Shipwrecked - Chapter 148: Hard Work and Worry (nosex)

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Chapter 148: Hard Work and Worry

Kinnon wasn't the only one up before me the next morning. Nina was with her, the two huddling over coffee and laughing at a joke as I walked up. Kinnon wasn't fully naked, but she did have on only a pair of jeans, her heavy breasts swinging softly as she laughed. She spotted me and smiled, looking a bit ashamed, perhaps. Nina greeted me with a hug and a kiss, and I poured myself a cup of coffee while pulling up a chair.

I didn't address the sexually curious questions I had. It was fairly obvious the two had shared a bed the night before. Though that didn't necessarily mean they'd been fully intimate, the looks they gave each other suggested they had done more than talk.

“Long day ahead of us,” Nina said, “Now that the room is clear, I'll go get Mie and Poln and send them to bed.”

Nina left quickly and headed towards the main outpost. “So,” I said, hiding a pleased smile, “sleep well last night?”

Kinnon grinned, “Eventually.”

I laughed and said, “Nice. Nina's a wonderful lover.”

“I'll say. Those fingers...”

“Trust me... I know.”

“Anyway,” she said, “sounded like you were enjoying yourself last night as we came by...”

“It was Amy's first time in weeks since she gave birth.”

“Yeah,” Kinnon said, “Amy asked me to examine her yesterday. She looked healthy and fully prepared to engage in sexual activities again. Sounded like the two of you had a nice... reunion.”

I chuckled. “Get used to that. You hear that a lot around here.”

Kinnon shuddered. “Sounds great to me.”

Nina returned with Mie and Poln just behind. They both looked sleepy, but one or the other had been awake all night, as was expected. We'd made a big batch of scrambled eggs from those brought by Ekoh and the newcomers, and Mie and Poln ate quickly before heading to get some sleep. The night watch was a difficult assignment, but necessary. We couldn't risk having a boat visit us without warning while we slept. Everyone was on the schedule except the three young mothers. My turn was coming up in a couple of days, along with Ekoh. I figured it might be a good chance to get to know the man.

The eggs were amazing, a perfect protein-heavy meal on a day we were going to need lots of energy.

I saw Kinnon tipping the flask into her cup. If Nina noticed, she said nothing. I was still torn about how much to tell others. I felt the alcohol use should be passed on to those in leadership roles, but to do so, it would be hard to explain it without providing the whole, very private and personal, backstory. For the time, I decided to withhold the information, keeping my promise to Kinnon, but it was already twisting around inside my head that morning and casting shadows on my thoughts.

- - -

To call it a rough day would be an understatement. My back, arms, legs, and abdomen were all complaining as I soaked in the warm, dark waters of the Pacific. Those of us in the South worked from sunup to sundown laying down the foundation and skeleton of the first two new shelters. Our eagerness to make progress made us work faster, yes, but it added strains and stresses minute-by-minute, and other than about ten minutes to munch some dried nuts and berries for lunch, we took no breaks. Even Ekoh, the eldest among us, did his part, and the cuts, scrapes, and a couple of bruises on his arms showed true his effort. He was a bit clumsy, to be honest, but his effort was strong and he was largely helpful throughout the day.

Tok and I did most of the heavy lifting, along with Takino and Kate, while Mie and Poln slept the first half of the daytime and helped out after lunch. Amy, alone among us, was the only one who seemed anything less than exhausted. I knew from her touches in the water that she was interested in repeating the previous night's fun. I knew there was no chance my body would be in any shape to do so. Regretful, but unfortunately true.

The next few days were shaping up as much the same. Hard work, long hours, and more of the extraordinary efforts needed to get the shelters up and useable.

I apologized to Amy, wishing I could lay with her again. She shushed me and said quietly, “No apologies, Kal... I'm tired, too. Cuddle with me, though?”

“Absolutely.”

- - -

The next four or five days passed the same. Full effort, constant activity, brief meals, and no intimacy, at least for me. We finished our major work on the buildings on December 2nd, 2015. I couldn't complain about the way the three newcomers in the South had handled themselves. Kinnon did manual labor with the rest of us as if it came naturally. Maybe it did, I didn't know. She also took the time to tend to our various minor injuries of which we had many.

Takino was a strong performer, his youth and his muscles making him a real asset when we needed it most. And Ekoh, despite his random drops, trips, and manual hiccups, managed to provide enough to the team to fill in the gaps.

Word in the North was that the buildings there were completed two days earlier, and they were well into their difficult work cutting down trees, clearing stumps, and smoothing out the grounds East of the lake. Gale had had some concerns about the efforts of Geeni and Unune, but there were no serious red flags just yet. She wanted to give it some time, suggesting that perhaps the two were not adapting as quickly as the others to life on Phoenix.

