Leaving the grid: The Epic Saga of Apocalyptic Survival (Society of Sisters Book 1) Read online

  "You forgot to share that little detail with me. What the fuck are we going to do now?" I whispered back.

  Darlene was like that. She tended to skimp on the details and fill the void in with trivia or useless information. Darleen held my hand as we broke from our embrace, and spoke to the assembled women on the porch, "I would like you to meet my lover, Dennis Richards, everyone. He's old, but he's a very nice guy once you have a chance to know him."

  An older woman, who appeared to be the group's leader, stepped forward and said, "I'm Lisa Carson, Mr. Richards. Please come inside. I think we need to have a talk." I had the same, uneasy "Oh crap! Now, what?" feeling that I used to have when I got summoned to the Principal's office as a kid.

  Lisa turned on her heels, walked inside, and the rest of us followed her into the cabin's great room. If the cabin had looked large from the outside, it looked like it went on forever standing in the middle of the hall. It was enormous. A massive free-standing stone fireplace dominated the center of the room, and a blazing fire radiated heat and light in all directions.

  A cathedral ceiling towered over the open space, and a rustic balcony ringed the wall on all sides at the second story level. Thousands of LED icicle lights hung from the balcony railings and stairways. A soft, comforting glow bathed the room.

  Lisa directed us to follow her to her office upstairs. She stood about 5'6" and was a good-looking woman about my age. Streaks of red highlighted her closely cropped brunette hair, and she appeared to be in excellent physical condition. Her skin had the bronze tan of someone who was no stranger to hard outdoor work. Her face was more attractive than beautiful. She was wearing faded work jeans and a low cut wool sweater, which allowed an excellent view of well-tanned medium-sized breasts and ample cleavage.

  Lisa's office featured a large oaken desk and a stone fireplace. A picture window filled one wall with a breathtaking view of the frosted mountains painted silver in the light of a nearly full moon. A floor to ceiling bookcase crammed with books covered the opposite wall. There were several oriental rugs scattered about on the wood floor

  "Make yourselves comfortable, I'll be right back," Lisa made a quick exit through a side door.

  Lisa's abrupt departure startled me. Something was brewing, and I wasn't sure I cared for the flavor. Darlene and I took a seat on a small sofa in front of a coffee table and exchanged worried glances while we waited.

  I leaned close to her ear and whispered, "What the hell is going on? This ain't the warm and fuzzy welcome we expected."

  "I know. Seriously, I don't understand. I told Lisa's assistant that you were coming with me, and she said, 'Great, the more, the merrier."

  We could hear the muffled voices, but not the words, of two women engaged in a heated discussion in the next room. The conversation ended abruptly, and a moment later Lisa entered the office with another woman in tow.

  "Your presence here presents us with something of a problem, Mr. Richards. Darlene sent us a text message to our satellite phone. She told us she was bringing her lover 'Denise' with her. It was on that basis that we gave our permission for you to join our family of sisters," Lisa crossed her arms and studied us closely.

  Darlene let out a little gasp just before she burst out laughing. "Fucking auto-correct will get you every time. I dictated that message on my iPhone, and I never caught the error when it changed Dennis to Denise," Darlene said.

  Oh, damn! Talk about getting off on the wrong foot. We were at the intersection of Colossal and Fuck Up.

  It took Lisa only a moment to absorb the implications of Darlene's unintended error. There was no conspiracy at work here; just faulty technology.

  "Error or not, Mr. Richards' presence in our family of sisters might produce, er, unwanted sexual tension, that kind of stress can be bad for families," Lisa explained as she took a seat across from us.

  "Seriously? You're all lesbians, how can an old fart like me produce any sexual tension?" I protested.

  "There are capital-L Lesbians, and there are lower case-l lesbians, Mr. Richards, and then there are those who might want to find pleasure from a man out of mischief or mere curiosity. The fact that you're old makes you seem harmless, but I know better. You're not as safe as you appear. You have already seduced one of our first lesbian sisters and convinced her to take you on as a lover," Lisa answered as she glanced over at Darlene.

