by Jeff Olah
“Yes, and we need to go now. We’ll be there by the time the sun comes up and they’ll have the facilities to treat Justin.”
Turning to April, Mason was about to implode. “What the hell is Blackmore and how do you know about it?”
“That’s where my father worked…It’s a military research facility in the mountains. He’d be there all week long and then come home on the weekends, until just recently… My mother made him start spending more time at home with her; she didn’t want to spend the rest of her life alone in that big house.”
Mason turned to Randy. “And you?”
Letting out a long sigh, Randy answered. “Let’s just say I worked under him for a few years, but we’ll need to finish this little reunion later.” Pointing out the rear window, the cause for panic became clear. The two vicious attackers from the beach made the long walk from the burned out Challenger and had reached the gates. The group had less than twenty seconds before they were within striking distance.
“Ok, what’s the plan?” Mason said.
Randy took one final look at the airstrip ahead and shook his head, they needed more time. There wasn’t any. “Just get as close to the chopper as possible and please don’t hit the blades. When we stop, get Justin inside first and then everyone else. I’ll take care of the rest.”
Mason moved around Savannah and pointed to the passenger seat, eyeballing the woman from the house. She hadn’t said a word since they left the driveway and didn’t appear to comprehend what was happening. She also didn’t seem to hear what they were saying and simply continued to sit on the floor.
Slamming the RV into drive, Mason pushed the gas pedal to the floor and slowly pulled away from the hangars. Crossing the runway, he swerved to avoid a twin engine plane whose occupants had been overrun and still sat motionless in the cockpit. Blood ran down the door and onto the tarmac. Mason slowed as they approached the chopper, looked back for a split second for approval on where to stop and noticed Randy’s attention elsewhere. Not able to see what Randy was looking at from his seat, Mason asked, “What’s up?”
“Well… things just changed a bit. Get this thing stopped and cut the engine.” Randy said.
“What… Why?”
“I think I found out who left the chopper.”
Mason slowed the RV and came to a stop just short of their new ride and did as Randy asked. Craning his neck backward out of the driver’s window, the picture became clear. Three individuals sat with their backs to the runway, in lawn chairs just inside hangar number twelve, oblivious to the fact that the RV had driven within several hundred yards of them. They appeared to be charging something with the portable generator to the right of the large bay door.
With the clattering of the gas powered generator acting as cover, Randy rushed everyone to the door and started for the chopper. Mason carried Justin by tossing him over his shoulder in a fireman’s carry, amazed at the difficulty he was having. April and Savannah each grabbed what supplies they could as Randy continued to monitor the men at the hangar while transporting the three duffle bags.
With April watching over her son, Mason went back for the woman from the beach that hadn’t moved an inch. He was more dragging her than she was moving herself and when they reached the chopper doors, she froze.
Looking down at Justin’s bare leg, she suddenly awoke from her trance. She turned to Mason, “Has he been bitten?”
“Yes, but he’s…”
Her face felt warm and her fingers went numb as she snatched her arm out of Mason’s grasp, turned and ran toward the hangars. “HELP… HELP, HE’S INFECTED… PLEASE HELP.”
27
Not yet fifty feet into her escape, a single shot rang out and the group all turned to look. The woman was lifted off her feet and thrown sideways to the pavement, her body skidding to a stop between the two groups. If they were going to get off this runway, it would have to be in the next thirty seconds, as their pursuers were closing the gap. Randy was going through his checklist as Mason boarded the helicopter, twisting his hand in the air.
“Let’s go,” Mason said.
Randy turned to see the woman’s contorted body sprawled across the runway and farther down the tarmac, one of the men from the Dodge Challenger with the gun used to murder her, still smoking in his hand. The second group, alerted by the shot had switched off the generator and started toward them as well.
Focus on what you can control, Randy told himself. Let Mason worry about defense, you have to trust the others to help. “Come on baby… Let’s go!” he said as the motor roared to life. The blades began to cut into the early morning air as bullets whizzed by. Mason sat back against the seat in the rear cabin, sliding on a headset. “We gotta go man! They’re coming.”
“Workin’ on it.” Randy said.
The men who’d been busy with the generator appeared to have taken exception to the attackers from the beach shooting at their helicopter, even if they were about to lose possession of it. Guns drawn, they approached from behind without being noticed and caught them off guard. Unable to hear the conversation, Mason could only assume what was discussed as the meeting concluded with the two from the beach being ordered to set their weapons on the ground and were marched forward, hands clasped behind their heads.
The group who brought the chopper here for refueling, dressed in black fatigues and armed to the teeth, must have been some sort of home grown militia. They never broke formation as they moved quickly between the hangar and their adversaries. AR-15 rifles hung at their sides and with less than a hundred yards separating the two, they abruptly stopped and shouldered their weapons.
