by Amber Garr
Startled by his boldness, I stepped away. He chuckled, which of course made me angry. Zach and I had a close relationship, but not one that involved kissing. I couldn’t even remember the last time I kissed a guy…
“The lights are up ahead,” Zach said, pulling me back to the present again.
I walked behind him as the torches came into focus. Our camp of deserters felt we were far enough in the wilderness to build a fire. I’d have to tell Sasha about the mercenaries. She’d make us move again for sure.
Once we got close enough, I noticed something missing from Zach’s outfit. “Where are your knives?” I may be good with a sword, but Zach was lethal with a blade and his aim.
He looked down as though noticing the empty sheaths for the first time. “Umm…I guess I forgot to grab them.”
“Zach,” I sighed. “How is that possible? Where did you put them?”
“Through a leg and a hand…oh, and a head. You should have seen that one. I pegged him before he even knew what was coming.” He shrugged. “Damn, those were three of my favorites.”
“Sasha’s really going to be pissed now. I don’t think we have any extras.”
“That’s okay, I’ll just borrow your sword.”
“No, you won’t.”
“Well, look what we have here. The two love birds decided to grace us with their presence. Our leader will be so pleased.” A short, muscular man stepped out of the woods and blocked our path. His shaggy hair and growing beard made him look like a dwarf. The stench put him more on par with a pile of manure.
“Get out of our way, Trevor,” I said, pushing past Zach and nudging the annoying dwarf with my shoulder.
“She’s still fighting your battles for you, huh, Zachary?” Even though almost forty, Trevor had a bad habit of pushing everyone’s buttons. The wrong ones. “When are you going to start wearing the pants in this relationship?”
I turned around fast enough to throw a punch. But instead of landing on Trevor’s smug face, Zach’s hand wrapped around my wrist.
“Well that’s more like it,” Trevor said with mock admiration. “Keep it up and pretty soon she’ll be waiting on your every need. I knew you’d get your bitch in place- Ah!”
Trevor’s rude comment ended the minute Zach’s other hand struck him in the face. The dwarf dropped to the ground, covering his nose and spitting curses at us. We walked away from him without saying another word. I felt satisfied with Zach’s response. I secretly loved it when he stuck up for me.
“Why does Sasha keep him around?” Zach asked, shaking his hand and massaging his knuckles.
“Comic relief?”
“Huh,” Zach grunted. “You’re much funnier, Vee.”
I smiled and my heart did something funny. Zach had always called me Vee, and even though I used to beat him up for it when we were kids, the nickname meant more to me than I would ever let him know. I didn’t have anyone left. Just Zach.
“And you smell better,” he added with a chuckle.
“Thanks,” I said, unable to contain my smile. “You know, you’ll probably be forced on latrine duty for punching him.”
“I don’t care.”
“Okay,” I replied, knowing how much he hated digging the holes each time we made camp.
We continued down the short path to the first set of torches. Our group consisted of ten deserters. Well nine, really, and one juvenile boy not quite old enough for the draft who had just spotted us in the distance.
“Zach!” The youngest in our group ran over to greet his idol. “Where did you go? Did you kill anyone?” Hunter’s obsession with gore still fascinated me. It must be a boy thing.
“Hey kid. No, I didn’t kill anyone. She beat me to it,” Zach nodded in my direction and Hunter looked up at me in awe.
“Awesome,” he said, head bobbing up and down in approval.
“No, not awesome,” I grumbled. “They’re just like us trying to survive. I wouldn’t even have had to do it if this guy wasn’t such an idiot.” I pushed against Zach’s back, causing him to stumble a few steps forward.
Zach laughed. “Ask her how she did it.”
“Stop encouraging him,” I snapped back.
“You cut off their heads, didn’t you?” Hunter looked from me to Zach with nothing but anticipation in his eyes. He bounced on his toes, waiting for one of us to confirm the story. “Cool. Was it bloody?”
