Chapter 7

Waking up with a start, I realize both Gus and I are cuddled together on top of the bed, neither of us in our sleeping bags. We must have drifted off listening to the fuckfest that was happening in the tent next door. By the sounds of it, Mandy is one lucky lady. Craig lasted a lot longer than I expected. Checking the time on my phone, I realize it’s a little after 1 am, but I need to pee again, so I decide now should be a good time. Surely all the naked people have tucked themselves up in their tents, or some other couples’ tents by now.

“Gus,” I murmur lowly. I also gently lay a hand on his arm and press a little, to rouse him without waking him fully. “Gus,”

“Mmmm?”

“I’m just going to the bathroom. I’ll be back,” I whisper gently in his ear. He lets out another grunt and nods. Taking that as my cue, I slip on my flip-flops, crawl out of the tent, turn on my cell phone torch, and hot foot it across the campground, as fast as my flip-flops will take me.

I’m glad the campground has good lighting around the bathroom area. I take a quick look around for creepers and find none, so I slip inside, coming to a halt when I bump into a woman slightly taller than me with glasses and a lovely face. She kind of reminds me of Miss Honey from Matilda; the book, not the movie. This woman has blonde hair in a bob cut and is very pale. However, you can tell from her face that she is incredibly sweet and kind, hence Miss Honey.

“Shit! Sorry, I didn’t see you there,”

“Oh, no problem. It happens all the time.” She has the quietest voice and I have to strain to hear her over a kid using the Dyson Airblade before they leave with their mum.

“Then, honey, you need to make yourself known. As my mum would say, ‘Pull back those shoulders, let the world see you, then take it by the balls and make it your bitch’.” A shy smile breaks out across her face and her eyes light up as a small giggle escapes.

“Ok, I’ll, I’ll try. Thanks,” she gifts me with another sweet smile before she shuffles out the door.

I take another quick look around before I choose the last cubicle, lock myself in, and do my business. Over the sound of my high-pressure pee flow, I can hear murmurs on the other side of the door. What? Is that a man? And I’m bloody certain I heard him mention mine and Gus’s names. I finish up my business, pull up my shorts, and close the lid of the toilet. I feel bad about not flushing, but I don’t want to draw any attention to myself. I chose this cubicle purely because it was the furthest from the door and it had a larger window than the others. Both factors make this the A+ cubicle of choice for crappers, but it’s a blessing. Hopefully, he’ll now think I’m in here pooping, which gives me a little bit of time.

Looking at the window, I’m pretty sure with a bit of a wiggle, I’ll fit through it. I take off my flip-flops, cursing the grossness of toilet floors but needs must. Climbing onto the closed toilet lid, I send up a quick thank you to whoever decided that the toilet doors needed to go almost to the ceiling. Quietly unlatching the window, I push it out as far as it can go, looking down and making sure no one is out there waiting for me.

Once I make sure it’s safe, I pull myself through the window, cursing my wide hips when they wedge slightly. I have to twist a little and use my hands to free one saddle bag at a time before I can fully pull myself out of the window, landing inelegantly in a heap on the hard ground. I don’t even dust myself off before I’m sprinting back toward our tent, or at least what a woman of my size and weight would call sprinting. If I’m honest, I’m impressed with my speed and stamina. I dive through the doorway, landing on Gus, who wakes up alert and ready for a fight.

“Gus! It’s me!” I hiss out.

He blinks twice before growling, “What’s wrong?” His sleep roughened voice has heat pooling between my thighs, so it’s not until he grips my shoulders and asks again that I answer him.

“I was in the bathroom.” I huff out, “A man came in and was talking to someone. He was murmuring low, but I’m certain I heard our names. I climbed out the window and came straight back here to warn you. I made sure he didn’t follow me, but I think it would be safer for us to ditch the tent till morning. We don’t want to be sitting ducks and at least this way we can monitor anyone coming our way.”

Gus blinks at me once before nodding and putting on his boots. I give the bottom of my feet a quick wipe with baby wipes because even certain death isn’t gonna have me putting my shoes on with toilet feet, then I shove my feet into my boots. Grabbing my emergency camp bag, I silently leave the tent, Gus following close behind.

“So, babe, what’s the plan?” Gus whispers in my ear, causing goosebumps to break out on my skin.

“The plan is to set up camp in the trees. I packed two pairs of your infrared goggles, and one of those wee cameras you guys have that can send alerts to our phones. I know you hate it out here, but I think it’s the best option.” Gus stares at me for a long moment before he places his hand on the back of my head and pulls me in for a hard kiss.

