The Weak Shall Die: Complete Collection (Four Volume Set)

by Taylor Michaels

  "Yes John, you always say that, but it's true and credit should be given where it is due," said Fred. "Marceau works hard, standing on her feet from sun up to sundown making sure that we are well fed, or as much as we can be.

  "John always say that. Me too," said Cho.

  "While everyone is letting their dinner settle, as my father used to say, I have a proposal. Marceau, how about breaking out two more bottles of that fine local wine."

  "Uh-oh," said Fred. "When John orders more wine, it means he has something planned. Something we have to be drunk to hear and drunker to agree to." He threw glances to everyone before his eyes landed on John.

  "Not so fast, Fred. This is simple and easy."

  "It is always simple and easy, Jean. Usually, it is also dangerous," said Pierre, filling his glass completely full and passing the bottle to Masako. Looking at Marceau, he said, "I think we will be needing another bottle of hooch, mon amour." He made air quotes around 'hooch.'

  "OK, enough complaining." John put out his hands and moved his palms in a downward motion. "Enough complaining. Remember the preppers Fred and Masako met just south of town? I was thinking that it's long enough after the virus hit that anybody not prepared is now dead. Our foraging missions have not taken fire for a month now."

  "Haven't taken much food either," said George, his voice slurred. "Good thing we have the garden. And we have all that food that," he pointed to Carla, "brought from the Retirement Home."

  "And George, thanks to you for making the new power system and that marvelous stealth car. If they can't see you or hear you, they won't shoot you," said Fred, raising his glass. "Here's to you, George. Hey, somebody hand me a bottle."

  "Fred, how much have you had to drink?" said Harry

  "He's had three," said Masako. "Three that I've seen. Probably more." She half-laughed.

  "Then, medically speaking, he is drunk enough to hear John's proposal," said Pierre. "I am also ready myself. Go ahead with it, John. Spit it out, as you Americans say."

  "I was thinking of going back to those preppers south of town to see if we could form some kind of partnership. Maybe trade something. Now that the garden is in and most of the canning is done. What does everybody think?"

  "What do you want to trade," said Marceau. "Not the canned food we obtained from the Retirement Home."

  "No. We have lots of chestnuts. We'll never eat them all. They don't store well. They'll be good for a couple of months, maybe six if we freeze them. Not more. We don't have much freezer capacity, though. Once George's latest miracle is working, we should find another freezer or two."

  "He liked Masako," said Fred. "That prepper guy. Joe. She should go back to make the proposal. Maybe with a few of us as backup. Might take a few to hold him back. He really liked her."

  "He was just being nice, Fred." Masako's cheeks turned pink. "I think you've had too much to drink."

  "Not possible, sweet cheeks."

  "Are you volunteering, Fred?"

  "Sure. Who else?"

  "I'll go," said John. "The main thing I wanted to see was their layout. We'll all wear body armor and take plenty of weapons. Just in case. And travel in the Dark Death Dealer before dawn."

  "Are we talking about the Dark Demon?" George said.

  "Or the Dark Defender," said Fred.

  "Or the Dark Death Defier," said Harry.

  "I thought it was the Dark Destroyer," said Charles.

  "Come on guys," said Masako. "The question is not what, but when."

  "How about before sunrise tomorrow? I assume the car has enough range? What do you think George?"

  "In the beginnin' we thought it would have a range of around fifty miles, because the batteries were old. But we've gone over seventy with the extra batteries. Just keep the speed down."

  * * *

  The next morning around four, they climbed into the Dark Dagger with Fred in the driver's seat, Masako riding shotgun, with a sawed-off shotgun by her side, and John in the back with a rifle, shotgun and two forty-fives.

  "You know John, if we're all standing on the front porch with our weapons, it'll be difficult to say, 'We come in peace, take me to your leader.' "

  "We're not space aliens, Fred."

  "Might as well be, with the reception we'll have."

  "You gentlemen don't have to worry about getting dirty. I'll go. As Fred keeps saying, Joe was friendly. Just cover me."

