Don't Whistle Past the Graveyard

Ch. Eighty-Eight

For a second, all I could do was stare at Lisa. The words just refused to make sense.

He's gone. No one saw him leave.

They just sort of rattled around in my brain, pinging off the inside of my skull like pinballs. Distantly, I noticed that Shane was staring at me, looking like he wanted to move closer but unsure if that was the right thing to do.

Then things snapped back into focus and I stood up. Swallowing hard, I rasped, "How could no one see him leave?"

Lisa narrowed her eyes at me before she let her gaze flick to Shane. He raised his eyebrows in question and she returned her attention to me. "We don't have eyes on every inch of this place at night," she admitted through gritted teeth. "It's not ideal, but there it is."

"So, what?" Shane frowned, leaning against the table beside me. "He just strolled on out the front gate sometime last night?"

"That's unlikely," Lisa said, her voice turning dry. "We have guards at the front gate all the time."

"Would they lie about seeing him if he asked them to?" I let my gaze drift to the door behind Lisa, wondering if they would have the stomach to lie to me, or if we'd have better luck getting you to talk to them.

Lisa chewed on her lower lip, brows drawing together as she considered that. Then she shrugged. "Some might. Some might not. All we can do is ask."

I had the brief, nasty thought that we could do a lot more than ask. Immediately, shock coursed through me. How could I even consider something like that? Moreover, why would I consider going to such lengths?

Shane was watching me, waiting for my cue. So I nodded briefly, gesturing for Lisa to lead the way. She hesitated for a moment, eyes darting back and forth between us. I stared at her, waiting for her to ask whatever she wanted to ask.

"You didn't see anything?" she began slowly, hand tightening around the shoulder strap of her rifle.

"No," I said, voice flat. "We've been asleep all night."

"You were up early," she pointed out. "And you might not be inclined to care if he's in trouble."

"Habit." Shane's short answer cut through the air like a whip. Lisa didn't so much as flinch, turning her dark gaze on him. He stood up straight, moving a little closer to me. "Mornings come early out there. That's why we were up. Probably why you were up."

I almost wanted to applaud him. He had very neatly turned Lisa's own accusation back onto her. Lisa seemed to realize the same thing. She scowled at him, but didn't say anything more.

Stepping forward, I said, "My father and I have our problems. That doesn't mean I want him hurt or dead."

It surprised me a little bit, the truth of my words. At the beginning of the outbreak, when Shane had asked if there was any family I wanted to try to find, I had said no. I had said that there wasn't anyone else I cared about. At the time, I'd meant it.

The idea that my parents might be dead hadn't bothered me all that much. Or maybe I just hadn't had the option of being bothered. We sort of had a few more urgent things to consider. Like running for our lives.

But being confronted with the idea in real time, when I was in a position to actually do something was a different sort of beast. The realization sat heavy in my gut and I gestured once more to the door. "Well, all we can really start with is talking to the guards, right?" I raised an eyebrow. "So why don't we do that?"

Lisa gave me a long, measuring sort of look before she gave a curt nod. She turned on her heel and marched out the door. When I went to follow her, Shane grabbed my wrist. I met his grim gaze and whispered, "We can't do anything to help them right now. If we disappear, they'll come after us."