Regan shrugged and sat down on the edge of the bed. “It’s a mess out there. A tree came down. It didn’t hit the house, but he wants to do another perimeter check and see if there are any other trees that might hit the house, should they fall. There’s a lot of debris to be picked up, as well.”
“Fine, I’ll be out in a minute.”
Regan got up and left the room, happy Lily hadn’t immediately ordered her out. That in itself was a baby step in the right direction. She knocked on Tabitha and Geno’s door, then found Fred to wake him. RC had already been up and outside by the time she’d been knocking on Lily’s door.
Regan heard a chainsaw fire up and knew the men were getting to work on cutting up the tree that had fallen. It was going to be a busy day. She quickly whipped up some oatmeal, making sure everyone ate and fueled up for a taxing day.
Fortunately, with everyone working together, except Geno who was doing a perimeter check, they managed to make real progress with the clean-up, and the storm had brought in cool air to make it an easier day, busy as they remained.
Once the major debris was taken care of and they’d checked both the house and the boats, Tabitha and Regan worked together to clear the small garden space that had been littered with debris while the men stacked newly cut wood to be used for outdoor cooking, having gathered the downed trees and broken them down into manageable pieces. Likewise, the coconuts that had been knocked from the trees were collected by Lily and Fred, and dragged back to the house to be hacked open later. They couldn’t afford to waste a single coconut.
Movement from the corner of her eye caught Regan’s attention as she wiped her face, and her focus turned to the roof of the greenhouse. “Oh no!” Regan cried out, glimpsing one of the small solar panels on the greenhouse hanging askew, its wiring dangling loose.
“What’s wrong?” Tabitha asked before she followed her gaze and her jaw dropped open.
Regan rushed inside the greenhouse, immediately checking the tank that she knew was powered by the defunct panel.
“They’re still alive,” she sighed in relief. “I need to find Geno and see if he can help me repair those wires.”
“He’s probably down by the docks by now, checking the boats,” Tabitha said, keeping up with Regan’s long strides.
“I can’t believe I didn’t notice that earlier. I should have checked on things right away instead of worrying about the mess. I can’t let that tank of fish die.”
Soon enough, they found Geno re-tying up the sailboat to the dock.
“Everything okay down here?” Regan asked.
“Yes, but the rope was loose. I just want to make sure it’s doubly secure. The water is still pretty choppy.”
“Um, can you help me with one of the solar panels on the greenhouse?” Regan asked.
Geno looked back at the boats and shrugged his shoulders. “Sure. It’s all okay down here.”
Regan sighed in relief at Geno’s willingness to help without bitching about her being inept or offering some other complaint. The day was proving to be a good one, keeping all of them so busy and occupied that drama hadn’t risen up once. Regan had become used to being on guard, ready for someone to be snotty toward her or accuse her of doing something dumb. This was a nice change—one she hoped was permanent. Wolf had said everyone needed time to pull together, and it was starting to look like he’d been right. She’d tell him so later when they could sneak away for some alone time.
Hurrying back toward the house and the greenhouse, the three of them had to step over a couple of downed trees that had fallen over the path and not been cleared yet.
“Have you guys ever experienced a hurricane?” Regan asked the married couple.
They both shook their heads. “No,” Tabitha said with a smile. “Not unless last night was our first taste. We’ve certainly seen our fair share of windy days, but nothing like this.”
“It’s crazy. I wish we’d have watched it,” Regan mused.
Tabitha burst into laughter. “I think it’s better I couldn’t see what was happening. I would have been even more nervous.”
They got to the greenhouse and Regan showed Geno the broken panel. With Geno’s help, they quickly connected the wires. He explained what he was doing to Regan as he went, with the intention of her being able to make such a fix on her own the next time there was an issue. She was more than happy to learn, too, knowing he might be needed elsewhere.
“It worked!” Regan said, watching the bubbling water in the tank. “Thank you!”
