by Eric Vall
“You make everything sexual,” I said.
“Oh, she totally digs you,” the platinum blonde said.
“I don’t get that vibe,” I said. “She’s just happy to be at the college with us.”
“You’re good with baby Anthony, though,” Bailey said quietly. “Women do tend to like that.”
“That doesn’t mean she likes me,” I laughed.
“Uhh, everytime you hold that little tyke she practically melts into a puddle,” Tara cackled. “She totally wants you.”
“We aren’t mad about it,” Anna said with a raised eyebrow. “We all think you are hot when you hold Anthony. Why are you getting so defensive?”
“It’s because he thinks she’s hot, too,” Tara said with a grin.
“She’s a beautiful woman,” I conceded. “But that’s it.”
“Uh huh,” the platinum blonde said. “Let us know when things start to heat up.”
“Don’t hold your breath,” I laughed.
We finally reached the hospital to find that the glass front doors were busted, but most of the windows were intact. It was a tall building, and it would take a while to clear, but if we could find anything useful, it would be worth it. This was the biggest hospital we’d been to yet, and a score here could set us up for months. It could possibly even give us a bargaining chip for Brody.
“Alright,” I said. “This is going to take some time to clear.”
“Uh, yeah,” Tara said as she looked at the massive building behind me.
“We’ll go floor by floor,” I instructed.
“What about the carts?” Paige asked.
“We’ll find somewhere for them on the first floor after we clear it,” I said.
“We really just need to find the supply closets on each floor,” the brunette said.
“Right,” I agreed. “Where they keep the prescription medicines and things.”
“Alright,” Anna said. “We got this. Let’s do it.”
“Okay,” I said. “But we don’t know if there’s anybody in there. There could be tweakers in there for all we know, so be careful, keep your gun up, and keep your wits about you.”
“We did run into tweakers at the vet that one time,” Paige said. “It makes sense that they would hide out at the hospital.”
“Right,” I said. “So everybody be careful.”
“Don’t worry,” Anna said with a wink. “We were trained for this.”
“I know,” I said with a grin. “Alright, everyone ready?”
The girls all nodded.
“Let’s go,” I said, and I raised my pistol and headed inside the building.
It was a disaster, with papers littered on the floor, empty pill bottles, and a few dead bodies. The vending machines had been busted into, and it looked like every room had been gone through multiple times, there was practically nothing left but trash. After seeing the state of the first floor I didn’t get my hopes up for the rest of the building. After we had cleared the floor we met in the ER area to check for supplies there.
“It doesn’t look like there’s anything here,” Bailey said after a few moments of searching.
“Bail is right,” Paige said. “Everybody probably went right for the ER.”
“Yeah,” Anna agreed. “We might have better luck upstairs.”
“Okay,” I said. “Let’s bring the wagons in, then we’ll move up to the second floor.”
The second floor didn’t take much longer than the first, and it didn’t look much different, either. There were a few bodies either on the floor or in beds, and another reception desk with papers littered all around. We found the supply closet on the floor, but it was already broken into, and there wasn’t much left aside from some gauze and stool softeners.
“This is a bust,” Tara said as we scavenged through the remains of the supply closet.
“We’re only on the second floor,” Anna chuckled.
“Yeah, but we’ve got nothing,” the platinum blonde said.
“How about we split up and cover more ground?” Bailey suggested.
“That’s not a bad idea,” I said. “Paige and I will take the fourth floor, you three take the third floor.”
“Okay,” the brunette agreed.
We made our way back to the stairwell, and watched as Anna, Tara, and Bailey went through the door to the third floor with their pistols raised high.
“Ready?” I asked Paige as we reached the door to the fourth floor.
“Ready,” the brunette said, so I pushed the door open, and we went in quickly.
It was eerie to see the hospital so empty, though it made clearing it extremely easy and fast. The only people we saw were dead, and once again we found the supply closet had been ransacked.
Between the broken glass, strewn about papers, and the dead bodies, it looked like a scene from a horror film. The random puddles of dried blood we came across didn’t do anything to deter that aesthetic either.
“How are you guys doing up here?” Anna asked as they found us.
“Not good,” Paige said dryly.
“Us either,” Bailey said with a frown.
“There’s got to be fifteen more floors to this place,” Tara sighed.
“You’re probably right,” I agreed. “But we’re already here, and if there is a chance that we can find some medical supplies, we have to take it.”
“I agree,” Bailey said.
“Me too,” Anna agreed.
“Definitely,” Paige said.
They all looked at Tara.
“Oh, alright,” the platinum blonde said as she threw her hands up.
“We’ll move quickly,” I said. “We’ll keep our groups and take opposite floors. Clear them, then go straight for the supply closet. If there’s nothing there then move on to the next floor.”
“Alright,” Anna said. “You heard him, let’s get going.”
