“We’d love to have you come with us,” he told her. That wasn’t a lie.
“Then it’s a deal.” She looked down at her hands, pausing for a moment. “Ed?”
“Yeah?”
“Thanks again, I mean it.”
“Don’t mention it.”
“I really owe you guys. You went out of your way to help me, a total stranger. You risked your lives.”
Ed felt his face flush. His modesty was chided by her graciousness. “Don’t fret about it, we’re square,” he assured her.
“You risked your boys' lives,” she said, staring into his eyes.
He didn't respond. It was true, after all.
“And the city,” she continued, “I’m on board. We’ll make there, or we’ll die trying. I mean that.”
Ed smiled. “You need some rest,” he told her, changing the subject. “There’s a whole bed back there with your name on it. Go rest up. The boys and I are going to go fetch some water. We’ll lock up the camper while we’re gone.”
A concerned look crossed over her face. “I think I should come with you.”
“You’ll be safer here. You’re not road-worthy just yet. It’s dangerous to take you outside while you’re still not fully recuperated. And I’m not sure I can carry you anymore. I’m not as young as I used to be.” He grinned with that last remark, pointing to the gray hair around his temples.
Trish smiled. Ed thought her fears seemed to be somewhat quelled. She still seemed a little anxious, but he couldn’t really blame her for that.
Ed and the boys carried their canteens with them, plus six other containers with lids they found in the RV. He remembered seeing a small stream about a quarter mile back, down in a gully within the woods. He hoped it was fresh enough to suffice for a watering hole.
Between the canteens and the containers Ed hoped they could squeeze two days out of the water they were collecting. The safety of the RV was comforting, and the more they stayed inside it the less they exposed themselves to peril.
It took twenty minutes to make it to the stream. They passed the normal collection of random, rotten corpses and deserted cars while they walked the highway. Once, off in the distance, they heard the tormented scream of a carrier, but it was very far away. Regardless, it reminded them to be quick about their work.
Within ten minutes of arriving at the watering hole they were fully filled and on their way back to the RV. They made the whole trip in a little more than an hour. Although the trip was uneventful, Ed felt more exposed than usual. The threat of danger was palpable, and he believed it might be due to the feeling of safety provided by the RV. He had to be careful; the RV was only a temporary respite from the horrors of the outbreak. The lull of temporary safety and comfort could be dangerous.
For better or worse, they were going to the city. Although it might be a pipe dream, the city was the only thing that could possibly provide long-term protection for his boys. And that was all that mattered to him.
The water lasted two days, just as Ed had hoped. Trish slept most of the days away, usually stirring around lunch and dinner, then going back to peaceful sleep. Her strength was returning, especially with all the food she was eating, and she showed no signs of fever since the night they’d slept in the woods.
They ended up staying in the RV for just short of two weeks. The weather began to warm, but the mild spring conditions kept the RV’s internal temperature at a very comfortable level. They cracked a couple windows when it got warm, creating a draft that ran through the vehicle, cooling it nicely.
Ed and the boys went back out for water every couple days, using the same stream each time. It was fast-flowing, and the water was clean. With the advent of Spring came rain. It rained off and on for several days throughout their stay. Aside from one tiny leak in the roof the RV remained water-tight, and the sound of the raindrops dancing on the roof was pleasantly hypnotic.
During the rains they placed multiple receptacles out to catch the rainwater, including all the empty cans from the food they’d been consuming. The rain came hard and fast, and they collected enough to keep them from going back to the stream for an extra day, which would no doubt be swollen with muddy water from the rain.
After four days of day-long resting, Trish began sleeping normally. She no longer felt the need to sleep all day. Her appetite had returned, and the four of them found themselves eating better than they had in years. Watching the boys eat an actual meal, even canned food served at room temperature, made Ed feel good. They deserved so much more than what they had.
Sleeping arrangement had emerged on their own. Trish slept in the bed, Ed in the plush chair, and the boys took the couch each night. Often the boys would fall asleep in the bed while Trish and Ed talked. He would then transport them, still sleeping, to the couch so Trish could sleep in the bed.
Their conversations centered around a multitude of topics. They discussed their lives on the road before they met each other. They talked about music and movies, neither of which had been made in years. They hypothesized about the origin of the virus and they compared notes on their observations of carrier behavior.
Ed didn’t talk about Sarah though, and Trish didn’t talk about Tim.
Often the boys would sit up with Ed and Trish before bed. They talked about their own lives before the outbreak. They spoke of school, their friends, and, on occasion, their mother. It hurt Ed deeply when they spoke of her, but they did it because they loved her and they missed her greatly. So did Ed. He was happy they remembered her fondly.
The boys would also spend time just talking only to Trish. They talked about anything and everything important to them. Trish listened intently, commenting where appropriate. To watch her with them was to believe the boys might very well be her own. Ed smiled when he observed this; it had been so long since they’d experienced the maternal qualities of a female.
On a particularly rainy day of their stay Ed and the boys found themselves washing their filthy clothes in the rain with a bar of soap from the RV's bathroom. They wrapped themselves in towels from the same bathroom then hung their clothes up inside to allow them to dry.
