by Jeff Olah
“So, we just wait here?”
“I have a feeling they’re bringing everyone here. I heard them mention Mason as we were getting into the car. If nothing changes within the next hour, we’ll revisit our plan. For now I say we cooperate and get a feel for who these people are.”
“You don’t think these guys are somehow tied to Goodwin’s group?”
Holding back a smirk, Randy said, “No, these guys are something different, they are a bit too polished to run with those other idiots. They are almost too good, almost.”
“What do you mean?”
Randy stood and walked to the door to the cell. “Let’s see if we can get the old guy to talk… HEEEEYYY!”
225
The overhead lighting along their section of the parking garage blinked on. Shadows hung at the corners near the stairwell, although every inch of the expansive space was now visible. The two spotless vehicles obviously driven in by Mitchell Blake and his men sat directly behind the white SUVs and were left running.
As the sat phone continued to ring, Mason turned to Savannah and looked for an answer. Staring back at him and then to the men with the semi-automatic weapons, she shook her head. Running through his options, Mason kept his finger over the trigger and directed his question once again to Blake. “I know who’s on the other end of the line”
“Then why don’t you put that gun away,” Blake said. “And go ahead and answer it.”
“Because right now, you’re my only concern. And if I find out you’re in any way connected to Marcus Goodwin, I’ll kill each and every one of you.”
The first smile and then slight chuckle came from Mitchell Blake himself. And then as his men were overcome, they began to laugh as well. “If you’re under the impression that we would have anything to do with that degenerate Marcus Goodwin, you’re in for a bit of a surprise.”
“Then who the hell are you? Why are you here and where are our friends?”
The phone stopped ringing.
“I told you my name already and as far as why we’re here… well that’s a bit complicated. I could give you the short answer, although my guess would be that you wouldn’t completely understand and then this little encounter might just turn real ugly.”
If not for his excessively confident aura, Mitchell Blake wouldn’t typically give off the air of intimidation. The man looked as though he’d just stepped off a modeling runway. From the perfectly tousled blond hair to his nearly glowing blue eyes, he’d have been out of place if his friends weren’t equally as polished. His pressed jeans and fitted Henley only exacerbated his defiance of the post-apocalyptic world they now called home. And although he stood right at six feet, he couldn’t have weighed any more than one hundred eighty pounds, soaking wet.
“So, you aren’t with Goodwin,” Mason said. “But you do have our friends, Randy and Sean?”
“You mean the young boy and his intimidating older friend? Yes, they are resting comfortably back at the station. They aren’t hurt, of that I can assure you.”
“Okay, let’s go,” Mason said. “Take me to them.”
“We’ll get there. But for now I need you to answer that phone when it rings again. Don’t tell them where you are and don’t let them know that we’re here. Trust me; I know what I’m talking about.”
“Listen, I may know your name, but I still don’t know you. And I don’t trust anyone I don’t know. You seem pretty smart, you should know that. This world favors those who question everything and everyone. From the looks of you and your friends, I’m a bit baffled that you’ve survived this long.”
Blake smiled. “Looks can be deceiving. And you should trust me, because right now I’m the one holding all the cards.”
Savannah stepped forward as Megan and Eleanor took a half step back toward the door. “Okay, how about we have this pissing match another time?” Turning to Blake she said, “Can’t you just tell us where our friends are, and if you aren’t going to hurt us then why do you have your guns drawn?”
“I have a feeling you aren’t going to be happy with your decision to delay this, although if you feel the need to hear more of an explanation, here it is—”
“Everything,” Mason said. “Don’t leave anything out. Your life may depend on it.”
With the same self-assured grin plastered across his face, Blake began, “I’ve already told you my name and as far as my friends go, there really isn’t any point to me giving you each of theirs. You wouldn’t remember and there isn’t much time for those kinds of things anyway.”
“Okay, get on with it.”
“We’ve been here since the first day. My friends and I were out camping when the infection broke out and as we came into the city, everyone was running out. Once we got our minds wrapped around what was happening, we quickly cleared the east side of this city and began setting up small zones that would be inaccessible to Feeders.”
“What?” Savannah asked.
“We fenced off the police station and an outdoor strip mall. Food and weapons, that kept us going for quite some time and we only used what was absolutely necessary. After a few months, we started venturing out. We knew that there was someone in this building and who they were, although we only had contact with them a few times. There was nothing we needed here before today.”
“So,” Mason said, now resting his gun on his hip. “What have you done with Cedric and the others?”
“He and his wife and the others are in the building. The children are fine and aren’t in any danger. Once we vacate this garage, we won’t be returning. You have my word.”
Mason started in with another question, but was stopped as Blake pointed to Patrick. “You’re Cedric’s boy?”
“Yes.”
“Good,” Blake said. “Turn around and walk through that door. Go back to your family and don’t even think about trying anything. If you do, I will kill your mother and father and make you watch, do you understand?”
