She shrugged, meeting his eyes defiantly. “Grow it.”
“With what?”
“Logic,” she grunted, her shoulders slumping slightly as she moved back to his side—she couldn’t avoid this discussion any longer, it seemed. “Heather has some seeds.”
“Regan, I know the swamp doesn’t sound all that appealing, but it would be safer. We can harvest food from the vegetation. We can make it work. It won’t be easy, but we will have food.”
“What food? Do you have canned goods out there? Seeds? Corn?” she shot back at him, fighting not to raise her voice and draw the attention of the others who were still inside.
“No, but my ancestors have lived in the swampy areas of Florida for hundreds of years. I’m here as testament to their ability to survive.”
“That was all they knew,” Regan argued. “They were taught how to live out there from the moment they were born. I wasn’t. None of us were. You may have visited, but you didn’t actually live it day-in and day-out. I bet a lot of your ancestors died from malaria, dysentery, and wild animal attacks, as well,” she pointed out. “Many of them probably starved if crops were bad for even one year.”
“True, but we know how to avoid dysentery,” Wolf said gently, drawing her down to sit on the porch beside him, as if her sitting down might lower her defenses. “Malaria isn’t likely going to be an issue, and we can be smart and pay attention to avoid animal attacks.”
“Food? We were on the verge of starving when we were in the swamp,” she growled.
He reached out and wrapped her into his arms, pulling her in close to him. “Regan, I’m more worried about finding food here when there are hundreds, more likely thousands of people all trying to find food along with us. In the swamp, we aren’t going to have to worry about fighting other people for the resources. We won’t have that competition. People are far deadlier than any wild animal.”
She sighed against him, warring within herself. She knew he made a lot of good, valid points, but the very idea of living in a swamp, constantly being wet and smelling that horrid stink of rotten vegetation and stale water, made her stomach turn.
“Fine,” she muttered, wishing he’d let it go.
“You said that before. You know that if you’re not on board, it is going to cause tension.”
“Yeah, Wolf, I know. But I’m not the only one who’s hesitant. Tabitha and Lily aren’t exactly thrilled with the idea.”
“No, but they’ll go along with it if we make it sound like the best choice,” he reminded her.
“What about what Lily said that first night?” Regan asked.
“What?”
She cocked her head to the side and looked at him. “About Heather and Travis going with us.”
Wolf shook his head. “That was a suggestion. I don’t think Heather took it seriously. Lily was trying to be nice.”
“But what do you think Heather should do?”
“I can’t say. It isn’t my place.”
Regan shook her head. “Uh-uh, you’re not getting off that easy. Do you want them to come along or not?” she pressed.
He shrugged against her, the move shifting her against his body. “I honestly don’t know. It would be nice to have a couple extra strong, able bodies, but it would also mean we need more food, water, and shelter. There are good and bad sides to everything. I won’t stop her if she decides that’s what she wants to do, though, if that’s what you’re asking.”
“We owe her,” Regan said.
“We do, you’re right. We’ll have another conversation with her and see what she thinks without the kids around.”
After another minute, Wolf got back to his feet and reached down for Regan’s hand, pulling her up to stand beside him and wander into the yard, further away from the house and under the cover of some trees. They kissed briefly, and then stood in the silence of the early morning, listening to birds calling out, feasting on the many treasures the long rainstorm had brought out. Before long, the soft murmur of voices drifted through the open window, alerting them that the rest of the house was up and stirring.
“Ready to go in?” he asked, rubbing a hand up and down her back.
“Yep.”
“I’d like to start planning our departure. I’m thinking we could sell the boats in exchange for some supplies—maybe get some guns, food, basic camping gear….”
“Who are you going to sell them to?”
He shrugged. “I don’t know, but I’m sure there are plenty of people who’d like a boat. A boat has to be worth at least a handgun or a rifle. At this point, I’ll settle for a shotgun. We need more than a single weapon.”
