Sam smiled, glad of the comfort.
When she closed her eyes, Neil let his go up her jean-clad legs and over her sweater-covered chest. Nice. Neil tore his hot gaze away. “Let me know if you need anything.”
He moved back into the lightly swaying trees with a frown, unaware of anything but his reaction to the new woman. What was it about Sam that drew him so hard?
On guard duty over the Storm Tracker, Jeremy chose not to tell Neil he had a tail. The Trooper had felt something with Sam, his teammate was sure of it, and he hoped that Little Becky would now prove herself too young.
Neil heard the light steps behind him and turned. “Samantha, can I ask you…”
Becky pressed her body against Neil’s in abandon, pushing her lips to his, and for an instant his grip tightened! His mouth slanted over hers with a snarl of need that had her trembling and then he was gone!
“Damn kid!” Neil spat, unable to disguise his disappointment. “With anyone else, you’d be on your back right now!”
He moved away from her, hard body under rigid control. “Get back inside the tape!”
Startled by his anger, and frustrated by the age difference, Becky scooped up a thick handful of mud and let it fly.
Neil sensed something coming and ducked before realizing who had just stepped in front of him.
Adrian stiffened in surprise as the thick glop hit him in the face and slopped over the front of his jacket in thick waves.
Everyone froze.
Taking in a tight, calming breath, Adrian slowly used his clean hands to clear the space around his eyes.
“Uh, Neil?”
Horrified… “Yeah?” he answered harshly, not caring that the girl was now shedding real tears. Damn kid!
“Make sure she pitches for the next baseball game.”
They both stared stupidly at him, and Adrian turned back toward camp, seeing Jeremy’s satisfied look through mud-streaked lashes.
“I’ll be in the shower.” Adrian slung another handful of mud to the ground. “Maybe I’ll practice ducking while I’m there…”
Not sure what he might say to the crying girl, Neil turned for the training tent, leaving Becky alone.
Drawn by the sound of her name, Samantha had seen most of it and stepped from the windy shadows when the men were gone. “You okay?”
Becky stiffened in embarrassment. It just kept getting better. “Fine!”
Sam shrugged, staying back. “Thought I’d ask. He was kinda rough on you, kid.”
Becky didn’t want the older woman’s pity and she cried out in anger, “Slam you!”
The teenager fled toward camp and Sam went back to her watch area with a feeling she refused to identify. She wasn’t happy that Neil had refused the reckless girl, she told herself, fighting a grin. Not one bit.
Before Adrian made it to the shower, he was distracted by the sight of Dog sitting alone near the supply trucks. Not sure why, he moved that way.
Dog turned his head, eyes lightening to a warm shade of golden amusement. “It seems we’ve had the same kind of day.”
Adrian felt his mind try to resist and locked down on it. He kept his steps light, but stopped from the friendly rub he’d been about to greet the wolf with.
“What kind?”
Adrian watched in surprise as the animal groaned. Had he just been mocked by a wolf?
“Use the talk of thoughts so they’ll stop staring.” Dog instructed impatiently. He hated communicating this way. It felt wrong.
Adrian noticed the wolf had thick clumps of mud in his fur and nodded in understanding. He’d been on duty, running off ants.
“There is trouble coming.”
Adrian knelt down, pulling a dog snack from his pocket. “Do you like these?”
“No. They taste like feet smell.” The wolf obediently took the lint-covered treat from Adrian fingers, and snapped it down.
“The others around here, like me, are dangerous. You shouldn’t linger.”
Adrian grinned, hiding his worry. Not ants. Wolves. ”Thank you.”
Dog sniffed his outstretched palm gently, and licked away the crumbs. “I watch over the herd… work again. It is my honor.”
Adrian watched the wolf pad toward the perimeter with glowing blue eyes. Fate was giving him all he’d begged for and more.
5
“Get set folks. This one’s gonna take a bit.”
Standing by his usual table, Adrian opened his notebook and the crowded Mess slowly quieted down. They had just finished the evening meal and the people smoked and talked.
