Higher Ground

by Becky Black

  Glyn came bounding back out of the ship a few minutes later, carrying a coat and a medical kit in a bulky shoulder bag. He took his leave of Hammond.

  “See you in a couple of days, sir.”

  “Right. Look after yourself, lad.”

  “I will.” He turned to Adam. “I brought my coat. Figured it will get colder higher up.”

  “Definitely,” Adam said. “Come on, let’s put a pack together for you.”

  “Thanks, Adam.” He nodded to Zach. “Thank you for accepting my offer, Dr. Benesh.”

  “We need a medic,” Zach said in a chilly voice. Adam frowned at him. Come on, he wanted to say. The guy’s doing us a favor. Zach might miss Howie, but he couldn’t blame Glyn for replacing him.

  “Let’s hurry it up,” Hammond shouted, his voice carrying over the heads of the crowd. “Takeoff in fifteen minutes.”

  Chapter Twenty-One

  The fifteen minutes passed all too quickly, and the ship lifted off, everyone on the ground waving madly. Zach still felt torn in two directions and began to wonder if he’d ever know his emotions again. He was sad to see his friends leave, yet happy to see the people he’d taken responsibility for flying to safety.

  Walking helped keep his mind off it, as Simon and Adam led them to the stream. He couldn’t have asked for a better gift than Professor Korrie’s hiking pole as the slope grew steeper, grass growing only in patches. Flowers and trees had been left far behind. Zach climbed, pole in hand, and didn’t once look back. Primarily because he didn’t want to see how high the water had already risen. But mostly because if he didn’t look back, he didn’t have to look at Glyn.

  He didn’t like Glyn, not one bit. Glyn looked at Adam. He looked at Adam all the time. When someone else spoke to him, he’d turn to them, start his answer, but by the time he’d finished speaking, he was looking at Adam again, speaking to him. Zach felt like a fool or a child for such ridiculous petty jealousy. Glyn had volunteered to join them and share the danger. It was an act of heroism. Zach should be grateful.

  Should be.

  The much-reduced group—thirty-eight adults and a few dogs—reached the stream just before dark and made camp. They erected their tents quickly and settled around the fire with their supper.

  “You guys have making camp down to a fine art,” Glyn commented.

  “Hah, you should have seen us the first few nights,” Adam said. “It was mayhem.”

  “I’ll bet. With so many people and kids and pets.”

  “Are you a colony native?” Simon asked Glyn. He’d been quiet since the ship left, clearly missing his family, but looked as if he was making an effort to get to know their new companion. Zach felt briefly ashamed. Simon, part of the de facto leadership team, was engaging Glyn and welcoming him to the group. Shouldn’t Zach do the same?

  “No,” Glyn said to Simon. “I’ve been on the colony about two and a half years.” His gaze shifted back to Adam. Zach’s fists clenched involuntarily. “Spent six months in Arius and then got posted to an outpost.”

  “Dunbarrow?” Adam said. Glyn shook his head.

  “No, Timbuk. But I moved on after a few months to Dunbarrow.”

  “Like to keep moving, then?” Simon said.

  Glyn did it again, looked at Simon, said yes, then looked back at Adam. “I like to meet new people.” He smiled.

  Adam smiled back, and a surge of rage overwhelmed Zach’s senses, leaving him disgusted with himself. He shouldn’t feel like this. How could he want to do violence to someone because they were looking at Adam? Why shouldn’t Glyn look at Adam? Many people did, for good reason. He was beautiful. During the hike, Zach had seen several of the women and teenage girls looking at him and then whispering to each other and giggling.

  Adam had said he loved Zach, but would he easily forget that if he met someone he preferred? How well could Zach say he knew Adam? They’d only met a few days ago. Their supposed love might be no more than an infatuation, a physical attraction made more meaningful and intense by the dangerous situation.

  Glyn could be more Adam’s type. They talked easily and laughed at each other’s jokes. Zach’s hand tightened around the hiking pole at his side, and he tried to dismiss the picture of using it to bash the hell out of Glyn.

