Outbreak The Living (The Outbreak Series) (4 page)

He looks down at me and smiles, nodding a yes, he picks me up gently and starts to walk to one of the running SUVs. “Egypt, we need to talk, but we will wait until we are at the safe house,” he says.

We get to the back of the SUV and Gus opens up the door, Jake gently puts me in and goes around to the other side. My door opens up and the medic guy gets in. Great I’m sandwiched between two guys I really do not know with hardly any clothes on. Rick starts looking at my knees and ribs, I lean my head back and close my eyes. Why fight them I’m really messed up and chances are I will just make the injuries worse. I wonder how everyone back at the house is doing. I wonder if Mack left and where he is at. How much longer will I be with these guys? No, they have not hurt me, but what Jake did was wrong. Taking a deep breath, I feel a prick in my hip. What the hell, I cannot open my eyes and I feel hands holding me down. I feel like I’m floating…

Mack and Sal

We have been driving for two hours and I still have not gotten to her. Gripping the wheel tighter, I could only guess what he is doing to her. I know I told her do whatever it takes to stay alive. But the thought of him touching her makes my skin crawl, I just want to kill him. Looking over at Sal I wonder what he is thinking. I know they like each other but, I do not believe it is serious. Sal is a good guy really, but he is soft in ways where Egypt needs hard. I need to find out why she came to me this morning and not Sal. And I know he has to be wondering too. He really has not talked to me other than telling me to speed up or turn this way or that.

“Sal, hey man, what’s going through your head?” I ask.

“There’s a lot going my head right now, Mack. What the fuck do you think I’m thinking about? Why did she run to you, Mack?” Sal says.

“I’m going to be honest, Sal, I love her plain and simple. I told her I’d wait for her until she figures out what she wants, that I have all the time in the world. Tell me something Sal. You don’t love her, do you?”

Looking over at me, Sal runs his hands through his hair. “No, Mack, I don’t, I can’t.  I know I should and that is what she deserves. I mean damn, man, she’s perfect in every damn way. But you know me I’m getting antsy, I can’t stay in one place for a long time,” Sal says.

“Sal, you’re an asshole! You need to stop leading her on, that’s really fucked up,” I say angrily.

“Mack, slow down. They’re stopping up ahead,” Sal says.

Looking to where Sal is pointing, it looks like they are pulling into an old house. Pulling over to the side of the road, I stop the truck.

“It doesn’t look like anyone else is here,” I say.

“It sounds like they are checking the house. I bet they are going to stay here for the night. Then meet up with the rest sometime tomorrow,” Sal says.

“I hope you're right, Sal. Let's get out and go take a look around,” I say.

We both get out of the truck and slowly shut the doors so they don’t slam, hoping they don’t hear us. We jog closer to the house, stopping right at the edge of the tree line. “Sal, go to the right and check everything on your side I’ll go to the left. We will meet in the back,” I say. Sal nods and takes off. Jogging to the left, I make my way to the side of the house. Leaning on the side of the house next to one of the windows. I slowly look in. Both of them are in there sitting around a CB. They are talking on it. Looking around I need to get to that open window so that I can hear what’s going on. Bending down I head to that window to where I can hear what is said. Hopefully, I can find out where they are keeping Egypt, or at least where they are going to meet up.

Getting to that window I straighten up a bit so I can look in. I hear over the walkie,
“
Hunter, you and Alex take different cars. Hunter, you come to us and, Alex, go for the other woman and kid. We will all meet up in four days at the base. ‘over.'”

“OK, Gus, see ya then. How’s that hottie doing by the way? ‘Over.’
“

"She’s with Jake in the bedroom, they had to drug her. You messed her up bad, Hunter. Jake had to carry her. Plus she got into another fight and kicked this bitch’s ass that jumped Jake. She was amazing. Hey got to go, guys are coming in. See ya soon ‘over.'"

