Survivalist Reality Show: The Complete Series

by Grace Hamilton

  “I think it’s a great idea. I learned that the hard way while I was on the streets,” Regan commented.

  Heather wrinkled her nose. “Some days, I wish I could wrap Travis in bubble-wrap and never have to worry about him getting hurt.”

  Wolf laughed. “I would do the same if I could.”

  Apparently surprised at the remark, Regan gave him a funny look. She looked almost mad… or was that jealousy? He wasn’t sure. He turned back to Heather and saw her own expression changing as she looked over the walls of her home. He knew it would be hard for her to leave the place she’d lived in with her husband. It was a last connection to him.

  “Is there anything else you want to take?” he asked her gently.

  She smiled. “I’ve got a few pictures. It’ll have to be enough.”

  “Good. Treasure those pictures. Travis will appreciate being able to look at photos of his dad.”

  She nodded her head. “As will I.”

  They waited a few more minutes, but unlike earlier in the day, this silence wasn’t awkward. They were simply waiting, giving the kids time to get some separation. “Alright, our turn,” he said to Regan.

  “I’m ready. Man, I’m going to sleep like the dead tonight,” she mumbled as they headed out the door.

  Wolf looked right and left, making sure no one was observing them. The quiet little town had gone even quieter in the last few days. Wolf knew it was likely due to the new residents who had moved in. He had a feeling a lot more people would be fleeing in the near future, assuming they hadn’t already. Living under the rule of the tyrant Heather and Regan had described wouldn’t appeal to anybody. It was hard to predict what kind of nightmare Damien would instigate.

  Regan opened her mouth to say something, but he quickly shushed her. “Did you hear that?”

  Regan shook her head as her eyes darted around the area. “No.”

  Wolf spun around to find a young woman coming down a driveway off to the right, his own hand already on the butt of the gun in his pants, ready to aim and fire if needed. The woman saw them and froze. She clearly hadn’t expected to see anyone out in the road.

  “I’m just going for a swim,” the woman said, her voice high as her eyes danced between them.

  Wolf nodded his head. “We’re not part of the new guard. We’re with Heather and Travis.”

  The woman breathed a sigh of relief, visibly relaxing. “Oh. How is she?”

  “Good. We’re out for a walk ourselves.”

  “In this heat?” she asked, clearly not believing them.

  He shrugged. “We wanted some time alone,” he said with a smile, reaching for Regan’s hand to emphasize the excuse.

  The woman’s eyes lit up and she smiled. “I understand. I had a boyfriend, but he took off a couple weeks ago. He was convinced the city would be better.”

  “Are you alone here?” Wolf heard himself asking, knowing it was a dumb question.

  She shook her head. “No. I was here visiting my parents with my boyfriend when everything happened. I’m staying with my parents—for now.”

  “Good. Be careful and watch yourself. Things aren’t heading in a good direction.”

  She sighed. “I know. My parents aren’t sure what they’re going to do. I think they want to leave. I do, too, but I’m kind of scared. I don’t know what’s out there.”

  Wolf smirked. “Same position.”

  “Good luck,” she offered before passing on by them and heading toward the beach.

  “That doesn’t seem safe,” Regan whispered.

  Wolf nodded his head, his smile flattening out. “It probably isn’t. Last week, maybe, but with that new faction trying to take over, I have a feeling they’ll be on the prowl for a lot more than supplies.”

  Regan shuddered beside him. “That’s horrible.”

  “It’s why I want to get you all out of here. I don’t want any one of you to have to go through anything… like that,” Wolf finished uncomfortably, knowing she’d understand his point.

  “Thank you,” Regan answered, squeezing his hand. “I know you’re looking out for us. I’m sorry I’ve been putting up such a fight about this swamp thing, but it’s not my idea of a future.”

  “I know. Hopefully, we can find something better. Think of the swamp as a holding place, okay? I think things will even out eventually, but in the meantime, we need to be safe.”

  They walked on in silence, both of them paying attention to where they were going and what was happening around them. They listened to the birds and bugs sounding off as if nothing sinister was happening, making good time as they headed forward. When they got closer to the van’s hiding spot, Wolf paused again, listening for anything that signaled a human presence.

