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“Exactly. We have no idea if they’re still alive,” she said calmly.
While I knew those weren’t her words, I still resented that she said them.
“Then try to contact Whiteman,” I said. “Don’t use your secret coded relays. Just send out a message on all channels and ask people to keep spreading the message. There were still people out there when we were in the field. Survivors who are digging in deep. They’re listening to the radio.”
“We have tried,” she said. “Either Molev’s people aren’t listening, or they’re on the wrong channels. Either way, the lack of response doesn’t give a lot of people confidence that they’re still where Molev said they were.”
Heart sinking, I glanced at Molev. I hadn’t really considered something might have happened to them. I didn’t doubt they were still alive; I’d seen what one fey could do. But looking at how many bases had been evacuated, it made sense that his people may have had to move too.
“What do you think?” I asked Molev.
He considered the table for a long silent moment.
“I think Waurlyn is correct that we need to do something before the situation escalates. You have proven yourself as someone I can trust,” Molev said, looking up at her. “Not fully but enough that I do not wish to deal with whomever your people might send to replace you if I do not comply. So I will, for the last time, give more than your people are willing to give.”
He leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table.
“There is another reason to return to Whiteman,” he said. “A young woman is there. She was bitten, died, and came back. But not infected. She is the same as she was. I saw the scar myself and have no reason to doubt what I was told.”
Waurlyn leaned back in her chair, looking sick to her stomach.
“An immune human? How?”
Molev shook his head slowly. “I cannot say for certain.”
“Why didn’t you share this information sooner?” she asked.
“You’ve acknowledged the desperation of your people,” he said. “Although they would believe otherwise, they cannot do as they please with me. But this woman is human. She does not have my strength or speed…only the one thing your people want above all else.”
“And you don’t trust us not to hurt her,” Waurlyn said with an understanding nod. She sighed. “I don’t know what to do with this. You’re right. A lot of people are desperate. I’m desperate too, but being here changed how I see things.
“I know you’re truly helping us. I see how bad things are getting. We’re losing more people every day. Getting supplies to feed the people we have is becoming increasingly impossible. Based on the reports, or rather the lack of them, the infected are migrating away from the Midwest to the coasts. I’m not just facing the pressure of the higher-ups. I know our clock is ticking, and we’re running out of time to help the people in this building come up with the solutions we need.”
“Allow me to help with supplies again.”
She shook her head. “Too dangerous. You were too—”
“It was dangerous because I did things your way. Try doing them my way,” he said.
“What’s your way?”
“Tell me where you want to go. I will secure the location alone. Your people can then airlift the supplies out safely while I maintain the perimeter like I did in Loveland. The infected and the hounds aren’t interested in me. They’re interested in humans. The larger the group, the more infected the group draws.”
My stomach dropped as I realized what we’d done by hiding behind the mountains. A nice big pocket of humans. Was that why Molev’s gut was telling him we needed to get the volunteers and get out? How long would it take the infected and hounds to realize what they wanted was on this side of the barrier? Maybe they already had. It would explain why the watchtower outside of Loveland in the middle of nowhere had been attacked.
“How many people are in the camps on the east coast?” I asked.
“A fair amount,” she said, letting her understanding show. “Similar to the west coast, but their camps are closer together and more severely overcrowded. Or at least they were. With the number of bases we’ve lost in between, we’re no longer receiving regular updates.”
“But youarestill receiving updates from the east coast?” I asked.
“The last one was weeks ago. We believe the loss of bases in the central states is preventing communication.”
“What are you thinking, Andie?” Molev asked.
“That we need to listen to your intuition,” I said before meeting Waurlyn’s steady gaze. “Weeks ago, he said it didn’t feel safe here. That’s why he wanted to go to Loveland and see what was happening out there. And look how it turned out. If he hadn’t gone…if he hadn’t been there, we wouldn’t have found the infected inside the barrier, and the hounds in Loveland would have made their way in. If we want any chance of saving the people who are left, we need to start listening.”
“Okay,” Waurlyn said.
