Essential Beginnings (31 page)

“There’s been a change in plans,” Trevor announced, taking his knife out and holding it down to his side. Henley didn’t want to miss her chance, so she turned back around to face him and Stanley. Jarrett was a smart enough man to figure this out and he might be her only chance out of here. There was a slight problem with the fact that the ash had started to fall intermittently, Mother Nature letting everyone know she’d arrived at their doorstep. “Tell everyone we’re moving up to the bunker that Yates has waiting for us.”

“Don’t you say a thing to them,” Stanley warned, pointing his finger at Jarrett. “Trevor, we’re staying here. You can right this wrong by taking Henley back up there, but we’re sticking to our original plans. You made this mess so you clean it up. I’m tired of cleaning up your shit, boy. Both you and your mother together weren’t worth a plugged nickel.”

Henley had a feeling that Stanley had just pushed his son a little too far. Everything happened at once, but Henley wasn’t about to lose the advantage. With more strength than she realized she possessed, she swung the pocketknife from behind her back at the same time that Trevor raised his blade and multiple shadows came toward them. She felt more than heard the sickening thud of her short knife entering the man’s neck. It was unlike anything she’d ever experienced and never wanted to again.

Mav had always told her it was easy to say one could take another’s life in self-defense, but it was another to actually follow through with it. Henley had no doubt that Trevor would have killed his father in that moment, and then her if he’d had the chance. She hadn’t spent days preparing to live out a catastrophic event only to have it end here at the hands of a desperate and selfish young man.

“You bitch,” Trevor yelled and to her amazement, his blade still kept coming down toward Stanley.

Henley shoved the older man to the ground as gunshots rang out and she covered him with her body. She tried frantically to look back underneath the truck to ensure that Jarrett hadn’t been hit, but she couldn’t see anything…just empty space. Stanley was mumbling something, but the blood rushing through her ears was preventing her from hearing anything he had to say. She whipped her head around to the other side and caught sight of Trevor falling straight down. When he finally landed with his head turned toward her, his eyes were wide open, pupils fully dilated in death with half his head missing. It was a sight she would see again and again in her nightmares for many nights ahead.

*

Mav used hand
signals to advance that Truman and Ernie understood perfectly. He’d explained them to Jeremy, Dylan, and Jason during the ride down here. Each of them had pouches on their right sides with gas masks and another on their left with additional ammunition. Mav had determined that the load bearing vests wouldn’t restrict their movement too much. They hadn’t originally known what they were up against until Milton had shown up an hour ago. It turned out that Trevor had something to prove to his father he could carry his weight and thought the way to do that was by taking Henley to trade for the bunker. He couldn’t have been more wrong.

Trevor and Stanley were currently standing by the Dodge Ram pickup sitting at the bottom of the road. Mav was able to see Henley using Kellen’s M24s in the back seat of the super cab through the open truck door. His relief was palpable that she appeared to be moving. She was making her way out of the vehicle when it would have been best for her to stay inside, but there wasn’t any way she could know that. Mav and the men continued forward, using the coverage of the opposing tree line. By the time they reached the edge of the roadbed, Henley was standing beside the truck, having caught the attention of Stanley and Trevor. This heightened Mav’s tension, but he needed to concentrate on the task at hand.

Mav was about to indicate they were a go to converge on their target when Jarrett came up from behind the truck, possibly causing a problem with the plan. He had everyone stay where they were until it was evident that their situation was about to go south. He signaled and together they moved forward as one, crushing the small flakes of ash that had landed on the shoulder of the road. He was close enough to hear and see what was going on, so he wasn’t surprised when Trevor turned on his father and Henley.

“You bitch!”

Mav was at the ready and had pulled his rifle up to his cheek, taking aim through his Trijicon ACOG 4x32 scope. Henley must have had some type of weapon in her hand, because she had brought it forward with all of her might and landed it directly in Trevor’s neck. Pride overwhelmed him at her ability to fend for herself, but that wasn’t about to stop a man hyped up on adrenaline, so Mav did what he had to do. He pulled the trigger and put one .223 caliber 68-grain hollow point boat tailed slug into his head. A couple more shots were taken, but they were warnings for those up at the entrance of the mine farther up the valley…not that they were needed. Everyone stood there in shock at what had just transpired, but Mav allowed the others to deal with them. His one and only focus was Henley.

“Henley?” Mav quickly shifted the strap of the rifle so that the weapon rested on his back while he physically lifted her body off of Stanley’s. He was already mumbling and making excuses, saying he had nothing to do with Trevor’s plan. Mav didn’t give a shit and pulled Henley to him, holding her tight. “You scared me, sweetheart. I don’t think I’ve ever felt such a terror like that before.”

“Mav, I knew you’d come for me,” Henley whispered against his neck, holding on to him as forcefully as he was to her. He also knew her nature was to immediately defend those of this town, but he really wasn’t ready for that quite yet. That didn’t stop her though. “Trevor was behind it all. Stanley didn’t know until we got back to their camp. He’s telling the truth, just ask Jarrett.”

“Henley, could we focus on you right now?” Mav asked, pulling her away so that he could look her over. He couldn’t see any fresh blood other than what was on her hands, but he wasn’t sure he would with the way the ash was falling right now. Henley was definitely in pain and he needed to find its source. “Where are you hurt?”

