I struggled with all my treasure, but eventually decided to make two trips out of the master suite and downstairs.
Dad was waiting in the kitchen with soup and crackers.
“I’ll be right there,” I called, taking my suitcase out to the garage. “I have one more trip to make.”
“I’ll get what’s left upstairs,” Dad said, smiling as I came back into the kitchen. “You sit down and eat. You need to get your strength back, Chips.”
My jaw dropped as he used the nickname Tiff had given me. I didn’t even know he’d known about it.
“Eat,” he said, caressing my head in a loving manner as he walked past me with a grin.
I shook my head, laughed, and sat down at the kitchen island to eat the soup Dad had heated up for me. It was a beef stew and it was delicious. I couldn’t remember ever having something like this in my life. It probably wasn’t organic…and more than likely had too much sodium for Mom’s approval. I gobbled it down with an entire sleeve of saltine crackers.
Once I was done eating, I found I was thirsty. I remembered seeing a case of bottled water in the garage, so I headed out to get one. Just as I made it through the door, I heard a car pull up to the garage.
I jogged back into the house and closed the door that led into the garage. I didn’t know who was out there for sure and I wanted to make sure I stayed safe.
Seconds after I’d gotten to safety, I heard the bay door of the garage open, then I heard a vehicle door shut, an engine purr as the vehicle drove forward into the garage, and then the bay door closing.
I opened the door a crack to chance a peek; it was Chad. He’d returned with a van.
Pulling the door open all the way, I stepped out with a smile.
“Success!” Chad yelled, and pumped his fist in the air.
“Proud of yourself, huh?” I teased, my smile growing into a grin. He sounded just like I had when I’d found the toothbrush and toothpaste earlier.
“Yes,” he said, grinning and nodding, before he suddenly frowned. “I found something I need your help with.”
“That doesn’t sound good,” I said, stepping further out into the garage.
His sudden change of mood alarmed me. He’d gone from extremely happy to serious in a split second. The only other time I’d seen him do that was when he talked about his family, especially his mom. Whatever was going on wasn’t good. I could feel it.
Chad led the way to the passenger’s side of the van and opened the front door. He reached in and unbuckled something that was wrapped in a blanket, pulling it out.
I leaned forward and pulled a flap of the blanket back to see what was inside.
“Oh, my gawd,” I gasped. “Where did you find…?” I glanced up at Chad, my heart suddenly overwhelmed with sadness at the sight of the small, malnourished child.
“Him,” Chad said. “I found him locked in a room in a house where everyone else had apparently committed suicide. I don’t know why he was locked in the room or why they hadn’t offed him. He was bitten…on the ankle.”
I growled my displeasure and took the bundle from Chad’s arms. I didn’t know how anyone could treat a child like that. It pissed me off and made me want to hurt someone. There were few things in this world that made me violent, and abusing small children was one of them.
“Poor little guy,” I said, carrying him toward the entrance to the house.
“He’ll need a bath,” Chad called, shut the van door, and rushed after me. “I don’t have any clothes for him though.”
“We’ll see if anything of your sister’s will fit him,” I said.
“Girl clothes?” he asked, and frowned.
I laughed. “Does it really matter as long as he has something to wear?”
“I suppose not,” he said, and chuckled.
Dad was waiting in the kitchen with the piles of things he was supposed to have ready. I noticed my bin from the upstairs bathroom had joined them.
“See if you can get him to eat and drink something after his bath,” Chad called after me as I headed upstairs with the boy. “I got him to eat a bit earlier, but not nearly enough.”
“What’s going on?” I heard Dad ask. “Who needs to eat?”
“I found a toddler locked in a room in a house where everyone had killed themselves,” Chad said. “He was bitten, but he’s about starved to death.”
“What the fuck is wrong with people?” Dad asked, and frowned.
That was the last of the conversation I could pick up before I was too far away to hear them. I knew Dad would be as pissed about what happened to the little guy as I was…and as Chad seemed to be. He’d surprised me, bringing the boy back. Brad probably would have left him for dead, figuring he’d be too much of a burden while trying to survive himself. Chad hadn’t.
Chad had wrapped the boy in a blanket and apparently took the time to get the little fella to eat and drink something. He was surprising me more and more the longer I was around him. Once again I couldn’t believe how off my first insights about people were.
I made a mental note to stop trusting my head and to start trusting my heart to guide me. Also, I decided to get to know people before making assumptions. It was hard to do, considering the way I was raised and how my mom thought we were better than everyone else. And the way society rated people based on looks. Obviously, I’d fallen deeply into that trap.
I laid the boy down on the bathroom floor, blanket and all, and ran a warm bath for him. I didn’t want to take him out of the warmth of the blanket before warm water was ready to replace it.
Once the water was ready, I unwrapped the blanket and had to fight back tears. Before me lay a skeleton covered in skin. All he had on was a ripped, filthy diaper, which I removed.
He stirred a little and opened his eyes. They looked huge in his sallow face.
“Hi, sweetie,” I said gently. “We’re gonna get you all clean and then find you some clothes, okay?”
He smiled faintly and muttered, “Tubby bubbles.”
