The Night is Long Ch. 02

This is a work of fiction. This story involves a young man and his half-sisters doing whatever is necessary to survive in an apocalyptic world. That includes ensuring that there will be future generations, so if any of that disturbs you, then you should stop reading now. Any similarity to real names or real people is coincidental. Constructive comments are always very welcome.

My philosophy is that a story should be like a woman's skirt. It should be long enough to cover the subject, but short enough to keep it interesting. I try to do that in my stories. You may or may not agree with me as to where I should end a story, but know that I end each story where I think it should end. That being said, this is a fairly long story, which will require multiple chapters to complete.

Nobody in this story was under 18 when they had sex.

"The night is long... and full of terror."

One of Adam's tasks was to patrol the perimeter of their property each day. He had basically worn hidden trails through the woods. He always took a weapon with him on his walks. There weren't as many animals left as there had been before the disasters, but there were still some left, and some of the animals could be dangerous. In the last couple of years, Adam had noticed more and more animal tracks, so he assumed that the animals in the area were multiplying. By then, years had passed since the disasters, and although he hadn't seen another human in a long time (other than his half-sisters), he still kept an eye out for any human sign as well.

It was just a month or so after Rebekah gave birth to a son (named Isaac) that Adam actually found human tracks during his daily walk. At first, he missed them. The vegetation had grown up to the point where even his trail was obscured, and it wasn't until he found a small fresh footprint in a muddy area that he knew for sure that there was a human in the area. He carefully followed the tracks, and he had a lot of experience in tracking, so it was fairly easy for him to follow the trail.

Adam wouldn't normally go off their property, but following the tracks, he found himself crossing what had been the property line (not that it meant much anymore). He knew the area very well from before the disasters, so when the tracks led across the valley and up a ridge, he had a good idea where they were leading. Adam knew that there were caves in that ridge, and he figured that whoever had made the tracks was living in one of the caves.

The whole time he was following the tracks, he was careful not to leave any tracks of his own, and he was always looking for any other tracks. From the size of the tracks he was following, he figured that the person was either a boy or a woman. They weren't big enough to be made by a man. As Adam got closer to one of the caves, he slowed down and was even more careful than he had been. It was a good thing, too, because Adam started to find traps along the trail. It wouldn't be good if he got caught in a trap.

As he approached a cave, he got off the trail, and went up above it into the vegetation, where he could watch the trail and the cave entrance without being seen. It was soon apparent that somebody was using the cave for shelter. There was a fire ring in front of the entrance, and there were animal skins drying near the fire. Whoever was living there had some skills.

It wasn't long before he saw the girl coming out of the cave. He watched her for quite a while before she went back into the cave. She came back out with a bow and arrows. She sat by the fire and ate what appeared to be jerky before making her way down the trail toward him. Though Adam was pretty sure the girl was living alone, he didn't show himself as she walked down the trail. He continued to watch the cave entrance until she returned from wherever she had been. She was carrying a rabbit that Adam assumed she had trapped.

Adam continued to watch as the girl prepared and cooked the rabbit. By the time she was finished eating, Adam was fairly sure that she was alone. He pondered whether or not to introduce himself to her, but he finally decided to go back to his home to talk with his half-sisters first. If they took this girl into their group, it would change everything, so he obviously had to get their input.

He quietly slipped away through the vegetation, staying off the trails. He had already learned that the girl knew how to trap, and she was using the trails to catch animals, so it was safest for him to stay off the trails. However, that meant that he had to be extremely careful about where he put his feet. He backed out of the area and finally got back to his home. When he entered, both of his half-sisters asked him where he had been, since he was outside much longer than he normally was.

Adam sat down with his half-sisters and told them where he had been and what he had seen. Both of them were very curious about the girl, and they talked for quite a while before Adam told them he was hungry. Rebekah and Ruth smiled and asked him to come into the kitchen while they prepared some dinner, so they could talk some more.

There were a lot of questions, and Adam couldn't answer many of them. They talked about the different possibilities, and how they would affect their own lives, if they chose them. In the end, it was Rebekah who came up with the final solution. "Until today, we weren't sure there were any other living humans on Earth. Now, we know there is at least one other human still alive. I ask myself what it would be like if you thought you were the only human left, and my heart goes out to this girl. It must be depressing living alone like that. I think that Adam needs to go to the girl and ask her if she would like to join us."

