Chapter 1

Frigid air barrels through the city, threatening to slip under my jacket as I tuck it closer. Winter will be here, along with snow, sooner than expected this year. I hate winter. Last year, I nearly lost two of my toes to frostbite. The scraps of fabric I use this time are barely enough to deter the cold from seeping in. It has been hours since we moved from our post south of the once-great city, now reduced to rubble. These cities used to be crowded, with people packed together so closely that it was impossible to breathe. That was before it was bombed to dust, and millions were killed. More cities fell after it. Now, it is a skeleton—the Wilds, warning others of the consequences of too much power. Those who manage to live in the fallen cities might as well be wild animals.

A dim light flashes across the alley, drawing my attention back to the task at hand. A truck approaches from down the road, bumping over potholes and debris at a painstakingly slow speed. A large figure across from me steps out of the alley into the middle of its path, rifle aimed. The truck screeches to a stop, inches from him. One figure dismounts from the rear of the vehicle and reaches for a pistol as he approaches Baker.

"I suggest you move!" The stranger with the pistol yells, stopping just a few feet in front of me. "We don't want to shoot you."

The stranger freezes as I press the tip of my rifle to the back of his head. Baker turns to the man and motions for him to kneel. The man hesitates until three more dark figures peel from the shadows with weapons raised. He curses under his breath, then tosses the pistol to the ground.

"How many more in the truck?" Baker asks.

The man doesn't respond, so I tap him in the back of the head as a reminder.

"Three," he seethes.

The rest of our soldiers open the doors to the vehicle and take the passengers out, tying their hands behind them. I shove the man in front of me to his knees and tie his hands behind his back. He says nothing more as we escort him and the others to our van in the alley.

Rein appears as I close the doors. "Only food and water. No weapons."

Baker spits on the ground and slings his rifle over his shoulder. "Waste of a trip."

"Not necessarily. Food and clean water are hard to come by unless someone can rebuild the machines the old world left us and learn how to farm." Baker climbs into the van, and we follow suit. The ride home will be quiet.

It's morning by the time we reach the gates to the base. Baker pulls through and drives towards the back of a small, plain building—the prison where a few dozen Independents, like the ones in our van, reside until they choose death or become one of us. I watch as the new ones are escorted out of the vehicle into the building. Most never make it out alive, whether they choose to stay or not. I pity them. I pity those who make it through training only to come out as shells of themselves—mindless soldiers for Charlie's army.

Rein casts a glance over my shoulder as the devil himself approaches. Charlie eyes the newbies as they disappear into the building—four men and one female. He frowns as the door closes behind him. "Not ideal candidates."

"They're most likely scavengers," Baker says, stopping in front of us. "Nothing good with them, but Richards is somewhere behind us with their vehicle."

"We'll scrape it for parts," Charlie says, nodding for us to follow him. We trail behind him to another single-story building across the dirt road that splits the base in half. It serves as his office and housing quarters. Compared to its outside appearance, it is lavish inside. Colorful rugs line the floors, paintings cover nearly every inch of the walls, and books saved from the Fallout are stacked in haphazard piles in every corner—mostly war books that do not resemble anything we see now, not with the population a quarter of what it was a hundred years ago.

Charlie sits down at a large desk with a plush velvet chair behind it. Baker takes a seat across from him, while Rein and I stand behind him with our hands behind our backs. Charlie scans the three of us, making my skin crawl. "We are splitting your team for now. We have a source informing us that some of the rebel forces to the south are going to try to raid us."

Baker scoffs. "They're not a threat. The walls are constantly guarded."

"I am aware," Charlie growls at Baker. "However, I would like you and Richards to head south to scout what forces they are bringing and what weaponry they have."

I narrow my eyes under my helmet. Charlie has always stated that they have no functioning weaponry—at least nothing of significance. But they have something he doesn't want coming to our walls. Rein glances my way briefly, as if thinking the same.

"What about Rein and Pierce?" Baker asks coolly. Baker has always been protective of us since our arrival when we were children. It has given us more freedom than others, even if it is minimal.

"Rein will keep his post on the wall," Charlie smirks. "Pierce will be my personal guard. If anything were to slip through, Pierce is the most formidable and capable of defending me from any danger."

Baker nods silently, standing from his seat and turning on his heels to exit. He's probably the only man here who can get away without being properly dismissed. I take the opportunity to exit with him, Rein close behind. We head toward our dorm in silence. Once inside, Rein slams the door shut.

"This is bullshit. It's a test," Rein fumes. He rips off his gloves, tossing them on his bunk. "He knows something is up."

Baker runs a hand through his hair. "We must do this to divert any suspicion. Just don't do anything stupid while Richards and I are gone."

Rein looks pointedly at me, and I shrug. They've been planning to defect for some time—the three of them whispering in the night while I listen. Someone must have heard them, or else we wouldn't be under suspicion. "He wants you away so he can get rid of us."

"He wants Richards and me dead, not you two," Baker says, lowering his voice. "We'll take care of whoever he sends after us, then return for you both." He pauses. "Just keep your heads down."