Lightbringer Read Free

Thanks to his clumsy fighting, the Walker had gotten away and now it knew where some Lost could be found. It would be back. They had to leave.
    Inside, Piotr was met with anxious, pale faces. Tubs, clinging to Piotr's duster, huddled behind Dora, and Specs peered past splintery boards to the courtyard below. Piotr wanted to soothe them, to swear they were safe, but he didn't want to lie. Instead he remained silent.
    The silence grew too long. Abruptly Specs turned from the window, pushing his round frames up on his nose. His hair, dark with grease, fell over one eye. “That was the third time this week, Piotr. We should pack.”
    “Da,” Piotr sighed. “We should.” He knelt down and Tubs flung himself into his arms, sobbing into his shoulder. Piotr stroked the back of Tubs' hair and let him cry.
    “It spotted me,” Dora said. “I saw it watchin' me.”
    “Most likely.” Piotr stood, Tubs resting on his hip, and hugged the little boy close. Life seeped into Piotr from Tubs' skin in blue arcs, dulling his pain. The wounds on his arm began to slowly seal shut, itching like fire. “I am unsure but, yes, most likely.”
    “Perhaps we might bunk down with Miss Elle or Miss Lily,” Specs offered, hesitant to bridge the topic of Elle to Piotr. “Or perhaps Mister James.”
    The thought of begging his fellow Riders for a place to stay made Piotr laugh roughly. “James? I'd rather leave you on your own.” He set Tubs down and smoothed the wispy blond hair back from his forehead. “You okay now? Yes? Go wash your face.”
    When Tubs had toddled off, Piotr reached out and enfolded both Dora and Specs into a hug. Specs clung tighter than Dora, trembling lightly, the remaining unspent years of life flowing into Piotr in small, sharp spikes. The itching on his arm faded, replaced with smooth, blessed coolness.
    Piotr squeezed them both and then stepped back, alert and wary, listening for intruders. “ Spaseebo .” He gestured to his upper arm. “Thank you. For the aid.”
    Uncomfortable, Specs shrugged. “It is the least we can do, Piotr. You're welcome.”
    “They, the Walkers, are getting closer.” Piotr crossed his arms over his chest.
    “And smarter.” Dora chewed her thumbnail. “Remember, Specs? When we saw one of ‘em grab that kid right outta a tree last week? They ain't ever done that before.”
    “Do you think it's because of the White Lady?” Specs asked, pushing his glasses higher on his nose.
    “White Lady or no, so long as you three are safe, I don't care the reasons why.” Piotr ran his hands through his hair. He was still shaking, his mouth sour with adrenaline. The mill had been in a safe zone for years, but with the coming of the White Lady almost no place was safe anymore. The Walkers were everywhere.
    “Honestly, I don't know what to do. Walker territory is spreading and the mill is stuck between them.” Piotr leaned against a nearby wall, tilted his head back, and closed his eyes. They felt gritty with lack of sleep.
    “We ain't strong enough to fight ‘em.” Dora drummed her fingers along the kitchen countertop. “Ain't stupid enough, neither.”
    “Since we are running, we should decide where to go,” Specs said. “Which shall it be? Move closer to the bay or the valley?”
    “I thought of that before, but there are too many of the living,” Piotr said, rubbing his hands across his cheeks, feeling the light rasp of hair that would never grow past a certain point, brushed by calluses that would never fade. Piotr pushed away from the wall. “You should weigh in. What do you want to do?”
    Hesitantly, after several seconds, Dora hunkered down into a squat and, wrapping her arms around her knees, murmured, “I don't mean to start no fuss, Piotr, but I wanna stay with Elle for awhile.” Before Piotr could protest, she hurried to say, “I know we're safe with you, but there's been a lotta Walkers ‘round lately and you can't be with us 24/7. We gotta be somewhere more, I