She shook her head and frowned.
“Are you serious?!” Jess covered her mouth in shock. “He wouldn’t do anything with her.”
“Maybe. He turned her down this time. I know he has feelings for me, but it’s all so complicated. This whole situation is like a bad Lifetime movie.”
She wiped her nose on the napkin.
“He wouldn’t do that. He doesn’t even like her. I think you need to talk to him about this,” Jess suggested.
“Maybe you’re right. Help me downstairs?” she asked.
“Heck no! Cam would have my head for that!” she said. “You’ll have to wait for one of them to take you.”
Angie sighed. Was everyone afraid of Cam?
“I can help you get dressed though, so you can go down when they get back,” she said.
Angie cheered up a little.
It was better than nothing.
Jessica
“Watch it!” Jessica heard from behind her.
She turned and saw Monica sidestepping to make room for Jessica in the doorway.
“Sorry,” she told Monica.
She was pulling a heavy crate of supplies toward the basement. They still had several stacks in the foyer that she needed to sort through.
“Where are you going with that?” Monica asked.
“To the basement. I want to get it all sorted before they make another run for supplies.”
She stood up straight and leaned backward, stretching her back. She didn’t know how the men managed to carry these crates by themselves. She could barely scoot it along the floor.
“Let me give you a hand,” Monica offered.
She took the other side of the crate and lifted. They managed to get it to the bottom of the stairs before needing to stop.
“Damn! What’s in here…bricks?” she asked.
“Canned foods,” Jessica replied.
They started again and made it to the food storage section. There were crates stacked high, some to the ceiling, and it was turning into a maze. She wanted to finish getting the rest down here before sorting through it all and organizing it.
She was kind of looking forward to it.
“Hey! How are the lights on down here?” Monica asked her. “I want power upstairs too.”
“Jack found some solar panels on the back side of the roof, where the clearing is. He found the batteries already set up and wired it into this circuit down here. He’s pretty handy, I was surprised,” Jessica answered.
“So, no lights upstairs?”
“Nope. Believe me, I wish we had lights in the kitchen. It would make cooking way easier. Let’s go grab another crate.”
They both managed to carry the rest of the stacked crates to the basement.
“Well, you’re on your own now,” Monica said. “I need to get my stuff ready. I want to go with the guys when they go on a run.”
“Monica, wait a minute,” Jessica called.
She hesitated for a second and Monica motioned for her to hurry up. “Angie’s a really nice person.”
Monica snorted in disgust. “Et tu, Brutus?”
She ran lightly up the steps.
Jessica just shook her head. There was no betrayal here. It was all in Monica’s head.
◆◆◆
A short time later, she had organized the basement shelving into four general sections.
There were the canned foods on the shelves closest to the door. They had plenty for now, and there was still room for more.
The next section was all dry goods…pasta, beans, flour, sugar, etc. They would need to be very careful about mice, but as long as they kept it clean and organized, she thought it would be okay.
She had arranged the non-food stuff in the back.
They had stocked up on household chemicals, soaps, toothpaste, detergents, shampoo and conditioner, lotion, and other things. They would be fine for a while, and there was plenty left in the store to be brought back.
Someone had loaded up large amounts of clothing, linens, toilet paper, paper towels, paper, writing supplies, and feminine hygiene products. They had seemed to think of everything. She was especially grateful for the toilet paper, though she knew they would need to come up with a rationing system of some sort.
She stacked the empty crates neatly out of the way and dusted off her hands.
She needed to get supper cooking if it was going to be ready in time.
She turned the corner to go to the stairs and bumped in Jack.
“Whoa,” he said, grabbing her arms and steadying her.
“Sorry!” she said. She pushed her hair behind her ear. “Do you need something?”
“I just wanted to see if you needed help with those crates, but I see that you’ve already finished it. I’m impressed.”
He looked around at the work she had accomplished.
“Thanks, but I can’t take all the credit. Monica helped me move some of the crates down. The rest was easy.”
She saw him walk forward a bit and look through each section.
“I guess I need to go get supper started now,” she said.
She didn’t understand why he was still standing around down here, did he just want to talk?
“My wife keeps our pantry so organized…used to.” He looked down at the floor. “She spent so much time labeling things and organizing and whatnot. I never understood what the big deal was. Just throw the stuff on a shelf and be done with it,” he said, remembering.
Jessica smiled a little. “Spoken like a man,” she teased.
He threw up his hands. “Well, you got me there.”
He smiled, but she saw the sadness in his eyes.
It must be so rough on him, going through this alone…dealing with the way his wife died.
Jessica thought he might feel guilty for not getting back to his family sooner, for not being there to save his wife. There was a lot of guilt circulating in this group, she realized, especially among the men.
“It’s nice having an organized space. I enjoy it too. It relaxes me, and it makes cooking so much easier. Oh hey, did you get those refrigerators and freezers going?”
