Reduced

by Robin Tidwell

  Straining to both see and hear, she unclipped a flashlight from her pack and shined it down those stairs.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  Abby slipped into the kitchen shelter at the far end, nearest the trees. Dinner was over, the sun was taking its final bow, and the entire camp was gathered. Ted had the floor.

  “And so,” he concluded, “For the time being, we’re okay on provisions. Meals will be served at 8:00 a.m., noon, and 5:00 p.m. We have a full crew at the moment, but some of you may find your assignments changing as things progress.”

  Ted took a seat, wiping his brow. He wasn’t much on speaking in front of large groups, and this one had doubled in size just since this morning.

  Janey stood up next. Abby didn’t know her well, but certainly had heard of her expertise with firearms and other assorted weapons. A former Marine, Janey’s short hair and no- nonsense attitude, along with her diminutive stature, made for quite a contrast.

  “Defensive training will begin in the morning at 0900 hours,” stated Janey. “Before you leave here this evening, please pick up your assignment sheet; this will tell you to which group you belong and, therefore, what time you are expected to arrive. Do not be tardy.

  “We’ll start with basic self-defense and hand-to-hand combat. We’ll move on to non-mechanized weapons, then handguns. Regardless of any training or experience in which you may have previously participated, everyone will start at the beginning.

  “Any questions? Good.” Janey strode back to her seat near the front of the shelter.

  Meg introduced Sandy. “Sandy is in charge of security here. That means when she tells you to do something, you do it. There’s a reason for it, and our safety here depends on her. Those assigned to Sandy’s watch will have a brief meeting as soon as you all are dismissed.” Meg stomped off. She wasn’t much on small talk but preferred to get to the point.

  Lorie stood up and smiled. She was so friendly and open that she put everyone at ease, even strangers. Her success at sales in her former life made her an ideal fit to run the commissary and keep track of supplies; very detail-oriented, she was also honest to a fault.

  Lorie explained to everyone how the commissary system worked. Each person was accountable for their purchases, although there was no money involved. Since everyone worked at different jobs around the compound, everyone contributed. However, she added, there would certainly be limits simply because no one was sure how and when supplies would be replenished or for how long certain things would be available.

  “Your personal items are, of course, yours to use as you see fit. But I will caution everyone on being conservative and making things last as long as possible. We will try to keep all necessities available, but there may times when this is impossible. Please try to be understanding and patient.”

  The group remained silent as Lorie made her way back to her seat and Cal stood up near the front. They all seemed rather shell-shocked and Abby completely understood that. Kudos for Cal and Meg for calling this meeting so soon, not only so everyone could begin immediately to work together, but before people had entirely recovered from this disaster and therefore were less likely to question or derail all the earlier planning.

  Meg tapped her on the shoulder. “Glad you got back, Abby.” She gave her a quick hug. “Come over to our tent after the crowd here thins out, ‘kay?”

  “If there are no more questions,” Cal said, “Please see Meg for your work assignments before you leave. Have a good night, everyone.” She turned and left, but her progress out of the shelter was slow as many wanted to speak with her.

  Abby pushed her way through the crowd until she found Emmy. “Hey, you,” she said, squeezing her shoulder. “How’d everything go today?”

  “Abby! When did you get back? I was so busy all day, first we had a new family come in right after breakfast, then I spent a few hours showing them around and helping them unpack. This afternoon three more people came in and, well, I pretty much did the same thing!” Emmy was clearly caught up in her role, a perfect fit as Abby already knew.

  The girls walked back towards their tent. “I’ll introduce you at the campfire tonight, okay, Abby?”

  “I have to go see Cal and Meg,” Abby replied, “But sure, I’ll see you either here or there…let me just drop off my pack, and I’ll be back as quick as I can.” Emmy went inside to light the kerosene lantern and hang it on the outside pole, and Abby continued on to the command center.