We made our way up the tower of a building, but it wasn’t until we reached floor sixteen that we found something. Even then, it was a few bottles of aspirin, some antibiotics, and some IV bags, but it was better than what we’d found on the previous floors. By the time we reached the twentieth floor, however, Paige and I had struck a jackpot. We found a supply closet that was hidden in a dark hallway, and it appeared to be fully stocked. There were syringes and needles, plenty of different medications, gauze, bandaids, and medical tape. The whole shabang.
“Awesome,” the brunette said as she inspected our inventory. “This will be great for the college.”
“It will,” I agreed. “Let’s see what the other girls have found.”
We made our way to the floor below us and ran into Anna with a large box of supplies.
“Looks like you guys hit a score, too,” Paige said happily.
“Hell, yeah.” Anna grinned. “Wait, did you say, too? You guys found stuff?”
“We did,” I said. “Let’s take it all back down to the carts, and we’ll tally it up there.”
By the time all the supplies were loaded onto the cart it was late afternoon and we only had half a cart’s worth of room left.
“I think it’s about time we head back,” I said.
“I think you’re right,” Paige said. “We should get back to the beach before dark if we leave now.”
We each took a cart and followed Paige back toward the road she had taken us on earlier. At least once we hit the back road we wouldn’t have to worry about people for a while, though we still had maybe a quarter mile left through town.
I had taken the cart that was stacked with the supplies we gathered from the resort, while Tara had gotten stuck with the one from Nordstrom, which was mostly her clothes, and a few things for everybody else. I looked back to see that the platinum blonde was definitely out of breath, but she hadn’t complained yet, and I doubted she would. She was just happy to get some new clothes.
We reached Fort George road just as the sun dipped below the trees and the world lit up with a delicate orange.
“How long until the beach?” Bailey asked.
“It was about a twenty-minute walk earlier,” Anna said.
“Right,” the blonde said, and she looked at Tara who struggled to keep her wagon wheels moving.
“Can we stop by the park commission we saw up here earlier?” Paige asked. “I’d like to see if they have any maps of the area.”
“Don’t you already have maps?” Anna asked.
“Well, yeah,” Paige said. “But not all maps are the same. Some are way better.”
“I don’t see why we can’t stop for a minute,” I said.
“Thanks,” the brunette said with a grin.
It didn’t take long for us to reach the park commission, and I decided to head in with Paige and leave the other girls to get a drink of water, particularly Tara who looked like she was about to collapse. It was growing dark though, and we needed to hurry and get to the beach before sunset fully took over.
Paige and I found the door to the place easily, and it looked like it hadn’t been touched.
“Should we break a window?” the brunette asked.
“Nah,” I said. “Step back.”
I raised my foot up and kicked the old door so it burst open easily.
“Right,” Paige chuckled. “I keep forgetting you can do that.”
“It works better with old wooden doors like this,” I said.
We cleared the place quickly, but it was such a small, sad little building that there wasn’t much to clear. There were two desks with computers and plenty of files stacked on them, a small kitchenette area, and a few chairs in a makeshift waiting room.
“Looks like they were pretty understaffed,” Paige said.
“No kidding,” I agreed.
We found a wall filled with pamphlets and small maps, but nothing of true value until Paige dug through the drawers and found several maps of the area.
“Aha,” she said as she pulled them out of the drawer and smiled wide.
“Awesome,” I said. “Now let’s get going before it gets too dark.”
“Right,” the brunette agreed.
We finished the short trek back to the beach, though it took longer than we had originally anticipated since Tara moved a bit slow. But nobody seemed to mind, we kept a nice, easy pace as we walked through the trees, and once we reached the beach, the platinum blonde plopped down in the sand and breathed heavily. The sun was low in the sky by that point, and we only had a few minutes until it was fully dark.
“Alright,” I laughed. “Paige and I will pull the boat over closer to us, everyone else get ready to load it.”
The brunette and I pulled the boat by the rope so it came closer to the dock, and we held it in place while the girls loaded it.
Despite Tara’s exhaustion, it didn’t take long for us to get the boat loaded, and we pulled out our fire pit, some snacks from the resort to take with us, and our new backpacks so we could use them. After everything was prepared for the morning and the fire was built, we sat down around it, and I heard the group let out an audible sigh. After being on the boat for so long it felt like we had walked forever, and I knew everyone was exhausted from the day’s trip. It was probably good that we started with a shorter walk, that way they would be better prepared for the next morning when we had at least thirty miles ahead of us.
“Are you up for cooking?” Anna asked Tara after everything was unpacked and the fire was going.
“I think so,” the platinum blonde said with a smile. “I was exhausted from pulling that stuff, but it was totally worth it. I’m happy.”
“I’m glad,” I chuckled.
“You guys really should have grabbed more,” the platinum blonde said. “There was some good stuff in there.”
“I’m good,” Anna said.
“Me, too,” Bailey chuckled.
“Yeah,” Paige agreed. “I got enough stuff to last for a while.”
“Suit yourselves,” the platinum blonde responded with a shrug.
