CHAPTER THREE
Two Weeks Later
“Not to sound like a five-year-old, but are we there yet?” asked Nat through sleepy eyes.
Flip looked at the beautiful woman beside him, her shining blue eyes filled with sleep, her blonde curls tangled around her own body. She was everything he was not – small, delicate, and perfect.
When he’d focused in on her face at the fire, he immediately knew – she’s mine. Her tiny frame and elfin features drew him in. When he looked at the two of them standing side-by-side, the only thing he could think was how much he looked like a troll, and she looked like a fairy princess.
“Flip?” she asked, staring at him lost in thought.
“Oh, sorry,” he said, blushing, “we have at least another day, maybe two days’ ride. We probably need to find a spot to pull over and camp for the night. It’s not a good idea to be on the roads too late into the night, and I’d rather find somewhere for us to rest and eat.”
“Okay, let me see what I can find,” said Nat, pulling out her phone. “Looks like there might be a small campground about twenty miles from here. I think it’s inside the Thunder Basin, so it could be a state park facility, probably really nice.”
“No go,” said Flip, “we don’t want anything where they might track us down. We’d have to register the vehicles and give our licenses. Find something more remote.” Nat nodded and looked down at her map.
“Okay, it’s kind of out of the way, but near Hulett, there’s a small private camping area. Looks nice. Clean lots, electricity, and water.”
“Then that’s where we’ll go. Put it in the GPS.” Before Nat could even lift her fingers to the screen, a voice came over the speakers, and the GPS flickered, finding their target.
“ No need, ” came the booming voice over the truck’s Bluetooth.
“Holy fucking hell, Spook! I swear I’m going to beat you to death for that one!” Nat’s eyes were huge in surprise, and Flip grinned.
“ Sorry, brother, but I just can’t help it. I put the coordinates in your GPS, but just follow my truck, and I’ll lead the way.”
“Got it,” he said, smiling.
Spook was probably his best friend in the whole world and had been for almost ten years. Their friendship, like all the others, started with their gifts. Spook’s abilities were on a completely different level, and, given to a lesser man, would certainly have killed him.
There had been several years when they both struggled with their gifts and kept their distance, but somehow, they always seemed to reconnect. Now, they were connected permanently as part of the team that included Kane, Aislinn, Adam, and Fiona.
“That’s pretty scary,” said Nat, staring at the speakers as if Spook might materialize at any moment.
“Yea, but he’s damned sure useful in a hostile situation.”
Flip thought back to all the times Spook saved their asses, and they didn’t even know it. No one seemed to be able to pinpoint how or why things always turned in their favor, but it didn’t take long being around Spook to fully understand.
“How so?” asked Nat.
If the last two weeks taught her anything, it was that this team, Kane, Adam, Aislinn, Fiona, Flip, and Spook, was a tight team. The men served together in the military, and the women complimented their skills perfectly.
“When we were in Afghanistan on my first tour, my team was pinned down. There was no way we were making it out of there alive. The enemy was coming at us from all sides, and we were running out of ammo fast. I couldn’t get a signal on comms to call for help. The radio seemed to be jammed. Later we thought it might have been tampered with, but I wanted to at least text my parents and tell them I loved them. I figured when someone found us, when the phone hit service, they would know I was thinking of them.”
“That’s so sad,” she said, looking at him. Reaching for his big bear paw, she lay her tiny fingers on top of his large, rough hands. Flip could only look down and smile.
“It is, but it ends well,” he grinned. “Spook saw… or heard… or read… hell, I don’t know, but he got the text message and knew something was wrong. He triangulated our position and got us help. He saved our asses. It wasn’t until I got back to base that I knew what had happened. Even then, I wasn’t sure how he knew. I just knew that some guy named Spook had sent in air support for us.”
“How did you figure it out?” she asked as the truck in front of them took a left turn onto a small dirt road.
“I didn’t figure it out, really, at least not right away. It just seemed whenever we were in trouble, Spook was sending help our way. I knew something was up, but I didn’t know what, and I damned sure didn’t know how. If I’m being honest, I didn’t give a shit why or how. I was just happy that he was on our team.”
“That’s pretty incredible.”
“ Thank you, beautiful Nadine.”
The voice of Spook filtered into the truck once more, and Nat smiled at the invisible being. Flip rolled his eyes, clenching his jaw tighter.
“I will kill you,” said Flip into the communication device through clenched teeth.
Nadine laughed a girlish laugh and reached out, touching the back of Flip’s hand. He looked down at the neatly trimmed nails and long thin fingers.
“Are you jealous?” asked Nat shyly.
“I-I don’t know. Do I have a right to be? Should I be?” he asked, flustered for words.
“You have no need to be jealous, and as for whether or not you have a right, you haven’t asked me yet, have you?” she said, smiling. Her cheeks lit up with a bright cherry blush, and she smiled into her lap.
