Megan looked back at Wyatt. He was looking at her, waiting for her to give the green light. She looked around the room. Everyone was buzzing with the excitement of moving to a bigger cabin that offered more safety and security.
She wanted to scream at them. She couldn't stand the idea of being so far out of reach from her daughter. It felt like she was leaving the country and leaving Caitlin all alone, with no one to call for help. What if she and Rosie managed to escape and ran for the hunting cabin only to discover they’d been abandoned?
“Megan?” Wyatt asked.
She looked at him, unable to give him the answer he was looking for.
“If we’re at the other cabin, we can come up with a plan to retake the lodge while rescuing Caitlin. We need some time. We won't have that luxury if we stay here. Our energy will be focused on fending off the scouts that are sure to keep coming.”
She looked him in the eye. “It feels wrong.”
He nodded, softening his earlier demeanor and squatted low in front of her. “It's up to you. Only you can say if we should stay or go. It's your daughter stuck in there.”
She looked at him. “Rosie?”
He smirked. “She's a tough cookie; a lot tougher than she lets on. I'm not too worried about her.”
Megan sighed, mulled over the options and finally made the decision. “Let's go,” she mumbled.
Willow looked at her with softness and understanding. She would know the war Megan was battling. Megan gave her a small smile, assuring her she would be okay. She hoped she would. Right now, it felt as if her heart were breaking in two.
“Okay. We'll pack everything we can tonight and we leave at the crack of dawn. We need to take a wide berth around the lodge. Those scouts will be out in the morning, I'm sure of it. I don't want to risk running into any of them,” Wyatt said, seeming full of energy now that they had a mission.
Megan wished she shared his enthusiasm. She was going along with his plan, but her heart wasn't in it.
13
It was exactly dawn when they began the long hike down and to the east. Because they were terrified Neil's troops would be out looking for them, they chose to stay off the game trails, which would have made their hike easier. Sticking to the thick trees, they made slow progress on the treacherous ground.
Each of them endured scratches to their arms and faces with more than one person dealing with a twisted ankle or in Albert's case, an angry knee. Considering they only had a handful of supplies to carry, their burden was light.
“Did you hear that?” Ryland said in a low voice.
Duke was beside him, standing stalk still, his ears perked up and his head cocked to the side, intently listening.
Megan looked around, but didn't see anything.
Wyatt looked at the dog, and then in the direction he was staring. “We listen to the dog. Duke hears something and I trust his senses a lot better than ours.”
“What do we do?” Willow asked, slightly panicked.
“We hide,” Wyatt said, pointing deeper into the trees.
The group moved at once.
“Shh,” Albert hissed.
The sound of crunching branches and heavy footsteps reverberated throughout the area. Megan almost laughed at the absurdity of their attempt to hide. It was like trying to hide an elephant in a room. They weren't thinking clearly. They weren't organized and if they didn't pull it together, they would walk right into Neil's men, making their capture a little too easy.
“He's right,” Megan said loud enough to be heard over the various conversations and stomping through the forest. “We need to be quieter and move in an orderly fashion. With a group this big, we’re too obvious even if we’re avoiding the game trails.”
Wyatt came to stand next to her. “We’ll walk single file. I'll lead, Albert you get behind me. From there, I want Jayden and Aiden, Willow, Ryland, Frankie, Brenda and Bryan you bring up the rear.”
“What about me?” Megan asked, a little perturbed he excluded her.
He looked at her with a look that said she was dimwitted. “Uh, by me. I need your eyes and ears.”
She nodded her head in understanding. She liked that he spoke of them as one unit. Fighting back a smile, she helped everyone get in line, giving each of them instructions about how to step lightly, holding the branch for the person behind them and so on.
Wyatt gave them a quick tutorial on the hand gestures they would use to communicate in case the enemy was near. Megan felt better with everyone on the same page. Their rush to get away from the hunting cabin had led to these basic skills being overlooked.
“Ryland,” Wyatt said, walking back to him in line. “Keep Duke with you. If you see him start to act funny, alert me. Dogs have very powerful senses. He'll know long before we do that someone is near. You know him best and I'm counting on you to keep a close eye on him.”
Ryland's chest puffed out with his new responsibility. “I will, Uncle Wyatt. You can count on me.”
Megan looked to Willow who was beaming with pride. Her little boy was growing up fast and was a real asset to their merry band of misfits.
With the group in proper formation, they started moving again. Megan and Wyatt watched the area carefully, constantly scanning the ground for traps. They had no idea how big of a perimeter Neil would have demanded. They couldn't take any chances.
It was midday before Wyatt held up his hand, telling the group to stop moving, without saying a word. It had warmed up quick, leaving them all a little cranky from the heat. The water they’d packed was nearly gone. Megan was still a little sore from their rapid return home from Ravena and could feel her almost-healed blisters rubbed raw, again.
“We're close,” Brenda called out from her new position next to Wyatt at the front of the line.
They’d decided she knew this area better than the rest of them and asked her to lead the way. She and Megan had switched places in their formation once they got closer to the general area of Brenda's old cabin.
