Surviving Seduction (35 page)

Dan looked back and forth between them, no doubt wondering what this new mayhem was about.

The two women were soon cackling outright.

Blaire’s whole body bounced and she threw her head back in a great bel y laugh before doubling over on the table.

“Th-the worst part was that you ruined his
breakfast
!”

she barely managed to articulate, and the last word had choked off in a squeal at the absurdity of it.

He looked at his plate and focused on consuming his meal as efficiently as possible. Hysteria had taken them to a place he couldn’t fol ow.

“Oh no,” Selena gasped, now crying tears of laughter. “Oh, poor Dan!”

“He’l never eat
here
again!” Blaire put in with another surging gale. “There go my reviews!” she howled, her eyes squeezed tightly shut as she clapped Dan hard on the shoulder, interrupting his chewing.

“What does that mean?” Selena whispered, clutching her stomach and nearly sinking beneath the table in the process.

“Oh never mind, honey!” Blaire wheezed, wiping her eyes and trying to get herself under control. She struggled to breathe deep, slow breaths. “Oh, it’s okay. We’ve been under a lot of pressure. Gotta let it out somehow! Better than kil ing people, right Dan?”

He didn’t look convinced as he continued working at his meal.

Selena managed to calm herself down and return her attention to her omelet. Dan was finished and stood from his chair. He paused as if to say something, then turned and walked out.

“Oh God,” Selena huffed with a smirk, shoveling a bite of potato in her mouth. “He thinks I’m crazy. Why did this have to happen today?”

Blaire shrugged with a rueful smile. “There are worse things to worry about.”

“That’s the problem,” she grumbled. “This tastes so good, Blaire. You know I used to go for weeks with nothing but roast rabbit and whatever berries I could find?”

“That’s why I’m glad you’re here,” she answered with a wink.

Selena continued to savor the meal in front of her, enjoying the nourishment it provided and feeling healthier already.

“Any idea what’s gonna happen today?” Blaire asked more soberly.

She shook her head with a long breath. “None at al .”

Her brow pinched. “I had the worst feeling when we walked out this morning.”

Blaire frowned. “Wel , whatever happens, honey, we’l al be standing right behind you.”

Selena nodded, feeling reassured by some measure, although she wasn’t real y afraid for her own sake. “Did you say Tim was on lookout?”

Blaire nodded.

“Wil he stay alert?”

“Oh yes,” she answered with assuredness. “Josie wouldn’t surprise us anyway.”

“I know,” Selena said, shaking her head and taking another bite. “It’s just so hard to figure out what to expect.”

“It ain’t you, honey,” Blaire interrupted. “It’s these times we live in. Things used to be a lot quieter before the Crash. Predictable. Too much so, for some. Now there’s less people around but the ones you do run into can turn things upside-down.”

Selena mul ed over her words as she chewed, needing a distraction. “What was your life like before?”

Blaire smiled wistful y. “Sometimes I hardly remember. Seems like someone else’s life, or a story I heard.” She thought for a while. “I was always in the kitchen, even as a kid. My momma taught me a lot of what I know. I never went to col ege, just graduated high school and went right on cookin’. Learned a lot of fancy recipes. Had a handsome boyfriend too. Dean. We were engaged.”

Selena listened with interest, wanting greatly to know what happened, but she didn’t want to pry into what could be a painful memory.

Blaire continued. “I was twenty-four when it started to get bad. By the time I was twenty-five, we realized things might never get back to the way they used to be. He drove out to bring back his little brothers, but they were a few states away. He never came home. I stil think about him, ya know? I’l always believe he’s alive out there somewhere, and he just couldn’t get back. Hope he’s found someone else.”

Selena thought she might cry again. “Does Tim look like him?” she wondered hopeful y.

Blaire shook her head. “Crash happened sixteen years ago. Tim is thirteen. Dean wasn’t his father,” she said quietly. “He has no father.”

“Oh,” Selena whispered. “I’m sorry Blaire. I wasn’t thinking.”

“It’s alright,” she said, waving away her concern. “No need to hide from reality. It was a hel of a thing to happen, and I can hardly imagine anything worse, even though the best thing in my life came because of it. I was twenty-eight years old. I was alone when he found me. Scoutin’ for food.

