“Are you talking to me?”
The woman looked left and then right.
Kai did the same.Is the woman looking for someone else?There hadn’t been anyone else here but her.Then again, she hadn’t heard this woman show up, either.
For a brief moment, the woman looked her up and down.
Preparing herself, Kai stuck out her chin and waited for some vulgar comment about her disheveled appearance.Had this lady been sent out to tell her to leave?Sorry for her if she had because she wasn’t going anywhere as long as they had Morlie.
“You’re with the girl just brought in, right?”
Frowning, Kai moved closer to the woman.As she took her in, her clothes were similar to those of the medical attendants who had come out to get Morlie.However, her face was shadowed and tight compared to the indifferent expressions of the others.“Morlie?Is something wrong with my sister?”
Stepping closer, the woman tapped a hand against the air, halting Kai’s questions.“The Dispatch one.You must get her out of here,” she whispered.
Kai shook her head.She tried not to be offended at the label the woman placed on her sister.“No.She needs help.I told the men upfront I can pay some—”
The attendant made a slicing motion with one of her hands.“It is not safe.You must take her.They’ve marked the girl for transport.There’s not much time.”
Chapter Two
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Morlie’s wheezing hadchanged over an hour ago to something reedy and high-pitched like her lungs were closing off, not allowing enough air.
“Hold on, sis.”Kai peeled one hand off the steering wheel to reach over to her sister’s arm, trying to comfort her.She wasn’t sure if Morlie knew she was with her.Her sister hadn’t opened her eyes since they’d placed her in the truck.Her skin was cold and clammy, and coloring was far worse.“Daybreak should be here soon, and I can find a better path, some kind of sign of life, and get you help.”
She spoke to her sister, really for her sanity.She couldn’t lose hope; it was all they had left now.
After driving for more than six hours through rocky and overgrown terrain, they hadn’t gone more than a hundred miles based on the odometer.It was slow going.The darkness was so dense she could only see about twenty feet in front of her truck.The headlights just weren’t strong enough to cut through it.So, she had to take her time to keep from crashing—trees, boulders, or cliffs lay in her path.
A light on her dashboard was of greater concern; the truck tank was running out of compost oil, and there was nowhere to buy more.Soon, she would face decisions she didn’t want to make.She was angry with herself.In her haste, she hadn’t stopped for supplies before embarking on this journey because the medical attendant had made it seem like, at any moment, the authorities would come and drag her sister off, away from her.
Kai groaned.
One of the wheels hit a rut in the road and caused her to grip the wheel with both hands to maneuver around it.
