Valley of Fire by Missouri Vaun

Author:Missouri Vaun [Vaun, Missouri]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781626394964
Google: eUlFjwEACAAJ
Amazon: B01LYSVUO1
Barnesnoble: B01LYSVUO1
Goodreads: 28695479
Publisher: Bold Strokes Books
Published: 2016-10-18T03:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

Leland followed Faith as she led them to their new quarters. The rooms were next to each other, partially submerged at one end, but the windows along the far wall were above ground. There were inner and outer wooden shutters mounted on each of the thick walled openings. Faith reached through each and closed the outer shutter and then latched the inner one. They did this in the room that Ava was to occupy, then Faith ushered Leland next door and did the same.

“You’ll need to keep these closed until after the storm.” Faith set the last latch.

“And how will I know when that is?” Having never experienced a dust storm, Leland wasn’t sure.

“You’ll know. Listen.”

They were quiet for a moment ; the wind sounded fierce, and the shutters vibrated against their wooden frames.

Her question seemed stupid now. “Oh, yes, I see.”

“The desert has its own rhythms. It’s very different from what we all experienced in the cloud cities.”

Leland wanted to ask Faith more. How did she find her way here? What was such a seemingly sane woman doing in an organization run by Meredith? But she sensed that Faith had somewhere else to be. She simply said thank you as Faith closed the door, leaving Leland alone.

She was debating going to Ava’s room when she heard a soft knock. Ava had come to her first, and that made her heart flutter in her chest.

“Hi, I was just going to come find you.” Leland held the door for Ava to enter. She leaned out and checked the hallway. No one was around. “I guess we really are free to come and go. No one seems to be watching our doors.”

“That’s small comfort considering our overall circumstances.”

“Yeah, I have to agree.” Leland hadn’t really had a chance to examine her new space, but she was hoping it had running water. She’d been incredibly thirsty since they’d arrived.

The one-room living space had a partial wall that divided a sleeping area with a U-shaped kitchen, which was very primitive—a small stove with two electric heating coils, a small basin with a faucet, and open shelving that revealed a sampling of dishware. On the counter sat a bowl of fruit and vegetables and a loaf of unsliced bread under a glass dome cover. Leland reached for a glass and filled it from the sink. She studied the water before sampling it.

“The water seems fine. I tried it in my room also.” Ava paced back and forth across the small space with her hands in her pockets. She was wearing loose trousers and a V-neck knit T-shirt. The fabric of the shirt pulled taut across her breasts, and the sleeves outlined her toned arms. Leland took another sip of water. Ava seemed upset while Leland was unabashedly savoring how beautiful she was.

“I want to know what you know.” Ava’s voice had an edge to it.

“What?” Leland felt as if Ava was accusing her of something.

“I could tell that some of what Maxine was saying to you struck a nerve.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.