Stung - By Bethany Wiggins Page 0,70
And I didn’t pack a candle.” Tommy turns to Arrin. “So, Fec, where are we going?”
Arrin shrugs, peering at him through stringy bangs. “You tell me. And I’m assuming I’ll be paid? I’m not helping you for nothing.”
“Will a can of peaches be payment enough?” Bowen asks.
“Double it and you’ve got a deal.”
“Done,” Bowen says. “Well, then, where to?” Arrin asks.
I look at Bowen, hope burning in my chest. “Can we still run?” I whisper. “To Wyoming?”
He shakes his head. “Too weak. I’ll never make it. And you’ll never make it on your own.”
Eyes pleading, I look at Tommy. He smirks and shakes his head. “I ain’t running with you. And besides, even if you did run, even if Bowen was all right, there’s no way you’d get far. Not with the manpower they’ve got on your tail.”
“You can live in the tunnels,” Arrin says, a sly gleam in her eyes.
“No!” Bowen and I say at the same time.
“Suit yourself. But where to? I can get you to the outskirts of the city or inside the wall, or if you want—”
“What?” Bowen says, interrupting her. “You can get us inside the wall?”
She spins around and grins at him, nodding. The match flickers out, and Tommy lights another.
“I don’t believe it,” Bowen says, his words a challenge.
Arrin shrugs. “Believe it or not. Doesn’t change the fact that I know a way in. I know a lot more than just that. Like why the raiders always keep a beast in their camp. And why the lab wants her so bad.” She nods her greasy head at me.
“Why?” Bowen asks, his eyes darting between Arrin and me.
“Because she’s the first child to wake from a coma. And when she woke, she wasn’t crazy anymore,” Arrin whispers, as if it’s the biggest secret in the world.
Chills dance down my spine.
“How do you know?” Tommy asks.
Arrin doesn’t answer. Bowen does. “The Fec’s clothes. They’re standard lab uniforms. Patient uniforms. They used to be Fiona’s. And I’ve never heard of a Ten who didn’t turn. Except for Fiona. And the bruises in the creases of her elbows. They’re from needles. She’s from the lab.”
Arrin nods. Tommy stares at me, eyes shining with amazement.
“Since you’ve got everything figured out, how did she get on the wrong side of the wall?” Arrin challenges.
“I haven’t figured that out yet. Have you?”
Arrin shakes her head. “But I know why they want her so bad. They need her back so they can figure out how to cure the others. But …”
“What?” I take a step toward Arrin. “But what?”
“But …” She looks right into my eyes. “They’re going to have to kill you to get the answers.”
The match goes out and I’m blind. A cool, damp hand finds mine and folds around it. “I won’t let the lab kill you.” Bowen’s breath is warm against my ear. His lips press against my temple. “Arris, take us inside the wall.”
His words stun me. “Wait. Inside the wall? You are taking me to the lab?”
His fingers tighten on mine. “Never, Fiona. I’ll never take you to the lab. But what if I’m right about your sister being alive and living inside the wall? Do you think she’d hide us?”
A wave of relief and hope shudder through me. My sister. Lis. “Yes.”
“Then that’s settled. Take us inside the wall, Arris,” Bowen says, his voice sounding stronger every time he talks.
“Are you sure we can trust him?” Tommy asks.
“Do we have a choice?” Bowen answers.
Another hand finds my empty hand. A small, hot hand, with jagged nails and grit-covered skin. “Tommy,” Arrin whispers. “Hold Bowen’s hand so we’re all connected.”
Tommy splashes through the water. “Got it,” he says, his deep voice echoing against cement. “You want me to light another match, Fec?”
“Nope. Darkness is my friend.”
“Thank you, Arrin,” I whisper, squeezing her scrawny hand.
“For what?” she says, her voice suspicious.
“Helping me.”
She laughs, and another chill races down my spine.
Chapter 30
The water changes from stagnant to rancid and clings to my ankles like mud instead of splashing around them. Bowen’s breathing has grown labored, and his palm has turned icy cold in mine. His hand begins to drag against mine, making me pull Arrin to a slower pace.
“Let’s take a break,” I say after an hour or so.
Arrin’s hold tightens on my hand. “No. We’re almost there.”
I dig my feet into sludge and refuse to take another step. Bowen bumps into my back and drops my hand, clutching at my shoulder to keep from falling.
“Arrin, we