by Marla Monroe
Harriet is my sister. I love her more than anyone. There’s no way I’ll ever risk her welfare and happiness unless I know that the man she chooses will treat her like a queen.
Instead of going on to college when she’d had the chance, his sister had stayed to help him with his business, so he wouldn’t need to shell out a big salary for an assistant that would eat into his capital for his capital funds. He’d argued with her, but in the end, she’d won because he’d been both desperate and smart. By the end of the first year, he’d made a name for himself with his custom-built log cabins and homes. By the end of the second year, he had two crews and more work than he could adequately handle. It sucked turning down jobs, but it was more important to build safe, quality homes than to grow the business beyond his capabilities. Growth could come later once he had another crew trained to his satisfaction.
Harriet worked right alongside him that first year, spending just as much time wielding a hammer or Skil saw as she did working in the office they pulled around behind his truck. Not once in all the years before hell rained down had she ever indicated that she wasn’t happy or wished she’d gone on to college instead.
No, Harry would protect and care for her until he died, unless she found a man worth his salt who proved to honestly care about and love his sister. He prayed they found someone like that once they arrived wherever they were headed. The map showed a community at the end of the journey, but how long it would take to get there was a complete mystery. He’d compared the old maps to this one and figured the colony was located somewhere around the Yellowstone National Park area. Using that as a target, he’d figured that they had a good fifteen hundred miles to go. What might have been a twenty- or twenty-six-hour drive was more like a seventy-five-day journey for them.
There’d been whispers about the place for nearly a year, but none of them sounded solid enough at the time to risk the long and dangerous trip. Then two trappers had returned to gather more seeds and such to carry back in trade with the community. The stories they told about the way the community worked sounded like a type of utopia to Harry. He prayed he wasn’t risking their lives on a pipe dream.
It doesn’t matter. I’m making the right decision for both of us. If we keep moving, we’ll eventually get there, but if we find another place that feels just as safe, we can check it out to see if we can be happy and Harriet will be safe.
But no matter how much Harry told himself that, doubts still held his conscience hostage. What if he wasn’t making the right decisions? What if he got them both killed?
In Arkansas, where they’d lived before, everyone knew everyone and looked out for each other. Crime was rare and confined to shoplifting teenagers and the occasional break-in where all they were looking for was money or something to hock for money. No one shot anyone or anything. Things were different now. It felt like they’d moved into a crime-ridden city that never ended.
I can’t think like that. I have to keep reminding myself that this is the right decision, or I’ll fail for sure.
He refused to fail.
“What’s that over there?”
Harry stopped and shaded his eyes with one hand as he followed where his sister was pointing. The structure definitely looked like a huge cross. Oxidization had given it a rusty color.
“Is that the cross we’re supposed to be looking for?” Harriet asked.
“I think so. It’s definitely a cross and about where it should be according to the map, but I’m not sure what that is at the base.” He tried squinting a little less to get a better view but with the sun in his eyes, it was impossible to form a strong opinion. “We need to be as quiet as possible, sis. I’m not sure what that is at the bottom of it or if there’s someone there or not.”
“Maybe we should just go around it now that we’ve found it. Is there any reason to actually go right up to it?” His sister hadn’t taken her eyes off of the cross since she’d pointed it out to him. Worry darkened their normally bright twinkle.
“Let’s get as close as possible and make sure there aren’t any more instructions there. The map kind of indicates that we need to go right up to it, like there’s more information or something.” He didn’t like the idea either, but they needed every bit of help they could get in order to make it to their destination.
“This is so not a good idea,” his sister muttered as they readjusted their direction and started walking toward the cross and the odd structure surrounding the base.
Harry hoped she was wrong, but nothing was certain in their world anymore. Once they decided about the cross, his next order of business was finding their next meal. Rabbit would be nice, but finding and catching one wasn’t easy in the tall grasses. The map hadn’t shown a stream or river nearby for fishing, so he had to hope for the best with rabbit hunting.
Just as they reached the last line of cover before stepping out into the open in the clearing surrounding the iron cross, Harry saw movement and put his hand up to stop his sister from moving or talking. He wasn’t sure what he’d seen, but he’d definitely seen it move on the other side of the structure at the base of the cross. That structure proved to be what looked like a teepee built around the base of the cross. It looked like one of those emergency foil blankets was wrapped around the top to a little over half way down in what he guessed was an effort to protect the inside from the elements. Long dried grasses had been interwoven through the vertical sticks from the bottom of the foil blanket to the ground. He couldn’t help but be impressed, but that didn’t change the worry eating at his gut.
“Harry?” His sister’s voice barely registered in his ear. He felt her breath more than he heard her words. “Who was that?”
He just shook his head. He didn’t want to chance speaking. His voice carried much more than hers did. They needed to back away as quietly as possible. Harriet had been right. This had been a bad idea. They would back up, then skirt the site in a wide arc until they were back on track on the opposite side.
He searched the area in front of him one more time, trying to see if there was anything that might have made the risk he’d taken worthwhile, but nothing stood out to provide further guidance.
