Wings of the Walker - CoraLee June Page 0,342

to write down the instructions for extracting the DNA code from his blood for the cure.” He didn’t have to say why. I knew how the virus worked in stages. One of the first things to go was a person's mind. I leaned forward to press my lips against the glass, hot tears flowing from my eyes as I sobbed. He was right. I had a mission. It wasn’t just about saving the empire anymore.

I was going to save Maverick.

Chapter Seventeen

Every bone in my body ached. I had never run so fast in my entire life. I had tunnel vision, and the end of that tunnel was Stonewell Manor. Luckily for me, the other guys kept their eyes out for looters and infected Walkers. I was too busy keeping my eye on the prize, the prize being my old home and Payne.

Kemper stayed behind with Maverick and Cyler to keep watch. Cyler would be healed in another hour, but the process made a person very weak for a few hours. I was eager for Cyler to wake up. Huxley was terrific at keeping the group on track during a crisis situation, but I needed Cyler’s no-bullshit leadership abilities to bring me back down from the terrified high I was feeling.

We didn’t talk about the dangers we faced. Nor did we mention the gigantic cloud of doom hanging over our heads. There wasn’t time for breakdowns and emotional talks about our feelings. There wasn’t time to cope. Huxley gave me thirty seconds to compose myself, and we were off.

It was the hardest thing I’d ever done, leaving Maverick behind in the clinic. With everything I had, I hoped that the safe didn’t lead to another clue. Time was of the essence, and we did not have time to travel all over the empire in search of a boy that would save the love of my life.

“Ash, look out, movement to the left,” Huxley said while grabbing my wrist. We paused at the corner of a building and watched as a mother and her young child scurried by. Once they were out of sight, we started running again.

With every step that increased the distance between Maverick and me, it felt like my soul was being ripped in half. It wasn’t a clean cut, either. It was a jagged tear that left barbed strips of me on the street as I ran. Although I wanted nothing more than to swallow my grief and choke on it, I kept moving. It was a thirty-minute run from the clinic to the house, and for the first time in my life, I found myself sighing in relief at the site of the metal door. I never thought Stonewall Manor would be a symbol of hope and comfort for me.

With shaky, exhausted legs, I tripped up the stairs leading to the front door and placed my hand on the thumbprint scanner. It took a moment, but the door unlocked with ease. Josiah never changed the locks. It was like he was always waiting for me to come home. Memories hit me like a ton of bricks, elevating my already depressed state to a feeling that was going to overflow into tears.

Huxley gently pushed me aside and entered the home first. He checked to see if it was empty and then nodded when he saw that everything looked untouched. When I stepped inside, I nearly gasped at how things hadn’t changed. Aside from dust covering the furniture, it looked like no one had been here since Josiah was taken by Cavil’s men. “It looks the same,” I whispered in awe. It was like walking through a time capsule.

The Stonewells had the best security money and influence could buy. There were metal barricades to keep anyone out, and a failsafe lock on the windows in case of an outbreak. The air that was pumped through the vents was even tested for toxins.

The guys filtered in behind me, and it occurred to me just then that they’d never seen this home, never seen where I grew up. “Home sweet home,” my shaky voice said on a sigh as I made my way to Master Stonewell’s office. There was a musty scent in the home that felt foreign to me, and hot air hit me in the face as I moved. The generators were working, illuminating the formal sitting room with light as I passed by it.

“His office with the safe is this way,” I explained while heading down the hallway.