We're Still Alive(Book1)BEING REWRITTEN

Fifty-Six

   Gavin had never been more happy to see that messy, makeshift bed that night when he collapsed onto it. He felt somewhat guilty about it, though. He was finally home with his friends-- his new family, while Laina was dead and burned outside the storage units, and Cora was no where to be found. He'd been the one to tell everyone what happened when they got back. They had a minute of silence and said their goodbyes to thin air.
   Tom said they'd go back to find Cora first thing in the morning, though. Paige talked about wanting to join them, too. Gavin almost felt bad for her; she'd been stuck in the mall all day while they were getting all the excitement. And it had taken its toll on him; he was asleep seconds after laying down, but not before Buddy curled up next to him. Paige was laying by a wall with the horse standing next to her
sleeping form. It had been like that since he got back, and it had never moved once and kept its head lowered; he assumed--hoped--that it was asleep.

   He woke with a start, curling into a ball from the sudden pain as Buddy jumped on him. Martine laughed from beside him.
   "About time you woke up." He said. "It's almost noon."
   "Noon? Did the search party leave already?" He asked, suddenly wide awake.
   "No, I haven't heard anything about sending out a search party today." Martine answered. "Why, are you impatient to leave us now that you've been back a few hours?"
   "No, no I missed you guys. But Cora's still out there and I feel like I'm somewhat responsible. I mean, she came looking for us with them, and because of that she's gone."
   "You wanna talk to Tom about it?" Martine asked in a more serious tone.
   "Actually, yeah. Where is he?"
   "I think he's still in the cafeteria." Martine turned to walk away and Gavin followed. Once they were on the bottom floor, Gavin heard the clopping of hooves behind him before Paige appeared.
   "Where are we going?"
   "I don't know about you." He answered. "But we're going to go talk to Tom. We need to send out a team to look for Cora."
   "I'll go with you then." Gavin didn't argue as she followed them to the mess hall, where Tom sat with Renee and Joe. He looked up as the three walked over.
   "What?"
   "It's past noon." Gavin said. "Why haven't you sent out a search party yet?"
   Tom sighed and sat back in his chair. "We were threatened yesterday, probably by the same group you met at the gas station. We can't afford to have people gone if they attack."
   "We can't just leave her!" He objected. "She's probably got somewhere set up and is waiting for us. You guys found us-"
   "That was different!" Tom interrupted. "We have bigger problems right now. I know Cora, and I know that by now she's probably got someplace to last her a while. She's resourceful. Until we figure this thing out with the other group-"
   "What if we go?" Paige's voice was quiet, but it shut Tom up.
   "Who's' we?'"
   "Me, Gavin, Jared, and Casey. I know that if something happens, you won't let us see much action anyway. Sorry Martine, by the way. They'll probably want you here." She acknowledged him quickly. "Mica, Jay, Avery and Ben can look after Cobalt and Bud. They seem to like them. Then the four of us can go, and it won't make a big difference." Gavin took a quick glance around after she finished talking and saw everyone was watching her. Joe and Renee turned to Tom expectantly. Renee gave him a little nod and Joe followed. He looked between the two of them and sighed.
   "You know what? Go ahead. But Casey will need to stay. She's a good shot, and we might need that."
   Paige was suddenly bouncing on her feet. "I'll get Jared." She swung herself onto Cobalt's back and nudged him forward. They took off at a trot, all they could risk on the hard and slick floor. He turned back to Tom.
   "Better start packing your stuff. You might be out there for a while." He nodded and turned to walked away. "Gavin?" Tom called, and he turned back to him. "Be careful. We don't need to lose any more
people."
   "No promises, but I'll try." He replied, then walked back to his 'bed' to pack his things. It looked like he might spend the night on the cold, hard floor of some abandoned building. Again.