Tara started some dinner for us while I set up our tent for the girls. I would take the first watch that evening. Not only had they let me sleep in earlier, but I felt nice after a day of rummaging and scavenging. We hadn’t gone nearly as far as I hoped to get, but we still had plenty of time, and I knew we would get the job done long before the civilians arrived. They most likely wouldn’t even leave until the next morning, so by the time they arrived at the refinery things would be taken care of.
“Anybody want more Coke and peanuts?” Paige asked as she held up a few of the snacks.
“Uh, yeah,” Anna said, and she reached for a bag and a bottle.
“Please,” Bailey said with a smile.
“It’s not even a question,” Tara chuckled.
“Me, too, please,” I said, and I held my hand out.
We all ate our little treat while Tara cooked dinner.
It was dark by then, and the lake lit up with the light of the stars overhead. I looked out at the water while I warmed my feet by the fire.
“I bet you could barely see the stars on the lake before,” Bailey said after a while.
“Why do you say that?” Anna asked through a mouthful of peanuts.
“Because it’s lined with houses and buildings,” the blonde answered with a point. “The lights from them probably reflected on most of the lake.”
“Not to mention all the streetlights,” Paige said.
“True,” I agreed. “But I bet if you went out in the middle of the water you could still get a good view.”
“Yeah,” Bailey said. “But it’s nice to have a good view right here.”
“It is,” I said with a soft smile.
“You know,” Tara said. “These peanuts and Coke are pretty great, but there’s one thing that goes better with Coke.”
“What’s that?” I asked.
“Rum,” the platinum blonde said, and she pulled a few small bottles from her pocket.
“Alright,” I laughed. “But only one each.”
“Good,” Tara said. “Because that’s all I grabbed for tonight.”
We each took our mini bottle of rum and added it to our Cokes. It tasted even better with the saltiness from the peanuts mixed in, and I couldn’t believe I had never thought to add alcohol into the mix before.
The rest of the night was spent eating Tara’s dinner, finishing our rum and Cokes, and staring out at the lake. After dinner I sent the girls to bed and took the first watch with the promise that I would wake up Bailey after a few hours. I kept my promise, but in the meantime I sat and stared at the water and the forest with my rifle against my shoulder.
We had a good score that day, and I was confident that even if we hadn’t found something to trade with Brody on this run, we would be able to find whatever we needed to. I often forgot how skilled and determined the girls really were, but days like that reminded me. They had found some overlooked items and with a bit of determination they had even found some medical supplies, one of the most valuable things you could find in the current world. I was extremely proud of them and how far they had come.
The next morning we set out early after we made sure the boat was secure and hidden. We followed the same path that we had the day before, which brought us out at the same part of town, but as we neared Nordstroms I heard voices, so I held my hand up and ducked down behind a nearby car.
“What’s going on?” Paige whispered.
“I heard voices,” I said.
“Somebody’s definitely been here,” a male voice said loudly, and the girls looked at me with wide eyes.
Chapter 9
“You’re just bein’ paranoid!” another man shouted at the first.
I leaned up to look through the dirty car windows to see if I could get a clear look at the men.
Through the glass I could see that they each wore a wife beater, which reminded me of the men that had tried to take our boat, and I wondered if it was some sort of a New York thing, or what. One wore baggy shorts with high socks
and tennis shoes, and he had long, greasy black hair that hung down to his chin, and what looked like scabs all over his body.
The other had no hair at all, similar wounds, and he wore a pair of deep blue sweatpants.
Each of them had a pistol that they waved around as they spoke, but it didn’t look like they had any other weapons.
“These guys are gross,” Tara whispered.
“I’m tellin’ ya,” the one with the greasy hair said. “Somebody’s been here!”
“You’re just bein’ paranoid!” baldy shouted once more.
“I’m tellin’ ya,” the greasy-haired one repeated.
“They’re just saying the same things over and over,” Bailey said, and she looked at me in confusion.
“They’re tweakers,” Paige whispered, and the rest of the girls looked confused.
“You’re right,” I agreed. I knew these guys were on something, and from the scabs all over their arms and faces, it looked like they’d been on it for a while.
“You mean they’re on drugs?” Bailey asked with wide eyes.
“Yes,” I told the blonde. “And they probably have been for a while.”
“Ew,” Tara said with a wrinkled nose.
“Just get what you came here for,” baldy told his companion, and we all looked up once more at the men.
“Alright, alright,” greasy hair said, and he grabbed a shopping basket and they both set off down the street toward the hospital.
“What the fuck was that about?” Tara asked once they were well out of ear shot.
“They’re on something,” Paige said.
“Well, obviously,” the platinum blonde agreed. “We’ve established that.”
“That makes them dangerous,” I said. “They’re erratic and trigger happy, it looked like.”
“So, time to take out some tweakers?” Anna asked with a raised brow.
“I believe it is,” I said with a grin.
We slowly made our way up the street so we could keep an eye on the men as they walked, and we stayed behind the nearby buildings and houses until they stopped at a small house that looked more rundown than the town itself. The place was littered with used tires, trash bags full of cans, and the house itself was painted the ugliest pale yellow color I had ever seen.