A/N: So this fic is coming up to two years old and it's almost done! This is the second last chapter, and I'm giving people fair warning that it ends with a cliff-hanger - I'm aiming to have the last chapter posted by the middle of next week. As ever, thanks for reading, and for the great feedback people have been giving me for the last couple of years :)
"We need to start packing up. Make sure to take everything you want...we're not coming back." Naomi snapped at the sea of expectant faces staring up at her. She was standing in the living room in front of the others. It was the middle of the night and they still hadn't heard a word from either Cook or Emily. The farmhouse was freezing cold, but Naomi was burning up. She was grateful for the dim light coming from the candles dotted around the room; the darkness made it that much easier for her to hide how sick she really was.
Naomi's stomach felt like it was twisted up in knots. Her head was pounding and she was struggling to keep the room in focus as she slumped down against the liquor cabinet. Naomi was starting to seriously question whether she would make it through the night. She couldn't let the others know how grave things were though; they were already in a bad place with Emily and Cook still being missing.
"Go where? Em's still not back yet-" Katie started to protest, but Naomi didn't want to hear it. She was worried sick about Emily, but she had to look at the bigger picture. She needed to make sure her family were safe, and she was running out of time to do it.
"We'll give them until morning, but whether they're back or not we have to leave. We can't stay here. We're running out of food and water. Bex has offered us a place on the farm. We can stay there until we get back on our feet...we'll leave a note. Cook will know where to find us." It was the best Naomi could offer the other girl. They had no idea where Cook and Emily had gone, and no way of knowing when they'd be back; or even if they would be coming back.
Naomi had been mad as hell at both of them for running off without telling anyone where they were going. It was stupid and reckless; and knowing the two of them as well as she did, they were probably in a heap of trouble. As angry as she was at them, Naomi would forgive them both in a heartbeat if they just walked back through the door safe and sound. She would give anything to have Emily there; just to have one more night with her.
"What are you all just sitting there for? Go pack!" Naomi snapped at the group of misfit teenagers that she called a family. They all slowly started piling out of the living room to go and pack up what few possessions they had. The group had bounced around from place to place after the outbreak of the virus and they had quickly learnt to travel light. The farm had been different though. They'd finally had a place to call home, somewhere to put down roots; until it had all been cruelly ripped away from them. They had worked hard at making a second life for themselves, but as Naomi cradled her aching head in her hands she was beginning to think it had all been for nothing.
"What's wrong?" Naomi looked up from the floor and realised Katie had hung back when the others had left the room. Her expression was strangely concerned and angry at the same time. Naomi knew the older twin thought they were making a mistake by leaving the farm without Emily, but they were running low on viable options, and Naomi had to put the needs of the group first.
"What's right?" The blonde managed a weak smile as she pushed her hair back from her face. Strands of it were sticking to her cheeks from the thin sheen of sweat that seemed to be coating her entire body. Her skin was burning up, yet Naomi had never felt so cold in her whole life.
"Emily's coming back. She wouldn't leave me a second time." Naomi wasn't sure whether the oldest Fitch was trying to reassure her, or herself. Neither of them wanted to believe that Emily and Cook had abandoned them, but there weren't many other reasons for them disappearing in the middle of the night; not ones Naomi wanted to think about anyway. She had to believe that they were still alive. That they were coming back.
"Of course she is." Naomi tried for what she hoped was a confident smile, but Katie's eyes narrowed on the older girl, scrutinising her response. "They both are. They'll probably be back before we even leave in the morning; you'll see."
"Yeah." Katie nodded in agreement, wanting to believe her. "Yeah they will. I'll go start packing. You can get Em's stuff right?"
"Sure." It wasn't like Emily had much to pack. She had been mostly sharing Katie and Naomi's wardrobe since she'd first come to the farm.
Naomi slowly made her way upstairs to the room she shared with her girlfriend. After locking the door behind her, she slumped down on to the bed, overcome with exhaustion. She lay on her back and reached out for the plaid shirt slung over one of the bedposts. Emily had been wearing it a couple of days earlier. It still smelt of the other girl as Naomi brought it up to her face. The thick material absorbed most of the heart wrenching sob that escaped from Naomi's lips as she finally accepted that she might never see the youngest Fitch again. The first tears led to a floodgate, and before long Naomi was curled up on the bed, with Emily's shirt pressed against her like a comforter as she wept. She cried for Emily, and for her mother and everyone else she'd lost in her short life; she cried for herself.