He turned and motioned with his head that they needed to back up. He prayed she’d understand to make as little noise as was possible. They didn’t need to draw attention to themselves if they could help it. Whoever had taken up residence at the cross might have a gun. Since all they had were knives and traps, Harry didn’t want to give the resident a couple easy of targets to practice on.
Each step they took was a step closer to safety, and each foot they managed without making enough noise to draw attention to themselves seemed a miracle. Too bad he didn’t believe they were getting away unnoticed. Something in his gut told him they were on the edge of disaster. The silence in the trees and tall grasses pointed to a predator, and since they hadn’t considered them worthy of that title the entire time they’d been walking, Harry knew they were being watched. He just prayed whoever it was decided they weren’t worth the effort of attacking them.
“Har? Why is it so quiet? I can hear myself breathe.” The tremble in his sister’s breathy whisper next to his ear added to the desperation already riding him.
He held up one finger just high enough over his shoulder that she could see it. She immediately stopped and they both sank as close to the ground as possible without actually sitting and cutting down on their time to jump and run if need be.
Harriet leaned into his back and clutched the top of both his shoulders with her hands. He wanted to comfort her, but she would need every bit of the adrenaline running through her veins if they needed to fight. He prayed for the first time since they’d lost their parents years before. When everything fell apart with all of the natural disasters that tore apart their world, Harry stopped trusting that the Lord was in control anymore. He stopped praying at the same time.
Now he prayed for forgiveness for doubting and asked only that his sister would be safe. He
held no illusions for himself. If they were facing another man, the chances were good he’d just kill Harry and take his sister for himself. At least she’d be alive and maybe live a better life than he’d been able to provide her so far.
The sound of grass parting somewhere to their right left a knot in his throat. Should they jump and run now or wait and see? If they ran, whoever it was might shoot them in the back. If they waited now that their presence was obviously known, maybe their stalker wouldn’t hurt his sister.
“Harry?” Harriet breathed out.
“Shh. Just stay quiet. Running isn’t a good idea now.”
He could feel her shiver as she clung to him. He slowly removed her hands from his shoulders. He needed to be unencumbered in case he had to fight. Harriet needed to be ready, so she needed her hands free as well.
Harry strained but couldn’t hear anything in the grass now. Was he waiting them out, thinking he and his sister would jump and run soon? They could stay that way until dark if necessary. It would be easier for them to sneak away at night anyway.
In a split second, Harry’s entire world changed.
Chapter Two
Abby stood up directly in front of the couple crouching in the grass. She’d tried to move as quietly toward them as possible in hopes of taking them by surprise so they wouldn’t start shooting at her or just run away. The shock on the man’s face would have been funny if things hadn’t already been so dire.
“Don’t shoot! I’m not going to hurt you. I just wanted to talk to you, but you tried to leave.” Abby held her hands out in front of her to show them she didn’t have a weapon.
“Who are you? Are you out here by yourself?” The man’s rough voice had a Southern accent that instantly relaxed her. It shouldn’t have, but the soft twang reminded her of home.
“My name is Abby. Yes. I’m alone, although I really shouldn’t tell you that. I was hoping to meet up with someone here at the cross that was on my map, but no one has come this way in days and days. I was beginning to think no one would. Another couple of days, and I was just going to go it alone.” She stopped talking, realizing she was rambling.
The burly, handsome man slowly stood up to his full height, which had to be about six feet. While he didn’t tower over her five feet, six inches, he did make her feel much smaller than she was. The guy was built like a lumberjack or something. His rugged face with the short, uneven cut of brown hair had a calming effect on her. Hazel eyes stared down into hers, but she didn’t feel any hostility or danger from the man. To her, he felt like home.
That’s a dangerous thought. I need to be very careful around him. He’s obviously married or hooked up with the pretty woman behind him. I don’t need to have thoughts like this about him. I don’t chase married men.
The woman appeared to be the same age as the man with a medium build and lighter brown hair than her companion’s. She had light green eyes with just a fleck of brown in each one. For a second, Abby suffered a bout of jealousy that the woman’s size was closer to what everyone usually thought was sexy, with slightly rounded hips and a bust that men would think were just right. On top of that, she had a man to take care of her.
Instantly she was reminded of her own loss. He’d been the best thing that had ever happened to her, and then he was gone.
“My name is Harry.” He pointed to the woman who’d crowded into his side. “This is my sister, Harriet. What are you doing out here by yourself?”
Sister? She had to bite back a smile. The pretty woman with the light brown braids down her back was his sister. Relief flooded her body that she wasn’t ogling another woman’s man. Abby reminded herself that she only needed a man to keep her safe from slavers and bounty hunters. He didn’t have to be more to her than that. Really, he didn’t no matter how hot he looked.
“I’m so glad to see you two. Are you traveling in a specific direction?”
“Actually, we have a map we’re following that indicated this cross was a marker of sorts—like a landmark. We aren’t quite halfway there, but it’s definitely closer than we were,” Harry said.
