by Daniel Smith
“Can you drag him out of the house while I grab James and Marion,” Manny paused to see Dan nod agreeing.
Dan looked from the two bodies he had finished dragging over to one side of the yard where he found one man with a bashed in skull near the trashcans. Seeing a growing pile of weapons and jewelry sitting next to him as he worked on the one Manny referred to as a salesman. Dan looked up and watched James and Marion glance over at him work before James maneuvered the horses and trailer up the driveway towards the rear gate. Watching Marion step down from the trailer opening the gate waiting for James to get the horses and trailer threw before closing it behind them. Manny exited the trailer walking over to stop at the truck looking into it. Dan finished and was caring the bundle of jewelry and other items as he met Manny coming from the truck with a similar bundle.
“Truck is useless. We managed to siphon some gas out and I found some ammunition and road flares and more jewelry,” he said conversationally as they entered the house.
Marion was inside clearing out some stuff in the kitchen trying to make it usable. As they entered, James was out in the backyard taking care of the horses.
“If you two can get that area cleaned up we can have dinner soon, this used to be such a beautiful house,” Marion said.
As she started getting a pot ready with water adding some cut vegetables into it before turning her attention to the rabbit.
“Oh and can one of you start a fire in the fireplace so I can cook dinner, “She added.
“ I'll get it, “Dan said as he moved towards the fireplace.
“Thanks Mike,” she stopped catching herself. “Thanks Dan,” she stated.
“No problem,” Dan said continuing his work as if he had not heard as he made a fire.
Marion put a stew on next to the fireplace in a large pot and James had come in from attending the horses.
Well it will be great with all of us to stand watch tonight we can get a few extra hours of sleep,” James was saying as Dan walked past.
“What happened,” Marion blurted out pointing at the tear in his pants. Dan shrugged.
“I’ll fix them later,” he simply stated.
“Give them to me now and I will fix them,” Marion said with an authoritarian tone entering her voice. Dan started to say.
“I can fix them later,” But James cut him off.
“Trust me I have learned after twenty years of marriage to her just to it now,” he said quickly.
Dan looked to him them to Manny who nodded his head agreeing with James.
“All right,” he said slowly.
With dinner served, his pants mended, and the rest of the group sleeping Dan stood watch during the dark hours of the night. The night silent hearing only the noises of horses in the field and the fire crackling. Giving him time to think about how Marion had mended his pants and he was full from eating so much. Marion had made him eat more then he wanted to but she kept telling him he was too thin. Manny and James had been no help they just kept snickering at him. For the first time in a longtime, he felt at ease. The knot of tension that usually sat in his stomach was gone. His mind not racing he would wake James in twenty minutes and could sleep the rest of the night and he was looking forward to it.
It took almost two days to get to Vicksburg with the way the weather was the rain coming down like a wall of water slowing them. When they got there, they found the main roadway into town blocked by several police cars and people in police uniforms and civilian clothes. In front of a plastic table with people sitting in a couple of chairs stood a line of people James pulled on the leather reins bringing the massive horses and trailer to a stop.
“Wait here I will go and talk to them,” Manny said smiling.
Dan watched as Manny took his place in line and waited as the guards questioned several different people sending them away with whatever they had come with. Dan looked around behind them seeing an empty road he turned to watch. The person standing in front of Manny appearing more as a bundle of rags then a person stood talking to the guards. He placed several plastic bottles on the table when a woman in civilian clothes started picking them up examining them. The man seemed nervous and kept looking to a pile of supplies placed on the table next to his items. Dan felt the knot of tension start building again as the man started getting agitated at what the woman was saying. Before his eyes, he watched as the bundle of rags of a man grab at the stack of supplies pulling most of it into his arms as he turned to sprint off.
