by Dirk Patton
“This may sound like a joke,” I said when I came back into the bedroom. “But why does my ass hurt?”
Katie and Rachel looked at each other, both of them trying to suppress a giggle and a smile.
“What?” I asked, lowering myself onto the edge of the bed.
“You needed aspirin,” Rachel finally said. “You had a high fever and we needed to bring it down.”
“What’s that got to do with my ass?” I asked as I swung my feet off the floor and settled back onto the pillows.
“Um, well… you were unconscious and couldn’t exactly swallow them,” Rachel said.
“You shoved aspirin up my ass?” I said too loudly and started coughing.
When I could look up, Katie was grinning at me and holding her hand up in the air, just like a school kid admitting to something.
“I did,” she said. “We flipped a quarter and I lost.”
Both of them burst out laughing. I knew I was going to be OK if they were laughing at me. Several things ran through my mind, but I kept my mouth shut. What do you say to a woman that loves you enough to stick her finger up your ass to give you medicine?
“How is he?” I nodded at Dog when they stopped giggling.
“He’ll heal,” Rachel answered. “Chewed up pretty bad, but fortunately nothing vital. He got IV and some antibiotics so infection shouldn’t be a problem. All I’m worried about is rabies.”
This got my attention and I turned my head to look at her.
“It’s remote, since I’m pretty sure the wolf wasn’t rabid, but still possible,” Rachel said when I just lay there staring at her.
“He’s going to be fine,” Katie interjected with a stern tone. She knew that the one thing in the world that could make me blubber like a baby was losing a dog.
“What happened after I passed out? The last thing I remember is starting the climb up the ridge from the lake.”
Rachel gently lowered me back onto the pillows and returned to the chair she’d been sleeping in. Katie squeezed onto the edge of the bed, bumping me over with her hip. Normal for her. Despite the fact that I’m more than 100 pounds heavier and at least twice as broad as her, she’s always pushing me over to make room for herself. I’d never admit it to her, but I’d gotten used to it and kind of liked it.
She told me about the two of them dragging me and Dog the rest of the way to the Jeep followed by the drive out of the mountains. Then she relayed the events at the hospital and the drive around Ketchum until they located the house we were in.
“You have to be more careful than you were in the hospital,” I said when she finished with her story.
“Seen you do worse,” Rachel chimed in from the darkness before Katie could respond.
Katie looked at me, grinned and leaned over to kiss me on the forehead.
“You’re still hot,” she said after her lips touched my skin.
“So are you, sweetie,” I grinned, but she was no longer in the mood for banter.
“Rachel?”
“His fever should break in the next few hours with the fluids and aspirin. He needs rest.”
Katie brushed the back of her hand across my cheek, kissed my forehead again and moved back to the chair closest to the bed. Once she was settled she picked up her rifle and rested it across her legs before tilting her head back to get some more sleep.
I lay there in the darkness, hand on Dog’s back and tried to fall asleep. At first it didn’t seem like that was going to be possible, but before I knew it I woke up to bright sunshine at the windows. Dog wasn’t on the bed any longer and when I looked, both Katie and Rachel were gone.
The bedroom was large with dark, heavy furniture. I was still propped up on pillows in the king sized bed and felt about a hundred percent better than when I’d woken up during the night. The sheets were clammy, drenched and cold underneath my body. Apparently my fever had broken.
Throwing the pile of blankets to the side, I peeled the sheet off that was covering me. An IV needle was in my right arm, securely taped in place and I glanced over my head to verify there was still fluid flowing. A half full bag of saline was connected to me. Sitting up I paused on the edge of the bed, evaluating my condition.
All things considered I felt decent. Weak as hell, needing to pee again, but better than I expected. Across the room I could see the bathroom through a wide door and after removing the O2 mask and standing, I grabbed the IV bag off the nail and toddled across the thick carpeting. Walking showed me just how weak I really was and half way across the room I had to stop and cough.
Reaching the bath, I stepped onto the ice-cold tile, noting a bucket of water sitting on the floor next to the toilet that hadn’t been there the night before. I relieved myself into the bowl, then poured some of the water in to flush the waste into the sewer. I was mildly surprised, and proud, that one of them had thought of how to use the plumbing.
I was wearing nothing but a pair of briefs that were sweat soaked, cold and sticking to me. Returning to the room, I looked around for the rest of my clothes but didn’t see them. I checked the large dresser, hoping the homeowner had something in my size, but only found drawer after drawer of panties, bras and nightgowns.
“What are you doing?”
I turned to see Katie standing in the doorway, a large mug in her hand holding something that steamed.
“Had to pee,” I said.
“Looking for clothes, weren’t you?” She said with an accusatory tone, her free hand balled into a fist and resting on her hip.
“I…”
“You’re not going anywhere except back to bed.”
Katie came forward, set the mug down on the dresser and took my arm. I caught a whiff of the hot coffee and snagged the drink, turning away from her when she reached for it.
“You are feeling better,” she smiled. “Take a seat in the chair and I’ll change your sheets.”
