by TW Brown
“If I do, I am certain that we will cross paths at some point,” Catie replied. “Look, I did not come here for this. Elliot told me that you won’t let them give you the cocktail. He said that you would only let me put you down.”
“Then he wasted your time. He didn’t tell you everything. I said that you could execute me. I told him that if you had the guts to spike me while you looked me in the eye, then that was the only way I would allow it.”
“Why?” Catie asked, not hiding even the slightest bit of how incredulous she was over this demand. “What purpose does it serve?”
“If you do it, then you will have my blood on your hands forever. If you don’t then you confirm to me that you are the weak coward I believe you to be.”
Catie dropped her gaze. There was a moment of silence. She felt the hand of the guard on her arm.
“C’mon, ma’am,” he whispered. “You don’t need to put up with this from the likes of him.” She heard Clarence start to laugh; bitter, nasty, and full of hate.
“No.” Catie jerked her arm away. Her head popped back up and now it was her turn to fix Clarence with her own glare. “You gambled and lost, hot shot.” She turned to the guard. Her eyes scanned him until she found what she was looking for. She pointed to the fisherman’s spike at the young man’s belt. “Give me that.”
“Umm—” the young man began, but Catie cut him off.
“I take it you were not given instructions as to what to do if I actually agreed to end this person?”
“No, ma’am.”
“Well that ain’t my problem.” Catie craned her neck past the guard standing before her. “You down there, get your ass up here.”
The second guard at the end of the hallway looked at her with absolute confusion. The one beside her started to say something, but Catie spun on him.
“You two can either do what I say and see to my security, or you might just be next. I think you are about to discover that doubting or underestimating me is a tragic, if not fatal, mistake.”
12
Unlikely Pair
I moved quietly along the wall. I could hear the normal sounds of the night as well as the occasional conversations as I hugged the shadows. Having been the curious sort when I was younger, I had learned a few places where one could slip out of the compound if they wanted to do so without being caught.
Getting out was not much of a problem and it was not long before I was jogging through the woods. The adrenaline kept me going for those first hours, but once it seeped away, I realized that I had been on the go for quite a while in the past several days. My body needed rest.
A little after sunrise I spied a fire watch tower and veered that direction. I had to shimmy up one of the support legs until I reached what remained of the ladder. That was fairly common for these old towers. Most travelers who passed through these parts sort of viewed the towers as an oasis; a nice place to be able to rest and relax. Many were kept stocked by surrounding communities since we all sort of relied on them and a person never knew what condition they might be in when they arrived. This one had some dried meats, travel bread, and water.
I ate light and then laid down on one of the cots. When I awoke, imagine my surprise when I saw the sleep blurred silhouette of somebody else in the tower with me!
“How could you do this!” a familiar voice snapped.
I scrubbed at my eyes and felt confused more than anything to find Kayla Brockhouse sitting there warming her hands at a fire that I had forgone to minimize the chance of giving myself away. She was in full field gear with her crossbow on her lap like she thought I might try to attack her or something.
“Go back home, Kayla,” I snarled as I stood up and grabbed my stuff that was miraculously still hanging on the hooks where I’d left it all before going to sleep.
“Not without you,” she insisted.
I decided that I would just ignore her. If she did anything stupid like try to stop me physically, I would take her down. Paula had taught me an excellent sleeper hold that would put her away in just a few seconds. She would wake with a nasty headache and I would be long gone before she could return to Platypus Creek and give me up.
“How can you be this selfish?” Kayla moved in front of me as I started for the door. “I don’t get it. Everybody thinks that you are just so special. One of the first children of the settlement and the daughter of the founder, Steve Hobart, big deal. And just because you wanted to grow up to be like Billy and Paula instead of have a family, that makes you the town pet.”
I was hearing this tirade and could not believe that Kayla actually sounded jealous…of me! She was the pretty one with long hair and big boobs with hips and curves that made boys turn around and walk backwards until they ran into something. I had the body more like that of a boy my age than a girl. If anybody had something to be jealous about, it was me in regards to her. However, right now, I simply did not have the time.
“I am leaving, Kayla. You are going to get out of my way or I will move you by force.” My eyes flicked to the crossbow in her hands, but I barely gave it a second thought. She wouldn’t shoot me, of that much I was certain. Mostly.
“Then why did you come back in the first place?”
“You wouldn’t understand.”
“Because I am just stupid Kayla. Never quite good enough for you.”
I heard the tears and did not need to turn around to know that she was crying. I imagine that I could have just walked out the door and been done with this scene, but I am not entirely heartless.
“It’s not like that, Kayla.” I turned. Sure enough, she had tears streaming down her cheeks. “I am going after Jackson. I have no idea how I am going to do this, or if I am going to end up dead. But I can’t just leave him behind.”
There was a moment of silence, and I thought that maybe Kayla understood. I thought that she would stand down. Heck, she might even return to Platypus Creek and not give me away.
I was only partially correct.
“I am coming with you.” She slung her crossbow over her shoulder and crossed her arms in some signal of finality on the subject. I was going to make it a point in my life to never make that gesture ever again.
