SWAB (A Young Adult Dystopian Novel) Read Online Free PDF Page B

what happened.”
    I bit my lip to keep back the tidal wave. “I will as soon as you gather everyone. Please.”I didn’t know how much longer I could keep it together.
    “Okay,” Officer May finally acquiesced. “Jonathan, go round up the men at the tents. We’ll meet inside the Post.”
    The air inside the canvas building was musty and smelled of dust and wood chips. The circular saws had been pulled out, and the men had already gotten to work on the logs Ray had helped bring down just a day earlier. I picked up one of the curly shavings. How quickly things have changed since then.
    But there were the two packs at my feet. I’d done as I set out to do. I got the packs, but I lost Ray. I bit my lip, wondering how the people would take that. Everyone likes Ray. If one of us had to go missing, I’m sure they would rather it was me.
    Officer May entered, followed by Officer Reynolds and three dozen others. The crowd settled in a congested semi-circle, their eyes on me.
    As usual, Officer Reynolds took charge. If Rimerock had a mayor, he was the closest thing to it. “So, what’s this I hear about Ray gone missing?” His face was pinched and his arms crossed. He looked at me like I was a fly he wished he could simply swat away.
    I took a quick breath. “Yes, he’s gone. We were coming back from the saddle, when we ran into scarb—”
    The room erupted before I could say more.
    “Wait! Just listen to me!” I said, trying to finish my story. But they drowned me out. I stepped up on a wooden crate next to one of the saws. Ray’s not dead!” I shouted.
    The crowd stilled, watching me.
    “At least, not yet,” I added, softer. “But we have to hurry or he might be.”
    A gruff soldier, named Dan, with a red beard stepped forward. “What do you mean, not dead?”
    “Yeah,” several others echoed.
    “How can he not be dead?”
    “Did you meet scarb or not?”
    Looking across them, I continued, “That’s what I’m trying to tell you. We did run into scarb, but they weren’t like any others I’d ever seen. For one, they were fliers—”
    “Fliers!” A middle-aged woman, named Pam, with a tight black bun laughed. “Sounds like Cat just brought us here to tell us stories. My daughter says she has a knack for getting attention.”
    “They were fliers,” I shouted. “There was a female with greenish skin, the fastest scarb I’ve ever seen.” Their faces showed only disbelief. “She had these two bodyguards with her. They wouldn’t let me get to Ray. They flew him over the mountain.”
    Only open mouths and unkind eyes met me.
    Officer Reynolds took charge again. “What I want to know is what you and Ray were doing up on the mountains alone?”
    Officer May gave a cough. “They’re teenagers, Tom. I don’t think that’s too hard to guess.”
    My cheeks flushed hotly. Before any more accusations could be made, I hefted one of the heavy packs. “We went back for this,” I said flatly. “Do you recognize these?”I practically shoved the pack in their faces.
    “You got the parts?” Sergeant Sims, asked, looking at me with his one eye. He’d gone with us on that mission to Durango. I unzipped the bag. “Wow.”
    I could’ve kissed him. “We got the packs last night, but then that huge storm came in. We wanted to get back, but we had to stay the rest of the night in the forest. This morning, the scarb found us and took Ray with them. I think they were headed to the colony in the eastern hills. We have to save him.”
    No one spoke for several long moments. Many of them just stared at the parts.
    Office May’s gentle voice sounded first. “If there’s a chance Ray is alive, I think we have to help him.”
    Hope started to warm the cold in my chest. I motioned to the packs and said, “We have the parts we need to fix the fire trucks.”
    Officer Reynolds scratched his goatee. “Yes, we have the parts. We’ll have our mechanics start on the truck first thing in the morning. We’ll continue