I giggled. “Yes, we’re gonna have tubby bubbles.”
He didn’t fight me at all as I lifted him into the tub and lowered him into the water. I tried to get him to lie back and relax, but he insisted on sitting up. I was surprised he could, considering his diminished state. I wasn’t going to argue though, especially when he started slapping the water gently and giggling.
I found a cup and wet down his hair and body. He cooperated when I asked him to do things, like tilt his head back. The only thing that kept me from cry while I washed his hair and body was the fact he was enjoying the water so much. He was a delightful soul despite what he’d been through.
Once he was clean, I unplugged the tub and tried to lift him out.
“Swirls!” he screeched.
“Swirls?” I asked, frowning.
He pointed to the drain where the water was forming a swirl as it went down the drain.
I sat him back in the tub and left him there to watch the water while I got him a clean towel. By the time I was ready to get him out again, the water was gone and he made no protest.
I wrapped him in the towel, lifted him out of the tub, and carried him out of the bathroom to Chad’s sister’s bedroom.
“We’re gonna find you some clothes,” I said, sitting him down on the floor in front of the small white dresser. “They’re girl’s clothes, but that’s all we have right now.”
He didn’t respond, or seem to even care.
I got out a couple pairs of underwear, a couple t-shirts, and a couple pairs of shorts.
“What do you want to wear?” I asked, laying the shirt and shorts on the floor in front of him.
He chose the pink shirt with a sparkling unicorn and white and purple stripped shorts.
“Okay,” I said. “Let’s get your dried and dressed.” I reached out and started rubbing the towel to his hair. “What’s your name? My name’s Elaine.”
“’Laine?” he asked.
“Yup. What’s your n
ame?” I asked again.
“Tob,” he said.
“Todd?”
He shook his head “no.” “Tob.”
“Tooobb?” I asked, drawing it out to make sure I had it right.
He nodded enthusiastically.
“Tob,” I said again, and nodded. “I’m gonna stand you up and help you get dressed.”
He nodded again and didn’t fight me at all as I wrestled him into girl’s clothes.
I found a small comb – I assumed it was for dolls from the size – on top of the dresser and used it to comb his hair.
“All done,” I announce when I was done.
I rolled the other outfit that I’d laid out together, gripped the small ball in one hand, and picked Tob up, sitting him on my hip.
“Let’s go see if the guys are ready for our adventure,” I said, looking at him. “Do you want to go on an adventure with us?”
Tob smiled and nodded before laying his head on my shoulder. He went limp.
I sighed. I could tell he was getting worn down. Obviously he hadn’t had a lot of energy to begin with, but the bath and dressing had sapped what little strength he had.
I kissed the top of his head and we went back downstairs.
Chad raised my eyebrows as he looked Tob over when we reached the bottom of the stairs.
“Don’t say a thing,” I said, grinning. “Tob picked them out himself.”
“Tom?” Chad asked, stepping closer.
“Tob,” I said.
“Tod?” Dad asked, stepping up behind Chad from the kitchen.
“No, Tob!” Tob said forcefully, picking up his head and scowling at them.
“Okay, Tob,” I said. “You ready to eat something and go for a ride?”
Tob nodded his head and put it back on my shoulder.
“He can sit in the back seat with you,” Chad said. “I’ll let your dad drive and I’ll navigate.”
I nodded and headed toward the van with Tob. Honestly, that sounded great. I was getting a little worn down myself. The idea of sprawling on the backseat and napping with Tob sounded wonderful.
“Let’s get to Washington Center,” Chad said, and slapped Dad on the shoulder.
I walked out to the garage – noticing everything had been loaded into the van – and climbed into the backseat with Tob. There were juice boxes and cereal bars waiting for us – I’d wondered why Chad hadn’t had food waiting inside, when we’d come downstairs. He was thoughtful to have things ready for us in the van so we could eat while we traveled.
“Want a snack?” I asked Tob, holding him on my lap.
He nodded weakly.
Dad climbed into the driver’s seat.
Chad closed the sliding side door of the van I’d entered through, went behind the van, opened the garage door, waited for Dad to back the van out, shut the bay garage door, opened the van’s passenger door, hopped in, and we were off.
I glanced around at the world outside the van as we moved slowly through the suburban area. Everything was a mess. There was smoke from fires in the distance. Zombies were wandering around everywhere – Dad had to hit a couple.
I even heard Chad tell Dad about the zombie that had bitten him. Dad laughed at the sight of her and I bit my lip to keep from doing the same.
It didn’t take long before Tob was full and ready to sleep.
I quickly ate a cereal bar and sucked down a juice box too, because I was hungry again, and was still thirsty from earlier. Then I laid down on the seat and laid him on top of me.
We fell asleep instantly.
Chapter Nine
“Pee!” Tob screamed, ripping me from a deep sleep.
“I guess we’ll have to pull over once we get off the highway,” Chad said, and chuckled.
“Sounds that way,” Dad said. “Honestly, I could use a potty break too.”
“Hey, guys,” I said. “What’s going on? Are we almost there?”
