Page 74 of The Compound

“If you take five lefts, three rights, a left, and two more rights, you’ll reach the entrance,” she said.

“I won’t find it on my own,” I said.

“We need to separate. He needs both of us to do the task. I’ll take a different route. Go, quickly!” She pushed me toward the left path, and then she ran to the right. I wanted to call her name, but I couldn’t risk being caught. I could hear footsteps, but couldn’t tell whose they were. I ran left, and the moon moved again behind the shadow.

Left, left, left, left—but where the fifth left should’ve been there was only another right turn. I paused, my heart knocking painfully against my ribs. While I was standing, trying to decide what to do, I heard a sound behind me. I froze, my limbs locking. If this were the wild, I thought, I’d be dead.

Andrew came around the corner, and I sagged with relief, slumping against a hedge behindme.

“Lily, thank Christ,” he said. He took my arm and pulled me upright. “Are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” I said, but my voice was hoarse. “I just—Andrew, are you all right?”

“I really need water,” he said. “I feel incredibly ill.”

“It’s okay,” I said. “Lean on me. We’ll get you inside. It’s going to be fine.”

He leaned on me, and I was pressed farther into the hedge. I tried to shift a little out of the way, but he took my shoulder. “Don’t you feel sick, too?”

“I do,” I said, my voice barely there. “I feel really sick.”

His face was close to mine. “Why did you go out on your own, Lily? It’s dangerous out here.”

“Andrew!” came Tom’s voice, at once close and far away.

Whispering urgently, I said, “We can’t let him know that we’re here.”

He squeezed my shoulder. “It’s okay,” he said. Then he shouted, “I’m here! I’m here with Lily!”

I tried to wrench myself free from him, but he held tight. His fingers dug into my skin. I pushed against his chest, and he said, “Stop, Lily, stop. We need water, all right? Stop.”

Tom came around the corner, carrying Becca. She was limp in his arms. I tried to move again, but Andrew held me tightly, my arms pinned behind my back.

“She’s fine,” Tom said. “She’s fine, she just—needs a rest.” He placed her on the ground with great gentleness.

She sat up, and shivered, her arms tight around her. There was dried blood on her face, and scrapes on her arm. She clutched her leg and moaned.

“What did you do?” I said to Tom, my voice trembling, though I wished for strength. “You—you psychopath, what did you do?”

“I didn’t do anything,” he said. “She ran away from me and tripped.”

“And why was she running, do you think? Andrew,let me go.You’re hurting me,” I said. He complied, and I knelt beside her. “What happened?” I asked her.

“He grabbed me and I ran away. I fell and twisted my ankle. I must have passed out.”

“But you didn’t hurt her, Tom?” Andrew asked.

I turned to him. “Look at her! Of course he hurt her. And he would have hurt me, too, if he had caught me. He pinned us down and took the water—the last of the water, every drop!”

“Well,” Andrew said, in a strange voice, looking at me. “You did hoard the water, the two of you. You snuck out here and left us sick and dehydrated.”

“We wouldn’t have let anything happen to you,” I said.

He sighed. He sounded exhausted. “We need to do the task. Now. It’s not ideal, but we all need water, fast. We can’t put it off.” He said, “I’m sorry, Becca, I don’t think I’m strong enough to lift you.”

“Wait,” Becca said, but Tom bent over and picked her up again. “No!” she screamed. “Put me down. Put medown!” Tom let her down roughly, and she leaned against me, her legs trembling.

“Jesus fuckingChrist,” Tom said. He grabbed his hair in a strange mix of rage and exasperation. He twisted toward Becca, spittle flying from his mouth. “What is wrong with you? Don’t you realize that you’re the ones who put us in this mess? All I’ve ever done is look after you!”

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