“Wait, what do you mean if it really existed? He hasn’t seen it?”
“No, he just heard about it from some Topsiders they met.” Sean heard Sara suck in her breath at the mention of Topsiders, but he pushed forward with his story. “They weren’t dangerous, though Asher did say it was pretty crazy, because it was just this guy and his wife and two kids, and they were all outfitted in crazy survival gear and…” he stopped, suddenly regretting his decision to share this part.
“And?”
There it was again, he thought, that edge in her voice. “And they all had A-Ks,” he finished reluctantly.
Sara stopped in her tracks, her hands on her hips. “What do you mean they all had A-Ks? I thought you said he had two kids with him.”
Sean gave a quick whistle to alert their guards that they’d stopped walking. He turned back to Sara and nearly jumped at the change in her expression. Her face was hard, and her dark eyes flashed with intensity. Crap, he thought as his shoulders slumped. Somehow he’d brought whatever it was going on inside of her to the surface. It was so hard to tell what was going to set her off lately, but this was exactly what he’d been trying to avoid. Sara glared, awaiting an answer.
“Yes, the kids had A-Ks too,” he admitted, and Sara shook her head. He could see her hands working at her sides. It was something, he knew, even though she wouldn’t tell him. It was something about violence, or kids, or…something. He took her hand. He felt her relax at his touch, and warmth filled his chest. Sara trusted him, he knew. One day she’d explain this to him, this thing that she was carrying around.
“I know it sounds horrible,” he said, his voice soft. He looked over his shoulder and saw that Alessandro and Justin had turned away. He touched her cheek and felt her shudder. “We live in a crazy, messed up place now, Sara, but all we can do is try to fix it.”
She closed her eyes and nodded. “I know.” She turned away and walked forward, her head down. “It’s always been messed up anyway.”
Sean drew beside her, but left her alone. In a short while they came across a gravel driveway marked by a “Ray’s Outdoor Superstore” sign, festooned with an explosion of antlers.
“All right, this is it,” Sean confirmed, and Alessandro split from Justin as they worked their way around the perimeter. Sean and Sara approached the front cautiously. The doors were ajar. When Alessandro gave the all-clear signal from the back of the property, they slipped inside.
It was dark and quiet, and the air smelled stale and vaguely sweet, like rancid molasses. Sean could feel Sara’s rapid, shallow breathing beside him. He heard her gulp for more air and he put his hand on her shoulder.
“It’s ok, Sara. Let’s just take a look around and make sure it’s as empty as it seems.”
She nodded and they crouched and crawled their way around the large perimeter aisle of the store. The only windows were a series of thin slats where the walls met the roof, and paper-thin slices of sunlight split the interior. As their eyes adjusted to the dim light, Sean saw that the store had metal shelving that extended all the way to the ceiling, just like the superstore from his first raid. Deja vous, he thought, as they made their way back to their starting point by the door. The silence was suddenly shattered by a bang, followed by a squeak.
Sara’s hand landed squarely on his chest as she shoved him behind her into the wall. Something sharp jabbed his shoulder blade and pain shot through his back.
“Ooof,” Sean grunted, and then looked up in shock at Sara’s transformation. She’d sunk into fighting stance in front of him with her fists up. Her head was cocked, listening for warning sounds, and she was panting. Despite their readiness to fight, her hands were shaking.
“Sara,” he whispered. There was another squeak and distant scuffling. Sara spun wildly at the sound and her eyes met his. “It’s ok, it’s just rats.”
Sara exhaled audibly and dropped her head. “Sorry.” She winced as she saw him fingering his shoulder blade. “Did I hurt you?”
“A little,” he admitted grudgingly, as he reached out to lower her clenched fists. “You slammed me into the enviro-control panel. But that doesn’t matter. What matters is that you can’t keep going like this. You can’t be on super-high-alert-freak-out mode all the time.”
“Yeah.” Her voice was shaky.
“C’mon, Sara,” he urged. “Just try to relax. Let’s think of something else. If I think of something else, I can kind of ignore the fear for a while.”
