by Sam Lang
Sanctuary
Moira turned over and felt his warm body against hers. She idly stroked his long lustrous hair and sighed with deep satisfaction. He was perfect in every way. His teachings were important to her and to their small community as a whole. That is why she did not mind sharing him. She’d been a scared young woman before she had come across this sanctuary. Gavin and his teachings had made sense to her and she had watched their little band grow until they now numbered almost one hundred people. They included families, singles and children of all ages. Everyone shared a common goal.
Survival.
The Ocean Sapphire Hotel offered more than that. It offered a new start in this new world, a chance to be reborn as a Sapphire Child. As their father, Gavin controlled their security, food and plentiful water. He orchestrated the groups of people to scavenge and find more supplies. Under his watch, everyone helped one another. The sea provided food galore and as Gavin had always said, the lord would provide.
Gavin taught them all the new way, the new religion of love and be loved. Everyone was equal. Gavin shared his love with all of the women, married or not. His new way would insure their survival.
Oh, there had been trouble makers, but that is why they had The Pool. There could be no room for those that did not embrace the new way. Those that would not conform went to The Pool. Those that did not share received no blessings. How could people not agree with their simple ethos? How could they not love and be loved when outside of Sanctuary in the world at large there was only pain, hurt and fear?
Moira left Gavin in bed. She watched him for a moment, snuggling one of the new women. Moira did not know the new one’s name, but she knew the welcoming ritual and was glad to be a part of this one. It would be another two weeks before she would see Gavin’s bed again.
Now Moira looked out over the balcony. She liked how the sun seemed to shine through the Ocean Sapphire. The bluish shadow danced on the afternoon waves. Inside the hotel, they no longer knew fear. So, Moira did not panic at the sight of the figures ambling down the street, coming straight for their Sanctuary.
“Gavin,” she called. “Gavin, wake up. More newcomers. And they have children.”
Gavin pulled himself to a sitting position. Sweat glistened off his sculpted chest from their recent activities. This excited the still aching, but yearning, parts of Moira’s body. She grabbed a robe for Gavin and then one to cover her own nakedness.
By the time she followed him down the three flights of stairs, some of the other Sapphire Children had cleared the barricade to allow in the visitors. The four of them looked to have been travelling for some time. Moira suspected Gavin would put the curly haired boy to work on one of the scavenger teams. The slightly older woman looked fit. She had healthy curves that made Moira wish she could partake of this one’s welcoming ritual. The girl child looked frightened and a mess. She could not be quite old enough to serve Gavin’s special needs, but it would only be a year or two more. The baby could have been a match for the boy. He had the same curly hair and piercing eyes of his father.
“Welcome to the Ocean Sapphire,” Gavin said eloquently. Moira knew him only to be eloquent. He had no other way. Gavin continued, “You have been out in that world too long. Here you will find peace and rest.”
“Thanks,” said the woman.
Gavin put his hand on the boy’s shoulder. Moira knew Gavin liked to have that physical connection. Gavin said, “Please, give me your name.”
“Um, Zac,” said the boy.
“Give me your friend and children,” said Gavin.
“What?” asked a confused looking Zac.
“Their names,” prompted Moira. Gavin had an exact way of speaking to convey his desires and intentions. Sometimes newcomers needed help understanding his expectations.
“Oh, this is Judy. Holly is my daughter, but we haven’t named my son yet,” answered Zac.
“We’re looking for some friends that may have come this way,” said Judy.
Gavin waved his arms about the opulent lobby. He said, “Rest first and then we will discover your business. The Ocean Sapphire will comfort you. Moira, take the children to be bathed and fed. Zac, the men will help you with your needs. But Judy. Judy, I would love to have you...tour our sanctuary.”