“They were already wired into the generator system. We can run them, but it will take fuel. I’ll have to ask Cam if he wants to start it up. We have to think of the noise it will make too. I’m not sure how far the sound will travel, being near the water.”
He ruffled a hand through his hair.
His hair was a bit longer than he normally wore it.
Back during normal times, he kept it really short on the sides and a bit longer on top. She thought he was so good-looking, with his crisp uniform and his light brown hair swept back with gel…his easy smile. She didn’t let herself think on it too long back then though because he was married.
“So, what’s for supper?” he asked her.
“Spaghetti and meatballs, salad, garlic bread, and chocolate cake for dessert,” she ticked off on her fingers.
“You’ll spoil us,” he teased.
They walked back up the steps, Jack behind her.
When they got to the top, she felt his hand resting gently on her lower back for a brief moment, guiding her. She felt a warmth low in her stomach. She forced herself not to think about it.
His wife just passed away. He didn’t mean anything by it. He probably didn’t even realize what he had done. He was just being nice, like always.
“I’ll let you get to it then. I’m going to take Jonah out for an hour or so and let him get some practice in with the pistol,” he told her.
Jessica was surprised. “He shoots?”
“Oh sure. We started him out a long time ago. He’s a pretty good shot. I still supervise though. You can’t ever be too cautious.”
“Maybe you can teach me sometime?” she found herself asking.
Where did that come from? She didn’t want to shoot a gun!
“Absolutely. I think it’s important for you to learn. Actually, I think Jim wants everyone to become prof
icient with at least one firearm.”
He saw her look of consternation. “Don’t worry, we’ll start you out small.” He smiled.
“That’s good. I’ve never shot a gun in my life,” she said, turning to pull some meat from the cooler.
They would need refrigeration of some sort soon. It was starting to thaw out.
“I’ll see you later then, Jess,” he said and walked away.
She ignored the thrill she got from her name on his lips.
◆◆◆
That evening, while the sun hovered in the western sky, Jessica set the table.
They would serve themselves at the table tonight. She laid out the plates and utensils with care, this time placing a wineglass at each place.
She laid out the large bowl of spaghetti, and another of salad, placing several dressings on the table. She uncorked two bottles of red wine and set them aside.
Everything was ready. She wanted it to be relaxing, and nice. Like before.
They all needed a break from the tension.
She left the room and went up the stairs. She wanted to check on Nick again. He was sleeping earlier, and Bradley had assured her that his fever was still low.
She wanted to check on him herself this time though.
“Nick?” She knocked on his door.
Bradley answered.
“Hey Jessica. Nick is awake.”
He left the door wide open and led her into the room.
“Hey Nick, how are you feeling?” she asked him. He was probably so tired of that question.
She searched his face, seeking any clues. He still looked like death, but he managed to sit up against the headboard.
“Hey, I feel a little better. I’m even a little hungry.”
She smiled, that was a good sign.
“I’ll bring you up a tray right now, that way you can eat while we are. You want me to eat in here with you?” she asked him.
“I will. I’d rather eat in here anyway,” Bradley offered.
“No problem, I’ll bring yours up too then.”
As she was leaving the room, she heard Nick speak.
“Why am I naked?” he asked Brad.
She snorted and hid a smile.
Cam
Cam returned to the island and trudged up to his room.
He hoped to make it to the shower before anyone saw him.
He was covered in gore, he stunk like the dead, and he had two obviously large injuries to his legs. He didn’t want any fussing from anyone, or any lecturing from Jim.
He managed to make it to his room before he was seen. He walked in and was very surprised, and pleased, to see Angie sitting in the armchair in the small sitting area.
“Angie! What are you doing up?” he asked, walking barefoot across the rug.
His boots were in need of cleaning, or burning, and he didn’t want to track infectious zombie sludge into their home.
“I woke up and felt a little better, so I got Jess to help me take a bath and get dressed. She said you would have to take me downstairs though. Apparently, she values her life too much to attempt it,” she joked.
“Cam! What happened to you, your legs are bleeding!” She made as if to rise from the chair.
“No, stay there. I’m fine, just fell while I was running. I need to take a shower and then I’ll take you downstairs. I think supper is about ready.”
He took off toward the bathroom as she looked at him skeptically.
He was glad he had taken the time to strip off his shirt and wipe off some of the blood splatter. He didn’t want to worry her.
He started the shower and stripped off the rest of his clothing.
He stepped into the steaming hot water and sighed. He leaned an arm against the wall and put his head down under the spray. His muscles were still trembling with exhaustion, but the hot water restored some of his energy. He was never so grateful for a hot water heater before.
Eventually, he shut off the water and looked in the mirror.
He looked okay…no chunks of zombie flesh in his beard. No scratches. He looked down at his knees and sighed.
They really needed stitches, but it couldn’t be helped. They didn’t have any suture kits, and he wasn’t about to let Jean come after him with a needle and thread.
He wondered if he couldn’t just duct tape them closed for a few weeks.
