Point Of Destruction

by Max Lockwood

  “No,” Will said strongly. “I don’t want to hear another word about it. Can we just focus on how we’re going to get out of this forest?”

  Thomas stood to his feet. He wasn’t going to let Will change the subject. He wasn’t going to let the others forget about this conversation. Will was hiding something and Thomas needed to know what it was.

  He grabbed the strap of Will’s bag and gave it a forceful tug. Will pulled back, but Thomas was firmly rooted to the ground. With all of the strength he could muster, Thomas yanked it from his clutches, sending Will sprawling to the ground.

  As Thomas unzipped the bag, Will retuned to his feet and tackled Thomas, sending them both to the ground. In the scuffle, both boys lost possession of the bag and it landed at Elaina’s feet. She grabbed it and held it close to her chest.

  “You wouldn’t dare attack me, would you?” Elaina asked Will, her eyebrows raised.

  Now Alec was on his feet, just in case he needed to come to Elaina’s aid. Alec and Will had a sort of kinship, but Alec would remain loyal to Elaina, first and foremost.

  She opened the bag and unloaded bags of snack crackers and bottles of water and energy drinks. Then, she pulled out a small radio.

  It was dripping water, and when Elaina went to turn the device on, it released a surge of electricity and shocked her. She yelped and dropped it on the ground.

  “What is that?” Alec asked.

  “Looks like a radio,” Derek replied, confused. “It’s a pretty good one too.”

  “How did you get this?” Alec asked, looking disappointed and dismayed.

  “I found it back at the hospital. It wasn’t working, but I thought I would bring it along anyway.”

  “Obviously, it had some power left,” Elaina said, sucking on a sore finger.

  “Why didn’t you tell us about it?” Alec asked again. “We could have made contact with someone. Or we could have called for help. Just because you didn’t know how to use it doesn’t mean that a police officer or ex-soldier couldn’t figure it out.”

  “He didn’t tell you about it because he didn’t get it at the hospital. He got it from that truck that wrecked.”

  Everyone stopped and looked at Thomas. He had a smirk on his face.

  “Honestly, I’m glad this happened. Now, everyone else will believe me when I say that you’ve gone off the deep end.”

  “What do you mean?” Derek asked.

  “I’ve seen that radio before. It belonged to Bethany, the girl who hit my truck. When I saw her last, someone was trying to reach her. When I went back to check on her, she was gone. I didn’t bother checking to see what kind of valuables she left behind—you guys were all knocked unconscious, and it seemed more important to take care of you all than do an inventory of that girl’s stuff. But when Will went back to confirm my story, he must have rummaged through her things. Didn’t you?”

  Will looked nervous. He was blinking rapidly and biting the inside of his cheek. “I don’t buy your story about this ‘Bethany’ chick. I didn’t see anyone there.”

  Thomas was red in the face now. Will was lying right to his face and trying to convince the others of something completely false.

  “She’s absolutely real,” Thomas argued. “Stop lying!”

  “Hey,” Elaina shouted over the boys. “There’s a gun in here. I thought you said you didn’t have a gun, Will?”

  Alec rubbed a hand over his stubble. “Why did you lie about that?” he asked, his voice eerily calm.

  Will sat back down on the ground. He buried his head in his hands.

  “I don’t know,” he said. “I knew that if I said I tried to kill a few infected, I would get blamed for shooting Melissa. Thomas has had it out for me ever since the accident.”

  “For good reason,” Thomas interjected.

  “I didn’t shoot her. I’m telling you, there’s someone else in the forest. I’m not a big fan of the girl, but I would be crazy to shoot her in front of all of you.”

  Thomas gritted his teeth.

  “Tell me everything that happened when you fired your weapon,” Alec ordered.

  Will closed his eyes and thought before opening them again. “We saw the infected and they began to close in on us. I saw Derek start shooting and I wanted to help. I grabbed the gun that I found at the scene of the accident and started firing everywhere I saw infected people.”

