Silver Lining - The Host fanfiction

Chapter 107 The Dysfunctional

The Earth does not need new continents, but new men.

-Jules Verne

Emma

When we arrive back at our hiding spot, Blake is no longer there. I look at Burns and he presses my hand. "They're probably at the van," he says and he tows me to the pond. "So that was Patt," he says.

I give a stiff nod.

Burns nods too and doesn't say anything on the matter. He knows it's difficult for me to talk about the time with Sky. His hand tightens around mine in comfort.

"What are we going to do, Burns?" I sigh, "that kid, he's still so young. And his parents... those Seekers didn't even care. They were just host bodies to them."

Burns stops and pulls me into a tight embrace. "I know," he says softly, "I'm sorry. I wanted to help them, but I couldn't do anything."

"It's not your fault," I say. I kiss him lightly on the lips.

"We'll take care of him" he promises, "we'll take him with us, back to Nate."

We walk towards the van and I tap on the slide door. "Blake?"

The door opens and reveals Blake and the boy, Finn, I remember the man calling the boy. Finn's face is still pale and tears are slipping down his cheeks. He is so incredibly young. He can't be older than eight.

"You two alright?" Blake asks when he sees our faces.

Burns hands Blake the weapon Patt gave him. "Hold onto this please. I don't want to touch it."

"How did you get this?" Blake's eyes go wide. "Did you kill them?"

"He gave it to us," I answer, "that one Seeker... he was the one..." My voice breaks and I can't finish what I was going to say, but I know Blake understands.

Finn's eyes move over to us now and land on Burns. His eyes go wide and he starts to tremble. He screams.

Blake flinches and turns. "Geez kid calm down!"

"He's one of them!" Finn yells, "he is a monster! He will hurt us! You have to kill him!"

"It's alright," I try to calm him, "he is our friend. He won't hurt you."

But Finn is not listening. He cowers in the back of the van.

"Hey," Blake says to the boy, "remember what I said before? He may be one of them, but he's on our side. You see Emma here? She was kidnapped by those aliens, but Burns fought them and brought her back. He's like a secret agent. You can trust him."

Finn doesn't look convinced and keeps casting Burns suspicious looks.

Burns keeps quiet. Perhaps he knows that Finn won't believe him, whatever he says. He's been through this before and Finn is only a child who has just lost his parents.

"There's something else," I say hesitantly. I glance at Finn briefly before looking at Blake again, "we're going to have to make another detour home."

"What do you mean?" Blake shifts his eyes from me to Burns and back.

"Patt made me promise to visit Rain and Storm," I explain, "he believes I'm still Sky. He is their friend too, if he tells them he saw us and we never stopped by, it will put us in danger, especially since they know there are humans in the area. They may start a search party. They could find Russell."

Blake's expression turns grim. "It's too dangerous, squirky. You told me they were the ones that put Sky in your body. If they find out you're human..."

"I'll be careful," I promise, "Burns will be there with me. We won't stay long. I'll come up with some excuse. You're going to have to stay in the van though."

"I'll leave on the air-conditioning," Burns adds.

"The van will die out," Blake says, "we'll have to endure. There's water here in the crate. We'll just pick up more on the journey home."

He glances back at Finn. The boy seems utterly confused and scared. And lonely.

"It's gonna be okay, kid," Blake says.

Finn looks up at him with a haunted expression. "My mom and dad... they're not coming, are they?"

Blake sighs. "I'm afraid not, kid."

"Finn," Finn says, "I'm Finn."

Bake nods. "I'm Blake. That's Emma and Burns. I know you probably don't trust Burns now, but when you'll get to know him, you'll see he's alright. It's Emma you have to be afraid of. She's the scary one."

I narrow my eyes. "Nice Blake."

Blake gives Finn a conspiring wink. "See?"

Burns chuckles softly and I elbow him between the ribs. It only makes him laugh more. "We should get going," he says.

The atmosphere becomes serious right away. We all understand the risk of staying here. Blake closes the slide door and Burns and I climb in the front. I hand Blake his sunglasses back.

My eyes linger on Finn. What are we going to do with him? I'm not good with children.

"What are you going to tell Rain?" Burns asks me and I turn around again. I know he's trying to distract me, but he is right. I need to come up with a solid story. And an excuse for not taking off my sunglasses while I'm there.

I sigh. "Last time I talked to Rain, on the phone, I told her we were going to Australia. She's going to want pictures."

"Tell her I haven't developed them yet," Burns says, "I prefer film over digital, so they'll accept that."

I nod. "It's hot enough to stay outside in the garden, so I won't have to take off my sunglasses."

"It's going to be alright, Emma," Burns assures me, "I will be there."

I swallow. "I know. I just... they've known Sky for a long time. I don't know if I can make them believe I'm her."

"You'll do great," Burns says, "we won't stay long."

It's a solid hour drive to where Rain and Storm live. It's quiet in the van. I think everyone can feel the tension. Eventually Burns turns on the radio, just to break the silence, because I don't think any of us is actually paying attention to the program.

The pressure on my chest gets heavier the closer we get to our destination and I'm on the verge of a panic attack.

"Breathe, squirky," Blake's voice sounds close to my ear. "You can do this. It's just like going on a raid."

Except it is not. On a raid we're dealing with strangers. These are Sky's friends. And if I can't fool them, we are in deep trouble.