Land of the Dogs (Book 1)

by S. L. Rowland

  “Becky, get her out of here. Clean her up and feed her. I want to speak with her as soon as she is able. Maggie, get someone to help you and put Russel in holding. Then take Stan’s body out back for the pigs.” He walked over to Simon. “Come on, son. Let's get you cleaned up and tell me what happened.”

  “I need medical attention. Mayor, please,” Russel pleaded.

  The Mayor moved in, inches from Russel’s face. “You listen to me, Russel. Before this day is out, you will either be hanging from a tree or food for the wolves.”

  Becky led Claire out of the room. Her head hung low as she walked past Simon.

  The Mayor lifted Simon up by the arm. Simon could feel the Mayor's strength as he gripped him. He let the Mayor guide him to the bathroom where he wiped the splattered blood off of Simon's face and hands. Simon’s green shirt was flecked with blood, like a speckled Easter egg. “How did you find out about this?” he asked Simon.

  “I woke up to go to the bathroom. I heard people moving around inside the room when I walked past and on my way back, I heard Claire whimpering. It was a muffled whimper, because her mouth was gagged. I didn't know it was her at the time, but I knew something was wrong. I just had a bad feeling inside of me and I knew I had to see what was going on.” Simon paused for a minute as the Mayor continued to wipe off the blood. “And then when he opened the door, I could see in his eyes that something bad was happening. It was like he had been caught. When I kicked the door in, and I saw them naked, and I saw her tied to that chair…I still didn't know it was Claire. But I kind of lost it. I’ve never felt that way before. I hit Stan in the head and he died instantly. I didn’t know it would kill him. I just— I just swung, you know. And then I realized that it was my sister. That these two scumbags had tied my sister to a chair and did God knows what to her for however long…” Simon had tears slowly streaming down his face. “When I realized this, I hurt him bad. I don’t know what would have happened if you hadn’t shown up when you did.”

  The Mayor pulled Simon in and let him cry on his shoulder. Simon shook violently and let the chaos of the past two days leave his body. When he was done, Simon wiped away his tears and leaned against the white tile of the bathroom wall.

  “I’m sorry. I knew something was off about those two, but I could never put my finger on it. I wondered why they always wanted to sleep in the same room together when we had plenty of space. But they were helping to protect everyone, and I had no proof that they did anything wrong. Just an uneasy feeling I would get when we were all together. I'm sorry that this happened to your sister. I really am. We all thought she had run away. Stan and Russel were helping head security, I let them call the shots on the search for Claire, no wonder we found no trace of her. Thinking back on it now; what did she have to run away from? Your mother and brother were both here. And now they are gone, God knows where, on a fruitless search for your sister.” He put his hand on Simon's shoulder and looked him in the eye. “Whatever you need from me, just say the word. I know you're going to try and find your family, and I don't blame you, but I will help you in any way I can.”

  “I’ve never killed a person before. Do you think it will change me?” Simon was afraid of what it could do to him. Was what just happened murder or self-defense? If they deserved it, was it still wrong?

  “I would think it has to. It’s not an easy thing to do. In the world we live in now, though, sometimes it is a necessity. There is no law other than the ones we dictate ourselves; and out on the road, it’s hard to trust anyone.”

  In the hallways, the sun was just starting to spill in through the windows. Becky was cleaning up blood from Russel and Stan's room, scrubbing the carpet and washing the walls. Aside from her, the hall was empty. Russel must have been moved while they were in the bathroom.

  “Simon, go hang out in your room for a while. I need to go check on your sister. Once I talk to her, I’ll send her your way. It will be good for her to see you, but she’s been through a lot. We need to take it slow. I think you should probably stay here at least a few days before you head out.”

