“That’s… another story for another time.” She dropped a pair of binoculars in with the collection, and I hefted the full basket from the floor.
Sadie grabbed the empty one and charged off, ponytail swinging, attention passing over each display as she walked by.
Conscious of our time limit, I caught up to her just as she was turning down the clothing aisle.
She headed straight for the puffer jackets and ski gear, dumping her basket on the floor to rifle through the hangers.
“Do you have one of these?” Her fingers caught the edge of a slimline puffer jacket, and she pulled it back to reveal the reflective lining. “It’s supposed to send your own body heat back to you for warmth.”
“Two minutes!” Drew called out.
Asshole was getting on my nerves.
“I bought one last year before the shit hit the fan,” I said.
“Does it work?”
Distracted, I nodded. Her denim-blue eyes were full of energy, and her mouth parted as she waited for my response.
Until a few days ago, I’d only observed her from a distance, and I’d never picked up on the sprinkling of freckles across her nose, or her lashes being the same dark blonde as her eyebrows. It was like meeting her for the first time.
“If the power goes off, our apartments are going to be freezing.” She flicked through the sizes and chose one, draping the jacket over her arm. “Two more stops—if we don’t run out of time.”
Her sudden smile shot awareness through me, and I cursed myself for waiting so long to talk to her. All this time, we couldhave been getting along, and it took months of pandemic life to push us together.
Sadie collected her basket and left the row as quickly as she’d entered it. I followed her down the centre aisle again, turning with her when she hung a right at the electrical goods section. The woman was giving me whiplash.
She stopped short and stood back, evaluating her options. I knew better than to offer suggestions, so I kept my mouth shut.
“I don’t know how effective these will be during winter, but let’s try them out.” She dropped four solar power banks into her basket—one for each household excluding Dustin, would be my guess—and moved straight on to the emergency radios. All I could do was stay out of her way.
“One minute left!” Drew bellowed from the front of the store.
Sadie ignored him and picked up a hand-crank radio. She didn’t seem interested in the features listed on the side of the box. Just dropped it into her basket, then added a second one for the hell of it, using both hands to adjust to the heavier load.
It looked like we were prepping for the end of days, and if there were guns and ammo here, she’d be stocking up on assault rifles, too.
“Knives next,” she said with a straight face.
My body went still, and I searched her features for a hint of humour. “Shit. You’re serious.”
“Varesh thinks the world’s going to fall apart, too. We might as well be prepared.”
“Varesh also loves a good conspiracy theory,” I pointed out.
“Better to be over-prepared than under, don’t you think?”
I released an audible breath through my nose. Her ideas weren’t panic-driven. She moved like she had a plan, calm and measured even under pressure. The only time she’d ever looked uncertain was when I caught her eye or tried to talk to her. “If you say so.”
“We’ve wasted too many months following orders,” she went on. “Wouldn’t you rather be in charge of your future? Or do you prefer being a good boy and doing what you’re told?”
I mean, if she told me what to do in that sweet voice with those big blue eyes locked on me…maybethe latter?
There was no point in arguing with her, though. She was in the zone with money to burn, and nothing I said or did would change her mind. If she started talking about a coup to overthrow the government, I might think about stepping in. “Knives are up front in the locked cabinets.”
Sadie lifted her mask into place, her eyes meeting mine over the top.“I’m not losing my mind, just in case you’re worried.”
“Somehow, that’s even more concerning.” I masked up again and took the basket from her before she could protest, leaving her to carry the puffer jacket. “Let’s finish up and get out of here.”
