LAW Box Set: Books 4-6 (Life After War Book 0)

by Angela White

  “That’s, um... Could you lift up a little?”

  Missy’s anger grew as Shawn resumed grunting. In the dark and with some clothes on, she couldn’t see very much but she knew what they were doing.

  Furious, Missy lit the fuse on the firecracker and tossed it onto the couch with them. She had a small pile, gifted to her by Li Sing’s youngest daughter. Missy lit a second one as the first exploded in a loud crack.

  “What the…!”

  “That hurt!”

  Crack!

  “Stop it!”

  “Who is that?!”

  Crack! Crack!

  Shawn batted away the next firecracker, knocking it into Tara, who was trying to get dressed.

  The lit fuse dropped into Tara’s blouse and she danced herself out of the shirt, shouting, “Help me!”

  Crack! Crack!

  “Stop it!”

  Shawn flinched from the loud noise by his ear and dove toward the cabinet where he’d glimpsed the spark of a lighter. Holding his pants up, he grabbed the only place he thought someone could be. And a small fist slammed into his groin.

  Shawn dropped to his knees and Missy kicked, catching him in ribs. She ran for the door, shoving Tara aside as she went.

  Tara recovered and tried to grab the girl but missed, instead falling down the steps of the camper in only her skirt and bra.

  Missy ran faster, shoving through the crowd of members and guards that rushed over. She ducked, and was swung into strong arms that refused to let go.

  “Enough!” Marc commanded, using the alpha power to break through the child’s struggles.

  Missy stilled, realizing who had picked her up. She instinctively leaned against his chest and began to cry.

  Marc had the sudden sense that he was comforting a grown woman and he patted her shoulder awkwardly. Unhappy that something had upset the child so much, Marc cast a nasty glare toward the couple hurriedly moving around inside the camper door. He noticed Tara’s exposed skin and the burnt smell next, scowling. “I want you both in the brig office in five minutes!”

  Hidden against Marc’s chest, Missy smiled happily.

  7

  “I can’t live in the cave.”

  Samantha found Jeremy standing in the drafty hayroom behind her. She’d come here to work off some of her anxiety and guilt. David was back with Adrian. “What?”

  “I can’t even go in there,” Jeremy confessed.

  “You haven’t been inside the cave?”

  Jeremy shook his head.

  Samantha frowned at herself, adding more guilt. She’d been so wrapped up in her own issues, she hadn’t checked on her men. Was Neil having trouble too?

  Samantha motioned toward the bale next to her. “Come and tell me about it.”

  Neil listened from the doorway, glad to hear Samantha being reasonable. Jeremy had confessed to him only a short while ago and Neil had recommended that he do the same with Samantha. Where they would live was a group decision.

  Neil yawned, not ready for his upcoming shift on the gate. He’d just helped to unload the first truck of rock salt and spread it around.

  “I have some good news for you,” Samantha soothed. “I don’t care where we live. I doubt Neil does either. Try to relax.”

  Neil approved, leaving them to work it out. He would prefer to be in the cave for the warmth and safety, but she was right that it didn’t matter enough for him to argue. Not splitting them up or letting petty issues come between them was much more important to the former state trooper.

  Jeremy figured he might as well unburden himself all the way and asked, “Are you okay now? We know something happened.”

  Samantha smiled wryly. “I should have known you guys would notice. Yes, I’m fine.”

  “Conner helped you?” Jeremy wanted to verify.

  “How did you come up with that?”

  “Doug told us that you and Peggy had gone to Adrian. I added the rest.”

  “You guys were snooping on me?”

  Jeremy grinned. “Yeah. Problem?”

  “Considering the circumstances?” she snorted bitterly. “No. And yes, Conner helped me.”

  “Because you wouldn’t let Adrian?”

  “Because Adrian couldn’t,” she answered. “But yes, too. I could accept Conner doing it. Not his father.”

  “We would have gone with you,” Jeremy complained gently.

  “I know.” You two would have fought with Adrian the entire time, she finished silently.

  Jeremy seemed to hear the thought. “I’m sorry.”

