Red Rock

Chapter 14: Commitment (Part 2)

Mellissa sat silently and followed the process of separating the meat from the fat and bone with the machete. She felt angry that she had to use the bigger less mobile machete to skin the animal, and felt even bitterer that Jacob had refused to apologize for the earlier incident. Sam on the other hand was joyously swinging the gutting knife with precision, cutting each strain horizontally for an easier chew just as Jacob had taught her. To avoid any accidents, Jacob kept the campfire bright enough for the girls to see what they were doing with the blades.

Daire took off his blood stained shirt and drenched it in the bucket of water from the well, twisting the fabrics until pale red water poured back. He repeated the process, squeezing less red liquids from his shirt with every twist. Grace bashfully looked away when Daire turned to see her admiring his figure. Daire's muscles were less than impressive, his collar bone and ribs protruded through his skin, giving him a ghastly unappetizing look. He wasn't sure what she saw in him, they barely knew each other. There was no intimate connection between them. The only kind of allure Daire provided at the moment was his half naked body of skin and bones.

It was only natural to be slightly curious about a naked body. To judge one based on their physical fitness was a primitive instinct. But Grace's admiration went beyond the realm of curiosity and into sexual desire. Daire knew it too. He had been fantasizing about Grace since the day she arrived. It was an odd attraction. Grace was over twice his age and he felt guilty for having such feelings for someone old enough to be his mother. Such a relationship would never happen back on Earth. But with the simple concept of supply and demand, Grace was the most attractive on the market, and the supply of attractive males was next to none.

"Hello!" an unknown and relieved voice called out.

Jacob shot up from his seat and snatched Mellissa's machete from her hands as if he'd been expecting the intruders. "Get down on your knees! All of you!" he threatened, raising the massive blade.

"Woah, woah!" the three men collectively said, getting down to their knees simultaneously.

"What are all of you doing here?" Jacob questioned, circling the three men and frisking them for weapons. He patted his hands on the waist line of a man in a blue suit and pulled out a sizable knife from his jacket pocket.

"Jacob?" The man asked, shocked, looking up at him anxiously. Jacob returned an unsettling glance. He knew who the stranger was but couldn't place a name on him. His grimy blue suit and messy greased hair made him look like a failed businessman now homeless on the streets. "It's me Andy! Remember? From the ship!"

Jacob smirked. "I remember."

Andy breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank god we found you, can we get up?" he asked, already on his way to his feet.

"No," Jacob replied, stepping on Andy's calf making him screech.

"Okay, okay!" Andy pleaded, waiting for Jacob to take his foot off his calf.

"What are you doing here?" Jacob asked again, much less aggressively, taking his foot off of Andy's leg.

"Oh my god, Jacob. Things turned to hell when you left. We went to the forest and everything just went so downward."

"So, I've heard."

"We had to get out of there! We had no other option."

"You always have an option."

"Not this time. Us three left out of desperation and got out before everyone else. Thank god we found you, right? We would've starved out there."

"You should've stayed, Andy. We have nothing for you here."