by Perrin Briar
“Forgot what was in there?” Ernest said.
Jenny bent down to pick up the cards again. She pulled out the offending object. A water-damaged image of Jenny’s parents and herself with beaming happy smiles at the beach.
Jenny’s eyes were filled with tears. They cascaded down her cheeks. She had grown hard over the past year, but even she had not totally lost touch with herself. And for a moment Ernest saw the gawkish girl he knew from high school.
“I’m sorry,” Ernest said. “I should have checked the contents before I gave it to you.”
“No, you shouldn’t,” Jenny said. “You wouldn’t have removed the photo even if you had seen it. It’s just… like they’re not my parents anymore. Like they never existed. I’m not sure how I think. It’s like my old life was a dream and never really happened.”
“I know how that feels,” Ernest said.
“Yes,” Jenny said. “I supposed all you Flowers do. It’s what’s great about what we’re going through, isn’t it? The fact we’ve been through it together and now we’re in the same place, the same town. It unites us, links us in a way that no one else can ever be.”
“We’re lucky you have each other,” Ernest said.
Jenny smiled and grinned. It broke into a sad expression once again. She burst forward and wrapped her arms around Ernest, hugging him tight. Ernest smiled and returned the cuddle. It felt nice.
“We’d best be getting back,” Jenny said, straightening up and wiping the tears from her eyes. “They’ll be wondering where we got to.”
Yes, Ernest thought. Especially Fritz. That thought alone brought a smile to his lips.
Chapter Twenty-Four
SARAWAT and the warriors pulled the boats onto shore and up the beach, and then spread out, taking position before the jungle.
They couldn’t miss the weapons even if they wanted to. They lay on the ground, presented to them like a gift. The warriors shared a look, cautious. But they couldn’t leave the weapons where they were. They were too powerful in battle to leave them behind.
Sarawat approached them, keeping his eyes on the jungle foliage. The wind blew, but everything moved naturally. He picked up the gun, and felt the weight in his hands. He moved it around. It felt heavy, unwieldy and slow compared to his ax.
Then he pulled the trigger. The bullets thudded into the tree trunk, spitting woodchips. It was so easy. A man could control the world armed with this one machine alone. And yet he still gripped his ax in his hand. He looked at it, but couldn’t bring himself to let it go altogether. He tucked it into the loop at his waist.
Then he moved into the jungle. He’d keep an eye out while the other warriors picked up their own guns. Who had left them here for them, for what purpose, Sarawat didn’t know. He didn’t care.
Now, fully armed, they were ready. The white man was as good as dead.
Chapter Twenty-Five
JENNY, armed with a tray laden with food, headed into the stables behind Falcon’s Nest. Beside the sheep, pigs and chickens resided a dangerous animal. She was restrained, tied up, but she would be ready, Jenny knew, to seize upon any opportunity.
Captain Shih lay leaning against the wall, in what must have been an uncomfortable position. Apparently it was the only one she could find sleep. The smell wasn’t so bad. It was of hay, animals, and the vague essence of excrement. It was better than Shih deserved.
She was still asleep when Jenny put the tray of food on the floor, stood up, and turned to leave.
“Hello, pretty lady,” Captain Shih said. “You know, had I known about your sexual persuasion I could have helped make life aboard The Red Flag a lot easier on you. I’ve always found men to be vastly overestimated. It’s like they’re always have a pissing contest, always trying to see which of them has the longer penis. There is no space for ego in leadership. You do what you do because you have to. No hard feelings.”
“If I’d have told you I was a woman, you would have used it against me,” Jenny said. “Just as you use everything against everyone, for your own ends.”
Captain Shih shrugged.
“I make no apologies,” she said. “You’re smart, Jim. Or should I say, Jenny? I never should have underestimated you. It’s difficult to know when someone will be useful to me, others a hindrance, which is why I run the ship the way I do, so only the strong can rise to the top.”
“Only the ruthless can rise,” Jenny said. “I’ve seen what you and your plans create. You’re a monster.”
“We are what our world makes us,” Captain Shih said. “Take you, for example. You were an upright member of society before, I would guess. You were probably a straight A student, a little shy. The kind of kid every parent wants. And then the virus came, and it forced you to remould yourself into the person you are now. Strong, a fighter. You are someone I can work with. And you’re a woman—all the better, I find.”
Jenny had heard just about enough from Captain Shih. She had no intention of being here any longer than she needed.
“Your men will be here soon and you’ll be released,” Jenny said.
She turned to leave, but Captain Shih hadn’t finished with her yet.
“Set me free,” she said. “Come with me, and together we return to The Red Flag. You will take up your position as the first mate and keep track of all the weapons caches I have hidden on each of the islands. What do you say?”
“I say go to hell,” Jenny said.