  Samantha shrugged, leaning against his heat. “It’s done now.”

  “And it won’t return?”

  Samantha tensed, understanding that Jeremy knew it had been cancer. “He couldn’t promise that.”

  “Then I guess we should make sure he stays alive,” Jeremy tried to joke, not certain if he was okay with Conner.

  “He’ll be here for rookie lessons at some point,” Samantha confided. “He’ll be monitored.”

  Jeremy knew that would cause concern. He chose to make sure Samantha’s future health was covered and said, “Maybe he should just be forgiven for a mistake.”

  Samantha sighed. “Maybe, but I don’t think that’s what the boss has planned for our powerful peeping-tom yet. I saw him and Adrian’s soldiers preparing to leave earlier. I think he’s headed south.”

  8

  “I’m not going.”

  Adrian didn’t have time to argue with his angry son. His own orders had come a few minutes ago and he needed to leave immediately.

  Conner dropped the kit his father had tossed to him, not caring that the soldiers almost had the camp packed up. “I won’t go.”

  “Tell Angela,” Adrian instructed. “She’s planning to bring you inside after this, so I’d be polite when you spit in her face.”

  Conner realized Angela was giving him a way to keep atoning and earning his way back in, and his attitude changed. A smile spread over his young face as he bent down to retrieve the kit.

  Adrian grunted. Kids were a pain in the ass most days and this one was no different. Conner would do about anything to be allowed inside with Candy. The women had been fooled so far, but Adrian knew Conner’s obsession was growing worse. This time away would either make him or break him.

  “What will you be doing while I’m gone?” Conner asked suddenly.

  “Working,” Adrian replied, slinging his rifle over a shoulder. “Tracking down future problems.”

  Conner didn’t want more details and let his father leave without saying anything else. All he could think of was getting inside Safe Haven to Candy. She needed his love and his protection.

  Adrian stayed to the tree line, glad the crowd hadn’t noticed his site yet. Conner and most of the soldiers would be gone in a short while, following Kendle’s team. Adrian was grateful to Angela for not leaving them all out here. Anyone around the gates now was in eminent danger.

  Adrian spotted his target being ushered from those barely cracked fences and went dim, studying the man. Angela had sent orders for Darian to be removed before he could join another group, but Adrian wasn’t certain why. Jobs like these were maddening in that aspect and Adrian planned to ask the man why he had been marked before he killed him. It was the only link into Angela’s personal activities that he could get.

  Adrian stayed still as the man passed the zones and milling crowd, not answering any of the questions about why he was leaving. No one tried to stop him, but Adrian was confident that would change too. The three largest groups that had come in this week were all gathered together in Zone C. They had physically removed the other people already there and those angry folks were camped outside that zone. It was ugly and getting worse.

  He would have to pick a new location for his site soon. Overcrowding after an apocalypse wasn’t an issue that most people ever considered, but Adrian was positive his former herd was doing that now. The sound of so many threats on your doorstep had a way of changi
ng a person’s priorities. The ‘take them all’ attitude of Safe Haven was about to shift forever.

  Putting everything else from his mind, Adrian subtly followed Darian down the mountain, eager to discover why he’d been sent.

  9

  “So… Who wants to tell me what happened?” Marc asked, shifting the little girl to a more comfortable position. He was in the tiny, chilly office of the brig, with Tara and Shawn sitting anxiously across the small desk. He’d made them wait for an hour while he handled other things.

  “Missy had a stash of firecrackers,” Shawn tried to explain.

  “He was on top of my mommy!” Missy shouted in Marc’s ear, making him flinch.

  Tara turned scarlet, telling Marc she’d been willing.

  “You two were having a moment…in the kids’ camper?”

  Shawn nodded, unable to hedge or lie with Missy curled onto Marc’s chest like Angela might have.

  “With Missy watching?” Marc asked in disapproval.

  “I thought we were alone,” Shawn muttered, staring at the floor.

  “She was in the mess, with Li Sing’s children,” Tara stated, also staring at the floor. The cold draft coming in couldn’t cool her cheeks. “Seems like the kids here can wander off at any time.”

