“Yes.” Zane pulls one out from the pack Dante had on.
“He’s going to need all the antibiotics we can get him. I’m not sure. Fuck.” I’m not going to cry. I don’t cry. But honestly, I’m not sure he’s going to make it.
Chapter 10
Patching the Hull
Haley
Irace for the dilapidated structure. The exhaustion from the trek over the mountain and through slashing the bamboo vanishes. Easton’s alive! And for once, I’m going to be positive. I’m going to push what Calvin just said about Easton out of my head. Easton has to be okay. He will be okay. I’m not going to allow anything but him being okay.
This isn’t like my mom. This isn’t the John Hopkins cancer ward. I push away the thought, because Easton would be a lot better off if it was. My mom was too. It just wasn’t the outcome we wanted.
The tall surrounding grass scratches at my legs as I push through it. The hut’s not much more than a mound of dried, crumbling earth. Rotten wood lies next to the entrance. The roof’s mostly gone, and I duck under a beam that’s jutting out of the wall at an angle. It’s cooler in here even without the breeze from the ocean.
It takes me a second to spot Easton to the left. I’m relieved and horrified at the same time. He’s lying on a bed of green palmfronds. So pale. A shiver runs through me, and the image of my mom under layers of blankets bombards me.
Easton’s eyes are closed. The little patch of remaining ceiling gives him some shade. His chest is bare, and around his arm is a part of Calvin’s shorts and another fabric I don’t recognize tied to his arm with a vine, and there’s a small clay cup next to him.
“Easton.” I drop to my knees next to him. Cautiously, I touch his leg. He’s warm and clammy.
“Hey.” His eyes open to little slits. “There you are, my Firefly, shining in the middle of the day.”
I press my lips to his forehead. I’m not sure if I should say it now, but I have to. I can’t hold it back. “I love you. I was so worried about you.”
“I love you too.” His eyes open a bit wider. He tilts his head up. “Can I kiss you?”
My hand shakes, and I lean over him with care. His lips are cool, but my heart is soaring. I cut the kiss short.
“Hey, that’s all I get when I’m the wounded one here?” He flashes a quick smile. And I give him another quick kiss. “I suppose that’s enough. I’m calling a rain check, though.”
His head drops back onto the fronds. His eyes are red, but the surrounding skin has a ghostly sheen. I press a kiss to his forehead, the way my mother used to when she was checking for a fever. He’s hot but not scarily so. The hair rises on the back of my neck. I’m worried. “I’ll make a note of it.”
“Hmm, I’m going to hold you to it, even though you didn’t write it down in your notebook.”
I hold his hand, but I’m staring at the leaves and vines on his arm.
“I’m not as bad as I look, Haley. Calvin’s been looking at me like he’s trying to figure out how big a hole to dig. You didn’t happen to bring the first aid kit?” He pushes up on the elbow of his good arm. “Tarzan did the best he could. It’s scary how muchis tucked away in that huge head of his. Did you know coconut water has an antiseptic quality to it?” His voice trails off as he says it. He’s putting on a good front for me.
I shake my head. “Really?”
“I mean, he said so. But then he said that there were no signs of anyone living over here, too. He could just be shitting me to get me to stop moaning.” He drops his head. “But the vine was pretty smart.” He nods to the green vine around his arm. “It’s slowed the bleeding a lot, that and the moss. As ingenious as it is, I’d prefer a nice clean gauze bandage and a shit ton of alcohol for the wound.” He’s awkwardly propped up with his uninjured arm.
“I’ll go get it. Stay still. Sam had my backpack. We brought the big kit.” I should have grabbed it before I came in.
“Is everyone here? Everyone okay?” He winces, his eyes shutting and slowly opening again.
“Everyone’s fine. We’re all fine.” I’m repeating myself, but then maybe I’ll start to believe it if I say it enough. “I’ll be right back.” My eyes trail over the rest of the former hut. Everything has fallen apart or rotted. There’s a small tree growing out of the corner and a smashed sleeping platform. I take a few small backward steps to the door.
“Okay, hurry, I’m planning to go out for a light jog in a few minutes.” He rests his head on the palm fronds.
I take off my jacket, ball it up and place it under his head. “You’ve still got your sense of humor. I’ll make sure to take the shovel away from Calvin.”
“I appreciate that,” he says, a smile on his lips as he closes his eyes again.
I blink, coming back out into the sun. The series of holes in the side of the building makes my stomach clench. The walls are thick, old and crumbling, but it’s not hard to figure out how they got there. This was someone’s home. A family. Alargefamily. Alittle village. There are more ruined buildings poking out of the growing palm trees leading in the opposite direction from the orchard.
The guys are a few yards away from the rubble cottage. Dante’s holding Penny on the leash. But even with her on the leash, there are cats poking their heads out from under discarded boards and large clumps of ferns. Most of them are copies of Pepper.
