by J. Rudolph
I was puzzled by the change in the pitch and I searched Trent's eyes to find out why it had changed. My husband's face was beaming with excitement. He clutched the microphone in his hand and with his thumb, he pushed the talk button down. "Wilsall, calling. Come back?" He waited for a moment, his foot tapping the floor with the impatience of a child who was told to wait to open his Christmas presents before he adjusted a dial and tried again.
He gently tweaked the fine knobs, and announced himself again.
He repeated the process a few times, and I was beginning to feel like the excitement that I was feeling was a bit premature as waves of doubt began to build up in my head. I wanted the radio to work, but I started questioning the realistic odds in connecting with the other side of the country. The Ham radio wasn't a cellphone and it certainly wasn't the Internet. Hailing different parts of the country wasn't really that realistic. It couldn't be.
Out of nowhere, a voice came out of the speaker. It was garbled and indistinct, but it was there. I looked over to my son to see if he heard it too. His mouth hung open in a gentle 'O' as he leaned closer to the radio. I hadn't imagined it. There was someone there.
"Repeat your transmission, please," Trent begged into the microphone, his eyes pleaded for another chance to hear the voice to be real and happen again.
"Flotilla East, we copy you, Wilsall."
We cheered for a second as Trent clicked the talk button down to speak with this stranger. There was a good chance that we hadn't connected with the right people, we had connected with people all over the country, after all, but the voice said 'Flotilla East' and that had to mean east coast, didn't it?
"Flotilla East, my name is Trent Anglin. I am a part of a survivor base in Wilsall, Montana. I have been trying to connect with the people that are running survivors to a safe zone that we learned about from Dr. Hiller of the ISS. Do you have any information that will help us in our search for this group?"
"Mr. Anglin, my name is Desmond Lloyd. I am a communications officer with Flotilla East. We are a group of ships that have been trying to assist survivors with relocation and protection. Dr. Hiller has been an incredible ally to our group in giving hope to other survivors, and I am glad to hear that you have met him.
"We are based out of the Port of New York. Allow me to explain a little bit about our group. I want to start by saying we are not affiliated with the government, but we are operating with the support of the US Coast Guard. We learned of a flotilla in Long Beach that were using their boats in rescue operations and we are modeling our group after what we learned in their attempts that they have been gracious enough to share with us. They created a floating city for those with access to boats, but for those that don't have boats, we have this as an alternative. We were able to negotiate an agreement with the country of Ireland to accept people from multiple countries that have survived the effects of Shelton's Virus. Ireland, as I am sure you are aware, had a very minor outbreak of Shelton's before they closed their borders and gained the upper hand and eradicated the problem. They are now a thriving community of people that are maintaining a normal life. They have an excellent community of doctors, law enforcement, educators, and they are living a close to normal life.
"There are some terms to the agreement that people will have to accept before boarding one of our freighters, but they are straightforward. For instance, we will not be admitting people that have been injured by an infected person in any way, symptomatic or not. Passengers will have to submit to an exam by one of our medical staff prior to boarding and once we make port in Ireland, you will be in quarantine for an additional week before you are assigned housing. You will be expected to abide by the rules of the ship for the safety of everyone, and the rules are basic common sense rules, and once you enter Ireland, you will be expected to follow the laws of the land.
"If you are agreeable to the conditions mentioned, the only thing you will need to do is to be in New York. A ship leaves on the third Thursday of every month, at nine in the morning, local time, from the Manhattan Cruise Terminal. If you miss the boat, you will have to wait until the next boat leaves a month later. There are no exceptions. We do this for the safety and best possible transportation of everyone.
"Is this something that you would be interested in doing?"
"Yes! We would be very interested in traveling with you. You have no idea." Trent was bouncing up and down in joy as he responded. This was exactly what we had been waiting for.
"Alright, then. You know the deal, Port of New York. Be safe in your travels and good luck. Lloyd, out."
The static resumed as he disconnected the call, and the soft hiss was the only sound left in the room.
We had been waiting for this moment for what felt like an eternity, and now we had made contact with them. We knew for a fact that there were people out there that were making it possible to live a normal life. There was a way to move forward with this dream of being back with people and civilization and resources.
I had stopped believing in the hope that we would find these guys. I hadn't realized I gave up until I was listening to this man talk to us, this wonder that we were actually talking to people that would make it possible to relocate was bordering the discovery that Santa Claus was actually real.
I couldn't wait to tell the others. We were going to be able to plan something again. We weren't going to be just sitting there waiting for the next disaster; we were going to be moving on. We were going to be able to put the pieces back together and start again. Drew's science fiction stories had a possibility of being real in a place where people didn't have to stop to take out a pack of roaming monsters.
We had a reason to keep going.
We held a meeting in the school to discuss how we were going to get everyone to New York. As it turned out, not everyone was as interested in the idea of leaving for a cross country trek. We assumed that everyone was as overwhelmed with the life we put together as we were, and just as anxious to get out of it. When we started the meeting in the cafeteria of the school, a place that we had taken to using as our community center, everyone had gathered to see what Trent and I were so excited about. It was almost like people were expecting that we were going to tell them that there was rescue or something, and to Trent and me, there was. To us, Ireland was the beacon of hope that we always imagined we would find. When we told the group about the flotilla that would transport us there, the responses were incredibly mixed. Some were talking excitedly, while others were less than enthusiastic.
