by Deb Rotuno
“I’m never alone, Dad,” I said softly, turning when he sat beside me. “It’s impossible here.”
He was in jeans and a navy-blue Sandy Fire Department T-shirt that had been worn thin. Around his waist was a police gun belt, along with a knife strapped to his thigh. I noted plenty of changes—scars along his arms, a new one slicing through his left eyebrow, and he was due a shave, but his small smile was still the most comforting thing on his face, not to mention the warm concern glaring back at me from eyes that matched my own.
Now that I could truly see him, I saw weariness and worry. “What the hell happened back in Sandy, Dad?”
“You want to hear that now? Or meet everyone? I suppose Derek needs to hear it too,” he surmised, rubbing his face.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right,” I muttered, looking back at the graves.
“You need a minute?”
I nodded a little, feeling a kiss to the side of my head. “We fought…Leo and I. Just before,” I blurted out in a whisper, but Dad kissed my head again.
“About?”
I snorted, rolling my eyes up to his. “What do you think? Brody, of course. He’s been such a ray of sunshine this whole time, Dad; you have no idea.” My sarcasm was sharp, making him smirk, but I turned back to the cross. “I told Leo to stop apologizing for his son, especially since his son left us down two people. And then…they came in…so many. There had to be fifty of them. From there…and there,” I explained, pointing to the two sides of the lake from which the pack had emerged out of the woods.
“I tried really hard to get to them, to Leo and Carol, but they surrounded us. And Leo’s chair got stuck…” I was rambling, tears filling my eyes. “Dad, they turned. I had to put a bullet in your friend!” I hissed, my hands balling up into fists. “I knew he’d hate what he’d become, and he wasn’t Leo anymore…but I put him down like a rabid dog. I’ve killed so many of these…these…things that I barely bat an eye, but that?” I shook my head, swiping at my face. “And then…to watch my son raise a weapon to protect me…”
I found myself pulled to my feet and wrapped in a hug. “Sara, stop. Don’t torture yourself. You did everything you could. Don’t think that Martin and Derek haven’t told me already. That Freddie hasn’t told me. They have. You did all you could. Trust me, we’re all doing our damnedest to get through.”
Nodding, I sniffled, getting myself together and finally looking up at him. “I’m glad you’re here.”
“Well, getting here was a miracle,” he countered, “and it took way longer than I’d imagined.”
I took his hand and led him down the hill back toward camp. Several people milled about—some I thought I recognized from Sandy, others were strangers, but one I’d recognize anywhere.
“Travis?” I called, smiling when the man spun around. We’d attended high school together, but he’d been Sandy’s youngest police officer. He’d been a good friend in school.
“Sara,” he sighed, walking to me and hugging me. “God, you have no idea how happy I am that you and Freddie are okay. For…you know…Grumpy’s sake.” He jerked a thumb toward my dad.
Grinning at my dad’s chuckle, I nodded. “Yeah, well, thanks for sticking with him.”
“Bah, no worries.” He rolled his eyes probably at how trite that sounded. “Okay, so it was a bitch getting out of there, but…none of us would have made it this far, if not for your dad’s calm head. Nick didn’t make it, though…” His voice trailed off at the mention of a young firefighter who’d worked with my dad.
“Well, I want to hear about it,” Derek piped up from the table.
“Introductions first,” Dad insisted, pointing to the group of people who were gathering around us.
There were eight people, aside from Travis. Ivan and Margaret Leary had made it as far as Sandy from Gresham before their car broke down, and they’d lost her sister, Elise, to a pack as they’d tried to find another vehicle. If I were guessing, I’d have pegged them at around early to mid-forties. They were sharing an RV with two girls—sisters—Hannah and Mallory Gold, who were barely out of their teens. They were blonde and fit and quiet.
One gentleman I knew from Shelly’s Bar: Moses—or Mose, as he liked to be called. He was a tall African-American, with a big smile and an obsession with football, not to mention a love for cold beer.
“Omigod, Mose!” I gasped, rushing to him and laughing when he lifted me into a big bear hug.
