Without law 16, p.15
Without Law 16, page 15
I hoped coming to that realization wouldn't affect her too much. She was the sweetest girl I knew, and I’d hate to have that good natured spirit taken away because people just couldn't stop being assholes. I had faith that she would be able to keep that piece of herself, but it was something I’d watch out for. I wanted to protect that part of her, the part that felt like everyone deserved some sort of kindness, the part that saw the good in things.
“So, that happens pretty frequently, then?” Kimmy asked as we got back to the auto parts store and started to look around some more.
“Too frequently,” I answered.
“It’s hard to believe that someone would try and steal something even with a gun literally pointed at their heads,” she said with a confused look. “Why wouldn’t they just give up?”
“People are just trying to survive,” I explained. “But sometimes that leads them to do just the opposite.”
“That’s crazy,” she said with a shake of her head. “I mean, I’d like to think that I wouldn’t steal from someone in the first place, but even if I did, if I got caught I would give it up.”
“Why?” I asked. “What would stop them from just shooting you right then after you gave up?”
“I hadn’t thought about that,” she said with a frown. “Were you going to shoot them anyways?”
“No,” I said. “But they couldn’t know that for sure. They had no reason to trust us just like we had no reason to trust them.”
“I guess that makes sense,” she sighed. “I feel like I’ve been sheltered at the campus. I haven’t had to deal with any of this in such a long time that I forgot what it was like in the outside world.”
“It’s not pretty,” I said with a soft smile. “But I’m glad that you feel sheltered, that’s what I want for you. It’s what I want for all of my girls really, but I know that the girls wouldn’t go for that.”
“They shouldn’t,” she said with a grin. “They're total badasses. Besides, you need a team. This would be way too much to handle on your own.”
“You’re right,” I said. “I think I’d miss having them out in the field with me anyways.”
“I’m sure you would,” she said. “Sometimes I wish I could be out here with you guys, but this just seems like a lot. Thank you for letting me come today, though.”
“You’re welcome to come whenever you want,” I said with a smile. “I won’t let anything happen to you. But I understand why you choose to stay home most of the time.”
“Anthony needs me,” she said with a smile. “And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t need him.”
“I get it,” I said. “I mean, I don’t exactly since I don’t have kids of my own, but I know the feeling.”
“You’re the closest thing to a dad that Anthony has ever experienced,” Kimmy said gently but seriously.
“Is that okay with you?” I asked softly.
“More than okay,” she said with a nod. “I’m glad to have you in his life. And in mine, too.”
“I’m glad to be there,” I said.
Kimmy smiled at me, then we both went back to looking for the oil filters. I couldn’t get the silly grin I had off my face, though, so I just kept perusing the aisles while I smiled like an idiot. To think that Kimmy thought of me as a father figure, possibly more, to her child, that was incredible. I loved baby Anthony as if he were my own. He had already become such a big part of my life, of the reason why I tried to fight so hard to protect what I’d built back on campus. I wanted him to grow up and live a full life.
I knew that the only way he could do that was if he was safe, and I swore a long time ago that I would keep him safe at all costs. There were other children on campus, and I’d gladly put my life on the line for any of them, but baby Anthony was different. He was more like my own child than the others were. Kimmy and I were an item of sorts, and Anthony and I had bonded quickly from the beginning. He always loved when I held him, we had a certain connection that I thought dads must have with their own children.
“I found them!” Kimmy exclaimed, and I followed her voice to one of the center racks. She had a box pulled off the shelf and inside were ten or more oil filters for our jeeps.
“Perfect,” I told her with a smile. “Let’s see what else we can find while we’re here.”
“Anything in particular?” she asked.
“Whatever could be useful,” I told her. “We have room on the trailer so we may as well get whatever we can while we’re here. We don’t know if we’ll have this opportunity again.”
“Right,” she agreed. “I’ll see what I can scrounge up.”
“You’ve already found the filters,” I said. “That’s a great start.”
