“I appreciate the offer, Lorraine, but I’m not sure if that’s such a good idea.”
“I was a trauma nurse in the ER at Mercy General. I’m the only one in the group with any medical knowledge beyond basic first aid. I know what kind of things we are going to need, especially for when Jenny goes into labour.”
Her words came out in a rush and he realized she had been thinking on this for a while, lining up her reasons to run off to him when the time came. And he had to admit she was right. He had only a basic knowledge of what medical supplies they might need and he knew next to nothing about what they would need for a birth. He hated to admit that he had not thought far enough ahead to consider what they would do when Jenny gave birth.
“You’re right, Lorraine, I didn’t think of that,” he said and she smiled brightly at him. “Plus with you, it will bring us to an even six. We can split into pairs, cover more ground in less time.”
“I’m just glad I can help,” she said. “Your group has done so much for me, I just want to pay it back.”
“It’s not my group. It’s our group. You’re a part of it too.”
She smiled at him. “Thank you for that. I suppose I’m just not used to being a part of something. I’ve always been a bit of a loner.”
He could understand that. He had been a bit of a loner himself, mostly out of necessity. It was hard to maintain any kind of friendship when you disappeared for weeks at a time and the reason for it was classified. It also made it near impossible to have any kind of serious romantic relationship. He had spent most of his adult life alone, Janet and her late husband the only ones he could call friends.
“I get that. When I was in the Marines I had friends. We had to be if we were going to be an effective unit. But then I started working for the Agency and everything changed. The men and women I worked with, we weren’t friends. We worked together but we never moved beyond colleagues. I think it was just the nature of the job, we had to keep a distance between us.”
He didn’t tell her the reason for the distance. There was no way to explain that if a colleague took a misstep he could be tasked with taking them out without making her think he was a monster. Civilians could never understand that when they took on the job, they put the security of the country above their own life. It was their duty to forfeit their life if they put that security in danger.
“Still, even with all the secrecy, it must have been an exciting job to have,” she said.
It had been exciting at times but it had also been dark. He decided it was probably best to steer the conversation away from that. “Your job isn’t something I’d call boring. You’ve probably seen more interesting things in the ER than I have.”
“I suppose you’ve got something there,” she said. “The man who came in, a hundred percent conscious and cognitive, with an arrow through his skull comes to mind.”
“Did he survive?”
“He did. A couple of scars and some of the shaft left in his head but he walked out of the hospital just fine.”
“Your job wins for most exciting,” he said. “It’s a good thing that you’ve got yourself a strong stomach. We’re bound to come across some bodies today.”
“I expect that will be true for a long while.”
He couldn’t argue with her on that. The sight of death was going to be something they would have to get used to in the coming days. They had only gotten a glimpse on the highway of the death that was sweeping through the world. They were isolated here in the park, shielded from what was going on outside. Today they would get their first real look at what it would be like for them on the road to the island.
They picked up the jugs and headed back to the camp, dragging the cooler behind them.
“When we get back, I’ll have Craig go over some of our training with you,” he told her. “You’ll be paired with him when we go in today. He’ll watch your back.”
“Yes, he will. He’s been doing that for some time.”
“I’ve been meaning to ask, what exactly happened before you met up with us?”
“Craig and I lived in the same apartment building. When things got bad, those of us who were left in the building barricaded ourselves inside. We were safe for a while, the military and looters had bigger fish to fry, but it didn’t last.” Her gaze dropped to the ground, avoiding his. “Someone figured out we were in there and they came at night. We didn’t even know they were inside until they started shooting people. I tried to go help but Craig stopped me and made me get out on the fire escape and climb down. If it hadn’t been for him, my own stupidity would have gotten me killed.”
He could see she was beating herself up over it even now. “You weren’t being stupid. You were doing what you were trained to do: help people who are hurt. If anybody understands how hard it is to ignore training, it’s me. And trust, that instinct to help is going to pay off one day.”
“Thank you. That is something I didn’t realize I needed to hear.” Her gaze lifted and she smiled at him. “You’re a good man, Malcolm. I can see why Kim likes you.”
“She said she likes me?” As soon as it left his mouth, he wanted to kick his own ass. What was he, in middle school? And apparently Lorraine was thinking the same thing judging by the way she tried to choke back her laughter. “Forget I said that.”
“Already forgotten,” she told him with a smile.
As they walked the rest of the way back to camp, he told himself he was being a dumbass. He knew that there was something between him and Kim. So what made him so excited at the idea that she had told someone else about it?
The camp was humming with activity, everyone else having gotten up and moving while they were at the creek. Breakfast was well under way, everyone sitting around the tables, chatting about their chores for the day. He and Lorraine took the water over to the fire, leaving it there to be boiled and bottled later.
They walked over to join the others, figuring he should get a bite to eat before he went to sleep. When they were still out of earshot of the group, Lorraine put a hand on his arm, looking up at him with a cheeky grin.
“She said you’re the most gorgeous man she’s met in years,” she said, squeezing his arm and then moving away to join Craig, who had saved her a bowl.
And didn’t that confession just put a bounce in his step as he slid into the seat facing Kim. She flashed him a smile as she handed him a bowl of oatmeal and there was that kick in the gut again.
“Hey Malcolm, I was reading one of the books from the ranger station,” Trey said, drawing his attention away from Kim. “It’s about trapping and snaring animals. I was thinking about putting some snares up for rabbits. I found some stuff in the ranger station that I can use.”
“That’s a good idea,” he said and the kid’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. Malcolm didn’t doubt for a second that Kim had done everything she could for her son but it was obvious the boy was thirsty for male approval. It was natural for him, he was a boy on the brink of manhood.
