Day of Reckoning

Chapter 4

Gabby

So, this is Texas. Vicksburg to be exact. The capitol.

Dawn"s hand rests in my, lifeless. I squeeze her fingers, trying to pretend that nothing has changed. She"s here with me. A sigh pushes past my lips. In truth, nothing is the same as it was before. They tell me that she"ll wake up when she"s ready, but what about when I"m ready?

“Dawn,” I whisper. “I need you.” I want her back.

My stomach twists as I think about what waking up will mean for her. When she comes around, I"m going to have to be the one to tell her that Drew is gone.

Gone. Dead. Never coming back. A tear rolls down my cheek.

They found Drew in the woods with Dawn but there was nothing they could do for him. Sam was there too, a bullet lodged in his skull. Happy, smiling Sam. Dead like so many others. I blink away the tears and rip my hands from Dawn"s.

They were going to pay.

I have to get out of this hospital room, with its beeping monitors and suffocating stillness. Walking by the mirror over the sink near the door, I pause, barely recognizing myself anymore. I"m nothing but a grotty wreck. My beautiful hair is no longer sleek and smooth. It"s been frayed and damaged by months on the run. I have a scar above my right eye that"s still red and painful to touch. My clothes hang off my now thing frame like sacks, clothes I"d never have worn back home; lightweight blue pants and a white shirt; the same as about half the people here. I hate it because I was made to stand out, not to disappear in the crowd. I take the stairs two at a time and slam my hands into the door desperately to open it. It swings open and I gasp in the fresh air.

The Republic of Texas stretches before me. It"s a strange place. Everything is so…orderly. The streets are pristine and the buildings, every one of them, are made of red brick to match the wall that encircles the city. I"ve been told that this is only one of three walled cities that make up the Republic. I don"t know whether to feel safe or trapped. I"m going to go with trapped. Then again, I"m not sure I"d know what freedom feels like anymore.

People stare as I walk by. In London, I basked in the attention when I caught someone"s eye, but now it"s different. Their gazes didn"t infuse me with confidence as they once would have. It"s no longer my blond hair or long legs catching their eye. It"s their suspicions and curiosities. I"m not a freaking side show.

It"s close to noon and the streets are full of people. None of them talk to me. Of course.

A bell rings from somewhere on my right and, all at once, the crowd on the street starts moving in the same direction and I"m pulled along. We wind through the streets until we reach a large building, the only one not made of brick. Instead, it"s white, with a domed roof and large windows. The group funnels through the front doors and we"re in a long room lined with benches. There"s a table in the front and a man in a black robe standing behind it.

The entire town must be here. No seat is empty and many people stand at the back. I"m one of them; opting to stand close to the door so that I can easily leg it if I need to. Why are we here?

The man at the front raises his arms and the room falls silent. A chill races up my spine. “My brothers and sisters,” he begins, “welcome to the house of the Lord. God invites his chosen people into his prophet"s presence.”

So, this is church, right out in the open. I"ve heard about underground churches in London, but mostly only the ones that got raided. I"ve been taught my entire life to fear church; that it"s f*******n for a reason. I don"t know if I believe that anymore. I"m about to sneak out when a woman appears up front. She too wears a robe but it"s white this time.

“Faithful followers,” she says, “as mayor of this city and prophet to the people, I must inform you of the heathens that breached our borders. As God willed it, we took care of the enemy soldiers. Just remember, that those who choose the righteous path that we follow will not go without while those who stray will find this world a harsh place.” I look around and some people are nodding their heads along with this woman"s words while others mumble, “Amen.”

Uncomfortable, I move to leave. I barely take a couple steps before two men block my way. They stand with their arms folded across their chests and their feet shoulder width apart.

“The service is not over yet,” one of them says, his voice stern. I can feel the eyes of curious worshipers burning into my back.

“You"re not going to let me leave?” my voice goes up an octave on the last word. They don"t respond. I try to go around them, but they force me back. The woman at the front hasn"t stopped her speech and shows no indication that she sees what"s going on. Anger rushes through me, but there"s no use unleashing it when it would only cause problems for me and Dawn. I take a step back and turn to face the front once again.

When the service ends, the men from before are nowhere in sight so I book it out of there as quickly as humanly possible. I run the entire distance back to the hospital.

What the hell is going on here? I"m not sure I want to stay long enough to find out. If Dawn were better, we"d already be gone, but she"s not and I have no choice but to stay put. For now.

Back at Dawn"s side, I sit by her bed and only look up when a nurse comes in. She"s one of the only people who will tell me anything. She smiles at me as she checks the monitors for my sister"s vitals.

“I was here an hour ago and didn"t see you,” she says as she changes the IV bags around.

“I went for a walk,” I respond.

“How nice. Did you attend the service? I"m always sad when I have to miss it, but working at the hospital, you can"t just leave.”

“Yes,” I say coldly. I don"t want to talk about it and she doesn"t press me further.

“How do you like the city?” she asks.

“I haven"t decided yet,” I answer, though that"s not entirely true.

She must hear the doubt in my voice because she says, “they"ll warm up to you. People here have been through a lot.” I want to say that I doubt they"ve been through as much as me. I want to say that none of their sisters are lying in a coma. I want to say so much more, but I don"t. The nurse is only trying to help. Instead, I just nod and watch her leave the room.

“Dawn,” I whisper. “I love you and I"m so sorry. Don"t leave me here alone.”