by N. C. Reed
Maria went to where Roland was standing in a hallway just off the school office.
Alone.
“Roland, what are you yelling about?” she demanded.
“This dog!” he pointed. “Where did it come from?”
“I see no dog,” Maria shrugged.
“Are you blind?” he demanded. “it’s right he...” Roland turned his head to look at the dog, then turned back to Maria. Then did a double take. There was no dog.
“Where did it go?” he asked the air around him.
“Roland, do you feel all right?” Maria asked.
“I’m fine!” Roland insisted. “I’m tellin’ ya, there’s a dog in here!”
“Where?” she asked, calmly.
“I swear it was right here,” Roland told her, bewildered.
“Why don’t you let me get you a cup of coffee,” Maria soothed, taking his arm. “You aren’t getting enough rest, Roland, and that can...”
“Don’t gas light me!” Roland shot back, but allowed her to lead him toward the kitchen. “I know I saw a dog!”
“What kind of dog?”
“It looked like a chocolate Lab,” Roland told her.
“I see,” Maria nodded, and Roland flushed a bit.
“I’m telling you, there’s a dog around here,” he ground out.
“We’ll find him, dear,” Maria smiled, patting his arm. “I promise.”
“You don’t believe me, do you?”
“Of course I do,” Maria smiled. “A dog made of chocolate. I’ll ask everyone to be watching for him.”
“It’s a female,” Roland almost sulked. “Her, not a him.”
“I see,” Maria said again, steering him to a table. “Wait right here while I get you some coffee and something to eat.”
“I’m not a baby, you know,” Roland told her, sitting down.
“I know, dear,” Maria patted his shoulder, then headed for the kitchen proper. “I’ll just be a minute.”
Roland sat there, looking around him as others who were eating hastily went back to doing so.
“I’m telling you...”
-
James was on his feet when Melissa entered his room, followed by Doctor Kingston.
“What are you doing up?” she demanded, seeing James almost completely dressed.
“Uh, getting dressed,” he replied.
“You should still be in bed!” the nurse insisted as she arrived at his side.
“I’m fine,” James told her. “Too much to do for me to be laying around.”
“Would you mind if I take a look at that leg first?” Kingston asked, smiling.
“Doc, I’m fine,” James repeated. “Really.”
“Please?” Melissa asked. He looked at her puppy eyes, and sighed.
“Fine,” he grumped, and sat down on the bed.
“Pants off, youngster,” Kingston demanded. Glowering, James stood up again, and pulled his pants off, sitting back down in a sulk.
Kingston looked at the wound, clucking on occasion as she did so. Finally, she stood back.
“Hurts plenty, I imagine,” she told him.
“Some,” James admitted. Reluctantly.
“Probably will for several days,” she nodded. “But the wound looks like it’s wanting to heal already. Stitches are holding, but I want you to take it easy, understand? That’s some mighty fine knitting I did there, and I don’t want it ruined.”
“I can stand the radio watch,” James nodded. “That’ll free up someone who can do something I can’t.”
“I can agree to that,” Jennifer nodded in reply. “I want you doing that at least three days. After that, if there’s no seepage or swelling, then you can do what you can do. But James, when it starts hurting, sit down for a while. You’ll have to ease your way back into fighting trim, understand?”
“I get it,” James agreed.
“Okay, then, you can get dressed,” the doctor agreed. James put his pants on once again, and then gathered the rest of his gear. He turned suddenly, looking at the two women.
“Hey, do you guys know if Jesse brought my dog with us?”
“What dog?”
-
“Dog?” Jesse frowned, then lightened. “Oh, yeah! The Lab! Yeah, she made the trip.”
“Great!” James grinned ear to ear. “Where is she?”
“Uh. . .well, I don’t. . .see I didn’t. . .I mean that is. . .hell, I don’t know,” Jesse finally settled for saying. “I wasn’t paying attention when we got here so I don’t know where she got off to, but she came with us, I know that.”
