Angus and I started searching for food all over the area.
We didn't expect to find something like bread.
Any kind of meat even rat would be enough for Mia to recover just enough to make it to the center.
Minutes passed… then a couple of hours.
But we didn't manage to find anything.
Even after deciding to split up and search in different places at the same time, we found nothing.
There was only dirt and rubble.
It hadn't rained in days, so we couldn't even get a bit of water.
The little we had saved was almost completely gone.
Everything had already been taken by others before us.
What are we going to do…?
It's getting later and later.
In just a few hours, it'll be dark.
We can't leave Mia alone for too long.
But…
If we don't find food, she won't make it.
Even we were already feeling weak from not eating.
If things keep going this way, Mia won't be the only one too weak to move.
As I was searching through the rubble, something moved quickly.
I ran toward it before it got away.
I dove and managed to catch it.
It was a lizard…
Not very big.
Definitely not enough for the three of us,
but maybe it would be enough to keep Mia going a little longer.
It would buy us time to find something better.
I met up with Angus a few minutes later.
He told me the only thing he'd managed to find was a couple of insects.
"Well…" I said. "We can eat those. We'll give the lizard meat to Mia and keep the insects for ourselves."
We went back to where we had left Mia.
She was still the same.
It didn't look like anyone had found her while we were gone.
But her condition had worsened.
In just a few hours, her eyes had sunken, and her face looked like a skeleton's.
I started cooking the lizard right away while Angus gave her the last drops of water we had left.
When I finished, I brought the food to her.
She didn't even have the strength to lift it to her mouth.
After she ate, her condition seemed to improve a little.
Not long after, she fell asleep.
Then I cooked the insects Angus had found.
They tasted horrible…
Too crunchy, a bit tough, with a sour or bitter taste—I'm not sure which.
But without a doubt, after eating them, we felt a little better.
A couple of hours later, Angus fell asleep.
I…
I couldn't.
I was too worried about Mia.
Even though she looked a bit better, I doubted she'd be able to walk the next day.
We needed more food.
Fast.
Maybe we should try to carry her.
Move forward even if slowly maybe we could make it to the center that way.
The insects, awful as they tasted, filled me more than I expected.
Maybe we should gather as many as we can.
Save them so we can eat while carrying Mia.
Even if it's hard…
I think we can make it.
As I was thinking all this, I looked up,
over the rubble.
There was the dark sky.
I knelt.
Put my hands together and whispered:
"Please…
"Let me save her.
"Don't take her to heaven just yet.
"I beg you…
"I know it's selfish, and I'm sorry.
"I know she'd be better off there. She wouldn't be hungry, she wouldn't suffer, she'd be happy…"
Tears started running from my eyes.
"But…
"I don't want to be alone. Mom and Dad are gone. She's all I have left.
"I know I didn't believe in you at first. I denied your existence. A sin I'll spend my whole life trying to atone for.
"It was after hearing Angus for so long, after reading your teachings… that I understood the truth.
"I… I'm sure you exist.
"Every time I read your words, when I could finally sleep, I felt something I had never felt before.
"With each passing night, I became more convinced that being your apostle is my path.
"So…
"I promise I'll be the best apostle I can.
"I'll be light.
"So please, I beg you…
"Don't take her away from me."
-----------------------------‐-----------------
Two days passed.
We managed to move forward a little, carrying Mia.
But it was exhausting.
It was so hot.
It hadn't rained in more than two weeks.
The insects we had gathered were already gone.
And we were weak again.
Mia…
Thinner, more fragile, more like a skeleton every day.
The insects only delayed the inevitable.
The center was getting closer.
And we decided to leave Mia in a hidden spot again while we went out to look for food.
Before we left, I knelt down, kissed her forehead, and said:
"Don't worry, Mia. We'll be back soon. Don't move from here."
"Yes… brother," she replied, barely nodding.
Angus and I went off to search the surroundings.
Two more hours passed.
We managed to find a few insects.
We were heading back to Mia when suddenly, as we walked, a glint caught my eye.
I turned.
A shiny spot peeked out from the rubble just a few meters away.
I went closer…
And then I saw it.
My eyes went wide.
I couldn't believe it.
A can.
Something I had only seen when I lived in the center.
I grabbed it quickly.
It was still sealed.
Sardines.
I jumped with joy.
With this, Mia wouldn't just survive…
She could actually recover.
I ran to Angus and showed it to him.
He was surprised too, but then he smiled.
"Little Aiden," he said. "No doubt, it seems the Lord has blessed us. Finding something like this in a place like this is nothing short of a miracle."
"Yes… The Lord helped us. Let's take it to Mia fast!"
My prayers over the past days had worked.
The Lord had saved us.
It had been so long since I felt so happy…
So long… that I didn't notice someone approaching.
I didn't see them until it was too late.
We were in an open area.
And the can was shining in the sun.
I should've hidden it under my shirt the moment I grabbed it.
But I didn't…
When I realized, Angus was standing in front of me, shielding me.
In front of him, a man.
He had a sharp piece of metal in his hand.
I saw the blood dripping to the ground.
It was Angus's.
The metal was buried in his stomach.