Love at the End of the World

by Christiana Miller

McKaye rushed forward, tripping, falling, then crawling toward her friends. Belle tried to talk, but blood dribbled from the corner of her mouth as it moved in silent pleading.

  Tears filled McKaye’s eyes as she looked to Melody for an answer.

  Stricken, Melody rocked Belle in her arms like a child. “I don’t know. He just kept saying the baby would be a monster. He attacked. I couldn’t stop him. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry.”

  Belle quieted. McKaye tasted bile. For a long time, Melody rocked the dead woman. Unvoiced fear kept them from trying to save the baby.

  That was the moment McKaye truly lost faith in people. Once she lost Melody she promised herself she’d never join another group of people, but here she was.

  * * * *

  Reece opened his eyes. For a moment, he struggled to remember where he was. McKaye. The wonderful night came flooding back to him, and his cock grew hard. The smell of sex lingered in the room. He lay there, surrounded by gray dawn light filtering in through the lace curtains on the window, and remembered how she’d felt under him.

  He could see snow on the windowsill. For now, he’d be able to keep her. He just had to figure out how to make her want to stay. In the old world, he would have taken her out for dinner and sent flowers to her at work.

  He wished she was still in bed. Getting up, he groaned; his back ached. The pain reminded him he wasn’t a young man.

  “What the hell am I thinking?” he grumbled to himself as he stood up, pulling on his pants.

  Leaving the room, shirtless, Reece stretched. McKaye sat knitting on the couch. She looked content. Beautiful. Waking up to her was something he wanted to repeat. If she looked this good on his sister’s couch, he really wanted to see her on his.

  His cabin was nice, but never felt like home. Would a woman change that? He pushed the question away. First, he had to figure out how to get her on his couch and his alone.

  Before the end began he’d never considered getting married. After, he’d regretted dismissing the importance of pair bonding. Now, he realized his soul had never recognized his other half until he’d found McKaye.

  Humbled, he stood for a long time watching her from the bedroom doorway. Her small hands moved with practiced movements as she slid the yarn over the needles. The vision of home and hearth before him made his throat tighten.

  McKaye looked up. Smiled. Then went back to work.

  He cleared his throat. “Morning.”

  “Good morning. I—I didn’t want to presume you’re a breakfast person, but are you hungry?”

  “Isn’t every man a breakfast person when a beautiful woman is cooking the meal?”

  Pink tinged the crest of her cheekbones prettily. She rolled her eyes, but he could still see she was pleased with the compliment as she put down her project and stood up.

  “Anne brought over some fresh eggs yesterday. The chickens are laying well.”

  He followed her into the kitchen. She bent over to fish the frying pan out of a cupboard, and he took the time to admire her ass. She straightened. Putting the pan on the propane burner, she wrinkled her nose as the fuel smell emanated for a moment before the gas caught flame. Heat began melting butter in the pan.

  She paused, turning to him. “Nella mentioned the way you like your eggs cooked.”

  He shrugged, leaning against the wall. “I’d eat whatever you make.” Watching her move was waking another appetite, and he wanted to drag her back to bed.

  “Do you like toast?”

  “Sure.”

  She unfolded a folding camp stove toaster, placing it on the other propane burner, before putting four pieces of thickly sliced homemade bread over the heat.

  Her hair had grown a bit longer since she’d been there. He watched the way a long, blonde strand curled over her neck. The urge to kiss her there made him restless. He wanted to hold her, but there was too much risk that he might make the wrong move. She was like some wild thing in the woods he needed to tame. He had to show her she was safe with him.

  “Could you grab the jelly? It’s outside.”

  He opened the door. A brisk wind hit his bare skin as he reached inside the blue chest cooler by the door and grabbed what she’d requested. Once he’d shut out the winter chill again, he set the jar by the fireplace.

  “I think our January thaw is over, the jelly froze.”

  She sighed. “I hate this time of year. Maybe I’ll make my way down south. I thought about it a few years ago, but then I heard the sicks migrated down there, like birds, and I stayed up here. At least in the winter there aren’t as many of them wandering around. I’ll take the cold over the alternative any day. But a warm winter does sound good.”