“Asked you what?” said Flip, suddenly feeling uncertain and very young.
“Don’t be obtuse, Flip. You haven’t asked me on a date or to dinner or even if I would check the box ‘do you like me yes or no.’ Maybe if you did, you’d know the answer.”
The truck pulled to a stop, and Flip inhaled deeply. He was gathering his courage to say something to Nadine. Turning in his seat, he opened his mouth. Just as he was about to speak, Spook opened the door and held out a hand.
“Hello, beautiful!” he said, smiling. His shock of auburn hair flopped in his eyes, the tanned, muscular arms stretching out toward her. Where Flip was all bulk and mass, Spook was lean muscle and long limbs.
“Spook,” said Flip through gritted teeth, “you are seriously testing our friendship.”
“Well then, asshole, you should hurry up and let the lady know how you feel.”
Nat jumped from the truck and strode toward the small wooden building, where a teenage boy stood smiling at them from the front porch. He didn’t look to be more than seventeen, but he had an air of authority and a shirt that said he was the assistant manager.
“How can I help you, folks?” he asked.
“We need a campsite that will hold two tents,” said Spook, his head casually turning in all directions, no doubt scanning for communications.
“Yes, sir,” he said. “Twenty-five bucks for the night. There’s electric and water on all the sites, but we also have a bathhouse right back there. It’s co-ed, so just be careful.” He grinned at the couple, and Nat could feel herself blush.
“Don’t worry about us,” said Spook. “We just need a good night’s rest, and then we’ll be on our way.”
He looked around the small campground and noted a few other campers, mostly pickup trucks with campers on the back. There were three tents and two trailers, but the rest of the park was empty.
“Kind of quiet here,” said Nat under her breath, suddenly feeling unsure and nervous.
“Yes, ma’am. My parents own this place, and this time of year, we don’t have many tourists. Mostly hunters or fellas heading towards a hunting trip. First snow will be coming on fast up here at this elevation, so it gets pretty cold at night. Summer is our big season. We’ll be closing up here in about three weeks. When the snow hits, nobody comes this way.”
“I see,” said Nat, feeling suddenly on high alert.
“What’s wrong?” asked Flip from behind her.
“I-I don’t know. It just feels strange.”
Spook turned his head from one side to the other and then pulled out his phone.
“Oh, there’s no service here, sir. We’re too far out,” the young boy punched the ticket for their windshields and gave them the number for their lot. “You’ll be right back there by the bathhouse. I thought the lady might want to be close. Be careful of coyotes and wolves. We get a few bears now and then, but they mostly stay away. There’s an emergency phone right here on the outside of the building if you need something in the middle of the night. It’s a direct line to my parents’ house. You won’t get cell reception or Wi-Fi at all. It just doesn’t exist out here. Otherwise, I’ll see you folks in the morning if you don’t leave before I get here.”
“Thank you,” said Spook, watching the boy begin to shut things down and lock the office door. He was probably just a high school kid, but he appeared mature and responsible, helping his parents out.
“You hear anything?” whispered Flip in his ear.
“Nothing. He’s right. There is no signal here, and I gotta tell you, it’s both eerie and welcome. I haven’t had silence in my head for as long as I can remember. We’re not even anywhere close to air traffic, which makes this the most silence I’ve had in my head in, well, ever! I hear a few conversations of some of the campers who must be on walkies or sat phones, but it’s really just about hunting or fishing, nothing gruesome.”
“Should we leave?” asked Nat in a hopeful tone.
“No, we have no reason to believe anything is wrong other than no signal. I haven’t felt anyone’s presence and didn’t sense anyone following us,” said Spook. “I think it’s as safe as we’re going to get until we get home.”
“Okay, let’s get settled. Nat? If you’ll start a fire, I’ll pull out something to cook,” said Flip.
“It’s what I do,” she said, smiling as she rubbed her palms together. Wiggling her fingers in a display of showiness, she lit the fire and watched the flames lick the sky. Realizing she didn’t check her surroundings beforehand, she looked behind her and then to each side, noting that no one was paying them the slightest bit of attention.
It took Spook and Flip only minutes to set up the two tents. When they set out over a week ago to retrieve their belongings from their homes, they could hardly believe the turn of events in their lives. Aislinn and Kane, now married, and Adam and Fiona, as good as married, decided they would build their business and a safe compound in Wyoming.
Colonel Moore was dead, but his accomplice, and most likely the person behind all of the attacks and the pink dust, was still on the loose.
Thanks to Uri Bellum and his generous donation of land, the team would build a safe compound for all who wanted to live there. So far, Aislinn, Kane, Adam, Fiona, Spook, Flip, and Nat would be building homes.
Defected from Moore’s team, Tom Cullen, Dan Henry, and Norris Fredericks were also joining the team but needed time to settle their personal matters and families first.
