The Grace Series (Book 2): Tainted Grace by M. Lauryl Lewis Read Free Book Online Page B

trips as it pressed on my bladder.  I knew now he wasn’t kidding. 
    As I finished, I heard laughter from downstairs.  It was a welcome sound.  I washed my hands and headed back to the hallway.  Em’s bedroom door was open, their bed made.  Susan’s was closed, so I assumed Nathan was still sleeping.  My guess was both men were exhausted from their time out in the open, surviving not only the elements during winter but also the risen dead.   I walked back to the bedroom I shared with Boggs, slipped my socks from the night before on, tidied the bed, and then headed down the staircase to join my companions.
    “Morning, Zoe,” chirped Emilie with a smile that brightened her freckled face even more than usual.
    “Morning,” I said, returning her grin with a smile of my own.  “What’s going on down here?” I asked.
    Boggs turned away from his place at the stovetop to wink at me.  “Making breakfast, sweet thing,” he said. 
    “Eggs and baked beans,” said Gus.  “Hope you’re hungry.”
    “I actually am,” I said.  “It smells awesome.”
    Bill walked in from the living room.  “Morning,” he said as he tipped the brim of a ragged baseball cap he was wearing toward me.
    “Morning Bill,” I said.  “Sleep well?”
    “Like a baby,” he said with a chuckle. His broad chest shook as he laughed.  “Better than I have in many days.  Thank you.”
    “Thanks for sharing the eggs,” said Emilie.
    “Where’s Susan?” I asked, noting her absence.
    “Still sleeping,” said Gus.
    “She’s not in my bed,” I said.
    Emilie giggled.  “She and Nathan decided to keep each other warm.”
    I heard Bill sigh. “Well, they’re both adults.”
    “Yup,” said Gus.  “That they are.”
    “Plus,” added Boggs, “since the world is fucked over…and all.”
    I noticed Boggs’ neck was bandaged this morning.  I wanted to ask him how it was doing but wasn’t sure it would be wise in front of Bill.  Not with our barely knowing him.
    “Should we wake them for breakfast?” I asked.
    “Probably,” said Bill and Emilie at the same time.
    “I’ll go,” offered Emilie.  “Just save me some grub.”
    Within ten minutes we were all seated around the small kitchen table.  Emilie and I were sharing a chair and Gus had brought in a crate from the shed as an extra seat.  It was crowded, but felt right.  Boggs had scrambled the wild duck eggs and assured us that none of them had contained ducklings.  The baked beans were a combination of two cans of pork-and-beans and a can of kidney beans, baked in a pan for twenty minutes. We were being extra careful to not run the appliances, including the fireplace, more than necessary since Boggs had noticed the propane tank was less than half full.  Now that our smoked fish was gone, we had unplugged the refrigerator.  Anything needing chilling could be set outside.
    “It’s raining,” I said as I finished my eggs.  “It’s washing away the snow and blood.”
    “Might be a warm spell moving through,” said Nathan sleepily.  “It might be good to start talking about plans.”
    “We’ll need to get back to the rest of our group soon,” said Bill.  “I worry about leaving them for this long.” 
    “Have you all talked about longer term plans?” asked Gus right before taking a bite of his eggs.
    “We have,” said Bill simply.  “Our best idea so far seems to be moving out toward Puget Sound.  I’m not sure how the Runners , as you call them, deal with water, but if it’s an effective barrier we’d be smart to relocate to one of the islands.”
    “Huh,” said Gus.  “Interesting idea.”
    “We’d be happy to have you all join us,” said Nathan.  “I think I can speak for the others with us too.”
    “Are you thinking of finding a boat?” asked Gus.
    “Precisely,” said Bill.  “It might get tricky heading back toward the cities, and it’d take time, but I think we need to try.  What’d be the ideal scenario is