“I bet we have the same map, then. I’m trying to get to a place that is on the edge of the old Yellowstone Park, nearly at the Idaho-Montana border. I was told that there’s a settlement there where I’ll be safe and be able to find plenty to eat and have a roof over my head.” Abby made up her mind about them and took a couple of steps back. “Come on. I’ll show you, and we can compare.”
Taking a huge chance, Abby turned her back on them to hike back toward the cross and her makeshift shelter. Though the covering wasn’t professional by any standard, it kept her from getting wet and even provided a little heat since the space blanket helped keep the warmth from the sun blazing down on the iron cross lasting longer into the night.
She’d thought long and hard about camping there, but in the end, logic and desperation won out. She doubted the men from where she’d come from would pursue her and since the cross was off the main road, she hoped only those actually seeking it would find it, and thus her.
“Did you make the tepee?” Harriet asked when they’d reached the sixteen-foot cross.
“Yeah. I was tired of getting wet and sleeping out in the open. This isn’t much better, but anything was a step up from how I’d been sleeping.” Abby opened the flap and gestured that they should go on inside.
“Hey. It’s kind of warm in here,” Harriet said with a soft laugh.
“It still gets pretty cold at night, but the iron pole with the silver space blanket holds in the sun’s heat most of the night.” Abby reached into her bag and pulled out her map, carefully spreading it out to show them.
“Yeah. That looks just like ours.” Harry opened the flap of his pack and pulled out theirs.
When he opened his up, Abby was hard pressed to find any differences. Really it looked like the same person had drawn them. The only variation was the direction in which it had been drawn.
“I wonder how many of these are out there,” she murmured to herself.
“Not many, or more people would be traveling in the same direction. Most of the people where we came from left the bigger cities to move out to smaller, more open places where they could have farms and grow their own food.” Harry shook his head. “They had no clue how to go about running a farm, though.”
His sister smiled at Abby. “We helped as many as we could, but more and more bullies and thugs started showing up. We didn’t want to hang around any longer.”
“I don’t blame you.”
“Since we’re heading in the same direction, let’s stick together. It’s safer for all of us that way.” Harry held out his hand toward her.
“Great.” Relief washed over her like a gentle rain shower after a long hot afternoon. “I appreciate it. I get so tired trying to watch my back and be aware of everything and still manage to rest from time to time. Thank you.”
“Why are you out here all alone? Surely you knew how dangerous it was, even with a group,” Harry said.
“I didn’t really have a choice. There was no one I trusted enough to go with me other than Tammie, but she wouldn’t try it. She was already so weak, but I knew that if I didn’t leave soon, I’d end up dead or worse.”
“What could be worse than dead?” Harriet asked with narrowed brows.
“I ended up with a group of people who decided to create their own little commune of sorts. The only thing was that once we got things going and the crops were coming in, several of the men decided that we needed leaders to keep order and make sure no one took more than was their share. Unfortunately, no one thought that was a bad idea at the time. That changed, though. Soon, there were the leaders and their favored ones who did little to nothing around the commune and the rest of us who did all the work.” Abby wondered if Tammie was even still alive. As bad as it sounded, she hoped not. Death would be much better than living the way Tammie did to survive.
“That’s what I was afraid was about to happen where we w
ere,” Harry admitted.
“You never told me that,” his sister accused.
“I didn’t want you to worry. You were already becoming uncomfortable with how the men were watching you. You should have told me about Eddie and Matt ganging up on you that day. I would have put an end to that ever happening again.” Harry’s face turned pink as his jaw clenched.
“H—how did you find out?” Harriet’s whisper barely hid the shiver Abby saw.
“Mrs. Homer saw it all and told me about it. She’s the one who said we needed to find somewhere safer, and I agreed.”
“That’s who gave you the map, isn’t it?” Harry’s sister said.
“Yeah.”
Before they could say anything more, Abby changed the subject. “You must be twins. I mean, you have similar names and all. The similarities in your looks are subtle, but there.”
Harry’s face transformed from tight hard lines to a softer grizzly look that sent chills along her spine. They weren’t frightened chills. Not by a long shot. His smiles had her girly parts swooning. She had to resist squeezing her thighs together to relieve the pressure building between her legs. God, she hoped he couldn’t tell that her panties were wet with desire.
How could she feel this way about a man she’d barely met when she still missed Evan? He’d been so amazing to her. Abby shouldn’t have thoughts like this about another man when the pain of Evan’s loss still woke her from dreams and left her crying for him.
“Mom used to dress us up alike even though we weren’t identical. I fussed about it, but Harriet loved it.” He turned to her and ruffled her head despite her braids.
“I didn’t have any brothers or sisters. I can’t imagine growing up with a built-in friend like that.” Abby thought it would have been cool to have someone her age to talk to and get into trouble with.
“Yeah, I guess it was.” Harry smiled at her, then grabbed his sister’s hand. “We got into it with each other, though. When we turned twelve or thirteen, I didn’t want her to hang around with me and my friends. They started noticing her, paying more attention to her than me. Then I started paying attention to her friends as well. Some of them were a year or two older, and boy, were they cute.”
