Chimera

Chapter 4

Half of us wanted to pack up and leave, while the other half wanted to get help. So we decided that Munroe, Tish and Chad would leave with Maddy's body to the nearest police station to get help, while Jax, Ronnie, Logan and I would stay behind, start packing and wait for the police so that we can be sure they had the right place when their investigation began. There were a lot of protests on who goes and who stays, but Munroe didn't want just anyone to drive his van and Tish wouldn't leave Munroe alone. Ronnie didn't want to be alone with Chad so he had to go with the driving group. I on the other hand wanted to stay as I struggled with the thought of driving with a body in the car.

Tish was already in the driver's seat when the guys made their way towards Maddy. I could hear how Tish was struggling to start the van, so Logan ended up moving her over and trying to start the engine. A rapid clicking noise emanated from the engine, but no life could be found in the machine.

"It's dead guys," Logan yelled to Munroe and Chad before they could pick up Maddy.

"What do you mean it's dead?" Munroe asked as he made his way to the car.

"Just what I said, it's dead. No life. We can't leave." Munroe pushed Logan aside and tried to start the van only to hear the clicking of the ignition doing nothing. He slammed the door closed and opened the hood to check out the engine.

We all moved closer to look. I was no expert in engines or anything, but from the look Ronnie was giving the guts of the machine, I knew that there was a problem.

"Radiator is shot, and the battery terminals are missing." Ronnie stepped closer, showing Munroe what she was seeing. Anger flare on his face as he jumped up and spun around so fast that all of us took a few steps back.

"Who the hell fucked with the ride?" Silence fell as he looked at each one of us. We were all just as shocked as he was with this revelation. Munroe was still yelling incoherently when Tish came closer.

"Babe? I don't think anyone here messed with the car." She put her hands on his arm gently in the hope of having him calm down. "I mean, why would anyone want to do it?" She took him by the hand and led him away so that he can cool down.

"I'm hungry," Chad whined.

"Dude, seriously? How can you even think of food right now?" Jax asked giving him a 'WTF' glance.

"I eat when I'm stressed. And besides, I think better too when the tank is topped up."

"I think we can all use something to eat. Then we can make a plan," I replied to Chad's mumbling and stroked Jax's arm as I passed him towards the camp. I hated the tension in the group. Not wanting to eat anything, I made my way to our campsite so that I can busy myself and not think about the shit show we were in.

Logan and Ronnie came, and Logan started the fire. Ronnie and I made up some toasties on the skillet over the open fire. I knew no one was going to want to eat, so we made something practical to nibble on. We were about halfway when Munroe and Tish returned. Chad immediately grabbed a toasty and shoved it into his mouth.

Eyeing the couple as they came closer, he just couldn't help himself with his five cents' worth.

"So that's how you keep his calm, Tish? Downward dog?" Chad asked, lifting his eyebrows suggestively.

"I don't know what you are talking about," Munroe replied.

"Dude, zip it." Chad's eyes drifted down south towards Munroe's pants. I wasn't looking but out of the corner of my eye, I caught Munroe moving to zip up his pants, Tish blushing all the way. Some whispered laughter enveloped the camp but died down too quickly. This whole thing with Maddy made everyone feel guilty for making jokes or even thinking about what to eat.