Autumn's Calling (Book 2): The Battle

by Michelle Weese

  “Thank you ever so much, Autumn. It is rather apparent, but are you a doctor?” he questioned, examining my handiwork.

  “Just a nurse. But these past few months tested my knowledge in the medical field, so I suppose I’m the closest thing to a doctor you guys get. Now answer my question… please,” I narrowed my eyes at him. Was he deliberately avoiding my question? Leland stood behind me with a hand on my back. He must have sensed my tension, because he began kneading my neck and shoulders, working to loosen up the knotted muscles with his skilled hands. Alastor glanced at him, a bitter look flitted across his eyes, but he soon recovered and rested his sights on me.

  “I came outside searching for food. The drugstore had been ransacked before I sought refuge, so there remained precious little to eat. Today, like every other day, I have hunted for other survivors. But until now, I failed to find anyone. My gun ran out of ammunition after three months of fighting these monstrosities, and it is nothing more than a useless object to me now,” he claimed with defeated eyes.

  “Imagine being stuck in this town all by yourself, with nobody to talk to…” Jess sympathized. She intervened in my interrogation, so I glared at her and she grinned. Her crazy pink pixie hair had grown out and spilled across one eye when she shook her head as if to say, ‘Leave it alone’.

  “I’m sure you have to be starving, Alastor. Let me find you something to eat,” she told him, jumping from her seat with enthusiasm. She disappeared into the next aisle over and I heard her humming while she searched our freeze-dried meals for her new “buddy” something to eat.

  “That would be much appreciated, Jess. Thank you,” Alastor called to her, glancing at me with hesitation, then at the floor.

  I folded my arms across my chest and heaved out an agitated sigh. Leland grabbed my hand and circled his thumb around my palm in a calming gesture. He is my rock, reminding me to be patient and not jump to any conclusions.

  “Okay, here we go. How does red beans and rice sound? We’re running out of many options in our MRE section, guys,” Jess told us as she placed a square foil package and bottle of water in front of Alastor on the table.

  “That sounds wonderful. I have not eaten for two days now, so I am famished,” Alastor admitted, adding water to his freeze-dried meal and waiting for it to warm up.

  “Might need to make a trip out to see what we can scavenge nearby. There can’t be many people around here. I mean Alastor is the only living person we’ve found for three months so there must be supplies left out there,” Jess suggested.

  I dreaded the days we were forced to run out on another fool’s errand, but it remained unavoidable. The MRE’s and other snacks we gathered at the beginning of the outbreak continued dwindling slowly, but surely. Now we added another mouth to feed, a large one at that, and would need to restock the commodities. The generator demanded the fuel be replenished soon, so this would have to be a significant run. I stood up to head for the bathroom and grab a quick shower before we set out on our dangerous mission.

  “If I could join you on your scavenger hunt, and if no one objects, I am certain I can be of service,” Alastor offered, glancing at the rest of the group then settling his sights on me, as if waiting for me to protest. “Allow me the opportunity to prove I know full well how to handle a weapon.”

  I opened my mouth to answer when Jess jumped up and agreed.

  “Of course you should join us. We’ll need those big strong arms for carrying food back here,” she beamed at him, her flirting obvious to everybody.

  All I said was, “Sure… why not?”

  My mom spoke up, “I believe that’s an excellent idea. The more muscle you have out there, the better. By the way, we need toilet paper, Autumn. Oh, and if you can find those little things of dental floss, I would be thrilled and…” she continued blabbing on and on, adding more to the already full load.

  I strolled towards the back of the store for that shower I craved so much. “Make a list, Mom. I’ll see what I can do,” I called over my shoulder.

  Leland followed me as I walked away from the group. When I came to the doorway of the bathroom, I turned to face him. He placed his hand under my chin and lifted my face to meet his eyes.

  “What’s the matter with you, love?” he asked me in a soft voice, gazing at me with his ridiculous eyes.