“Thanks, Jesse!” James smiled widely. “I’ll just go see if I can find her.”
“We’ll go see if we can find her,” Melissa countered, her voice firm. “You’ll be where I can keep an eye on you while you’re healing.”
“I can live with that,” James gave her another grin, and Melissa blushed in spite of herself. The two set off, arm in arm, to search. Leaving Jennifer and Jesse alone.
“So how is your day going, Doctor?” Jesse asked. Jennifer looked at him, fighting off a smirk.
“My day is just fine, soldier boy,” she replied smoothly. “How are you feeling? Still sore?”
“A little, maybe, but nothing like yesterday morning. A good stretch this morning helped a lot. I’m gonna go for a run here in a bit,” he added, standing. “Work out the rest of the kinks that way.”
“Running, huh?” Kingston’s voice was non-committal. “Where do you run?”
“Track outside,” Jesse nodded his head toward the back of the school. “Not a professional track, but it’s comfortable to run on.”
“I might just join you,” the young doctor’s silky voice told him. “It would be nice to have a relatively safe place to run, for once.”
“Why not just stay here?” Jesse asked. “This place is reasonably safe and we could sure use you, especially when the kids come back. It would be nice to have a real doctor in the house, not to mention another adult.”
“Well, you do work fast, don’t you soldier boy,” she teased, smiling brightly at him. “Known me all of two days and already asking me to move in. You do that to all the girls you meet?”
“Well, I ...er, that. . .no,” Jesse managed to stammer an answer to her direct question.
“Take it easy,” Kingston’s laughter echoed in the room. “I’m just messing with you. Although, there are some good points to being in a place like this,” she admitted. “But, I still have to make rounds, and help the sick and injured, at least as much as I can with what I have left to work with. Being here, so far out, might present a problem.”
“With travel, you mean?” Jesse asked, and she nodded.
“Nah, we can handle that,” Jesse promised. “We should be able to set you up a route and provide an escort while you’re making your rounds. Say once a week, barring an emergency?”
“That. . .that would work,” it was Kingston’s turn to look a little nonplussed. “Seriously, though, there’s a lot of equipment and supplies I’d need to move, if I came out here. And where would I work, and live?” she asked.
“Well, here,” Jesse waved his arms around. “There’s plenty of room. If we keep growing we may have to double up some,” he admitted. “But I’m sure Maria and Terri and Deena wouldn’t mind sharing a room with you. All three of them seem to hit it off with you right away.”
“And Angie would probably be overjoyed at having someone more qualified than her to handle the medical front. Plus, Miss Andrews looks like she’s going to stay, and she’s a nurse.”
“A good one, too,” Jennifer nodded her agreement. “Melissa works hard, and she’s smart.”
“As to your equipment and supplies, we can take a truck and go get everything you want to move. Set it up for you, here, to your specs. We’ve got power, and we’ll try to get more UV stuff set up as well. The school’s large enough, even with all the kids here, to probably let you have a small clinic room for patients. Maria would know that better than m
e, though,” he admitted.
“Well, why don’t I think about it while we run,” Jennifer offered. Removing her lab coat, she revealed her own running clothes. Clothes that hugged her form very enticingly, and set Jesse’s mouth to watering.
“Uh, yeah, that’s sounds. . .I mean that’s. . .sure, why not,” Jesse finally managed.
“If you beat me, I’ll move in with you, soldier boy,” she batted her eyelashes at him. “Does that give you any incentive at all?”
“Lot of incentive,” Jesse almost whispered.
“Then let’s see this track of yours.”
-
Roland was looking for the dog. He was tired of being treated like a simpleton. He knew there was a dog around here somewhere, and when he found it again he was going to make sure everyone saw her. Hence the rope he was carrying.
Roland had already scoured the building once, so he decided to go outside. He hadn’t found any doggy waste anywhere in the building, so the dog had to have a way in and out of the building. If she wasn’t inside, she had to be on the grounds.