The room was cold, no central heat keeping the house nice and toasty, and by the time Katie was finished I was shivering despite the hot coffee. She tossed the dirty linens through the door and disappeared into a walk in closet next to the bath for a moment, returning with a clean pair of underwear. After helping me change, she got me back in bed and stretched up on her toes to hang the IV bag on the nail.
“Where’s Dog and Rachel?” I asked.
“He needed to go outside and Rachel is making sure he’s moving around so his injuries don’t stiffen up too much.” Katie shoved the heavy chair closer to the bed and sat down looking at me.
“Fill me in on this place,” I said. “Are we safe for the moment?”
5
The house wasn’t just big, it was massive. 6,000 square feet if it was an inch. It was the following day and I’d recovered enough to be out of bed and wandering around. I’d fallen asleep the prior afternoon while Katie described where we were and gave me a rundown of our tactical situation. She hadn’t thought about several things, playing soldier wasn’t her bag, but she and Rachel had done a great job of finding us a place to lay up and heal.
My lungs had cleared and while I still had an occasional cough, I felt much better after two days of IV fluids and what I now knew was a ventilator. I was still weak, but getting stronger and no longer felt like I was moving and thinking in slow motion. Dog was healing as well, having benefited from the rest and antibiotics Rachel had given him. He was a long way from a hundred percent, but he was out of danger.
As I walked the house, getting a feel for the layout, he limped along at my side. I’d tried to get him to lie down and stay put, but he insisted on staying with me. Despite my concern, I knew this was best for him as long as we didn’t over do it and cause too much stress on his wounds.
Katie and Rachel were getting along, but seemed to be keeping their distance from each other. When they did communicate it was strictly business then one of them, usually Rachel, would find something that needed to be attended to in a different part of the house. I had several ideas about what might be
going on but was old enough and wise enough to not feel the need to insert myself into the dynamic.
Once I’d finished my tour of our temporary residence, Katie ushered me into the kitchen where Rachel was preparing a cold meal. A camp stove they had been using to heat water for coffee rested on the stove, but Rachel shook her head when I asked for some. There hadn’t been much fuel in it and it had run out quickly.
It was cold in the house, but still better than outside. The sun was shining weakly, but snow was piled in drifts and a strong north wind moaned through the building’s eaves and around the corners of the walls.
Before I sat down at the kitchen table I looked out a window at a large thermometer mounted on the patio. 17 degrees Fahrenheit. Probably below zero with the wind chill. I was glad for the cold weather gear I was wearing since it probably wasn’t much above freezing inside. It was cold enough to see my breath.
“I talked to Jessica on the sat phone yesterday,” Katie began, taking a chair across the table from me.
“Good,” I said, having completely forgotten about our eye in the sky. “How does the infected situation look?”
“None moving that she can see in the area. There’s a large herd passing through Twin Falls, but it’s just too cold here. They can’t survive.”
I smiled at the good news, getting a bad vibe when Katie and Rachel exchanged glances.
“What?” I asked, looking back and forth between them.
“She got the archived sat imagery working, or at least partially working, and found out what happened to the rest of our group.” Katie said, nodding her thanks when Rachel set a plate of food on the table in front of her.
“That’s great,” I said, smiling. “Are they on the way?”
Katie sat there looking at me, not touching her food. Finally, she took a deep breath and continued.
“Remember Jessica telling us she found the Bradley abandoned?”
I nodded, not liking where this was going.
“From what she can tell they encountered a Russian patrol. A helicopter. It looks like Irina talked them down and they were able to overpower the crew and take control. They flew east to refuel, then headed in this direction. Jessica lost them when they went under the cloud cover a few hundred miles east of here. Apparently thermal imaging doesn’t write to disk so she doesn’t know where they went after that.”
Katie tried to hold my eyes but gave up and stared down at the plate of untouched food. Maybe I was still thinking slow, but what she was telling me finally dawned. My stomach dropped as I stared back at her in disbelief.
“What kind of helo were they in?” I finally managed to speak in a whisper.
“Hind. Mi-24.”
I just sat there, staring at her, mouth hanging open. It couldn’t be. Could it? Had I killed my friends? Part of me refused to acknowledge the possibility while another realized that was probably exactly what had happened. I hadn’t given any thought to why a Russian helo would have been up in the mountains until now, and try as I might I couldn’t come up with a reason other than it was Martinez and the rest looking for us.
Rachel was standing by the sink, behind Katie, looking at me with a mix of pity and concern as tears rolled down her face. Katie was crying too, sniffling softly and wiping her eyes. Both of them were doing their best to hold it together.
“I need to be alone,” I whispered, standing up so abruptly the chair tipped over backwards and crashed to the floor.
Neither of them said anything further as I walked out of the room. I didn’t know where I was going, just knew I needed to do something. The urge to throw up was almost overwhelming, but I fought it down as I wandered, eventually winding up at the front door. I glanced down and saw my pack. Bending, I dug through it until I found what I was looking for then opened the door and stepped out into the frigid wind. Dog had followed me and pressed against my leg.
I was standing on a large, covered porch. The storm had blown snow onto its surface, coating everything. At the far end were several wrought iron chairs and I walked over and sat down. The air was sharp, the wind bringing tears to my eyes. At least I blamed it on the wind.
