Frostbite & bruises

Morgan looked around the room as the two men set the plates down on the wall.

The men’s living area was not large, but it was comfortably furnished. It was a hodgepodge of things the men had collected over the years and most of it was in need of major refurbishment.

The rectangular room contained a small kitchenette and an old, ramshackle sofa. There were two old leather chairs by the fireplace in which the two girls sat comfortably, and on the other side of the room, against the wall that led to the large factory hall, was a dog basket in which, to Morgan’s surprise, Viggo was curled up asleep against the large German shepherd.

Her eyes slid to the dining table where the other man was busy sanding what appeared to be a table leg. The corners of her mouth turned up slightly at the sight of a sleeping Mads. Next to the table stood a large wooden bench, covered with several thick blankets and cushions where the blind man had placed the old woman. After that he’d seated himself down next to her, and as if it was meant to be, Mads had placed her head on the man’s lap. Morgan saw how the man occasionally brushed away the old woman’s grey hair from her face with a gentle gesture.

Slowly Morgan walked towards the table. She hadn’t spoken to him before and was curious if he would react the same way as his brother, something she couldn’t quite imagine, given the sweet scene.

“What can I do for you...” Morgan started to laugh softly, surprised that he had already noticed her.

Now that he was speaking directly to her, she could clearly hear that he had a pleasant, deep and baritone voice. Although he had a rugged face like his brother, his blind eyes were alert but kind, the opposite of his brother’s.

“Um... since we’re allowed to stay, and... well... we haven’t eaten yet, maybe I can fix us something. I mean, we brought some food with us. We don’t want to abuse your hospitality. To avoid waking Mads, Morgan kept her voice low. But something told her, even if she could not see it, as she was standing with her back to him, the bigger brother was listening to their conversation.

To her surprise, the blind man began to grin. “That wouldn’t be such a bad idea. Between you and me, Nox is not much of a kitchen princess, and frankly, I would love having a nice meal again!”

It was not lost on Morgan that the last three words were clearly said much louder, but... at least she knew the big man’s name now and that was nice too.

“If you found my cooking so horrible, than why didn’t you start cooking yourself...” Nox’s gruff voice sounded awfully close and Morgan felt the hairs on the back of her neck stand up.

Quickly, she took a step forward and immediately looked back.

With a sideways glance at her, the man walked past her, his lips pressed into a thin line.

“If you are going to cook for eight people, you are going to need a lot more than what you have in your backpacks. Follow me.” And walked towards the door.

Uncertain, Morgan looked around, but there was no one she could turn to. Mads and the children were asleep, and Steve was still in the process of putting things in order in their new room.

Her heart pounding, Morgan hesitantly approached the man. A shiver ran down her body as he opened the door and a blast of freezing air entered the room, she wondered if the shiver was from the cold or something else...

“Well, don’t just stand there, let’s go!”

At a steady pace, the man made his way through the factory, not caring if Morgan could keep up with him. They walked through several corridors and smaller factory halls and an uneasy feeling came over her. What if he wanted to rape her here and now?

“I have to feed the dogs first...”

So lost in her own thoughts, Morgan hadn’t noticed the dogs barking and her eyes widened to see the small pack of sled dogs.

Her surprise grew when she saw the man kneeling among the dogs, who greeted him enthusiastically, whimpering and wagging tails.

“There are several large sacks in that iron box over there. Hand me one...” Stunned by his harsh command, Morgan did as he asked and walked over to the large box on the other side of the room.

A foul smell hit her as she opened the box and she had to hold her breath if she didn’t want to throw up. Inside the box were several bags of half-frozen meat. Carefully, she grabbed one and, holding it as far away from her as possible, walked back to him.

“I didn’t think you were such a wuss...”

His condescending remark made her anger flare. “I’m not a wuss! This stench is just disgusting!”

The only reply she got was a contemptuous huff.

After the feeding of the dogs, they walked further into the factory until they came to a halt at some sort of fold.

Though the shelves weren’t fully stocked, there was enough food for a couple of months, at least for two people... Morgan thought to herself. Now that they were here too, that supply would quickly dwindle.

“Take what you need for two days and hurry... I’m freezing my ass off!”

The uncertainty took over again, now she had to walk past him and into the room. Was he going to make a move on her?

“I’m not going to rape you, if that’s what you think!” His cold eyes narrowed to slits.

“We made an agreement, but I won’t force you, I’m not a monster. But I expect you to keep your word...” His piercing eyes seemed to bore deep into her soul and Morgan’s cheeks began to burn with embarrassment.

She quickly lowered her gaze. “I will... but I need some time, if that’s all right?” Her voice was soft and tentative. From her vantage point, she noticed the man clenching his hands into fists.

“Like I said... I won’t force you!” He shoved a bag into her hands, then turned and walked out of the room.

Morgan gasped for breath. She hadn’t realised she was holding her breath.