by Raymond Lee
Damian made a disgusted noise and pushed his bowl away. “I’m not eating Bambi, and I damn sure ain’t eating Thumper, which this probably is because they had a whole pen of rabbits out there too. What else would they need rabbits for?”
Hal didn’t answer, busy watching what was happening on the stage. Elsie, David, and the pastor were huddled together, the men listening as Elsie used her pen to point out something on her clipboard. She glanced in his direction and David and the pastor did the same before returning their attention to the short, plump woman before them.
“Did you see that?” Damian asked.
“Yes.” Hal continued watching them, unease slithering in his belly as the men looked at each other and frowned. David said something to Elsie and she nodded before stepping down from the stage. David and the pastor continued talking.
“Leah still isn’t here. Do you think they eat in shifts around here?”
Hal looked over at the serving area, noting that the servers were busy cleaning everything up. “Doesn’t look like it.”
“Do we have to eat all of this?” Elijah asked, sounding very much like the seventeen-year-old kid he was.
“No,” Hal said. Normally he would be deeply opposed to wasting food, especially with it as scarce as it had been since their country had gone to hell after the unleashing of a zombie apocalypse, but it wasn’t as important to him as saving the life of a friend. They’d just found Leah about three months earlier. She’d been all alone and nearly starved. They hadn’t rescued her then just to deliver her to people who would harm her now. He pushed away from the table and collected his dishes. “Let’s find out where Leah is.”
“David doesn’t take too kindly to people wasting food,” the red-headed man sitting next to Elijah said, keeping his eyes down. “You’d best eat all that before you try to leave this building.”
Elijah and Damian, both of whom had been halfway out of their seats, looked up at Hal. He sighed and sat back down. “Eat the food.”
“How do we know this isn’t poisoned?” Damian asked. “Didn’t all that Jim Jones stuff happen in a place like this?”
“I don’t think that’s something we need to worry about right now,” Hal answered, voice low, as he looked at his glass of tea. “We don’t want to offend anyone here though.” He looked over at the red-headed man. “Thanks. I’m Hal.”
“Patrick,” the man said, eyes still down as he ate.
“One of our friends arrived with us today and she isn’t here. Do you know where she’d be?”
Patrick paused with his spoon halfway to his mouth and flicked a glance toward the two men still standing on the stage talking. “I don’t know,” he finally said, shoving the spoonful of stew into his mouth. He quickly finished his meal and left.
“Gee, I kind of got the impression he didn’t want to talk to us anymore,” Damian whispered.
“Yeah, I did too,” Hal said.
“That’s not shady at all.”
“Yeah, doesn’t have my intestines in a knot at all,” Hal murmured. “Let’s finish this and get out of here.”
Hal and Elijah ate their stew quickly, scooping up large spoonfuls as Damian picked around the meat. Not wanting whatever animal had given its life for their meal to have died in vain, Hal ate the chunks he left behind.
“Enjoying the stew?” David asked, appearing before their table.
“We appreciate the meal,” Hal said, downing his tea in effort to get the salty flavor of the meat out of his mouth.
David nodded, smiling. “We’re glad. Your friend was fed in her room. Her sister was given food there too. She doesn’t seem to want to leave her side and we won’t push, especially with the language barrier and all. As we told you earlier, our visiting hours are pretty much wide open as long as you’re not in the doctor’s way. I imagine you want to check in on her. Elsie’s shown you where you’ll be staying?”
“If we decide to stay,” Hal said.
David’s piercing blue eyes widened. “Of course, although I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t choose to stay. You were shown our fence? We’re very well secured here and we have livestock and the greenhouse. I can’t even imagine what it must have been like for you out there all this time, scavenging for food. You’ll never go hungry here and you can sleep well at night trusting nothing will get beyond our security.”
Hal made a show of looking around. “We’re missing a friend. We expected her to be joining us for dinner.”
“Not everyone chooses to partake of the main dinner. We have a set breakfast, lunch, and dinner, as you were told during your welcome tour, but we don’t force people to join. We only ask that you finish any food you take, and we do allow smaller meals of fruit and vegetables throughout the day for anyone who skips a main meal.”
Hal held David’s gaze, searching for signs of lying. He didn’t see any but his gut didn’t untwist either. Something was off in the compound, or the farm, as David and his people called it. He hadn’t liked Elsie’s reaction upon finding out Leah was gay, especially after she’d been going on and on about finding a husband for her and living as God intended. He really couldn’t imagine Leah not joining them for dinner, choosing to stay separated in the strange place.
“Is everything all right?” David asked.
“We’re used to being together,” Hal answered honestly. “We’re a family. We stick close.”
“We’re all family here,” David replied, “and we’re so glad to have you. I’m sorry to cause you any unease, but we can not have single women and men living together unless they are related by blood. It sends the wrong message to our young brothers and sisters. We won’t judge you for doing so out there. Again, we can only imagine what you’ve been through, but we are a community that lives by God’s laws here. I’m sure you can understand that, Hallelujah.”
Hal tensed under the use of his unabbreviated first name, not happy to have it used against him. Yes, he had been raised to follow the Lord and his mother had given him a name that reflected his upbringing, but he did not appreciate the man’s tone or the look in his eye when he spoke it. He was not one of his blind followers, and he never would be.
