The One Percent (Episode 3): The One Percent

by Heller, Erik P.

  I watched in the mirror as she gave her ankle a squeeze.

  “Twisted, I think. I can try and put some weight on it, but I can’t promise to be of much use.”

  “OK. Try it, but if it isn’t any good you might as well stay in the car.”

  “OK, I will. Is this the place.”

  The entrance was just coming up, so I slowed down. The news was good. No sign of even one Groaner, never mind a ravaging horde of them.

  David was at the gate as I swung the car onto the drive and I watched in my rearview mirror as he pushed the gates closed behind me.

  Out front of the house, I could see the army lorry that had gone on the scavenging run parked up, plus the much bigger motorhome that Daisy had evidently navigated back successfully.

  When I got out of the car, Daisy ran out from inside and wrapped herself around me in a big hug.

  The smaller campervan with Jezza and the two army boys wasn’t there, and there was no way we could wait for them. If they didn’t get there by the time we were loaded and ready to go, then we were going to have to leave them, and the guns, to find their own way.

  Once I’d managed to disentangle myself from Daisy, we wandered back inside.

  It was a veritable hive of activity in there.

  People were calm, but I couldn’t help but feel nervous with that many Groaners breathing down our necks.

  “Brian,” I yelled when I saw him. He hurried over.

  “Frank. Any sign of who shot the flares?”

  “It was the people in that motorhome. We lost one of them while we were out, but this is Libby.” I turned to do the introduction, but Libby was still leaning on the car, wincing, puffing, and panting with the pain. “Never mind, we can do introductions later. What’s the situation?”

  Brian looked worried which was unusual for him. Generally, he was the height of cool, calm, and collected, but right then, he was looking hot, bothered and about to go off pop going by the colour of his face.

  “We only just got out of that village, Frank. When we got there, a dozen or so Groaners were wandering about, so we knocked them off pretty quickly and got into the shop. The lad who came from the village was pretty upset because a few of the Groaners we got rid of were people he knew.”

  “Is everybody OK?” I asked. I already knew the answer, just by his face.

  “By the time we loaded up the tinned and dried stuff, we were just emptying the soft drinks cooler when we got the shout outside from the lad who was on guard. We all rushed out. All apart from one of the boys who was determined to get as many drinks as he could. In the end, I had to go back in and drag him out while he still had his arms full. When I looked along the street there was a wall of the things heading our way. They were just crushing each other against walls and cars until the pressure eased then they moved fast,” he ran his fingers through his hair, and I could see he was picturing the scene in his head, “it was like they were pushing each other along. They were running.”

  “Running?”

  “Well, walking quickly. I gave the order to get back on board, so we could get out of there. The lad who was driving got the truck started. The sergeant helped get everyone in. We were just pulling out when the lad I’d grabbed out of the shop got up and just jumped out of the back of the truck.”

  “Why?”

  “I don’t know for sure, Frank. He went back into the shop so maybe he’d left something behind. He shut the door behind him, but we couldn’t stop, we couldn’t. They would have been on us. I could smell ‘em.”

  I could see he was disturbed by what was going through his head, and if what he described and what I’d seen were part of the same phenomenon, the chances were that we had little more than a few minutes at most to get out of there, or we tried to ride it out.

  I put the alternatives to Brian which helped take his mind off what had happened.

  He immediately said he wanted out.

  I didn’t blame him. So did I, and I could see Daisy nodding her agreement out of the corner of my eye.

  I know it sounds almost cowardly, but as far as I could see, running away to fight another day was better than trying to fight off an overwhelming horde, especially as we still had next to nothing in the way of ammo or weapons. An image of the man, Mike, I’d left behind being smashed to the ground by the raging horde flashed across my mind.

  I didn’t want that for me or any of the people here.

  Right then, our main concern was to get everybody out of there as quickly as we could, with a minimum of fuss and get away, maybe drive a few miles then have a chance to pull ourselves into shape a bit more.