It was a lot to ask, honestly. These people had just left their reasonably comfortable lives in Uhonamona to come to Phoenix and they were nearly immediately thrown into the toughest work we'd done since arriving. On top of the emotions, the doubts each must have, they also had to exert themselves in ways some had seldom, else ever, had to do. Still, Unune was said to be a general laborer, so her lack of effort compared to the others was a minor concern, but like Gale, I wanted to let things play out for a while. Plus, Hakee had no complaints, so I wasn't too worried just yet.

The tents had worked out for the couple of nights needed, but with the new shelter in place, there was now room to spread out in the North. Still not lots of room for the big crew taking up residency there, but better than risking the tents in a storm.

I might not have had any intimate moments over that week or so, but the same could not be said for Nina and Kinnon. The two had become fast friends and lovers, sharing a bed each night. I stepped out late one night to pee and check on Mie and Poln at the outpost, and I could hear the moaning easily as I paused only briefly to listen. I would have known Nina's cries anywhere, but I was quickly getting accustomed to Kinnon's as well. Whatever Kinnon was looking for romantically, it seemed Nina was what she needed sexually.

In order to get the shelters completed faster, Mie and Poln had agreed to take watch for the days Ekoh and I were scheduled, and we pushed the rest of the assignments out to make sure everyone had a fair turn. It meant that Ekoh and I would take our turn the day after we completed the last building.

There was still work to do on the insides, but structurally, the new shelters and storage and medical center were complete. We celebrated the evening of December 2nd with rum and tinned cake and lots of joints. I noticed that Kinnon had two drinks for every one I had, yet she showed no signs of being excessively inebriated. I knew from friends in my past that that was often a sign of someone being an alcoholic. I hoped that wasn't the case with Kinnon, but I'd started taking stock each day of the alcohol supplies in camp. She hadn't touched them that I could tell, but the amount she brought with her had to have been about empty. I wondered what she would do for her morning nip, and likely, her evening cup, when her own supplies were exhausted.

Speaking of exhausted, I certainly was that after several long days of hard work. The next day would be lighter on everyone. The work would start inside the shelters, adding seals and shelving, but there was less urgency. The regular chores needed caught up. The stream had some blockages which needed cleared. We hadn't caught fresh fish in days, though we had plenty of dried, salted, and smoked fish. We needed to clean the travel clothes we'd worn days earlier, so of which also needed mending from tears and wear.

It was nice to get back to something resembling normalcy on December 3. I stood down by the surf looking back towards the North and took pleasure in the new look of our camp. We'd about doubled the amount of covered shelter space available. The medical shelter was tucked into the trees more than most of the other buildings, Kinnon suggesting it would help keep the heat down for those suffering from fevers, which, it turned out, Amy seemed to have that morning.

She'd been sweating against me in the night, more than just the heat of our bodies causing her skin to be drenched. I checked her forehead as she tossed restlessly between Bailey and I. I'd rushed to get Kinnon and she met us in the clinic as Bailey and I helped Amy stumble onto the wide, padded bench covered with a sheet being used as the main bed. Kinnon confirmed the fever and gave Amy some medication. The surgeon assured us there was nothing more to do other than keeping Amy cool and giving her meds on schedule. Kinnon promised to watch over Amy for a while, and Bailey and I both agreed to take turns mopping Amy's forehead and helping her sip cool water.

It was tough to see how quickly spirits could go from lifted to sunk. I was worried, as anyone would have been. I recalled how Hona had battled a fever before succumbing. I knew we had much better medicines available now, but that did little to help me feel anything but anxious about things. I was worried sick, so much that I turned down the last of the fresh eggs, this time being boiled and peeled, still hot, by those around the cook fire. I tried not to show my fears, but my stomach was too twisted to try eating anything. Instead, I sipped some of the powdered milk, the coffee too acidic to throw on top of the turmoil already in my gut.

Amy's words haunted me. Bad things happen, Kal. I didn't believe in prophecy or such nonsense, but it was hard to be objective about things in that moment. Had she known? Had she suspected? I knew, in my logical brain, that it was just coincidence. Still, more than my stomach was unsettled by the sudden turn in Amy's health. How could things have gone from so much ecstasy to dread and fear so quickly?

