Hard Rain Falling (Walking in the Rain Book 3) Read Free

from Darwin Keller. I’d swapped him all the random non-standard caliber firearms and ammo I had for a supply of 5.56, 7.62x51, 9mm, and .45 ACP.
    Initially, I’d just planned to donate those weapons to the cause but Darwin would not accept the gift. He made up the difference that he insisted he owed in gold and silver coins, so despite cutting back my stock of firearms to a more reasonable level, I still need help moving the footlocker. I’d guess it weighed over two hundred pounds.
    The second requirement was that the three of them could volunteer for whatever chores they wanted, but I wanted all three of them together at all times. If one had to take a potty break, I said, then I had better hear about that goofy group of girls that always goes to the bathroom together.
    This was on the first night after our arrival as we all sat around on our bunks getting ready for bed. At this point, the only other guests in the large barracks structure had chosen to bed down at the other end of the building. Not out of fear of us, I didn’t think, but courtesy since they had several small children and infants in their group.
    Summer wanted to complain, but Lori shut her down fast. She waved in my direction as she spoke.
    “Honey, Luke is just making a point. You haven’t seen the worst of things out here yet. I think we’re somewhat safe here behind the fence but even that’s not certain. Lots of fence and not enough guards. Plus, there are people outside who would kill us simply for being here if they could. Then there may be some folks already inside who might not be opposed to getting a little action going with one of us.”
    “Yeah, but he doesn’t have to say it that way. Of course we’ll look out for each other.”
    “And if I need to go to the restroom, are you coming with me?” Lori asked.
    “Well, of course. But he still doesn’t have to say it that way. We’re not goofy,” Summer said with as much wounded dignity as a thirteen year old could muster.
    “I’m sorry, Summer. I didn’t mean to say it that way.” Which was true, I wasn’t looking to alienate these two young ladies; for a lot of reasons. They were here because they could somewhat take care of themselves and for their contacts in McAlester.
    “I don’t mean you or your sister, or, heaven forbid, Amy is goofy. What I meant was, if one of you is working in a warehouse on one row, then the other two needs to be there within sight as well. Anything they have you do, stay together. Just try not to be obvious about it. I was only talking about the old cliché about ladies always going in groups to the restroom so they could talk about the boys.”
    “Oh. Well why didn’t you just say that?”
    I had gotten to like Summer and her sister, Lori, a good deal. Summer was a generally pleasant girl, smart as a whip, and fun to be around. She reminded me of my sister Paige a bit, except without my sister’s snarky remarks. I felt Amy was thinking of her as a younger sibling as well.
    One night not long after I’d returned from the school in Bentonville, we were sitting around an outside fire-pit at the farm enjoying the flames even in the summer heat. Amy, her voice no more than a whisper in my ear, confided in me that as an only child growing up she’d been jealous of her classmates who had brothers and sisters. Since Amy was even more reluctant than I to speak of her family, or even her life generally before we met, I took her words as a good sign.
    At seventeen, Lori was actually older than me, which came as a surprise. Her size fooled me. She was small and compact, but with dense muscles like a gymnast—or at least she was before her sudden crash diet. Chatting with her back at the farm, Amy and I found out the only reason she was at the cheerleading camp for the junior high crowd was to work as an unpaid assistant coach.
    “Yeah, getting a cheerleading scholarship is really hard work, but I had a better shot there than with basketball. Not many