  “Found?” Thomas asked. “Did you take it from the truck too? Was it right next to Bethany’s radio?”

  “I don’t know why you’re trying to make me into a villain,” Will retorted. “I was trying to stop us from being killed by the infected. That includes her,” he said, pointing at Melissa.

  “Give me the gun,” Alec said gently.

  “Why?” Will argued. “You don’t believe him, do you?”

  “I would just feel better if it was in a safe place,” he replied as Elaina handed over the weapon. “I’ll give it back if we’re in a situation where you need to defend yourself against the infected. There’s too much uncertainty and conflict around. Let’s just cool off for a while.”

  Thomas was glad that Will was no longer in possession of a gun and that the others were starting to realize he was coming unglued. Still, it wasn’t enough for Will to be put on probation because of uncertainty. Thomas was fairly certain that Will had found an opportunity to cause Melissa harm and get away with it and used it to his advantage. He was frustrated that no one treated Will like the danger that he was.

  Until Alec finally realized what his friend was capable of, Thomas took it upon himself to be the watchdog for the group. He would do his best to observe everything that was happening and protect Melissa, but he didn’t want to be constantly accusing Will of crimes if the others didn’t want to hear it. He would just collect evidence and use it when the time was right, if necessary.

  Melissa’s condition grew worse by the minute. When Derek removed the bullet, everyone figured that it would help her get better. Her body would have the chance to heal without the foreign body inside. Instead, she was still losing a considerable amount of blood, and there was always the risk of infection, no matter how much alcohol they wiped on the outside of her arm.

  As Thomas, Will, and Melissa sulked, Derek approached Alec and Elaina.

  “If we want the girl to survive, I think we need to get a move on,” he said. “She looks just like the other girl did after she got shot in the leg. Honestly, she probably looks worse, because at least the other girl tried to put on a tough face. She needs professional medical treatment immediately. Even if we don’t want to stay, I say we at least drop her off at a hospital somewhere.”

  “How long do you think it will take to get to a hospital?” Elaina asked anxiously.

  “Hours. Days, at this rate,” Derek responded.

  “And we don’t have the medical supplies she needs?” Alec asked.

  Derek shook his head. “We collected a lot of useful stuff, but it’s still not enough. We can’t give her a blood transfusion or give her IV antibiotics. Besides, my training is for patching people up well enough to survive the hour-long trip it takes to get to a real medic. She’d last an hour or two in her current state.”

  “If that’s the case,” Alec said, “then what are the chances that she’ll survive to even see a hospital? We haven’t even gotten out of the forest yet. We’d still have to find a car. Then, who knows if we’ll even be able to find a hospital that isn’t overrun with infected? If what Thomas told us is true, then we’d have to drive another eight hours or so to get out of the infected zone.”

  “That’s the thing,” Derek said softly so the other three wouldn’t hear. “I’m not very confident that she’ll survive to see the healthy world again.”

  Chapter Seven

  As the group continued on down the trail, Alec stuck close to Will, keeping an eye out for him. He didn’t want to distrust the boy, but he hadn’t left him much choice. He tried to have a little empathy for him, though. When he had been thr
ough trauma at the beginning of the epidemic, he had dealt with it by not dealing with it at all. Still, staying home and getting plastered all day was different than potentially shooting a travel companion, but he wanted to keep Will in good spirits if he could. He didn’t want to believe that Will was dangerous, but if he was, Alec had the responsibility of preserving his mental health.

  Unsurprisingly, Will was fairly silent and respectful for much of the hike. He knew he was on thin ice for lying and didn’t want Alec and Elaina to worry about him. He replied to Alec with short responses and stayed well within sight at all times.

  Derek and Thomas were both in charge of ensuring that Melissa was well enough to continue. Fortunately, the injury was to her upper body, so she was capable of walking. However, infection and blood loss was setting in, and it limited the amount of physical activity she could do.

  Her caretakers discussed the best options for both Melissa and the group. Painkillers would make her more comfortable, but in the event of an attack, her senses would be dulled too much to think defensively. She stayed silent for most of the conversation but finally needed to speak up.