Manny stepped away to one side as one of the uniformed police officer pulled his service revolver shooting at the running man. The running man’s arms shot out in front of him sending what items he had grab flying out in front of him as the bullet struck his back slamming him to the ground. Dan’s hand shot to the brown hardwood checker grips of the forty-five while James and Marion sat where they were not moving. Manny calmly waited as three people went to pull the now still bundle of rags to the side of the road. One taking a small ax from his belt to sink it into the side of the man’s head before joining the others recovering the supplies he had taken. Before Manny calmly stepped up to the table and started talking to the people.
“They have a flu or emphysema epidemic going on,” Manny said returning to the group of people on the trailer. James and Marion looked alarmed Dan looked puzzled.
“They want to limit the number of people in the town right now. But they want you to talk to the farmers for your services and the doctor wants to see our supplies,” Manny said calmly. James and Marion nodded.
“If we do not agree to what they want,” Dan said motioning towards the ditch where the bundle of rags now rested. Manny smiled.
“First I have not set a price for what we are offering. Second we are not peddling fake medicine. And I am only offering half of what we have right now,” Manny said. Turning walking to the table after pulling one bag of medical supplies they were carrying for the woman to examine.
Dan stood the light jacket tied about his waist as he scanned the area. The field James was plowing half done as he wiped the sweat from his fore head from behind the horses. Manny stood in another field watching over Marion doing the same. He had time to reflect on the deal Manny had struck for the medical supplies. They had food and safe rooms for the time they were here plus food and ammunition. Dan was unsure of the gold and silver that exchanged hands. He accepted Manny said it would be useful. In addition, they had credit at the Pemberton square mall now used as a hotel and trading post. He had also heard the movie theater was still in use. He was keeping an eye on James plowing the fields not the locals. They were friendly even after the first meeting. They kept their distance from them from fear of the flu virus or because they were strangers. While he did his best to stay, awake for the past week he had only three of the undead that approached the field to deal with. They had been no real issue to deal with them. He started feeling uneasy again after a farmer approached him after he had removed some jewelry and a lighter from a zombie moving for James wanting what he had taken. He replayed the conversation over in his mind.
“You need to give me what you took it is my land and I am entitled to it,” the man had demanded. Dan had looked at him blankly responding coolly in turn.
“You want what they have, you kill them. I kill them I keep it.” Before the farmer started arguing James had spoken up.
“He provides security for me and our deal is he keeps what he wants. If you want to renegotiate our deal and provide security let me know.”
The farmer backing down still made Dan wished they would finish and move on. It would be another two weeks before they finished plowing the different fields for all the farmers. He had managed to watch a movie in the mall it was an action movie he had seen before but the experience had made him feel unreal while he was watching it. He talked with a few teens his age finding he felt uneasy they only interested in the zombies he fought and places he been on the road. He liked talking to someone his own age even feeling uneasy. Manny had b
een spending time with James and Marion lately. He liked them but he was feeling a little uncomfortable with the attention Marion was giving him.
During this time, a representative arrived from Natchez negotiating with James to use the horses and plows. They had started down the sixty-one highway heading south and was still northwest of Fayette and the farm but had been traveling most of the day having gone about twenty-five miles when they stopped. Manny and Dan had just finished pulling their bikes and trailers from the bigger trailer when James approached them.
“You two all right doing this,” he started nervously steeling a glance towards Marion.
“No problem, you don’t need us in Natchez to help and we can check on this new town for you,” Manny said as he put the kickstand down on his bike.
“I know but how will we know if you are safe,” James asked.
“Simple” Manny said pulling a torn green shirt from the trailer.
Walking over to a tree slightly off the road near a green sign on metal legs. A slightly different shade of green paint covering the towns name with white block letters painted of top of it spelling Hope to tie it to the tree. Manny spoke as he returned.
“If everything is safe that rag will be gone if we do not meet you on the road we went back to the farm,” he said confidently as a light rain started to fall.
