Ravaged Land: Divided Series - A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller Books 1-3 Read online

  Pop.

  One bullet right in the shoulder, exactly where I'd aimed.

  It knocked him back just enough that I could line up the second shot. Abby held her hands up to her mouth, it looked as though she was silently screaming.

  Pop.

  Right between the eyes. Ross dropped heavily to the ground as the life left his body.

  “We gotta go,” I said stepping forward to grab Abby to pull her away from Ross’ dead body.

  She looked back at his body on the ground as if she wanted to make sure he was really dead.

  “He’s still out,” Shawn said.

  Logan tapped his cheeks several times, but he didn’t come to.

  “I’m sure they heard the gunshots. They’ll come looking,” I said.

  “Maybe they won’t. Maybe they’ll be afraid they’ll get shot,” Shawn said.

  I shook my head. “Maybe, but we don’t know. Either way, we should get out of here.”

  “Well, we can’t leave him,” Charlie squeaked.

  “I know that,” I said pressing my fingertips against my temple.

  I looked up toward the hill and saw the shadows in the moonlight. Several people were at the top looking down, and more seemed to join them with every passing second.

  “Oh shit,” I said.

  The others followed my gaze. More and more shadows popped up. There were far more than what had been in Tina’s group.

  “Can they see us?” Abby whispered.

  “I don’t know,” Shawn responded in a voice quieter than a whisper. “When we were up there we couldn't. It was pitch black.”

  I grabbed Logan’s arm and shook him. “Can you carry him?”

  “No, but I will,” Logan said, grunting as he picked Ryder up and flopped him over his shoulder.

  We started moving away from the hill, but when I turned back, the shadows were disappearing one by one. They weren’t walking away… they were lowering themselves to the ground just as we had.

  They were coming.

  Chapter 24

  We moved as fast as we could, but with Logan carrying Ryder, we were slower than usual. I listened closely, but I couldn’t hear anything behind us. Of course, that didn’t mean they weren’t coming.

  I looked up at the sky as I drew in a deep breath. It felt as though I couldn’t get enough oxygen into my lungs.

  Clouds were filling the night sky, moving quickly toward the moon. Once the moon was covered, our surroundings would be even darker than they already were.

  “Uhhh,” Ryder groaned.

  “Keep moving,” I said stepping behind Logan. “Ryder, you were knocked out. Logan’s carrying you and there are natives are behind us.”

  Ryder groaned again, and I wasn’t sure he’d heard what I’d said. Even if he had, maybe he hadn’t understood.

  “Ryder,” I said again.

  “Yeah, yeah,” he said grabbing his head. “Logan… put me down.”

  “Are you sure?” Logan asked.

  Ryder’s eyelids closed as he pulled in a deep breath. “Yes. I’m sure.”

  Logan stopped and set him down. He held his arms out worried that Ryder wouldn’t be able to steady himself.

  “OK. I’m OK,” Ryder said turning his body in the direction we’d been going. “This way?”

  “Yes, we need to hurry,” I said glancing over my shoulder.

  We ran as fast as we could, keeping our voices down. All we had to do was put enough distance between the natives and us that they’d either give up or didn’t know which way we’d gone.

  A dark cloud drifted in front of the moon, darkening the path in front of us. My eyes adjusted but my visibility was cut in half.

  I looked over my shoulder, but I couldn’t see anything. It looked like a navy sheet hanging down from the sky blocking out everything.

  “What do we do now?” Abby said in a soft voice.

  “We keep going,” Ryder said.

  “When do we get to take a break?” she asked rubbing the back of her neck.

  Ryder patted her back. “Sorry, I know it’s hard. But keep moving as if your life depends on it because it might.”

  It hadn’t been long after the clouds blocked out the moon that the rain started to fall. The ground was slick, and we had to slow down our pace to a careful yet brisk walk.

