The valley was a small community of people. John had been avoiding Lauren ever since their final conversation, and she recognized why. There were days when it didn’t bother her much; then there were days like today when she seemingly had no other choice than to pour all her emotions into her run, allow the external pains of overexertion to supersede the internal, and pray that she not injure herself.
As she cleared the turn and started along the straightaway, Lauren spotted a slender figure wearing all black headed in her direction. As the figure grew closer, she recognized who it was. Jade had evidently decided to go on a run as well this morning. And as the two women passed each other, she threw up a hand and smiled at Lauren.
Lauren waved back but held her smile. Jade was an acquaintance, much about her remained a mystery still, and of late, Lauren couldn’t help noticing that Jade seemed to be an adjunct to her almost everywhere she went.
Jade’s arrival here had been nothing short of a surprise. The woman’s affection for Lauren’s father was considerable and had been easy as pie for Lauren to decipher, even at first contact. Lauren had confronted Jade about it, and to date, Jade hadn’t so much as overstepped, gotten in the way, or altered the family balance, proving thus far that she could be taken at her word. Still, Lauren wasn’t done figuring her out yet, and it seemed, in similar fashion, that Jade was attempting something of the same.
Approaching the northern barricade, Lauren threw a waving hand up at two members of Dave Graham’s unit standing guard alongside a JLTV, recognizing one of them as Will Sharp. She smiled at him and noticed he was smoking a cigarette, most likely from one of the packs she had provided.
Will called to her to come near and take a break, but Lauren thoughtfully dismissed him. She turned on the ball of her foot and began running in the other direction. It wasn’t long before she found Jade stretching and taking a breather along the route.
Lauren slowed and gradually came to a stop to run in place a few feet away. “Morning. I never knew you were a runner.”
“I never knew I was either,” Jade mused. “Sorry, kidding. I get that a lot. Truth is, I’ve been doing some form of the cardio thing for most of my life. It does a body good, you know?”
“I do. I’ve been hooked since elementary school.” Lauren pulled a knee to her chest. “Well, enjoy. It’s a perfect day to run. See you around.”
“Hey, Lauren, hang on a second,” said Jade, rising fully. “There’s plenty of road and only two of us, why don’t we run together?”
Lauren hesitated, seeming skeptical. “Sure—just be forewarned. I keep a pretty swift pace.”
“Is that your way of dissuading me?” Jade asked, smirking, her brows knitting. “Or saying you don’t think I can keep up?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“You didn’t have to. Look, Lauren…if you don’t want to run with me, just say so. It’s not a big deal.”
“That’s not it at all,” Lauren stated. “I’m a solo runner, always have been. And I prefer to keep a pace that can sometimes be…strenuous.”
“Strenuous I can handle,” said Jade. “How about this, we try running together. You worry about your pace, and I’ll worry about mine. If it works out, great. If not, no hard feelings.”
“Suit yourself.” Lauren agreed to Jade’s terms, and the two women started off at a meager jog. They trotted side by side, remaining evenly matched for a distance, but it wasn’t long before the jog became a sprint. Lauren soon poured on the speed and was impressed with Jade’s ability to keep up. Until now, no one in the valley could match her stride, and Jade seemed to have zero problems doing so.
Jade had put on her game face today, but on the inside after a mile at this pace, she was struggling. She considered herself athletic, was slightly less than twice Lauren’s age, but her bones and muscles were nowhere near as puerile. She’d lived a longer life, had more time to do damage to herself, and she could feel those things now.
Lauren increased speed in intervals. Her stride looked effortless, and Jade tried with everything to make hers look the same, but she felt every stretch, every pull, every bone-jarring heel strike, every gram of lactic acid building in her muscles, and resolutely fought against them all. There was no way she was going to let the younger woman outdo her.
In opposition, Lauren Russell had no intention whatsoever of allowing Jade to show her up.
And the race was on.
Both women galloped with every bit of tenacity they possessed, harder and harder against each other’s pace, each trying desperately to beat one another, both exerting themselves into an adrenaline-fueled frenzy. It lasted for several miles until the duo reached the end of their ropes and yielded to fatigue, skidding to a stop in unison below the gravel entrance to St. James Church.
Lauren keeled over at the hips, her chest expanding and contracting in heavy, rapid movements, her hands falling to her knees for support. Fighting for each breath, her mouth felt as dry as the Sahara. Shin splints were starting to take hold, and she could feel a tinge of pain in her previously injured ankle, but she steeled