He pulls back and rests his forehead against mine. “Fuck, babe, the plan is exactly what I would have done. We stay in the tent, we’re sitting ducks with only one way in, and one way out. This way, we have the upper hand. Tell me what you need me to do.”

This is huge. I know Gus enjoys calling the shots. Yeah, he can cooperate with others, as long as he’s one of the decision makers. When the shit hit the fan and he, Marx, and Roman had to work together, all three alphas would have had to compromise for the best outcomes. But for Gus to defer to me in this case? To trust my judgment and let me call the shots? It means the world to me. He sees me as his equal, someone that he can trust to keep us both safe. I will not let my husband down.

I follow my wife into the treeline and this time, instead of barreling along like I did the last time we were in this situation, I follow her lead. Last time I was in protection mode. I mean, it’s my job and my default setting. This time I know that the little woman in front of me can take care of herself, so I’m willing to fall back. In some ways, it’s actually kind of nice to not have to be in charge. To be able just to let someone else call the shots for a change.

When my parents were killed, I was 21 years old and studying architecture. In one night, the course I had mapped out for my life changed and instead, I went into the security business. Jules joined me first, then Tav, and lastly Tuesday. I can’t speak for my brothers and sister, but I take pride in knowing that we have helped people. We’ve helped small mom and pop businesses from losing money because of petty crime. We’ve kept family homes safe with our surveillance, and we’ve protected some pretty high-profile names when on tour. We have even helped the MC rescue victims of trafficking and get them back home to their families. Together, Tombs Security all works as one. Even if it does take all the people skills I have to juggle my sibling’s personalities. But running the business, managing my staff, and looking at every scenario and outcome can take a toll on a person.

I look around at where Ana has stopped in a well-wooded area close to the campsite. She has her head tipped back, looking up into the trees. The moonlight is dappled and if I was a sappy bastard, I’d be waxing lyrical over how it’s casting a wondrous glow on her face. And it would all be true. Ana is fucking beautiful. But even if she wasn’t, I would still feel it in my bones that this woman is my perfect counterpart. Now I just have to get her to see it. I’m not sure of her feelings for me exactly. I know she wants my cock. I’ve seen the way she looks at me sometimes, but anything more than that, I have no idea.

“I think this would be a good spot for us to place the camera. It should cover our tent and most of the angles that anyone could come at it. What do you think?” She turns her face to look up at me, eyes shining brightly with intelligence. Taking a quick look around, I note that she’s correct, although the tree two over looks like a better spot, so I point it out. She creeps over silently, sizes it up, and nods.

“Yep, you’re right. Good spotting big guy,” she murmurs out. Just like that, no arguing that her spot was better. She sets off climbing up the trunk like it’s something she does every day. I’ve seen people in the Pacific islands scaling trees for coconuts and things; do they do the same in New Zealand? I should really find this shit out. Marta, the marriage counselor, strikes me as the type of person who would ask that shit to catch us out.

Ana places the camera and makes her way back down. I reach up and wrap my large hands around her soft hips, helping her down the last couple of feet. With her back plastered against my front, I slide my hand around to rest on her soft stomach as I rock into her slightly before placing my lips next to her ear.

“How the fuck do you know how to climb like that?” The apple of her cheek plumps up as she smiles.

“Misspent youth” She pats my hand and walks off looking for something. I’m not sure what. She leads me a little further into the woods, finds what she is looking for, and then from her pack pulls out some plastic sheeting. I watch her plump ass wiggling in the air while she lines the ground under an overhanging rock formation I hadn’t even noticed. She crawls under and gestures for me to join her. It’s not the comfiest, but it is big enough for both of us to fit and it will shelter us from the weather. Sitting leaning against the rock, I wrap my arm over her shoulders and she rests her head against me.

“So, little Miss Bear Grylls, does every kid in New Zealand learn this stuff?”