“Doesn’t it ever bother you?” Captain Shih said. “The fact you’re the reason this family is in all this trouble? That they will end up dying, just for you? But there is a way out of here. It’s very simple.”
“If I let you go, you’ll leave the Flowers alone?” Jenny said.
“I will,” Captain Shih said. “If I don’t, you won’t tell me where my guns are. The family gets to live, and we’re all happy.”
“How can I trust your word?” Jenny said.
“Because I want what’s inside your head,” Captain Shih said. “I wouldn’t risk that just to get at this family.”
The pirates would be getting close. The natives too. And they would all be heading here, to the Flowers’ home. All because of her. She didn’t need to do this to them. They didn’t need to risk their lives for her. They were good, caring people, and she was going to be their doom. They had managed to survive this long, and now they were going to die because they had tried to shelter her, Jenny, from harm.
“If I get you out of here, now, will you promise to leave the Flowers alone?” Jenny said.
Captain Shih’s eyes latched onto Jenny’s. She pieced together what was happening.
“Of course,” she said. “They are of no concern to me. All I want is what’s in your head.”
“And you’ll leave them alone, forever,” Jenny said. “Neither you nor any of your crew or anyone else you can hire can go near them. Forever.”
“You have my word,” Captain Shih said. “On the condition that you return all my weapons caches to me. And you’ll write detailed maps with directions on how to find each one.”
“No,” Jenny said. “Once you have it all, how can I trust you not to come back here and exact your revenge upon the Flowers?”
“Half then,” Captain Shih said. “Tell me where half are, and we’ll dig the rest up over a longer period of time. As we dig, we’ll be burying others. I can’t say fairer than that.”
Jenny didn’t like this situation at all, but she didn’t have time to iron out the details. Soon, Shih’s crew and the natives would arrive. She needed to be out of there before then, so she could cut the crew off and present their captain to them.
“Fine,” Jenny said. “But I need one more favor.”
“Name it,” Captain Shih said.
“Some natives have returned to this island and will engage with your crew or anyone else they come upon,” Jenny said. “Will you destroy them?”
“I will,” Captain Shih said. “What are a few bows and arrows against a fully-arm
ed crew?”
“They have weapons now,” Jenny said. “The same as your crew.”
The captain’s eyes narrowed.
“And who armed them, I wonder?” she said.
“Can you do it or not?” Jenny said.
“We can,” Captain Shih said. “But it means we’ll need to get into position, ambush them before they get a chance to do the same to us. It will take time.”
“Fine,” Jenny said.
Captain Shih smiled.
“You made a good decision today,” she said. “Let’s try and reduce the bloodshed as much as we can.”
“No deal,” a voice from the door said.
It was Ernest, crossing the space toward the pen the captain and Jenny were standing in.
“I wondered when you were going to show up here,” Ernest said to Jenny.
“What are you doing here?” Jenny said.
“Preventing you from making a mistake,” Ernest said.
“You can’t stop me,” Jenny said. “I’m going to do this.”
“I don’t think you’ve thought this through,” Ernest said.
“I have,” Jenny said, gritting her teeth.
She hated it when people told her she was being stupid—especially when she was being stupid.
“No,” Ernest said. “You have thought about it, but now you’re making an impulsive emotional decision. Not a well thought-out logical decision. You are biased. You should be thinking about this from a third person perspective, an unemotional one. Like mine. I understand what you’re trying to do here, but you’re not thinking clearly. Do you honestly think Shih will do what she says to you? That she’ll keep her promises to you, to anyone?”
“I have to do something,” Jenny said. “I’ve brought the pirates down on you. And the natives. I’m sorry. I never wanted this.”
“Who does?” Ernest said. “But we’re here now. This is what we’re facing. What we have to do. We’ve been preparing for this.”
“We’re not ready,” Jenny said. “A thousand and one things could go wrong.”
“Or it could go right,” Ernest said. “But we have to try. You’re with us. Please. Come help us do what we need to do. We can’t do this without you.”
“You took me in,” Jenny said. “You gave me food, clothes, safety.”
“You can’t go back with her,” Ernest said. “We won’t let you.”
Jenny broke down into tears.
“I’m sorry,” she said. “I escaped, and they’re after me. Now I’ve put you all in danger. I’m sorry.”
“It’s all right,” Ernest said, wrapping his arms around her shoulders. “You don’t have to go back to him. We’ll make sure of that, won’t we, Fritz?”
“Yes,” Fritz said, stepping into the stables. Jenny hadn’t even noticed him standing there. “Yes, we will.”
“I have to go back to them,” Jenny said. “There’s no other choice.”
“They know you’re a girl now,” Ernest said. “What do you think they’re going to do to you if you go back now?”
“Better that than the alternative,” Jenny said. “I don’t want any of you to die because of me.”
“We decided to take you in,” Ernest said. “No one forced us.”
