REM

by Valentine, J. D.

  Danny kept his eyes on her hand as it was turning white from her squeezing so tight. "Soph, we need you."

  Sophia kept her head to the floor as she nodded. "I know. I just don’t want to leave him."

  Eric leaned forward, touching her shoulder. "Soph, he is gone."

  "Don’t say that!" She yelled, wiping away her tears. "I...don't know what happened. I mean one second he was there and then..."

  Danny patted her hand that was gripping Chaps. "Kid, he is gone. I need you to focus right now. We have to secure this place before nightfall and before we do that, I need to know you are good before Eric and I go up there."

  Sophia was about to say something, but she swallowed her tongue.

  Come on, kid. We need you.

  Her hand let go of Chap's hand, and she grabbed her rifle, checking the chamber. "Just do what you gotta do."

  Eric looked at Danny then nodded as he stepped out.

  She is tough.

  Danny exhaled as he looked back at Chaps.

  "I'm sorry," he said, patting the limp hand.

  Danny then stepped out from the Humvee, letting the door slowly shut. Eric had spread out, putting distance between him and Danny in case something was ready to ambush them. Danny took the right side as they slowly started to bound towards the cafe. The road was to their left, but the thick pines blocked out its view as Danny took his next piece of cover.

  "Move up, Dan," Eric said over the radio.

  Danny moved up, so he was in line with Eric. He could see the straight lines of the cafe’s wood frame. Beyond the pines opened to reveal a small parking lot. No cars stood there, but there was an energy that Danny didn’t like about it.

  "Dan, whenever you're ready," Eric said as he racked the bolt back on the SAW.

  "Ready or not, I always say."

  Eric laughed as he shouldered his weapon. A deep breath in and Danny exhaled slowly.

  Go.

  He moved at once heading right for the back door. Danny's pace was brisk as he held his weapon up, ready for any threat. The back door was slightly hanging ajar, making his heartbeat even faster as he tried to peek inside. He positioned himself on the right side of the door where he could only see a steel sink and an industrial dishwasher.

  "On you, Eric," Danny said over the radio.

  A wood door stood in front of him as he aimed his rifle at the opening. Eric quickly ran up behind Danny giving him a light shove to make entry.

  Okay.

  Danny pushed open the door and quickly pivoted to the right. The cafe was not how Danny imagined it would be. On the far left was a window to order food and the rest looked like a glorified 7-11. Everything was calm except for the shotgun-sized hole in the front door that swung lazily in the breeze. A man was lying face down with a giant bloodstain that surrounded his decaying corpse. Eric pushed forward past Danny. He moved with the 25-pound machine gun like it was an extension of his body, quickly clearing the store to the end.

  "Well, I was hoping for an espresso or some shit," Eric said as he unbuckled his chin strap.

  Danny walked forward to the body and tapped it with his boot. "Yeah, well maybe there are some cigarettes behind the counter."

  Eric tried to smile, but Danny could see the pain in Eric's eyes or was it fear?

  "Soph, everything is all clear," Danny said into his headset. He unbuckled his helmet and set it on the counter. He fished behind the register until he pulled out a pack of Marlboro Reds. Eric walked behind the register and grabbed a bottle of rum that was on the wall. He popped the top and took a sip.

  "This shit still makes me want to puke from the smell," Eric winced.

  Danny lit a cigarette and inhaled. "I’ll stick to the cigarettes," he said holding out one to Eric, who quickly took a whiff setting down the bottle of rum.

  "I’ll head down there in a couple of minutes," Eric said, taking another sip. "I imagine Sophia isn’t gonna be much help for a couple of days."

  She is stronger than you think.

  A rumble came from down the hill. Eric and Danny looked at each other as the whining engine came up the hill, and the brakes squealed as it slowed to a stop.

  Danny looked over at Eric. "I think she is a lot tougher than you give her credit for."

