We The Forlorn (Book #2) (Completed)

31. Traitor

Sunlight filtered through Bo's eyelids, making her brow crease. She brought a hand up, trying to block it, and wanting to shout at whoever had left her curtains open... until she realized she hadn't fallen asleep in her bed back home. Her father wasn't in the room next door, and the walls were not dutifully keeping bad things out. Instead, she felt concrete pressing into the boney parts of her body and smelled filth and metal.

And then she remembered the way Aston had stalked toward Adam with his gun drawn and murder in his eyes.

Bo surged awake, her heart slamming against her ribs and her breath exploding from her lungs as her eyes frantically scraped along her surroundings. She saw beige concrete walls and ceiling, and a splintery wooden bench with Khan laying on it and Esme at his side. Helga stood next to them, her back against the wall and arms crossed.

"What happened?" Bo demanded, climbing to her feet and realizing that her forehead pulsed with pain. She quickly swiped at her skin, and saw that her fingers came away wet with blood. She must have fallen unassisted to the ground when she passed out. Her whole head felt like her brain was about to explode from her skull. But none of that mattered until she found Adam.

"You fainted," Helga supplied.

Bo frowned at her. "Thanks for that, Captain Obvious," she said. "I mean what happened to Adam. Where is he? Did you hear... Did you see if..." She couldn't bring herself to finish the sentences. Instead, she cleared her throat and tried something else. "Did you see where he went?"

Helga shook her head. "We don't know anything more than you do. The tank was too loud to hear anything, and they tied me down to a seat pretty fast."

Esme spoke up, her voice soft but strong. "Khan tried to get out and help Adam," she said. She gestured to Khan's prone form at her side, his head cushioned on her leg. Bo looked closely at him for the first time, and noticed that his usually tan face was ashy and dry, and that his eyes were closed. He clutched one shoulder, a furrow between his brows.

"You're hurt?" Bo asked, coming to his side. His eyes fluttered open and he looked up at her.

"They're quick to pull the trigger," he said, voice dull and scratchy. "I didn't get far enough to even see out of the tank. I don't know what happened to Adam."

Bo exhaled and ran her hands over her face as she turned around and looked up at the ceiling as she fought against tears she knew she couldn't show the crew. Placing her hands on her hips, she bent over and breathed in deep. She held that breath and slowly let it out as she battled the panic that shook her heart.

There was no way Adam could be alive. Aston wanted him dead. Aston blamed him for ruining his life. Aston had to have shot him, and probably tossed his body—

She choked on a sob and raised a shaking hand to cover her eyes as her breath quickened and she felt her knees turn soft. She reached out and grabbed the nearest thing, which turned out to be a metal bar. She opened her eyes to see that the wall in front of her was made of them. Another prison cell. It seemed she'd never escape them. Not that it mattered if Adam was...

She shook her head, not wanting to believe anything that meant she'd never see his face again or feel his arms around her waist as he kissed her with smiling lips.

She couldn't think of him dead. She couldn't think of him staring blankly at an orange sky, forgotten in the dust fields and scavenged by animals when the sun went down. She couldn't think at all.