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She pressed the back of her hand to his forehead. “I’m just following up on my patient.”
He took hold of her wrist. “Then why do we have to hurry?”
She yanked her hand away. “I didn’t want them to think you’re sick or injured. People like that can be a liability on these types of missions.”
He set his bag down on one of the seats. “Why did you agree to let me come, then?”
She smirked. “Would you have stayed behind?”
Deflection. “No. I would have followed you.”
“Why do you care about Everwood so much, you’ve barely—”
He closed the space between them and leaned forward. “No. You misunderstand me. I would have followed you. I owe you, after all, for saving my life.”
Her cheeks flushed under his gaze, before she said, “Your wound looks fine, and you don’t seem to be burning with fever...”
To his frustration, footsteps sounded just outside the door, and Eva moved away from him, dropped her bag of gear, and looked out the front. Luke bounded up the stairs.
She motioned for him to come in. “What news do you have for me?”
He hooked his hand behind his back. “The fire is started and the food is cooking. Derek and John have not returned yet from their scout.”
She removed the pelt from her pack and straightened. “Not to worry, Luke. You know Derek likes to be efficient. We’ll be out in a minute. Make sure Sarah doesn’t burn our food, okay?”
“Yes, ma’am,” Luke said as he made his way off the bus.
After readjusting her gun in her pants, she grabbed his bag from the seat and started investigating. “Tucker stocked you good.”
“Yes, in fact—”
“Here.” She handed him a sheathed knife and the pistol that had been stuffed into the bag. “Keep this close.”
He nodded and accepted the items, placing the knife in his boot and the pistol in the band of his pants. Once he had them situated, he arranged his shirt around the metal, then met her eyes.
“It’s most dangerous at night. The Others smell the food, hear our movements... We need to be ready. They will kill us for the provision we carry, it’s important we arm and protect ourselves.”
“I understand.”
When she went to go past him, he stilled her with a hand on her arm. “Thanks, for keeping me informed and... for checking my wound. You didn’t have to—”
Her hand covered his. “Just alert me if you’re not feeling well. I meant what I said about the sick and injured being a liability.” She waited for him to nod, then got off the bus.
The last thing he wanted was to be a liability to her, but he wouldn’t let that happen.
He zipped his bag closed, then descended the steps off the bus. His feet sank into the mud as he took in his surroundings.
Darkness had fallen on them, and the light of the fire cast eerie shadows on the debris. The area they’d parked in contained only a few stacked tires, broken sheets of metal, and a shattered tree trunk. Perpendicular to them was a row of abandoned buildings; some had no roofs or side walls, but they all were missing the glass in the windows.
Derek and John walked into the light just as wooden bowls were being passed around. Eva handed him a steaming bowl of brown slop that resembled the muck under his feet.
“It’s black beans and water. Not very tasty, but it will keep you full,” Sarah said as she stirred the food over the open fire.
Eva placed a heaping spoon into her mouth and motioned for him to do the same. His mouth salivated at the hearty smell. Shit, he was so hungry anything would taste good at this point. He scooped up the textured water and shoved it in his mouth.
Well, at least it was a warm meal. After he ate a few spoonfuls, he said, “It doesn’t taste as bad as it looks,” which was more of a dig at how it looked than anything else.
Sarah shrugged, then stoked the fire.