  Cal was, as usual these days, bent over a table filled with papers and her laptop. Fortunately, the generators in the old lodge behind the campsite were still functioning and they’d rigged up a charging system of sorts for certain electronics. The cell towers were still up and operational and, while the Internet seemed to still be plugging away, there were very few updates and many error messages.

  In other words, no news. The latest stories were almost 48 hours old and no one had any answers then, only questions. And so it continued.

  “Hey,” said Abby. Cal looked up and motioned her inside. “How’d it go today?” Cal asked. She spread out a map of the area on the table, displacing several stacks of paper. “Show me.”

  Abby picked out a pen and circled the first site she’d scouted, labeled it, and gave her report. Then she hesitated.

  “I went back up behind the old office and staff house. There used to be an old cave up there, a couple hundred yards behind the buildings. It’s pretty overgrown, impossible to see unless you know it’s there. Kind of a small opening, but it expands if you go back farther.”

  “I didn’t go much past the entrance, but it’s definitely empty.” She took a deep breath. “I think it’s best that it remain unmarked. Just in case.”

  Cal nodded. “I’ll brief Meg and Sandy, of course, but it goes no farther.”

  Abby continued with the second location, labeling it as she had the first one and giving her detailed description. Meg arrived just as they were discussing the newer latrines and their storm shelters.

  “Not where I’d want to be, exactly,” said Abby. “I mean—it’s a latrine, ya know? And it’s small, maybe hold 20 people for a short time and not very comfortably. But it’s secure.”

  “Smelly, too, I’d imagine,” said Meg with a wry face. Abby confirmed that guess with a grin and a nod.

  The third site that Abby had inspected was up on the hill almost directly across from their current location, past another meadow and behind the remains of an old dining hall. Abby had poked around in rubble briefly before climbing the hill and she told Cal that there was nothing useful to scavenge. Meg nodded. She’d been there earlier in the week when she’d brought down a load of supplies.

  “Now, the site itself is workable, at least for some of the group—by the way,” Abby asked, “What’s our count up to now?”

  “Fifty-six,” replied Cal. “And,” she added, “No word from Brad . . . yet.”

  “So,” Abby multiplied quickly in her head, “With an average of, say, three per tent, this site can accommodate just over half of us. Site Number 2 could hold the rest, but it needs some work—more so than this one.

  “That is,” she looked questioningly at the other two, “If we need to move farther back into the woods?”

  Meg and Cal exchanged looks. “We’ve been mulling that over all day,” said Cal. “We’re pretty well-established here in the meadow and folks are beginning to settle in, but it feels awfully exposed.”

  “To what?” Abby asked.

  Cal sighed and picked up her laptop. She opened it, turned it around, and handed it to Abby.

  Facebook, Abby thought. Of course. She almost smiled. Then she saw exactly what Cal was showing her. She scrolled down, reading quickly.

  “Itssss the ZOMbIE TAKOVER!!!!!!!”

  “No more then you disserve, you Chritsan haters!”

  “imma get my big guns out for this!”

  “GOD told me to warn you and I did!”

  “WTF???????”

  Then she saw it. />
  “I know who you are, Calypso, and more importantly—I know WHERE you are, right this minute! Better look out . . .”

  Abby blinked. She read it again.

  “Cal, who is this?” she asked. Meg looked worried. Cal wrung her hands and started pacing.

  “I don’t know,” Cal said simply. “He’s blocked. Or she’s blocked. It’s a fake name, a fake profile. I mean, it says Dan, but we know it’s not. I think. Dan’s profile is still there, but so is this one, the fake one.”

  Abby was beyond irritated. Really? People had time for crap like this now? Sheesh.

  “All right,” she said. “Tomorrow morning, first thing, I’ll take a crew over to site Number 3 and they can get started. I’ll go on up the hill behind it and check it out more thoroughly.”

  “Exactly what we were thinking, Ab,” said Cal. “And what about the second site you checked out yesterday? How much work needs to be done?”

  Abby mulled it over for a moment. “That one needs canvas more than anything; I suppose we’ll have to scavenge it from another site, and that means going further down the road to Number 4 . . .”