“I don’t think that is a good idea,” I said slowly. Think? No, I was certain. “You should just go back home. This is going to be an ugly situation and I would hate it if I got you hurt…or worse.”
“You think I can’t handle myself. You and everybody else it seems. I am not just some dumb girl, ya know!”
I thought it over. I could do something drastic like take her out and then be on my way, or…an idea formed, and I actually felt just a little bit naughty. It was devious and cruel, but it might be the best choice.
“Okay.”
“You don’t understand—” Kayla stared at me with the next words apparently stuck in her throat. “Really?”
Her face bloomed like a flower, becoming annoyingly pretty as she smiled and her eyes actually seemed to sparkle. Yuck! Then she leaped at me and hugged me.
“Don’t make me change my mind,” I grumbled, extracting myself from her embrace.
“You won’t regret this, I promise,” she squealed as we headed out the door.”
Too late, I thought. But you certainly will before I’m through.
We headed out into the wilderness together. I set a pretty hard pace and felt that it would not take long for the complaints to begin. As the sun slid across the sky and eventually ended up directly overhead, I had to actually back my pace down a bit because it was wearing me out.
Kayla soldiered on, every time I shot a look her direction, she would flash me a smile or a thumbs-up, even if she did have sweat dripping into her eyes. Obviously she was made of sturdier stuff than I gave her credit.
When it came time to stop under a cluster of trees and nibble on a bit of our travel rations and sip some tepid water, she was quiet and did not even bitch when I ended the break and resumed the journey. Honestly, I wanted to take a wh
ile longer, but I did not want to give her the satisfaction of seeing that I was feeling the effects of being on the move these past couple of days with minimal rest.
We reached the now familiar bus that acted as a major landmark, and I saw Kayla’s pace slow. I was about to say something when she suddenly sped up, grabbed my hand and led me to the side of the road. We had just climbed over the old guardrail when I finally heard the clopping of horses that she obviously had already detected.
I slid into the scrub brush, willing the gravel that was skittering down with us to come to a merciful and silent stop. I heard voices now and they did not sound happy…or familiar. I glanced at Kayla and saw that she was at least as scared as me. Her jaw was clenched so tight that you could almost hear her teeth breaking.
“…don’t care what you thought you saw, Zeke. Ain’t nobody on the road. Damn sure ain’t no two kids,” a man said with a lazy slur and drawl.
I was still looking at Kayla and saw her mouth the word “kids” with her nose wrinkled and eyebrows furrowed. I could think of worse insults.
“Yeah?” I had to guess that was the unseen Zeke now talking. “Well one of them kids had titties out to here!”
If the kids comment had struck Kayla wrong, that last one had absolutely pissed her off. She reached over her shoulder to pull her crossbow around. I grabbed her arm and gave a curt shake of my head.
“Looked like one of ‘em was a young boy, though. That oughtta suit you fine, Merle,” Zeke hooted.
I had not even realized that I’d grabbed for my own crossbow until Kayla’s hand clutched my wrist. Now it was her turn to shake her head at me.
The voices grew faint and the topic of conversation turned to some woman named Marybeth who could apparently “suck the chrome off a trailer hitch” for whatever good that might do. I noticed Kayla blush, so I had to imagine they were hinting at something dirty.
Once they were gone and then we waited a while longer, I finally crept up the little embankment and glanced in the direction the men had been heading. I caught sight of them just as they rounded a distant bend in the road.
We stood up and dusted ourselves off and resumed our trip. At last we came across a small pack of zombies. I almost welcomed the break in what had been a long and uneventful day. Yes, I knew it was foolish to invite trouble, but a few zombies would allow me to get out some of my frustration. Also, I could see how well Kayla could handle herself.
The head count came to seven. No problem. I could take that many by myself. I darted in and stuck the first one in the head and then jumped back. Kayla was just moving in on her first target and I was admittedly impressed with the way she came in and stuck the thing in the eye without hesitation or appearing even a little bit awkward.
In no time, she had gone through the small group all on her own. I had stepped back and simply watched. To me, that was actually another plus in her book. She had focused on the task that needed to be done instead of worrying about where I might be at the moment.
“You didn’t think it might be easier if we both took them down?” she asked with just that slightest hint of annoyance creeping into her voice that reminded me of the old Kayla.
“You want an honest answer?”
“I don’t think so.” Kayla wiped off her blade and gave it a quick inspection for any nicks before putting it away. “You wanted to make sure that I would not need you to babysit me. I get it.”
And then she walked off, continuing on in the direction we’d been going. I stood there like an idiot for a moment before I realized that she was not going to stop or wait for me. She was irked. I guess she had a good reason. I was being a bit of a bitch and could admit as much. It was time to accept her help graciously and treat her like she was my partner on this little mission.
***
We had spotted the camp while we were still in the foothills. It was massive and only seemed larger now that I’d been back to Platypus Creek and seen how tiny we were in comparison. Kayla, to her credit, had not even suggested that perhaps we abandon this foolish quest that was certainly doomed to fail. Instead, she had simply shrugged her shoulders and followed me down to the creek that would bring us to the walls of Island City.