  Her words sliced through his heart. “Why not just stay?”

  Her back straightened. She didn’t turn to look at him. “I’ve tried to explain the danger of a group like you have here. I understand why you feel growing a community is good for survival, but I feel the opposite way. Anyone still out there has probably done some terrible things. Desperation changes people. Think about it.” She flipped the eggs, salting then peppering the cooked side lightly.

  “You were still out there.”

  “Yes, and I’ve been in groups that didn’t last because they let the wrong people stay.”

  “Is this about James? What did he do?”

  “No. And yes. I don’t know. You’re a good man. Nothing good can survive in this world.” She used tongs to flip the half-toasted bread.

  “I won’t let anyone hurt you. What has James done?”

  “He cornered me in the canteen and tried to kiss me. It was really uncomfortable.”

  Reece went cold, and then hot. His hand balled into a fist as his vision narrowed to pinpoints. Anger coiled like a snake in the pit of his stomach. “I’ll kill him.”

  “No.” She turned back, flipping both burners of the camping stove off and settling the hot pan over a trivet waiting on the counter. “That’s exactly how trouble starts. And you’ll let more people in. The next James might not show his true colors until it’s too late. Don’t kill him, but make an example out of him. You’re too altruistic. Something will snap, and you’ll be the one who suffers for it. I won’t stay and watch you die.”

  “Is that why you plan to go?”

  “Yes.” Her voice cracked. “I won’t lose someone else I love.”

  “You love me?”

  “Of course. Didn’t last night show you that?”

  “Damn it.” He moved to her, pulling her close with his one arm. “I love you. The thought of you leaving, especially alone, is driving me crazy.”

  “The thought of losing you is driving me crazy.”

  He kissed the top of her head. “But if you leave, we lose each other.”

  A loud banging on the door made them jump. Reece swore under his breath as he let her go. He went into the bedroom and grabbed his shirt before opening the door. McKaye had plated their breakfast and was buttering the toast when Garret came in.

  “We got a problem,” Garret said without preamble.

  “Yeah?”

  Garret nodded casually to McKaye before he grabbed a piece of toast off a plate. “Yeah.”

  Annoyed, Reece extended his hand and shook it in the air. “Okay? Spill it.”

  “James. He hurt Tanya, bad, real bad. He’s got a couple of guys hold up with him in Jared’s cabin. They’re saying no one can do anything about it.”

  “Why the hell would anyone be taking his side?” Breakfast ignored, Reece started to pull on his boots.

  “Well, they’re saying since there’s no real government, there’s no real law. They said they’re making a stand about this because it’s time to decide how this place really works. My wife is scared.”

  “Tell her it’ll be okay. When did all this happen?”

  “Last night. No one knew you were here. Sorry.” Garret flushed and glanced at McKaye. “Um, well, it’s not a big deal you’re together—here, we’re just surprised.”

&nb
sp; “That’s not important. What is important is that James and his cronies aren’t taking over our home.”

  “They got the guns.”

  “All of them?” Reece grabbed his coat off the back of the couch.

  “Most of them.”

  “Shit!”

  “Yeah.” Garret’s glum look would have been comical under other circumstances.

  Reece exchanged a nervous glance with McKaye. He gave her credit for not wearing an ‘I told you so’ look on her face, but he didn’t like to see how pale she’d grown. Her big, blue eyes appeared huge, and the innocent quality of her small face tugged at his heart. He cared about all his people, but suddenly the stakes to keep them safe had leveled up.

  He nodded to her. “It’ll be okay.” Then he turned to Garret. “You tell that to your wife too. Then get whatever weapons you have and meet at the canteen.”

  “The others are already there. We’ve been waiting for you.”

  The weight of the responsibility settled in his chest. He nodded, then look back at McKaye. “Stay here, and lock the door. Do you know how to use a gun?”

  “Yes.”