  The air felt heavy. It felt like a thick fog had surrounded us like a cushion. There was a hint of sweetness on my tongue whenever I drew in a breath. I could smell the pungent scent of moss covered wood even though I couldn’t see any trees around.

  With each step, my feet slid just a bit on the dead grasses and mud. I took another step forward, and suddenly my feet had a bit more traction.

  We were on a road. It was in terrible condition, cracked and broken in many places but it was far easier to walk on than the wet ground.

  “A road,” I said, and the others looked down. It had been a long time since I’d seen a road like the one we were on.

  “Think this used to be a highway maybe,” Logan said looking at the stretched out wide path in front of us.

  “Maybe it leads somewhere,” Charlie said, not bothering to hide the tinge of hope.

  I let out a slow controlled breath. “Might lead us into trouble, and I think we’ve had enough of that.”

  Shawn bumped his shoulder into mine and took my hand into his. “You’re going to lead us south, and we’re all going to be OK. Isn’t that right?”

  “Well,” I said swallowing down the sour taste that formed in the back of my throat. That had been my plan, but after everything we’d been through, I worried that wasn’t realistic. I couldn’t imagine a time we’d ever be able to be safe.

  “Well, I believe in your plan,” Shawn said not waiting for me to finish my thought.

  “Me too,” Ryder said.

  I wiped the beads of moisture off of my cheeks. “At least you guys do because I’ve lost all faith. If we’ve managed to lose the natives, I still don’t know how we’re going to survive long without our supplies.”

  I wanted to cry just thinking about my backpack. It held everything I’d taken from my home. My items. My memories. All of it was gone forever.

  The only thing I had left was what was in my pockets, and the memories that would always be in my mind. It wasn’t going to be easy to find food, but there was no point in worrying about it when I wasn’t even sure we’d escaped the natives.

  When the sun started to touch the horizon, the world around us lit up a bit more. The rain had stopped hours ago, but the dampness clung to the air.

  I turned and exhaled slowly when noticing that our surroundings were completely empty. There was nothing in front, to the sides, or behind us. It was just a bumpy road stretched out for miles in front of us.

  “We made it another day,” Shawn said stretching his arms over his head as he yawned.

  “Hopefully that’s a good thing,” Abby said with a shiver. “How much longer until we can rest?”

  Ryder scanned the area. “Maybe up there.”

  He pointed at what looked like a hunk of rusted metal sitting on its side in the ditch. It was coated with moss, and a tall weed was growing out of an opening.

  “But just a short rest,” Ryder said placing his hand over his eyes and rubbing vigorously. “They could still be after us for all we know.”

  “Lots of days of traveling in are in your future,” Logan said flashing Abby a smile. “It’s tiring, but I’m glad you’re with us.”

  “Me too,” she said smiling back. “This is what you guys were doing before Tina found you?”

  I nodded. “Just walking around making our way. It was easier when we had our things.”

  “Well, you still have your gun,” Abby said.

  “Can’t eat a gun,” I said. My eyes shifted to Ryder’s empty hands. “What happened to Charlie’s club?”

  “I lost it going down that stupid hill,” Ryder said flicking out his blade. “Still have this though.”

  My hand je
rked to my hip to make sure my gun was still there. “And once I’m out of bullets, I’ll have nothing.”

  The sun finally peeked over the horizon highlighting the gray clouds that scattered the sky.

  “Looks like we might get more rain,” Ryder said approaching the hunk of metal with his blade in hand.

  “Better than snow though, right?” Charlie asked, leaning against the rusted metal.

  “I suppose so,” Ryder said crouching down to pick at some of the grasses. “Wonder if this is edible.”

  I glanced over at the tall bruised up grasses. “Hmm, not sure but I think it’s a good sign that things are starting to grow. Hopefully, we’ll spot something we can eat.”

  “Maybe we can find a lake or river and catch some fish,” Logan said.

  “Doesn’t look like worms should be hard to find,” I said as one scooted across the cracked pavement. “Hey Ryder,” I said gesturing at the worm, “that’s edible.”

