From The Ashes (Life After War) (52 page)

Adrian caught Daryl's eye before he could order the fourth wave.
“That one–now.”

Daryl followed his line of sight to where Becky's bright hair could just barely be seen against Seth's straining arm.

Daryl scowled, causing attention to turn that way.

Adrian allowed the camp to find out together, like they had with Kyle–confirmation that both team leaders had been breaking the rules. It didn't matter that Becky was now legal by the new age line. She hadn't been before, and there was no statute of limitations on a violation like this.

When the camp members almost immediately started turning to look expectantly at Daryl and his team, Adrian nodded in personal satisfaction.
“Do it.”

Daryl shrugged, motioning his unhappy team to follow. What the boss wanted, he got.

The wolf came to Adrian’s side.
“There is fresh food here–hoppers to the north.”

Adrian waved Kenn over.

Dog tensed but went on with his report.
“There are also people and animals following–living off of this pack’s scraps. Those we’re passing are starving.”

Adrian felt that blow.

Dog stretched his neck up in concern.
“Can we wait?”

“
No,” Adrian stated. “But maybe we can help them anyway. We’re going to start leaving supplies in our old camp sites, for those who come after us. Kenn will take care of it.”

They were carting around a lot of extra things. Water and fuel wouldn’t be in the packages, but they had an abundance of basic medical supplies, soup and crackers, and Poptarts.

Not the least bit surprised to find Adrian communicating with the wolf, Kenn wrote it in his book. Knowing he had his own bit of magic had eased that savage beast in Kenn’s mind.

“
Also, get a recon together–go north.”

“
We’ve already got one going to check out the city. Use them on the way?”

“
No. Take a group of the females out. Do a rookie field evaluation and hunt.”

Kenn’s head snapped up. “Me?”

Adrian snickered. “Afraid of being alone with a bunch of rookies?”

Kenn snorted. “It’s the female part that concerns me. They all have guns now, and I’m not their favorite person.”

The two men chuckled, Adrian sealing his emotions behind the mental walls that had allowed him to keep so many secrets this long. One exposure might cause the rest to tumble out, but until then, he was the Guardian. What did he need with love, or even sex for that matter? He had absolution and power. That should be enough.

Adrian’s gut twisted. But it wasn’t. He wanted his son by his side, and he wanted Angie.

He distracted himself, looking at Dog. “Why don’t the flies eat through your fur?”

Dog’s answer was obvious once sent.

“
I’m an Alpha. Our scent is stronger.”

“
Will your scent on the other dogs help them with the flies?”

Dog’s golden head swiveled up to stare at him with an incredulous expression that was much too human for Adrian’s comfort.

“
I hope you’re not serious.”

The blond leader shrugged. “It was only an idea. I don’t like for them to suffer.”

Dog snorted.
“If you want them to smell like me, tell them to keep sniffing Star. They’ll die with my piss in their noses.”

Adrian grinned as the wolf resumed his patrol. Dog might not like mutts, but the vet had matched those two up well.

“
Star is part wolf. I think that matters, but I’m not sure why.”

“
She’s in heat, I’d guess,” Adrian stated.

“
I don’t understand much about that.”

Adrian chuckled ruefully. “Not many men do. Have you thought about talking to your mom on this one?”

8

“
Would you like some company?”

Tracy's sultry voice sent chills through Kyle's stomach. After that kiss, he was on the edge, and the camp knew it.

“
No.”

Tracy had been fairly certain, and she frowned a bit, moving closer. “What do you need?”

Kyle couldn't tell her–it was wrong–but the fantasy played in his head in constant repeat.

“
Kyle, I'd like to be your relief.”

To have it spoken so openly,
so hopefully
, cracked Kyle's control. “I need to fuck and forget, and for her to never find out.”

Tracy blinked at the growl, body lighting up at the passion. “The first I can do. The second, not even you can. There are too many eyes here to keep even one time a secret.”

Tracy moved closer. “Unless...”

Kyle's head snapped up, waiting tensely. Now the whore would demand her price and he would pay it. Kissing Jennifer–
twice!
–had lit his fuse.

“
Unless you see me out of camp.”

Kyle waited. Surely she wanted something in return?

Tracy read it and shook her head. “It's FND, baby. I don't need anything else.”

Another convert, Kyle realized as her scent blew over him, stole his breath. Could she handle his needs? There wouldn't be any consideration for hers.

Tracy picked that up too, and took advantage of only Daryl's eye being on them in the very early morning shadows. “Your relief, big boy, not mine.”

Kyle shuddered. He wanted... needed! to be as deep in something as he could get.

“
What if I lean against that rail and give you sixty seconds right now? Daryl won't...”

Tracy stopped at the muscles twitching erratically in his jaw, the fire filling his eyes.

Kyle wasn't sure if he meant it or not, but the question was out before he could stop it. “Will you?”

Tracy arched her chest as her nipples hardened. “Can we make it ninety, and you spend the extra time in the front?”

Kyle didn't remember moving, but she was in his arms an instant later. He held her tightly, not sure he could stop or go through with it. The lie to Jennifer had fallen easily, but the actually choice was complete torture.

