself back into his arms. I released Cade and wrapped my arms around them both. "Thank God you're ok," I whispered.

"You too," he said with a small smile. "And from the looks of you it doesn't seem like you had a very easy time of it."

"It was awful," Abby agreed.

"Let's go find the others and you can tell us all about it. We've found a place to stay for the past couple of days. I'll take you there before going to retrieve them."

***

The shower had been lukewarm by the time I got to it, but I didn't care, it was still amazing. I scrubbed myself so ferociously that my skin was red and chapped by the time I was done. I lathered conditioner into my hair hoping it would help untangle the horrific mess it had become.

We had managed to dig up some clothes upon entering the basement apartment, but they were all men's clothes. I didn't care; I would rather have walked around nude then put my disgusting dump clothes back on again. My old clothes were sitting in a trash bag now, but I could still smell them. Either that or the stench really had permeated my skin forever. Just the thought made me scrub myself again, it was becoming painful to do so, but I didn't care.

Intending to save at least some warm water for Cade, I finally tore myself away from the delightful spray. I dressed in the loose fitting tee and oversized pants. Using a belt I cinched the waist and rolled the bottom of the jeans up. It took me awhile, and a lot of wincing and cursing, but I was finally able to untangle my hair so it fell around my shoulders and back again.

I didn't pick up the trash bag with my clothes in it, but rather opened up the door and kicked it out. Much like a soccer ball, I bounced it back and forth as I made my way down the hall. I kicked it next to the other two bags sitting by the bulkhead in the small galley kitchen. There was no stove but a hotplate sat next to the microwave. I didn't know if the home above had been the parents of the guy who had lived here, but the entrance into the house had been blocked off. The bulkhead was the only way in or out.

The basement had no windows, but we had only turned on one lamp upon entering. The lamp was in the far back, in a small living room with a battered sofa and a ratty armchair that looked entirely inviting. I slumped into the chair, pleasantly surprised by how comfortable it was considering stuffing popped out of the arms. Cade slipped down the hall and moved toward the shower.

I drew my legs up onto the seat, closed my eyes, and passed out.

I didn't know how much time had passed before I woke again. It was impossible to tell time in the windowless room. My legs were asleep, my neck ached from sleeping at such an awkward angle, but I felt better than I had earlier. "You're awake."

My hands slapped down on the arms as I bolted upright. I hadn't realized Bret was on the couch until he'd spoken. I winced as my legs protested against me straightening them and my neck screamed in twisted agony, but I was eventually able to unravel myself from my cramped position. "I didn't see you there. Where is everyone?"

"Bedroom down the hall. How are you?"

I swallowed heavily. His tone sounded dull and flat. There was something wrong, and I was afraid I already knew what it was. I'd been an idiot to fall asleep before I'd had a chance to talk to him; it seemed as if Jenna had beaten me to it. "Ok."

"From what Abby said it sounded like you guys had a rough time out there."

"It could have been worse. Far worse."

I tried to make him out on the couch, but all I could see was a deeper shadow as someone had turned off the lamp. There was definitely something off about him, but I wasn't sure if Jenna had talked to him, or if he was just as exhausted as the rest of us. I swallowed heavily. If Jenna hadn't spoken to him, then I had to now. There was no point in dragging this out, no reason to cause him more grief than I was already going to. I couldn't keep up this charade, and I had a feeling Cade wouldn't allow it to continue for much longer.

The couch groaned as he stood up and shuffled toward me. Guilt and self-hatred flooded me as he knelt before me and took hold of my hands. I was about to pull my hands away, but he leaned forward and kissed me before I could react. My head spun, I almost recoiled from him, but I couldn't bring myself to be that cruel. Bret didn't deserve that, he didn't deserve any of this. There was no spark in the kiss, no passion, but it was comforting, familiar, and sweet. I allowed him to kiss me briefly before I pulled away from him.

"I'm glad you're safe, Bethany, and here, with me."

"Bret..."

"We can get through this, together. We can get through _anything_ together."

His hands squeezed mine more firmly as he leaned closer. I swallowed heavily, unsure how to proceed. I'd never dealt with anything like this before. "Bret, we have to talk."

"You had a rough time out there."

"We _all_ did."

"Sometimes things happen..." My eyebrows drew together as my mouth pursed. Had Jenna talked to him, or had he picked up on a strange vibe from Cade and I? Either way, it seemed as if he was determined not to hear what I had to say, or to rationalize it away.

"Did you speak to Jenna?'

"Jenna? No, why?"

I hedged, uncertain how to proceed. He must have picked up on something between Cade and me, or perhaps Cade had said something after I'd fallen asleep. "Bret there's something we should talk about. Did Cade..."

His hands tightened on mine, he leaned closer. "We don't have to talk about him. When people are frightened, or stressed, they do things they normally wouldn't do."

"Bret..."

"It's ok Bethany; things will go back to normal now or at least as normal as they can be under the circumstances."

I didn't know what to say to him, I could barely breathe through the anguish clenching my chest. I'd known Bret most of my life, he was a good person. It was me who was awful and wrong. I clasped both of his hands in mine. I knew what had to be done, but maybe it didn't have to be done right now. It was obvious he didn't _want_ it to be right now, obvious he clung to the hope we would be fine. I couldn't give him much, but I could give him that at least. Couldn't I?

My eyes shot toward the doorway as movement caught my attention. I didn't know how long Cade had been standing there, but if he hadn't moved I never would have noticed him. It seemed he was a part of the shadows as he blended in with them seamlessly. I was amazed and a little unnerved by the way the shadows embraced him.

I pulled back, unable to stop myself as Bret leaned forward to kiss me again. Distress flashed through his eyes, his hands clenched upon mine as he sat back on his heels. I couldn't look at either of them as I untangled my hands from Bret's grasp and rose slowly. My back protested the movement as I stretched my cramped muscles, but it felt good to move again.

I blinked against the harsh flare of light as Cade flipped the switch. Resentment flashed across Bret's features when he spotted Cade leaning in the doorway. "What do you want?" Bret demanded.

Bret had decided to take all of his ire out on Cade, instead of me, where it belonged. Cade lifted a black eyebrow as wry amusement flitted over his handsome features. Under the amusement though was a seething mass of tension. This situation would have to be resolved, soon, or it would get ugly. It never should have gotten to this point to begin with.

And it was entirely my fault.

"You know what I want, or at least _who_ ," Cade drawled.