  I also gave Darlene an inquiring glance of my own. I had suspected, but never known for sure that my lady love walked both sides of the street.

  Lisa leaned forward and looked directly into Darlene's eyes, "Since we're already on the subject, why on earth did you pick such an old guy for a lover in the first place? My God girl, he's old enough to be your father or even your grandfather."

  Darlene laughed, "Everyone wants to know about our May-December relationship. I picked Dennis because he's low maintenance, easy to be with, and treats me with respect. He's a fantastic lover and knows how to make a woman happy. His tongue is very talented."

  Lisa looked over at me and raised a questioning eyebrow. I just smiled back and shrugged as the 'talented tongue' comment seemed to hang in the air forever.

  Lisa let the silence stretch out a bit, and then leaned across the coffee table, took Darlene's right hand in her own, and asked, "Tell me, dear sister, is his penis as talented as his tongue?"

  I shifted in my seat and struggled to keep a neutral expression as the two women discussed my sexual performance. I couldn't imagine a more awkward conversation.

  Darlene looked surprised at Lisa's question, and then looked thoughtful. She told Lisa after several moments of reflection, "His penis is untrained, and it doesn't work nearly as well as his tongue. Sometimes my lover can't get it up or keep it up. Other times his pecker has a mind of its own. He often suffers from premature ejaculation when he finally does get an erection."

  Lisa glanced over at me and raised another questioning eyebrow. I just blushed, shrugged, and did my best to sink out of sight in the sofa. I tried to avoid any response that might extend discussion further. Darlene had a tendency to overshare information.

  Lisa turned toward her assistant and said, "Will you please show Darlene to her room and round up a few of the sisters to help unpack their vehicle, Lucia? I need to spend a few minutes to bring Dennis up to speed on the ground rules for our colony. Please let the kitchen crew and the others know that we may be a little late for dinner."

  With a quick kiss on my lips, Darlene rose and give Lisa a slightly longer kiss as she followed Lucia out of the room.

  As the door closed, Lisa stood and beckoned me to follow her, "Let's adjourn to the next room where we can be more comfortable. We've got a lot to talk about."

  There was no doubt about it, I was a stranger in a very strange land.

  Chapter 3 – (Return to index)

  The 'next room' turned out to be the bedroom Lisa shared with her partner, Lucia. The walls were hand-hewn pine planks decked out with bookcases and several very well done nude watercolor portraits of women.

  A queen-sized four-poster bed covered with a beautiful handmade quilt took up one wall, and a rustic looking nightstand with a large table lamp adorned with a stained glass shade provided most of the light in the room. The balance of the lighting came from a stone fireplace with several burning logs.

  A huge bearskin spread out on the floor before the fire, along with several large throw pillows, offered comfortable seating. The room had an elegant, warm and cozy feel to it overall.

  Lisa retrieved an amber colored bottle and two glasses from the bookshelf and sat down on the rug. She patted a spot next to her as she invited me to join her at the fireplace.

  "Dennis, would you care to join me in a glass of home-brewed brandy?"

  "Only if you make mine a double." I was tempted to ask for a triple, but I let it pass. A double would do for now.

  Taking a seat on the rug next to Lisa, I made myself as comfortable as possible. I was no longer as flexible as I had been wh
en I was younger. Moreover, sitting on the floor was hardly my preferred mode of relaxation.

  I took a sip of the offered brandy. Oh my, God, it was as smooth as silk, and I could feel it filling me with a warm glow.

  "Tell me Dennis, how comfortable are you with public displays of nudity?" Lisa asked as she took a sip of her brandy.

  I nearly snorted the drink out of my nose as I coughed and choked in surprise. What the fuck kind of question was that?

  "I don't have a problem with public nudity," I regained my composure. "I've visited plenty of nude beaches in my life."

  "Did you get nude yourself or just visit as a voyeur?" Lisa inquired.

  "I got as naked as everyone else. Why do you ask?" I responded.

  "Because our dress code most assuredly is clothing optional when we're in the cabin. Most of us go skyclad when we aren't working or cooking, or if safety requires we remain covered up. I'm glad that you're comfortable with this," Lisa said, as she pulled her sweater over her head and exposed her braless chest.

