River, Sun, Freedom

You can run, but you can't hide...especially from yourself

hey everyone. sorry this chapter isn't very long, but i needed to get on with the story. i really hate it when stories drag on and on about pointless things, so i'm trying to avoid that as much as possible.

Yay, i reached 100 reads! it's like every time i check, more people have read this, i'm so happy.

new chapters coming soon. can't wait! please vote and comment. i'd really appreciate some feedback. (votes are more important)

Chapter 5; you can run, but you can’t hide ...especially from yourself

Jodi and Nate’s relationship quickly spread around the headquarters like wildfire. Guys grinned and waggled their eyebrows at them and girls giggled when they saw the two of them together. For Jodi it was the most unnerving and satisfying thing she’d gone through. Who’d have ever guessed that watching women turn their faces away as they hid their smiles could have been so pleasing?

But there wasn’t much time for gossip in the headquarters. Summer was already passing and autumn was coming in. The last of the summer grain had to harvested and stored for winter. Groups were being organised to go on expeditions around the continent to try and find more people and steal whatever useful things couldn’t be made in the rock. This time, Nate had volunteered to stay back and “hold the fort” as he said, but when Jodi asked him why, he turned his face away and said “because I want to” which would make anybody listening also turn their faces away and grin to themselves all of which only served to confuse her.

Because Jodi and Jake had only been around for a few months neither of them were allowed on the expedition, but Jodi was in charge of supplying weapons and bullets and Jake had been asked to be prepared to memorise newspapers, books, anything that they could bring back that would give them information.

And so three teams had been made up including Alice, Richard and Hari, who was taking Nate’s place on the team. The teams left the base amongst many goodbyes, and none of them were expected to be back for two weeks at least.

But despite the fact that the base was almost deserted now, Jodi and Nate hardly had any time for them to be alone. The rest of the crops had to be harvested and whatever couldn’t last long had to be preserved in jams, chutneys and fruit leathers. Jodi learned the techniques in graining rice in a large bucket with a heavy stick, which was stored along with grain in the storage vats.

But even after the harvest was over, the fields still needed to be prepared for next year’s crops, with manure and other fertilizers being spread all over and raked through, which took a lot of work and time.

All in all the two weeks passed very quickly, and the first group came home very quickly with clothes and weapons and something else that sparked the interest of every single person in the rock.

“Come on, Jodi!” shouted Jamal from the doorway of the garage, an impatient Iqbal standing beside him.

“In a second!” replied Jodi, trying to make on last set of bullets before going up to greet the newcomer everyone had been talking about.

“No second, only first!” he shouted.

Jodi grinned and put down her tools. She was still grinning as she followed the boys up the lift and still grinning when she joined the crowd staring at the new human that the group had brought.

But then the smile vanished, as she caught sight of the man standing up of the juncture. He was a tall, slightly muscular man of around forty, with long grey hair and an upright figure. The sight of him gave Jodi a wave of apprehension.

He was surveying the crowd himself with awe when he caught sight of her. His awed look was replaced with anger.

“You!” he shouted and pointed at her. Startled, the crowd turn to see who he was pointing at and Jodi felt many eyes upon her.