Zero

Chapter 16

Chapter 16

 

The almost two mile walk is killer. I didn’t realize how tired I was until the six year old climbed up for a piggyback ride. With her weight the sudden exhaustion from staying up all night as look out and then not sleeping in the car today really caught up. I’m not the only one dragging, we’re all tired from the long day and I’m pretty sure Bambi has fallen asleep on my back.

So when we finally see the ramp exiting the highway, it’s like a beam of light from heaven is flashes down and shows us the way. Everyone’s step picks up as we realize we’re nearly done for the day. When our feet leave the rough asphalt and step into the soft overgrown grass, I kneel – doing my best not to collapse, and slide Bambi off my back.

After a scan of the area we decide to crowd into a decent sized gazebo. It’ll offer a little protection since it has railings that are three feet high around the whole thing. All the bags are dropped and each guy stretches in effort to loosen up already tight muscles.

Braces and Hunter take off to do a sweep of the area. They wont bother with the building, since any in there should be trapped, but we can already see a few wanderers roaming aimlessly since they have yet to spot us. Atlas takes Birdie and the two head off in the opposite direction to cut back on time. Within the next half hour or so it’s going to be completely dark and a good, wide patrol will be almost useless with so many trees around.

“Will you two please start spreading out sleeping bags?”

While Squirrel and Bambi begin to lay out bags for everyone, I work on starting a small fire in the grass just outside the gazebo. As soon as they finish, they come over to where I’m working on the fire. Bambi plops down right next to me but Squirrel sits on the opposite side. She’s still upset with me but I don’t have the mental capacity to speak with her right this second. Braces and Hunter get back first right as the fire gets going. Hunter sits next to me, almost as close to me as Bambi is sitting. Close enough our shoulders will brush if I move at all. Braces sits on his other side, closest to Squirrel. As if in a trans by the orange flames, both stare into the fire.

Rifling through one of the bags with food, I pull out enough for everyone and start passing cans around. Most of them have an easy open tab, but at least a few will have to be cut open with a knife. We have the fire, but we left behind all the sticks we used to old the aluminum cans while they roasted over the flames.

I get to my feet and walk to the tree closest. Thankfully it’s a tiny little tree with branches low enough for me to reach. I pull out my knife and cut three good ones off, leaving them about a foot long. I toss one to Hunter and Braces and then sit down with the last one next to Bambi. She still looks like she’s going to pass out, so I want to get her fed first because tomorrow will be another long day.

I take her food and peal off the label so that we wont have to smell burning paper and then open the tab and wedge it between the “y” of the of the branch. I hold it over the flame for her until the top starts to boil and then carefully set it in the grass in front of her before passing the stick across the fire to Squirrel.

Atlas and Birdie join us looking a little more worn out than when they left so I know they had some creepers to take of but, just like Hunter and Braces did, the other two boys assure us all is well. Hunter hands me the stick he used to warm his meal so I pass it, along with a can of food, to Atlas to use and ignore Hunter’s sigh.

He forgets his own hot meal and reaches over me, completely invading my space, and grabs my can of food. My can didn’t have one of the easy open tabs and Hunter doesn’t have a knife on him. Without warning, he sets my can to the side and reaches across me again, his hand settling on my hip. Involuntarily, I jump at the contact with wide, shocked eyes. I’m not wholly uncomfortable with the way his fingertips brush against my skin, but I’m not completely comfortable with it either. He looks at me and even in the dim, flickering firelight I can’t mistake the amusement dancing in his eyes. When he pulls away, I realize he was reaching for my knife. Which had been firmly attached to my hip.