The New Way
Zac found himself escorted from the lobby rather abruptly. He noticed that Gavin had a hypnotic aura about him. Everyone seemed enthralled by the long-haired, sparkling-eyed man. Zac felt a tingle of it when the man touched him, but it faded as soon as he was out of sight. Zac remembered old TV shows like The Mentalist and Psych. He knew a fake psychic when he saw one. Gavin used basic tricks to convince people to do things his way. Zac would not allow himself to be tricked. At the first opportunity, he would get Judy and the kids out of here.
The other men led Zac to a room on the first floor. Three other men sat inside the dark room. Between them, they shared two queen size beds. The sun had not fully reached this side of the Ocean Sapphire and the men had the curtains drawn. Even in the shrouded room, Zac recognized the figure of the reclusive author sitting in the lounge chair near the sliding glass doors.
“Matthew!” he exclaimed. Zac honestly never expected to see the older man once they left Disney World.
The man in the chair swivelled his bearded head toward Zac. He said, “My boy, what are you doing here? You should have known better.”
Zac stepped past the other two men. The one that led him there, the one Zac thought of as a guard, lingered a moment before closing the door. Zac could tell the man did not like him. He had a feeling that something might happen very quickly. He would be ready. Zac scooted a second chair in front of Matthew.
“Is Liz with you?”
“I should have known that would be your first question. I should have told you that first,” started Matthew. “Yes. Liz made it out of Orlando with me. I wanted to keep going south, but the silly girl saw those blasted signs. She wanted to come here. She thought you would have brought the kids here. How are the girls?”
Zac fought an ache in his chest, “Gladys didn’t make it.” He recovered quickly and said, “They are giving baths to Holly and the baby.”
Matthew leaned in close, “Listen to me boy. Get your children and get out of here. That Gavin will not let anybody challenge him in any way. Don’t wait for me. Don’t wait for Liz. Save those kids. Otherwise, you’re going to go swimming with me.”
The former author pulled back the curtain with dramatic flair. Zac looked across the lanai toward the pool area. He could see a makeshift fence had been constructed and several decayed hands trying to claw their way out of the deep end of the pool.
“It’s a cage match to the death,” explained Matthew. “Weak-minded fools get to live a happy existence of scavenging and sharing their women with Gavin. Anyone with half a brain goes in The Pool. He makes a party out of it and I’m next on the guest list.”
Zac did not want to think about anyone being thrown into an empty pool. The waterless drop would be bad enough. He would not want to play Marco Polo with some zombies besides. Zac felt his stomach turn. He knew he had to take care of his baby boy and Holly, but he could not leave Liz. She meant more to him than his own life. He would not want to leave Judy in a place like this either.
“Where is she?” Zac demanded.
The hall door swung open. The guard had returned with two bigger men. He pointed at Zac and said, “That’s the one. Time to go swimming.”
As the first man came close, Zac struck out wildly and his fist connected with the man’s jaw. The big guy toppled in surprise. The other men that Zac now regarded as prisoners pressed themselves up against the wall. Zac jumped up on the closest bed and leaped onto the next one. The second thug grabbed for Zac, but Matthew smashed a lamp over his head. Zac moved for the door and managed to catch the original guard behind it. Zac slammed the door wide open and pinned the original guard. The man dropped to the floor, unconscious.
“Do you k
now where they took the kids?” Zac asked Matthew.
The older man nodded.
“Grab them and meet me outside,” Zac instructed.
Matthew said, “He keeps the women on the second floor. We’ll meet you at the MacArthur Causeway.”
The other two prisoners pushed past them, heading for the lobby. Zac and Matthew separated before any more guards came. The second floor did not show any signs of being a prison. Various women moved from the bright sun-filled rooms without a guard in sight. Zac found Judy being led by the same women that first introduced them to Gavin. He paused for a moment when he realized she had bathed. Her wet, glistening hair and milky skin caught his attention. He had not realized before how beautiful she was.
Shaking his head like he had been asleep, Zac said, “Liz is here. We have to find her and go.”
“I’m going to the mezzanine,” offered Judy. “Gavin wants to have dinner with me tonight.”
