“What’s going on? I see some people walking this way from Todd’s,” Kate said, having suddenly materialized on the stairs next to the dining room.
“Hold on, Ed,” Alex said and muffled the phone.
“Honey, I’ll be off in a second. It’s nothing we need to worry about.”
“Sorry, Ed, Kate’s freaking out…”
“Freaking out?” she yelled indignantly and grabbed the phone from him.
“Thank you for the heads up, Ed. Sorry to hang up on you, but I need to talk some sense into my ‘it’ll all work out’ husband.” She hung up on Ed and put the phone back on the table, turning to face Alex, who stood staring at the hand that just moments ago had held a phone.
“That’s funny, I could have sworn I was having a productive, adult conversation with a good friend of mine, when—”
“You’ll get over it. So now we have an angry mob headed toward our house?” she said, walking toward the great room.
She’s in driver, panic mode. Great.
“Why don’t we take a look? I’m not worried about these yahoos,” he said and followed her. As they crossed the great room, he passed Emily, who was sitting on her favorite chair, wearing earphones that were plugged into a portable DVD player opened on her lap.
Kate’s solution to the great room noise problem.
Emily looked up and smiled at them as they walked by. Kate walked to the front of the great room and peered through one of the windows facing across the Walkers’ yard. Alex joined her and saw the group walking down the sidewalk, headed straight for their house. The group was already halfway across the sidewalk in front of the Andersons’ house.
“Looks like you need to start getting concerned real quick. Those assholes are going to be at our front door in less than a minute. Emily, turn off the DVD player and go upstairs, please,” Kate said loudly.
Emily looked up and shrugged her shoulders. Kate briskly walked up to her and reached for the headphones. Emily took them off, annoyed. “What? What’s going on?” she asked.
“I need you to go upstairs right now,” Kate said.
Emily didn’t stir. “Why? What’s…” Emily started.
“Just get upstairs now! Go!” Kate yelled.
Emily closed the player and hopped out of the chair, mumbling a series of hushed complaints.
“Thank you,” Kate said as Emily exited the room.
“Thank you, sweetie,” Alex added. “All right, when they come to the door, we’ll see—”
“Come to the door? No way. We’re not letting them get that close to our house. You want to know why I’m freaked out? I don’t like the idea of these people just deciding to march on our house. We’re going to meet them on our driveway and tell them to get the hell away from us. Let’s go. They’re already in front of Ed’s,” Kate said and started walking back into the kitchen.
Alex paused to think about the situation, then followed her. “Do you want me to bring the rifle?”
“No, I don’t think that would be a good idea. You still have the pistol on you, right?’ she asked, and Alex nodded his head as he patted the small of his back.
“That should be more than enough if this gets out of hand.”
He and Kate both rushed to the mudroom and put on their shoes, grabbed jackets, and headed out of the mudroom door. As soon as they cleared the stoop, Alex was glad they had hurried. Six pissed off looking men were already halfway across their lawn, headed straight for the mudroom door. Kate led him through the evergreen bushes on a direct path to intercept them. Todd appeared surprised by the sight of Alex and Kate.
“Can we help you?” Kate yelled with her hands on her hips. She looked irritated, and everyone stopped.
Alex moved next to Kate’s right side as the group paused for a few seconds before Eric Bishop attempted to respond, his words cut off by a violent coughing spasm. He took to a knee and turned to Steve McKinney on his left, who backed away quickly with a frightened look. Mike Lynch and Tom Hodges both moved in to help him, but withdrew as the hacking worsened. True to Ed’s words, Eric looked like he was about to die. His face was ashen gray, his lips purplish, and sweat was pouring down his face. Alex thought he saw a small amount of blood on the corner of his mouth, but couldn’t be sure.
Jesus, he didn’t look this bad ten minutes ago.
Todd finally answered Kate’s question. “We’re just out for a stroll. We all have the right to walk around the neighborhood, right?”
“Looks like you strayed off the sidewalk a little. I think you should all go home. You don’t look so good, Eric,” Alex said.