“It’s good to see you, Miss Sara,” he rumbled in my ear. “Any word on that soldier of yours?” he asked in a whisper, keeping me in his arms. When I shook my head, his face fell. “Damn.” He sighed, kissing my cheek. “Hang in there, huh?”
“Shelly?” I asked tentatively when he set me on my feet. When he simply shook his head sadly, I turned my attention back to Dad’s people.
The oldest among them was Jonah Winston. He used a cane to steady himself but seemed fairly spry for a man who proudly proclaimed his age as seventy-one. He had a mellow demeanor and an easy smile. He was the owner of the other large RV and had come in from Tillamook, hoping to find his brother in Sandy, but had come up empty. He shared his space with the last two people, who stepped forward. They were a young couple, Jesse and Lucy Camden, and I gaped at the two of them.
“Oh, hell,” I murmured, shaking my head at the large, pregnant belly the girl was rubbing. She was seven months along if she was a day.
“Do you see? Why I couldn’t leave any of them?” Dad asked, rubbing the back of his neck.
“Yeah, definitely, but…we’ll need to prepare for that baby, Dad.”
“I know. Believe me, I know. I have EMT training, but Miss Margaret over there is a nurse, so she’s our best hope when it comes time for that baby,” he sighed, starting to pace by the table. “We’d had a few things stored already, but…” He let out a breath, facing me. “Sandy fell…and hard.”
Freddie walked to me, and I pulled him into my lap, kissing his head as we waited for Grandpa Hank to tell us what happened.
“Sara, Derek…when you guys left, I had hoped that someone would come secure that nursing home,” he started, looking between us. “No one came. Not a soul. Hell, I don’t think there’s anyone left, to be honest. At least not in any surrounding cities. The bigger ones, anyway.” He pointed to Ivan and Margaret. “Gresham was on fire when they left. With no power and people trying to defend themselves, things simply got out of hand.” He sniffed once, seeming to steel himself to continue. “Travis, Nick, and I tried our best to secure that building. We had a few nurses left who were able to care for the sick, dole out what meds were left, that sort of thing. Anyone we saw who was still living, we brought them in, turning the large cafeteria into a camping ground. We were able to shelter about fifty people.”
Dad started to pace again. “We had willing young men and women who went out daily, scouring homes, stores, schools, clinics, and abandoned cars for supplies. They did really well. They used a four-person buddy system with a pickup truck. They’d drive door to door, raiding everything they could find, from food, to baby stuff, to medicine and first-aid supplies. They’d even bring any survivors who needed a safe place.”
He pointed to Moses. “Mose there…He set up a checkpoint at the home. No bites, no flu-like symptoms, no scratches were allowed inside. And it worked…except someone in that one group had to have gotten cornered while out scouting and then got scared and hid their wounds, because one night we all went to bed, and the next morning, I had a nursing home full of infected killers. They turned—just about all of them—and they trapped us in there for days. And they could turn in less than thirty seconds.”
He pointed around the crowd. “Who you see? That’s who made it out. We were able to fight through it, using medical equipment and what ammo we had on us. Nick was with us, but he fell trying to help Lucy through a window. We had to leave everything inside because I wanted that building closed and locked up. So we had to start from scratch,” he explained, shrugging a shoulder.
“We holed up at the station for a few days, but eventually we were going to run out of food and ammunition. We needed what we’d stocked up in the nursing home.”
“Who went in?” Derek asked, narrowing his eyes a little.
“Me,” Dad answered, nodding. “Along with Mose, Travis, and Jesse. We strapped our arms and legs down with magazines and duct tape to prevent bites getting through, we strapped knives to the end of our shotguns and rifles like bayonets, and we wore riot helmets. It was the only way. We got most of it, though we lost a few things. The crib, baby clothes…They were ruined. Unfortunately, we set most of those dead people free out on the street. We had no choice.”
Frowning, I kissed Freddie’s head again as he toyed with Jack’s dog tags around my neck. “When was this?” I asked Dad.
“About a month ago,” he answered, his nose wrinkling. “It took us quite a bit of time to get the cars and RVs together, fueled up, and find enough food to make the trip. We got separated when another bunch came through, but we finally got the hell out of there. I saw the path you took, Sara. You cleared it beautifully, but there were packs of dead on the road. We stopped to hunt and made a couple of side trips into a few small towns to grab what we could.”
