Page 23 of Shattered Home

“Asshole! I’ll get you back for that,” he yelled, standing up and chasing after a laughing Rainer.

Rainer and Murphy chased each other around the small creek, splashing each other and trying to dunk one another under the water. The sight was heartwarming and I could easily envision them as kids, chasing each other around in the same way.

About an hour later, Mina and Sasha stood up from the water, telling me they were going to explore a little further down the creek. They asked if I wanted to join them, but I was content in my spot, and I figured Mina wouldn’t mind a little alone time with Sasha. At least if those looks from earlier meant anything.

Situating myself against a rock that jutted partially out of the current, I rested my back against the hot stone, letting the sun lull me to sleep. I was nearly asleep when a shadow crested the sun. Peering through my lids, Murphy’s smiling face appeared, nearly as blinding as the sunlight.

“Were you sleeping?”

“Almost.”

“Alessia, today isn’t about resting. It’s about having fun.” Murphy looked behind me, a mischievous grin on his face.

Before I could prepare for who I knew would be behind me, a large wave of water came cresting over my body, chilling my upper half that had been sweltering in the sun.

Yelping, I jumped up, Murphy and Rainer’s laughter mingling as I glared at the two of them. Scooping my hands into the water, I did my best to splash the other two, but it wasn’t a fair fight. It was two against one and before I knew it, I was holding my hands up in surrender, soaked from head to toe.

Blinking past the onslaught of water in my eyes, I said, “Okay, I give up. Please stop splashing me.”

Both of them laughed at the sight of me, but thankfully, they stopped splashing, giving up on the game. The others still weren’t back yet and suddenly, I was all too aware that it was just the three of us. And we were all nearly naked. And now my brain couldn’t stop thinking about the moments at the radio tower with Murphy or the way Rainer’s chest felt pressed against me when I practiced self defense.

Wanting to diffuse the heat that was rushing through my body, I cleared my throat loudly. Murphy smirked at me and if I didn’t know better, I could have sworn he could read my mind and knew exactly what I was thinking. Rainer, on the other hand, stared at me intently, his gaze darkening the longer he looked.

“What should we do now? I don’t think I can actually just sit in the water all day.”

Murphy was the one to speak up and I took the opportunity to focus entirely on him, Rainer’s penetrating gaze burning a hole into the side of my face. “How about we fish? That’s still fun.”

“Maybe for you guys. I wouldn’t consider fishing fun.” Maybe I would if I could catch more than one fish every few days.

“Says the girl who fishes every morning,” Murphy teased, pulling on the strands of my hair falling around my shoulders.

“That’s to get away from everyone else,” I quipped, climbing out of the creek and toeing my shoes back on. Fishing may not be my favorite thing in the world, but if it got rid of some of this tension, I was all for it.

Murphy and Rainer followed me, pulling on their own boots, and Rainer finally broke his silence. “I’m sure that’s the reason.”

His deep blue gaze met mine and I swore he understood me more than I thought he did. Murphy broke our stare by slinging an arm around my shoulder, tangling his fingers in my hair and guiding me back toward camp.

“Let’s go get the fishing gear. I’m craving seafood tonight.”

Laughing, I let him guide me back toward the clearing, my body leaning into his side and soaking up the warmth of his bare skin against mine. Rainer followed closely behind, his presence a beacon at my back. And although the world could be ending for all we knew, I couldn’t find the energy to care when I was surrounded by these two men.

***

The rest of the day flew by in a blur of joy. The guys and I fished for several hours, Rainer catching a few while I caught none. Murphy blew us both out of the water and I wondered why he wasn’t up at dawn and fishing. We probably would never have to hunt again if he was out here every morning.

Sasha and Mina rejoined us a few hours later, their arms filled with different berries and nuts. They must have had the same idea as us, that they couldn’t just sit around and relax. Truthfully, none of us had relaxed for more than a few minutes lately and it felt wrong to lie around.

Eventually, our clothes dried and we all pulled them back on. Relief spread through me once Rainer and Murphy were covered up once again, and I decided we shouldn’t have another creek day for a while.

Elizabeth, Emmanuel, and the twins came back a bit later, just as the sun was beginning to float above the horizon. Knowing we needed to get back to the camp to get a fire started and cook dinner, we all walked back in a cluster. Silence echoed around us, but I could feel the contentment flowing off of each individual. We were all a little burned from the sun and a little happier. Today was needed.

When we approached the clearing, I was chatting with Mina about how I could teach her a few quick first aid things when Murphy held up a hand, stopping all of us. My words faltered as he and Rainer stepped forward, their footsteps silent.

Nerves skated up my arms and I knew today had been too good to be true. The world was falling apart; we didn’t get to have relaxing days filled with fun. Rainer and Murphy took a few more steps forward before Rainer finally spoke. “Everyone, grab as much as you can. We need to leave. Now.”

No one questioned him, immediately moving into action and picking up the things around camp. Walking into the clearing to grab the first aid bag and a few of the cooking supplies, I glanced around, trying to see what spooked them. Obviously, there was no one in the area. At this point, I figured Rainer was more of a shoot now, ask questions later kind of man.

I was about to ask Murphy what the concern was when I spotted a pair of boot prints circling the fire. We hadn’t been here all day besides when we grabbed the fishing gear and not once had we stepped by the fire. The prints were large, most likely a man’s, and the tread looked like it came from an industrial styled boot.

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