My mouth dropped, my hands clenched on my arms as I stared at him in utter disbelief. I couldn't believe he'd just said that. "Son of a bitch!" Bret growled.

I seized hold of Bret's arm as he took a threatening step forward. He looked about ready to beat the crap out of Cade, but Cade remained leaning nonchalantly in the doorway. He didn't appear at all fazed by Bret's irritation though Bret was a good thirty pounds heavier, and three inches taller. "I just thought all the cards should be on the table, so there is no confusion about what my intentions are." I could only stand there and continue to gape at Cade as his gaze burned over me. "I know what I want, and now you do too."

Bret was shaking in my grip, his hands fisted at his sides. I was trembling from the effects of Cade's sizzling look, and from the words he'd just uttered. "Don't do this now," I managed to whisper. Bret didn't relax in my grasp, but his gaze slowly slid toward me. The look of betrayal in his eyes made me want to cry. "Bret, I'm sorry, I really am. I didn't mean for this to happen, I never meant to hurt you, it's the last thing in the world I ever..."

I gasped as he knocked my hand aside and jerked his arm from my grasp. Cade's casual demeanor vanished as he came away from the door. Fury darkened his features; his eyes were shards of black ice as a muscle in his cheek twitched. My heart leapt into my throat, I stood in between them and threw up my hands to halt Cade's approach.

"You want to take this out on someone then take it out on me!" Cade snarled. His rage was so volatile, so intense, it caused the hair on my neck to stand up. It didn't matter if Bret was bigger, in that moment I thought Cade might just kill him. "Not her, _me_."

Before I knew what Cade planned he seized hold of my hand with surprising tenderness, considering the enraged look on his face, and began to rub it. "It's fine... I'm fine," I managed to stammer out. His eyes came toward me; they crinkled at the edges as his gaze softened. My hand clenched around his, I couldn't stop the immediate physical and emotional reaction that surged through me.

"What's going on?" I had been so caught up in everything I hadn't noticed Aiden's appearance in the room. His hair was rumpled from sleep, his eyes were a little swollen, but the keen edge in his gaze was somewhat unnerving. "Are you ok?" he demanded of me as his attention honed in on Cade's hand on mine.

"I'm fine. Everything's fine," I managed to reassure him.

He glanced at Bret, then at Cade, before finally settling on me again. Cade had been his friend once, but that had been years ago. Bret was his best friend now; I knew where Aiden's loyalties would lie. I didn't want him put in the middle of this. "Better be," he said. "Abby, Molly, and Jenna are awake too."

"Good, we have to figure out what we're going to do."

"Didn't Bret tell you?"

I glanced back at Bret, but he wouldn't look at me as his gaze remained focused on the far wall. His mouth was clamped shut and his arms folded over his broad chest. I ached for the sting of rejection I sensed in him. Swallowing heavily I turned my attention back to Aiden. "No," I informed him.

"The rental store down the road _does_ have scuba gear."

I frowned in confusion. "But you said that was a bad idea."

"It's the only one we have now. The fact we need to get to the mainland hasn't changed Bethany. We can't stay on this side. They'll find us." My hand tensed on Cade's as I sought his strength. I knew I should let go of him, knew I was only hurting Bret more, but I couldn't bring myself to release him. I was a truly awful person. Cade's hands wrapped around my arms, he pulled me a small step closer to him. His attention was still half on Bret as he listened to Aiden. "We have to do something, Bethany."

Though Aiden was trying to keep his face expressionless, confusion and astonishment blazed from the eyes rapidly flickering back and forth between the three of us. He focused on me, shook his head, opened his mouth to say something, and then clamped it shut again. He muttered something under his breath, it was so low I couldn't make it out, but Cade pulled me even closer to him.

"I know we do," I muttered.

"It's getting dark now, we should be going soon."

I couldn't wait to get out of this apartment, and to put some space between Cade and Bret. But the thought of being outside again, of being completely exposed to those creatures once more, caused a cold chill to run down my spine.

# CHAPTER 25

I turned the scuba tank over in my hands. I had no idea what we were going to do with these things. What were we thinking to attempt this incredibly crazy idea, even if it had been _my_ crazy idea? Drowning was _not_ the way I intended to go out, but then again neither was getting my blood drained by some crazy freaking spider/tick/octopus/jellyfish-like monster.

Both options sucked, but I preferred to give my body over to nature than the aliens any day. "There might be some kind of manual or something around here," Aiden muttered as he wandered behind the counter. "A video even."

"A video?" I inquired dryly.

"DVD maybe."

I rolled my eyes as I shook my head. Only Aiden would think he could play a DVD and know what to do, or that there even was a DVD on the basics of scuba diving. But then again, for all I knew, there actually might be one. Abby was holding up a set of flippers, studying them carefully as she flapped them in the air. We had lived on Cape Cod our entire lives, but strangely enough my siblings and I had never donned a set of flippers before.

"We do have Molly," I reminded him.

Aiden shrugged absently. "Would still like to learn as much as possible beforehand."

I followed Aiden behind the counter and held a flashlight for him as he rummaged through the shelves. I didn't think he had a snowballs chance in Hell of finding a video, but I didn't say that to him. I figured he simply needed something to distract him from what we were going to do. "Here's something."

"What?" I asked in surprise.

He pulled out a stack of papers and fluttered them in the air. "It's a manual." _Well that might be helpful_ , I thought. Though, I was sure reading about scuba diving wasn't the best way to learn how to do it. It was better than nothing though. He sat back on his heels and flipped through the pages. "It will help."

He put it on top of the counter as he stood up. Cade and Molly came around from where they had been exploring the back of the store. "There's a room back there, but it has windows. We either leave tonight for the mainland, or we go back to the apartment," Cade informed us briskly.

He'd been on edge since we'd left the apartment. The strange thing was I didn't think it had anything to do with what had happened with Bret, but something else entirely. He was pale again and his mouth was pinched once more. I wondered if perhaps he hadn't slept like the rest of us. I worried he was going to make himself sick with lack of sleep and nutrition.

"I would like to read this." Aiden drew my attention back to him as he tapped his fingers on the pages before him. "Maybe we should go back to the apartment till tomorrow night then."

"Are we taking all this stuff with us?" Jenna inquired. I'd noticed she'd become a lot more agreeable since she'd seen Cade and I holding hands in front of Bret. "It's pretty heavy."