  “There’s one in the top drawer of Nella’s dresser. If anyone tries to get in here, anyone you don’t trust, shoot ’em.”

  If it was possible, her eyes grew wider. Her small, mauve lips formed an ‘O’. He couldn’t look back. If he saw her, he wouldn’t be able to leave her and do what he had to do.

  The snick of the lock gliding into place behind them was a comfort as he and Garret walked over the frozen ground. Spots of brown grass showed through where the warmer days had melted some of the snow.

  When they reached the canteen Reece went straight to the cot where Tanya lay. Her eyes were closed, and both of them were bruised and swollen. Her lips were split, and there was a goose egg at her temple that caused his stomach to clench in worry. He touched her shoulder gently, and she flung out her arm, yowling with terror. Her eyes weren’t able to open more than slits.

  “Shh, it’s just me. I’m going to see he pays for this. I’m so sorry.”

  She made a little grumbling sound that was half a sob before falling back to sleep.

  More determined than ever, Reece wasn’t letting James leave in one piece. A man who could do this to a woman shouldn’t be free in a world where there was nothing to stop him from terrorizing every female he ran across.

  Reece started a mental tally of who was on his side. “Where are Nella and Max?”

  “You just came from there,” Sabine said. “Her house, probably. Where else would she be?”

  “I saw them leaving earlier. They were headed out to the fences. Max said something about security when I talked to him at supper last night. He was worried about the January thaw bringing a herd of contaminated this way.” Peter handed Reece a loaded gun. “He didn’t take a weapon. We can’t spare any, so if we send someone out there to warn them, we send them unarmed.”

  “I’ll go,” Sabine volunteered.

  “You’re too good of a shot.” Peter handed her a gun. “What about McKaye?”

  “No!” Reece felt his face heat, but he didn’t care. “She stays at Nella’s.”

  Peter grumbled under his breath but didn’t argue further. They didn’t have enough guns to go around, but he finished handing out what they had.

  “I’ll go,” Bob Wood offered. He was old, probably the oldest man left alive these days, and his eyesight was failing. “I’m fit enough to make it out there, but I’m shit with a gun.”

  Reece clapped him on the back. “Thanks.”

  “I’m going out the back. I’ll take one of the walkies, and if I see any more of them out there, or anything suspicious, I’ll radio back. I just hope I see it in time.”

  “I’ll go with him,” Brandy, Garret’s teenaged daughter, said.

  “No—” Garret began to protest.

  “Dad. I’m seventeen. Let me do this. If those jerks take this place over, I’m going to end up just like Tanya.” Her eyes watered. The girls were best friends.

  He backed down, nodding, but pinned Bob with an intense look.

  Bob held up his hand. “Brandy here is like my own granddaughter. I’ll protect her with my life.” The girl had been reading to Bob every night since his sight grew worse. Reece didn’t doubt the man’s statement.

  “We’ll surround Jared’s cabin. Who’s all in there?” Reece asked.

  “Jared, James, and Zane are holed up there. Zane’s girlfriend might be in there too, we aren’t sure.”

  They’d taken in Zane and Jill, his shy girlfriend, just before Christmas. It had been a mistake. He and James fed into each other’s poison. He hadn’t realized Jared agreed with them.

  “I’m going to try to negotiate, but if they shoot, shoot back on my signal.”

  The group left one by one, using the buildings and vehicles for cover as they surrounded Jared’s cabin.

  Chapter 9

  McKaye sat gazing into the fire. She nibbled her thumbnail until she tasted blood, then switched to the other hand.

  She had her pack on. Her first night she’d realized Nella’s bedroom window was the best escape route. Preparation was like a loved security blanket. Reece was too good. He’d be fair. James and his cohorts wouldn’t be. If the camp fell, she’d run.

  McKaye wasn’t proud of her cowardice, but she had to survive. Her mother sacrificed herself all those years ago on the highway. She had to live to honor that martyrdom, no matter how much living hurt.

  Her throat tightened, and tears blurred her vision as she tried to imagine living when Reece was dead. Lonely days of foraging and sleepless nights of fear didn’t appeal to her anymore.

