Chapter 14
Finn
Despite my refusal, River insists on using the jetpacks to cover ground, so I find myself once more flying in the air after I almost crashed to my death. But these jetpacks aren’t built for long journeys, and soon we’re out of fuel, forced to continue north on foot.
We end up leaving the jetpacks behind, since they are too big to carry comfortably.
The following evening, we stop at a small settlement to spend the night.
Unfortunately, they don’t have a way for us to pass a message to Unity.
We spend the next few days walking north without coming across any other settlements.
I know I’m holding River back by being much slower than him, but I’m going as fast as I can and not asking for breaks even when my feet are killing me.
The temperature drops on the fourth evening of our journey. River goes to hunt rabbits, then he cooks them on the campfire. I’ve always appreciated how he skins the animals away from camp without getting blood on his clothes.
“Eat more,” River says once I finish my plate. He’s holding the harmonica he had with him during the ball, but he hasn’t played in days.
“I’m not hungry.”
“You need to be strong so you can walk faster.”
“Eating more isn’t going to make my legs move faster. I’m walking as fast as I can.”
“Well, you don’t let me carry you.”
“Because I’m not a child.”
He crosses his arms and looks away. “It’s cold. You should wear one more shirt.”
“It’s not that cold.”
“You can’t get sick, Finn.”
“Oh, just shut up already! If you want to leave me behind, just do it! Go storm Denver and get yourself killed—much help it’s gonna do for Josh.”
He watches me in shock, and I realize the bluntness of my words. Before I can apologize, he stands up and walks away, disappearing between the trees.
I sigh and rub my face. “Dammit.”
“He’s lost and afraid,” Timothy says.
“It’s not great for me either.”
“You’re more in control of your emotions, and you don’t blame yourself for what happened.”
“How do you know I don’t blame myself?”
He uses a stick to poke the logs in the fire. “Because you are aware of your limitations and don’t believe you can fix everything.”
He’s right. I want to find Caden and Josh more than anything, but I acknowledge that bigger forces are at play here. “I should go talk to him.”
Timothy nods. “Yes, but you should also wear one more shirt like he suggested; the temperature is dropping fast.”
I grab another shirt that used to belong to a dead guard, then I go after River.
There’s still some light left from the setting sun, and I find him sitting on a flat rock with his legs crossed.
I sit next to him and say, “I didn’t mean to get angry at you.
” He doesn’t respond, so I add, “You can get angry at me if you want.”
“I don’t. I only want to save Josh.”
“And Caden.”
“Yes, and Josh.” He sighs with his head bowed, threads of long, red hair covering parts of his face. “My heart is still beating, but it’s no longer whole.”
I hope to love someone someday as deeply as River loves Josh, yet it scares me to lose myself so profoundly in loving someone.
“I don’t know how to help,” I say. “We have to get more support, and I wish that I could get it right now, but I can’t. I’m scared that you’ll do something reckless that will leave me alone in this.”
“I won’t be reckless, and you will be fine without me if you have to. You’re a Finn after all.”
“What’s a Finn?”
“A highly intelligent and handsome creature.”
I smile and lean against him. “And what’s a River?”
“Hmm, a slightly more highly intelligent and handsome creature.”
“River!”
“I said slightly!”
We stay quiet for a while, and I no longer feel the tension between us.
Truth is, I’m lucky to be here with him and not have to worry about wild animals, sudden attacks by Raiders, or going hungry.
It’s easy to take him for granted because he never acts as if he’s doing you a favor or expecting a thank you, but I am deeply thankful for having him.
“Do you know where we are?” I ask. “I’m completely lost.”
“Mother is helping me navigate. She says we’re not far from Molly’s Burgers.”
“You took me there once. Can we send a message to Unity from there? Maybe they have some radio equipment that I can use.”
River thinks before he nods. “They might have that there, and if not, they can pass over a letter like Josh once did.”
“How long until we get there?”
“If I carry you—”
“No.”
“Almost two days.”
“Okay, we’ll leave early tomorrow morning.” I stand up and offer him my hand. “I’d like for you to play the harmonica tonight.”
He shakes his head, heaviness in his eyes. “It will make me think of Josh.”
“Aren’t you already thinking of him?”
He sighs. “True.”
We return to our makeshift camp, where Timothy has already arranged the two sleeping bags we got from the settlement we visited. I sit on mine and cross my legs as River sits on the other side of the fire and begins to play, his music as sad as I expected it to be.
I think of Caden, telling myself he’s been fighting Raiders for his entire adult life.