Ben Rollins and Juan Smith, called out as additional security, also decided to stay. Both had previous military or police experience but had no family to speak of other than one another. Ben adopted Juan when he rescued him from the streets of Mexico, so he was the closest thing to a father Juan had.
Ben’s large presence and menacing frown made everyone stand back a bit, but Juan’s presence was harder to get a handle on. He was very quiet, perhaps even shy, yet possessed amazing abilities to gather intel. He was superbly physically fit and unbelievably loyal.
Flip sold his precious motorhome, which gave him so much solace from the outside world. He was surprised how easy the decision was for him. Somehow, the thought of spending time with Nadine in a real home was much more appealing than a cramped motorhome. The only problem was he hadn’t even asked her on a date!
“Hey! Yoohoo! I’m talking to you, big guy,” said Nadine, waving at him, the brightness of her smile seeping into his dark soul, lighting it for just a fraction of a second.
“Oh, ah, sorry, I was thinking about something that I might have left in the motorhome.” He looked down at his feet, avoiding her eyes and the certain giveaway that he was thinking about her.
“Uh huh, well, it’s gone now, so move on. Can you get me the burgers from the cooler?”
“Sure thing,” he said, cursing under his breath.
Did she know he was thinking of her? He was certain that his face showed it. Truth be told, Flip’s experience with women was minimal, at best. He had one serious girlfriend in college, but her idea of intimacy was a hand job and a towel.
In the Army, your choices were limited, but Flip did have a brief fling with a female soldier who saw him as a distraction and a challenge. Or at least a challenge she thought she could mount.
She wasn’t beautiful, certainly nothing to write home about, but she had a rocking pair of tits and gave a blow job like nobody’s business. Flip was certainly well-endowed, and she seemed to delight in taking on the task of trying to shove his cock down her own throat. But that was where their experience ended. Multiple hand jobs, a dozen blowjobs or so, and one act of penetration. Ironically, that one act ended his relationship with the female soldier. She loved sucking but didn’t like the fucking, especially with a man that almost split her in two.
He watched as Nat twisted her tangled mass of hair onto her head and set the frying pan on the hot coals. The burgers sizzled as they hit the skillet, and the night air filled with the scent of cooked meat. The fire was so hot it would only take a few minutes for them to cook through. She expertly flipped them several times and then placed a few slices of cheese on them.
Flip and Spook’s stomachs immediately growled as if on cue, and they turned to see Nat plating the burgers.
The first thing Spook noted was that the burgers were cooked exactly as he and Flip liked – medium rare – and she had not asked either their preference. The juices were seeping seductively from the sides, the huge patties almost calling to them.
“These look delicious, Nat!” said Spook, sitting on the log in front of the fire.
She handed him the plate with three burgers and a handful of chips, and he nodded his thanks. She turned to Flip and handed him a similar plate but with four burgers, and he smiled down at her.
“Four? You know me too well,” he grinned. He felt his face redden at the overtly familiar comment, and she graced him with a blush as well.
“It does feel odd that I seem to know what you guys need ahead of time,” she said quietly. “Have you noticed that?”
They both nodded. Along their route several times, while they stopped to refuel, Nat would run into a convenience store and come out with bags full of snacks. Not just any snacks, the exact snacks Flip and Spook were craving moments earlier. She filed that information away in her head and focused on her own meal.
Two hours later, the meal was eaten, the mess was cleaned up, and the team was ready to hit the sleeping bags. Except Nat realized she reeked.
“I need a shower,” said Nat, smelling the greasy scent of beef and fire smoke in her shirt.
“I’ll walk over with you and watch the door,” said Flip, standing calmly from his seat. He rubbed his palms on the front of his jeans, nervous at the thought of Nat behind a shower door naked.
“No need, big guy. Unless you’re going to shower as well. I can take care of myself.” She waved her hand casually at Flip and picked up her toiletry bag, a clean shirt, and yoga pants.
“I know you can take care of yourself, Nat, but the kid said they’re co-ed. I don’t know who else is camped here, and it would make me feel better,” said Flip, taking a step toward the showers.
“Well, it would make me feel better if you would trust me to take care of myself,” she said with her hands on her hips.
Flip looked over at Spook, who shrugged his shoulders with a curl of his lip. He was enjoying this little banter and thought it would be good for Flip, but he also felt like Nat should use a little more caution until they were safely back together with the others.
“Fine,” he said, reluctantly sitting back down. “I’ll wait right here.”
She nodded at him, grabbed her shower kit, and hugged her things close to her chest as sauntered off to the shower.
“You got her, right?” asked Flip to Spook.
“You know it, brother. She’s got her cell phone with her, even though we don’t have a signal out here. Because I have the signal in my head already, I’ll still hear if anything is going on with her. Don’t worry, big man. I’ll hear anything happening.”
“I wish I could explain it, Spook, but that woman is mine. I know it. She was made for me, and I need to find a way to get her to see that as well.” Spook grinned.
“Maybe you start with actually telling her that. That seems a good place.”