"Help! Help us! He's really sick! Help us!" Emily screamed at the top of her lungs as she pounded on the solid metal door of the walk in fridge she and Cook had been confined in. There was no power to the refrigerator, but the air inside was still cold enough for Emily's breath to come out in hot, ragged clouds. Beside her, Cook was lying cold and still on the floor. His eyes were open and staring blankly at the patch of mould on the ceiling directly above him. His chest was still and there were no clouds of air passing from his lips. "He's not moving! Help us!" Emily carried on pounding on the door until she finally heard footsteps approaching.
She held her breath as she stepped back from the door and waited for it to open outwards. There was a rush of warm air from outside as the door was opened by two grumpy looking middle aged men in a matching green tracksuits. They had rifles slung over their backs, but they made no attempt to reach for them as they stepped inside the fridge. Emily's short stature hardly made her seem like much of a threat, and Cook was still motionless on the ground.
"What?" One of them, a grotesquely obese man with a receding hair line, snapped at her in an almost bored tone. Emily did her best not to recoil at the stench of his stale breath.
"He's sick...he just collapsed. He won't wake up..."
"Saves us a job if he's dead." The other man grunted as he kicked Cook's leg with the tip of his boots. The teenager didn't move a muscle, his glassy eyes still fixed on the ceiling overhead.
"We could save a bullet keeping this one alive." The overweight man nodded at Emily, his lips curling up into a lecherous grin as he looked her up and down. Emily took two hasty steps back, not liking the way the two men were suddenly looking at her like she was a slab of meat.
"Don't be like that, Poppet. Play nice and we'll be real gentle." The first man started to advance on her, his stubby little fingers fumbling over the clasp of his belt as his friend hung back by the open door. The plump man had barely taken two steps when Cook shot up like a rocket. He grabbed hold of the man's rifle and aimed it at the one by the door. He squeezed off two shots before either man could react, taking them both down in seconds. The shots echoed loudly around the near empty fridge.
"There's a good chance somebody heard that." Cook frowned as he helped Emily step over the body of the largest man.
"Probably." She agreed. "I think it's still early. There's a good chance no one's checked those trucks yet. We need to get to the yard. As soon as we're in the trucks we're good." The renegade depot operation relied on their armoured trucks to protect their drivers when they were out on runs. If the two teens could get in to one of the cabs they'd be safe from Johnny White and his men, and they could drive right out of the gates and back to the farm.
Emily stooped down over the body of the smaller man and wrestled his rifle free from his shoulder. His body was already a dead weight and she had to give the gun a good yank before the strap finally came loose. Once they were both armed, she and Cook set off to find the way out. Their heavy footsteps sounded like thunder against the metal grates lining the floor, but neither of them were too worried about being quiet; the gunshots had already given them away.
"This place is a fucking maze!" Cook spat as they came to a stop at another dead end. The depot was made up of aisle after aisle of metal shelving that went so high up it almost reached the ceiling. Emily was breathing heavily as she shifted her stolen rifle from one shoulder to another. They'd been running for a good five minutes solid and they were still no closer to finding a way out.
They heard footsteps approaching from somewhere in the distance, followed by loud, violent curses. The bodies of their two captors had inevitably been discovered. More footsteps were coming from the other end of the warehouse, getting closer by the second. "Fuck! Which way?" Cook looked around wildly for any sign of a way out. They needed a sure way out. The only thing that running around in circles would get them was a bullet to the back of the head. Emily didn't answer right away. She was too busy staring up at the metal shelving. There were five metre bays lined up next to each other in endless rows. Most of the lower shelves were packed with goods, but the ones higher up were empty, making a pretty good runway.
"Up!" The tiny redhead slung her rifle over her back as she clambered up on to one of the lower shelves. Cook followed suit, and before long they had managed to climb far enough up to be able to walk along the empty rows. More footsteps and shouting sounded below, but the teenagers were tucked safely out of view of White and his gang. Another of the advantages of being so high up was being able to spot the loading bay in the far corner of the depot. Emily silently led the way, thankful for all the times her dad had dragged their family rock climbing in the Scottish Highlands.
Getting down from the shelving was harder than getting up, with the two of them having to work their way down backwards. Emily misjudged how secure a wrapped pallet of tinned beans really were and ended up knocking a couple of them loose with her foot. They dropped five feet below and clattered to the ground with an impossibly loud bang. She held her breath as Cook paused above her. His eyes scanned the surrounding aisles for any sign of the men pursuing them, but no one jumped out at them, so they slowly carried on their descent.
Emily should have been the first to reach the ground, but she stopped by one of the lower shelves and wrestled something free from one of the stacked cardboard boxes. "What were you doing?" Cook demanded in a harsh whisper as she finally made it down beside him. There was a suspicious lump in her pocket and she looked pretty pleased with herself, but she just shrugged off his question.
