The Longest Road (Book 3): The Other Side

by A. S. Thompson

  At one point, Alex made a move for his machete, but when he did, Baldy wrapped his cold hand around his neck. Alex swiped the crusty hand from his throat and went back to defense, but in that moment, the worst happened.

  Alex’s grip slid down the loose skin on the man’s arm and Baldy took advantage of the opportunity. He pulled Alex upward and bit down hard on the area between the shoulder and neck.

  “AHHH FUUUUCK!” Alex screamed in pain; he could feel the blood pour from the punctures.

  At that point, Alex used all the pent up fury and anger and drove his thumb into Baldy’s eye socket and continued pressing until his entire thumb was hidden inside the man’s ocular cavity.

  Not enough trauma to the brain!

  In his less than prudent search for a weapon, Alex spotted his gun to the left but it was out of reach. Then he looked right and saw it; the wrench that initially exposed him.

  He used his legs to kick Baldy away and grabbed the thick adjustable wrench.

  As Baldy came bearing back on him, Alex half-swung the wrench, connecting with the man’s jaw; a portion of skin and a small chunk of bone flew away.

  Dark blood dripped over Alex’s face, and despite repugnance, he swung again, this time connecting with the man’s temple. The force drove Baldy backward where he bounced off a tool chest and fell to the ground.

  Alex hopped on top of the man, cursing, “Die!” through clenched teeth. He aimed a third strike at Baldy’s forehead, but the man moved, so the wrench connected with the bridge of the nose favoring the remaining eye.

  Despite the deep dent, the trauma wasn’t enough. So, Alex continued swinging, and after the tenth contact, Baldy’s face was an indiscernible pancake. A mix of brain matter and soft tissue oozed to the ground, and Baldy’s outreached hands dropped.

  Breathing heavily, Alex hovered over Baldy’s dead body until shooting pain in his shoulder captured his attention.

  “Jones!” he roared, furious.

  Alex covered his jacket over the wound and moved toward the exit, retrieving his gun along the way.

  “JONES! DAMNIT WHERE ARE YOU?”

  Just as he reached the door, Jones peeked his head inward.

  “I almost shot you!” Alex said, startled. He lowered the gun to his side. “Where the hell have you been?”

  “I-I opened the door and ducked around the corner. The infected must have thought I was in there. Pretty ingenious if you ask me,” Jones replied, pleased by his own wit. “What happened to you? You look like-”

  “Duck!” Alex shouted, raising his gun directly at Jones’ head.

  Not a moment after, Alex fired two rounds at the woman who was charging at Jones from behind. The bullets blasting into the woman’s face caused her body to flip backward and land on her head.

  Jones looked at the mangled body that was within an arm’s reach, then up at Alex. “Y-you saved me?”

  Alex assisted Jones to his feet, but cringed at the pain the act required from his shoulder.

  “You saved me...and you don’t even like me. W-why?”

  Alex rested his back against the aluminum hangar. Looking at the sky, he sighed heavily and replied, “That’s what we do in this group. We look out for each other. Even if the person is a huge ass-clown.”

  Jones swallowed a dry throat. “I-I’m sorry for being a pain in the ass-”

  Alex snorted and rolled his eyes.

  “No, really I am. Look, I’m not, well, used to apologizing, but I mean it. Thanks.”

  “Doesn’t matter,” Alex said, touching the bite wound again. “Not like you have to deal with me much longer.”

  Jones noticed the fresh wound on Alex’s shoulder. “You got bit again?”

  “Ya, in there, searching for you,” Alex replied, walking back to their hangar.

  “What does that mean? Does that mean the infection will take over faster?”

  “I honestly have no idea. Knowing my luck, ya, it’ll probably speed up the transformation.”

  “We should contact West and the others. Tell them what happened. Tell them to get back here ASAP.”

  Without warning, Alex spun around and held up a bloody finger. “Shh! You hear that?”

  “Hear what?”

  “Come with me,” he said, pulling the billionaire by the jacket. At the end of the alley near the taxiway, Alex crawled and inched his head around the hangar. “That. The plane.”

