Page 4 of Shattered Home

A biting remark was on the tip of my tongue, but I held it back. Eventually, I was sure I was bound to snap. I had been holding back for months now. However, today wasn’t the day. Tensions were already strained enough, I didn’t need to add fuel to the fire, especially when we had no idea how much longer we would be out here.

When he realized I wouldn’t be responding, he sneered his lip at me once more before turning and striding away. Murphy took his place in front of me and smiled gently.

“Don’t take it personally. We’re all just frustrated.”

I wanted to tell him that I was all too aware that it was personal. Rainer didn’t treat any of the others the way he treated me. But again, I held my tongue. Maybe that was my skill; trying to be the peacekeeper.

“Thanks Murphy. Is there anything I can help with?”

If Murphy was surprised by my sudden interest in helping around camp, he didn’t say anything, and for that I was grateful. It may have been obvious that I wasn’t pulling my weight, but I didn’t feel the need to voice that quite yet.

Murphy slung an arm around my shoulder, the touch shocking me with the familiarity of the move. If I hadn’t been helping around camp, I definitely hadn’t been forming friendships with the others. Mina was the only person I would consider myself close to and that was solely based on the fact we slept next to each other every night.

“You can help me get some more wood for the fire. Based on the breeze today, I’m thinking tonight will be cooler than usual.”

I followed Murphy into the woods, watching as he picked up random pieces of wood. Some were small twigs, other were larger branches that had fallen off trees. Some of it was burned, the raging fires having reached this far before finally dying out. After several minutes, I thought I had a better idea of what I should be grabbing, and started my own pile in my arms.

Murphy glanced back at me as I picked up a large branch and smiled warmly. The gesture put me at peace and for the time being, I was content to be in his presence.

“Where are you from?” Murphy’s voice broke the tranquil quiet of the forest and I jolted, a few pieces of kindling spilling from my arms.

Quickly picking them back up, I answered, “Summit. It’s near –“

“I know where it is,” Murphy cut me off. He gave me another grin, but this one was crooked, and I knew what he must be thinking.

The stereotype Rainer had placed on me wouldn’t change much if he learned where I lived. I wasn’t ashamed to come from a well-off family, in fact, I was grateful for the hard work that my parents had put in to give me this life. But I wasn’t an idiot. I knew I was sheltered and my complete lack of skills out here was proof of that.

“What about you?” I grabbed another piece of wood, my pile beginning to overwhelm me.

“I’m from the east side of the state. Rainer and I were out here on a trip when everything went to hell.”

A faraway look entered his gaze as he spoke, and I wondered if he was remembering that day. I also wondered why he and Rainer hadn’t tried to make it back home by now. The two of them could take care of themselves and it’s not like they didn’t have a home to go back to as I did. Even if my parents' home had been spared from the fire, I was too scared that the person who had shot my dad would still be keeping an eye out, waiting for someone to come back.

“What about your job? I’m assuming you did something outdoorsy.” I tried to inflect some happiness into my tone, wanting to forget about everything that had brought us out here.

For one single moment, I wanted to pretend that I was out on a hike with a sweet guy, not struggling to survive.

Murphy laughed at my assumption, and I sighed in relief when his smile returned and the dark expression faded. “Surprisingly, no. I do love the outdoors, but I’m a teacher. And a baseball coach in the summer.”

Stopping beside him, knowing I couldn’t gather anymore wood or else it would all topple over, I responded, “Now that makes total sense.”

“And why is that?” He raised his brows, his lips tilting up teasingly.

“I’ve watched you with the twins. You’re a natural around kids.”

Murphy’s smile widened even further, if possible, and he gently nudged my shoulder with his. “You’ve been watching me, huh?”

Rolling my eyes good-naturedly, my body relaxed for the first time in three months. Maybe I should have made an effort to get to know the others earlier, the easygoing nature of Murphy made it easy to push the constant depressing thoughts to the back of my head.

“There’s not much else to do besides watch. And you’re more interesting than the trees, at least.”

Laughter echoed throughout the area as Murphy’s head tilted back in joy. “I guess I’ll take what I can get.”

His smile was infectious and I found myself mirroring the expression, leaning into his presence. I opened my mouth to say something else, wanting to prolong this happiness as long as possible, when the sound of a large branch breaking broke the silence.

Immediately, Murphy dropped all the branches in his arms, pulling his gun from the back of his pants and swinging toward the noise. His free arm pushed my body behind his and I waited with bated breath.

Seconds later, two men stepped past the tree in front of us. They couldn’t have been much older than me, but the weariness in their eyes aged them. Their clothes were caked in mud, and I realized one of them was missing a shoe. The other had a long cut along his arm. They were a complete mess and to me, not a threat. However, Murphy had other ideas.

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