His opinion had its share of dissidents, with people accusing him of trying to bring us back to the Dark Ages. Personally, I agreed with him. The world was already worse off than what people faced in medieval times. We were homeless and struggling to survive day by day. I figured a feudal system had to be easier to achieve than Aline’s idea of a centralized government.
Clutch stepped back from loading our supplies, which included new radios to talk with Moose Jaw and other provinces. He wore a T-shirt, which showcased his full-sleeve tattoos. “Ready to head home?” he asked.
I smiled and nudged into him. “You bet. Let’s go home.”
Griz had already climbed in the back along with Joe, the only remaining survivor of the New Eden squadrons sent to the south. My Cessna had been destroyed in the fire, and so I opted for a comfortable twin-engine, which could make it back to New Eden without a fuel stop and haul a lot more supplies.
I climbed in, and Clutch took his seat and organized the maps. As I taxied to the runway, Akio smiled and waved broadly from the edge of the ramp. I waved back and smiled, knowing I’d see him in a couple days when he’d come to pick up the zed kids and bring them to the CDC center in Helena.
I’d miss Moose Jaw. It was more than the sense of safety and the electricity and people like Akio. It was the city’s potential. Moose Jaw was proof that we could live relatively normal lives, even in all this.
But we weren’t ready for that. Not yet.
I throttled forward, and the airplane picked up speed and took to the air as though it couldn’t wait to get off the ground. We climbed high, seeing only major landmarks such as rivers, forests, and cities. The sun glistened on a flooded river, and I hoped its floodwaters would wash away the zeds, leaving only pure water behind.
We touched down at the airport outside New Eden by mid-afternoon. Fortunately, there were no signs of wild animals today. The Humvee sat by the hangar, but there was no sign of Zach.
After we tied down the plane and moved the supplies from the plane to the Humvee, we leaned against the Humvee’s bumper. Clutch handed me a bottle of water, and I drank greedily. The three of us stared off at the woods, watching the tree line. When nothing emerged, we all climbed into the Humvee and headed back to New Eden.
On our drive, we saw more creatures moving around than when we’d left. Not many animals—only the sick dogs and wolves seemed to venture out during the day. It was the two-legged ones.
Spring was here.
The zeds were thawing out.
Chapter XXXI
Later that night
Back in the silo was a bittersweet welcome party for Joe. While everyone had known the risks of sending the squadrons after the zeds, everyone had also hoped more would return home. I didn’t stick around when people started grilling Joe about what happened out there. I had no doubt the man had been through a far worse hell than any of us.
Clutch had already disappeared to his tiny office in the lowest floor of the silo to catch up on the daily logs since we’d been gone. I hit the shower and stood under the hot spray for my entire five-minute ration. With my skin still steaming, I headed up to my dorm. I rifled through my backpack and pulled out the special items I had bartered for at the capital and hid from Clutch.
I set the bottle of wine and corkscrew down on the mattress. I pulled off my T-shirt and pants and slipped on the dress. Before the outbreak, I never would’ve worn anything like it. It was a slim-fitting, tiny white thing with spaghetti straps and dainty roses printed on the sheer fabric. It was as much a nightgown as a dress, but it fit perfectly. My shoe wardrobe consisted of two pairs of hiking boots, so I decided to go barefoot.
I stood in front of a small mirror. I tried to look past the jagged scar on my forehead and circular scar on my calf where I’d been shot. Hell, I had so many scars now, they crisscrossed my skin like spider webs Then again, Clutch bore far more scars than I did.
I didn’t have model looks before the outbreak; I certainly didn’t have them now. Curves had toned into lean muscle. My face had lost its softness. Taking a deep breath, I tried to focus instead on the dress and how it fit my body.
Get ’em where I want ’em.
I grinned, thinking of the one rule I had set for myself during the early days of the outbreak. It had meant that whatever happened, I needed to take control to get things to work out so I could survive. I’d never thought it applied to anything except fighting zeds. Until now.
I grabbed the wine and searched around until I found two red plastic cups.
“Holy shit, why are you wearing that?” Jase asked, startling me.
I nearly dropped the bottle. “Jesus. You about gave me a heart attack.”
“She can wear what she wants, Silly,” Hali scolded, giving me a knowing smile.