Kimmy and I looked through the store and made a large pile of stuff to take back to the trailer with us. I realized then that we’d forgotten to grab a cart, so I went back to the trailer to retrieve the Walmart cart that we’d used earlier. The other girls were offloading their stuff when I walked up, though, and I greeted them as I approached.
“Hey,” I said as I looked over their haul. “It looks like you all did well.”
“Not too shabby,” Paige said with a grin.
The girls had managed to find a few boxes of flour and other cooking essentials like baking powder and yeast. These were typically things that people left behind because they didn’t have a way to use them, but that was good for us since we had a place to store and cook things. Besides, eventually we’d run out of flour and things like that, and we wouldn’t be able to replace them unless we figured out how to make them ourselves. It was good to have as much as possible.
“Did you guys find the oil filters?” Anna asked.
“Yeah,” I said with a nod. “But I need a cart.”
“Well, we’re almost done offloading stuff,” Anna said. “Paige, why don’t you go with him and help?”
“Sure,” the brunette said.
“Hey, why does she get to go with Tav?” Tara pouted.
“Because she doesn’t get on my nerves,” Anna teased.
“Don’t you think that would make you want me to leave even more?” the platinum-blonde laughed.
“It does,” the redhead replied. “But I also like irritating you.”
Anna gave Tara a big grin, and the platinum-blonde responded by sticking her tongue out.
“Alright,” I chuckled. “We’ll be right back.”
“Those two are ridiculous,” Paige said.
“They really are,” I agreed.
“Fuck,” Paige said, and she looked down. The brunette’s foot had landed right into a puddle. They were everywhere since it had stormed a couple of nights before and the ground was still wet and even muddy in some places. So far we’d avoided it, but Paige just managed to run right into one.
“Sorry,” I said with a smile.
“Eh, it’s okay,” she said with a shrug. “My sock is gonna be wet, but I’ll live.”
“I hope so,” I laughed.
With Paige’s help, Kimmy and I were able to load up the supplies we’d found easily, and once that was done we headed back over to the trailer and offloaded them. Tara and Anna weren’t there though, and I wondered where the two of them had gotten off to.
It didn’t take long for me to figure it out. I heard bickering coming from a salon across the street, and I headed over there and found the two of them arguing over some sort of hair product.
“What’s going on?” I asked.
“Nothing,” Anna said, and she took advantage of their surprise and snatched a bottle out of Tara’s hand.
“Hey!” the platinum-blonde exclaimed.
“The trailer is pretty full,” I said. “I’m going to get Bailey.”
“Okay,” Anna said. “We’ll make sure everything is secure.”
“Good call,” I said with a nod.
I walked around to the back of the building and looked up to see Bailey smiling down at me.
“I figured it was time to go,” she said.
“It is,” I chuckled. “I came to help you down.”
“Thanks,” she said. “I didn’t want to make that jump. It’s not super far, but I have my gun and everything.”
“No worries,” I told her. “Come on down.”
The ladder was only about ten feet off the ground, so it wouldn’t be too much of a fall, but I didn’t want to risk her getting hurt if she tried to hop down on her own. A sprained ankle would leave her out of the field until it was healed, and I needed her in top physical condition if we were going to go after the NKs again soon.
Bailey climbed down, and once she was within reach I placed one hand on her ass and the other on her waist so I could easily lower her down and place her on the ground.
“Whew, thanks,” she said as I set her down.
“No problem,” I said with a smile.
“Yeah, I noticed that you went straight for the butt,” she laughed.
“It was the easiest way to get you down,” I said with a shrug.
“You just wanted to touch my butt,” she teased.
“Guilty,” I said with a grin.
We made our way back over to the trailer, and I saw that Anna and the rest of the girls were working on securing everything we’d found with ratchet straps.
“You guys need any help?” Bailey asked.
“I don’t think so,” Kimmy said with a smile. “We’re almost done.”
“Okay,” the blonde said.