Was bein’ real careful too. Would you believe I used to be shy back then? Ever since it happened I’ve been usin’ my big mouth to scare men away.”

It made sense, Selena realized with bitter sadness.

“That’s why I’m glad Dan dragged you here, even though he had to do it by force. You’l never be better off out on your own than you wil with friends. Nothing’s certain, but I know that if I’m gonna die, I want to die with the people I care about.”

Selena nodded with a sniff, her eyes wel ing with tears at Blaire’s sincerity.

“Now let’s not do that again,” Blaire told her, patting her arm with a sad smile. “We’ve got enough to worry about today. Al we can do is pray that everyone who’s with us this mornin’ wil be with us at the end of the day.”

Selena nodded, wiping the tears from her eyes. “I should check on Becky,” she realized suddenly, doing her best to hurry with the last of her meal.

“I don’t think you need to,” Blaire informed. “Her fever broke sometime last night and she got some decent food in her earlier this morning. Looks like the worst is over.

Bear said you and Amy brought some of that medicine. He sure was grateful.”

“Thank God,” Selena breathed, finishing her food in silence. When she was through, she rose to clean up.

“Don’t even think about it,” Blaire said, getting up swiftly. “You get yourself prepared however you need to.”

swiftly. “You get yourself prepared however you need to.”

She made to gather the plates.

“Blaire?” she said somberly.

“Hmm?”

Selena walked around the table and wrapped her arms around her. Blaire returned her hug and rubbed her back soothingly, and they exchanged misty smiles.

“Thanks for everything,” Selena told her, then final y made her way out.

Selena left the dining hal determined to focus her thoughts on the possibilities of the day. Some of the others were out and about, but she hurried to the pond before anyone noticed her. There, she perched on a rock at the water’s edge and splashed cold water on her face.

Blaire was right. She needed to prepare herself.

Who knew how much time she had before Josie arrived?

She would have to find out what Dan knew, and what his plan was.

She closed her eyes and soaked in the sun’s warm rays on her face, gathering her focus. When she was ready, she headed back toward the fire pit. As she rounded the dining hal , she could see that most of them had gathered around Dan. Only Susan and Sara were absent, probably looking after the kids.

The pounding of hooves sounded then, and Selena saw Tim and Jack riding toward them, both mounted on Jack’s horses. When they were near, Tim slid down.

“They’re coming!”

Seventeen

Selena’s heart quickened, and the fear she’d felt earlier came howling back. She almost couldn’t force herself to come out from behind the building to join them.

Dan and Jack hardly glanced away from one another as Selena approached. The latter was leaning on his saddle horn and watching Dan keenly from beneath his hat. They were at a safe distance, but the strain between them was palpable.

The others were fanned out behind Dan, aside from Sara, Susan and the children.

Selena made her way to his side, but was careful to give him his space. She’d hoped he would give her some last minute advice or instruction, but he remained silent, and the steady sound of hooves was growing.

Josie and her company became visible through the trees. None of them spoke as they dismounted and tethered their horses at the tack room.

It felt like an age passed in the time it took for them to draw to a halt ten paces away. One of her men held a large plastic container in his arms.

“Show them the medicine, Gary,” Josie instructed.

The man with the container placed it on the ground between the two groups. Then he opened it, exposing the supplies for everyone to see. He moved back to Josie’s side as she scanned them al .

Selena took in the sight of Roark and al the other men. Among them, she spotted a pair of eyes that caused an icy stab of fear to shoot through her chest, and stepped back instinctively right into Ben. He caught her shoulders and steadied her, but she couldn’t take her eyes off that man. The last time she’d seen him, it had been dark, and his face had been covered by a bandana. It was Victor.

Her stomach turned and she watched him with wide eyes, but he never looked back at her. She was lucky for this, and felt that she couldn’t bear so much as his gaze on her skin.

Josie’s eyes narrowed at Selena for a moment.

“As we al know,” the woman began in a commanding tone, “these medical supplies were stolen from us, leaving my seventy-eight people in possible danger, and some of them in certain danger. This act was not only an unforgivable breach of trust, but what I would also consider a declaration of war, as it risked the lives of my men, women and children.”

