I let the tears fall down my face and onto the carpet. All my agonizing means nothing now. I have no choice but to let the people I risked everything for come back in for the third time. Hopefully this time it will be to save us instead of harm us. My voice is barely a whisper but I know she’ll hear me.
“AIRIA, increase Rex Larson’s authorization to green. Tell him to bring the doctor.”
As my vision starts to dim my brain can’t process what she says next.
“Skylar Ross, outer perimeter breach detected.”
I try and say more but blackness closes in and I let my head slump to the floor.
Chapter Eleven … Rex
I’m tired but it’s a good satisfied tired. We got so much accomplished today. Ethan spent the morning treating the minor burns from the rain and ailments of the large group and has plans to set up vaccinations for all the children in the barracks. I’ve never seen him so happy as when he found out about the stockpiles of stored medicines available to us. Belle bounced between getting the kitchen stocked up with supplies from storage to organising a team of people to start filling the garden beds and pots with bags of soil to start planting seeds. Lance, Marsh and I worked on hauling out desks and office furniture so we could fill the empty rooms with bunks for families.
Everyone from the hotel seems revived by the comforts of being in a safe place with heat, hot water, and good food. They all dove in, getting bunks moved around into separate living spaces and supplies distributed. None of our group had really gotten to know anyone from the hotel with the threat of Ted and his men hanging over us but now we were finally learning names and what skills everyone has.
Lance has plans to get a census started with everyone’s skills listed and then make a schedule for different areas of work. At first, I was worried that the people would resent us for taking charge but it seems they’re all happy to be doing something positive after barely surviving and cowering in fear at the hotel. I ask Lance the question that I’ve been worrying about since we all came inside.
“Are all of these people safe?”
Lance looks down the barracks at the people milling around and gives a thoughtful frown before answering.
“The short answer to that is, I honestly don’t know. We don’t really know any of these people. We weren’t at the hotel long enough to interact with them much and I can’t say I’m really impressed by how they all let Ted control them. I can see how the fear of everything that happened, in the beginning, could make them all follow a strong leader, but seven years of his abuse?” He shakes his head dismissively. “That’s pretty weak. All I can say based on that is I don’t really see any of them being a threat. Especially if our group keeps control of things. Most of them will just follow along with what we suggest and be thankful we aren’t cruel like Ted and his men.”
I nod in agreement to that but I’m still concerned that we may have brought a threat in with us.
“What about Ted’s men? What happened to all of them?”
Lance’s face turns grim. “Not a lot of them made it back from the group he sent with me to scout the ski resort. They either didn’t survive the radiation cloud or the savages picked them up. When I made it back to the hotel, it was in chaos. People had found out that he and Mickey had taken off with most of the supplies and the water had stopped flowing. There were only five of his guys left there and I saw three of them take off with backpacks in the opposite direction than us. The other two decided to come with us but I…persuaded them not too. They disagreed so I had to permanently persuade them. I wasn’t going to have them with us as a constant danger so I did what I had to.”
He looks over at me to see my reaction so I just nod that I agree with what he had to do. He pushes off from the wall we’re leaning against and takes a step away before speaking again. “From what I’ve seen so far, we’re going to be good here, Rex. I don’t foresee any problems at all with the others but if something does come up, we will handle it.” He leaves me there to think about his reassurances.
I can’t help but think about how hard we’ve all had to become since the bombs dropped. We went from a cushy life where the idea of taking a life was a shocking event that would cause a long-lasting ripple effect to ourselves and society, to it just being a sometimes needed event.
I’ll never forget the first time after the bombs dropped that that lesson came hammering home.
Chapter Twelve … Rex
Matty’s smashing block towers in the corner with some of the toy blocks we brought with us from the store. The kid keeps building them up and knocking them down with great big belly laughs. I try and smile at his antics but the howling wind that smashes against the windows on the other side of the plywood covering them sends a frigid chill down my spine. You’d think I’d be used to it by now but even after four months of arctic weather it still gets to me.
Marsh and I are playing our thousandth round of cards while Sasha huddles under two blankets on the couch with a book. Lance, Ethan, and Belle are working on the garden they set up in the basement. I draw my next card and complete my winning hand but it’s hard to get excited when you’re numb. Not just numb from the constant cold but emotionally numb from being terrified for so long. Don’t get me wrong, I feel safe with these people and I’m grateful they took Matty and me in but I still can’t get over how everything has changed. My parents are dead and so is most of the world. Just about everything can kill you now, from the weather to the radiation or just other survivors. I’ve been waiting for four months for the next horror to happen and it’s made me numb. I guess that’s why I barely react when the back door comes smashing in, bringing a gust of arctic air and two huge monsters.
