Flash Bang (34 page)
Her eyes sparkled with tears as she whispered, “Thank you.”
Zach followed Graham and Rick into the kitchen, and squatted to roll up the colorful rag rug that lay in the center of the floor. Graham knelt beside him and lifted a loose plank. Rick cocked his head to the side as Zach turned the recessed metal handle and a section of the wooden floor and a slab of eighteen-inch thick concrete lifted.
“What the hell?”
“Come on down,” Graham said as he climbed down the ladder. Zach waited until Rick had made his way into the bunker before following. Graham stood next to the red dome mounted on the wall.
“This actuator releases the hydraulic system so the floor drops back into place. Once the system is engaged from below, this bunker is inaccessible from above.”
“Well, I’ll be damned …” Rick’s look of wonder gave Zach hope that Graham’s revelation might actually change the man’s mind.
“That’s eighteen inches of poured concrete, reinforced with twice the amount of rebar normally used. That construction carries through to the rest of the bunker.” Graham pointed toward the porthole-style door across the room. “That steel door is a foot thick and, when it’s locked, it isolates this section from the rest of the tunnel and bunker system.”
“Rest of the system?”
“There are four bunkers, each provisioned and equipped with independent air filtration systems and stand-alone wells. If one section is compromised, the rest are still safe. This was originally built as a bomb shelter, and then upgraded to a fallout shelter. We’ve added our own touches over the past few years.”
“Well, shit. This place might just be built better than my little hidey-hole. It’s certainly bigger, especially if the other rooms are this big.”
“They’re near the same size.”
Zach was about to release a breath when Rick said, “I still think you’re going to have a problem with the feds beating down your door.”
“Then we fall back in here. We’ve got enough supplies to last us for years.”
“But what kind of life is that? Living underground?”
“The same kind of life you’ve got to offer. Isn’t your ‘hidey-hole’ underground? What makes it safer than this?” Zach could tell Graham’s patience was wearing thin as the muscles of his jaw tensed.
“It’s not the same. The main living quarters might be underground, but it’s far enough out of the way that it would be safe to come up during the day. There’d be fresh vegetables once the garden was established.”
Well, fuck. This is going nowhere fast
, Zach thought. Time to put a stop to the pissing match.
“Just … stop. This isn’t about what you’ve got or what we’ve got. The only thing that matters is keeping your daughters and the baby safe. We’re on the same side. At least for now, anyway.” Zach met Rick’s stare. “We can’t let Ro wonder for the next eight months whether you’re going to walk out those gates with or without her and us as soon as she gives birth.”
“Now wait a minute—I’m not going to try to separate her from either of you.” Rick blew out a rush of air. “Look, as far as I’m concerned, the window for safe travel is closing pretty damn quick. I can’t say what this world is going to be like eight months from now, but I will swear to you that I will not do anything to make Rowan unhappy, as long as she and Erica and the baby are safe.”
Zach felt the tension in the room drain away.
That’s good enough for now.
Allison insisted on another celebratory dinner—one that actually involved celebrating. Ro laughed as Ty and Travis toasted Graham and Zach repeatedly, urging them to take shot after shot of whiskey. Neither of them would be worth a damn if they kept going at this pace. Which was too bad, because she was ready to drag the pair back to their cabin and do very dirty things to them.
Grace giggled as Ro’s dad stole her nose and pretended to forget where he’d hidden it. Cam sat midway down the table, shielding Lia from the boisterous noise of the room. Erica cleared dishes and carried them to the kitchen. Ro pushed away her plate. The only evidence of her dinner was the bare rib bones and a smear of mashed potatoes. Full, she laid a hand on her stomach and marveled that there was a person growing inside her. A little bean that would be an amazing combination of her and one of the men accepting congratulations for ‘knocking up the little woman.’ She leaned back in her chair. The warm glow that settled over her had nothing to do with pregnancy and everything to do with the fact that somehow, despite everything that had happened in the last month, she had found a new home and was surrounded by the people she loved. Ro fingered the dog tags hanging from the chain she wore. One was Graham’s, and one was Zach’s. They’d dropped it over her head unceremoniously before dinner, explaining that if she wouldn’t relent on her no-wedding stance, she was damn well going to wear some sign of their commitment. To Ro's mind, they were better than any ring.