"Nothing. Come on. We're nearly there..." Emily laced her fingers with Cook's and headed for the door. She used her free hand to push down on the door release of the fire exit right next to the metal roller door that led on to the loading bay.
"Wait, what if it's-" Cook started, but Emily had already pushed the door open before he could finish his warning. A shrill sound pierced the air as the siren above the door started to wail. "Alarmed." Cook finished weakly. The distant sounds of White and his men suddenly grew a lot closer as they closed in one the source of the sound.
Just beyond the fire exit, the two fully stocked trucks were waiting idly. The yard looked empty, but it was hard to tell just how many people were milling around the depot. Emily quickly threw her arms around her partner in crime and pressed her lips against his stubbly cheek. "Make it back in one piece." And with that, she was sprinting across the loading bay as the first cracks of gunfire sounded behind them. Cook followed after her, his arms pumping at his sides as he legged it towards the second truck. His fingers scrambled inside the pocket of his jeans and came out with the keys. Out of the corner of his eye he could see Emily climbing the steps up to the cab of the other truck; and White and his men spilling out of the warehouse.
His heart was pounding in his chest as he yanked open the door to the cab of his own truck and jammed the key in to the ignition. Shots were ringing out in the air, with bullets bouncing harmlessly off the reinforced trucks. The engine roared in to life just as Johnny White fired a sawn off shotgun right at Emily's windscreen. Cook could see the glass starting to splinter as Johnny pumped the barrel to take a second shot. He slammed his foot down on the accelerator, sending the truck lurching towards the notorious gang leader and drawing his attention away from Emily.
White had placed himself right in front of the locked gate, which meant he was playing a deadly game of chicken as he aimed the shotgun right at the truck that was hurtling towards him and the gate. He fired two shots in quick succession and Cook's windscreen exploded inwards, showering him in glass. Small slithers sliced at his hands and face, but he ignored the pain and kept his foot down, smashing right through the gates; White had jumped out of the way at the last second.
Cook risked a glance in one of the wing mirrors and grinned as he spotted Emily's truck following behind him. He sounded his horn twice and howled with laughter as the tiny twin returned the gesture. "Fucking rights!" He slammed his open palm down against the wheel as the trucks thundered down the open free way. There was blood dripping down in to his eyes from one of the many cuts on his face and the harsh wind stung him everywhere as it blew through the shattered windscreen, but Cook didn't care about any of it. They'd fucking done it! They were home free! He couldn't wait to see Naomi's face when they rolled up with enough supplies to see them through two winters.
Naomi's eyes cracked open as she heard the distant rumble of thunder. She'd fallen asleep on her bed with Emily's shirt still clutched to her face, and there were tiny red imprints from the buttons on her cheek. She sat up gingerly and tossed the shirt aside as she tried to focus on the noise that had woken her. It wasn't actually thunder, it was the sound of something heavy rolling along the gravel drive that led up to the farmhouse. Fearing the worst, she staggered towards the window just in time to see two massive trucks lurching to a stop outside. Her heart swelled as she spotted Emily climbing down from one. The horn sounded on the other one. The windscreen was completely blown in and Cook was sitting behind the wheel with a stupid grin on his face as he slammed the horn again.
It was early in the morning and the sun had barely dragged itself up over the horizon, but the others were already dressed and running outside to see what the commotion was all about. Naomi smiled weakly as she watched Freddie practically tackle Cook to the ground the second he stepped down from the truck. Katie was in the middle of giving Emily a crushing hug when Effy joined them. Panda was practically vibrating with excitement as she and Thomas inspected whatever was in the back of Cook's truck. JJ and Lara brought up the rear, with little Albert cradled against Lara's chest.
Naomi watched them all. Her family, celebrating Cook and Emily's return. Her knuckles were white from gripping the window ledge to keep herself upright. She'd been lucky to make it through the night. Part of her hadn't expected to open her eyes again after dropping off the night before. Once Emily had finally wrenched herself free from her sister's headlock, she looked around for her girlfriend. Her gaze travelled up to the window and an adoring smile crossed her lips as she waved up at Naomi. She pulled something out of her pocket and held it proudly over her head with a stupid grin; Naomi instantly recognised the purple packet of biscuits as her favourites, Garibaldi.
She discreetly wiped at her eyes as Emily waved her down. Turning away from the window, she frowned at her reflection in the full length mirror hanging on the wall. There was no hiding how sick she was in the cold light of day. Her usually pale skin had a yellowy-grey tint to it and her eyes were withdrawn and sunk to the back of her head. Her long blonde hair looked limp and greasy, stuck down against her fevered brow. She passed by the bathroom on the way downstairs and splashed some water on her face in an attempt to try and clean herself up.