  Reverberation cracked as a gunshot echoed through the trees. McKaye gasped. Her breath caught. Fear, far more intense than any mortal terror she’d experienced, zinged through her. It was fear for Reece.

  “What am I doing?” Suddenly, she realized breathing wasn’t enough. Her mother had wanted her to live, and to do that, she needed Reece. He was worth dying for.

  She crept to the window and looked out without disturbing the sheer fabric. Someone behind the van shot at Jared’s cabin. A volley of gunblasts danced back and forth. She went into Nella’s room, careful to avoid the windows, and took the gun out of her dresser drawer.

  “He’s mine.” She’d finally found a home, Reece, and she wasn’t giving him up.

  * * * *

  Reece checked his ammo. Negotiations had failed...miserably. This wasn’t going well. James and his buddies had to have planned this. They must have taken all the guns out of the canteen after he’d gone to McKaye.

  He shouldn’t blame himself, but he did. This was all his fault. He should have stepped in sooner, but he didn’t want to be a control freak. They were building something good here. Babies had been born. They’d gone back to living off the land, mostly, and the days were pleasant. He wasn’t ready for some jackass to take that from him.

  “Reece. I have something you might want.”

  Nella screamed as her head was pushed out the door. Someone had hold of her hair.

  “Hold your fire!” Reece stood up, holding up his hand. “Let my sister go.”

  James laughed. “I like her. I think I’ll keep her. If you surrender, I’ll even let her live.”

  “Don’t do it—” Nella yelped as she was yanked back inside.

  “Let her go!” Reece yelled, and a shot rang out near his head. He dropped down, finding cover. “Damn it!”

  They had him by the balls. He couldn’t sacrifice his sister, no matter what she said. He was prepared to surrender when gunfire and shots inside the cabin erupted. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Brandy and McKaye running around the side of the cabin.

  “Double damn it!” he spat.

  There was no time to lose. He had to put an end to this bullshit.

  Another blast brought his attention to the right. Garret slid behind the wall where Reece had taken cover. The bullet just missed him
. “Did you see?” Garret asked.

  “Yeah, I did. What are they up to?”

  “I don’t know, but I want my girl out of there.”

  “Agreed. I want McKaye and my sister out of there too. Those bastards have no respect for women. You got a plan?”

  “Sort of.”

  “I’m not willing to bet their lives on sort of.”

  “Me either, but we have to do something,” Garret replied.

  Another gunshot rang inside the cabin. The men exchanged a look. A moment later they heard shouting.

  “Let’s go.” Reece leaned ahead and made eye contact with Sabine. “Cover us.”

  They stood at the same time. Sabine kept the traitors from shooting at them.

  “Run,” Reece ordered, and he and Garret made it across the slippery ground swiftly.

  Reece kicked in the door, and they rushed inside. Jared grunted as Garret hit him in the face with the butt of his gun, then took aim at James. Zane was already on the ground. McKaye stood over him. Her arms shook as she continued to train the gun on the dead man.

  James raised his gun, pointing it at Reece.

  “No!” McKaye screamed.

  Something knocked Reece over. A gunshot blast deafened him. He hit his head, and everything went black.

  * * * *

  When Reece opened his eyes McKaye was cradling his head in her lap. Her tears splashed on his face.

  Her eyes were closed. “Don’t die. I won’t leave. Don’t die.” She kept whispering the same thing over and over.

  He gazed up into her distraught face. His head ached like hell, but if his injury had changed her mind about going, it was worth every second of the pain.

  “Do you mean it?” he whispered huskily.

  Her eyes opened, and her lips trembled. “Reece?”

  “I’m still alive. I promise.”

  “Thank God. Oh, thank God! I’m sorry. I won’t go. I want to stay with you. I can’t imagine life without you.”

  He put his hand on the back of her neck and gently pulled her down so he could kiss her. When he let her go she blinked at him. “I love you too. I can’t imagine you walking away from me. If I knew it would be this easy to convince you to stay, I would have let someone knock me out months ago.”