Between Worlds (The Wall Series #1)

Chapter 19

"I think someone must've realised about the bait," Anna said shakily. "When they did, they told the colonel—who would've known where we were going. He knew Amy's dad was here. So they teleported to the wall just as Hale was coming."

My eyes widened as I realised what that meant.

A figure—a man—emerged from the wall. He landed on his feet just a few inches in front of Hale's head. Heart racing, I instantly shot up from my sitting position and aimed my rifle as the person clad in a green uniform raised his pistol, aiming it back at me.

My heart beat faster. Before I knew it, my finger went to the trigger, but my hands were shaking.

Then, everything happened too fast. He pulled the trigger, and a loud gunshot rang through the air.

I stopped breathing. I closed my eyes.

Wait a minute.

I opened it again to see the man, stumbling backward, clutching his bleeding chest. I whipped my head to the right to watch Alec, rifle in hand, breathing heavily. His eyes—for the first time, ever—his eyes were full of rage.

The man's lifeless body fell to the ground.

I stared in shock. A murder. I just witnessed a murder. Alec just took someone's life right before my eyes.

"Bloody piece of crap," Alec growled. I was frozen on the spot.

"Alec, Hale's losing blood," Anna warned, her voice cracking. She might never have sounded so worried in her life.

Alec, still fuming, bent down and observed the wound one more time.

"He's unconscious," she whispered.

I turned my head to look at Alec. He closed his eyes, thought for a moment, took a deep breath and opened them again.

"Okay, we need to move, quick, before more of these idiots find us." He cocked his head at the soldier's corpse. "If we make it to my house I'll be able to dress the wound."

Alec grabbed the hem of Hale's shirt and pulled it off. He twisted it and tied it roughly around the wound. Anna looked away in sadness. With much effort and a lot of grunting, he managed to bring Hale to his feet. His unconscious body leaned over Alec's.

Anna held one of Hale's arms and wrapped it around her neck. Alec did the same. Together, they shuffled away from the soldier's body, before Anna turned back to look at me.

"Amy? Come on!"

"I..."

For some reason, I couldn't move or speak. The soldier, whoever he was, was dead. I just witnessed a shooting. My friend just shot a man dead. He took a man's life. I didn't know why, but his death was unnerving...

There was a pool of blood where he lay. Alec took his life. Alec actually took his life.

"Amy! What's wrong with you?" Alec demanded.

"I—I'm sorry." I snapped out of my trance. What was wrong with me? "Let's go."

I gathered our rifles and scampered over to them as we began moving. We stealthily followed Alec wherever he went: across destroyed road, around pile of debris, in an abandoned store, behind bushes and whatnot.

Demolished building after demolished building. A broken water fountain. And everyday things strewn across pavements. A toy. A water bottle. A box of medicine. Even a bouquet of flowers.