I wrestled with Tob until we were both sitting up on the seat again. I looked around. We seemed to be getting off the highway in a somewhat rural area. There were fields all around us, spotted with trees here and there. In the distance I could see a gas station, but we weren’t close to anything else, other than wilderness.
“We’re getting close,” Chad said.
Dad guided the van off the highway and onto the off ramp. At the end, he turned left.
“Where should I go now?” he asked Chad.
“There should be a service road up here, leading into some tree cover,” Chad said. “That would be a good place for a bathroom break. It’s private.”
I think Dad understood what he was getting at because he smiled and nodded.
“Ah, I see it,” Dad said, and turned right onto the dirt road Chad had mentioned. He pulled into the cluster of trees Chad was talking about that shielded the van and us from view of the road we’d come off of and the highway. “Time to pee!”
I helped Tob open the side, passenger door and he hopped out. In moments he had his pants down and was peeing on a tree. I was glad to see he’d had enough fluid to pee. That was a good sign.
“He has the right idea,” Dad said, laughed, and climbed out of the van.
Chad opened the passenger’s door and climbed out too. He walked off into the trees that separated us from the road. I assumed he had to relieve his bladder too.
I headed off in the opposite direction of Chad, found a spot, pulled down my pants, and peed – I hadn’t realized how badly I’d needed to go. Apparently the combination of the water, soup, and juice box had caught up with me. After being sick, I took it as a good sign that I, too, had enough fluid in me to need to pee.
When I was done, I headed back to the van and opened the back hatch. I found the hand sanitizer I’d packed from the bathroom, used it, made sure Tob used it, and sat it where it was easily accessible for later. Then I started looking for a snack.
“Everyone feel better?” Chad asked, smiling as he returned from his trip into the trees.
“Yup,” I said. “Want some trail mix and water?”
“Sure,” Chad said. “I think we should get going too, if we want to make it to Washington Center by dark.”
Tob was sitting in the cargo area of the van, propped up against the supplies, eating.
I nodded in agreement, noticing how tired Tob was getting again.
“Let’s get all loaded up and on the road, shall we?” Chad said, clapped his hands once, and walked toward the van. He took the trail mix and water I held out to him as he passed.
I picked up Tob.
Dad shut the hatch and headed to the driver’s door. He opened the door, climbed inside the van, and shut the door.
Chad slid the rear passenger’s side door shut after Tob and I were inside. Then he opened his door, climbed in, glanced back at us, leaned over to Clay, and whispered something I couldn’t make out.
Dad, looking very serious, nodded and started the engine.
I could tell something was off. Both of them seemed tense. I wanted to ask what was wrong, but obviously they didn’t want to talk about it in front of Tob. At least, that’s what I told myself. I somehow had the sneaking suspicion they didn’t want to worry me. If so, I felt it was bullshit. I was in this with them whether they liked it or not and I needed to be respected as a capable person too. But, since Tob was with us and awake, I decided to let it slide because it wouldn’t be a good idea to freak him out if my suspicions were correct. I hoped if something significant was happening they would let me in on it. I guessed I just needed to trust them…no matter what my feelings were.
With a sigh, I resigned myself to keep silent, for now.
Dad turned the van around and headed back out to the road that would take us to Washington Center.
< + >
We encountered a slew of zombies on the way to Washington Center. We travelled on a state route that took us through multiple little towns and villages. Each time we reached one, Dad slowed down so we wouldn’t slam into the
shambling corpses that came out in droves to beat against the sides of the van. The slow, but steady movement seemed to do well at getting through the zombies.
Grotesque faces slammed against the glass all around us to make smears of puss, blood, and black goo. It probably would have freaked Tob out if he hadn’t fallen into a very deep sleep. I kept my eyes closed and covered my ears each time until we’d gotten through the hordes.
The drive took an hour and a half, but it seemed like forever. The sun was setting as we crested the hill that would give us a great view of the shopping center. What we saw was shocking…
There was a wall fortifying the entire shopping center and the surrounding parking lots. If I hadn’t known that’s what they were, I would have thought it had always been part of the compound that now existed in the space. There were tents and people everywhere inside the compound, as well as more walls that seemed to separate sections inside. There were large red crosses on some of the tents, and I took that to mean that was the medical section. Washington Center was safe and we had arrived.
My heart leapt for joy inside my chest. Safety at last! After the journey, seeing how many zombies were out in the world, somewhere safe seemed like Heaven.
Dad’s face lit up with a huge grin.
Chad smiled broadly.
I leaned up between their seats and said, “Well, there it is!”
“Yup,” Chad said. “Let’s get down there.”
Dad nodded and drove down the road that led to the front gates.
Chapter Ten
There was one car in front of us being inspected by armed, military personnel while the occupants waited and talked to other military personnel close-by. Once they cleared the car, a military guy got in the driver’s seat and drove it inside. The people were also taken inside and then split up. They looked a little upset about it, but said their goodbyes and waved at each other.
“I wonder why they’re being separated,” I said. I didn’t want to be separated from my dad, Chad, or Tob. A new fear gripped my heart…of being alone in a strange place in this new world, depending on strangers for protection.
Zpoc Exception Series (Book 2): Re-Civilize (Elaine) Page 5