Bailey, too, was a wreck. We hadn't told Keekah, who had generally been worn out since giving birth to the twins. She seemed to constantly be feeding one or the other, getting little sleep, and doing little more than barely keep up with the two infants. When Kate or one of the other mothers had given her a break from her children, she either napped restlessly or was too worried about their welfare to stay away from them long. It left her exhausted and withdrawn. Kinnon had suggested she might benefit from a slight mood enhancer and that we needed to keep an eye on her for post-partum depression. I knew little more than that it resembled a depression or malaise, but Kinnon insisted it could be dangerous for both mother and children. Keekah didn't consent to taking drugs, so we tried our best to keep a careful eye on her and one of us kept her company whenever possible.

Which wasn't always easy. There was so much to do. Sure, we were past the hardest part in the main camp, but we were behind on many things and still had the upgrades to the water storage and other such projects ahead of us. But we wouldn't leave her alone often, and it just meant working later in the day than normal to stay on schedule.

With Keekah struggling to find stability in her day, and Amy laid up with a fever, it left Bailey as the primary caretaker of four young children much of the time. Katie was old enough to wander off and get into trouble. We'd had to go over everything in camp carefully weeks earlier to see if we could reasonably child-proof things. Most worrying was the ocean itself. It wouldn't take much for our little one to stumble her way into the water and drown. We'd done our best to take her down there often, and she showed enough hesitation near the it on the heavy-surf days to think she wouldn't just head in, but it still worried me enough to regularly look in that direction whenever the thought crossed my mind.

Takino did an amazing job picking up slack on all accounts. He was a workhorse. Shelves and cabinets and the finishing touches were done on the shelters ahead of schedule. He helped with dinner, cleaning fish, and was generally in a good mood around us all, even though he seemed fairly shy and didn't talk very much. He answered simply when asked questions, and other than the conversation we'd had on the boat trip, he had said little to me during his time on Phoenix.

By the fifth of December, we were largely back on track, at least in terms of our work load. Amy, though, was still feverish. Kinnon was worried, though she did her best not to show it. I spent every moment I could with Amy, but she was usually sleeping or dazed. I remembered my own fight with a fever on Phoenix. Looking back, it was quite a scary experience. At the time, I was too incoherent to know what sort of danger I was in. I hoped Amy was so lucky, and she would only worry about herself when she got better.

I held her hand late on the night of the Fifth, my first shift on watch in some time. Ekoh was manning the outpost while I slipped in to see Amy. Bailey had just arrived to keep her company, Kate keeping an eye on Azure and Katie as they slept. Amy hadn't awoken in more than a day, and even then, she'd barely been aware of us in the room with her. My heart was breaking for her. I'd barely eaten, and it was starting to take a toll on me as the work continued and the almost-Summer heat was arriving in full force.

I couldn't stomach the thought that Amy was ill, and I couldn't even consider that things might take a turn for the worse. I trusted that Kinnon was doing everything she could, and consulting with Manu over the radio suggested she had nothing better to offer. All we could do, both assured me, was treat her fever with medication and keep her cool. I knew, ironically, that my humorous idea of getting an ice machine would have been really handy in that moment. We could have kept Amy cool much easier. We were already carrying her frequently to the bath to cool her down. Ice would have done a better job.

I rocked my legs, nervous energy trying to get me doing anything which would take my mind off of Amy. I needed to get some sleep, or at least get back to the outpost to let Ekoh get some sleep. But I couldn't let go of Amy's hand in that moment. I was near tears. Exhausted. Frightened. Worried sick. Bailey held her other side, and I could see the tears hovering on the edge of falling in her eyes.

Amy stirred a moment and her eyes half-opened. They were unfixed, hazy glances as her head turned slowly. “Azure?”

“She's fine, Amy,” Bailey assured her in a calm voice, “she's sleeping.”

“Azure?” Her hands began clawing weakly, her shoulders tensing, as if she was trying to pull herself up. “Azure?” Amy's voice was slurred and without urgency, but Amy's mind was clearly panicking.

“Maybe I should bring her in?” I suggested.

Bailey nodded, and I let go Amy's hand and quickly went to where Kate was snoozing with the girls next to Keekah and our twins. I carefully pulled Azure up, still asleep and rested her against my shoulder. Kate woke with a start, but I hushed her and smiled. She smiled back and tucked Katie in closer to her hip. I returned to the medical shelter and carefully settled Azure onto Amy's chest. I knew we shouldn't let her nurse, not in Amy's condition, but perhaps both would benefit from the close contact.

Amy settled immediately. One arm wrapped over Azure's body, weak fingers holding the girl against her. “Aww... awww...” Amy repeated several times. I stroked my young wife's forehead, then dabbed it with a cool clothe. She was still burning up. I really wished we had that ice maker.

“I'll keep an eye on them, Kal. Go get some sleep.”

