by Maira Dawn
Jesse went on about some boys he had met and their game of makeshift basketball.
Wade, who had over-indulged a bit on both food and drink, insisted on singing. It seemed that with every step, his voice got louder.
Every so often, Jesse would send him an eye-roll and raise his own voice a little more.
Sue Ellen proudly showed off her first-ever music player. It already had many songs on it, and Bre was going to download more from their computer.
As Skye had promised, it was the first exchange the family made. She’d given the girl a few different household items with which to barter. Sue Ellen had hardly used any of them, so Skye assumed she had gotten a good deal.
Dylan threw an arm around Skye. "You didn't want anything for yourself, darlin'?"
Though they had gotten a few things for the house, neither had picked up any personal items. Skye's gaze sparkled as she spoke. "No, I have everything I need right here with all of you." She wrapped her arm around Dylan and asked, "What about you?"
"Me. Nah. I don't need nothin'." He slipped a hand under her chin and lifted her lips to his. Giving her a quick kiss, he looked into her eyes. Except you is what he implied without saying a word. Skye smiled and ducked her head, laying it for a moment on his arm.
As they walked into the yard, Skye said, "Oh, hang on a minute. I want to get a couple things from the garden for breakfast." She hurried over to the mini-greenhouses and lifted the lid.
The garden was empty except for three broken plants.
Skye stared at the naked ground, dumbfounded. Then moved to the second greenhouse and lifted its lid. Nothing. Her fingers moved to her parted lips. She couldn’t believe what she was seeing. All her hard work gone. How had this happened?
“Dylan, everything from our garden is gone. Could an animal have done this?”
He rushed over and scanned gardens. “No animal did this.”
“Really? Are you sure?” Her heart fell. Who would do this to someone now when food meant everything?”
Wade became silent for the first time since they left the gathering. His happy mood turning somber. "What kinda low-down snake—”
Sue Ellen stood by the garden, staring at it. "I took 'em,” she said in a flat voice.
A bolt of shock went through Skye. "Why?"
"For my music player."
"But I gave you trade goods for that."
Sue Ellen shrugged. "They didn't want them. They wanted vegetables."
Skye stared at the girl, speechless. Surely, she knew how crucial fresh food was. And they had so little of it. But she was gone or shut up in her room so much, maybe she didn’t understand. Or perhaps, she just didn’t care.
Dylan started to pace and threw flinty looks at Sue Ellen. "Have ya got no sense, girl?"
Skye held up her hands. “Dylan, I must not have explained properly. She didn’t know."
"Didn’t know what? That we need to eat? You think she doesn’t see us all strugglin' to put food on the table? The girl contributes to nothing, and then, she does this?”
Skye threw a glance at Sue Ellen. “She needed time to settle in.” The girl’s sly look didn’t escape her notice.
Dylan turned to Sue Ellen. “You’re done getting settled. Your free ride is over.”
Skye grabbed Dylan’s arm and dragged him away from the children as she nodded at Wade to follow them.
Behind them, Jesse berated his sister. “Man, you really screwed up!”
Dylan ran a hand through his hair and punched a finger toward the girl. “All this coddling and waiting for her to get used to us, and she does that.”
Skye patted his arm. “I messed up. With her losses, I thought time was needed. But she seemed to just use that for trouble. You’re right, she needs to stay busy.”
“What she needs to learn is the value of something,” Wade said. “What it takes to survive now.”
Skye nodded. “Okay, so where do we start?”
“First, she’s going to be findin’ some seed to replant your garden,” Dylan insisted. “She sure needs to learn that. It was bad enough she took the vegetables, but the plants? And for a stupid music player?”
“I can always use help cleanin’ out the gutters,” Wade said. “A little hard work will be good for the girl.”
“She isn’t going to like that,” Skye said. “But, I agree.”
Dylan crossed his arms. “I don’t like that she gave away my dinner. I ain’t done talking to her yet.”
Skye pulled on his arm. “Dylan, don’t yell at her.”
“That’s up to her.”
“Dylan.”
“The girl needs some instruction, Skye.”
“Yes, but with less volume and force.” Skye willed him to remember one of their first conversations.
Dylan snorted.
He returned to what Skye hoped was a repentant Sue Ellen. That didn’t appear to be the case. She did, however, stand quietly as Dylan laid down the law.
“You can use the music player tonight. After that, this entire garden will be replanted to Skye’s standard before listening to that music player again. After that, it will be on a day to day basis. Every morning, you will turn the player over to us. If you’ve done well, you’ll get it for the evening.”
“For how long?”
“For as long as we want.”
Sue Ellen put a hand on her hip. “That’s not fair.”
“It’s very fair. None of us play until our work is done either.”
Her lips compressed into a thin line.
Wade stepped up. “You’ll be helping me with the gutters now.”
“No, I won’t! What am I? A slave now? I thought we were friends.”
Dylan turned on his heel, a vein pulsing in his cheek.
“We are friends, girlie,” Wade explained. “That’s why I’m gonna teach you to survive.”
“I ain’t helpin’ you on that roof!”
“You are, even if I have to haul you up there. I know you ain’t gonna think so, but it’s for your own good.”
