by D. J. Molles
“Hmm.” Lee considered this.
“You can’t really replace a child’s parents, Lee.”
“I wasn’t trying to replace—”
“At his age, that’s a hole that’s never going to get filled. All you can do now is be a friend.”
Lee set his empty plate down on the ground beside him. “Yeah, I suppose so.”
Angela reached out and put a hand on his shoulder. “You do good.”
He smiled guardedly. “Thanks.”
They passed another ten minutes, just sitting in the sun and enjoying the warmth. Angela sat with her elbows leaning against her knees and her hands clasped in front of her, a contemplative pose, and he sensed that she was taking her time, considering her words.
When she spoke, it was delicately. “I want to ask you something, but I don’t want you to be angry at me. I just… need to know something.”
Lee tensed, a bowstring being drawn back.
“How do you feel about Julia?”
There it is, Lee thought. You knew it was coming.
“Julia,” Lee said with a deep breath. “Why do you ask?”
Angela laughed, but it sounded sad. “We’re not married, Lee. Stop putting responsibilities on yourself that don’t exist.”
“Yeah, I know.” Lee turned slightly so he was looking at Angela. She was shading one side of her face with a hand. Her smile was enigmatic. “Julia… is a good teammate.”
The smile remained, but Angela looked away from Lee. “Old Captain Harden. Always such a secretive creature.”
Lee scratched underneath his chin where his beard itched. “Well… what do you want me to say?”
“I don’t want you to say anything.”
A moment of silence passed between them and they both just looked out at the barren woods beyond the barbed-wire-topped fences.
“I don’t know what we are,” Lee stated.
“Who?”
“Me and you.”
Angela considered this at length. Lee was surprised that she did not have a ready answer for him. He had always kind of figured that he was the only one confused about things, and that she would have a better idea of what was going on. Apparently the mystery of them was just as elusive to her.
“I don’t know,” she said, as though coming to a decision. “But I think we trust each other. I think we lean on each other. Maybe because we don’t think there is anyone else to lean on.”
A gust of wind blew a bit of hair into her face and she hooked it with a finger and drew it back. “Maybe there would be more between us if we didn’t both realize just how fucked up that would be.”
They both laughed suddenly.
“Right?” She looked at him sheepishly.
“Yeah.” Lee smiled at the ground. “I guess it would be kind of fucked up.”
Another long silence.
“It’s sad, actually,” she said.
“How so?”
“It’s sad that we still think like that, when obviously things have changed.” Angela looked at her hands and the stubborn dirt under her fingernails that she picked at incessantly. “Otherwise…”
Lee waited for her to finish, but she did not.
She sniffed and Lee thought it sounded wet, but when he looked, she had turned her face away from him. Her voice was solid when she spoke. “You don’t have to sleep up in the office, you know.”
“All right.”
He didn’t want to leave her question unanswered.
“Julia is a good friend,” he said. “A good teammate.”
“You can tell me if you like her.”
“I do in some ways,” Lee said earnestly. “In other ways she pisses me off.”
Angela smiled. “And you can tell me if you have feelings for her.”
Lee shook his head. “I’ll let you know if that happens.”
“Okay.”
“Okay.”
“Captain Harden,” a voice said from behind them.
Lee turned and found a man of about thirty years that he recognized from Camp Ryder. He’d never had much reason to speak with the man, but they’d been friendly in passing. He was one of those who gave Lee a respectful nod when he saw him but never approached, and the extent of any conversations they had were one-word greetings.
“What can I do for you?” Lee’s expression was cautious.
The man glanced quickly between Lee and Angela, but whatever he was thinking remained a mystery. He pointed in a general direction toward the Camp Ryder building. “Could I get you to come with me for a moment? It won’t take long.”
Lee looked at Angela and she nodded graciously. He stood and motioned the man forward. “Lead the way.”
The man turned and began walking, his rifle slung diagonally across his back from shoulder to hip, the barrel pointing down. It swung slightly as he made his way, not into the Camp Ryder building, but around the side of it, toward the rain catches. Lee followed a few paces behind and became suddenly and acutely aware that he was unarmed.
His whole body tensed when he turned the corner.
Facing him were almost twenty armed men.
CHAPTER 9
Fighters
Unconsciously, Lee’s feet spread, and the tension pulled the muscles in his legs taut. He was only about ten feet from the corner of the building, and he estimated he might be able to leap back into cover before they began firing. They were only about twenty feet from him, so he would have to move quickly, as each one of their shots was unlikely to miss at this range.
Then he realized that none of them was pointing a rifle at Lee, and in fact only a few of them were even holding their rifles. The others had them slung on their backs. And they were not standing in any sort of firing line, but rather jumbled together in a mixed-up circle.
“What is this?” Lee growled, not quite sure what he was looking at.
The man who had led him around the corner turned to face the captain. He clasped his hands in front of him. “We’ve all talked it over and slept on it. And we want to help.”
Lee tried not to let it show when the breath came out of him in a long blast. His heart knocked on the inside of his chest hard enough to make his vision jump with each pulse. He folded his arms across his chest and said, “I see.”
