The five of us take off down the ash-covered street, fires roaring beside us, and we never look back. But part of me wants to look and find out what’s behind me.

Chapter 35

“We should just sleep through the night and then walk the rest of the way in the morning.” Ryder paces in front of us, her matted hair pulled up in high ponytail. Her ears are strange. They have these large holes in them, which she’s filled with the black buttons that have red dots in the center.

After we left the bubble-top building behind, and the Day Takers, we ran until we reached the land where the red rocks start. There, we found a place to rest, because everyone, including myself, was getting tired.

Aiden’s bandaging up my wrist with a piece of his shirt that he ripped off. But I can still feel everything; every burn, every sting, every pain. It hurts and I hate it. I feel like everything’s spinning out of control and I can’t stop it.

“Hey,” Aiden says, drawing me back to reality. “You’re going to be okay. Everything’s going to heal.”

“Except for the scars,” I say.

The corners of his mouth quirk and he touches his eye where the scar used to be. “Yeah, maybe.”  He touches his cheek where there’s a fresh new cut. “Maybe I’ll be lucky enough to get a new one.”

I forge a small smile, feeling like I don’t belong out here, like I’m supposed to be doing something else—something more important. “Wait. Who’s watching Maci?” I ask Ryder.

She stops pacing and her voice comes out small and guilty. “Umm… Dominic.”

“What!” Aiden and I shout together.

“What’s wrong with you, Ryder?” Aiden says. “I told you to keep Dominic away from her.”

She looks like he’s slapped her. “There was no one else, okay? I did what I had to do to save your stupid ass, which I might add, I told you was going to happen.”

Aiden calms down a little. “How’d you even know we needed help? Or where to find us? Or anything for that matter?”

She fiddles with her ear piece. “Maci told me that you guys might run into some problems.”

“How would she know?” He asks, wiping the sweat from his face with his shirt.

Ryder bites on her lip, glancing at me. “I’m not sure.”

“Because she knows things,” I explain with a sigh. “Even before they happen. Which is why she shouldn’t be with Dominic.”

“Dominic told me that she’d be fine with him,” Ryder says, like that means something. She hops on a rock and crosses her legs. “And I didn’t tell him about her little seeing gift.”

Whether he knows or not, I don’t trust Dominic the least little bit. And getting back to the hillside suddenly seems like my top priority.