Sasha lets out a high pitched scream followed quickly by Matty’s siren-like wail while Marsh and I just stare open mouthed with our cards still clutched in our hands. It takes a few seconds in the dim light for me to realize that they aren’t monsters but two men bundled up in multiple layers of outerwear. The one in the lead pushes his hood off his head and quickly scans the room before focusing on Sasha and thrusting a gloved finger sharply at her with a harsh “shhh” sound. Her scream cuts off halfway through and she yanks the blankets up and over her head before he turns and faces Marsh and me.
He takes a step closer to us and into the flickering candle light we’ve been using to see our cards while the guy behind him wrestles with the damaged door to get it to close. His face is gaunt with his cheeks hollowed and his eyes sunken in, he looks half way to being a skeleton. This is the true face of what the bombs have left behind, starvation.
“Where’s the food?” His voice rasps out menacingly. When no one answers him right away, he does the opposite of what I expect. I expect him to bellow and rage and threaten but instead, he lets out a deep sigh. “We know it’s here. Every house in this area has been stripped of every crumb and you are the only ones living on this side of town. So, where’s the food? You can give it to us or we can take it!”
I peel my eyes off of him to glance at Marsh to see if we should give this guy some of our supplies but he’s looking past the intruders at something else. I swing my eyes back to the man and open my mouth to speak but whatever I was going to say comes out a gag as a bloody arrow tip explodes halfway out of his neck. I think the worst part of seeing my first man die is not the blood but the resignation and something that looks almost like relief in his eyes before he falls to the floor. It’s almost like he’s relieved he won’t have to fight and struggle anymore.
When I finally pull my gaze from his empty eyes and look up, Belle is scooping Matty up and pulling Sasha off the couch before rushing them down into the basement. The second intruder is on his knees with Ethan gripping his shoulders from behind and Lance is in front of him with an arrow notched and ready to fly right at his face.
Marsh finally drops his cards to the table and stands but he moves towards the front of the house and looks out the viewing slot cut into the plywood over the window. I have no idea w
hat I should be doing so I stay right where I am and watch the kneeling man’s face. I’m amazed that there’s no anger in the man’s face. All I see is acceptance. Lance calmly asks the man questions about where he came from and if there are others in his group. When the man answers all of Lance’s questions, I’m not even surprised by his response.
“You know we can’t just let you go.”
When the man merely nods, I finally realize that all of us are numb, not just me but everyone who’s left.
I stay sitting there with my winning hand of cards clutched in my hand as Lance takes the man outside and Ethan works on fixing the damaged door. It isn’t until Lance comes back and kneels in front of me and starts speaking that I finally move.
“Son, Rex, I need you to listen to me. What just happened was…sad. They were probably good men once but they had finally reached their limit and had become a danger to us and anyone else out there. The difference between us and them is a slim line but it’s a line we will never cross. Life is hard now and it’ll get much harder in the future but we will never attack and take food from other people so that we can survive. We have the smarts and will to take care of ourselves without resorting to that.
"Even if we had given them some of our supplies, it wouldn’t have been enough. They would have come back for more eventually until it became a fight and we ended up having to kill them to keep us alive.
"I didn’t enjoy doing that and I never will. Taking another’s life is huge but this world has changed and we will do what it takes to keep our family alive. I want you and Marsh to really think about what happened here and what drove those men to try and take food from children. Listen to us and learn how to grow and hunt food so that you will never be forced to come close to that line. One day, and it will probably take years but one day, this world will be easier to live in again. "YOU need to decide what kind of man you’ll be when that time comes. Will you be the man who killed others by stealing their food or will you be the man that learned how to survive honorably and killed only to protect yourself and your family?”
He leans back on his heels and waits for my response. I look down at the cards in my hand and for the first time since the bombs dropped, think that just maybe I was dealt a winning hand by ending up with these good people. I lay the cards down on the table and face him again before I nod in agreement and finally, I don’t feel quite so numb anymore.
Chapter Thirteen … Rex
The smell of baking bread has been wafting out of the kitchen all day and I’m ready to round up Matty and go sit down for whatever meal has been prepared for supper. I’m hauling the last bunk into place with Marsh when AIRIA’s voice booms out to fill the cavern causing me to drop my end with a metallic clang to the concrete floor.
“Rex Larson, authorization increased to level green. Please proceed to alternate living quarters with Dr. Ethan Gains to attend to Skylar Ross and Benjamin Ross who are in medical distress.”
It takes half a second for me to process this before I’m sprinting towards the offices. Medical distress? What does that mean? They’re hurt, somehow they got hurt and need help. Ethan, I need Ethan! I change directions on the fly and almost skid out on my still damaged knee but ignore the flare of pain and keep going. I can hear pounding footsteps paralleling mine in a different area and when I clear the last set of bunks before the medical clinic I see Ethan disappearing through the doors. I fly towards the doors and make it through them before they slide closed.
Ethan has a bag in hand and is throwing supplies into it while talking to AIRIA.
“AIRIA, what happened to Skylar and Benjamin? Is it trauma or illness? What are their symptoms?”
