It was the first Sleeper I saw wearing a blue smock.
She walked toward us, her head tilted, clutching a candy bar wrapper in her hand.
I watched her.
Within seconds, she was at my window. Her hands clawed, and her lips pressed against the window as if she were trying to eat it. I wanted to put her out of her misery, but I also didn’t want to attract more Sleepers.
Her eyes, void of true color, stared at me, she watched me. She stopped clawing and biting and watched me.
“This is kinda creeping me out,” I said. “Where are Mera and Beck?”
Mike replied, “They’ve only been in there half an hour.”
“Christ … oh, sorry, Padre. Half an hour,” I grumbled. It was like a train wreck, watching the Sleeper woman in the bargain store blue smock. She was quiet as she watched me. Did she think she knew me? There was a moment there that I felt sorry for her. She actually looked like she was going to speak, and then she shocked the hell out of me by opening my driver’s door.
“What the hell!” I almost wasn’t fast enough. I didn’t expect it. I had never seen a Sleeper open a door. She struggled with me over that door, shrieking a noise that sounded like a dying cat.
“Two more are coming!” Sonny said. “Should we shoot them?”
“We can’t,” I said. “We’ll attract more attention. Lock the doors.”
“This is ridiculous,” Mike sneered. “I’ll handle it.”
“Stay in the truck.”
“They won’t bite me,” Mike argued.
“I’m not chancing it, stay in the truck!”
I fought to close my door, wondering where she got her strength, while I argued with the padre to stay put. Just as I was about to lose the battle with the padre and the door, the Sleeper woman sailed to the left when the butt of a rifle smashed her in the side of the head.
Beck hit her again, waved an arm to Mera in the doorway then walked around the vehicle.
Beck had no problem with the older male Sleeper. He tossed him out of the way as if he weighed nothing. However, the younger one… man, Beck gave it all he had. He slugged the guy in the face and the man kept coming.
The size difference between Beck and this Sleeper was enormous, with Beck having the advantage, but the Sleeper wouldn’t go down. Finally, after struggling with him, Beck gave up and shot him.
Mera got in, and then Beck tossed two large bags in the back, squeezing them in tightly. He walked around and got up front with me.
“Everyone alright?” he asked.
“What the hell took so long?”
“Don’t ask.”
I started the van to pull out of the lot. “What the hell did she get?”
Beck only glanced at me. “Don’t ask.”
I couldn’t help it. I looked in the mirror. “Mera, what the hell did you get?”
Beck said, “I told you not to ask.”
“Things,” Mera replied. “I have nothing. Okay, I needed almost everything. Jeez. And I’m sorry, I love that store.”
“And you picked now to go shopping?” I asked sarcastically.
She pouted. “I needed stuff, and I can’t help it. Every time I go in that store I get more than I need.”
I looked at Beck.
“I told you not to ask,” he said.
I tapped my hands on the steering wheel and looked at everyone in the vehicle. Sonny stared out the window, Danny smirked, and Michael looked as if he enjoyed the fact that Mera annoyed me.
“Mera, dear …” I said as passively as possible, “I fully understand your need for things. However, two nuclear weapons detonated not far away, we’re facing being exposed to radiation, and did you happen to notice when you came out of the store that we were being attacked?”
“I’m sorry,” Mera said. “You said we were safe, and I didn’t think there would be a problem.”
I gave up. I dropped my head to the steering wheel then took a deep breath and concentrated on driving. The highway was clear. Sonny told us about a campsite that wasn’t much further. He was sure it would be safe enough to hang tight and wait out a few days.
Shucking my annoyance over the shopping spree, I enjoyed hearing Mera gripe about Phoenix smelling like Spam, and then I focused on getting us to the camp.
I hoped that Sonny was right. We all needed to stop, settle in, and come up with a plan.
17. MERA STEVENS
My instincts were not solid evidence, yet with each passing moment, I felt there was something different about the Sleepers. They were …changing. Since the beginning, they had gone through phases, so was it inconceivable that they’d begin another stage?
I didn’t share my thoughts, not yet. I would talk with Beck later when he and I had some time.
It was hot in the van, suffocating. Understandably, Alex wouldn’t turn on the air conditioning, but even with the windows open it was unbearable. Not a single window opened all the way. They cracked open. It was not enough.
I tried to think of other things apart from the heat.
My mind went to the Doctrines, or Logan’s Logs as they were originally called when Bill wrote them. As with the Bible, how much had historians and translators changed them? I wished that I’d read them during our two months in the church.
Michael was the only one who tried, and he never finished, though he said he’d gotten pretty far into them. I asked him about the part where he was called the new Savior, but he told me to let it go.
I couldn’t see for one moment Bill Logan, the atheist, writing that Michael was the Son of God. It had to have been interpreted incorrectly. When I asked Alex about it, he said he only got as far as Michael’s appearance at the New Jerusalem. When he asked Randy about it, Randy informed him that the Doctrines called him the Second Coming.
If the campground panned out as Sonny expected it would, we’d have plenty of time to talk.
Jessie’s hair was soaked with sweat, and I was glad when Alex announced he was pulling over.