"I guess we can leave it," Aiden answered but his attention was elsewhere. He was like a pit bull when he became focused on something, he locked onto it and wouldn't let go, and right now he was focused on the manual.

"There's no guarantee we'll be able to make it back here," I interjected.

"Hmm, true," Aiden muttered.

I sighed as I shook my head at him. I moved away from the counter and headed toward the window at the back of the store. Through the trees and homes, I could just make out the light of the moon sparkling across the gleaming surface of the ocean. It all looked so peaceful, so delightfully normal and safe. I could almost believe everything was as it should be.

I closed my eyes as I tried to bottle the rush of emotions swelling up in me. I allowed myself to long for everything we'd lost, and everything that we would never have again. Then, I opened my eyes, and forced myself to accept this as our new reality. Running, hiding, being hungry, scared, dirty, and tired was all we would know for the rest of our lives. But at least we were alive, we still had loved ones, and we were still moving which was more than I could say for most people.

"Are you ok Bethy?"

I hadn't heard Abby approach but she was suddenly at my side. "I'm fine."

"Are you sure? You seem so... ah... I don't know, but you don't seem like you lately."

She was trying to discreetly ask about Cade, but I didn't have any answers for her. I didn't know what it all meant, how it would all turn out. All I knew was everything was extremely complicated and I wasn't ready to talk about it. "None of us are the same lately."

"Bret..."

"I don't want to talk about it Abby."

"He loves you Bethany. He's our friend. What are you doing?" Unable to stand the pleading look in her eyes anymore I turned back to the window. I felt bad enough without her heaping more guilt onto me. "Cade is..."

I glanced pointedly at her. "Is what?"

She shrugged her delicate shoulders. "I don't know; he's always so distant and aloof, so cold and _hard_. He's a stranger, Bethany..."

"I can't explain it Abby, but Cade isn't those things, not really."

Abby's gaze drifted toward where Jenna stood with Molly. I knew she was thinking about when Cade had threatened to leave Jenna at the dump. "That _is_ who he is Bethy. It's the way he is toward all of us." Her doe eyes flitted back to me, her mouth parted as she gazed at me with dawning understanding. "It's just not who he is with _you_."

I shifted slightly before turning my attention back to the window. She was right, Cade was detached, he was remorseless, and he was deadly. They were all traits he'd clearly exhibited over the past few days. He just wasn't like that with me and he never would be. I knew that instinctively. I didn't know how to explain it to her though, and I wasn't sure she would understand even if I could explain it to her. People had been wary of Cade for years; that wasn't going to change simply because I wanted it to.

She rested her hand on my arm. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"I don't," I admitted.

She squeezed my arm before hooking her arm through mine and leaning against my side. "He is gorgeous," she muttered.

I chuckled as I hugged her to me, taking solace in her warmth. "It's time to head back." Cade didn't acknowledge the midnight hair falling into one of his eyes as he stepped beside us and focused on me. "Your brother is determined to read it cover to cover."

"Of course he is." Abby rolled her eyes as she pulled away from me.

She only made it one step before an echoing, crashing screech froze her in place. The sound rumbled throughout the night, and shook the building, as its crescendo rose to higher levels. Abby threw her hands over her ears. She took a step back as it steadily grew louder, and more ear piercing with every second. I didn't even realize Jenna was screaming until Molly slammed her hand over Jenna's mouth to stifle her. It made little difference though; I never heard Jenna's screams above the rising shriek pulsating through the air.

Abby was nearly on top of me as she fell back. Cade seized hold of my arms as a series of rambling crashes, and the brutal squeal of twisted metal resonated through the air. It rose and fell in streams of sound that shook the windows and caused the floor to tremble. I didn't know what was causing the noise but I was beginning to fear it was never going to stop, that it would continue endlessly on until it deafened us, or drove us all mad.

Then it stopped as suddenly as it started. The ensuing quiet was more unnerving than the awful sound had been. We all held our breaths as we strained to hear or see anything. My ears were ringing; I was shaking within Cade's grip. I kept waiting for the noise to start again, kept waiting for something to happen, but the world remained still.

"What... what was that?" Molly breathed.

Aiden took a step from behind the counter; his face was far paler than normal. "I think it was the bridge."

"What?" Jenna demanded.

"The bridge, I think the bridge just collapsed, or was blown up, or whatever. But I'm pretty sure it was the Bourne Bridge," Aiden answered.

Though I couldn't see it from here, I knew he was right. The bridge that had been a constant staple in my life was gone. As a young child I'd despised driving over it, certain it would collapse beneath us. After my father's death I hadn't stayed in a car long enough to make the trip over the bridge until a couple of years ago. Both bridges had been a major topic of conversation for the locals, when the tourists flooded in and created massive congestion during the summer. The bridges had been sweeping testimonials to the architecture and technology of the thirties, and now at least one of them was a pile of rubble within the canal it had once gracefully spanned.

"Why would they destroy the bridge?" Jenna whispered.

"Someone must have tried to get across again," Abby replied.

"No," Aiden's forehead furrowed as he puzzled it out. "Someone _made_ it across."

A jolt of astonishment rocked me. "What?" I inquired.

Excitement filled Aiden's eyes as he began to talk faster. "Think about it. Those things were waiting for us to try and cross the bridge, so they could spring their trap. For them, those bridges were like picking off ants at a picnic, easy, simple, and they had the right bait. They wouldn't destroy that opportunity unless something had gone wrong, unless some _one_ had made it across. Unless someone _survived_."

Hope swelled up my throat. "You really think so?"

"I do."

I glanced eagerly at Cade, but his eyes were distant and turbulent as he focused on the far wall. "Or _we_ did it," Cade said.

"Huh?" Abby asked.

"There has to be some military still around, there are most definitely other survivors out there. It could have been either group that destroyed the bridge."

"But why?" Molly demanded.

"To deter others from attempting to cross it and to keep more people from getting killed."

There was an extended silence before Bret finally spoke. "No matter what it's a good thing the bridge is gone. Someone could have made it to the other side and is seeking help, or there are others on the other side looking to damage the aliens, and they could help us. At least no one else will be hurt again by trying to cross it again."

"We should get out of here. No matter which side did it, it's going to attract a lot of attention and we aren't far from it." Molly bit on her bottom lip as she stared at the window.

