Without Law 18 by Eric Vall (most difficult books to read .txt) 📗

“Tara!” Paige exclaimed, and she put her hand on the platinum-blonde’s shoulder. “Oh, my god, are you okay?”

“I’m fi--” Tara started, but then she covered her mouth with her hand, stood up, and ran into the woods.

“You think she was going to say she’s fine?” Anna laughed.

“Sounded like it,” Paige agreed, but she stared after her friend with concern. “Her morning sickness is no joke. Poor thing.”

“You know she’s been a monster to us for, like, ever, right?” Anna joked.

“She’s Tara,” Paige said with an eye roll. “Of course, she’s a monster.”

“Oh, come on,” I laughed. “Monster seems a bit harsh.”

“Before you got here I’m not even sure she knew my name,” Anna chuckled. “She just called me ‘the redhead’ half the time.”

“It’s true.” Paige nodded.

“Be nice,” Bailey chastised them softly. “She really doesn’t feel well.”

“I know,” Anna sighed, and she looked in the direction Tara had taken off. “She said we couldn’t do anything to help, but you have experience with this, right, Bail? Can you think of anything?”

“The ginger really is her best bet, unfortunately.” Bailey frowned. “Ginger Ale is the best, but I don’t think we have any of that just laying around.”

“No, I don’t think so,” Paige sighed. “I do feel bad for her. I hate being sick.”

“It’s probably my least favorite thing ever,” Bailey said, and her face pulled into a grimace, and she took a deep breath. “Just talking about it…”

The blonde sniper blanched, took another deep breath, and pulled herself together.

“You cool?” Anna laughed as she looked at her friend with wide eyes.

“Yeah, sorry,” Bailey chuckled. “Just thinking about getting sick makes me feel queasy. I had the flu like every year as a kid, and I always threw up a bunch. So gross.”

“Well, the least we can do is finish cooking breakfast,” Anna said as she picked up the pot Tara had abandoned.

“That’s nice of you,” I told the redhead.

“It’s only because I’m starving,” she teased.

“Actually, making sure Tara eats will be a big help,” Bailey said. “It’s counterintuitive, but she’ll feel better if she gets some food in her.”

“No, that makes sense.” Paige nodded. “At least from a medical standpoint.”

Tara trudged out of the woods then, and she wiped her mouth on the back of her hand as she walked back over to the fire.

“You bitches shit talking?” she joked, but some of her usual luster was lost in how pale she looked.

“Not at all.” Paige chuckled.

“Ugh, I’m sick of this,” Tara said with an eye roll. “This morning grossness better end soon.”

“It’s actually a good sign,” Paige said with a reassuring smile. “It means the baby is growing well.”

“It has plenty of time to grow.” Tara shook her head. “It can slow down for a little while.”

“Dang,” Bailey said with a smile. “I just realized you won’t be able to know if it’s a boy or girl.”

I smiled as the girls talked about the baby. Just hearing them bring it up made me feel happier than I’d felt in a long time, and I was generally a happy person, so that was saying something.

It was a strange world now, and bringing a baby into it would mean having to do things a lot differently than I’d ever imagined, but I was okay with that. My child would know how to care for themselves, how to protect themselves, and they’d know just how much I loved them.

“Tav?” Bailey asked, and her voice brought me back to their conversation.

“What?” I asked.

“Which do you want?” the blonde chuckled. “Boy or girl?”

“Doesn’t matter to me,” I said, and I smiled at Tara. “I’ll love our baby regardless.”

“I want a boy,” Tara said matter of factly. “A little mini Tav.”

“Oh, my gosh, so cute,” Bailey gushed. “We can put him in little khaki pants with a tight T-shirt.”

I looked down at my outfit.

“Do I wear this a lot?” I asked.

“All the time.” Anna nodded.

“How much longer until breakfast is ready?” Paige asked suddenly.

“A few minutes, I think,” Anna answered. “Why?”

“Tav,” Paige said, and she looked right at me. “We should check out the map and see if we can figure out where the Boston troops are.”

“Good idea,” I agreed.

Paige pulled a map from the bag next to her and walked around the fire to come sit by me. She laid the map out on our legs and started to point to different areas.

“They probably would have taken the interstate,” she said.

“I would think so.” I nodded. “That seems like the fastest route.”

“If they left a couple days after us, then they’re likely here,” Paige said with a point about five-hundred miles or so north of us on the map.

“You’re right,” I said, and I pursed my lips. “If we can catch them before they get past us, maybe we can funnel them over to us and take them out that way.”

“You don’t think they’re on their way here?” Anna asked. “For the pincer attack?”

“I believe they are,” I said. “But they’re probably going to try and make contact with the ships. Technically, the crews on the ships should have been able to take out the small resistance here already.”

“I guess that’s a fair point.” Bailey frowned. “They probably won’t stop unless they have to.”

“Right,” I agreed. “They’re going to want to get down to Georgia as soon as possible.”

“So, what’s our plan?” Paige asked.

“We should check out the area,” I suggested. “If we find a good area, then we can figure out an ambush attack strategy for the Boston troops.”

“I like that idea,” Anna agreed. “We can head out after breakfast.”

“Speaking of,” Tara said, and she nodded to where Anna stirred the oatmeal. “Thank you for taking over, but