The Capture by Tom Isbell

they meet up with the others.
    Their friends are banged and bruised. Diana sports a long scrape on her forearm; Helen, a bump on her forehead; Flush, a gash on his leg. But Four Fingers took the worst hit of all. He rolls on the ground, grabbing the bottom of his leg.
    Book kneels by his side while Helen undoes his bootlaces. A knot the size of an egg sprouts from the outside of his left ankle.
    â€œHey,” Book says, patting him on the shoulder, “it’sall right. Just a sprain. Doesn’t change anything.”
    â€œDoesn’t?”
    â€œHeck no. We’ll take turns letting you lean on us. It’s no big deal.”
    A smile spreads across Four Fingers’s face, and they help him to his feet. Book can only hope he’s telling the truth.
    â€œSo,” Twitch says. “What now?” Remarkably he made the jump unscathed, even without sight.
    â€œSame plan as before,” Book says. “We free the Sisters, then the Less Thans after that.”
    Hope nods in appreciation. She has her own addition to that plan, of course, in the form of three names: Thorason, Maddox, and Gallingham. But no one knows that except her.
    Scylla points to the glow of coming sunrise and they realize they need to get going. They don’t want to be on the tracks when daylight hits.
    â€œWe’re not going through town, right?” Flush asks. He doesn’t need to mention the word Crazies for everyone to know exactly what he’s thinking.
    â€œDon’t worry,” Hope says. “We’ll stay on the outskirts.”
    As they walk the narrow path between train tracks and cattails, Hope dwells on their new reality. Although they’ve escaped from Dozer and can make decisions on their own, their numbers have dwindled to just eight.
    Doesn’t change anything, Book said, but Hope isn’t so sure.
    They head north on a two-lane road, in the direction of what they hope is Camp Freedom. They come across an old sign, pitted with bullet holes.
    WELCOME TO BEDFORD
    Population 2,143
    They skirt the far edges of town. Trudging past vine-covered houses, they realize this is less a town and more a disaster area. Weeds overwhelm the potholed streets. Trees sprout through rooftops. Debris is scattered everywhere. There’s something terribly wrong about it all. How could it come to this?
    But they know the answer to that. Omega. The day the bombs fell.
    They’re nearly past the town when Four Fingers crumples to the ground like a sack of flour. Everyone gathers around him. Even in scant light it’s easy to see his face is pale, his eyes glassy. Dehydration.
    â€œHe needs water,” Helen says, crouching by his side.
    â€œYeah, but where?” Flush asks.
    Hope wants nothing more than to get out of here. Avoid the Crazies, reach Camp Freedom, worry about food and water there.
    But they don’t have that luxury.
    â€œWe’ll find some,” she says.
    â€œWhere?” Flush asks.
    â€œWherever they store water around here.” She tries to keep her voice calm, to make it sound like it’s no big deal. She knows that’s far from the truth.
    â€œI’ll come with you,” Book says.
    â€œYou don’t have to—”
    â€œI want to.” Despite herself, Hope feels a tingle of relief.
    They gather up the canteens, and Argos scrambles to Book’s side. Bad leg and all, he’s intent on joining them.
    Just as they’re about to leave, Helen reaches behind her neck and undoes the clasp of a tarnished chain. “Here,” she says, presenting a locket to Hope.
    Hope recognizes it, of course. It’s the locket she found in her dead father’s pocket. The one that contains the miniature photos of her parents. She gave it to Helen as a good-luck charm, right before they swam through the flooded tunnel during their escape from Camp Freedom.
    â€œYou might need it,” Helen says.
    Hope fastens it around her neck and gives Helen a