The huge center fire and cans popped nearby and the wind blew sticky hair from sweaty skin when it gusted. The temperatures were getting odder. It was the second week in April and they were sweating. What was next? Rain for a month straight?
Adrian sent his gaze over his flock, vaguely aware of bug lights zapping and guards circling. They look nervous, was his first thought. Nervous and ready to run. The sniper attack had them a little spooked. Good thing he was ready to sing.
“This is the 4th mandatory camp meeting of Safe Haven. We are now 200 strong.”
There were murmurs at the large number and Marc took the moment to do a fast check. He saw things that made him unhappy, but they were minor - guards slightly out of place, a corner not covered - and he would keep his own eyes on them. The camp thought the brothers had acted alone, but the Eagles now knew otherwise and they were more alert than when he and Angie had first made it here. When the assassins didn’t return, the Slavers would come… if they weren’t here already.
“We’ll start with health.” Adrian’s face tightened a bit, telling them he wasn’t happy about something. “Not everyone has been by for the basic tests. If even one person has a disease, we all have it. Get tested. Get current on your shots. We can’t handle an epidemic.”
There were surprised glances at that; Adrian admitting there was something he couldn’t do.
The Leader returned the gesture. “I’m not a doctor and even if I were, it wouldn’t save everyone.” He looked around, pushing the calm over them. “I know you’re scared. I am too, each time they stick me with a needle to find out, but I go and I do it, and you need to do the same.”
He beckoned to the cook, and she and her teenage helpers (Zack’s boys) started passing around popcorn and apple juice.
“Next are new people.” Adrian gestured at one of the full tables. “These are the seniors from the Rapid City airport. They have majors from psychology to engineering, so we’ll all get a chance to learn their names while they help us make things better.”
The young adults sat down with red faces after the smiles, and Adrian gestured to the benches behind them.
“We also have a second doctor now. Stand up and say something nice, Angie.”
Face painted with vivid eyes and even brighter cheeks, Marc was impressed with how steady her words were.
“Hi, ladies, come see me. No paper gowns, cold exam rooms or roaming fingers, I swear.” She delivered a sexy smile. “Can’t make any promises for the guys.”
She sat down with the light laughter echoing, breaking the tension, and Adrian went to John. “Let’s have our medical report.”
The doctor stood up, a paper in one hand, gently smoking pipe in the other. “It seems like things are okay. No signs of radiation sickness in camp yet, nothing contagious. We’ve removed some odd moles and warts in the last weeks. Might be the start of something, though, so everyone needs to watch for changes in those things and come to me right away so I can take care of it.” John paused, “I have a suggestion and a request.”
When Adrian indicated he should, the doctor went on. “We need to up our iodine intake for when we get around the bad places. It will help keep us stronger against the War’s effects.”
“That sounds reasonable. What’s the request?”
John was careful not to let his discomfort show to the listening camp. The pain had gotten as bad as it had ever been last night, and thou
gh it had eased off around dawn, he was extremely sore.
“We need help, two full time students who would take over if anything happened to us,” he stated firmly, motioning to Angela to show his faith in her.
“I’m… I was a nursing assistant.”
It was one of the college kids and Adrian took over, wondering if Angela had felt their value as much as their need for rescue.
“Let’s have a quick show of hands. Those interested?” Half a dozen hands went up and Adrian voiced his approval. “Great idea. We’ll get a signup list posted and John will do interviews.”
He glanced back down at the notebook he had laying open on the center table. “Next are the monthly updates.”
Kenn stood up, feeling both the welcome of the camp and the cold shoulder of the highest Eagles. “We’re good on water and fuel for a couple weeks, and two months on food. Starting tonight, the supply trucks will be locked from midnight to dawn. Only the guardian and duty man on Point will have a key. You will also now sign out anything you take and how much of it, so we can keep better track of how much we’ll need to see us through when we settle somewhere.” The Marine fought his anger when Angela’s voice echoed in his head. “There will be no limits. Adrian knows we don’t have greedy people here.”