  He laughed and covered his mouth. “Not that hungry yet.”

  “Good thing we had our fill of Tina’s stuff,” Charlie said. “But I could really go for one of those salty bags of chips right now.”

  “Let’s not talk about food. That’ll just make it worse,” I said, patting my stomach.

  Everyone grew quiet as they rested. I looked at the position of the sun and tried to plan our route.

  Shawn bumped me with his elbow and jerked his head to the side. “Can I talk to you for a sec?”

  “Sure,” I said glancing at the others, but no one seemed to even notice us stepping away.

  I crossed my arms and looked into his eyes. He met my gaze for a second before turning to look back at his boots.

  “Everything OK?” I asked, starting to feel flutters in my stomach.

  “Yeah, it’s just that, I think we need to talk to Ryder,” Shawn said.

  I scrunched up my nose. “What do you mean?”

  “About us.” He swallowed hard. “Time is getting away from us.”

  My heart bounced as he ran his fingers through his hair. He looked at me with those eyes. Those beautiful sparkling eyes.

  I didn’t realize at first, but I was already nodding.

  “Not now,” I said pressing my lips together. “But yeah… soon.”

  “I want us to be together,” Shawn said keeping his voice low. “He’ll be OK with it. At least he will in time.”

  “I hope you’re right,” I said, crossing my arms. It wasn’t a conversation I wanted to have, but I didn’t want to put my life on hold. Ryder had made his choice, and I deserved to make mine too. “I’ll talk to him when things settle down.”

  Shawn flashed me a gorgeous smile that made my insides swirl. “Good. Because if you don’t, I will.”

  “Is that a threat?” I asked smiling back at him.

  “Think of it more like motivation,” he said placing his arm around my shoulder as he turned me back toward the others.

  “Maybe I rather you do it.”

  “Really? Because I will, right now—”

  “No, not really.” I chewed my lip. “I’ll do it. I will.”

  I let out a heavy sigh and turned away from the group to check our surroundings.

  Everything was peaceful. For a moment, I almost thought that maybe things could actually work out.

  All I knew for sure was that I wasn’t ready to give up trying.

  THE LAST STRUGGLE

  ravaged land: divided

  —————

  BY

  KELLEE L. GREENE

  Chapter 1

  I wasn’t sure how many days had passed after we’d escaped Tina and her gang, but we’d been traveling for weeks stopping only for food and to catch up on sleep. It was impossible to shake the feeling that we were being followed, so we never stayed in one place for too long.

  It was hard to find food, but occasionally we’d trap a small animal, and every so often, I’d find a small amount of greens that I knew were safe to eat. We were getting by, but only just barely.

  The temperature was warming, and things were starting to grow back. A little bit of green brightened the browns and tans of our world.

  We were lucky that water had been easy to find, but with the rapidly warming temperatures, I didn’t know how long it would last. Everything seemed to be drying out rather quickly. The earth had little cracks, and the ground was dusty.

  It was a particularly hot day, but we kept moving despite the heat. Ryder led the way with Shawn and me only a few steps behind. Charlie and Abby were behind us, with Logan bringing up the rear.

  Charlie and Abby continued to grow closer, but I didn’t mind because it had stopped her from rolling her eyes at me so frequently. She was too busy socializing with Abby to worry about antagonizing me.

  “What’s that?” Ryder asked as he held out his arms to stop us. He looked over his shoulder to make sure no one was behind us. “It could be a trap.”

  I squinted at the dots sitting on the horizon. “Buildings.”

  “There could be someone waiting for unsuspecting victims,” Shawn said.

  “Could be a good place for a nap,” Charlie said covering her yawn.

  Ryder met my eyes. “Should we check it out, or go around?”

  I chewed on my cheek as I scanned the area. We hadn’t seen anyone since leaving Tina’s group. The warmer it got, the fewer people we saw. Then again, maybe it had nothing to do with the temperature. Maybe no one just happened to be around the areas we’d been traveling through.

