“The hell is that?” Dillon asked no one in general.
“It’s coming from the jail. Surely no one got out. There’s two heavy duty, razor topped fences surrounding it. Even the gate is designed to prevent cars from crashing through it.” Crystal said.
“How do you know that?” Dillon asked.
“I had a friend that worked there and brought her some lunch a few times.” Crystal answered.
“Tell you what, you guys wait here while I go recon it and see what’s up?” Dillon put out.
“No. Your dumbass will get killed and then what are we supposed to do? I say we all go together.” Jessie replied.
“See how she treats me?” Dillon asked no one in particular, but Spencer nodded anyway. “Listen, if we all go, there’s a bigger chance of us getting caught. If I go, I won’t get caught because I know what I’m doing.” Dillon explained.
“Makes sense to me.” Crystal said and Jess shot eye daggers her way.
“Okay, fine. Be a dumbass. We’re waiting one hour. I swear to God, if you aren’t here, we’ll leave your ass for the zombies.” Jessie hissed.
“Okay, damn.” Dillon complained and made his way to the edge of the woods. Jess looked up at him just as he sprinted across the road.
Dillon hurried to the guardrail divider and took a knee, waiting for a couple of minutes to see if he’d been seen. Since he heard nothing but the endless wailing. He still wasn’t sure what the deal was, but it was driving him crazy and he damned sure wanted to get close enough to silence it.
He hopped over the guardrail and quietly sprinted to the other side and took another knee, waiting. Nothing. He hopped over the last guardrail and landed knee first in a huge pile of dog shit. He tossed his head up to the sky and mouthed why. He shook his head and started a low walk towards the jail. He pushed his way through the trees and took another knee, wishing he could get rid of that smell. What he saw made him want to puke.
Walt
Richview, IL
Walt went to reach for his pistol, but clearly his daughter had the drop on the man. His first impression was that it was the farmer that owned and worked the land where they’d sought refuge.
“Easy, mister. We don’t mean any harm; we’re just trying to regroup and figure things out.” Walt said as calmly as he could.
“That ain’t how it looks when I got a kid pointing a rifle at me.” The man said.
“Yeah, well you snuck up on us. Not a good thing to happen today.” Walt explained and the man nodded.
“Yeah, I was afraid that you were some of the infected the news was talking about, just before the power went off. My name’s Norm Phillips. This here is my land, all hundred and fifty acres. What can I do to help you people, and more importantly; what’s going on out there?” Norm asked and Walt finally got Lexi to switch off warrior mode and lower her weapon.
“Well, sir. We came out of O’Fallon, headed towards Tennessee. My father-in-law has a place down there and we’re hoping it’ll be a little safer. What we saw getting this far would turn your stomach. It seems some of the people have gone, for lack of a better term; bat-shit crazy. It’s like they don’t know who they are anymore and don’t care what happens to them. They riot like crazy, hurt themselves, hurt each other, and we aren’t sure what they have in store for normal folks.” Walt explained and the old farmer nodded in understanding.
“So, it’s Walking Dead for real?” he asked and Walt chuckled.
“No, they’re not zombies, so it’s worse in some ways, better in others. What we’ve seen is that they have the speed of normal people and they also bleed out like normal people. We haven’t put that to the absolute test yet, but we’ve seen some strange things getting this far and had to pull off the interstate to try and figure things out.” Walt explained and the old farmer nodded, understanding.
“Look, I don’t know you people, but you look like a nice enough family, so I’m giving you my okay to stay here awhile until you get sorted out. Just make sure the gate you went through is closed, don’t want any of those zombies walking around.” Norm said and shook Walt’s hand.
“Yes, sir. We’ll be gone as quick as we can.” Walt said and the old man turned to leave but stopped and pointed at Lexi.
“Young lady, I can’t say having the business end of a rifle pointed at me is any fun, but I respect the way you look out for your family.” He said and nodded before turning to walk back the way he’d come. Tanith let out an audible sigh.
