After the Storm (KGI #8)(30)

Travis smiled at Eve’s statement, and even Cammie nodded solemnly. Eve smiled back and then extended her hand, palm down, in front of Travis and Cammie. Travis slid his hand over Eve’s and then Cammie put her free hand on top. Then Eve put her hand over Cammie’s, sandwiching hers and Travis’s between Eve’s. It was a gesture of solidarity that had become familiar to them over the last while. Eve had begun it as a way to reassure Cammie that they were family and that Eve would never leave them.

“Together,” Travis said quietly.

“Together,” Cammie said in a fervent voice. “We’ll always be together, won’t we, Evie?”

Eve reached for Cammie, pulling her warm body into her arms. She hugged her close, giving her a squeeze. “Yes, darling. We’ll always be together. I promise you that.”

It was hard to promise her younger sister something Eve had no way of controlling. But if intent counted for anything, then they’d be together forever. Safe. Away from their father.

“I want you to promise me something,” Eve said in a serious voice. She stared over at Travis and then down at Cammie. “I want you both to promise me.”

“Anything,” Travis said.

Cammie nodded her agreement.

The words knotted in Eve’s throat. She didn’t even want to contemplate what she was about to say, but it had to be considered. And she wanted to make certain that Travis and Cammie knew what to do if the worst happened.

“If something happens to me . . .”

Cammie immediately went rigid in Eve’s arms, and Eve closed her eyes in regret over upsetting her baby sister. But she couldn’t afford not to prepare for the worst-case scenario. Travis’s and Cammie’s lives depended on it.

“Listen to me, darling. If something happens to me. If the police find me or if your father discovers us, you have to promise me that you’ll go with Travis and do what he tells you to.”

Her gaze lifted to Travis to see the torment in his eyes. The reality that what she was saying could very well come true.

“If something happens to me, you take Cammie and you run. Stay on the move. Do not worry about me.”

“I can’t do that, Evie,” Travis said hoarsely. “You’d never leave us. We can’t leave you.”

Eve shook her head emphatically. “Promise me, Trav. You have to protect Cammie. And yourself. That means you keep her away from Walt. Whatever it takes, you keep her safe and keep running.”

Travis closed his eyes and bowed his head in resignation. “I promise.”

Feeling only marginally better now that she had his promise, she shifted Cammie in her arms and took the drink from Travis’s hand to make Cammie sip more.

“You should eat something too,” she said quietly to Travis. “I left enough out on the counter to make sandwiches. There’s even pop in the refrigerator, thanks to Donovan. Eat now while we have time. We may not have that luxury over the next few days.”

Still, Travis hesitated. It broke Eve’s heart that he often went hungry and without because he placed Cammie’s—and Eve’s—needs above his own. He of all of them needed regular meals. In the last year, he’d hit an enormous growth spurt, going from an average height of five foot six to nearly six feet. And it was obvious that he was undernourished. His tall, lanky frame showed his thinness. With adequate nourishment, he’d be a broad, much thicker . . . man. It was hard to envision him as an adult, but in fact, he’d been forced to grow up and mature much too fast. He had knowledge and experience of the evil in the world that most adults never gained.

If it was the last thing Eve did, she was going to ensure that they had a good place to live, or at least an adequate place, and food so Travis and Cammie ate regularly. Even if it meant going without herself.

“Eat,” Eve prompted gently. “There wasn’t room to pack it all anyway. No sense in it going to waste. Eat as much as you can stomach because as I said, we’re going to be on the move for the next several days, and we’ll have to eat when we can and sparingly so we stretch the food as far as possible before we have to buy more.”

“Do you want anything?” Travis asked as he rose.

Eve started to shake her head. The thought of food made her nauseated when her thoughts were in turmoil over what they faced for the next days. But she also knew that she couldn’t very well convince Travis of his need to eat if she refused to eat herself.

She forced a smile in Travis’s direction. “That would be nice. Just make me a sandwich. There are two cans of pop left in the fridge that I couldn’t fit in the suitcase. Why don’t we drink those before we head out?”

There was still enough of a boy in Travis to be happy over the “treat” offered to him. Her heart ached at the idea that something as simple as a sandwich and a can of soda would be a luxury often denied them.

“What do you want on yours?” Travis asked as he headed toward the kitchen.

“Oh, one of everything,” Eve said with a smile. “We may as well splurge tonight since we can’t bring the rest of the food with us. Cammie, what about you, darling? Are you feeling up to eating something more than the crackers you’ve been nibbling on?”

“Can I have another grilled cheese?” Cammie asked around her thumb.

“You betcha,” Travis said with an indulgent smile. “I’ll heat the pan while I make my and Evie’s sandwiches. Then we’ll all eat together on the couch and wait for the storm to pass. That sound good?”