I scowled at Jase and walked past the pair. “Like Hali said, I can wear what I want.”
“Have fun,” Hali said.
“Where’s she going?” I heard Jase ask as I entered the hallway.
I hurried down the steps, not wanting to run into anyone else. If Griz saw me, he’d never let me live it down. Fortunately, most folks were already in bed. My feet flew down the stairs until I reached the right floor.
Clutch’s office door was open, and I peeked in to see his nose buried in a stack of paper. I knocked and stepped in the doorway. “Got a minute?”
“Yeah,” he grumbled, dropped his pen, and looked up. His features changed from exhaustion to shock in an instant. I had no idea how I didn’t laugh at the expression on his face. I’d never seen his mouth drop so quickly. He shuffled his papers to the side in a rush. “Yeah, um, yeah, come in.”
He came to his feet rather clumsily, like a schoolboy, and I grinned. He seemed to struggle finding words. “You look nice tonight. I mean, you look better than nice.” He finally settled with, “You look really good.”
I held up the bottle of wine. “Happy Birthday.”
His lips slowly curved upward. “I didn’t think anyone knew.”
I shrugged. “You told me once, a long time back. We never seem to get the chance to celebrate things like birthdays anymore, so I thought tonight would be as good as any to sneak in a little celebration.”
He smiled. “I like that idea.”
I shut and locked the door and gave him a mischievous grin. “I don’t plan on sharing this wine. I had to trade my machete for it.”
He frowned. “Your machete? You shouldn’t—”
“I have another one under my bed.” I set the bottle, corkscrew, and cups on the table. “Now, do you want a birthday party or not?”
He came to his feet. “Hell yeah. I can’t remember the last time I did something on my birthday.” He went to work at opening the bottle. He glanced up every couple of seconds while I watched. He filled each cup with the red wine, nearly draining the bottle, and he handed me my cup. “You do look really good.”
“Thank you.” I took a sip, watching him.
He took a drink, eyed me, and then took a longer drink. After a deep breath, he set his cup down, took mine, and set it down next to his.
He kissed me softly on the lips. “You asked me to say the words once. I couldn’t do it. Not then. I was afraid that if I said them, something would happen, and you’d be gone.” He swallowed. “But, I can say them now. I love you. With every fiber of my being, I love you.” His shoulders relaxed as though a weight had been lifted.
“I know,” I whispered. “But, I like hearing you say it.”
He then gave me a kind smile. He deepened the kiss, our tongues meeting for a slow, passionate dance. Our bodies pressed tighter together, moving in a rhythm only we could feel.
He broke the kiss, and his smile widened then, enough to show the wrinkles at his eyes. He lowered himself, kissing first my neck, then moving a strap aside to kiss my collarbone. His kisses were innocent, yet they sent tingles across my skin. Already, my breaths were coming faster. His hands ran down my shoulders, my hips, my thighs, and then came back up under my dress. He chuckled when he realized I wasn’t wearing underwear.
I held on to him; his heart pounded under my palm. He pressed tighter against me, and I wrapped a leg around him. I felt a shudder surge through him, rippling down his body into mine. He stared at me, the wildness on his face making my heart pound harder. Unable to stand it anymore, I tugged off his shirt as he unbuttoned his pants and shoved them down. He lifted me off the floor and took me right then and there. In perfect rhythm, he kissed me, devouring, violently satisfying kisses as he drove into me.
We made love, and it was sublime.
For the next hour, he went about showing me exactly how he felt about me, until someone pounded on the door.
“Hey, I know you guys are in there,” Griz’s voice yelled out. “These walls are thin, you know.”
Clutch threw a stapler at the door. “Go away,” he yelled back before grinning down at me.
“Come on,” Griz yelled. “Wrap things up in there. Deb’s water broke. She’s having the baby!”
Chapter XXXII
The following morning
Groggily, I woke when the chest under my head moved. “Hm?”
Clutch stroked my black hair, which I’d let grow out during the cold winter. “Vicki has an update.”
I pulled myself up and rubbed my eyes. Everyone from Fox had been here all night. Benji lay sleeping on Diesel at Frost’s feet. Other residents had come and gone, checking in to see how New Eden’s first birth was coming along. The excitement was palpable. Nerves were on edge as everyone waited.