“Do you think your condo is an option?” she asked.
He scoffed. “I doubt it. I don’t even think it’s worth the risk to try to get there. It would have been looted by now, and it’s not as if I kept much there in the way of supplies. I guess I never thought I would need more than a get-home bag,” he muttered.
“What about the van? Are you going to see if it’s still there?”
He nodded. “That’s the plan. Let’s go in and see if Geno’s up for a walk today.”
She chuckled. “Oh, I’m sure he’ll be thrilled.”
They opened the door and found Tabitha folding the blankets and stacking them with Heather’s help.
“Hi,” Tabitha said, her usual warmth radiating outward—even this early.
“Morning,” Regan replied, picking up the pillows and moving them to the corner of the room.
“Is it nice out there?” Heather asked.
“Much better than it’s been,” Regan said with a rueful smile, trying not to think of the smells.
Walking on by after handing her the last of the pillows, Wolf followed the men’s voices into the small kitchen.
Tabitha turned to Regan. “More swamp talk?”
Regan nodded her head. “He wants to take Geno to see if that van is still there.”
Heather remained quiet as she folded another blanket. Regan wasn’t sure what the woman wanted to do. She didn’t know her well enough to gauge her expressions. Nothing had been said about her going with them since that first night. Regan didn’t know what to do now to keep it from being an elephant in the room and had only just decided to bring it up herself and have it over with when Wolf came back in, followed by Geno, RC, and Fred.
“Geno and I are going to head to the van,” he told them. “We’ll take the gun with us in case we run into trouble. RC and Fred are going to ask around and see if anyone’s interested in trading supplies for the boats.”
“Oh, you should take Travis with you,” Heather suggested. “He knows everyone, and they know him.”
Wolf nodded, smiling in thanks. “Good idea.”
“He’s in the backyard with Lily.”
Wolf headed for the back door and returned seconds later with both kids. Travis looked proud to be included. He had a grin on his face that stretched from ear to ear, and seemed to be walking a little taller, as well.
“Listen to RC,” Heather told him.
Travis nodded his head. “I will. Let’s do this!” he said, clapping his hands together much like a coach might at the end of an inspirational speech.
“Be careful,” Regan reminded them as they moved toward the door.
Tabitha gave Geno a quick kiss and told him the same thing. Then, with all the men gone, it was just Tabitha, Heather, Lily, and Regan.
“You’re going to be leaving soon?” Heather asked.
“That’s the plan,” Regan said with a sigh.
The elephant was back in the room, but they let the subject drop anyway. Regan didn’t want to say anything Wolf wouldn’t be happy about it—he ought to be there for the conversation about what Heather and her son would do, one way or another. She knew he’d been a little irritated when Lily had blurted out the idea of them coming along to the swamp.
The women worked together to prepare a meal for the large group, once again pillaging Heather’s meager
stock of food. Regan hated using the woman’s supplies more than anything, and hoped they could repay her before they left. If the boat was valued enough, they could get a gun and some food—enough, she hoped, to leave some supplies behind for the kind woman and her son.
With a meal of potatoes, canned chicken, and some canned veggies in a Dutch oven over a fire, it was finally time to do a load of laundry. Washing clothes in a sink in the backyard wasn’t quite as effective as a washing machine, but it did the trick. It was more about getting rid of the smell of sweat than anything else, anyway. With eight people laundry duty was no joke. The trick was to do it with as little water as possible. Without the desalination set-up that Wolf had had on the island, they were completely dependent on rain. Wolf had set out every pot, bucket, and even dumped-out rubber totes in order to catch rain, early the day before. The rain had made it uncomfortable for them all, but it had provided much needed water.
The chores took a fair bit of time, and the women had just gotten back inside when there was a knock on the door. They each looked at each other with surprise.
“Do you get visitors often?” Regan whispered.
Heather shook her head. “Not really. Most of the people I knew around here have gone.”