“I’d be doing a lot better if you weren’t hiding medicine from all of us. Fucking sneaky, you two. I caught one of Jamie’s kids swallowing some pills earlier this week. Looks like you managed to hook them up, huh? Now they’re doing just fine, while my entire family is sick,” Eric said.
“What exactly do you want from us?” Kate asked.
“I want a full inventory of your food supply and any medical supplies you have, so we can divide and distribute them to those families that need help,” Todd demanded.
“This is ridiculous,” Kate fumed.
“It’s all right, honey. Really. I want to hear this,” Alex said.
Todd looked confused by Alex’s response and looked at Eric, who shrugged his shoulders.
“So is that your plan? Just inventory everything and divide it up?” Alex asked, trying to bring them back into the conversation.
“Yes, that’s sounds about right,” Todd hesitantly said, as if he was not sure how to answer the question.
“Just my house, or everyone’s?” Alex asked.
“Well…we should start with your—”
“But we’re going to move on to every house? Right?” Alex pressed.
“Sure, but I don’t think most houses will have—”
“Have what? Any food? Any supplies? That shouldn’t matter. Then what? Where will we store everything, and who will divide it up evenly?”
“Look, cut all this bullshit speech and debate crap. I don’t think we’ll need to go any further than your house, or his…or his” Eric said, struggling to point at Charlie and Ed.
“So you just want to raid our houses because you suspect we have enough food and medical supplies for everyone? How much food do you think I have, Eric? Todd? Take a guess,” Alex challenged.
“I don’t know. That’s why we want to see, so we can figure it out,” Todd said.
“A year? Does that sound like a lot for one family? If we had enough food for a family of four for a year, should we divide it up for everyone?”
“You’re goddamn right. If you have a year’s worth of food…are you kidding me? I have less than a week,” Todd raved.
“Okay, so that’s fifty-two weeks, divided by thirty households. I’ve already done the math here. That’s 1.7 weeks per family, maybe more, maybe less. Twelve days. Not exactly a windfall. So, if I had that much food, which I don’t, you’d be asking me to give it all up so that we could all be equally screwed as the winter descends. It’s only the middle of November, Todd. We have a long way to go. Probably until springtime when the roads are cleared and the trucks can move supplies again,” Alex said.
“Cleared from what?” Mike demanded.
“From the snow. Do you really think the plows are going to keep up with the snow? When’s the last time you’ve seen a police car, or heard a siren? Everyone is either sick, or not showing up to work, and we’re only seeing the tip of the iceberg here. The worst is on the way, and it won’t get any easier. Especially if we sit on our asses and hope someone else solves our problems,” Alex said.
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” Todd asked angrily.
“It means that I believe you had every opportunity to stock up on food, Todd, even after the food crisis started,” Alex said.
“That’s bullshit! Every time I tried, the store closed before I set foot inside!” Todd yelled.
“Are you ki
dding me, Todd? I distinctly remember volunteering to watch your kids, at the ass crack of dawn, so you and your wife could get over to Hannigan’s early enough to make it through the store. We waited, and we waited, and you never called,” Alex reminded him.
Todd looked uncomfortable with the accusation, and Steve McKinney mumbled something to Mike Lynch. Mike Lynch fired back at Steve with a hushed “that’s not the point of this,” and then Mike stepped forward.
“Look, food is no longer the issue. You made your point. You don’t have enough food to carry the entire neighborhood along through the winter. Understood.”
“It’s still an issue for me,” Todd yelled.
“I know, but we can deal with that later,” Mike said to Todd.
“So what exactly do you want from us now?” Alex said, exaggerating an exasperated look.
Before Todd could answer, Eric, still on one knee, broke into another coughing fit.
“Eric doesn’t look like he needs to be out here in the cold. He needs to be breathing warm, moist air to help open up his airway. This cold air is constricting his lungs, making it worse,” Alex said.
“He’s fine for now,” Todd retorted.
“And you’re a doctor?” Kate shot back.