Guns drawn, they positioned their hostages directly in front to be used as human shields and opened fire on the chopper, most of their ammunition wasted as it buried itself deep within the RV, still partially acting as cover for the group.
Not satisfied with the current situation, the larger of the two men from the beach turned and began to fight his captors, although he was quickly neutralized with a bullet to the head. The second man, his accomplice was trying at all costs to avoid a similar outcome. He got low to the ground, covered his head and waited for death.
As the chopper began to lift off, Mason ordered everyone to the ground and raised the only rifle left behind by the men now showering the area with metal projectiles. Once out in the open and above the safety of the RV acting as a shield, they rose quickly and moved away from the area. Holding her breath as the seconds ticked away, April was silent as she stayed as low as possible and held Savannah’s hand, trying to remain clam.
Sliding the heavy metal door, Mason left just enough room for the barrel and without hesitation began to return fire. Through the murky, bloodstained window, he could barely make out any of the men below firing at the helicopter. They were a blurry mess of rounded moving targets that looked less like people than video game characters, although that didn’t matter anyway, he wasn’t really expecting to hit any of them. Rocking back and forth as he squeezed off one round after another, he was happy just to see the men below scatter as the rounds ricocheted off the concrete runway all around them.
As they lifted higher into the sky, Randy dipped the nose and turned to the left, hoping to narrow the size of the target he was flying. Darting forward he noticed the smaller of the two men from the burnt vehicle making a break for the hangers. This man didn’t get halfway to safety before one of the others realized he was missing, sighted his weapon and put two rounds into his back.
Three lifeless bodies now littered the runway below as the group of militias returned their focus to the air. With only one way out of the area, Randy pushed the chopper forward and directly over the three men.
No longer able to get a fix on his targets from the left side of the cabin, Mason quickly switched sides and shoved the rifle through the opposite window as Randy continued to increase the air speed. Multiple bullets rebounded viciously against the body of the helicopter and with each passing second, the group prayed fo
r a miracle. Checking the interior, Mason counted no less than eight areas where the helicopter had been compromised. As they pulled away he rehung the rifle, slid out of his seat and made his way back to April and Savannah.
Leaving the three men in black fatigues standing alone on the dark runway, Randy pushed the battered vessel into the early morning sky. Scanning the gauges, he anticipated touching down at Blackmore shortly before dawn. If everything worked in their favor, they’d be able to get help for Justin upon arrival. He just hoped they’d make it that far.
“You know the way?” Mason shouted from the rear as he adjusted the cord from the headset and climbed into the seat next to Randy.
“Yeah, more or less.”
“You really know how to instill confidence in a person don’t you?”
“We’ll get there. Is everyone ok? We took some shots.”
“Yeah, everyone is good except Justin. I can’t get a consistent pulse.”
“Is it there at all?” Randy asked.
“Very faint, how long till we get there?”
“I’m guessing an hour. Don’t know what to expect though.”
“What do you mean?” Mason asked.
“It is a military facility and we’re flying in blind. I’ll try to make contact when we get closer although they may be without power and…”
“And what?”
“See those gauges that are flat?”
Looking over the dizzying array of buttons, gauges and knobs, Mason couldn’t make heads or tails of anything. “Not really.”
“Anyway, we aren’t completely out of the woods just yet my man,” Randy said as he looked out across the land, trying to get an indication of their proximity to Blackmore.
Mason didn’t want to ask and it really didn’t matter anyway, although if there was something he could do, he had to at least make an attempt. The intensity in his friend’s eyes told him there probably wasn’t anything he or anyone else could do about the “flat gauges” and the sweat running down Randy’s face cemented this conclusion.
“Randy…” His friend turned, knowing what Mason was about to ask him. “What do the flat…”
“Mason, did you notice anything leaking into the cabin?”
“No…Why?”
“See this one right here?” Randy asked, tapping his index finger against the glass. “It tells me we’ve lost pressure in the fuel tank and the way we’re burning fuel, it may be accurate... I think we may have a leak.”
28
Their position in the sky was clear, stars fading into the morning light and with the window open the nip in the air was not only refreshing, it also kept him alert. Randy continued to fly at an altitude much higher than was needed to help conserve fuel, although it looked like they would scoot into Blackmore without any trouble. He had been there many times and once the mountain range came into view it was only a matter of finding the right highway. From there, he’d simply follow the path to its gates and pray they’d be permitted to land.
Sitting next to his friend in silence for what seemed to be an eternity, both men scanned the vast wasteland below. Mason knew his presence was no longer needed and turned to the rear cabin. April and Savannah sat on the floor flanking Justin and holding hands. Their eyes were shut as they rested their heads against the backstop, although their current situation combined with the roar of the engine left little chance they’d actually be able to sleep. He turned back to Randy, pointed toward the rear and gave a thumbs up. Randy returned the sign as Mason pulled off the headset and stepped out.