“There won’t be any limits, though. Adrian knows we don’t have greed here.”
He flipped the page in his own book, aware of Adrian’s approval for the neat transfer of information. “We have openings in this month’s basic self-defense and karate classes and I need 6 more FND workers for third shift guard duty. See me after this meeting.”
Thinking there was more “Foot in the Door” work than even he and Brady could handle if they fought every day, Kenn snapped his book shut. His eyes were harder than most of the camp was used to seeing.
“Last thing. Anyone caught feeding the working dogs will take their place for a week. They are in training the same as the Eagles. You wouldn’t hand a person a slice of meatloaf five minutes after they’ve worked out, and you can’t do it with an animal either.” He threw in a grin he knew his boss would like. “That’s the workers. The breeders are fair game - the fatter the mom, the healthier the pups.”
Kenn ignored Angela’s look of respect as he sat down.
Adrian took back over, thinking he would have the Marine MC the next meeting.
“Next are changes and improvements.” He felt their need for more hope and was able to answer it. “We live like gypsies. No homes or any of the things that come with them. No curtains blowing in the breeze, just annoying tent flaps slapping you awake at odd hours. No light on over the sink, just a candle that burns too fast and too dim. No mattress, no kitchens, no walls.”
His face glowed with happiness that he could give them hope for a better way of life. “That’s almost over for us. It will never be the way it was, especially not for those here and those still on their way, but I’d have back what we can. Over the next months, we’re going to trade in these canvas homes for RVs.”
There was a huge cheer at that and it swelled into the night. During the happiness, apple juice ended up spilling on a few of those in the very back, namely Matt and Charlie. Only two of the Eagles noticed. Zack, who grinned and went back to guarding, and Billy, who thought it was about time Zack’s bully-prone boys were taught a lesson.
“We have a great idea for getting water quicker, and if it pans out, that’ll mean we can all use campers. Men will be three to a tin can. Women need a bit more room.”
Gaffs and snorts echoed at this, but died down quickly as the wind increased.
”They’ll be 2 in a camper. Women and elderly will get them first, as with anything here, by alphabetic last name.”
There were words of thanks and whispers, and Adrian waited for them to settle down before continuing. “We’re also putting awnings over most of the camp areas, so there will be no more waiting in the rain for bathrooms or Mess.”
As if on cue, thunder cracked in the distance and two shoe-sized ants raiding the camp’s garbage dove for cover unseen.
Adrian chuckled through his sudden tension. “We’ll hurry up on that one.”
His eyes went over Rick, seeing his glare at someone in the back of the crowd, and stored it for later. “There are a lot of us here now and I’m also working on a better schedule setup. Only those who have duty that week will be given a copy.” He cracked a grin. “Scheduling for 200 people twice a month sucks and Kenn and I are working on a quicker system.”
While Adrian was talking, Doug had been installing a large wallboard onto the hard side of the Mess truck. There were a lot of smiles and whispered repeats of what he wrote on it.
Point: The Guardian.
The Irishman drew a quick US flag in the far corner and sat back down, grinning. Only Angela noticed his slight shake as he lit a smoke.
“We’re starting a fire crew, a garden, a newspaper, and a radio station. That last one will be called After War Airwaves and I’d prefer people with experience, even if it’s only the basics.”
Adrian sighed, voice resigned. “Now, for the part we all hate - a rule change.”
Tension flew through the crowd and Adrian kept his tones level. “We agreed every able person would pull four - 6 hour shifts a month but it’s not enough to cover us. Our size keeps growing and people already have their time in by 28 days, which leaves almost a week where we have to run a light watch or hope for volunteers.” Adrian turned the page. “We came up with 3 solutions. First, we raise it to five shifts and maybe even six if our population keeps expanding. I honestly hate that idea, loathe it even. I want the number of shifts to go lower as we get more people, not higher.”
The groans and complaints had turned to nods of agreement.
