Live Free or Die Complete Series Boxed Set: Age Of Madness - A Kurtherian Gambit Series Hayley Lawson (ebook reader play store .TXT) 📖

passed. One of the men must have been his dad. Doesn’t it hurt the kids more to see their parents like that? Ryder wondered as she gathered the bedding. She’d wrung out as much water as she could.

A few of the kids she’d walked to the settlement with were at the lake, and some waved at her. One even asked to pet Fluffy, but she said no since she wasn’t sure how he’d react.

The kid wasn’t too pleased, but Ryder knew it had been the right thing to do. She hoped that over time, she’d know what Fluffy was like with others and she could let them pet him. But it wouldn’t be any of the kids in this settlement.

She’d be long gone by then.

Ryder hung the sheets on some wooden poles outside her shack. She’d noticed other people doing the same. It didn’t matter if the bedding dried before bedtime since she had no intention of sleeping on the bed. It was more for show and something to do, really.

Night was coming, and soon, it would be time to escape. Until then, she would take a break in her shack with Fluffy.

She lit a small candle, the flame dancing in the cooling breeze. The flickering shadows on the wall reminded her of when she and Terrier would make shadow puppets for the kids in the bunker. The memory struck a painful chord, but it reminded her what was at stake. Ryder steeled her resolve.

I'm coming, Terrier.

Once darkness had fallen, Ryder knew the time was right. She didn’t need to waste any time gathering belongings because all she had were her weapons, and they never left her side. As she prepared to make a break for it, Leandro’s ears perked up, and Ryder knew something was happening outside the shack.

Her door swung open. Carter was standing there, and Louis wasn’t.

“After what you said today, I shouldn’t be rescuing you,” Carter bitched, clearly still bitter about the joke from that afternoon.

Ryder frowned at him. “Rescuing me? Who the hell says I need rescuing?”

Carter rolled his eyes. “Can you just stop running your mouth until we get the hell out of here? I'm trying to be kind. Why must you make it so difficult?”

Ryder knew he was right, but she’d never admit it. She’d never hear the end of it. She gave him a smile as she ran past him, and Fluffy followed her, a white blur in the dark.

“Wait up, you two,” Carter whispered. “You don’t even know which way you’re going.”

He had a point. Ryder let him catch up. She needed to get the hell out of here before Maxwell or any of the others realized she was gone, and if that meant relying on Carter, then so be it.

As they ran through the trees behind the settlement, Ryder kept looking over her shoulder like she thought someone would be coming after them. Maxwell seemed like a smart guy. He had to know she would try to escape tonight and that Carter would help. But no one came. Ryder began to wonder if Maxwell really did care about his people.

They paused for a moment when they were far enough away from the settlement, and Carter gave Ryder some water. She sipped just a little. She was determined to keep a clear head, even though it was hard because all she could think about was the next sip.

“What did you do?” she asked, lowering the bottle from her lips.

Carter looked at Ryder with mischievous eyes. “Well, I knew Maxwell would think that I’d come for you or that you’d try to evade him. So, I tied him to his chair. He’s so little, I kind of feel like a bully for doing it.”

Ryder grinned. “And the others?”

“They weren’t quite so easy. Those fuckers are big.” Carter laughed. “I bopped them over their heads. They’re sleeping it off in their shacks.”

“You mean you bashed them over the head?”

He shrugged. “Bashed? Bopped? What matters is that they’re all asleep.”

Ryder shook her head. “How many people did you ‘bop’?”

“Only the people I had to,” he said. “I lost count.”

“Dammit, Carter, it was meant to be a quick, quiet escape. By the sound of it, you bopped everybody.”

He grinned. “There will be a few headaches tomorrow morning, but they’ll all be fine.”

“Why are you helping? Don’t get me wrong. I’m grateful.”

“Wow, a compliment,” he said. “Look, unlike the elders, the younger generation wanted me to help rescue the people in the bunker. If I had stayed, they would have known I was a traitor to our people, and that is a terrible example for a big brother to set. So, I’m going to help you.”

Ryder took a moment to look at Carter. His beard was filled with color and had bows at the ends of the braids. Jessica had gone crazy before sending him off.

Carter blushed and poked at his beard. “I had to let Jessica do it. She said it would give me good luck. Don’t be jealous.”

Ryder laughed, but she was a little jealous of the elegant bows and braids. She’d never had anything so pretty done to her hair. Maybe her mother had done her hair before she’d been kidnapped, but if so, she couldn’t remember it.

“Hey, you don’t need to laugh so hard,” Carter said, smiling and batting his eyelashes at her playfully. “I know damn well I look cute.”

“Maybe a little.” Ryder winked.

“Wow, two compliments from you in one day? I might have to write them down because I have a feeling there won’t be more anytime soon.”

Ryder shook her head, smiling. “Yeah, don’t get used to it.”

“Which way now?” Carter asked.

Her smile evaporated. “I thought you were the man with the directions? I’ve never been anywhere other than the area around the bunker.”

On the horizon, Ryder could see a flicker of orange, probably from a fire. Maybe there was some life there, and they’d help like Carter. She hoped they were better than Carter, actually. Ryder smiled.