“It’ll be okay, Sue Ellen,” Skye tried to assure her. “You’ll learn a lot. I know I did.”
The girl flashed her an irate look. “Are you done yet?”
“No. I understand why you took the vegetables, though they weren’t yours to take, but why the plants.”
Sue Ellen flapped her arms. “I tried to yank the vegetables off, and the plants came with them. I didn’t know what to do with them, so I threw them off the mountain.” She took a step closer to Skye. “I know I messed up, but this seems a bit harsh.”
Behind her, Dylan made a noise of disgust and moved further away. Wade shook his head in disbelief.
Skye sucked in a breath and stayed calm. “I know it may seem that way. But with the rule Dylan set, you actually could listen to your player every day. And everyone on this mountain works now, from the smallest to the oldest. It doesn’t have to be just a chore. It can be fun.” Skye reached out and laid a hand on the girl’s shoulder only to have her jerk away. “If you have the right attitude, you’ll do fine.”
Sue Ellen promptly turned on her heel and stomped to the house.
Jesse came to stand beside Skye. “Sorry, Mom. She’s just—she’s just so dumb.”
Skye put a hand on his head. “Well, we all have to start somewhere. I was dumb too.” She laughed and shot a glance at Dylan, who only halfheartedly chuckled. “I don’t know it all yet, but at least, now I’m trying.”
“Yeah, well. I don’t know about her,” Jesse said. “She’s gettin’ more like Grandma every day.”
Skye pulled her lip between her teeth. That didn’t bode well for the future.
As they moved toward the house, Skye walked beside Dylan. “I’m surprised you allowed her to have her music player tonight.”
“I was thinkin’, then she’d know what she was missing if she didn’t cooperate.”
Skye nodded. “Good thinking. I know you don’t like to miss the reward of a beer after
a long hard day.”
“I do not. Speaking of which, one of my buddies is making beer now. I got some.”
Sky giggled. “I thought you said you didn’t get anything.”
“I didn’t buy anything. The man just handed it to me. It would’ve been rude to refuse it.”
She sent him a sly glance. “Are you going to share?”
“I don’t know. How good have you been?”
“I’ve been just as good a girl as you have been a boy.”
Dylan uttered a low chuckle. “Well, now, that must have been very good indeed.”
Twenty-Five
Remembering
The next morning, Dylan was somewhat surprised when Sue Ellen came out of her room and quietly handed her player over to him. She gave it a longing look as he put it on the bookshelf.
“Soon as you've replanted the garden, you can have it back every night,” Dylan gently reminded her.
Sue Ellen nodded then went to the table for breakfast. Dylan sent Skye a raised eyebrow behind the girl’s back. Maybe she would really cooperate.
Wade planted himself in the seat across from Sue Ellen. “I talked the Smith’s this morning. They said they had some seed they’d give you. You could head on over there this morning and have the whole thing done by evening.”
Sue Ellen agreed as she buttered her toast.
“Course, they're wantin' to trade some work for it. Ms. Smith needs someone to help her with house cleaning today, so that’s what you’re trading.”
Sue Ellen stopped mid-bite and sent Wade a cold look before lowering her eyes. It took her a moment, but she shrugged. “Okay, whatever.”
Dylan’s gaze narrowed as he watched the girl over his steaming cup of coffee. There was something hard about her.
But Wade gave her a big smile. “I’ll walk ya over after breakfast, then.”
Later, as Dylan washed the dishes, Skye dried. “I think I’m going to go to my house today.”
“Okay.”
“I have some things I left behind. I’d like to see if they’re still there and bring them up here.” She met his eyes and smiled. “I left in such a hurry before, I didn't take them, but now I have time to do it.”
“You seem sad about it.”
“I am. A little. I’m not sure what condition the house is in. I keep telling myself it doesn’t matter, I live here now. But I wouldn’t like to see it torn up after all the hard work I did.”
“All right. I’ll take you down there.”
“I wasn’t sure what you were up to today. I’m sure Tom’s going if you’re busy.”
“No, I’ll take you. Jesse can help Wade today.”
Skye nodded and took his hand in hers. “Thank you.”
Dylan grunted his acknowledgment as he looked at their hands. Would he ever get used to her mannerly ways? He and Wade had hardly known what a proper manner was unless slapped in the face with it. Sometimes, all her pleases and thank you made him a little uncomfortable, but it was good for the kids. And he wanted them raised right.
As Dylan pulled into her driveway, Skye scoured the house. It didn’t look too bad. A little bit of damage here and there but definitely livable. Maybe one day, it would be safe enough to stay down here for a while.
The keys in Skye’s hand jingled as she walked up the front porch. She pushed open the door but just stood there.
It had been less than a year since she’d been in this house, and yet it seemed like forever. She steeled herself for what she knew would be a difficult day.
Dylan glanced at her, and she stepped over the threshold. The air was a bit stale but not as bad as she’d thought it would be.
Dylan soon found the reason why and pointed it out. “There’s a hole in this window here. Looks like some little critters have been gettin’ in. I can board it up for you.”
“That’d be great. And there might still be a few things in the cupboards and garage that could be of some use. If you want to check that out.”