Tracy, who had passed novice at this years ago, made it easy on him. She pressed a soft kiss to his clenched jaw and then slowly turned around in his rigid arms. She braced herself against the fence rail. “I want a kiss when you're done, one taste of those lips before you go back to your duty–her.”

Kyle broke. He shoved Tracy forward, hand going to his buckle.

Daryl kept a sharp eye out for his team leader, filled with relief when Kyle raised the whore's dress and growled in lust. Jennifer was safe for a while now, and so was the dream.

9

The Cessna’s engines were loud and choppy–struggling as the wind gusted harder. It jostled the plane’s two passengers violently.

Lightning flashed, brilliant and blinding. They both jerked as the control panel exploded in a series of sharp cracks and flaming sparks.

The cabin went dark.

“
We’re going down!” the pilot shouted, sawing on the stick as he fought the downdrafts rattling them.

“
You have to jump!” he shouted at the female. “Tell them about our Island. Take them to Pitcairn!”

The plane slanted downward as both engines cut out.

Charlie jerked up in the bedroll, the sound too real to just be in his dream.

He stumbled from his tent while still fastening his jeans and saw half a dozen other camp members already out of their tents and scanning the sky for the first plane they’d even heard in six months.

He and the others who’d been drawn from their tents stared at the gritty sky for a long time, but there wasn’t any smoke signaling a crash, and the sound didn’t come again. By morning Mess, most of them had convinced themselves it was a dream.

Charlie knew better and stewed over it while he got his shower. The Island woman had made it home. Kendle was here.

Chapter Fifteen

1

On her way to the parking area to ruin a few people’s day, Samantha paused, unable to stop herself from scanning the sky. No one had spotted the plane, but there was no mistaking the sound.

A plane meant a lot of things, but one of them was danger. It might mean there was authority somewhere, government who would want them to fall in line with the old rules and the old ways that had destroyed their world. There was no way Adrian would allow that to happen. They would be fighting again, this time against the better-armed government.

Sam continued to the vehicles, aware of Doug and Peggy sitting together again at the Mess. They were becoming an item.

“
Look at that!”

Leslie, part of the six-female clique in camp that usually caused trouble, caught Sam's attention with the smirk. Right now, she and her sisters, as they liked to call each other, were mocking a passing camp member for her brightly shaded hair.

Candy’s styling tent was popular with the females who had lived lives of monthly hair appointments before the War. The comments hadn’t been noticed by the woman yet, but Sam didn’t think it would be long before the bullies got louder. They were having too much fun being the center of attention with the Eagles on duty. Now that a few of them were rookies, the sisters were being evaluated as mates, and they knew it.

Sam noticed Neil’s unreadable shadow lurking around the edge of the parking area. He hadn’t noticed her yet, too busy doing what the rest of the males here were. She thought Neil would take his time getting around to it, though. Sam wasn’t blind to the way his attention followed her, how he stayed away even while making sure she had what she needed for the garden. He was hurting.

Jeremy, on the other hand, had become preoccupied with his laptop for some reason he refused to tell anyone. The camp had several bets going as to what it was, but all Sam ever saw him do was try was a code system that she wouldn’t have told even Adrian about. Jeremy didn’t ask her to keep it to herself, but she knew he trusted her with it. She wasn’t spending much time around him, but whenever he agreed to spare her a few minutes, the laptop was always along.

Jeremy joined Neil in the shadows.

Now both of her moody males were staring at the sisters, and something inside Samantha flipped. They were wondering if the other females could satisfy them, replace their need. Could they get away so easily? Did she care?

Her feet moved. Yes, but only because of her ego. It allowed Sam to be smoother than she’d planned to be as she stopped by the six females.

Leslie noticed her first, and dropped her head. Sam didn’t give the others time to react.

“
If I ever see it, hear it, or hear of it happening again, I’ll go to Adrian personally. Using dirty tactics to make the Eagles think you’re hard won’t fly with these men, ladies. They’ll know the difference the first time Angela breaks your nose and you quit.”

She leaned back a bit, hands loose and ready. Sam thought she’d probably win, but was hoping it wouldn’t come to a fight. She didn’t want to hurt any of them, and with these odds, she would. Anything less would guarantee a loss and Sam just wasn’t wired to take that. It was something she’d never known about herself before the War. She loathed losing–anything.

“
It won’t happen again.”

The others stared at Leslie in surprise, and Sam hoped it was genuine regret in her words as she faced her friends. Leslie was tall and blonde–the platinum kind that came from a bottle, and Sam didn’t consider her competition. Her beautiful nails and lightly-painted face didn't last through a single lesson with the Eagles. She looked like the rest of them when it was over.

“
I want to talk to you guys about some things,” Leslie said.

Sam wanted to hang and observe, but left instead. Leslie’s expression said they would welcome her into their sister group, maybe even give her the lead. It was tempting to the glory-seeker inside, but to the Eagle, it was forbidden. Sam would never cross that line.

Neil and Jeremy were helpless to stare as Samantha walked by, male eyes revealing enough need to make each of the six sisters feel dismissed. Sam didn’t notice, but the men did. Others suffered in comparison.

They watched her head confidently for the parking area, where their team was loading up for the hunting trip.