I stepped around the boys and continued on to the camp without answering his question. I heard the two of them chatting away behind me, Zach being sure to embellish every detail, including admission about his own kill. Hunter continued to ask the most inappropriate things, but Zach catered to his morbid curiosity. In a world filled with so much violence, I didn’t understand why this boy wanted to live it over and over again.
I reached the torch laden perimeter before Zach and Hunter. The bonfire in the center glowed in the black night, and carried a familiar scent of home. I’ve lived in the forest for almost half of my life. Acrid smoke and ripe human bodies were something of a comfort to me now.
“Hey, Vivienne,” a deep voice acknowledged me.
I turned my head to see Jackson sitting at his post with a crossbow in his lap. Dark hair and dark skin, a token of his Caribbean ancestry, contrasted nicely with his bright smile. Just a year older than me, Jackson had finally grown into his body. Where he’d once been tall and lanky, his broad shoulders and fuller face made him easy to look at. Not that I looked at him that way.
“You got stuck with the night shift again, huh?” I asked.
He stood, towering over me with his impressive height. Not many people could look down at me. “I volunteered. Sasha’s really pissed at Zach and I don’t want to be around when she lays into him.”
My stomach dropped. If easy-going Jackson was worried about the upcoming tirade, I felt bad for Zach. “Maybe I’ll come join you,” I teased.
His eyes lit up and the smile spread wider. “That would be great.”
I didn’t know how to reply to that.
Uncomfortable with the tense silence, I walked away. Jackson had liked me since we met a few years ago, but I could never return the feelings. I didn’t really understand why, he just wasn’t my type.
Not that a girl could be choosy in this post-apocalyptic day. Our group had four women and six men, one being Hunter. Our leader, Sasha, had dibs on Max. They acted like a married couple, even though the institute of marriage was all but worthless anymore. My kind-of-friend Carrie liked Jackson, but spent most of her time teasing Trevor. Back in my old life, we would’ve never been friends. It was only after the world pretty much ended that I’d been forced to deal with her. Zach tolerated her too, as his patience far outweighed mine, but I knew he couldn’t really stand her. How she’d survived this long was still a miracle to me.
“Where’s Zach?” Sasha’s red hair glowed in the light of the fire, anger oozing from her body. I swear the blaze grew stronger when she spoke. Her petite frame often deceived foolish adversaries who underestimated her strength. And her fierceness.
“He’s right behind me,” I said as neutral as possible. Bending forward to grab a piece of meat from an abandoned plate, I avoided all eye contact with our leader. She waited patiently. “He’s fine. He got a few bottles.”
“A few?” she asked, stepping closer but looking past me toward Zach. “How many is a few?” she asked. I shrugged.
“Three,” Zach answered. His voice sounded under control, but I knew I detected a hint of fear. He must have seen Sasha’s face.
“You risked the safety of our group, not to mention the life of our best fighter, for three bottles of water?”
I lifted my head up at the compliment, but with one look at her pinched lips and hand flexing over the pistol holster on her side, I decided to keep my mouth shut.
“She’s not the best fighter,” Zach said with humor in his tone. I shot him a glare and watched him smile at me. He loved e
gging me on like that.
Sasha dashed over to him and knocked the bottles to the ground. She really was pissed.
“You’re not the only person here. When are you going to learn that?” Spit flew from her mouth yet Zach refused to back away from her. At least he kept his snarky comments to himself. “You can’t go running off on your own, Zachary. We have rules for a reason!”
Sasha paced back and forth in front of my friend. I knew she was contemplating what to do with him. A crowd had now gathered as we waited for her decision. Zach didn’t move. Even Hunter had nestled down beside me for protection.
“I don’t even know what to do with you,” she finally said. That comment pierced through my heart. I’d heard my parents speak those words to me so many times in the past. Our life before moving to the mountains hadn’t always been pleasant. The rebellious streak in me started a long time ago. I felt the tears building in my eyes, so I focused on Zach instead. No time for reminiscing. Thinking about the past would only wear me down.
