He helped Cam get it looped around a protruding branch. There was only one way they could pull it. There was a steep gully to one side.
Cam jumped in and switched to reverse.
He began dragging the large tree, slowly making headway, until he couldn’t back up anymore. He got out and they looked at the small path he had made around it.
“I don’t know if that will work. Maybe if we really hug the edge we can get by,” Jim said.
Cam looked skeptical. “Well, if you don’t hug it enough, you’ll be dead.”
“Me? Why do I have to go first?” he asked.
“Because you’re the cop,” Cam said.
“That doesn’t even make any sense!” Jim retorted.
“Neither does brother-husbands! Now get going!” Cam said and pointed at the vehicle.
Jim huffed but got going.
Angie and Nick thankfully didn’t see the barest inch of earth he had under his left tires as he passed through the point. Angie would have thrown a fit and probably started crying.
He made it to the other side and got out. “Easy!” he shouted over the tree.
“Angie. On me!” he called out. She came running.
“Climb over that tree. Jim and I will drive your vehicle around it.” Angie looked apprehensively at the drop-off on the side and back to Cam. She ran up and gave him a quick hug and kiss then climbed over the tree.
“I didn’t get a hug and kiss,” Jim said in her ear.
“I’ll see if Nick is willing,” she teased.
“You know what? I think I’ll just take a rain check on that,” he said.
“Your loss. Now hush so I can worry,” she said, putting her finger over his lips.
He opened his mouth and bit her finger.
“Ow!” she yelped and punched his arm.
He distracted her though, and that is what he set out to do. Cam had made it around.
The next nerve-wracking ten minutes went by very slowly. Jim was pretty sure his entire life flashed before his eyes at least twice.
Finally, they were all around, and everyone went back to their own vehicles.
He tapped the wheel as he drove. He smelled the terrible stench of the extremely dead, extremely putrid, rotting corpses at the entrance to their parking lot.
“Ahhhh, home sweet home,” he said, eyes watering.
They really needed to burn this shit or something. It was literally vomit-inducing. He paused mid-gag when he saw Cam jump out of his Humvee and put his hands on his head, staring over at the island.
“What?! What is it?!” he called, sprinting over to Cam.
Hadn’t they been through enough shit already, did they really need more piled on?
“Tornado damage, looks like,” Cam said, pointing at the lodge in the distance.
It was hard to make out just how bad it was, but they could tell something was wrong with the roof.
“Nick! Bring the binocs!” Jim yelled.
Angie and Nick ran over from their security patrol. She ran to Jim, who pulled her close.
“Do you see anyone?” she asked Cam, a hand on his shoulder.
He peered through the binoculars a few moments longer. “No movement. The boats are destroyed too.”
They looked over at the pontoon boat they had brought over. They all hurried to it, hoping it wasn’t damaged. It would be another long night away from their friends if they didn’t have a boat. It would be getting dark soon too.
Jim walked around the boat. It was exactly as they had left it. There didn’t seem to be any damage. He hoped nothing made itself known while they were in the middle of the damned lake.
“Let’s get the equipment loaded up and hurry over there,” he said.
“I hope everyone is okay,” Nick said anxiously.
They loaded everything up onto the boat. Miraculously, it all fit. Even with all the ammo. The boat rode low in the water, but as long as they went slow it should be fine.
Should be…
◆◆◆
It seemed to take a stupidly large amount of time to travel the short distance across.
Everyone was anxious. Nick kept his eyes glued to the shoreline with the binoculars, but he still couldn’t see anyone around.
“You think they made it to the basement?” Angie asked, nervously chewing her fingernail.
“I’m sure they did. Whoever was on watch would have woken the others,” Cam said.
Jim wasn’t particularly reassured by this.
They weren’t exactly battle-tested troops, just a few civilians who had been drafted into Cam’s army. They didn’t really scream discipline to him.
Cam throttled back the engine, slowing as they came upon the wreckage of part of the dock and the other boats.
“Yeah, they’re destroyed,” Nick said.
Angie jumped down and ran off to look for the others, leaving him and Cam to tie down the boat.
“Leave the gear. It’s not going anywhere. We need to find the other team,” Cam said.
The three men walked toward the lodge— their home— and were saddened by the complete destruction they saw. It was entirely unlivable. They weren’t even sure the basement could have survived such devastation.
The walked grimly around the back, expecting to have to start digging people out, and they weren’t looking forward to it.
“Cam! Jim! Come here!” Angie yelled and his heart stuttered in his chest.
They took off running around the corner, then stopped short.
“Man, it is good to see you guys,” Jack said, walking forward.
He reached over and gave Cam a one-armed hug, then Nick, then Jim.
“Since when are you all touchy-feely,” Jim said, patting him on the back.
“I’m not touchy-feely. It must be the head wound,” Jack said lightly.
“What happened to your head?” Cam asked him.
Jim moved closer and looked under the bandage gently. He hissed at the cut. “Damn, that must have hurt.”
“I got hit by a house. Of course it hurt,” he joked.