  Simon almost objected, but he wasn’t sure what to say to his sister, not yet anyways. The Mayor left and Simon walked back to his room, alone with his thoughts. Simon sat on the bed, reliving the last few minutes in his mind. He had never had a violent temper, not even when things were stacked against him. Simon had never even been in a fight. And yet, he had completely lost himself. People had a hard time hating on Simon. In school, he was quiet. Even when he hit a homerun at a game, he didn’t brag and he didn’t showboat. He took off running as fast as he could, like it was a base hit, even when he knew from the moment of contact it was going out of the park. The papers had taken to calling him “the quiet colossus.” It suited Simon just fine. But here Simon was, having killed a man and he might have killed another if not for the Mayor’s intervention. Bad man or not, the weight of Stan’s death sat heavy on his shoulders.

  It felt like hours before Claire showed up at Simon’s door. She just stood there for a moment, unable to believe that it was actually her brother sitting on the bed. When he saw her, Simon stood up. She ran and hugged him. They embraced each other, afraid that letting go might rip away the very fabric of time.

  “Where have you been?” she asked between sobs.

  Simon let go of Claire and moved towards the bed, motioning for her to do the same. She wore a button-up blue and red plaid shirt with a pair of faded jeans. Her blond hair hung just below her shoulders. Her cheeks were sunken in and bruised. Simon was sure the rest of her was as well.

  “I’ll tell you everything I know if you promise to tell me how all this happened,” he said. “Deal?”

  “Deal.” Simon held her hand as he told her what had happened to him.

  “The last thing I really remember was being at the lake house. We were having a diving contest; you, Dan, Dad and Mom were sitting on the shore. I dove off the end and when I came up, everything was different. No one was there anymore. I saw the smoke coming from town and walked this way. That was two days ago.” Simon looked to his sister for a reply. Her face was contorted in confusion.

  “That doesn’t make any sense, Simon. How do you expect me to believe that? We all thought you were dead. We thought you hit your head and drowned. You dove off and never came up. We called the police; they dragged the lake and couldn’t find a body. I thought, for a minute, that maybe you fooled us and dove in and swam underwater to where no one was looking and snuck out, playing one of your famous tricks. But you never came back. We searched the woods, the lake, everywhere and you were just gone. There is no way you just disappeared,” she said, her voice shaking. From anger or sadness, Simon wasn’t quite sure.

  “How is that so much harder to believe than that the dead come back to life?” he asked, defensively. “What do I have to gain from lying? I have no idea what the hell is going on. I woke up in a goddamn zombie movie, Claire. Do you have any idea what that is like? The first place I went when I made it back to town was home. And I saw Dad. How did that happen?” The mention of their father quenched the fire in both of them. A look of sadness fell over Claire’s face.

  “It’s so stupid,” she sighed. “He had a heart attack. Nothing even got to him, he did it to himself. All those long hours at work, stressful meetings. All so he could die.” She stood up and looked at Simon. “Where were you, Simon?”

  “I already told you. I have no idea. I woke up to this world, literally dove in to it. Sometimes I wonder if I’m still stuck in a bad dream. But when I pinch myself, I bleed, and I feel the pain. I wish I had answers for you, but I don’t. I’m going to find them, though. As soon as you are better, I’m leaving this place, and I hope you’ll come with me. I’m going to find Mom and Dan. And after that, I don’t know, but I’m going to find them.” He paused. “Tell me how this happened to you.”

  Claire sat back down on the bed. She ran her fingers through her hair, searching for the words. “I believe you, Simon. Maybe not r
eally, but I’m going to try to. I owe you that much.” She took a deep breath, then continued. “It was a while ago, maybe a few months, I’ve kind of lost track of the days since they took me. I was out in the greenhouse watering the plants. That was my job. I watered the plants every day and trimmed off the bad leaves and stems so everything could grow. It was very relaxing work, and I was good at it. I was in there alone early one morning when Stan and Russel came in. They asked me how everything was going and I immediately started to get a weird feeling about them. They were just staring at me. Not at my face though. At my body. I asked them to stop, but they wouldn’t. They just moved in closer. I told them they were scaring me and they said nothing. They kept coming closer and closer. I got scared and ran for the door. That’s when Stan grabbed me in a chokehold and put his hand over my mouth. I guess I passed out because the next thing I remember was waking up in their room. Russel was on top of me and my mouth was gagged. They brought me a little food every day. Enough to keep me alive. They kept me tied up when they were out of the room. As the weeks went on, I just tried to block everything out. Stan was the sadistic one. No matter what I did, he always wanted to see me cry. There were days I just prayed to die. Help seemed so far away. They said if I screamed, they wouldn’t kill me. They said there were worse things. And I believed them.” She started crying. “I never felt so alone in my life.”

