No Safe Place

by Christine Kersey

  Derrick slapped the hood of his truck. “Let’s roll.”

  Dylan jumped into the bench seat in back before Matt climbed in the passenger seat.

  “Frank said if we went into populated areas, to head south,” Matt said when they reached the end of the gravel drive. “To the north is Stockton. According to Frank, it wasn’t the safest place before society collapsed. So now…” He let his words trail off.

  “Right.” Derrick turned south.

  Dylan leaned forward. “Maybe that’s where the Emperors are. In Stockton.”

  If Stockton had been filled with gang-bangers before the apocalypse, then yeah, it made sense that the ones who’d survived had banded together to create this new ultra-gang. “Maybe.”

  “We should go there,” Dylan said, his voice filled with intensity. “To find them.”

  Matt glanced at Derrick, who was slowly shaking his head, his wrist resting lightly on the steering wheel.

  “Come on, Dad.”

  As angry as Matt was for what the Emperors had done—to him and to Walter—he had zero desire to hunt down Randy and his crew. “Today we’re after food and supplies.”

  Dylan slumped back into his seat.

  “Your dad’s right,” Derrick said, his eyes going to Dylan in the rearview mirror. “We don’t need to seek out trouble. It’ll find us soon enough.” His eyes went back to the road.

  Remembering that the Emperors had forced them off of the freeway before robbing them, they decided to stay to the back roads. They were about fifteen miles south of where they’d had their run-in with the Emperors, but still, no reason to chance running in to them again.

  “There’s a house,” Matt said, pointing to a structure tucked away behind tall trees. No other houses were nearby, and the lot looked like it was a couple of acres. “Let’s check it out.”

  Derrick slowed. “Okay.”

  As Derrick pulled into the circular driveway, Matt scanned the area. No people and no cars. Still, for all they knew a whole family was inside. They would have to approach carefully.

  Matt stepped out of the truck, his eyes on the front door. No movement. No red X either. “Anyone home?” he shouted. Leading the way to the front door, he wondered if this would be a waste of time. Maybe they should have driven right past and hit a grocery store instead. Except the nearest grocery store was several miles away while this house was right here.

  He knocked loudly, then paused to listen for approaching footsteps. There were none. He twisted the doorknob, but it was locked. With a look at Derrick and a nod of agreement, Matt led the way down the porch steps and toward the back. No fence blocked off the backyard. As they strode toward the back door, Matt was on high alert. Worried that the homeowner was tending a garden or something, he called out, “Hello? Anyone home?”

  When there was no answering reply, Dylan said, “Guess not.”

  Matt climbed the three steps to the deck. Then, trying to see inside, he squinted as he got near the back door, staring at the French doors. No movement came from inside. Just to be safe, he knocked, then pounded on the glass. All was quiet.

  He turned the knob. Locked.

  Suppressing a sigh, he turned to Dylan. “Find a large rock.”

  Dylan’s eyes widened. Up to this point they’d been able to get into the houses they’d searched through an unlocked door or an open window. Of course, all of those houses had been hit by someone else first. Guess whoever had cleaned out the places hadn’t felt the need to lock up afterwards.

  Did that mean this house hadn’t been hit yet?

  Hope blossomed inside Matt.

  “We’re going to break the glass?” Dylan asked, his eyebrows high on his forehead.

  “Unless you have a better idea how we can get in.”

  Dylan glanced around, his gaze going to the closed windows before settling on the French doors. Shrugging, he turned and walked away.

  Matt met Derrick’s smiling face with a chuckle.

  Moments later Dylan was back with a sizable rock. He held it out to the two men.

  Derrick looked at Dylan with a smirk. “You try first.”

  Dylan’s gaze went to Matt, who nodded, then he drew his hand back and lobbed the rock at the glass. It bounced right off. He tried several more times with no luck.

  Panting lightly, he turned to Matt and Derrick. “How about I try to break a window instead?”

  Matt nodded with approval. “Good idea. A window should be a lot easier to break.”

