However, this time something changed.
Suddenly, Jim did an exaggerated left-face movement, raising and stomping his feet on the packed dirt. He paused a moment and their eyes widened in anticipation.
What was he doing?
He then executed what was probably the snappiest British army salute, ever performed by an American.
He did a right-face, stomping his feet— perhaps even higher and harder than before— and continued following Cam with his arms swinging to and fro in wide arcs.
Cam missed the whole thing.
Everyone broke out into hysterical laughter, and Cam looked around, puzzled.
He turned to Jim and narrowed his eyes. “What did you do?” he asked.
“I don’t know what you mean,” he said seriously.
Nick snickered, though kept a mostly straight face.
Cam sighed, disgusted with his lieutenant colonel.
“Everyone gather ‘round. I’ve got an announcement,” Cam said.
Angie moved to stand next to Jim, looping her arm through his in a friendly gesture. He was the more affectionate of the two men, and she knew he would appreciate the contact.
They’d managed to develop an easier friendship, and she felt that his feelings for her were mellowing. He still flirted with her, but she knew he just did it to rile Cam.
He squeezed her hand as Cam began his announcement.
“Ed spoke with Jim and me this morning. He told us that he’s leaving. He wants to go alone to his home and get some things.” Cam stopped and let the others react.
Angie was shocked and saddened.
Why would Ed want to leave? And to go alone?
“Ed, what do you mean you are going home? You can’t go out there without taking some people with you! It’s not safe!” Jessica said, obviously upset.
Jack moved closer to her and put a hand on her arm. She wiped her eyes and stepped back.
“Ed, please stay here, or at least take someone with you! I don’t understand why you want to go alone,” Angie said before anyone else could comment.
Brad and Nick were looking at each other, open-mouthed.
Nick had never really gone back to normal. His eyes were still semi-frightening, like a cross between his regular eyes and zombie eyes. It took some getting used to.
He had to wear sunglasses on really bright days. He said the sun was extremely painful. He also had some new tastes in food, which bordered on disgusting. Angie didn’t want to think about that now, and she turned back to Ed.
“Listen. You folks are like my family. Shoot, you are my family…the only people I have left in the world, that I know of. But something has changed in me. Ever since Peg…well, I just don’t feel right inside, not like I used to. Even after Brenda passed, I never felt like this,” Ed started.
Angie bit her lip as he went on. She could feel tears welling up and she willed them back down. Jessica and Bradley had less success.
“So, I need to go off alone for a while, just a little while. I need to find my purpose in life again, what is left of it anyway. I want to go back to my home and get some of my things. I miss having them around me.”
When Ed was finished, Cam slapped him on the back and moved forward.
Angie was upset that nobody had realized that Ed was feeling that way. After Peggy died, they had constantly been on guard, making sure he didn’t do anything impulsive or reckless.
He didn’t.
He was sad, of course, and depressed. They had thought he was getting better, not planning to leave.
“I told Ed that we would get him a car ready to take and help him get loaded up. I also have another mission that I want to talk to everyone about. Jim?” he said.
Jim walked up and spoke. “I’ve made up a list of two teams. One team will remain here to protect our island. The other team will go and prep Ed’s car over in the lot across the water. They will then proceed on the mission that we have planned.”
They all waited in silence. Nobody had left the island since Peggy died a few weeks ago. Angie knew they had come a long way since then, but she didn’t think they were ready to be going on any missions. She held her silence and waited to see what they said.
“The first team, the one staying behind includes: Jonah, Jean, Jessica, Jack, Monica, and Bradley. The second team includes: me, Angie, Nick, Ed, and Colonel Breckenridge,” he said with a smirk following Cam’s name.
“Onto the mission. We will be hitting a small National Guard Armory nearby. If it hasn’t been cleaned out, there should be vehicles, gear, and weapons available there. We’ll need to be cautious, as places like that are likely targets. If there is any indication that it isn’t safe, we will abort the mission.”
“The hardest part of this mission will be getting into the vault where the weapons and ammo are stored. This armory uses a portable modular-type vault that houses many different weapons systems. We’ll take what we can load up quickly, then relock it and keep the keys. Perhaps one day we can go back and get the rest,” Cam finished for him.
He waited a minute and looked around. “Any questions?”
Everyone started talking at once.
“Whoa! One at a time. Bradley, you first.”
“Can you get some better radios there too?” he wanted to know.
“Absolutely, that’s a good idea and I had already planned on it.”
Angie had a question. She had several, but she would start with the most important.
“Can we get a tank?” she said, and several people laughed.
She was serious.
“No, they don’t have tanks there or the rounds for them. They don’t have choppers either, Nick,” Cam said, and Nick groaned in disappointment and put his hand down.
“So, what vehicles are we going to get?” she asked.
“We’re going to get Humvees for now. I’m hoping to get four. One for each of us,” Cam answered.
“I don’t know how to drive one of those,” Nick said tentatively. Angie didn’t either.