“I can't sleep.”

“Then go spell Ekoh. He was drooping this evening.”

“I know, I just...”

“She's okay now, Kal. Worrying isn't helping,” Bailey said gently.

“I know... I wish I could just turn it off, but...”

“I know,” she repeated. “But I'll stay up with her until Kate or Kinnon are around in a few hours. She'll be okay. I'll come get you if anything changes. She's calm now that she has her daughter.”

“Alright,” I conceded. I kissed Amy's cheek twice and stroked Azure's thin strands against her head. “If anything changes... anything...”

“I'll be right there to tell you.”

“Thanks Bailey. I love you.”

“I love you, Kal.”

- - -

It was hard to keep watch. While Ekoh got his turn in the sleeping bunk built into the outpost, I wandered the shore line. There was no chance I could sit in one place for more than a moment. I kept up my duties to scan the horizon. The clear night made it easy to make out except to the East where it was very hazy. Still, the partial moon and brilliant stars made the water sparkle as far as I could see, and I'd have spotted even a small boat before it got too close to the island.

I dwelled on Amy. It had been days and she'd shown no improvement. I remembered Hona lingering for a while before she passed away. It made me feel so hollow to think the same might happen to Amy. It was just a fever! Back in the old world, she'd have already been back on her feet, so I told myself. Or at least she'd have been in a first-rate hospital with a dozen well-trained doctors and nurses ready to help at any moment. It wasn't that I didn't trust Kinnon, it was just a general negative thinking that led me to ponder a dozen what-ifs.

We couldn't save Hona. Sure, we now had Kinnon's medical supplies and her skills, but I couldn't see hope. I was too sunk in worry and nervous anticipation to be optimistic.

But I tried hard to calm down. We were doing everything we could for Amy. That's all we could do. There was no cutting-edge hospital to take her to. We didn't have ice. We were lucky to have medications which kept her fever from being as high as it had been in the first few hours. That was something.

More importantly, I was setting a very bad tone in camp. My fears and worries were being cast down to those who looked up to me for guidance. I was their Chief. They needed me to be calm, positive, careful in how I dealt with difficult situations. I resolved to present myself differently in the morning. It may be a well-crafted mask, but the others in camp didn't need me to bring them down. They all felt it, the sadness, the worry. I was just compounding it by confirming their worst fears. Whatever was to happen to Amy, I had to help them deal with it, and it meant I would have to take my fears, my worries, to a private place. Displaying them in public only made things harder on everyone.

That, and a lot of walking, got me through that long night. I let Ekoh sleep past the point where I should have woken him. I couldn't sleep though I needed to do so. I heard stirring around the shelters and saw Kinnon coming out in my direction.

I waited until she was close to the outpost and waved her to walk with me so as to allow Ekoh a few more moments of sleep.

“Amy?”

“She's stable, Kal. No change. Bailey took Azure back to sleep with her after Kate got up. Probably not a good idea to bring the children around her. I don't think she has anything communicable, but you never know. Little children are very susceptible to such things.”

“Alright,” I replied, catching the dropping tone in my voice and correcting it before saying, “but she called for her and it seemed to bring her some calmness to hold Azure.”

Kinnon nodded. “I know. I said it wasn't a good idea... But I admit it's hard to not want Amy to have that comfort. No nursing, though.”

“I remember. Amy's weak, and if she does have an infection...”

“It could transmit in her breast milk, yes,” Kinnon confirmed. “The good news is that her fever seems to have spiked two nights ago. She's down half a degree over that time. It's a slow drawdown, slower than I'd like, but it hasn't gotten worse. The medicine is working.” She turned to me and said, “And if I had my way, I'd put that ice maker on your shortlist of things to get, right after the generator.”

“I have been thinking that same thing,” I replied. “To put in a drink, it would be a luxury, but...”

“To save a life, it would be worth more than anything,” Kinnon finished my thought.

I nodded, silently. “So... be honest with me... what signs are we looking for now... good signs... bad signs... what tells us how this thing breaks?”

“Well,” Kinnon said slowly, “the fever getting worse would not be a good sign. I could go more aggressive with the meds, but then we're risking some pretty bad complications. As a last resort, worth it, but we're not there yet. If she has trouble breathing, if her limbs swell, if she won't drink water...”

“And... good signs?”

Kinnon shrugged as we stopped and turned back towards the outpost. “The fever breaks. There's not much else to look for. Whatever's got her immune system fighting, it needs to be defeated. I've got her on strong antibiotics, but there are many things which might have gotten in her. I just don't know. If I had access to a phlebotomy lab...”