  “Am I allowed to have a say about my own body?” she asked, slowing to a stop. She sat down on a fallen tree to rest.

  “Of course,” Thomas said.

  “I’m in a lot of pain. It’s not just my shoulder, either. Every part of me aches. I want the drugs.”

  “But what if something happens?” Thomas asked. “If you’re out of it, then you’re not going to be able to fire a weapon. Your reactions will be slower and I’m afraid that you’d be an easy target.”

  “I don’t know if I even care.” She sighed. “Let’s face it—I’m not in great shape already. I think I’d already be a target.”

  “Don’t say that,” Thomas said. “You’re going to be fine. We’re not that far from the quarantine border now. We’ll get some help.”

  “I hate to say it,” Derek added, “but if you’re lagging behind, that puts the rest of us in danger too. If we have to stop to carry you out of a tight spot, then that increases our chances of being attacked too.”

  Thomas glared at Derek for bringing up such a sensitive subject. Derek revised his statement.

  “I still plan on helping you, regardless of the situation, but I want you to consider all of the possibilities.”

  “I understand,” she said. “Honestly, I occasionally thought that Victoria held us back. I didn’t want her to die, but I thought about how much further we would have gotten if we didn’t have to stop so often.”

  “I’m not in the business of leaving group members behind,” Derek said.

  “And I appreciate that. That’s why I’m telling you now—if you’re in danger because you’re watching after me, let me go. I don’t need that on my conscience.”

  “Come on,” Thomas protested.

  “I mean it. Save yourselves. That’s what I would do.”

  Thomas frowned. From what he knew about Melissa and her strong will to live, she must have been suffering.

  “You really want those pills, don’t you?”

  “Just one,” she said. “I don’t want to overdo it.”

  Derek pulled out the kit and placed one white, oblong pill into the palm of her hand. She popped it in her mouth and swallowed it with a swig of water. Then, she got back up to her feet and continued walking.

  “You’re a tough girl,” Thomas said. “You’re going to be okay.”

  She gave him a quick grin. “Thanks. I really hope you’re right.”

  A few feet ahead, Alec fiddled with the radio, trying to get it to work again. He managed to get the device to dry out, but it still wasn’t working.

  “You’re sure you put the batteries back in correctly?” he asked Will.

  “Yes,” Will persisted. “I double-checked. I don’t know if the thing ever worked to begin with.”

  “That sucks. Do you know how useful this thing could be? We could actually find out what the hell is happening out there. We could probably even call for help. Imagine if we could just give some stranger our coordinates and a helicopter appeared to take the six of us out of here.”

  “Sounds too good to be true,” Will replied.

  “You got that right.”

  “Maybe we’ll end up somewhere where there are spare parts for this thing,” Will said hopefully.

  “We’d have to figure out how it works first. The thing that I don’t understand is that Thomas said he heard someone speaking on that radio. How much time had passed between your visits to the other truck?”

  Will looked up into the sky. “I don’t know. It was all pretty disorienting. Maybe thirty minutes? Possibly more. Anyway, I wonder if Thomas had a concussion he didn’t know about. When I got to that empty truck, that radio was silent.”

  “Not this again,” Alec groaned.

  “What? I didn’t say anything bad about him. If he got a few marbles knocked loose, that isn’t his fault.”

  “Okay,” Alec said. He thought that at that point, it was more likely that Will was the one with the brain injury. He hadn’t been himself in quite some time. “Here,” he said, handing the device back over to Will. “Put it back in your bag. We’ll try working on it later.”

  “I’ve messed around with computers before,” Will said. “If we had a screwdriver, maybe I could open it up and take a look inside.”

  Alec stopped for a second and looked Will straight in the eyes. “Why didn’t you say anything? Why didn’t you mention the radio or the gun?”

  “I told you,” Will said, looking away, “Thomas and Melissa would have found some way to turn it back on me. I wanted to tell you later, in private, but he exposed me. I’m sorry. I really didn’t want you to find out this way.”