The biggest question was about how we would move everyone there. There certainly wasn't enough fuel to drive across the country. We had to wonder at times if we were going to have enough fuel to get to the trade meets and if we were going to be able to trade enough to come back. DaWayne asked how possible it could be to make a wagon train like they did in the old days, and I thought that was a great idea. My brain started thinking about the logistics of how long it would take to cross the country with a pack of horses pulling a wagon.
"We could trade a great deal of supplies for a few horses, especially since we weren't going to need them all anymore. Hell, we could trade our entire town if that was what it would take." DaWayne added emphatically. My eyes widened with excitement, he had an excellent point. When we were at trade meets there were always people asking for items that they needed that we had, but there was no way for us to part with them and survive the winter ourselves. If that didn't matter anymore, if there were no more long stretches of time that we needed to get through, then it wouldn't be a big deal to trade for traveling supplies.
"Cali, Trent," Derek began, "I see how serious you guys are about this idea. I also see the value in going, but your mom and I, well, we aren't up for a commute like that. We like it here. Sure, there are problems, and going to Ireland would fix the problems there are, but I see moving as a whole different set of problems. I look at the trade-off of being crammed together all over again in a series of apartments and going back to relying on a ne
twork of deliveries to get supplies. I look across this town right now and I know what resources we have and what we need to do to keep going. I like it. I like the simplicity. It's something I always wished for before the zombies, and now I have it. Why would I want to run across zombie infested madness and fight to board a boat to go back the world we had?"
"Derek, people are dying here. We have to fight tooth and nail for every last thing, and they die anyway." I said, tears filling my eyes. I had failed my job in taking care of these people, and I was stunned that Derek wouldn't be on board with this.
"Cali, baby, everyone dies. We can do our best to stave off death for as long as possible, but in the end, we all have to die." Derek walked over to me and put his hand on my shoulder, looked in my eyes and asked, "Do you really think this is the best idea that you can come up with for your family?" I nodded and he leaned in and said, "Then you do what you have to do. You take Drew and you run. You run fast and hard and don't stop until you get your son and yourselves on that boat, my decision be damned."
Tears filled my eyes, and I swallowed the lump that was forming in my throat. "Guys? Trent and I, we're going to New York. You are all invited to go with us, but no one has to. You don't have to, and I want you all to think on this heavy tonight. We'll talk about it tomorrow."
A Camp Divided
The next morning we all met again to decide who wanted to be a part of the traveling group. I knew that there were going to be a few people staying behind and that made me feel sad. I had visions of us all moving to Ireland together and being neighbors there too. Everyone here was my family and I loved them. Leaving with even one less person felt like a huge loss. My stomach was tied up in knots as we gathered in the cafeteria.
For a while, we sat in silence as everyone found their seats. I studied the faces of my friends, hoping to get a hint of what they decided. I didn't get very far in my guessing game when I realized that I barely heard Trent as he started the meeting. As he spoke, I tried to be attentive to what he was saying but I failed. There was a look of turmoil on the faces of those I held dear to me, and their stressed body postures and grimaces were so much louder than anything that Trent was saying, until he finally asked the question that was burning in all of us. It was a simple question, really; one with only five words. Who is coming with us?
Lucas and Lacey were the ones who spoke first, beginning the roll call of those who were going to go with us. There was heaviness in their eyes when they added that they would be accompanied by Raine, Liam, and Abigail. I quickly understood why the emotions on their faces were so mixed when they explained that Erin and Sawyer didn't want to make the trip. To further divide the family, Erin was going to keep J.J. with her. She argued that taking that sort of trip with a toddler didn't seem to make any sense. She was right about keeping her brother, and the entire family knew it, but it didn't make the division any easier. Liam sat sullenly with his family, holding onto his dog. He was heartbroken that his sister and his brother weren't coming and it was made worse by the fact that he couldn't take his dog with him. It seemed that he didn't know if he really wanted to come along either. After the meeting, Sawyer took him aside and swore to Liam that he would take care of his family, and his dog was included in that. Sawyer was still walking with the fresh wounds of losing his sister, and I think that those cracks in his heart made it even easier for him to sympathize with Liam's heartbreak.
Matt wasn't committed to staying or going, he was committed to his brother. When Lucas wanted to go, Matt was right behind him. Jackson and Justin didn't seem to care about where they called home; they were just as adrift as their father. However, like Liam, they had become attached to their dog, a loyal pup that followed the boys everywhere. There was a farm that one of Jack's people ran which hired Jackson and Justin to repair some tractor parts in their auto shop. The farmer seemed to really care for the dog. Every time he came to check on the tractor project, he brought treats for the dog and played with him. Justin and Jackson finally offered the dog to the man, and he accepted it, swearing that this would be the most spoiled dog ever. I knew that it would be.