  Why did Glyn keep moving postings, he wondered. Did he wear out his welcome? Did he get in the middle of too many couples and make things awkward? Zach chided himself for such ridiculous speculation, trying to work out a man’s history and behavior patterns based on an acquaintance of only a few hours. Jumping straight from a hypothesis to a conclusion. What happened to his scientific method?

  “It’s tragic about the rest of the colony,” Glyn said, shaking his head. “All those people… What, nearly eleven hundred of them, all dead.”

  “More like nine hundred,” Adam said. “Awful, I know. If they’d just listened to Zach.”

  “Nine hundred? I thought the colony had about twelve hundred people.”

  “Yeah, three hundred came with us,” Simon said.

  Glyn looked puzzled and shook his head. “Three hundred people didn’t get on the ship.”

  “No,” Simon said. “The group split up a couple of days ago. Some people decided to go back.”

  “What?” Glyn stared. “They’re, um, they’re dead too, then?”

  “No, they started climbing again after the quakes started,” Adam said. “They’re a couple of days behind us. Your captain is going to pick them up—or as many as he can—before he comes back for us.” Glyn stared at him.

  He didn’t know, Zach realized. He must have been out of earshot when they discussed it with Hammond. Glyn thought he’d volunteered to join them for less than two days; instead, it would be at least twice that. Easy to be a hero for thirty-six hours. Not so much for three or four days.

  “I see,” Glyn said.

  “You didn’t know?” Adam said.

  “No.” He’d gone serious, staring into the fire with a thoughtful look on his face. Zach had to hide a smug expression at Glyn’s discomfiture. Perhaps his charm would crack under the strain of several days’ exposure to the danger of quakes and rising water.

  Then Zach lost his smugness when he remembered this meant Glyn would be around for several more days of looking at Adam.

  * * * *

  Adam crawled into his tent to find Zach already in the sleeping bag.

  “Everyone’s settled down,” he said, yawning and pulling his shirt off over his head. “First watch is in place.” He noticed Zach’s bare chest and grinned. “Are you naked in there?”

  “Yes.”

  “You’re gonna be cold.”

  “No I’m not.”

  Adam knew what he had in mind to keep warm. Zach had a rather intense expression on his face, and his cheeks were flushed. Determined to tease him, Adam took his time shedding the rest of his clothes, peeling each item off slowly. Zach watched him with a frown, tapping his finger against something in his hand, which Adam realized was the bottle of lube. Impatient fellow tonight.

  When he’d stripped off everything but his socks—he wasn’t having cold feet for anyone—Adam slipped into the sleeping bag, loving the feel of Zach’s warm skin against his, still chilled by the night air. He turned down the lantern to a dim glow, zipped up the bag, and cuddled close.

  “Are you feeling okay?” he asked. “I know it was hard to see people leave without us. Do you want to talk about it?”

  Apparently not. Zach pushed Adam onto his back, and his mouth crashed down onto Adam’s so hard their teeth clashed briefly. Adam groaned but soon forgot the pain of the clumsy move, lost in the hunger and passion of the kiss. He pulled Zach farther onto him, wanting to feel the weight of him. Zach was so demanding tonight. So full of need and not taking the time he would usually. After a couple of minutes of kissing, he rolled onto his back, grabbed the lube, and spread it on his fingers.

  He hadn’t asked if he could, Adam thought suddenly. He normally asked. Nicely brought up boy
s always asked for permission. For a second, this made him want to resist. He liked to be wooed into giving someone his ass, even someone he loved. But when Zach slipped lubed fingers inside him, the sensation allowed for no resistance. No silly games. Zach seemed a bit strange tonight—the day’s events must have unsettled him—but Adam couldn’t deny he wanted Zach, strange or not.

  He raised a knee, shifting the angle, and moaned when Zach began to massage his prostate. “Oh yes! Do it, Zach, do it!” That counted as permission sure enough. Zach needed no more urging. Adam tried to roll onto his front—the position easier in the confines of the sleeping bag—but Zach put a hand on his belly, stopping him.

  “No. I want you to see my face.”

  Odd thing to say. Usually guys said “I want to see your face.” Did Zach think Adam would forget who was fucking him if he did it from behind? But he didn’t object to taking it from the front, even though his legs were tired and aching from the climbing.

