by L. D. King
“Maurico, will you come down with the girls, please?”
“Yes, we’re coming down. Is everything okay Mother?”
“Yes, it’s fine. Please come down. She turned back to Roberto. “These are my children; Maurico, my son, who is twenty and my daughter Lucinda, who is eleven. The three other girls are my best friend’s daughters, Rosalinda, who is twelve; Rosari, who is nine, and Reva, in the back, who is eight. My husband and the girls’ mother were killed in our hometown of Mazatlan on the first day of the zombie outbreak. We have been traveling from Mazatlan since then.”
Esparana continued, “Like you, we want to go to America. We don’t know how the zombie thing started. We think the Drug Cartels have something to do with it. But we think that, in America, it should be much better for all of us.”
“Esperana, we have been very fortunate. Recently we discovered a newer model Dodge pickup truck, with four extra cans of gas. We think it belonged to the cartel death squads or the road banditos. They must have been killed, as there was a lot of blood in and around the truck. What was left of their bodies were lying nearby. So we took it. It is in the garage of this house,” said Roberto.
He continued, “We were out trying to find some more food, and we have been lucky with that as well. We have enough for ten or twelve meals. Would you and your family like to join us for dinner tonight?”
“It is very kind of you to offer. Yes, would be honored to sit and eat with you. We have taken one of the rooms on the second floor of this home. I hope that is all right with you.”
Maurico said, “We have been trying to find buildings or homes with more than one story, and we try to take the highest room that is available at night. You are welcome to join us on the second floor. We have enough people that we can have a night watch if you would like.”
“Let’s sit and eat the midday meal first,” said Roberto. “We can move upstairs later. There isn’t much for our meal, but we are willing to share. It is not a grand meal, but it is filling; mostly vegetables that we found in backyard gardens. We don’t light a fire at this time of day, for fear of attracting the cartel death squads or the banditos or the zombies. So our meal is cold, but good.”
As two families ate, they talked about what they had been through. Esperana talked about what her extended family had encountered along their travels as well as of the family members they had lost. Roberto told them that they had also lost their two younger sons. When their meal was finished, Roberto’s family moved to the second floor with Esperana’s family. The three parents worked out the night watch that included the older children.
Roberto followed Maurico into the courtyard so they could talk.
Maurico said, “I am glad that our families met. It is unfortunate that it had to be while this zombie outbreak is going on. The drug cartels are not making this any easier, and the banditos have taken everything they could from anyone they come across. I think we can help each other to go to America.”
They checked the courtyard gate, making sure it was locked. They went back into the house, making the rounds to ensure that all of the entry points were secure. The two of them began barricading the windows. While going through the house, they also found a food pantry in the basement that was full of canned food and bags to carry the food in. After they had loaded all of the bags, they carried them upstairs to show everyone. Until now, none of Esperana’s family had looked in the garage. When Maurico opened the garage door what he found was a welcome surprise. There was a shiny, late model Dodge truck.
As they looked around the garage, Mauricio also found several handguns and rifles along with several hundred rounds of ammunition. The two of them decided that if everyone agreed, they would leave the next day for the border. From there they would try to cross into America.
That night, as they ate, Roberto stood to speak:
“Today Maurico and I discussed the possibility of leaving in the morning, to try to reach the border with America,” he said. “We have what looks to be a good truck, some guns for protection, and quite a lot of food. We are doing very well right now.”
He continued, “There is enough room in the pickup for all of us with our food and supplies. I think that this is the best for all of us. While the border is open, we should take advantage of it before it is closed once again. One day might make the difference between getting across or not. It would be best if we all travel together. Now that Esperana has arrived with her family, I think the time is right to go, or we could stay one more day to rest. Esperana, what are your thoughts on this?”
Esperana smiled. “Wow. All I can say is wow. You have it all under control. You both have found more food and you found a pickup truck to drive us to the border. Once we cross into America, we don’t know where we will go. I would love to talk with you more about it tomorrow, but it is getting late, and I am tired. I need to lie down so I can get some sleep, but I would like to talk more about this tomorrow. If you don’t mind taking another day out of your schedule to talk to us about your plans, I know our family would love to hear more before we commit to them. This is a big step for us. I just want to make sure that what we do will be the best for all of us. Thank you for offering to include us in your plans.”
“Very well, Esperana. We will wait until tomorrow to talk. We will meet you back in the kitchen for breakfast. Our last watch of the night will wake us at dawn. If we can work this out, we could still leave tomorrow. Good night to all of you.”
“Thank you, Roberto, for your offer. We will gladly talk tomorrow. Thank you again. We will see you in the morning. Children, please come upstairs with me to go to bed. Goodnight, everyone.”
They all went off to their respective sleeping areas for the night. Upstairs, the girls were talking quietly with Esperana. Maurico was involved in these discussions as well.
At first light, everyone upstairs packed up all of their supplies and brought them down to the garage, ready to be loaded into the truck. They went inside to have their breakfast. As they sat eating breakfast, Esperana started to talk to Roberto.