She’d gone from a strap-on induced pity party to celebrating the news of her pregnancy with her two men and her family. And all it had taken was a damn apocalypse. Go figure.
A girl really couldn’t ask for more.
Well … maybe she could.
She covered her mouth with her palm and faked a yawn. “I’m feeling a little … tired.”
Her hand hid a wide smile when Graham and Zach stood in tandem. Zach swung her up in his arms.
“Let’s get you to bed, baby.” Graham smoothed a wisp of hair away from her face. Ro grinned. She was getting lucky tonight.
“I swear to God, I’m going to neuter you both! You’re never fucking touching me again!”
Graham flinched as Rowan’s grip approached finger-breaking strength. He looked over at Zach and noted the pained expression on his face. After delivering the baby, Beau might be setting and taping fingers.
“I see the head,” said Beau. “Give me another push, Ro. You can do it.”
“Come on, baby. You’ve got this.” Graham adjusted the pillows behind her with his free hand.
“Fuck you, you don’t know what I’ve got. Holy shit, that hurts!”
“Breathe, baby. Just breathe,” Zach said.
Ro breathed, and Graham’s stomach knotted at the agony twisting her features.
A cry cut through the sound of Ro’s panting breaths, and Graham’s zeroed in on Beau … who was holding a white-faced infant streaked with blood.
Holy shit. We have a baby.
“Congratulations. It’s a girl.”
Beau immediately moved to lay the baby on Ro’s bare stomach, drying her off and covering her with a blanket.
Graham marveled at their tiny, squirming daughter.
Holy shit. We have a daughter.
He leaned down to kiss Ro’s hair as Zach kissed her cheek. Graham focused on the baby and her thick black hair.
Holy shit. That’s my daughter. Our daughter.
Beau clamped the umbilical cord and cut it. Ro moved the baby up to find the nipple she was already rooting for.
“Wow,” Zach said. “Just … wow.”
“What are we going to name her?” Graham asked.
They’d been arguing for months, but had narrowed it down to two girl names and two boy names.
Ro glanced up, eyes bright with tears. “Mira. I want to name her Mira.”
It wasn’t a name that Ro had ever mentioned. Zach shrugged. After watching her go through labor … “Whatever you want, Ro. I think it’s perfect.” Graham leaned closer. “Welcome to the world, Mira.”
They watched their tiny daughter until Beau eased her from Ro’s chest and sponged her clean. After she was dried and swaddled, he asked, “Which of her daddies wants to hold her first?”
Zach reached out, and Beau settled the baby—
Mira
—into his arms. “Holy shit, she’s so little.”
A light tap on the door stole Graham’s attention. He walked over and opened it a crack, revealing a concerned Jonah. “We’re a little busy at the moment.”
“I know, I know. I’m so sorry, man. The timing sucks, but the sensors triggered about ten minutes ago, and now we’ve got someone at the gate wearing a uniform. Travis seems to think you might know him from your last tour. We haven’t engaged. Wanted your input first.”
Graham glanced at Ro, Zach, and Mira. Keeping them safe was his first priority, regardless of the shitty timing. Rumors had been swirling over the ham radio waves. The military was reportedly out rounding up every able-bodied person to work as a laborer in the New Hope For America Work Corps camps. Small militia groups had formed and were engaged in guerilla warfare, ambushing them repeatedly. Whichever way Graham figured it, someone showing up at their gate in a uniform could only mean bad things.
“Give me a minute. I’ll be right there.”
Graham returned to Ro’s side, leaning down to kiss her forehead. “I’ll be right back.”
“What’s going on?”
“Don’t worry. I’ve got to go check on something. I’ll be back to hold my baby girl in a little bit. I love you.” He nodded to Zach before grabbing the M4 propped next to the door and heading out to deal with whoever was interrupting the most important moment of his life. Friend or enemy, the first thing they’d be getting was a fist to the jaw.
Thank you for taking the time to read
Flash Bang
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