Georgia Walking chapter 10

[[ 3rd person perspective. ]]

He raises his pistol and aims. One shot is the distraction, the second one is fatal.

Her hand had been only a few inches from his. Within a second, it begins to fall further away from him. "NO!" Keira's voice pierces through the air. The scream is filled with enormous pain and grief. "No!" she yells again. The plea comes with instant tears as she is about to hurdle herself towards Lucy's fallen body. Jason has to use all his power to wrap his arms around her and hold her back as shots are still being fired. "Let… me… go!" she screams while frantically hitting Jason. Her feet leave the ground slightly as he pulls her towards the gate. Tears stream down her face when she gives up. Her hand reaches out somewhat when she screams Lucy's name one last time. Her eyes stay on Lucy's body as she lies on the cold pavement. There is nothing she can do but feel her heart breaking.

It has only been a split second since the shot was fired and Jason has to move fast to protect Keira from the soldiers still coming closer. It seemed as if the world had stood still for a moment. Sebastian might be a ruthless leader but murdering an innocent teen made the Militia soldiers stand and stare. Their weapons lowered an inch and some had blank stares, not knowing how to react. Jason takes the time to pull Keira the last few steps to the gate. He keeps her close when looking up at Miles. His reaction is indiscernible.

Miles turns his back without a second look. He passes Keira and Jason as he makes his way out of Philadelphia. His face was hard and not a single thing in the world could make him turn back and fight for what would possibly become the worst loss of his life. Monroe yelled something. However, Miles Matheson was already gone.

[[ Keira's perspective. ]]

I don't need a mirror to know my eyes are bloodshot. No one needs to tell me for me to figure out what everyone around me is thinking. The morning brought realization of the mess I had caused. Miles sits with his back turned on a fallen tree stump. My eyes fall to my feet as I can't get myself to look at him for longer than a second. I can feel the pain he has, losing the child he barely knew. But it's because of me that he feels even more separated from her. Charlie sits beside Jason.

"What are you thinking about?" she asks him as he appears to be lost in his own world.

Jason gave Charlie an adoring look before dropping it and showing the contemplation running through his head. "There is something that doesn't make sense. Monroe shot Lucy first. Not Miles. I mean it has an effect but still, why not just shoot Miles, he was an easier target as well." He paused for an instant. "Monroe sort of got what he wanted anyway. Without even touching him, he's destroying Miles more by the minute," his words were spoken softly. I turn to see Nora is still playing with Bo. After five hours of walking, we build camp. Introductions were made. The story as to why Bo had become part of my life wasn't asked for and I wouldn't really have answered it anyway.

Ripper comes to mind. The last time I saw him he ran off in a different direction. Since that moment I have lost hope of ever seeing him again as well. The image of Lucy's body lying in the dark creeps into my brain. "You know, he looks almost more like Lucy," Nora suddenly mentioned. My head shoots up. "Sorry, I was just joking. You know because you look so much alike," her laugh followed. She meant it in a good way and I can't help but smile quickly. Bo giggles as he doesn't mind being in the forest sun and being played with so much. Nora seems good with him. We all know that any minute now, Miles will tell us we have to leave. But for some reason, he doesn't move. Militia won't let this one go and soon Monroe will put Neville on our case if he doesn't hang him first. Letting me slip away so easily a few days ago, not getting his hands on Miles, and not being back in time to capture him within the walls of Philly will not go over well. Jason says something that begins to fade away. Then, the world slowly goes black.

My head spins as I shoot up straight in my bed. Bed… bed. I don't remember getting into a bed. Looking around the room there is nothing I recognize. The floor is cold on my bare feet but I move along the hallway anyway. Nothing comes to me except sitting in the woods with everyone. Then I notice I haven't seen a single other person in the building. It's not as dark as the prison but it might be one. The hallways spin lightly and I feel weak. What happened?

"Why don't you ask her? It seems they knew each other quite well," I hear someone say. I peer carefully around the corner and I see them all sitting in a sort of living room.

"Well look who decided to grace us with her presence," Jason greeted me. All eyes turned except for Miles'. It would probably take a while. They look at me as if they expect me to say something, so I asked the standard question of someone who is confused and ask what the hell happened.

Charlie responds first. "You just sort of blacked out. We got a horse and carriage and found this old cottage. We are trying to plan the next route," she informs. "You've been out for three days."

Three days? My thoughts get interrupted as I get smacked to the ground. I turn around to see Ripper licking my face and happily jumping up and down. "We found him in the woods. No idea how he got out but he's certainly helpful," Jason smiles.

We drink tea and talk about where we should be heading. The Plain's Nation is on the top of most people's list as Rachel and Aaron headed that way a few weeks ago. Ripper whines once in a while as he wants more attention than I give him. From the corner of my eye I can see Bo sleeping in a pile of blankets in the corner of the room. No matter how good everything seems at that precise point in time, something eats away at me.

There is no Militia guard to hear me. Monroe isn't around to ruin the plan. Nothing is keeping me from actually telling the truth. Images of the last night I remember fill my brain and cloud my eyes. Conflicting thoughts scatter all reasoning skills I still possess. It's time to tell them everything. I owe them an explanation and now is as good a time as any. Miles sits across from me in the room, slummed against an old sofa. He fiddles with something between his fingers. I recognize it. It's the photo I left behind for him at the old rebel's camp. As he stares at it there are tears forming in him eyes. I can't take it any longer. Clearing my throat gets everyone's attention. They deserve to know. They need to know.

[[ Sorry, the end is sort of filler. The next chapter might be the last one. ]]