  “That guy gives me the heebie jeebies, like he’s hiding something. The way he stares at me creeps me out. I’m not sure I trust him, but Jess is dead set on flirting her ass off with him and I don’t want to upset her. She needs a companion as well. Ever since we brought her back here after the hospital rescue mission, she’s seems so lonely, even with all of us around. We haven’t been able to find her parents or sister anywhere, who knows if they’re even still alive…” I cried, rampant thoughts spewing from my mouth. But the expression in Leland’s eyes distracted me. I quit ranting and looked at him. He had that “shut up and kiss me” gaze that still made me melt in my socks.

  “Are you finished?” he asked, inching closer as he licked his lips. My breathing sped up, and the butterflies fluttered deep in my belly as they always did for him.

  I licked my own lips and whispered, “Yes, I think so…”

  He crushed my mouth to his in a soul wrenching kiss that made my head spin. I wanted to climb in through his mouth and wrap his lust around me like a fur blanket. A kiss with him is the greatest sensation in the world. More than anything, I yearned for him to ravish me all the way, but we never get the opportunity to be alone. Sneaking off in a zombie infested town was impractical and selfish. We would be putting ourselves in danger to quench our thirst for each other when people loved and depended on us to keep them safe. It frustrated us both. So we released our sexual tension with passionate make out sessions like this. Which was better than nothing… I suppose.

  I hauled him into the bathroom and closed the door, shoving the lock in. Hell bent on pressing as much of him against as much of me as possible, I jerked my sweater and shirt up over my head. Then unbuckled my jeans, leaving them loose around my hips. Standing in front of him, with a bra and half buttoned jeans remaining, I grasped Leland’s shirt and began lifting it up. I took my sweet time revealing each ripple of muscle stretched across his perfect stomach.

  He captured my wrists when I came to his chest and growled, “Come here,” as he drew me in close and simultaneously pressed me against the wall so I was pinned. He tore his shirt up over his head, dropping it to the cold tile floor. While appreciating the view, he raised my arms above my head and interlaced his fingers in mine, keeping me restrained. Our hearts fluttered against one another as if they would intertwine if they could get through these fleshly walls between them. His lips traced their way across my collarbone and down my chest to the swell of my breasts. I turned towards my right and moaned pleasure against my arm, struggling to muffle the sound so the others wouldn’t hear us. He moved across a small diamond shaped scar I got when I was a child. A rather sensitive spot on my shoulder.

  I received the scar on a spring morning while out playing in my mom’s garden. While digging in the dirt around her flowers, I came across a baby bird that fell down from its nest in the old dogwood tree hovering over our backyard. I believed I was able to climb that tree with one hand while clutching the bird in the other and return it to the nest. But a few branches up, my patent leather Mary Janes slipped on the bark. I scraped a jagged branch protruding out, and it pierced my shoulder, directly below my collarbone. My father rushed to the rescue, after hearing my cries, rescuing me and my fragile friend. Mom patched me up and chided me for always trying to save everything. Still to this day I remain the same girl, continuously putting myself at risk for others. That’s why I studied nursing, it’s just in my blood.

  The scar tissue grew back thick and felt silky soft when I ran my fingers over it. I’ve always been self-conscious about it for some ridiculous reason, until Leland decided to run his tongue over it and sent a delightful shiver through my body. When he
teased me enough with his kisses on my chest and neck, I slid my hands in his silky black hair and drew his face up to meet mine. I crushed my quivering mouth to his and made sweet love to him with my lips, tongue and teeth. The inability to get enough of this scrumptious man was overwhelming and maddening. My hunger for him could never be sated. His touch was nothing I’ve experienced before. We would need to find a place to be truly alone soon, or my body would spontaneously combust.

  He pulled away laughing, “Slow down, Autumn. I’m not going anywhere.” He caressed my face between his strong hands and smiled at me. “How did you get the scar?”

  “Trying to save a baby bird from its demise, it was a long time ago. Now don’t stop kissing me,” I told him, wishing to change the subject. I gripped his face and pressed my swollen lips to his once more. But he couldn’t help himself and began chuckling at me again.