Using the front door, Roland made a circuit of the school grounds. He passed the ball field, where he saw Jesse and the Doctor running on the track. Jesse seemed to be lagging behind the good doctor, who would occasionally turn to taunt the former soldier. From Jesse’s reaction, it was all in good fun, and Roland wondered if the two might have a thing for each other. Jesse was a good-looking guy, and smart as a whip, while Kingston was about as shapely and attractive as any guy could ask for, and a Doctor.
He wished them both well. In this world, the way it was now, if two people could find happiness together, they needed to grab it with both hands and hang on.
Thinking that made him consider his relationship with Maria. He had mixed feelings still, expecting any moment for her to come to her senses and realize that he really wasn’t much of a knight in shiny armor.
But, she should have already known that, really. He hadn’t made any secret about that. And she had already seen him when he wasn’t really trying to impress anyone. He thought back to when they had first met, and to their often contentious working relationship. It still surprised him that the two of them could even be friends, let alone that she could develop feelings for him.
And what about him? Roland considered that as he ambled along, no longer in any hurry. Did he return her feelings?
She was attractive, that was certain. A man could look far and wide and not find a more pretty woman. She was a hard worker, too, and had worked night and day to care for all the children. At times he had worried about her health as she seemed to always be awake and working.
She was also smart. Not just book smart, which she was to be sure. Maria had a head full of common sense, too. She seemed to be able to find a solution to any problem that cropped up, without resorting to some complicated, overly complex plan. She simply looked at the problem, and came up with a workable fix.
In these new times, that was worth a lot. He shook his head at that. Why was he trying to evaluate her? He wasn’t hiring her for a job, for goodness sake. He was thinking about what his feelings for her might be.
Not so long ago, he hated her. Had actively hoped for the day when she would leave. He didn’t want that now, of course. They had gotten along much better after settling into the school. And there was no point in denying that he was attracted to her. Maria was gorgeous. And she had a good heart. She had stayed to help with the children despite her inherent distrust and fear of Roland. That said a lot about her character, too.
Yes sir, a man could look a long time and not find a better woman than Maria. That being said then, why was he still thinking about it? Why not just go with it, and see what happened?
Yep, that’s the thing to do, he decided. See where it goes, what happens. He started walking a bit faster at that, as if making that decision had made him pick up his pace.
He was just approaching Ralph’s ‘lab’ when the teenager burst through the door, running as fast as his legs would carry him.
“Duck Mister Roland!”
-
“Ralph, what are you doing now?” Roland asked, as he and Ralph finally managed to get the fire out. It hadn’t been too bad, to be honest. The explosion, though, that had been pretty spectacular. Fortunately, Ralph had used the same outbuilding where his bomb miscalculation had occurred, so the damage wasn’t nearly as bad as it could have been.
“Well, I heard everybody talkin’ ‘bout how we ain’t got much gas,” Ralph replied, slapping a ragged towel at a last few embers. “And I got to thinkin’ how maybe I could help with that, and I wondered if I had what I needed out here to make a still, and since we ain’t gonna be drinkin’ it, I didn’t have to worry about usin’ copper, or worryin’ ‘bout if there was impurities in it, and so I found an old water heater in the shed and decided that would work well enough to test things, and so...”
“Ralph!”
“Yes sir?”
“Short version!” Roland didn’t quite snap.
“It blew up,” Ralph said simply, shrugging. “Happens sometimes,” he added philosophically.
“What happened to telling ...asking, adults before you did any experimenting?”
“Uh, I thought that was just the bomb thing,” Ralph answered. “And I wasn’t so much experimentin’, Mister Roland. I know how to make shine all right. Just. . .well, maybe that ole water heater wasn’t the best alternative. But that’s okay, ‘cause I found...”
“No, no, no,” Roland slapped his hands over his ears. “Don’t tell me!”