  I used to think I was pretty jaded and nothing would surprise me. Wrong. What do you say to a naked lady? I felt like I was playing a bit part on candid camera.

  Neatly folding her garment, she rose to her knees, unbuckled her jeans, and slid them down to her ankles. My eyes widened in surprise, Lisa wore no underwear, and her naked body showed no trace of tan lines. My head was spinning. Seriously, the same dizzy feeling I had when standing at the edge of a cliff swept over me in a wave of cultural vertigo as I struggled to keep my mental balance. The normal social landmarks outlining the boundaries of acceptable behavior were either missing or obscured in this strange new world.

  Lisa folded her jeans, placed them on top of her sweater, leaned back on the pillow behind her, and closed her eyes, "Ahh, that feels much more comfortable. I'm almost getting to the point where I hate wearing clothing," she said with a deep sigh.

  I took the opportunity to examine Lisa's exposed body as she lay naked next to me. I was trying to engrave this moment in my memory for later replay. Maybe it will make more sense the second time around. Her breasts were still pretty firm, and they showed few of the signs of aging or sagging, apart from a few stretch marks, which came along with advancing years. Lisa's nipples were about the size of the tip of my little finger, and her dark brown areolas were roughly the size of fifty-cent pieces. Her stomach was flat with just a few wrinkles above a thin patch of reddish-brown pubic hair. She was in better physical shape than most women half her age. Either that or she was a very high mileage thirty-year-old.

  Lisa's face had the usual lines and weather-worn creases of someone who spent most of their time outdoors, and there was only a slight hint of a double chin.

  She opened her eyes and caught me studying her body, "Do I meet with your approval?" I was stone-cold busted.

  "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to stare. I don't often find myself alone with a naked woman," I stammered.

  "This whole thing is way too weird. Talk about being beyond my comfort zone; you're naked. Now you tell me there's an entire group of naked women just beyond this door," I looked around and waved my arms, "and then there's all this, this cabin in the middle of fucking nowhere. It's just everything. I don't mind being outside my zone, but I still need the time to process it," I said.

  "Take this cabin, for example. It didn't grow here. It seems to be at least ten or fifteen years old, and it must have cost a fortune. What did you guys do? Win the lottery or something?" I said, waving my arms around the room.

  "You're either a good guesser or a very lucky boy. That's exactly how this place came to be. Do you remember 20 years ago when everyone freaked out over a $75 million jackpot that remained unclaimed for almost a year? That was the sisters and me," Lisa said.

  "It took eleven months to decide what we were going to do and set up a corporation to hold the ticket. We decided that we would fly under the radar. We didn't want the media attention, I'm sure you can understand." she patted my leg.

  "How the hell did you build this structure? You needed some heavy equipment to put this place together, and there are no roads in or out of the valley?"

  "We cut and milled all the wood we needed on site. A French Canadian Heavy Lift Helicopter Service brought in all the necessary equipment to complete this building and about a dozen utility structures. I'll give you and Darlene a tour of our Colony tomorrow," Lisa offered.

  I numbly nodded 'yes' while reaching into my shirt pocket. I needed a smoke to calm my nerves.

  With a pack of smokes in my hand, I asked, "Is it okay with you if I have a cigarette?"

  "Shit! You've got cigarettes? I haven't had one in years," she took the pack from my hand and tapped two cigarettes out before setting the pack down next to her leg.

  Lisa gave me one before rolling onto her stomach. Slightly spreading her legs for balance, she stretched forward and reached into the fireplace to find an unburned twig to use as a match to light her cigarette.

  Her buttocks were on vivid display as she sprawled before me. Each rounded cheek was firm, compact, and well-tanned. Her small puckered brown anus was clearly visible in the valley between them just above the lips of her vagina. I could feel a stiffening in my shorts as my body responded to the vision before me.

  I was going to have to get my aging and raging hormones in check if nudity was going to be the new normal. I had a hunch that sprouting a boner every time one of the women of the colony bent over wasn't going to cut the mustard.