“It’s easy. Pretty much like a regular vehicle. It starts up a little differently,” he said.
Jim looked over at Cam for a minute and she saw his eyes light up. “So, we can mount up some weapons?”
“Yep, if we can find the mounting hardware in time. Remember, we won’t have all day there. I don’t want a repeat of the sporting goods store fiasco,” Cam said.
They spent the rest of the day prepping their gear, the men speaking excitedly about possible machine guns in their future.
She was more concerned about Ed and his situation. An old man like him would be easy to take down, by the living or the dead.
Jessica
Jessica had just finished the day’s training and was exhausted. She wasn’t as good at the physical things. She wasn’t very strong, she was a slow runner, and her aim just wasn’t good.
She mentioned this to Jack, who only said that she would get better with practice.
Mmmmhmmm, sure.
She wished she could be a little more like Angie. Angie wasn’t scared of the big guns, she was fast, and she was getting better in such a short amount of time.
Honestly, she would rather spend her time cooking and taking care of the lodge and other domestic chores. The laundry was never ending, but she didn’t mind helping the others out when they had more important things to do.
“Hey, what are you thinking about?” Jack asked, coming into the kitchen and grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge.
“Just that I’d rather be in here doing this than out there doing that,” she said, gesturing to where Cam was giving Angie some pointers on moving while firing the AR-15.
“That’s harder than it looks,” she added.
Jack set the bottle down and came up, putting his hands on her shoulders. “You’ll get it, it just takes time. Look how much you’ve already learned in the last couple of weeks!”
She supposed she was judging herself too harshly. She had learned a lot so
far. She would just have to try harder on the physical stuff. If Jean wasn’t complaining, then she wouldn’t either.
Speaking of Jean…
“Where is Jean anyway? Last I saw she was trying to get Jim to get her some S.W.A.T. gear, though I have no clue why,” she asked Jack.
“I heard her muttering to herself about machine guns a little while ago. I think she was looking for Cam.”
“She’s playing Jim and Cam off each other again?”
“Oh absolutely. She’s got them figured out,” Jack said, looking down at her mouth.
He moved closer, bent his head kissed her, causing her to forget everything else.
It was magical, how time seemed to stand still when they were together. Her heart pounded in her chest, her body tingled…God, she was so fascinated with him, and not just…that way. She wanted to know everything about him.
They hadn’t had sex yet, not that she didn’t want to, there just hadn’t been a good time. They were so busy during the days, and then there was Jonah. They just hadn’t gotten there yet.
She was also a little nervous.
She didn’t know how to tell him that she wasn’t exactly…experienced. It wasn’t really a common thing for a twenty-one-year-old woman these days. Before the whole apocalypse thing happened, she had been waiting for marriage.
Now, she was waiting for Jack.
A marriage certificate just didn’t seem that important anymore. Besides, she loved Jack and she thought he may have feelings for her. They hadn’t exactly said the L-word yet, it was too soon.
“I’ve got to get supper started now,” she whispered against his lips, though she hated to stop him.
“Mmm, what are you making?” he whispered back.
“Enchiladas,” she said. “I’ve got to go downstairs and get a few things, want to help?”
“Hell yeah. I love the basement, when you’re in it.”
She smiled at his comment and turned to the basement door. The went down the steps and opened the door to the bottom. She flipped the switch and turned on the overhead lights.
“Uh uh,” he said, flipping them back off.
She stood in the complete darkness for a moment. Soon, she heard him push a button and a dim glow appeared from a small lantern.
She smiled.
“Remember our first trip down here?” he said, moving closer to her.
“Of course,” she said and leaned up, grabbing his shoulders. “I wanted you so much,” she confided in his ear.
She blushed, embarrassed by her words and forwardness, even if it was true. Talking openly about sex was hard for her. She didn’t know how people got so comfortable with it.
He growled, a deep rumble in his chest. His voice lowered in desire and excitement, “Is that right?”
“I didn’t want you to stop,” she said truthfully.
“You have no idea what I wanted to do to you. I was so close,” he said.
He pulled her close, kissing her mouth. She opened and let him in. Their tongues tangled in passion and Jess felt her body throb with desire. She slid her hands down, and pulled up his t-shirt, exposing his abs and chest.
He squeezed her hips firmly, groaning with need. He took one of her hands and slid it down further.
“I’m about five seconds away from taking you right here on the floor, Jess,” he warned.
She considered it, but she didn’t want to lose her virginity on the basement floor. Perhaps they could come here another time and have some fun.
Then, she had another idea.
She kneeled on the floor and his eyes widened.
◆◆◆
Later, they heard the door at the top of the stairs open.
Jack straightened their clothing, and she fixed her hair. Smoothing it where he had messed it up. It was hard to fix curls though, and she was afraid whoever it was would know exactly what had gone on down here.
“I’m coming to your room tonight, be ready for me,” he whispered.
She nodded, still in a haze of lust and longing. She wanted it now, she didn’t want to wait until later!
