Essential Beginnings (14 page)

“Trust me, you were hard to ignore,” Henley all but whispered, causing the vehicle to heat up in a manner Mav was sure she wasn’t ready for. He hadn’t seen this timid side of her and he wasn’t sure how to respond. He’d been up front with her about what he wanted and she’d all but stated she wasn’t ready for anything other than friendship. Or was she? She hadn’t had a chance to comment after he’d spelled it out for her. Henley cleared her throat as Mav met her gaze. Her throat moved gracefully as she swallowed and he deeply regretted that they were now in a situation that was bound to become life and death. He also lamented that she switched the subject to something safe, at least in terms of emotions. “It looks like we’re home, so I’ll go check on our guest and fill him in on what’s happened.”

“Truman likely already knows,” Mav replied, letting their conversation slide for now. There was still quite a bit of work ahead of them to prepare for what was to come and he would feel a hell of a lot better once his fellow Marines arrived. They were the only ones he trusted outside of Ernie, and in all likelihood the two of them alone stood only a fifty-fifty chance if some of the better-armed residents in town decided to take the bunker by force. What they didn’t understand was there weren’t enough provisions down there for what was truly needed, leaving Ernie’s theory of Lost Summit being naturally protected by the high mountains to the west being the best scenario they had. Mav hoped like hell it was true, but it wasn’t like they had many options. “Stay away from the man until we know more about him. I’ll talk to him and see if he’s contacted anyone that might be headed this way. We need to be prepared for people to start coming this direction, which is why I’m glad that Felix has stationed Jeremy on the only incoming access road.”

“Elijah’s house is on the west side of town and he said he’d keep a lookout from his back porch,” Henley said, unclicking her seatbelt as they finally pulled onto the lane that led to the cabins. She shifted her body back into the seat and looked ahead at something that caught her eye and she finished her thought somewhat vaguely. “It’ll give him something to do so he doesn’t feel useless. Mav, Kellen seems to be waiting for us.”

Mav had already noticed the other man standing off to the side where Tank had already parked his truck. There was a grim look on Truman’s face, alerting them that something else had happened. Ernie was in the process of opening his door when Mav drove passed and parked closer to where Henley’s cabin was located. He parked the Jeep and then quickly exited with the intention of opening her door, but she’d already beat him to it.

“Where are you going?” Mav asked, placing a hand on Henley’s arm to stop her from walking any farther. He didn’t want her anywhere near Truman. “We can’t be wasting time, so why don’t I meet you at the storage locker in back. You can get a quick count on the supplies, cots, and sleeping bags we have to distribute if we need to provide for more than what Ernie thought would be necessary.”

“Mav, I already know our inventory and I can recite it to you by heart,” Henley said in irritation, shaking off his hand to continue in the direction of Tank and Truman. She shot him a sideways look when he fell into step beside her, but he didn’t rightly care. Her attitude was going to get both of them killed eventually, especially since Truman wasn’t what he appeared to be along with her penchant for taking everyone that appeared at her doorstep at face value. He would have thought from her experience in Hollywood that she could see the masks that people usually wore, but it was as if she’d put a divider between her two lives. She was wrong if she thought that the townsfolk from her hometown were different. They weren’t. Mav could perceive a threat a mile away and this man had a written warning label stuck to his forehead. He kept pace with her when she quickened her stride. “Let’s face it, we feel useless by not doing anything and twiddling our thumbs. We have a
need
to do something other than sit here and admit defeat. I get it. But there is nothing more we can do with the exception of protecting our town and taking care of our own. Oh, and have sex. Would you like that in between our breaks of defending what’s ours?”

Henley stopped and whipped around to face him, the anxiety within her eyes telling him how hard she was trying to keep her head together. She’d shocked Mav with her last exclamation, but that had been her intention. Everyone was dealing with this disaster in their own way and his was to take charge, protect, and keep them alive. Hers? Mav didn’t know, because he hadn’t taken the time to ask and now he felt like an ass.

“Come here,” Mav murmured, taking her by the hands and pulling her to him. Henley resisted at first, but then she allowed him to envelop her into his arms. She fit perfectly with every curve and he held her tightly for the first time in three years. He rested his chin on her head as she laid her cheek against his chest and slid her hands up his back. There was a hint of vanilla he’d never breathed before. It came from her brown hair and he dipped his head so that he could press his lips against her silky strands. They stood that way for a moment longer, ignoring the two men not ten feet away. “It’s going to be okay.”

“You don’t know that,” Henley whispered, her fingers digging deeper into his shirt and skin. Her voice trembled, but she didn’t break down. “I thought I was fine up here, keeping to myself while only having Ernie to worry about. I really wasn’t okay and now it’s too late.”

Henley slowly pulled away, looking up at him with those green eyes that had haunted his dreams for longer than he cared to remember. There was regret, fear, and a sorrow for what they were about to lose. She was right when she said it didn’t seem real that Mother Nature had stirred awake and eradicated a hundred thousand people while they stood here seemingly unaffected. He knew it for the lie it was and he could only imagine the devastation to come.

“I’m afraid, too, Henley,” Mav softly conceded, trusting that his admission would make her understand that she wasn’t alone. He brushed the back of his fingers down the side of her face, wishing beyond hope that they had the means to endure this catastrophe. This wasn’t a television show that allowed them to go on with their lives afterward. The fallout of this would go on for years, the infrastructure of their country would eventually fail, and it would forever be a different world. Even the country might be destroyed by this overwhelming disaster. One just couldn’t comprehend every consequence in one day. “We all are, but I can promise you that I will do whatever is necessary to see us through this. And as for it being too late…it’s never too late to struggle against the tide.”