Ruth chimed in, "I agree."

"Okay, then," Adam replied. "I will go to her cave first thing tomorrow morning. Have you girls thought about how we will explain our situation to her?"

Rebekah said, "Don't worry. I will explain it to her, if she is willing to come with you."

They all sat down and ate dinner. Rebekah had actually cooked earlier, so all she had to do was dish it up. She said, "Adam, we have everything we need to set up a greenhouse. Now that things are growing again, I think it is time to build the greenhouse and plant a garden. What do you think?"

"I have been thinking about that for a while," he answered. "With all of the ash, the soil seems to be more fertile now than ever, so I think that a garden would do well. We have plenty of water, and now we have plenty of sunlight, so things should grow. We will want to keep the greenhouse next to our home, so nobody else will discover it. If somebody does, we will need to protect it. Therefore, we may want to build a wall to protect it and our home from critters as well as any scavengers that may still be out there. After all, if there is one survivor out there, there may be more, and we can't assume that all of them will be friendly to us."

Rebekah replied, "That is true. In fact, we can't even assume that this girl will be friendly. However, if it turns out that she isn't, we must be prepared to deal with that as well."

"I agree," said Adam. "I will be armed tomorrow when I visit her camp. What happens will be completely dependent on her reaction to me."

Little Isaac started to cry in the other room, so Rebekah went to look after her son. Adam had built a small crib, so Isaac could sleep in their bedroom, but so he could sleep in the crib by himself when he wasn't being fed or changed.

Adam went outside to stake out where he would put the greenhouse. He knew that his parents had purchased a few greenhouses long before the disasters, but they hadn't ever assembled them, and they had been stored until they could be used. Now was the time to pull one out. The greenhouses were stored along with a lot of other prepper supplies back in the cave behind their home for future use in case they were needed. Now, they were needed, so they could start growing their own fresh food. Adam would also stake out the perimeter of the perimeter wall he planned to build around the home and greenhouse area. It would be a log palisade, like an old west fort. Since there were standing dead trees all over the property, it would be easy to build with them.

When Adam was finished laying the greenhouse and palisade out, he went back into the house. It was getting late, so he went to the shower before getting in bed. As soon as Isaac was asleep, Rebekah came to Adam and offered him her right nipple. Adam smiled and lay there and suckled for a while. He really liked the sweet taste of Rebekah's milk. Besides, Rebekah really enjoyed being suckled, so it was a win-win for both of them.

As Adam was suckling Rebekah's nipple, Ruth straddled his waist and lowered herself of his cock. She then slowly fucked him. She was already too pregnant to want to fuck fast, and that was fine for Adam. He didn't really have to do anything besides suckling Rebekah's breast and bringing his cock up as Ruth lowered her pussy onto him. The sex lasted for quite a while this way, but Ruth still came. When her orgasm subsided, she slid off to the side.

Rebekah immediately took Ruth's place, sheathing Adam's cock in one thrust. Her breasts were hanging down in his face, which he liked, but she increased the rhythm until there was no way he could capture a nipple in his lips. Adam rolled her over on her back and started to really fuck her. Since Rebekah had completely healed from giving birth, she could fuck as hard as Adam wanted. Sure, her pussy wasn't as tight as it was before the birth, but it still felt wonderful on his cock.

Because of all the suckling, Rebekah orgasmed fairly quickly, but Adam continued to fuck her even as wave after wave of intense pleasure swept over her. That was one thing that Adam had learned with his half-sisters. They could have orgasm after orgasm, and each orgasm would only get stronger as they progressed. Rebekah was squealing in pleasure as Adam continued to rut her. She had long ago lost all sense of reality, and her pleasure consumed her thoughts.

Adam came, and he came hard. It felt like his cock was shooting spurts strong enough to penetrate her entire body. His cock was lodged against her cervix, and his sperm quickly filled her womb and beyond. Even though Rebekah was still climaxing, Adam barely noticed. He was too preoccupied with his own pleasure. It seemed like sex just got better and better as time passed. Maybe they were getting better at it, or maybe he was just getting more pleasure from it. He didn't know, and it didn't matter. It was good.