“My wrist,” Henley answered vaguely, turning her head to look at the others with a wince. That tell told him she was hurt somewhere else, but she was being too damn stubborn to admit it. Her eyes skimmed over Trevor’s body, but she obstinately held true to what she believed. He had no doubt the reality of what had happened here today would sink in and he would be there for her. “We need to get everyone up to the lodge now.”

Mav had already released her and had pulled his backpack off while setting his rifle on the deck. He withdrew her gasmask pouch, handing Henley hers as she continued to ask if they had enough for everyone here. He would have laughed at the absurdity of it all, but all he could do was take a moment by placing his hands on his knees. She literally had no idea the worry and terror that he’d experienced thinking that he couldn’t save her. He took a deep breath, trying to steady what nerves he had left.

“Mav? Did you hear me? The ash is starting to come down and we need to get everyone up to the camp.”

“Henley, give the man a minute,” Ernie instructed with a bark, walking up to them and slapping Mav on the back. He managed to stand and shoot the old man a warning look. It didn’t help in the least. “He just saved the woman he loves. That’ll take something out of a man—hell, he’ll be greyer than me by the time you’re through with him. I will say I’m downright proud of you, girl. You fought like a champ and came out the victor.”

“Yates,” Ratliff called out, making his way over through the thickening air. Henley was right when she said they needed to start clearing the area, but Mav couldn’t take his eyes off of her face. She was smiling brighter than any sun he’d ever had the pleasure of seeing and would no doubt not see for a very long time. He didn’t need to with her by his side. “Could we talk?”

“The man lost his son, Ernie,” Henley spoke softly, her eyes never leaving Mav’s face. “Go easy.”

Ernie grumbled as he walked away and Truman took over in getting the remaining people in the vehicles he had brought up by the other team members. The ash was coming down but it wasn’t thick enough to clog the engines before reaching the lodge. Ramsey had come in through the access road and would take care of Trevor’s body, leaving Mav and Henley to their own devices.

“You could have just told me you loved me,” Henley said after she’d taken one of the gas masks that Mav held in his hand. He picked up his pack and rifle, slinging it over his one shoulder so that he could wrap his other arm around her. She was cradling the mask to her chest with her right hand while protecting her left. He wasn’t sure he’d be able to let her out of his sight for a while, but that wasn’t going to be an issue for some time to come. “Letting an old man do your dirty work isn’t like you, Maverick.”

Mav laughed, grateful for this weightlessness that came over them. This was the Henley he’d met three years ago, the one who kept him on his toes and loved taunting him with mocking scoffs that got under his skin. The thing of it was…he liked it. Hell, Ernie was right—he loved it.

“Are you going to wait another three years to say it or are you going to hide in that cabin of yours until the sun starts to shine again?” Mav asked, pressing a kiss on top of Henley’s head as he led her to Ramsey’s cruiser. The sheriff would have to use that shitty old POS Dodge to transport the body to a burial ground. The ash was still falling lightly, giving everyone time to get the things done they needed to do. It was heavy enough though that had they had to walk any farther in distance, he would have had her put the mask on. “We all know how long it takes for you to make up your mind.”

Mav released Henley to open the passenger side door of the cruiser and then looked down at her when she didn’t immediately get in. She was looking up at him with those green eyes of hers, ashes settling on her upturned face. Her answer was already shining bright.

“I do love you, Maverick Beckett. And it’s a good thing too,” Henley said, carefully sitting down into the passenger seat. “Who else is going to keep you on your toes and give you something to do around this one horse town?”

Mav stored his pack and rifle in the back seat before kneeling in to kiss her as tenderly as he could. It was more than apparent by the pain in her eyes that she was hurting and he didn’t want to add to that. He finally pulled back, making sure she was paying attention to every word he said.

“I can think of many things we could do that will keep us on our toes, sweetheart. Many, many things. After all…it’s the end of the world.”

M
av entered the
cabin two days later and waited until he’d shut the door to remove his mask. He had already brushed himself off with the whiskbroom before he entered. He leaned against the door and rested his head against the wood. He was bone tired, but very satisfied with how things were turning out. Ernie had been right about the location being protected from the elements and the ash falling here was not as significant as the vast majority of the United States, allowing them to continue to stay in the lodge and the cabins. They’d managed to get some of the older townsfolk into the bunker while making room for Stanley and the others that had come back with them in the lodge. The gas masks were used to get from point A to point B, no one wanting to take the chance of getting ash into their lungs.

“It took you long enough,” Henley called out from the bedroom. “Do me a favor and have a seat in the overstuffed chair in front of you.”

Mav frowned when he noticed that their furniture had been rearranged. The chair she was referring to was positioned right in front of him, totally out of place. The back of the couch was to his left and the coffee table was turned on its side on his right. What the hell was she doing when she was supposed to be resting?

“Henley, what the hell are you doing?”

Mav finally gave up when she didn’t answer right away. He used the time to remove his boots, not wanting to get ash anywhere within the cabin. He also took off his jacket and coveralls, hanging them up on a hook he’d installed the other day. There was a side table there for his two-way radio along with his sidearm. His rifle he hung from the other hook. That left him in nothing but his T-shirt, cammies, and stocking feet before he gratefully fell into the chair in a heap. He looked over to his left, finally noticing that she had a fire roaring in the fireplace, making the whole cabin very toasty.