by Brown, TW
“You people look like you have been busy,” Kevin said as he let his binoculars drop to his chest.
“Amazing how much work a person can get done when they don’t have Facebook to distract them. Now we ‘friend’ each other with a handshake. I think we may be one of the few towns in the country with a larger population now than before the zombies showed up. I think the last census…” Tiffany paused and then smiled, “…probably the last one ever…anyway, it had the town at around two thousand people. We don’t keep the number official, but I think we have almost double that many living here now. It has reached a point where we are actually about to begin construction on some new housing.”
Kevin whistled in appreciation. From what he could see, this place had everything he could hope for as he tried to begin a new life with Aleah. Looking around, he saw mixture of awe and relief on the faces of the others.
“Is this home?” Heather asked as she coasted up beside him on her bicycle. He glanced over and saw tears forming in her eyes.
“Yeah,” Kevin said after reaching over and patting the young woman on the arm. “I think we found a place to stay.”
17
Welcome Home
I sat at the table with the tattered notebook in front of me. It was not a long read, so it had taken just a few hours to finish. I considered reading it again just because I was not entirely certain what to make of it.
Everybody in the house had been thrilled to see me. But there was an undercurrent of anxiety and expectation as each greeted me. The last to shake my hand was the Marine. His name was Paul Gordon.
Paul was right around six feet tall and a solid, muscular two hundred pounds. He kept his head shaved clean (with a knife he wore on his belt that was so sharp it would make a samurai jealous) and had a dark, well-trimmed mustache that was showing flecks of gray. His eyes were a dark brown, and had the intensity of a laser when they focused on you that was only made more intense by the pebbled scarring that covered the right side of his face. There was a nasty scar on that side of his neck as well that made you wonder how a person could survive such an injury, because that scar looked so horrible. Oh…and he had a prosthetic right arm from just below the elbow.
Paul had been part of a select group of soldiers that had been wounded in battle over in the Middle East. He and several others were making stops around the country to share their stories and visit high schools around the country to say that, despite what they had suffered, they did it for a cause they believed in: the fight for freedom.
When the whole zombie thing happened, Paul had been shuttled to a FEMA center. That location was overwhelmed in the first week, and Paul found himself on the run with a handful of his fellow wounded warriors. They immediately sought out a unit and stepped in to offer assistance.
The rest of his story was pretty much like everybody else’s. Some good…some bad. He ended up in Washington State as part of a detachment that was sent to try and hold the small town of Walla Walla. When that fell apart, he ended up on his own for a while. Eventually he stumbled across a military installation. The place had been abandoned, but there was a well-stocked bunker. It had a radio, and that is where he listened for weeks.
He heard and monitored Winters’ group as well as several others, until he eventually lost the use of his generator. After a long and lonely winter, he set out with the hopes that he might join up with what he had assumed were military units trying to help others.
Of course what he found when he finally reached La Grande was something far different than he expected. Apparently he slipped out during all the chaos created when Jon and Jake had tainted the water with their infected blood.
Paul kept low and watched our group come in and take over the compound. At some point, he decided to reach out to the people who had taken over Winters’ compound—that would have been us. That had been while I was in that damned hospital bed trying to recover, so I missed out on meeting Paul and apparently a great deal more in that brief span.
The next bit is where things get dicey. The journal that Jake was keeping continued to talk about his son and how he was always looking for him every time that he went out. Somewhere along the line, he was told that his son was in La Grande. Also, he’d heard all about Winters. That must have meant that he and Jon had been playing them all along. I felt a little better in thinking that Jon had done what he did in order to prevent a greater evil.
Unfortunately, the journal entries stopped shortly after we came down and took control of Winters’ compound. From there, I had to rely on what this absolute stranger was telling me. According to him, Jake gathered information that his son might be held captive inside the Island City compound.
If that was true, it could explain how he’d flipped a switch so suddenly. He’d even used my own argument against me in that last little confrontation that we had, the one I’d originally used when I thought Carol had been taken prisoner and that they had cut off her fingers.
Apparently, Paul had been with Jake and the others on that failed attack against Island City. He’d taken part because they had been told that most of the people inside the Island City compound were being held against their will by some secret council. Hmm…where had I heard that before?
“Some of us still believed in who and what we are,” Paul said with pride. “If folks were being kept prisoner, no Marine with any self-respect could allow that to continue. Jake did what he did because he thought he was serving the greater good…and he thought that his son might be here. He would have walked through a sea of those damn zombies in his skivvies to try and save his family.”
“But why not try to talk with the people first?” I asked as I pushed the tattered journal across the table, pinching the bridge of my nose with my thumb and forefinger and squeezing my eyes shut in hopes that the headache building behind them would vanish.
“I asked Jake to reconsider.” For the first time, I saw a hint of sadness replace the stern military expression that seemed permanently etched on the man’s face. “But he insisted that if the people…” he paused and looked around as if suddenly realizing where he was and then continued, “…the people here were willing to maim and torture an elderly woman, then his son would face much worse.”