Looking down at my hands I was surprised to see the pack of cigarettes I’d just retrieved from my pack. I didn’t even remember getting them. Extracting one, I cupped my hands and lit it, inhaling deeply and immediately coughing. Not too smart after just having fluid in my lungs, but at the moment I didn’t give a shit.
Dog lay down at my feet, head turned to keep watch on the large expanse of land that dropped away from the house. Even though the sun was weak, it reflected brilliantly off the virgin snow that blanketed the landscape. I sat there, wiping tears out of my eyes and smoking, trying not to picture the faces of the people I’d killed.
I sat on the porch for most of an hour, smoking and thinking. Unable to handle the inactivity any longer I went into the house and loaded up with my knives, rifle, pistol and a bunch of spare magazines. I was in the mood to get lost in a fury of violence. Shock and sorrow had given way to anger. White-hot anger that events begun by a madman in Russia had led to me killing some of the best people I’d ever known.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Katie stood between me and the front door, hands on her hips, eyes flashing the way they do when I’m about to do something stupid and she’s intent on stopping me. Rachel stood a few feet away, a similar expression on her face.
“Going to get us some real food,” I mumbled. “Can’t take another MRE.”
“Bullshit!” She stepped forward and looked up into my face. “You think I don’t know you better than that? You’re going looking for a fight. Kill a few infected. Blow some shit up. Exorcise your demons. It won’t bring them back!”
Tears were rolling down her face as she spoke, her voice growing loud and rough with emotion. And she was absolutely right. That was exactly where I was headed. What I needed to do before I completely lost it. Lose myself in an orgy of violence.
“Fine!” Katie snapped after I just stood there staring back at her for close to a minute. “Go do what you need to do. You never fucking listen to me anyway.”
She turned and shoved past me, disappearing down the hall. A moment later the whole house shook when she slammed the door of whatever room she went into. I had watched her storm away, turning back to head for the door and stopping when Rachel stepped in front of me.
“Seriously?” She said.
“What?”
“Everything you’ve done, we’ve done, to find her and this is how you treat her?” She folded her arms across her chest and shoved her face into mine.
“How I’m treating her? What the hell did I do?”
“You’re being an ass! That’s what. Twenty-four hours ago you were flat on your back in bed and now because you’re upset you’re ready to go out into freezing weather and pick a fight you don’t need to fight. A fight you might not come back from because you’re weak.”
Rachel punctuated the last word by reaching out and pushing me. Hard. I took a couple of steps back and she advanced on me.
“You’ve beaten the odds up until now,” she said in a calmer voice. “And if this was something you really needed to do I’d go with you, but this is bullshit. Suck it up and deal with it like a man, not a boy. Put the goddamn weapons down and go talk to your wife.”
I just stood there, staring at Rachel. Pissed off at first, I slowly cooled down and realized she was right. It was foolish to put myself at risk needlessly, especially when I wasn’t in the best shape. Nodding, I turned and headed down the hall to find Katie and confess that I was a moron. Not the first time I’ve had to do that, and somehow I suspected it wouldn’t be the last.
6
The conversation with Katie went pretty much like they always did. I apologized for being an idiot and she forgave me and told me she loved me, called me an asshole then gave me a kiss. Crisis averted, I divested myself of some of my weapons and made another tour of the house.
A massiv
e fireplace was the centerpiece of the great-room. It was made of smooth river rock that had been set in mortar and went all the way to the soaring ceiling. The firebox was large enough that I could have sat inside if so inclined, but there wasn’t any wood in the two storage areas built in on either side.
“Have you checked outside for firewood?” I asked the girls. They both shook their heads.
“We weren’t sure about lighting a fire and having smoke coming out of the chimney,” Rachel said.
“I’m going to check around outside,” I said after a minute. “I think we’re probably OK. The infected, even if they could survive the cold, shouldn’t be able to recognize the smoke for what it is. Besides, I want to see what’s around us.”
I called Dog, who probably needed a break by now, wincing for him as he limped towards me. Slinging my rifle, I went to the back door and looked out before opening it. A deep, covered patio led out onto what was probably a lush green lawn hidden beneath the snow. Nothing was moving and the snow was undisturbed, so I opened the door and stepped out with Dog at my heels.
Making a tour of the perimeter, I kept a close eye out for any marks in the snow. Finding nothing other than the tracks Katie and Rachel had left when we arrived and the same path Dog had used several times, I made sure the garage where the Jeep was parked was secure then returned to the rear yard to search for wood.
A large shed sat to the side, a hundred feet from the patio, and I plowed my way to it. Dog followed in my wake, taking full advantage of walking on the path I was blazing. I paused a couple of times to give him a chance to relieve himself and was glad to note that all of his plumbing was functioning properly.
The shed door was locked with a heavy knob and deadbolt that matched what was on the house. A burst from my rifle shattered the lock and a second burst blasted it free of the surrounding wood. Pulling the door open I stepped back and aimed my rifle in, flashlight on. I didn’t really expect there to be any infected inside, but then why take the chance?