Hacker (Book 1)

Veronica Chapter 44

Days have past since I left Sebastian at that horrible place. There are moments when I forget he's gone, I'll look up to say something, and then it all comes back in one devastating tidal wave.

I fold up the blanket from my bed and pile it into one of the bags we found stashed in a trunk on one of the upper floors. We've decided to find somewhere else to stay, they probably figured out that we can't be too far, and we need to keep moving.

"Veronica, are you ready?" Em calls from the kitchen.

"Almost," I shout back. I scan the room one last time for anything valuable. With a sigh I grab Sebastian's jacket, and wrap it around myself breathing in the smell of him. I throw the bag over my shoulder walk out the door.

I see the others standing outside waiting, all with backpacks strapped to their backs. We've avoided talking about what to do next. At first it was just too hard to talk about, but now it's like if we don't talk about it then maybe it's not real. All we did talk about was how we needed to go somewhere else.

"So where we going now boss?" Bruce asks, looking at me.

"Me?" I ask in shock. Did he just call me boss?

"Well who else is going to lead us?" He asks.

"I don't think I'm-," I start.

"V, you've kind of been leading us this whole time," Em points out.

"Yeah," I say, "and look how well that turned out. We're down a member."

"That wasn't your fault," Bruce says, "we all agreed on a plan. It could have happened to any of us."

"But," I try to get out.

"But nothing. None of us knew or could have known what to expect," he interrupts. "Like it or not you are our best shot, and there is no one else I would rather follow."

"Bruce is right," Em agreed, "You are our only chance at surviving. So yeah you're our leader."

"Fine," I relent, "I'll be your leader, but we are a team!"

"Agreed," both answer in agreement.

"And we're not going to just survive, we're going to take the Black Dagger down," I declare.

"Didn't we try that already, and failed?" Em asks wearily. 

"Yeah, but that was with only four of us," I respond. "We are going to find others and then we're going to drive the Black Dagger into the ground."

"And where are we finding these people?" Bruce asks.

"I don't know yet," I say, "but I'm not going to stop until ever last Black Dagger agent is gone." I stretch out my hand, "For Sebastian."

"For Sebastian," the repeat placing their hands on top of my mine.

"So what's the first step?" Bruce asks.

"First we need to find somewhere to live," I say.

"Agreed," Em says with a smile. "Maybe we'll find someplace with less rats."

"I doubt it," Bruce says with a chuckle.

"I liked the rats, the were cute," Wendy says in her sweet little voice.

"No, they are disgusting, disease filled creatures," Em says with a shudder.

"Look as much I love talking about rats I think we should stop wasting daylight," I say sternly, even though a smile tugs at my lips.

"Yes ma'am," Bruce says with a salute.

We then start off in the opposite direction of the compound. I don't know where we're going, but this isn't the end this only the beginning. I won't fail you Sebastian! I think as we march off, in search of a new home, on our way to creating a new world.