The Disbanded: Divided We Stand – Chapter 54

By MyNameIsCAL

---Max's POV---

The fire was soon forgotten as the snow slowed to a halt and the roads were cleared. Ramirez was eager to get going. It was nice to see we finally had something in common.

Fang was getting sick though. The stuffiness of the car only made it worse. He was slouched against me, his hand in mine. Every now and then he would squeeze my hand wincing in pain as we went over a bump.

"There's a gas station up ahead," Ted said. "Anyone need to get anything?"

"I need Advil," Fang muttered.

I spoke up. "Yeah, can we stop?"

Ted pulled into the parking lot. "Be back in fifteen minutes? I think I need coffee."

"Fang, do you want to stay here?" I whispered, nudging him a little.

He shook his head. "It's icy out there."

"I'll stay with him," Iggy offered. "The one thing I'll never figure out is ice."

"Alright, thanks," I said, following Ramirez out. "Do you want anything, Ig?"

He thought for a moment. "A bar of chocolate, please."

"Sure."


---Angel's POV---

The scientists had a change of plans suddenly. Nudge and I were shoved into one crate and thrown onto the back of a pickup truck. The thoughts of killing us had turned into thoughts of excitement.

"Angel, where are they taking us?" Nudge was in a panic. She thought they were going to kill us.

"They're bringing us to Chicago," I said, listening to the thoughts of the driver.

"Chicago?" Nudge repositioned herself, trying to make more room for me.

"Yeah," I replied. "And they're going to use us to lure Max in."

"What?!" Nudge grabbed me by the shoulders. "They found Max!"

It was complicated though. I didn't understand half the things going through any of the scientists' heads. All I knew was that once they got what they wanted, using us, at the end, it wouldn't matter if we were dead or alive.


---Fang's POV---

"Is it me, or does Ramirez give you an off feeling?" Iggy asked.

"Sure, I guess so," I agreed.

Iggy yawned stretching his legs. We had been in the car for a good two hours already. The wind howled against the side of the van. I shivered thinking about being out there. Or maybe it was just the cold I had.

"Gazzy's convinced he's going to screw us over," Iggy went on after a while.

"Maybe we should talk to Max," I suggested.

"Yeah, we should." Before I could say more, Ramirez got back into the van.

The rush of cold air inside made me cough. I closed my eyes, waiting for the fit to pass.

"So, you're blind?" Ramirez addressed Iggy.

"Yeah," Iggy sounded annoyed.

"You know, I know this doctor who does eye transplants and…"

Iggy scowled. "I'm perfectly fine the way I am, thanks."

Ramirez closed his mouth.

The tension died down as the door opened again, Max entering this time, fortunately.

"I got you coffee too," Max said, handing me the cup and the Advil.

I took the Advil, downed the coffee, and closed my eyes.


---Gazzy's POV---

Fang was asleep now, leaning up against Max. She draped a blanket over him, stroking his hair. Fang looked miserable. I felt bad for him, I really did. Max always looked like she was worrying. If she worried enough, those lines were going to become permanent and Max was too young for that.

And Ramirez. We needed to get rid of him. He was going to slow things down rather than speed them up. We already had enough people as it was, not to mention the humans outnumbered us. Ted and Cal were cool, even Chuck and Barry. Yet Mike and Eli were starting to bother me as they showed how close they were to Ramirez. But we needed Mike and Eli. They were the reason we had gotten here.

I couldn't put my finger on it. What bothered me about Ramirez? I just got a funny feeling from him. It was like he thought this was a joke or something. He was rambling about some story of his old days in the FBI. No one was really listening. I think Iggy was asleep too now, ear buds jammed in his ears. Ted was the only one making the effort to sound interested, and he was driving. Cal was fiddling with the radio, trying to find good music.

"You're not going to find any," I said.

"Why not?" she responded, twisting the dial.

"Because good music on the radio is impossible to find these days," I answered, thinking about how sometimes I'd be able to nab a radio from someone or somewhere. I always ended up listening to the news.

"Well, I can try," Cal insisted.


---Iggy's POV---

Ted wanted to drive through the night, even though Ramirez wanted to stop. Fang, who I thought would rather sleep in a hotel, actually agreed with Ted. But maybe it was only to defy Ramirez. I was hoping to get a chance to talk to Max about him, but I guess I would have to wait.

Fang was awake now, whispering back and forth with Max. I could pick up on their conversation, but I wasn't going to eavesdrop. If it was anything important, I know they would tell me. Gazzy was out cold now, head leaning against some jackets he had made into a makeshift pillow. That kid had been through more than I had. I wondered how he managed after all this time. Now that I thought about it, I guess it was a miracle none of us had ended up dead during out time apart, that is if you include that Angel and Nudge are still out there somewhere.

I missed Nudge. She was like my little sister, someone to look after and comfort. It gave me, I don't know, some sense of pride that I could do something for someone and make them laugh.

My phone began to ring. I answered quietly. "Hello?"

"Hey, it's Ella."

"Oh, hey, Ella," I smiled. "How's it going?"

"Good," she said, sounding relieved. "Mom wanted me to check up on all of you. We heard the snow finally slowed down over there."

"Oh, yeah it did," I said. "Finally. I was getting tired of it. Sort of useless if I can't see it."

She laughed. "Are you on the road?"

"Yup. Ted wants to keep driving through the night. We have to make up for lost time," I told her.

"Well, that's good then." Ella let out a sigh. "I miss you, Iggy."

"I miss you too."


Thanks for reading!