Page 248 of Entangled

“What the fuck do you need a boyfriend for? I’m teaching you how to do shit. So you miss out on crusty socks and BO, big whoop.”

Kasey mutters something under her breath I can’t hear, and I look around. Isn’t there someone else who can do this with her?

The two old bats are nearby and seem conveniently deaf right about now. They’re almost as coated in crap as I am as they muck around in the garden.

Eden’sgarden.

Where the hell is she? She wasn’t out here yesterday either. I said I needed time, notspace. It’s not like I can’t look at her while I think.

I suddenly realize it’s been three days. It’s time to give her an answer, but I’ve got nothing.

Only my damn hindbrain growlingmine, mine, mine.

Kasey huffs, getting to her feet. “You are useless at this. Forget it. Tell me more about the pipes.”

Jada comes back around from the side of the house with a questioning look, and I nod back to her. She looks down at the giant hole in the lawn and gives me a rueful smile.

“Thanks, Jayk. Put me in the roof if you need to, but I’m way too sparky to be around water.”

I grunt, shrugging. She was an electrician back before it all went to shit, and she’s been taking most of the wire work off my hands with about twice as much skill.

“Did you say he got it?” Ethel calls out, finally bothering to tune the hell in.

Jada grins at her. “Water’s officially fixed!”

Ida rips off her glove and whistles while Ethel laughs. They all do this, get all worked up over me doing the simplest shit—the shit Ialwaysdo—and I don’t know how to turn it off.

“So I’m going to get started on fixing the dishwasher. It’s been fritzing, but I had a look yesterday and it shouldn’t take too long,” Jada says, and I give her a blank look.

“Yeah, fine, whatever,” I mutter. They do know I’m not in charge, right?

She lowers her voice. “The rations team also said they’ve run out of protein. It’s getting rough. They’re trying to come up with ways to stretch the reserves until the others come back. Do you think we could use another pig? We’re struggling to feed them anyway.”

Kasey steps in closer to me, looking anxiously between us. I hope she doesn’t expect me to solve all her problems for her. That ain’t my job.

My shoulders bunch. “I don’t got a clue what to do with rations. Isn’t this their whole job? What are you asking me for? I’m just here to make sure you don’t get your asses blown to kingdom come while the battle brigade is off playing hero.”

Jada’s forehead scrunches. “O-okay. I’ll tell them.”

“Do we have many left? What do we do after we run out of pigs?” Kasey asks. “We’re not catching anywhere near enough game, right?”

Fuck if I know. Maybe we can kill off the ones who bat their eyelashes too much and eat them. It’s not my problem. I’m not going back out to gun-happy Reaper central to pick up any more, neither.

Kasey’s arms come around herself, and they’re the size of twigs. I grit my teeth.

Jada’s face gets all soft and patronizing like the kid can’t handle a bit of reality—which is just bullshit. She’s had nothing but reality.

Jada winks. “Don’t worry, Kasey. They’ll be back before then with supplies. Eden said she’d keep an eye out for honey, too, and I will hand over my left ovary for a piece of that action.”

Eden?

Sudden panic needles every inch of my skin. I whip my head around again, searching for her, but I know she’s not here. My body isn’t prickling with that charged awareness she always zaps me with without even trying. I could find her in a room, blind and deaf, by the feel of the fucking air.

The air is flat. Dead. It has been for two days.

She’s not beingpolite—she left.

They’re taking her into a war zone.

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