They separated a little and started scanning the shelves for the ingredients for tonight’s supper. The overhead lights switched on and Nick came down the stairs.
“Oh! Hey. I didn’t know anyone was down here,” he said, looking from Jack to Jessica and back again.
Jessica blushed and looked back at the shelves.
Kill me now. Could he tell?
Jack cleared his throat and spoke. “We were just trying to find the stuff for supper,” he said.
Nick raised an eyebrow. “Wouldn’t it be easier with the light on?”
Crap. This was so awkward!
“Habit, man. I forgot all about the lights down here,” Jack said.
Nick made no comment, just nodded once and went over to the household supplies. He picked up a couple of boxes of soap and passed back by on his way up the stairs.
“By the way, your pants are unzipped,” Nick said from the stairway.
As soon as she heard the door shut, Jess busted out laughing. “You forgot about the lights?! We’ve been using them for weeks now!” she exclaimed.
Jack turned a little red in the face and chuckled. “What else should I have said?”
“I don’t know. Come on, help me get this stuff upstairs,” she said.
Chapter Thirteen
Love in the time of the Zombie Plague
Cam
Cam sat at the head of the table that evening, as had become his custom.
Angie, to his left, was leaning around Jim to talk to Jessica. Everyone else had their own conversations going. It was a comfortable feeling, being with them all here and having a normal dinner together.
It was still a little surreal that the outside world was falling apart, or had already fallen, and they were relatively unscathed.
They lived in comfort and safety here. How many others out there could say that?
Something was bothering him though. It was the lack of news from the outside. They were so isolated here that it was easy to forget that they knew nothing of what was going on across the water on the mainland.
They could be cleaning all this shit up by now and we wouldn’t know it.
One day the Guard could roll in over there and find out they had taken over this island. They would be forced out and put in some camp somewhere probably. He and maybe Jim could be forced back into service. Their weapons and supplies would be confiscated…it wouldn’t be good.
They would need to be careful on this next mission.
They would use the backroads to get to the armory. He knew that place well, having done some time there. He thought he knew pretty well where he could get a set of keys to the weapons vault and lockers.
The supply room would be easy. They could finally get some good gear, and some military grade weapons. The challenge would be getting everything they wanted quickly, and then getting the hell out of there.
“So, Cam, are you guys leaving out at dawn in the morning?” Jessica asked him.
“Yes, that would be best. I’m not sure how long we’ll be gone. Most likely two days…maybe three.”
“I wonder what it’s like out there now,” Angie wondered.
“No telling. Hope for the best, prepare for the worst,” Jack said.
“I think this will a good training run for you and Nick. It’ll give you guys a little experience and a way to practice your new skills. Remember though, it doesn’t mean that it will be easy. Going out there will always be dangerous,” Cam said to Angie.
“Gangs will be forming up soon if they haven’t already. We’ll really need to keep an eye out for that,” Jim warned.
“We will,” Cam said. “Pretty soon the gangs are going to need to watch out for us,” he added, narrowing his eyes. He would make sure of it.
“Ed, you’re pretty quiet this evening. Are you changing your mind about leaving us tomorrow?” Jim asked hopefully.
Cam sat b
ack in his chair and took a sip of bourbon. He knew Ed wouldn’t be changing his mind. That man was on a personal mission. He recognized it.
“’Fraid not. Just trying to take it all in is all. I’m going to miss you folks, at least until I get back,” he said with a small chuckle.
Everyone laughed.
Cam got up and went to the library. He wanted to double check his list and notes for tomorrow. He was treating this like any other mission from his past, and that meant going over it again and again, contingencies upon contingencies. They wouldn’t have too many backup options, but he had a few ideas in place should he need them.
He was hoping to get enough Humvees to be able to mount at least a .50 cal on one and an MK19 on another. They would both be useful against the living and the dead.
He would have to train the teams on their use. He wrote down the mounting hardware and the other weapons and gear he hoped to find.
“Hey Sweetie, whatcha doing?” Angie asked him, coming to sit next to him.
“Making lists, checking them twice,” he said tiredly.
“Gonna find out if I’m naughty or nice?” she asked with a saucy grin.
“I already know the answer to that one, babe, and I’ll show you just how naughty you are soon,” he promised.
He would too, he was looking forward to it. She hadn’t seen anything yet.
Jim strolled into the room. “Did I hear someone say naughty? I’m naughty.”
Cam sighed and put a hand over his face. “I don’t particularly want to hear that, you know.”
“We share a home, Cam. We’re pretty much life partners right now,” Jim said with a straight face.
“I’m not having this talk with you!” he said and got up, he needed a refill now.
“Face the facts Cam, you’re stuck with me. You better treat me right too, or I’ll leave your ass. Then where would you be?” Jim joked.
Cam walked out, flipping him the bird on the way.
He heard Angie and Jim giggling as he left. How he got stuck with some Keystone cop living on the fringes of his relationship with Angie, he’ll never know.
Refuge From The Dead | Book 2 | Dead Summer Page 15
