Free Zero Trilogy (Book 2): Day One by Summer Lane Page B

“What happened back there? We just ran. We figured if you were alive you’d find us.”
    They were right about that, at least.
    “Oh, I just fell off a cliff,” Elle replied. “No big deal. Right, Bravo?”
    “Whoa, you got a
dog
while we were gone?” Jay exclaimed.
    “Hey, he’s not just a dog. His name is
Bravo
and he’s with us now.” Elle touched Bravo’s head. “He was a bomb dog. He can track, and he can fight.”
    “He’s cute,” Georgia commented. “I mean, I’m not a huge dog person, but you know…I could be one, I guess.”
    “You guys okay?” Elle asked. She looked at Flash as she said this. The boy was incredibly silent, never opening his mouth to say so much as a single word. “Flash?”
    He nodded.
    “He doesn’t talk much these days,” Georgia said, almost in a whisper. “Ever since…well, you know.” She paused. “It’s been tough.”
    “Sorry.” Elle touched Flash’s cheek with her finger. “It’ll be okay.”
    “How did you find us?” Jay asked.
    “Followed the bread crumbs,” Elle replied.
    He raised an eyebrow.
    “Just be glad I found you at all,” she said, glancing behind her. “Come on, let’s keep walking. The Slavers will be looking for you guys for a while.”
    “I can’t believe you came back for us,” Georgia said. “I mean, after everything. The argument and all that.”
    “Believe it.” Elle looked at her. “So what happened, anyway? I showed up at the Jeep and there were Omega men dead, and you guys were gone. Pix was…” Elle stopped herself. “What’s the story?”
    “Not long after you left,” Jay explained, “an Omega patrol from the city rolled in. They came out of nowhere. We were asleep. I didn’t even hear them coming.” He looked embarrassed to admit this. “Theyhad us all at gunpoint. They were the ones who killed Pix – not the Slavers.”
    Elle frowned.
    “Then what?”
    “The militia came,” Georgia picked up. “At least, we
thought
it was the militia. They killed the troopers. We thought we were saved, but it was a lie. It was the Slavers. They took us in a truck. There were some other people, some kids. We went for a long drive, then they dumped us in the mountains in a barbed-wire cage.” Georgia spread her arms. “It’s kind of simple, actually.”
    “Okay, but here’s my question,” Elle said. “What are the Slavers actually using their prisoners for? Hard labor? What?”
    “We couldn’t figure it out either,” Jay replied. “At least for the first couple of days. The guards up above on the cliff - the ones with the hoods. They’re mercenaries, hired by the Slavers. The Slavers take their prisoners and hold them before selling them to Omega to do hard labor.”
    “Wow, supply and demand,” Elle remarked, disgusted. “Omega is actually purchasing slaves?”
    “That’s the conclusion we came to,” Georgia confirmed.
    “But if the Slavers and Omega are in this together…why would they kill the troops who shot Pix?” Elle asked.
    At the mention of his dead sister’s name, Flash flinched.
    “I don’t know,” Jay admitted. “Maybe because Omega was going to kill us, and the Slavers wanted the chance to sell us back to Omega. The Slavers have no rules. They’re organized, but they’re barbaric. Some of the crap we saw in San Jacinto was pretty harsh.”
    Elle didn’t doubt it.
    “Well, it’s about time we got our butts to Sacramento,” Elle stated. “I’m sick of running around the state, rescuing you guys.” She cracked a dry smile.
    “We don’t know that’s what’s in Sacramento for sure,” Jay pointed out.
    “It’s our best shot.”
    He didn’t argue with that.
    They faced the desert. Elle looked at Bravo. She felt a twinge of disappointment…of
hurt
. She had expected one of them to at least say
thank you
forbraving the desert, for nearly getting killed by the Slavers, for everything she had done to extract them from the confines of imprisonment.
    But they had said