  Dylan chose a large window that would be fairly easy to climb through and hurled the rock right at the glass. It shattered immediately, leaving jagged edges that looked wicked enough to slice them all to ribbons.

  Using a cushion from a nearby chair, Matt cleared all of the glass out of the frame, then turned to Dylan and Derrick with a grin. “I’ll climb in.”

  Chapter Eight

  Matt

  The place was surprisingly clean. Not even much dust. How long had the residents been gone? Then a new thought popped into Matt’s head. Maybe whoever lived there was out scavenging too. Maybe they would be back any minute.

  With a new sense of urgency, Matt hustled to the French doors and let Derrick and Dylan inside.

  “I’ll check the bedrooms and bathrooms,” Derrick offered.

  With a nod, Matt and Dylan headed to the kitchen. The first thing Matt noticed was how tidy the room was. The only things on the counters were a toaster, a can opener, and a bowl of oranges. Matt went directly to the oranges, picking one up. Mold had formed where the orange in his hand had been touching the ones beneath it.

  “That answers that question,” he murmured.

  “What question?” Dylan asked as he joined him at the counter.

  Matt set the orange back in the bowl and looked at his son. “When we got here, I wondered if the people who live here were out scavenging and would be returning. But the rotting oranges tell me that they’ve been gone a long time.”

  Dylan nodded. “Because if the people were still around, they would have eaten the oranges or thrown them out.”

  “Yep.” Hope growing that no one would be showing up anytime soon, Matt strode to the pantry. He pulled the door open then turned to Dylan in triumph. “Score!”

  Smiling, Dylan came to stand beside him and looked at the shelves heavy with food. Boxes of crackers, cookies, macaroni and cheese mix, spaghetti noodles. Jars of spaghetti sauce, cans of soup and vegetables. Bags of flour and sugar.

  Barely able to withhold his joy, Matt said, “Sarah will be able to make her bread.”

  “Yes!”

  Matt laughed, then he glanced around. “We need a box or something to carry this food in.”

  “Maybe there are boxes in the garage.”

  “Good idea.”

  Grinning, Dylan said, “I’ll check.”

  Matt nodded, and as Dylan left the room, Matt opened other cupboards to see what else he could find. Moments later Dylan shouted, “Dad!”

  Heart racing at the tone of Dylan’s voice, Matt tore out of the kitchen and ran down the hallway to the garage door where Dylan had his back pressed against the closed door that led to the garage. Derrick got there a moment later.

  “What is it?” Matt asked.

  Eyes wide, Dylan said, “Someone’s in the garage. Sitting in the car.”

  Alarmed, Matt shoved Dylan away from the door. Whoever was out there was probably armed and could shoot right through the door. But it didn’t make sense. The oranges were rotten. Was it a trick? A ploy to make people think no one was home? Was the person in the garage trying to lure people in? But why?

  “Get back,” Derrick said, then he drew his gun out of his waist holster and moved to the side. “Okay. Open the door.”

  Despite being worried that they were stepping into a trap, Matt did as Derrick asked, yanking the door open. When nothing happened, Derrick swung his gun into the opening, then poked his head around the door frame before pulling back. Still nothing.

 
“Are you sure someone was there?” Derrick said to Dylan, his voice low.

  Looking less certain, Dylan shrugged and nodded at the same time.

  Matt didn’t hear any noise coming from the garage. “It might be a trap.”

  Derrick nodded, but stepped into the garage nonetheless. Matt drew his weapon, told Dylan to wait there, then followed Derrick, who had turned on his flashlight.

  Matt immediately saw that Dylan was right. A man was sitting behind the wheel of a car.

  Aiming his gun at the man, Derrick approached the driver side door. “Hands where I can see them!”

  The man didn’t move. Not a muscle. That’s when a familiar odor hit Matt. “I think he’s dead.”

  Derrick nodded. “Yeah. I do too.” He holstered his weapon and opened the car door.

  The stench hit Matt full-on. He threw his hand over his nose and mouth.

  Derrick shut the door and manually opened the large garage door, sliding it on its rails. Sunlight and fresh air poured in.

