JR was silent during the twenty minute ride. Her left palm laid on Sam’s thigh, and she stared vaguely at the scenery. Smokey lay beside her with his head on her knee. Once again, her rage at being attacked and used harshly brought out her violent Bonny Parker like reaction. She had never entertained thoughts of vigilantism; hell, there was no need to. No one in her circle of acquaintances would commit such barbaric deeds. She’d never been a frail snowflake, but now her life was as if the pendulum had swung from one extreme to another. In the new world she’d been thrusted into, mavericks had grown bolder and to survive she had grown tougher and harder. At first her violent reactions frightened and repulsed her. After the Hooper encounter, she finally realized and accepted her reactions were strengths not weaknesses. She and Sam would need to be tough to survive and exist in their new environment. She squeezed Sam’s leg, closed her eyes, and thanked God he had stopped for her in Oklahoma.
Passing through Marion JR remembered a house where a large fenced vegetable garden was planted out back. The sweet corn should be ripe and ready to pick. They stopped and gathered a dozen and a half ears the deer hadn’t gotten to.
Before lunch time Sam and JR hauled the first confiscated load to the cabin with the Kubota. JR smirked as she asked, “How long does it take to walk a mile and a half and then ride five miles on a bright, sunlit day?”
“That depends on how many times you and I would stop for sex. I can’t imagine what’s taking them so long.” Sam grinned, then said, “I’m hungry after missing breakfast, but let’s haul another load, then we’ll stop for lunch whether they’re back or not.”
The pickup was unloaded, and all the booty was staged alongside the cabin. After eating lunch, Sam carried a scoped .22 caliber rifle when he walked a short way into the woods. Over a span of thirty minutes, JR heard five muted shots in the near distance. Minutes later Sam sauntered out of the timber with a smile on his face and four squirrels held by their tails. He and JR dressed the fox squirrels and had the carcasses on spits roasting over an open fire when they heard a motorcycle approaching from the north. She put two more ears of wet corn in the husk in the hot coals.
Sam grinned at JR. “I expected them to come from the west. North of here is where I believe Brodie lives.”
The dirt bike chugged into the clearing and Mona released her hold on Brodie’s waist to step away from the bike. Brodie walked toward the fire with Mona at his side. Close to his side.
“Food will be ready in about fifteen minutes,” JR said.
“It smells good. What is it? Mona asked.
“Squirrel,” JR said, “and sweet corn is roasting in the hot coals. Squirrel and rabbit pieces are also excellent rolled in flour, seared in a skillet, then sautéed with a little water and a lid on it. ”
Sam didn’t waste any time in prying. “What have you two been up to?”
“We went to my place to talk,” Brodie offered somewhat sheepishly.
Mona said, “I’m moving in with Eli temporarily to see if we’re compatible . . . then we’ll see if there’s a possibility for a long term relationship.”
Brodie was sober as he said, “She’s already acting like a wife; she scolded me because the cabin needs a good scrubbing. Hey, it’s a bachelor’s pad. We don’t do windows and such.” He turned to Mona, “But you’re free to put your mark on it.”
Brodie put his arm around Mona’s shoulders possessively. “It gets lonely out here month after month without anyone to talk to. So we’ll give it a go and see if we can adjust to living with each other.” He grinned. “Personally, I think we can.”
Mona looked up to Brodie. “I’m a city girl, so there’s a lot for me to learn about living in the backcountry. Are you going to be my teacher?”
Brodie grinned. “Oh yeah!”
JR addressed Mona, “Let me know when cleaning day is scheduled, and I’ll help.”
While the men talked hunting and such, Mona motioned for JR to enter the cabin with her. Mona searched her bag of drugs and found what she wanted. “I don’t want to take a chance of being impregnated by any of those animals who raped us. These are morning after pills the hospital furnished to rape victims. They’re effective for up to seventy-two hours after having intercourse.” She extended a small package to JR.
“Thank you. I dreaded the possibility of getting pregnant because of those multiple rapes. I can’t stand the thought of carrying a child of any of those sexual predators to birth.” She turned to a plastic water cooler and lowered a dipper into it. She took the pill with a drink, then offered the dipper to Mona. “In fact, I’m having serious second thoughts about even having Sam’s children in this violent world we’ve inherited.
