Storm

Chapter Fifteen

"What do you mean?" I asked, trying to remain calm despite the complete panic that was overtaking me.

She seemed exasperated that she even had to explain this to me. "The leaders of the Equator aren't all concentrated at the actual Equator. They have bases outside of it; places for research, and places to find human life that they might want to recruit. They occasionally host meetings a these bases, with many of their higher-ups. We decided to send Asten to one to bring us back information, any updates and such."

"Oh my god...," I heard January whisper from right next to me. She was covering her mouth with her hand. Kyan just stood their, stoic.

"So why Asten? Why not anyone more experienced?!"

Claire crossed her arms over her chest, assuming a more powerful stance. "Because he's Dr. Conway's son. Nobody knows much about him, or that he actually isn't on their side. We snuck him in, but if anyone asks questions, he could easily use that as an alibi."

"And what if they don't believe him?"

"Then, we're hoping that his mother still loves him enough to get him out."

Hoping. Wow, that was really confident.

Then again, what should I have expected? These are the same people who left January and I for dead. They wouldn't care much if they lost Asten.

Even more frustrating, though, was the fact that Asten hadn't mentioned a word of this to us. It bothered me that he'd gone through with it at all. He probably hadn't said anything because he knew we'd disagree.

I guess that also explained why he hadn't come after the three of us after we'd gotten left behind.

But I knew one thing: I wasn't about to leave him behind. It was obvious that this mission would not end very positively for him, and I was pretty sure Claire knew that, too. The Equator wasn't careless. And someone was definitely going to recognize him from our pretty dramatic escape from them.

"Where is he?" Kyan asked, before I could.

"A mansion about an hour drive away," she explained. "Although I don't see why that's necessary for you to know. If you really want to go after him. That's your death wish. And, I promise, none of our people will interfere if you get caught."

Her convincing would do nothing to change my mind. I was already planning how to get out of camp, find a map, and make my way there.

"I'd like to add, if you attempt to 'rescue' him, we also will have no choice but to try and stop you...," Claire added. Her words spoke of a threat, but her eyes gave away nothing. I was surprised she wasn't already restraining us. We probably could've done better to be less conspicuous.

I tried to put on a neutral face to match hers. I knew what we had to do. We just needed to get to the main storage tent, sneak in, and grab what we needed, before somehow stealing a car and getting out. "All right. We won't be a problem."

                                                                      __________________________

My plan sounded so much easier in my head. Because when we actually reached the main storage tent, there were already a few problems.

Number one: there was a guy standing directly in front of the tent opening.

Number two: he had a gun.

And number three: the only way to get to the back of the tent would be to pass through his line of vision. The tents were strategically planned so that people couldn't sneak from one to another in the guard's blind spot.

I sat on the sand with January and Kyan next to me, under the shade of the tent nearest to the storage one. It was sunny, despite it still being cold. I'd gotten so used to the conundrum of the weather that it didn't bother me anymore.

"This already seems like a bad idea...," January muttered, as I went over our possible course of action with them one more time.

"As long as we're careful, it should work," I said, glancing nervously at the guard again. I couldn't tell much about him except that he was blonde. "So Kyan will go distract him. I don't know. He'll think of something."

I nodded my head in Kyan's direction, and he nodded back in affirmation. I hoped he already had something in mind.

"And then, me and you will fast walk, to the back of the tent, slip inside, and slip out. We need a map, compass, food, and water." I took a deep breath, steeling myself for my own part of this journey. "I'll take care of the map and compass, you get the others. Then, we'll head straight for the vehicles. And like Kyan said, one of our people is on watch right now. So, hopefully, he'll be more loyal to us than to the camp."

Honestly, I wasn't exactly sure who this person was. Kyan and January both knew and trusted him. I guess that had to be enough for me. 

"Got it?"

January just nodded. She hefted the backpack she'd picked up from her mat in the sleeping tent onto her back. It was currently empty, but we would soon add everything we needed into it.

We weren't just going out to find Asten. We were going out permanently.

I was already so hungry, and wasn't sure how long our food would last. I knew at some point we would need to find a more sustainable source of food and water, but for the moment, we could only focus on the next step. And that was finding Asten.

And hopefully, he'd still be alive enough for us to find him.