Free Uprising by Shelly Crane Page A

just...unheard of. It’s still dark. But first thing in the morning, we’re coming. It’s right at 5:00 so about an hour and a half. Hang on, baby, I’m coming. God I hope you can hear me. I love you.
     
    I can hear my real voice crack and strangle. Danny extends a hand to me on the floor as I open my eyes. We make our way downstairs to gather with the others. As I descend the stairs I see a sea of angry and determined faces. Our group is ready for news and ready to do damage. Jeff had filled them in on everything.
    “You understand there are Makers. More Markers than you have ever seen before and I have no doubt there will be Lighters too. You understand how dangerous this is, don’t you?” I ask. I need them to know what we’re up against.
    “This is Sherry, Merrick. And Cain. There’s no question. As soon as the sun hits that horizon, we are going after them,” Danny answers in a growl and crosses his arms to stop the shaking fury in his hands.
    I can feel my head start to buzz with that familiar sting at his words. At him going out to fight and me not protecting him, but I try to push it down.
    “Absolutely,” Ryan agrees.
    “Well, we’ve got to do something,” Trudy chimes and they all start in on a plan, a course of action but I’m afraid there’s only one way.
    Hand to hand combat. A fist fight with evil.
    We wait and plot and plan. Finally the times comes. We takes our stakes and irons and bats and whatever else we could find and head up the stairs in a precession of Keepers, Specials, and normals who have no freaking idea what to do but won’t be told to stay put. Not for Sherry. I want to hug them all for their loyalty and then yell at them for their stupidity.
    I see the sun and look to the sky, knowing I’ll see it empty of Markers, and I do. I call to her once more.
     
    All right, Sherry. We’re coming. Tell Cain if he’s there with you. You two hold tight wherever you are. Love you, honey.
     
    But then I notice something else...Lighters. Like I expected. Two zoom past but don’t touch anyone, don’t even really get close. Pap fires off a shot and Jeff yells at him to conserve his rounds. I’m not sure what the Lighters are trying to accomplish. Then I scan the field. And see her.
    My heart jumps. She’s standing, that’s a good sign. I can barely see her outline and Cain’s way out past the field and almost to the old caves that are back there that Max told me about before. Aha! I bet that’s where they were. But why?

    Sherry!

 
    One Small Step For Man.

Chapter 5
    All at once, a fleet of Lighters take center between us. A quick count shows eight. This is crazy. What are they all doing here? Can Lighters talk to each other the way Keepers do and they told the others I’m here? That we’re here? This can’t be about me. This is about us, being here. Too many of us together. If that was true, why didn’t Crandle just come himself? Unless he’s scared of a battle. Maybe he can be killed like the rest of them can.
    They form a line to expand the gap between Cain and I and our rescuers. Red Rover Red Rover is all I can think about through the burning and throbbing pain in my leg and wanting desperately to get to Merrick and see Danny safe. I can see him now, across the expanse of field, standing with the others to fight. I swallow hard at the thought of that but I know Merrick will keep him safe, if he can.
    The Lighters don’t move, they must have had a plan of some sort because they seem to have formation and discipline to stand their ground. They watch, some facing us some facing the others. Then the one in the middle gets my attention by waving a few fingers at me in a menacingly friendly wave.
    Phillip.
    I gasp and recoil, pull myself back behind Cain out of instinct, fisting my hands in his shirt back. As much as I thought it didn’t bother me, my almost rape, seeing him brings it all back in a flood of glimpses and flashes. Images of fists tugging, bruising hands, hard