  "Sure, Sweet Cheeks."

  "Chauvinist pig."

  They arrived at the turnoff just as the darkness gave way to the first rays of dawn.

  "John was right," Fred said. "This area not only has great sunsets, but also sunrises. The orange of the sun against the blue of the sky is amazing."

  "I used to hate this time of day," said John. "It's humid, cool, clammy. And since the electricity failed and the gasoline ran out, it's quiet. Quiet as the grave. No noise from the AC's or cars. Nothing. They may even hear us coming. But, the light show is fantastic," he said, rolling down the rear window and peering at the light pink and orange streaks of the clouds made by the sunrise.

  "No noise is good noise," said Fred. He drove another mile and pulled off the road to wait until daybreak. As the world slowly became visible, he drove down the road to the farmhouse and backed into the driveway. "OK, all ready for a quick getaway."

  "Is my negative point of view rubbing off on you?" John said.

  Fred got out of the car and looked around. "No, not this time. What do you think, John. It looks bad. Bullet holes in the door and a dozen window panes out. Signs of a fire."

  "Something has happened. Masako, maybe you'd better wait. I'll go and you and Fred use the car for cover and keep your weapons out and ready. Blow the horn if you see anything."

  John pulled out his three twenty seven magnum and walked up to the house carefully and knocked on the door. Nobody came. He knocked harder and the door fell in. Inside, the walls and furniture were charred black. Definitely a fire.

  He yelled, "Anybody home?" The silence was deafening. Not even a cricket made a sound. He listened and heard nothing but his own breathing. He turned and motioned to Fred. "Cover me. It doesn't look good. I'll check it out." Two minutes later, he came back out. "They had a fire, a big one. Half a dozen bodies in the living room and kitchen. Charred beyond recognition. Intentionally set. I could smell the gasoline. I'm surprised the whole thing didn't burn down or fall down. I'll check around back," he said, walking toward the corner.

  "No, it's my turn. I'm the one who was in the Army. I was trained for this. I'll take the point." Fred gripped his gun and pushed past John.

  Fred walked to the corner of the house, his back flat against the wall and peeked around. Seeing nobody, he continued, hugging the side of the house until he reached the back of the house. Still seeing nothing unusual, he turned toward the greenhouses. Several pieces of glass were broken out. "It doesn't look good here either," he shouted.

  As Fred reached the corner of the greenhouse, a voice yelled out. "Back again? Didn't you eat enough buckshot the first time?"

  Fred and John instinctively raised their hands. John said, "I haven't been here before. Fred was here back before the panic, with Masako. The Japanese lady. They had a white van. You showed her around. We thought we'd come to see if you were interested in trading."

  The prepper wrinkled his brow. "You come to trade carrying weapons?"

  "We go everywhere carrying weapons. From the condition of your house, it looks like a great idea. Who hit you?"

  "I don't know. Half a dozen of 'em. Two nights ago. They threw some kind of gasoline bomb in the window. I don't think they figured we'd have weapons. I got three of 'em. I didn't figure they'd be back, but people get real crazy when they're hungry. After the others left, I put out the fire with a fire extinguisher and a hose, but it was too late. Fumes got most of my people. I was out back burying Ma just now. I didn't hear you drive up."

  "How many of you are left?"

  "Just me and my daughter, Mary
."

  "You been sleeping in the house?"

  "Nope. Stinks. Gasoline fumes. Dead bodies. About ready to fall down. I hate that. We built it with our own hands. We have a tent on the other side of the greenhouses."

  "So what are you going to do? It's hard for two people to exist by themselves. Especially if a gang is prowling around."

  The prepper's eyes shifted to his shoes and he shuffled in the ground, kicking up dust. "I don't know. I just don't know. I never expected this. Maybe I should've known. I thought everybody had died from the plague. I wasn't watching. We just wanted to be left alone. We didn't bother anybody. We didn't figure anybody would bother us."

  He stopped talking, pulled out a handkerchief and wiped his brow and eyes.