“Latrine duty for three weeks,” Sasha finally said. “And anything else that has to be done around camp will be your responsibility. That means the skinning, gathering wood, washing clothes…anything I want you to do.”
Zach stared at her with a small smirk on his face.
“Am I clear?” she asked with raised eyebrows.
“Perfectly.”
“Do you have anything to say for yourself?” Sasha slammed her hands on her hips, daring Zach to speak.
“Yes.”
After a few seconds of silence, Sasha sighed with exasperation. “What would you like to say, Zachary?” I grinned at his childishness. Zach could always find a way to have the last word.
“They have a truck.”
As if he’d told us that unicorns and dragons were coming to save us, the entire camp grew quiet. Crackling from the fire eventually filled the air, but it wasn’t until Max spoke that we all snapped out of it.
“A water truck?” he asked Zach.
“Yep.”
“That’s impossible,” Trevor said. He held a cloth over his nose but I could already see a shiner beginning to form under his left eye. I should’ve been embarrassed with the satisfaction that rolled through me.
“Are you sure?” Sasha asked, her voice softening a bit.
“Yep.” Zach’s smirk grew.
“Only government officials can have one of those,” Carrie chimed in. I hadn’t seen her on the other side of the fire.
“You must have been seeing things,” Daric said. He sat next to Alicia, his girlfriend who nodded in agreement by his side. She never argued with him or anyone for that matter.
“Yes, you can’t be right,” Alicia added. Predictable.
Zach moved closer to the center of the group. “I know what I saw and I think we should go back for it.”
“What?” I called out before I could stop myself. Jumping to my feet, I only had eyes for Zach. “No! You almost got yourself killed for three bottles. Do you think they’re just going to let you waltz in there and take water from the truck?”
Sasha turned to look at me, something brewing behind her emerald eyes. She’d acted as the group mother for so long. Perhaps my grown up response surprised her.
“Yes, that’s exactly what we should do,” Zach said.
“You’re an idiot,” I snapped.
“Can I go?” Hunter asked Zach.
“No!” we both yelled together. At least we could agree on one thing.
“Zach, it’s not worth it,” Jackson said.
“How long could we survive on that?” Zach walked around in a circle being sure to look everyone directly in the eye. He’d always been a people pleaser. “We’re almost out and we haven’t found another group in a while. I know we can ration until we’re blue in the face, but the bottom line is we’re desperate. We have two packs filled with empty bottles.”
A few people sucked in a sharp breath. They hadn’t known how dire our situation had become. I didn’t even realize it had gotten that bad. We never risked showing up at a government distribution center for fear of being captured. But other deserters would take the risk. And we’d steal water from them.
“We’ll be fine, Zach,” Sasha said, giving him a look that warned him to be quiet.
“But we can be better.”
“He has a point,” Daric said.
“We are running low,” Alicia added.
Sasha glared at the couple. “Is it worth losing some of us? Because that’s exactly what will happen.”
“No it won’t,” Zach said then continued before she could argue. “Just a few of us will go. Me, Max, Jackson, and Vee. We’ll be in and out in no time at all. The rest of you can wait nearby in case we need help. But we won’t.”
“They have guns, Zach,” I sighed, knowing he had his heart set on this insane mission of his.
“So do we,” he countered.
“We have one gun.” I looked at Sasha who held the only firearm in our camp.
“And a crossbow, knives, sword, and Max.” Max liked to fight with his hands.
“You’re still an idiot,” I said. Zach winked at me.
“I need to think about this tonight,” Sasha sighed.
“We should go tonight,” Zach pushed.
“I will think about it tonight and make a decision tomorrow.” Her tone turned harsh and menacing. This conversation was over. “Besides, you have holes to dig.”
Trevor pushed a shovel into Zach’s hands. He acted like such a suck up to Sasha. Just one more annoying trait.
“And don’t punch Trevor again,” she added.
