into the grass. She stepped off him and felt her legs wobble under her. There was a slight electricity in the air as Dylan began to revert to human form, the hair sloughing off him, and he stood up shakily, his naked body wrapped in sweat.
“Dylan,” she said, reaching toward him, and stopped.
“Down this way,” he said without stopping, and walked past her. The point of the island had a small animal trail, well covered, that led down to the shore, and she was surprised she hadn’t found it before; another of the island’s secrets, no doubt.
The surf was roughing the shore, despite the fact the sun was up and wandering from cloud to cloud. Then she saw that there was a small cave, indented into the side of the pale cliffs. It’d be invisible from the shore because of its obtuse angle but when you approached from the side it was quite obvious, a wind and ocean sculpted tunnel that led a good ten meters into the cliff-face. She followed Dylan’s naked body into the throat of stone, and shielded her eyes when he struck a match. The cavern lit up.
It was full of books, a small decrepit drawer at one end, backed up against the wall and a mattress in the middle. Dylan stooped and lit several more candles, until the cavern was aglow with the orange light of paraffin, and they were both tapestries of shadows.
“One of my hide-outs,” he mused, “even Chris didn’t know about it. At least, I didn’t think he did. He always kept things to himself.”
He pointed to one of the drawers where the satellite radio was perched, and Sarah let out an exclamation and went to it. The power was still on – broadcasting an intermittent SOS message. If anyone can pick it up.
“He must’ve brought it here when they started to…” Sarah broke off.
“I think so. It’s funny… I always thought this was my own secret place but of course he knew about it.” A tinge of sadness crept into his voice. “I found this place the first day we came here, and brought things over time… books, sea-shells. I guess you could call it my home away from home.”
“A sanctuary,” she said, and he nodded.
He lumbered forward and fell onto his back on the mattress, one hand over his forehead, and his gaze fluctuating with the ballet of shadows that danced against the contours of the cave’s roof. He’s lost his best friend, his patron, she reminded herself. And yet he was as solemn as a statue. She felt the same way, as if they’d encountered so much suffering in such a small span, it had overloaded their capacity for feeling anything.
Absently, she pulled at her tank-top and cast it to one side of the room. It still smelled noxious with the chemical burn of potassium nitrate. Her small breasts swayed and jiggled as she took a step toward the bed, fingering the button on her jeans as she did. Dylan turned his gaze slightly at the sound of her pulling the zipper slowly down, and saw her ripped pants and thong drop as one to her ankles where she stepped out of them, never breaking stride. She folded down beside him like origami, her pale leg curving over his waist, brushing the blunt end of his member, and he quivered. Her other hand stroked his chest, and she pulled herself closer so she could kiss his shoulder.
“I don’t know what to do,” he admitted, his voice as hopeless as a kite without a string.
She kissed his shoulder again. “What Chris would have wanted us to do,” and she saw a plaintive look move over the dim sheen of Dylan’s skin, “we survive. No matter what.”
She bent down, her black hair swimming against his neck, and kissed him deeply, pushing her mouth hard into his. She started to cry, and kissed him harder, forcing his lips apart with her tongue as her leg rubbed up and down against him, and felt the scratchy tangle of her pubic hair thrusting against him eagerly.
“I should have told you,” he said. “I should have told you… so much sooner…” He reached up and cupped her cheek, and felt more of her hot tears land on his chest. “I love you, Sarah.”
She kissed him again and sobbed, throwing her leg all the way over him until she was straddling him, and his hands clutched at her thighs, forcing them apart even as she bent