Fight, Flight, or Freeze: The Healer's Story
Chapter 76: Short Of Death, I Could Save Them

Chapter 76: Short Of Death, I Could Save Them

"They’re in the trees!" yelled Ye Yao Zu as he lifted his rifle up, trying to figure out exactly where the creatures were lurking.

The only reason why he knew they were even in the trees to begin with was because he watched a noose circle around Yi Chen’s neck and pull him upward into the branches. Yi Chen didn’t even have the chance to scream before they plucked him off the ground.

"Fuck!" grumbled Si Dong as the eleven men formed a circle. "Bullets do fuck all against them."

"Knives are the same," reminded Cheng Bo Jing as his eyes scanned the shadows in front of him. He let out a soft sigh, knowing that no one would be able to hear him.

"I don’t think we are going to be able to get back to you, Kitten," he said under his breath as yet another one of their teammates let out a blood-curdling scream. "I will find you in my next life, I promise."

-----

I spun around, my hand going to the small of my back. "What the—" I gasped as I saw Cheng Bo Jing sitting comfortably on the couch in front of me.

"Hey, Kitten," he said softly. The look in his eyes was one of tenderness and regret. "It took you long enough to get here."

"Yeah, sorry about that. I had to walk all the way from the hospital after a double. It took longer than I thought it would," I shrugged. Now that I knew there wasn’t a stranger in my house, I bent down and picked up my two go bags. I needed to restock them just in case I needed them again.

"Yeah, we think that it was an EMP. One big enough to take out everything in the country," nodded Cheng Bo Jing. "It seems like anything electronic died at 5:00 pm yesterday."

"Shit," I grumbled as I turned around to face the man on my couch. "Did you guys know it was coming?"

"There had been some chatter, but I don’t think we took it as seriously as we should have," he admitted, a half smile on his face.

"Where are the others?" I asked, looking around the bunker for the first time. Only Cheng Bo Jing was here; were the rest coming soon, too?

"I’m sure they’ll be here in good time," was his only response.

"I don’t care. Just as long as you are all safe, that is all that matters," I said with another shrug. I could cure anything but death, so as long as they found their way to me, they would be fine.

"Not out of the woods yet, but I know they will find you," chuckled Cheng Bo Jing like he was in on some joke that I didn’t know about.

"I am going to jump in the shower right now. I have more blood, guts, and gore in my hair than I can stand. Are you hungry? Did you want me to make you something to eat?"

"Nah, I’m good. You go enjoy your shower. I’ll be here when you get out."

"Sounds good. Hopefully, the others will be here then too."

Cheng Bo Jing just smiled, and I walked into the room I had prepared for myself and stripped down. I would have to wash those clothes and put them back into the go bag, but for right now, I just wanted a hot shower.

-----

I wanted to stay longer in the shower, but I knew I didn’t want to waste the hot water. I was sure that Cheng Bo Jing could use a shower too.

The water from the shower would be recycled. I had a miniature setup similar to a water treatment plant a few miles away, but it was something that I would have to be conscious of.

Turning off the taps, I grabbed a towel for my hair and wrapped another one around my body.

Walking toward the mirror, I wiped the condensation off so I could see my reflection. I had a few cuts on my face from the raspberry bushes, but that was about it.

I would take a few seconds to properly clean them, and then it should be good. I didn’t want to take the chance that they could get infected. While I had the medicine to treat anything, it was like the water. It would be better if I learned to conserve it.

Drying off, I pulled on a pair of fleece pajama pants, a sports bra, and a hoodie. I don’t think the guys have ever seen me be so casual, but this was my house, so fuck them. I wanted to be comfortable.

I pulled my wet hair up into a messy bun and walked toward the area I had designated as the living room.

I had spared no expense when it came to my comfort level in this bunker. There were four full-sized couches that faced the flat-screen television I had mounted to the wall. I even included matching oversized chairs for those who wouldn’t want to sit beside each other.

All in all, I had the perfect space for all seventeen of us, the total bunker measuring around 2,100 square feet. The secondary bunker with the pantry took up 700 square feet, and the medical bunker was also 700 square feet with a fully functioning operating room.

Like I said, short of death, I could save the guys.

"At least the generators here are working," I smiled at Cheng Bo Jing as I went to sit down on the couch with him.

"I have to say, I was surprised when I saw this place. You really know how to keep a secret, don’t you?" laughed Cheng Bo Jing as he put a throw pillow on his lap and patted it.

With a smile, I stretched out on the couch, my head on the pillow. Reaching forward, I grabbed the remote.

"If it was an EMP, then we might have problems with cable. However, I had some streaming services downloaded onto the servers down here if there is anything you want to watch." I handed the remote to him, but he simply shook his head.

"I’m good with whatever you want to watch," he said with a smile.

"Cooking shows it is," I laughed as he groaned.