The Light in the Dark

Chapter 34

Carson and I stay seated by the window as we watch the sun rise and bathe everything below in a bright light. I've been with him for the past few weeks, but this is the closest I've felt to him in a while. The entire time Carson and I were constantly looking behind our backs or I was too preoccupied with other things. For now I have nothing to worry about.

I hear a crackle overhead, signaling that Sander turned on his microphone. "Ladies and gentlemen, please take your seats--"

"What seats?" Xavier grumbles from his cramped spot in between two crates.

"--we are beginning our descent."

I look out again and see the plane turning. It lowers through a layer of clouds that envelop us. When the whiteness breaks apart, I can see smaller mountains with rivers coursing through them.

Soon we're close to the ground. There's a long runway in a field of grass and dirt with a few planes on it. I watch as the ground rushes up to us. Then the wheels touch the ground. The plane bounces, and I hear Kylie yelp in pain as her head hits the roof. Finally we're on the ground. Sander drives the plane slowly to the side by a warehouse.

"Welcome to California. The weather is sunny. The time is 6:49 in the morning. There is little Government activity. I hope you don't die chasing a whim, and enjoy your stay," Sander says in a cheery voice.

"At least he has our well beings in heart," Xavier says in a teary voice with his hand on his chest.

I just laugh and roll my eyes. I'm convinced that the only reason Sander flew us was because he owed my dad a favor. The plane finally slows to a stop, and we all get up from our spots, stretching and moaning.

Sander comes out of the cockpit with tired eyes and a stubble growing on his chin. He walks to the door and twists it open.

"I hope you enjoyed your first class seats," Sander says as he heads down the stairs.

"Oh yeah my neck will never be the same," Xavier replies sarcastically.

Sander just laughs a deep, throaty chuckle. He leads us into the warehouse. The air inside is dank, and the only light is coming from the open spaces in the roof. There are more crates stacked high and a couple of old, rundown cars and jeeps in the center.

"You guys can stock up on supplies and take that jeep over there." Sander points to the oldest one in the bunch. The paint is peeling off, the glass has cracks in it, and the metal is rusting.

I can see the grimaces on everyone's faces as they slowly approach our newest ride. They begin reloading their bags with ammo, food, and water. I hang back for a moment and turn to Sander.

"Thanks a lot for the ride. We weren't looking forward to walking all this way," I tell him.

"My pleasure," Sander answers and there's something in his voice that makes me believe he's telling the truth. "It's nice not traveling out here alone. Everything just feels so distant out here."

"So you haven't seen anything?" I ask sadly.

"Nope but there are rumors. If there's any truth in them, then you should be a couple hundred miles away."

I nod my head. We can manage that. "Then that's where we're going," I answer determinedly. We're so close. Closer than we've ever been.

Sander hands me some supplies to fill my backpack, and it falls heavily against my shoulders. The feeling comforts me, makes me feel prepared.

"I'm saying this sincerely, I hope you make it. We could really use a miracle right now," Sander says earnestly.

He nods his head once in goodbye. I give him a small smile as I climb into the back in between Carson and Olivia. Sam starts the jeep and soon we're off. He pulls out of the warehouse, and I look back one more time to see Sander give us a salute. I wave back. We make a turn, and then he's gone.