Black Box 1.0

At the end of the third day, there was nothing else to do. The house was clean, and the systems were fine. He'd checked the guns. The last two meals he'd made for Lillian sat outside her door. He was going insane just sitting around the house. It was a risk, but he decided to take the ATV and go to Leah's.

Leah Marsden rescued him shortly after he arrived in the area. For Lillian, keeping an off-the-grid compound running should be a simple thing. In her view, Kevin wasn't a complete idiot; therefore, if he watched enough YouTube videos and read enough websites from other people living off-the-grid experiences, then he should be able to figure things out.

That Kevin had an English degree and grew up in the suburbs was beside the point to her, but not to him. He crammed as much information as possible but still found himself helpless more than once, especially when he began experimenting with growing their food.

Leah found him in the hardware store trying to figure out fertilizer. "I'm a sucker for lost puppies," she told him later. When he protested, she laughed. Despite being mocked, Kevin found he liked the sound of her laugh. She was older than him by a few years and was Métis. Leah had long, black hair that often had beads or other accessories weaved through it. Her left arm had a tattoo sleeve of Métis art she liked. She also had a scar on her face beneath her right eye. Leah never talked about it, and Kevin never asked. She was perpetually wearing jewelry that she made and sold locally or on Etsy. It didn't pay much, but she said she didn't need much.

What was a one-time hardware rescue developed into a friendship. Leah lived off-the-grid, about 20 km away from him, although her accommodations were much more modest. The only time she visited and walked around Lillian's place, she shook her head, astonished at all the toys and gadgets.

When he visited her home, it was much more modest. It was less than 800 square feet; except for a space carved out for a bathroom, it was open-concept. The pick-up she drove was from the previous century.

One day, Kevin brought over a couple of bags of the expensive coffee Lillian drank as a gift to say thanks for all her help. As they drank it and chatted, she paused and gave him an odd look.

"I am the Queen of Lost Causes and Bad Decisions," she said. "Let's see which one you are." Then she leaned across the table and kissed him.

It wasn't until she kissed him that Kevin realized how long it had been since he'd been with someone. There had been a few one-night stands in LA, but that was it. He'd always had terrible luck with women. Most of his relationships lasted a few weeks, then something would happen, and they'd break things off. They'd move away, meet someone else, or realize they weren't that compatible.

But being in the middle of nowhere with Lillian, he realized how lonely he'd gotten. There were only so many Zoom calls you could do with friends and his parents. He had time to write, and he did. But sometimes it was nice to talk to another person.

Afterwards, as she had her head on Kevin's chest, he could hear her laughing quietly.

"What?"

"You are so not my type. You don't even have tattoos, for God's sake," she said. "I swore off white guys long ago, and yet here I am, back to fucking a white guy again."

"So why? I am not complaining. I think I'd almost forgotten what sex was like," he said.

"I could tell," she said, looking at him with a smile.

"Asshole," Kevin said, and then kissed her head.

"There. That's the reason why. I make that joke with some guys I've been with, and they don't react well. You laugh," she said.

"Well, I promise to get better," he said, running his hand down her back. "You've taught me pretty much everything else out here."

She laughed and leaned up to kiss him. He could feel himself getting hard again and was ready for another round when she pushed back and looked at him.

"I do like you, but I'm not going to be your girlfriend, ok? I need....this," she said, gesturing around her house. "This is my space. I went through hell to get this. It's not your mansion, but it's mine. I'm happy to give you a hand from time to time. But we're not going to be serious. Every few weeks, I'll give you a call, or you'll give me a call, and you can come here, drink this ridiculous coffee, and we'll fuck. But that's it. Clear?"

It was blunt, but she meant it. Kevin would have to be an idiot to argue, so he didn't. Instead, he nodded his head.

"Ok, you're a fast learner on other things. Let's see how you do here," she said, kissing him.

That was over two years ago and their relationship worked how she liked it. Sometimes they went for a couple of months, especially during the winter. Other times they'd fuck several times a week. If Lillian objected, she never said anything.

Kevin felt, if nothing else, he owed it to Leah to let her know that some bad shit might be coming down and that it might be best for her to go and visit some family or friends for a few weeks. He knew she would take it poorly, maybe bad enough to end things. But if something happened to her because of whatever bullshit Lillian was involved in, he'd never forgive himself.

