Page 27 of The Hollowed

Chapter 11

Lucilla

Dinner was a meager spread of protein bars, meat sticks, and stale cookies scavenged from one of the classrooms. It was hardly a feast and certainly no match for the cafeteria meals back home, but it filled their stomachs. Being full counted for more than flavor.

“I’ll take first watch,” Myra announced, pushing herself off the wall of the classroom they’d turned into makeshift sleeping quarters.

“I’ll help,” Luci added quickly, glancing at Alex before he could object. “I can’t sleep this early. It’ll be fine,” she promised.

The last thing Luci wanted was to feel like dead weight. With everything the team was risking for her, this felt like the least she could do. And besides, she’d managed to grab a book from the library earlier. That would be enough to keep her mind busy until fatigue finally won her over.

Alex looked at her for a moment, his brow furrowing as if weighing whether to argue, then he gave in with a reluctant nod. “Alright. But if you see or hear anything out of place, you come find me. Got it?”

“I got it,” Luci assured him.

She expected that to be the end of it, but before she could turn away, Alex leaned in and pressed his mouth to hers. It wasquick and almost instinctive, as if it was just habit. To Luci, it was starting to feel natural, like they had always been meant to meet here, no matter how impossible the road that brought them together had been.

And though she couldn’t put words to it, something inside her whispered that this was only the beginning for them.

“Should we give you two some privacy?” Grayson teased, grinning as he dodged the foam block Alex threw at his head.

“Shut up,” Alex shot back, though the corner of his mouth twitched with amusement. His retort only made Luci smile wider as she rose and trailed after Myra.

“He’s ridiculous around you,” Myra said, glancing over her shoulder with a smirk. “Honestly, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him like that with anyone before.”

Luci almost asked if that included Myra but she swallowed the impulse, answering only with a faint smile and a nod. Once they were back near the barricaded entrance, she lowered herself against the wall, letting the cool concrete press into her back before she cracked open her book.

Myra couldn’t seem to sit still. She shifted from pacing to sitting to standing again. Her boots scraped restlessly against the floor. The constant motion was distracting, but Luci managed to work her way through nearly half the book before Myra’s voice cut through the silence.

“How soon do you think they’ll be able to operate on Jace?” Myra asked, not slowing her pacing.

Luci lowered the book into her lap. “Depends,” she admitted. “I moved him to the top of the transplant list, so he’ll be next in line. From what I remember, there wasn’t another patient who was a perfect match for a donation so they’ll need to 3D-bioprint new kidneys for him, but Doc will handle it. He’s in good hands.”

What Luci didn’t mention was how many protocols she’dbroken to make that happen. Manually shifting Jace’s priority was a violation that could cost her her career in an instant, but she knew Doc would cover for her if it came to that. Still, one misstep, and her license was gone forever.

“Good,” Myra replied calmly, but her jaw was tight, her shoulders wound like coiled springs.

“You care about him a lot,” Luci responded.

Myra froze mid step, her hand curling into a fist before she forced it open again. “He’s like family,” she admitted. “If anything happens to him, I don’t know who I’d be anymore.”

Luci set her book aside. “Then it’s good he’s on the list.” She tried to sound reassuring. “At least now he’s got a chance, Myra. That’s more than most people have.”

Myra nodded once, but before she could reply, a faint scratching sound started above them. She glanced up at the ceiling, rolling her eyes. “Another damn rat,” she muttered, shifting toward the wall.

Myra suddenly went still, slowly raising her hand to her cheek. Her fingers smeared a crimson droplet across her face just as another splashed onto the floor between them, painting the linoleum red.

Both women looked up at the same time.

Blood was dripping through the gaps of the air vents above.

Luci’s stomach lurched as she locked eyes with Myra.

The infected weren’t outside.

They were inside the vents.

Myra’s hand was already on her rifle. She flicked the safety off and leveled it at the vent above them.