They had started down the two-lane asphalt side road off the sixty-one the wind-felt cold on their faces as it blew through the tall thickly packed pine trees. They kept scanning the trees threw the rain on either side of the road occasionally turning one of their heads to look behind them. The dark black clouds of the late afternoon sky looked menacing as lighting tore across the dark clouds as they rode on. They slowed their bikes to read a green Highway sign on rusting metal supports on the side of the road rising out of the windswept tall green grass.
“Now entering the Town of Hope, Population six hundred and fifty three,” the sign read.
They could clearly make out a small rectangle of a darker shade of green paint covering the original town name on the sign and the new town name added in bold white letters. Picking up their pace of their peddling in the rain they made good time to a gentle bend in the road lined by large swaying trees. They stopped to look down a sloping asphalt road that led to a large gray painted curved steel beamed framed bridge. With massive round, looking bolts holding it together making it look like something made from a large erector set. The bridge sat over a small tributary river that flowed slowly west towards the Mississippi river, the thickly packed pine trees started to thin as the ground sloped gently towards the river.
From where they sat on the bike seats one leg resting the wet roadway. A makeshift guard gate sitting in front of the bridge entrance made from two gray metal shipping containers using their doors as a double gate for the bridge. Manny putting the black kickstand down on his bike getting off. Dan started to do the same but a motion of Manny's hand stopped him before handing him the Ruger rifle before detaching his bike trailer.
“Cover me,” he said with a calm smile as he climbed back on to his bike to start down the sloping road to the bridge.
Dan raised the rifle to his shoulder sighting down the scope he watched two black clad people walk from behind the makeshift gate. Clad in black police riot gear. Consisting of a black tanker style Kevlar helmet with a lifting full-face wrap around clear plastic shield. Black padded vest with small hard plastic rectangular plates in three columns going up and down the vest in rows with hard plastic shoulder and forearm plates. Worn over a black short sleeve shirt with black tactical gloves. Going down to black military style cargo pants with hard plastic groin plate to merge into plastic thigh, knee and shin plates to be completed with black combat boots. At their sides were leather sheaths holding a machete. One of them was holding a large curved rectangular clear plastic shield with SDF in black letters over a thin white background in the center of the shield on one arm. From his vantage point up the road, he could also make out two more of the bridge guards in the same riot gear lying prone on top of the shipping containers. Behind a barrier of tan sandbags. A smile crossed his lips as he saw threw the scope of the rifle one of them watching him through a rifle scope. He lowered his gaze watching as a large figure on the right of the gate held up a hand for Manny to stop.
Dan watched and waited as Manny and the large man talked, after a few minutes Manny gestured to Dan. This bringing a smile to his face as the ball of tension left his stomach.
“All clear,” he thought as he shouldered the rifle to pull a short elastic strap with hooks on it off his bike attaching one end of it to the trailer Manny had left.
The other end to his trailer allowing him to tow the trailer as he mounted his bike to start slowly pedaling for the open gate on the bridge. He approached the bridge with almost no notice from the black clad figures before he stopped the bike, getting off near the large man who was still talking to Manny. The large man turned to face the newcomer quickly looking in surprise at Dan before he spoke.
“Hi I am John, good to see you,” he said extending a hand. Dan looked up at the big man before he replied quietly.
“Hi John, I’m Dan,” extending his own hand to shake. John remove the black Kevlar helmet with the clear plastic face shield from his head. Allowing the hair underneath free the hair mostly gray with some touches of brown still in it, even though he looked like he was in his late forties.
“You two are the first people we have seen in a while,” John said as he looked up the road the way he just came down.
“No more of you,” John asked. Dan shrugged noncommittally resisting an urge to look at Manny. For his part just unhooked his trailer from Dan’s by the strap pulling it free.
“They are having a shift change in about thirty minutes. We can come inside and get something warm to drink before they take us into town,” Manny said in his calm tone as he started pulling the trailer towards the gate.
