11. Taryn
CHAPTER ELEVEN
TARYN
The town’s department store wasn’t really a department store anymore. It was a graveyard for civilization disguised as a thrift store.
I stood in front of a rack of shirts that looked like they’d been scavenged from every decade since the invention of cotton while Lila held up a faded yellow sweater.
“What do you think?” Lila held it to her chest and made duck lips.
I smirked. “I think that shade of yellow makes you look like one of the infected.”
She laughed. “You’re such a bitch.”
“That’s what my therapist would’ve said.”
Lila blinked. “Did you ever have a therapist?”
“Nope.”
“Then how would you know?” She blew a raspberry at me.
“Because I would’ve made sure of it.” I continued thumbing through the racks.
Harper laughed harder this time. “I can’t argue with that.”
The store occupied what had once been a discount retailer. Most of the original shelves still stood, creaking under the weight of items scavenging teams had gathered and things taken from houses outside the fence.
Nothing matched or made sense.
A wedding dress hung beside a hunting jacket. Children’s toys sat next to bedding. A blender shared shelf space with fishing lures.
The apocalypse had apparently murdered organization of any kind.
I was reaching for a black, long-sleeved shirt that looked mostly stain-free when movement outside caught my attention. People were drifting toward the front windows.
Harper immediately noticed that my attention had wandered. “Scavenging crew.”
That explained the interest.
Everyone left the store and headed toward the gates, eager to see what they were bringing in.
“Come on.” Harper looked excited. “Let’s see what they’ve found.”
I glanced toward Lila, but she was already heading out the door. I rolled my eyes but followed behind her.
The settlement gate slowly rolled open in the distance. The first vehicle through was an ancient Ford pickup that looked like it should’ve died sometime around the Kennedy administration.
The second was a battered Jeep Cherokee missing half its paint. Then an old Honda Civic followed behind it, packed so full of supplies I was amazed it could still move. The rear bumper scraped the pavement every time it hit a bump.
The final vehicle was another pickup carrying a group of scavengers in the bed alongside crates of supplies.
Dust coated everything.
The vehicles, the gear, and all the people.
One by one, they climbed down and immediately began unloading. Fuel, food, and medical supplies came first, then a crate of batteries. That earned actual applause from several bystanders.
I understood that reaction completely.
One of the scavengers tossed a backpack toward a woman sitting in the truck bed. “Get your ass out and pull your weight.”
I widened my eyes in astonishment. Given how precious women were supposed to be in this town, his tone shocked me. Even her being on the scavenging team surprised me.
She caught the backpack without looking. “Fuck off.”
One of the other men, clearly the one in charge, pointed toward a stack of crates. “Start unloading those.”
The woman looked at the crates, then at him, then back at the crates again. “Fuck off, Charlie.”
“You already said that, you crazy bitch.” Charlie’s face started turning red.
She shrugged and climbed out of the truck.
I smiled at the men's irritated grumbles. It was nice to see a woman who didn’t give a shit what the men wanted and still spoke her mind.
She appeared to be in her mid-twenties, with sun-kissed skin and dark blonde hair tucked under a worn baseball cap. She wore an oversized flannel shirt draped off one shoulder and loose-fitting blue jeans.
She looked exhausted yet still beautiful despite the dust and dirt.
“Wren’s already thinking about wandering off before we unload all this shit.” A boy who couldn’t be much over sixteen muttered as he got out of the Honda Civic.
Another man on the team pointed toward the back of the first truck. “At least unpack that one before you disappear.”
Wren stopped, dropped her backpack, then saluted him with a wide smile.
Maybe she was ex-military?
Everyone started laughing, and the lady next to me muttered, “It’s a damn shame to see her like that.”
Before I could question Harper, the woman looked up and spotted me at the front of the crowd.
Her smile vanished, and the backpack she’d just picked up slipped from her fingers.
For several long seconds, she simply stared.
I looked around at the people beside me, but they looked just as confused as I felt.
The woman was looking at me as if she’d just found something she’d been searching for years.
Then tears filled her eyes. “There you are.”