  I reached into my pocket, pulled out my Bic lighter, and lit my cigarette while Lisa worked to get her twig lit. I then tapped her on the leg and offered her my lighter.

  Lisa relaxed against her pillow for the next few minutes and puffed away at her first cigarette in years. "Damn! I had forgotten how much I enjoyed a good smoke." She laughed and blew a perfect smoke ring and then another.

  "Keep the pack; it's my treat. There are plenty more in the car," I watched the smoke rings until they dissolved in the air. I was impressed. Not many smokers could blow a quality smoke ring.

  "Really? How much is plenty more?" Lisa asked.

  "I brought enough tobacco to roll at least 24,000 cigarettes. That should last a few years," I told Lisa about my bulk tobacco purchase in Rifle, Colorado.

  My eyes kept drifting back to Lisa's breasts and down to her pubic hair and vagina as we talked. I finally said, "I know that staring is rude, Lisa, but it's hard to keep my eyes away from your body. You're a very attractive woman." I felt my erection twitch.

  "I noticed, but don't worry about it. I didn't give you much warning before changing into my birthday suit, and this was a test. I wanted to see how you would handle female nudity, and you did just fine. I'm frankly flattered when someone admires my body, even if it's a man. Just try not to drool," Lisa said with a grin as she glanced at my crotch.

  "I understand the usual norms around social nudity, and it doesn't include unwanted sexual aggression. Just because a woman is naked doesn't give anyone permission to grope or fondle her. I get it," I rested my hand in my lap. Just to be on the safe side.

  "That is almost a feminist viewpoint for a man. Maybe you'll be able to fit in here after all," Lisa stood up, stretched and stood on her tiptoes as circulation returned to her legs.

  "I'm famished, and it's getting late, Dennis. Let's continue this conversation later, but we need to get downstairs before there's nothing left of dinner in the meantime," I gratefully took her hand as she helped me to my feet. I have the knees of a man twice my age.

  Chapter 4 – (Return to index)

  The dining area was located just off a large commercial kitchen at the far end of the great room. A supersized picnic table lined with benches provided more than enough seating capacity for the thirty-seven females who made the Colony their home. The table itself is a stunning thing of beauty. The tabletop surface consisted of wide pine planking sanded to a silky smooth sheen and then coated with dozens of layers of polyurethane.

  I
took a good hard look around as we descended the stairs. Designed to appear humble, at least from a distance, the cabin functioned as a state of the art survival factory with enough solar capacity on the roof to meet the needs of several large households. All the lighting in the cabin utilized LED bulbs. The thousands of icicle lights deployed around the great room drew less power than two or three 75-watt bulbs.

  The air temperature in the hall hovered at a pleasant 75°F. Most of the sisters of the colony were gathered in animated conversation around the expansive dining table, which Lisa said doubled as a conference table for group meetings. They were all topless, and most were bottomless. Never before had I seen so much exposed female flesh in one place at one time.

  In a daze, I tried to process a torrent of new information. I was kinda prepared for the sight before me thanks to Lisa's sudden introduction to public nudity. Nothing Darlene told me about this place prepared me for the strange reality of actually being here, however.

  One of the women spotted us and shouted out a greeting to Lisa before we even descended a third of the way down the staircase. A naked Darlene waited for me with a hug by the time we reached the bottom of the stairs.

  Darlene whispered in my ear as we embraced; "Give me a long, wet, sloppy kiss and play with my ass. I'll explain later."

  I learned long ago that obedience is the best course of action when Darlene gives a command like that. We locked lips and traded spit in one of the most passionate kisses we shared in a long time. I ran my hands over her bare bottom and lovingly caressed her buttocks as I held her. Darlene let a low moan out. I cupped each cheek in the palms of my hand and jiggled them so much that she burst out laughing which ended in a loud 'yelp' when I gave a loud slap to one of her cheeks.

  "What was that for?" she whispered.

  "Payback for your excessively detailed account of my prick's sexual deficiencies," I whispered back.

  Darlene giggled, gave me a quick kiss, took my hand, and then pulled me in the direction of the dining table as she said, "You've got to get some dinner before it's all gone. It's venison stew, and it is absolutely delicious."