  “Unzip the bag,” he said. “Give us some room.”

  Zach did, too fast. The zip stuck, and he cursed in a bloodcurdling way.

  “Wow, so you actually can swear.”

  Zach looked at him, baffled. “What?”

  Adam smiled. “Never mind. Let me.” He freed the zip and opened the bag right to the bottom. At once, Zach pounced on him.

  “Zach! You are so horny tonight.” Seeking comfort again, like the night before? Still mourning? Or something else? When they’d made love in the open air last night, there’d been a desperation in Zach. Not tonight. This felt like something else.

  Zach thrust into Adam in a swift movement, hard, deep.

  Something else. Anger.

  What the hell? Angry at who? Why? Couldn’t ask. Couldn’t talk. Couldn’t think. Could only writhe mindlessly under Zach, Zach’s cock thrusting into him at the same time as his hand pumped Adam’s cock. Adam wrapped his legs around Zach’s body, kicking away the sleeping bag as he did. Cool air on his burning skin felt like a caress.

  He almost had to bite his tongue to keep from crying out as the pleasure intensified beyond the point of no return. Zach made no sound, though, stared down at Adam with a fierce and fiery look in his eyes. Not only keeping quiet for the sake of not telling the whole camp what they were doing, but as if he couldn’t spare the energy. All his strength concentrated in the powerful thrusts of his hips and legs, and Adam welcomed that strength, fed on it, his tiredness receded, replaced with intense energy.

  He pulled Zach closer with his legs until his hand had little room. Zach’s knuckles grazed Adam’s belly as he pulled on Adam’s cock, faster and faster.

  “Say it again,” Zach said, through gritted teeth. “Say it again.”

  “Say what?”

  “You love me. Say you love me.”

  “Zach!” Adam bit his tongue at shouting a bit too loudly. “Don’t play games. You know what I feel.”

  “I love you, Adam. I love you. Please say it back.”

  Not a game. He sounded so needy. Did he need that kind of reassurance? How could Adam know, when he’d met Zach such a short time ago? And the first few days of a relationship, a person was on their best behavior. Trying not to reveal weaknesses or their more crazy sides. In the current emergency, Zach might be excused for not being able to sustain his best-behavior act any longer.

  “I love you, Zach.” It couldn’t do any harm to give him reassurance, with all the pressure he had to deal with. If a reminder he had Adam’s love would help him retain his confidence, then by all means, Adam would reassure him. Why not say something true anyway? “I love you.”

  Zach climaxed, his body going rigid as he spent himself inside Adam, and he stopped his rhythmic tugging of Adam’s cock. It didn’t matter; Adam came too, spurting onto Zach’s chest and then feeling the warm stickiness of it against his skin when Zach collapsed on top of him. They lay like that for a moment, panting, before Zach recovered enough to withdraw from Adam but stayed lying on top of him, looking down into Adam’s eyes.

  “Aren’t you cold?” Adam asked. For himself, his blanket of Zach kept him pretty toasty.

  “I’m okay,” Zach said.

  Adam ran his fingers down Zach’s back, feeling goose bumps. His hands rested on Zach’s ass and stayed there for a while, cupping the firm cheeks, thumbs stroking gently, until he felt a draft on the backs of his hands and his forearms.

  “It is cold. Zip up the bag.”

  Zach sighed and sat up with apparent reluctance. He passed Adam a towel and zipped the bag. Adam threw the towel away into the shadows after he wiped the stickiness from them both, then snuggled against Zach’s side.

  Zach’s arms circled Adam’s waist, pulled him close. He kissed Adam, who closed his eyes and welcomed the deep, slow kiss, taking a moment before opening his mouth, making Zach wait.

  “You’re tense tonight,” he said when they came up for air. “I feel it. You’re all wound up.” Adam himself felt boneless and close to sleep after his orgasm, but it seemed to have had little effect on Zach’s tension, which thrummed from his body.

  “I’m sorry. It’s been a strange day.”

  “I know. But a good one mostly.”

  “Mostly. If only we’d all been able to get away.”

  “I know.” Adam sighed. “But we couldn’t, so there’s no point in complaining about it.”