Josie let it sink in.

Dan waited and Selena’s heart hammered.

“This was an act of desperation, and it was also stupid,” Josie added. “The consequences, I’m sorry to say, wil involve further loss of life. I don’t enjoy giving these orders, but I have no choice but to take a stand for the safety of my people.”

“She didn’t do it!” Blaire bel owed, causing most of them to jump. She marched up behind Selena and glared bel igerently at Josie. “We’l be more than wil ing to show you a good fight if that’s what you want! Selena didn’t steal your damned medicine!”

Dan shot a severe look over his shoulder and Blaire quieted down.

A smirk passed over Josie’s features. “I know,” she answered quietly.

Selena stared in confusion. She tried to get a glimpse of Dan’s face, but found herself too far behind him.

“Bil ,” Josie said, nodding at the medicine.

He stepped over to the container and waited for further instruction.

“The one who real y stole it had the sil y notion he knew as much as I know.” She paused grimly. “What he did
not
know was that I memorize what’s in that container every night before I sleep.”

She shot Dan a dark, meaningful look, and to Selena’s surprise, he slid his hunting knife slowly from its sheath.

“And do you know what I found missing?” she went on fearlessly. “Al three bottles of our folic acid.” Now she turned her furious stare back to Bil . “The very same medicine that your wife needs to battle her anemia.”

Selena’s eyes widened in confusion, and she stared at Bil incredulously, as did most of the others.

“Without this medication, sickle cel anemia is horrifical y painful, and probably life-ending,” Josie explained. “What I can’t figure out, Bil , is why you would want to blow this deal.”

Selena saw his face harden, and knew that he would refuse to speak.

In a flash, Dan was behind him, his knife tight against the man’s throat, with one of his arms twisted back behind him.

“Where is that medicine?” Josie asked, in a voice like steel.

He didn’t answer.

He didn’t answer.

Dan exchanged glances with her before speaking. “If you don’t answer, I wil cut your throat and have your wife thrown out.”

Selena saw Shane, Cal and Bear edge toward Josie’s men. She blinked in confusion.

A pit of dread grew in her stomach. Josie’s men were now mirroring the advance. She didn’t understand what was happening.

Dan pressed his knife into Bil ’s throat and Selena knew it would break the skin soon.

“Kil me, just leave my wife alone,” he gasped, showing the first signs of real panic.

“No,” Josie barked angrily. “It’s like Dan said. You’l be dead, she’l be thrown out, and she’l die too! The only difference is that her death wil be a hel of a lot slower and more painful. Now where is the goddamned medicine?”

Bil groaned desperately, gulping for air. “I don’t know where it is! I don’t have it! I had no choice!”

“What are you talking about? If you don’t start making sense, this is going to be over in a second!” Josie railed.

“He made me do it! He hid her medication and said he’d only give it back if I buried the supplies here! If I told anyone, he was going to throw it away! I couldn’t tel you!”

“
Who
?” Josie hissed.

“Roark,” he uttered final y, defeated.

Selena watched in shock as Bil ’s admission triggered an explosive reaction.

Josie’s men rushed them. Three sprinted toward Selena with knives drawn. Dan released Bil and oriented on her attackers, but in the same moment, Roark, Gary and Victor came at him, along with three others. Her heart was in her throat as they took advantage of his distraction to move in for the kil .

“Dan!” she screamed and yanked her sling from her belt, forgetting about the men who would be upon her before her next breath. Ben tried to pul her away, but she jerked from his grasp and reached for a stone.

She watched as Gary came up fast and quiet, his knife poised to stab Dan in the back, but he spun and grabbed at the man’s wrist. Gary was too quick, and dodged Dan’s grasp as Roark rushed in.

Jack, who had flown to intercept the men that were barreling toward her, blocked Selena’s view. He held two menacing blades and stood poised to fight al three men.

There was so much happening so fast, Selena couldn’t fol ow it.

She tried to see Dan, and could only tel that Cal had grappled with one of his attackers.

“Stop!” Josie screeched at her men. “What are you doing?” She had nearly thrown herself into the fray when Bil caught her around the middle and hauled her from harm’s way.