All three of them fell asleep quickly. It had been a long day, and the next day might be just as long. Rebekah had to get up a few times during the night for Isaac, but she didn't mind. She loved being a mother, and Isaac had been a perfect baby for the most part.

Adam woke early in the morning and quickly popped out of bed. He would take some bread with him, rather than stop for breakfast. He wanted to be at the cave before the sun came up. That way, he could watch the area for a while before he appeared to the girl. It was a good thing. The girl came out of the cave to tend her fire. Adam had noted that she was wearing animal skins, so she obviously had been without clothes for a while.

She got the fire going again, ate some jerky, and then walked over to a stream. Adam sat in the bushes as she approached the stream, took off her skins, and proceeded to wash herself. Adam noticed that she had a beautiful body, and she obviously wanted to stay fairly clean, since the water in the stream had to be cold. Adam knew that she didn't have a weapon on her (since she was naked), so he thought this might be a good time to introduce himself.

The girl had her back to Adam when he stood up and walked quietly toward her. She was busy with her hair, and she didn't notice him until he was next to her. She spun around in horror, obviously fearing the worst. Adam put his hands up to show her that he didn't have a weapon in his hands. She glanced down at the pistol on his belt, still terrified. "Easy," he started. I'm not going to harm you. You are the first human that we have encountered in several years."

"We?" she asked.

"Yes," he answered. "I live with my two half-sisters. We thought we might be the last people on Earth, but then I found you yesterday."

"May I dress?" she asked.

"Of course," he replied. The only reason I approached you while you were naked was that I knew that you wouldn't lash out with a weapon. By the way, my name is Adam. And by the way, the night is long..."

She quickly put her animal skins on. "And full of terror. My father taught me the greeting when I was young. My name is Eve. I haven't seen another human in several years either. I thought I was the only one left. When I was little, I hid a lot because people were killing each other for food or whatever. Lately, I have mostly just stayed in the mountains, living in caves, and hunting and trapping to feed myself. I was lucky that my father taught me those things before he died. It was also lucky that some animals managed to survive the disasters, or I would have had nothing to eat."

Adam said, "It sounds like you have lived a very hard life, and it is likely that you have experienced much more terror than I have. Can we sit over by your fire and talk?"

"Sure," she replied. They walked over to the fire area and sat down. "You have real clothes. Where did you get them? My clothes wore out years ago."

Adam smiled. "Our parents were preppers. We have enough clothes for many, many years."

"Wow," Eve sighed. "That must be nice."

Adam looked at her. "If you want to live with us, you can have clothes too. However, I must tell you that we live together as if we are married. If you join us, you would be my third wife, if you want."

"You would let me live with you?" she asked. 'How do you know your half-sisters will accept me?"

"We talked about you last night," he answered. "They will accept you, if you will accept being a member of our family as one of my wives. I am 25 and lead the family, Rebekah is 22 and just had my baby, and Ruth is 19 and is about seven months pregnant with my baby. Both of our parents died along with our younger brother. We are now trying to rebuild the human race. So, do you think you would be okay with that?"

"I have no problem with that," Eve replied. "The old rules no longer apply. I have walked hundreds of miles in my wanderings, and you are the first person I have seen in many years. I want to be loved, and I would be happy to be a member of your family, if you want me. This is the best opportunity I have had since my father died when I was young. I would be happy to be your wife. By the way, I am 18. How did you find me?" she asked.

"I found your track in a little patch of mud on one of my trails," he replied.

"Wow," I am usually more careful than that. I must have been tired, and I didn't realize that I was on somebody's trail."

"That is on purpose," he said. I try to not leave any sign, even on our property. You never know who might be out there."

"That is true," she replied. Even though I haven't seen another person in years, I try to be careful just in case."

"Okay, then, Eve," he said. "Let's gather your things and take them back to your new home. My half-sisters will be happy to meet you." When they went into the cave, Adam was saddened by how little she had. She quickly gathered everything and stuffed it into her backpack.

She turned to him. "I need to collect all of my traps. Otherwise some animals will die and go to waste.