  Eyes watering from the smell, Matt hustled to the driveway to be able to breathe the clean air. That’s when he saw a hose going from the exhaust pipe to the interior of the car. He shook his head. “Killed himself.”

  Dylan joined them just outside the garage. “What do you mean?”

  Matt pointed to the hose. “He poisoned himself with the exhaust fumes.”

  Dylan looked confused. “But the car’s not on.”

  Derrick pulled the hose out of the exhaust pipe. “Must’ve run out of gas.” He looked at Matt and Dylan. “Died a while ago, I guess.”

  Matt knew things were bad, but were they so awful that it was worth taking your own life? Then again, he didn’t know what this man had lost. Maybe his whole family. If Matt’s whole family was dead, what would he do? He honestly didn’t know, so he wasn’t about to judge. “We should bury him.”

  Derrick frowned. “I don’t really want to take the time.”

  Neither did Matt, but he had a good reason. “We’re going to take all of his food. It’s the least we can do.”

  Sighing, Derrick nodded. “All right.”

  They found shovels and took turns digging a shallow grave for the man before wrapping him in a sheet and laying him in the hole. They covered him with dirt, then set rocks on top to discourage animals from digging him up. After a moment of silence, they went back in the garage and got to work, finding several boxes that they dumped out. Before long they’d emptied the entire pantry and loaded all of the food into the bed of Derrick’s truck. They also took toiletries and medications they found, along with a few other supplies that had caught their eye.

  “Nice haul,” Derrick said as they drove away from the house.

  Matt shoved aside the image of the dead man while at the same time saying a silent prayer of thanks that he’d left such a bounty for them to enjoy.

  A short distance down the road they came to another house. Derrick looked at Matt with raised eyebrows. Matt nodded. Derrick pulled into the drive. The front door had a bright red X painted on it.

  “What do you think?” Matt asked. “Should we see what we can find?”

  Dylan leaned forward, hovering over the console between the two front seats. “But there will be dead bodies inside.”

  Derrick looked at Dylan. “Which means there might be food.” He smirked. “Dead people don’t eat.”

  Matt nodded. “It’s worth a look.” He pointed to the bandana on the seat next to Dylan. “Mask up.”

  The three of them put their bandanas over their mouths and noses, then jumped out of the truck.

  Chapter Nine

  Derrick

  Derrick was eager to get the food and get out. Though he’d gotten used to the stink of death, he wanted to minimize his exposure to bodies that possibly carried the deadly virus. He didn’t know how long the virus could live on a corpse and he had no desire to find out.

  Before approaching the front door, he swept his gaze across the front of the house. Blinds were down on all the windows. No way to tell if anyone was inside. Anyone living, that is.

  Resting his hand on the butt of his gun in his waist holster, he mounted the porch steps then ran his finger across the red paint. The X was bone dry. No telling how long it had been there. He knocked, loud and sure, then waited. No response.

  Doubting the door was unlocked, he turned the knob anyway. To his surprise, the door opened. The stench of death slapped him in the face, making him recoil. The bandana did little to dampen the smell, but that wasn’t really its purpose. It was for protection from germs that might somehow get into his nasal passages.

  Before stepping inside, Derrick turned to Matt and Derrick, whose eyes were scrunched up in clear disgust. “I don’t think we have to worry about anyone living.”

  Matt shook his head. “Nope.”

  Derrick let his gaze slide to Dylan, who looked like he might hurl. Figuring the body or bodies would be in the bedroom, Derrick offered to search that part of the house. Eventually though, the kid would have to face the nastiness of a corpse decomposing from the virus. “Let’s get this over with.”

  With a curt nod, they split up. Derrick made his way up the stairs. The foul odor grew stronger. Ignoring it, he did a quick search of the first bedroom—no bodies there. He didn’t find anything worth taking. Same story in the next bedroom and in the hall bathroom. Finally, he walked toward the master bedroom. The strength of the smell told him that that was where the body was. Sure enough, sprawled in the middle of the bed was a bloated, rotting corpse.

