Finally another chapter in the story of our heroes/heroines has been completed. I do apologize for the lengthy gap in between postings, but I hope this latest chapter makes up for it. I would like to thank Jane for editing it for me, making it actually understandable. If you do happen to like it, please don't be shy about commenting and rating.
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A few days after the ordeal at the pumps, Trudy's body was mostly healed up. There were still a few cuts that hadn't fully healed, more than a few bruises that weren't completely faded and her most of her body still ached in one way or another. She was however up and about, trying her best to keep busy and useful.
There hadn't been much talk about what happened. None of them wanted to relive any of it and Joe and Jackie didn't want to seem pushy or try forcing Trudy to talk about her experience. That said, they had all gotten quite a lot done in the time that had passed. Trudy and Jackie had done a more or less complete overhaul of the old beat up pickup truck. Between the two of them they had managed to fix whatever it was that was causing the rattling in the engine, patched up the broken exhaust and even managed to get the air conditioning working again. They would have to find a replacement for the battery at some point though; the one that was in there now wasn't in great shape but it would hold out for a while longer.
Joe had spent most of the time tending to Trudy's wounds, keeping them all fed and improving their defences. There was now a ladder from the back room up onto the roof where he had made an impromptu sniper's nest. He had built a replicated air conditioning unit out of storage crates that he placed almost at the edge of the roof, put some blankets down for comfort and made small slits in the sides just big enough to get a rifle barrel or a crossbow bolt through. From down below it looked the part enough that unless you really knew what you were looking for, you'd probably not pay it any mind.
Jackie had also enlisted Trudy in helping her get the water purifier up to her standard. She had gotten stumped on raising the quality of the purified water, and she couldn't figure out why it wasn't coming out clear. It took Trudy no more than a few hours to recognize what the problem was. There was a cable that had come loose in the last stage of the filtration process, making it completely useless. When she pointed this out to Jackie she could actually see the penny drop, and the resulting facepalm made her let out a small giggle in spite of herself, making Jackie glare angrily at her for a moment before joining her in her giggle fit. Once they had both calmed themselves somewhat the fix to the filtration system was an easy one and in a matter of minutes they had the purifier producing crystal clear, drinkable water.
At the moment all three of them were busy making dinner. There wasn't much left in the way of supplies in the small store, but they tried to make it last. They were down to another couple of days worth of food for the three of them and they all knew they would have to go out looking for more, and very soon. But none of them were really looking forward to that endeavour. They didn't want to leave their home unattended during their expeditions, but they also didn't want to leave anyone on their own. There had been some discussions in the last few days about what they should do about their situation but no real decision had been made. They all liked the home they had build out of the old ruined store. They had plenty of space, a big garage filled with all kinds of tools and equipment, pumps that were still pumping gas and most importantly a sturdy roof and four walls keeping them same not only from the sun, but also the sandstorms and the cold nights. It was a more or less perfect place to stay in this shit hole of a world, if it hadn't been for the fact that there wasn't anything nearby that would allow them to restock their dwindling supplies.
"Ok, look..." Joe spoke calmly, but he sounded almost dejected. "We have to go soon. We can't stay here until we're completely out of food. We need to bring some with us seeing that we have no idea how far we'll have to go before we find something useful. The truck will allow us to move further and faster, but we still have no idea how long we'll have to be gone."
Jackie looked over at him, then at Trudy, and gave a short sigh. For the first time since she had been taken from her friends she had somewhere she could actually call home. She liked it here. Sure, it wasn't perfect but it was home. She had her new family here, and she felt safer here than she had anywhere she had been since the world had changed. Still, she knew he was right. If they stayed here they would all die of starvation.
"I have no idea where to go." She spoke almost apologetically. "I'm not even sure where we are."
This was true. After being kidnapped she had been taken to many places but she had been tied up and blindfolded for most of the travelling, lying either on the flatbed of the pickup they now had in their garage, or sitting on her knees in between one of her captor's legs pleasuring him. As a result, she didn't even know if she was in the same state as she had been before she was taken.
"We're roughly three or so hours away from the the closest major former settlement." Trudy spoke with utter confidence, smiling at the surprised looks on her lover's faces. "What? I've been around." She smirked. "When I came here the first time I was headed east to an old mining village from before. Rumors say that it's untouched both by the desert and by raiders. They won't go near it. Something about it being haunted or something, I don't know. It's probably bullshit, but I thought it would be worth checking it out. That's where I was going when..." Her voice trailed off and she went silent.
Joe put a hand on her shoulder and nodded slowly. He knew what she meant. They all did, but no one really wanted to talk about it. So he just finished off the last of the canned meat on his plate, stood up and started gathering up everything they'd need to make the journey. It wasn't a terribly long journey if they took the truck and bike, but if the place was as intact as Trudy said they wouldn't be coming back here.
"Are you seriously saying that I have to pack THAT thing back down again after only just finishing it?" Jackie pointed to the purifier and gave out a loud, disgruntled groan of frustration.
Joe tried not to smile as he knew she was seriously annoyed at the prospect of dismantling the big machine she had built, but he couldn't help it. Her grumpy, pouting face was just too damn adorable. So he looked at her and gave her a small sympathetic smile and an 'I'm sorry' shrug. Jackie huffed and stomped off to the back, leaving her empty plate on the improvised dinner table. Joe was about to go after her when Trudy slowly got up, put a hand on his shoulder and shook her head slowly.
"She's not really upset." she said with a small grin as Joe looked at her confused. "Just trust me on this, ok? She's trying to bait you into going after her. Then you'd ask her why she is upset, she'd not want to tell you, you'd drag it out of her and she'd want some cuddles... and so on."