  John continued, "We've let our guard down once or twice and we've paid for it. It happens. You just have to go on." John felt a kinship to this man. The prepper, like he and his group had prepared and tried to survive in a changing world. But desperation and hunger required desperate measures and these people had shut themselves away from everyone else and forgotten the first rule of survival. Always expect the worst.

  "It's gonna be hard. Ma was my inspiration. She ran the whole operation."

  "Do you have any food?"

  "Got plenty of food. Enough for twelve people for a year. No problem there. But if they come back, I won't be able to hold 'em off. They'll kill me and take the food. No telling what they'll do to Mary," he said mopping his eyes again.

  "You should both come back with us. We have a group of twelve people. We have some food, maybe enough. With yours, we would all make it through the winter and maybe next winter too. You probably know more about farming than we do. You'd be a good addition to our group. And with more people, we'll be better able to defend ourselves. You can help us and we can help you. What do you say?"

  "Mighty kind of you to take us in. Where's your place?"

  "About fifteen miles, northeast. We'll load up what we can now and come back at dusk for the rest." At that moment John remembered that the prepper's name was Joe.

  "How do I know you won't kill me?"

  "You don't, Joe. How do you know those guys won't come back tonight? And how do we know you won't kill some of us?"

  Joe moved his head up and down. "Fair enough. I have a truck. We'll pack it and head off before it's too light. Looks like you're our best bet."

  Joe brought his small white Isuzu box truck around from behind the greenhouses and they spent an hour loading.

  "Joe, it's beginning to be light out. I think we should go. We'll come back just after dark for the rest."

  "Sure. One of you gonna ride with me and Mary. I might lose sight of that contraption you're driving."

  "I'll go with you," said Masako. "We'll go in front and John and Fred can follow at a distance and come to our rescue if anything happens."

  "Now look who's the military strategist. Yes ma'am, General Hirakawa," said Fred. "Wish I had the motorcycle though."

  Masako had to smile. "Chin up, chest out and stomach in, soldier. You have what you have and that's what you'll work with. Understand!"

  "Yes Ma'am. By the way, John, we may not have enough power for the car tonight. It might work, but we'd be taking a chance."

  "It looks like a clear day. We'll make the decision before we leave. I'd like to take it if I can. We should bring a lot of boxes. And not plan to spend the night. Get in and out as fast as possible."

  "I suppose that's a lesson Carla taught us."

  Thirty minutes later, they pulled into the driveway at the lodge.

  "Joe, this is home," said Masako. "All the junked cars are a fence or a barricade, whichever way you want to look at it. We've had two attacks and we were able to stand our ground. We just had a normal fence for the first one. That's when we put in the barrier. All three attackers died. In the second attack, they also lost everybody."

  "Good idea with the cars. Wish I'd thought about that. You wasn't completely honest with me the first time we met, was you?"

  "No, not completely. Sorry about that. As John always says, 'Secrecy is the best security.' "

  As they climbed out of the truck, John and Fred drove up.

  "Joe, we have enough cabins for you and Mary to have your own. Cho here will show you around. We'll introduce you to everyone at breakfast. I'll find Abby, Carla and Iris to unload your truck. You guys go and rest."

  "No, I'd feel real bad about that, John. You and your people doing all the work."

  "You've been through enough."

  Joe seemed taut and anxious to John. The raid on his farm, the death of his mother and clan and losing everything was weighing heavily on him.

  "Thanks, but I'd rather be doing something."

  "Me too," said Joe's daughter, Mary. "I didn't sleep much last night, and I couldn't sleep now. But, I do feel safe now. Thanks."

  "This is a lot of food," said Iris, looking into the truck.

  "A nice variety, too. Marceau should be able to make some great meals with this," said Abby.

  "Even more back at their place," said John. "We'll go around dusk."

  "You want me to go, too?" said Harry.

  "No, you're becoming a good shot. You should stay with Marceau and Abby to defend the place. Maybe George also. It's not as many as I'd like, but they had a lot of food. I'd like to take it all and as fast as possible. Those guys are licking their wounds and gathering their nerve for another battle. Sooner or later, they'll be back. We'll be lucky if they wait until tomorrow."