  My fingers lightly grazed the cool metal of my gun. “Let’s check it out. It’s probably a waste, but there could be something of use.”

  “I agree,” Ryder said, and Logan nodded.

  We started to walk toward the buildings, moving at a slower pace as we observed the area for anything unusual. But the only thing that was out of the ordinary was the somewhat larger sized house we were approaching. Very rarely did we come across buildings in such decent condition.

  “It doesn’t appear to be in that bad of shape,” I said quietly.

  The house was made of brick, and the other smaller building was made of stone. There had been a third structure, but it had mostly collapsed to the ground.

  “Somehow after everything, this place survived,” Abby said with a smile stretched across her face. “Most of it anyway.”

  As we got closer, I noticed the fence that surrounded the large property. There were parts missing, but it still managed to outline the area that had once been what appeared to be a rather large farm.

  I pulled out my gun as we stepped over part of the fence that had been knocked down. The house was a two-story building, and as we drew nearer, I saw that it was in even better shape than I had originally thought. It was as though the storms had completely missed the home.

  “Look at that,” Ryder said slapping his thigh.

  “Shh!” I said, worried that someone might be around to hear his excitement. It was far too nice of a place to be completely abandoned.

  We walked around the smaller stone building that looked as though maybe it had once been used to store farm equipment. But now it was just a water-stained building with random junk inside.

  We made our way cautiously to the house. The porch sagged in places, but for the most part, it looked like it would hold.

  “One clear,” Ryder said, raising his eyebrow at me.

  I narrowed my eyes at him and stepped in front of him gripping my gun tighter. “Stay back.”

  From a distance, I looked up at the house trying to see into the windows. I waiting to catch movement but there wasn’t anything. The windows were dirty, but they were clean enough that I would have been able to detect even the tiniest of movement from a person or the curtains.

  I slowly stepped up the small set of stairs and onto the porch. My breathing slowly as I inched over and peeked inside the window.

  Every piece of furniture that had been in the house seemed to still be in place. It was as if the house had been f
rozen in time.

  “Unbelievable,” I mumbled.

  “What?” Shawn asked.

  “The condition of this place,” I said gesturing toward the window. “Take a look.”

  They all stepped up to the windows on either side of the door and looked inside. Their mouths dropped down one by one in surprise.

  “Can we stay?” Charlie asked light touching the dirty window with her fingertips. She looked like a child that wanted her wish granted more than anything else in the entire world, but I didn’t believe it was possible.

  Ryder and I looked at one another. His lip curled up on the end, and I already knew what he wanted to do. He wanted to grant her wish.

  “What do you think?” Ryder asked keeping his voice low.

  “I don’t know,” I said looking over my shoulder and then back inside the house. “It’s kind of close to that big city we avoided back there.”

  Shawn nodded. “We don’t even know if this place is safe yet. You guys are getting ahead of yourselves.”

  “Let’s check it out then,” Ryder said nudging me.

  I opened the door, surprised it wasn’t locked. I could tell by the echoing inside the home that it was most likely empty. Of course, someone could be hiding, and that was exactly what they would want me to think, but there weren’t any footprints in the dust and dirt that coated the floor.

  Shawn followed me as I walked through the first floor. Ryder and Logan quietly went up the stairs to check the second floor while Charlie and Abby flopped down on the sofa. Apparently, they felt comfortable enough to make themselves at home.

  When we entered the dusty but organized master bedroom, Shawn grabbed my arm and spun me toward him. I bumped lightly into his chest.

  “What do you think about this place?” he asked wearing a completely unreadable expression. Shawn was trying hard not to influence my opinion one way or the other.

  “It seems empty,” I said mostly avoiding what he was really asking me about.

  Shawn raised his eyebrow, not even the slightest bit fooled. “I meant about staying.”

  “I’m not sure… what do you think?” I asked pressing my lips together as I cocked my head to the side.