Page 36 of Embers

We’ve been traveling for a while, making surprisingly good time, when Mack taps on the back window, signaling for Cal to stop.

“Where do we go now?” I ask.

“Nowhere. We stay here. They’ll find us. They should be passing this way sometime this afternoon.”

Cal has put the truck into park and gotten out to join us in the back. He stands up so he can get a good view of anyone approaching. He keeps his rifle at the ready.

He doesn’t look happy to me. His shoulders are stiff, and his eyes are clouded. He probably wants to know more information about who we’re waiting for.

“Whoever you’re meeting is safe, right?” I ask since I know Cal won’t.

“Safe?” Mack gives a little shrug. He’s standing up too with a hand on his own gun, but he’s not nearly as tense as Cal. “I wouldn’t say that. But they won’t hurt you unless you give them reason.”

Cal turns his head to catch my eyes, and we have another silent conversation with nothing but our expressions. He’s getting worried and impatient, and I have to try to convince him to stick this out.

He gives me a final look that clearly says his patience is wearing thin, but he doesn’t press the issue. Not yet.

“It’s going to be fine,” Anna whispers when Cal has turned away. “Maria and the crew are good. We help a lot of women. They’re not going to cause you any trouble.”

“Who are they?”

“They’re a group of women who travel around and look for other women who need help. I’m supposed to be with them, but I took, uh, a short break.” She glances over at Mack for just a few seconds. “I joined up with them last year because I didn’t have anyone left in the world. No family or close friends or anyone. At least with them I do good and learn how to take care of myself.” Her big blue eyes are sincere and slightly anxious. “I used to feel so helpless all the time. All my life, I felt that way. But I want that to change, so I’m working on it. They’ve taught me a lot. I’m still not much of a fighter, but they don’t expect me to be perfect. They’re teaching me, so I’m getting better all the time. I just want to feel like I can take care of myself.”

“Yeah,” I murmur slowly, keeping my voice as low as hers. I’m not sure I’ve ever had another woman open up to me the way Anna just did. It feels like I need to treat it with consideration. “I get that. I’ve felt helpless like that a lot too.”

“Have you? Because you seem so confident and competent and like you know exactly what you’re doing.”

“Really?” My eyes widen.

Anna laughs. “Yes. Really. I’d love to be more that way myself.” She sighs. “Maybe one day.”

“If I can do anything, it’s only because Cal taught me.” I’ve honestly only occasionally considered what a gift all his training has been for me. He never even made a real point of it. Just naturally started giving me advice as we went through the regular routines of life after Impact. But it occurs to me that he hasn’t just saved my life and kept me safe by actively protecting me. He’s also done it by teaching me how to defend myself.

I glance up at where he’s standing, and my chest feels tight again, too full. Right now he’s got a grumpy expression as he scans our perimeter, but even his stance has moved so he’s standing over me.

He’ll put his body in between me and any danger. He’s done it time and time again.

When my gaze returns to Anna, she’s giving me a quizzical look.

“What?” I ask, suddenly self-conscious.

“Nothing.” She smiles. I really like her smile. It’s warm. Hits you with a wave of unexpected softness. Her voice lowers as she adds, “He’s really not your man?”

I shrug and glance away. “I guess I don’t know what he is.”

* * *

Less than an hour later, our truck is surrounded by women.

They’re on foot, so we see them coming, but they move in sync like an elven army from a movie. They all have weapons. If they genuinely believed us to be threats, we’d never have had a chance of coming out of the encounter alive.

But they don’t attack. They wait as an attractive, efficient woman comes forward to talk to us. She’s got black hair, tan skin, and dark eyes, and she looks to be in her thirties. I assume this is Maria, the leader of the group. She nods at Anna without smiling. “Everything all right here?”

“Yeah,” Anna replies. “Sorry for the change in plans, but we lost our truck and had to hitch a ride. But I’m ready to come back now if you’ll still have me.”

“Of course. With us, you’ll always be free. You can come and go whenever you want. All women are welcome to join, as long as they do no harm.” Maria’s eyes shift over to me. “You’re welcome too, if you’d like.”

I blink, taken completely by surprise. “What?”

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