The Survivors (Book 2): Autumn (27 page)

Richard handed the toolkit down to me, then he helped Jim into the boat as well
.  The rocking motion as the older man walked over and sat down made me tense up, but he didn’t seem concerned.  While Richard untied the slimy rope that held our craft against the docks, Jim took the wheel in his one good hand and looked over the controls.

Richard had managed to clear away the worst of the debris, and wedged the water-gate open far enough for us to get out
.  Now, the only thing between us and the freedom of the open river was figuring out how to drive a boat.

The men seemed to know what they were doing, or were at least good at faking it
.  They fought for a minute before Jim finally relinquished the wheel to Richard and came to sit opposite me in the aft.  He was huffing and grumbling so much I had to fight hard to hide my amusement.

There was no time to laugh, though
.  A few moments later, Richard put the boat into whatever passed for ‘in gear’ in a floating craft, and we leapt away from the dock.  I yelped in surprise and grabbed the edge, half-expecting to hit something at high speed and burst into flames.

Luckily for all of us, he figured out what he was doing before that came to pass
.  With a little more care this time, he nudged the boat out of the cavern and eased us out into the open river.  A pleasant breeze hit us, bringing with it fresh, pleasant scents.  It was raining again, just a light drizzle, enough to refresh but not enough to drench.

The wind caught a few strands of my hair that had escaped from my braid, and sen
t them dancing around my face as we slowly picked up speed.  In spite of my initial caution about the unfamiliar sensation of boat travel, I found myself enjoying it.  Like riding on the back of a quad bike, it got my heart pumping and adrenaline flooding through my veins.

Unfortunately, thinking about the quad bike brought back memories of Tane, and what I’d seen the night before
.  I stole a furtive glance at Jim and found him staring off into space, oblivious to my concerns.  It seemed so cruel.  After all the sacrifices he had made to keep the electricity on all these years, he’d been betrayed by his own wife.  I had to talk to him, but not now.  Later, in private.  No need to humiliate him in front of Richard.

Trying to distract myself before a dark mood could settle in, I watched the trees flash by along the edge of the water, then looked back to admire the ripples we left behind in our wake
.  It was kind of mind-boggling to think about the fact that it had been ten whole years since any human crafts had troubled the placid waters of the Waikato River.  I hoped ours would not be the last.

The more that I thought about it, the more the idea gestating in the back of my mind made sense
.  The human species – my species – was on the verge of extinction.  The only possible way for us to survive was for someone to intervene in the survivor culture that had sprung up over the last decade.

Someone needed to take a hand in the future of humanity
.  God knows we’d done the same for many other species over the years.  I thought about the zoos, where scientists had strived so hard to preserve the most vulnerable animals against their inevitable extinction.  Now, it was our turn.  Someone had to do it, or there was no guarantee that my kind would live to see another generation.

When I watched Michael with Priya, something stirred inside me that had lain dormant for a very long time
.  I was shocked to realise that I did want children one day.  When the time came, I knew I could rely on him to be a wonderful father, just the way my own dad had been for me.

Although I had initially rebelled at the idea of having my own offspring, the truth was that perhaps they would help me to fill the hole in my heart that had been so empty since I lost my family a decade ago
.  But there was a problem.  Several problems, in fact.  Even if our children were born immune to Ebola-X, there was no guarantee that they’d be safe if we continued to live the way we were.

If I wanted to have my own child one day, then it was my duty to make sure that the world I brought her into was a place where she could grow up, be educated, and live amongst friends
.  That meant that something had to change, and it had to change within my lifetime.

As our little boat rounded a bend in the river and the massive power station came back into view, I came to a decision
.  I’ve never been the kind of person who relies on others to do things for her.  It’s against my nature.

If I wanted this world to be better, for my children and my children’s children, then I would have to change it myself.

A cheer erupted from the gaggle of survivors on the river bank as the power station roared to life.