The words were so soft I almost missed them. I glanced behind me, then beside me, then back at her.
Wren laughed through her tears. “There’s my sweet sister.”
Harper stepped to my side. “Oh, no.”
I looked at her. “Oh no, what?”
Harper didn’t have time to answer before Wren was running toward me. She looked as if she were afraid I’d disappear if she moved too slowly.
“Robin!” she yelled right before pulling me into a tight hug.
“What the hell is happening?” I mumbled into her shirt.
Wren pulled back and then grabbed my face with both hands. “Where in the hell have you been?”
“I-”
She pulled me back into her arms and squeezed me tighter. “That doesn’t matter. I’m just so happy that you’re here now. My precious sister.”
“I’m not your sister,” I muttered with my face pressed into her shoulder.
Wren pulled back again, then wet her thumb with her tongue and wiped a dirt smudge off my face.
That broke my paralysis. “What the hell?” I jerked out of her reach, wiping frantically at my face. “I don’t know you!”
“Yes, you do.” She gave me an indulgent smile, her eyes suggesting I was the one acting oddly.
“No, I really don’t.” I took a couple of steps back.
Normally, I’d punch a bitch in the nose for grabbing me in the first place, but obviously, something wasn’t right with this woman.
Wren put her hands on her hips. “You’re always such a jokester, Robin.”
“Lady, I don’t know who the hell Robin is. My name is Taryn.” I took another step back as she stepped closer.
Lila started giggling. “I don’t know. You definitely look more like a Robin.”
I gave her a very unimpressed look. “Shut up.”
She crossed her eyes at me and started laughing harder.
I startled when Wren hooked her arm through mine. “Come on, Robin, and I’ll show you where we’re staying now.”
“Wren,” Harper said gently, running a hand through her hair in frustration.
“I’m not your sister,” I stated for the second time.
The look she gave me was the same look adults gave toddlers who insisted the moon followed them home.
Patient.
Affectionate.
Yet completely unconvinced that I knew what I was talking about.
“Of course you are.” Wren smiled, and it shocked me again to see how beautiful she was beneath all the dirt and sunburned skin.
“Wren,” Harper tried again. “That’s not Robin.”
Wren finally looked at her, but only for a second. Then her gaze shot right back to me. “Yes, it is. I think I’d recognize my own damn sister.”
And before I could dodge, she wrapped both arms around me again.
Right when I was about to force her to let go, tired of this bullshit, she whispered in my ear. “You came back. Thank God. I didn’t know how much longer I could hold on alone.”
The words hit me square in the chest, and the emotion left me more than a little uncomfortable.
She sounded so genuinely happy and relieved that I didn’t know what to do.
I saw Harper over Wren’s shoulder, and she looked sad.
Eventually, Wren stepped back, still smiling even as tears ran down her face.
I was surprised when the old lady from the boarding house walked by and gently patted Wren on the shoulder. That seemed to snap everyone out of the trance they’d been in since Wren started this whole spectacle, and they all went back to what they’d been doing.
“Come on,” Harper whispered. “We have a meeting with Gideon.”
Wren frowned. “Why does Gideon need to see Robin?”
“She’s not Robin, Wren. Your sister died. Remember?” Harper asked her gently.
Wren started laughing. “You’ve gone completely out of your mind. Robin is standing right here.” She shook her head. “Finley is working you too hard.”
I sighed. “Let’s just go. She’s not changing her mind anytime soon.”
Harper nodded. “This way.”
“Don’t worry, Robin. I’m coming too.” Wren hooked her arm back through mine.
“I wasn’t worried in the least,” I said, exasperated.
Lila was trying to hide her laughter behind her hand. “Come on, Robin. Let’s get this meeting over with.”
I rolled my eyes so hard that they should’ve popped out of my head. “Why did I ever promote you from asset to friend?”
Behind us, one of the scavengers called out, "Good luck, Robin.”
I heard the laughter pick up after I flipped him off. Then he muttered, “You’re going to need it.”
Fantastic.
Absolutely fantastic.