“I’ll take over driving,” Arkas said, dipping his fingers into her pocket for the keys.She sucked in a breath as lust surged through her at his close proximity.He gave her a knowing look and a smug wink.
“I need to pee,” she said, deliberately ruining the moment.She’d chosen a rest stop for truckers.The restroom would no doubt be disgusting, but it was better than stepping behind a shrub.
“I’ll keep watch,” her tall, blond and handsome companion said.
Oaklie hurried to the restroom next to the gas station.No one was around, but she still felt uneasy.Using a small bottle of hand sanitizer when she was done, she carried her roll of toilet paper back to the truck.She stopped dead when she saw a buck and stared at the animal.The deer was standing on the edge of the woods, looking right back at her.He wasn’t as magnificent as the stag she’d carved, but he would grow into a fine creature.
“The animals are already becoming less fearful of humans,” Arkas said, walking over to her.The buck turned and sprinted under the cover of the trees.“Soon, they’ll be so numerous the ecosystem will be affected,” he predicted.
“Everything is already out of balance,” Oaklie pointed out, storing the scene in her mind.“It’s probably about time the animals took the planet back,” she figured.“Humans have done enough damage to it already.”
“Humanity will bounce back, but things will be far worse,” the knight said.“All of the good people are gone, so the population will be lawless maniacs until newborns become adults.That’s if any of them turn out to have white souls.”
“Thanks, voice of doom,” Oaklie grumbled.“You won’t be here to see it, but I’ll have to live with those maniacs who’ll be running loose killing each other.”
“At least you know how to defend yourself,” Arkas said, but she saw how disturbed he was that she would be all alone and have to fend for herself.“I need to teach you how to shoot,” he decided.
“Later,” she said.“We need to find your commander first.”
He nodded and they climbed back into the truck.She ate a snack and drank what was left of her now tepid thermos of tea while her knight drove.Mentally smacking herself at that thought, Oaklie knew she was treading on dangerous ground.Arkas was everything she’d ever wanted in a man, but he wouldn’t be staying here for long.He wasn’t hers and she wasn’t his, even if he was having trouble remembering that fact.
Spreading the map out on her lap, she waited for the next problem to crop up.They managed to drive for half an hour before she had to direct Arkas around a traffic accident.“That looks like a bad one,” she said as he circled around the pileup.Fire had engulfed the vehicles, leaving charred skeletons inside.
“It would be a horrible way to die, trapped in a vehicle and burning to death,” Arkas said.
“I’ll add it to my list of things to avoid,” Oaklie said and was rewarded with a tight smile.The warrior was getting tense as they neared their destination.His shoulders were hunched and his eyes darted around, searching for danger.
He made it back onto the highway, but didn’t get far before there was another obstruction.“I think we’re going to have to drive through suburbs and take backroads to avoid the pileups,” Oaklie suggested.
“So it would seem,” Arkas agreed.“You’ll direct me?”
“I’m on it,” she said as he took the next exit to avoid the catastrophe they could see in the distance.It was strange to be using an old-fashioned map instead of an app on her phone, but she was used to it by now.She gave her companion directions that led them closer to New York.They were lucky enough to avoid major problems for the next couple of hours, but Arkas had to drive slowly.They were both wary about driving into another ambush.
Chapter Thirty-Three
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