Zach started to follow Sasha when she walked away, but Max shook his head. Now was not the time. Hunter bounced over to Zach and grabbed the three bottles of water sitting on the ground. Zach roughed the hair on his head and gave me one more wink before walking to the far side of camp to begin his punishment. I couldn’t help but smile when he started whistling the famous “Off to work” tune from Snow White. Zach, the persistent optimist.
No one knew it, but I liked digging holes. It was the kind of workout that reminded me of the rigorous football training I’d endured before the wars. Despite lugging our supplies from camp to camp, I had little chance to break a sweat and steal time for myself. Getting punished for being insubordinate proved a welcomed retreat from reality.
Tonight I thought about Vee as I tossed one pile of dirt after another to the side. In all honesty, she’d occupied my daydreams quite a bit lately. I loved to watch her fight and nothing pleased me more than giving her a hard time. We’ve been in each other’s lives for so long, it felt like she’d become a part of me.
We’d met in middle school at the principal’s office. I’d been dropping off something for my teacher and she’d broken some kid’s nose. Despite being in sixth grade, I hadn’t remembered seeing her before. But when I watched her standing in front of the principal and three other teachers with arms crossed, lips pinched in defiance, and bright blues eyes daring them to force an apology, I knew we’d be friends. I was popular but she was edgy, exotic, something different.
I lingered around the office until their meeting ended, finding excuses to stick around. First I chatted with the secretary, then I helped sharpen pencils. Anything to bide some time until I could meet her.
Once the crying boy with blood stains on his shirt got carted away by the school nurse, the principal dismissed my new friend. She walked out into the reception area and slammed her body down into a chair, her backpack falling with a thump to the ground. Notebooks, pens, and other girly things fell out onto the floor but she didn’t make any attempt to pick them up. I immediately saw an opportunity.
“Here, let me help,” I said, bending forward to shove her belongings back into the bag. Propping it upright against the chair leg, I sat down next to her. “So what did he do?” I smiled in the most charming way I could.
She turned and bore an angry
gaze into my eyes. A few seconds later, her face softened and she shrugged. “He called me a name.”
“So you punched him?”
The corner of her mouth lifted and she looked at me in amusement. “He wouldn’t stop, so I made him stop.”
I chuckled. “What did he call you?”
Rolling her eyes, she tilted her head up, obviously trying to decide if she should reveal this secret. Finally, she sighed, “Vivacious Vee.”
I laughed again but she glared at me. “What’s wrong with that?” I asked.
“I’m not vivacious and I hate the nickname Vee.”
“What is your name?” I found that I sat close enough for our shoulders to touch, effectively blocking out all of the adults in the room.
“Vivienne. My name is Vivienne.”
“I’m Zach,” I said, extending my hand and waiting for her to respond. She smiled and shook it.
“Nice to meet you, Zach. What are you doing in here anyway?”
“I’m just-”
“Zach, please get back to class. Now.” Busted by the principal. And unlike Vee, I didn’t want to get in trouble.
“Yes, Mrs. Morgan.” I stood, and turning to the only girl in my world I said, “I’ll catch you after class, Vee.”
Not knowing what her reaction would be, I scooted a little closer to the door. She surprised me with a giggle instead of a fist to the nose. I waved my goodbye and spent the rest of the day counting the seconds until I could see her again.
It turned out that we lived in the same neighborhood. So between the carpooling, after school activities, and our joint interest in videogames, we became inseparable. Our parents called us twins even though we looked nothing alike. Her dark mane and pale skin contrasted with my own blond hair and farmers tan I had from playing so many sports outside.
In high school, where most friends drift apart, we grew even closer. Some people thought we should just date and get it over with, but our relationship wasn’t like that. Sure, I noticed how I felt when other guys would hit on her, but she never pursued them and I never had to admit my jealousy.
“You finished yet?” Vee asked, startling me enough to force pins and needles through my body. I dropped the shovel and she laughed. “Still afraid of the dark?”