  “I’m off to get the tractor going,” Daisy said. I nodded my agreement. At least with Daisy in the lead, she could power through any smaller groups of Groaners without us having to tiptoe past at walking pace to avoid damage to any of the vehicles. That should mean we have a chance to get away somewhat quicker. That was a comforting thought right then.

  Brian had already started barking out orders to get everyone in the truck. People were grabbing what they could and running out of the front door.

  I went and grabbed my pack from beside the sofa I’d slept on. Then I ran up the stairs and barged into the room Daisy had shared the night before. I saw her pack and grabbed that too.

  Nobody else was in there so I headed back out and downstairs, then out the front door. I told Libby to get back in the car and slung our stuff in the boot.

  Brian was standing by the back of the lorry which had its engine going.

  “Is everyone out?” I yelled.

  “Just David up at the gate to go,” he yelled back.

  “I’ll get him. I just want to talk to the people in that motorhome before we leave.”

  “Be quick.” Brian pulled himself up into the truck after slinging his pack in first.

  I walked around to the driver’s side of the motorhome and banged a fist on the door. The man in the driving seat turned his head to look at me, then I heard a click and the door opened. I stepped back, pulled it wide open, and offered him my hand.

  He looked at it disdainfully, then turned his eyes to mine.

  “I’m Frank. Those Groaners we got away from back in that village are likely on their way here, so we are all shipping out. Follow the tractor out and turn left out of the gates. OK?”

  He didn’t look scared. If anything, his whole vibe as a person was one of contempt.

  “What if we don’t want to?”

  I was taken aback a bit by the question, but I didn’t have time to argue with the guy.

  “Look. We’re going to get a few miles away from here, somewhere we can stop and get ourselves sorted out. The tractor will clear the road, so we can move quickly. Follow it until we stop, then if you decide you want to go your own way, there’ll be no hard feelings.”

  The guy looked at me for a few seconds then evidently saw the logic in the plan. He didn’t say anything, just pulled the door to, looked out of his windscreen, then started the engine.

  I coughed at the cloud of diesel fumes that plumed out from underneath the motorhome somewhere and stepped away, heading over to the tractor. I climbed up, opened the door, and leaned up to give Daisy a quick kiss.

  “Turn left at the gate. I’ll pick up David. Everyone else is out and in the truck. Once we’re a few miles out see if you can find anywhere for us all to park up, so we can get ourselves sorted out a bit more.”

  “What about Jezza and the guns?”

  “There isn’t time to wait. He’ll have to try and catch up.”

  “How will they know where to go?”

  “I don’t know. We’ll have to try and leave a sign or something. I’ll be in the car behind if anything happens.” I leaned in, kissed her again, and jumped down. She pulled the door closed and as I ran back to the car, I heard her engine noise get louder as she slowly trundled forwards. I waved the guy in the motorhome out, then jumped in the car and quickly backed it around and followed him along the drive. I
n my rearview, I could see the army truck pull out behind us.

  “Where are we going?” Libby asked from the back seat.

  “As far away from here as we can,” I replied, pressing the button down to drop my window, ready to shout David over.

  IX0X0X0X0X0X0XI

  Thirty minutes after we abandoned Marldon, Jim brought the motorhome in front of me to a halt, its brake lights illuminating Mungo’s pointed terrier face as he travelled while sitting on the front seat with his paws up on the dashboard watching where we were going.

  I pulled the Range Rover in behind, and I heard the squeal and hiss of airbrakes behind me as Brian and the soldiers parked up. I jumped out, with Mungo on my heels, to take a look where we were, and hopefully, be sure we were safe for the time being at least.

  Daisy was heading back from the tractor, while the people from the truck disembarked. Everyone came together on the side of the road in a turn off into a field that was blocked off by a sturdy-looking metal gate.