She was right, of course, but the last thing I felt like doing was going back outside. Everyone seemed to feel the same way, as no one moved. I finally broke out of the paralysis clinging to me as I reluctantly pulled away from Cade and made my way to the front door. Pulling the blinds apart, I peered out at the night. I could see nothing, but I had the unsettling feeling there was a menacing presence just waiting for us out there.

I backed away from the door. Goose pimples broke out on my skin as a cold chill swept down my spine. "How long will it take you to read that thing?" I managed to croak out.

"I don't know, an hour, maybe two," Aiden answered.

"I don't think we have that long."

"Betha..."

Aiden's words were cut off as another rattling explosion rent the air. I jumped back, nearly falling over my own feet as I staggered away from the door. I threw my arms up as the glass window exploded inward and littered the store with shards of glass. Cade lurched forward, grabbing hold of my arms he pulled me down and covered me with his body as another loud bang rent the air. I curled into a ball beneath him and covered my ears as I tried to protect them from the noise.

Cade scrambled over me for something I couldn't see. He returned, pulling my hand away he pressed his mouth to my ear. "We have to go Bethany."

"Where?" I cried over the resounding explosions.

Cade didn't answer as he seized hold of my hand and pulled me to my feet. Another loud bang shattered one of the windows at the far end of the store as the explosions seemed to get steadily closer. I'd had nightmares like this, being frozen in place as imminent death rushed toward me. Then I'd been able to wake up, now I was trapped, stuck like a fly in a spider's web.

Cade released me and stumbled forward as he staggered toward the wall containing the scuba gear. "Give me a hand!" he yelled at Bret.

Bret and Aiden lurched forward to help Cade tear the equipment from the walls. I seized hold of one of the boxes containing an assortment of floaties and tubes. The contents scattered across the floor as I hurriedly dumped them out. I tossed the box to Aiden and searched for another one as they began to fill it.

Another explosion shook the earth; my ears were ringing from the continuous onslaught of noise. The ground beneath my feet began to vibrate. I jumped as a hand wrapped around my arm, Bret pulled me against his side. "This way Bethany!" he shouted above the noise.

I searched for Aiden and Cade, but they were struggling to carry the equipment and the box. "We have to help them!" I cried.

"We have to get out of here!" he snapped back.

"Wait..." I strained to break free of him, but he wouldn't let me go. "Cade."

Cade's head whipped around, his eyes narrowed upon us. "Get her out of here!" he growled with such ferocity even I was taken aback. "Now! Get her out _now_!"

Bret tugged on my arm, and this time I relented and stopped fighting him. Abby was already by the back door, holding it open for us. Bret pulled me forward rapidly; I nearly tripped over my own feet as I hurried to keep up with him. I staggered out the door, inhaling giant gulps of air that was nowhere near as fresh as I'd hoped it would be. It smelled rancid and the bitterness of its taste caused me to recoil. My lungs burned from the tainted air, my nose hairs were singed by the intense heat.

For an entirely disorienting minute, I thought it was snowing. But it couldn't be snowing, not in August anyway, could it? Then again, far stranger things had happened over the past few days, snow in August didn't seem entirely impossible right now. I stretched my hand up and blinked against the fine particles coating my eyelashes, falling across my face, and turning the night sky completely black as they blocked out the stars and moon. The fine particles were pungent against my lips. My brain struggled to process that it wasn't snow, but fine, flowing _ash_.

I turned to the right, the building blocked some of my view but the sky behind the building was a vivid red orange hue. Whereas the night around us was as dark as midnight, it was as bright as the sun over there. And it looked angry, malevolent, and deadly. We all stood, staring in awe at the glowing, malicious sky. We had been so eager to flee the building, but I found my feet wouldn't move. I didn't want to see what the building hid, what was sheltered from our view.

"Awful," Abby breathed.

"What _is_ that?" Molly croaked out.

"Flames from the bridge must have spread," Bret muttered.

"The gas station," I whispered.

"And the other buildings close to it. Those were the explosions. The fire is going to keep spreading. It will reach other propane tanks, gas tanks, oil tanks. We have to go before it gets to us." I dropped my hands, dismayed by the coating of soot clinging to them. "We have no choice but to swim now."

He tugged me back a few steps. For a second I remained frozen, and then self-preservation kicked in. Bret's hand slipped away as we hurried down the hill, struggling to stay on our feet on the uneven, gloomy terrain. I had to keep wiping the ashes from my eyes as they stuck heavily to my lashes and made it even more difficult to see. The hill became slick with the material coating it, I slipped and slid, waiting for the inevitable moment when I lost my balance.

Surprisingly, I wasn't the first one to go down. Instead, Molly let out a small cry as she lost her footing. Her arms pin wheeled in a useless attempt to keep her balance as her feet flew out from beneath her. I winced for her as she landed on her butt, bounced a few times before doing a complete ass over teakettle somersault.

Bret and Abby attempted to grab hold of her, but she quickly catapulted out of their reach. Molly let out a muffled cry of pain, but she remained terrifyingly quiet as she plummeted out of view. "Molly!" Abby cried.

"Hush!" Bret commanded briskly.

"But..."

"Shut up Abby, Molly did."

Abby became silent but I could almost hear her tears. My heart hammered, was Molly ok? Had she been injured in the fall? I had no way of knowing what was at the bottom of the hill; I could barely see a foot in front of me due to the inescapable blackness. Were there rocks down there? Was the ocean down there?

I chanced a glance over my shoulder; I could barely make out Cade and Aiden struggling down the hill behind us. Their breathing was loud in the oppressive air, but then, so was mine. My lungs labored, my throat burned. It couldn't be good to be inhaling this crap, but there was little any of us could do about that now.

A loud pop sizzled through the air. A burst of fire leapt into the air over the burning glow behind the store. A propane tank perhaps? I tried to recall the buildings in the area of the bridge. There was the IHOP, a hotel; no there were _two_ hotels, a laundry mat, convenience store, gas station, funeral home, tourist traps, woods, and plenty of homes. So many things could spread the growing flames without anyone to stop the inferno.

The aliens certainly wouldn't stop it. Not when they knew it would flush out the remaining people like rats fleeing a flood. That's exactly what we were now, trapped rats they would hone in on quickly, especially if we continued to head toward the water.

My heart flip-flopped; I tore my attention away from the abhorrent flames. Was that the real reason the bridge had been destroyed? Had the aliens decided to ruin any chance of escape, and set fire to the land in order to draw us out?

