EDEN (Completed) (EDEN Series Book 1)

Chapter 25

"How did he get passed you, or rather, Luna?" Aroma asks.

"I-I don't know. He didn't say a word to her last night, and she wasn't awake when he left," Sol responds.

"He couldn't have gotten far," I add, "We have to find him."

Echo jumps up and stretches. "What if he's just taking a walk, clearing his head or something? I'm sure he'll be back."

Just taking a walk? I think freezing a man and losing your family is a little too much for a simple walk to cure. He's hurting and may be a danger to himself and others; we need to find him and bring him back to us before he does something stupid, before the Gens see that he's exactly how they want him now, broken. I won't let him end up like that.

"We need to find him, as a group. If we split up, and get caught out alone, it's all over for us," I say.

Everyone nods in agreement. They need some leadership to point them in the right direction. I'm willing to fill in while Snap is absent. I feel like I've learned enough from him to make the right decisions. That decision, right now, is to get our friend back, safely. Everyone gathers their things, quickly, and gathers at the front porch. I search for any signs in the yard of Snap's departure, but there's no luck finding any. Mute points, aggressively, to an opening in the bushes that creates a perimeter around the house. I don't think it was there yesterday.

"I agree Mute; that is probably our best bet for the direction he headed," Aroma says.

The leaves start to rustle, and the bushes shake. Twigs crunch from the advancing footsteps. We wait, ready for anything or anyone to reveal themselves.

"Snap!" Sol yells, running towards the opening.

A woman with long, bleach blonde hair and beautiful porcelain skin walks out. Her narrow brown eyes give us a concerned, frightened look. Her neatly trimmed eyebrows and makeup covered cheeks show she's coming from home, or somewhere she's been well taken care of. The white tank top that hugs her hourglass figure is tarnished with dirt, while her blue jeans have grass stains and a few leaves carried along. She raises her hands as a symbol of meaning no harm, and creeps forward, slowly.

"Be still," Sol commands, "what are you doing here?"

The woman halts and nods, submissively. "My name is Alaina, but I'm called Arc. I'm part of a sanctuary for people like us not far from here. All of you are all over the news. Most of us escaped the Gens just like all of you. We can help each other," she says, hands still raised.

We all turn to each other. Usually, Snap would be the one asking and answering questions, or maybe even Luna. But they aren't here right now. I suppose one of us has to step up in their absence. One thing that confuses me is how do people keep finding us? Are we leaving some type of trail? Her face is trusting, but so was Sydney's. I twirl my locket in my fingers and step forward.

"How did you know we escaped them, and how did you know we were here?" I question.

"Because we found your friend, Snap, I believe it was. He made a sword of ice when we crossed paths. I told him where we came from and that we're like him. He was happy to come with us, and he told us where to find you. He said he couldn't come back here, after what happened. We didn't know what that meant, but we didn't pry him about it, he looked distressed enough," she replies.

We all look around at each other. I guess we don't have a choice but to follow her, but we all have to be on our guards. It's a somewhat likely story and seems difficult to make up. Aroma pulls me back to the rest of them.