I couldn’t stop staring at him. If my dad—being a firefighter—could make it, if he was standing in front of me, then my hopes and prayers and dreams went out silently that the other half of my family could make it. I so badly needed them to make it that I started to shake, and I hugged Freddie closer. My husband, Joel, Rich, and Dottie were all military trained soldiers. They were so smart, so strong, and so capable that my hope renewed almost to a point that it made me drunk, but I pushed it down. No one, aside from Freddie and me, felt as positive as we did. I saw their pity-filled looks, their disbelief, and their sadness. To voice my hope would make me sound pathetic and crazy, but something deep down told me that my heart would just…know if Jack’s beautiful spirit was gone, if it no longer existed on this planet.
Derek whistled low, shaking his head. “You are officially a member of the badass club, Henry Stokes,” he praised, giving him a mock salute.
Dad laughed, shaking his head. “That’s a good thing?”
“That’s the best thing,” he sighed. “I guess what we need to figure out is this whole living here, campsite thing. Rich’s cabin is free, but we’ve been using the bunker below it for storage and emergency shelter. If you want to add what you’ve got, we’ll have a better idea as to where we stand.”
“We can do that,” Hannah, the older of the sisters, piped up. “We used to work at the market in Sandy, so…Yeah, kinda got the grocery thing down.”
Dad chuckled. “Okay, you two get started on that. Josh, you can show them and give them a hand. Travis, if you could sort the ammo, see what the combined stock comes to…”
“Yeah, Hank. No sweat.”
“I have a suggestion,” Mose stated, smiling when we turned to him. “I don’t want to step on toes or nothin’, but this fence…It won’t hold, even when you finish it. Not against a large pack like you said came through yesterday. If you want, I’ve got an easier, better solution.”
“Man, I’m all ears,” Derek stated, standing up from the table.
“Spikes, crisscrossed each way,” Mose said, mimicking an X with his hands. “Those zombies…they don’t seem to be able to avoid running into stuff, so it would basically skewer them. We’d need plenty of trees chopped down, but you know, it seems to be the one thing you have in spades. It’ll take some time to fence the whole camp, even longer if you include the lake. It won’t keep out humans, but it will stop those walking nightmares.”
I laughed, simply because we were deep in the woods. Trees were in abundance.
The door to my dad’s cabin slammed open, and Brody’s hung-over ass stumbled out into the camp. He squinted at the sunlight, and I was happy to see just how hard Derek had hit him, not to mention the slight limp he walked with from my knee to his balls. As he got closer, I could even see a handprint around his neck from my dad the night before.
“Oh, I bet he feels like rainbows and glitter today,” Tina drawled wryly.
I had to hide my laugh in Freddie’s hair, but my dad heard her, smirking her way before turning to Brody.
“Just the man I needed to see!” he boomed loudly, most likely on purpose to make Brody flinch. My ex groaned when Dad’s heavy hand slapped his shoulder. “I’ve heard some things, Brody,” he started slowly, a warning tone to his voice. “I don’t like them…these things people are telling me. Your cooperation starts now. I’m sorry about Leo, son, but if you again blame my daughter or anyone else you left behind that day, you’ll find yourself tied to a tree until the next pack comes through. You know damn well they didn’t allow it on purpose.”
Brody narrowed his gaze on me, and Freddie sat up straighter. I smirked when Dad called his name again—especially loud—in his ear.
“Now…you’re gonna go back to my cabin, grab everything you were able to procure yesterday, and give it to the young ladies sorting the food. That includes alcohol, son. I’m not joking. Next, you’ll be joining Mose and Derek here. We’re gonna need some trees cut down. Lots of them. And I have a brand new set of tools in my truck.” He slapped his shoulder again.
I moaned, looking to Tina. “You know, my first hangover…Dad did that same thing. Suddenly he needed help mowing the lawn really early the next morning.”
Tina chuckled. “Cruel but helpful. Look.”
Brody stumbled away, muttering under his breath as he trudged back into the cabin.
