Now that she was confident they were not trapped here indefinitely, Camarin felt more relaxed. She boosted herself onto the filing cabinet and sat down. "Let's talk," she said.
Kimberly sat on the floor, the cold seeping through her coat and pants, numbing her butt. Given how sore she was, the numbness was a welcome relief. "First of all," she started, "I don't understand what got into me back there. This is totally out of character for me. I do not engage in sexual intimacy with members of the same sex. And I do not engage in rough sex with anyone. Male or female," she added for emphasis.
Camarin found her speech somewhat amusing, given the way Kimberly had responded, participated and obviously enjoyed what they were doing only moments earlier. However, she decided now was not the time to argue the point. If all went as planned, Kimberly would have it figured out by the time her excursion ended. "You don't need to explain," Camarin responded. "I don't know what got into me either. Although I prefer women, I do not typically engage in sex with straight women who want it because they are curious as to what it would be like." Camarin was surprised by the anger that crept through in her last comment.
"Are you saying that's what this was all about – that I was just curious?" Kimberly asked.
Camarin shrugged. "Maybe, or maybe it was just a matter of happenstance. I don't know. However, I do think we need to let it go and move on to more important matters. Like what you're going to tell Mark when you go back to the cabin."
Kimberly sighed and pulled her knees to her chin, hugging herself.
"Maybe I won't tell him anything," she suggested. "I'll just rent a car and drive back home. Call him later and tell him there was a family emergency or something. If he asks why I didn't leave a note, I'll just tell him I was too upset to think of it." Her eyes wide and questioning, she looked at Camarin. "What do you think?"
"I think it's going to be hard to rent a car when you have no identification or money or credit cards on you. And why would you leave without taking any clothes? Don't you think Mark will be awfully suspicious?"
"Oh, shit!" Kimberly exclaimed. "Maybe I should just tell him the truth," she muttered. "I'm fucked up, confused, unhappy and don't know what I want at this point."
A tear slid down her cheek and Camarin saw it before Kimberly had time to look away. She eased herself off the filing cabinet and kneeled beside her. "Ssh," she whispered, placing her arm around Kimberly's shoulders. "It's all right." Gently, she pulled Kimberly into her arms and held her. She kissed the top of her head and whispered soothing words of reassurance.
Kimberly clutched Camarin's shirt and pressed her face against her chest. She listened to the soothing sounds of her heart beating and gave vent to the tears she'd repressed for so long.
Camarin had to think of something fast. Thanks to her little deviation from the script, things were happening much quicker than they'd planned. This changed everything and she had to figure out what to do. There seemed only one solution. She'd have to tell Taylor what happened, and then bring Kimberly back to their cabin for a while. Between the two of them, they should be able to set things right again.
Feeling better after her cry but still worrying what to do, Kimberly pulled away and wiped her eyes. "I'll be okay," she said, running her fingers softly down Camarin's cheek. "Thanks for letting me cry on your shoulder."
"Any time," Camarin told her. She stood and offered Kimberly her hand. When they stood face to face, she lifted Kimberly's chin and kissed her softly on the lips. "I'm sure you will be okay, but I don't want you doing something you'll later regret," she told her. "Like I said, it's not my norm to sleep with straight women, but I've done it enough times to know you shouldn't rush into anything." She paused and looked outside. "It's getting late. Let's hike down to the docks."
"But…"
There's a pay phone there," she explained. "I want you to come back to my cabin with me. But I need to call my friend first and let her know we're coming. I'm sure she won't mind, but since we're sharing the cabin, it seems only fair that I ask her."
Although her words belied Kimberly's earlier impression of Camarin, she sounded sincere. "I would appreciate that," she said.
"I'll call Mark from there and tell him I'm going to be out for a while.
If her presses me for details, I'll just tell him we'll talk about it later."
Camarin smiled and lifted the axe. "Sounds good to me," she said.
"Are you ready?"
Kimberly nodded and stepped aside. "I take it you're going to do the honors?"
"Yes." she replied. Swinging the axe at her side, Camarin sauntered over to the door. After making certain that Kimberly was out of the way, she took aim and slammed the axe against the door.
Having weathered a lot of abuse over the years, the wood cracked and splintered. Two more strikes and the door was shattered. Camarin stepped back and motioned Kimberly to go first. "After you," she said very politely.
Kimberly smiled, grateful to be out of the cabin with its stifling dark atmosphere and musty smell. With the ease of two old friends taking a walk, she held Camarin's hand and they started for the docks.
It was a strange and different, but good, feeling that accompanied Kimberly down the mountain. She found Camarin's courtly demeanor to be very flattering. Hmm, she thought to herself. Maybe there is something to this female-to-female sex thing.
There was only one pay phone and it was being used by a boy who looked to be about fourteen or fifteen years old. He was bragging to someone about a big catch that he'd just made while ice fishing. Very politely, the two women stood to the side and waited.
The young man could see they were there but they weren't intruding on his space. Their show of respect must have pricked his sense of consciousness. "Well, I gotta go. I'll call you when I get home," he told his friend. "Okay, bye." He replaced the receiver, then turned and gave Kimberly the once over. An appreciative smile on his face, he winked at her and went on his way.
Camarin laughed. "I think he likes you," she teased.
"Humph," Kimberly replied.
Camarin dropped coins into the telephone and dialed the number for the cabin. Taylor answered on the first ring. Gesturing as though she couldn't hear, Camarin pushed the door closed and turned so her back was leaning against it and Kimberly could not see her face.
Taylor listened patiently to Camarin's description of what happened between the two women. Although Camarin was making an effort to convince Taylor that it was an act of necessity, Taylor felt betrayed and hurt. "How convenient," she said in a voice ripe with sarcasm.
"Too bad I wasn't part of the script when you fucked me. If I had been, maybe you'd have returned the favor."
Camarin smarted as she listened to Taylor's painful diatribe. "I'm sorry," she whispered. A moment of silence passed between them.
Camarin searched for some way of appeasing Taylor's hurt pride, but nothing seemed adequate. Why today of all days, she asked herself, have I suddenly developed a conscience?
Taylor, too, was debating the matter. She decided that it was unfair of her to expect anything more of Camarin than she gave her. "It's okay," she said, her voice very soft and low. I have no right to question you about what you do. After all, I'm the student here.
Right?"
Camarin laughed. Taylor's humor was a good sign that she was forgiven. "So, do I need to pick up air freshener?" she asked, referring to the fire that occurred earlier that day.
"Nope!" Taylor informed her. "The smoke finally cleared and I cleaned every porous surface I could find in the place. It's not perfect, but it'll do."