Read Online Erin M. Leaf by Joyful Devastation - Free Book Online

off.
    “Yeah,” Bea said tiredly. Her
adrenaline rush from earlier had disappeared and now she was even more
exhausted than before. And hungry.
    “We need to get out of here,” Theo
said again. “The longer we stay in one place, especially in a building, the
more likely it is that they’ll find us.”
    “I saw them before I went into the
safe. I was going to drive home, but then I saw them,” Ella said, her voice
going low and shaky.
    Bea understood. She, too, was busy
repressing all her shock and horror from what had happened, but she knew it was
going to come back up again. Probably at the most inconvenient time
imaginable, she thought.
    “That’s why we need to get out of
here,” Theo said, moving toward the door.
    “Where are we going to go?” Ivy
asked tremulously.
    “I know a place,” Gideon said.
    ****
    Gideon led the way up the trail,
moving slowly so that everyone could follow him. They didn’t dare use a light,
so even though he knew the trail well, it was rough going. He’d been hiking
along this section of a large nature preserve since he was a kid, looking to
get away from his foster family. He’d stumbled upon the cave system by accident
one day.
    “How much farther is it?” Bea
asked.
    She was right behind him, hand on
his hip so she could follow without using a flashlight. He tried very hard not
to think about how sweetly she’d kissed him in the elevator. Now is not the
time, he told himself repressively. “It’s not far,” he murmured aloud. “Just
around the next curve in the trail.”
    “Why is this safer than going back
to the house?” Ivy asked, her voice carrying more than he’d like.
    “Keep it down, Ivy,” Ella said
quietly. “And it’s better because it’s not a house. It’s not somewhere people
live, so hopefully they won’t be looking for anyone there.”
    “If they have any sort of
technology, they’ll find us,” Ivy said, demonstrating that she was young, not
stupid.
    “We just need somewhere we can rest
for the night. We can figure out what to do next tomorrow morning,” Theo said,
bringing up the rear.
    Gideon kept moving, not saying
anything more. There wasn’t anything to say. The rumbling of the alien’s
tech had faded, but their larger ships were still in town. Ivy was correct. He didn’t
even know if the caves would be safe, but they were a better bet than staying
in a house. Thankfully, the night wasn’t too cold. Spring had come, but
sometimes the temperature was downright unpleasant until summer.
    “It’s just ahead,” he murmured a few
minutes later. He led the way down the path, careful to stay to the right. “To
the left is a ravine. Be careful.” When he was sure he was in the right spot,
he stopped, looking for a way to climb up to the caves. This isn’t nearly as
difficult in the daytime.
    “We need to climb up about twenty
feet to the first cave. Bea, you’ll have to let go. We can’t do this if we’re
right on top of each other,” he said, starting up.
    “Okay,” she replied softly.
    He grimaced. There was no trail to
the rocks, so climbing was difficult. He wished he could turn on a flashlight,
but they couldn’t risk it. When the full moon came out behind the clouds he
breathed a sigh of relief. It didn’t provide much light, but it was better than
what they’d had before.
    It took them nearly an hour to
climb. When they reached the small ledge outside the cave’s tunnel, he waited
until they were all there before leading them inside. He took Bea’s hand and
she held Ivy’s. He didn’t stop until he was at least twenty feet down the
tunnel.
    “I think we can use a light now,”
he said quietly. “The tunnel curves so it should be safe.” He reached into his
duffel and pulled out a light, flicking it on. After being so long in the dark,
it hurt his eyes.
    “Whoa,” Bea breathed, staring.
    Gideon frowned at her, then turned
to see what she was looking at. When his eyes landed on the cave wall, he went
perfectly