  Averting his gaze, he searched the master bathroom before turning to the room itself. Gagging a bit and in a hurry to leave, he forced his eyes to stay on the bedside tables. The first one held nothing of interest, but the second one held a handgun. Brightening with his find, he tucked the gun in the back of his jeans then did a quick search of the dresser. Several boxes of ammo were nestled in the bottom drawer.

  Thrilled, he gathered every box into his arms and hustled down the stairs to see what Matt and Dylan had found.

  They’d already filled a box with food from the pantry. It wasn’t nearly as much as they’d found in the last house, but every bit would help. Derrick dumped the ammo on the counter and smiled, although he knew they couldn’t see his expression behind the bandana.

  Matt nodded. “Nice!”

  Soon, they were back on the road, their bandanas off. Flush with success, when another house appeared, Derrick didn’t even ask. He just pulled into the driveway, then hopped out of the car. Matt and Dylan were right behind him. He lifted his fist to knock, but before his knuckle touched the wood, the door flew open. The only thing he saw was the shotgun pointed at his face.

  “Get off my property,” the man holding the gun growled.

  Momentarily stunned, Derrick met the man’s gaze, then he threw his hands up. “Okay, okay. We’re leaving.

  The man motioned with his shotgun for them to get going.

  Not wanting to turn his back on the man, Derrick slowly retreated while keeping his eyes on the man and his hands in the air. When he reached the bottom of the porch steps, he turned around. Dylan had already climbed into the back seat and Matt was closing the door on the passenger side. Derrick hurried around the hood of his truck and hopped behind the wheel. Then he looked at the man, whose gun never wavered. Derrick started up the engine and they tore out of there.

  “Okay,” Derrick said as his racing heart slowed to its normal rate. “Guess we got a little cocky. We have to remember that some houses are occupied.”

  “Can’t really blame the guy,” Matt said. “We’d do the same if people showed up at the farm.”

  That was true. “Speaking of that, we should probably get back. We have a lot to do to secure the farm.” Derrick felt like it was up to him to make sure it was done right. True, Jeff had said it wasn’t all on him, but he felt like it was, nonetheless.

  “Sounds good,” Matt said. “We got a decent amount of food.” He chuckled. “It won�
�t last long though. Not with how big our group is.”

  That was painfully true. They would have to either go scavenging several times a week, or they would need to get a bigger haul, something that would carry them for a longer time. At least Frank and Sarah had a decent-sized garden. Which reminded him… “We need to find seeds so we can expand the garden.”

  Matt made a sound of disgust in his throat.

  Derrick squinted at him in confusion. Until he remembered that Matt and Jessica had had a number of seeds. Before the Emperors had taken everything. Lips tugging downward, Derrick wondered how long it would be until they crossed paths with the Emperors. Preferably not for a while. They had enough to do—scavenging, creating a secure perimeter, expanding the garden, building more housing. Not to mention the day-to-day tasks of running a farm and feeding their small army.

  Suppressing a sigh, Derrick focused on driving. It didn’t take long to reach the turnoff to the farm. They drove down the gravel road toward the house, which was hidden from view by the almond trees in the neighboring orchard, but when they cleared the orchard, Derrick saw two unfamiliar vehicles in the driveway, one truck and one SUV. Immediately on alert, he stopped, put the truck in reverse, then backed all the way down the driveway before driving a short distance away and parking his truck behind some overgrown bushes.

  Chapter Ten

  Matt

  Deeply concerned about who was at the farm, especially since his family was there, Matt’s thoughts flew in a hundred directions at once. He stared at Derrick. “Who do you think it is?”

  Derrick shook his head.

  Maybe it was Walter again, although there were two vehicles. What if it was the Emperors? No one had been outside. Wait. Wasn’t someone supposed to be on watch? For all Matt knew, his family was in serious danger. He reached for his door. “We need to go.” He hopped out.

  “Hang on,” Derrick said.

  This annoyed Matt. Derrick didn’t have any family inside. Then again, weren’t they all family now? Deciding to listen to Derrick, Matt paused, standing just outside the passenger door. “What?”