“But Sean,” her voice grew smaller. “What if we’re attacked? How will you be ready if you’re focused on something else?”
Sean kissed her forehead. “Your training, Sara. That’s why Fi told you the story of my first raid. It’s just like she said. We train so that we can be ready in an instant. I mean, Sara, look at how fast you reacted. You’ll be ready, believe me.”
“I guess so. I just have to learn how to go from calm to…” she paused.
“Uh,” Sean hesitated to fill in the blank, since “crazy” was the only thing that came to mind.
“Ready,” Sara saved him the trouble. She took a deep breath and smiled, exhaling her adrenaline. “So how do we distract ourselves then?”
“What about primes?” Sean suggested. She grinned and his heart melted. That was his girl.
“You got it,” she said. “Ok, 2.” Sean could see the tension in her shoulders release a bit as they started to move again, in search of the radio equipment he hoped to find. At least she had backed off of DefCon 5, he thought with gratitude.
“3,” he responded, very quietly. Despite his assurances that Sara needed to be calm, that didn’t mean that they could act as they did in Eden, and she understood this. They tread lightly and kept their voices low.
“5,” she murmured. They peered up at the high shelves with their flashlights, the beams of light slicing through the thick air. “What are we looking for again?”
“Radio equipment, antennas, batteries, and any survival gear that would be good for Seeks that we can carry. There,” Sean swung his flashlight to the top shelf. “I think I see antennas.” He set down his pack and grabbed the shelves and pulled, testing his weight. They seemed steady, so he jammed the flashlight into his waistband and began to climb. “Cover me,” he said, and Sara nodded. Sean looked down at her once more and was relieved to see that she didn’t seem to be freaking out.
“7,” he called.
When he reached the top shelf, he had to lay nearly flat in order to squeeze between the shelf and the ceiling. There were long cardboard boxes that had begun to wear away in the musty air and he ripped at an opening, still listing primes with Sara as he went. The cardboard fell away and he saw the dim gleam of long metal poles in the box. Bingo. He pulled out the repeater antennas and began jamming them into his pack. They were about a foot too long for him to close it, but that wouldn’t matter.
“113,” Sara called, and he leaned his head over the edge and made a face as he thought.
“Uh, 127. Hey Sara, they’re here,” he held up an antenna.
She smiled and gave him a thumbs up. “Awesome, then can you come down now? 131, by the way.”
He snorted. She was so competitive. He turned back to his work ripping open moldy boxes. As he found another box of antennas, he realized that they’d hit the jackpot. There had to be at least fifty in total. His mind continued working the primes in the background. “137,” he called.
Sara laughed quietly, the light sound floating up to his perch. “139. You’re getting slower.”
Sean was relieved that Sara felt calm enough to tease him. She really was starting to get used to this. He hung his head over the edge. “149,” he crowed, and then pointed at her. “It’s not fair, you aren’t doing two things at once.” He swung himself over the edge and began making his way down, the antennas jutting from his pack like spider’s legs
“151,” Sara murmured, when he reached her.
She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek and despite the coolness of h
er lips; they seemed to leave a lingering heat. His mind went blank. “Also not fair,” he complained, as he struggled to think. “Um, 157.” Ha! Even through distraction, he could beat her.
“163,” she responded immediately.
Well, maybe not beat her, he thought. Keep up with her then.
“167, 173, 179, 181, 191, 193, 197, 199, 211.” She rattled them off and pretended to yawn. “I’m relaxed now, that’s for sure.”
Sean’s mouth dropped open. “What did you do, memorize them to a thousand?” She bit her lip. “You did???” he squeaked. Jeez, he’d been kidding. “Why?”
“School has always been boring. Eden’s boring,” she shrugged. She looked around and laughed. “I guess Eden is less boring now.”
Sean shook his head. “C’mon, let’s find the radios to go with these antennas.” They kept moving. “So you really memorized the primes all the way to a thousand?” He still couldn’t believe that anyone would do that for fun.