“Do we answer it?” Tabitha said in a low voice.
The knock came again, louder and more forcefully.
“I think we have to,” Heather murmured. “Travis has a baseball bat in the hall closet,” she whispered.
“Lily, hide in the bedroom,” Regan ordered Wolf’s daughter, already dashing down the hall to find the bat.
The girl had looked as if she would protest, but quickly changed her mind and rushed down the hall. When Regan got back into the room, Tabitha stood to one side of the door while Regan stood behind it, the bat in her hand and ready to swing if she had to.
Heather pulled open the door. “Can I help you?” she asked in a pleasant voice.
Regan held her breath, waiting to hear who was on the other side of the door. She’d watched Heather stiffen upon opening it and knew it wasn’t a friend.
“Good afternoon, miss. Are you alone?” a male voice asked.
Tabitha stepped in behind Heather. “No, she isn’t. Do you men need something?” she asked, alerting Regan that there was more than one.
Tabitha’s hand went to the door, holding four fingers against the back side, offering the silent signal to tell her how many men they were dealing with. If the men decided to attack, Regan wasn’t convinced they could fend them off. This was what Wolf had been worried about.
Her eyes darted around the room, looking for anything Heather and Tabitha could grab that could be used as a weapon, but there wasn’t much to be seen.
“Well, it’s lovely to meet you ladies. My name is Damien and these are my buddies. We’re new in town. Actually, not all that new to the area, but we are here to offer you our protection. We’ve formed a security force, I guess you could say,” the voice added. “We’re here to make sure those that live in this little town are safe.”
“Safe?” Tabitha asked.
“What do we need to be protected from?” Heather asked sweetly.
There was a deep chuckle. “Well, ma’am, there are all kinds of unsavory types out there. We’re offering to be the law in town. We’ll make sure no one bothers any of our people.”
“Thank you for the offer, but we’re doing just fine. I feel we are plenty safe,” Tabitha assured the man.
“Oh, do you mean because of the men we met earlier? Coming from this direction? The big Italian, the old Indian, and the kid?” the man’s voice commented with a hint of amusement.
Regan’s mouth dropped open as she watched Tabitha jerk back as if she’d been hit.
It was Heather who spoke next. “What did you do? That is my son you’re speaking of,” she said, her voice scary-calm.
“We only talked, I assure you. They mentioned they had a boat and some other things they wanted to barter for supplies.”
“And?” Heather snapped.
Regan bit back a smile. Heather had a serene look about her, similar to Tabitha, but there was bite to this woman also. She was simple, and with a quiet elegance about her, her Native American heritage evident in her long, thick black hair that she wore straight, sometimes pulled back in a low ponytail. Her high cheekbones and dark brown eyes further revealed her heritage, but as graceful and sweet as she looked, there was more to her. Regan loved how she could appear meek and docile one second, and step right into the angry mama bear role in the next.
“Alright, I might have guessed that,” the man continued. “And, like I said, we’re new to the area. We want to get to know our people a little better.”
“Your people?” Tabitha asked, her voice tight. Regan watched her nails dig into the wooden door and knew she was angry.
There was a brief chortle from what sounded like a couple of the men. “Do you mind if we come in, so we can have a friendly chat? I didn’t even get your names. I’m hoping we can all be friends. We’re all going to be living in this happy little place, so I think we should be on a first name basis.”
“Yes, I do mind if you come in. I don’t make it a habit to let strangers into the house. If you have something to say, you can do it from right where you are,” Heather responded smoothly.
The man was silent for a moment. Regan stared at the side of Tabitha’s face, trying to gauge what was happening. Maybe sensing her nerves, Tabitha gave a subtle shake of her head, telling Regan to stay put. But Regan felt like a coiled snake, ready to spring, and it was starting to get to her, this waiting. Her legs were vibrating, her body tense as she prepared to fight for their lives.