“I did want to say that was awesome earlier, though,” the dark-skinned woman told Bailey.
“What?” Bailey asked. “You mean when I took those guys out? It wasn’t a big deal.”
“I’m sure it wasn’t for you,” Kimmy laughed. “But it happened so quickly. And all of them have shots to the head. I mean, everyone said you were a good shot, but that was intense.”
“Oh, yeah, I guess Kimmy’s never really seen Bailey shoot before,” Paige said.
“No,” Kimmy agreed. “It was incredible, though. I wish I was that good of a shot.”
“That was nothing,” Tara said. “She could hit literally any target you gave her.”
“That seems a bit extreme to say,” Bailey said, and her face went slightly red with embarrassment.
“Bitch hit a grenade mid air one time,” Tara said braggily, and she pointed a thumb at Bailey.
“Noooo,” Kimmy said, and her jaw dropped, and she looked at Bailey. “That’s insane.”
“Can we give her a shot?” Anna asked me with a smile. “I mean, just to show Kimmy. She didn’t really get to see earlier since we ducked down.”
“Oh, please,” Kimmy begged. “I really would love to see.”
Anna was right, we had to duck down earlier, so Kimmy really hadn’t got to see Bailey in action. We’d filled the trailer and Bailey had already taken out the assholes in the area so I figured a couple of quick shots wouldn’t cause too much harm.
“Bailey?” I asked. “You down for a bit of target practice?”
“Sure,” the blonde said with a smile. “Just give me a target.”
“Kimmy, you pick,” Tara said.
“Oh, yay,” Kimmy said, and she looked all around curiously. “Okay, do you see that car over there? How about the drivers side mirror?”
“Oh, please,” Bailey said. “Give me something difficult.”
“Bailey’s feisty today,” Tara laughed. “I love it.”
“If I’m going to show off my skills, I want a challenge,” the blonde replied with a grin.
“How about the U in the word Saturn on the back?” I asked.
“That’s more like it,” Bailey said with a nod.
“That’s a tiny target,” Kimmy said. “I wasn’t even sure that’s what it said.”
“Yeah, it’s a Saturn,” Bailey said.
The blonde walked over to the front of the jeep and set up her rifle on it. She leaned over and I got a view of her ass. I hadn’t realized how muddy my hands were, but there was a handprint on her tight shorts from earlier when I’d helped her down from the roof.
She looked sexy as hell bent over the hood of the jeep as she lined up her shot.
“Ready?” she asked, and she glanced back at us.
“Ready,” Kimmy agreed.
Bailey turned back to her weapon, then a split second later she fired and a second after that we all heard a loud clinking noise.
“No way,” Kimmy said with a grin.
“Go see,” Bailey said confidently.
“We’re about to head out anyway,” I said. “Hop in, we’ll drive over to it on our way out.”
We all got into the jeep, and I fired the engine up and drove us over to the car that Bailey had fired at. I pulled up behind it so we could see the emblem, and it was clear that Bailey had made the shot. Where the U used to be there was now just a small hole through the metal of the trunk.
“Geez,” Kimmy breathed. “I can’t believe you made that shot.”
“Thanks,” Bailey said with a smile. “I’m sure with some practice you could, too.”
“No, no, no,” Kimmy laughed. “Don’t sell yourself short. That’s not practice, that’s something else.”
“That’s what we’ve been saying,” Tara chuckled. “She’s just naturally gifted.”
“They’re right,” Kimmy told Bailey.
“We all have our strengths,” the blonde said.
“Take the damn compliment, Bailey!” Tara exclaimed. “You’re a badass, okay?”
“Okay,” Bailey laughed. “I’m sorry.”
“Badasses don’t apologize,” Tara said. “Stop it.”
“You’re so pushy,” the blonde teased.
“Damn right,” Tara chuckled.
“Thanks for letting us take a minute for some fun,” Kimmy said. “I’m glad I got to see that.”
“Of course,” I said with a smile.
