Wings of the Walker - CoraLee June Page 0,323

tried, I still felt anxious and helpless. Now that I knew what it was like to act and do, I couldn't stand to sit around.

Kemper was the one that spoke next, his tone gentler than my tough leader. "Why don't you go sit with Mia for a little bit? The sooner she's out of the woods, the sooner we will be able to leave."

I bit my lip and struggled to find that compassion I knew was deep within me. I loved Mia. She was one of my first friends when I moved here to Dormas. I wanted to feel settled and help her, but death made me see the world differently. I saw Mia’s sacrifice as something that needed to be treasured. She fought for her life because she knew that she had a role to play in saving Payne. Her suffering would be for nothing if we didn't get to him in time.

But I feared saying these thoughts out loud. The guys were already worried that I'd lost too much of myself to the violence of Cavil and Ethros. So instead, I nodded and shuffled my way over to Mia, where I knew there was nothing I could do but hold her hand.

The moment I was by Maverick’s side at her bed, he grabbed my hand and lifted it up to place a tender kiss on my skin. I felt shockwaves of love and compassion flow through me, and I borrowed his selfless views of caring for others for a little bit. I did love Mia, I just loved humanity more. I was at war with myself, at war with wanting to save the world but also wanting to do things the right way. It made me feel naïve and foolish for feeling so brash about everything.

"Her blood sugar is low, I'm afraid to give her too much water, and she's too weak to eat. They have no sugar here, or I would give her droplets of sugar water to at least stabilize her glucose levels," Maverick said before placing a hand on his chin as if considering all the options.

I closed my eyes and decided to focus on one problem at a time. "On our way in, I saw an apple orchard. It's getting colder, but I bet there are a few apples left, assuming looters haven't taken them all. If I got some, we could make her some juice. Then maybe get some sugar in her system until she could eat?" I offered while staring at her frail frame.

Maverick turned to look at me with appreciation. I liked that we could bond over this. I found myself wondering how Lilly was doing. The old woman that taught me medicine and about the human body was good to me. Maverick would've loved her.

"I can also look for some beehives. They're popular in this area, some honey would do her good too." I reached over to feel her pulse and nearly gasped when I saw how slow it was. Mia quite literally would have starved to death in that cave. Anger flared within me, and the need for justice once again came to a head. Lenny deserved to die even though it wasn't my place to decide.

"Do you think you could get some?" Maverick asked, his voice gaining enthusiasm with each word. I could feel him vibrating with the need to act, similar to the way I felt with the need to go rescue Payne. Looking at Mia now, I felt terrible for ever wanting to leave. Cyler was right, we needed to get her out of the woods first.

"Yes. If I had some help." I looked over my shoulder at Kemper, remembering the time he and I went to an apple orchard outside of Dormas for a picnic. I remember the tension between us, the desire to act on our impulses. I remembered the thoughtfulness and care he put into our date. "I'll take Kemper with me, and we’ll be back as soon as possible."

Maverick gave me a brief hug, and I noticed how he breathed in my scent as it grounded him. "You amaze me, Ash." His whisper over my skin felt like zaps of electricity.

Chapter Ten

Kemper and I were heading back from the apple orchard with barely enough bounty to make a difference, but it was still a welcomed distraction from everything. It felt good to feel useful. I found myself whispering over and over again the steps that would lead me to Payne.

Find Tallis and