When Kevin pulled up to the front of her cabin, she opened the door looking surprised but smiling. It had been a few weeks, so dropping by wasn't exactly a surprise.

"Hey, you. Good timing. I was thinking of dropping you a line and telling you to get over here," Leah said. Then she saw his face as he took off the helmet. "What's happened?"

Kevin pulled a bag of coffee from his backpack. She nodded and waved him inside. He walked into the cabin, took off his Columbia coat and hung it over the back of the chair at the kitchen table.

Leah had been working before he arrived, with her work area covered in beads, wire, silver, gold, and other instruments and materials used to make her jewelry. Other than that, the rest of her home was neat. She only liked clutter where she worked. Kevin sat at the small kitchen table as she took the coffee and brewed it, saying nothing until after she handed Kevin a mug. He took it with cream and sugar. She took it black.

"Ok, what's going on?"

Kevin couldn't tell her everything, but he told her as much as possible to get the point across. That a former employer of Lillian's had come back, insisted she work on a secret project and threatened her with unspecified consequences if she failed.

"How scary is he?" she asked.

"Physically? Not at all. I could take him," Kevin said. Leah tried and failed to suppress a smirk. Since he moved out here with Lillian, he'd gotten in better shape. Much of the weight put on in LA eating cheap food vanished. He was slimmer, but he was 5'7" and only had a few inches on Leah. She was also more muscular than he was. And he knew she could fight better than he could.

"The point I'm trying to make is that he's not physically threatening. But he can bring scary people with him," he said.

"So, what are you going to do?" Leah said, taking a sip of the coffee. "Can she do what he wants?"

"Almost certainly."

"You sound very certain about that. Is it bet your life confident?" she asked.

As their....friendship grew stronger, Leah had naturally been curious about the nature of his and Lillian's relationship. There were times Kevin wasn't sure what had happened, but he explained as best he could. They'd met when they were 11 when she moved next door. She was an odd kid, which resulted in ruthlessly bullying. Kevin loathed bullies, so he stepped in to protect her. For almost 20 years, he was still trying to protect her from bullies.

When Kevin explained it to Leah, she seemed both envious and confused, especially since he was still doing it.

"You don't often get to be next to a genius. And Lillian is a genius. She's the smartest person I will ever meet. And I think she will do something great. And if I'm around, maybe I can play some small role when it happens," he said at the time.

But was she worth possibly dying for? That's what Leah was asking now.

"She can do it. I'm 99% certain she can. And I'm not certain I can walk away from her now. Or even if I'm allowed. Mitchell's a prick, but he has resources. If he found me here, he'll find me anywhere I go if he wants to. Plus, we hate each other, so he's looking for an excuse."

"Jesus."

"Yeah."

Neither one said anything for the next few minutes, content to drink their coffee and process things. Kevin had been figuring out some things independently, but it was nice to talk to someone out loud about it.

"Kevin, why are you here? Please don't fucking tell me it's something stupid like telling me I should go and visit some friends and family to try and protect myself," she said, nodding to the rifles in her gun cabinet. She'd indicated that not all of them were for bears. Some were for other predators that might pay an unexpected visit.

Kevin gave a small laugh. "I thought about it but didn't think it would go over well. But I am telling you to be careful. Fair?"

She gave him a guarded look. "Fair."

"And in case something happens, I wanted to say goodbye. I mean, maybe I'm being melodramatic..."

"You? Noooooo..." she said, trying to keep things light.

"...but I don't know. This is a weird situation and more than I signed up for. I genuinely don't know what will happen next. So if the worst happens..." Kevin started.

"Don't you fucking dare," Leah snarled at him, the smile evaporating. She stood up suddenly, knocking over her mug. She walked around the table and looked down at him. "Don't you fucking dare. You are one of the few decent men I've met. Yes, you're hopeless at many things, but you're a good man, so that balances things out. So don't you fucking go and do something stupid. No hero shit. Do we understand each other?"

She'd been frustrated with Kevin so many times over the last two years, with his inability to master things she considered basic survival skills. But she'd never been as angry and upset with him as she was now. He could joke with Leah or argue back. Instead, he stood up and looked her in the eyes.