One of the men stepped forward from the group. He was younger than the others, perhaps in his early twenties. His head was a shaggy mop of brown curls. His face was covered in patchy scruff. “We’re with you, Captain.”
The twenty before him were not all men, but a few women as well. Some of them stood beside their husbands, determined to accompany them into the fight, while others stood alone, having made the decision on their own. But the thing that struck Lee the most was that there were so many of them. This was nearly a fourth of the camp. The very same people who ran scavenging operations into abandoned apartment complexes and neighborhoods, who bartered over cans of tuna and rejoiced when they found something as simple as a bottle of aspirin or a toothbrush. These were people who worked hard for the group, who gave what they could for the group. These were people who had virtually nothing to their name but ramshackle huts and the clothes on their backs. And yet, here they stood, ready to give even more so that the group might survive.
He took two steps toward the group and stopped, his expression forthright and cautious. “You understand what I’m asking you to do?”
There was a chorus of affirmative sounds.
Lee nodded. “You understand that I’ll be asking half of you to go toward the east coast, which we have virtually no intelligence on? And the other half will be going northwest, past one of the biggest urban areas in the state? You understand that even with all of your help, we’re going to be incredibly outnumbered, our supplies are going to be stretched thin, you’ll be far from your loved ones and possibly never see them again?”
“Sir.” The thirty-something man who had retrieved Lee took a step forward. “Believe me, we’ve talked about all of this. Not only with our fam
ilies, for those of us who have them, but also amongst ourselves. We understand the risks involved. But we believe this is the best chance we have at survival, even if it is a slim one. We want to help fight for it.”
One of the women stepped forward, not much more than a girl. “We’re not running into the mountains, Captain. We’ve busted our asses to build what we have here, and we’re not giving that up. We’re tired of being on the run all the time.”
The shaggy-headed guy nodded fiercely at her. “We’ve gotta fight for it. We understand.”
Their hearts were strong now, but when the bullets fly and you’re up to your elbows in the blood of your friends, it has the tendency to weaken resolve and make high ideals seem very small. The only solace that Lee took from them was the fact that they were here, living and breathing before him. They had survived the collapse, which was a trial by fire. And if you were able to survive that, if you were still functioning on the other side of something so horrible, then there must be some steel inside you after all.
These were not some random civilians who toted assault rifles around with them for no reason. They were the survivors. The only reason they were alive right now was because they were smarter and stronger, or at least luckier, than every other civilian who had died or succumbed to the pandemic and the incredible violence that followed.
“Okay.” Lee’s smile was thin. “If you all understand what you’re getting into and wish to volunteer anyway, then I’m honored to have you.”
A ripple of excited murmurs went through the group.
Lee stepped forward to the thirty-something man and extended his hand. “I recognize you from camp, but I don’t think we’ve ever met.”
The man took his hand and shook it vigorously. “Nate Malone.”
“Good to meet you, Nate.” Lee looked over Nate’s shoulder at the others. “For now, I’m going to leave you unofficially in charge of these folks.”
Nate nodded. “What do you want us to do?”
“Nothing for now.” Lee clapped him on the shoulder. “For now, rest up. I’ll have you guys training tomorrow, but today we’re on hold. So enjoy it. You won’t see it again for a while.”
“What about Sanford?” Nate worried. “Don’t you guys need us for Sanford?”
Lee shook his head. “No, we need you guys to train as a team so we can rely on you. I’m sure you’re all good shots, and I’m sure you’re all outstanding people, but working as a team takes practice, and we only have about a week. I need you and your group spending all that time getting ready.”
Nate considered this for a few moments, then finally nodded.
To the entire group, Lee raised his voice. “Thank you, folks. This is gonna be a tough road, but I couldn’t have asked for better volunteers.”
Lee left them and immediately went to find Harper. He rounded the building and could see the little fire pit where he and Angela had sat and talked, but she was no longer there. He headed for the door, and once inside found LaRouche and Jim just walking out from eating breakfast. He stopped them in passing.
“Either of you guys seen Harper?”
LaRouche pointed up to the foreman’s office. “Yeah, he’s up there with Bus and the dude from last night.”
“Eddie?”
“Yeah, the mechanic.”
“Thanks.” Lee turned for the stairs.
“Hey, we’re gonna see if we can’t scrounge up a little bit of extra meat and some booze.” He winked secretively. “Make a little fire out back and have us a regular barbecue later tonight.”
Lee made a face. “Good luck with that. You might have to barter the clothes you’re wearing.”
“The ladies might like that.”
The two men departed with a wave, and Lee continued up the stairs. In the office, he found Bus sitting behind the desk, Harper leaning on the edge of it, regarding the map, and Eddie Ramirez standing in the middle of the room, sharing in Harper’s fascination with the map.
Bus noticed Lee first and raised a hand in greeting. “Just the man we wanted to see. We’ve got a problem.”
Lee sighed. “What’s new, right?”
“You’re going to the coast, aren’t you?” Eddie interjected.
Lee hesitated, then nodded.
