Zone Zero (Book 1 of 3)

Chapter 24

"HELP! HELP ME!" I scream at the top of my lungs hoping that someone on the other side of the wall might hear and rescue me.

How on earth did I get on this side of the wall?

I scurry along the outer fence screaming with all my might hoping that I am found before night falls. I don't want to be out in the open like this when the vampires come out.

"SOMEBODY! PLEASE!" Surely the group on wall duty will be able to hear me if I am loud enough.

Suddenly a young boy appears at the top of the wall. He can't be any older than 13 and I wave my arms at him.

"HELP ME, PLEASE!"

He stares at me and then disappears. Did he see me? How could he not?

He reappears as quickly as he left with a second person. I look closely and I realize that I know that face. It's Steele.

"STEELE, HELP ME PLEASE!" He waves back to me and is gone suddenly. I know he has seen me for sure.

I watch the wall as a rope ladder is thrown from the top and Steele bounds down the rungs at light speed. The sight of him is enough to bring on even more tears.

"Evie? Holy shit it is you!" He exclaims as he reaches me at the fence.

I tangle my fingers into the chain link fence and Steele holds onto them from the other side and I know that I can't control myself any longer. I begin to sob uncontrollably and let my head rest on the coolness of the metal.

I am saved.

...

I find myself sitting on a navel style cot in a barred cell. Why does this feel so familiar?

There is a guard standing on the other side of the iron bars staring at me intently. He looks as though he is seeing a ghost.

I scrunch my fingers up in my lap and try to remain calm. What the hell happened to me? How did I get beyond the wall?

"Where is she?" A familiar voice asks is the distance and I stand ready to meet him at the cell door.

Uncle James appears within a matter of seconds and stands holding onto the iron on the other side of the cell door. He breathes out a sigh of relief and I must admit, i am actually glad to see him. I follow suit and begin grinning graciously at the sight of my Uncle.

I never would have dreamed that I would be happy to see Uncle James.

"Are you ok? The Doctor is on his way to give you a full medical. Where have you been, girl?" His voice is almost demanding as he barks his questions, but for once in my life I don't fight him.

"I'm ok Uncle James but I have no idea what happened. The last thing I remember is Jeremy hurting his leg and Steele and I helping him, then nothing." I speak sincerely and hope that he believes me. I am frightened as to why so many people seem shocked to see me but I don't want to let anyone see just how fragile I truly am right now.

Uncle James studies my face for a sign that I could be lying but I know that he will find none. I have nothing to hide from him.

"Where is Logan?" I ask genuinely. "I want to see my brother."

"When the doctor clears you then you will be reunited in no time. You have my word."

I nod in acceptance and take my place back on the naval style cot and wait for the moment that I get to see my big brother so all this confusion can subside.

...

"Evette, you need to tell me everything you remember. Where were you?" Uncle James implores as he sits across from me, his mahogany desk between us.

I look around the room of his office and try to think but everything is gone. I don't remember anything and I feel myself begin to cry. No, don't cry. Not here.

"I can't remember."

"You have to try!" He brings his hands down onto his desk with a loud thud in hopes to scare anything I could be hiding from him out. I tremble at the sound as my bottom lip begins to waver.

"I promise Uncle James. I don't know. I...I can't remember anything."

Slowly he leans back in his office chair and brings his hands up to his temples and begins softly massaging the sides of his head.

"You mean to tell me that you went missing from inside the zone and were found outside the wall but you have no recollection of how you got there?" His words are bitter, almost as though he doesn't believe what I am saying.

"I don't remember. I can't remember anything since yesterday when Jeremy fell." I sound my plea as my voice begins to crack.

Suddenly Uncle James's face grows hard and he leans closer over his desk. It is the same face that he uses each time he has had to deliver bad news to me and I am instantly worried.

"Evette, you have been gone for almost a fortnight." His words cut through me like knives as the realization sets in. I have been missing for 2 weeks and I can't remember a thing? What the hell happened to me?

"The doctor says that there is nothing physically wrong with you. A few cuts and bruises that seem weeks old but nothing major," he reports, "you really don't remember anything?"

I gulp down a large breath as the tears well in my eyes and before I can hold them back they begin to fall steadily down my cheek. What the hell happened to me?

"Where is she? Let me see her right now!" A muffled voice demands on the other side of the door but before I even have a chance to turn my head, the doors burst open.

There, just inside the door frame, stands my big brother Logan dressed in his combat gear with hair all a mess. He looks as though he hasn't slept for days and wears anger on his face proudly, but I know that it is just a mask.

I gasp at the sight of him and push my chair back hurrying over to him.

I leap into his arms and let my tears fall on his shoulder as he throws his arms around me holding me tighter than he ever has.

"Evie, thank God you are safe." He mutters into my ear and I know that he means it. He is the only person that would say such a thing and actually mean it in my life right now.

I hold onto him tightly and don't let go. I never want to leave him again. He is all I have left.

"I am taking you home right now." He begins to lead me out of Uncle James' office when the scrap of a chair being pushed back bounces off the walls.

"Logan, I still need to talk to her. We don't know where she has been or what she has been through." His voice is governing and demanding but Logan doesn't even quiver.

"You have had her for almost an hour. Its time she comes home. She needs to rest." He yells back in response.

He ushers me toward the door again and this time Uncle James lets us leave.

A/N - A big thank you to all the readers and all your kind words!!! You are all amazing! Keep reading, voting and commenting! Xoxoxoxo 😄