Cameron took a swing at whatever was poking him in the darkness, fairly certain that it wasn\u2019t Neve doing the poking.\u00a0 \u201cGo away,\u201d he mumbled into his pillow, feeling lazy for the first time since he made it through basic training.\u00a0 The bed was warm and the weather sounded nightmarish outside.<\/p>\n
Then he realized that Neve wasn\u2019t beside him and sat bolt upright.\u00a0 He blinked blearily at Thom, who stood in the darkness well within arms\u2019 reach in the shadows of the room, just barely visible in the light from the lamp that they always left burning dimly.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat the hell are you doing in my room?\u201d\u00a0 Cameron asked.\u00a0 \u201cWhere\u2019s Neve?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWith Marin, waiting for the both of us,\u201d Thom said, crossing his arms.<\/p>\n
With Marin?\u00a0 When\u2014why would she\u2014?<\/i>\u00a0 Cameron frowned, shaking his head to clear the last vestiges of sleep.\u00a0 \u201cWhat\u2019s going on?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need to talk, that\u2019s all.\u201d\u00a0 Thom\u2019s gaze drifted toward the roof.\u00a0 \u201cAfter we have a look at what the hell it\u2019s doing outside.\u00a0 I think it sounds worse than it actually is.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cameron rubbed at his eyes as he groped his way out of bed and into pants and a shirt.\u00a0 \u201cSo you\u2019re going to drag me out of a warm bed to go out gallivanting in a raging winter storm?\u00a0 What did I do to upset you?\u201d<\/p>\n
Thom sorted a laugh.\u00a0 \u201cPut your coat on.\u00a0 The sooner we get to have a look, the sooner we\u2019re back to the girls and they can stop conspiring against us.\u201d\u00a0 His mirth faded as his gaze grew distant.\u00a0 \u201cSomething\u2019s bothering the both of them.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re pregnant, Thom,\u201d Cameron said, smothering a yawn as he yanked on his boots.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re pregnant and they\u2019re highly engaged in whatever\u2026supernatural\u2026shit goes on in the immediate vicinity, and I don\u2019t know about\u00a0 you, but I\u2019d consider the werewolves a pretty supernatural occurrence.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re perfectly natural,\u201d Thom said, keeping a straight face.\u00a0 \u201cThey\u2019re just from an era well beyond our ability to clearly remember.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve been spending too much time with Phelan and Thordin,\u201d Cameron decided, getting up and snagging his coat.\u00a0 \u201cYou\u2019re starting to sound like them.\u201d<\/p>\n
Thom laughed a little and shook his head.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, maybe.\u00a0 But it\u2019s not bad when they\u2019re right.\u201d<\/p>\n
Cameron shivered at how often they seemed to be right.\u00a0 \u201cYeah, well.\u00a0 Let\u2019s get on with this.\u201d\u00a0 What the hell got Neve up and wandering tonight?\u00a0 What\u2019s going on?<\/i>\u00a0 Another shiver crept down his spine.\u00a0 I\u2019m not even sure I want to know.<\/i><\/p>\n
He shouldered his way out the door and into the darkness of the corridor.\u00a0 The wind rattled the planks and shingles above, though it didn\u2019t seem to quite penetrate the tar paper that was sandwiched those shingles and the wooden underpinnings.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need more insulation,\u201d Thom said as they walked toward the exit.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe need a lot of things,\u201d Cameron said.\u00a0 \u201cWe can\u2019t live in these sheds like this forever.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cCome spring and summer, it\u2019ll be different,\u201d Thom said with heartfelt conviction.\u00a0 \u201cWe\u2019ll be able to get to work\u2014get some real work done.\u00a0 There\u2019ll be a lot to do, but we\u2019ll have more time to do it.\u00a0 More time to prepare for another season like this one.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cMust have been hard for you guys here,\u201d Cameron said.<\/p>\n
\u201cEasier for us than for you, I think,\u201d Thom said.\u00a0 \u201cI can only imagine how awful it must\u2019ve been on the road.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cIt wasn\u2019t so bad,\u201d Cameron said.\u00a0 \u201cVaguely horrifying here and there, but if I hadn\u2019t crashed my plane and started hiking, I never would have found Neve.\u201d\u00a0 I wouldn\u2019t have survived.<\/i><\/p>\n
\u201cFunny how things like that work,\u201d Thom said.\u00a0 \u201cI was supposed to go to Chicago the weekend things went to hell.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhy didn\u2019t you go?\u201d<\/p>\n
Thom smiled weakly.\u00a0 \u201cI would have missed saying good-bye to Marin if I had and I couldn\u2019t bring myself to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Cameron took a swing at whatever was poking him in the darkness, fairly certain that it wasn\u2019t Neve doing the poking.\u00a0 \u201cGo away,\u201d he mumbled into his pillow, feeling lazy for the first time since he made it through basic … Continue reading