“And what made him think that his son was even being kept here?” Dr. Zahn asked from where she had taken up leaning in the entry to this dining room. That was the big question as far as I was concerned.
Once again, Paul’s expression changed. He actually looked uncomfortable. I was not sure I wanted the answer if it was bothering the man this much.
“We captured a two man patrol that had been observing our compound. Jake spotted them and a few of us went out to nab them. Only, when we subdued them, Jake changed his mind about bringing them back for questioning. We took them to an empty house that had a basement, and Jake went to work. The rest of us stayed out, not wanting any part of it. When Jake came up, he was…different. But that is also when he made up his mind about attacking this place.”
I sat back in my chair and let it all sink in. Jake had used torture, and in the end, he had either been deliberately lied to, or he misheard the information. It was entirely possible that he’d gotten ahold of one of the men from the group that Gable and his mom had been with and gotten the man to identify his son. Only, he had gone after the wrong target. Instead of the camp just up the hill a ways, he’d turned his anger on Island City.
I was not that much less confused than I had been before all of this, but at least the mud was a few shades clearer. I now had a possible reason for Jake’s sudden switch in behavior and seemingly rash and certainly ill-advised attack. This was a clear case of how real life never quite works out like it does in the stories. Somewhere along the way, miscommunication reared up and it cost people their lives.
Suddenly, I was exhausted. It felt like everything from the past several weeks…months…all of it had come slamming down on me at once. I wanted to crawl into bed and sleep for a month.
“William?” Dr. Zahn stepped towards me, but I held my hands out to keep her back.
“I just want to get some sleep.” I stepped past her and climbed the stairs.
Glancing back on my way up, I saw everybody sitting around the living room, hands folded or in their lap. They had obviously heard it all. For some, like Sunshine, Melissa and maybe even Cheryl, this shed new light on things that I know I had wrestled with and had to assume that the others did as well—at least to some degree.
My entire body hurt. They’d taped up my ribs at the medical center, and I had not been able to take a full breath ever since. Having suffered through my share of rib injuries from the days as a high school football lineman, this was probably (as strange as it may seem) the most welcome injury that I had received.
Damn you, Jake, I thought as I undressed and climbed into bed. Why all the secrets? If any of us would have known that he had a son, and that his son might be a prisoner, didn’t he think we would all step up to help? Or was that part of the problem? He was not sure of the situation, so he left us out of it in order to keep us safe? Had he tried to give me the Old Yeller treatment? Acting all mean, doing everything he could think of to push those he cared about away to shield us from potential danger.
A million thoughts swirled through my head as I drifted into an uneasy sleep full of horrid nightmares involving kids being blown to bits; sometimes it was the faces of those children from the camp we’d hit. However, slipped in there every so often, I would toe the body at my feet and find Thalia staring up at me with dead eyes. But every time, they ended the same. Emily would walk up and reach out her hand, the tiny body would stir, and then it would take her hand and walk away, leaving me standing there alone atop a pile of corpses.
***
I do not believe that I will ever get used to waking up in the middle of the night. My eyes opened to such complete blackness that I could not actually be certain that I’d opened them. Feeling around, I was relieved to discover Katrina’s body close by; her soft breathing slow and steady.
I very carefully extricated myself from her and the covers and got dressed. I was aware enough of my own body to know that I was done sleeping. It did not matter that I felt almost as tired now as I had before. I was awake for the duration.
I made my way down the stairs and paused when I reached the landing. Just enough light was drifting through the living room window for me to make out a human-shaped shadow sitting on the sofa.
“It’s me, Billy,” I heard Darla whisper. Her voice was thick, and it took me a few seconds to actually remember the terrible injury that she had suffered.
“When did you get back?” I asked. I felt a flash of guilt for not looking in on her or seeing if she was close to done with her checkup after we’d arrived and been taken to the medical center.
“A few hours ago,” she answered as she got up and walked to the front door. I took that as meaning she wanted to talk, so I followed.
“I am having a problem with what we did,” Darla finally said after a long silence. “I mean, I get that we had a mission and that we were trying to secure our borders, but was that really the answer?”
“I have been asking myself the same thing.”
We both plopped down on the top step and took in the cool night air. It might be rolling deep into spring, but clear nights out here in Eastern Oregon were some chilly mothers. The sky was clear, but there was no moon.
“You think we did the right thing?” Darla finally asked.
“I honestly don’t know.” I let my answer hang for a few seconds before I changed the tack of the conversation. “I am of the mind that maybe we are just not supposed to be gathering in such large groups. As soon as a bunch of people come together, it just feels like they try to go right back to the old ways of doing things. People who assume the control shift right into acting almost like freaking stereotypes of what we think of when we think about government leaders. All the secrets and dirty dealing…it’s crazy.”
“So it’s not just me?” Darla asked with an uncomfortable laugh.