“Our second way is to change the structure a little. Everyone who passes a class has to take a week at helping teach it. That would free up enough Eagles to cover those extra days even when we have a double watch posted.” His tone grew cold. “The last way is to do nothing and hope we have a full shift on duty if something happens. I won’t vote for that.”
“Neither will I,” Kenn spoke up, doing his job this time without being told. ”I’d rather work an extra shift or teach a class to know I’m safe when I sleep.” He didn’t look at the smoldering man sitting across from him, sure Brady was thinking something ugly at the remark.
“Agreed. Okay, we’ll be voting on shift change or teaching change and also on some places to head next since all the reports of mutations are north. You’ll notice I favored dropping back down the way we came in. To the east are Badlands and open country, nothing we really need. If we get back down into Nebraska, we might find more farms, maybe even a field with corn ready to be smeared with butter.” That drew more smiles. Corn, other than canned, was a thing of the past for most of the country.
“I also included a shortlist of places to spend the winter. It’s not the final vote by far, but it will give us an idea of the supplies we’ll need so we can start gathering. I left an empty line for other ideas. All right. Any new business before we spend some time on the Slavers and our defenses?”
There was a tense quiet while he closed his book and waited. He couldn’t tell them they were safe here, but he had to make them feel it just the same. Some of the most recent of Cesar’s refugees had recognized Rick. There was no avoiding the topic and he had chosen to handle it as openly as he could.
“They’re still in northeastern Wyoming as far as we know. The radio has been quiet, but we’ve all seen the smoke trails and damage they leave, even if we weren’t in one of the towns they attacked. They seem to be moving along Interstate 25 and east of it, so I’ve only included places south.” He glanced around at all the uneasy eyes. “Eventually, they’ll catch up or we’ll have a delay, and we’ll have to make a choice. That’s later. For right now, here’s what we’ve been doing: Marc, Neil, Kyle.”
There were frowns at the order of the names, most people now understanding it wasn’
t random, and Marc steeled himself as Neil and Kyle held up a drawing so good they’d made the Trooper sign his name to it.
“We made up some emergency plans,” Marc told the watching crowd, starting with the one labeled, While Camped - Daylight.
“He thought; I drew,” Neil cracked, grinning. “And Kyle made fun of us in support.”
There was light laughter, and Marc saw Adrian give Seth a pointed nod that said they’d demonstrated the proper use for running off at the mouth.
“If we’re camped, the guards will sound the alarm we hooked up to run the length of camp.” Marc looked at Kenn, who angrily hit a button on his wrist watch.
“Incoming! Seek shelter! Incoming!”
It blared from all corners of the dark camp around them, horribly loud, and everyone was glad when the Marine slapped another button and made it stop.
Marc wiggled a finger in his ear. “Okay, since we’ll all be deaf from the alarm, pay attention to where you should be.”
He began to explain, leaving Adrian free to judge the reactions of his herd. The Leader was hoping this would be enough to temporarily erase the quiet worry he saw lurking.
“We’re steel-plating things, Neil will get into that. All of these semis here will be nearly bullet proof. If the alarm goes off, get to the Mess or one of these trucks. They have three drivers assigned at all times, and supplies inside in case you get pinned down or want to make a run for it,” he stated, not hiding the fact that he wouldn’t. “How you know which truck to go to will be covered in a minute. The plan would be to circle around the Mess and make our stand if we were out in the open, or move into a nearby building and defend it. If we’re on the road, it’s a little more complicated.”
He waited for the two Eagles to flip the picture over to the side labeled, On the Road.
“We’ll be practicing during travel time, so you’ll get the hang of it. Basically, the lead semi will pull sideways across the road and each of the cars behind will pull all the way up to form a barrier wall. Pull in with a hard right or left, leave your doors open, and line up nice and tight. We’ll be steel-plating car doors too, so you’ll have cover if you stay low. Head for the Mess and help each other.” Almost finished and glad, Marc moved back. “Copies of these plans and what to do are being put into each glove box. Now, for a nighttime attack, Neil’s gonna fill you in.”
Adrian's Eagles: Book Four (Life After War) Page 15
