Page 38 of Purgatory (Devil Dogs of the Apocalypse #1)

Cole

We take our time, sipping our liquid breakfast. I don’t mind the quiet.

It gives me time to think. Time to observe and admire.

I admire Jax’s tenacity. For how much he’s been through, the fact that he is so fully committed to Aly’s well-being is commendable.

I understand that he is more comfortable outside of our tryst, but he’s still there, protecting her as if she’s his whole world.

I don’t know if he realizes it yet, but he’s in deep.

The more I can do to ease him into the knowledge of this, the less abrupt the fall might be.

It’s why I suggested the boat outing. He needs to focus on something other than the house or the property or baking bread for the umpteenth time.

Focusing on Aly’s safety? It’ll be as easy as breathing and it’ll loosen up that crease that has seemed to take up permanent residence in between his eyebrows.

I take the time to inform Aly of our plans, to which she danced around on her tip toes like an anxious little pup ready to go to the park.

Then, I got to receive the saddest rendition of a puppy dog face from Hawk, as I told him he had to man the fort.

After he finally caved and submitted to the will of the house, I had to avoid a near miss with his fist to my face when I said, “good boy” and patted him on the head.

We both laughed it off shortly after and I walked out to meet the rest of our motley crew out back.

As soon as I open the door leading to the lake, I see Jax and Aly.

I hear them talking animatedly about which super power is the best. Aly is dead set on super strength, giving examples of Superman or The Hulk, while Jax is pushing for the power of invisibility, using the argument that if they can’t see you, they can’t shoot you.

I get where he’s coming from. Stealth is definitely an advantage, but so can insane strength and invincibility.

“Personally, I think time manipulation or superhuman stamina wins out.” I pitch into the conversation. They both stop and look over at me with curious glances. Aly is the first to respond.

“What? Look, I get the time manipulation. Go back and fix stuff in the past to better the future, whatever, I get that. But stamina?” I nod as she continues. “Really? Why? There are so many better ones out there.”

“You know why.” I mutter under my breath as I smirk and wink at her. She blushes almost instantly. The rosy color looking so perfect on her pale skin, it makes me wonder what the rest of her body would look like with little red tints gracing her curves.

Surprisingly, Jax must have overheard what I said to Aly because he’s also smirking at my suggestion. Fancy that. Maybe today won’t be as awkward as dinner’s been lately. Eggshells belong in a compost bin not on the floor. I don’t want to feel like I’m walking on them anymore.

Jax throws his arm up, indicating that we should be getting a move on and we turn to follow after him.

Aly and him continue their debate, which has now taken a turn, discussing the pros and cons of telepathy.

While their conversation has depth and they’re both interested in the topic, he stays a bit ahead of Aly and myself, obviously keeping his distance as we get closer to the lake.

When we get there, Aly stops. Both the conversation and her feet. She stands there, head cocked to the side, her eyes squinting, like she can’t quite wrap her head around what she’s looking at.

“Uh.... where’s the dock?” She asks. Confused when she sees the boat Jax is moving towards drifting about one hundred feet out into the lake with no walkway to it.

“There isn’t one,” I say to her.

The other properties surrounding the lake all have docks. Hell, this one did once upon a time, but Jax being Jax decided on safety and security over convenience so he chose not to use it and got rid of it. I understand his reasoning behind the decision, though.

She looks to me, scrunching her nose up at the site.

But while she notices the obvious, I notice something odd myself.

Something hidden. Actually, I noticed it when she came downstairs for breakfast but it wasn’t until now that I started questioning it.

She’s wearing a t-shirt and shorts which is a normal clothing option for being outside on a day like today, but she's currently sweating buckets.

“Would you like me to get you a pair of these?” I point to my light green P.T.

shorts. “Maybe a tank top? You look a little uncomfortable.” She quickly shakes her head, turning down my offer of getting her a pair of silkies.

I mean, I get it. They’re not exactly the most fashionable thing I could be wearing.