“You ever laid a trap before?” he asked.
“No, sir, but the book has the instructions and pictures. I think I can do it.” He set his jaw with determination. “I
know
I can do it.”
“Tell you what? After we’re done with breakfast, you and me will go out and set them together. I can show you some tricks I know.”
“Really? Thank you, that’d be awesome.”
The grin nearly split the kid’s face in half and Malcolm felt a tug at his heart. Trey was smart, respectful and eager to help. He was a good kid and it felt good to make him happy.
“Trey, wait a minute,” Kim cut in. “Malcolm has a lot of things to do today and he also needs to get some sleep before they go out.”
“It’s okay,” Malcolm said. “Early morning is the best time to find tracks. We aren’t planning on heading out until midday, we’ve got plenty of time.”
“I’ll go grab the supplies I found,” Trey said and jumped up from the table, not waiting for his mother to object any further. She watched him run off, a small smile on her face before turning back to look at him, her face nothing but concern now.
“I really appreciate you going to all the trouble of teaching him--”
“No trouble,” he cut her off. “I like Trey. He’s a good kid.”
A soft smile touched her lips at the compliment. “He is, but don’t feel obligated to go, not with everything going on today. I don’t want you to be too tired when you go on the run. Something could happen to you.”
Hearing that she cared what happened to him had his pulse kicking into high gear. Yeah, he was falling in deep with this one.
“It won’t take long, I’ll have plenty of time to sleep,” he reassured her. “Besides, the thought of rabbit for dinner is too tempting.”
“Oatmeal not hitting the spot?” she asked with a raised eyebrow and a sly smile.
He reached across the table and put his hand over hers, letting his thumb caress the inside of her wrist. He heard her breath catch and he watched her eyes darken as the sexual tension sizzled to life between them.
“I can think of something that would be much tastier,” he said and he watched her pupils blow wide at his words. His gaze slid down to her mouth, his head filled with memory of how she tasted. He inhaled sharply when the tip of her tongue darted out to wet her bottom lip. He leaned forward, wanting to close the distance between them, the rest of the world around them forgotten, his vision filled with nothing but her beautiful mouth.
“Got the stuff, Malcolm!”
They both jumped at the sound of Trey’s voice and Malcolm sat back from the table, blinking a few times as he realized they were still sitting at the table, surrounded by the others. Kim looked like she had forgotten too, a hand going to her cheek as she blushed, looking at the others before darting her gaze back to him and sharing a conspiratorial smile with him.
“We’ll be back soon,” he told her, squeezing her hand before standing up and heading over to where Trey was waiting for him. “Come on, let’s get ourselves Thumper.”
Subject File # 750
Administrator - It seems that your father provided you with a lot of skills to survive. What would you say is the most important one he taught you?
Subject - That I don’t get to give up, no matter how hard it gets.
The drive away from home had been silent, Quinton and Veronica not speaking as they lost themselves among the rural roads of Virginia. Claudia had also remained silent, curled up in the backseat, just staring out the window. They had occasionally spotted headlights in the distance, forcing them to pull off road to hide the Explorer until the car passed by without noticing them.
Veronica wondered about those people. Had they been forced out on the road by bullets and fire too? How many loved ones had they lost along the way? Were they headed anywhere in particular or just far, far away?
“Shit.”
She looked over to see Quinton glaring at the dashboard. “What is it?”
“We’re running out of fuel,” he told her and she leaned over to see that the needle was hovering just above the E.
“What about the jerry cans?” she asked. Their father had stockpiled half a dozen of them just before the gas station in town had run out.
“They weren’t packed up in the car.”
“Why the hell not?”
“Dad was worried about the fumes gathering inside the car,” Quinton explained. “He was supposed to grab them if we had to run.”
“Well that’s just fucking great,” she yelled, her voice even louder in the enclosed space. “Why wouldn’t he at least put one in and leave the windows open? Damn it, we’re completely screwed. Why would he do that?”
“He didn’t do it on purpose,” Quinton said, his voice clipped with annoyance.
“He was always prepared for everything but this…this he drops the ball on! Un-fucking-believable.”
“Well he’s dead now, so is that enough of a fucking punishment for you?” he snarled at her and his words were like a slap in the face.
She hadn’t meant to speak badly of their father. She was scared about what was going to happen to them and she was angry that their parents weren’t here. She might be a grown woman but that didn’t mean she still didn’t need them. She wasn’t ready to be an orphan now.
“I didn’t mean it like that,” she whispered and he sniffed in response, rolling his shoulders as he kept his eyes on the road.
Tears pricked her eyes as a fresh wave of grief moved through her. Even after they had boarded up the house and the neighbours had fled, Veronica had never really believed that things would get this bad. That they would lose their parents and their home to the chaos that had risen in the world. They were supposed to survive this, they were supposed to be the one family that stayed together, that made it through without even blinking.
“How many miles to the cabin?” she said, trying to focus on the problem at hand instead of what had happened.
“Another fifty before we’re even close. We’re going to be lucky to make it twenty.”
“Last crossroads said we were twenty five miles from Maryville,” she said. “Let’s hope we can make it there.”
“Better to hope we actually find gas there,” Quinton said, his mouth drawn tight and she knew he was still pissed at her.
She turned around to look at Claudia, appearing so tiny as she kept herself tucked into the corner of the seat. Veronica reached out to her, placing a hand on her knee, looking for some reaction but Claudia didn’t move a muscle. She continued to stare out the window unseeing, the steady rise and fall of her chest the only sign that she was still alive.