Moving away from the window a little bit, I see that Sal has heard the same thing. Signaling with my hands, I start back to the truck. We need to go find another car so that we can follow both of them. By tomorrow morning we will be splitting up. Getting to the tree line I start to run I push my limits as my legs pump faster. What is he doing to her? I am going to kill him.

Making it back to the truck, I get in. Breathing hard, I grab for water and drink it down. Sal gets in to the other side and does the same thing. Starting the truck, I pull away from the side of the road.

“OK, Sal, I know that you heard what they are going to do. I’m not going to argue with you. I’m following Hunter. You can follow Alex,” I say.

I really hope that he doesn’t try to argue. I’m going after Egypt, there’s no other way. She asked me to find her and I need to talk. I need her.

“OK, I take it were going for another car? I will get the woman and kid and meet up with you where? I’m not going to argue with you, she wants you even if she doesn’t know it yet. I’m not stupid. I don’t think I ever stood a chance with her. Sure, she and I had fun fooling around but it was never going to be anything else,” Sal says.

I grip the wheel tighter, so I don’t haul off and punch Sal in the mouth. “We will meet up in six days, as soon as we find a car for you. In the event one of us is late, we will wait three days before we head back to Egypt’s,” I say.

“Sounds good to me. Let’s find a car so that we can get back to the house,” he says.

It takes us about an hour to find a car with gas in it. Sal starts to pack his gear in it. Everything he will need to make it. “Here take this sleeping bag with you, you have a kid to think of,” I say as I hand it to him.

“That will leave you with one, Mack. Egypt is injured she’s going to need this,” Sal says.

“I’ve got one, and I don’t need one,” I say. I go to the back of the truck. We brought the one with the cap on it. I rearrange the stuff back there. I’m sure we will be staying in the back of this.

“OK, let's head back to the house and keep an eye out. We need to be ready for anything," I say.

We head to the house and I park in the woods so they don’t see us when they leave. Sal comes and gets into the truck, so we settle in for the night. Sal takes the first watch and I try and get some sleep. I’m not going to be any good for Egypt if I’m dead on my feet.

“Mack, hey man time to wake up, it’s your time,” Sal says.

“I’m up dude, get some sleep,” I say.  Turning in my seat, I grab a can of pop and down it. I can’t go out and make a fire for some coffee, so this is going to have to do. Looking at my watch, I know we have two hours before its daylight. Settling back in the seat, I look over at the house. There's no lights on, I guess they are still sleeping.

After a few hours, it is starting to get light out. I see the lights starting to turn on in the house. “Hey Sal, wake up they are up in the house. They should be leaving soon,” I say.

“I’m up, man, so what’s the plan?” Sal says.

I don’t let him finish. “Let’s not do small talk, Sal. I’m not even going to ask why you would even consider going after another woman with Egypt out there, and you don’t ask me why she came to me,” I say.  Getting out of the truck, I walk over to a tree to piss. Coming back to the truck, I lean up against it. I really don’t want to talk to Sal. I have had enough time thinking about all of this, and I just cannot believe he would consider doing this. That man has no honor. Looking up at the house, I see Hunter start putting stuff in the SUV. Getting back into the truck, I tell him get out. It is time to go.

“Remember our plan and I’ll see ya in about a week. Stay safe out there, man,” I tell him.

“Yeah, man, you do the same, tell Egypt I’m…”

I do not let him finish. “Man, I’m not telling her shit, just the truth; you tell her when we meet up,” I say.

Sal hops out of the truck and goes to his car. I watch the house and wait for Hunter to leave. Ten minutes later, he is pulling out the driveway. I wait until he is a few miles away and start to follow him. I am glad that I put that tracking device on the right SUV, this way I can stay back and watch. I thought to myself,
Egypt, just hang in there. I’m coming …

It feels good to stretch so I move my legs. I snuggle closer to the heat. Why do I hurt just about everywhere? My mind is fuzzy and is not working right. I try to think of why that might be. Slowly things come back to me. My run with Tomas, getting beat the hell up, then kidnapped. Moving my hand slowly, I feel skin under my hand. Oh shit. I know this smell and it is Jake. I slowly move my hand off of his abs, but he grabs my hand and I cannot move it.