Megan looked around and realized she knew where they were as well. This is how they’d come to find Brenda. They were on the opposite side of the meadow, which meant to reach Brenda's cabin, they had to walk all the way around or across the open field.
“We'll stick to the base of the cliff. They won't be able to see us from up there,” Brenda said, pointing up the hill that Megan and Caitlin had tumbled down the year before. “However, if they’re on the lower elevation, they'll be able to see us. With this many people, we’ll stick out like sore thumbs. Maybe we should go the long way around and stay in the trees?” she asked the group in general.
They were all exhausted and feeling the pain of walking in thick trees. Spending more time doing that exact same thing didn’t appeal to anyone, but no one was willing to complain. JJ had fussed very little, which had been a blessing. Listening to a crying baby would have amplified everyone's sour mood. His crying would have also meant they were at an increased risk for discovery. Despite the miserable circumstances, Megan was grateful for the small things, she supposed.
“I know everyone is anxious to get to the cabin, but we can't risk it,” Wyatt said, bursting everyone's excitement.
Megan groaned, but quickly changed her attitude. The group was looking to her, judging her reaction. She had the power to set the tone. It reminded her of what Rosie told her several months ago. She had the power of a leader in this group. How she chose to use that power was critical to everyone's survival. She had to stay positive, even if she wanted to kick and scream while thrashing around on the ground like a two-year-old.
“Okay, let's go. We'll collect some edibles as we go,” she said, trying to sound upbeat as they veered to the left. “We can eat a scrumptious salad when we get there,” she said, laughing a little as she said it. A wild edible salad wasn't exactly filling, especially with the amount of energy they’d expended so far today, but it was all they had.
It took close to an hour for them to make their way around the meadow and
up to the cabin. Brenda, Wyatt and Megan went ahead to check it out, while the rest remained a safe distance away in the protection of the forest.
“Anything?” Megan whispered. The three of them had formed a semi-circle, allowing them to cover three sides as they approached.
“Nothing,” Wyatt called out.
“Clear,” Brenda answered.
When they decided there was no one holed up in the cabin, they approached it.
“Wow,” Megan said, staring at the dilapidated cabin. The windows were all broken. The front door had been completely removed and was now lying out front. Inside, the few cupboards had been left open and the furniture turned upside down.
Megan walked to the back room, remembering the moment she’d seen Caitlin lying in the bed for the first time. The bed was bare. Someone had taken the blankets. A light was shining directly in the center of the bed. When she looked up, she could see a large hole in the roof.
Wyatt and Brenda were standing in the center of the small cabin when she emerged from the bedroom. They each had looks of disappointment on their faces.
“We better let the rest know it's clear,” Megan mumbled, walking out the door and making the birdcall that signaled the all clear.
It wasn't long before everyone was at the cabin. Each of them had a look of defeat on their faces as they took in the sight of their new, temporary home. It wasn't much better than where they’d been. The supplies Brenda had hidden had been found and taken. The only positive was the cabin was larger, had a stove and there were various tools scattered around that would make it easier to make repairs.
“This sucks,” Megan groused.
Wyatt shook his head. “Yeah, it does, but I feel safer knowing we have some distance between us and the lodge. We didn't see any of his men on the way here. That's a good sign.”
She shrugged, still feeling disgruntled. “I guess.”
He closed the distance between them, put his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. “This place puts us in a position to win. It has a strong foundation. We have resources all around us that will keep us going until we can take the lodge back.”
She stared at him, hearing the words and letting them sink in. “You're right. It's such a letdown. I was hoping to find a nice cabin that needed a little work. Now, we have to spend a lot of time fixing it so we can stay here instead of planning an attack. It's frustrating,” she whined.
He agreed. Squeezing her shoulders lightly. “Yeah, it is, but we should've known it would be this way. This apocalypse business is no joke. Nothing is easy. We’re constantly being tested and this is another one. We’re going to be all right. We'll figure out a way. We always do,” he reassured her.
She looked over his shoulder, staring at the cabin that looked as if it would topple to the ground with the first strong wind.
“We need to get that roof fixed first. We can take care of the rest later, but I don't want squirrels dropping in for a visit or tossing pinecones at us,” she laughed.
He turned and looked. “I'll get on it. We'll organize teams to get the roof fixed and collect food and water. Tomorrow, we'll focus on cleaning up and making this place livable.”
“Again,” she mumbled, walking towards the cabin. Once again, they were cleaning up and transforming a shack into a home. It really pissed her off they had to do so much work because one selfish man took everything they had. He didn't have to lift a finger. He walked right into their lodge, stocked with food, water and every other amenity a person could want.
She planned to kill him. Slowly.
14
“I'm going to make some curtains,” Willow declared, standing in the middle of the room.
They’d spent the evening cleaning up the cabin, righting the overturned furniture and making the cabin more inviting in general. Bryan, with the help of Aiden and Jayden had gotten to work digging yet another latrine. The twins grumbled about it, before Megan explained to them the dangers of living in unsanitary conditions.
