Page 37 of Blue Arrow Island (Blue Arrow Island #1)

Leadership at the aromium-enhanced camp has informed me that they’ve named their group Rising Tide.

It gave me goose bumps of excitement. There have been hardships, but these people now see themselves as one cohesive unit with a clear mission.

Just as nature’s rising tides wash away all that came before, so will they, in favor of something better.

- Excerpt from the journal of Dr. Randall McClain

“I get nervous shooting apples on top of people’s heads, but I’ve done it.”

I gape at Amira. “Really?”

She shrugs. “When you get to a certain point, you know you can make the shot. I’ve won a lot of bets doing it.”

We’re sitting side by side on the concrete floor of a huge room with a domed ceiling inside the Sub. There are about thirty people sheltering in here, some of them restless kids playing tag. It’s been a couple hours, and I’m getting more nervous as time passes.

“Have you ever let anyone shoot an arrow at an apple on your head?” I ask.

“Sure. If I knew they could make the shot. It’s pretty messy when an apple explodes in your hair, though.”

I study my nails, cut short because they had to be for working in the garden. Before the virus, I had long, pretty nails. Even though I was a broke college student, I always found the money for manicures. My life now is completely disconnected from what it was then.

What if I had met Marcus back then? Things would have been very different if we’d met as a quarterback and an aspiring scientific researcher.

The apocalypse has taught me a lot about what’s important. Trusting someone and feeling genuinely secure in their presence is a rarity to be cherished. My gut tells me I’m right to feel that way with Marcus, but I’ve been burned before.

“We’ll see a lot more of each other with you on the security team,” Amira says.

“You like your team members?”

She shrugs. “They’re okay. I’m still pretty new.”

I spent my first half hour in here talking to Stella. After I told her what Marcus wanted her to know and that I’m joining the security team, she quickly explained the structure here.

Command teams one and two handle camp security and enforce camp rules. Security teams one through four only train and handle security. The camp perimeter is checked four times a day.

Amira and I are talking when the lights in the room suddenly go out, people murmuring in alarm. A couple seconds pass, and then there’s a loud whooshing sound and spotlights mounted on the walls switch on, providing a little light.

“We’re running on low power,” Stella announces. “Everything’s fine.”

I see more than a few side-eyes in response.

“You think that aromium shield needs electricity to work?” Amira asks me in a tone only I can hear, barely moving her lips.

“Yeah.”

She sighs heavily.

“You have plenty of arrows?” I ask her.

“Yeah, but not all of them with me.” She leans in, her head right next to mine. “Should we come up with a rendezvous point in case shit ever hits the fan?”

Just the thought makes my stomach feel like a tumbling dryer, spinning endlessly. As far as life on Blue Arrow Island goes, we’ve got it great. But that’s all dependent on the shield that keeps anyone or anything with aromium out.

“The beach? Where we were first dropped off?”

She nods. “Okay.”

“I killed a dog-sized praying mantis.”

I hear her sharp intake of breath. “Are you shitting me?”

“Nope. It was a walking nightmare.”

Her groan is weary. “This fucking place.”

My gaze wanders the room, landing on Stella. She’s listening to something over the radio, her brows drawn together with worry. A few people near her stand up.

“Everyone, stay here,” she says, her voice stern. “Ellison, Breck, come with me.”

Breck is a tall, burly member of Command Team Two. Ellison’s face is drawn with concern as she follows Stella.

“She’s worried about Nova,” Amira whispers.

She takes my hand, both of us holding on tight as we wait. Marcus is so strong and capable that I’ve never considered him dying. But I’m holding my breath, staring at the doorway when Nova walks through it a couple minutes later, blood splattered on her face and in her hair.

Marcus comes through next, a woman limp in his arms. He scans the room, his gaze landing on me. The agony I see in his expression makes me want to run to him, but I can’t. Not now.

“Put Shan in the surgery room!” Ellison flies through the doorway next. “Des in an exam room. Niran, keep pressure on that wound.”

Everyone who’s been sheltering here is standing now, people putting their arms around each other as we all look on in shock. The woman in Marcus’s arms leaves a trail of blood as he carries her through a doorway.

“What the hell happened?” Amira says softly.

“Virginia.” My fury for her seeps through my tone.

She’s on the wrong side of the battle for control of this island. Her niece’s life isn’t worth more than those of the people she’s hurting and killing here. All so Whitman can build a supernatural army to help him murder more people and amass even more power.

