Page 42 of N8
“Round me up as many of the men you can. Call ‘em at home and tell ‘em to get over to the Trautman place on the double!”
“Affirmative, Sheriff!”
Biggs gave Milton his darkest glare. “I want you here when I get back, do you hear me? And you better have one fucking good reason why you violated their trust and sold out those kids!” Without waiting for an answer, he slid back under the steering wheel and peeled out of the driveway.
Pushing the unit above the speed limit, he hoped to overtake the vans, pass them, and get to the camp before they did. On the plus side, those guys didn’t know this area, and the dirt road cutoff was practically invisible in the dark. With a little luck, they’d miss the turn. And by the time they realized their mistake, he and his men would be waiting for them when they finally did arrive.
He reached inside his pants pocket and pulled out his cell phone to call his wife and let her know she’d have to eat supper without him. It looked like it was going to be a long night for everyone involved.
22Educ8
They spent the afternoon sweeping,mopping, and basically trying to get the three cabins into decent enough shape to spend the night in. Once the debris, dirt, and dust was removed, F8 distributed the blankets and pillows N8 and Cydney had bought that day.
“Better get used to sleeping on the floor until we have enough money to buy mattresses,” she advised them.
P8 looked up from where he slouched by the campfire and was eating a cookie during a short break. “I’m guessing real bed mattresses cost a lot?”
Cydney nodded. “A lot.”
“How about air mattresses?” G8 pitched in. “Like the kind you use in swimming pools?”
N8 pointed to him, smiling. “That’s a good idea! They’re bound to be a lot cheaper than real ones. Wouldn’t they do in a pinch until then?” He turned to Cydney for verification.
“We’d have to lay something on the floor to place them on, so they don’t get a splinter and deflate,” she commented.
K8 snorted. “Shoot, there’s a whole bunch of blankets and stuff in the main lodge. Some of them need to be trashed. Rats and all were using them to nest in. But there should be enough left for us to cover the floors.”
By the time the sun started dipping behind the trees, they called it quits for the day. Grabbing bars of soap and towels, they raced down to the lake, stripped down to their underwear, and bathed, including scrubbing their only set of clothes. Cydney pointed out the small cinderblock building situated a couple of hundred feet or so from the edge of the lake. “See that? That’s the pump house. That hose you see takes the water from the lake and feeds it into the cabins. Try to stay away from that area when you bathe, to keep soap from being drawn into the system.”
They continued to play and swim, until one by one they wearily trudged back to the main lodge. Grabbing a can or package of food from their dwindling stores, they all retired to their cabins for the night.
N8 watched as Cydney hung their damp things on top of the bedsprings to dry. They still wore their underwear. In the dim light of the single candle, he studied her, learning her features and memorizing them by heart. She noticed his intent gaze and smiled.
“What?” Digging her hands through her short mop, she vigorously shook it. “At least my hair’s short. I feel for poor K8, with all that long hair. Getting the tangles out is going to be a bitch.”
She dropped next to him where he sat on top of the blanket and picked up her packet of tuna fish and crackers. They ate in silence for a few minutes, until N8 broached a subject he’d been thinking about for the past few hours.
“Cyd?”
“Mmm.”
“Do you ever wish you hadn’t done…this?”
“You mean, help you guys escape?”
“I mean go to work at the complex in the first place. You know the labs won’t stop looking for us. They mean to get us back, one way or another. And if they do—”
She stopped him, placing a hand on his knee. “If it happens, it happens. I’ve stopped worrying. I had to. It was tearing me up, thinking of what they’d do to you and the others if they got their hands on you again.” She lowered her gaze for a minute, then raised blue eyes back up at him. “I’ve never regretted taking the job because I never would have met you.” A smile creased the corners of her mouth. “Of course, I wasn’t expecting this to happen. Who would? But I don’t regret it. Not for a second.” Lifting her hand to his cheek, she repeated. “Not…for…a second.”
He pulled her toward him. She giggled and threw her arms around his neck. “I never wished this on you,” she murmured against his lips.
“I know. And I never wished this on you, either. But here we are. Let’s make the most of what we have now. That way, if something should happen—”
She shushed him, placing a finger to his lips. He kissed it, but finished. “If something should happen, we’ll always have our memories.”
Cydney shook her head. He caught the twinkle of tears in her eyes. “Don’t say that, N8. Please realize that I did what I did because I love you. Because I worry for you. I’m willing to risk it all because I want to be with you, no matter where, no matter what. You know that, right?”
“Yeah.”