He smeared them with antibiotic ointment and wrapped them in bandages for the moment. His pants would cover the injuries. His palms were scraped up, so he disinfected them again, and left them open to the air.
They would heal soon.
He left the bathroom and went to help Angie up.
She stood and he stepped close to her, resting his hands lightly on her hips.
She leaned against his chest and put her arms around him, and he closed his eyes.
Standing here, with Angie in his arms in relative safety, was the best feeling in the world as far as he was concerned.
◆◆◆
They were all sitting down, savoring the meal Jessica had made, when he spoke up.
“I went over and cleared out most of the walkers that were in the parking lot. Well…I put them down, they’re still laying there.”
Angie looked horrified. “Why didn’t you tell me!”
“I didn’t want you to worry. It was no big deal.”
“Is that how you got hurt?” she asked fearfully.
“Yeah, I just fell though, it was nothing. I didn’t get bitten or scratched.”
“I don’t want you to go over there alone again, please?” she asked him softly.
He brought her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles.
“Okay. I won’t,” he promised. He didn’t really want to anyway.
“That area is pretty hazardous now,”— massive understatement— “so when we take a team out, we need to make sure we avoid the sludge pit.”
“Sludge pit?” Jim asked from around Angie.
“Please don’t talk about it at the table!” Jean said, covering her ears.
“You can’t hear anyway, so what’s the problem,” Ed retorted.
She glared at him a minute before resuming her meal.
“What’s the sludge pit?” Jonah asked around a mouthful of bread.
“Just what it sounds like,” Cam answered back.
He brought the conversation back on track. “So, I think we can be ready to move out in a couple of days. That will give us time to choose a route and decide who goes and who stays.”
He looked around the table, assessing each member of the group. Ed needed to stay. He deserved a rest. Jessica and Jonah were staying obviously. Bradley was out.
“Jack, I think it’s up to you and me,” he said finally. “You can drive the rental truck, and I’ll drive the SUV and provide security.
Jack nodded and was about to speak, but Monica interrupted. “I want to go too. I can help pull security and load the truck.”
Cam looked at her sharply, was she serious? Or did she have some kind of ulterior motive?
“I’ll expect you to do as I ask, when I ask. It could mean the difference between life and death out there,” he warned.
She nodded shortly. “I will.”
“Alright then, Monica, you can ride shotgun with Jack,” he decided.
They ate in silence for several moments, Cam considering the logistics of getting into a possibly overrun medical clinic.
There was no question of not getting the medical supplies. They were at the top of the list. The sporting goods store was next, then the rest of their supplies at SuperMart.
“I don’t want you to go,” Angie said suddenly.
He reached over and patted her leg. “But I have to go.”
“But I don’t want you to go,” she insisted.
“Babe, I have no choice. It has to be done, and I will not send a team out there to risk their lives, without being on it. I’ll be fine,” he reassured her.
Jessica got up to clear their pla
tes and bring back the dessert. He watched Jack get up and help her.
Jim leaned into Angie. “I’ll get you a lounger set up outside in a couple of days. That way you won’t be stuck in bed all day.”
Cam thought that was an excellent idea, with one stipulation. “Don’t leave her alone outside, Jim.”
“Of course not! I was going to get one too…work on my tan, maybe polish my toes. Jess can serve us pina coladas and we’ll gossip about all the newest celeb hookups. Is Brangelina still a thing?”
Angie laughed and elbowed Jim in the ribs. “You clown. I’ll hold you to that.”
“Of course you will, babe. Hey, it’s still better than watching Twilight,” he quipped.
“I thought you liked the Twilight series!” she accused. “I saw the smile on your face…and you cried when Bella died!”
“They were tears of joy. I thought that shit would be over, and we could move on to Jason Bourne. I should have known she would come back to drag out my misery through a whole other movie,” he lamented.
Cam rolled his eyes at the exchange. The others watched them argue in amazement.
“That’s enough about Twilight. If I have to hear about that movie anymore, I’m going straight over to the parking lot to roll myself in Z sludge,” Monica said.
“Besides, The Hunger Games movies were a lot better.”
Jim smacked his head on the table, almost faceplanting into his cake.
“I was more of a Divergent fan, myself. Of the books, anyway,” Jess said shyly.
“When are you guys going to grow up?” Ed asked, shaking his head. “Talk about some real movies for a change!”
“Like what, Ed? Bonanza?” Jean said snarkily.
“Bonanza was a T.V. show you old fool. It just happens to be a good one too!” he replied.
Cam had enough.
He stood up and walked over to the corner. He poured a shot of bourbon into a tumbler and took a sip. He didn’t often drink liquor, but he would have one tonight.
He needed to relax and unwind, and he hoped it helped his muscles loosen up a bit too.
“Excellent idea,” he heard behind him.
Jean was holding out a glass to him. She shook it impatiently and he poured her a drink.
Refuge From The Dead | Book 2 | Dead Summer Page 6