"I will do everything I can not to be stupid. I promise. No hero shit," Kevin said.

She stared at him, measuring the sincerity of his words. Then she nodded, judging that to be good enough. She grabbed a towel to mop up the coffee but still looked upset. Her eyes looked moist, but if Kevin mentioned it, he was pretty sure he wouldn't live long enough for Mitchell to kill him.

"I should go," he said, turning away from her and moving towards his coat. Then he heard a half-laugh behind him.

"Jesus Christ. You promise not to do anything stupid and then break your promise 30 seconds later," she said.

"What?" he managed to get out as he started to turn around. Then Leah slammed him into the wall hard enough to cause at least one of her pictures to fall and break. Her lips collided with his and her fingernails raked through his hair hard enough to hurt.

Kevin hadn't come to fuck Leah. He'd honestly come to her house to talk and give her a head's up that some serious shit was coming his way. But the instant she pushed him into the wall and kissed him, he realized he wanted her badly.

She reached down, hooked her fingers under the t-shirt and sweater he was wearing, yanked it over his head, and tossed it across the room. He grabbed her faded A Tribe Called Red t-shirt and carefully pulled it over her head. Her hair was always a tangle of braids and beads. And no matter how much she liked Kevin, she'd help Mitchell kill him if he ripped her favourite t-shirt.

They resumed attacking each other, hands and mouths flying over each other's bodies. Leah bit his ear hard enough that he was sure she must have drawn blood. Kevin grabbed her ass and carried her over to the bed, throwing her on it. Leah made an 'ooof' sound before Kevin began pulling at the legs of her jeans. She quickly unbuttoned them, and he yanked them off her legs, leaving her wearing just a pair of well-worn black panties.

Kevin began taking off his pants while Leah impatiently slid her fingers under her panties to play with herself. Leah had never been one for slow, romantic sex. It annoyed her. She liked sex to be forceful. She didn't care if she was in charge or the other person. Just as long as it was passionate, not sweet and gentle. It took a while for Kevin to get into what she liked, but today he had some aggression to work out.

He stood in front of her, naked with his cock hard. In her blunt way, Leah told him she'd had bigger but that his cock was just the right mix of length and thickness to suit her.

He took a second to admire her body. She had a dark complexion, and her body was lean, coming from constantly moving. Along with the tattoo sleeve, she had a dog tattoo on her hip and a Kraken on her upper thigh. There was also a jagged scar on her lower stomach she never discussed.

"Are you waiting for applause or something?" she asked him, smirking. It was her way of reminding him to get on with it and to piss him off so he'd be more forceful when he took her.

"That normally comes afterwards," he said, getting on the bed and began sucking on her tits. They weren't huge, but he loved their sensitivity. He also slid his hand down, grabbed Leah's panties and, with some wiggling, pulled them off her legs. Kevin then removed her hand and replaced it with his own, sliding his fingers through her bush until he found her clit. Unsurprisingly she was already soaked.

"Oh yeah, that's it, baby," she groaned, running her hands through his hair. He took her left nipple in his teeth and pulled hard. She hissed and arched her back but didn't tell him to stop. His fingers moved faster, and she began breathing heavier until she finally cried out and did a little shudder as she came.

He lifted his mouth off her breast and looked at her for a moment. That little smile always crossed her face after she had her "icebreaker." A quick little orgasm to get her warmed up. He moved up and began kissing and nipping at her neck.

"Mmmmm, someone's hungry," she said in a husky voice.

"Let me show you how hungry I am," Kevin said, using his hand to push her legs apart. He repositioned himself, lining up his cock with pussy, and thrust into her.

"Oh fuck!" she cried, wrapping her legs around him. He grinned at her reaction.

"Somebody needs some fucking, obviously," Kevin said.

"You're the only halfway useful cock for 50 kilometres. Don't get too fucking smug," Leah said, running her nails down his back.

He stepped up the pace of his fucking, not being gentle nor subtle about it. He rarely was when it came to Leah, but in the back of his mind, he kept thinking that this could be the last time he had sex. If that was the case, give her something to remember. Their hips slammed together, and she kept crying out, grabbing onto him as if her life depended on it until she finally screamed and came again. Kevin paused, his cock buried in her as her pussy pulsed around him. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, but some still dripped on her.