It had taken a week for us to clear the obstruction from the turbines, but at long last we had succeeded.  A few hours before, we’d hauled the last of the debris down-river and disposed of it where it would no longer pose a danger to anyone.  Now, we stood watching as our victory came together at last.

For the last week, I had struggled to try and get Jim alone for a moment, but it seemed like there was always someone around to get in the way
.  Although it was frustrating, my temper had calmed down when my hormones settled back into their normal routine.  I had patience again, so I bided my time, waiting for the right opportunity.

On the day after we had found the boat, a sharp stab of pain in my lower abdomen had advised me that I’d guessed correctly: my emotional outbursts had been a symptom of an impending visit from Aunt Flo
.  Although the discomfort – both physical and emotional – made it much harder to work up the urge to lug around bits of tree, necessity had driven me to keep on trucking.  The worst of it had passed now, and the cramps had subsided to a dull ache.

Michael had proven himself to be a real keeper during that week, too
.  Even though I had been in no mood for sex, he’d been so sweet and understanding that it made me want to cry.  He was always on hand to administer kind words, back-rubs, and cuddles when I needed them most.  Best of all, he knew without me having to say anything that my condition meant I was often unhappy and in pain; he had made it his duty to be a pillar of comfort and sympathy throughout, and that made it so much easier to deal with.

He was with me now, standing with one arm looped casually around my waist as we watched the power station begin sucking water in through its enormous turbines
.  Everything seemed to be going fine, but we still observed with avid interest as the station went through its start-up routine.  Eventually, it settled into a low, deep thrum that sent vibrations through the ground beneath us and all the way up our legs.

“Big noise,” Priyanka whispered theatrically, looking nervous as she hovered nearby
.  I smiled reassuringly at her and reached over to ruffle her hair, which brought a bright smile to her face.  After a solid week in our company, the girl had begun to truly blossom into the lovely young lady she was going to become.

Watching her grow more relaxed and social had been one of the most pleasing experiences I’d felt in a very long time
.  Although her speech was still a little stunted, she improved every day.  She was constantly cheerful and busy; it seemed like she was always rushing about, helping anyone that expressed a need, which was an attitude that quickly endeared her to everyone.

She was no longer afraid of Hemi and the others
.  Quite the opposite, in fact.  I often caught sight of her following one person or another around, looking fascinated by everything that they did.  Despite that, she never seemed to get underfoot.  There was just something about her sweet-faced innocence and earnest desire to help in that made even the staunchest of us happy to have her around.  Looking down at her young face, all I could think was that she deserved so much more than to live out her life as a solitary survivor.

“Well, I guess that’s our work here done,” Michael rumbled, holding me close against his side.

I nodded thoughtfully and glanced up at him.  “It’ll be nice to go home.  Skye sounded pretty stressed when I spoke to her last night.  Maddy’s still freaking out pretty badly.”

“Agreed
.  I hope they’re okay.” He sighed softly and reached up to trail a finger around the curve of my neck, tracing the chain that held my ring.  It had taken some time for me to get used to the idea of getting married, but once I’d warmed to the idea… well, let’s just say that I had only taken my ring off to bathe.  When I looked up at him and saw the flash of silver around his throat, I knew that he felt the same way.  On a sudden impulse, I leaned up and pressed my lips to his.  Surprised, Michael hesitated for a moment before returning my affections.

Priyanka giggled gleefully, as she often did when we expressed our feelings for one another in front of her.

“Kissie-kissie,” she teased, but there was no malice in it so I took no offense.  Instead, I teased her right back.

“You just wait, little miss.”
I waggled a finger at her.  “One day you’ll meet a boy that you fall in love with.  Then, you’ll kissie-kissie him, and I’ll laugh at you.”

“No!” she cried, looking mortified
.  “Boys, yuck yuck.  Boys have bugs.”

“Boys do not have bugs!”
I laughed, surprised and amused by her outburst.  “Who told you that?”

