Barrel

21

Barrel’s smile melted away, and he looked at her briefly from the side of his eyes. “What would you call this then?” he asked, c*****g a brow.

Eva couldn’t help but laugh. “This,” she said, chuckling, “is what one would call an accidental adventure.”

Barrel snorted a laugh, making him even more endearing to Eva. “You just wanted a cruise, and you got me.”

Eva wanted to reach over and touch his hand, his leg, anything. She wanted to tell him that being with him was worth more than any shitty cruise could offer. But as he slowed the truck, she turned her attention to their surroundings.

They were on the outskirts of a village that had a gas station, almost like what you’d find in a small town in the states. The vehicles, though, were small and didn’t have brand names she recognized.

Barrel grabbed his backpack and opened the truck door. “Wait here.”

He approached a man putting gas into a beat-up two-door box. After talking for a moment, Barrel dug around in his pack and pulled out a stack of bills. Eva’s jaw dropped. She hadn’t seen that in his bag. He had to be holding hundreds of dollars.

Barrel handed over the money to the man and then waved her out of the car. Lifting her bag, she rolled her eyes, knowing the routine now. At least that car wasn’t completely rusted as the truck was. Probably had better shocks too. She climbed out, then moseyed to the passenger side of the car and got in. It smelled like smoke. Ugh. She rolled the window down.

Barrel got in with a huge grin. “This one has enough gas to get us where we’re going.”

Well, at least they wouldn’t have to walk again. She was happy about that. Not long after that, they arrived at the cabin, creeping through thick layers of trees. She peered out the windshield at it.

It looked like something out of Snow White. A smaller cabin that contained only the necessities for a simple life. There was something sweet and quaint about it, which made Eva’s heart go a mile a minute.

“This used to be home,” Barrel said. “When the government traveled in our community … which was quite often … we retreated here. Usually for summers.”

Barrel got out of the car and retrieved their bags. Eva stepped out slowly. The silence from the trees enveloping them was slightly intimidating. Filtered light came through the canopy in tiny peeks, casting shadows over the moss and vines that were growing over the infrastructure.

“We’ll stay here for a bit and feel things out,” Barrel said. “If they follow us all the way to the border, then we’ll endanger more than ourselves. We need them off our tail.”

He walked toward the cabin, looking as tall as the highest roof. Eva was feeling a strange mix of emotions … attraction, excitement, and fear about being excited. It was her normal cocktail of feelings, ones that were capable of corrupting beautiful moments.

She followed him to the door, adoring the cool rush of air as she walked on. She had no idea how she was supposed to adjust to life back home, teaching kids about Shakespeare, when she had gone to the edge of the earth with the man of her dreams and, hopefully, lived to tell the tale.

BARREL

As Barrel walked outside of the cabin to make sure all was safe, the wind blew the trees, and the smell of pine hit him hard. He remembered coming out here. He liked the open space.

Barrel's mind traveled to Eva, and he found himself smiling. Eva had certainly turned his world upside down. She'd been snarky and funny. She was always trying to make him smile, even when they were running for their lives. She'd been thankful, but anyone would after being saved.

His view of her had been wrong from the start, and she just continued to keep reminding him that she wasn't some weak girl waiting for the end. She was fighting just as hard as he was, and he admired it.

Maybe there were some good people still in the world. Eva was one of those people. She was special.

Tyres was not. Barrel was still pissed after catching him on the phone. He was grateful he’d not had that extra beer before bed. Otherwise, he would have slept longer and missed the phone call.

"No, he's here now," Tyres had said, holding a snappy tone. "And you need to get him. He is unarmed and with that woman. If you want them, come get them. I have him eating out of the palm of my hand."

Tyres paced, clutching the phone with white fingers. "I want the money first. No holding out on me this time."

Barrel shook his head, hating to have witnessed it. He thought Tyres was a friend, but he was wrong. It only proved that trusting people wasn't something Barrel should do. Even friends could stab you in the back.

Barrel grew closer to the cabin, ready to put the day behind him. He was prepared to rest for a few days before they started heading out for what he hoped would be their final destination. However, he wasn't entirely sure if he was ready for it. He liked Eva, and he didn't know if he was ready to part with her.

He walked into the cabin taking in the smell of cooked meat and roasted vegetables. Eva stood over the oven, patting her hands on an apron. He smirked, liking her in his cabin.

"You look comfortable," Barrel said, talking across the cabin toward the kitchen. Eva gave him a gentle smile with a nod.

"Well, there was some dried meat that I seasoned with some tomato sauce, and you had some canned peas and carrots, and I heated it up. It's not a lot, but it's a good meal." She gave him a bright smile. "I promise it won't kill you."

Barrel chuckled, shaking his head. He seated himself across the counter, watching her stir a pot. He enjoyed watching her, almost loving it.

Eva served up the plates, and they sat to eat. It was quiet with the wind blowing and the sound of an owl in the distance. Neither spoke as they ate, almost shoveling it in like they had been starving.

They had driven all night and most of the afternoon to get here. They hadn't eaten since last night, so being hungry made sense.