  “Nose is up too far,” Jones said, critiquing the pilot’s landing.

  Both men watched the jet as it touched down and taxied toward the main terminal.

  As it rolled past them, Alex noticed the decal on the body of the jet. “Oh no,” he uttered, yanking Jones to the ground with him.

  “Oh no what?” Jones replied, uncomfortable as he brushed brown snow from his clothing. “Who is it?”

  “The jet belongs to the LIFE Corporation. This could be a serious problem."

  "You think?"

  "Shut up and get back to the hangar."

  A few steps in to the retreat, Jones stopped. "Wait, what about you?"

  "I’ll be right behind you. I'm gonna go get a closer look first..."

  New Jerusalem

  December 2, 2009

  1015 hours

  "Welcome New Jerusalem,” the Preacher said with a southern accent. “Looks like the Lord has led four little lambs through the darkness and back to his shepherd."

  “There is a fifth,” Binky corrected. “The one I told you about who is recovering from hypothermia. He’s back in my room.”

  “I certainly cannot wait to meet him.”

  The woman standing to the Preacher’s right lifted the heavy hood from her head. Lengthy brunette hair, she was not at all excited about the newcomers. “Lawkeeper, you know our rules here. What you did could have compromised our sanctuary.”

  Binky pled his case to the Preacher. “I’m sorry I didn’t come get you first, Reverend Thoreau, but I didn’t have time. And these people didn’t look like the others. They looked like they needed help so I-”

  The Preacher smiled and held up his hand politely. “Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked. Proverbs 82:4. You need not apologize, my son. You acted in the way of the Lord.”

  “Thank you, Preacher, but if I may…”

  Binky pulled the Preacher aside and spoke softly, though his words resonated throughout the quiet and were heard by the newcomers.

  "I’m confused. The last to beled here were the Paxton family and that was nearly eight months ago. I thought you told us that there was no one left outside our walls, only demons? The townspeople are in a frenzy!”

  “Nick,” Jenny whispered, tugging on his arm. “Did he just say demons?”

  Nick’s eyes narrowed in suspicion. “Yes, he did.”

  “Now, now, good Lawkeeper, my words were not that there was no one left. On the contrary, there is an abundance of evil occupying mortal vessels outside these walls,” the Preacher explained. “If I recall correctly, my exact words said oh so long ago, were as such. For it was told to me that ‘No more shall there be life where I have given. Now only darkness shall, for a time, reign. For the end of days has arisen, and you, the chosen few, are all who remain. And for the righteous and for the just, New Jerusalem shall be your haven. Pure of body, mind and spirit, be you until the day I call and reclaim.’”

  Binky appeared to ponder the word of God.

  “If these words and my interpretation led you to believe otherwise, I apologize. I can see you do not fully understand, and that is fine, my son. For I am only a conduit of the Lord and not God himself. I do not presume to know everything He does. Nor should you judge Him and His omniscience…”

  The Preacher then faced the newcomers and spoke with a passionate flamboyance when he declared, “Blessed be our house, the Lord has delivered more of his chosen! But surprised I am not!”

  “I’m sorry, Preacher,” Binky interrupted politely. “But does that mean there are more outside? M
ore people like them?”

  The Preacher placed a gentle hand on Binky’s shoulder and shook his head slowly from side to side. “No, but be sorrowful not. For their arrival was a revelation I was going to announce during my sermon this evening, but since you have inquired, I will explain to you now. For last night I was visited by a messenger of God,” he said, sweeping his hands across the room. “The angel showed me a vision of a flock of sheep journeying among wolves. And I believe these souls to be the righteous. Now I have more to explain, and I will, but I ask that you all keep this information to yourself so I may address the congregation as a whole and avoid any...misinterpretations. Can I count on your candor?”

  Binky nodded. “Of course, Father.”

  A loud creak from the front door turned all heads. It was a man whom the group had not yet met. He had a dark black beard and wore a long plaid shirt and faded blue jeans.

  “Sorry to interrupt, Preacher.”

  “It is fine, Bradley. What can we help you with?”