Patrick didn’t say a word. He looked to Mason who nodded and then paused for a moment before turning and walking back into the shadowed stairwell.
“Okay,” Mason said. “How are you connected to Goodwin and what the hell are we still doing here?”
“That’s where things get a bit tricky,” Blake said. “He and his men showed up here sometime after the first few weeks. They have their own way of doing things and let’s just say that our styles work well together.”
“And?”
“And, to make a long story short, we now want them out of our city. Resources are growing scarce and now he and his men have begun venturing into my territory. I could start an all-out war with him, but my time is better spent on other things.”
“How does that involve us?”
“That’s not for me to disclose. Let’s just say, when that phone rings, you’ll want to be sure to pick it up. I’m thinking that with all that you and your friends have seen—”
Interrupting, Mason stepped closer and again pointed his weapon at Blake’s head. “Answer the phone when it rings? How would you know that it’s even going to ring? Why would you say that, what the hell do you know?”
“I know that your name is Mason Thomas and that you lost your wife and son about a year ago. You’ve been on the run since the first days of the infection and these people, all of these people mean something to you.”
Mason said nothing.
Blake continued, “I know that you’ve killed more people than you care to think about and presently you’re attempting to outrun those demons, although deep in the pit of your stomach, you know you never will. The only thing I’m a tad unclear about is what happened to your hand. That must be new, and you may want to have that thing looked at.”
Stepping back, Mason tucked his weapon into his waistband. “Why wait?” he said pulling the phone from his coat pocket. “Let’s see what they want.”
226
Soon he’d have to make a decision. A time when he’d have to either severely injure the ol
d man in the lobby or kill him. They’d open the cell at some point and when they did, he had to be ready. The men who brought them here were coming back and when they did, there wasn’t a scenario he could think of where both groups would shake hands and part ways. It just wasn’t going to happen.
Still seated at the front desk, the old man hadn’t moved an inch in the last twenty minutes. He was either hard of hearing or just really obstinate and wanted nothing to do with Randy’s rambling calls for help. Turning to Sean, he wasn’t surprised to see that the boy was now stretched out on the thin slice of a mattress and had fallen asleep.
Leaning back into the cell door, Randy closed his eyes and listened to the overhead duct whistle to life. He liked that Sean was positioned at the opposite side of the cell, and for the first time in the last twenty-four hours, he was relaxed.
His thoughts drifting between the events of the last few months, he found himself reliving the early hours of their final day at the shore. The rain from the night before sat in small puddles out along the deck as Randy slowly savored his second mug of coffee and watched the tide gradually take over the beach.
As the sun began its trek through the diminishing cloud cover, he turned back to see Megan headed his way. Moving across the dimly lit bedroom, she rubbed the sleep from her eyes and yawned. As she approached the door, Randy quickly stood and held it open. Taking her hand, he guided her to the lower level near the sand and offered her a seat alongside his own. “Good morning, how’d you sleep?”
She smiled and rubbed her partially exposed belly. “Your child decided he wanted to go for a run at three in the morning, so I guess until then it was just fine.”
“So,” Randy said. “You’ve finally come to your senses?”
Megan laughed. “I don’t think I like where this is going.”
“You call the baby a He. I wasn’t sure I’d convinced you, but I guess subconsciously we both already—”
“Hey, hey now. Don’t get too ahead of yourself. You know I don’t have full use of my brain so early in the morning. I guess I was just so used to you calling him that, that it just kind of slipped out.”
“You did it again.” His smile could not have been more genuine. “You called our baby Him.”
“Okay, so I can see how this day is gonna go. I think I’ll just hop back in bed and wait for my man to bring—”
Randy leaned back and slid the mug over to her. “You honestly didn’t think I’d have it ready? I’ve had your morning tea ready for you every single day for the last six months, even before you were drinking decaf; it’s now part of my daily ritual.”
After a long slow sip, Megan set the mug aside, grabbed his face with both hands and kissed him lightly on the tip of his nose. “You were good to me long before I deserved it. I should have seen it sooner, but even though it took me a while, I’m glad I finally did. And now, given the fact that no one knows their way around a kitchen as well as you, I think it’s only appropriate that I let you stay.” She winked at him and again reached for her mug.
“Let me stay? How generous.” Sliding toward her, Randy leaned in and returned her kiss.
Still focused on one another, neither noticed Sean coming up the beach. His words reached them only slightly before they turned. “Okay, break it up you two, this is still a public beach.”
“Hey my man,” Randy said. “What’s new?”
“You tell me. I thought we were going shooting this morning. Although it looks like you’ve fallen victim to my sister’s evil spell. Please tell me this isn’t true.”
“It’s possible, do you have the antidote? Is that why you’ve spent every waking minute in your father’s lab?”
Sean shook his head. “Even if I told you what I was doing in there, you wouldn’t believe me.”
“Try me.”