We had entered through a grate that allowed the creek to flow through. When we came out of the creek bed, we got a bit of a scare as a lone zombie had just apparently been sitting up against a tree. It had stringy hair and was so old that it looked like just another nearly rotten corpse that was slowly decaying away into oblivion. Also, the grass was tall enough that we basically walked right past the thing unaware until it reached out and grabbed Kayla by the leg. She let loose with a shriek that echoed in my ears like an alarm bell. It was hard for me to be mad at her since it had scared the hell out of me as well. Plus, I noticed just the slightest dark stain in the crotch of her pants, so I figured that she had suffered enough. She also managed to impress me once more by spiking that pathetic thing right on the top of its head.
When we reached the first street, that was when Kayla got her first look at one of the massive piles of corpses. Also, now that I was looking again, I was very cognizant that there were no children. Suzi had made a point of asking me about that when we’d first met.
“They destroyed this place,” Kayla said, her voice muffled from the rag she held over her nose and mouth.
It had been a while, and the flies were thick on the mounds of corpses. Some had been burnt, but even those had not been tended well, and so there were plenty of bodies that did not get devoured by the flames and were providing a disgusting layer of putrefying flesh under the charred skeletal remains. Various rodents and skittering creatures were burrowing amidst the carnage, some trotting away boldly with one prize or another.
One rat in particular actually stopped and faced me. It was holding a huge gray piece of something that I did not want to even try and identify in its mouth. Apparently it had not been around people enough to fear them. Considering its size, I imagined it to be the rat bully of the neighborhood. That might explain why it dropped its prize and made a sort of ratty growl at me before reaching back down, picking up its offal reward and trotting away with its long tail dragging in the dust.
“We need to be on our guard,” I whispered.
“Why? It looks like they took down most if not all the zombies. Although why they would bother is beyond me.”
“Unless they plan on inhabiting the city,” I offered.
Kayla seemed to consider it. “If that was the case, why not move in yet?”
“You know…” I started as I climbed up onto the porch of one of the homes and then used a tree to reach the overhang so that I could see the area better. “I think you have a good point. Why hasn’t Suzi moved her people in? They are living in tents on the plains when they could be sleeping under roofs and on actual beds.”
“Maybe they keep losing their scouts and they are scared,” a voice said from some neat hedges that made a natural fence between this house and the one next door.
“Cricket?” I asked.
I saw Kayla bring her crossbow up to her shoulder and turn in the direction of the voice. Good for her, but I recognized the old man’s rasp in an instant.
“Girly? What in tarnation are you doing here?”
Sure enough, Cricket emerged, but he was not alone. Four more people came out; each of them was dressed in camo gear including hats that had nets over the faces. As an added effect, some had branches and such jutting from their clothes. Each had a scoped crossbow in hand. Kayla might get off one shot, but she would not likely survive to see if the bolt even struck her intended target.
“It’s okay, Kayla,” I called down. “Lower your weapon.”
“Them first.”
“She’s a spunky one,” a young woman said with a laugh that was not teasing or mean. If anything, she actually sounded impressed.
“Weapons down, kids,” Cricket said to his companions. “These ain’t from that army out there.”
T
here was not the slightest argument or hesitation. All four crossbows dropped almost as one. A couple of the new arrivals even went so far as to remove their Panama hats so that we could see their faces. I was only a little surprised to discover that both were women. They didn’t look much older than Kayla or me.
“Well they ain’t locals,” one of the girls said, the same one who had commented on Kayla’s spunk from the sound of her voice.
“No, Nat, these here gals is from up the hill,” Cricket said.
Nat was a stocky girl with curly brown hair. She had brown eyes that were bright and crinkled around the edges from her seemingly perpetual smile. She had a crooked nose that looked more cute than anything else and had a generous sprinkle of freckles for added measure. She could give Kayla a run for her money in the cleavage department for sure. That much was apparent even with all the heavy clothing. It was further accentuated by an unfairly skinny waist and equally curvy hips.
The other girl who had removed her hat had dark brown skin and thick, full lips. Her hair was worn in several braids that had been coiled and tied into a knot that would impress Medusa as it looked like she had a nest of snakes on top of her head.
“What brings you back here, Girly?” Cricket asked as the rest of his little band sauntered over to the porch of the house I’d been using to scout the area.
I was not quite ready to trust this man. It wasn’t that I thought he might be one of the bad guys so to speak, but I was still just a bit leery.
“We came down to see if that army had moved on yet,” I lied. I saw Kayla shoot me a quizzical look, but she quickly wiped all expression from her face and pretended to search for something in her pack.
“I don’t see that as likely,” Cricket said. He climbed up on the porch and took a seat, patting the spot beside him as an indication that I should join him.
“Been a lot of strange things since I saw you last. You ain’t been the only ones skulking around Island City. Been a group of real suspicious types the past few days coming and poking around. They only come into the place when it is dark.”