Chapter Forty-One
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CAMRIEL AND AMAROS both felt the sense of danger ebb away at the same time. “They’re okay,” Cam said in relief. They’d just found some showerheads that matched their needs. They were now searching for more items in the hardware store that they could use.
“I don’t think any of the cambions were injured,” Amaros said, probing his bond with Zoe. He couldn’t sense any panic or pain, but she was too far away to be certain.
“Should we wait here and escort them back home?” Cam asked.
The black truck was parked behind some trees near the road that led up the mountain. They were trying to conceal their comings and goings so no one would realize a group of people were living nearby.
“It’ll take them at least an hour to reach us,” Amaros said. “Let’s load up as much gear as we can and be ready to move when we sense them getting closer.”
Cam was all for that plan. He might be banned from speaking to Victoria, but it would ease his soul if he could at least see her.
They carried boxes of items to the truck, loading up the bed until it was full. They had plenty of storage space in the north wing, since it was currently unoccupied. Only a few of the twenty rooms in the south wing were being utilized so far as well.
“Here they come,” Amaros said when he sensed Zoe was only a few minutes away. They hurried to place the final load into the truck, then hastily secured a tarp over the back.
Cam climbed into the passenger seat, craning his head to see the little red truck was coming. Grace was behind the wheel instead of Victoria. His mate was in the back, looking completely unsurprised to see them when Amaros nudged the truck into view.
Zoe waved at Amaros and he blew her a kiss in return. Grace grinned at them both and Vic lifted her hand in greeting. Cam’s heart lurched as he lifted his hand to acknowledge her. “She doesn’t seem so mad today,” he said hopefully.
“They just survived a battle,” Amaros reminded him, pulling in behind Grace as she headed up the mountain. “I’m sure they’re all feeling grateful to be alive.”
“I can’t wait to hear what happened,” his second said, wishing he’d been there. Both he and his boss had wanted to rush to the rescue, but they hadn’t been needed. Not this time, at least.
Grace drove at a sedate pace, avoiding the rocks and landslides they’d left as a deterrent for unwanted travelers.
Amaros followed her, then swung the truck around the smaller vehicle when she parked near their base.
“It looks like they cleaned the entire bookstore out,” he marveled, seeing books bulging beneath the tarp.
It was agonizing for Cam to keep his distance from his mate. He remained at the tank, undoing the tarp in preparation to unload the vehicle. Amaros ambled over and hugged his cambion tightly. “What happened?” he asked when he finally let her go.
“We were jumped by eight dudes, but Vic saved our butts,” Grace said.
“You have my eternal thanks,” Amaros said to the wrestler.
“It was nothing,” she said with a grin. “Zoe and Grace did fudging great. They killed four of them without my help.”
“That’s not true,” Zoe refuted, unwilling to let go of her warrior. They had their arms around each other’s waists. “Vic told us what to do and we just followed her orders.”
Cam was proud his mate was a natural battle leader.
He couldn’t wait to fight alongside her again.
Seeing her in action gave him a thrill and filled him with pride.
Victoria caught him grinning at her and scowled before turning her back.
He could sense she wasn’t really angry with him, so his confidence wasn’t destroyed this time.
Grace launched into an account of their battle as they unloaded books from the truck. Her voice faded as Cam started lugging items inside. He was acutely aware of Victoria’s location at all times, automatically tracking her through their potential bond.
“Come and see the progress we’ve made setting up a shower,” Amaros said when both vehicles had been unloaded.
Cam hovered in the distance rather than following behind the cambions. His commander showed them the shower stall, the metal tank and one of the showerheads they’d just looted.
“You’ve got a showerhead just like mine,” Vic said.
“Cam and I had some trouble figuring out how to stop the flow of water,” Amaros admitted. “I hope you don’t mind, but we visited your cabin to see how your system was set up.”
“That’s fine,” she replied without any signs of anger. “I should have mentioned you’d need a showerhead you can switch on and off,” she added.
“I can’t wait to try it out,” Zoe said longingly. “Will you finish setting it up now?”
“That’s the plan,” Amaros confirmed. “We just need to cut a hole for the hose and secure it in place,” he explained.
“Good luck with that,” Grace said. “We’re going to put the books in order and give Vic her pick before she heads home.”
Camriel was disappointed that Victoria was leaving so soon. He made sure he ducked out of sight as the females made their way to the great room. He joined Amaros in the bathroom and they continued their mission to get the shower working.
“We need more bookcases,” Grace grumbled.
“I’m sure Cam will be happy to build us some,” Zoe said soothingly.
“I’ll need one for the cabin,” Victoria realized. “I don’t want to have to pile them up on the floor.”
Camriel made a mental note to build his cambion a bookcase as soon as possible.
“We need to empty the tank before I drill a hole in it,” Amaros said, forcing his second to drag his attention back to their task.
“Or you could drill a hole in it and we can catch the water in another container,” Cam suggested.
It would save them from having to detach the full tank from the wall.
At Amaros’ nod, he grabbed the huge plastic container they were going to use for a base.
He placed it on the floor, then stepped out of the stall.
There was only enough room for one person at a time, so he watched his commander go to work.
They would need to leave the stepladder next to the shower to fill the tank with hot water.
He listened to the females chatting as his mate chose the books she wanted. Zoe and Grace decided to help her carry them to her cabin.
“We’re just going to visit Vic’s cabin for a while!” Zoe called out.
“We’ll be having coffee and snacks, so don’t expect us back in a hurry!” Grace added.
“Bye, guys!” Vic called out.
Cam’s heart lurched that she’d included him. “Goodbye, mate!” he said loudly before he could stop himself.
“We’ll see you when you get back!” Amaros said with a smirk at his second in command.
“Fudging cocky azzhole,” Camriel heard Vic mutter. He knew she was talking about him rather than Amaros.
“He’s smitten with you, Vic,” Zoe told her as they headed outside. Cam didn’t hear his mate’s response, which was probably a good thing.
Water began pouring through the hole Amaros had drilled, splashing into the plastic container. “We’ll let it drain out, then figure out how to attach the hose,” Amaros said.
Cam had grabbed plumbing gear from the hardware store and had some ideas how to accomplish that. He was glad to have something to keep him busy, so he didn’t sneak over to the cabin to listen to what Victoria had to say about him.