“Then I could leave my family here, where they’re safe, and I’ll go with you to the coast. On the way, I’ll keep your engines in top shape. And when we get there, I’ll figure out if I want to return there with my family or stay with your group.”
Lee considered it and looked to Harper and Bus to get their take on the arrangement. They both gave him a nod of approval. “Seems fair,” he concluded.
“Excellent.” Eddie clapped his hands. “You want me to take a look at your trucks now?”
“Well…” Lee didn’t really want Eddie fiddling with the trucks unsupervised. The guy seemed straight up, but Lee still wasn’t comfortable with trusting him implicitly just yet. “Let me get up with Sergeant LaRouche and I’ll have him help you out.”
Eddie seemed to get the picture. “That’s no problem. I’ll be with my family, so you know where to find me when you need me, okay?”
“Thank you very much, Eddie.”
The mechanic left the room.
Harper watched him go with one raised eyebrow. “Interesting guy.”
Lee smiled. “Yeah. We’ll see how useful he is.”
Bus rose from his seat. “We were just talking about the plan.”
“Yes.” Lee put his hands in his pockets. “That’s what I was trying to find Harper for.”
Harper raised his chin. “You found me.”
“You know Nate Malone?”
“Yeah. Decent guy.”
“Good. Because I need you to train him and about twenty others who just volunteered to help.”
“Oh.” Harper looked confused. “That doesn’t leave much time, between Sanford and heading east…”
“You’re not going to Sanford.”
Harper’s lips tightened. “Um… what do you mean?”
“I need you training the volunteers while we’re clearing Sanford.”
“Why not LaRouche?” Harper gestured off to the side as though the sergeant were sitting in the room. “He’s military, and he’s got just as much or more experience than I do. He’s way more qualified to train the volunteers than I am. Why would you want me to do it?”
Lee leaned in. “Come on, Harper. I trust you both, but… don’t take this the wrong way, but I need LaRouche with me in Sanford. You’re the next in line as far as trust and experience goes.”
“Fuck.” Harper hung his head.
“I need you to do this for me.”
“But—”
“You’ve soaked up what I’ve taught you and you’re one of the best people I have. Plus, you’re a natural leader. People listen to you. LaRouche is just as good, tactically, but he’s a little bit loose for me to trust him with training the volunteers. Father Jim is good, but not as good as you. I need Julia as our medic. Jeriah and his team are just plain green.”
Harper looked up at the ceiling. “All right. Fine.”
“You’ll do good.”
“I’d do better in Sanford.”
“Agreed. But I gotta have someone to train them, and you’re the best choice.”
“Well…” Harper trailed off, not having anything else to say.
Lee looked to Bus. “Is there something you guys wanted to talk to me about?”
“Yes.” Bus took a pen that was lying on the desk and tapped it on the wooden top. “It’s about fuel.”
“Right. The tanker.”
“Were you planning on taking it with you?”
Lee shrugged noncommittally. “I gotta keep the Humvees running.”
“Okay.” Harper looked back at the map. “So are you taking both the Humvees in one direction?”
“I’m gonna have one Humvee go east and one north. Obviously there are going to be other vehicles in each group, especially the one heading
east, because that group is going to need to carry a shitload of ordnance. I’m going to need to keep all the vehicles in both groups fueled.”
“We also need to keep the hospital running.”
Lee nodded. “I agree. Which is why I hadn’t really cemented this part of the plan. Because what we have to do depends on what we find at Sanford. There was a military installation there, evacuating people. We have no idea how much of the equipment they left. If we’re lucky, we might come across some fuel trucks. We’ll just have to see what we come up with.”
Bus put the pen to his lips thoughtfully. “Keith Jenkins did that welding for the dozer attachment, didn’t he? If we can scrounge up some more welding supplies for him and plug him into the power at the hospital, he might be able to weld us some fuel tanks.”
Lee had to admit that was a good idea. “Definitely. But how big those tanks need to be depends on how many vehicles will be in each group. Which depends on how many people and how much crap we have to carry with us.”
“So, essentially, planning is on hold until you guys clear Sanford.”
“Correct.” Lee rubbed his palms together. “Now, Harper, why don’t you go talk to Nate Malone and plan for what you’re putting them through this week?”
Harper looked at him blankly. “What do you want me to teach them?”
“Just drill the basics,” Lee said. “Marksmanship and squad tactics.”
“Right.” Harper sounded despondent. “Just the basics.”
* * *
After Harper left, Lee and Bus turned their attention to matters inside the camp.
“Have you heard from Jerry at all today?” Lee asked.
“No.” Bus splayed his hands out across the desktop. “He’s made himself a bit scarce after yesterday’s performance.”
“I’m worried about Jerry and Professor White,” Lee stated.
“In what way?”
“They make me nervous. Professor White is just angry enough to do something stupid. And Jerry seems like he and his supporters are on the verge of leaving.” Lee chewed at the inside of his lip for a moment. “You think they might do that?”
“Leave the group?” Bus’s eyebrows quirked up. “I don’t know. That’s a big risk for them to take, wandering out there by themselves. We’ve built something safe here, or at least safer than it is in the rest of the world. I don’t know if people will want to leave it.”