Born 01 - Born

and hands and face. He pours the water on me slowly.
    When it's his turn, he removes his shirt. I watch him scrubbing his body and feel my stomach knot up the way it does around him. His skin is soft and strong looking. I want to touch it. Instead, I pour the cold water on him. He strips to his boxers and I pour more water on him. His tanned skin gets goose pimples. I rinse him off some more and try not to get lost in the water trickling down his skin.
    We walk back over to the camp. He puts his clothes in a backpack and pulls on the baby blue t-shirt he was wearing when I met him with a pair of jeans. The shirt stretches across his chest.
    "Emma."
    I look at Anna smirking at me. "You want to get the bowls?"
    I nod and she giggles. I blush. I know I got lost in him. I know if I'm not careful, I will lose myself to him. I can feel how big he is to me. He could swallow me up whole.

Chapter Seventeen

    The old farmhouse sits alone in the field. I close my eyes and let the wind sway the tree and me. I had feared I would never see it again and here I am. Nothing moves in the field, and the door to the barn swings with the wind. Everything moves in sync with the wind.
    I climb down and take my bow.
    Will and I sneak through the field first. I can hear the others as they enter the field. It's no doubt Jake and his inability to do anything quietly.
    We slink up to the farmhouse and wait in the hay.
    Will gives me a signal for going to look. I shake my head and creep from the field. I have the bow. I kill quieter than he does.
    My arrow is at the ready. My feet make their first crunch on the gravel, which starts my heartbeat.
    I don’t do circles. I know Will has my back. It's a nice feeling. I lower the bow and put the arrow back. I unsheathe my hunting knife.
    Sweat lingers on my face. Summer has started. It comes earlier every year.
    I look in the barn first. I hear footsteps but I know they're Will's. He is walking behind me, watching my six. Anna is next out of the forest. Hopefully, she has left Jake and Sarah in the field.
    The barn is empty. I lift the bunker cover on the floor and am excited when I see my stuff sitting there.
    "We'll clear the house."
    I look at Anna as she walks behind him into the barn. "Don’t forget the basement cellar." She nods. I pick up my hunting rifle with scope and toss it at her. She beams when she sees it.
    Will frowns. "That’s a lot of fire power for her." He's too serious.
    I raise an eyebrow. "She saved my life with it. She's probably a better shot than you with it."
    He snorts. She pushes his arm but it looks forced. I can see she isn’t as playful or friendly with him yet. She sees the differences in him. At least she is pushing and teasing him now.
    I pull the boots off and rub the bottoms of my feet. I pull on some socks I have stored and the boots I always stock piled here. My feet sigh with relief as I tie the laces. I instantly feel better.
    I grab a few sealed bags of jerky and some water bottles.
    Jake and Sarah are standing in the wheat field. I can see his face.
    I wave at him to come.
    I am happy. I wish we could live here. I can see us running this farm.
    I don’t hear it until it's too late. Sarah and Jake are walking across the gravel chatting like blue jays.
    A shot echoes through the clear sky.
    I see a dust spot rising from the ground in front of Jake and Sarah.
    I hear a scream. "RUN!" My arms are waving. The jerky drops from my hands and the water bottles roll along the gravel. I have an arrow out and pulled and am running to where they are ducking.
    Jake picks her up and sprints in his hobbled way to the side of the house. I see the flash from the scope and let loose the arrow. I have another pulled and am searching the windy field.
    I don’t see anything but a shot rings out again and a dust spot appears to my right. I run into the field. I duck and run with the arrow drawn. A dark shape appears through the wheat and leaps at me from the right side. I am surrounded.
    My bow drops but I have my hunting knife out again. I am stabbing but the person taking me to the ground moves faster than I do. His hands grip my wrists. I see his smile as he takes me to the ground.
    He pins my wrists to the ground and I cry out, "Why?"
    He laughs, "I knew you would have places like this. I knew he would set you up."
    Serge has me pinned. His weight is holding my body to the ground. I try kicking him, but he is too wide between my legs for me to get a good kick in.
    "You