  Brian stepped forward, clearly feeling like he was now leading our merry little band, while a couple of the soldiers maintained a watch at a short distance either way along the road.

  “Right everyone,” Brian yelled over the muted chatter between the various people. “We managed to get away from Marldon just in time by all accounts. We need to find somewhere to stop tonight before it gets dark. We have enough food and water with us to last a day, so that’s the first task for the morning, then we need to head north again.” There was a murmur from Lucy and David who had never been party to the original plan, and a shout from the motorhome.

  “Why north?” Jim yelled, drawling the words out having not bothered getting out. He’d wound the window down instead.

  “Because that’s where we’re heading.” Brian didn’t look like he appreciated the interruption. “Argue about it tonight when we find a place to stop, OK?”

  Jim huffed and rolled his window back up again. I knew it was early, but I hadn’t formed an altogether positive impression of the man.

  “Daisy, keep an eye out at the front. If there’s a horde of those bloody Groaners heading toward us, we’re going to have to stop and reroute. We also need to find somewhere we can park up for the night.”

  “Any idea what sort of place?” Daisy yelled over the muttering which didn’t seem to be abating.

  “Somewhere off the road if there is something like that. If it has a wall or a fence, then all the better. Frank, what do you want to do about Jezza and my two boys?”

  I tried to think. In all truth, I wasn’t sure having Jezza back among the fold was the best thing for the group, but then he was my brother, so I was resigned to having to try and do something.

  “We could have someone wait here, sir,” the sergeant suggested.

  “No,” I said. “We need to stick together. It’s bad enough three people are stuck out on their own without us adding to it.”

  “What do you suggest we do, Frank,” Brian asked.

  “If we could leave some kind of marker? I don’t know.”

  “A sign?” Lucy suggested.

  “What sort of sign? We haven’t really got anything we could use, short of sticking bits of paper up for them if they spot them.”

  “Has anyone got any paper in their vehicles?” Nobody volunteered any. “Jim!” Brian shouted at the motorhome. Everyone turned to look as Jim studiously ignored Brian’s yell. “I’ll take that as a no then,” Brian said, shaking his head. I guessed he wasn’t too impressed by Jim’s recalcitrance either.

  “Branches,” Daisy said.

  “What,” Brian asked, looking puzzled at Daisy’s outburst. I had an idea of what she was going to suggest but, ever the gentleman, I didn’t want to steal her thunder by interjecting.

  “Branches. Off the trees. We could collect up some branches every few miles and make arrows out of them. Lay them on the road so they’re bound to see them as they drive up to them.”

  “We could put one down every time we go past a junction or every few miles or something.” David joined in the discussion and I could see Lucy nodding beside him. She still looked very wan, so I guessed the events of yesterday at the gun shop were still playing on her mind.

  “Seems sound to me.” Brian waited for any objections from the rest.

  “What if someone else follows them?” I heard Libby say from just behind me.

  “Sorry, Libby is it?” Brian asked. He hadn’t had more than a fleeting glimpse of her so far, never mind a chance to get to know her. She nodded. “If other people do see it and follow, then I hope they are decent people, but in all truth, I can’t see it. We’re stuck on a back road in the middle of nowhere and I haven’t seen anyone new for at least a couple of days. We’ll just have to take the chance.”

  I watched Libby as the options played across her mind, and in the end, she nodded her acceptance.

  Daisy piped up again. “The next problem we have is that we’re only just outside Wantage and according to the map book the army lads provided, there’s no sensible way around it. We could do a long detour but I’m conscious of fuel. Do we try to batter straight through, or do we do the detour?”

  “Anybody know the place?”

  One of the soldiers put up a hand. “Went there for a night out a couple of times, sir. Not much there. Several supermarkets. One had a petrol station if we’re running out of fuel.”

  “Thanks, Corporal Smith.” Brian stood tall and looked around at everyone. “So, what’s the decision? Do we go around even though that might take us a while, or do we go through and take the chance there aren’t too many of those things there?”

