by Jay Morris
The torture, the shame, the agony; Mrs. Franks admitted that she had demanded that Mr. Tucker kill her, that he execute her right then, right there. He hadn’t answered; instead he went into the house but soon reappeared with some of the clothes line that the gang had used to tie Mrs. Franks up when it served their interest. He tied the younger girl’s hands behind her back. He led her to the back of the house like a horse at a glue factory. Mrs. Franks following silently behind.
The girl cried and pleaded, she begged.
“Mister! Mister please, what’s your name?”
“Listen please, don’t do this, Diamonte and me we didn’t hurt them, really! Ask her!”
Tucker looked at Mrs. Franks but she just stood there.
“We gave you water didn’t we and we even got them to let us give some to your husband, didn’t we?”
Franks looked at the ground, then said softly,
“Do you want a drink of water? Before…”
“No! No, please tell him, we didn’t touch you, we didn’t even want to! We had to do what… what we had to do! You didn’t know what it was like, Jamal was crazy! We couldn’t cross him! We couldn’t! He would have killed us!”
Mrs. Franks shook her head ‘no’ over and over like she was trying to deny the truth of what the girl had to say.
Tucker lifted her to a sitting position.
“Wait! Wait! Wait! Wait! When the monsters came I didn’t have anywhere to go! Jamal and his nephew took us in, me and Diamonte. They protected us, when they made us wait for you I had no idea, we had no idea what he was planning! I swear! And I’m sorry for what they did to your uncle! Really I am!”
Mrs. Franks said
“Do it.”
Tucker knelt behind her.
Janae tried one last time,
“We were trying to find a way to…..”
Her words were choked off as Tucker wrapped his right arm around her neck, her windpipe in the crook of his elbow, with his other forearm pressing forward on the back of her neck, he applied all the pressure he could, shutting off both the jugular and the carotid, She thrashed and kicked her legs but Tucker outweighed her by almost 200 pounds, she didn’t stand a chance. In less than three seconds her vision went dark. She was unconscious in six, terrifying, horrendous seconds. Mrs. Franks stayed with Old Man Tucker as he held her like that while he silently counted up from 101. Then there was a horrible cracking sound as he broke he neck
Elaine said that she hadn’t wanted to tell me all of this, but she had heard from Janey what had happened between us the night before and well, she just felt I needed to know. I needed some time to process this, to see how it might change my opinion, if at all. That was when I realized I hadn’t seen OMT all day. I began to look for him in the rooms, I needed to know where he was, I don’t know why; I just did. I found Mr. Franks in his bed asleep, Mrs. Franks sitting in a chair by his side keeping vigil. I waved an apology at her and started to leave but she motioned for me to stay. She got up and I winced as I saw how much pain she was in as she hobbled over to me. She pulled me into her arms and smashed me against her, she kissed the top of my head then looked at me, she thanked me for what Janey and I had done and she apologized for what they had done.
She said she felt they were responsible for what had happened at least in part. I listened while she told me how sorry she was for what had happened to Mom and to Billy. She stepped back a bit and rubbed my arms as if she were trying to warm me on a cold winter’s day, she smiled although regret and pain filled her eyes. I realized that I believed so I hugged her back and said I would let her know when dinner was ready then started to leave but then I stopped. I turned back and said
“Old Man Tucker was going to kill you, you know”,
I left out that he had said he was not going to hurt her, only her husband. I waited for her response; she shrugged and said softly
“Maybe he figures we had already been punished enough.”
“Maybe so” I said and only then did I leave the room
I finished checking the rooms, some were empty, others trashed but all were arranged around an open atrium overlooking the dining room. There was still no sign of OMT and suddenly I was over whelmed with the fear that he had taken one of the cars and, I don’t know, escaped. I ran down the stairs and out the front door. I looked around the circle drive Desert-1, Rock-3, the Escalade and the other cars. All were present and accounted for, I slapped my hands to my sides and spun around in frustration, where was he? I looked back at the lodge and glanced upwards and there he was, on the roof he was standing there, the long barreled Moisan Nagant hung by its sling over his right shoulder. He was holding Cpl. Jones’ binoculars to his eyes and he was scanning the horizon.
As I watched him he completed a scan and lowered the high quality optics and then glanced down at me. He didn’t show any emotion he just watched me for a moment and then returned to his watching. He stayed up there all day and didn’t even come down for lunch. As we ate, there was only casual conversation. Mrs. Franks came down to get some food for her husband and I asked her how OMT had gotten onto the roof. She told me that upstairs there were two large linen closets but between them is an access door to the roof. In fact the roof is not just a roof;
“There is a sitting area up there, folding chairs and a couple of round tables complete with umbrellas. In the middle of the summer it is a great place to pick up some wonderfully cool breezes. There is even a built in ice chest.”
She took the plate and went back up stairs. I debated going back up there and kept deciding then changing my mind. I went back outside a couple times and every time there was OMT looking through those binoculars. I gave up trying to figure him out and went inside to sit with Lucy, maybe get her to play a game or something.
