Plague Of The Wise

Chapter 5

After I brushed off David and caught up to Wilfred, he was breathing heavily, leaning against a tree, as if he had just ran a marathon. His chest was heaving and his small frame was shaking, his eyes closed as he struggled to regain control of his breathing.

He seemed to sense me there. "I couldn't," he said. "Not yet."

I stepped closer and laid my hands on his shoulders. He raised his head to look at me. There were tears in his eyes, but his breathing was becoming less raggedy. I had done this with him many times before.

"Wil," I said calmly. "What's your last memory of your mother?"

He recognized the routine and gave me a grateful glance. "We were eating breakfast," he began, his face muscles tense. He took a deep breath. "She had made me bacon and eggs, and a batch of gluten-free pancakes for herself."

"What else?" I prompted him. I watched him carefully, not letting my gaze waver.

"She told me how much of a nice guy you were and how she was astonished that we weren't dating yet," he said, letting a little chuckle loose. "I told her we would only ever be friends, and she asked me about Audrey." He heaved another breath. "I made the same excuse and we laughed together. She collected the dishes and picked up her briefcase.

I waited patiently. I knew what was coming.

"As she walked out the door, she told me to be careful because it was my first time driving with my learner's permit. And she told me she would see me after school."

I knew well enough that I didn't have to ask to know that she hadn't seen him after school. "And your brother?" I asked. "What was your last memory of him?"

Wilfred was breathing easier now, well enough that he could talk without gasping for air. His tears had almost dried up. "He had promised to drive me to school. It was a long time ago, so it's a little hazy, but he went back on his promise because he-" Wilfred made air-quotes. "-didn't want to be seen with his dopey brother anywhere." Wilfred set his jaw. "He didn't take me to school, and he never came back."

I waited a terse moment before asking, "Are you okay?" He nodded and gripped my forearms.

"Thank you, Ethan," he said. "I don't know what I'd do without you."

"You're my best friend," I said quietly. "You'll never be without me."

Wilfred nodded gratefully and we walked back to the others. I rubbed my arms as the air began to cool off. I could almost see my breath in the air.

Audrey was inside the spruce tarp shelter, using one of Wilfred's matches to light the fire. She had a small collection of sticks arranged in concentric circles like a hut with a wad of paper in the center. She looked up, saw us, and shrugged. "Warmth takes priority over schoolwork," she said mournfully, as if burning her schoolwork was the last thing she wanted to do, which it probably was.

In one swift move, she lit the paper and it was quickly engulfed in flames that spread across it, brushing against the sticks stacked around it like a careful hug. Within minutes, the sticks had lit and Audrey was warming her hands up by the fire. Due to the tarp surrounding the shelter, I could already begin to feel the warmth collect.

The others ducked into the shelter, and there was barely room for all of us to sit huddled around the fire. The ground was lined with spruce boughs as well in hopes to hold off ground frost. Wilfred, naturally, had a small, lined sleeping bag to sleep in, but the rest of us had to make due with a couple thin blankets he had also pulled from his pack.

"Who the fuck are you, Mary Poppins?" Zachary asked in awe after the third blanket emerged from the backpack.

"I'm just prepared," Wilfred said. "You'll thank me later."