She felt tempted to hug him, but knew he wouldn’t appreciate the gesture. It was out of character for her, as well. The excitement over having gotten the panel fixed in time to keep the fish none the wiser was exhilarating, though—and on top of that, she felt confident that she’d be able to fix the next panel that came loose.
“Hey!” Wolf called out. “We need everyone over here!”
“That doesn’t sound good,” Tabitha sighed. “It’s always something.”
The group gathered in the backyard, where Wolf had his hands on his hips, his long hair blowing in the breeze that had kicked up again. The clouds that had slowly been moving in seemed to be coming much faster now, bringing the promise of more rain.
“What’s wrong?” Regan asked, approaching him.
“Did anyone take the pins out of these windows?” Wolf asked.
A lot of head shaking and a chorus of negatives answered. Regan didn’t even know what the pins were or why they mattered, but judging by the looks on RC and Wolf’s faces, this was serious.
“The pins are gone. We can’t lock the windows in place. If we get a real hurricane, these windows are going to blow open. If that happens, we’re all in serious danger. The debris that will come through the windows will be deadly.”
“What do we do?” Geno asked, his voice revealing a trace of panic.
“Can we make pins or use something else to lock the windows? We can cover the windows with plastic or trash bags,” Fred suggested.
“Plastic isn’t going to stop a tree branch. Plastic isn’t going to hold up against much of anything,” Wolf snapped.
“What about some wood? I saw some leaned against that back shed,” Geno volunteered.
Wolf shook his head. “We don’t have enough to cover all the windows. And these pins didn’t just fall out.”
Rain began to fall in slow, heavy droplets. It wasn’t nearly as bad as the night before, but the wind picking up around them made it feel like the rain was coming at them from all directions. Regan shielded her face and looked up at the sky. The clouds looked to be swirling, completely blotting out the sun.
“Let’s go inside. We need to figure something out, and fast. If this storm gets a lot worse, we have a problem,” Wolf announced. “Without those pins, the windows will blow open. They could be ripped from the casings, in fact. With that being possible, it isn’t safe in the house and it sure as hell isn’t safe outside the house!”
RC was standing off to the side, his arms folded over his chest, a scowl on his face as he stared at everyone. For her part, Regan had a feeling something sinister was happening. There were too many things happening. Things that made no sense. No one living in the house would purposely sabotage the windows that would keep them safe—would they?
Regan looked around at the faces of the people she was supposed to be trusting with her life. Everything she had forced herself to accept about them was suddenly being put into question again, though she honestly couldn’t fathom what reason any of them would have to sabotage their home. True, she didn’t know any of these people beyond what she had learned over the last few weeks of their being together. They could have lied. They could have made up stories. One of them could even be doing these things to set her up…but there was only one person she could think of who might hate her badly enough to want her to get kicked off the island.
She looked at Lily. The girl’s blonde hair was whipping in the wind, her eyes narrowed as she looked around at the group, accus
ing everyone. The girl looked more suspicious than Regan herself felt. She glanced over to look at Geno. She didn’t think he would risk Tabitha’s life just to set her up. Plus, he hadn’t known about the pins. In fact, the only people who had known about them were the three inhabitants who were all staring at the newcomers with suspicion.
It was too much.
Regan walked away and into the house, needing to get away from them. She sucked in deep breaths, trying to calm her nerves, quieting that internal voice telling her to grab her stuff and run. She couldn’t run, not now, not with a violent storm brewing. She’d never make it off the island.
Everyone else filtered in, heading to the storeroom.
“Where are you going?” Regan asked Tabitha.
“Wolf said to gather in the storeroom. Something about fewer windows in there and a hurricane door. It’s his safe room in case he ever has to ride out a Category Five hurricane. He’s worried the storm is going to get worse and, without the ability to lock the windows, he wants everyone in the safest place possible with the fewest hazards.”
“Oh,” she mumbled, not making a move to join the others.
“Regan?” Tabitha asked.