He did not make an appearance at dinner but later in the evening after the sun set he did. He went around the room, pulling the curtains tight over each window, the rest of us didn’t say anything we just watched his antics. We were all gathering in the living room, sitting in the various leather couches and chairs that were arranged tastefully around the room. Mrs. Franks came down with a strained and worried look, her husband had not really said much to her and nothing at all to anyone else but he was sleeping. Mrs. Franks had found some sleeping pills she had left there on a previous visit. She looked exhausted and defeated. Mrs. Driscol went and sat on the arm of her chair and held her hand for a minute. OMT had left the room but returned quickly enough with a plate with some sliced cheeses and a few pickles. He had a cup of coffee in the other hand.
He sat on the hearth by the fire we had started, for the first time since our attack he spoke. His voice was harsh, raspy, and barely audible. It was then I noticed the darkening bruises on his throat.
“We need to maintain light discipline, we don’t want the crazies to know we are here” he said.
His voice sounded like his throat was full of gravel or maybe he had gargled with razor blades. Karen Morena asked what that meant and he said we just didn’t want any random light to show, to draw attention that we were here. She nodded and then he continued;
“I also suggest we try to disguise the entrance to the private road, it turns behind the tree line after about 20 yards so that is all we need to hide.” He looked around, “Elaine, do you think you can be in charge of that? Maybe Kyle and Karen could help?”
She said “Sure, we can come up with something.”
“Just what are you going to do?” I asked with disdain evident in my voice. OMT looked at me but he didn’t seem angry or perturbed by my attitude.
“I am going to take one of the cars, the Acura maybe, there is a gun store called Dray’s Firearms outside of Morgantown, they did internet sales rather than a traditional store front. I am hopeful that since it is a warehouse there is a good chance it will be un-raided” he answered.
“Why?” Janey asked, “We have lots of guns already and bullets too.”
He nodded as he sipped his coffee,
“Yes, yes that is true but the crazies or the Zs are changing, they are not what we have been taught in the movies or in books. They are not human anymore, and they are not mindless, they work together, they are hunting us. Their bodies are becoming armored somehow and the guns we have been using just won’t do the job. Not anymore, we need higher power weapons than what we have and I think I can get what we need at Dray’s.”
Mrs. Driscol said
“Well, I don’t get it, can’t we just hold up here? Certainly we can defend ourselves.”
He shook his head,
“Mrs. Driscol, I honestly believe that these crazies, these Zs are actually hunting us down, hunting us into extinction. Holding up here is not a viable option.”
The debate continued quietly for an hour or so, some felt one way, some the other, I kept my opinion to myself but finally I began to get the feeling that if OMT didn’t get his way he was going to leave and I said so. OMT looked at me and I knew at last I had gotten to him; I had hurt him. He looked over at Lucy who had a horrified expression on her face. He took a breath and said
“I won’t deny I hadn’t considered it, some of you don’t trust me, others…” he paused and looked at me then continued, “Others are not sure I should be here at all but I am going to make this promise.”
He paused and looked at Lucy, speaking really only to her,
“As long as you want me to stay, I will, I will do everything I can to protect each and every one of you no matter what. I promise.”
He maintained eye contact with Lucy and she clambered down off of Elaine’s lap and reaching out she took the old man’s hand. He waited for her to say something but she didn’t, instead she climbed into his lap and ate his cheese. I was furious, how dare she? What is she thinking? This monster killed her mother and there she is, sitting on his lap, eating his various and sundry dairy products. I ‘frumpt’ into my chair and pouted while they discussed guard duty and rationing and a thousand other things.
I must have dozed off because when I awoke I was alone in the living room, the fire still burning lowly. I sat up and went into the kitchen to get a drink of water; we still had well water so we saved the bottled stuff. I ran the tap a moment and then filled a glass. I walked back into the living room and then up the stairs, Elaine, Lucy and I had formally picked out a room with two big double beds in it. I saw that the door to the roof was ajar and as I passed by I started to close the door but I heard voices, I strained to hear and I was able to make out that one was Old Man Tucker. I slowly slipped up the stairs as silently as I could. The door to the roof area was open; there was a small electric lamp that someone had set on the floor so to illuminate where they would have to walk but the light would not show over the side walls of the open air patio. I looked around and saw that OMT was standing with the rifle on his shoulder, just as he did all day long. Next to him was Mrs. Driscol, my best friend’s mother and the closest thing to one I still had left.
“Don’t worry, he will come around.” Mrs. Driscol said.
OMT didn’t respond so she touched his arm and I felt my blood boil, yet another treachery, another betrayal. Damn him. I thought.
“He’s just a boy, give him some time.”
I realized with fury that they were talking about me. Old Man Tucker spoke softly but didn’t look at her or acknowledge that she had touched him.
“Mrs. Driscol, he isn’t a boy anymore, he has had to grow up in a week more than most men do in their entire life” he said.
There was a moment of silence then OMT continued,
“He has seen suffering and death, lost his father, his best friend, and I killed his mother, no one can get over that.”
