From The Ruins

Chapter 10 (Oryon)

The next morning, Landon ushered us out of the bunker at the ass crack of dawn. I had managed to almost get a full night's rest and so I wasn't nearly as grumpy as the others as we piled back into the truck.

"Are you sure you want to drive?" Kaia asked me.

I nodded as we settled into the front of the truck. I turned on the engine and looked into the rearview mirror. Claire was sprawled out on the backseat, already dozing off. They boys were crammed into the back, no doubt vying for room in that tight space.

I took off down the road with Kaia acting as the navigator. Dan had marked the route on the map and then threatened to decapitate the both of us if we strayed even slightly from his strict direction.

"Make a left here," Kaia instructed through a yawn.

"You know you can sleep," I told her as I made the turn. "I can multitask."

She shook her head, her eyelids drooping so low I couldn't see her irises.

"Why are you so tired anyways?"

She shrugged and made some noncommittal noise. Last night she had slipped into bed far later than me and when I questioned her, she simply said she'd gone to shower. I left it there, expecting an explanation later but from the looks of it, I wasn't going to get one.

"Stay straight for six clicks," she murmured, peering at the map.

From the backseat, Claire let out a content groan and shuffled around. I envied her ability to fall asleep so quickly but what remained truly impressive was her ability to drown out Levii's thunderous snoring. There wasn't much else I had managed to gather about her. She was quiet, often lost in thought and prefered our company over the guys.

"I was meaning to ask you," she let out another yawn. "Have you come up with any theories?"

I sat up in the seat, glimpsing her way. "As a matter of fact, I have. I think the guys might still be in the military. Currently."

Kaia's eyes had fallen shut but she frowned. "That doesn't sound right. If they were, they'd be posted in Tarolix or defending The Exium."

I nodded excitedly. "I thought that too but how else would they have access to military bunkers and weaponry? And take a look, their equipment is relatively new."

She peeked an eye open. "What exactly are you saying Ry?"

"That something doesn't add up! There are holes in their story!"

I spoke a little too loudly causing Claire to stir. She released a low groan and scooted further down in her seat. We waited a moment to see if she'd wake but her breathing remained steady.

Kaia sat up, turning towards me. "So why not ask them? Rather than sitting here and speculating."

I rolled my eyes. "Kaia, what honestly makes you think that they'll tell us the truth? It's not as if they haven't lied to us before."

"That was then," she replied lightly. "We were hardly acquainted, I'm not surprised they didn't trust us."

"You really think he's going to tell us the truth?" I scoffed.

She pulled her bottom lip between her teeth and gave me a halfhearted shrug. "I guess there is only one way to find out."

***

We drove through the night, only stopping twice for bathroom breaks, gas up and stretch our legs. I had driven for well over twelve hours before relinquishing the wheel to Landon. I climbed into the passenger seat with every intention of falling asleep but my mind had other plans. My thoughts stubbornly revolved around Landon, replaying each of our conversations to find some clue that would explain all my unanswered questions. I twisted in the chair and peeked at Kaia and Claire in the back seat, both of them sleeping soundlessly.