Trish helped them get their clothes wrung out and hung, then tended to the boys. She dried their hair and cleaned their faces. Then, using scissors and a comb she found in the bathroom, she worked the knots out of their hair and trimmed it. She offered the same service to Ed and he gladly took her up on it. After a quick rinse in the rain they all looked more presentable than they had in years. It was an immeasurable boost to their already worn spirits.
Trish began telling Zach and Jeremy stories before bed. Mostly she told them half-remembered fairy tales and fables from early in her childhood. Occasionally she'd concoct a story or two of her own, something incorporating a character the boys wanted to hear about. The boys were held in rapt attention while Trish told of dragons, knights, and maidens. They listened intently as she described werewolves and vampires ravaging the countryside. She stopped short of zombie stories. That stuck a little too close to reality.
Ed watched her as she interacted with the boys; she was a natural. It seemed so easy for her, as it had been for Sarah. The thought that they could lose Trish at any moment caused Ed serious anxiety. He wondered if he'd put the children in a position to lose another loved one. Then again, wasn't everything fleeting?
Almost two weeks after they happened upon the RV, Ed found himself sitting in the plush chair he’d grown to love, talking to Trish and watching the light outside the windows dissipate into inky darkness. She sat on the couch, relaxed and healthier than she'd been in years. The boys were asleep in her bed; the playing cards they had found had either been erected into small houses or scattered all over the floor of the bedroom.
Ed noticed she had put on some weight since they first found her. She herself had taken an opportunity to bathe in a rainstorm, and Ed thought she looked radiant. It wasn’t just her weight gain or cleaning up, it was her drive and determination returning as wel
l. She was getting back to her old self again, he could tell. The frightened and desperate creature he’d met was beginning to give way to a strong and defiant woman. It was time for all of them to move on.
“We need to leave soon,” he said, looking toward her in the fading light. “This place is great, but it's really only temporary.”
She nodded. “I know. We’re wearing out our welcome in this place.” She gestured with her hand, her voice taking on a grand tone. “The city awaits.”
Ed chuckled, then smiled. “We can take the rest of the canned food with us; I think we can carry most of it.”
“I agree,” she added. “I’ve developed an insatiable appetite for lukewarm green beans, so those have to come with. Of course, I'd kill for a Big Mac right now.”
Ed laughed out loud. She wasn’t exaggerating; she wolfed down green beans like they were jelly beans. And a Big Mac did sound good.
“I don’t want to tell the boys tonight,” he told her. “I’ll tell them tomorrow morning.”
“Do you think they’ll be disappointed?” she asked.
“A little, I’m sure. They like this little house on wheels. I think though they’ll be less disappointed since you’re coming with us.”
Trish smiled.
Ed continued. “They like you. They were concerned about you when you were sick. They need someone like you around. They’re better off for it.” He paused, wondering whether or not to say the next thing on his mind. With life so precious and fleeting, he decided it was best to say what he thought.
“I’m better off for it too.”
Trish smiled. “You know, Ed, I do think you’re one of the good guys.”
Ed held up a hand. “I’m just a guy.”
“And modest, too.”
They sat in the room, watching the last fragments of daylight succumb to the darkness of night. Ed felt his eyelids begin to get heavy. His thoughts were rambling the way they did just before he fell asleep.
“Ed?” Trish called out softly in the near darkness.
“Yeah,” he replied.
“Can you hold me?”
Ed returned to full consciousness, surprised by her request. He looked over at her as if to ask if she was serious.
“Please?” she asked.
“Sure.” He got up and sat down on the couch with her.
“Just for a while,” she told him. They lay down on the couch. Ed placed an arm around her and she snuggled into his body. It felt awkward to him at first; he hadn’t held a woman like that since Sarah. He supposed it felt the same way for Trish as well. However, despite the awkwardness, there was a sense of growing familiarity between the two of them. Before they knew it they were both asleep.
The following morning they awoke on the couch together. Ed sat up, feeling a little strange about sleeping the whole night with Trish. He looked down at her as she stirred, eventually opening her eyes.
She smiled at him. “Did we sleep the whole night through?” she asked.
“Apparently so. I’m going to go check on the boys.”
A quick check on the boys revealed they were still sound asleep. Both Ed and Trish used the RV’s lavatory. He had drained the gray-water twice while they stayed in the RV; that had been enough to allow them to continue using the indoor toilet. Before long they'd be back to urinating outside again, a thought he didn't relish.
Ed and Trish proceeded to pack the remaining canned foods into the the backpacks they brought with them. Trish had no backpack, so they used a pillowcase from the bed to hold the overflow. They would eat for a good long while on the canned food they were taking with them.
The boys awoke during the packing. Ed explained to them that they were leaving, and they took the news with no noticeable disappointment. They were excited that Trish was coming with them, just as Ed had predicted. He was sure that helped to offset some of the disappointment they might have felt leaving the RV behind.