“Yup,” she admitted, her tone embarrassed.
Good, he thought. At least she has the decency to feel nerdy, considering the number of times she’d made fun of him. They moved steadily toward the back of the store. They found another shelf full of batteries and this time Sara climbed up, eager to help.
“Would you like me to continue with the primes?” Her singsong voice made him laugh.
“Definitely. You shouldn’t keep a talent like that hidden.” She snorted and he heard the sound of boxes ripping open as numbers rained down on him in steady drops.
“223, 227, 229, 233, 239, 241, 251, 257.” There was a pause, followed by a dragging sound and a grunt as Sara shifted to a new box. “263, 269. Hey,” she stopped. “I think I see radios too.” As she leaned over the shelf, her black ponytail fell into her face and she brushed it away in irritation. “Here,” she pointed her flashlight across the aisle.
Sean followed the beam and clambered up quickly. “You’re right,” he answered excitedly. There were boxes of standing radios and what looked like hand-helds as well. This place was awesome, he thought triumphantly. It was like a post-apocalyptic dream come true. “Good spot, Sara.”
She grinned and turned back to her work. “271.”
“Ok, I get it, you’re a genius.” He turned to throw packing peanuts at her when something at the back of the store caught his eye.
“277, 281,” Sara continued to murmur, until she noticed that Sean had grown quiet. “What is it?” Her voice grew wary.
“I don’t know. There’s some kind of hole in the ground or something back here.” He climbed down and tiptoed toward the back office of the store where a large, heavy door seemed to be sticking up from the floor. He heard Sara’s gasp as she joined him.
The store may have been relatively undisturbed, but the office looked like a bomb had hit it, literally. Shelves and walls were riddled with holes, and there was soot and shredded paper everywhere. The “door” that Sean had noticed was a trap door leading underground. Though clad in heavy metal plates and a series of strong locks, it hung open on one twisted hinge. Sean’s heart began to pound as he realized that someone had blown it open.
“What is it?” Sara whispered.
“A bunker, I think,” Sean replied, “built underground, like Eden.” Sara made her way around to the front of the door, where the entry yawned open. Her flashlight glinted off the metal ladder at the top. “Must have been the owner’s plan,” Sean added. “He built his bunker right in his own shop. Not a bad idea really.”
Suddenly Sara screamed and clapped her hand over her mouth as her flashlight clattered off the ladder and dropped into the hole. She backed away, her eyes wide, and doubled over as she gagged.
“What?” Sean rushed to her and she pointed into the bunker. With dread, he stepped closer and peered into the depths where Sara’s flashlight glowed. His stomach turned. The red flashlight lay atop a dusty pile of rotting fabric and bone. It was too dark to tell if there were others in the bunker besides this person, who had obviously tried to defend it when the door was blown off.
He turned back to Sara who was hugging herself and shivering. “Sara.” He approached cautiously, unsure of her mood. “Sara.” She looked up and folded into him when he opened his arms, burying her head in his chest. A stifled sob rose in her throat and he squeezed her.
“I’m sorry,” she whispered.
“For what?” As she pulled away and took deep breaths, he recognized someone trying to get it together and gave her some space. He remembered the first time he saw a body…and the first time he saw a skeleton…and the first time he saw a child’s skeleton. He shuddered and felt the bile rise in his own throat.
“For being a baby.” Her breathing had slowed, and her voice was firm now that she’d regained control. “I knew this was something I might see.” She started to step toward the hole again and he grabbed her arm.
“Don’t!” He shook his head. “There’s no heroism in forcing yourself to look at it. It doesn’t make you feel better. Trust me, I know. C’mon, we can’t help this guy anymore. Let’s just get what we need and get out of here.” Sean pulled her away.
“But what about my flashlight?”
“We’ll find another in the store.”
He picked his way past the destroyed bunker with a silent Sara in tow. As they left the storeowner’s body behind in his self-made grave, Sean knew that Sara would likely remain silent for quite a while. This was not a time for primes.