Priyanka looked at Michael with enormous eyes, but said nothing
.  He stared back at her, looking sheepish.  I looked back and forth between them for a moment, then fixed Michael with a pointed stare.  It only took a second before he started looking guilty.  “I just didn’t want to see anyone taking advantage of her.”

“So you told her boys have bugs?” I said dryly, fighting the urge to laugh my head off
.  “That’s some solution, honey.  Good thinking.”

“Hey, give me a break!”
Michael put on his best whipped-puppy expression.  “I haven’t had to deal with a girl going through puberty before – but I know what I was thinking about at her age.”

“True.”
I sighed heavily, and gave him a long, thoughtful look.  “I think we’ve got some time yet, but one of us should probably give her The Talk at some stage.”

“Hey, don’t look at me,” Michael protested
.  “When I tried, she ended up thinking that boys have bugs.”

“Fine, fine, I’ll take care of it.”
I snorted mockingly, but I wasn’t angry at him at all.  He was right.  I had more experience with teenage girls than he did, since I’d been one.  Sure, that felt like it had been a lifetime ago, but I still remembered the hot surge of hormones that had driven me towards anything that remotely resembled a male.  That gave me a moment’s pause, then I looked back at Michael.  “On second thoughts, let’s ask Doc to do it.  I’m sure he’ll be able to traumatise her enough that she’ll never want to touch a man, ever.”

“Now that sounds like a plan,” Michael said with a good-natured laugh.

“In the meantime – do you see what I see?” I asked, raising my eyebrows pointedly.

He blinked, then looked around curiously
.  “That depends.  What do you see?”

“I see Rebecca over there, along with everyone else, so it occurs to me that means Jim must be on his own inside
.  I should go check on him.” I shot another pointed look at Michael, who smiled grimly and withdrew his arm from around my waist.

“Good luck,” he murmured
.  I nodded and touched his hand, then turned and walked away from my little family.  Priyanka tried to follow me, but Michael distracted her with something I didn’t quite catch before I was out of earshot.  The sound of voices faded behind me as I made my way away from the group, and picked my way carefully up the stairs that led back into the depths of the power station.

The door closed heavily behind me, blocking out the sound of the churning turbines, but not the vibrations
.  I could still feel the tremor beneath my feet as I made my way through the tunnels, and found the set of stairs that led up into the engine room itself.

There, a single figure stood hunched over a control panel, monitoring a mind-boggling array of dials and
doohickies.  I had no idea how he knew what he was doing, but he seemed to.  Jim was so focused that he didn’t even seem to notice my approach until I cleared my throat loudly.  Only then did he glance up, with a look of annoyance at being interrupted.

“What?
Can’t you see I’m busy here?” He glared at me.  The dirty look gave me a moment’s pause, but I braced myself against it.

“Jim, I need to talk to you about something and I wanted to get you alone to do it,” I answered calmly, keeping my tone of voice as even as possible despite my annoyance at his attitude
.  “This is the first time I’ve managed to all week.”

“Christ, what’s so important that you have to tell me now, of all times?”
He grumbled a few choice words and turned his attention back to the panel in front of him.

“Jim, I just want to know… about you and Rebecca.”
As Michael and I had agreed, I chose my words carefully.  I didn’t want to get Rebecca in trouble – or worse, put her in danger.  “I don’t know what kind of relationship the two of you have.  If she got involved with another man, would you be angry?”

“What?”
He froze for a second and stared at me.  “That’s all? You came all this way and interrupted my work to ask me that? I wouldn’t care.  I already gave her permission to shag whoever she likes.”

“You… I… what?”
I stared at him, shocked.  “So you already know?”

“Of course I bloody well did!” he snapped
.  “She asked my permission when your boys arrived, and I agreed.  Christ, you think she’d do something like that without my permission?” As though suddenly realising just how much distress I’d been in for the last week, he turned and looked at me.  “You were really that worried?”

