Ravaged Land - A Post-Apocalyptic Novel (15 page)

First I heard a rattling noise, and then what sounded like a weird grinding noise. I realized they had opened the garage door. Owen and Ryan must not have ever figured out a way to secure it or maybe they hadn’t tried too hard with everything else they had been doing to gather supplies for us to live. They were in the garage now scrounging around. Ryan had put Sienna in the bathroom, I’d heard the faintest door click and he was crawling military style towards the kitchen keeping his gun pointed towards the door that led to the garage. Seth and I didn’t move, and I still didn’t know where Owen was. I hoped Dean would stay upstairs until someone came and got him, or if he heard he was needed for backup. I didn’t know if he could hear them futzing around in the garage or for that matter, how much he heard of any of what was going on while he was up there.

“Open it,” one of them said.

“It’s locked.”

“Try harder.”

And there was kicking and pounding. My body jumped with each one. I felt a tear stream down my cheek and then a matching one on the other side. The second was because I was upset with myself for being such a coward.

“This one’s boarded up too.”

“Aw shit man we’ll have to come back with something. Let’s go, probably nothing here anyway.”

“There is probably something in there, something good, since it’s boarded up,” a third person said.

Then they closed the garage door and walked out front. Someone threw something at the house and I jumped again almost letting out a noise but I stopped myself. Seth was back at the front door ready with his bat, so I peered up through a crack to see if I could see what they were doing. They were walking away. All except for the one that was at the window. He popped into view only inches from my face. I fell back covering my mouth with both shaking hands to keep myself from screaming. I prayed to everything and anything holy that he didn’t see me. He tapped the glass with his fingernail where my face had been.

“Let’s go!” someone shouted to him.

“Yeah I’m coming!” his voice so clear through the window.

Had his window tap been a message? Had he seen me? If he had he would have told the others. Maybe he was testing the thickness of the glass? I didn’t know. Right now, I didn’t care. I didn’t breathe again until I heard the car drive off and could no longer hear the car engine. I was still unable to move.

“Are you OK?” Seth asked reaching his hand out to me. I couldn’t take it, my arms didn’t work. I was stuck, I felt paralyzed. This is where I was going to be the rest of my life, curled up into a terrified ball behind this chair.

I shook my head unable to respond.

Ryan returned to the living room with Sienna and sat her down on the couch. She was visibly shaken too, but she was movable. That made me angry. The freshman was tougher than I was. I wasn’t exactly sure when it had happened but I was standing.

The stairs creaked loudly as Dean come down them rapidly. Owen was standing near the kitchen table. They were all looking at me, their mouths were moving but nothing was coming out. Everything started to spin and get fuzzy, and the last thing I heard was Ryan saying “Oh shit,” as he took a step towards me.

* * *

When I came to, I was lying on the couch with a cool cloth on my forehead, Ryan was perched over me. Dean and Owen were at my feet, Sienna sat on the chair with her arms folded looking annoyed. I heard Seth dragging the chair I had been hiding behind back into place.

“You OK?” Ryan asked as he loosely pinched at my hand.

“Mmm… yeah. What happened?” I asked sitting up and removing the damp cloth from my lap after I noticed it had fallen off my head. I gasped at the pain I felt, and I reached back to feel a big goose egg had formed, “My head?”

“You fainted,” Dean said walking around the coffee table and sitting beside me with a concerned look on his face. Then it all came rushing back at full force and I flinched at the memory. My whole body jerked thinking about the men coming and snooping around our home. In this heat, of at least 100 degrees, I shivered. “And you hit your head pretty bad when you did.” Dean slid his hand to the back of my head feeling for the bump, “Jesus!”

Ryan glared at Dean but reached back and felt it too. “Do we have any ice?” he asked Owen. Owen shook his head. “Right… no freezer, I think we need to turn on the generator and make some ice.” Thankfully we had the generator off when the men were here otherwise they would have known without a doubt there were people inside.