  Shawn and Marc both frowned.

  “Weren’t you supposed to be helping with the kids?” Marc demanded coldly.

  Tara flushed darker and refused to speak.

  Marc felt Missy grin against the bare skin of his neck. For some reason, she was enjoying this.

  “I suggest you do your work and keep a better eye on your child,” Marc told the woman, still bothered by her being here. He hadn’t nailed down a reason to ban Tara, but he knew one existed.

  Marc glanced at Shawn. “Suspended. One week.”

  Shawn’s face fell, but inside, he was relieved. Being in the kids’ area for something like this was a serious offense. He’d expected to lose rank at the least.

  “Is that what you need?” Marc demanded. “Because I’ll give you that and more.”

  “No. It won’t ever happen again.”

  “Good.” Marc gestured at Tara. “You can go.”

  “Should I–”

  “I’ll drop her off,” Marc answered, daring the woman to protest after the scene she and Shawn had made. “I’ll make sure she eats and brushes her teeth.”

  Tara stormed from the tent, not looking into the one occupied cell.

  Shawn lifted a brow. “Was that right? It’s her kid.”

  Marc shrugged. “She doesn’t act like it.”

  Shawn couldn’t argue. Tara often handled Missy like an afterthought. It bothered him too. Enough that he was certain it was why the sex wasn’t that good. He’d been having trouble getting into it even before Missy’s interruption.

  “You are stupid!” Missy declared, pushing herself off Marc’s lap. “I knew it!”

  Before either man could respond, Missy grabbed Marc’s coffee mug from the desk and threw it at Shawn.

  Shawn caught the metal travel mug easily, snickering. “The lid was locked.”

  Marc thought to tell Shawn not to taunt a female of any age when they missed a target, but it was too late. Missy neatly slid around the desk and kicked him in the shin. Then she stomped on his foot, grinding down with her boot.

  “Ow!” Shawn twisted around in his chair to witness the child marching toward the door, rubbing his leg. The toe, he wasn’t touching yet. “Why did you do that?!”

  Marc dropped his head, trying not to laugh at them. He’d figured it out now and it was hilarious.

  “Why are you always so mean to me?” Shawn demanded.

  Missy stopped, putting small hands on her hips as she twirled around in her blue dress. “Because you’re stupid and I didn’t ask for a stupid mate!”

  And with that, she flounced from the brig, leaving Shawn in a state of shock.

  “Mate?”

  Marc’s chuckles filled the cold air.

  Shawn stared disbelief. He had assumed Tara was his future, though, Angela hadn’t confirmed it. “But…she’s a little kid!”

  Listening from outside the door, Missy stomped her foot, crunching through the ice. “Stupid! Take him back and give me a puppy. You can train those.”

  Even Chauncey laughed this time.

  10

  “All team are now grounded,” the radios crackled with Marc’s tired voice. “Return to base if you’re out, via option B. I repeat, all teams are now grounded.”

  Seth and Becky exchanged worried looks, but they didn’t stop to discuss it. Angela had told them to complete their mission no matter what.

  “Over here,” Seth called, hating the dark shadows of the Amazon warehouse. This fulfillment center held crates, bags, and boxes of supplies that Safe Haven needed. Seth had been astonished to find it undamaged. The next shock had come at the abandonment of the town around it. There were no kicked-in doors or signs of looting here. The people were just gone, leaving clear roads. Creepy.

  Becky held the light as Seth got the crate open with the mini-pry bar that was standard Eagle equipment. They hefted the lid to the floor instead of shoving it over and making noise. Angela had also said to be as low key as possible. It implied there were people or problems around, despite them not spotting any.

  Seth held the bag open for Becky to dump the packages into, both of them reading the labels in concern.

  Potassium Iodide Tablets

  14 tablets, 130mg

  They didn’t speak their fears, but thoughts roamed with terrible suspicions as they emptied the crates. Angela had three items on her list, but this one was underlined and they’d decided to procure it first. The other two items were nearby.