  For the first day in a month, it was a sunny day and by dusk, the Dark Deceiver was nearly fully charged. Fred still wanted to take his motorcycle. He was followed by Joe in the truck, with Mary. Next came the SUV with Iris driving and Pierre as shotgun, with a real shotgun. Carla and Masako were in the back. Finally, a quarter mile behind, in the Dark Deceiver were John and Cho.

  "This really crazy car. I could use this in old days. Great for smuggling. Cousin would pay big buck for car like this."

  "Yeah, it works well if nobody else is on the highway. But if you're high-balling it down the road and someone pulls out in front of you because they didn't see you, it would be bad."

  Cho laid a hand on the dashboard. "George pretty smart guy. He know everything electric. Lots more too."

  "Yes. I've been reading the books he bought. Most of it is just following the colors."

  "What about Joe. He make solar panels. He know a lot, yes."

  "That's right. I forgot about those. We should grab all those panels and all the other equipment, too. We could seriously electrify."

  "You do wires?"

  "Better not take a chance. George and Joe can handle it. I'll watch them and maybe learn something. You never know."

  * * *

  As John made the turnoff from the highway, he heard gunshots and stopped the car. "Oh, crap. Those guys must have come back. And the big problem is that we are on the other side of them, if they came up the road. Our people in the house will be shooting our way.

  "I check it out," Cho said, pushing the button on her radio. "Fred, what up?"

  "They were behind the house. Must have come back during the day and heard us driving up. Three of them."

  John took the radio, "Ask Joe where this road goes after it passes the house. Does it turn back around the greenhouses?"

  It was a long moment of silence before Fred came back on the radio. "Yeah, John. He says it does. You going to flank them?"

  "Yes, you guys stay behind cover and don't give them a target."

  John slowly drove past the house and could see flashes from the darkness behind. The road continued five hundred feet and then turned right. John pulled the Dark Deceiver off the road. He slowly and quietly opened the trunk and removed a bow with a quiver of arrows, which he put over his back.

  "You be Robin Hood and save maidens in house?" Cho whispered.

  "Distress. Maidens in distress. Everybody's a comedian. I didn't know you had a sense of humor."
<
br />   "Easier to learn than English. Less confusing."

  "Bring your shotgun and pistol."

  They cautiously stepped through the trees. Fortunately, Joe was a neat guy and had removed all the fallen branches and had cut out the brush. Apparently, he was trying to maximize his timber production.

  John caught sight of one of the shooters. He was puffing a cigarette. Stupid twice, once for smoking and once for providing a target. John nocked an arrow, drew it back, quickly aimed and released. The man fell over. As John looked around, he saw a flash from a rifle in the house. He heard another man hit the ground. Pierre rarely had to shoot twice. One left -- if the count was right. He listened and finally heard a rustling in the leaves. Bam. Cho fired the shotgun and the man screamed. Bam. Another shot and no scream, then a thump on the ground. John waited for five minutes and heard nothing else. He pushed the button on his radio. "Three down. You sure about the number?"

  "Yeah. Three."

  The group spent the next two hours loading the truck with canned food and bags of potatoes and onions.

  "We eat good tomorrow. What you think, John?"

  "Definitely, Cho. We should have a celebration. It's been a hard summer. Hey Joe. Did you install those solar panels?"

  "Sure did. Pretty easy. What're you thinking?"

  "What do you say, we come back tomorrow and grab them? I assume they would have to be removed in the daylight?"

  "Some kind of light. Maybe the break of dawn. If you want to get 'em all, it would take all day. And the truck. You think it's worth the work and the risk?"

  John turned his attention to Fred, who was listening intently. "What do you think, Fred. We could be seriously electrified. Plenty of power to charge the Dark Defender and those other cars George is working on. And anything else we want."

  "It's not as critical as you think. We're close to having the gasifier generator working. We found one of those expensive houses with a whole house generator. But, it would provide backup and we wouldn't have to use as much wood. That would be nice."