“What if they come back?” Sienna asked.

“I think we have to risk it…” Ryan said lightly pressing the cool cloth against the back of my head. “Need anything? Something for the pain?” he asked quietly and kindly.

“Ibuprofen?” I asked wincing. Dean darted up and brought two pills and a bottle of water. I took them eagerly wishing they’d work instantaneously.

“It’s almost dark, I don’t think they’ll come back tonight, they’d have to carry flashlights and why would they bother when they could just come back during the day? It’s not like anyone would be calling 911 on them. Owen would you start the generator? Seth would you start the ice?” Ryan asked, his eyes wide with concern.

“I want to go lie down,” I said trying to stand up.

“Here?” Ryan asked.

“No, in my bed, I don’t want to be by the window, door or chair right now. Could you help me?” I asked Ryan. He carefully helped me up and when I wobbled threatening to fall on my face, he caught me and guided me, practically carrying me to my room. Dean stood watching the whole time ready to jump in to help if he was needed but it was Ryan’s arms I wanted to be in. It was his protective body I wanted to be next to in order to feel safe again.

He started to help me into bed but I wanted to change first. Every night I’d slept in an over-sized T-shirt, it was comfortable and cool. “What is it?” he asked when I stopped moving.

“I want to change,” I said not sure how to go about changing and have him here to steady me.

“OK what do you want?”

“That shirt,” I pointed to the one haphazardly draped across the top of the dresser and he grabbed it while I held onto the bedpost.

“OK what else?”

“Just that,” I shrugged.

“Should I leave?” he offered, but I honestly didn’t think he could. I didn’t know if I’d be able to hold myself up with this vertigo and remove and replace my clothing on my own without falling.

“No, stay… help,” I said blushing.

“Right, ummm… OK, just tell me what you want me to do,” he said aiming his eyes towards the ground.

“Not sure, I’ve never had to do this before,” I said, “I mean, having to change while feeling like I’m going to lose my balance and fall on my face.”

“I could get Sienna,” Ryan offered.

“No, I’m afraid she’d drop me if I fell.” I shook my head, knowing it would have been easier if she could have helped me, “Let’s just do it, quick. Stand behind me.” I started to take off my shirt but I couldn’t do it one handed, and I let go of the bed post. My body started tipping forward and Ryan grabbed my hips to pull me back up. He held me steady while I finished undressing myself. When I got the shirt above my head I felt the stiffness in my shoulders and neck and struggled to get it off. I felt the shirt disappear from my hands as Ryan yanked it the rest of the way off.

There I stood in my bra and jeans, wobbling forward and backwards, at least it felt like I was. Ryan pushed the T-shirt against my hand and I opened it and struggled to get it on. “I can’t, my neck hurts too much,” I said holding the shirt in front of myself covering as much as I could. I grabbed a hold of the bedpost again. “You’re going to have to do it,” I said, almost not even feeling embarrassed because I felt out of options and really wanted to just lie down. In fact, I started to seriously worry I might have a concussion.

He took the shirt and pulled it down over my head while I held on tightly. Once it was over my shoulders I was able to get my arms in one at a time, and he helped me pull it down. I felt as though that couldn’t have gone any smoother than it had. After all, he saw my back, big deal everyone has a back and my back was a back he wasn’t interested in any way. If he had been, he no longer was, so it was just a back.

“There!” he said as if we’d accomplished a great feat. I turned to him and smiled. I wobbled towards him and he caught me, “In bed,” he ordered.

“Wait.”

“Now what?” he said not sounding annoyed but more like he was wondering what else there could be.

“My pants,” I said, “Help me sit down.” He guided me down to the bed and once I was sitting comfortably, I covered with a blanket, undid my jeans and wiggled them down as much as I could. Ryan looked at me and placed his hand on mine holding it still. The look in his eyes was overwhelming and intoxicating. He lifted my hand off my leg and placed it on the side of the bed and did the same with my other hand making sure I was well braced. He slid his hands up my thighs to the waistband of my semi-pulled down jeans and slowly started to pull them down my legs. He wiggled them around my knees, then over my calves, slipping out one foot and then the other never taking his eyes off mine.