“Uh, okay,” Ralph replied. “Um, does that mean I can go ahead and...”
“I said don’t tell me!” Roland repeated. “Please, please Ralph, don’t. . .blow yourself, or anyone else, up. Will you promise me that much?”
“Well, sure!” Ralph grinned. “No problem!”
“I’m going now,” Roland said, shaking his head, walking back toward the school building.
“Don’t forget your rope, Mister Roland!”
-
“Well, I don’t know where she is,” James sighed. “Imagine somewhere taking a nap.”
“Well, you need to rest, too,” Melissa scolded lightly. “It’s time you went to the radio room, wherever that is.”
“This way,” James motioned, and limped in that direction, Melissa at his side.
“Say, Melissa,” James said casually as they walked along.
“Yes?”
“I was wondering, and you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to, but, well, I think you’re awful pretty, and… well, there’s no way around here to have a real date, but, I was thinking we could do something together, sometime.”
“And just what did you have in mind?” she asked, eyebrows raised. James looked at her, then slowly started to blush as her words sank in.
“I didn’t mean it like that!” he objected. “I was just. . .well, I was looking for a way to spend time with you, that’s all,” he shrugged. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you like that.”
“God, you’re so easy,” Melissa suddenly laughed. “And I’d love to spend time with you, James. I’d like the opportunity to get to know you better. Learn more about you.”
“Really?” James looked surprised, but pleased.
“Really,” Melissa nodded, and slipped her arm through his. “We can start by you showing me this radio room, and explaining what goes on there.”
“I can do that.”
-
“Maria’s right,” Roland said aloud as he walked through the back door into the school. “I need a rest. I’m not getting enough sleep. That’s part of the problem. I need to just relax for a day or so, and then...” He stopped.
Right there in front of him sat the dog. Looking at him steadily. Not moving.
“Hello, girl,” Roland said easily, and the dog wagged her tail.
“C’mere, girl,” Roland said, holding his hand out. The dog got to her feet and walked over to him. He let her s
mell his hand, then slowly moved his hand up to scratch her head. She leaned into the contact, tail still wagging.
“Well, ain’t you a friendly thing,” Roland smiled. “Now, I’m gonna just loop this old rope around you so I can lead you into the-”
In the kitchen, only a short distance from where they stood, someone apparently dropped several pans, the clatter sounding almost as if the roof was falling in. Before Roland could react, the dog was gone.
“Wait!” he called, looking around. Nothing.
“Dammit,” he muttered. “At least I know I’m not crazy.” He walked along a little further, ignoring the spirited language coming from the kitchen. He decided he’d lie down a while. He’d feel better after a nice nap.
Yeah. That’d do it.
Just a nice little nap.
CHAPTER FORTY-FIVE
“Just so we’re clear,” Kingston said, “if you can’t hold up your end of this bargain, tell me now. I can’t just abandon everyone.”
“We can, at least for now,” Roland nodded. It was the next morning, and despite the fact that the pretty doctor had handily beat Jesse on the track, she had decided that the school was not only a safer place than town, but it would let her accomplish more than she could on her on.
Her requirements had been few, but non-negotiable. Once a week she would be taken into town to see the patients she had been caring for since the collapse. One room of the school would be set aside as a clinic ‘ward’ where patients could be housed that needed more acute care. No one would be refused medical aid if they came to the school seeking it.
Roland had balked at that one.
“We’re not going to treat any of these scumbags that have been terrorizing the community,” he told her flatly. “Anyone who is a known thief or predator will not be allowed on these grounds. Period. And that’s final,” he added, when Kingston started to reply.
“I was actually going to say I can live with that,” Kingston shot back primly. “I’m a doctor, not a saint. I’m not going to waste precious medical supplies on vermin, Roland.”
“Then we got a deal,” Roland smiled. “I like your attitude, Jennifer. And I’m in your debt, anyway, after you patched up James.”