“Yes,” I answered, feeling more and more confused by the second
.  “I mean, I thought…”

“Aw, Christ.”
Jim absently scratched at his balding pate and eyed me uncertainly.  “Erm… how do I put this? Rebecca is my friend.  We’ve been friends for a very long time, but we’re not friends ‘like that’.  About a year or so after the plague, she was living in Arapuni township while I ran the station.  She used to bring me food and stuff, but then some boys from the south started coming by and bothering her.  She was getting really scared for her safety, so I convinced her to move in here and be my ‘wife’, so that I could protect her.  It’s never been any more than that, though.  She ain’t my type.”

“She’s not your type?”
I stared at him, bewildered by what I was hearing.  “I don’t understand.  She’s a nice lady, and I’m sure she’s pretty attractive, if you’re that way inclined.  What’s not to like about… wait…” My eyes widened in surprise when realisation struck me.  “Do you mean…?”

“Aye, lass
.  I’m gay.” Jim looked amused by my freshly-caught-fish expression.  I could only guess that he got that a lot when he told people.

“But, you don’t—”

“I know, I know.  I don’t look gay, and I don’t act gay.  I’m homosexual, not a bloody ponce.  I’m just a regular Kiwi bloke who happens to prefer other blokes.  There’s a difference.” He glared at me for a moment, right up until I started feeling like a total idiot.  It must have shown on my face, because an amused smile suddenly flickered across his lips.  “Stereotyping is rarely right on the money, kid.  You should know that.”

“Damn… I’m sorry, mate.”
I looked down at my feet, rubbing the back of my neck.  “I had some trouble with the blokes down south as well, so I’ve spent most of the last decade alone.  I don’t really know how to read people anymore.”

“Don’t worry about it, lass
.  You meant well.” He brushed my shame aside with a vague gesture.  “Just be glad your boyfriend isn’t my way inclined, or I’d give you a race for your money.”

I smiled shyly, sensing the joke behind his words despite his deadpan expression.

“Fiancé, actually,” I corrected him, reaching up to draw my necklace out from beneath my clothing to show him the ring.  “He proposed a few days ago.”

To my surprise, Jim looked genuinely pleased
.  “That’s good to hear.  You two make a nice couple.  You’ll work well together, I think.”

“I think so, too
.  He’s the only other person that I told about Rebecca, Tane and Iorangi.  We didn’t want to embarrass you, but I guess it doesn’t matter now.” I sighed, feeling relieved all of a sudden.  “I’m so glad it turns out there was a perfectly reasonable explanation for it.  To be honest, it’s been tearing me up inside all week thinking that she might have been betraying you with my friends.”

“Two of them, huh?”
Jim chuckled, a dark sort of chuckle that set my teeth on edge, but he didn’t seem to notice.  “That little slut.  Well, I suppose a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do.”

“I guess she was a little pent up?” I suggested with as much humour as I could, even though the comment made my inner feminist a little uncomfortable
.  I’d learned that Jim was a special kind of fish, and that it was best not to take his comments seriously.

“Must be
.  Now, you get out of here, I have work to do,” Jim grumbled and made shooing gestures at me.

“Okay, okay, I’m going,” I answered as I retreated towards the door
.  “Thanks for not killing me.”

“It's
fine, lass.  Thanks for giving a shit,” he replied.  A moment later I was out the door, and left him in peace.  That also left me alone with my thoughts, which were a very confusing place.  How on earth was I going to explain this to Michael?

***

It turned out to be easier than I was expecting.

By the time I tracked Michael down, he was back in our room packing our bags in preparation for our departure
.  It was still fairly early in the day and we were all anxious to get home to our families, so it seemed wise to set off as soon as possible.  I plunked myself down on our bed and repeated word-for-word exactly what Jim had told me.  Michael stayed quiet the entire time I relayed the conversation, and it wasn’t until after I was done that he said anything.