“I’m working on a cure.” He let his declaration hang in the air for a moment before starting again. “I’m taking what my dad has already completed and testing different delivery agents. He said that was his stumbling block and the reason why he wanted to meet with those other scientists. He said there is a chance we could beat this.”
“Okay, not really understanding much of what you just said. You could have just said that you were working on your dad’s stuff. That would have made way more sense.”
Sean didn’t respond, although there was obviously something more he wanted to say. After thirty seconds of awkward silence, he finally turned to Megan. “Is Randy free to go? He said he’d take me shooting this morning and then I need to get back to the lab.”
“He’s all yours,” Megan said. “Just give us a few minutes. I’ll send Randy over to you ASAP.”
“Okay,” Sean said. “But not too long, I’ve got things that—”
“Yes, yes I know. He’ll meet you in just a few minutes. Now get going.”
“I’ll be waiting,” Sean said as he turned and headed back down the beach.
As Sean rounded the edge of the deck and moved out of earshot, Randy lightly nudged Megan’s shoulder. “Wow that was harsh. I think he’s just really excited for us to hang out. He feels like he’s watching over you by getting closer to me. Like he’s protecting you.”
“I don’t need protecting and if I did, I don’t think he’d be the one I’d come looking for; he’s just a boy.”
“Your little brother is more capable than you may think. He’s a natural with a weapon and one little guy I wouldn’t want to see angry. I’ve seen him do things with a rifle that even Jack would struggle to recreate. Don’t count him out; he’s more grown up than you think.”
Her face changed and Randy could sense that the reason she sent her brother away had nothing to do with the two of them stealing a few minutes alone. “What is it?”
“It’s that obvious?” Megan asked.
“Well, I’m not the most perceptive guy in the world, but even I can see that something is bugging you.”
“It’s my dad.”
“Yeah?”
“He’s not having Sean work in his lab just to keep him busy, and he didn’t go to Oregon for the exact reasons he said. He didn’t want anyone to know and although he and I have had our differences, I think he did the right thing.”
“Okay,” Randy said. “This is not at all what I expected, and I’m not quite sure I understand.”
“You cannot let Sean know anything about this. It’s up to my dad to tell him when the time is right. You have to promise me to keep this between us, no matter what.”
“You have my word.”
“My dad is dying,” Megan said as a tear started down her face. “He’s having Sean get familiar with his work and was in such a rush to get to Oregon because he doesn’t have much time, maybe only a few months. He’s hoping Sean can continue his work and even advance it at some point. He thinks Sean will someday save the world. Corny I know, but it’s what he said and what he believes.”
“Why are you telling me all this?”
“Because I need you to protect my little brother. Because I need you to make sure nothing ever happens to him. And because he’s now the most important person alive.”
Opening his eyes, Randy peered across the room at the boy still fast asleep on the metal cot. “You’re gonna be okay, buddy; I’m here to make sure of it.”
227
His eyes swept in and out of focus as he stared down at the display. Clutching the phone, Mason desperately struggled to recall the ten digits he’d memorized only minutes before. The buzzing in his ears that began as only a slight distraction was now the only thing he could hear. Attempting to blink away what he most certainly knew was already happening, he never saw the man approaching from the left.
With the phone less than six inches from his face, Mason’s eyes readjusted and the underlying problem revealed itself. As he dialed the number and waited for it to ring, his left hand and wrist went numb. Searching for an answer, it didn’t take long. The bandages covering his injury were now saturated and had begun to dr
ip out onto his boot and the ground below.
Mason was standing in a small pool of his own blood.
The others only realized the problem as they followed his eyes to the pavement. Savannah reacted first, although not for the same reason. As the man approaching from the left raised his rifle, Mason had already begun to lose consciousness. The stock of the weapon being driven into the back of his head accelerated the devastation as Mason began to fall.
Savannah’s scream was too late. Mason’s body went limp and as he hit the ground, the phone skipped to within inches of Blake’s feet. Quick to retrieve it from the floor and answering it as he placed it against his ear, Mitchell Blake said, “Tobias… yes, we have what you want.”
The headlights lit up the interior of the station as if the van was being driven up through the hallway. Randy hadn’t remembered falling asleep, although the harsh wake up reminded him of just where he was. Still half in the subconscious world of his mind, he squinted through the radiant beam and moved toward Sean.
“Randy, what’s going on? Are they back?”
“Yes, I need you to stay at the back of the cell and don’t move until I say so. Got it?”
“Yeah, but I thought you weren’t too worried about these guys.”
“I’m not,” Randy said. “But we’re getting out of here and I need you to stay back until it’s clear.”
The double doors at the front of the station parted and although Randy couldn’t make out each individual who came through the door, he saw her. Megan was the third of six to enter the building. The young man, who Randy assumed to be the leader, entered the lobby last. He quietly gave instructions to the others who rushed Megan, Eleanor and Savanah into an adjoining room.