Making his way back to the others, he’d almost become numb to their predicament. With everything that had taken place in the last twelve hours, he needed to let the pain in, he wanted to. Savannah looked up as he approached and pulled April’s hand to her lips and kissed it. Mason helped her to her feet and the two switched spots. April moved to the side, making room for her husband to slide in between her and her son. He watched Savannah move up next to Randy and fiddle with the headset, adjusting it for size.
As a first priority, he placed his index and middle finger against Justin’s carotid artery, peered out into the morning sky and counted the passing seconds, waiting for a beat. His slow, shallow pulse appeared much slower than before; Mason counted forty-two thuds in what seemed like a minute. Moving his hand away from his son, he wrapped his arm around April and kissed her on the forehead. She looked up at Mason and a slight smile and returned the gesture.
“So…” she said. “Bad?”
“Not really, his heart is slowing and I’m not sure why,” Mason said as he turned back to Justin and now watched for his chest to rise and fall. Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed his wife also watching. He pulled her close into his chest as the seconds passed and they both counted each time their son took a breath. April turned her head and moved her lips to Mason’s ear. He could feel her warm breath on his neck as she paused to gather her thoughts.
“He’s not dead…” she said. “But he’s also not alive, is he?”
Not knowing the answer or even what to say, he simply held her hand and watched as Randy banked the chopper right, heading for the base of the mountains. They were no longer afraid of what their son would be when he woke up. With the unrelenting pace of the past several hours, they became numb to almost everything around them and tried to forget about the consequences of Justin’s current condition.
Continuing to adjust the headset, Savannah slouched in the seat and finally perfected the look. Her eyes darted from one switch to another on the massive control panel in front of her. She had no idea what any of it meant or how it all worked, she was just happy her cousin did. This was the first time in days that she finally felt safe. She dared not talk about it, as anytime she did the reality crept in and took over. Letting the fear in meant giving in to it and losing control of her sanity; she was finally, if only temporarily, past that.
Craning his head to the right, Randy looked over Savannah’s shoulder to determine where they were in relation to the upcoming landmark. Once he spotted the semi-hidden road, he squinted through the filtered sunlight and followed the path to its end along the distant peak. Blackmore stood just beyond the treeline, below the crest and could be seen once they rose out of the valley. He’d try for radio contact at that point and hope for the best, although in his estimation they’d used every ounce of luck in their coffers just getting away from the airport in one piece.
Not making heads or tails of any of the instruments strewn across the dash, Savannah moved the microphone to her mouth and tested its effectiveness. “Randy…” she said, not really expecting a response.
Savannah’s voice sounded odd as it came through the earphones. So odd in fact, he turned to her and smiled without saying a word. This was the first time in as long as he could remember that he’d actually smiled and from her look of surprise, it caught her off guard as well. Turning back to the mountain, Randy continued to grin at the absurd thought of sitting next to his cousin… Here in a helicopter, two weeks after the end of the world, trying to return to Blackmore.
Comfortable with their current trajectory, Randy returned to her, continuing to smile and said, “Yes Savannah?”
“I’m sorry,” she said.
“OK, for what in particular.”
The smile returned to her face, not necessarily to match his, more because she needed to get through this in one piece without breaking down. “When I left home with those two idiots the day of the outbreak, I already knew what they’d become and where they were going. I got in the truck knowing full well what their intentions were and a part of me wanted them to find you.”
“Savannah, I already…”
She turned her focus back to the windshield and the vile world beyond, her smile now gone as she began to cry. “I wanted them to find you and I wanted you to kill them… for me. I was terrified and wanted them dead. I knew your history with them and once you all met, what would happen. They deserved to die, but you didn’t deserve
to be put through that. I’m sorry… I could never…”
“Savannah, I knew they’d come. I knew you’d come. What happened to them was always going to happen, and yes, they deserved to die. You have nothing to be sorry about. You know how I feel about you.”
Pulling her sleeve up over her hand, she wiped her face and turned back. “Yes, and I love you too.”
The pain in his left arm now began to fade into numbness as Blackmore came into view. Randy flexed and contracted the muscles of the upper arm to avoid having to attempt to maneuver into the area one-handed. The fact that there was blood running down the left side of his body was something that would have to be dealt with later. “There’s Blackmore, let the others know we’re getting close and to hold on tight, it may get bumpy.”
Twisting in her seat, Savannah turned to Mason and shouted above the noise from the blades, pointing out toward the mountain. “He says we’re getting close. Hold on.”