Page 14

“I smell coffee,” smiled Jenna, walking out of the bedroom dressed in a pair of long tan shorts, tennis shoes, and a soft cotton shirt. She looked rested, relieved, and somehow different to the men this morning.

“Coffee is a requirement in the military,” said Luc, pouring her a cup. “Partly to stay awake, partly to tolerate your superiors. Either way, it’s a mandatory part of wearing the uniform.” Jenna laughed, taking the coffee from his hands.

“And after you’re no longer wearing the uniform?”

“Oh, we’re all wearing it beneath our civilian clothes,” said Nash. “It never goes away.”

“I was thinking while I was in the shower this morning. There’s nothing here for me. I appreciate the care that they gave me, even though they were pretending to be my parents. But there’s nothing left here except more questions.”

“What do you want to do, Jenna?” asked Nash.

“I think we should go back to Belle Fleur and figure things out from there.”

“We’re sure glad to hear you say that, honey,” said Antoine. “We think that’s the right thing to do as well. Jenna, we do have a question for you.”

“Sure.Anything.”

“Did your parents, the people who were the family that you knew, did they leave you anything?”

“Leave me anything? No. They had nothing as far as I knew. I had a few letters from them at the convent telling me that they were okay. Like I told Nash, the twins married right out of high school. I wasn’t happy about that because I thought they were too young, but my folks said that they were both in love.

“Dad, John, or Victor, or whatever his name was, apparently had a good job by then, and they moved to an apartment closer to Tucson.”

“Tucson? That’s where they were found dead in the desert,” said Luc. “Maybe they knew someone was coming for them, and they decided to run.”

“I wish I knew,” said Jenna.

“Let’s pack things up and head out,” said Antoine. “We’ll stay close, making sure that no one can get between us.”

“Why is it so cloudy out? There’s usually not rain here this time of year,” said Jenna.

“That’s not rain,” said Nash. “That’s dust. We’ve got winds at up to sixty miles per hour. It’s going to be rough on the open highways. We may have to take it slow getting out of Arizona.”

“I’ve got nowhere else to be,” smiled Jenna. “Besides, just ask Nash. All I seem to do on road trips is sleep.”

“Makes for a quiet ride,” smirked Nash.

After grabbing a quick breakfast and packing their things, they were on the road. The comms team, using satellites and drones, confirmed that they were not being followed, tracked, or stalked in any way.

By the time they hit the other side of Tucson and were driving along the I-10, they realized just how desolate and difficult this journey would be in a dust storm.

“Maybe we should pull over,” said Luc.

“I think that’s what I would hope for if I were chasing someone,” said Antoine. “Let’s try to get into Texas. At least we know there we’re not far from Fort Bliss. We could always use the guest quarters on base if we had to.”

“Alright, but if this shit gets worse, we’re going to be in trouble.”

It was painfully slow going as the winds whipped across the desert. Like an old John Wayne movie, tumbleweeds littered the highway, pieces of cactus hitting their vehicles.

When Nash’s SUV stopped on the side of the road, they were both confused at first, then saw what he was seeing. The flickering flames of a fire about to be completely out of control.

“Stay in the car!” yelled Nash as he opened the door, running toward the flames. Antoine took his place, ensuring that Jenna didn’t move.

“Nash! Nash! Where are you?” yelled Luc, trying to protect his eyes from the wind and sand.

“Here!” came the voice. Luc followed the sound and saw Nash staring at the wall of flames moving toward them.

“Oh, fuck. What are we going to do?” asked Luc.

“I need water, and I don’t sense any,” he said, staring at the dark clouds of sand. He knelt to the ground, touching the earth with his hands.

“Nash, you read?”

“Loud and clear.”

“According to satellite footage, there’s a water tower about two hundred meters to your southwest. Does that help?”

“That is exactly what I need,” smiled Nash. He turned in a circle, his hands wide open, his palms itching as he felt the water in the tower. “Hold onto something. We’re about to get drenched.”

Luc wrapped an arm around his waist and shrugged.

“I have zero pride when it comes to self-preservation. Do your thing, brother. We’ll either live or drown together.”

A few seconds later, Luc heard the creaking of steel bending and the sound of the falling tower above the sound of wind. Water rushed toward them, the roadway, and the fire beyond. The SUVs rocked back and forth as the water doused the flames of the desert inferno.

When it was done, Luc laughed at the sight of the two of them soaked to the skin.

“Holy shit! That was the most fun I’ve had in a while,” he said, standing and helping Nash to stand. The men laughed, shaking their heads.

“You did it,” said Jenna, stepping out of the SUV with Antoine.

“Brother, that was fucking amazing!”

“I think we got it all,” said Nash. “At least now the fire department will have a chance.”

“How will that be explained?” asked Jenna.

“Simple. The winds were more powerful than they thought, and it toppled the water tower. There’s always an explanation, Jenna. Even if it’s not the one they want to hear.”