The Aftermath Trilogy (Book 2): The Aftermath [Town of the Dead]

by Smith, Daniel

  “Manny thought well of you,” he said as an opening statement with the hint of the smile still there. Dan studied him for a moment before he spoke.

  “You knew him,” the smile on the Commander’s face became more pronounced.

  “Yes; we had more than one interesting conversation," he said almost fondly. “I miss them.”

  Dan reflected for a minute. That was praise for anyone to say they missed an interesting conversation with Manny.

  “So I hear you have a treasure map,” the smile faded and the Commanders voice became soft but full of authority, that broke Dan out of his train of thought.

  “Yes, and I think Sandra told you my terms,” he replied a little unsure of himself but managing to keep his voice calm.

  “Yes and I think you took advantage of her but that is not my business,” he said quietly. Dan’s anger rose slightly as he stirred at this he felt he had given Sandra a good deal on this job. He was about to reply when he caught a gleam in the commanders eyes. He had seen that look in Manny’s eyes before when he was trying to teach him a lesson. On recognizing it, Dan settled down quickly before he answered.

  “Well then I’m glad I didn’t do business with you then,” he replied coolly glancing around the office again. The hint of the smile returned to the commanders lips before he spoke.

  “I guess so, But what is my business is to pull this mission off successfully,” Commander Hudson started. “And to do that I need to know where I’m going. And what we will face there,” he finished.

  Dan looked at him for moment in silence before the commander spoke again.

  “You don’t trust me,” he asked rather unconcerned, Sandra had said he could but he had no dealing with him until now.

  “No, I don’t, the last person from the government. I trusted shot me and then left me for dead,” Dan said coolly. Looking for a reaction from the Commander he only received the hint of the smile on the commander’s lips fade.

  “What do you know about that,” Commander Hudson said still seeming unconcerned. The answer took Dan by surprise it was not what he expected. He recovered quickly once again.

  “Manny said you where an embedded adviser,” he said studying the Commander for a reaction. He saw none as the Commander sat quietly.

  “Had Manny reported to a safe area during the start of the plague, they would have asked him to be one,” Commander Hudson said. “You know what an embedded adviser is,” Commander Hudson asked him the smile once again playing around the corner of his mouth.

  The Commander’s lack of concern on this subject once again caught him slightly off guard. However, before he could respond Commander Hudson continued.

  “At the plague’s outbreak. The leaders of the country had some hard reality’s to face and some equally difficult decisions to make on what they were going to do,” Commander Hudson spoke in a friendly tone. “Before the plague the government had several plans and agencies in place to recover from natural and man-made disasters. After all formal plans for the nation’s survival. By nuclear, chemical or biological weapons have existed since the cold war after world war two,” Commander Hudson continued as he study Dan. For some odd reason he thought he was back in school being lectured by a teacher.

  “The government had three basic groups for these scenarios. The military with their command headquarters, bases, and stockpiles of fuel, weapons and food set up throughout the country with trained soldiers. FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency) and the Red Cross even though it was an international organization. The country’s branch would handle many of these events, theoretically to rebuild and protect the country from any possible disaster. Unfortunately reality does not always go according to plans,” Commander Hudson said rather tiredly. “There was no apocalyptic nuclear attack. No squadrons of enemy bombers in the sky, no fleet of ships carrying foreign troops sailing for the coastlines or the earth-shattering natural disaster predicted for decades. Instead, it was a slow chain reaction of civic breakdowns causing the majority to panic. As the plague spread across the Middle East and Asia. The government had people working here. And country's overseas trying to keeping it a secret while they worked on the plague’s cause and a cure. The government and military argued over what to do and tell people. The one item they did agree on was the need to stop the flow of air, land and sea traffic to the country. Trying to prevent the spread of the plague to the United States by refugees. This decision did not work as well as expected causing several unwanted side effects, one being on a key industry for our modern society. The slowing supply of petroleum for production and refining began to cause trouble as it started running low. The plague had stopped the oil wells from the Middle East. As governments started collapsing the few remaining tankers at sea where intercepted and confiscated by the government using the justification they could be carrying the plague. And yes, while the government has oil wells and oil reserves. They could not support the country as normal,” he paused for a moment as if to give Dan a chance to speak, but seeing no hint from him the Commander continued.

  “While the government tried to keep people calm on the home front. FEMA and other government agencies found out after years of budget cuts and political infighting they did not have enough emergency shelters, stockpiles of food, fuel or medical supplies for the entire country. They found themselves set up so they could only handle one event or major city at a time. Therefore, when the plague finally began in the United States the government had no choice but to issue the instructions for a normal flu pandemic, for people to stay-at-home and avoid large groups. I was part of the first teams of police and special military teams the government used to eliminate the zombies. Or then we call them the infected,” the hint of a smile still on his lips.