"Sure," Adam replied. "I don't want any animals to die that we won't be able to eat."

Eve put on her pack and picked up her bow and arrows. She then turned to the entrance and said, "Let's put out the fire before we go." She quickly scattered the rocks and took the remaining wood and coals to the stream to put them out. When nobody would be able to tell there had ever been a fire there, they started down the trail. Eve stopped periodically to spring traps and gather the materials. Most were simple wire snares, but some were elaborate wooden spring traps capable of killing larger animals.

Once all of the traps were disarmed, collected, and in her pack, Adam led the way across the valley to his home. Eve didn't realize that anything was even there until they were at the front entrance. That was how Adam had set things up. The home was camouflaged, so that unwanted visitors wouldn't find it. Actually, most of the home was inside of a cave, so only the entrance had to be camouflaged.

Adam opened the front door, and took Eve inside. Her mouth was hanging open. It had been many years since she had been inside of a home, and she thought this one was beautiful. "Wow," was all she could say. She was all smiles.

Adam's half-sisters heard Eve speak, and came into the room carrying Isaac. "Introduce us, Adam," Rebekah opened.

"Eve," Adam said (pointing to the oldest half-sister). "This is Rebekah and our son Isaac, and (pointing to his youngest half-sister) this is Ruth, who will be giving birth in a couple of months. Girls, this is Eve. She hasn't seen another person in years, so don't overwhelm her. We will be able to get to know each other better over time, but first, are you hungry, Eve? I notice that you didn't have much to eat this morning." Eve nodded her head to show that she was hungry.

Ruth went into the kitchen, and they all followed. Adam took Eve's pack and other things and set them to the side, and then he seated her at the table. He and Rebekah sat down with her and Ruth brought food to the table. There was bread and soup. Once everybody was seated, Ruth started to dish out some soup for Eve, with a slice of bread on the side. Then she dished up soup for Adam, Rebekah, and herself. Eve didn't eat until everyone had their food. She was having a hard time deciding if this was real or just a dream. When Adam dipped his bread into his soup and took a bite, she decided that it was real and tasted the soup. It was the richest food she could remember ever tasting, and she started to cry.

Ruth was heartbroken. "Is it bad?" she asked.

"No," Eve replied. "It is the best thing I have ever tasted. I just don't know what I have done to deserve this."

Adam answered, "You have survived. That is enough. I'm sure that you will contribute a lot to our family in the future."

"I will do whatever I can," Eve said. She then picked up her bread and sniffed it. "I remember bread from when I was young, but I didn't think I would ever see it again."

"Well," said Ruth. "You can have all the bread you want here. I usually bake bread at least twice a week, so we always have some around. Tear it up and soak it in your soup. It is best that way."

Eve watched as the others tore their bread to soak it in their soup, and she followed their example. Then, she tasted it. It was amazing. She smiled at Ruth. "Thank you, Ruth. You are all so kind to me." Then, she put her spoon into the soup and started to eat.

When Eve got to the bottom of her bowl, Ruth smiled and said, "There is more soup and more bread, if you are still hungry. I know that at least Adam will have seconds, so you might as well, too."

Everyone had a second bowl of soup to make sure that Eve wasn't uncomfortable. When they were all finished, Ruth took the dishes to the sink and started to wash them. Eve said, "Let me help with that. I want to contribute."

Rebekah held up her hand. "How long have you been wearing these skins?"

Eve looked down and replied, "I grew out of my clothes years ago, so this was all I had. Clothes are hard to come by out there."

"Well," Rebekah replied. "You have come to the right place. We have a lot of clothes. Come with me, and we will find you some clothes to wear, and you can get a shower and put on some clean clothes." Rebekah took Isaac (who was asleep) to his crib in the bedroom, and then led Eve back into the storage area behind the main living area. There were rows of shelves with boxes on them.

Rebekah got down some boxes that were marked, 'Women's clothes' and opened them. Eve was amazed by all of the clothes in the boxes. There were also clothes in a hang-up area. Everything was covered to ensure cleanliness. Rebekah even found several pairs of panties for Eve. Eve couldn't remember the last time she had nice panties like these. Rebekah said, It is a good thing that you are the same size as me and Ruth. Most of the clothes are that size."