And yea, they’re nut huggers to the tenth degree but at least I'm not drenched in my own fluids.

She brings up her arms around her waist, hugging herself while simultaneously trying to downplay the subtle movement by smiling and offering a kind response.

“Nope. I’m fine, but thank you. I should be ok once we get onto the boat, the air will feel nice.” She looks around for a second, taking in the scenery surrounding the lake.

It’s beautiful here. Especially now when the leaves start changing their colors, like the nature surrounding this place has been painted by a higher power for us to marvel at, rather than just a simple scientific reason like the changing of the seasons. It's nothing compared to her, though.

“So, why isn’t there a dock?” She changes the subject back to the not there nautical equipment. It hasn’t escaped my brain that she isn’t acknowledging the overflowing and worsening state of her pores, the redness to her face or the mild panting her breathing has evolved into but I let it go.

For now.

I make a mental note and silently hand her my water bottle.

Thankfully, she takes it and drinks it down greedily but stops after a few seconds of gulping.

She hands it back to me, almost empty, with a small thank you leaving her lips.

I smile my approval at her willingness to listen to my directives without my having to voice them.

Satisfaction filling my veins at her easy submission.

I go to answer her question but Jax beats me to it.

“There is no dock, because if there was, anyone could pass through and easily take the boat. By doing this, it makes the theft more difficult and therefore deters any passersby from trying to. Not to mention, the dead can’t swim, so it keeps them away from it as well.”

Aly nods, understanding his reasoning. “Makes sense. So, what about the alive humans that own it?”

Jax turns around so he is walking backwards into the lake.

“We swim.” He falls backward into the water, making a big splash as I take Aly’s hand in mine and walk toward the water.

She tenses as the cold water touches her skin but slowly continues to ease in.

She’s not the greatest swimmer, relying solely on a doggie paddle, but it does the trick.

I stay close to her the entire way to the boat, just in case.

Jax gets there first, obviously. Heaving his large form up and over the back landing by the inboard engine.

When we get there, he holds out a hand for Aly, easily pulling her up onto the deck.

I pull myself up, as well and take a second to appreciate Aly.

The water has made her clothing stick to her, showing off her delicious body underneath.

The curves of her form are beautiful. I could look at her all day.

She, on the other hand, has other plans when she sees me staring, turning away and ringing out her shirt to loosen the fabric.

Jax, sensing her uneasiness, comes up next to her and tentatively takes her hand, redirecting both her mind and her body towards the steering wheel.

He takes his time showing her all of the levers and buttons, bells and whistles and, of course, where the keys are hidden.

The thing I like most about this boat? It’s easy.

It’s almost as easy as learning how to drive a car, only with a throttle instead of floor peddles.

It’s a key ignition with a steering wheel so it’s basically crank and go.

No trying to start it like an unruly lawnmower.

We spend the next few hours caught in the space between drifting on the current and letting Aly take in the sights along the bank.

To be honest, I’m enjoying the relaxation as much as they are.

Maybe I needed to take on some control for myself.

Making this happen did just that. And seeing Aly’s happy face as well as Jax’s resigned contentment, I’d say it was all worth it.

When we return to the “ docking ” point, Jax throws out the anchor, waiting until he knows it’s secure, then we all jump off the back of the boat and swim back to shore. Jax gets to the shore first, as usual, and runs to grab towels from the utility shed just as Aly and I reach the beach.

When Jax gets back, he opens a towel, signaling me to take the other side. Together we wrap her up and take turns patting her down, drying her off quickly and efficiently, then turn to walk back to the house. We’re about halfway back when Jax stops, making us turn to see what for .

“I was just thinking... we’re showing you the boat and everything not just to have a fun day but also to teach you how to run if you need to. What about if you need to fight? Do you know how to use a weapon? Like other than a baseball bat?”

Aly shakes her head. “No. To be honest, I never needed to. I had a can of pepper spray and a switch blade when I lived in the city but never needed to use them. And ever since the disease, the bat’s been pretty reliable when I needed to handle a zombie so...”