  Bradley stepped inside and signed himself with the cross. “Actually I am here for Lawkeeper Binky. There’s a problem with LT.”

  “There’s always a problem with that boy,” Binky sighed, lowering his head. “Alright, I’ll be right behind you, Bradley. Preacher, do you mind?”

  “Not at all. As truth and guidance are mine, the law is your position here.” The Preacher turned to his female assistant and said, “Ms. Cromwell, would you mind seeing the Lawkeeper to the door?”

  “Of course.”

  “Thank you, Jill-”

  “Excuse me, I don’t mean to be rude,” Eddy interrupted, rudely. “But can someone explain what the hell is going on here? Who are you people? And why did one of your men kill our friend?”

  Jenny and Lisa both hurled questions of their own.

  “Why did they call us demons?”

  “And why did you say there wasn’t anyone else out there?”

  “Show the Preacher some respect,” Jill Cromwell hissed as she positioned herself beside the Preacher.

  “Now, now, my dear, our friends have every right to be emotional. For they have endured a great hardship to get here,” he said, appeasing his vivacious assistant. “I would be happy to answer any and all questions, but I cannot answer them all at once.”

  “How about the most important,” Eddy said, tone hinting on a strong-willed bias. “Why did one of your men murder Kelly? She did nothing wrong!”

  “Ah, yes, the loss of life is one of the greatest of tragedies,” the Preacher said, nodding his head. “Our Lawkeeper has explained the events leading to the death of your friend Kelly. And I would agree with him that it was an accident-”

  “Accident?” Eddy growled, hands curling into tight fists. “How does shooting a defenseless woman in cold blood constitute as an accident? That’s murder where I come from!” He slammed his thick fists against the pew, causing the wood to split from the nail.

  “I understand you are upset, but there is much you do not understand. Jason, the man who fired that fatal shot, assumed your friend was one of the damned...a demon.”

  “Demon?” Lisa asked, making sure she read his lips correctly. “Why do you keep saying that?”

  Nick attempted to clarify. “Do you mean infected?”

  “Demons, of course, my deaf child,” the Preacher answered. He stepped forward, leaning his thighs against the first row. “Sad how such a beautiful girl be subjected to the loss of hearing...”

  His sympathy could almost be interpreted as condescending.

  “You will have to excuse me, but I do not understand what you mean byinfected.”

  “The people, the ones I believe you are referring to as demons, have been infected with a disease called the Trinity Virus,” Nick explained. “There was a doctor with our group. Diane Phillips from the DHHS. She discovered the virus and-”

  The Preacher’s small smile subtly and slowly reversed into a frown. “I believe you are gravely mistaken. For God has sent forth his rapture and allowed demons to walk the earth in the bodies of the unworthy…”

  The Preacher turned and walked toward the statue of Jesus on the cross.

  “More than one year ago, I was visited by the Lord himself. In a series of visions, I was shown this world as it was to become; the death, the destruction. Like Noah with the Ark, He told me where to go and what to do.”

  Even Jenny found the claims ridiculous. “What? You can’t be serious!”

  “Oh, I assure you I am very serious, my child. It was my sacred mission from God himself to establish New Jerusalem and protect the souls of his children until He comes to call us back to His Kingdom.”

  Eddy snorted in utter disbelief.

  “What are you saying? That you really think there is no one left but you people?”

  “As I stated earlier, I do not presume to know any more than what the Lord has told me. And the Lord has made it very clear that as long as we stay within these walls we will be safe from the clutches of the Damned.”

  “I mean no disrespect, but that is ludicrous,” Nick said bluntly. “Those aren’t demons outside these walls. They are people, infected people. AND there are more like us, surviving. What has happened is not a matter of God and his apocalypse, but the actions of the LIFE Corporation. It was a company that developed the disease that has caused people to turn into these ‘demons who walk the earth’ as you put it.”

  “How dare you!” Jill exclaimed, pointing a spiteful finger at Nick. “How dare you question the Preacher! How dare you question the Lord!”

