That stupid bitch had picked a god damned remote place. There was no way to leave here without the cage. How in the hell was he going to escape this nightmare? He’d found Carol and Vana asleep, they’d eaten all their MREs as well.
His stomach hurt from the vomiting and he’d gone to the falls and drank water to help ease the cramping. He got up and crawled out of the cave. There was no help for it, he’d have to go back down to the main camp and hope there was still some food left there. He’d not eaten in three days. He’d had a few berries, but they didn’t help at all.
How in the hell had Aiden and Sarah found what they’d found? Neither looked like they were starving. If he could find them, he knew he could get something to eat. For now, though, he’d head down to the main camp and see what he could find. He was walking down when he saw Matt. Matt looked like he was hung over.
“You look like shit man, you eat too much?” Connor laughed, humor replacing anger.
“Yeah, almost made me sick. It was all I could do not to throw it all back up. You got anything left?” Matt asked, looking at him with a little desperation written on his face.
“No, I’m heading down to the main camp to see if there was anything we missed. I already checked on Carol and Vana, they ate all their shit.” He grumbled.
“Hey, now that it is the end of the world, why don’t we just go over and have some fun with the girls? It isn’t like anyone is going to arrest us. Who are they going to tell?” Matt asked hopefully.
Connor stopped and looked at Matt for a long moment, he said nothing, just looked at the younger man, then a slow smile began to spread across his face, his mood had suddenly begun to improve.
“You know what, that is a good fucking idea. It isn’t like we’ll ever get out of this place. We might as well go out with a bang.” Connor said with false bravado and both men turned toward where Connor had seen the girls sleeping.
Within ten minutes they found them, still asleep. Connor walked up to Carol, squatted down and shook her awake. She looked up at him confused and he smiled wolfishly down at her. He watched as she blinked her eyes and he stuck out his hand. She was still confused but put her hand in his. He pulled her to her feet and walked her away from Vana, he winked at Matt as he went. The thought of taking what he wanted was a heady feeling, and the fact that there was no one to stop him was a dream come true.
He walked her farther into the dense woods and turned on her. His hands went to her shirt and he began to unbutton the small pink buttons.
She slapped at his hands, looking up at him, still confused. He grinned, “Since it is the end of the world, I figure me and you can have a little fun.”
“What? No Connor, no. I have a boyfriend back home.”
He knew she was weak because she could barely stand, she was wavering on her feet.
“Yeah, but you’ll never see him, will you? Besides, what else are you good for? You sure as shit can’t find food.” He laughed cruelly. She tried to smack him in the face, but he caught her hand easily. His other hand yanked at her shirt and it opened. She gasped and tried to free herself as he squeezed her breast hard.
“This can go one of two ways Carol. We can have a little fun, no one has to know, and if I find food, I’ll share it with you. Or, I can take what I want, maybe beat the shit out of you and leave you to rot in these woods. No one is coming to help you.” He said viciously, his eyes boring into her fearful ones. He smiled, he liked the power that surged through him, it was intoxicating and it filled that hunger that gnawed at his insides.
Carol’s mouth trembled and her eyes filled with tears. She looked around the empty woods, she could hear Vana crying and Matt laughing. Connor saw her face and knew he’d won. He slipped her breast out of the bra and laughed, then kicked her feet out from under her and she fell to the ground, and he was on top of her.
¤¤
Marla and Leo sat in the camp chairs, they’d spent most of the previous evening pooling all their supplies. They’d found two MREs that had gone under her tent, they found the instant coffee, they also had several lighters, medical supplies, bug repellant, Christian’s cigarettes, two plastic bags of fruit chews, a bottle of vitamins, ten rolls of toilet paper, three packs of bathroom wipes, four bottles of shampoo, and other odds and ends but no more food.
They planned to save the MREs for an emergency, but this whole situation was an emergency. Her heart was also breaking, she would never see her parents, nor her brothers and sisters and their children. She didn’t even know what would happen to them, if they were bombed. She would never know.
Marla was hungry and she was so angry at herself. What had possessed her to choose this remote location? She’d been so smug about it all, and now, she was in their shoes, only there was no rescue, no one was coming to get them if Aiden was correct. It was all she could do not to break down and cry. She had always thought of herself as a resourceful woman, but she was totally out of