  The engine ceased making little pinging noises that sounded like a BB gun going off. One of the humvee’s doors shut and footsteps approached the cafe. Danny swallowed heavily as the door swung open ringing the bell. Both men stood as Sophia walked in. Her eyes were red and puffy, and her face held no expression. Danny and Eric glanced at each other for a moment before they headed for the door. Eric walked up to Sophia.

  "You alright?" he said, rubbing her shoulder.

  "What do you think?" She said glaring up at him.

  Eric stepped back. Giving her all the space she needed.

  She shook her head. "I just need some time."

  "By all means," Eric said as he walked outside.

  "Soph, Eric and I will handle everything," Danny said, holding the door open. "When it's all done, we will let you know." He was about to walk outside but stopped in his tracks. "I'm sure after it’s all done, he would want you to say a few words."

  Sophia started to sob heavily as her hands covered her face. Danny left her there as she slowly began to sink to the floor. When he turned around outside, he found Eric already unbuckling Chap’s body from the restraints.

  Danny grabbed a shovel from the back and headed to the treeline. He knew Eric wouldn't have much trouble moving what was left of the body.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  "HOW’S SHE LOOKING?" Danny said as he leaned on the Humvee.

  Eric looked up from the engine compartment cursing to himself. "Well, it was overheating so letting it sit for a couple hours cooled it all down, but I think the air intake valve is seized open. The radiator has been pierced, and as it stands, I’d say this thing is done."

  Danny stared at him with his arms now crossed. "Do you have any good news?"

  "They have slim jims in the cafe," Eric said as he bit off a stick and chewed it intently.

  Danny sighed as he rubbed his beard. "Well, that is good news."

  Eric slammed the hood closed and looked over at Danny, who was pacing back and forth, cursing to himself.

  "Looks like we are walking there, chief."

  Danny rolled his eyes. "Great," he said sarcastically. "No, this is perfect. I always wanted to take a stroll in the mountains during an apocalypse!"

  "Etter. We can cover some distance if we plan a good route. Hell, we can cut through this whole mountain and hit that small town on the other side."

  "Spare me the upside," Danny said in disgust. "I’m gonna look around, make sure there is nothing along the tree line."

  "Don’t go too far, Dan."

  "Yeah. Yeah," Danny said as he walked out the back door.

  He kept walking down the hill following the small road that led to the highway.

  What are we gonna do now, Chaps?

  Danny could see the main road and by that point, the blood in his veins was boiling. He felt like slamming his rifle into the tree until it was bent metal and shattered polymer. Danny wanted to scream until his vocal chords were grounded meat, but instead, he buried that anger. He pushed it down deep like he was drowning a ball in a pool. It took everything he had to push it deep into that void, and eventually, it stopped fighting to get to the surface. Danny sunk to the floor and let his hands cover his face.

  A break. Can’t we just get one fucking break?

  The forest around him became lively, as birds chirped and the small creatures said one last goodbye to the retreating sun. His anger had fully melted away as he looked out to the burning cities. Instead of anger, he felt this growing sadness that crept up his throat.

  Goddamn it.

  He was ready to feel all those raw emotions, it was finally time. He was ready to let it all go, but something stuck out to him. He stood trying to listen to that peculiar sound. />
  Was it the wind? Maybe it was an animal? Maybe it was one of those crazies?

  He heard something that stuck out from the rest of the ambient noises of nature. It was whining and unnatural. He heard it again, but this time it was louder. Danny’s eyes went wide. Scattered pines still blocked the view of the sound, but it was getting closer.

  "Dan, you hear that?" Eric said over the radio.

  Danny fumbled for his headset. "Someone is coming! You two push into the trees on the other side of the parking lot. Grab all our shit, so they don’t suspect we are here."

  "Where are you?"

  "Just move your ass, Eric," Danny said as he sprinted deeper into the pines.

  The engine grew louder now, and Danny could hear that it was more than one. He ran into a ravine. His eyes found a tree to his left that had fallen on its side. Parts of it had rotted away, which to a scared man looked like the perfect hiding spot. He vaulted over the log and quickly crawled underneath it. There was a small hole in the log that gave him a perfect view of the road that led to the Crystal Cafe.

