Chapter 31
As night threatened its descent, the group opted for a small patch of woods to camp out in until morning.
According to the sign they passed on their way in, the section of forest was acreage belonging to a state park.
The section the group chose was a camping site with distinct lots of soft, luscious grass split into rectangles that would typically house a tent or an RV.
In the center of the camping slots, stones stacked atop one another provided a makeshift fire pit.
Nick and Ryan collected branches and twigs from the surrounding woods, stacking them within the stone pit.
Nick lit kindling beneath the branches with a lighter until they absorbed the flame.
Several moments later, the pitfire was rolling, and the group gathered around to relax before calling it a night.
Phoenix passed around a few snacks he had in his pack: granola bars and trail mix. Tatum greedily devoured the offered food before curling up next to the fire and falling asleep.
“Remember when problems were simple? Like traffic jams or the internet going out?” Ryan reflected.
“Shit, I’d give my left nut to binge something on Netflix right now,” Phoenix said with a mouthful of crunchy oats.
“I will never know how all my favorite shows end!” Grace whined playfully.
Kate laughed, though she felt a sense of emptiness as her last experiences of a normal life were further into her past than others. Nevertheless, the thought of kicking back on a sofa watching an episode of an exciting, trendy show beneath warm blankets was a daydream Kate could get lost in.
“Bro, the new Call of Duty was two months away from release!” Phoenix said.
“Oh, man. I was really fucking excited for that game.” Nick took a swig from a bottle of water, then passed it to Kate.
“But hey, at least we don’t have to go to work anymore,” Ryan said.
“Thank God!” Grace exclaimed, laughing and leaning into Ryan’s shoulder.
Ryan wrapped his arm around her and kissed the top of her head.
The sentiment forced Kate’s lips upward in a smile.
Watching Ryan and Grace, she knew she was not the only person in the world holding on to a love made from pieces of a shattered life hastily superglued together.
“You know what I do miss? Ryan, remember that little cafe we used to eat at on the corner of Melrose Avenue? Rico’s! ”
“Oh, damn. Those fish tacos were amazing,” Ryan remembered.
“Where was your go-to place to eat together?” Grace asked, looking back and forth between Nick and Kate. The pair tensed up. Kate let out a nervous laugh while Nick’s gaze fell to the ground.
“Uhh, well—” Nick started.
“We weren’t together before…before the world fell,” Kate admitted. Ryan’s eyes narrowed in confusion, and Grace’s eyes widened.
“Wait, what?” Grace asked. “You two met and fell in love even with all this shit going on?”
Nick wrapped his fingers around Kate’s. “Yeah.”
“I must know this entire story immediately!” Grace sat forward with her hand on her chin and her eyes wide, waiting for Nick or Kate to explain. As Kate rewinded the events in her head, the start to their story kept getting further away.
“Well, before the end, I was dating this guy—”
“No, baby, you don’t have to talk about that. Just start with how we met,” Nick directed.
“Our story is more powerful knowing what happened in my past,” Kate replied.
“Let’s just say, I was in a very abusive situation, and the only reason I was able to escape from it is because my ex became diseased,” Kate continued, explaining the day she was walking down the backroad by herself when a man chased her into an old farmhouse.
She described the terror she felt being chased into the farmhouse, Nick’s rescue, and running through the woods in the middle of the night.
Kate went on to tell how they paired up, traveling and surviving together.
Nick took over, talking about the junkyard group and the events that led to fleeing in the middle of the night.
He spoke about the mansion home, hearing the transmissions from the radio, and their journey to the hospital.
Once there was no more to their story, Nick and Kate smiled at each other.
They were already aware they had been through hell together and only gathered strength with each trial, but speaking it aloud had them buzzing with power and affection.
Grace and Ryan were speechless. Phoenix stared at them with his eyebrows almost touching his hairline.
“Holy shit,” Ryan said, finally.
“That is the most amazing story. I figured you both had been together for, like, years before the disease. I can’t imagine meeting someone new in this world, much less learning to trust them and then falling in love with them,” Grace said.
“You met and trusted me,” Kate said.
“True, but that felt different. We were established and part of a strong group. We didn’t risk much by taking you in,” Grace answered.
“Speaking of which, Ryan and Grace, I just wanted to thank you for looking after Kate when I couldn’t,” Nick said.
“It’s no problem, man. I don’t feel like we did much. In fact, she fell out of a three-story window on our watch. I wish we could have done more,” Ryan said, directing his gaze at Nick while Grace gazed at Kate with a saccharine smile.