Eve picked out a few dresses and some blouses and skirts, and then Rebekah took her back to the bedroom, and they sat on the bed. She showed Eve where she would hang her clothes in the closet and her drawer in the dresser. "We all sleep here on this bed, and we sleep nude, so I hope you will be okay with that."

"I don't know," Eve replied. "I have never slept with a man. I'm not sure what I'm supposed to do."

"Don't worry," Rebekah responded. We will help you. Do you want to be loved by Adam?"

"I don't really know Adam," Eve said. "But I have been alone for so long, and I don't want to lose this chance to be part of a family. I will love Adam, and do whatever he wants me to, if he wants me."

"Oh," Rebekah said. "I'm sure that he wants you. You are a beautiful girl, and I'm also sure that you noticed that I just had a baby and Ruth is pregnant. I'm sure that Adam will like having you in bed with him. Besides, you are Adam's Eve. I just realized that."

"Okay," Eve replied. Teach me what to do, and I will do my best to please Adam and be the best wife I can be. I really don't know anything about that, though. My father never talked about that."

"Right," said Rebekah. "First, I will show you how to use the shower. It looks like it's been a while since you were able to really clean yourself. If it is okay with you, I will help you to get clean in the shower."

"It is okay," Eve responded.

Rebekah smiled. "Good. Then let's strip together and get into the shower. Do you have any attachment to these skins you are wearing?"

"No," Eve said. "I will be happy to get out of them."

"Okay, then," Rebekah said. "I will have Ruth take them outside to burn them. That way we won't have tiny critters in our home."

"Tiny critters?" Eve asked.

"Lice," Rebekah responded. They suck your blood and carry diseases. They also make you itch."

"Oh," Eve replied. "Is that what caused the itching."

Rebekah smiled again. "I will treat your hair with lice shampoo too while we are in the shower. We wouldn't want your beautiful long hair bringing any little critters into bed with us. We try to stay healthy, and we want you to be healthy too."

"Thank you," Eve said. "It has been so long since anybody actually cared about me. I will always be grateful."

Rebekah called to Ruth, and then they took off all of their clothes to get into the shower. Eve was amazed when the water came out warm. She couldn't remember bathing in anything but cold stream water. Tears came to her eyes, but she was smiling as the water ran over her.

Rebekah started with Eve's hair, washing it first with the shampoo for lice. Even though she and her half-sisters kept very clean, they still treated their hair with this shampoo twice a year to make sure that there was never a problem. So far, there hadn't been. Once Eve's hair was thoroughly shampooed, Rebekah let the shampoo stay there in Eve's hair as she started to wash Eve's body. Rebekah used a sponge and body wash to scrub Eve. Eve liked the scent of the body wash Rebekah was using, and she was enjoying having Rebekah scrubbing her all over.

It was soon evident that Rebekah would have to scrub Eve's body for quite a while before she was truly clean. Rebekah had to rinse the discolored body wash from Eve's skin a few times before no further dirt was being loosened. Rebekah and Ruth had dark brown hair, while Eve was a blonde. She was also a bit thinner than the half-sisters, but not by much. Likely, she just hadn't fully matured and hadn't been getting enough to eat. That would change in time.

Eve really enjoyed having Rebekah washing her body. She especially liked it when Rebekah washed her breasts and between her legs. As Rebekah washed her, Eve noticed that Rebekah had no body hair in her armpits or groin area. She asked her about that. Rebekah smiled. "We all shave our body hair. That way, there is no place for lice to live. Would you like me to shave you?"

The question surprised her, but she nodded her assent. "Very well," Rebekah said. "I will get out a new razor for you, and I will take care of you. Don't worry. I think you will like the way it feels when there isn't any hair." Rebekah went over to the bathroom cabinet and pulled out a new razor, and then she got back into the shower with Eve. She had Eve raise each of her arms as she shaved her armpits. Then, Rebekah got down on her knees to work on Eve's pussy hair. Rebekah thought it was almost a sin to shave the girl's small patch of blonde pubic hair, but she knew it was necessary.

