Page 86 of Wreckage

“The traps were empty,” I said.

Adrian’s expression hardened, any trace of sleep vanishing instantly. “Shit.”

“Yeah,” I muttered.

I motioned to the food I’d gathered. “I found this, but it’s not enough. We’ve got maybe a week.”

Adrian sighed, running a hand through his hair. “Then we need to come up with a plan.”

I hesitated again. I knew where Adrian stood on the subject, but fuck, we were in trouble, so I said it out loud.

“If we don’t catch anything and no one finds us soon… we’ll have to talk about Dean.”

Adrian’s jaw clenched instantly, his eyes flashing. I watched the muscle in his jaw twitch, waiting for him to argue, to tell me I was a sick bastard for even suggesting it.

But he didn’t.

Instead, after a long, tense silence, he exhaled and muttered, “I don’t want it to come to that.”

I nodded slowly because neither did I. But wanting and surviving weren’t the same.

We both turned our heads toward Elena at the same time.

She was still asleep, her breathing even, her chest rising and falling with each slow breath.

I felt something in my chest tighten painfully.

She was already so small, so fragile. She couldn’t afford to starve like this.

I looked back at Adrian.

“If it comes down to it,” I murmured, “I’ll go. I’ll walk and keep walking until I find something.”

Adrian’s head snapped toward me, eyes flashing with anger. “That’s a death warrant.”

I met his stare evenly. “We’re dead anyway if no one comes.”

Adrian exhaled sharply, rubbing a hand down his face. I could tell he wanted to fight me on it, to say to me it was a bad idea, that I was reckless. The truth was, we were out of options.

Finally, he sighed and muttered, “Let’s revisit that in a few days. See where we’re at.”

I nodded but already knew where we would be when the time came. “Fine.”

Adrian crossed his arms, eyeing me warily. “What are you gonna do today?”

“I’m gonna walk in another direction. See where it takes me.”

Adrian’s brow furrowed. “You’re pushing it, Troy.”

I smirked, grabbing my coat. “Wouldn’t be me if I didn’t.”

I grabbeda small ration of food and water, stuffing it into my coat, before turning back toward Adrian. He stood there, watching me like he wanted to stop me, but he knew he couldn’t because we needed to find help, food, or a combination of both.

Instead, he shook his head and sighed. “Take care of yourself, dumbass.”

I smirked and held my pinky out for him in a promise. “You take care of Elena.”

“I will,” Adrian promised, voice low, steady as he hooked his pinky with mine.

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