  “That started appearing preventing the people in the cities from panicking. This strategy was use in part to prevent the roads from becoming clogged making transport difficult of troops and supplies and to keep it from spreading. But you know well the plague intensified and the general population found out what it was doing to people. The President had no choice but to ordered martial law on the entire country. The order given to the military and National Guard to seize all the remaining food distribution centers across the country and what petroleum and gasoline that remained. The government conceded they only had enough troops and equipment to keep control in a fraction of the country’s cities and towns. In the country from the growing numbers of zombies and civic discontent. That is why they sent out people like me,” Commander Hudson sighed.

  “The decision to recall all United States military personnel from overseas with all the equipment. They could bring back with them to help set up safe areas around key infrastructure of the country as some cities and towns where abandoned by the government. This determined on what resources were available and needed to help rebuild the country. As winter approached the interior and eastern part of the country began experiencing record low temperatures and snow. Casualties mounted among the old, infirm and even the healthy as supplies of heating oil ran out. Electricity and other services cut to many cities and towns and shifted to safe areas. Many more individuals sickened and died as hospitals ran out of medical supplies or abandon by the doctors and staff. As they started looking for someplace safe for themselves and families. This complicated the Governments problem as the number of zombies increased with those dying of the extreme weather and lack of services. The next major decision made by the government was to transfer as much of the nation’s population as possible to safe areas they could control. This would make rationing food and fuel easier while reducing the number of troops needed to protect the people. While conditions started worsening over the nation. The government found the buses, trains, and even boats used for relocation where difficult to fill with people. Doubt caused reluctance to relocate from people, nobody wanted to leave the security of their homes and belonging to go to some unspecified place. The city’s governments started to break down as the food and fuel started t
o run out. Leaving areas open to looters, gangs and would be leaders that tried to seize power as people tried to find relief to the growing problems.

  The government found that their relocation plans had some major flaws in them. Becoming noticed when the government announced specific convoys. The government ordered the military and city police forces to confiscate every bus for miles. Some hard decisions on the importance of certain individuals became public. The government was giving a higher priority to those people who would be more valuable at their final destination like mechanics, technicians, medical personnel, construction workers and soldiers over the untrained and unskilled. These people called on or required by the government to perform their jobs found the government did not allow their families to go with them. Some reported for duty as asked and sent their loved ones to the supposedly safe areas set up by the government by other means. Others simply showed up at their duty stations with their families demanding admittance also causing a strain on supplies the government had placed in the areas. While others refused to report for duty staying with their families trying to protect them. Still other people simply ignored the government as they started looking for a safe place of their own.

  As the population in the government safe areas increased, they tried to make distributing food, fuel and shelter as fair as possible. However, as new refugees arrived and delays in shipments because of paperwork errors or raids by survivors in the non-safe areas. The supply of rations became scarce the administrators had to deal with increasing complaints and mumbled curses. As the crisis continued, the government tried to plan. To limit food and fuel shipments to some areas to ensure that distribution of supplies went to skilled workers, farmers, soldiers, and other important personnel needed to rebuild. Unfortunate doing this caused large-scale riots in some of the safe areas and cities. Causing the government to abandon these areas to survive on their own as they further sought to secure the areas for their critical needs program. That is when the embedded advisers plan started, the government asked those of us with Special Forces training to help communities survive, outside the safe areas. We received gear and a location to go to,” Dan could still see the hint of a smile around the commander lips as he continued.

  “I was in charge of a small team, the town we went to was having a power struggle between two leaders. Both of them saw us as a way to legitimize their position and defeat the other,” Commander Hudson paused again to look at him who this time added.

  “That is not the town’s history,” Dan stated

  “It was not this town, both leaders died in the fighting,” Commander Hudson replied.

  Dan saw the hint of the smile fade a little around his mouth.

  “The town fell apart, we left and finding this place made it our home,” Commander Hudson finished looking at Dan.

  “Now are you going to trust me,” he asked in his soft voice.

  “Yes” Dan replied quietly.

  “Why,” Commander Hudson asked and seem interested in the answer, Dan felt it was time to see if he could rattle the commander.

  “Because Manny once told me I could,” he replied he could see the smile form on the commander’s lips as he nodded his head in approval.

  “He was a good man,” was all he said.

  Dan reached for the gray daypack at his feet and opened the front zipper removing a folded road map. Handing the map to Commander Hudson, who turned the map to looked at the front for a moment.

  “Ah, you found the lost city of gold,” he said with a smile. Dan looked at him puzzled.

  “I will explain later,” Commander Hudson, said as he noticed the look on Dan’s face, placing the unfolded map onto his desk. Commander Hudson looked up from the map after a moment at Dan.

