Don't Whistle Past the Graveyard

Ch. Twelve

I didn't realize that I'd dozed off until the sound of the door opening startled me awake. I sat up quickly, and Shane put his hand on my back, keeping me from going over backwards into the blood on the cushion next to us.

My now dry, short hair floated around my face as I looked around to see Kyle coming back into the apartment. I tried to get up, but Shane held me in place. For someone who hadn't been able to walk a year ago, Shane was pretty strong. I couldn't decide if this irritated me or not.

Kyle didn't seem to mind and sat in the recliner looking at Shane, leaning forward slightly. Shane didn't let me get up, but I did manage to wiggle around so that I was facing Kyle too, hoping that my movements were causing Shane all sorts of havoc.

Okay, maybe a little irritated.

Kyle pursed his lips and said, "We might need to think about leaving sooner than I thought."

Shane sighed and said, "Why?"

Kyle took off a St. Louis ball cap, and pushed his hair back before replacing the hat. "I was keeping watch from the roof and I think maybe the shots from earlier might have attracted some attention. There's a lot of movement in the streets."

We both looked at Shane, waiting for his decision. I frowned and said, "If we go, I need better shoes."

We both jumped when Kyle stood up quickly. "I got you covered," he said before disappearing into the hall.

I raised an eyebrow at Shane, who just shrugged, resting his chin on my shoulder. I opened my mouth, not even sure what I was going to say, but then Kyle came back into the room. He handed me a pair of black, combat-style boots. They weren't military, but they looked sturdy.

"You're a size nine, right?" Kyle asked, handing me the shoes and a pair of clean socks.

I took them, surprised, and said, "Yeah. Thanks Kyle."

He just shrugged and looked at Shane. "So?"

Shane watched as I put on the boots and nodded. "Yeah. I don't want to get pinned down here. But where would we go?"

I knotted the laces, pleased and a little weirded out that Kyle had found a pair of shoes in my size. Shane looked at me and said, "What do you think?"

Frowning, I asked, "What?" 

I was confused about why they were asking me. They were the military guys. Shouldn't this kind of be their thing?

Shane clarified, "Is there anybody you want to try to head toward?"

When I shook my head, Shane raised an eyebrow, but didn't press for more details. All he said was, "Okay. We don't either."

Kyle frowned, but didn't contradict his brother. Still frowning, he said, "Well if we don't have a destination in mind, I think it's best to just keep moving. I don't think it's really all that smart to try and settle anywhere."

Shane nodded. "Okay. Do we need to go now, or—"

Kyle cut him off, shaking his head. "Come on, Shane. You know it's stupid to travel after dark when you don't know what might be out there waitin' for you."

Shane rolled his eyes. "Fine."

Kyle stood, seemingly pleased with this arrangement. "Okay. We'll leave at first light. I'm gonna go put the stuff I found together."

"Do you want help?" I asked, then glared when Shane made an irritated noise.

Kyle smirked and shook his head. "I'm good." Glancing at his brother he said, "About time, man."