Vicki, one of the two people assisting the doctor with Deb’s birth this morning, stood in her scrubs, smiling. “Dr. Edmund says she’s fully dilated. It should be any time now.” With that, she turned and hustled back into the room.
I stood and stretched. Jase and Hali stopped their card game to stand and watch the door. Clutch and Griz also came to their feet. Only Frost remained sitting, but his gaze never left the door.
Five minutes passed. We waited. I paced the floor. Jase and Hali joined me. Ten minutes passed. I wanted to be in there, with Deb, but the doctor had been adamant about keeping the room as germ-free as possible.
Deb cried out, and I froze.
“It’s time,” Frost said. “She’s having the baby.”
I could hear Dr. Edmund’s muffled voice and Deb’s cries through the door. The doctor was giving orders, and I heard a flurry of movement behind the door.
“She’s seizing!” the doctor yelled. “Hold her down.”
I moved toward the door, but Clutch held me back. With my back to his chest, I clasped onto his forearms that wrapped around me. My heart pounded as we waited.
As quickly as the ruckus began, everything silenced. Then, the sound started softly but grew in volume. A baby’s cry.
I let out the breath I’d been holding, and turned in Clutch’s arms. We smiled and kissed. “It’s going to be okay,” I whispered.
I tapped my foot, waiting for them to bring out the baby.
“I wonder if it’s a boy or girl,” Hali said.
Then, a second cry broke free, adding to the first. My eyes widened. I squealed and covered my mouth. “Twins!”
“Two?” Griz asked. “Wow, Tack had some strong swimmers.”
A moment later, Vicki and Izzie emerged, each carrying a baby, and neither looking up from her precious cargo. We rushed the two women to see the babies. They were wrinkled and purple and adorable.
“Are they healthy?” Frost asked first.
“Yes, they are a perfectly healthy boy and girl,” Vicki said softly.
“Can we see Deb now?” I asked, excited to congratulate the new mother.
Izzie sniffled and started to cry.
I swallowed and looked at Vicki. “Deb?”
Her lips trembled, and then she slowly shook her head.
“Oh, no,” Hali gasped. “Not Deb.”
“She hemorrhaged,” Vicki said after a long silence. “She lost too much blood, and we couldn’t stop it. We tried.”
No one spoke. I found I could only stare at the babies, the weight on my chest making it hard to feel anything.
“I promised her I would look after his babies,” Vicki said quietly.
I swallowed, then placed a hand on her shoulder. “You don’t have to do it alone. We’ll all take care of them. Together. Because that’s what families do.”
Chapter XXXIII
Easter Sunday, one year after the outbreak
“How about Jack and Jill?” I asked.
Clutch guffawed. “That’s as bad as Griz’s idea for Dick and Jane.”
I shrugged. “Jase wanted Fluffy and Wuffy.”
His eyes widened, and I held up a hand. “Don’t worry, I shot those down.”
“Their names are Ted and Debra Nugent,” Vicki said, settling the debate.
Her words silenced the Humvee.
It took me a moment to place the male name before I remembered. Tack’s real name was Ted. Theodore Nugent, to be precise. Vicki had named the twins after their parents.
My smile was bittersweet. “Those are good names.”
The other Humvee pulled around us to take lead. Griz waved from the driver’s seat. It was the vehicle we’d hidden in the shed before going to New Eden. It was still packed with all the gear and supplies we’d crammed into it. We’d told Justin about it and offered to share the supplies, but he’d been adamant that we needed everything we had if we were going out on our own.
I turned to make sure Jase and Hali were following us, flanking our tiny convoy. The old Chevy truck was dirty, but Jase didn’t seem to mind—if his wide smile was any sign. Of course, that could’ve also been because Hali was sidled up next to him.
Boxes piled high to Hali’s right nearly hid her. All three of our vehicles were weighted down with food and supplies we’d bartered for in New Eden. Even our Humvee, with only room for the three of us, was chock full of supplies, including a radio so we could stay in touch with the other provinces and for me to plan flights with Akio.
Clutch drove. I sat in the front seat with one of the twins and a rifle propped against my hip while Vicki sat in the backseat with the other twin.