Page 34 of A Wilderness Within

“Look for a motel off the highway,” he said, glad to have something to focus on other than the past.

They watched for signs, and when he spotted a decent-looking Holiday Inn outside of Kansas City, she took it. They parked in the lot next to the other cars, making sure their vehicle didn’t stand out. Then they unloaded their bags.

“We can come back for the chickens,” Lincoln said.

They took only their backpacks first, and he entered ahead of her, pistol out but not raised. The hotel was dark, the chairs in the lobby overturned, and the minibar behind the desk had been emptied. Ice cream had melted into hardened puddles on the floor. Basic medicine, razors, and shampoo bottles were still there. He touched his beard, considering shaving it. What would Caroline like? Beard? No beard?

“Let’s go to the second floor,” he said. He would come back for those supplies later.

“Why?” she asked in a hushed whisper.

“Tactical advantage,” he explained. “We can still leave quickly if there’s a fire, but we aren’t as vulnerable as we would be on the first floor. Most scavengers look for a quick and easy hit. Break into the ground floor, check those rooms, and move on.”

“Oh, got it.” Caroline adjusted her backpack and followed him as he led them to the staircase used by employees.

He found an empty room and checked the door adjoining to a neighboring room was locked on their side. Then he went back to their door and checked the sliding bolt lock.

He noticed her watching and cocked a brow. “What?”

She grinned. “Nothing.” She shrugged casually, which would have pissed him off if it had been anyone else. But with her it was actually kind of cute, not annoying like he thought it would be. He didn’t press her on what she was thinking. He just liked knowing she was acting, well… normal. Normal, considering. Like a normal woman would when she teased a man.

“So this is our place tonight, huh?” The way she said “our place” made him grin back at her.

“Yeah.” He nodded at the two twin beds. He had hoped for a king, but he didn’t want to kick down every door in the place looking for one.

Caroline collapsed onto one bed and dropped her bag at her feet. “God, I wish we could watch TV right now.” She flopped back onto the bed, presenting herself as an all-too-tempting offering.

“There are a lot of things I wish I could do now,” he muttered, cursing his sore but mostly healed arm. “What did you like to watch?”

“Sitcoms.” She sighed, gazing longingly the dark TV. “I know they were super cheesy, but I loved them.”

“Why?” His curiosity was piqued. He’d always like documentaries.

“I like to laugh. And no matter how bad a day you had, watching those shows would make you laugh. I haven’t really laughed since…” Her gaze grew just a little bit distant, and the pain in her eyes made his teeth clench.

“What was your favorite show?” Lincoln eased down on the bed beside her, wanting to touch her but hesitating. He’d spent the last few weeks pushing her away because he’d felt weak and ashamed. Now he didn’t know how to get back to where he’d been with her. So he did what he and his men did on their downtime: shared stories, memories, talked about favorite foods and favorite movies. It worked well as a reprieve from the fear and anxiety around them.

“There was this one, about an office with all these employees. This one character was super obnoxious, so this other character pulled pranks on him.” Caroline was smiling now, and the brightness of it would have knocked him over if he hadn’t already been sitting down.

“What kind of pranks?”

Caroline spent the next hour reenacting about a dozen episodes and somehow managing to spoil all the funny parts until they were both laughing. He couldn’t help it. She had a sexy, happy laugh. A laugh a man like him never got tired of hearing.

“I guess what I loved most was how the people were normal, like me. They faced normal problems, but the show made it amusing and true. Like the office romances. It’s hard not to fall for someone you work with, someone you’re close to on a daily basis.” Her face reddened and she looked away, and he had a feeling she was thinking about them and how closely intertwined their lives had become since they’d met.

People bonded in times of danger. People became lovers, soldiers became bands of brothers, strangers became parents to orphaned children. It was human nature to take care of each other. But contagious diseases were different. They drove people apart. They were terrifying because they were invisible and could be anywhere, on anyone. He could still hear Adam on the radio in the bunker, giving the last few messages of hope to those still listening.

“We must never forget who we are. We must care for each other. We must put others before ourselves. The nations of the world can survive this if we stay true to the only cause that matters now—the survival of the human race. Together.”

Lincoln wasn’t sure he believed any of that, but he’d believed in Adam and would have followed him to the ends of the earth. In a way, he had. Now he would follow Caroline. He saw that same hope in her and that belief in humanity in her eyes. It stirred something deep within him, something he had thought long dead.

“Rest and let me get the chickens. I’ll put them in the room across the hall.”

She stretched and yawned. “You sure?”

Fuck, she was adorable. “Yeah, get some sleep.”

She scooted back on the bed and lay down on her side, falling fast asleep. He envied her that. He had a soldier’s ability to sleep just about anywhere and anytime, but he never slept deeply the way she did. He woke with every creak and groan of the places where he slept.

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