Page 18 of Unrest
Remy and I smiled, and my mouth watered.
“Yeah, boy,” Texas Harry yelled now. “Corn Nuts and Combos. We done hit someone’s mother lode stash!”
Whoever they were was probably taken before they had a chance to go back for it.
“I don’t see nothing that looks like a generator, though.” Texas Harry stepped out and let Matt in to look around. As he circled the small space, touching things and shaking his head, my excitement began to dissipate.
“Oh, no,” Remy whispered. “Amber, I really don’t know if I can do this.”
“I know,” I whispered back, clutched by dread.
After a few more minutes of practically turning the place upside down, Tater sent our vehicle a firm, disappointed look, and shook his head.
Remy made a small sound of disbelief. I looked back at her, trying to stay strong even when I wanted to freak out. I glanced down the barren road with its hills and shrubs and distant mountains that seemed to stretch on forever. No part of me wanted to be out there.
“We can do this,” I said, as much for myself as her. “We’ll all take care of each other. Maybe the fresh air will be good for us.”
I expected her to call my bullshit, but she nodded, her eyes panicked. “Okay.”
All at once the guys were back at the vehicles, opening the back ends, getting their packs together. This was really happening. I got out with Remy, trying to be strong for both of us. Of all the things we’d been through since Thanksgiving, this scared the crap out of me most because of our lack of resources. If we had food, water, gloves, hats, and freaking snowsuits I might have felt more positive about a thirty-mile trek.
I took a deep breath and shook out my arms. We had no choice. We had to keep going, and this was the only way.
Tater and Rylen opened their bags.
“We need to bundle up,” Rylen said. “As many layers as we can put on—especially you two.”
Remy and I took out all of our shirts, about three each, and pulled them on.
“Hey,” Tater called out to the guys at the van. “If any of you got extra clothes for the girls, toss ‘em over.”
Rylen took out the remaining trash bags and told us to put them on our legs under our socks and shoes so our feet wouldn’t get wet if it rained or snowed. The plastic was crinkly and uncomfortable, but we did as told.
New York Josh came over with a pair of warm looking Army gloves, and handed them to Remy.
“You’ll need these,” she said to him.
“Nah, I’m used to cold. Plus, I got a decent jacket and sweatshirt. I’ll be a’ight.”
She gave him a small smile. “Thank you so much.”
He nodded and jogged off. I caught Tater eyeing the scene, but he nodded down to the gloves. “Put ‘em on, Rem.” She did, and he handed her a pair of his fitted sweats to pull on over her leggings, which were lumpy from the plastic bags. She rolled them three times at the waist.
Tall Mark gave me a long-sleeved camo shirt. I put it on over my thin sweatshirt. I let his shirt hang past my fingertips. Remy and I doubled up on socks and I put two pairs over my hands.
“Here you go.” Sean handed me a navy blue sweatshirt with ARMY in yellow—a real sweatshirt—thick with a hood.
I looked to make sure he was wearing a coat before I took it and thanked him profusely. I cinched the hood of the sweatshirt so only a round part of my face was showing.
“Pep.” I looked down at Ry, who was digging through his bag. “Those jeans are too thin.” He held up a gray pair of his physical training, PT, sweats, and I took them gratefully, resisting the urge to see if they smelled like him. I pulled them on and rolled them at the waist, then tucked the bottoms as much as I could into my sneakers. That completed my clown look, and I felt as warm as I was going to get.
Mark grinned when he saw me, and I had an urge to laugh hysterically. I must have looked ridiculous. But I wasn’t alone. Some of the guys had track pants tied around their heads and necks to keep them warm.
The next step was to pack as much stuff as possible into our duffle bags and backpacks. The guys were super efficient at this. My bag was already filled with essentials: bathroom stuff, over-the-counter meds and first aid kit, plus my extra undies. Devon came over and shoved two Gatorade bottles into my netted side pouches. Then he gave me a wink and I threw him a thumbs-up as I pulled the heavy pack onto my back and adjusted the straps.
Remy and I faced each other. What I wouldn’t have given for a camera phone at that moment. She had someone’s cotton shirt around her ears and neck like a scarf. Her backpack was the same size as mine, and I think they’d put all of the snacks and a sleeping bag in hers.
The guys’ duffles were filled to the max. Not a single thing was being left behind except an empty propane canister. Tater shut the back end and stared at the car for a minute before giving it a salute. I kissed my fingertips and touched the window.
