Born 01 - Born

time. "Hi, sweetie."
    The rebellion people are nice.
    "Do you know where the nearest breeder camp is?"
    She frowns. "Yeah." She looks over at a dark strawberry blonde who has a scar along her mouth. "Beth, where was that camp that you all saw not far from here?"
    "South-East, over two small mountains and a ghost town. Used to be a place called Lincoln there. Stay on the outskirts of that place."
    I nod. "Thanks so much."
    "You aren’t trying to go there?"
    I shake my head. "No way. Just wanted to know where my friend went. Her nine years is almost up."
    The lady with the scar laughs bitterly. "Honey, she ain't coming back out here to shit in a ditch. She'll get herself a nice place in the city. I hear they even got air conditioning again."
    A lady with a t-shirt with a big red tongue on it laughs. "Oh girl, what I would do for air conditioning."
    They all laugh, and it makes me grin. I walk away from them and go back to the small tent.
    The man looks less than pleased that I am there.
    "Really, you're back again? Look, kid, I'm not sending a bunch of men to their death over some girl."
    I scowl. "I'm not asking you for a thing. I just want to see the map."
    He holds him arm out at the one on the table. "Have at it."
    I look at the compass on the map.
    "Where are we?"
    He drops a fat finger onto the map next to a blue line.
    I drag my finger South-East to the place that says Lincoln. I look up at him. "Which way is South-East from here?"
    He points to the back of the tent where the other maps are. He's blocking my view of them purposely.
    I nod. "Thanks." I walk in the direction he's told me.
    My quiver isn't very full. Normally I make arrows once a month, but I haven’t had a chance in the last month.
    Nothing has been the way it would have been back at the cabin. I think about the moment I stood at the door as Anna knocked outside of it. I remember the regret.
    I see Will and Jake. I walk faster. I don’t know what to say, but running away from them seems like a pretty good idea. Jake still limps from the branch, but they move quickly.
    "Em, wait up." Jake's voice picks at me.
    I want to be alone. It figures the only boys I've ever liked have to be brothers. My mom would have been proud. She too had a thing for brothers.
    Fingers bite my arm and spin me around.
    Will towers over me. "What are you doing?" He looks annoyed.
    I pull my arm from him. "I'm going to find her." I look at Jake. "Stay here and get better. That leg wound isn’t going to heal with you traipsing all over hell's half acre."
    He looks hurt.
    Will grabs my arm again. "Em, we aren’t going to let you run off half cocked. We need a plan."
    I feel angry, maybe because I like them both and maybe because they're not running after her, like I expected they would.
    I glare at Jake. "When you fell in that hole, she did the bravest thing I have ever seen anyone do. She told me that she didn’t care if I shot her, but I had to come find you."
    He shakes his head. "We need a plan."
    I point south. "There's probably a three day hike; we can plan on the way."
    Will's grip on my arm tightens. "We will be down a mountain and in the woods alone with no resources when we find her. What plan can you come up with there?"
    I shake my head again. "I've made it this far without anyone." I pull my arm free and take a step back. "I don’t need either of you."
    I feel something in my stomach. I should have grabbed food. I start my hike. I realize I not only have no plan but that I'm starving.
    I hear their footsteps behind me.
    "She's really stubborn." Jake tries to whisper, but I hear him.
    "I did notice that. How's the leg?"
    I make a face but don’t look back at them.
    "Good. She did surgery on it. I don’t think I'll ever win the Boston Marathon if it comes back in style."
    Will snorts. I want to laugh but I'm pissed off.
    "Anna been a handful?"
    Jake laughs. "Oh man, the year she started the road to womanhood was the beginning of the end. Oh my God, it was bad."
    I feel my face flush with heat. I remember getting my first menstruation and cringe. I had thought I was dying for a few days. I read Granny's encyclopedia of health and found the answers I'd been seeking. I made rags and stayed indoors. I rubbed the clary sage oil on my stomach for the cramping like the book said and put warm compresses on my belly.
    It was the first thing I added to the list of things he should have told me about. Being twelve and alone in the forest was daunting. Bleeding every