Savage (The End 1)

He looked over his shoulder to see Lucy start to wake just a few moments later, murmuring softly to Sasha, excited that they would finally be leaving.

They’d been holed up in the theater for far too long, but the storm had been too dangerous for them to even contemplate leaving, even if they’d wanted to, even if he wanted to give the girls what they wanted.

And he did.

He looked at Lucy. So young, so unaware of the real dangers of the world. It wasn’t just starvation and dehydration that could take her life. It was the fucking brutality of the people around them, of humanity. It was the fact that she was female and that in itself anymore was a commodity, something the disgusting and vile motherfuckers of this world wanted for their own pleasure.

No, he wouldn’t let anything happen to his girls.

The type of world they lived in had everything moving in fast forward, emotions and situations a whirlwind of activity and feelings. He saw Lucy as this small, almost newborn child, needing his protection, his help.

Although Sasha was the same way in regard to needing protection, needing safety, what he felt for her was bone deep lust, one that was only getting stronger and would need to be sated eventually.

No doubt she would give herself over willingly, give herself over fully. He saw the way she watched him when she didn’t think he noticed, the way her gaze raked over his body, the telling signs of how she reacted to him.

Her pupils dilated, her chest rising and falling as her breathing increased, and her tight little nipples pressing against her shirt.

She couldn’t hide her body’s reaction to him. That was as strong as if there was a flashing neon sign above her head.

He was a patient man, and he’d give Sasha all the time she needed.

Once they were packed up they headed downstairs. He went in first, the water coming to his knees. It would be a little higher up for Sasha since she was considerably shorter than he was. And he didn’t want to risk Lucy trying to navigate through it.

He turned and held his hands out for Lucy. She smiled and let him pick her up, clearing knowing it wasn’t safe for her to tread through the water. She weighed almost nothing in his arms. He didn’t like that. He didn’t like that they had no food. The girls needed something with substance, something that would fill them up. The canned peaches and tortilla chips wasn’t fucking cutting it.

Without thinking, he reached out with his other hand to grab Sasha’s. He looked into her face, saw her eyes widen slightly. Maybe it surprised the hell out of her, but surely, she could see how much he wanted her, how much he needed her? She had to see how he wanted to keep her close.

Together they walked through the water, debris floating all around, butting up against their legs. It took him a moment to pry the debris from the front of the entrance, a lot of it blocking so the water had no way to escape.

Once that was cleared the water rushed out. He held on to Lucy and took Sasha’s hand again. They stepped outside, seeing the wreckage in the small town. The storm had been a bitch, the wind so powerful trees were knocked down, pieces of siding and shingles scattered around the street.

Malachi had little hope the car was still intact, and if it wasn’t, well, he’d have to come up with a different solution.

They started making their way down the street, stepping over and around debris, seeing the destruction of the storm and how massive it had been. Shit, they were lucky the fucking theater hadn’t blown over.

Maybe things would start looking up, or maybe not. Maybe life was just going to be this fucked-up from here on out.

Chapter Twenty-Nine

A new start?

Sasha looked out the front windshield, the drive they’d been on for the past hour seeming the same as the scenery moved by. Before they’d gotten to the car, she’d assumed that it would have been destroyed with all the debris flying all around. but then she’d seen it still standing, and she’d noticed Malachi’s surprised expression and knew his thoughts and been exactly like hers.

But it just seemed like one thing after another in this shitty world, and she hoped that they could find a place to settle down, for Lucy’s sake.

She looked over at Malachi, one hand around the steering wheel, his knuckles white as he gripped it tightly. He had the window down and his forearm resting on the windowsill. He looked so strong, so unbreakable, like this tank that would take down anyone or anything that threatened them.

And she knew he would. He’d said as much, showed them as much. He was their savior, even if she wanted to deny all the things she felt for him, all the things she wanted with him.