No one wanted to deal with diarrhea or stomach problems in general when there wasn't a place to go. The latrine was a necessary evil. Everyone would appreciate a clean camp that didn't reek of human waste. When Bryan mentioned wolves, coyotes and every other animal in the forest would be drawn to the camp if they smelled the poop, it was all they needed to get busy digging.
“Curtains?” Megan asked with a smile. “That'll be, uh, cute,” she said, struggling to find the right word. She didn't want to take away from Willow's suggestion, but curtains seemed low on the priority list.
Willow laughed. “Not curtains to be pretty, curtains to block the sun during the day. It will help keep the cabin a little cooler and hopefully some of the bugs out as well. We can't board up all the windows. We don't have candles to give us light. We need to take advantage of the daylight while we have it,” she explained.
“What are you going to use to make curtains?” Albert grumbled, shifting on the floor where Brenda had demanded he lay so he could elevate his swollen knee.
“Grass,” Willow said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
They all looked at her, waiting for her to explain.
“I'll braid the grass together. Depending on how many hands I have to help, we can braid mats to sleep on, too.”
Everyone looked around the room at each other in the fading light. Each trying to figure out who would be willing to sit and braid tall field grass.
“I can help,” Brenda volunteered. “Albert isn't going to be doing much of anything tomorrow either, so I volunteer him.”
Megan fought back a laugh at the look of horror on Albert's face. He opened his mouth to argue, but one look from Brenda and he changed his mind.
“I need to work on that roof,” Wyatt said. “I think we can probably find some of your old traps around here, Brenda. Maybe you could take the twins and reset them?” he asked.
She nodded. “You're right. I'll do that instead.”
Ryland looked at his mom. “I guess I can do it,” he mumbled, clearly not excited about the task.
“Water?” Bryan said the word as a question.
Wyatt looked at Megan. “I'll help Bryan. We'll need to look around and see if we can find more buckets. Ten gallons of water isn’t going to be enough for even a day.”
They’d carried two buckets from the hunting cabin, but they had nothing else. Everything left at Brenda's cabin had been smashed or taken. The senseless destruction had been heartbreaking and infuriating at the same time.
There was nothing they could do about it except adapt and overcome.
“Do we dare make a run into town?” Megan asked, knowing they needed supplies.
Wyatt grimaced. “That’s a last resort. Let's see what we can scavenge tomorrow when we’re fresh and rested. If we have to, then we do, but that's an entire day spent traveling and we run the risk of running into Neil's men.”
They gave Willow the only bedroom in the house to share with JJ and Ryland. This would give her privacy to feed the baby. It would also allow the rest of the group to sleep through the midnight feeding.
Megan stared at the stars peeping through the holes in the roof. It was a beautiful night. She wondered if Caitlin had managed to escape yet. Was she looking at the same stars or was she locked up in the dark root cellar or some other horrible prison? The not knowing was driving Megan crazy. If she had some confirmation that Caitlin was with Rosie, safely tucked away in the root cellar, she would feel a little better. As it was, she knew nothing. It made her sick to her stomach. She held on to the idea Brenda's cabin gave them an advantage and she would be able to rescue her daughter soon.
“Sleep,” Wyatt muttered when she flopped on her side.
“I'm trying,” she shot back.
No matter how hard she tried, sleep eluded her. It wasn't until she heard birds starting their morning song that she finally drifted off, only to be awakened a short time later. She couldn't wait to have a room with a door, again.
<
br /> “You look like hell,” Wyatt said, looking at her with concern.
“Thanks, Wyatt. That’s exactly what every girl wants to hear first thing in the morning,” she grumbled.
He grinned and kissed her on the forehead, before pulling her up off the floor. “We'll get this figured out. You can't worry yourself to the point of not sleeping. You won't be any good to us if you’re a zombie.”
That made her laugh. In all the apocalypse movies she’d watched, it was the zombies the people feared. If they only knew, the living were the real danger.
She grabbed Wyatt's hand and walked outside in her socked feet, needing a moment alone with him.
“What is it?” he asked, concern on his face.
She took a deep breath. “I need a plan, Wyatt. I can't wait for an opportunity to get Caitlin back. I have to make one. I know we’ve talked about this before, but this is serious. I don't want to run off by myself, again. I get why that's not okay, but I won’t wait forever.”
He nodded. “I know. I get it. We'll start working on it today,” he promised. “We've got a lot of balls in the air here.”
She groaned in frustration. “I know, I know. I have to keep busy. I'm going hunting.”
He raised an eyebrow. She already knew what he was going to say. She couldn't go alone. It was too dangerous. She enjoyed hunting by herself. She loved doing many things by herself. It was who she was. She’d been working on improving her teamwork skills, but truth be told, the others weren't as good as she was and they slowed her down.
“I'll go with her,” Albert said, walking out the door.
“I thought your doctor told you to rest the knee today,” Megan replied.
He shrugged. “Believe it or not, I'm a big boy who says when he sits and when he hunts.”
Megan had to laugh. She’d sensed the tension between the two last night, but chose not to interfere. Brenda and Albert had a very odd relationship. She didn't fully understand it and didn't feel qualified to meddle.
EMP Lodge Series Box Set | Books 1-6 Page 104