  “Trust me, I long for nothing except to tear the rest of those clothes off your beautiful body and devote hours to exploring every inch. But regrettably, we don’t have the privacy to do such a thing, and we need to get geared up for this major run we’re about to make. So I’ll step out and gather my senses, while you hop your sexy ass in the shower to cool off.”

  I sighed and bit my bottom lip, “It’s not fair, Leland. We need to release all this stress and tension… join me in the shower?” I smirked at him with a devilish grin and wiggled my eyebrows in a “come hither” motion. He looked like he was struggling with which decision to make, so I nudged him a little more.

  “Oh c’mon, I can tell you want to,” I gestured to the bulge in the front his blue jeans begging to be unleashed.

  He glanced down at himself and chuckled, “My body says hell yes, but my brain is telling me to be considerate of the others.” Confusion etched his features. He gaped at me and said, “Wait, there’s something wrong here. Aren’t you the one that’s supposed to be saying this part? What the hell is happening to me?”

  I gasped dramatically and replied in my best sassy cowgirl voice, “Well, I think I’ve gone and turned you into a gentleman. Oh, Lord, what have I done? My mother would be so proud.” He stayed there with a blend of confusion and amusement on his gorgeous face. “It’s okay, there’s nothing wrong about being a gentleman. But when the time comes, and we get our 'privacy', I’ll prefer a little rougher than gentle,” I assured him with a wink.

  He laughed, reaching down to pick up his discarded shirt, “You sure? I will remind you of that when the time comes.” He drew his shirt down over his head and covered up all of my eye candy. He offered me another gut wrenching kiss and left me breathless once again. I stared after him like a bumbling idiot as he slipped out of the bathroom and closed the door.

  “Tease,” I muttered as I finished undressing and climbed into a lukewarm shower.

  The generator worked overtime to keep everything up and running, but the water heater required a little more boost than it was getting to run hot. I scrubbed down in a hurry since we were losing daylight and needed to be quick if we expected to come across anything useful before twilight. I dried off then realized I foolishly failed to grab a change of clothes. This new guy had my brain on high alert and focusing on simple everyday tasks, like grabbing clean clothes before heading to the shower, seemed hopeless. A muffled knock on the door startled me as I stepped out of the shower folding my towel around me.

  “Yeah? Who is it?” I asked.

  “Autumn, honey, it’s me. Leland figured you might need a change of clothes, I’ve brought them here for you,” Mom said from the other side.

  ‘God bless that man of mine,’ I thought to myself. I’m not positive how I functioned like a normal human being before he came along.

  I cracked the door and Mom handed me a bundle of zombie ass kicking gear I chose to wear when traveling out into the badlands. It consisted of old torn blue jeans with sewn on leather patches at the knees; zip up sweater vest over a thermal shirt; black sports bra with undies; thick hunting socks and black combat boots.

  “Thanks, Mom,” I told her, blushing with embarrassment.

  “You’re fortunate to have that young man, you know,” she joked. “After you get dressed, can I come in? I'd like to have a quick chat with you before you take off.”

  “Sure, just give me a minute.”

  I dressed in my gear and was towel drying my hair when I opened the door again to invite her in. “So, what’s up? This isn’t another attempt to prevent me from going outside as always, is it? Because I know this town better than…” I said as she cut me off.

  “No, sweetheart. I’ve discovered by now you will do what you believe is best. You’re an intelligent girl. Can we talk a few minutes though? We make no time to just relax and chat like we used to. I miss our girl talks,” she confessed, showing me sad eyes.

  While combing through my long wet hair, I remarked, “I understand, Mom, I miss them as well. It’s too bad times can’t be like before when we would go shopping at the second hand boutiques and have frozen yogurt at Hamilton’s. But the world has turned upside down, so we don’t have the luxury of those things anymore.”

  “Here, turn around and sit down on the toilet, I’ll braid your hair so it won’t be in your face. You shouldn’t cover up that lovely face your momma gave you,” she bragged, with a full smile. I snickered and rested on the edge of the toilet, as instructed, while she finished combing through my waist length tresses until all the tangles were out. She began intricately twisting them piece by piece, overlapping each strand with another, as she worked her way down my damp auburn locks.