A light morning breeze bit at the flesh of her face as the weary blonde stepped outside. The clouds overhead were thick and grey, pregnant with the promise of snow. The first few flakes started to fall as Naomi made her way towards her family. There was a lot of excited chatter as the others started exploring the goods that Emily and Cook has come back with. After months of hardship and loss they had finally landed a break. They would be comfortable over the long winter, and ready to start fresh on a new farm somewhere in the spring. The thought brought a smile to Naomi's lips, even as her legs gave way and she fell to her knees on the hard gravel.
"Naomi!" She heard Emily screaming at her as her eyes rolled to the back of her head and her breathing got shallower. She felt numb all over. Not even the icy snow flakes falling steadily over her could make her feel anything. Not until Emily's arms were wrapped around her. The other girl's touch burned hot against the bare skin of her arms and Naomi felt herself slumping forward in a bid to feel more of something, anything. She was still alive as long as the burning sensation was running through her veins. "Naomi? What's happening?"
She felt Emily's fingers brushing her hair back from her face as she searched Naomi's icy blue eyes for some kind of answer. Cook was suddenly behind her, his hard chest keeping her from falling back on herself. "You did it...you're all going to be okay..." Naomi smiled absently as her eyes fluttered shut. Emily was safe, and the blonde could finally stop fighting the pain that had spread throughout her entire body.
"Open your eyes, Naomi! Open you eyes!" Emily demanded, her voice shrill with fear as she shouted at her barely conscious girlfriend. Naomi tried to do as she asked, but her lids felt heavy and she struggled to comply.
She felt Cook scoop her up in to his arms and lift her up; though the feeling was strange, like her body wasn't really her own any more. Emily's hand desperately clutched at one of Naomi's as Cook carried her back in to the house. He lay her down on the sofa as the others crowded around her, concern marring all of their young faces. Naomi had led them through thick and thin. She was their fearless leader, the one who made all of the hard decisions; they'd have been lost without her after the outbreak. They still would be now.
"It's okay babe. It's all going to be okay." Emily tried to reassure her as she fought back tears. She had to be strong for the other girl. She couldn't let her know that deep down she was panicking.
"No. It's not." Naomi shook her head. She groaned as her brain seemed to bounce around her skull like a ball bearing in a pinball machine. "I'm sick, Em. Really sick."
"It's just the infection, we'll get you some more antibiotics-" She trailed off as Naomi managed to lift her arm up high enough to show her the angry red boils under her arm pit.
"Shit..." Cook cursed behind her at the same time as Katie let out a wail and turned to bury her face against Effy's chest. The taller girl wore a stoic expression as she wrapped her arms around the oldest twin, though she couldn't hide the way her eyes were starting to water.
"They don't mean anything." Emily somehow regained her composure as she squeezed Naomi's hand that little bit tighter. "I got them too, but I pulled through. You can too. You were immune the first time around, so maybe...maybe it's not deadly any more."
"Maybe..." Naomi croaked out as her chest grew tighter. She didn't sound very convinced though. Emily looked around for some encouragement, but was met by a sea of hopeless faces. None of them were optimistic; they had all seen enough of their loved ones die at the hands of the terrible sickness that had reduced the human population to nothing.
"Someone go get Bex's dad!" Emily snapped at the others standing around them. Her grief and despair bubbled over in to anger as no one moved. "He's a fucking doctor, he can help her!"
"I'll go..." Cook eventually spoke up and nodded towards Freddie to join him. He leant over the back of the couch and pressed his lips to Naomi's forehead. He couldn't just stand around and watch her leave him. "See you in a bit, yeah?"
"Yeah...in a bit." Naomi agreed, her eyes closing over again as the harsh light streaming through the windows became too much. Her breaths started to come out in short sharp rasps as she felt her body beginning to shut down. "Em..." She whimpered, hating the fact that she couldn't keep her eyes open long enough to look at her girlfriend. She knew Katie and the others were all hovering over her too, but all she could think about was making sure Emily knew she wasn't leaving her by choice. She had fought the sickness for as long as she could.
"I'm here." Emily moved so that she was lying curled up beside her on the small sofa. Their bodies were pressed so tightly together that she could feel the blonde shaking. "I'm here..." Naomi moved her head just slightly, so that her lips were pressing softly against Emily's. She didn't have the energy to kiss her goodbye properly, so she just had to hope the gesture would do. She took a deep, shuddering breath, summoning the strength to utter her confession against Emily's lips.
"You know..." Naomi sighed as she stopped fighting to keep her eyes open. "I was in love with you before I'd even met you..."