  “I want to know what these marks are for,” he told him in that strong soft voice of his. This started several hours of question and answers for Dan as Commander Hudson study the map.

  The light gray eyes of Commander Hudson watched Dan leave his office. Waiting a moment before he reached down to the gunmetal gray desk and pulled open a drawer removing a satellite phone pushing the power button he waited while the phone booted up and turned on. Dialing a number he put it to his ear listening to the dial tone ring.

  “Hello,” an unsure voice answered.

  “Good afternoon Mr. Pennington this is Commander Hudson,” his soft voice stated. A slight smile playing on his face to the pause on the phone.

  “How did you get this number,” Mr. Pennington stated. Commander Hudson shook his head with the phone.

  “If you are asking that question I will have to revise my opinion of you,” Commander Hudson soft voice said. The flustered voice of Mr. Pennington changed. After a slight pause.

  “Of course what can I do for you,” he asked sounding professional. Commander Hudson did not pause.

  “The situation with Captain Jones is becoming unacceptable,” his voice said, but it almost seemed like he was yelling.

  “What do you mean,” the professional sounding voice asked.

  Commander Hudson smiled as he porously paused before answering.

  “She came in to town today and tried arresting someone,” he answered.

  “Someone,” Mr. Pennington voice lost some of the professionalism.

  “It was Dan,” Commander Hudson stated as he heard as soft.

  “Damn it,” come over the phone. Without giving Mr. Pennington any time to respond.

  “If this continues I will have to take personal action to resolve it,” he stated listening to the silence of the receiver on the satellite phone.

  “I understand,” said the defeated sound of Mr. Pennington's voice. Commander Hudson let a long tense silence trying out.

  “I hope so,” his soft voice said as he hung up the phone.

  Dan left Commander Hudson's office and retrieved his bike to start riding back to Sandra's house. The events of the afternoon playing in his mind. Captain Jones trying to arrest him for looting in front of the police station. He appreciated the help of the self-defense forces. As he rode he shook his head realizing the differences between them was going to have to end. He knew this town was too small for both of them and he had no plans to leave. His mind stewed on this as he arrived at home. Sighing as he arrived he knew what he had to do. He quickly unloaded his supplies going into the closet. He moved a few items around to finally remove a hunting arrow the razor-sharp cross tip was not like any of his other arrows. Moving through the house he donned his leather shooting brace on his arm. Grabbing the quiver of two dozen regular dart tip arrows. Slipping a few out and leaving them on a table he placed the hunting arrow in their place. Picking up and strapping the Katana sword to his back. Slipping his Bear Archery 53 inch recurve bow over his shoulder as he left the house locking the door behind him. Going to the garage to remove his trailer from his bike. He checked the street making sure no one was about as he started riding off into the town.

  He did not head for one of the gates sitting along the North and South running street separating the occupied part of town from the uninhabited.

  He did not want to go through one of the towns checkpoints.

  “Who am I kidding he doubted they would let him through,” he thought. Riding his bike down one street passing a pile of chain-link fencing sitting by an old light post. Looking around the street he could see the houses on this street had a X on their doors in chalk Looking around the street he saw no one. Which was good he knew the city had just recently cleared the street of any zombies.

  Selecting the house he wanted he moved for the side gate leading into a backyard of the house. Going through the gate into the weed infested overgrown backyard. Leaving the bike near the gate to make his way to the back fence. He took the opportunity to look around one last time before he started climbing over the fence dropping into a bordering backyard in the uninhabited part of the town. He looked listening for any sound at hearing none he moved for the gate looking for ant movement in the fading light. Dan scann
ed the street looking out at the overgrown yards full of tall grass and weeds to the dark homes. The home’s doors had no X chalked on their doors. Satisfied he moved out onto the street and started making his way along the uninhabited part of town towards where the government had set up their forward base. It was getting dark when he started approaching the street he needed. He slow down moving into the underbrush and shadows of the house as he slowly worked his way closer to the old apartment complex.

  Getting to within fifty yards of the old apartment complex. Squatting behind some bushes in front of an old home looking out at the chain-link fence surrounding the apartment complex extending into the street. He studied the place seeing several lights on as a lone guard walked the fence. Looking at his stainless steel watch timing the guard seeing how long it took him to pass a certain point. Before he started moving closer when the guard was at the farthest point away from him. He managed to work himself to within twenty-five yards of the apartment complex. Taking cover in a weed infested overgrown yard of a house missing most of the windows. Dan slipped the bow from his shoulder. Then removed the cross tip arrow from his quiver placing it on his bowstring which he held loosely as he studied the apartment complex. He could see the lights on in the building as a slight thumping of the generator reached his ears.