Zac could not believe it. He did not think Judy could be so weak-willed. Somehow, Gavin had already brainwashed her. He hoped Liz was not the same. Zac grabbed the other woman by the shoulders and pushed her against the wall.
“What’s your name,” he demanded.
“Ma...ma...Moira,” she stammered.
“Moira, I am looking for my girlfriend, Liz. She came in a few days ago. Long, dark hair. About this tall,” Zac gestured with his hand a few inches below his own curly hair line.
“Oh yes, I know Liz,” said Moira. “She and your friend Judy here are going to the welcome bed tonight. Gavin will take care of both of them for you. She’s in room 217.”
Zac’s heart raced. He thought he might have lost Liz forever, but now he knew she was only down the hall. He said, “Come on, Judy.”
Judy pulled back from Zac’s open hand. She said, “I think I’m going to stay here. Gavin says I need to rest. His words are so comforting.”
The thought of the guards most likely coming after him caused Zac to turn away from Judy. He did not have the luxury to stand around trying to convince her. Zac ran down the hall to room 217. He found Liz asleep on the king-size bed. In that instant, his whole world stopped. He focused on her light brown skin wrapped in a sheer white evening gown. Her hair spread out across the pillow and everything else fell away in a haze. The shouting of guards broke through his fantasy.
Instead of trying to wake her, Zac lifted Liz from the bed and carried to the hall. He could not take the chance that she would insist on staying like Judy did.
“What’s going on?” murmured Liz. She must have been deeply asleep, realized Zac.
He carried her to the stairwell before putting her on her own bare feet.
“We’re leaving. Matthew has Holly and the baby,” explained Zac.
“But I don’t want to leave,” started Liz.
Zac said, “I was afraid of that. Please forgive me.”
Without another word, Zac smashed Liz on the head and knocked her unconscious. He carried her down the stairs and across the lobby. He could hear guards yelling as he forced his way out into the street. Zac ran south on Ocean Drive as the sun started to dip behind the faded giants that used to house so many tourists.
Whatever Floats Your Boat
When Zac and Liz finally made it to MacArthur Causeway, he rememberd the sign he saw a few days ago warning him to avoid it. Seeing parts of the bridge collapsed into Biscayne Bay made him understand why. The next causeway had to be at least a mile away. They might not make it if any of Gavin’s men were searching for them. At least Liz stopped insisting on going back.
“I don’t know what I was thinking,” she said.
“It doesn’t matter now. I have you. Matthew should be around here somewhere,” said Zac.
As if on cue, Zac noticed some movement in the dark windows of an old Pier One store. He reached over his back for a weapon, expecting the undead to march out of the store in a moment. Panic instantly racked Zac’s mind. He left all of his weapons and supplies back at Gavin’s hotel. Then the broken glass door started to open. Zac and Liz stood in the middle of the street. The closest cover looked like a dilapidated Burger King or a three-story shopping mall.
Before they could run, Matthew revealed himself. Holly carried the baby, walking a few steps behind the old writer, as they left their hiding place.
“Hold your fire, it’s us,” exclaimed Matthew.
“I don’t have anything to hold,” said Zac.
“That is bothersome,” said Matthew. “Never mind that now. Remember when I told you about Fort Jefferson and the Dry Tortugas?”
Zac had a recollection of the older man’s plan to sail to the isolated national park. He decided an island surrounded by a brick wall would be the safest place to spend their days.
Matthew continued, “The marina is right down Alton Road. We can find a boat and sail right around the Keys.”
The noise of an approaching crowd interrupted Matthew’s explanation. In the growing darkness, Zac could not tell if the small group was alive or dead. The fact that they carried torches gave him the answer he needed. If they had come to take them back to the Sapphire, they would have to take his corpse. Zac prepared for a fight.
At the head of the group of seven people, Moira called to Zac, “We want to come with you.”
“What do you mean?” asked Zac. “We don’t even know where we’re going.”
