Total pages in book: 22
Estimated words: 20653 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 103(@200wpm)___ 83(@250wpm)___ 69(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 20653 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 103(@200wpm)___ 83(@250wpm)___ 69(@300wpm)
Descending from the helicopter on a rope ladder is a man in thick boots and jeans. He touches down on the ground, and I see he’s wearing a bright yellow vest over some green flannel.
He looks my way, and I can’t help but feel like everything is going to be okay.
Just from looking at him.
He’s handsome as hell, with a well-kept beard, piercing blue eyes, and a dashing smile as he lays his eyes on mine. “I’m here to help, miss,” he says, looking toward me and the child I carry.
“You’re part of the search and rescue?” I say, suddenly realizing that I’m a bit awestruck by the sudden appearance of this handsome man. Maybe in shock, too.
“Yes, we’re going to get you and your child out of here. We have a shelter in place at the fairgrounds. Come on.”
My child?
I’m filled with dread as I remember my sister. I look at the devastation surrounding me. I hope to God she found her own way out. But my hope is weak at the moment. If worse comes to worst, I need to hold onto Lucy. The last thing she needs after all this is to end up in the hands of that dickhead that is her supposed father.
The man wraps his arms around me and tugs on the rope ladder, which causes the helicopter to lower, the gusts created by the aircraft growing more intense. I know his embrace is meant to shield me and steady me, but I can’t help imagining it being more than that.
“I’m Graham Rough, an officer of the Home Police Department,” he says. “I’m going to get you and your child somewhere safe and sound. What’s her name?”
“Lucy,” I say.
“A beautiful name. And how about you?”
I swallow audibly. “Tallie Miller,” I reply, feeling overwhelmed by this man who has just rescued us. His eyes reach mine, making me feel safe, like somehow we are going to be okay.
Graham helps me and Lucy into the helicopter, and buckles us into some seatbelts.
Still holding Lucy tight, I worry about my sister. I worry about our future. All my hopes and dreams were in Julia’s apartment.
And I worry about Julia herself.
I pray she’s already been rescued and is at the shelter.
Everything is being left up to hope, and that’s terrifying to me.
3
GRAHAM
It’s a long, agonizing day. I didn’t expect anything less.
Lots of coffee, lots of soda, me desperately trying to get caffeine from any source that I can.
Again and again, I’m scooping stranded people up who did whatever they could to survive this sudden predicament. People on whatever scraps they could find floating in the mud, people on top of tall buildings, and people stranded in the nearby wilderness, all scratching and clawing to survive, hoping to hang on just long enough for help to come.
It’s what I wanted to do. Be the hero people need. I scoop them up, ferrying them back and forth, guiding them over to the Burly fairgrounds where there are hastily constructed, temporary shelters. By no means luxurious, just loads of cots and MREs brought in from the local military base, but it’s safe and dry. People can make do there until we get aid from county, state, and federal sources, and decide what to do next.
When my shift comes to an end, I’m dropped off at the fairgrounds. I should just call up Bartlett to come and pick me up, but I can’t shake one particular survivor I laid eyes on.
Tallie Miller.
Fuck, she was gorgeous, and that was probably her at her worst. Running for her life with her child, flirting with death from a sudden event. Mud-covered and wearing not a stitch of makeup, from the looks of it.
Yet she was still absolutely fucking mesmerizing. A dark brunette, curvy as hell, looking like she could weather a rough storm both in the literal sense and in the double entendre sense. I like that in a woman. I guess it’s just a Rough boy thing. We take our names kinda literally in that we like girls who can work a day on a farm or pitch in at the construction company, girls with a little extra to love, something to keep us warm on cold winter nights.
I decide to wander into the tents to check on her. It’s a mess inside, lots of people chattering, crying, still recovering from nature’s cruelty being inflicted on them. I wander the aisles, seeing various people I’ve helped today, but I’m focused on finding Tallie and her child.
Luck’s with me today, and I see her. She’s sitting on a cot, still holding her child so close. One of the social workers is standing in front of her, talking to her. It takes me a moment, but I realize I’ve seen that particular social worker around. “How’s it going in here, Gertie?”