He just needs to hold on until we can find a way to rescue him and Josh.
But it’s easier said than done, and I can’t ignore what I know about the Raiders’ cruelty.
Once Dino and Unity hear about the king’s betrayal, things will likely move faster, but even that can take months.
What will remain of Caden and Josh’s sanity by then?
“Finn,” Timothy says quietly, while River keeps playing. “Look.”
I follow his gaze, though I see nothing but trees and… can it be? “It’s the same one,” I whisper, my heart beating faster. “The same one I saw at the palace.”
“I saw it too when we walked to the ball.”
River stops playing and follows our gaze as we watch the king’s turquoise iguana.
“Hello, pretty lizard,” River says, and I realize he didn’t notice it at the palace.
The iguana’s amber eyes are locked with mine. “You’re following us,” I say. “Did the king send you here, or was it Hector?”
I get no reply, but I do sense that this iguana can understand me, and I wonder if anyone else can hear me through it. I’ve seen enough crazy shit to believe it’s possible.
“Do you know this lizard?” River asks.
“It was in the palace. I’m sure it’s the same one that belongs to the king.”
River stands up. When the iguana starts to turn, he says, “You can’t outrun me. Don’t try.”
The iguana turns back to face us. “Can you understand me?” I ask, and it replies with a single nod.
“Can Hector hear us right now?” Another nod.
“Do you have Caden and Josh?” The iguana shakes its head.
I ask instead, “Will you have Caden and Josh?” The iguana nods, and I can swear I see a taunting smile on its thin lips.
“Can we negotiate a deal for getting them back?” I ask.
The iguana shakes its head.
“I’m coming for you,” River says. “You can try to defend yourself, but it won’t matter.” The rage in his eyes makes me shiver. “I am River Benett, the destroyer of Father, his army, and his city. I’m coming for Denver, Hector. I’m coming for you.”
As fast as I can blink, River lunges. I look away, but I still hear the impact of the lizard against one of the trees.
“He would’ve followed us,” River says. “I didn’t want to kill it.”
“I know. I would’ve done the same.” Although I wouldn’t have told my enemy that I was coming to kill him. I wonder how many more lizards will spy on us, but I can’t turn paranoid.
“At least we know for sure where they are headed,” Timothy says.
River returns to sit on his sleeping bag, his head bowed.
I take a breath and say, “River Benett, you can carry me on your back tomorrow.”
He raises his head and smiles for the first time in days. “Thank you.”
*
We move much faster with me on River’s back.
Timothy can run fast as well, and unlike me, he doesn’t get tired.
What should have taken us two days ends up taking us a single one, though we do stop for the night on the side of the road since we don’t expect the restaurant to be open so late.
During the early hours of the morning, we make our way to Molly’s Burgers, and there are already people there.
“Stay close to me,” River tells Timothy.
We step inside to old music playing. The air smells of fried food, but the place is warm and comfy, mostly painted in red and white. About a dozen customers sit inside, and one is wearing dark sunglasses even though there isn’t much light.
“Red!”
Roberta comes over and hugs River warmly. Her blonde hair is short and curly, and her bluish uniform has a stain on the right shoulder.
“I think I remember you,” she tells me.
“I’m Finn.”
“Right right. It’s been a while. And this is… oh my.”
“Timothy Brown. Pleasure to meet you, ma’am.”
“I thought I saw everything this world has to offer, but I guess not. Do you eat?”
“No, but Finn is quite hungry.”
I don’t mind him saying that since it’s true.
“Go and sit,” Roberta says. “Oh, and where’s my dearest Josh?”
River’s face falls. “Kidnapped by Raiders, but I’m going to get him back.”
She covers her mouth. “Those fucking… I’m livid! Livid!”
“They’re taking him to Denver. Maybe he’s already there.”
She opens her mouth and quickly closes it, but the look in her eyes speaks volumes.
“I’ll save him,” River says sternly. “And Caden.”
“Do you have a radio transceiver that I can use to speak with my Hive?” I ask.
“Hmm, I think that Hank got his hands on one a couple of months ago. Don’t know if it’s working, though—he’s a hoarder of junk. I can also find someone to pass over a letter, but that will take longer.”
“We’ll try the radio transceiver first,” I say. “Right after we eat.”
We slide into a booth, placing the rifles we took from the High Hope guards next to us. I order the straight-to-your-hips pancakes and the fishy-looking scrambled eggs.
“Is this a toy?” an old man asks from a nearby booth, pointing at Timothy.
“No,” River says. “He’s my oldest friend.”