When Eve was completely free of body hair, Rebekah once again used body wash to scrub her one last time. Then, she rinsed the lice shampoo out of Eve's long hair, running a comb through it as she did. It was quickly obvious why this was necessary, as Rebekah could see dead head lice and nits in the comb each time she ran it through Eve's hair.

Once there were no more lice or nits and Eve's hair was completely rinsed, Rebekah used some high quality scented shampoo to wash Eve's hair one more time, All the time running the comb through her hair just to make sure. She then thoroughly rinsed Eve's hair, and then applied crème rinse. While the crème rinse sat in Eve's hair. Rebekah continued to run a comb through the girl's long blonde hair. "I feel so pampered," Eve said.

Rebekah smiled. "Don't worry, we all pamper each other like this. You will get a chance to wash me and Ruth and even Adam." That made Eve blush. She had no experience with men.

After several minutes, Rebekah rinsed the crème rinse out of Eve's hair as she ran the comb through it one last time. She then wrapped a big fluffy towel around Eve's hair to help dry it as Rebekah dried the rest of Eve's body with another big, fluffy towel. "I really love your hair, and now that it is clean and shiny, it will be even more beautiful. I'm guessing that you won't recognize yourself in the mirror when your hair is dry and you have clothes on."

"I'm sure that's true," Eve responded. "I haven't seen myself in a mirror in years. I haven't even had a mirror since I have been alone, and that has been more than seven years."

Rebekah hugged her. "I can't even imagine how hard it must have been living in the wilderness alone the way you have, but you are safe with us now. Let's get you dressed, and then I will get your hair completely dried and brushed out. You should wear your hair like the crown God intended it to be." Eve didn't completely understand, but it was obvious that Rebekah cared for her already.

They walked back into the bedroom, and Eve picked out clothes to wear. She really liked the lacy panties, and she picked a pretty dress as well. Then, as Rebekah brushed out her hair, she studied herself in the mirrored closet door.

"What do you think?" Eve asked.

Rebekah smiled. "I think you are drop dead gorgeous. You are the prettiest girl I've ever seen."

"Really?" Eve asked. "I didn't know. I've never had anything to compare with, but I think that you and Ruth are very pretty too."

Rebekah was very happy with Eve's reaction. "That is one reason why we find you so endearing. You are innocent in so many ways. Trust me, we will all love you for the rest of your life, and Adam will really love you. You have nothing to worry about there. You will always be safe with us."

Eve smiled. She had long dreamed of being in a family where she was loved. After her father died, she was afraid that she would never know love again, but here she was being given another chance. "Thank you. I will do my best to deserve your love."

Isaac was starting to stir, so Rebekah went to his crib. He was in need of a diaper change, so Rebekah took care of him while Eve watched. Eve seemed fascinated by the process. Rebekah noticed how engrossed Eve was and commented, "You should get some experience doing this. It is likely that you will have a child of your own within a year."

Eve blushed. "Oh. I hadn't thought of that."

Once Isaac was changed into a new diaper, Rebekah lowered her top and put him on her breast. Again, Eve was fascinated. Rebekah smiled. This girl was very innocent, as she had never been exposed to any of this kind of thing, and she had no books to learn it from. Then she had a thought. "Eve, do you know how to read?"

"I can read some," Eve responded. "My father taught me, but I'm not very good at it, and it has been years since I read anything."

"Okay," Rebekah said. "We will fix that. We have lots of books and old magazines to read."

Rebekah lay back against the pillows on the bed while Isaac suckled her breast. She looked at Eve and smiled. "Adam likes to suckle a woman's breasts too. It feels very good."

That surprised Eve. "Really?"

"Yes," Rebekah answered. "Would you like to see what it feels like to have a baby suckle on you? It would give you some experience."

"But I don't have milk in my breasts," Eve replied.

"Isaac doesn't know that," Rebekah responded. He will continue to suckle as long as he is hungry. Would you like to try?"

Eve thought for a second. "Okay. I'll try."

"Unbutton your dress and expose your nipples," Rebekah instructed. "Then, you can come over here next to me, and I will show you how to put a baby on your breast." Eve followed the instructions and Rebekah put Isaac on Eve's nipple. Rebekah watched as Isaac latched onto Eve's nipple and started to suckle.