  The engines were idling as men shouted to one another. Suddenly, all the engines cut, letting the forest regain its natural balance.

  "Tonto!" a hispanic voice called out from the treeline.

  "Yeah?" a man said from behind the trees.

  "Take some of your boys up there and clear it out."

  The small hole showed nothing, but the small road leading up to the cafe. Nothing moved, except for the beads of sweat that ran down Danny’s brow and settled in his eye making it sting. He blinked trying to bring himself some relief. When he focused again he saw four men were quietly walking through the pines.

  Pine needles crunched as the men drew nearer. Danny pulled his body close to the log and tried to calm his breathing.

  They won’t see me. They can’t see me, right? Shit. SHIT!

  The men were close now. Danny saw four of them spread out as they closed in on the cafe. Pine needles crackled ten feet in front of him. A young hispanic boy emerged into view clutching a bolt action rifle. His eyes scanned ahead, unaware of Danny, who was just to the boy's right.

  "Fuck this," the kid whispered to himself. "Why are we doing this?"

  "Hey, fucker!" a man called out to the left on the boy. "Shut up, puto and do your job."

  The boy shook his head in disgust as he pressed forward in fear. Danny laid there until the footsteps were drowned out by the wind as it rushed through the pines.

  Danny pressed the button on his headset. "Eric, you have a small group coming up." He waited for a response.

  Come on. Come on! Talk to me.

  The radio squelched twice presumably from Eric.

  Danny laid in that log for what felt like an eternity. The sun would be setting in a half an hour, which started to eat away at Danny’s hope. Suddenly, someone whistled from the main road and all the vehicles started up again. A motorcycle led the charge up the hill as did the rest of the caravan. That was his moment. Danny slowly started to crawl down the hill away from the cafe. He finally crept out of direct sight, he stood.

  "Eric, where the hell are you two?"

  "Dan, there are a few of them who are starting to sweep the area. Two of them are headed in your direction, but they seem pretty suspicious of the Humvee."

  "Shit," Danny whispered to himself as he kept moving down the hill.

  Eric clicked back on the radio. "Dan, we have the high ground. Double back down the hill and swing around. We will wait for you."

  It can never be easy.

  "Eric, lets just meet up and get out of here."

  The radio clicked back on. "Dan, get your ass up here," Sophia said. Her voice was bitter and unrelenting.

  I guess the lady has spoken.

  ***

  "Almost there, Etter," Eric said over the radio.

  Danny dry heaved as he leaned over from absolute exhaustion. He decided instead of looking up, he would look out at the horizon. The sun had its last glare of orange as it retreated for the evening.

  Oh, that’s nice.

  Darkness was welcomed in a moment like this because it meant they could sneak away with relative safety. Sure, the hike would be miserable, but it was better than getting shot.

  "Come on, chief," Eric said over the radio.

  Danny looked up to find the side of the hill had been eroded, leaving the exposed roots of the pine tree above him. Eric’s smiling face was looking down as he held a hand out.

  Eric clicked his radio headset. "I have good news for you, chief."

  Danny was still winded. ‘What’s that?"

  "Your dad bod is diminishing as we speak."

  For the first time all day, Danny smiled. "I thought the dad bod was in?"

  "It never was. Just a fabricated lie to make out of shape dad’s like yourself feel sexy."

  Danny reached up exposing a little of his small gut under his armor. "Well, I’m feeling damn sexy at the moment."

  His breath finally calmed enough for him to do the last twenty-foot climb. The dirt cracked and fell away as he used the roots to pull himself up the last bit of the steep hill. Eric grabbed his shoulder strap and pulled most of Danny’s weight onto the flat surface above.

  "Man, that sucked," Danny said, still gasping as he laid on his back.

  Eric took a knee next to him, still smiling. "I’ve gotta say, chief. I think that was a record time."

  Danny smiled back as he held up a hand. "Do me a favor, and shut up."