Mrs. Driscol patted his arm and said
“That isn’t so, Sharon was dying, she was in agony, there was no hope, she knew it, I knew it, and you knew it. Would it have been better to let her die screaming in front of him? In front of Lucy? Damn it, she BEGGED you to end it for her.”
There was a long silence and I felt sick hearing what Mrs. Driscol had said. Finally OMT answered
“Mrs. Driscol, you know that and so do I, which does not mean he will be able to forgive me for what I did.”
There was another pause then “I am not sure I can forgive myself”.
I don’t know if it is possible or not, but I swear I could hear tears coming from Old Man Tucker. Mrs. Driscol sighed then asked
“What happened to you? Why do you punish yourself like this?”
He looked at her just for a moment then said
“I have lived far too long Mrs. Driscol. I am tired, I hurt all the time and if not for you and the others, I imagine I would have just opted out by now.”
“Bullshit.” Mrs. Driscol said.
“Do you think I’m blind? I have seen how you care for those kids and how you cared for Billy”
Her own voice catching at the mention of her dead son.
“We need you damn it, who is going to do this? Kyle? Me? Mr. Franks? For God’s sake, we need YOU, you big dumb son of a bitch.”
Mrs. Driscol wrapped her arms around her chest and looked away.
“Mrs. Driscol.” he said.
“I made a promise and I am going to keep it. I will stay until Lucy tells me to go. Is that good enough?”
“NO IT ISN’T” she said defiantly. “That sweet little girl wraps you around her finger so what? We need you to want to live. We need you to want to live, to want to fight not just for her but for all of us.”
He didn’t answer and she turned and started to walk towards the door, my heart began to pound in my chest, she was going to catch me spying on them! But suddenly she stopped and turned back to him and asked one last question,
“Tell me one more thing, why won’t you call me Amy? It’s my name you know.”
He didn’t look at her, he kept his vigil, but he answered her;
“It has been a long time since I called a woman by her first name, and to do that to you might be misunderstood.” She laughed softly under her breath.
“You can have friends Mr. Tucker, you won’t be betraying her.”
He did not answer and I took the opportunity to scamper down the stairs and into my room, I didn’t shut it all the way and I waited peeking through the crack as she exited the stairwell and started down the hall, without looking left or right she stopped outside my door. Mrs. Driscol spoke
“I hope you learned something tonight young John. Things are not always as they seem.”
Then she walked on down the hall to the room she was sharing with Janey. After she closed her door I shut mine and proceed to lay on my bed, many conflicting thoughts in a worried mind but eventually I fell asleep.
DAY 10, Frank’s Family Lodge
The next morning, I rose early and got my own breakfast. I waited until everyone else was up and OMT was getting ready to go. As I watched him it became apparent that in spite of his recent weight loss, the Acura was NOT going to work. He discussed things with Mrs. Driscol and they decided he should just go ahead and take Rock-3, our SUV. He used a siphon to drain the tank of the VW Golf to replace some of what we had used in our long journey here. Elaine loaded a dozen MREs and a case of water into the back seat and handed him a couple of spare batteries for the handheld radio, Lucy helped by carrying three cans of chili, apparently remembering how much OMT liked it. OMT spoke to Elaine and asked about her plans for the private road and she said that she and Kyle had a couple of good ideas and that he should definitely call them before attempting to drive up the road upon his return. He actually had the nerve to kiss Lucy on the top of her head before he placed the Moisan in back seat he shoved the antique double barrel 10 gauge between the front seats and checked his colt revolvers. Then he got in and started the engine, when he did that I opened the passenger door and got it. I placed my back pack on the floor boards at my feet, my M16 between my knees and my M9 in its shoulder holster like any well-dressed 12 year old. I stared at him, daring him to say something.
He just sat there a moment then ‘harrumphed’ then looked over at Elaine who just shrugged and tilted her head in her patented ‘what are you going to do?’ manner. He put the car into gear and we slowly made the turn around the flag pole and started down the road towards the highway.
There was complete silence until we actually got onto the highway. He reached into the pocket of his flannel shirt and handed me the spare batteries.
“Would you please put these in the glove box?” he asked.
His voice still damaged from his fight with ‘muscles’. I took them and put them inside but before I closed it I reached in my back pack and took out 2 of my 3 spare magazines for the Beretta. I put them in as well. We drove on, only the road noise to keep us amused but eventually he spoke again,
“We don’t have enough gas to get to Morgantown so we will have to keep an eye open for any abandoned vehicles or gas stations.”
We passed several vehicles but they didn’t seem to be in very good shape and I think that neither of us felt the locale was safe enough. After about an hour I saw a little ‘mom and pop’ on the service road ahead of us and I spoke for the first time
“What about there?”
He nodded, “yeah, looks like it might be worth checking out.”
He slowed and then pulled across the median, down a slight slope and onto the service road. We drove slowly both of us kept looking this way and that but it still looked safe. We pulled up to the gas pump, I say pump because that is exactly how many there were, one. There was a sign mounted along the roof line and the letters, painted in an arch said