“I’m no doctor, but I’m pretty sure if he’d received some of the drugs and medical supplies you’re hoarding, he’d be doing a lot better!” Todd said smugly.
“I already donated anti-virals to the community chest. That’s it,” Alex said.
“That’s it? That’s all you have to say?” Todd said, his face reddening.
“That’s it. And, uh…from what I understand, Eric received one of those courses of anti-viral therapy. Sarah told me that she handed over four of the thirteen courses to Stephanie. Unfortunately, it looks like it didn’t help him, which is not unusual,” Alex said.
Todd looked down at Eric, barely able to contain his surprise. Alex also detected a hint of anger flash across Todd’s face. “Maybe he didn’t take it.”
“Four doses. Four family members. You do the math. The flu affects everyone differently. Some get hit hard, some don’t even get symptoms. Others get slammed and die within a day or two, like Matt McDaniel. Anti-virals are no guarantee of anything. The best way to fight this thing is to avoid it altogether. So like I said before, you should all separate and button up inside your houses,” Alex advised them yet again.
“If you’re trying to talk me out of getting some anti-virals for my kids, save the lecture,” Todd said.
“This conversation’s over,” Kate said and turned around to walk away.
“No, it’s not,” John Hodges piped up.
Kate turned back around. “Get off our property right now. I say this is over, and that’s it! I don’t want to see any of you around here anymore. We have nothing more to say or give you. We’re done here.” She pulled Alex’s arm as she started back toward the mudroom. “Don’t even look at them,” she whispered, releasing his arm as they walked away from the mob. “Talking just encourages them. We’re through communicating with those jackasses.”
Alex and Kate entered the house and closed the door behind them, muting the verbal tirade launched by the group. He glanced back out of the door and verified that they hadn’t moved any closer to the house.
“Your problem is that you continue to engage these guys until they reach their boiling point. You have to cut them off and walk away. They want you to provoke them,” Kate said.
“But I didn’t even get a chance to threaten to kill them, or something good like that,” he insisted, still watching the group.
“Yeah, that would have helped the situation immensely.”
“It doesn’t matter what we do. He’s raving mad. No food, no meds, and he’s fomenting the idea that we’re sitting on enough of these supplies to save the entire neighborhood.”
“Christ. Could we give up some of our stuff and make him happy? We have a lot of food down there, way more than we need. We could put together a package for them. Just enough to get them off our backs,” she suggested.
“I think it could only make matters worse. As soon as they run out of whatever we decide to give them, they’ll be right back at our door, along with the rest of the neighborhood. Then we’re truly fucked,” he said.
“I don’t know, but we need to do something. We can’t sit here for months waiting for them to attack us. We can’t live like that.”
“Hey, I lived like that for several months. It can be done,” Alex said, stepping into the kitchen.
“Yeah, but the rest of us can’t. Let’s figure out what we need to survive. I don’t mind stretching our food supply thin if it will get them off our backs.”
“Off our backs for now,” he reminded her.
“Well, at least we’ll have a clearer conscience,” Kate said, following him into the kitchen.
Alex sat down at the kitchen island and poured a cup of steaming coffee into a brown mug, waiting for Kate to sit down next to him. “My conscience is clear,” he said, not sure he fully believed the statement.
“Really? You don’t feel the slightest amount of guilt that we are sitting on enough food for six families to last well past the winter or spring? Or that we have essential medical supplies that could make a difference to at least a few households? Hon, we have a ton of stuff down there.”
“I know. Believe me, I’ve thought about it, and that’s why I don’t mind helping out Ed, or Jamie’s kids…”
“Hon, we can’t pick and choose who we help. That’ll only make matters worse. We need to make an offer to those around us, but make sure they understand it’s final. That it’s all we can give up without…”
“Without sticking it to ourselves?” he asked, taking a long sip of coffee.
“Yeah, something like that…” Kate said, her voice trailing off.
Alex heard her remove the coffee pot from the coffee maker.
Priorities.