“Huh?”
“Are you coming? Did you hear what I said?”
Regan nodded her head. “Yes, sorry, I was just thinking about everything that’s been happening around here lately. It isn’t funny anymore.”
“No, it isn’t,” Tabitha agreed.
Regan followed Tabitha into the storeroom, not looking forward to being trapped in a small room with people who might not be who they claimed to be. It was like being back at the compound—trusting no one. It seemed like everything always led back to that one basic principle in life, of relying only on yourself and withholding trust entirely. Yet, she’d really wanted to trust everyone around her—despite herself, she’d begun to think of them as a sort of family. To suddenly suspect that one of them might be sabotaging everything, for some reason she couldn’t imagine, was a gut-wrenching blow.
Still, she took a deep breath, closing her eyes and mentally steeling herself. She had to put all that aside for now. She had to get through this next storm, and then she could figure out what to do next.
Regan looked around the room where everyone had already gathered. Tabitha had headed straight for Geno, sitting next to him, their thighs touching as they leaned against the small section of bare wall opposite the window. She hated this room. It was stark and cold and not the least bit comfortable.
Wolf and RC stood in front of the shelving while Fred stood near the door. Regan took a deep breath, praying they didn’t get to a point where they had to close the door. The room was of a decent size, and there was a window, but there were too many bodies for her comfort. Even thinking about being trapped inside this space was tickling her claustrophobia.
“Can we make pins?” Fred asked again. “Maybe use pieces of wood we sharpen to fit into the brackets? Wire? There has to be an alternative,” he insisted.
Wolf shrugged. “At this point, it’s our best bet. We’ll definitely try to fashion pins from whatever we can find. For now, we’ll ride out this storm. It doesn’t look too bad. I’m not sure who took them or why, but…,” he looked around, meeting everyone’s eyes in turn, “I won’t ask any questions if you turn them in. Leave them on the kitchen table or find me and give them to me in private.”
Everyone looked at each other. One of them was sabotaging their refuge.
It made no sense.
Regan sat down on the floor next to the door, Fred standing on the other side, and her eyes continued to dart around the room, looking for some sign that would reveal who the saboteur was. Regan had always been good at reading people, especially people who were bad. Right now, though, as she looked around the room, meeting the eyes of everyone she had been living with, her senses failed her. She had no idea who it was.
Regan finally looked up at Fred. He hadn’t quite gelled with the group. He’d been at the house a lot, all alone, never really explaining what he did all day. She’d always been a little suspicious of him, ever since they’d first met back at the swamp. He almost seemed to like the drama since it always gave him a chance to step in and be the rational mediator or lecturer. He was an instigator without even trying. The more she thought about it, the more she made up her mind. It had to be him.
From her vantage point on the floor, he looked like a giant. The thought amused her and terrified her at once. But as she stared at him, something dawned on her.
“Where’s Lily?”
Before anyone could answer, the door to the storeroom slammed shut. Unlike most interior rooms, this room had a door that opened outwards.
“What the hell?” Wolf yelled out, lunging forward toward the door and grabbing for the handle.
“Was it the wind?” Tabitha asked, her voice high-pitched.
“No,” Wolf answered.
Regan scrambled to her feet, and when she saw Wolf trying to turn the door handle and getting no response, she began throwing her body against the door. “It’s locked!”
Wolf pounded on the door, using his shoulder to push against it. “Hello! Who’s out there? Open this door!” he shouted.
Geno had come to stand next to Wolf, using his large size to try and push the door open. Regan shook her head as she stepped backward and away from the men, realizing it was no use. Even Geno’s brute force wasn’t going to work. The door was solid. It was a hurricane door, meant to withstand the missiles Lily had told her about. Geno wasn’t going to be able to use his size to get out of this mess.
She met Tabitha’s eyes as her friend came to stand beside her and watch Geno fight with the door alongside the others.