“Nah. I mean, we go to a lot of school camps and learn some of this camping stuff, but it was mostly stuff my dad taught me. Before going to live with Mick and Debs, I was angry. Pissed off at everything and everyone. Adults all sucked, so did school, and it’s hard to make friends when you don’t know how long you’re going to be staying in one place. If I made any friends in the homes I was staying in, it wasn’t long before they got adopted or moved on. So by the time I landed with Mick and Debs, I was a pissed off kid with no hobbies and nothing I enjoyed doing.” I nod, not wanting to ruin her flow. She snuggles closer before continuing. “That first year was hard on all of us. I’d been let down so often that I didn’t want to get my hopes up. I needed to keep the space between us so it wouldn’t be so hard when I had to leave. I didn’t make it easy for them to love me. But after a while, things changed. We went on trips away and slowly I began to think that maybe I wasn’t going to be moved on. On those trips, Mick would take me tramping and fishing. He taught me how to make shelters so that when I got bored with fishing, I could make a little hut to hang out in.” Glancing down at her resting against my shoulder, I see the smile on her face. “Somehow, Mick or Debs, or both, figured out that being out in the bush, the Kiwi wilderness, was my happy place. It was where I liked to think about things. Where I was the most relaxed. It still relaxes me now.” She looks up at me and pokes me in the shoulder.

“So, August Tombs, what did you get up to as a kid?” I let my head roll on the cool rock as I think.

“For the first 5 years of my life, it was just me and Jules. He’s only a year younger, so I can’t remember a time when I didn’t have him. He’s always been grumpy and surly, and we spent a lot of time hitting each other with stuff, hence the crooked nose.” She lets out a snort and I carry on. “When I was 5, Tav was born and then for my 8th birthday, I got Tuesday. I was so excited to finally have a sister because my 8-year-old self was so sick of having to share everything with my little brothers. The whole family was excited to get a ‘little princess’. We got Dayz.” Ana chuckles softly at this, humming her agreement that Tuesday Tombs is most definitely not a princess. “We had a lot of good times. Mom and Dad were great. They were both only children. They wanted to have a big family, so we would always have someone on our side. As the oldest, it was always my job to help Mom with the younger ones, and when I would act out, Dad would always remind me I had brothers and a sister who looked up to me, so I had to remember to set a good example.”

“So you’ve always been responsible?”

“Fuck no! College was a wild ride of sex, drugs, and minor illegal activities. I thought I was a real badass.”

“Oh, yeah?”

“Yeah. But then one night a mugger attacked my best friend and me. Jeremy was stabbed in the altercation. No matter how badass I thought I was, I was fucking useless at stopping the attack. I remember sitting in the police station giving a statement, with Jeremy’s blood on me while he was in the hospital getting stitched up. All I wanted was to be back home. With my family. My safe place. Sitting there, shaking, in that station felt like the worst moment of my life. I didn’t think things could get any worse. Then my phone rang and Pops told me that Mom and Dad had been killed. That one night changed my life. I realized I have so much to lose and so much to protect that I needed to keep my head at all times.”

“That’s why you hardly ever drink alcohol?” I give a quick nod. It’s not worth it. I need to have all my wits about me. One slip up and who knows what could happen.

“I’m not too sure how this marriage is going to work in the long term, if we’ll stay together for the whole two years or whatever. But so that you know, I’ve got your back, Gus. Anytime, anywhere you need me, I’ll be there.” I look down at her upturned face. I can see the sincerity in her eyes as she stares up at me, filling me with her truth. She may not think this is forever. Shit, after her childhood she may not even trust that I’ll hang around, but she’s willing to pledge her support to me, and that means more to me than I can ever put into words.

Swallowing down the lump in my throat, I whisper, “Thank you. I -” I feel vibrating on my thigh and realize that both mine and Ana’s phones are sending us camera alerts.

“Looks like we’ve picked up something,” Ana murmurs. Pulling up the live footage on my phone, we both lean forward, heads resting against each other as we peer at the tiny screen.

“What the fuck, Miss Honey?” Ana whisper shouts.

“Do you know them?” She shakes her head, not taking her eyes off the screen.

“I bumped into that woman in the toilets. I thought she was the loveliest person I’d ever had the chance to meet. That sneaky bitch!”

She crawls out of our little shelter and starts silently pacing. I really need to find out how she can move so quietly. I’d be able to use it against my siblings. Looking at the footage playing out, the woman’s face comes into better focus.

“Fuck! That’s the couple from the silver car! That’s the woman I saw when I went to recon them. Dayz said they weren’t a threat. Obviously, she was wrong.” Rubbing a hand down my face, I look up when Ana comes to a stop in front of me

“What do you want to do?” She asks in a low voice. I quickly run through all the options in my mind and there’s not a lot.

“We can’t take them out because we’re in a camping ground surrounded by families and horny fuckers. The only real thing we can do is neutralize them and then load them up in the trunk. Take them back to the MC and see if Rhodie or Dayz can get anything out of them.” Ana stares me down for a moment before nodding her head.