My poor, smiling daughter didn’t complain. I wish I had her level of tolerance.
There was a gas station off the exchange before we veered east on the highway. Several stores were on the strip of road, but it was deserted. The windows in the station were broken, and it clearly looked picked through.
Where were the Sleepers? We had not yet hit a town that didn’t have Sleepers. Then again, this wasn’t a town. It was a small shopping strip in the middle of Nebraska.
The van doors opened, and the air rushed in. It felt like air conditioning although I was certain the temperature outside wasn’t any lower than eighty degrees.
“The Settle Ridge campsite isn’t much further,” Sonny said as he stepped out. “Ten miles, maybe. Most of it is traveling through the woods, so it’ll be cooler.”
“Everyone stay close to the van,” Alex ordered. “Beck and I just wanna fill up our cans. Sonny, you got this?”
Sonny raised his rifle in answer.
I watched Beck and Alex take the gas canisters, the hose and the little pump to remove fuel from the reservoir. It was something they did well by this point.
Shouldering his weapon, Sonny reached into the van, lifted a jug of water, poured some in the container and handed it to Danny. “Cool the baby down.”
“That’s a good idea, thanks,” Danny said.
We stood by the van’s open door, Michael keeping a vigilant watch.
Sonny turned to Jessie. “Hey,” he said. “Put your head back like this.” He tilted his head all the way back.
Jessie imitated him, and when she did, he slowly poured water over her head. She giggled, trying to catch it, dancing around from the chill.
“Feels good, huh?” he asked her.
“That is nice, thank you,” I told him. After a few minutes, I saw Alex and Beck return, then I noticed an untouched soda machine by the side of the dilapidated gas station. “Oh look.” I pointed.
Danny laughed.
“What’s so funny?” I a
sked.
“They had one at the ARC, and Alex was excited about it too. You gonna ask if anyone has change?”
“No, should be easy to break in. It may be warm, but man, won’t that taste good?” I smiled. Danny had Phoenix, Jessie was occupied with Sonny, what would it hurt if I went the fifty feet to the machine?
Beck spotted me and called out, “Mera, where you going?”
“Gonna get a Pepsi. I’ll be right over there.”
“Too far,” Beck said. “Give me a second to finish and I’ll walk with you.”
“Beck,” I whined and laughed at the same time. “It’s right there. Jeez.”
“I’ll go with her,” Michael cut in. “She’ll be safe from any Sleepers with me.”
“Padre, you’re taking this ‘Son of God’ thing a little serious, aren’t you,” Alex said. “You keep saying that.”
“I take offense when you make fun like that,” Michael countered. “I am certain the Sleepers avoid me like poison.”
Another laugh from Alex. “I’ll believe it when I see it.”
I waited for Michael to join me, and I told him to ignore Alex. He’d obviously forgotten that Michael had been overtaken by the Sleepers and had survived his encounter.
The soda machine was a bit farther than I thought, but the van was still in our sights. It looked like Alex and Beck were packing everyone back in.
Michael and I pressed all the buttons, hoping for some magical release of the beverages, but had no such luck.
Michael reached into his back pocket and pulled out a screw driver. “I’ll pry, you pull.”
“Sounds good.” It dawned on me that, in all of our journeys, pulling that soda machine was probably one of the only physically useful things I had done.
“Almost there,” Michael said.
Jessie called out, “Ma.”
“One second, sweetie,” I said, remaining focused on the soda machine.
As soon as Michael made some leeway with that soda machine door, there was a series of calls for us.
“Mom!”
“Mera! Michael!”
Before Michael or I could register why they were calling our names, we found heard the sound. It started as a rumble nearby, sounding as what I could only describe as a stampede, like horses on a racetrack.
Michael turned his head to look, and the screwdriver dropped from his hand. There had to be at least fifty Sleepers running full speed our way.
They were close. Too close.
“Get in the van!” I shouted to the others.
I couldn’t determine whether they did or not. The wall of Sleepers blocked my view as they came straight for Michael and me.
He grabbed my arm, I think to try to make it to the store, but there was no time. Before we even made a move, they were on us.
Michael slammed me back first into the soda machine, tucked my arms to my chest then pressed his body firmly against mine, shielding me the best he could.
They attacked us.
I felt fingers reaching for me as Michael held me tightly. There was so much pressure, I swore I could feel each Sleeper as it slammed into him trying to get to me.
I could hardly breathe because my face was plastered to his chest. His heartbeat was loud and fast.
Michael was as scared as I was. Nevertheless, he held on, protecting me.
“Don’t move. Don’t speak,” he whispered. “Still. Stay still.”
He spoke rapidly, then his voice dropped even more, and I couldn’t understand what he was saying.
The moans and cries of the Sleepers were loud. They pushed and pushed.
Oh, God. Make it stop! I screamed inside.
Eventually, Michael’s strength would give out. He was only human.
Or was he?
I don’t know how long we were under attack. It seemed like forever when I knew it wasn’t long at all.
In the distance, muffled within the noise of the attack, I heard Beck’s voice shouting, “Over here!”
Beep. Beep. Beep. The van’s horn.