  “You’re right. Wishing won’t change things. You do the job in front of you.”

  “Don’t be too worried. We’ll move faster with only young, fit people.”

  “I feel more singled out now. Before, with Korrie and the doctor to back me up, it was easier. They had the authority I didn’t.”

  “You’ve got authority.”

  “I have?” He sounded genuinely surprised, and Adam chuckled and ruffled his hair.

  “Good thing you’re cute, eh?”

  “What?”

  “Zach, you were right. What you said would happen, happened. Being right gives you authority. Like Simon. He sent the signal, risked his job, and if he hadn’t, rescue might still be days away. That’s given him authority.”

  “And you?”

  Adam grinned. “I hang out with you and Simon and bask in the reflected glory.”

  “That’s not true,” Zach protested, shaking his head. “I’ve seen the way people come to you and ask your advice.”

  “I’m the practical one, I guess. Could call me your right-hand man.” He moved said right hand, stroked Zach’s side, continued down his thigh, and pulled Zach’s leg up to crook over his. “What do you think of our replacement medic?”

  Zach stiffened. His whole body went tense against Adam’s side. Could Glyn be the source of Zach’s tension? He’d given Glyn a couple of unfriendly looks this evening.

  “I’m sure he’s a competent medic,” Zach said.

  “But he’s not Dr. Howie, I know. He’s not one of us. But give the guy a chance. He didn’t have to volunteer.”

  “He didn’t anticipate how long it could be for,” Zach said. “He was surprised to hear about the other group.”

  “Yeah, guess he missed that. Well, he’s here, and we have to deal with him.”

  “You made an effort to make him welcome today.”

  “Didn’t I mention it?” Adam grinned. “I appointed myself morale officer.” He laughed at the impatient look on Zach’s face, then swallowed the laugh in a yawn. “Okay, we’d better get some sleep.”

  “Okay.”

  Zach didn’t let him go when they lay down to sleep. They usually slept pressed against each other—as much for warmth as anything else—but Adam wasn’t sure he could sleep with someone’s arms around him. As he drifted off, he figured they’d both have cramps in the morning.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Zach’s rage had a new target in the morning—himself. He couldn’t believe how badly he’d behaved the night before. He knew exactly what he’d been doing—claiming Adam. Marking his territory like an animal. The fact Adam didn’t seem
to realize it only made Zach feel worse about such disgusting behavior.

  Trudging through the steady rain didn’t make him feel any better. The drops drummed on the hat he’d brought to keep off the sun, soaking it right through until water ran down his face and neck. The rain could make little difference to the weight of water in the basin so would have no effect on the island’s gradual submergence, but it dragged people down at least symbolically.

  “It’s like water is trying to get us from below and above,” Adam said gloomily while they ate a cold lunch, barely stopping for twenty minutes. Then he shook himself, smiled, and went to talk to people, trying to lift them out of their glum mood.

  He was good at cheering people up, and when Zach thought sensibly about it, he knew Adam had only been trying to make Glyn feel welcome and part of the group when they’d been talking and laughing around the fire the night before. He’d joked about being morale officer, but that was exactly what he’d become for the group.

  As they hiked on over the bare and stony ground, sometimes slipping on rock torn loose by the quakes, Zach couldn’t lift his personal gloomy mood. He wished Adam would come and help boost his morale. Finding out he had such caveman-like depths of unreasoning jealousy had bothered him. He was supposed to be an intellectual. A man of logic and rationality. A scientist. Yet he still felt the ridiculous urge to challenge Glyn to a fistfight every time Glyn even glanced at Adam. He’d been jealous before, if he suspected a lover of betraying him, but never in such a bloodthirsty, primitive way. It wasn’t a pleasant aspect of himself to discover lurking in the darkness. Would he have violent feelings toward Adam if he suspected him of being unfaithful? That would be much worse than such feelings about a rival.

  Stop it, he ordered himself. So far, he hadn’t had any such abhorrent feelings and no reason to think he would. He looked back over his shoulder at the group, struggling on up the slope, hiking poles more than mere accessories but necessities, even for the fit young people. Behind them, he could barely see into the basin, visibility poor in the rain.