We didn’t know what other kinds of weapons these aliens possessed, didn’t know what they were capable of. Just because they had always announced their arrival with noise and light before didn’t mean that they always had to. The noise and lights could just be a fear tactic, one that worked really well as far as I was concerned. Maybe they had taken Cade. Maybe they knew we were here and were just waiting for us to expose ourselves.

   I took a step back from the roadside, losing count as I began to search the night around us. Were they out there? Hunting us, stalking us? Were they narrowing in on us even now? I didn’t want to leave Cade, but he had been gone for far longer than he should have been, and he had faith in me that I would continue on, that I would get them to safety.

   “Bethany…”

   “Five more minutes,” I whispered.

   “But he’s been gone…”

   “Five more minutes Abby.”

   “Look, I get that you don’t want to leave your lover behind, but they could be closing in on us even now,” Jenna said.

   I shot Jenna a furious look, my hands fisting at my sides. “Five more minutes!” I snarled.

   She glared at me as she shifted angrily. I turned back to the road, starting to count again. One more time to two hundred, and then we would have to go. We would havetoo. Fifty six… fifty seven… fifty ei… Movement rustled the trees in the median.

   My breath froze, I took a swift step forward as hope exploded through me, and then Cade was emerging from the shadows. My legs shook as relief flooded me; I was able to take my first real breath since he had left. Cade knelt by the side of the road, his hand resting lightly on the ground as he searched for us. I stepped slightly forward, barely exposing myself to the dim moonlight that illuminated the road. He lifted his hand, gesturing for us to come over.

   “Let’s go,” I said softly.

   “Wait!” Jenna hissed in surprise.

   “We have to go now, well it’s still safe.”

   “Out there?” she croaked.

   I decided to take a page from Cade’s book. “Then stay here. Let’s go Abby, now.”

   Jenna’s eyes widened, her gaze darted wildly around, but she offered no further protest as Abby came slowly toward me. I heaved the duffel bag onto my shoulder, bowing slightly beneath its weight. It was far heavier than I had expected considering the ease with which Cade moved with it. I straightened my shoulders and burst onto the road with Abby close at my heels and Jenna following reluctantly behind.

CHAPTER 15

    We trudged slowly through the woods. Though we had managed to get some sleep, it had done little to ease the exhaustion that clung to us all. Jenna had been bitchier than usual for the first hour of our walk. She had finally, and thankfully, grown silent.

   “How much further do you think it is?” Abby asked softly.

   “Mile, maybe two,” Cade answered absently.

   It wasn’t that far, I kept telling myself. An hour at the most, and that was only ifthe terrain became rough, which I didn’t think it would. Or I hoped it wouldn’t anyway. There weren’t any dumps between us and the gas station at least. I kept my head down, my feet ached, my legs were weak but I could make it. We all could.

   Though the trees mostly blocked the sun, the heat of the day was growing oppressive. The light filtering through them was bright, and hot. I was sweltering, which I found oddly surprising. The heat rarely bothered me. Only when it was over a hundred did I truly dislike it. To me, anything under seventy was chilly. But today was at most eighty degrees, and though sweat coated me it wasn’t that humid out. There was a light sea breeze filtering through the leaves, shaking them gently.

   Perhaps it was my exhaustion that was making it feel as if it were a hundred and twenty. Or maybe I had caught something from tromping through all of that disgusting garbage and sliding through sludge. I rarely got sick, but I couldn’t even begin to imagine the amount of germs we had been exposed to, and none of us had eaten or drank much in the past few days.

   Whatever it was, I felt like hell and I didn’t like it.

   I was so ensnared by my misery that I didn’t notice Cade had stopped until I bumped into him. He reached back with his arm, pushing me behind him as he studied the woods. His eyes were narrowed; his body tight with tension. I frowned, glancing swiftly around. There were a couple of squirrels sitting in the trees so I didn’t think the aliens were near, but something had caught Cade’s attention.

   The sharp snap of a twig caused me to jump in surprise. Jenna and Abby huddled closer to us. A squirrel darted through the branches of a tree, causing a small raucous as it leapt into another one before disappearing into the woods. Was it fleeing from approaching aliens or from some other unseen thing?

   “Abby? Bethany?”

   I jumped slightly, spinning in the direction the voice had come from. “Aiden?” I whispered in surprise.

   He stepped out from behind a tree, his eyes wide as he stared at us in shock. I knew we looked awful. Our clothes were caked with muck; Abby’s delicate features were streaked and coated with dirt and slime. Her dark brown hair was now black, and a tangled rats nest. Jenna’s strawberry hair was also far darker; she’d placed it into a braid before going into the dump so it was not the tangled mess that Abby’s and mine was. My own honey hued hair was a dark, snarled, filthy brown.

   No wonder Aiden was having a hard time recognizing us beneath the layers of filth.

   I couldn’t stop the smile that spread over my face at the blessed sight of him. He still appeared slightly singed, or shocked, from whatever had happened to him on the bridge. His light hair was standing up, and burn marks marred the fair skin of his arms. But he was cleaner than we were, and I was certain he smelled far better.

   Abby let out a delighted cry and raced toward him. Aiden grinned brightly at her as he held out his arms to receive her. I followed behind her, but by the time I reached them, Aiden was already pulling back, a disgusted look on his face. “Holy crap Abby you smell awful!” he gasped.

   I halted in midstride, unable to stop the burst of laughter that bubbled out of me. He turned toward me, holding his arms out. “I don’t smell any better,” I assured him.

   “I don’t care.”

   My laughter ceased as I stepped into his warm, welcoming embrace. Though he was brave enough to hug me, it did not last long, and Abby and I left a sludge mark on the front of his shirt. “Are you ok?” I asked softly.

   “Yes.”

   “Bret, Molly?” My voice squeaked, I could barely breathe as I awaited his answer.

   Aiden grinned at me. “They’re fine,” he assured me. “Bret’s on the road across from the gas station, Molly’s on the road next to it keeping watch for you guys.”

   Cade and Jenna had edged closer, but remained slightly behind us. “What happened?” Jenna asked quietly.

   Aiden’s eyes darkened, anger and sadness crept over his features. “I don’t really know; we were almost to the bridge when all hell broke loose.” His gaze moved away from us, he seemed to be focusing on something that neither of us could see. “That guy that was with us, he was in the front. When that light hit him...” Aiden’s voice grew taut; a slight tremor shimmered through him. “The edges of the light seemed to set him on fire, from the inside out.”

   My heart was hammering, my mouth dry with horror as he uttered the words inside out. Instinctively I sought out Cade and seized hold of his hand. “The fire actually came from his mouth.” Aiden shuddered; his eyes came back to us. “I could feel it creeping up inside of me. I could feel it licking against my organs, burning its way through me. Thankfully, whereas the others had been trapped by the light, we were not far enough into it to be completely ensnared by it. The three of us were able to break free, able to run. I didn’t even know where we were until we reached the other side of the IHOP.”