Ferryman

by Jonathon Wise

  “If I did the right thing then why does it hurt so much?”

  “I know…I know. Putting others before yourself is what makes you such a great leader.”

  “You’re our leader!”

  Chuck swallowed hard. No one had actually ever come out and said it like that. “Maybe now I am…but you will be. And they’ll follow you. It’s a grave responsibility that sometimes will force you to make difficult decisions. Like today. But you have to know that what you did was best for the entire group.”

  “How’s that?”

  “Well consider what you told me. It sounds like Jason was waiting for you—you know…expecting someone to make a rescue attempt.”

  Andy’s face took on a sense of calm as he listened. A moment later he made the connection. His pupils constricted as he voiced his thoughts out loud. “You mean it was an ambush!”

  “Yeah, basically. Remember Mike said he thought Jason was starting to suspect something.”

  Andy nodded, “Yeah…it all happened so fast…I didn’t hear any cars before the gun shots…it was like they were hiding and waiting for us to show.”

  Chuck suddenly let go of Andy’s neck and took a step back from the situation. He needed to think. His original intentions were simply to relieve any guilt that Andy might have—but it was beginning to look like they might have a much bigger problem than just Andy’s guilt. They could be in real trouble. He looked over his shoulder at the crowd waiting with Jim and Jamie on the other side of the truck. They needed to know. “Come with me,” he said, as he led Andy around the truck and through the crowd toward the main house. He left Andy at the foot of the porch while he stepped up on the platform

  Cindy walked over and stood silently by his side as he started ringing the bell. As soon as they were sure that everyone was there, Chuck raised his hands to quiet the crowd. “Folks…how’s everyone doing today?” He paused as several looked up with questions on their face. “Take a look around,” and swept his hand in a display of the dirt yards in front of the three houses. “Six months ago this part of the street looked just like any other abandoned section—no sign of life, no sign of hope. But you came down here and changed all that. Think about all you’ve done in such a short amount of time. Most of you have tilled the soil and planted crops. Most of you have picked up a wrench and worked on an engine—some of you can even rebuild one now. You’ve all learned what it takes to generate electricity and where to find good water.” There were nods of pride in the crowd. “You’ve learned how to do all of this in a very short time. That’s a lot of change. And even more impressive is that you’ve done all of it in a group setting.” He paused and held his hands out in recognition of everyone. “And still you managed to get along. There have been no fights, no ridicule or harassment. You guys have gotten along and in some cases, have done more than just gotten along.” He looked at Sara standing hand-in-hand with Jim. “That’s something to be proud of, something to base our hope on.”

  He squeezed Cindy’s hand as he continued with what he was preparing the group to hear. “Now we MAY have one more challenge.” He paused until he had everyone’s attention. “As you know only one truck came back from the run today, and I don’t think the other truck is coming back.”

  “What about Mr. Campbell and the fellow that just joined us?” Lori Wilson asked.

  “Bill was last seen running from some of Jason’s men. And Mike Cameron, well we don’t rightly know. Gun shots were heard though.”

  A soft mumble of shock started in the crowd that quickly grew into a fury of fear, remorse and revenge. Chuck raised his hands again. “Folks! Folks! Let me finish. I feel the loss as much as any of you do and I take full responsibility for it. Mike had told us that Jason was starting to wonder what was going on; well it appears that he might have anticipated the run up there today.”

  “What exactly are you saying Chuck?” Sara asked.

  “I’m saying that we may have one last challenge to overcome.” He paused and looked in Cindy’s eyes. It was there that he found the strength to continue. “Let me start off by saying that we’re not going to make any more runs for survivors, at least not to Indy. I think we have to be prepared for the possibility that Jason knows we’re down here. I mean…I would expect that Jason will try to find out where Bill and Mike came from and if there are any others.”

  Kyle asked, “What do you mean, ‘try to find out?’”

  Chuck shook his head. He didn’t want to have to say it out loud.

  Andy helped him out. “We mean that Jason may torture them if they’re still alive.”

  “I’ve seen him torture people,” Julie McAllister said with a numb look. “And I pray that I never see anything like that again.”

  Chuck broke in before the speculation could get out of control. “So! We need to be prepared to defend ourselves. We can do it,” Chuck said as he tried to muster confidence with a nod.

  Jim asked, “What about going up there and hitting first, gain the element of surprise?”

  After a moment of consideration, Chuck said, “Not a bad tactic, but no. That’s the kind of behavior that we’re trying to stay away from. Defend ourselves—yes, but go up there and murder others, no, that’s not the way. Besides, we don’t know for sure if they even know we’re down here. And if they do we don’t know for sure that they’ll attack.”

  “Sorry.”

  “Don’t be. It was a good idea and it shows that you’re thinking. Now all we have to do is turn that mind of yours around into figuring out how best to defend ourselves.”

  Jim smiled and nodded. “Will do, Chuck!”

  Chuck looked at the new man standing next to the platform and offered his hand. Jamie took it and joined Cindy and him on the platform. “Everyone, this is Jamie…”

  “Jamie Ross,” the man finished.