“I agree. You take him, I’ll take her. I’m going to kick her ass for fooling me.”

A smile grows on my face as I follow my wife into the fray. The woman is inside the tent, her partner outside keeping watch. Sizing him up, I feel good about what I’m about to do. We’re fairly evenly matched, which will make taking him out a little easier. Sneaking in from the side, his pulled up hoodie gives me the element of surprise when I give him a quick jab to his blind side. He swings toward me a lot quicker than I thought he would. I block the blow, get in close enough to wrap my arm around his neck, and then hit the deck, wrestling him onto the ground. I hear a squeak and when I look up, Ana is pulling the woman out of the tent by the hair. The guy I’m wrestling with taps my forearm that’s wrapped around his throat before rasping out,

“Gus! It’s me, Wire! Fuck, it’s me!”

Looking down in shock, I see Wire staring back at me, wide eyed. I let him go before scrambling up to stand. Swinging my head around, I see Ana also has the woman in a headlock.

“Shit, Ana! It’s ok, let her go.”

The next thing I know, a glaring light comes on, blinding me.

“Neighbors! Are you ok? We heard a ruckus!” Craig’s voice breaks through the night and I blink my eyes to help them adjust. And then I wish I never had, because standing there in all his pasty glory is a pants-less, long cocked Craig.

“Ah, yup, no, we’re ok, thanks, man. We thought these guys were robbing us, but we’ve got it under control,” I wave out to him. He squints at me for a moment before addressing Ana.

“Ana, are you ok? If you would feel safer, you can come and wait for Gus in our tent if you like?” I growl a little before reining myself in. I mean, it is a nice thing for Craig to offer. I look at my wife, who is looking anywhere but Craig.

“Um, no thanks, Craig. Thank you for the offer, but um, I think I’ll be ok.”

Our naked neighbor lets out a sigh. “Too soon?”

“Yes Craig, way too soon.”

“Ok, well, you can’t blame me for trying” We watch his glow-in-the-dark ass bend slightly as he goes back into his tent.

“What in the fuck was that all about?” Wire rasps out before coughing.

“W-was that guy naked? I didn’t imagine that, did I?” a very quiet voice asks.

Staring at the slightly worse for wear Wire and the librarian-looking lady, I can’t help but feel annoyance bubbling up.

“Who the hell are you? Actually, why the fuck are you two snooping around us in the first fucking place? Please tell me you weren’t in the women’s toilets earlier, Wire?”

I watch his eyes dart around and I swear to God I’d see a blush on the computer man’s brown cheeks if the light was better.

“Fuck. Marx sent us to keep an eye on you. Make sure you’re both safe. We noticed you left the tent in a hurry and never came back. I sent out a message to your sister and then me and Remy decided we’d check it out.”

“Hi. I’m Remy.” I can see how Ana would have been fooled by this woman. She exudes gentle energy, the opposite of almost everyone I know.

“Hi. Um, sorry for pulling your hair.” Ana gently pats Remy’s hair into place.

“Oh, that’s ok. You didn’t know we weren’t a threat.” Remy smiles and waves her off.

How the hell did this woman end up here with Wire? Whatever, it doesn’t matter. I’m still pretty pissed. I mean, what the fuck? I get everyone is trying to keep us safe, but we have this shit under control. I could have spent the last hour tucked up in bed with my wife. I clench my hands at my side while I try to settle down. I feel a small, soft hand slip into mine and, as if by magic, my blood pressure lowers. I look down at Ana, whose lips are twitching.

“You’re going to laugh, aren’t you?” I frown down at her.

“Well, I mean, it is kinda funny. We’re both hypervigilant and neither of us recognized Wire. Or that we are camping in the middle of a bunch of swingers.”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa, hold the fuck up. These guys are swingers?” Wire asks, looking around at the tents surrounding us.

“Yup.”

“Your neighbor had quite an impressive penis. I wonder if he knows how to use it?”

Ana and I share a look before we both burst into laughter.

“What? Did I say something wrong?” Remy quietly asks, but I’m a goner. All the stress of the past hour, broken sleep, squatting under a rock in the woods, and Craig’s cock has sent me over the edge, taking Ana with it.

“Oooook. Well, nothing around here is out of the ordinary. Remy and I have been keeping tabs and running backgrounds on everyone in the campground. Although none of that picked up their bedroom activities. I’ll cancel the alert I sent your siblings and we’ll leave you to get some sleep.”

“Um, it was lovely to meet you. Good night,” Remy quietly calls, but it’s lost in the noise of our laughter.