  “I think it’s clear,” he whispered.

  Regan nodded her head and started into the bushes. They walked through the heavy brush to the stand of trees where the van was hidden, doing their best not to create a visible path by walking several feet apart and taking a different way in than either had on previous visits.

  Grunting and rocking of the van told him there was some serious loading happening—Tabitha and Geno were packing and re-packing, rearranging what supplies had already been brought over.

  Wolf walked up behind it. “Whoa!” he exclaimed.

  Geno was inside the van, shirtless. Sweat poured off the man. “No kidding, whoa. What are we doing here? This isn’t a moving van!”

  Wolf nodded, looking at the contents of the van. It was packed full already, and Heather and Fred were on the way with even more. He hadn’t realized how much stuff the group had been bringing over. They were preparing for everything, which made him proud, but the sheer amount of boxes and bags in the back of the van was overwhelming.

  “We can’t all fit in the van if we take all this,” he said quietly, and felt more than saw Regan deflate beside him with the same conclusion.

  Heather and Fred walked up a few minutes later, the wagon loaded with supplies in tow. Heather took one look at the back of the van and blanched. Wolf already knew what was coming, but couldn’t stop her.

  “We need to unload everything and repack it to make some room. This is a mess!” Heather exclaimed.

  Geno was hunched over in the back of the van, pushing stuff against the wall as he made a path. “Excuse me?” he growled.

  Heather spread her arms wide. She spun around to Wolf, her hands on her hips. “There’s no rhyme or reason. Aren’t you the one who said stuff that gets used the most should be the easiest to access?”

  He suddenly felt himself getting dragged into a war, and held up his hands in defeat. “I was talking about our bug-out bags.”

  “It makes sense, though. You were right,” Heather stated simply, turning back to face Geno.

  Ignoring her, Geno jumped down from the back end of the van and arched his back in a stretch as he faced Wolf. “I’m not repacking anything.”

  “I’ll do it,” Heather huffed.

  She climbed into the back of the van and began moving things out of the way.

  “Hey!” Geno protested as she pushed a toolbox out of the way.

  “Tools go in the back,” Heather said matter-of-factly.

  “No! What if the van breaks down and we need to fix it? I don’t want to dig through all this stuff to find them,” Geno protested. “We can’t risk getting stuck on a road. We need the tools easily accessible.”

  Wolf caught Fred glaring at him and Heather in turn, but the man backed off and leaned against a tree, apparently deciding he’d let this play out with the others while he played the observer. Regan moved off to his side as Wolf closed his eyes to find some of the patience he’d barely gotten his grip on earlier.

  He opened them to see Heather picking up a box labeled medical, and Tabitha’s mouth falling open as she shifted it to the side indelicately, shoving the box to the back and dropping one of the suitcases on top of it.

  “Um, we need that stuff, Heather,” Tabitha complained.

/>   Heather ignored her and continued to pack items around the tools and medical supplies. Wolf watched, and could feel the tension building. Things were about to get very ugly. Tensions were high, the weather was extremely hot and humid, and everyone was exhausted. Tabitha opened her mouth to say something else and Wolf prepared himself for a screaming match. Instead, Regan stepped forward and put her hand on Tabitha’s arm.

  “Why don’t you two take a walk down to the beach and cool off?” Regan suggested in a gentle voice that held no judgment whatsoever.

  “But—” Tabitha argued.

  Regan shook her head. “You and Geno have been out here all day. Let us do this. You guys haven’t had a break from the heat. Maybe you can get your feet wet and cool down a little.”

  Tabitha drew in a long breath. “Fine. Geno, let’s go,” she grumbled, and her husband followed her toward the beach.

  Regan looked back at Wolf and blew out her cheeks. “Whew, that was a close one.”

  He nodded, looking over to where Travis and Lily were sitting in the shade of a bush, observing the chaos. He was happy to see her happy. He’d keep his eye on Travis, though. The kid was respectful, but it was painfully obvious he had a crush on Wolf’s daughter.