  “Can you add anything to the situation?” Chuck asked.

  “Well, I think you’re right about them waiting on you guys. Andy pulled me out of there. I was part of Jason’s tribe, had been since around the start of summer. He didn’t trust me too much yet so I can’t say for sure, but the last couple of weeks he seemed to be talking a lot with Mark and a few of the other guys. Jason’s got this small group of guys that he keeps close to him at all times. Mark leads them and is like Jason’s right hand man. He’s a real big, mean son-of-a-bitch. But anyway…they’d been doing a lot of whispering lately, like they were planning something.”

  Chuck interrupted, “How many of them are hard core followers? How many will do what he tells them to do without question?”

  Jamie pumped his shoulders once. “I don’t know…twenty maybe. But there are at least four in his tribe that we don’t have to worry about. That is unless there’s a gun to their heads. They’re friends of mine. Like me, Jason found them and they had no choice. It was join his tribe or burn.”

  Cindy and a few of the others indicated they knew what Jamie was talking about.

  “Anything else?” Chuck asked.

  “Yeah. Based on what Andy and Jim told me about this place, and from looking at all of you, you look healthier and better prepared to fight than they are. But that doesn’t mean you don’t have anything to worry about. Those guys up there are mean mother-fuckers. You guys have electricity and wells and…I mean look around, you guys are actually living. They don’t have any of that shit. Jason has them held up in the old Radisson on Ohio Street. No electricity or running water…very little food. They see by torch light at night and most are on the verge of starvation.” Jamie paused to look at Chuck and then around at the others. “In a fair fight—hand to hand—you guys would win. But that’s not the way Jason does things. He works his men up to a boil and then turns them loose. Christ, I’ve seen them nearly rip a man apart with their bare hands. You guys…I mean we…we need to be ready in case they do come down.”

  Chuck slapped Jamie on the back and told him thanks as he sent him back to stand with the others. Chuck started to talk but stopped when he
saw the desperation on the faces of those looking to him for reassurance. He had seen that look before in individuals, but never collectively in the entire group. To see it like that—stole his thoughts.

  A silence settled over the group as the sun continued its descent to the west. Sara and Lori’s flocks caught the sunlight and burned a brilliant red, as did Robby’s, while they stood and waited for Chuck’s wisdom. Chuck’s gaze diffused as he started to think about the dream of Cindy and the boy at the edge of the cliff. Within it, he found the strength and confidence to face everyone and say, “Okay…there we have it. You all eat a good supper tonight and while you rest and wait for the start of tomorrow, I want each of you to think about what we can do to defend ourselves. It needs to be something that we can live with, that we don’t have to worry about the children getting hurt on, but at the same time will make Jason and his men think twice about continuing on. We’ll get together around the pit tomorrow after everyone’s had a chance to eat breakfast. Normal chores are put on hold until we figure out what we’re going to do. Any questions?”

  Cathy Ferguson asked, “Are you scared, Chuck?”

  Chuck knew how delicate the question was as a few nervous laughs broke out. “Yeah, I am a little scared. That’s only natural in a situation like this. But when I look out and see all of you, when I think about what we’ve done and what we’re capable of, then I’m not so scared anymore.” He gave a reassuring smile and finished with, “We’re going to be okay. You know what I mean?”

  Cathy smiled and nodded.

  “Anything else?” Chuck gave them a few seconds and then said, “Alright. Everyone eat a good supper and get a good night sleep. We’ll talk tomorrow. Oh, and by the way, the hot shower is still open.”

  That night he and Cindy lay awake in bed. Partly because of what the day brought, but also because of how warm the temperature remained well into the night. The windows were open and a gentle breeze was blowing through, but any movement brought trickles of sweat. The only comfortable position was sprawled out on their backs on top of the sheets.

  Cindy whispered, “Do you really think we’ll be okay?”

  He found her forearm and gave it a gentle squeeze. “Yeah, we’re going to be alright.”

  He heard the sounds of her rolling onto her side and then felt her breath against the side of his face. “You’re always so confident and calm.”

  It was too dark to see her, but he could sense her lips within inches of his. “I get a lot of that confidence from you.”

  Then he felt the smooth warmth of her thigh slide up and across his midsection as she asked, “What do you mean you get it from me?”

  “I see it in you…there’s a—” Cindy cut him off as she pressed her lips to his and slipped her tongue into his mouth. Even though this was something that he had thought about for a long time, he did nothing at first. There was still Becky to think about. How could he cheat on her? But the night he heard Cindy in the bathroom came rushing back to him. That was all it took. He slid his fingers down her back. That night was a sweaty one—their first.

  Chapter 36

  The harsh sting of smelling salts brought Mike Cameron back into the conscious world. The shock snapped his head like a whip and drove him back against a hard surface. That split second of tension gave him the illusion of having some control over his body. It passed just as abruptly and he turned to dead weight. As he started to slump forward, something coarse snagged his wrists and jerked him to a stop with a painful grunt. He rolled his head to the right and after a moment of grogginess, he saw his hand tied to the front pillar of a car. After a wince, he checked his left and saw it tied to the frame of the rear door. He was bound to a car with his hands out to the sides.