DaWayne was going, but Trisha, the girls, Tanya, and Tyreese were not. Trisha volunteered to take over the medical station, and while I was sad that they weren't coming either, part of me was grateful to not be leaving them without someone to take care of their bumps and bruises. Trisha was ready in my opinion. She still had more to learn of course, but so did I. I burned the midnight oil more than once studying infectious diseases and she was willing to do the same.
Derek and Louise still didn't want to go, and Kristen and her family wanted to stay with them. It seemed to derail Trent that none of his family wanted to go. It made him take a moment to wonder if this was perhaps a bad idea after all if no one else in his family wanted to come, but he figured with the group that was staying behind, if things were going really well with Ireland life, maybe he could get in contact with them on the radio and convince them to come at that time.
Seeing the others make plans with their dogs reminded me that I too, had to bite the bullet and re-home Momma. We loved that dog. She was hope that the outside world could be survivable and home could be found if you were willing to go the distance. I hailed Terri on the walkie after the meeting and arranged to meet her at the safe house. I took Drew and Momma with me and met Terri there. As we walked down the road, I was watching how Momma walked. She was almost completely unrecognizable from the dog that walked up to our gate. That dog was thin and terrified, where the dog in front of me now was healthy and confident. We all went inside of the house and I sat down on the floor next to the dog. It took me a moment to make my mouth work, so until it did, I sat there and scratched Momma's ears. I finally managed to speak the words that were trapped in my throat and asked Terri to take our dog. She agreed, and she promised that the dog would have a very good, loving home with them. I trusted her. Drew whispered his goodbyes into Momma's ear as he held tightly to the dog's neck. It was funny, we started out our neighborly interactions with the exchange of an animal and it seemed that the end of our neighborly relationship was with one final animal passing hands.
Trent had asked their group if they wanted to come with us, and I was sad that they didn't want to come along. I really grew to love the people from their group, Jack and Terri especially. They considered it, and for their group, they decided that it had to be an all or nothing sort of thing, and not everyone was on board to go. Trent promised them that we would keep them updated on the trip and how Ireland was. Maybe if we proved that this trip was manageable, they would be more comfortable with the idea of coming along. I gave Terri a tight hug and told her I would see her in Ireland soon. I felt her nod her head against me, and when we finally let go, I saw that she had tears on her face like I did. I hated goodbyes, and this one was no exception.
After Drew and I met with Terri, we headed off to the library to meet the rest of the group to look at an atlas and figure out our route. We knew to stay away from the Midwest, because of the militia we heard about, but if we stayed in the northern areas, we should be safe from running into that group. We decided to go through North Dakota, Minnesota, the top part of Wisconsin, and through Michigan, before we would cut through Ontario, Canada. We would reenter the United States at the New York/Vermont border and travel right down to Manhattan where we would catch the boat. It seemed easy enough, not a great deal of twisting and turning, and the entire trip measured out to be around 2,500 miles.
We talked about the idea of a wagon train for as much of the trip as we could and ideally, the trip should only take around two months to complete. We knew things never were ideal with us, so we figured to allow six months. If we arrived there sooner, we could feel like a success. If it took three times as long as it should, at least we were prepared. With that kind of time line, and the fact that Fall had just started, we decided it would be better to leave after winter was over so we weren't stuck on the road turning into Popsicles. That would give
us several months to put together supplies and build up a wagon and trade for horses.
I tried to imagine what sort of supplies we would need to pack. Six months was a long time to be on the road, and I was worried that if we actually took six months’ worth of stuff, that we would be leaving the rest of the group high and dry; not to mention our horses overloaded.
We needed to make more supply runs. If nothing else, we needed to go to some of the larger towns to acquire enough wood to build the wagons, and we needed to find some sort of trailer chassis to build our wagons on. We had scavenged everything in the local area, so we needed to reach out to farther areas. We studied the map and decided that Bozeman would be a good spot to start our hunt, and if we needed to, we could go from there.
We spent the day getting prepared for the trip. There was so much that we needed to be able to do this kind of journey. Matt, Lucas, and DaWayne joined Trent and me on our supply run, if for no other reason than to be able to bring more trucks to load up if we hit the jackpot with our finds. We took off with our heads spinning from all the shopping lists in our heads for the trip, as well as wish list items for those that were staying behind.
We started off at a home improvement store, and it was there where we had our first idea.
There were several large storage sheds on display in front of the store, and it was these structures that made us realize what we could make our wagons out of. These sheds were like miniature homes, and they were more weather resistant and more lightweight than wood structures would be. We needed those sheds, and probably a lot of other stuff that was inside. We approached the store carefully; our various weapons in hand, not knowing what we would find. We walked up to the sliding glass doors and discovered broken glass strewn all around the entry way. We were not the first people to come up with the idea of looting this store, and whoever was here last didn't have a chance to re-secure the entrance, or just didn't think about it. We went aisle by aisle, looking for evidence of the undead. After some very tense moments of slipping quietly through the store, only one zombie was discovered. It was pinned underneath a pallet of fertilizer, trapped there with the smell of cow poop blending with the smell of decay in a very unique mixture of grossness. We took the trapped zombie out if its misery and continued with our task.