I hear him laughing. “Egypt, I know you're awake. How are you feeling?” Jake asks.

“I’m sore, just like you’d think I would be.” Looking around the room, I see that were in a huge bedroom. “Jake, where are we?” I ask.  I get the courage to look over and up to him. He grins at me. “Well, that storm came rolling in and visibility is nil so we stopped for the night. We might need to be here a few days. The guys could use the rest.” He says.

I shift a little bit and start to get up. Arms wrap around me and stop me from getting up. Looking up at Jake, “What do you want, Jake?” I ask. He lets go of me and sits up. He doesn’t have a shirt on, and I will have to admit, he’s got one hell of a body. If things were different, I would totally want that. Blushing, I look away.

I hear him chuckle. “Just wanted to let you know there’s clean clothes in the bathroom over there, and there’s hot water,” he says. He gets up and throws a shirt on. Walking over to the door he looks back at me on the bed. “When you get done, come on out, dinner will be ready in an hour and a half, Egypt.” He shut the door and I fell back on the bed.

Looking around I take the place in, it is a beautiful room in creams and reds. The room is huge with a sitting area and an en suite bath. Throwing the blanket off me I swing my legs off the bed. Well, a hot shower sure does sound good. I slowly stand up and put weight on my knee. It still feels a little bit numb. Limping over to the bathroom, I walk in and close the door behind me. I do not lock it. Why should I? He would just break the door down to get in here if that is what he wants to do. Walking over to the sinks I lean up against them. I am not going to cry. I will get through this. Bending down I start to unwrap my knee from the bandage. As it comes off, I see my knee is swelled and bruised. I know it is not broken, but I pulled it a good one.

I take off my running shorts leaving my underwear on. Pulling my tank top over my head, I see that my ribs are wrapped too. Pulling the cover off I am bruised there too. Damn, Hunter did a number on me. I’ll be ready the next time, the prick. Walking over to the shower I turn the water jets on. This is an amazing shower. The jet heads are on every wall two each. Taking the rest of my clothes off I step in and it is like heaven. Looking around I find the shampoo. Quickly I wash my hair and the rest of me. I am finished, but the water feels so good that I just stand there. My mind goes right to Mack, and the words that he said to me before I left with Jake. (I’ll come for you.) I don’t know why I did not go to Sal. We get along well. The spark just is not there. He seems so far away sometimes, almost like you cannot reach him. That night I spent with him, he was calling out to someone. It just seemed right with us. Smacking the shower wall, I turn the water off and get out. Wrapping myself in a towel and another one for my hair I walk over to the sink where there are clothes in a bag.

Oh hell, this is the bag that Sal and I got a few months ago when we were at the bookstore. Opening it up, I pull out the clothes. There are two pairs of jeans, four tank tops in different colors, a package of socks and a few undies and bras.  OK, I am a bit freaked out, but at least I have something to wear. Grabbing jeans, a tank, and the under things I start to get dressed. I am not wrapping my knee and ribs up. As my one nephew would say, suck it up cupcake. Smiling to myself I cannot wait to be home surrounded by my family. Yanking the towel off my head I start to brush my hair. After I get the knots out I decide to leave it down. Grabbing my old clothes, I find the little trashcan in the bathroom to throw them away. There’s blood all over them that I know I won’t get out. Grabbing the extra clothes and head out of the bathroom, opening the door I head into the bedroom. Looking at the bed I see there is a backpack on it.

This was not there when I went in the bathroom. Jake must have brought it in while I was in the shower. Unzipping it I put my clothes in it. Zipping it back up, I put it in the corner of the room by my boots. I toss my socks on the bed and head to the door, pausing. OH, get a grip, Egypt, you have to show them you’re not afraid. Grabbing the handle, I turn it and walk out.