The slight whine of Dan’s bike tires was just barely audible between the rain and the clapping of the horse’s hooves as Dan used his left hand to hold onto the trailer near the front. He alternated his look between Manny and the large man in riot gear holding the reins of the horses and the stretch of tree lined road before him. He could just make out the large blades of a wind turbines above the tree line to his left threw rain before catching pieces of conversation between Manny and John.
“You are the first new refugees in about a year,” John was saying to Manny.
“That’s good right,” Manny prompted him politely. John turned his head slightly.
“No the last batch was pure trouble,” he said as he shook the reins.
His statement caused Dan quickly to look into the back of the trailer at Manny’s bike sat with the guards their only interest seemed staying dry.
“The town was in decline when the plague struck,” he heard John say. “Started out a small-town, but during the housing boom it managed to tripled in size. Taking part in the green energy movement boasting of wind, solar, and hydroelectrical power producing capabilities. Offsetting the need to be dependent to the electrical grid like most cities,” John continued as if he was a real estate agent showing a potential customer around. But then shook his large head the wrap around visor protecting his face from the rain.
“But the good times ended, the housing bubble burst as the economy fell into recession. Add in rising unemployment and home foreclosures, the town almost became a ghost town as people move away. That saved the towns as the plague spread. Most people forgot about the small-town halfway between Natchez to the south and Vicksburg to the north. They only thought about them and their large bridges to cross over the Mississippi river. The small two lane bridge crossing the Mississippi river was not even on the GPS system. Going unnoticed by many of the people as they tried to find a safe place from the plague.” John finished.
“Well the town seems well organized you lived here.” Manny ventured the question. John turned his head and sm
iled at Manny.
“To answer your questions no, I was a police officer in Jackson found this place with my family when we fled.” Manny looked at John puzzled at this.
“Jackson fell to the dead. There are people still their but no government,” John elaborated.
“But the town success is largely because of two people. Our Mayor she was a city engineer before coming here. She has kept the lights on and water running. And Commander Hudson he has organized our defenses and police forces,” John finished as they cleared the tree line to see a chain-link fence making a corridor separating the street from the houses. Manny was silent as he studied the set up.
“You keep the used areas fenced off,” Manny half asked half stated. John nodded his head.
“We clear out the homes and then fence them off as we need them.”
Dan noticed all the houses they passed needed to have the long grass cut in their yards. The few cars he passed no longer needed washing because of the rain removing the layer of dirt built up on them. They had just turned onto another street of small one-story homes. Finding a checkpoint with two people in police uniforms sitting at a small canopy under of a large oak tree near an intersection out of the rain.
The rain started slowing to a drizzle, as the trailer passed through the last gate into the town. Dan hoped they did not have further to go he was starting to shake from the cold. The trailer lead by the horses passed several tree line roads until they turned onto Main street. A four-lane asphalt road flanked on either side by one story stores all sporting the same types of fading paint jobs to make them look uniformed.
“That grocery store is a farmer's market; the furniture store now sells used furniture recovered from the abandoned homes and businesses. There were also clothing, hardware and gun store, and various repair shops. The open areas between the stores and in some of the parking lots also consisted of many street sellers,” John was telling them as they passed by.
Dan read the sign in the drizzling rain stating City Hall. They made their way through the medium sized asphalt parking lot to an open space near a well-kept concrete sidewalk that lead from the parking lot. The trailer stopped near a group of people dressed in riot gear and they enter the trailer as everyone else exited. Dan helped Manny remove his bike from the back of the trailer before watching the new group start to move off. They walked their bikes as they followed the large man up the sidewalk towards the small three-tier square water fountain ringed by concrete benches. Separating two small modern office style building. One being two stories made of bright metal frames with a dark tinted glass. To an identical bright metal frame and dark tinted glass one story building of the same construction with the tops of the three bladed wind generators visible. They turned towards three large flat concrete steps flanked on either side by white columns supporting the arched entranceway roof over the tinted black double glass front doors. They were still following the large man when he stopped a few yards from a group of people.