Henley pulled away at the sound of Ernie calling them over to where he stood with Truman. Mav wasn’t quite ready to let her go, but he didn’t really have a choice at the moment. This morning before all of this happened he would have driven away and not returned until the end of the year. He would have gone through months of being angry over what she’d said, resentful that he hadn’t handled it better, and bitter that nothing had been resolved. It was astonishing that emotions and actions could change so much in so short a time, but it all seemed petty to him now. They would have to talk about it as soon as he was done figuring out who Truman was and what he wanted.

“Kellen has just told me that he’s been in touch with Fairchild Air Force Base down near Spokane.” Ernie appeared skeptical and Mav took his lead, trying to maneuver himself so that his body shielded Henley. She had other ideas and stood directly at his side, measuring the situation and causing him to be slightly uneasy. Talk about a contradiction. For how cautious she was, she had a tendency to be spontaneous and he was afraid that would put them in a precarious situation. “They apparently will make room for anyone who can make it to the base.”

“We’ll let the residents know first thing in the morning.” Mav carefully worded his statement so that he didn’t give out any names of those in charge, specially the sheriff or the mayor. “We appreciate your help. What branch of service did you say you were in?”

“I researched the area before deciding on this trip and I know that the population is close to fifty,” Kellen disclosed, blatantly not answering Mav’s question. The man had not only skirted replying, he’d carefully steered the conversation back to the town. Mav glanced around the wilderness and had to wonder if this man had truly arrived alone. “The base is their best chance at survival and the citizens should head there tomorrow based on the military’s calculation of when the ash cloud will reach us.”

“Like I said,” Mav reiterated, having an itch to scout the area but he would take a more powerful weapon than his pistol, “we’ll inform the mayor tomorrow of your offer and allow the residents to make their own decision based on all the facts.”

“I’d like to go into town with you,” Kellen replied, skimming his eyes over Henley, although not in a sexual manner. It was more of a measuring glance than anything. “I can give the mayor more information if need be.”

“That’ll be fine,” Ernie commented rather tersely, ending the conversation. “Is there anything else you’ll be needing this evening? If not, we’ll see you at zero five hundred.”

“Zero five hundred it is,” Kellen agreed before turning back to his lodging. Mav noticed the man’s gaze hesitated as they drifted across the back of the grounds where Henley’s cabin was located. The action solidified exactly where Mav would be spending the night, after he reconnoitered the area of course. “Good night.”

Mav, Ernie, and Henley stayed where they were as Truman shut himself inside of his cabin, a single light shining from the lone window of the wooden structure. The man didn’t appear too concerned that an eruption of a supervolcano had already wiped out thousands of lives and would continue to do so for years to come. He didn’t fool himself into believing that Truman wouldn’t be up the rest of the night monitoring them, but that didn’t stop Mav from indicating to Tank that he wanted the keys to the bunker where there was a stash of proper weapons for emergencies such as these.

“Take Henley to her cabin so I can do my job,” Mav said low enough for them to hear but not loud enough that they could be overheard in case someone was listening. He caught the set of keys that Ernie had thrown him and didn’t pause to explain things to Henley. Ernie would take care of that, but Mav was angry with himself that he hadn’t brought Jeremy up to the fishing lodge instead of allowing him to monitor the comings and goings of people that could pose a threat to Lost Summit. The three of them didn’t have what it took to protect the lodge properly from a determined force, which was why it was critical that the guys show up sooner rather than later. “And Tank? Stick to our motto. Shoot first, ask questions of the next of kin.”

H
enley slammed the
cabinet after she’d snatched two coffee mugs and did her best not to break them against the counter setting them down. How dare Mav treat her like some helpless female who didn’t know her way around a damn cave? She wasn’t some fragile woman who needed to be taken care of when she had that ability all on her own. Just because she apologized for the misinterpretation of his character didn’t mean she was a doormat. They needed to have a major discussion to set him straight if that’s what he thought. She’d been raised in this area, taught how to hunt and fish from a young age, although her agent had kept that out of her modeling résumé. The power players had recommended omitting that fact due to not everyone thinking being self-sufficient was appealing. She could handle a weapon just as well as the men in town according to her father. She was losing sight of why she was angry at Maverick and that just wouldn’t do.

“We can’t afford to lose any dishes or cups, so go easy over there, missy,” Ernie grumbled while he stood next to the window listening to the shortwave radio he’d turned up not ten minutes prior. He had even repositioned it from the kitchen counter to the coffee table. She didn’t even bother to look over her shoulder at him because she knew she’d find his back to her. “This Kellen Truman didn’t come today by mistake. He had this planned and there must be a damn good reason. Did you notice any firearm cases in his luggage when he unloaded his gear into the cabin?”

Henley didn’t point out that Kellen had made the reservation months ago. Ernie would come up with some conspiracy that the military had already known about the Yellowstone caldera and had been making preparations. She wasn’t about to debate more half-assed theories with him. She’d been proven wrong in the most horrific way and for the hundredth time today she tried to push away thoughts of the people that hadn’t made it out alive.

“No, all I saw was the overnight bag he put next to the door. Tank, we need to drive back into town and let Felix know about the base accepting people.” Henley watched as the coffee maker finished its brewing cycle, waiting for the last drop to fall. She then pulled out the pot to pour the much-needed fresh java into the mugs. They hadn’t broken when she’d set them down and she felt smug for just a second at that fact. Unfortunately, it made her realize how on edge she really was in feeling a sense of accomplishment that she hadn’t broken the dishes. She took a moment to deeply inhale the delicious aroma, giving thanks to whoever was listening that she was still able to do so. “I’m sure their buildings have roofs that won’t collapse under the weight of the ash. We need to be thinking about that.”