  “Do we all have to go through?” I asked. “What about if we send some people around and some through then meet up on the other side?”

  “We could do that, Frank,” Brian said, “but we only have one tractor and we’re going to need that if we’re going to get through. That would leave the rest vulnerable if they happen to come across any Groaners on the trip around.”

  “And it would be better if we all stuck together,” Daisy said. “It’s going to be bad enough without us having to worry about the other group getting through. The more of us the more chance we have of getting past them.”

  “Let’s vote,” Brian said. “All those for going through, raise a hand.”

  Brian put his hand straight up. I looked around. I was truly undecided about this. If Newbury was so bad we couldn’t get in, I couldn’t see Wantage being any easier. From what I knew of the place, it was a good bit smaller but if there were thousands of Groaners there, whether it was five or fifty thousand, it didn’t matter because they would still make mincemeat of the few of us.

  I had a look around to see how it was looking. All of the soldiers had their hands up. Daisy had hers up. Lucy and David had their hands down, Jules looked out of it still and Libby had hers down as well.

  At that stage, if I voted to go around, I’d have been outvoted and truth be told, I thought we needed the supermarket goods more than a long drive around. I put my hand up hoping it wasn’t a massive mistake.

  Half an hour later we reached the outskirts of Wantage, having stopped a couple of times to build a rudimentary arrow in the hope Jezza would see them. If he caught up. Indeed, if he was even still alive.

  As we bore down on the town, the first few Groaners we had seen for a while began to appear, and I found myself shaking at the prospect of getting caught up like so many flies in a web of the undead.

  ***

  As we crept into the town, I pulled out and tried to get an idea of how bad things were ahead. The road in toward the town centre was narrow but from what I could see there were a few Groaners wandering around, but not vast numbers, certainly not enough that Daisy couldn’t thunder a path through that everyone else was able to follow.

  The road then started a long, left curve before coming to an abrupt stop and opening out wide into what must have been an old marketplace or something, now used as a car park. Or not. I me
an everywhere was actually a vast car park because the cars weren’t going to be going anywhere anymore, but it had spaces marked out in the centre although only one or two were in use.

  The square itself was home to a few dozen groaners who by the look of them had got stuck in there and couldn’t find a way out.

  As I halted behind the motorhome, the army lorry pulled past me and stopped next to the tractor. I pulled the keys and jumped out. Mungo immediately followed, and David and Libby stayed put for a while.

  When I reached the tractor, I asked what was going on?

  “Corporal Jones knows where the big supermarket is,” said Brian, “so he’s going to jump in with Daisy and guide us around, so we can get as close to the entrance as we can.”

  “Sounds sensible. Where do you think all the Groaners are? I was expecting the place to be teeming with them?” I asked, keeping an eye on a group of half a dozen who had started to move our way.

  “No idea, Frank, and to be honest, I don’t care. I’m just grateful we’ve managed to get this far without running into too many. If this is like what we saw coming out of Swindon, perhaps they are all out there in the countryside.”

  He shrugged, and I couldn’t fault his logic, even though I also couldn’t shake the feeling that a huge crowd of the bloody things wasn’t going to come blundering around a corner straight at us, and we had barely seen any on the way in.

  I was lost by the time we got into the supermarket car park after going what seemed like halfway around the town to get to the entrance. Another genius bit of planning on behalf of our council masters no doubt.

  That was one thing I wasn’t going to miss in the new world.

  I pulled up next to Daisy and stayed where I was. The car park was almost empty of cars which surprised me, but I suppose when everything went to shit more people would have been trying to use them to get the hell away than to go and do a big shop, so I probably shouldn’t have been quite so astonished. If there had been many survivors here. It didn’t look good so far.

  The shop itself was completely shuttered around the entrance although most of the other glass on the building was open, but there was no way of seeing inside because of the promotional window coverings.