  He rolled his head back to the front as a man walking away slowly came into focus. Others started to appear, including some he recognized, milling around the street. His look for familiar faces stopped when he saw the man sitting in the leather wingback chair directly across the street, slowly nodding and staring at him. It was Jason. He sat like a self-proclaimed King in his royal leather chair on the sidewalk—completely out of place in all minds except his own.

  Mike felt the pain and swelling of the various bruises all over his body as he tested the strength of the rope. He could remember being surrounded and rushed. He remembered the Dodge and Bill. That’s when he saw the unconscious man tied to another car twenty feet to his right. It was Bill.

  “Mike…Mike…You disappoint me,” Jason said, as he stood and strolled over. “I always thought of you as my second in command after Mark. And here I find you running with this man, trying to take the very people that we’re trying to save—right out from under my nose.”

  “You’re not trying to save anyone!” Mike spit out as Jason approached to within arm’s reach.

  Jason shook his head as he leaned against the car to whisper in Mike’s ear. “You’re right. I really don’t give a shit about any of these people. I’m going to make them suffer and then kill every last one of them unless someone stops me.” He pulled back and took a moment to study each individual feature of Mike’s face. When he finally settled on Mike’s eyes he dipped his head and whispered, “Is it you? Are you the one that will stop me?”

  Mike tensed up. “You’re fucking crazy! If you’re going to kill me, then kill me.”

  Jason stepped back and glanced over his shoulder as if someone were behind him. Then with a grin that would make the devil back down, he looked over at Bill before returning his gaze to Mike. “Plenty of time for that. First I want to know where the others are.”

  “What makes you think there are any others?”

  “Simple. Unless you have the ability to be in more than one place at one time,” he motioned with his head toward Bill, “then someone else was helping that man find survivors.” He paused for a moment and looked at Mike like he was admiring him. “Come now, you know what I’m capable of, you know I won’t hesitate to do something really delicious to you.” He grinned and added, “Or perhaps to your friend over there. Shall I take my time with him?”

  Mike looked past Jason to the others who were watching. Some were friends, but when he made eye contact with them they quickly looked away. They were scared—too scared to help, and he understood the reason for their lack of action. “There is no one else. The guy was just lucky to be able to do it before I hooked up with him.”

  Jason’s grin grew and he bit his lower lip. “Good. I’m glad you’ve chosen to do it this way.” He swung around and put his back to Mike as he yelled across the street. He told them to go get Mark. A second later he added with a yell, “And have him bring a saw.”

  “What are you doing, Jason? I told you there is no one else.”

  Jason looked at him with a stare that stole his breath. It was the look of someone beyond insanity—the look of someone who recognizes no life other than his own. “True enough, he could have been lucky before you came along. But then what happened to all those people he found? Did they just disappear?”

  Mike started to panic as he watched Mark running down the street toward them. “Jason!”

  Jason stepped back over toward him.

  “He let the people go! They left for the safety of the country, up toward Pendleton I think.”

  Jason smiled and nodded. He didn’t care if Mike was telling the truth or not.

  Chapter 37

  Chuck saw the jagged white face of the cliff and heard the thundering boom of the ocean crashing against the rock a hundred feet below. He saw the grasses in the knolls and valleys sway and roll like green waves as the chill of the ocean breeze pushed across them. He saw the boulders that spotted the land as if they were pebbles dropped from the hand of God. In the distant horizon the sun was setting over the ocean. What he didn’t see was Cindy or the boy.

  Chuck woke with a sudden flinch, and immediately pulled out from under Cindy’s arm to where he could sit up on the edge of the bed.

  The sudden movement brought he
r upright. She clutched his arm and gasped, “Is it Jason…Is he here?”

  He patted the top of her hand and whispered, “No. We’re okay.”

  Cindy blew out a sigh of relief as she slumped back to the comfort of the mattress.

  Chuck remained on the edge of the bed. He stared at the early morning display of light outside the window and organized his thoughts. Before Cindy could fall back asleep, he asked, “I’m guessing that as a teacher you’re probably pretty good with geography.”

  Cindy struggled with the question as she propped herself back up on one elbow. “It’s not my strongest subject, but yeah.”

  Chuck pictured the landscape of his dream. “It’s a place on the ocean with rocky cliffs, white rocky cliffs. There are green rolling hills next to the cliffs with lots of rocks and boulders everywhere.” Deep down he knew the answer himself, but he wanted the additional confirmation that came from Cindy.

  “Sounds like Scotland or Ireland.”

  Chuck smiled. “I think I know why we lived and the others didn’t!”

  “Why?”

  He jumped up. “We’ve got to wake the others!” As he scrambled to throw his clothes on, he said, “I can’t believe it. It’s been staring me in the face the entire time.”

  “What?”

  “A reason to keep hope alive. Get up and get dressed. I want everyone to hear it at the same time.”

  Cindy jumped out of bed and started throwing her clothes on as if her life depended on it, almost falling to the floor as she tried to drive her foot through the leg of her shorts. It was a panic, the kind of urgent rush associated with being late for an appointment.