  “This is so nice. I can’t remember the last time you braided my hair for me,” I claimed, delighting in the sensation of Mom running her fingers through it. As I breathed in her essence, the fragrance of lavender and chamomile filled my senses, automatically calming my jostled nerves. “I’ve always loved your perfume. The scent reminds me of when I was a child. You, Dad and I would go to church on Sunday mornings. Before we left, I would sneak into your room and spray it on my wrist. I believed it was the greatest smell in the world, still do. I wish Dad was here still. That’s the only part missing.

  “You and me both, sweetheart. I think of him every day, but I wouldn’t wish this life for him. It’s a dreadful place to be right now. I envy him because he spends his days with the angels, and we’re trapped down here with our worst nightmares. This is no life. I would’ve given up already if I didn’t have you, Andrew and the others with me. All of you give me something to live for.”

  “I admit it’s terrible, Mom, but this is the hand we’ve been dealt. We can either lay down and die, or stand up and fight. Maybe this is a test for mankind, only the strongest will survive. I count on you to be there at the finish line with me, okay?”

  “Well, I’m trying my best, honey. Some days are harder than others though. Everyone here by my side helps to stop the bad thoughts from rolling in. That keeps me going. I’m more than thankful that you found Leland when you did. That boy has been a Godsend,” she declared as she finished up my braid and secured it with an elastic hair band. “You two remind me of your father and I when we were younger. So much love and passion for one another. I couldn’t be happier to witness you in love. You loved Luke. But you two never looked at each other the way you and Leland do.”

  The fact that Mom realized what I was feeling for Leland left my mind content. It’s not always easy to spot the truth through the eyes of love. Sometimes love can be quite deceiving and show you things you desire rather than honest reality. It wasn’t like me to jump from one serious relationship to another so suddenly. Yes, circumstances are severe and the universe isn’t what it used to be, but I continue to be amazed that of all the people I could have bumped into at the Old Colonial Inn, Leland was it. He wandered into my life at the best, and the worst, moment imaginable. We had a connection I never even dreamed would exist outside of romantic movies. But we weren’t in a fairytale where everything is kittens and rainbows. We had grown together in the a
berration of this plague, exposing our true identities. If that doesn’t stand for something, I’m uncertain what would.

  I rose to meet my reflection. The green eyes staring back at me glowed like precious polished jewels. They were remarkably vivid with a mingling of pale green around the pupil that melted into glistening emerald. With my hair pulled back in the tight braid, my face looked clean and radiant. Strong cheekbones cut soft angles and merged with the rounded oval contour of my jawline. A faint sprinkle of light freckles danced across my nose and faded into my cheeks. My creamy white skin, compared to the brilliance of my eyes and auburn hair, held resemblance to a life-size porcelain doll.

  Mom stood behind me and gazed in the mirror with her own green eyes, “You are so beautiful, Autumn. I am proud of the strong and brilliant woman you have grown into. I hope Leland knows how lucky he is.”

  “Aw shucks, Ma,” I replied jokingly, in my best Howdy Doody impression. She grinned and embraced me from behind, squeezing tight enough that my body starved for oxygen and I had to tap out. “Mom, I might need my lungs if I’m planning to survive the undead army outside… and especially if you want your toilet paper and dental floss,” I gasped.

  She relaxed her grip and kissed me on the cheek. “Well, in that case… I better let you go. A girl’s gotta have her dental floss, you know.” Her smile faltered, and a seriousness swam into her eyes. I recognized that expression.

  “Before you even say anything, I get it. I’ll be careful. I won’t take any unnecessary risks. I won’t stay gone any longer than needed. And I won’t forget to wear my coat. There, does that cover it all?” I asked her in a sarcastic tone.

  “Pretty much. But let Leland be the leader of the group this time. I’m not suggesting you’re not a great leader, sweetheart, but you have that “must save everybody and everything no matter the consequences” mentality and one day it will get you really hurt. No good deed goes unpunished. Leland makes careful judgments and thinks things through, leave all the tough decisions to him for once,” she proposed.