Looking around this must be the first floor. Walking down the short hallway, I end up in the study. I hear voices across the room on the other side of the door. Limping my way over there I stop and listen. I cannot really understand what they are talking about. There is laughing and joking going on. Well, it is now or never. Opening the door, I walk out into who knows what. Most of the guys turn my direction, and the talking has stopped. Lifting my chin and squaring my shoulders I look around.

They mostly have military clothes on. There are a few in jeans and t-shirts. Jake walks over to me and gently takes my arm. “Egypt, it’s so nice of you to join us,” he says. We slowly walk over to the bar and I sit down. The talking starts back like nothing has happened. Looking around the room, I have to admit it is a gorgeous house. It does not seem like a farm house from the inside. A normal old farm house would not have an open floor plan. I hear a few of the guys talking about Hunter. He is on his way here and should be here in two days. That is just great. That asshole has one coming to him. Looking into the kitchen there is a long-haired black man cooking something. I have to admit it smells amazing. Jake walks over and sits down next to me, setting down a glass of something.

“Here ya go, Egypt, thought you might be thirsty,” he says.

Looking over at him, I shake my head no. Like I’m going to drink something he gives me?

“Listen, Egypt, there’s nothing in it. Come on we’ve been through too much now to not have a little trust between us. Don’t you think?” he asks.

Looking at the glass, I know he is right. He has had plenty of time to do something- other than being an asshole and kidnapping me. He has been OK. Taking the glass, I take a drink. The drink is so cold going down my throat. Looking up at Jake he is smiling at me.

“Thanks, Jake,” I say. He nods at me and starts talking to the guy that is sitting next to him about who is going to keep watch tonight. Getting up I limp over to the windows on the side of the room. Looking out I see an enormous old-time barn. In the pastures, there are two horses there. How can that even be possible? This place doesn’t look like it has been touched by the flu and the chaos that has devastated the rest of the world. Moving the books away from the window seat, I sit down, pulling my legs up so that I can rest my arms on them.  Looking out the window at the horses, I listen to the guys talk. I need to find out all that I can so that I can get out of here and back home.

About 45 minutes later the guy from the kitchen yells that it is dinner time. I look over my shoulder and watch all of the men line up with some cutting in line, acting just like kids at lunch time at school. Smiling, shaking my head I look back out the window. I hear someone walking up to me, it is the cook with a plate in his hand.

“Mama, I thought you’d like something to eat, and I know you’re a bit sore, so,” he says.  Looking at him, I see that he’s blushing.

“What’s your name? And please call me Egypt,” I say. I take the plate that he has offered me.

“I’m Willie, pleased to meet you, Egypt,” he says. I smile at him while looking at my plate. Damn does this look and smell good: fried chicken, mashed potatoes, corn on the cob, and a salad. I dig in. Between bites I say, “Thanks for the food, it’s amazing, Willie.”

He nods his head and walks away. Continuing to eat, I watch the others around the room. None of them look like they have been without food. Yet. It’s going to get harder to get it, it is just a matter of time. The survivors really need to stick together and not fight and kill one another. Like that is ever going to happen. Sticking my fork into the chicken, it is crispy with just the right seasonings on it. Something catches my eye, looking out the window past the barn and pastures I see a flash of light. Looking around the room I see that no one else notices it. I can see two of the guards, but they are facing the other way.

Getting another bite of food, I look out and do not see the light flash anymore. I wonder if that could be Mack. Getting excited I look around the room. Everyone is still eating going on about their business. I’m going to do the same. Finishing up I get up and walk over to the kitchen, and throw my plate away. Going to the counter I pour myself another glass of iced tea. No one is paying any attention to me. I spot Jake on the other side of the living room staring at me. Well, I have had enough of this so I head back into the bedroom. No one is stopping me. I do feel eyes on my back as I walk away. Closing the door, I take a deep breath. Sitting down on the bed, I look out the windows past the barn. Mack, is that you? If it is I know he can see me, I have all the lights on. Wait a minute, that can’t be Mack, Hunter isn’t back and he would have followed him. What the hell am I suppose to do now?