“Brad stitched it up while I was knocked out, so I didn’t feel it. Got a hell of a headache though,” he said.
Cam shook his head and gestured around him. “It’s all gone?” he asked.
“Yeah. We still have all the supplies though, but we’ve got to get them out fast before it falls in. It’s been sounding pretty close to collapsing all day.”
Jessica walked up and gave them each a hug, then put her arm around Jack’s waist. “We’ve been getting as many supplies out as we can, but Jack won’t let anyone in but him and Bradley, so it’s slow work.”
She looked up at Jack, and Jim could see the love in her eyes. He felt a twinge of jealousy for what they had. He looked around.
“Nobody else hurt?” he asked.
“Jean got knocked on the head too, but everyone else is fine. Brad took charge and got most of this accomplished while I was out,” Jack said.
They all walked over to the tents, Jessica explaining the sleeping arrangements. “I’ve got you guys over here. I thought you three could maybe share. We don’t have any mattresses out here yet though, just blankets.”
“I’m so tired it doesn’t even matter. I will miss not having a bath though,” Cam said, then gave Angie a smoldering look, “…and a hot p…”
“Cam!” Angie interrupted.
He gave her an innocent look. “What?! What did I do?”
“There are people present,” she hissed under her breath.
“I was going to say that I was going to miss a hot plate of food!” he said, raising his eyebrows to help his case.
“Yeah, right,” she said.
“Where is your mind at woman? And can I go there too?” Jim asked, giving her a wicked look.
She closed her eyes and snorted in laughter. He loved exasperating her. Hell, he loved doing everything for her, period.
A little too much there, Mojo.
He was acting whipped.
Where the fuck had he left his balls?
Angie
They had just finished eating when Angie stood and stretched. “I’m going to go wash in the lake. I can’t stand being dirty for another minute.”
She left the shelter where they had set up a table for eating, and she heard Jim and Cam rise too.
“Yeah, we’re going too. We’ll see you guys in the morning, okay?” she heard Jim say.
“You aren’t going,” Cam said.
“Please?” Jim asked.
“No.”
“You don’t like me anymore,” Jim complained.
She was amused.
She was glad they had unloaded everything from the boat earlier and gotten a lot of the stuff from the basement. They had found a few smaller tents and let Jonah set them up. That is where they stored their supplies. They were lucky they took most of their gear with them, they hadn’t left much behind in their ruined suite.
Angie grabbed a couple of towels, some soap, shampoo, conditioner, and a razor. Cam picked up the stack of clothing she was going for next and tucked it under his arm, then grabbed a bottle of whiskey, a blanket, and some lights. Apparently, he had plans and she was looking forward to it.
She shivered at the possibilities.
They reached the shore on the opposite side of the island. The grassy bank merged gently into a sandy slope leading to the lake. The water was perfect this time of year, not too warm and not cold. Too bad it was lake water and not a shower.
It was better than nothing.
She unbraided her hair and it rippled down her back, wavy from the braid. She stripped off her shirt and pants and stood only in her bra and underwear, staring out at the horizon. The sun was going down. The brilliant orange and pink light bathed their little cove with warmth. She felt Cam move next to her. He put his arms around her.
He had stripped and was looking at her with such ferocity, and longing.
Angie brought her hands up and caressed his face, dragging her hands down slowly to cup his strong jaw. Cam’s beard was rough, and she enjoyed his ruggedness. She pulled him closer. She was going to enjoy this moment to the fullest. It was rare, and precious to her.
Cam’s dark blue eyes and gently lined face stared into hers, so seriously. His long hair gently brushed his shoulders and gleamed in the sun. He wouldn’t hold back much longer, she knew. She was awestruck by his absolute male perfection. He was hard, and strong, and scarred. He was rough and dangerous and safe.
She loved him absolutely.
She brought her face closer to his and him. She felt Cam’s patience wearing thin. She knew he wanted to thrust, and pound, and bite, and make love to her, roughly and wonderfully. He enjoyed the control over her, and she loved allowing it. He had given her the power of their relationship, and she cherished it. His hand tightened on her hip, squeezing almost painfully tight.
“Follow me,” Cam commanded.
She got goosebumps just from the tone of his voice, and heat flooded her body. She followed him into the water.
Cam reached forward and ran his large, rough hands through her hair, cupping both sides of her face. His eyes blazed into hers and he lowered his lips. An instant spark at the first touch of his lips, igniting chaos. He plundered her mouth, his tongue tangling fiercely with hers. She moaned as he dragged his rough hands down her neck. His calloused fingers grating gently along her collarbone. He jerked her to his chest, and they sank down into the water.
Waves of mindless pleasure overtook them as they moved together. They took their time, finding satisfaction just being together and alive when so many hadn’t made it.
◆◆◆
Cam reached down with his hand and cupped her cheek.
“You’re so fucking perfect for me. I love you,” he said gruffly.
She knew he was uncomfortable saying so, and she treasured his words. They meant a great deal.
She kissed his hand. “I love you too.”