  Simon wrapped his arm around Claire and pulled her close to him. For minutes, they just sat there as she cried in his arms. “It’s over now, Claire. I’m not going to let anything else happen to you. We can leave whenever you’re ready. We’ll get as far away from this place as you want. We’ll find Mom and Dan. Unless you would rather stay here.”

  “Are you fucking mental? I’m not letting you out of my sight again,” she said. “We’ll find them together.”

  They lay in bed for hours. Simon stroked her hair and held her in a way only a brother could. They didn’t talk, but enjoyed the warmth and comfort of finally having someone to lean on.

  “I need to go talk to the Mayor,” said Simon. “To see if he has any leads on where we should start looking. He said we could take anything we wanted with us. You need to rest for now, but maybe tomorrow we can start gathering things for the journey?”

  “Sure, there is a supply room in the main building” said Claire. “What kind of things do you think we’ll need? I can go ahead and make a list.”

  “Bullets for one. I found a shotgun on my walk here. I only have two shells, though. We should get as many as they can spare. Sleeping bags if they have them, basic survival tools. A tent would be nice, but not necessary. As much travel food as we can carry, that’s my biggest worry. And water. Or at least something to carry water in if we find it. And anything else you think might be of use.” Simon stood up from the bed. So did Claire. They hugged once again, thankful to have each other.

  Claire called for Simon as he was leaving. “Simon,” she started.

  “Yes?” he replied.

  “It seems like you’ve really grown up a lot. If what you say is true, and it’s only been two days for you, that makes less sense than anything else that has happened.”

  “Maybe I only ever needed a reason.” He turned the corner and went down the stairs.

  The Mayor’s office was empty when Simon arrived. Simon asked around and a lady said she had seen him walking around the perimeter with Maggie. When Simon went outside, it was a nice day, or as close to nice as things could seem in a gray wasteland. There was a slight breeze, and the sun shone down in a way that warmed the body, but not enough to cause sweat. He found them by the entrance he had first come through.

  “Mayor!” Simon shouted. “Can I talk with you for a minute?”

  The Mayor turned and said something to Maggie, who then left. “Sure thing, Simon. How is Claire doing?”

  “She’s been through a lot, but I think she’ll be okay. Obviously, this isn’t something she can just get over, but hopefully she can still move forward.”

  “From what I remember, she was always a resilient kid.” He paused for a few seconds, observing the barricade. “So, what brings you out here?”

  “We’re going to stay a few days and let Claire rest up, but then we’ll be leaving. I wanted to get your opinion on where we should start our search. And see if there was anything that I needed to know about once I’m outside of the gates.”

  “Of course, I’ll tell you everything I know. Let’s have a seat on this picnic table over here?” It was about fifty feet from the barricade, nestled under a luscious tree on a plot of green grass. The tree was a stark contrast to those on the other side of the wall, which looked deathly. Simon noticed a rope hanging from one of the branches. He wasn’t sure if it had been there when he first arrived.

  “How do you get the grass to grow in here when it is barely doing anything on the outside?” asked Simon.

  “It’s hard to say. Everything pretty much died right after the power went out, but it seems anything that is planted again will grow the way it did before. I have my own theories, but no real knowledge. But I’m sure that’s not what you want to talk about.”

  They took a seat at the picnic table across from one another. Simon brushed his fingers across the wood, feeling the grain. “You’re right. Where should we start our search?”