“I didn’t expect that.” She smiled, hugging Lexi. Curtis started acting fussy and she knew he was either hungry or in need of a change, so she went to go take care of him. Walt and his father looked at the atlas on the lowered tailgate, trying to figure out how to navigate this mess.
“First, we need to stay away from cities of any kind.” Paul said and Walt nodded.
“That means backroads as far as we can.” Walt said.
“Yeah, but here’s the problem; what if there’s a big enough force to set up road blocks to keep everyone out? We’ve got to come up with something.” Paul pointed out.
“The rivers.” Nate said and everyone stopped and looked at him, so he continued, “The Tennessee River starts in Tennessee and flows all the way to the Ohio River in Paducah, Kentucky. All we have to do is take a series of boats and follow it upstream. It’ll take us almost to grandpa’s house.” Nate said.
“What are you talking about?” his other grandfather asked.
“Those things that used to be people are on the roads and stuff. If we stick to water, we’ll be able to avoid pretty much everyone. All we have to do is find another boat on the other side of the dams and keep going. It’ll be faster and safer.” Nate said.
“Any idea how many dams there are?” Walt asked.
“Seven. And they’re spaced fairly well apart.” Nate answered.
“How do you know this?” Paul asked.
“Because he’s a nerd.” Tim smirked.
“Yeah, well nerds were the richest of people. Before all this.” Nate retorted.
Walt and Paul started looking over the atlas and backtracking the river.
“He’s right.” Paul said.
“Yeah, about everything. Outside of Huntsville, Alabama and Chattanooga, it’ll keep us from having to go anywhere near the bigger cities.” Walt said and went to go discuss the idea with Tanith. She took a few minutes to consider everything.
First and foremost was her family; they were kids and Curtis, the youngest, still a baby. Babies cry and that could attract unwanted attention. It was easier to spread out on a boat, unlike the truck, and they could carry more good for longer distances. She imagined that they could anchor off the shore if they had to. The bad part was that it might not be as easy to defend as a faster moving truck, then there was the need to look for a new boat at every damn because, as Walt had explained it, the locks were not going to be working.
The greater safety and the ability to move in relative safety while the kids could sleep won out. She went to Walt and gave him her okay. Now they just had to get to Paducah and stay on the backroads. She hoped they could do this. Nate was the one child of theirs that seemed to be able to see through the crap and find a solution, so she trusted that. He was much smarter than his years.
She had just gotten Curtis to sleep and in the car seat when she heard a vehicle approaching from the farm. Tim and Lexi snatched up their rifles and hid in the brush. Walt thought about getting his, but he was pretty sure who it was.
Norm came chugging up the road on a tractor that was probably around the same age as the driver. He pulled up behind the truck and turned it off.
“Hey. Listen, sorry if I was being rude earlier, but like I said; I was afraid that you were some of the infected. I talked it over with my wife, and she just about chased me out of the house for not inviting you up. So, I’m here to do just that. She’s pulling out the stoppers for dinner, and we’d be pleased if you came up.” Norm said, getting down of the beat-up Ford.
Walt was about to decline, wanting to get some more miles under them before nightfall, but Tanith interrupted.
“We’d be glad to.” She answered and Normed beamed with pride.
“We don’t get to show off the place much, with everyone we know being locals, but we’d sure be glad to show you around.” His smile was as genuine as Tanith had ever seen. There was nothing the man was hiding, he really wanted them to come up. Walt shrugged and started loading the truck back up.
Delores Phillips wasn’t exactly what Tanith expected; she expected a wiry older woman, much like Margret Hamilton, who played the wicked witch in The Wizard of Oz. What she found was a short, plump lady who was nothing but smiles and excitement. She was thrilled to not only have company, but as she explained, be able to entertain them. Dolores set the kids loose to be kids until dinner was ready and both Tanith and Lexi volunteered to help, but Delores wouldn’t hear of it. This woman, Tanith thought, was the quintessential grandma for everyone, related or not.
