Part 5 (1/2)

”No one is going to take what I have. It's not the Wild West out here.”

She shrugged. ”Doesn't matter. People who are desperate enough will pillage everything in their path if they think it will save them.”

”We're not exactly in the end of days, you know? I don't expect to see villagers with pitchforks come through here on a supply hunt.” He laughed. She was a little ridiculous.

”I do. And those two guys who came sniffing around here the other day? They know you have at least one gun, and I bet they're smart enough to figure out that where there's one, there's probably more. You're officially a target.”

”For those two jokers? No way.”

Her gaze penetrated into him questioningly. ”Why are you so set on staying here?”

He met her look straight on. ”Why are you so set on leaving?”

”Because I have family waiting for me.” She sounded as if she choked on the words.

”I don't. This cabin-my sister's cabin-is the closest I will ever be to her. When I'm here, I feel like she's here with me.”

”Don't you have parents you need to worry about? Isn't there somewhere else you could go so you're not alone to defend this place on your own?”

”No. I don't.”

”I'm sorry,” she said, her voice quiet. ”I didn't realize your family was all gone.”

”Well now you know, but I still don't know what you're leaving for.”

”And I still can't tell you.”

”Why?” he challenged.

”Because you're not allowed to come with me. No one is. I'm supposed to go alone. It's the deal. The plan. I can't risk the safety of my family by telling you.”

Dane grabbed their dishes and took them to the sink. He needed to be away from Sara for a few minutes while his temper calmed. He couldn't believe what she'd implied with that statement.

He washed the dishes in the sink he'd filled earlier when he'd run the generator, not caring the water was cold. It would work well enough and he didn't have the patience to boil water to clean two bowls.

”I'm sorry,” she said, coming up behind him. Her touch on his back was gentle. Much gentler than her words had been.

”You're sorry you can't tell me where you're going, or you're sorry you insinuated I'm a risk to your family. Like I'm some kind of threat to you. Nice. I open my home to you and this is what I get in return.”

”I wasn't implying that at all. It's a general rule we decided on as a family. If your family asked you to do something, would you go against them?”

”I don't have a family anymore, so it's a little hard for me to answer that question. If they were still around, they'd probably tell me I was stupid for offering my home, my food, and my weapons to some strange girl I found in the woods. The difference between you and me is, I wouldn't have listened to them and left you out there. I would have still acted the way I knew was right instead of the way they told me to in some made-up doomsday scenario.”

”You're determined to stay in this stupid cabin forever. Why do you even care where I go? You wouldn't come with me anyway, so what difference does it make?” She threw her hands in the air and walked out of the kitchen.

He tossed his dishtowel onto the counter and went after her, grabbing her by the arm and spinning her around to face him. ”The difference is that I trusted you these last couple of days and you can't be bothered to offer me the same courtesy. Even knowing I have no desire to tag along, you still won't tell me your big secret. Well, guess what? I don't give a s.h.i.+t where you go or if you get yourself killed along the way. From now on, it's your business, not mine.”

Sara sucked in a sharp breath as if she'd been slapped. He turned and stalked to his bedroom, slamming his door behind him like a petulant child-but not quick enough to block out the sound of Sara breaking down into tears.

Chapter Eight.

Dane paced until he couldn't pace any longer. The silence coming from the living room was unnerving. Was she still out there? Had she left? He hadn't heard the front door open, but that didn't mean she couldn't have gone quietly. And what if she had gone? His last words to her had been that he didn't care if she lived or died.

That wasn't true. He cared a h.e.l.l of a lot more about her than that. More than he should.

d.a.m.n it.

He had to fix things. Even if she was leaving in the morning, never for him to lay eyes on again, he had to clear the air between them.

Pulling open the door, he set his shoulders and his resolve, then strode down the hall in search of Sara. He didn't have to look far. She sat cuddled into the corner of the couch with a blanket across her lap, staring at the fire. If she heard him, she didn't pay him any attention as he wandered into the kitchen, scrounged around for what he hoped would help, then went back to the living room.

When he sat on the couch beside her, he handed her a gla.s.s of red wine and a bar of milk chocolate. ”It's not flowers and a card that says I'm sorry, but it's the best I can do, and I am.”

”Thank you,” she said, accepting his offering. When she did, a picture of Tasha slipped off her lap. He grabbed it before it could fall to the ground and stared at it, his thumb brus.h.i.+ng over the surface.

She'd looked so pretty in that picture. It had been taken down by the lake on a sunny afternoon after swimming and a cookout; she'd been so alive. It was still hard for him to believe she was really gone.

”I shouldn't have touched your picture. I just like looking at her. She reminds me of my sister Sue and my brother Josh. I miss them so much right now. I can't imagine how this must feel for you.”

”I've been better. But it could always be worse.”

”I'm not sure how. The power is out. Communication systems are down. And last we heard, a pandemic had sprung up from nowhere. Seems pretty awful to me.”

He drank his wine and broke off a piece of the chocolate, savoring the taste. Who knew when they'd ever get to have this again?

”I'm so scared. I hate not knowing what's going on out there. I hate not knowing if my family is okay. I shouldn't have taken all of my worries and fears out on you. I'm sorry.” Her voice broke on the last word as more tears ran down her cheeks.

”I'm scared too.” He hated to admit it and look like a baby, but it was true. ”Neither one of us knows what's going to happen next. We don't know what's going to happen when you leave and we don't know what will happen when I stay. But tonight, we know we're warm, and safe and fed. If nothing else, we have this moment right here, right now to enjoy.”

Sara sipped her wine and nibbled on another square of chocolate. He was right. Again.

They didn't know what would happen in the future. h.e.l.l, they didn't even know if there was a future to look forward to at this point. So why shouldn't they enjoy the moments like this one while they could? Moments when they were safe, warm, fed, and comfortable. They might not get many more nights like this if things kept getting worse, as they seemed to be. Best to savor the time while they had it instead of squandering it away with fights.

At this point, she didn't even know what future awaited her at the bunker. Would she live with her family for the rest of their lives, never to interact with people from the outside world again? That's sort of what they wanted, wasn't it? Wasn't that why they hadn't told anyone about the bunker, because they couldn't trust anyone?

What if this was her last night on her own? It might be her last night to live her life however she wanted to before she had to start making group decisions with her family.

”You're right.” She polished off the last of her wine in a big gulp. Her head already swirled with the effects of the alcohol. She'd always been a lightweight when it came to getting drunk. Tonight would be no different. Good thing she'd planned to stop at one. She had other plans for the rest of the night.

”Right about what exactly? I said a bunch of stuff.”

She put her winegla.s.s on the floor and took his hand in hers. ”You were right about enjoying this moment we have tonight since we don't know what the future holds, or even if we have a future.”