I was so fixated on my own thoughts I didn't realize the ground had begun to level out. Molly came into view at the bottom of the hill. She was dirty, disheveled, and her bottom lip was bleeding but she appeared otherwise unharmed. We raced across the street, fleeing into the backyards of residential homes, staying parallel with the railroad tracks running near the beach. The tracks followed the water and roads, yet the trees surrounding them offered us enough protection to stay hidden from anything above.

Our breathing grew labored, my lungs were burning from the acrid air, but no one asked to stop. It simply wasn't an option right now. I don't know how long we ran, pounding over unseen ground, trying to escape the ash and deadly flames. I didn't dare look back to see how close the fire was, I didn't want to know how much time we had left.

"This way," Aiden panted.

We followed as he took a right and dashed through someone's yard before stopping at the edge of the woods. I stared out at the shadowed parking lot before us. A chill cooled the sweat on my body at the thought of running out there. We would be exposed, vulnerable.

Aiden and Cade dropped the equipment they had been carrying. They muttered to each other before a small flashlight clicked on. "Aiden!" I hissed.

His mahogany eyes were piercing as he gazed at me over the beam. I was pinned by his stare, frozen within its desperate depths. "Do you plan to use this crap or not?" he demanded.

I bit my bottom lip as I finally turned back to the hungry inferno. Above the tree line I could make out the angry glow of the flames. We had gained some time, but there was too much kindling and fuel in between the fire, and us, to think it had been much. We had an hour, maybe two, before those flames came far too close for my liking.

"Why are there only four tanks?"

My head whipped around at Jenna's question. I strained to see into the box Cade had been carrying, hoping that fear had caused me to lose my ability to count right. One, two, three, four... No, no, there had to be more. One, two, three, four...

But no matter how I twisted the box in my head, I still only saw four tanks within it. "They were the only ones," Cade told her.

"I saw at least ten tanks in the store!" Jenna retorted fiercely, terror causing her bitchier side to reemerge in front of Bret. But then again, I was feeling pretty damn bitchy right now too.

Cade's coal eyes were wintry; Jenna recoiled from him as he leveled her with his remorseless gaze. "These were the only ones with oxygen in them," Cade elaborated.

My heart plummeted; my legs suddenly became so weak I slumped to the ground. The ash wasn't as thick here, but it would be soon. I stared out at the parking lot toward the beckoning ocean beyond. There were still some boats floating out there, bobbing on the small waves lapping against them. They taunted me with their presence; they would be so useful right now, but to climb on one, start it up, and use it would be certain death.

"What are we going to do?" Abby breathed.

"Share them," Molly answered simply as if it was the most obvious answer in the world.

I swallowed heavily at the suggestion. It was such a long swim to be sharing tanks, especially when most of us didn't have a clue as to what we were doing. I turned to Cade, trying not to give way to my panic. His eyes burned into mine. Though he wasn't right next to me, I could feel the soothing caress of his presence on my raw soul.

"Is that possible?" Jenna squeaked.

"It's going to have to be," Molly muttered her attention riveted upon the contents of the box as she pawed through it.

I watched with growing unease as she began to pull things out and lay them neatly upon the ground.

# CHAPTER 26

I felt like swamp thing/idiot as I walked/wobbled toward the edge of the water. I also felt extremely exposed. We would only briefly be in the open and able to be spotted, but that moment was far too big for my liking.

We had avoided the parking lot area, moving further down the shoreline to a more secluded spot. It was a further distance to the mainland from here, but we had all opted for a longer swim rather than longer exposure time. Molly, as the only one with experience, was the only one with her own tank. It would be better if she possessed it and was able to help out if something went wrong. Molly and Aiden were the only ones with compasses.

My eyes lingered upon the rope tying us all together, except for Molly. I didn't like this, not one bit. Though the ocean was vast I could already feel a growing sense of unease about being trapped beneath its rolling waves.

Aiden and Abby had been paired together in the front; Bret and Jenna were behind them, and finally Cade and I. Cade had the tank strapped to his back, though I had a feeling he would try and force me to take the mouthpiece far more often than I would need it. I only hoped he didn't hurt himself in the process.

Knives had been handed out in case someone got into trouble and had to be cut away. In case they had to be _sacrificed_. I didn't have a knife, but then I wouldn't have been able to cut the rope and sacrifice anyone anyway, no matter what happened. I shuddered at the thought and shifted the bag of guns on my back. The weight of the guns was reassuring. They had been divided into three waterproof bags and given to the three of us without tanks.

I wasn't too confident in this plan, but it was all we had. It had taken a half an hour for Molly to explain everything to us as quickly, and as well, as she could. It had been another half an hour before we found a secluded backyard. The falling ash had become thicker again and dawn was only hours away. We didn't have any time to try and formulate another plan.

I didn't think there _was_ one anyway.

"Let's go."

Molly easily slipped into the water, my entrance was nowhere near as graceful as hers was as I flopped, floundered, and fell into the ocean. I was thankful for the wetsuit as the chill of the salty water hit my cheeks and hands. I inhaled deeply before ducking beneath the waves. Though I was nowhere near lacking in oxygen, my lungs began to burn as panic tried to claim me. Cade was suddenly beside me, I couldn't see him through the murky water, but his hand grasped hold of my arm before stroking upward.

His presence caused the burning in my lungs to ease a little. I held onto the rope as I kicked through the water. It hadn't been long, I knew that, but I felt as if we were making good progress, even if I couldn't see where we were going. Apparently Molly decided we were far enough down as she clicked on the light. I could barely see the dim glow, it briefly highlighted Aiden in front of me, and then it was gone as Molly turned it back off. There was a shifting in front of me, a small turning toward the right.

Cade was beside me again, I didn't know what he planned until I felt the press of the mouthpiece against my lips. I tasted salt and water as I inhaled deeply, grateful for the fresh surge of oxygen filling my lungs. His hand lightly pressed over my mouth, looking to calm me as we continued to slip through the sea.

This was going better than I'd anticipated, that only caused my uneasiness to spike. Everything had been so grueling up to this point; I had expected the same thing here. It made me anxious and tense, I was certain something was going to happen. Cade tried to force me to keep the mouthpiece, but I managed to give it back to him. For a brief time my fingers entwined in his, and then he was taking the air from me.