  “Can I help?” he asked Heather, hoping to speed up the organization and packing process.

  “I’ll do it,” Fred volunteered.

  “I’ve got it,” Heather snapped.

  “I can help,” Fred shot back.

  Wolf closed his eyes, trying to hold onto his patience. “You guys, we need this done, and quickly. We need to leave early. I don’t want this thing dragging out. I don’t care how the stuff goes in, honestly—just get it in and remember there are eight of us that need to ride in there,” Wolf added.

  Heather stopped moving, her eyebrows drawing upward as she turned back to look at him. “No way. That is never going to work. Plus, it’s too hot back here, and with no windows, it would be too dangerous. Geno said the AC doesn’t work in this thing. We’d all be suffering from heat stroke within a couple of hours.”

  “What? What do you mean the AC isn’t working?” Wolf snapped, turning back to find Geno before he remembered they’d sent the man off with his wife.

  Fred nodded his head. “Yes, Wolf, she’s right. We discovered that earlier today. Geno started the van to check everything over and realized the AC wasn’t blowing cold air. He thinks it’s a compressor or something.”

  “Dang it!” Wolf muttered.

  “It’s okay. We’ll figure it out,” Regan said, stepping in close to him, her hand going to his bicep and gently squeezing.

  He shook his head. “This is a mess.”

  “I’ll have it all cleaned up for you, Wolf. Don’t worry about it,” Heather said cheerily.

  With nothing else to be done about the van, Wolf turned toward his daughter. “Travis, Lily, let’s get back to the house,” Wolf said.

  With that, the four of them headed out. Wolf was in no mood to talk, and the trip was a silent one.

  When they walked into Heather and Travis’ home, RC was laying on the couch, one arm thrown over his forehead, his feet propped up on a pillow and the gun resting on the floor. The man looked pale, and he wasn’t moving.

  Wolf couldn’t see his chest moving up and down.

  “Dad?” Wolf asked, suddenly worried. RC didn’t move, and Wolf felt an icy chill run down his spine as he stared at his father’s still body.

  “Stay here,” Wolf ordered Lily, closing the door behind him and blocking everyone else out.

  He hurried to the couch and stared down at his father, his heart pounding against his chest as he silently prayed for his father to move—to show some signs of life.

  “Dad,” he said again, his voice harsh, louder.

  Silently, he berated himself for not being more careful even as he realized that his dad was indeed breathing. He’d seen the symptoms of heat exhaustion. He’d assumed his dad knew what to do to keep himself safe, but he shouldn’t have. Heat stroke was no joke. Wolf sucked in a deep breath and dropped to his knees beside the couch. He reached out and gently touched his dad’s arm.

  RC jerked, nearly knocking Wolf backwards. “What? What happened? Is everything okay?” he demanded, sitting up.

  “Are you okay?” Wolf asked.

  RC rubbed a hand over his face. “I’m fine. I was a little tired and thought I’d rest my eyes.”

  Wolf reached out and grabbed his wrist, checking his father’s pulse and wishing like hell that Tabitha was with them. He knew the basics, but Tabitha did this for a living.

  “I’m fine,” RC growled, yanking his arm away.

  “Dad, I don’t think you are. I should have paid attention earlier. You were looking a little pale. You’re sleepy and I bet you have a headache, which is why your arm was over your head.”

  “I always sleep like that,” he argued.

  Wolf shook his head. “No, you don’t. It’s okay, Dad. It was a rough one today. Rest. Take it easy. You’ve been pushing yourself too hard.”

  RC leaned back against the couch, looking away. “Maybe you’re right.”

  “I’ll get you some water.”

  Trying to overcome the worry he still felt, Wolf stood and opened the door.

  “What was that about?” Lily asked, coming into the house.

  “Nothing,” he muttered, going into the kitchen to pour his father a glass of water.

  Regan followed him into the kitchen, pushing him backwards toward the open refrigerator that had been cleaned out to keep it from stinking up the house. “If you won’t tell her, tell me. What was that about?” she whispered.

  “My dad. I couldn’t wake him up,” he replied. “I worried….”