“I used to love this show called 24,” I said with a wistful laugh. “It was so over the top and crazy. Everybody had a secret and nobody was really who they seemed. As soon as you thought you knew who the bad guy was, somebody worse would pop up. And through it all, Jack Bauer was this badass who walked the line between hero and villain. I used to think there was no way that shit could happen with real people…but lately, I think all the folks in charge must have watched the same show and think that is how leaders are supposed to act.” I rubbed my hands against the cold and felt a thought start to break free in my head. I was sure now more than ever that this was the way to go.
“I won’t be here tomorrow,” Darla finally broke the long and thought-filled silence. I jerked my head to face her. “I just wanted you to know and hear it from me so that you did not think I was one of the shady people.”
“Why…where…?” I had questions, but apparently my mouth was not up to the task of forming them properly.
“A few of the people that we rescued, they are heading out. None of them found any of their loved ones. Can you believe it?” She let loose with a bitter laugh. “Anyways, I was talking with a few of them at the medical center and they just don’t feel that this is where they want to stay. We don’t have any place specific in mind in case that is one of the questions you want to throw at me. I just wanted you to do me a favor and give my best to Dr. Zahn. I can’t explain it, but I really like her.”
I nodded and she stood up. “Wait…now…you’re leaving now?” I blurted.
Darla gave me a hug and then stepped back. “Like I said, I just don’t have a good feeling about this place. I think it would be best if we slipped out at night.”
I watched her as she made her way across the street. A moment later, she was joined by a handful of shadows. I heard a little bit of a commotion, and then what looked like a trio of the shadows peeled away from the group and came my way.
“Darla said that you were up…that’s good,” Gable whispered as he reached the bottom step and looked up at me. His mom was on one side, Paul was on the other.
“You’re going, too?” I asked, although it was a pretty stupid question.
“I think it is best,” Gable said with a nod. “But I wanted to thank you for everything that you did. And knowing that you knew my dad really meant a lot. I am glad that we don’t have to wonder.”
That makes one of us, I thought.
“Well…” I stepped down and shook the guy’s hand and then turned to Sylvia and reached out to do the same. I ended up in a big hug with the woman. When she let go, I stepped back and gave a polite nod of the head. “I wish you guys the best.”
“You too, Billy,” Gable said as he and his mom melted back into the darkness and rejoined their little group.
“I wish that I could have been more help,” Paul said apologetically as he shook my hand. “I guess nobody can know what is really going on inside a man’s head…much less a man like Jake. I do know that he thought the world of you. I’d heard all about you from him when you were in that hospital bed. He said that if there was one person who could survive this thing…it was you.”
“Thanks,” I muttered.
I really did not know what to say. I guess I would have to wonder for the rest of my life as to what really happened with Jake; what had caused him to make a choice that led not only to his death, but the death of all those who had followed him. If he’d just gone on some damn commando raid on his own, maybe I could reconcile that and find some peace.
I watched as they disappeared into the black. I understood their choice, and I sincerely wished them all the very best. I took my seat back on the top step and watched as the sun slowly began to cast its glow over the scene. Birds chirped and flitted past as they began their day, bringing me from my reverie.
Sounds of a
ctivity within the house brought my attention and I rose to go inside. It was time that I make my decision known to everybody.
***
“That is the smartest thing that I have heard come out of your mouth, William,” Dr. Zahn finally spoke to break the agonizing silence.
“I’m in,” Grady chirped.
I was stunned. This was the exact opposite of the reaction that I had expected. Not that I was upset; truth be told, I was elated. I had absolutely expected Katrina to join me, and maybe even Cheryl. She was sort of a loner now that her husband was gone. Sunshine had clung to Dr. Zahn and Melissa had her baby and Thalia. Cheryl was sort of the forgotten soldier in all of this. Heck, I doubted that she and I had shared more than ten words since we had come to Island City.
I had been a little surprised that Melissa agreed to come along. I truly believed that she would have made the choice to stay behind with her baby. Again, there was a tinge of guilt, shame, and embarrassment. I guess I secretly hoped that she would not join us. However, the upside was that it meant Thalia would be coming along. For whatever reason, I had a strong affinity for that little girl.
“The thing is,” I leaned forward and placed both my hands firmly on the table, “I just don’t feel like these people will let us go like that. They will want to talk and chip away at our resolve. Hell, they might even lock us up for all we know.”
“You seemed to have a good relationship with Carol,” Sunshine offered. “Maybe if you spoke to her alone.”
“Nope,” I answered with a shake of my head. “That is part of the problem here. We don’t really know any of these people. She has already proved adept at keeping secrets from us. We have been spied on at every turn. I think it would be in our best interest to just leave. If we push hard, we might make it to the old place and get set up with enough time to be able to set defenses in place that will allow us to hold off any sort of attack. Honestly, I doubt that they would send that big of a force after us if they sent one at all.”