"You...didn't....cum? she got out between gasps of breath.

"Not yet," he said, pulling out of her, then grabbing one of her legs to turn her onto her stomach. He pulled her hips up. Doggie was one of those weird positions that she loved because she came like gangbusters and hated because she felt helpless.

She could hate him later, he thought, forcing his cock back into her.

"Oh, you fucking bastard!" Leah cried out.

Kevin grabbed her hips and began fucking her hard, feeling the sweat flying off him and the growing ache in his muscles. He knew he didn't have long but wanted her to cum one more time. Taking a chance, he let go of her hip and brought his hand down on her ass a half dozen times in rapid succession.

"Oh fuck!" Leah screamed out and came again. That was all it took for Kevin, who buried his cock into her and came. Stars flashed behind his eyes and he collapsed on top of her.

There was no noise in the cabin except for the two of them trying to catch their breath. Eventually, Kevin slid off the top of Leah and rolled over onto his back. He stared at the ceiling of her cabin and wasn't thinking of anything, which was a welcome relief after the last few days. To his surprise, Leah rested her head on his chest and wrapped the rest of her body around him, unwilling to let him go yet.

"Only halfway decent cock for 50 km?" he repeated back to her. He had to admit it was a good line. "You've done extensive surveying on the matter?"

"Never settle for inferior cock," she said, making him laugh. Then she shifted and looked at him. "This is as close to affectionate as I get, but I'm serious. Don't fucking die."

"Leah," Kevin started. She interrupted, thumping her fist on his chest.

"I'm serious, don't fucking die or do something stupid. If you get the chance to walk away, fucking walk away."

"Halfway decent cocks are hard to find?" Kevin said, trying to make light of things, but she wasn't having any of it.

"Decent human beings are hard to find. I have a very fucking short list of them. Don't make it shorter for me," Leah said.

Kevin had a very one-sided view of their relationship; he needed her far more than she needed him. She always seemed comfortable in her skin and solitude. He would have been lost out here without her wisdom and company. While he had Lillian, he suffered from loneliness more than Leah did. He was usually the one calling and asking if it was ok to drop by, rather than her asking for him to swing by.

But now, listening to her voice and seeing her reaction, he realized that maybe their relationship wasn't as one-sided as he thought. That perhaps she did need him...at least a little bit.

"I'll do my best, Leah. I don't particularly want to die either," he said.

"Then don't," she said, but this time in a tired voice. Soon she drifted off. Kevin wanted to pass out as well. He was exhausted, but already his brain was beginning to spin back into gear. A glance at his watch showed he'd already been gone longer than he should have. Not that Lillian would miss him, but he didn't like leaving her alone for so long.

Kevin got dressed as quickly and quietly as possible so that Leah didn't stir. It was better this way. Leah had already been more emotional with him than he'd ever seen before. A big scene would just piss her off more. He walked over to the ATV, started it up and drove away. He didn't look back.

****

Three days later, Lillian solved it.

Kevin was outside. An early winter storm blew through the day after he left Leah's, trapping him in the house. Once it ended, he went around the property, clearing off the solar panels to ensure there were no power dips. Then a tour of the property, making sure nothing was damaged. It wasn't hard work; he just had to be thorough. He welcomed the chance to be doing something after nearly losing his shit stuck inside the house during the storm. Lillian's door remained closed and locked.

There was the additional bonus of being outdoors. Kevin was a kid from the suburbs, so the kind of views he enjoyed now were only things he saw on tv or in the movies. Snow always covered the mountain tops, but now the spruce and pine trees had a coat of snow. It was breathtaking, so he occasionally paused and enjoyed the scenery as he worked.

After stowing the snowmobile in the garage, he trudged through the snow towards the house. To his shock, Lillian was sitting on the front steps; her only concession to the cold was the duvet she stripped from her bed and was using to keep warm. That she could have grabbed one of her winter coats in the closet didn't occur to her.

He was walking over to chastise her for being outside like that. What if she got sick and couldn't finish this project? His ass was on the line too. But as he got closer, Kevin saw the look on her face. Emotion was never something that Lillian was good at expressing. She was good at frustration and anger sometimes.