Page 66 of Monsters within Men
“Apart from being a hopeless mess?”
“Well, yes, that.” Noah grinned at him, turning his heart to putty and melting the gnawing worry away.
“So, what’s next on the agenda? It’s definitely your turn to choose the activity.”
Noah scratched the back of his neck. “I know this one place. It’s halfway back to Avantis. It’s really beautiful, even at this time of year.”
“Lead the way.”
On the way out of the city, a sight caught their eye. A crowd gathered around two men, lying face down on the ground, handcuffed, the shattered remains of a glass shop window scattered nearby. Earlier, Zaya spoke in depth about the state of London. How she and her friends now felt unsafe out after dark. The rise of knife crime, the relentless riots. These events hadn’t appeared out of nowhere, but for years, he’d largely remained oblivious, choosing to remain in his sugar-coated bubble. Theywouldwin the war. Thingswouldgo back to normal. But now, the world had hurtled past the decade mark with no sign of hope on the horizon.
Thirty minutes later, Noah pulled the car over into a ditch on a quiet road. Turning off the engine, he faced him to say, “This isn’t anything spectacular. I think I mainly like it because it reminds me of Rold Forest back home.” Noah sounded like he’d merely popped over to England for a holiday, rather than fled a now uninhabitable country.
Finding a wooden farm gate, Noah used one arm to swing his body over it, landing on graceful feet. Zeke, on the other hand, clambered over it with the elegance of a bear, practically falling into Noah as he reached out to grab him. Noah laughed as he brushed the leaves from Zeke’s stolen coat. A flash of guilt at leaving all his own coats neatly tucked away in his wardrobe earlier—very much deliberately—struck him.
“I found this place in my first year here,” Noah said, as they ambled along. Luscious green trees, littered with tiny budding blossoms, lined a narrow path. The sweet scent of spring made up for the boot-deep mud they battled through. “I was struggling with leaving home. Almost everyone I knew from Rotterdam was gone. I drove and drove until I was as lost as I felt. Then I pulled over exactly where we just did.”
Beside them, a trickling stream of water joined a tributary. Noah walked three steps ahead of him, causing him to have to hurry to keep up.
Noah’s urgent pace seemed to match his tone of voice as he continued talking. “I walked and walked until I hit this river.” He pointed to a spot in the distance before increasing his speed even further, breaking into a jog. He didn’t stop until they were at the riverbank. Gushing, murky-green water, littered with sticks, hurtled downstream. “I was going to throw myself into it.”
Startled, Zeke’s breath caught in his throat.
“Come on.”
Noah took off again, following the river up to cross a rickety, rotten bridge that’d seen better days. He almost commented that the bridge looked like suicide before deciding that would be in poor taste.
Another few minutes of more muddy trails, and their destination finally came into view. Noah stopped at the base of a hill, on which sat a small stationary watermill. The tree line almost completely camouflaged the wooden structure that was overtaken entirely by thick emerald moss. Two doves perched on the highest spoke of the wheel. Noah smiled at them like they were old friends, rubbing the tattoo on his wrist. Then he sat down on a nearby boulder, throwing his small rucksack to the ground.
Zeke hovered nearby. “It’s lovely here. Was it this that changed your mind about throwing yourself into the river?”
“No. I went all the way up to the mill and found two dead bodies inside.”
“What?”
“Don’t worry, they’re not there now. I came back with a shovel and buried them.”
“Who were they?”
“A mother with a young toddler. There were barely any remains left to bury. I think they probably hid up there during the first wave. Maybe even starved to death, too terrified to leave to find help.” Noah paused, looking up at the building, a dream-like expression on his face.
Zeke threw himself down on the damp earth in front of Noah’s rock, daring himself to rest his back against Noah’s knees, though it made his heart pound to do so. “Jesus, Noah. This sounds awful.”
Noah fiddled with a loose thread on the collar of Zeke’s coat, his hand coming distractingly close to his neck. “Anyway, the story is, finding them there reminded me of why I went into the military. My uncle and father were a large part of it, sure. But I guess I’ve always had this… urge… to protect people. It started with my younger brothers and sister. My parents were away a lot, so it was up to me.”
Zeke tilted his head back, so it rested fully on Noah’s lap. He gazed at him, upside down, and smiled. “You’re very good at it. Protecting people.”
A dangerous smirk stretched across Noah’s lips. “Thanks.”
The light breeze blew a few strands of Noah’s hair around his face, and Zeke’s hands twitched in his lap. The pair remained frozen in place, neither one averting their eyes until the sudden flapping of a bird taking flight distracted Noah.
“So,” Noah began. “I may have lured you out here under false pretences.”
Zeke almost choked.
“I’ve got a paddleboard stashed over there.” He pointed to a spot under the mill, where black material covered something large. “Habib and I found it on a scavenging mission a few years back and brought it here. Want to take it down the river?”
Positioning his expression into one that didn’t reveal his disappointment, he said, “You’re joking! It’s December. The water’s freezing.”