“Dr. Ethan Gains, it appears to be an illness of some kind. Symptoms are dangerously elevated temperatures and respiratory congestion. Without fluid samples, I am unable to reach a further diagnosis.”
I stand waiting for him - but all I want to do is run. Run to Sky’s place and make sure she and Ben are okay. I know he needs to take supplies with us but inside my head, I’m screaming “LET’S GO!” He finally looks up from a drawer that he’s pulling I.V. bags from and notices me waiting for him.
“Oh, Rex, good, you’re here! Take this bag so I can start filling another one.”
I snatch the bag from him but grab his arm as he starts to move away.
“Ethan, we have to go! We can come back for more if you need it. Or we can bring them both here!”
Ethan stares at me for a second before he starts shaking his head. “No, we aren’t going to do that. Skylar does not want to be over here and she really doesn’t want her brother here. We are not going to go against her wishes on that if I can help it. Bring what you have in that bag and I’ll come back for more if I need to.”
I turn without a word and wait impatiently as the doors slide open before sprinting towards the offices. I see faces staring at me as I run past including a worried looking Belle and Matty, but I can’t stop. Skylar and Ben need help and it’s my turn to do the saving. Ethan and I run down the corridor to the double metal doors. There always seems to be doors between me and Sky but this time she’s given me the key so my palm slaps the pad and the doors slide soundlessly open. Our feet echo even louder in the tunnel and it feels like I’m running in place. I’m so scared of what we’ll find on the other end.
The tunnel doors open between the animal area and the gardens and I have to stop and take a few steps back to get Ethan moving again because he’s standing there staring at the small farm. He shakes away his amazement and starts following me again. Over the small bridge and past Ben’s sandbox, then palming the door to their living quarters. I scan the living room and kitchen but there’s no one there so I take a right and see a foot on the ground just inside Ben’s bedroom.
My heart just stops with my feet when I get close enough to see her laying on the floor. How could this happen so fast? I just saw her less than twenty-four hours ago! Ethan shoves me out of the way and hits the carpet on his knees beside her. He’s checking for a pulse on her neck and yelling at me but all I can see is Sky laying there on the floor lifeless and it’s frozen me solid.
Ethan breaks me from my trance by wrenching the bag of medical supplies from my shoulder and I finally hear what he’s saying.
“Rex, she’s breathing! Help me get her off the floor!”
I shake off my shock and help him get Sky onto the bed beside Ben. I can feel the heat radiating off of them both and it scares me to death how limp and lifeless Sky is when we lift her. I stand there feeling useless while Ethan pulls out a stethoscope and listens to both of their chests. My whole body is vibrating with the need to DO something, anything but this is beyond my abilities to fix so I have to just trust Ethan to make them better. He finally stands up and turns to me.
“Rex, I’m going to start I.V.’s for both of them and get some antibiotics running. I think it’s pneumonia but can’t know for sure unless I can do some x-ray’s back at the clinic. I’m almost positive though because there was a little girl in the hotel group who I think has it also. Her x-rays showed cloudy lungs so I set her up on an I.V. with antibiotics earlier this morning. Skylar probably picked it up from her and passed it on to Ben. They’ve been so isolated all these years that any bug is going to knock them right off their feet and move quicker than in people who have a better developed immune system. I need you to go back to the clinic and get a stretcher so we can move them.”
I just stare down at the two of them without moving. I did this to them. I remember how fierce Skylar was the first time she brought me and Matty into the airlock. How she was afraid we would infect Ben with something from the outside because he’s never been exposed to any real germs before. I remember her carrying a little girl on our mad run to get inside when the rain started and how she told AIRIA to override the decontamination process to get us all in faster.
I did this to them. For the second time, I brought danger into her home and put the only thing that matters to her at risk.
How will she ever begin to forgive me? I don’t think she will. The only thing I can do is pray that Ethan can get them better so I ask the computer.
“AIRIA, is there a stretcher here on this side of the tunnel?”
“Rex Larson, a medical stretcher can be found in storage container A1.”
I back away from the bed, not wanting to take my eyes off the girl I know I’ve lost for good. Ethan squeezes my arm and I make myself stop thinking. There will be time later, once they’re better, to face my guilt. Then I’m running out the door again.
Ethan doesn’t want to leave either of them alone so we put them both on the stretcher with their heads at either end. I’m thankful that it’s a full ambulance style stretcher with folding legs and wheels so we can move them faster and safer than trying to carry them both. Ben opens his eyes briefly when we lift him onto the stretcher, but I don’t think he’s really with us. Skylar stays limp and doesn’t even moan. I can’t help but wonder if all the pain and stress she’s endured since I came into her life has left her weakened. She’s such a fighter so it seems absurd that something as small as a germ can bring her down.
I’m so lost in thought that I don’t even realize that we’ve made it through the tunnel and to the metal doors until Ethan has to ask me to palm it open. Lance is waiting on the other side when the door opens.
Endless Winter Box Set: Books 1 - 4 Page 25