  Regan’s eyes bulged. “Is he okay?”

  Wolf nodded. “He will be. Heat exhaustion.”

  “Oh no. I should have been paying closer attention.”

  “It’s okay. He knows better,” he told her before walking around her and into the living room.

  Wolf handed the glass of water to his father. Lily was sitting next to him, feeling his forehead with her hand. Wolf smiled at the scene.

  “He’ll be okay. Right, Dad?”

  RC nodded, all but growling at those gathered around him. “I’m fine.”

  Forcing down a smile at the old man’s grumping, Wolf stood and headed out front to check around the house. If RC had been that sound asleep, he wouldn’t have heard anyone prowling around outside.

  “Are you okay, Dad?” Lily asked, coming up behind him.

  “Fine,” he replied simply, his eyes still on the surrounding land.

  “What’s the matter? Are you worried about Grandpa?”

  He shook his head, finally meeting Lily’s eyes. “No, Grandpa will be fine,” he said, projecting the confidence he knew his daughter needed to hear. “We just need to focus. Everyone needs to do their job and stop bickering—we’d all be here and resting now if everyone understood that,” he finished, frustration leaking into his voice.

  But Lily nodded her head, as if she understood better than he might have expected. “We’re trying. I’m trying. We’ll do better. Thank you for working so hard for all of us. Everyone is hot and cranky,” she told him.

  Wolf looked at his little girl, a little surprised. It hadn’t been too long ago that she would have bitten his head off. His Lily was back. Another bonus to his island burning down—he’d gotten his sweet little girl back.

  “Thank you. I appreciate that. I’m sorry I snapped. I’ll admit I’m a little stressed. Things will be better once we’re out of here. And your grandpa will be fine. I’m sure of it.”

  “It will get better. Grandpa will get better. I’m kind of excited to see this reservation,” she said with a smile.

  He nodded, smiling even as guilt reared its head. “I should have done a better job teaching you about your heritage.”

  She shrugged. “It’s okay. We’ve got time to do it now.”

  And she was rig
ht. He could deal with everything else just fine if his family was all put back together again. In fact, hearing the confidence in his daughter’s voice, he felt dang near invincible. He knew better than to get too comfortable, of course. There was always something around the corner. And with as many personalities as he was dealing with, whatever blow-up was coming would likely happen soon.

  4

  It was still dark when Wolf woke everyone up. There were a lot of complaints, but everyone knew it was what had to be done.

  The last to get to her feet, Regan stretched and rubbed her eyes, trying her best to wake up. Yesterday had been brutal and left them all drained. None more so than RC. His scare with heat exhaustion had been serious. If he could get taken down, any one of them could—talk about a reality check about how serious their situation was. Overworking their bodies in the high humidity was dangerous. It wasn’t laziness that drove them indoors or into the shade to relax. It was self-preservation.

  Tabitha and Geno had stayed back at the van, which was probably a good thing in Regan’s opinion. Everyone was tense, and the strain between Heather and Geno made everything worse. Regan knew what that was like all too well.

  This morning, though, the exhaustion was still too present for bickering to be a worry, and it didn’t take them much time to get up and out of the house. Heather came last, having taken an extra moment to say goodbye to the home she’d shared with her husband. Even she knew they had to get going, though, and she stayed toward the head of the group as they walked down a dirt path with only the moonlight to guide them. No one spoke as they made their way to the van.

  Toward the back of the group, she listened to the sounds of the nocturnal animals scurrying about, and prayed the snakes kept their distance. She wouldn’t be able to see them if they crossed her path.

  “Go ahead. I’ll wait and make sure no one followed us,” Wolf instructed once they approached the end of the dirt road near the van, his hand open and ready to grab the gun if need be.

  “Alone?” Regan questioned.

  “I’ll be fine.”

  With Regan taking lead, the rest of them spread out, pushing through the brush as they headed for the van. Regan held up a hand once they got close enough to form a silent semi-circle around the van, telling everyone to stop. She walked up to the back of the van and gently knocked on the door. “Tabitha, Geno, it’s Regan.”