“It doesn’t matter,” said Moira. “There’s something about you that made me see Gavin for who he truly is. We’ve got food and guns.”
Zac looked at the worried faces of the three women and four men. He did not see Judy.
“Alright,” said Zac. “We think the best plan is to go someplace with no roads. We’re going to take a sailboat to an unpopulated island. I know we won’t have many supplies, but we’ll only be about seventy miles from Key West, so we can make a few trips if we need to. We’ve survived this hell for five years, maybe we can figure out how to stop surviving and start living.”
Something’s Coming
Jefferson raced through the ancient cemetery. Looming monoliths, tributes to long forgotten patriarchs, cast deathly shadows between him and the swollen moon. Jefferson jumped over the occasional open grave. He never bothered to fill them in over the course of the past five years. He listened to the sound of his worn leather work boots thumping the ground. His heart mimicked the rapid pace of his boots. The only other noise came from the moans. Too many bodies lay, trapped in the ground, under heavy marble slabs and six feet of soggy dirt. These long dead bodies could not muster the strength to dig themselves free.
Jefferson assumed it was like this all over the world. He only had Mama Sati for guidance and she never told him otherwise. He assumed the dead rose from the ground everywhere. What he did not know was on the other side of the swamp, a now defunct factory had been dumping their chemical waste into the swamp for years. The waste saturated the ground and created an anomaly in this small Louisiana Gulf town. Of course, that company not only unleashed their toxic waste here, but they also unleashed a presumably safe product on the rest of the world.
Jefferson believed Mama Sati when she told him the dead ruled the earth. He did not know EZ-Thin pills caused it. He did not know Health-Pharm’s by-products and waste caused even the long dead to scratch and claw their way out of the ground.
Jefferson dashed into the decrepit plantation house. He found Mama Sati in her usual spot on the long sofa, close to the empty fireplace. Despite the cool evening, Jefferson had to wipe sweat from his brown, wrinkled forehead. He looked at Mama Sati, but she did not acknowledge him.
“They’s a commin’, Mama,” Jefferson said between deep breaths. Jefferson lost his birth mother years ago, when he was a boy. Mama Sati raised him in post-Katrina New Orleans. They only moved to the plantation after the world ended. He started drawing for Mama Sati long before that.
Jefferson scanned the pictures taped or stapled to the walls of this room. He drew what Mama Sati told him to draw. She got vi
sions and counted on him to make a proper account of them. Now, Jefferson looked for one that might show him what he saw outside. He saw one of a boy holding a baby at Disney World; a man with no face standing atop a steel tower; pyramids and a helicopter; a superhero in a ball of fire. The drawings covered most of the walls and many had come to pass over the twenty years that he drew for Mama Sati. Those recent ones, like the man on the tower, seemed to be make-believe. They had no towers around here, or pyramids. Still, in the last six months, Mama Sati had him drawing all sorts of outlandish things.
“You, listen ta me good,” said Mama Sati. Her strong voice surprised Jefferson sometimes. He did not expect that out of her frail looking body. With her dark, sagging skin, she did not look any healthier than the corpses shambling toward their home. “It’s time ta burn this here place,” she finished.
Jefferson knew the plan. She made him repeat it every day for the past two weeks. They saved one can of gas and a pack of matches for this very event. Jefferson watched her stand from the couch. When he was a boy, someone told him she already had eighty birthdays. Jefferson did not have the math skills to guess how old she had to be now. He went to the kitchen and dumped out the gas can. A pungent odor filled the room, but he did not wait to see the liquid seep across the floor and drip into the wide-grated air vent. Almost without looking, he struck a match and tossed it into the room. He could feel the heat of the sudden blaze on his back as he turned to go to the front porch.
Mama Sati stood by the rail. She stared out at the wide front lawn. Jefferson looked in the same direction. The courteous moon lit the field and Jefferson could see the horde that he discovered less than an hour earlier. Mama Sati had predicted they would come one day, which turned out to be today.