“Rolly’s told me what badasses you guys are, and I went with you to the radio tower, but didn’t get any action like that,” Kimmy said. “It must be nerve wracking being out here all the time.”
“It can be,” Anna said. “You get used to it, though.”
“I don’t know if I could,” Kimmy said. “You girls are tough.”
“You’re tough, too,” Tara said. “Didn’t you, like, give birth with no drugs? I bet that was hell. I’ve always said that if I got pregnant I was getting drugs for sure.”
“I didn’t exactly have a choice,” Kimmy chuckled. “But if I had I probably would have taken the drugs, too.”
“Why wouldn’t everyone?” Tara asked with surprise, as if it was a crime to refuse pain medication.
“Some people don’t like prescription drugs,” Paige said.
“Well, I’m not one of them,” Tara said. “Slap that IV in and get that baby out. Fuck that. I definitely wouldn't want to go through that without meds.”
“You know it’s not an IV, right?” Paige asked. “It’s a huge needle that goes into your spine.”
“What?” the platinum-blonde gasped.
“It’s true,” Bailey said. “I was there for part of the labor for my younger siblings, and I saw them give it to my mom. It was intense.”
“It can’t be that big,” Tara scoffed.
“It’s big,” Anna said, and her eyes displayed her horror at the size of the needle.
“Well, I’d still rather have that then be in pain for hours on end,” the platinum-blonde said.
“I’m sure you would,” Paige said. “But you don’t exactly have a choice now. I don’t think Marla knows how to put one in and even then we’d have to find the drugs and supplies.”
“Why wouldn’t Marla know how to put it in?” Bailey asked.
“She was a nurse,” Paige explained. “Epidurals are done by anesthesiologists.”
“Same diff,” Tara said.
“No, it’s really not,” the brunette laughed.
“Well, then, you better start studying up on some anesthesiologist stuff,” Tara said. “Because I’m not about to be punished for bringing life into the world. How fucked up is that? Isn’t this shit supposed to be a miracle or something?”
“Childbirth is a miracle,” Kimmy said. “But it hurts like hell, too. That’s just part of the deal.”
“Yeah, somehow I don’t think that I should be sticking needles into people’s spines,” Paige said with narrowed, confused eyes.
“I think you should,” Tara said. “I’m not going through that without pain meds.”
“Why are you so gung ho about this right now?” Anna asked with a grin. “You pregnant after all?”
“No,” the platinum-blonde said with a glare.
“Totally pregnant,” Anna said, and she and Paige nodded.
“Fuck you, guys,” Tara laughed, and everyone else stifled their giggles.
“Come on,” I said. “We should get going.”
We all hopped back into the jeep, and I turned it on and headed back down the road toward home. I had planned on stopping by Renee’s after our run, but we were still a ways from the fort and since we just had a run-in with some assholes I didn’t want to take the risk of running into someone else while we still had a trailer full of supplies. We’d go home and drop off the supplies, and we would visit Renee another day.
It was afternoon already, and the trailer was full of stuff. We had a good haul today. We had managed to find batteries for the walkie-talkies, new clothes for the children, the oil filters and oil for the oil changes, and a few other various things that we needed for the campus. Most importantly, though, I had been able to make sure that Jenny got her pregnancy tests. I’d make sure that I pulled one out to slip to her while we were offloading supplies. I didn’t want her to have to try and get one herself. I knew she was already embarrassed about it, or maybe not so much embarrassed, but she didn’t want anyone to know. She definitely didn’t want Betty to know, and I completely understood that. Who would want their grandparents to know they were having sex?
There wasn’t anything wrong with what Jenny was doing, but announcing a pregnancy was basically admitting to having had sex at some point recently. That wasn’t exactly something that everybody was comfortable with. And if Jenny happened to not be pregnant, and she told Betty that she might be pregnant then it was just telling her grandmother about her sex life needlessly. At least if she was pregnant, then Betty could be happy for her.