  There was a commotion outside; Meg stuck her head out of the tent flap.

  “Well, I’ll be . . .” she said in wonder, “Here comes the cavalry!”

  Brad and Zoe and Pops had finally arrived.

  It was late when the group finally disbanded. Brad had kept them spellbound with his tale of their travels, then there had been tomorrow’s plans to finalize and everyone needed to be brought up-to-date on the latest news.

  Abby went back to her tent and got ready for some much- needed sleep. Emmy was still out, helping Pops get settled in his tent. Abby lay down on her cot, still thinking through all the details for tomorrow’s project. She finally fell asleep, still worrying about that message on Cal’s computer.

  Morning broke; it was hot and humid already, nearly the moment the sun rose. Abby stretched and yawned and sat up; she reached over to wake Emmy.

  “Hey, sleepyhead, up and at ‘em!”

  Emmy moaned and pulled the covers over her head. “Feels like I just went to sleep,” she mumbled.

  “C’mon,” Abby told her. “Move! We’ve got a ton of work to do today.”

  “Yeah, yeah.” Emmy slowly sat up and rubbed her eyes. “M’kay. I’m up.”

  The girls grabbed their things and headed for the showers first, then breakfast. A truck was being loaded over in the parking area; Brad’s truck was still packed from last night. A group was milling around, getting organized to start off to Site 3 to begin the necessary repairs.

  Once they’d finished, Emmy caught up with Lorie to help list and divide supplies and Abby walked over to the parking area. The trucks were loaded and the crew was ready, so Abby jumped onto the running board of Brad’s truck.

  “Hey,” she said. “Recovered yet from all your traveling experiences?”

  “Not a chance,” he grinned. “But ready for more!”

  “Let’s hope not,” Abby retorted. “I, for one, couldn’t stand the suspense.” Part of Brad’s story last night had involved driving along a muddy riverbank, high above the Missouri River, slipping and sliding and coming perilously close to the edge. Abby didn’t mind heights, as long as she wasn’t in a vehicle. The thought gave her shivers.

  When they arrived at the site, Abby briefed Brad while the crew unloaded both trucks. Making sure both her knife and handgun were secure, she checked her Mossberg and started climbing the hill behind the tents.

  It was cooler in the trees than it had been in the meadow, but not by much. There were a few birds flitting around, some small animals scurrying through the underbrush. Abby idly wondered how much longer it would be before they’d have to declare open season on certain edible species. Yuck. She could do it, had done it, but simply wasn’t fond of wild game. Wuss, she told herself. Get over it.

  She’d nearly reached the top of the hill, one of the tallest in the entire camp. Truthfully, she wasn’t completely sure where the legal boundaries were located but she guessed that it didn’t matter much anymore. Most of the trees were cedars, but there was one majestic oak that stood out. Swinging a rope over the lowest branch, just out of her reach, Abby began to climb.

  Obtaining her goal after several minutes, Abby hooked one leg around the branch upon which she was sitting. She pulled a pair of binoculars out of her pack and began to survey as far as she could see, starting with the space closest to her.

  No unusual sounds, no movement that could be attributed to humans. Or anything else besides smaller animals. Good, she thought. So far, so good.

  Using the rope as a guideline, Abby came down rather more quickly than she’d gone up. She could have joined Brad and his crew for sandwiches, but instead rummaged through her pack for a couple granola bars. Finishing her lunch with half-a-bottle’s worth of water, Abby stood up and dusted off her jeans.

  Within less than 45 minutes, she was back at the base of the hill, checking in with Brad.

  The crew was finishing up lunch and, Brad told her, all the repairs on the unit were done. He was going to check out the old shower house nearby and see if that could be fixed up as well, and was moving part of his crew down the road to Site 2. Abby’s cell phone beeped.

  “Ab, how’s it going?” came Meg’s voice.

  “Fine,” Abby told her. “I’m off in search of canvas and Brad’s moving right along here. Looks like we can start the move tomorrow, unless something else comes up.”

