All Is Silence - Deserted Lands #1

Chapter 14 - Part I

SUDDEN HARD RAIN ON THE skylight overhead jerked Zach awake. His first thought was gunfire, but then he recognized the heavy rain. The room was dim, the fire still unchanged. The gas fire was okay for a while, but the repetition paled in comparison to real red-hot, flickering coals.

Spike was nestled into the love seat with a blanket tucked around him. The girls were gone. Zach stood, stretching stiff limbs, and walked toward the master bedroom.

He knocked on the door gently and heard some sort of murmur that sounded like an affirmative. Turning the knob cautiously he pushed the door open. Nev stared at the laptop. Lizzie lay on the bed next to her with Saj sleeping in her arms.

“Have a nice nap?” Lizzie asked.

“Not bad. A chair’s not as comfortable as a bed,” Zach said. “Why’d we bring the crib if you’re not going to use it?”

“I didn’t want to wake him up.”

“Oh.” Zach flopped down next to Nev. “What’re you doing on the laptop?”

Nev raised an eyebrow at him. “Trying to see if there is anything approaching an organized recovery.”

Zach snuck a hand up to tickle her but a glare stopped him. “Any luck?” He lay on his back with his hands under his head, enjoying at least touching the warmth of her hip with his.

“Not yet.” Nev shut the laptop lid. “Seems like someone should have their shit together. More than us anyway.” She dug her elbow in his rib.

”Ouch, Nev.” Zach squirmed away from the pain. “That didn’t tickle.”

Lizzie looked up. “Most of ‘em are probably partying.” She glanced around. “Like us.”

Zach snorted. “Partying, yeah, that describes it. Or surviving and trying to find other people.”

Lizzie got a distant look in her eyes as she said, “Like Jess.”

“Why not join the hippie-dippies?” Zach asked. He liked Vern. And the vegetables.

“You want to be told what to do by a bunch of old people?” The disdain in Lizzie’s voice was clear. “We’re fine. We’ve got each other. You can’t tell me this isn’t cool.”

“Yeah, it’s cool, but—” With Lizzie almost all adult men and most adult women were the enemy. Keeping us from being free. “Sheez, Lizzie. They’ve got food. They’re not exactly ‘The Man.’”

“Maybe. Maybe not. Besides I don’t know if I even want to stay in Bellingham.”

“You don’t know?” Zach wondered if he would ever figure out other people. “Whatever. I’m going to the gathering tomorrow. I want to help.”

“Gathering?” she asked. “’There can be only one!’”

Zach recognized the quote from the movie they had watched the night she had taken him up to her bedroom. They said it right before they chopped someone’s head off. “Uh, Lizzie, it might be a good idea if you and Spike both kept away. In case C.J.’s brother shows up.”

Lizzie scoffed. “Why would I go anyway? But you can go. I’m not your boss or anything. You can give me the highlights later.”

“I will. It would be good to have more people around. Even if they are a bunch of hippies.”

Lizzie shook her head and turned away. “G’night, Zach.”

“G’night, Zach,” Nev echoed.

“Dismissed, huh?” He stood up, mocking hurt. Lizzie’s comment stung, but Nev’s burned. What the hell? “Thank you very much. I’ll take my big man ass to the boy’s room while you princesses occupy the suite.”

“We already have our little Prince.” Lizzie smiled down at sleeping Saj.

“Well, you enjoy his affections, ladies. I’m outta here.”

He closed the door and returned to the living room. Spike had left his comfortable perch. Zach spied him hunkered down in the darkest part of the room. “‘sup Dogman?” There was no response.

Zach crossed to the big man. Something stunk. “Dammit, Spike.” He grasped Spike’s arm and pulled him across to the mess on the loveseat, then walked him the ten or so feet to the bathroom. When Gramps died he had thought he was done being a nurse.

“This,” he picked up the blanket, “goes in the toilet.” He flipped the light switch and dumped what he could into the bowl and flushed it. “Sit and shit,” he growled.

Spike’s arms flew over his head, wounded eyes stared at Zach. Now I scared him. “God help me.” He pulled his own pants down and sat on the toilet, miming the activity and adding grunts for effect.

The girls had definitely gotten the better end of the stick tonight.

Once Zach got Spike’s mess cleaned up he went to bed. But sleep was not in the cards. Zach lay there awake, restless. Yards away in a bed together were the two girls he had been in love with, girls who thought of him as a little brother. It’s not fair. But life never is. It could be worse. I could be alone. That held little comfort as he pulled the covers up around himself.

Zach still hadn’t cried. He tried to release himself to tears. I should be sad. Or I should be happy or angry. I should feel something, dammit! And still he lay there unable to sleep, unable to cry, unable to take the steps into the other room and ask for comfort, companionship.