Dinner consisted of everything grown on the farm, from the potatoes and green beans, to the roast beef.
“How are you able to cook this with the power out?” Tanith asked and Delores chuckled.
“We’ve been off the grid for years. That was Norm’s idea. At first I didn’t think it would work, but he ordered the stuff, set it all up, and before you know it, the light company is paying us for our overages. My norm is a man ahead of his time.” She smiled.
“Wow, I never would’ve thought of that.” Lexi said as Delores brought a pitcher of iced tea around.
“Now this isn’t as good as the tea I had growing up, because we can’t get Tetley up here, but it’s the best this old Southern Belle can come up with.” She smiled as she poured them all a glass.
“Southern?” Walt asked, accepting the cold glass from her.
“Well, yes. I was born and raised in Columbia, Mississippi. I met Norm while we were in college at Mississippi State. It’s known for being one of the leading agricultural schools in the nation. Or was.” Delores smiled and sat next to her husband.
“So, I don’t get it; you went to college to learn how to work a farm?” Walt asked.
“You bet. Farming now isn’t what it was a hundred years ago; it’s big business. I usually clear two-fifty a year. That’s after everything is paid for. Some years are leaner than others, but yeah. It’s all about forecasting crop yields, which fields to lay fallow, crop rotations, that sort of thing. This farm has been in my family since the early 1850’s. What my dad couldn’t teach me would have cost me a lot of money. Bigger yields that are more insect repellent and disease resistant is the key.” Norm explained and Walt whistled.
“I just never thought of it taking a college degree to run a farm, but now that you point all that out, it makes sense.” Walt said.
“It’s more than the degree, that teaches you about the science of farming. That’s a big help, don’t get me wrong. But the most important part comes down through the years. No school can teach that. That comes from the experience of those that suffered through things we don’t have to deal with today because of them, yet we don’t forget the lessons they learned and passed down to their children.” Norm said.
The talk during dinner was entertaining as the two families got to know each other. Somewhere along the line came the question of now that they were on the move, what were they going to do about it to get to safety. Tanith relayed what Nate had said and Norm sat back in his chair, digging out a pipe, filling it with tobacco, tamping it down and lighting it, while he mused things over.
“Young Nathan here has quite the head on his shoulders. That idea is brilliant, to say the least.” Norm spoke, his eyes staring off in the distance before he continues, “ We took the Tennessee all the way to Chattanooga a few years back. We’d made a lot of money from the crop that year. My son, the architect in Chicago, asked if we wanted to take a river cruise after the fall harvest. It sounded good to us, so we went. There’s a bunch of dams we had to go through, but if we do it right, it can be done.” Norm said, “That is if you’ll let us come along.”
Walt was stunned by the proposal. This man knew farming, which would prove vital, but he’d also cruised the river, which would be extremely helpful in getting them to the farm. But, he had to ask first.
“I need to ask my father-in-law before I can say yes. It’s his farm and he’d kind of picky about it.” Walt replied.
“Cell phones are down as are landlines. I wish we had some way to get a message through.” Tanith said.
“Does he have a HAM?” Norm asked and Tanith looked at him like he’d gone crazy.
“Not sure, but he’d better plan on eating it quickly.” She answered and Norm laughed.
“No, a HAM radio. If he has one, we may be able to get in touch with him.” Norm smiled.
“You know what? I’ll be right back.” Tanith said and went out to the truck to collect her backpack. After rummaging through the side pockets, she found what she as looking for and went running back into the house. She handed Norm the plastic sealed paper, “Does this mean anything to you?” she asked. He took the paper from her hand, glanced over it and smiled.
“This will most definitely work. He explains what channel he started and how to find the current one he’s using! Let’s go check out my radio room. Hopefully, we’ll be talking in just a couple of minutes. If not, maybe someone out there knows him.” Norm offered and Tanith smiled.
Julie
Ooltewah, TN
Julie was startled awake when something big nudged her back. She looked up to see Gus standing over her. She sat up and looked around but didn’t see anything out of place. Gus turned and faced the direction of the road.