Dylan nodded and went to work. If there was one thing that man liked, it was a mission. He’d be set for a little while.
Skye moved into the living room, walking toward the fireplace mantel. She reached for a picture in a dark metal frame, tears flooding her eyes.
Her mother, father, and brother. One of the last times they’d all been together. She plucked another one off the shelf. Bobby with his family. Had they survived? Had her brother and young niece been found? Skye choked back a sob. She would probably never know.
Wiping her eyes and hugging the pictures to her chest, she went into the kitchen for a small box she remembered leaving there.
Along the countertop were all the groceries she’d pulled from her cupboards and hadn’t had the time to pack before the horde of Sick and Infected had come. Among them was a box of blueberry iced Pop-Tarts.
This time a sob moved past her defenses, shuttering through her. Her mother had rarely let her have such processed treats, but sometimes she'd come home from school and find a box waiting for her on the counter.
She laid the two pictures in the box and added the carton of Pop-Tarts.
Skye moved through the house, gathering up photo books and knickknacks, each laden with memories. She and Dylan were making a life together up on the mountain, these things belonged up there with her.
Lastly, she walked to her bedroom. Searching through her clothing in her large walk-in closet, she found a few things that would still be useful and piled them on top of the wide dresser. After she went to the safe and pulled out all her jewelry. Some were family heirlooms her mother had given her when she’d left home. Others were items she’d bought herself. Either way, they meant something to her.
She was standing in front of a mirror, clasping a delicate gold necklace with a little heart around her neck when Dylan found her.
Confused, he glanced around the room. “What kinda room is this?”
“It’s my closet.”
“Closet? This is just about as big as our whole house.”
Skye scanned the room. It was close to the size of the cabin’s living room and kitchen. She winced. At one time, she’d thought this a small house. She smoothed the necklace as she glanced in the full-length mirror one more time. Then she walked to Dylan and put her arms around him.
“I loved this house. Now, I love yours more.”
“Ours.”
“Right. Ours.”
Dylan looked around the walk-in closet. “Dang, girl. I never even knew something like this existed.”
Skye laughed. “Believe me, there are even crazier wastes of space. But that’s not me anymore.”
“I’d build you whatever you wanted, ya know.”
“I know, but I don’t need it. It was important for me to come to get these things and mourn my family, but now it’s time to move on.”
Dylan pulled her closer, warming to her. It was exactly what he needed to hear.
Twenty-Six
Want To
The next day, Dylan woke, as he usually did, during what some would consider the night. He brewed some coffee and chewed on a piece of cold bacon leftover from yesterday’s breakfast. Then headed toward the door as Wade walked to the kitchen, yawning and scratching.
Some days the brothers went into the dark, cold mornings together. Sometimes they went their separate ways.
They didn’t need to talk about it. They just knew from the way each went about their morning. Brothers, as close as they were for as long as they were, could interpret the smallest changes in routine. It told them all they needed to know.
Today was a separate ways day. Dylan wanted to think.
He nodded at Wade’s wide grin when he gave him a quick wave goodbye. No doubt his brother knew what was on his mind.
With day breaking, he walked the trap line with good success. Not great, but good enough.
As Dylan walked home, he disturbed a flock of turkeys. Gunshots echoing through the mountains, he took down two of them. He reckoned more tha
n one person stirred in their beds with the racket.
The sunrise was at its glory by the time he got back to the cabin, reds and oranges exploding across the sky.
Stopping at the treeline, he stared at the sky, entranced by its beauty. It reminded him of Skye in some strange way. Or maybe it was just because she was all he’d been thinking of lately.
He blew out a breath of frosty air and kicked at the hard ground a couple of times as he looked out over the view his cabin provided. The sun lit up the small, tree-covered mountain across from his, evergreens and silver-brown bark of the leafless trees sparkled. Its warmth chased away the morning chill.
He’d told himself a million times he didn’t have to do this. Had no business doing it. But something in him demanded he try, and more than that, he wanted to.
But that didn’t calm his stomach or stop his racing heart. His eyes slowly scanned the view one last time before sighing heavily and walking to the front door of the cabin.
Wade met him at the door as if he’d heard him coming, though Dylan knew he was practically soundless. Dylan handed the catch over to Wade without a word.
Wade thumped Dylan on the back. “Reckoned I’d take the kids fishin’ today.”
Dylan nodded as he watched Skye walk across the living room to the kitchen. She pulled back her dark morning-mussed hair with one hand while hiding a wide yawn with her other. Seeing the men, she stopped and gave them a little wave. Dylan smiled and nodded. She wasn’t one for morning talk, and that suited him just fine.
Everything about her suited him just fine.
After washing up, Dylan helped with breakfast. Jesse and Sue Ellen showed up once they smelled the eggs and toast. They all sat around the table, eating first in silence, then adding small talk as their bellies filled, and the coffee hit their veins.
Dylan’s gaze hardly left Skye, and she noticed. At first, she only smiled. Catching him a second time, her gaze and smile turned shy. After a third time, she bumped her shoulder into his and quietly said, “Stop!” in a half-pleading, half-flattered voice.