“Hey! Come on! Get me!” Beck shouted again. He was close to us, closer than the horn. He fired a gun. “Come on! You don’t want them. They’re Happy Meals. I’m an all-you-can-eat buffet. Come on!”
The pressure started to lift bit by bit.
I felt the battering lessen until finally it felt like hundreds of pounds were lifted from my chest.
I still couldn’t see anything, but I could hear that the stampede was moving away from us.
The van door slammed, I heard the van pull off with a screech of its wheels, and the sounds of running feet faded into the distance.
Michael moved away and looked at me. “You all right?”
I peered to my right to see the van turning with the Sleepers senselessly running in pursuit.
After a deep exhale, I grabbed onto Michael and embraced him. My fingers clutched him, and I didn’t want to let go. “You saved my life. Thank you.”
He pulled back. “We should try to go inside until they come back for us. The Sleepers will be back at full speed.”
I nodded my agreement. As soon as we moved a foot from the soda machine, the door popped open, and cans rolled to the ground.
Not able to keep it in after the emotional turmoil, I coughed out a laugh. I crouched down, my fingers reaching for a can when I heard the van’s motor. The van sped toward us from the opposite direction. Alex must have led the Sleepers away and lost them. I didn’t see them.
Before the van screeched to a complete stop, the passenger’s side door flew open, and Beck jumped out.
He didn’t say a word, just took a single long stride toward me. He grabbed hold of me, almost crushing me in what felt like a grateful embrace. This surprised me – Beck never showed emotion.
“Oh my God, I thought I lost you. I thought I lost you. You scared the hell out of me,” he said. “You okay? You hurt?” he stepped back.
“I’m fine.”
He laid his hand on my cheek in one of the most natural touches I had ever felt.
“Good.”
“Thanks to Michael,” I told him.
“Yeah,” Beck smiled. “Thanks to Michael.” Then pushing me away, he did another thing that was totally out of character for him. Like an excited parent, out of breath, Beck placed both hands on Michael’s cheeks, yanked him closer, and smacked him hard with a kiss to the forehead. “Yes, excellent job.”
Alex cleared his throat. “I’m sure I didn’t leave those Sleepers that far behind. Can we wrap up the post-traumatic reunion and head out?”
Beck opened the back for Michael and me. “Get in.”
Michael stepped in first. I started to get in, then I paused.
“Mera, let’s go!” Alex shouted.
I couldn’t help myself. For all the trouble they’d caused, I just had to. I spun, bent down, grabbed a couple of cans of soda, and then I got into the van.
18. MERA STEVENS
I felt like an idiot.
Somehow, when Sonny had said campsite, I envisioned tents, not an operating mini community for trailers and campers.
He was right, though, it was secluded, two miles up a winding road to the top of a hill. It wasn’t as popular as some because the lake wasn’t as easily accessible.
There were four Sleepers there when we arrived. Sonny recognized them as people who hadn’t left the camp on that fateful weekend when everything went to hell.
Alex took it upon himself to take care of them. After that, he decided the site was secured. Sonny’s trailer was perched on a good lot, not far from the edge of the hill with a breathtaking view of everything down below. It would be perfect for night watch.
On the way from the gas station after the attack, my children held tight to me. Danny pressed against my side, Jessie had her head on my lap, and I held Phoenix in my arms.
I was told it was a difficult, emotional moment in that van when the kids saw the Sleepers crowd and surround us.
Beck said that Danny
was freaking out, screaming, “Do something! Someone do something!”
And Jessie had cried, “Ma-ma! Ma-ma!”
When the van pulled off, Beck said they grew frantic, which made him even more emotional. No matter what he said or did, he could not calm them until they saw us standing by the soda machine. Then both of my children had screamed for joy. Beck said everyone in the van did.
Beck.
Yet another aspect of this situation that made me feel like a complete idiot.
What a selfish, self-centered person I had been.
Here was a man who’d broken the rules for us in the first half hour after he met us at the refugee center, who was our guardian and protector, who joined a journey with a group of strangers to find a teenage girl all the way across the country.
The same man who was prepared to give his life so that my daughter and I did not die alone on that roof.
Beck was a complex, quiet man who barely spoke and rarely smiled. For over two months, I had been with this man. He lost everything – his wife, his two children, one of which was a newborn. For all that he did for us, for all that he did for me …. I never asked the names of his children.
I never bothered to find out who Beck really was. He didn’t volunteer information like Alex, Bill, Randy and Michael did.
Why had I never taken a moment to ask him a question that would show I cared?
I did care.
All of that hit me when Jessie and I were in the bathroom of Sonny’s trailer.
The trailer was a pleasant one, and I knew I’d get a decent night’s sleep.
She and I shared the shower, giggling like girls, just as we used to do when she was a child. I washed her hair, she washed mine. It was extremely easy with her intellect and demeanor to forget she was nineteen years old. When I looked at her, I saw a child. She was learning again.
We were combing our hair after we dressed when she said Beck’s name. Not ‘Ba’, as she usually did. This time she added the hard ‘K’ to it. I smiled and thought about how Beck had worked with her all the time.
At the church, he was always trying to get her to speak. I paused and took in all that he had done for us when a knock at the door startled me.
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