Sitting up, I know I have to tell Jake. Damn it, why do I have to keep helping them? Getting up, I walk over opening up the door I head over to the living room the last place I saw Jake. I cannot find him. I see Willie in the kitchen so I head there.

“Hey Willie, do you know where Jake’s at?” I ask.

“Sure, Egypt. He’s out on the porch,” Willie says. Smiling at him, I give him a quick kiss on the cheek and head out the door.  Opening the screen door up, I walk out slowly, some of the guys stop talking and look over at me. Shit, I can’t just walk over and start telling him, everyone will start freaking out I have to make it look like I just wanted him. OK, I got this. What would a woman want with a hot guy? Whoever is in the woods does not know that I was kidnapped. Locking eyes with Jake was not really hard, he was already staring at me. 

Walking towards him, the guys move out of my way. Stopping in front of him, my eyes move up his body ending at his eyes. Taking my hands, I slowly run them up his stomach. I can feel his muscles tightening up. Moving them around his neck I pull his face to mine. It is a soft kiss at first. He grabs my hips and pulls me tight against him. Taking the tip of my tongue, I trace his lips. He opens his mouth and I tentatively slide my tongue in. He deepens the kiss and I swear I leave the ground. Breaking off the kiss breathing hard I look around and he is carrying me to the barn. Looking back at him he bends down and his mouth is on my again. His lips do magical things to me.

Kicking open the door. He looks around and finds what he is looking for above us. The hay loft. Shifting me a bit he starts to climb up. Shit! I have let this go too far, I know I have. He gently lays me down on the straw and covers me with his body. I do not get the time needed to tell him what I need to because he is kissing me again. God I do not want to stop him, but I really need to. Pushing on his chest, he breaks the kiss off.

Looking down at me I can see the heat in his eyes. I know because I feel it all over my body. My nipples are hard and I am starting to get wet. Over a damn kiss???

“Jake, we have to stop for more reasons than one. But I have to tell you something and I didn’t know how else to do it other than this way so nothing looked weird,” I say.

He slowly leans off me and does not let go, his hands are still on my hips.

“What’s going on, Egypt?” he asks. His breathing is hard.

“Earlier at dinner I was looking out the windows. I saw a flashing light behind the barn in the woods. And then when I went to my room I saw it again. Your guys did not seem to see it.

I feel him stiffen up. He reaches next to us in the straw and pulls the CB out and tell them what I saw and to use caution. “We're going to stay put for now so it doesn’t look funny,” he says. Looking up at him, I can see he’s really thinking about something. “Let me know what’s going on,” he says. He puts the CB to the side again and I hear whoever on the other end tell him, “Roger that, Jake.”

He looks down at me and I feel his hand slowly start down my hip. Looking into his eyes, I wonder why he has not kissed me again? He is waiting for me to make the first move. Grabbing him by the back of his hair I pull him to me. Taking my lips, I meet his, and this time he is not gentle forcing my mouth open. His tongue is on fire. My arms have a mind of their own and start roaming his body. He breaks the kiss off and starts on my neck. Opening my eyes, I see that we are being watched by none other than Lane.

SHIT, I stiffen up and I know that Jake feels it. He stops kissing me and slowly looks me in the eyes. Taking my hand I run it down his left leg to his gun, I feel him stiffen up to stop me but I kiss him and grab the gun and point it behind him. “Hello, Lane,” I say.  Jake jumps up and turns around to face him. I rise up to my knees and hand the gun over to Jake getting to my feet. Staying behind Jake. Why would Lane be here?

“What the fuck you doin' here, Lane?” Jake says.

“Well tsk, tsk, is that any way you greet a friend there, Jake,” Lane says.

“I asked you a question, Lane,” Jake says.

“Well, just came to see how the better half lives, ya know. And to see if Egypt wanted to come live at our compound,” Lane says, smiling at me.

“Lane, it would be a cold day in hell before I went anywhere with you,” I say.