“I'll put that on the list, right behind the daiquiri machine” I offered in black humor.

“A joke,” Kinnon replied, “that's a good sign for your health.”

“I'm pushing on as best I can...”

“I know, Kal. Look, it's clear you take everything here on your shoulders, and when it's someone you really care for, you take in all you can. Bailey's worried about you.”

“I'll be fine,” I said firmly, meaning it. Maybe. “Don't worry about me.”

“You're not eating. You're not sleeping. And the mood around here...”

“I know, Kinnon,” I said, a snap of anger in my tone. I took a breath and calmed down. “I'm working on the latter. I need a mask. It won't be genuine. But I'm not helping anyone by showing myself so down. I'll sleep when Amy's better.”

“Then eat these,” Kinnon said, handing me a couple of dense wrapped chocolate and nut candies.

“Take two and call me in the morning?” I accepted them and did my best to shove them quickly into my mouth, chewing and swallowing without thinking. They were incredibly sweet and despite my mood, it did make me feel a touch better to put something in my stomach.

“Good,” Kinnon added. “I'll go back and check in on Amy and make sure Kate is alright, as well. Get some sleep when you can, Kal. In fact, I can give you a pill to help...”

“No,” I told her firmly. “I'll try to sleep, but I don't want to be loopy if something... something happens to...”

“Fine, Kal. Fine. I understand. But get some sleep as it comes. You'll feel better, I promise.” Kinnon took my hand and held it between us a moment. “She'll be fine, Kal.”

“You don't know that,” I retorted.

“No. But you needed to hear it anyway.”

I managed a thin smile. “Suppose I did. Thanks, Kinnon. For everything. Sorry I snapped at you earlier.”

Kinnon hugged me and I held her tight a moment, then she pulled back. “Believe me, in my line of work, I've dealt with far worse than that. No need to apologize. I'll get you if things change.”

I watched her walk off. It wasn't by much, but I felt a finger or two better than I had before she'd come to talk.

- - -

“Kal?”

I stirred and was on my feet in seconds. “What? What?”

I'd apparently fallen asleep on the small mattress along the back wall of the medical shelter. I blinked a few times. The sun was clearly up high. It had to be midday.

Kinnon was kneeling down still, slowly standing to meet my eyes. “Amy woke a moment ago. She's still about the same, but she was saying your name. She might like you near. Tok was here earlier to keep her company, but I've been staying with her since he set out to work.”

I nodded and wiped my face with a wet cloth, the dipped it again into the cool bowl of water nearby. I stepped to Amy's side. “Amy?”

I felt her hand searching for mine and I grasped her fingers. “Kal?”

Kneeling down, I said, “I'm here, Amy. I'm here.”

“Good... mmm... I feel strange...”

“You're doing great, Amy. You're okay.”

Her voice was distant, as if in a dream. “Am I... sick?”

“Yes. But Kinnon is taking care of you...”

“Azure?”

“She's fine, Amy,” I told her gently, “Kate's nursing her right about now, I expect.” I had no way to know that, but I thought it might cheer Amy to hear it.

Amy smiled a little smile. “Okay... Why do I feel so... mmm... heavy...?”

“It's a fever...”

“A fever... okay...”

I wiped her forehead and arms with the cool clothe. “Does that feel good?”

“Mmm... yeah... Kal?”

“I'm here,” I replied.

“I love you.”

“I love you, too...”

“Good... mmm... Don't leave me, Kal...”

“I won't. I'm here. And if I'm not here, Bailey is here, or Kate. We're all here.”

“Okay... Kal?”

“Yeah...”

“Make... mmm... make sure they... mmm... do the classes... mmm... like... like... Kal?”

“I'm here, Amy.”

“When are the newcomers getting here?”

Her brain was clearly fuzzy. I tried not to let on how concerned I was. “Soon, sweetheart. Soon. You'll meet them as soon as you beat this thing, which should be soon.”

“Mmm... good... good... Kal?”

“Yeah?”

“I love you... I lllo...” She fell asleep in mid-sentence.

I whispered, “I love you, Amy...”

I held Amy's hand a moment then heard a sniffle behind me. I looked back slowly to see Kinnon turning away from me trying to wipe her eyes. She was crying softly and couldn't hide it. I couldn't really process what that meant or how I felt about it, so I turned back to Amy and held her fingers gently, kissing her forehead and wiping her with the cloth to keep her skin from being on fire. I kept vigil until Kate returned.

I stepped to the edge of the shelter and took a few deep breaths. I donned my mask, tried to find a silver lining out there somewhere, and stepped out into the camp to see where I could lend a hand.