  “I just wish you could keep it together long enough to get out of this place,” Alec said softly, as if he were speaking to himself.

  Will didn’t know how to respond. He didn’t like letting Alec down, but he had so much rage and confusion building up inside him.

  Night had fallen, and the group was no closer to finding their way out than they were at the beginning of the day. Their detour had gotten them hopelessly lost. The trail they were on was overgrown with weeds and was largely unmarked, much to everyone’s frustration.

  “I think we need to stop for the night,” Elaina said apprehensively. “Melissa needs rest. We all do.”

  “What about the infected?” Will asked. “I don’t think it’s safe to camp here. What if we’re attacked in our sleep?”

  “There are six of us,” Derek said. “Well, excluding Melissa, there are five of us. We can sleep in shifts so one person is always watching. If everyone takes a turn staying awake for an hour, maybe a little longer, we can get a full night of sleep. Once we have light again, we can continue.”

  “Fine with me,” Elaina said. “I could use a little rest. My feet are killing me.”

  She laid her borrowed lab coat on the ground like a picnic blanket. The others gathered around and set their bags down.

  “Should we build a fire?” Thomas asked. He used to go camping all the time when he was younger.

  “I’m afraid it would attract the infected to our camp,” Derek said. “We’re better off huddling together to conserve body heat.”

  At this, Will got up and moved as far away from Melissa as possible. No one seemed to have a problem with that.

  “I’ll go first,” Alec volunteered. “I’m not feeling particularly sleepy yet.”

  “I’ll go next,” Derek said quickly.

  “Then me,” Thomas chimed in. “I can take the last watch if you guys want.”

  “No, that wouldn’t be right,” Elaina said. “We should all take turns.”

  “Then I’ll go next,” Will said. “You can take the last watch, Elaina.”

  “Good,” Alec said, removing his watch and setting it in the middle of the group. “Let’s aim for shifts between one and two hours. If you’re getting too tired to watch, then
move on to the next person. This is not the time for accidents.”

  Derek nodded. “Whoever is on duty needs to keep an eye on Melissa too. She may need bandages changed or medicines administered. If there are any complications and she needs help, by all means, wake someone else up for assistance. We want to be in better shape in the morning than we are in now.”

  “Sounds like a plan.” Elaina yawned. She fashioned a little nest of pine needles and leaves and settled down into the earth. One by one, the others followed, falling asleep on the forest floor.

  As the night went on, each travel companion worked their shift, patrolling the immediate area and keeping watch on Melissa. Alec, having experience staying awake at odd hours to patrol, made it an hour and forty minutes before giving his post up to Derek.

  Derek frequently checked on Melissa’s injury, applying antibacterial ointment and checking her temperature every twenty minutes until his shift was up. Once his eyes grew too heavy to continue—nearly two hours later—he woke Thomas up for his turn.

  Thomas also kept a careful watch over Melissa, placing a cool cloth on her forehead when she began to mumble in her sleep. He occasionally woke her to make sure she was hydrated and gave her more pain medication when she moaned in agony.

  Then Will stirred. Thomas hoped that he’d go back to sleep and Thomas could just wake Elaina for the next shift. If Elaina could watch out for the group for just another few hours, it would be morning and Will wouldn’t have to be in control of everyone’s welfare. The thought of his watching over the group, alone, made Thomas extremely nervous.

  But Will didn’t fall back asleep. Instead, he checked Alec’s watch.

  “Weren’t you supposed to wake me up a while ago?” Will whispered. “It’s my turn for watch.”

  “I’ve got it under control,” Thomas said. “You can go back to sleep.”

  “I’m up now. You might as well rest up. We need everyone to be sharp today.”

  Thomas looked around the forest. It had been rather quiet. Melissa wasn’t in great condition, but she wasn’t in horrible shape. Thomas knew that Will wouldn’t work for longer than absolutely necessary, so Elaina would be in control in an hour.