  “Jillian, please, it is fine. After all, even Noah had difficulty understanding why God intended to cleanse the earth with a great flood. May I ask, what is your name, my Native American friend?”

  “My name is Nick Stronghead,” he replied, before introducing his companions by first name only.

  “Nicolas, I can sense that you are a sad soul,” the Preacher continued. “Now I assume that you are not of the Christian faith. I admit I am not familiar with the teachings of Native American mythology, for I believe in the one true God, and His righteous word. And God has shown me the way, the truth, and the light, and I intend to save as many souls as I can.”

  “I thought it was God who saved souls?”

  “And I am His humble instrument.”

  Nick sat back. He noticed a hardback Bible in the tray in front of him and lifted it. A long moment passed before he said, “You know, growing up in my tribe, I came across something that I feel you might appreciate. Someone wise once wrote that a fool is right in his own eyes, but a wise man listens to advice.”

  “You will have to excuse me as I am not familiar with indigenous scribes and their adages.”

  “Actually, thatadageis paraphrased from the book of Proverbs. Chapter twelve, verse fifteen, if I’m not mistaken.”

  Jill was taken aback, and the Preacher raised an eyebrow and made a face as though he was both surprised and impressed.

  “Indeed it is. So you are familiar with the scripture.”

  “I am. I made it a point to study many of the world’s religions. And with respect, I say that you are misunderstood about what is going on outside. The truth is religion has nothing to do with it-”

  “Religion has everything to do with this!”

  “Blasphemy!” exclaimed Jill.

  “It’s not!” Jenny rebutted, standing up. “Nick’s telling the truth!”

  As much as Eddy wanted to stand with Jenny, the pulsing pain in his leg grew too great. “How ignorant can you people be?”

  “What we say is the truth,” Nick said, calming his friends. “We were part of a mission to stop the people responsible, but we suffered a car accident and got split up from our friends.”

  The Preacher straightened his posture. “Nonsense, your arrival is no coincidence. The Lord does not allow coincidence. It is all part of His plan. Just as He revealed to me you were to come here this very day!”

  Nick sat back evaluating the moment.
Meanwhile, Lisa, Jenny, and Eddy attempted to interject with comments of their own, but the Preacher rejected their claims and concerns with the flick of his wrist.

  “Now, now, hush. That is the last I will hear of this ‘infection.’ You must be delirious from your travels-”

  “We aren't delirious,” Jenny exclaimed, stomping her foot with the last word. “We know what we are doing and where we are going!”

  The Preacher chuckled. “And where might that be, child?”

  Jenny paused and looked to the others. “Well, it’s, um, it’s this town...Nick?”

  “It’s the town of Donner. After our accident, we got turned around, but it’s around these parts. I don’t know exactly where, but we will find it. I’m confident.”

  “I'm sure you are...confident that is,” the Preacher replied in a passively aggressive manner. “Now, let us stop this irksome debate. I can see you are cold, tired, injured, and most definitely hungry. Ms. Cromwell, would you be so kind as to show them back to their quarters?”

  “Of course, Father,” she replied, bowing.

  “Oh, and before you depart,” the Preacher said, stopping the newcomers from exiting the pew. “Our town’s physician would be more than happy to look at your leg, Edward, and any other injuries that ail the rest. I have always made sure the Lord’s children are well-looked after.”

  “Thank you for your hospitality,” Nick said on behalf of his group. “As soon as we can, we will be on our way. But we would like to bury our friend before we go.”

  “Of course, I shall make arrangements to retrieve her body when it is safe,” the Preacher answered. “And Nick, I would not be so quick to depart and play against the Lord’s plan. I believe you will enjoy the blessings New Jerusalem offers within its walls. Who knows, you might even come to realize you were meant to be here; to be reborn.”

  “We appreciate your help, but with all due respect, we will be leaving once we are able. We need to reunite with our friends and take down the people responsible for the infection.”

  The word was like acid to the Preacher’s ears. “Obviously, we will not physically restrain you, but I hope you will not be in too much of a hurry to leave…”

  Nick and the others sensed a “but” coming, and didn’t bother turning to the door.