Expiration Date (Books 1 and 2)

63 They're Finally Here

Erik~~

Sirens blare through every inch of the bunker. There isn't a crack or crevice you could hide from the piercing screech if you tried.

Each bunker I've passed through has rebels going in every direction.

As I pass by a table, a man reached under it and pulls out a gun. He heads for the door I come through, which would put him in the direction to the garage. I've also passed rebels heading for the gym exit. If there are any other exits, they've been kept secret from me.

I pass through two more bunkers, pushing past rebels in the narrow passageways, and reach the armory when I hear Anya's voice call, "Erik!"

Behind me Anya and L come through a side door, each holding guns in their hands.

Anya steps around me. "Get a weapon and come on."

"The Preeminence," I say. "That's where they'll be headed—"

L stops, leaning forward on the ball of her shoes. "There will already be guards there. We need to stop them before they get that far."

"They will though."

Anya's eyes narrow. "We don't have time for this." They hold open the door. "Come on, L."

"Erik, please," L says. "We need your help up there."

"He doesn't want to fight his family." Anya walks past L and through the door I came through. When L hesitates, Anya grits their teeth. "L."

L glances between us and opens her mouth to speak but gunfire cuts her off. Her expression hardens, and she takes off after Anya.

I grab a handgun and an extra clip before exiting the armory through a door beside where vests are hung.

Once I shut the door behind me, the gunfire becomes muffled. Almost muted.

I let out a breath. The Society is here thinking they're calling my bluff—that I won't really fight them when push comes to shove—and of course here to rescue their Jonas and their precious Amoris.

I thought what happened with Andrew earlier this summer would have taught them to question the loyalty of each member. I'm not their puppet, ready to act when my strings are pulled.

I am my own person, raised by the Society, yet but I do not belong to them.

As I push through the bunker, the one that holds Jonas and the Amoris, I encounter less and less rebels until it feels as if I'm the only person underground. It's eerie.

Just two more bunkers and I'll reach my destination. To stand between my family and my family.

When I open the next door, I come to a halt.

Five guards lay on the ground, three completely unconscious. The two that stir have blood on their foreheads.

The Society couldn't have gotten here already.

I pull out my gun and push open the final door. They couldn't—

Vienna stands before me, her gun raised.

My blood warms. "How did you get out?" Could she have used the gas we used on Jonas and the Amoris to take out some of the guards?

"I'm not the helpless maiden everyone seems to think I am."

"You've chosen the Society."

Beyond her I can see Jonas and the three Amoris. Their attention is on us, but they don't seem entirely present as if their injuries are too much for them to handle.

"I want Jonas to have his brother back. And, hell, I even want Bently to have his mother."

"Colton won't take you back."

She flinches before she quickly covers it by narrowing her eyes. Her hand that holds the gun doesn't shake. "Turn around and leave, Erik. Let the Society have what they've come for and maybe you'll get to fight another day for the rebellion."

"And what? You'll wait here for the Society to arrest you?" I need to disarm her.

"What do you think the Society will do when they learn all my secrets?" Her family. "I have to earn some goodwill back."

"Don't you think they might disagree with this plan of yours?" It was her parents who helped us get to Jonas in the first place. I sink down to the ground, one arm raised as if I'm going to put my gun down. "It's time to choose a side, Vienna. We're all over this wishy-washy act of yours.

"I wish it was an act."

I whip my leg forward and out, hitting her behind the leg, throwing her balance off, and jumping up, I kick the gun out her hand.

She cries out, clutching her palm, her fingers.

"Despite what everyone here seems to believe"—I aim my gun at her—"I've chosen my side."