“Where is she?” Hal hated not knowing. They’d been shown their quarters separately. All they knew was they were staying in Block D with the other single men and Leah was staying wherever single women stayed, or so they said.
“She will be staying in the women’s quarters with the other single women, but she’s free to move about just as you are.” David looked down at their empty dishes. “I imagine you want to check on your friend who is under Dr. Reed’s care. Maybe you’ll run into her there?”
Hal glanced over at Damian. The younger man shrugged, eyebrows raised, hopeful but uncertain.
“Maybe. Let’s see.”
Hal stayed alert as they walked across the grounds to the building serving as a hospital. They passed the farmhouse in the center of the compound, where David lived with his family, and the greenhouse that seemed to stretch for miles, growing enough food to keep them fed however long it took for the government to eradicate the zombie problem. He could see the pasture and barns where they kept their livestock in the distance, and several other buildings. Some had letters on them, like the D building where they’d been shown their bunks for sleeping. At least they were together, but with Pimjai under watch in the hospital and Janjai staying by her side, Leah was alone… wherever she was.
A cluster of women around the well whispered as they passed. They were assorted heights, ages, and races, but all wore shapeless dresses with long skirts. Hal shook his head, knowing they wouldn’t fare well if the monsters outside got through the fence. He wondered if Leah had been given a dress and cringed, hoping she hadn’t put up too much of a fight if she had. He looked over toward the fence. Too tall to climb quickly and topped with barbed wire anyway, it was as much of a way to keep them in as it was to keep the monsters out. Men paroled the border just inside the fence, shotguns resting against the
ir shoulders, smaller handguns strapped to their legs. He made eye contact with a few men, careful not to hold it long, sure they’d use those guns on him as quick as they would a zombie.
“I miss my rock hammer,” Damian growled. “I’m not leaving here without it. I’ll beat the shit out of these Mayberry-looking motherfuckers if I have to.”
“Keep your voice down,” Hal warned him. “Right now they have guns and all we have are pocketknives.”
“I’m surprised they didn’t strip-search us or pat us down,” Damian said.
“Be thankful they didn’t.” Hal nodded toward a small building near the front gate. “I’m betting they keep guns in there, or in the farmhouse. They won’t keep them anywhere unguarded.”
“They ever think of what might happen if the zombies get past the gate and all these people are in here with no way to defend themselves?’ Elijah asked.
“They think their guards are enough. If they’ve been here since the outbreak they’ve built up a sense of security that many won’t question.”
“Yeah, especially if they’re brainwashed,” Damian muttered. “I don’t think they’re going to get Leah into one of those ugly-ass dresses.”
“Yeah, I know,” Hal said.
They’d reached the hospital. Two armed men stood outside the front doors. The building itself was painted white, and stood two stories high with crosses on the doors and every window. Hal nodded toward the men as they passed, opening the front doors to step inside the small waiting area which consisted of generic folding chairs in the corner. The same auburn-haired woman who’d greeted them earlier that day sat at the desk in front of them.
“Hi,” she said, looking up from a chart she’d been writing in. “I assume you’re here to visit your friend?”
“Hi Gemma,” Hal greeted her, using her name to present them in a friendly light. He’d noticed something about her earlier when they’d first arrived, something different about her and it wasn’t just the fact she wore a black pencil skirt and a white blouse instead of the shapeless dresses the other women wore. She hadn’t seemed as overly greeting as the others, so happy to welcome new people into the fold. She’d almost seemed as if she’d pitied them for having been caught in a fishing net. “Yes, we were told we could visit Pimjai any time.”
“Pretty much,” she said, standing. “I’ll show you to her room. She and her sister have eaten and seem to be doing fine, but Dr. Reed can answer any questions you might have better than I could.”
Hal checked out the occupants of the lower level as she guided them toward the stairs. Beds had been lined up in rows against both sides of the room and filled with men. Some had blackened toes or fingers, victims of frostbite. Some appeared clean and shaven, clearly having been at the compound longer, but were red-nosed and green-tinged, victims of flu or some virus Hal prayed wasn’t the same one that turned people into zombies and created the mess they were in.
“You keep people showing signs of virus among the others?” Hal asked, reflexively reaching for his knife, stopping before he could clue anyone in to the fact he still had it on him.
“The virus that turns people into monsters always involves a high fever,” Gemma said as she started up the stairs. “Anyone showing signs of fever is kept in a locked room until the virus runs its course or …”
“Until they have to be put down?”
She nodded as they reached the top of the stairs, blanching a bit. “Fortunately we haven’t had many cases of that, at least not since I’ve been here.”
“Have you been here long?”
“My brother and I arrived in November just before the winter really unleashed its fury on this part of the country. Things were pretty quiet. He delivered a few babies and we dealt with the occasional case of frostbite or hypothermia whenever someone new arrived. Not many new people arrived through the worst of it. The streets weren’t drivable and I don’t even want to think about what people on foot went through. You’re very lucky to have survived.” She glanced back at them as she led them down a hallway. “You must have had a pretty good shelter.”