I had forgotten all about the throbbing pain in the back of my head. My heart was beating fast and I was extremely aware of each beat it took. He dropped my jeans to the floor and leaned forward against the bed one of his legs between mine. His right hand found my thigh and slid slowly upwards to the band of my underwear, but he thankfully kept going. I didn’t want to stop whatever was happening, since whatever it was both felt amazing and it cured all pain. His hand was moving up my side over my shirt. The T-shirt was getting all bunched up and wrinkled as it exposed the bare skin of my stomach and part of my light blue underwear. I could tell the cover I had once been under was no longer on top of me, but Ryan didn’t seem to notice. His eyes never moved from mine, watching me as his hand roamed. It almost seemed as though he was expecting me to stop him.

When he got his hand as far as my shoulder, he slid it around towards my back and gently guided me down into a laying position. He twisted my body so my head was on the pillow and turned me on my side so I was facing him. He was being careful so the big bump at the back of my head wouldn’t have any pressure on it. He slid his hand out from under me carefully trying not to jostle me too much. He touched my cheek and let his thumb brush against my lower lip making my whole body tingle. Ryan took the light sheet and pulled it up over my hips, it was too hot to be covered with anything more than that. Heck, once he left I’d probably kick my legs out anyway.

He lowered himself down to my ear and whispered “Good night, Ros.” He glanced at me for a brief second, “If you need anything just call for me.” The bed bounced upwards as he removed his weight.

“Ryan,” I said and exhaled.

“Hmm?”

And if I hadn’t heard the words come out of my own mouth, I would have doubted they had been mine. I looked into his eyes, “Don’t go.”

Chapter thirteen.

When I woke up Ryan was sleeping in the chair with his head cranked to the side. He would certainly have a sore neck when he woke up. Speaking of hurting, my head was throbbing, and I had the headache of a lifetime, but the bump felt as though it had gone down. I felt something behind my head and pulled it out. It was a plastic bag full of water that had been wrapped in a towel. They had made me ice and someone must have placed it under me while I slept. It hadn’t even woken me, I must have been out cold.

That’s when I had the flashback of what happened with Ryan. Had it really happened or had I imagined it? It was far too real for it not to have been real. I was staring at my feet feeling embarrassed, and I’ll admit a touch happy. A tingle surged from the top of my head to my toes about the incident, when Ryan coughed. It startled me at first, but I played it cool. I smiled my best smile and said, “Good morning.”

“Ugh, yeah….” He pressed his fingertips deep into his neck muscles, “Sorry Ros, I’m a real ass in the mornings,” he forced a small smile in return. “I slept in this chair all freakin’ night,” he said sounding as if he wasn’t sure. Yes, I had asked him to stay, but I didn’t ask him to sleep with his head cranked to the side all night in that uncomfortable chair. I wanted to ask why he didn’t sleep in the bed, but decided against it.

I hugged my legs to my chest, “Did you apply the ice to my bump?”

“Sienna made the ice,” he said. His head darted back and forth from me to the open door, “I told her I’d stay in here through the night in case something should happen, you know, like a concussion or something.”

“Sure.” Maybe I had dreamed our intimate moment, I did bump my head pretty badly. It wouldn’t be that out there to have actually dreamed it even though it had felt so real.

“Ros I have to ask you something,” he said looking at the door again. It was bothering him having it open, he got up and closed it quietly. It hadn’t sounded like anyone else was even up yet.

“Shoot,” I said feeling a little sick to my stomach.

“It’s about that day, with Dean.” He sat at the edge of the bed with his back towards me. I could tell he was uncomfortable and that something was bothering him.