  It only took a few minutes to empty the crates. When the couple finished, they took the big canvas bag of tablets with them to find the next items. In the stillness of the fulfillment center, Seth finally broached the subject he’d been avoiding.

  “Are you happy with me?”

  Becky paused for moment. He’s going to do this now? “Of course. Why wouldn’t I be?”

  Seth shrugged, leading them around by the map he had taken from the front office. “I know you’re not. I can feel it. I need to know if it’s me or the past.”

  “Can this wait?” Becky requested calmly. “At least until we’re camped for the night?”

  Seth hated that answer. It meant there were things to talk about. “Sure.”

  Becky wasn’t relieved. She hadn’t known that Seth was still watching her. She’d been doing a great job at hiding her chaotic mind.

  Seth reached out to take her hand for a long moment where sparks flew and their hearts calmed. He didn’t say I loved you or I’ll do whatever she need, but she felt it.

  Becky squeezed his hand, wising she had more love to give him. Seth was one of the good men, but her heart was often an empty void or a screaming lava bed of regret. There wasn’t much room for anything else.

  Outside, light snow flurries whipped against the warehouse. The wind sent drafts of icy wind over the town that chilled even those in winter clothing. The evening sky was dark and dreary, the moon not visible through the clouds, and few creatures were stirring. Seth liked it that way. He had chosen to do their hunting at night and sleep during the day. They had been able to avoid several groups of people, spotting the fires in time to take cover. Seth didn’t want to be seen by anyone if he could help it. Having only the two of them along made for bad odds in a fight.

  “Did you hear that?” Becky asked suddenly.

  “What?” Seth was comparing the crates in front of them with the id numbers on the sheet in his hand.

  “Like a…growl, maybe?”

  That got Seth’s attention and he scanned the area with his light. There were a dozen places for someone to hide. Uneasy, Seth gestured toward the crates. “You open ‘em.”

  Becky got on it as Seth did another slow sweep with his light. If she thought she heard something, then sh
e probably had. He rotated to study another direction, and found multiple shadows behind them.

  “Heads up.”

  Becky pulled her gun as she straightened. The feeling of danger swarmed, making her ease over to Seth’s side. Their problems were animals, not man, but the reactions would be the same. Neither of those enemies was forgiving.

  Seth motioned her behind him as he grabbed the bag they had filled. Seth quickly walked toward the office where they could make a stand, not sure why the dogs weren’t attacking.

  Seth locked the office door and put the bag in a corner, flying over plans to handle their problem. He didn’t want to use guns. It might draw more dogs, or worse, people.

  Becky stared through the dirty glass at the small pack of wild dogs that had followed them, wondering what type of life they’d had before the war. Thanks to nature and the apocalypse, animals hated humankind. They attacked and chased, even stalked in some cases, but Becky remembered when they had been best friends with people. Did they? Did the dogs also long for a return of the old world?

  She concentrated, trying to push inside the mind of the smallest mangy animal. She found a dark voice and an almost scary shadow in every corner of the dog’s small mind. Shaped like windy warriors, they whispered awful things about the humans in the glass room.

  Becky realized the animals weren’t under their own control. It was terrifying, and she turned to tell Seth what she’d discovered.

  “Shh…”

  Seth was staring down a wiry dog that they hadn’t noticed under the desk. Seth had his knife out, and the dog wore a vicious snarl on its snout.

  A low growl rumbled from the dog’s chest.

  Becky watched the dog leap at Seth, saw his knife come up…

  Seth fell from the weight as Becky rushed forward with her own blade and stabbed the dog in the throat. Her knife sank through and she jerked on it, hoping she hadn’t gone far enough to hurt Seth.

  Seth shoved the hot corpse off, slinging blood from his arm. He’d been bitten.

  “Damn.”

  Becky hurriedly dug out her medical kit as Seth retrieved his blade from the dog’s chest. She handled the bite on Seth’s arm as she’d learned in Angela’s class, but her stomach twisted harshly the entire time. The wound didn’t want to stop bleeding, even after she’d bandaged it as tightly as she could.