Hal simply nodded, not wanting to share their history. The less the people knew about them, the better, especially if they turned on them. “You said he delivered a few babies. Dr. Reed is your brother?”
“Yeah. There’s a ten year age difference plus he has that premature gray thing going on so it isn’t that obvious.” She stopped outside a closed door with the name Pimjai written on a small dry erase plate and knocked before opening the door and sticking her head inside. “You have company.”
“I don’t know if they even understood that,” she said, blushing, as she gestured for them to enter.
Elijah and Damian entered the room but Hal stayed behind in the hall, noticing Leah didn’t appear to be in the room. “Thank you, Gemma. Have you seen our friend, Leah? She arrived with us earlier today. She was wearing jeans and a sweatshirt under her coat. Her hair is long and brown. It was braided.”
“I remember her. I haven’t seen her since you left for your tour.”
Hal stepped closer to her. “She didn’t join us to eat in the dinner hall. I’m worried about her and don’t know where she’s been told to stay since we were separated.”
“They do that here.” Gemma sighed. “She’ll be in the quarters for single women, but there’s a few buildings for that, and men aren’t allowed to visit the women’s quarters, and vice-versa.”
“Do you think you could look for her? I’m sorry,” Hal apologized. “I don’t see a ring so I’m assuming you’re single and were assigned to the same area.”
“I’m allowed to stay with my brother because we’re blood relatives. We have the little bitty house just behind this building so he’s always nearby in case of emergency.”
“Oh.” He looked at her clothing. “I notice you’re not dressed like the other women either.”
“The benefit of being the doctor’s sister.” She shoved an auburn curl behind her pierced ear. “They have a pretty strict dress code in this place, but as long as I don’t show any cleavage and keep my hems close to my knees they don’t give me too much stink-eye. I can even wear pants when I wear long sweaters. Trust me, if another doctor came through here they’d try to make me wear those flour sack dresses too. They’ll give your friends dresses. You’re lucky. Men can wear most anything.”
“No one ever puts up a fight?”
“No one who stays,” she said softly, averting her eyes. “I have some things I need to do while my brother is having his dinner break. You should check in on your friend. I’ll keep an eye out for Leah, but I’m sure she’ll be by to check on your friend too.”
“Of course. I didn’t mean to keep you.” Hal stepped aside, allowing Gemma to pass. “Hey, Gemma. So you like it here? This is a good place to stay?”
She paused, and slowly turned to look back at him. “There’s food and shelter. So far no zombies have gotten in here.”
He watched her walk away, noting she didn’t really answer the question. After she descended the stairs he pushed open the door to Pim’s room and stepped inside. The building wasn’t an actual hospital but the room did contain an actual hospital bed and equipment. A cot had been brought in for Janjai who refused to leave her sister’s side and there was a bookshelf heaped with books and old magazines in the corner, the only source of entertainment in the room since there was no television. He did note a small clock radio on the bedside table in-between the two beds, but the radio was off. Radios hadn’t played music since the August before, and they hadn’t even heard people broadcasting any news since before winter had started.
Janjai, Elijah, and Damian sat on the edge of Janjai’s cot, facing Pim as she rested in the hospital bed. She’d been changed into a hospital gown and from the look of it, thoroughly cleaned up. Janjai was also clean, but still in the clothes she’d arrived in. A heavy cotton nightgown lay folded at the foot of her cot.
“They gave you a nightgown to wear?”
/> Janjai nodded. “I would have preferred pajama pants and a clean shirt, but they didn’t seem to understand when I pointed toward the doctor’s pants.”
Hal grinned. “Apparently the women around here have to wear dresses. They have a dress code. The doctor’s sister, Gemma, gets around it a bit, but only because they really need the doctor. So they’re buying that the two of you don’t know a whole lot of English?”
“We are very good at this act,” Janjai said. “My husband had no idea, remember?”
Hal nodded, remembering the horrible man who’d brought Janjai to America to marry and beat any time she didn’t please him. A pang of sorrow hit Hal square in the chest as he also recalled his deceased goddaughter, Angela, who had killed the man, an act which seemed to have given her a taste for blood.
Seeming to read his mind, Damian reached up and squeezed his shoulder. “Leah hasn’t been by here. Janjai has been here with Pimjai so we have no idea if they’re supposed to be in the same building as her or what’s going on.”
“Gemma said she’ll keep an eye out for her. Unfortunately, the doctor is her brother so they can live together. She’s not in the single women’s quarters.” Hal stepped over to the side of Pimjai’s bed and took her hand. “How are you doing, Pim?”
“I haven’t felt any pain since I’ve been resting.” She used her free hand to rub her swollen belly. “I can’t stop thinking of Raven and Cruz. I am so sorry you are all here because of me. You need to find them.”
Hal grabbed a tissue off the table next to her and wiped the tears spilling over her cheeks. “We will find them. We need to stay here until you are safe to move again. We can’t risk your life or your baby’s life.”
“I heard them say you can leave. I will be safe here,” she said. “Raven was bit, but Cruz may not be. Janjai will stay with me. The rest of you can go find Cruz and bring him here if he is not sick.”