“Look, it’s like this,” the man finally went on, and Regan thought his voice had gone a little harder, to hear it now. “We’re here in town, offering protection and a governing body, so to speak. Your men said they were willing to trade for some things, which means you’ve been holding out. We’re all here to help each other survive. Anyone who stays has to pay for the privilege,” he said flatly.
“Excuse me?” Heather growled.
“We’re here to provide a service. We’ll ensure everyone has enough to eat, a roof over their heads, and protection from any bad elements that try to come in. No freeloaders. Think of it as your taxes. If you don’t pay your taxes, there are consequences.”
“I already have all that. I don’t need to pay anyone,” Heather retorted.
“Things are changing,” one of the other men commented, this one’s voice deeper and louder—not trying to be friendly “We’re here and we’re running the show. We’ll give you a few days to think about what you want to do. If you want to stay here, in this house, you’ll need to add some of your food and other supplies to the community pot. We’ll be in charge of distributing those supplies as needed.”
Tabitha scoffed. “Why you?”
“Because I’m the new sheriff in town, I guess you could say,” this from the man who’d originally spoken. “Call me the governor, the mayor, or whatever you want, but I’ll be running this place. I won’t put up with anyone breaking the law or not pulling their own weight.”
Regan rolled her eyes. She wanted to see what this man looked like. He sounded to be in his mid-thirties or forties, but she couldn’t say for sure. Clearly, he was on a serious power trip. One way or another, she wanted to take him down a peg or two.
“We’ll take your offer into consideration. Now, if you don’t mind, I have things to do,” Heather said, closing the door in the man’s face.
“You’ve got a few days, but that’s it. You pay or you move on and your house becomes community property!” the man shouted through the door.
Heather turned to face Regan and Tabitha. Her eyes wide, her lips pursed together. The three of them stared at each other, without words.
Another moment went by before Lily appeared in the hallway, her face stricken with fear. “What did he say?” she whispered.
“It’s okay
. We’ll be fine,” Heather assured her.
“This is what my dad said would happen,” Lily said, shaking her head as if to refute the idea that any potential for their being ‘fine’ had long since passed.
“It’s okay, really,” Heather said, walking over to Lily and putting her arm around the girl’s shoulders. “He said we have time, and your dad is working on moving you right now.”
Regan watched the interaction with a strange mixture of feelings, still reeling from what she’d just heard, and now processing this scene in front of her. She missed having that kind of love from a mother. What was more, she knew it was what Lily needed in her life, too, and wasn’t sure she could ever be so easy with the girl herself. It came naturally to Heather, maybe because she was a mother. But if Regan was going to be in Wolf’s life, she was going to be Lily’s stepmother. Maybe that meant she needed some lessons in being a supportive mom.
Heather met Regan’s eyes and smiled. “It’s going to be fine.”
“I think we just brought a lot of trouble to your front door,” Regan replied.
Heather shrugged a shoulder. “It’ll be okay. And your group didn’t bring that trouble—they would have wandered by us eventually.”
“Regan’s right,” Tabitha agreed. “Us trying to trade the boats got their attention.”
“We’ll worry about that later. Let’s finish cleaning up and then we can get checking on dinner. I have some fresh herbs in the garden that we can use for seasoning,” Heather said, walking away with Lily still tucked under her arm.
Regan and Tabitha hung back. “I think she has to go with us now,” Regan whispered.
Tabitha nodded her head. “If she doesn’t want to, we can’t force her, but we also can’t stay here much longer. We’re bringing a lot of attention onto her. I don’t think those men are going to believe we were passing through, and she doesn’t have much to offer—she’s already shared too much with us.”
“What’d they look like?” Regan asked, catching her friend’s arm to keep her from following Heather and Lily into the kitchen.
Tabitha shrugged. “The lead guy, Damien, he looked like an average guy. Tallish, dark hair, average build. I imagine before everything happened he was probably a used-car salesman or something. A little pale—not the typical Floridian.”
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