He watched the mob through the mudroom door windows and saw them conferring with each other, obviously arguing about their next move. He saw Mark Silva shake his head furiously and hold up his hands, waving them, then start to walk back down the street. Eric managed to rise to his feet by himself, and everyone kept several feet away from him.
He’ll be lucky if he makes it home.
Todd continued to gesture wildly to the four of them. Alex saw some agreement in the faces and gestures of Mike and Tom, but Steve was clearly not interested in whatever Todd was proposing. Steve stepped back out of the group and started to head across the street. Alex watched as he walked between the McDaniels’ and Sheppards’ houses, soon disappearing behind the McDaniels’ on what Alex assumed was a straight line through the backyards to his own house.
The remaining four men started to walk down the sidewalk toward Todd’s house, soon escaping his view from the mudroom window. He hurried out of the mudroom and through the kitchen on his way to the great room so he could keep an eye on them the whole way back. He noticed that Kate was already at the front corner window.
“Did I miss anything?” he asked, embracing her from behind.
“Not really, just a bunch of bickering. Eric doesn’t look good at all,” she said, settling back into his grasp.
Eric kept shaking his head and coughing. His left leg collapsed and he fell to the ground in front of the Walkers’ house, managing to break his sideways plunge with his left arm. He ended up on his stomach, with his head turned away from Alex’s view. The other three knelt down around him, keeping back by a few feet. They didn’t appear enthusiastic about the prospect of lifting him back onto his feet. Todd stayed down with Eric, who was coughing so violently on the ground that his body appeared to convulse.
“Hon, you better call Stephanie and tell her to get over there. I’ll let them know she’s on her way,” Alex said, releasing Kate.
He rushed over to the front door, opened it and then the storm door, and called out to the group. “Hey, we’re calling Stephanie to come
pick him up!”
The three of them looked up at him, and he repeated himself. He heard Kate on the phone with Stephanie.
“Just get over here and pick him up,” she was saying as she appeared in the hallway from the kitchen.
“What’s up?” he asked, keeping the storm door propped open.
“Nothing…let’s just say that she isn’t a big fan of the Fletchers either,” Kate said.
Alex shook his head ruefully and continued to monitor the situation outside. A few minutes later, the Bishops’ gray Nissan Pathfinder pulled up. Stephanie Bishop, dressed in blue sweat pants and a light brown hooded winter jacket, got out and ran to her husband. Todd helped her get him into the front passenger seat of the SUV. Stephanie stepped around and walked toward the Fletchers’ house.
“Here it comes,” he said to Kate as she joined him at the front door. Stephanie got halfway across the sidewalk in front of their house and launched into a tirade.
“You and your buddy over there,” she screamed, pointing at Ed’s house, “can take care of Jamie’s girls. I’m taking all—” She broke into a coughing fit that took her at least thirty seconds to overcome.
“Jesus,” Kate whispered.
“Yeah,” he responded, never taking his eyes off Stephanie.
Stephanie continued, a little more subdued. “I’m taking my entire family over to the state triage center immediately, so the girls are going to have to find a new place to stay. I’m sending them over to your house in a few minutes. You and Ed can figure it out,” she said and turned around abruptly.
Alex closed the door, and before he could even open his mouth. Kate spoke.
“They can’t stay here.”
“I wasn’t about to suggest that. They can stay in their own house. We can bring meals over to them and keep a close eye on the house. They’ll be fine over there. They can call us if something happens. Amanda is almost Ryan’s age. She can take care of Katherine, as long as we help out. They have electricity, water, TV…they’ll be fine.”
He wasn’t so sure about what he’d just said. The two girls would be terrified without their parents, or another adult at the house. Given all that they had been through over the past few weeks, Alex couldn’t imagine how this could work. Still, he didn’t want them in the house, just in case they were still shedding the flu virus. It had been about two weeks since Jamie dropped them off at the Bartletts’ house, and Alex thought they were just getting sick at that point, so it was conceivable that they were no longer contagious, though he couldn’t be sure about the timing.
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