  With a heavy grunt, Eric helped Danny to his feet and brushed off all the dried pine needles that stuck to his clothes.

  "You alright?" Eric said patting him on the back.

  "Peachey," Danny said, still wheezing slightly.

  Eric started walking back into the tree line making Danny try to keep up. They crept into a thick mess of bushes. Eric suddenly crouched lower to the ground making Danny follow, except it became more of a crawl as Danny’s calves started to cramp. A small, little path led into a patch of bushes that stood about waist high. Eric disappeared to the left and Danny followed in suit.

  "Dan, glad you could join the party," Sophia whispered.

  "I was going to say the same thing about you," Danny said.

  It took Danny a moment, but he found her nestled next to a bush with her face covered with mud. Eric laid on the ground, in the prone, looking down on the cafe from behind the SAW. Someone screamed in the distance drawing Danny’s eyes down to the parking lot. A group of men were laughing as they tossed a few half dressed women around.

  "What the hell is going on here?" Danny asked as he slowly crawled up beside Eric.

  "These bastards have been going at this for some time," Sophia whispered from behind him.

  Eric spit on the ground to his left and used the binoculars to view the scene. "I’d say this is the third go around. They raped the blonde earlier. You probably didn’t hear anything because they gagged her."

  The binoculars were held out to Danny. He grabbed them and looked down on the scene. The first one who came into view was a biker with tattoos covering his head. He sat on one of the benches smoking a cigar. Danny panned to the right where a burly white fellow was slapping around a woman with greasy blonde hair. The three other men were tearing the clothes off a girl with darker skin. She looked to be no older than twenty, but her face was already swollen on her left eye. The women started to cry out but were quickly gagged. The men suddenly pulled the women from their hair and dragged them into the open doors of the cafe.

  Danny’s knuckles turned white as he gripped the binoculars tighter.

  "Why? Isn’t everything twisted enough?" Danny whispered to himself.

  Eric leaned on the SAW. "I can’t try to justify all the fucked up things those crazies are doing. I mean they are sick, but this shit, how can a normal human being do this?" Eric shook his head as he spit a wad of dip on the ground. "I cannot just standby and let this happen. How can we stay in the light if we let others fall in the darknes
s."

  Carry the light, Dan.

  Danny looked over at Eric. The man’s eyes showed something he had hardly ever seen since this whole thing started. It was absolute certainty.

  Eric chewed the inside of his mouth before he spoke. "I want to live, Dan, but I can’t if I don’t do what I think is right."

  "You aren’t doing it alone," Sophia said from behind.

  The sun was just setting, casting a purple hue over the burning city. Danny took a deep breath closing his eyes. The sound of one of the women screaming made him open them. His blood was boiling again. He wanted this all to stop, but the world was too far gone now. All bets were off the table.

  Be the man you always wanted to be.

  Danny rubbed the bridge of his nose and set the binoculars down. "Last time I checked, we own the night."

  Eric nodded as he ran his hands through his matted beard. "I’ve been telling you that for weeks."

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  A BRANCH SNAPPED in the trees.

  Damn it. Slow and steady, Dan.

  It was nearing three in the morning now, as Danny and Eric reached the base of the treeline. The parking lot had only two men posted on guard. The burly man with a jet black beard was sitting on a small rocking chair outside the store. Occasionally, he would get up and take a leisure patrol around the parking lot to stretch his legs or take a piss. His counterpart, who was a shorter man, would occasionally nod off on the picnic bench, but he hadn't done that for the past thirty minutes. Instead, the man would sing low tune Ranchera music as he swayed slightly side to side.

  "Soph, when it hits three, we are going in," Eric said over the radio.

  The radio clicked on quietly. "I have the main door covered. Let me know when you make entry so I can adjust my fire."

  "Roger," Eric replied.

  The back door screeched open, and Danny saw someone dragging something heavy outside. The dirt dragged underneath it and with a dull thump, a dark figure slumped to the floor. The man chuckled to himself as he walked inside, shutting the door slowly.

  That better not be what I think it is.