“So we look different?”
“That’s the general idea…” I say as I nod. “I don’t know how good it is. I dyed mine black and attempted to grow this beard—but I suppose if we were ever spotted, I mean we can’t do much about our how tall we are or the fact that… well—it’s a pretty shitty idea for a disguise.”
“Will you help me?” Claire asks as she pulls her shirt up and off.
“I’ll do my best,” I say as I watch her undress. Her small, waifish, beautiful form is illuminated by the light from a tinted window. I swallow hard as I have not seen her in the light. I find myself growing rather aroused at the sight of her nude form. She lies in the bathtub as I prepare a mixture in a bowl from the kitchen—it smells rather terrible. I lather it into her light brown hair and I run a little warm water so that she is not naked and cold in the tub.
“Are you looking at me…?” Claire says as she peeks over behind me and smiles.
“I’m finding it pretty impossible to not.”
“This burns,” she says as she begins to sound as though she is getting a little upset.
“I’m sorry… Claire.” I find it strange to use her real name, but I know that it will help her.
She draws her legs up and places them against her and begins to rock back and forth. I place my hand against her bare back and gently rub my hand along her spine.
“Not much longer…” I whisper.
“Not much longer…”
I check my father’s old watch, mentally counting down the minutes.
“Did I ever tell you about the time that I got in trouble when I was on a school fieldtrip?”
“On a school fieldtrip…”
“Well we were staying at this fancy hotel, I don’t even remember which one it was now—it doesn’t matter. But we were doing this whole thing where we were seeing the art museum and the history museums, it was a lot of museum visiting… stuff you don’t really care as much about when you’re in high school. Anyway, on this trip we were staying at this really nice hotel—and right before we got there we stopped at this grocery store to stock up on snacks, like cookies and chips and things. I saw this vending machine that had a bunch of those tiny little rubbing bouncy balls for fifty cents. I got change from the guy at the counter and I bought like ten of them. At the hotel, we get all checked in and they start breaking us into groups because we can’t fall fit into these all glass elevators… back then, I wasn’t afraid of them—now they terrify me, kind of strange yeah?”
“Kind of strange yeah…?”
“I suppose some fears you grow into… anyway, I’m in this group of six other people. I take a handful of the rubber balls from my pocket and I throw them against the window as hard as I can, they go whizzing around like crazy, bouncing against the wall, the ceiling, it is just madness—the other fix students with me are yelling, jumping around trying to dodge and not get hit—a few of them do… even myself. Those things were a lot harder than I thought they would be. The teacher who has volunteered to escort us sees the entire thing and I get sent home that same day. I never got to stay in the hotel. My parents were angry, but even they think that she overreacted. After all, it is not like I broke anything or really hurt anyone.”
Claire laughs as she continues to rock back and forth.
“It’s time,” I say as I reach down and pull out the stopper and allow some water to drain. I lean her head back beneath the faucet and wash out the mixture; I keep a hand over her eyes careful that none of it gets into her eyes or reaches her face. I run a towel through her hair, and to my relief it does not all fall out. It is definitely a very light blonde.
Claire takes the towel from me and dries off. She then rushes to the bed and lies down, covering herself up with the sheets.
“I’m sorry,” I say as I shake my head. “It was probably a bad idea.”
“I’m just… I know that I go somewhere else sometimes—It takes a lot out of me. I need to nap again.”
“I might run into town and check in with a guy I met… see if anything is going on. Do you want anything?”
“Get more eggs and bread?” Claire asks quietly. “I like to stock up…”
“Of course,” I say as I laugh.
“Mayonnaise,” she adds. “Egg salad sandwiches…”
“Got it,” I say as I pull up on the sheets and make sure she is properly tucked in.
I take the tarp off of the car and put it into drive. I pause at the edge of the driveway. “Any vehicles on the road…?”
“Currently no vehicles are active.”
I drive into Lawson; my rifle is seated beside me in the passenger seat. I make my way to the grocery store. I sling the firearm over my shoulder and enter the building.
The old man instantly recognizes me, despite my black hair and meager beard. I suppose though, last time it was nearly dark outside.
“Benjamin…”
“Eli,” I say as I nod. “Just came in to pick up some bread and eggs—anything going on in town?”
“We missed you at the militia meeting.”
“My girlfriend has had the stomach flu—picked it up from the drive over I suppose,” I say as I realize that I had completely forgotten. “I’ll make sure I make the next one.”
Eli nods. He then gestures over to an old hotel. About four of them C-Shapes Hunters have set themselves up in the hotel there—it is makin’ a lot of people nervous. They won’t say what their business is, which only makes them more suspicious.”
“Have you had any Unstables go Aggro?”
“Nah,” Eli says as he shakes his head. “However they seem to be real interested in checking in on our small population of them.”
“How many do you have here?”
“We got about fifty or so—we’re pretty lucky there as we got a population of around six hundred spread out in the area. So there is no good reason for Hunters to even be here—like I said we take care of our own. You wouldn’t know nothing about this would you?”
“Me?” I ask as I shake my head. “I came out here to get away from this shit.”
I pick up a few things. I grab a whole bunch of bottled water—the same kind that fits in the car. In the back of my mind I start to realize that we might have to start travelling again. At least Claire is feeling a little better.
As I return to the checkout a man wearing a camouflaged hat and leather jacket, despite the heat, is talking to Eli. A half smoked cigarette hangs from his mouth as ash carelessly falls down to the floor. He is carrying a handgun.
I place the items on the counter.
“This is Benjamin,” Eli says as he introduces to the man. “He and his girlfriend came out here from St. Louis to get away from all the trouble there.”
“Tom,” the man says as he extends a hand.
“Good to meet you, Tom,” I say as I shake the man’s hand.
“There’s one of the bastards now,” Tom says as he rubs his scruffy chin with his thumb. “You in the militia Benjamin…?”
“I’m joining.”
“Good,” Tom says as he keeps his eyes fixed upon the man dressed in the black suit. “Aggros might not be the only trouble we’ve got here.”
I watch as the man lingers around the front of the hotel. He sits upon a bench. I know that I have to go out there—I know stalling will only make me look more suspicious, right now these two are on my side and I have to keep it that way if I have any chance of making it out of here alive.
I pay Eli and head out the door. Tom puts his hand against my shoulder as I leave. “Be careful with that guy.”
“Thanks,” I say as I nod.
I open up the trunk and start to slide the water bottles into the large container. I place the eggs and bread, safely wrapped up in a blanket, in a vacant corner so they will travel safely.