The Wolves Above
---------- Fi ----------
Fi leaned against the warm body of the Jeep and listened to the others chat as she struggled to suppress her fear. The afternoon was waning and all of the Seek groups had returned but one…Asher’s.
By the time Sara and Sean’s group returned, it was getting close to dusk. Sara immediately sought Fi and began describing her day with excitement. At first, Fi welcomed the distraction. Sara’s impressions were interesting. She’d never seen Dead Zones or Ghost Towns. All of it was new to her. But as time went on and night fell, Fi felt her anxiety growing. It became difficult to focus her attention as Sara babbled. She kept tuning her out, staring across the Dead Zone to the forest on the other side. What had initially been concern was growing into a full-blown panic. C’mon, she thought to herself. Come on...
“Don’t you think so, Fi?” Sara asked.
Fi startled and shook her head in frustration. “What?”
“Don’t you think Sean will have us all reconnected within a couple of years?” Sara purred, smiling indulgently at Sean, who frowned and shook his head.
“Sure he will,” Fi snapped as her patience evaporated, “if he lives that long.” She got up and walked away, clambering onto an open tailgate alone. Sitting with her legs hanging over the edge, her feet jiggled back and forth with nervous energy. Her heart rate was getting higher every minute. Though it had been a long day, she felt no fatigue. Her eyes were locked on the Dead Zone, willing the missing to appear.
The night dragged on and most of the group bedded down while they waited, sleeping huddled on the ground. As time passed around her, Fi sat rooted, silently pleading with God. Though exhaustion had finally claimed Sara after her exciting day, Sean stayed awake with Fi, keeping vigil. José had offered to stay up as well, but Sean had urged him to rest. Fi wished that her mind could stop playing out the possibilities. It was getting hard not to throw up.
“They’re just late, Fi,” Sean reassured her. He stood in the back of the Jeep and scanned the tree line over her head. “It happens all the time.” Trusty Sean, she thought gratefully, though his presence couldn’t contain her fear.
“Mmmmm,” she murmured, her feet still jiggling. The sky had begun to glow with first dawn, and her eyes were adjusting to the violet light.
Sean stepped down and sat on the tailgate beside her. “Seriously, Fi, remember the time your group was held up for a while? You should have seen Asher. I thought he was going to lose his mind.” He put his arm around her shoul
ders and squeezed. “He’s coming back, Fi.”
She took a deep, shaky breath and nodded. There was no way she could trust herself to talk now. They were supposed to be back at dusk, and here it was dawn. There was no good reason they were this late. No good reason. Suddenly her stomach seized. Embarrassed by her own terror, she turned away from Sean as she retched. Her head whirled when she heard his shout.
“There they are!”
Everyone startled, many rustling awake in confusion. Fi jumped off the tailgate joyfully and started across the field and then froze, overcome with horror. Asher was walking with the group, but his face and clothes were covered in blood.
“Asher!” The scream ripped from her throat and she was running, tripping, racing to him.
He held up his right hand in reassurance and grimaced. As she drew near, Fi saw that the rest of the group was also bruised and bloodied. They were badly abused, she thought, her heart pounding. What had happened?
“I’m alright,” he gasped, “It’s not me.” Suddenly his lurching gait made sense as she saw that his left hand gripped the right ankle of a semi-conscious Gary, who was shot through the upper chest. Dark blood caked his clothing and his head lolled, as the rest of the Seek group struggled to carry him.
“Oh my God, Gary!” Fi stood transfixed.
“Move, Fi!” Asher barked and Fi scuttled out of the way as Sean rushed to help. Grunting and straining, the group made its way toward the vehicles with Gary’s limp body swinging between them. Together, they lifted and slid him into the back of a Jeep and Fi hopped inside. She lifted his head and gently cradled it into her lap.
“Wait a minute,” Sean said, his gaze scanning the group. “Where’s Nate?” Thomas, a tall African-American man from the security team, bit his lip and then shook his head once in a single, negative slash. Everyone gasped.
“All right guys,” Asher called.
Seeds of War Page 5