“Gentlemen, the first foul word he blurts out,” Dad told Mose and Derek, “I wanna know about it.”
“Yeah, Hank,” they both said through highly amused grins.
I set Freddie on his feet, walked to my dad, and kissed his cheek. “Welcome to Clear Lake, Dad. Glad you could make it.”
4 Months & 10 Days after
Hurricane Beatrice
“What do you think?” Dad asked, tapping the map of Mount Hood National Forest.
Derek and Josh studied where he was pointing. They were trying to figure out the easiest, safest way to hunt. We needed meat. Fishing was fine, though there was a concern that we’d already caused a dip in the amount of fish in the lake. The food stores were holding steady, with plenty of vegetables, dry goods, and soups. There were very few fresh veggies, but Millie had started to work a small garden just to keep us supplied with tomatoes, onions, and potatoes. She was hoping for more, but she was happy with what she’d accomplished. However, canned and fresh meat was scarce, and we needed a real, true hunting trip.
“I think…here…and here,” Derek said, dragging his finger from one point to another. “When you came in, was 770 still clear, empty?”
“Yeah,” Dad answered, nodding a little. “There were a few straggling dead but not anything you guys couldn’t handle. They’re just wandering aimlessly.”
Derek nodded, looking to Josh. They’d volunteered to go off on the hunt for us. Just the two of them. The thought was scary, but with Derek’s Jeep, Josh’s quick feet, and both of them being really good shots, they were the best option we had. The Jeep’s four-wheel drive alone could get them around and through tight spots and narrow roads. Any more than that, and they’d have to take a truck, which would limit their mobility.
“This will be more than just one day,” Josh explained, flinching when his mother tsked. “Mom! We don’t have a choice! Martin can’t go with that ankle he twisted. Hank’s needed here. Mose and Brody are barely making headway with that fence. Who else could go? Who else can track deer?”
Millie sagged in defeat, and I wrapped an arm around her shoulders. I completely understood her fears. Josh was all she had left. He was her son, her baby. My eyes immediately sought out my own son, and I found Freddie laughing and playing by the lake with Janie, Tina, and the two Gold girls. I’d found out Hannah was eighteen, but little Mallory, despite how mature she looked, was only fourteen�
�and crushing on Josh big-time. Martin was watching over them all, despite his wrapped ankle—a silly accident he’d gotten coming up the slippery bank of the lake. It pissed him off something fierce; he felt useless.
“Millie, I wouldn’t send them if I didn’t think they couldn’t handle it,” my dad soothed, and I smirked at the affection I saw there, now wondering if there was a bigger reason he’d asked me to take Millie and Josh with me when we’d left Sandy.
My dad, despite how he probably didn’t see it, was a born leader. People instantly looked to him for what to do. I’d seen it the second he stepped onto the campsite. Even Derek had relinquished some of the control, simply because Dad could handle it. It may have been his personality, or even the fact that he’d been the fire station’s captain, but it was most likely both, added with his calm, level head.
“What about Jesse?” I asked in a whisper.
“Nah,” Derek immediately answered. “I can’t risk a daddy-to-be out there. It’s not cool. Just like you aren’t going either.” He pointed at me, but I chuckled.
“Not a damn chance,” Dad added.
I sighed, shaking my head. “Well, then, I guess it’s you two, only because Ivan and Jonah are working on some sort of water thing. They’ve rigged a few barrels to catch rain water, and they’re working on some sort of pump. We still can’t drink it without boiling it, but running water for a shower and washing clothes sounds damn nice.”
“No kidding,” Millie agreed.
“Here’s what you’re gonna do,” Dad stated firmly. “You’ll take exactly twenty-four hours. I want your asses back in this camp same time tomorrow. Not a single argument, and I don’t care if you’ve caught anything by then or not. If you haven’t, then we’ll set up another trip, but I don’t want you gone any longer than that.”
Derek looked like he was about to argue, but Josh smacked his shoulder, saying, “Got it. If nothing else, we’ll snag some rabbits.”
“I don’t care if you catch frogs, son, just get back here in twenty-four hours,” Dad countered.