We made our way through the water, the beam would flare briefly every once in awhile before going back out. Subtle adjustments would be made in our direction as Molly read the compass. Three sharp tugs on the line alerted me we were finally approaching land. Hope and foreboding shot through me. We were almost out of here, but there was no way to know what awaited us on the other side.

Then suddenly I felt it, a rising up of the ocean floor beneath us. We began a steady ascent, swimming upward as we headed for land again. What were we going to do if they were awaiting us? Nothing, there would be nothing we could do. We couldn't get to the guns, we wouldn't have enough time to flee back into the sea, and even if we did, we wouldn't have enough oxygen to remain hidden for much longer.

We'd done all we could, now all we could do was pray luck stayed on our side. There was a shifting to the left; I followed along until I felt my head break water. I rose cautiously and pulled the mask slightly up as I surveyed the rocky shore. Cade was beside me, his midnight hair was matted against his forehead, and the water had plastered his shirt to his chest. He pressed closer to me as the air hit my wet hair and skin, causing me to shiver.

"This way," Molly whispered.

We half swam/walked closer to the shore. The darkness was so complete I couldn't see if there was anything waiting for us. Molly pulled her flippers off and tossed them onto the shoreline. I tugged the flippers off and wiggled my toes in the sand as I took a brief second to enjoy the simple pleasure as the others ditched their flippers and tanks.

I could barely breathe as we scrambled forward. The shore was rocky and rough beneath my bare feet but there was no way I was stopping to dig shoes out of the bag on my back. Cade's hand wrapped around my upper arm, I felt as if we were moving through quicksand as we slipped in the shifting sand.

We were almost to the tree line when illumination blazed over us. Everything seemed to slow around me; we were mired on the beach, trapped like rats beneath the glow. Everything around me was acute and vibrant. The air seemed to shimmer like the air above asphalt on a hot summer day. I felt as if I could reach out and touch every particle. In those, the final minutes of my life, I was completely connected to the world, and the people around me. I could hear and see everything, I could feel the energy of the earth, feel the life force joining me to the ones I loved. Though they had always seemed noiseless, I could almost hear the hum of the engines as one of the ships moved over us.

Then Cade was grabbing hold of me, wrapping his arms around me, and pulling me down beneath him. The earth rushed up to meet me; I spit and coughed as sand filled my nose and mouth. His hand in front of me was a deep bronze color in the dazzling light. I didn't know what he was doing until I saw the knife. Then, the rope connecting me to Aiden was sliced.

Love bloomed in my chest as I realized he'd just freed my brother and sister. They would be able to make it, we never would. We were too far behind, too far away from the sanctuary of the trees.

"Cade..."

"I love you, Bethany."

A sob ripped from me as my fingers dug into the sand. His lips were warm against my cheek as he kissed me. I turned into him, savoring our last moments together, taking comfort in the solid strength he radiated. I tried to tell him I loved him too, I always had, and always would. The words stuck in my throat though, I couldn't get them out.

"Bethany!" Abby's scream echoed from the woods. Tears burned my eyes as I watched her struggling against Aiden's restraining hold. "Bethany!" I knew Aiden would keep her safe. Ever practical, ever stoic Aiden would save Abby because he knew there was no hope for me.

Then another light blazed forth. A moan of despair tore from me as it illuminated the woods. My siblings weren't going to be able to escape either. They were as trapped as we were.

I was so caught up in my despair I didn't immediately recognize the noise blazing out of the forest, erupted across the beach, and echoed through the night. Then, the sound pierced my foggy, distorted mind. I inhaled sharply, getting a mouthful of salty sand for my effort, but I didn't care as gunshots continued to ring out across the beach. Far more gunshots than anything our supply of weapons could have achieved.

I lifted my head, wincing against the barrage of lights bursting from the woods. It wasn't another ship, but something else entirely. Cade was frozen above me, his muscles taut and rigid as they encompassed me. Then he was seizing hold of my arm and pulling me to my feet. "Stay low!"

I bent over as I labored through the sand sifting beneath my feet. I could barely see or hear anything over the gunshots and lights. Cade was grabbing for me when he tripped and fell. For a second I didn't understand what had happened, Cade was always so graceful and sure. Then I felt the brusque tug of the rope still binding us.

I cried out as I was roughly pulled back and knocked off my feet. My fingers clawed uselessly at the beach, but there was nothing for me to grab hold of, nothing to stop my violent propulsion backward. I spun onto my back, horrified to find Cade halfway off the ground. One of those _things_ was wrapped around his waist, tugging him into the air, and toward certain death.

A scream tore from my throat. I lunged at him, trying to grasp hold of his hands as we were pulled backward. My heart hammered, I wasn't concerned with my life anymore, but _his_. Another tentacle snaked toward me, but Cade was somehow able to turn and knock it away. I was tugged brusquely forward, lifted off the ground and awkwardly thrust back onto my feet. I stumbled and reached for Cade again, but he was getting further away from me.

"Cade!" I screamed. Jerked forward, I was spun around before being slammed face down onto the beach as the rope joining us was pulled taut. The breath was knocked out of me, I could barely see as stars burst before my eyes. I strained to clear my vision as I fought to breathe again.

I was drug toward the shore by the rope binding us. Somehow I managed to flip onto my back once more. Grabbing hold of the rope I tried to dig my feet in, tried to get some kind of leverage as I fought to keep Cade from being torn away from me. My hands caught fire as the rope tore across my palms but I refused to let go.

My feet hit the water; I was plunged in up to my knees. I knew heart-stopping dismay as my eyes met Cade's. "Cade." His name was just a whisper on my lips, a breath even I barely heard, but I knew he somehow had.

I was jerked to my feet again as Cade cut the rope.

A scream of anguish swelled up my chest and tore out of me. "No!" I wailed as I fell into the ocean. I scrambled to my feet and crashed into the surf as I tried to catch Cade before he disappeared from sight.

"No! Caaaaade!"

I was so focused on him that I didn't see the other tentacle coming at me until it knocked me off my feet.

# CHAPTER 27

I didn't know what happened after that. Hands grasped at me and pulled me from the surf, they carried me somewhere. I wasn't handled roughly, but the hurried urgency of the hands was disconcerting and frightening. I couldn't quite make sense of anything; I didn't know where I was. Time went in and out in flashing blurs that left me disoriented and confused.

At times, I was certain no time had passed, at others I felt as if an eternity had slipped by. Yet, through it all I was acutely aware of one fact and one fact alone...

Cade was gone.