“What is it?” she whispered, but Gus just turned, looked at her and then back at the road again. She got up off her poncho liner and quietly worked her way to where she could get a clear view and almost gasped loudly. There must have been two thousand crazies walking down the road, taking up every square inch. So far, she was right in that they seemed to prefer the route with the least resistance and she really hoped it stayed that way. Making her way back up to the camp, she quietly woke the other women, motioning for each to be very quiet.
“There’s a shit ton of crazies walking down the road.” She whispered.
“How many is your idea of a shit ton?” Donna asked.
“A couple thousand. Maybe more. We can’t get moving until they move by. I’m afraid if we even try to stay in the woods, we’ll make enough noise to draw their attention. Just because they like the road doesn’t mean they can’t come up here.” Julie said and both ladies agreed.
Julie thought the river of crazies would never run dry when suddenly in ended. The last person to straggle by was and elderly woman with a house shoe that had separated from its sole. She passed them with a steady “flap, flap” as the sole flipped up to meet her foot.
“Jesus that was weird.” Donna said in a hushed voice, “Think we should go now?”
“Nope. We need to wait for a little while to make sure that was all. The question is, where the hell are they going?” Julie said.
“Beats me, but let’s not go that way.” Vicki replied.
“No shit.” Donna said, grinning.
Gus stayed looking at the road for a little while before relaxing and starting to graze again. Julie went over and hugged his neck.
“Saved us again, big guy. Thank you.” She hugged him again. Gus was more interested in a tuft of grass to reply.
“He’s a damned watchdog, that’s for sure.” Vicki said and gave him a hug of her own. When an hour had passed, Julie told them they should head out.
“But do we stay in the woods, which takes longer or move back to the tracks?” Donna asked.
“I think we should stick with the woods. It’s a lot easier to duck down and hide than being stuck on the tracks with no place to go if we run into another herd. What do y’all think?” Julie asked.
; “The woods give more cover, which is safer, the tracks are a little faster. I say we stick to the woods.” Vicki said. Donna nodded in agreement.
“Well, ladies; let’s head out.” Julie said and picked up her pack.
“We have a mule, why are we carrying the packs?” Donna asked.
“Do you want to throw one on his back and see how he takes it? Because I paid attention to what he did to the crazy back at the interstate.” Julie answered.
“Nope. Now that you mentioned that, I think I’m good.” Donna said and donned her own pack.
“We should be able to get you home today, Vicki. I just hope you’re ready if it turns out not so good.” Julie told her. Vicki sighed heavily.
“It’s all I’ve been thinking about. What do I do if they’re dead, or worse?” Vicki admitted.
“No matter how much it hurts, you come with us. Those things would kill you in a second if they found you” Julie told her, “Just hope for the best, but prepare for the worst. There’s no guarantee that everything will be as you left it. I hope like hell it is, but I want you to be as ready as anyone could be.” Julie said and started walking the game path northward.
Julie was worried about Gus being able to walk across the steep terrain, but the animal seemed to be half goat, walking the path with no problem at all. As they rounded the bend of the gap, a house came into view. It was an older gray house with tile type siding, a giant satellite dish from the 1980’s was stuck forever on a rusty pole in the back yard. Julie motioned for them to stop and took a knee as the women joined her.
“What do you think?” she asked.
“I think we stay the hell out of the front yard, just to be safe, and stick to the woods and go behind it.” Vicki said and Donna agreed. They sat and watched for any sign of activity from the house for a few minutes before Julie stood and started working her way around it. She paid careful attention to Gus, who seemed to be unmoved about the house, so she sped up the pace some while keeping an eye on the house. She was tired, both physically and mentally and she didn’t know which was worse. She could be walking home to a bad scene herself. What if Brad or the girls had succumbed to the virus? What if the crazies had gotten them? She shook her head to clear it of the thoughts as she pressed on. Best not to think about that, she told herself, just deal with it when she had to.
Three Days From Home Page 13