The Anomaly Effect

CHAPTER EIGHT

AUTUMN

It takes me about five minutes to get over my little freak-out, and then it's back to business.

My head is killing me, I won't deny that, but come on. I'm Autumn Stone. I've endured so much worse than a stupid concussion. Besides, I can't do anything about it anyway.

I can take care of some of my minor wounds, though. There are some pretty big gashes on my arms and thigh, and I patch those up as best I can. They're not bleeding too much anymore, which is good. Hopefully they'll be scabbing over soon.

When that's taken care of, I drag myself to my feet, gritting my teeth as my head pounds but trying hard to ignore the pain. My knife is tucked safely in its sheath, attached to my hip, but both my crossbow and quiver remain where I left them – in the car.

I heave a short sigh, but don't worry too much about it. When I find the others – when, not if – they will likely have it with them.

I just hope Erik is all right. He was alone and unconscious when I left him. But again, I'm not too worried. Erik can most certainly take care of himself, even if he doesn't meet up with Tessa and Wesley.

We were heading west, is all I know. I don't know where I am now, or how to get to Moab from here, much less Obsistum Headquarters. But the only thing I can do is keep heading west. It's hardly anything to go on, but I can't stay here.

So I start walking. It's hard at first, nausea washing over me and pain coursing through my head. I almost throw up a couple times. But I can't stop, because if I do I'll never be able to start walking again. So I push through.

I don't know how long I walk for, but eventually I find my way out of the forest. The scenery has changed pretty drastically. No more tall pine trees and green grass. It's orange sand and red rocks now, scraggly, twisting shrubs scattered across the ground. I've never been to Utah, but I think this might be it. Or at least, I must be getting pretty close to the border.

I allow myself a quick second of rest, leaning against a tree, and then I venture out into the desert. There's an old highway off to my right, cracked pavement and chipped paint. I start off in that direction, figuring that it's as good a place as any to hike along.

The pain in my head is starting to subside, and I breathe a sigh of relief. Thank goodness for genetic enhancement. I'll be good as new in no time.

Without the throbbing concussion to distract me, I begin to fully take in my surroundings, everything sharpening and becoming clearer around me. The ground is scattered with rocks, cacti, and other twisted-looking bushes. Tumbleweeds drift across the highway, catching on the fallen barbed wire fence that lies a few feet away from the road.

The sky is clear and brilliant blue, contrasting brightly against the huge red canyons and rock faces, and I take a moment to pause and admire it. But I've only looked for a brief moment when a scratching noise by my feet draws my attention.

There's a lump of scrap metal sitting in the middle of the road. At least, it looks like a lump of metal. Chances are it's something else entirely, something Forrester has sent after me.

I take a cautious step toward it, ready to use my telekinesis if need be. Nothing happens, so I take another step, and it moves. A bump on one end comes up, something that might be its head. This close, I can see that it's peppered with holes all across its back. And it's not likely that anything good is going to come out of those. My hand curls around the hilt of my knife.

Carefully, with my mind, I push on it, moving it just an inch backward. The second I touch it with telekinesis, thin spikes shoot out of the holes on its back, gleaming in the sun. They're razor sharp, and there's a gleaming substance on them that could be poison.