“As strange as it sounds, it was exactly what needed to happen. I mean, I could have done without her getting hurt, but it brought her back to me.” Nick squeezed Kate’s hand.
“Everything happens for a reason. Even if it means Tumbleweed ends up with a broken arm,” Ryan said.
Grace yawned, and the group decided it was time to settle in. Without sleeping gear, each claimed their own section of grass around the campfire. Phoenix curled up and was asleep within minutes. Ryan and Grace lay together across from him, snuggling up and chatting softly.
Nick and Kate found their spot to rest for the night and sat in grass that was already collecting dew.
Nick unzipped his backpack and retrieved a long sleeve shirt for Kate to bundle up in, since she seemed to be freezing all the time.
Smiling, Kate pulled the shirt over her head and wrapped herself in its warmth.
She leaned in and pressed her lips to his.
The contact sent shivers through her, and an excitement scurried across her skin.
Nick stretched out his body and laid his head back on his arms. Kate sat, legs crossed, staring at Nick with a peculiar gaze.
“Nick,” Kate said. “Come here.” Kate pulled him to his feet. Nick caught the wild, sensual storm dancing in her eyes, and anxiety wrapped its tendrils around his middle.
Kate walked backward a few steps with Nick’s hand in hers before she turned and rushed into the woods.
Once they were about a half mile away from the rest of their group, Kate rested her back against a tree and pulled Nick close to her.
Soft, warm fingers glided up his chest and around the back of his neck.
Kate’s lips met his, and they kissed with fervor until Nick pulled away.
“Kate, we can’t be out here,” Nick said. His brain tugged at him to return to the camp while his body pushed to be closer to Kate, to kiss her, to let his hands roam her skin.
“Just a few minutes. Then, we’ll go back,” Kate bargained and returned her mouth to his.
At first, Nick only responded to her kiss.
After a few moments, he slipped his tongue around hers, and his chest leaned into her body against the tree.
A gentle breeze blew against the back of his neck, making the hairs stand up and igniting the flames of excitement burning beneath his skin.
The beat of his heart quickened until it was a bass drum, underlining each connection of their mouths, their bodies.
Then, the air changed, and an odor wafted through on a slight gail. Nick pulled back from Kate, his eyes piercing hers, though his mind was focused on the olfactory intrusion.
“Do you smell that?” Nick asked. Kate’s face contorted into an annoyed expression.
“No, don’t you dare—”
Nick clapped a hand over Kate’s mouth. He could feel the anger burning beneath his aggressive gesture, but she would have to concede. He preferred to make apologies rather than regret impetuous decisions.
The wind picked up again, and the scent grew stronger. Tobacco. Cigarette smoke. Then, Nick heard the footsteps.
A figure stepped out from behind the tree, and just as the cold barrel of a handgun dug into Nick’s temple, he gripped Kate by the shoulders and shoved her into the forest.
“Run!” Nick shouted, and without a second thought, Kate sprinted away.
“Catch her,” the shadow man ordered, and three men ran in the direction Kate had sped off in.
Nick stood, helpless, with his arms in the air.
“Get on your fucking knees,” the stranger ordered, and Nick complied, dropping to the ground.
Though he knew Kate was out of view, hidden by trees and the blackness of night, Nick stared in the direction she ran.
The gun to his head bothered him little.
The thought of Kate being caught by these unknown men unleashed violent, rageful pulses from his brain and into every nerve ending.
“Put down the gun!” Ryan’s voice broke through Nick’s focus. Nick turned to find Ryan approaching with caution and aiming a handgun. Every hair follicle prepared for action, and when the shadow figure’s attention fixed on Ryan, Nick used the opportunity to send an elbow into his gut.
As the attacker let out a moan of pain, Nick grabbed his armed hand and aimed it at the ground.
Nick kneed the man’s wrist, and his fingers relented their grip on the gun.
The weighty metal clunked to the ground in a pile of leaves.
Ryan slammed the grip of his pistol into the man’s head, forcing a gasp from his chest as he hit the ground.
Nick mounted the stranger, turning him over and securing his hands behind his back. Ryan picked the pistol up from the ground and holstered it in his waistband.
“You got him?” Nick asked, his voice hurried and panicked.
“I got him. Go,” Ryan answered. Nick’s legs pushed off the ground before Ryan had the chance to finish speaking. Within seconds, Nick was lost to the shadows of the forest in search of Kate.
Nick shuffled to a stop at the treeline and ducked behind a tree. Three armed men were loading Kate into a pick-up truck.