The Alliance Boxset Books 1-3

Chapter 4

Chapter Four

Jesse stumbled as she reached the entrance to the ruins of the parking garage. It had taken every ounce of her strength to make it the last few blocks. The only thing that kept her going was knowing that her sisters were depending on her.

She leaned down and let gravity take her to the bottom. She tried to push herself up when she hit the floor but found she didn’t have the strength to stand. Bitter tears of defeat burned her eyes as she struggled unsuccessfully to push herself up.

“Here, let me help,” Taylor said softly.

Jesse smiled weakly at her fifteen-year-old sister. She hissed as the cut on her stomach pulled as she finally stood. She would have fallen again if Taylor hadn’t wrapped her arm around her waist.

“Jordan?” Jesse asked wearily. “How is she?”

“The same,” Taylor replied glumly. “Her fever hasn’t gotten any worse, but the coughing has. I’m worried about her, Jesse. Since the other night... since the other night, she seems to have given up,” she added.

“Well, I have food so maybe that will help,” Jesse whispered. “We all need to eat good tonight.”

“Food,” Taylor’s eyes widened in excitement. “How much?”

“Enough for several days,” Jesse assured her. “Tonight, we all eat.”

“Oh Jesse, you are the best big sister ever!” Taylor laughed. “This will cheer Jordan up. It has to!”

“I hope so, squirt,” Jesse said affectionately. “I really, really hope so. Why don’t you warm it up while I take care of the cut I got. I don’t want to take a chance of it getting infected.”

“Are you sure? I can help you first,” Taylor said, biting her lip.

Jesse could tell her little sister was torn between wanting to help her and the idea of having some warm food in her belly. She knew that both of her sisters needed to eat. She could feel her second wind coming back to her. It would help them all if Taylor got the food ready.

“I can take care of the cut. It isn’t more than a scratch,” Jesse lied. “I would love it if there was some hot food in my belly after I’m cleaned up a bit.”

“Okay,” Taylor grinned. “I’ll have it ready in no time.”

“Taylor,” Jesse called out quietly as her sister headed for their makeshift living area.

“Yeah?” Taylor asked, turning to look at Jesse.

“Have I told you lately how much I love you?” Jesse asked.

Taylor grinned. “I love you too, Jesse,” she said before turning and walking quickly away.

Jesse watched until Taylor was out of sight before she raised a shaking hand to her head. She was freezing, yet her forehead was burning up. She had caught whatever Jordan had. On top of that, she could feel the blood sticking to the front of her black shirt.

She stumbled over to the corner and gripped her stomach over the deep cut. Dry heaves shook her as her stomach rebelled. After several minutes, she forced her body to straighten. She was shaking so badly her legs wouldn’t hold her up any longer and she slid down the wall to the cold, hard floor. She was so tired, so very, very tired. She would close her eyes for just a few minutes. That was all she needed. Just a few minutes of rest to gather her strength, and she would get up and take care of the cut on her arm and stomach.

Just a few minutes, she thought as darkness closed in on her.

“This way,” Hunter called out, sniffing the air.

“This human is pretty smart,” Saber commented as he pushed aside the door he had broken off. “I feel like we are running an obstacle course.”

“I found more blood,” Dagger called out. “She went this way.”

Hunter looked at the bloody handprint on the wall. They had spent the last two hours following the female’s scent. It was taking longer than normal to track her because she had woven in and out of the abandoned buildings and back tracked through alleys forcing them to retrace their steps over and over again.

He reached out and touched the small handprint outlined in blood. It was tiny compared to his hand. He looked around the rubble of the collapsed building. It was only the fact that she had left a trail of blood that they had been successful in tracking her. He was sure of that.

“Her tracks have disappeared again,” Saber bit out in frustration. “She must have doubled back again.”

“No,” Hunter murmured, looking at the pile of rubble. “She is here.”

“Yeah, but where is here?” Dagger asked, running his hand through his long white hair. “There is a mountain of rubble that she could be hiding in.”

Hunter moved forward, looking intently at the ground. The slight indent of the heel of a boot showed in the soft dirt. He knelt down and looked around. His eyes widened on the narrow opening in between the huge slabs of concrete. Standing, he walked forward, keeping his eyes on the ground.

He paused when he saw another slight mark. It would have gone unnoticed to most, especially at night. He ducked under the huge slab and peered down the dark opening. Sniffing the air, the smell of blood was thicker in the confined area. She had gone down into the fallen building.

Anger burned in him that the female would place herself in so much danger. If the ground were to shift at all, tons of concrete would collapse even further into the unstable pile. He stepped onto the slanted sheet of concrete and slid down it.

A moment later, Dagger and Saber were standing next to him. Both men looked around the area. Hunter could understand their surprise and appreciation for the human’s resourcefulness. He had not expected to find himself in a cavern below ground.

He held up his hand when he heard the soft murmur of voices. He shook his head when Dagger and Saber looked at him. He held up two fingers then a third. They nodded. There were at least two others down here in addition to the female they had been tracking.

They spread out. Hunter took the front while Dagger and Saber each took a side. They would come up on all sides of the group. Moving silently, they stepped closer to the area where a small fire burned.

Jordan held the cloth over her mouth to muffle her cough before she lay back on the blankets. Her eyes were glazed with fatigue, pain, and fever. There wasn’t a part of her body that didn’t hurt.

“Where is Jesse?” Jordan asked as Taylor brought her over some of the soup she had warmed up. “It shouldn’t take her this long.”

“She said she had a cut she needed to clean,” Taylor said, helping Jordan to sit up so she could eat. “She’ll be back any minute. You need to eat. This will help you get stronger.”

Jordan sighed tiredly. “I don’t think I’ll ever be strong again,” she said in resignation.

“Don’t!” Taylor said, holding the cup up to Jordan’s lips. “We promised each other we would never give up. It is okay to feel down. You deserve it after… well, you deserve it, but don’t ever give up, Jordan. We need you. I need you,” she said fiercely.

Jordan took a sip of the hot soup and moaned in pleasure as the warmth filled her stomach for the first time in days. She greedily sipped some more. With a shaky smile, she reached to take the cup from Taylor.

“I can do this,” Jordan whispered. “You need to eat too.”

Taylor reluctantly handed Jordan the battered cup of soup. She brushed Jordan’s tangled brown hair back from her face. A dark bruise covered the right side from her cheekbone to her chin where one of the men had hit her.

“I love you, Jordan,” Taylor said. “I’ll be glad when you are feeling better.”

“Me too, Taylor,” Jordan whispered tearfully. “I hate being like this.”

“One day we’ll have a house of our own. Maybe we can talk Jesse into stealing a car and we can go up to Wenatchee,” Taylor suggested. “We could live in the cabin.”

“If it is still…,” Jordan’s voice faded and her hand started trembling uncontrollably as her eyes widened.

“What’s wrong?” Taylor asked, turning around.

A low cry echoed throughout the parking garage as three huge forms stepped out of the darkness. Taylor stepped back with another cry, trying to shield Jordan, who sat frozen on the pallet. Both girls stared in horror as the aliens they had avoided successfully for the past four years stepped into the light of their makeshift campfire.