"This feels funny," Eve said.

"Does it feel good?" Rebekah asked.

"Yes," Eve replied. "It feels good."

"Good," Rebekah remarked. "It will feel even better when Adam suckles your breasts. A baby is only looking to get milk. A man suckles your breasts to give you pleasure. If you like this, then you will love that."

After suckling both nipples, but getting no milk, Isaac started getting fussy. Rebekah took him and put him back on her nipples until he was full. Then, he went to sleep again as Rebekah burped him over her shoulder. "This is important," she said. "A baby doesn't know how to get rid of the air it swallows when suckling, and it will hurt later on, if you don't burp the baby." Pretty soon, Isaac burped, and Rebekah put him back in his crib. "Let's go back to the other room to see what Ruth and Adam are doing," she said.

Eve followed Rebekah back into the kitchen where Ruth was preparing dinner and Adam was sitting at the table watching her cook. He looked up when Eve walked into the room. "Wow!" he exclaimed. "Your long hair is really beautiful, and you look really nice in that dress. I take it that Rebekah helped you back in the back."

"Yes," Eve replied. "Rebekah has been very helpful. I still don't know what I did to deserve all of this love, but I will always be grateful, and I promise to love you all back. I will do whatever I can to help the family."

"Eve," Adam said. "We are as happy that we found you as you are to be found. As for helping, you have been successful at trapping and hunting. Can you teach me some of your skills, and could you go with me on my daily patrols?"

Eve's face brightened. "Of course, I would love to teach you, and I will help you all I can. I noticed a box in the back storage that is labelled 'Traps.' Could we take a look at what's inside?"

"Certainly," Adam replied. "There are a lot of boxes back there that I have never checked. Maybe you can help me with some of my other projects too."

"I would love to help you with anything," Eve replied. "I may not know how to do much, but I am willing to learn whatever you think I need to know."

"I couldn't ask for more," Adam said. "After dinner, let's all sit down and talk. We want to know more about you, and I'm sure you want to know more about us."

Eve smiled. "Sounds good."

Dinner was ready, and Ruth set the dishes on the table. Dinner was spaghetti with garlic bread. Ruth was a pretty good cook, and she was able to do a lot with stored ingredients. Their parents had stored many years' worth of freeze-dried and dehydrated foods, so most everything up until this point had come from those stored foods. It took a lot of creativity to use spices and the few herbs they had to add that something special to the foods they ate.

"I remember spaghetti from when my mother was alive," Eve said. "This is wonderful. Thank you Ruth."

That made Ruth very happy. "You are too kind, Eve. Spaghetti is actually one of the easiest meals that I prepare."

"Well," replied Eve. "It reminds me of my mother, and that makes me happy."

Ruth smiled. "What other meals remind you of happier times? I'll see what I can do."

"Hmmm..." Eve thought. "I remember fried chicken, but there aren't too many chickens around, and I haven't ever had any oil to fry anything."

Adam cut in. "You are in luck. We actually have a small flock of chickens for the eggs, and we do have oil to fry things. I'm sure that Ruth will fry a chicken at some point. We don't have many chickens, and we are trying to increase the size of our flock, so it is rare that we eat them, so you won't see it often. On the other hand, I saw you trap a rabbit, and fried rabbit is as good as fried chicken, so there is that."

"I had no idea that you had chickens," Eve replied. "Is there anything else? You will have to show me around, so I know what is available. Then, maybe I can help you to use things even better than you already seem to be doing. At the very least, I am sure that will learn a lot of new things."

Ruth quickly cleared the table and washed the dishes, and then they all moved into the living room to talk. All three siblings were fascinated by Eve's tales of her life and all of the adventures she had experienced. She was equally fascinated by how it had been for the siblings to grow up in this refuge, how the few interactions they had with outsiders had gone, and how somehow they had managed to survive without being overrun by the scavengers.

It was an amazing contrast between Eve's life and the lives of her new family. She was so lucky to have entered this mountain valley when she did. It was truly a land of opportunity, and she planned to take full advantage of it. At the same time, Eve was fully committed to contribute to the family's well-being, and she would share her knowledge with the others as well.