Free Repossession (The Keepers Trilogy) by Rachael Wade Page A

That’s all you need to know.”
    The man burned Jet with another icy stare and shuffled a few feet closer to us, taking the lead in front of his friends. “I’ll tell you what I do and do not need to know, punk. Especially when it comes to traitors like you and your little girlfriend here. You know how many people claimed to have something we want, trying to hop a ride on this train? Too many to count. Right now, their bodies are dumped along the railroad ditch near Highway 85. So you either tell me exactly what I want to know, or you’ll be joining them in less than two minutes. Make your choice.”
    My teeth clenched at his warning, but I kept my hands up, hoping to God Jet did the right thing. I didn’t doubt for a second that this guy would follow through on his threat. “Don’t you want to know what we have to offer you first?” I asked, my voice coming out a bit shakier than I’d hoped.
    “We’ll get to that, sweetie. First, the map.”
    Jet inhaled and lowered his gun back to his chest. “It marks known Black Hole locations around the country. That’s all.”
    “That’s all?” the man laughed. “Hand it over.”
    I didn’t know where my sudden bravery was coming from. Maybe from the adrenaline high I was still riding from the jump onto the train. Maybe a product of pure desperation or a crack in my sanity. Whatever its source, I harnessed it with a vengeance and didn’t plan on letting go until we got what we came here for.
    I stepped in front of Jet, allowing the man’s gun to press against my forehead again. Every bone in my body shook, every hair on my neck raised in pure, stripped fear, but I worked to steel my stance and hold myself upright. “That’s not going to happen,” I said, my voice firm. “We’re not going to just let you rob us and then toss us out with the rest of those bodies. You’re going to hear what we have to say.”
    “Is that so?”
    “The fact that you assume anyone who works for the Invaders is a voluntary traitor shows just how little you actually know about the inside. If you want us to enlighten you, you might want to start with some good old southern hospitality.” I shrugged, trembling beneath the effort to make the gesture appear casual. “Then we’ll see what we can do.”
    The man’s fingers brushed over the barrel of his gun and he started laughing again, turning to glance back at his friends. “You believe this chick?” He gestured to me with a wave of his gun. He turned to glare at me, his maniacal laugh lingering. “Saucy little thing, aren’t you? I love it!”
    Jet shifted beside me, heat rolling off him in waves. He remained still, the tension in his neck and face coiled tightly.
    “We also have this,” I said, carefully pulling the canned corn from the backpack, along with a can of beans that we’d found not long after escaping the prison. I tossed them at the man’s chest and he caught them, his eyebrows rising in amusement. I cleared my throat. “And one other thing you’re looking for.”
    “Oh, yeah? Let’s see it, honey.”
    I hesitated for a beat, then stepped forward, placing myself directly in front of the men and their leader. I couldn’t think, just had to act before I lost my nerve. This was the only way to save Jet, and essentially, his sister Hera. A little girl that somewhere, was depending on him. It was the only way to save myself, by giving myself something to live for. Because right now, what did I have to live for? In this now barren, depressing wasteland once known as Earth—my home—what did I really have left? My only choice was to commit to devoting my fight to someone else. Jet’s battle had to become my battle, or the fire in me—the little bit I had left—would surely flicker out. And then what? He’d already saved me once and had done everything in his power to protect me. He’d more than made up for collecting me.
    I had to do this.
    The men waited, their eyes bouncing around curiously, and I