He had cut the rope. He'd been taken by those awful creatures. He was gone. He was probably dead.

In those moments of utter clarity the anguish of his loss was so intense it was all consuming, and debilitating. Agony would flash through me, it would sear me with its intensity and I would once again lose myself to the world of delirium and denial enshrouding me.

Then, one day, I awoke. I wanted to return to oblivion and lose myself to the world of delirium and denial, but I couldn't. I had to face reality. I couldn't simply curl into a ball and die like a part of me so badly longed to. It hurt to breathe; my heart was a broken vessel that only served to pump blood through my veins. But it continued to pump, I continued to breathe, and apparently the world was still turning. It was time I rejoined it.

I found myself in a small room, one I didn't recognize. I frowned as I stared at the dingy white walls, gray concrete floor, and ceiling fan spinning leisurely above me. I was on a metal table but a thin mattress had been placed upon it.

What the hell?

I carefully sat up and winced as I swung my legs over the side. Pain ran up my left leg and lanced across my hips and waist. I didn't recognize the shirt I wore and the lose pair of sweats definitely weren't mine. I pulled the shirt gingerly up, my mouth dropped as I took in the red gash marring my skin and the stitches holding it together. Pulling the pants down, I wasn't surprised to see a bandage covering my hip and upper thigh.

What had happened?

My eyebrows drew together as I tried to ponder the answer to the question, but it completely eluded me, as did my location.

Bracing myself, I slipped off the table. I winced as my feet hit the floor but I was able to support my weight. The floor was cool beneath my bare feet as I padded toward the closed door. I bit on my lip, I was anxious about what I might find on the other side, but I had no choice. I knew Cade was gone, but where was my family? I _had_ to find them; they might need my help.

Although it was obvious I'd most certainly not been much help lately.

My hand trembled on the knob; I held my breath as I cracked it open. I placed an eye to the crack and peered out on a vacant hall. My forehead furrowed as I tried to place what was stretching before me, but I was unable to do so. I shuffled forward, moving past a few closed doors before coming across an ajar one. The steel was cool beneath my hand as I cautiously pushed it open.

A scream burned its way up my throat; I could scarcely breathe through the constriction encasing my chest. I'd seen many horrible things in my life, but this had to be one of the worst.

"You're awake."

I jumped and stumbled a little as I spun toward the voice on my right. My breath exploded from me, my hand flew instinctively to my injury as the abrupt movement jarred me. I bent over as I panted for breath and sweat broke out across my brow. It took me a minute to regain control enough to stand and face the man.

It wasn't a monster beside me, or at least he appeared completely human, but after what I'd just seen I wasn't so sure I could trust my own eyes anymore. The aliens appeared human too, had I been captured? I swallowed back the coppery taste in my mouth before I spoke. "Yes."

I don't know why I'd bothered to respond, it was obvious I was awake. I was standing here after all. "How are you feeling?"

I studied the tall man, wary as to what was going on. He appeared to be in his mid to late thirties. His wavy brown hair had hints of grey at the temples; his grey eyes were large behind the horn-rimmed glasses he wore. He appeared friendly, personable even, but with what was inside that room I couldn't even begin to feel at ease.

"Ok," I answered, unable to stop my eyes from darting back toward the door.

"You were wounded pretty badly."

"My brother and sister?"

"They just went upstairs to eat. They've been sitting by your side for the past week." A _week_ I had been out of it for a _week_? "They'll be relieved to see you up."

I'd be relieved to see them and find out just what was going on around here. "Where am I?"

He gave me a sad, understanding smile. "A lobster warehouse in Wareham."

"The aliens?" My eyes flitted involuntarily back toward the door next to me.

"They haven't found us."

I heard the unspoken "yet" at the end of his sentence. Finally, I was unable to take it anymore. "What is going on in there?" I demanded.

He quirked an eyebrow, then his gaze returned toward the door. "Oh. Well we're trying to see what has caused The Freezing." I frowned at his nonchalant response. "Come."

I flinched as he opened the door to reveal the horror within again. He moved quickly into the room, apparently immune to the dreadfulness of what lay within. I remained hovering in the doorway, not quite ready to step in there. There were rows of people within the room, at least twenty of them from what I could see. They were all frozen in various positions, all trapped within their own bodies. Though I knew it wasn't true, I felt as if their eyes followed me when I hesitantly moved into the room.

"Are they still alive?" I managed to croak out.

He glanced back at me as he stopped by a child. A _child_. Of course I knew children had been affected by this, I'd seen them before, but not this close. The young girl, with her brown hair in a ponytail, her head tilted back, and her small hand reaching out toward something that wasn't there tore at my heart.

Tears burned my eyes, but even more than that I could feel a swelling rush of fury growing within my chest. I walked toward the little girl, taking in her innocent features, and the small smile curving her mouth. She could almost be a perfect, life-sized doll. A part of me tried to believe she was a doll, another part wanted to destroy the things that had done this to her.

"We haven't figured that out yet."

I glanced back at the man; I'd forgotten he was even there. "Have you figured out anything?"

"We think we know how the frozen people were chosen."

I took a quick step toward him that I instantly regretted as my hand went back to my side. "How?" I breathed.

"The people who are still moving all have one thing in common."

"And that is?"

"We all have type O blood."

I hadn't thought it was possible but I actually felt the color drain from my face. My brain flashed back to biology class three years ago when we had typed our own blood. I'd already known my blood type by then, as I'd received plenty of it when I'd been in the hospital after the car accident. My father had been O, my mother was A.

It seemed to be the one thing I'd inherited from my mother.

Swallowing heavily, I focused my attention back on the man. "How do you know this?"

He appeared a little frazzled as he ran a hand through his disheveled hair. "I've tested everyone within this building; they all have type O blood. The people trapped in this frozen state do not."

His gaze was piercing as he studied me, his arms folded over his chest. "Are you a doctor or something?" I asked.

"I am, though until this happened most of my work was focused upon research."

"What kind of research?"

We both knew I was stalling but I was hesitant to meet his penetrating gaze. He was a doctor, he had probably saved my life, and yet I felt trapped beneath the weight of his stare. "I was studying cystic fibrosis, but when the aliens arrived I began to research them. I was fascinated by them and intended to learn more."

" _Did_ you learn anything about them?"

"Not much more than we already knew." I shifted as my gaze turned back to the young child. "I've discovered they don't immediately kill everyone they take."