“Last night I was too tired to think about anything much more than getting to sleep. As I lay in my bed, I thought a lot about leaving today. I am ready to leave this place behind me. I had my girls pack up everything that we had and we are ready to go once we have finished breakfast.”
She smiled a genuine smile for the first time in days. “You were right last night,” she continued. “We need to cross the border into America before it is closed. Life in America will be better for us. We would be most honored to travel with you and your family.”
“Thank you, Esperana. It is we that are honored that you and your family accepted us. Remember I told you that we found guns in the garage…? We will have them ready if they should be needed. We will only use them for protection from the Drug Cartels or the road bandits.”
“I think we are finished with breakfast,” said Esperana. “Let’s pack up the last of our things. The sooner we can leave this place, the better.”
They loaded all their supplies into the pickup. There was a total of ten in the group. The pickup was a crew cab with two bench seats; there was enough room for three or four of them in the front, if two of them were the younger children. They could fit up to six or possibly even seven in the back. This way everyone would be able to ride inside the truck. All their supplies were crammed into the bed of the pickup.
Roberto was driving; as he started the pickup and was backing it out of the garage, he said, “We are on the way to America. I want everyone to keep watch outside for anything that does not look right. I think crossing the border will be the most dangerous part of our trip. If you think it looks wrong, say something. Even if you think you might be wrong, let us know.”
“You are right, Roberto. We’ve been walking for so long. I hope all of us can get across the border and beyond.”
“Yes,” he agreed. “We need to watch for other vehicles and people on the road, on either side of the border. If w
e see anything that is not right, we need to do anything we must to avoid them. If we encounter a zombie, we can just run over it with the pickup. Whatever we do, we don’t want to be forced to stop or be separated from each other or from the truck. All we need to do is keep our wits about us so we don’t do anything stupid that could get us hurt or killed.”
He turned to Maurico. “Can you ride in the bed until we cross the border? With your eyes outside, you will be able to see more than being inside.”
“Surely I will, Roberto,” said Maurico. “I’ll take one of the guns in case there’s trouble.”
“All right,” said Roberto. “Please don’t use it unless you warn me first. Sometimes guns can cause more trouble if you use them than if you don’t. While you’re back there, find something that you can hold on to. If I have to drive over barricades or other obstacles in the road, I don’t want you to bounce out because you’re not hanging on.”
“Yes, sir, I will,” said Maurico. “Can we stop somewhere so we can practice with the guns? I’ve never fired one before.”
“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” Said Roberto. “The noise might bring the zombies, the banditos, or the drug cartel. We need to cross the border as quickly as we can. We can just trust that using the guns will not be necessary.”
They got under way. They drove for some time, watching for anything that would cause problems; they saw bodies lying in the streets and groups of zombies here and there, but nothing that they couldn’t avoid easily. Then they approached the border crossing. Roberto slowed the truck slightly.
“Esperana, can you see the buildings of the crossing complex? It looks like they have all been burned to the ground. The gate and part of the wall have been demolished. Look at all of the bodies! I can’t really see across into America, but I’m sure that it is the same on that side as well.”
“I can see it, Roberto,” she said. “What are we going to do?”
He pointed to a white car that was crossing the border. “Do you see that car driving around the wall into America? There is no one to stop them. I am going to go the same way they did. If they made it without a problem, then we should be able to also.”
“That is good news, Roberto. We don’t want to go back,” said Esperana. “We both left too many loved ones behind us. All we have been trying to do is get to America. Being this close, we cannot go back now. For me, Mexico is a land of death. America has to be better than where we are now. How is our gas holding up?”
“This pickup has three fuel tanks,” Roberto said. “All of them are full. With the extra gas cans that we found, I think there is enough gas to fill the pickup three more times, at least. We have enough food to last us for a week, maybe two if we are careful. And I agree with you, we have lost too many of our family members to stop now. I do not want their deaths to be in vain. We must cross in their honor. I believe as you do. America has to be better than here in Mexico.”
Roberto drove to the collapsed border wall. Just before crossing into America, he stopped the pickup for a moment. He was looking for anything that might prevent them from entering the United States. He called out the side window for Maurico to look for problems. As he let the pickup engine idle, he turned to talk to Esperana.
“We are so close to a new life. I never thought that I would ever be this close to America. I never dreamed that the border would be wide open, unchecked. In the back of my mind, I felt that I would never be able to get our family across, and with all those doubts clouding my thoughts, I never thought of what we would do if we ever got across. I still don’t know what to do or where to go.”
“Roberto, why don’t we drive as far as Tucson. We can stop for the night there. After dinner, we can talk about what we should do or where we can go once we are in America.”
“Esperana, had you made any plans for your family once you crossed?”
“No,” Esperana said. “Like you, I never imagined, even in my dreams, what we would do once we were in America. Let's just go to Tucson for now. That is a good plan. After that, we can talk about where we should go from there. It must be about 10:30 AM. That gives us six more hours of driving before we will have to stop for the night.”
