There was total horror in those last two words, the kind that drew him instantly. It said she, and she alone, might be able to understand him. He held her close, forced his mind to stay where it belonged - in the present.
"Sshh... It's okay."
Kendle trembled in his arms, tears falling hotly on his weathered skin. "I'm K-K-Kendle Roberts. Nice to meet you."
Luke grinned as her arms tightened around his waist and he slowly turned them toward his cabin, her heat baking into him. "Likewise. You need a doctor, little girl. How's about we go to town and..."
She sagged against him and Luke swung her into his arms, aware she was very sick and might be contagious. The thought didn't scare him. He'd faced death before.
Luke headed home, frowning at not only her appearance and heat, but also at how light she was in his arms. His mind connected her to the tides and sunsets, already sure she was a survivor of whatever had happened…a survivor who might have answers.
A shudder wracked her thin body, and he increased his pace, not out of breath. She weighed almost nothing and he'd maintained a strict workout routine since exiling himself here.
"Ship's dead," she croaked, "all dead."
Her words gave him a chill. Her story would be no cakewalk and as much as he needed to know, he was dreading it.
"You okay, Sweetheart?" There was no response, and once he put her in his bunk and stoked up the fire, he took the dirt bike into town.
4
The next few days were a blur for Kendle as the pneumonia raged and she fought for her life again, her immune system weakened by her exposure to the radioactive flash. She had only brief periods of alertness, where she tried to tell him what happened, but wasn't sure if he understood. It was a full week after washing up on the north beach, that she came to, feeling alert and aware of who and where she was.
Kendle knew instinctively she was alone with the gently snoring man in the recliner closest to her - the fat, loud female healer gone - and she stared at his face in wonder. He looked so healthy! The sickness hadn't come here?
She closed her eyes as her head thumped. She was alone, but that death ship was still out there. Would they (she) spread it? Huge tears began to roll down her cheeks.
The quiet sobs woke LJ from his unsettling dreams. He couldn't ignore her misery and went to her with his blanket. As he pulled it to her shoulders, her claw-like hand flew out and locked around his wrist with an iron grip.