  “Great! Gotta go, be careful!” Meg hung up and Abby clicked off as well.

  “See ya,” she said to Brad.

  Some two hours later, Abby was still hacking through the scrub growth, trying to get to the last campsite. Obviously, this unit had been abandoned long before the others; she wasn’t very optimistic about finding anything here that they could use.

  When she finally emerged into a clearing of sorts, about halfway up the rocky hillside, she was positive that it had been a wasted effort.

  The tent frames were bare, some crumbling into termite dust. Old leaves littered the floors, and she smelled a skunk odor, faint but definitely present. She made her way over to the kitchen shelter. The cabinets, surprisingly, appeared to be intact; there was nothing strewn about. Empty, she guessed. Then she saw the padlocks.

  Removing a small axe from her belt, Abby struck at the first lock until it broke and fell to the ground. She opened the cabinet doors, which squeaked from disuse, and there they were. The cabinet was stuffed with canvas, presumably the missing tent covers but, given their size, only one or two could possibly be stored there. She hastily moved to other four and broke the locks.

  Eight. Altogether there were eight large rolls of canvas. Jackpot! She put the axe away and called Brad to send someone to the base of the hill; on second thought, she asked for an extra person to help drag these down to the road. They were quite heavy and bulky and smelled like mold. No matter, thought Abby, they’d air out just fine as long as that skunk stayed away.

  By 4:00, Abby was back with Brad’s crew at Site 3, stretching canvas over the repaired tent frames. Just before 6:00, everyone piled into the trucks for the short trip back to the meadow.

  Abby had a few minutes to check in with Emmy and get cleaned up, then she joined the rest of the group for dinner. Cal stood up as soon as everyone was served and cleared her throat to get their attention.

  “Tomorrow,” she said, “We’re moving.”

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  The buzz of conversation grew louder as people’s faces registered surprise and shock. Most of them had been there just a couple of days, some had arrived after that, but all were at least beginning to feel comfortable and safe given the circumstances. Many questions had yet to be answered, and there was a constant undercurrent of fear. This was too much.

  “Hey,” said Meg, loudly. “Listen up, folks!”

  The group quieted somewhat as Cal continued, “Late yesterday I received a message. I’m not sure fr
om whom it came, but that person was pretty clear: he or she knows we’re here and warned us of that fact.

  “There’s no easy way to say this. It’s a threat, and we’re too exposed out here in this meadow. We’re moving tomorrow, to higher ground. Meet up after dinner with your work crew, and we’ll get this done in an organized fashion. We’ll go over more details tomorrow night and hopefully be able to answer some of your questions.” Cal stepped out of the light, out of the shelter, and the general conversation became louder.

  Abby quickly finished her dinner, waved to Emmy, and made her way to the command center. Meg arrived just as Abby sat down and started giving her report to Cal.

  “Here’s the layout,” she began, making a simple drawing of Site 3. “The tents are all on the hillside, not very spread out but some are higher than others. Brad’s crew cleared out the paths in between them all, so movement is easy. The shelter is at the base of the hill, by the road, and since it’s just as large as this one, we should have no problem gathering everyone at once.

  “I suggest we keep most storage in the shelter at Site 2, maybe even reinforce that as needed. It’s back a lot further in the woods, even though it has road access.”

  “All right,” Cal said. “Let’s take a look at all this and go over the particulars as soon as the others arrive.”

  Abby stepped back further, into the shadows. She opened her phone and scrolled to Deb’s text message from three days ago. She could barely hear Meg and Cal’s conversation as she focused on the screen.

  “Abby. It’s too late for me. I know this. I’m not sure what’s happening, but I don’t feel too bad yet—just strange. I wanted you to leave, not knowing what else was coming. And now—”

  That was it. The message had ended abruptly; Abby felt as though she’d been punched in the stomach, hard. She took a deep breath, surprised to realize that she hadn’t actually taken a breath at all for several minutes. Later, she could think about this, about Deb. Right now she had to get control of herself and try to figure out what Deb had meant by “strange” and how she had known it was too late.