My eyes shot back to him, I took an involuntary step forward as excitement spurted through me. If he was right then there was still a chance, no matter how small, Cade was alive. I was tingling, electrified with excitement but I was terrified to put too much hope into his words, terrified of what he would say next.

"How do you know that?" I demanded.

"They drain some of them immediately." I shuddered as I recalled the man on the street. "And some of the others they take with them. I believe they store them for later."

I was repulsed by the notion, but hope still pulsated through my whole body. "Are you saying Cade could still be alive?"

His eyes became sympathetic, but the relentlessness of his gaze left me cold. "I believe it's highly unlikely."

"But it could be possible," I pressed.

"It could, but you would do better to let that thought go. It would be better if you moved on."

I couldn't look at him anymore. How could I simply move on? The thought caused a lancing slash of distress to tear through my heart. "If there's a chance..."

"How would you get to him? What would you do? You don't even know where he is, where to begin looking for him. There is no chance you will be able to find him."

I gaped at the man before me. I hated his words and him for saying them. I was resentful of the fact they may be true. And yet...

I knew I wasn't going to give up. I _never_ would. If there was even a small chance Cade was still alive, then I was going to continue to look for him.

I focused on the little girl again, my mind churning as I tried to sort through the tangled thoughts and emotions jumbling it. If he was alive, what were they doing to him? My head bowed beneath the weight of my emotions and the disquiet the thought caused. If he hadn't cut that line, I could have saved him, if he'd given me the chance. He had sacrificed himself for me; I had to save him now. There _had_ to be a way to find him, he would do the same for me.

"Do you know what your blood type is, Bethany?"

I had to force myself to look at the doctor again. The speculative gleam in his eyes made me feel like I was pinned under a microscope. "You could be wrong about the blood type. O is the most common..."

"But everyone here who is still moving has it, including your siblings. None of the frozen people have type O. I could be wrong, but the possibilities of this not being our uniting factor are very slim. Even if it is the most common blood type, there would be others here with a different type. There might be more than just the blood component involved, but it is the most significant tie I've found. _Do_ you know your blood type?"

"Yes," I responded flatly.

"You were injured badly enough you required a blood transfusion when you arrived here. I wasn't going to type you because everyone else has been O. Even though you were still able to take your siblings blood, your brother informed me you weren't."

I refused to look away from him as I forced myself to meet and hold his steady gaze. "No, I'm not."

He continued to study me. "I would like to run some other tests on you, if you would let me."

"What kind of tests?"

"Some genetic tests. There may be something different in your blood, something in your genetic makeup that isn't the same as the others, something that made you immune when others weren't."

"You're immune too."

"But you're different." He seemed a little too eager to start poking and prodding me. "You're different than the rest of us here. Don't you want to help if you can?"

"Of course I do!" I protested hotly, realizing only too late that I'd just given him the reaction he'd been angling for.

"Good, good. There may be something..."

His words drifted off as the door creaked open. Relief and joy filled me when Aiden popped his head around the corner. A small cry of delight escaped me as I hurried past the doctor toward my brother. He grinned at me and held his arms out for me. He caught me and hugged me gingerly against him.

"Finally," he breathed. I clung to Aiden, needing his solid reassurance right now. "You ok Bethany?"

"Yes." It was a lie, we both knew that, but it was a lie we were both willing to accept right now. Abby stepped into the doorway with Bret close behind her. They embraced me carefully, though Bret held me for longer than I would have liked. "Are you guys ok?"

"Perfectly fine," Abby assured me.

"What happened?" I asked.

"You don't remember?"

Everything in me shied away from the memory of those last moments on the beach. "No."

"One of those things hit you, but thankfully the rebellion had been in the woods when we made it to land. They were able to fight it off. You were wounded pretty badly but the doc took care of you so you'll be ok."

I managed a small smile for Abby, but I was certain I was never going to be ok again. "The rebellion?" I inquired.

"There are about sixty people upstairs, eight are soldiers, and the rest are survivors. They have a fair amount of weapons and it's relatively safe, for now," Aiden explained.

I had the crushing feeling too much time had passed, felt as if it was all slipping rapidly through my fingers, but I didn't know how to stop it. But it had to be stopped; it had to be changed, somehow.

"You have to be hungry." Abby drew my attention back to her. "We've only been able to give you juice and some soup while you were out."

I was amazed to realize I was extremely hungry. Abby continued to prattle on as they led the way down the hallway, up a set of stairs, and into the large warehouse. Her talk was nervous, on edge, and it took me a minute to realize she was trying to fill my head with her words instead of thoughts of Cade. I loved her even more because of it, but it wasn't working.

I studied the people gathered within the building; some of them were sleeping on blankets and thin mattresses. Others were huddled in small groups, though none of them seemed to be speaking. Lobster pots had been stacked almost to the top of the cavernous ceiling against the back wall.

"This way."

I followed Aiden through a back door into a small kitchen that must have been used by the workers. There were a few people inside of it, talking quietly as they put dishes away. My stomach rumbled eagerly as the tantalizing scent of food hit me. I was given a plate of canned beans and a peanut butter sandwich that looked as delicious as a steak would have. I picked at the food. I was starving but I found I didn't have much of an appetite.

Curtains had been drawn over the windows, but I pulled them back to stare out at the hushed day. As I ate, I planned. There were soldiers amongst the people, trained soldiers who would know how to hunt, how to attack, and how to shoot with confidence and accuracy. Soldiers who could teach us how to hunt, and how to _kill_.

Soldiers who could help me either find Cade again, or help me exact my revenge. Because if I didn't find him, or if he _was_ dead, I was going to take out as much revenge as I could until I was stopped. My attention was focused on the two men and one woman standing by the front door in army fatigues.

I placed my half-eaten food down and left the kitchen. I didn't know how I would go about trying to find Cade again, but I did know I was tired of running and tired of hiding. It was time to stand and fight. It was time to take our world back from the monsters ravaging it.

And these soldiers were the ones who were going to help me do that.

The End

Book 2, Taken Over, is now available!

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# About the author

Erica Stevens is the author of the Captive Series, Kindred Series, Fire & Ice Series, Ravening Series, and the Survivor Chronicles. She enjoys writing young adult, new adult, romance, horror, and science fiction. She also writes adult paranormal romance and historical romance under the pen name, Brenda K. Davies. When not out with friends and family, she is at home with her husband, son, dog, cat, and horse. 