“Wolf,” RC said flatly, immediately grabbing Wolf’s attention.
Wolf spun around, and Regan suddenly realized that the older man’s focus hadn’t been on anything inside of their small space. RC was staring out the window.
“Crap,” Wolf muttered.
“Who the hell is that?” Geno muttered.
A woman with long blonde hair pulled back in a ponytail was smiling at them, staring inward through the partially open window that they’d left ajar for air flow. The sight of another person on the island immediately stole the breath from Regan’s lungs. In shock, Regan heard Wolf curse, and the rare sound was enough to bring her back to the moment—from the look on his face, she got the feeling he knew the woman, and definitely didn’t like her.
“Hi, honey,” the woman said with a sneer, waggling her fingers in a fake wave. “Miss me?”
“Virginia! What are you doing?” Wolf asked. “And how dare you lock us in? Open this damn door!”
“Who is she?” Fred asked.
“Are you missing someone?” Snapping her fingers, the blonde woman was joined by four men, all of them dressed in black and dragging a struggling Lily.
Regan’s own gasp of shock was muted by Wolf’s low growl at the sight of his daughter being manhandled by a large man.
“Let her go,” Wolf shouted.
The woman shook her head, an evil grin spreading across her face.
The men looked like military in their matching outfits. Each of them carried a very mean looking semi-automatic rifle and wore some kind of bullet proof armor. Mercenaries was the term that came to Regan’s mind. But while she’d certainly heard the term, she’d never imagined seeing them up close.
No one talked or moved as they watched the group of gun-toting soldiers stare at them through the window. The two groups sizing each other up. If the mercenaries meant to intimidate, they were doing an excellent job. Regan suddenly felt as if she was on display in a zoo. The men were eyeing each of them with contempt, making her stomach clench each time one of them brought their eyes her way.
“I came to get what was mine,” the blonde woman replied. “You didn’t think I would let you have everything, did you?”
“What’s yours?” Wolf asked, shaking his head. “There is nothing here
that belongs to you. Nothing, Virginia,” he emphasized. Then he took a heavy step forward, putting himself closest to the window.
“I want the guns. I’ll let you have Lily, but I want the guns,” Virginia stated.
Wolf spun around, picking up the different guns sitting near the packs and carried them to the window. He tossed them out.
“Let her go,” he demanded.
Virginia shook her head. “I want the one you’re wearing and don’t tell me you’re not,” she sneered.
Wolf reached under his loose shirt and quickly pulled the Glock out of the holster and dropped it out the window. They all watched and waited to see what would happen next.
Virginia’s eyes scanned the room. She pointed to RC. “I know he’s got that Marlin. I want it.”
Regan looked at RC watching him cringe. The action was barely noticeable, but she saw it. He reached into the corner, the gun had been somewhat concealed between the shelf and the wall. He almost got to keep it. RC handed the gun to Wolf. Wolf walked to the window and shocking everyone, he cocked the gun and aimed it at Virginia through the open window.
“I’m done playing games. Let her go and you can take the guns. I don’t care if they shoot me. It won’t be before I shoot you,” he said in a voice so menacing the hairs on Regan’s arms stood up.
Virginia stared back at him. “You wouldn’t dare. I’ll shoot her,” she said, aiming her Beretta at Lily’s chest.
Regan gasped and nearly jumped through the window herself.
“You can try, but I know I’m faster. You’ll be dead before you pull that trigger,” he replied, his voice devoid of any emotion.
It was a side of Wolf Regan had never seen. It was the military training taking over. She knew Wolf would never jeopardize his daughter’s life. He was that confident in his ability to shoot and kill the woman.
No one breathed as they watched the standoff unfold.
“Let her go,” Virginia ordered.
The man holding Lily shot a look at Virginia.
“Now!” she screamed.
The man released Lily. When Lily moved toward the window, Fred sprang forward to lift her.
Surviving the Refuge (Survivalist Reality Show Book 2) Page 20