  “My money would be on one of the two closest settlements that I told you about yesterday. First, I would go down to Old Man River’s farm. There are only two dozen or so people there last I heard, and they are friendly for the most part. A little loopy if you ask me, though. They are all ‘Christ the Redeemers’ if you catch my drift.” Simon gave him a blank stare, so he continued. “They believe this whole thing was caused by God as a way to purge the Earth. They believe it is their job to spread the word and reclaim the Earth. You’ll want to make sure to announce yourself when you arrive. They are pretty nasty with a bow and don’t take kindly to people sneaking up on them. I guess some of them were bow hunters before and brought their skills and weapons to the whole group. They traded us all their guns early on and started manufacturing their own arrows. They are definitely resourceful, I’ll give them that. And damn near every one of them could shoot an apple off your head. If your mom and brother went that way, they’d be sure to tell you. They are good people in spite of it all.”

  “Sounds like it will be interesting to say the least. How far out is their farm?”

  “A day or two. I’ll give you a map before you leave and mark all of the locations I know about. There are a few out west that we’ve heard about, but never contacted. If the Farm doesn’t turn up any info, then the High School is your next best bet, but I would be wary of them.”

  “Why?” Simon asked. “What’s so bad about them?”

  “Well, first of all, they have about two hundred people last we checked. And they’ve formed more of a militaristic approach to everything. They have a commander and people below him. He was in the military before all this. We’ve had clashes in the past, but nothing in about a year. Everyone has a class and a job there, but it’s a lot more complex than that. If you don’t do your job, you get kicked out. Left to fend for yourself. It doesn’t matter if you have family or not. If you don’t pull your weight, you’re done. Even the elderly and children.”

  “Are you serious?” Simon couldn’t imagine the callousness of putting people out to die.

  “Dead serious. They attacked us about a year ago. They have a violent approach to everything. If they see a point of weakness and you have something they want, they will try to take it from you. If that’s where you end up going, be prepared to take something to trade with. Information won’t be free.” The Mayor stared solemnly at Simon.

  “What should I take?” asked Simon.

  “At this point, I’m not sure. They might need weapons. Last I heard, they had made an agreement with the Redeemers that they would protect them, in exchange for some of their food. The Redeemers accepted because they grow more food than the
y can use. And about once a week, the army fucks show up and haul away about fifty percent of what they grow.” The Mayor was looking out over the wall at the distant mountains.

  “From what you said, it doesn’t seem like the Redeemers, if that’s what we’re calling them now, need much protection,” said Simon.

  “I guess you can never have too much protection,” said the Mayor.

  “Do you think they are running out of bullets? The army guys, I mean,” asked Simon.

  “That’s the million-dollar question. I know we all used up a lot of ammo in that first year. We still have a pretty good supply. Our walls keep us safe so we are able to conserve as much as possible, but they have to outfit nearly two hundred people. And from what we’ve seen, everyone has a gun, maybe two. So at some point, unless they have found a way to make bullets, they will run out. And the Redeemers made a smart move a long time ago by deciding to move away from firearms. Only time will tell. It’s been a year of peace for the most part. But there is no telling what is out there. I mean really out there, in the rest of the country. I’m sure somewhere there are people holed up in army bases and firearm stores, who have bullets enough to shoot off a thousand rounds a day for two years. And I just pray they don’t come knocking.” The Mayor started to stand up.

  “Can I ask you one more thing?” said Simon. There was something that had been gnawing at Simon since he arrived at Town Hall.

  “Anything,” replied the Mayor.

  “If you are worried about all of these people out there and what they might do to you, why do you have the tire fire? I could see it for miles. It was one of the first things I saw from the lake house.”

  The Mayor stood up from the table. “It’s a choice I made. I believe that there are good people still out there. People like you. People who are desperately looking for a place to belong and feel safe. And we may not be the flashiest or the biggest, but we are well prepared and live a pretty decent life for the most part. If there are people out there that need help, I want them to be able to find us. And if there are people out there who want to cause us harm, I believe the fact that we are brazen enough to put a big ‘come mess with us sign’ for the world to see might give them some reserve. But that’s just my opinion. And besides, didn’t you ever watch The Simpsons?” He turned to leave. “If you need anything else, I’ll be in my office. Feel free to stop by if you have any questions.”