Marcus said Whitman could find out what’s really going on here at any moment. And if that happens, there’ll be no stopping Virginia. If she has all the supplies she needs and no one keeping her in check, she’ll be able to supply Whitman with countless pseudo-human soldiers.

“Everyone!” Stella calls out, her hands cupped around her mouth. “The storm has weakened. We’re calling everyone else here so we can all be briefed by Marcus. Hopefully we can start that soon.”

Marcus comes back into the Sub, his eyes finding mine immediately. He’s hurting, and not from his swollen black eye or the cut on his bicep. Bone-deep ache is written in every line of his face.

“What’s happening with you two?” Amira says, her voice so low I can hardly hear her. “I feel like I just walked in on an intimate moment, but you guys are just looking at each other.”

I break Marcus’s hold on me by looking away, not wanting to give my feelings away to the entire camp. “It’s nothing.”

“I’ll take total bullshit for a thousand, Alex,” she quips.

Within five minutes, the room is filled, well over a hundred fifty people packed into the space.

Marcus crosses his arms over his chest and speaks to us.

“Command Team One encountered a group of Tiders while we were coming back to camp after assessing damage to our solar array. I’m deeply sorry to tell you Shan was killed and Des was wounded. Ellison is working on him now.”

The room is eerily quiet, everyone’s attention fixed on him.

“Our walls are all intact, but we lost the tower to the storm. For now, we’re keeping everyone in the Sub who isn’t essential to running the camp. We have to get the tower back up.”

“What about the power?” someone asks.

Unease flickers over Marcus’s face, passing quickly. “I don’t know if we have what we need to fix it. And even if we do, we’d have to leave our shield perimeter to do it. There’ll be Tiders waiting to ambush us.”

“Unbelievable,” someone mutters from the other side of the room.

Everyone turns, people craning their necks and standing on their tiptoes to see who spoke.

“This is why we should’ve been building a boat,” Ray says, raising his voice with every word. “We can’t survive here long term. We have to get the hell out of here.”

There are a few nods of agreement. Marcus’s jaw muscle tics, his tell for being pissed.

“Ray, if you want to build a boat, go ahead. You’re not building it inside our walls, though. I’ll give you a few tools and you can get started immediately.”

Ray balks. “I can’t do it by myself.”

“Ask for volunteers.”

“Are you gonna provide us security? Give us weapons so we can defend ourselves?”

Marcus shakes his head. “Our resources are for protecting the people who live in this camp.”

“We don’t have to choose!” Ray looks around, gauging who’s with him. “We can have crews rebuilding here and building a boat.”

Marcus shrugs. “Like I said, go ahead. But I’m not asking anyone to leave our security perimeter. You’ll have to get volunteers.”

“Who’s with me?” Ray puts a hand in the air. “We can do this, guys. Don’t you want to go home?”

No one raises their hand. After about fifteen seconds, Ray scoffs, narrowing his eyes at Marcus. “They’re all afraid of you.”

Marcus shakes his head and moves on. “I need all command and security team members in the lab for security assignments.” He meets my gaze. “And also you, Briar.”

Amira and I exchange a look. Neither of us knows where the lab is, and since everyone is busy, we wander instead of asking.

“Do you think there’s a sign on the door?” she asks me as we walk down a hallway.

“Maybe we should go back to where we were and ask.”

She puts a finger to her lips and creeps forward, her footsteps silent. I follow, both of us staying close to the wall. As we get closer, I hear the voices of a man and a woman talking.

“... walking into another shit show out there.” It’s Marcus, and I’m immediately stabbed with guilt for eavesdropping on his conversation.

“She’s got the tools and some weapons, but at least we hid the ammo separately.” That voice is Nova’s.

“Yeah, we’re fucked if she finds it.”

“We have power banked,” she says.

“It won’t last long.” Marcus’s voice is tight and tense. “She’s not getting this camp. I’ll die before I give it to her. I should’ve turned my aromium back on before we went out to check the solar array. I could’ve protected Shan and Des.”

Amira’s eyes lock onto mine, wide with shock. My heart is racing so hard and fast, I’m worried Marcus and Amira will hear it.

“You can’t.” Nova hisses the words, catching me by surprise. “You’re not risking yourself like that. We’re not there yet.”

“I can provide cover for the solar array repairs.”

“No. It’s too dangerous, and we don’t even know if we have the parts to fix it.”

Marcus exhales heavily. “We’re running out of options.”

“We need to find McClain. He’s our best hope.”

“Even if we do find him—which is a big fucking if —we don’t have the flowers.”