They laid together on the blanket. They watched the stars for a while before getting up to bathe in the lake. They washed each other and swam, enjoying the pause in the endless terror and hardship.
It was a perfect evening.
Chapter Seventeen
Trial by Fire
Jessica
Jessica woke up early.
She felt the hard ground underneath her and felt the heat of Jack against her back. She lay there quietly for a while, just enjoying this time of peace. They had a lot of work to do today, and she knew there wouldn’t be much time to relax.
Jack’s breathing changed and he trailed his hand along her side.
She pulled the sheet up over her shoulder and pushed herself back against him.
It would be a long time before she would be getting breakfast started.
◆◆◆
The men finished clearing out the basement before lunch. Then they started digging through the rubble of the lodge, attempting to find personal belongings.
They discovered that although the roof had collapsed onto the upper floor, the suites and guestrooms were still somewhat accessible. Enough to get their things anyway. There was no way was it habitable.
The downstairs was a different story.
A support beam had fallen between the kitchen and dining room causing the basement stairway to cave in. Everything on that level was in danger of being crushed by the unstable upper floor.
By the time supper rolled around, Jessica had managed to set up a fairly decent outdoor kitchen. It was still much more difficult than cooking inside though, and her menu options suffered. She was thankful the grill wasn’t damaged too. She could do a lot with that.
She served grilled chicken that night. They had a large supply that needed to be used up from the freezer.
She passed out the chicken, encouraging everyone to take as much as they could possibly eat. They enjoyed the food and almost everyone came back for more. She was happy about that. She hated having it go to waste.
“We found that one of the cabins wasn’t damaged as badly as we thought,” Jack said to the women after supper.
They were sitting around the fire, sipping drinks. Jessica had a glass of Cabernet and found that she really enjoyed the taste. It was different. Smoky. She had never really been a big wine drinker, but she thought she could really enjoy this one.
“Which one?” Angie asked him.
“The one furthest away. It has some roof damage, but we can fix that pretty easily. Then we could all share it, or keep our supplies in there,” he said.
Jessica saw Angie glance over at Cam and give a little grin. Jessica blushed a little. She wouldn’t want to share a space with a bunch of people either. She enjoyed her time alone with Jack too much.
“But the best part is that the bathroom is still completely functional,” he added.
Jess did a little happy dance. She hated using the bathroom outside!
“Oh! Thank goodness! Squatting out in the bushes is hard on my old knees! Never mind watching out for all that poison ivy!” Jean interjected.
Everyone chuckled. Jean was just being Jean again.
“Jim and I have been talking,” Cam started.
He looked at Jim, who gave him a nod to continue.
“We need to start transferring some supplies out to our new secondary location soon. I don’t like having all our eggs in one basket here.”
“How are we going to do that? We only have one boat left,” Monica said.
“There’s a marina a little way down the lake. Shouldn’t be too hard to find a couple more boats there,” Jack said.
“I know which one you mean,” Jim said nodding.
“Well, when are we going?” Angie asked them.
“We aren’t going anywhere. You are going to sit this one out. I think Nick, Jack, and Bradley should come along this time. Jim, will you stay here?” Cam asked him.
“I guess,” he answered. He didn’t seem to care one way or another.
“Good,
we’ll leave tomorrow. Should only take a couple of hours,” Cam said.
Jessica had heard that before.
◆◆◆
Later that night, after Jack had physically exhausted her, she nestled into his arms. Sweat was still drying on their skin, and she was sure that mosquitoes had gotten in somehow, but she was happy.
She still couldn’t believe Jack was hers.
“What are you thinking about?” she asked him.
He traced circles on the skin of her shoulder. “Thinking about everything we have to get done before fall comes.”
“What do you mean?” she said.
“Well, we can’t stay here in cold weather. We have no shelter, and no real means of building anything permanent. Cam was talking about that cabin Ed had mentioned. He marked it on the map. He said we’ll be moving there at the end of summer.”
“What?! I thought you guys could fix this place up. At least enough for us to stay here. This place is safe. It’s not safe out there!” she said, sitting up on her elbows.
“Babe, there is no way we can stay here this winter. There wouldn’t be enough time. It will start getting cold in a couple of months, and we can’t possibly get a house suitable for extreme cold weather built that quickly. Even if we knew exactly how, we still have too much to do. We have to secure our secondary location and stock it with supplies.”
She sat up fully and put on her t-shirt and panties. “You sound just like Cam,” she said, irritated.
Jack sat up as well and reached for his clothing. “Look, I know you don’t want to go, okay? I know that. You don’t have a choice. None of us do. We can’t stay here alone. I won’t separate Jonah from a strong group, and a better winter shelter just because you are scared. I can’t!” Jack exclaimed.
Jess sighed. She knew he was doing what he thought was best. The truth was…she was scared.
She was terrified of those things. She almost felt paralyzed every time she had been near them. She hated it.
Now that fear was turning her into a shrew and a nag.
“I’m sorry, Jack,” she offered.
He scooted closer and pulled her into his arms.
Refuge From The Dead | Book 2 | Dead Summer Page 21