With that, Roberto put the pickup in gear and started to follow the tracks of the car ahead of them. The windows of the pickup were open, and Esperana leaned out the window to shout to Maurico.
“Did you hear what we have been talking about, about crossing into America?”
“Yes, Mother. I could hear the both of you. I can’t believe that we are going to be able to drive into America without being stopped. I think you’re right. The best thing for us is to go to Tucson. Tonight after dinner we can talk about what we should do. Right now I don’t have anything in mind except to cross safely.”
“Thank you, Maurico. That is exactly what we are going to do. If we don’t have any problems along the way, Tucson is where we will stay tonight. We should have more than enough time to get there.”
“Let’s get out of Mexico,” Maurico said. “I don’t want to stay here any longer than I have to.”
After driving several hours, dodging abandoned cars on the freeway to Tucson, passing bloodied bodies lying in their way on the freeway, it was not long before they entered the outskirts of Tucson. It stretched out for miles in front of them.
Sadly, from what they could see, Tucson was not in much better shape than Nogales. Some of the tall skyscrapers were still smoldering, the black smoke drifting in the wind.
They passed Tucson International Airport on the east side of the highway. It was in as bad shape as the rest of the city. Just past the airport, they came to the Valencia Boulevard exit. Esperana pointed at the exit and told Roberto, “Take the next exit. It looks like a large residential neighborhood. We should be able to find a house to stay in tonight. This way we are close to Tucson but not right downtown.”
“All right,” said Roberto. “I’ll go that way. It looks as good as any other place around here. I want to get off of this freeway. I’m tired of swerving around abandoned cars or the bodies. I could use the rest.”
As Roberto drove down Valencia Boulevard, he could see residential neighborhoods to the right and left. There were homes as far as he could see. When he approached the intersection of Valencia and Campbell Avenue, he asked Esperana, “How does Campbell Avenue look to you? I see many houses over there.”
“Campbell sounds fine to me. Drive down it for a few blocks. Then we can turn on any of these residential streets to find a house to stay in.”
“Yes, ma’am, you’re the boss,” Roberto smiled. “Let me know if you see one that you like.”
They drove down Campbell Avenue for a mile or so before he turned down a smaller street with houses on either side. He stopped in front of a clean looking, two-story home. It looked like a good candidate for the night. His plan was to drive past the home once before coming back. He wanted to see the home with the neighborhood before he committed to it. As he drove by, they could see that it had a short, decorative wall around the front of the house. The front door was standing wide open. They could see that it had a two-car garage attached to the house. It looked vacant.
Roberto drove five or six blocks past the house before he turned around. As he driving back the house, Roberto stopped a few houses down the street, shutting off the engine. As he got out, he handed Esperana a pistol, telling her, “Esperana, please take this just in case there is trouble. I’m going to take Maurico with me to check out the house. If it is clear, one of us will wave to you to bring the pickup. Keep everyone safe for me, please. Come on Maurico, let’s go. Bring your gun.”
As they walked to the house, Roberto and Maurico looked at the other houses that they passed. They wanted to see if it looked as if anyone — or anything — was, or had been, in the houses they passed. Shortly they arrived at the house they had selected. Roberto told Maurico, “Let’s go around to the back. We should look at the outside before we go in. As we walk around it, we c
an look into any windows that we come to. I want you to go into the back yard. You go around that side, and I’ll go around this side. Look inside as much as you can. We don’t need any surprises when we go inside.”
“Ok. I’ll meet you in the back. If either of us finds anything that is out of place, we’ll turn around and get back to the front of the house.”
Both men walked around the house from either side, meeting on the patio. Roberto was a little faster, and was waiting for Maurico. When Maurico got there, Roberto whispered, “I did not see anything out of place. Did you see anything on your side?”
“I didn’t see anything, not even a broken window. Do you want to go back to the front door? It’s open.”
“Hold on a minute, let me try this door first. I don’t want to break down a door that we will need tonight, but if it is open, we won’t have to walk back to the front.”
“All right, Maurico. Something had to break down the front door. We need to be careful. I’ll follow you.”
The door was open. They walked into the kitchen. They stood there for a moment to let their eyes adjust to the darkness inside. Then they could see a little better. They went through the kitchen. The garage door was next to the kitchen. Roberto opened the door into the garage; it was empty. They would park their pickup in the garage.
They walked on through the rest of the house, starting with the living room. They checked every room on the first floor. They went upstairs to check that floor. It was all clear and they went back downstairs.
“This house looks empty,” said Maurico. “No other people. No backpacks or sleeping bags lying around. No zombies. Nothing. This will be a good place for us. Let’s go tell the others.”
“Hold on one moment, Maurico. I want to go upstairs to watch over things. Go into the garage and open one of the garage doors. Walk down the driveway to the street and wave to your mother to bring the pickup into the garage. Have her back it in in case we have to get out of here quickly. Close the door once the pickup is inside. Make sure that the garage doors are locked. Then we can unload the items we need for the night.”