After all their things were packed they were ready to leave the RV behind. Ed left the door unlocked and the key in the ignition. Should anyone else find the RV and deem it useful he wanted to ensure it actually was. They took a last look at the their home on wheels, then said their goodbyes. Ed thought it felt as though they were leaving an old friend behind; a friend they cared deeply for, but knew they would never see again.
With so much food in their packs they passed up the next two exits over the subsequent days. Each day they walked they saw no carrier activity. The screams could be heard occasionally, the bodies still lay in dark piles, but the deadwalkers never materialized.
It was Ed's opinion that the deadwalker population seemed to shrinking. Harsh winters, starvation, disease, and other factors were reducing their numbers. They were no doubt making more, he assumed, as they infected a whole new generation of survivors. They still needed that “safe haven” until the last of them died out. It might take years still, and Ed couldn't guarantee their luck would hold out in the meantime. Their money was currently on St. Louis being that safe haven.
Trish traveled well; she kept up with Ed and the boys and she was able to walk for long distances without tiring to greatly. Her infection was gone, and she seemed to be functioning near full capacity. She didn’t talk much while they walked; she was mostly focused on keeping an eye out for threats. Ed wasn’t surprised she’d been able to stay alive for so long on her own. She had a natural knack for survival.
Ed sometimes found himself, typically at the end of a long day, waxing nostalgic for the safety and comfort of the RV. He shook those thoughts from his mind though as quickly as he could. That kind of thinking would get them nowhere. It was living in the past, and they had only their future ahead of them. He knew he had to continue focusing on that if they planned to survive.
Their rations held out for a while, but they eventually began to dry up. They expected this, of course, and knew they were going to have to find a suitable exit before long and resupply. They walked for another day, sleeping near the edge of the road that night, taking turns with guard duty, and trying to forget what it had been like to sleep in a real bed for two weeks.
The following morning they got up and got moving at the break of dawn. Within a couple hours an exit appeared on the horizon. Their supplies hadn’t been completely exhausted yet, so Ed wasn’t sure he wanted to stop right then. If necessary they could most likely make it to the next exit before they ran out of food. However, once he saw the discount warehouse he decided stopping was imperative. The likelihood of again finding so much in one place, just there for the taking, was slim. It would be foolish to pass up such an opportunity. Trish agreed.
Another twenty minutes of walking brought them to the exit; another ten minutes brought them to the front door of the warehouse. They huddled together, forming their game plan; stay together at all times, look for non-perishable foodstuffs, replace worn-out equipment and clothing, and keep an eye out for threats.
Ed and the boys suited up, covering their eyes with their goggles and their mouths with the face masks. Trish reused her impromptu face mask Ed had made her back at the farmhouse, tying it over her mouth. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing. Maybe they could find more masks inside.
They decided if they ran into any trouble then they’d run for the doors, shooting their way out if necessary. Not much of an escape plan, but their options were limited. It was dangerous; nothing could sugar-coat that reality.
They entered the store, guns drawn. Inside it was reasonably well-lit near the front of the store, but became progressively darker near the back. There were skylights, however, that provided enough light for them to see by. The shadows, however, made Ed nervous. He knew what could be lurking in them; he'd seen it too many times before.
The group proceeded with care. They combed the canned food aisles, taking what they could carry, then they found the clothing aisles. The clothes that remained were dusty, but otherwise fine. They changed their shirts, each person in the group finding their size as quickl
y as they could.
Pants proved to be more difficult to replace; only Trish and Zach found jeans that fit. She discarded the pants she’d stolen from her rapists then put on the new jeans. They fit nicely and felt much more comfortable. They also didn't have the stigma attached to them. She kicked the old pants far away and into the shadows; she was ready to leave all those experiences behind. Zach slipped quickly into his new pants, tearing off the paper tags.
They then headed toward the back of the store to look for goggles, face masks, or other miscellaneous supplies. All they found there were defunct freezers filled with rotten, desiccated food. They turned around, then headed back toward the front of the store to see if they could find the hardware aisle. They whispered to each other, trying to keep their voices down, but it was very hard to achieve due to the echos in the warehouse. Sound traveled well and far.
Suddenly, from behind the large shelves that made up the aisles, a man stepped forward. Behind him were two women, both holding guns. Ed pointed his pistol directly at the man without even thinking. Jeremy and Zach also trained their guns on the group standing opposite them.
“Stop right there!” the man yelled. “Don’t anybody move a fucking muscle!”
Both groups froze where they were, guns pointed at each other, locked in a standoff.
CHAPTER 14
“Put the guns down now!” Dave yelled. He stood slightly in front of Brenda and Tammy, baseball bat raised. He wished now he had a damn gun.
Ed didn't reply. He kept the pistol pointed at Dave while he ushered both boys behind him.
“I said don’t fucking move!” Dave yelled again.
“Calm the fuck down,” Ed warned.
“Shut up,” Brenda said, raising the pistol.
Dave’s thoughts raced. He felt transported back in time, back to the place where he’d cost his wife and friend their lives. He couldn’t make that mistake again. He wouldn’t make that mistake again. He took two steps back until he was standing between both the girls. Brenda kept the pistol trained on Ed. She found wasn't able to keep it pointed directly at the children.
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