AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Katie’s airy summer dress molded to her large baby bump in the light breeze as she navigated the sidewalk in front of my house. Almost every square on this block had a chalk design on it, courtesy of Lil and Timmy.
“Shopping? Where are you going shopping?”
“Warrensburg. Ben said that it’s clear enough that they’re taking buses in for non-essentials.”
Essentials had been cleared out the weeks following the fall of the hounds. Those with a knack for repurposing had been begging to take another trip in.
“Thanks, but I think I’m going to hang out here for news,” I said.
She nodded. “I understand. I’ll see if Roni’s interested.”
“If you see Rachel, tell her I’m headed to Unity tomorrow and to clear her schedule.”
“Will do,” she said with a wave, making her way to the wall.
Leaving the front door open to let the breeze in, I walked to Drav and Mya’s house. Fey nodded to me as I passed. Most of them looked at my legs and chest. I tried not to grin. Until recently, they’d had no idea how much skin would be exposed in the hot summer months and absolutely loved August…and bikinis.
Fey lounged on Mya’s neatly mowed front lawn in the shade of the single tree and said hello as I walked to her house. It was a pretty familiar sight these days.
Since the front door was open, I called a hello through the screen.
“Come on in,” she called back. “I’m just feeding Ricky.”
She was sitting on the couch, nursing her newborn son, who was a replica of his father in every way but the eyes. Those were just like his mother’s.
“Mind if I listen to the radio for a bit?” I asked.
She shook her head. “Figured you’d be here when I heard the plane.”
I looked at the map she had framed on the wall above the radio. Pins marked the locations of the reestablished bases. They weren’t manned by fey, but welcomed fey, having been reclaimed and continually supplied by them. Steve and Roland were at two of them, heading up the efforts to spread to the west, just as eager to reunite with their loved ones.
“Did you hear that they finished the third greenhouse this morning?” Mya asked.
“That’s a lot of planting room,” I said, thinking of the large frames the fey had moved from a local nursery.
“We have a lot of mouths to feed. Matt says we should have enough fuel to do monthly drops at all the bases so they can have fresh produce too. And Ryan and Viki think the potato crop is going to stun us. Drav said he’ll take us there tomorrow.”
“I planned on visiting Rachel tomorrow. But I’ll check it out.”
She lifted Ricky and set him against her shoulder, not worrying about covering up in front of me. It was the fey she set the boundaries with “for the sake of future shy moms.”
“We have an update for all our listeners,” a voice said over the radio. “We’ve officially reached California. Fort Irwin wasn’t abandoned and the survivors were glad to see us. Supplies were low and the infected count was high. Their fences have been cleared, and their supplies will be restocked within a day, thanks to the efforts of our fey friends. If you see a big grey guy with pointy ears, remember, guns are a challenge, and a smile is a welcome. I highly suggest not trying to ambush them after a smile, either. It won’t end well for you. Stay tuned for the regular update at high noon and dusk. Rebroadcast on all stations.”
The person announcing didn’t repeat the message. They’d wait to do that for an hour at noon and again at dusk. They’d dedicated the channel and set times like a news station. There were pockets of survivors out there who regularly listened and responded now. It still wasn’t safe enough to share locations, but talking was a start.
I turned the volume down on the radio and faced Mya again as she nursed Ricky on the other side.
She smiled excitedly. “Someone there has to know the location.”
I nodded, holding onto my hope. “And if not, we still have the location on the coast.”
Ricky pulled away from her and squirmed. She sighed and gave me a hopeful look.
“Would you mind?” she asked.
“Not at all.”
I put him against my shoulder and inhaled his baby scent as she righted her shirt.