“I can’t be responsible for more innocent deaths,” Jenny said.
“You’re assuming we’re going to lose,” Ernest said. “You’re mistaking us for a helpless middle class family. We’re anything but. We stood against hundreds of zombies, using our wit and intelligence, we defeated them.”
“These aren’t zombies,” Jenny said. “They’re smart too. They won’t stop until they get what they want.”
“And we won’t stop until they’re gone,” Ernest said. “We have an advantage – we know this island better than anyone. We can defend ourselves.”
“I don’t want you to be harmed because of me,” Jenny said.
“We won’t,” Ernest said. “But if you go back with Shih we’ll have no choice but to come after you. That’ll be a lot more dangerous for us than staying and defending ourselves here.”
“I’m sorry I came to this island,” Jenny said.
“I’m not,” Ernest said. “None of us are. We’re glad to have you. You’re a part of our family now. And we protect each other.”
“You don’t understand,” Jenny said. “It’s my fault you’re all here. It’s my fault the fire started on the ferry. I was scared when one of those things came into my room. I threw everything we had at it—and as my Mom had packed everything except the kitchen sink, there was a lot of stuff. I started the fire. It was totally by accident, but it was my fault. I’m sorry. It’s my fault you’re all here.”
That gave Ernest pause for thought. Then he shook his head.
“It doesn’t matter,” he said. “It doesn’t make any difference. We are here now, and if you didn’t start the fire, someone else would have done, and we would still be here.”
“But all those people…” Jenny said. “I think about it sometimes, all the time, when I’m alone, and it’s my fault they all died like that.”
“The undead were on board already,” Ernest said. “They were going to murder us all anyway. Anyone with half a brain knows that. And no one would blame you. It wasn’t your fault. It was the virus that did this to us, not you, or anyone else. Understand?”
Jenny nodded, but said nothing.
“I don’t know if this will make any difference or not,” Ernest said. “But your father had already been bitten. He was going to turn anyway.”
“I know,” Jenny said. “I was there when it happened. My father’s clothes were rumpled, his shirt unbuttoned, long scratches where the latest woman he’d been with had tore at him. Even his flies were open. He had come home before, smelling like other women, but he always attempted to conceal what he’d done. My mother was never fooled. She always knew what kind of man he was. But he respected her enough to at least lie about it.
“He always had a big smile on his face. For a while he was bearable, the way a serial killer has to strike or he’ll explode. But that night, turning up the way he did, with a complete lack of care about how he looked, mother’s face twisted up in a mask of rage like I’ve never seen before. I suppose she thought father might change with us moving halfway round the world.
“She hit him! She just flew out and hit him with the kettle! There was a deep thud noise and a ting sound like tapping two ceramic cups together. Father put his hand to his head and his fingertips came away red with blood. I admit I was shocked, surprised – in a good way – that she’d finally confronted him.
“Then he fell forward and didn’t move. Mother dropped the kettle and covered her mouth with her hands. She fell to her knees and crawled to him, into the pool of blood spreading out from his head. She begged for him to get up, that she was sorry. But he didn’t move.”
Ernest wrapped his arms around Jenny’s shoulders.
“It’s a tragedy,” he said. “And I’m sorry it happened to you, but you don’t need to worry about that now. None of it matters. Nothing from the old world does. This is the world we’re in now, and we’re lucky to have you. I say that for all of us.”
“If I go now, none of you have to get hurt,” Jenny said.
“Come on,” Ernest said. “We have to take Shih to the meeting point. We’ve got a plan, and we’re sticking to it.”
“A plan doomed to failure,” Captain Shih said. “Lead the way.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
THE TREEHOUSES were just ahead, on either side of the clearing. Flint Nose leaned against the wall and peered around it. Family members were wandering round, moving between the various outbuildings.
Flint Nose gripped his rifle to his chest. Dare he shoot? Doing so could potentially risk the captain’s safety. But doing well could get the respect of the captain… No. He couldn’t take the risk. She might blow even if he did manage to pull it off.
“Form up,” Flint Nose said.
Th
e men formed a line on either side of Flint Nose, hidden behind the two erect walls.
There was a strange warbling sound, like a bird with something stuck in its throat. It was coming from the jungle. The men shared uneasy glances. Whatever it was, it was coming toward them. And then they saw it.
An undead.
It moved unlike any undead they had ever seen before. It moved fast, spinning left to right. It had strange large pink pads on its hands, feet, and bony protrusions.
The men opened fire. But it did no good. Bullets slammed into its flailing body, but did not stop it, only knocking it slightly off course. And then, once it reached the pirates, and the limbs made contact with it victims, a thick cloud of purple-pink powder billowed.
After a couple of deep inhales, the pirates began to drop, falling unconscious. They were panicked, taking deep gulps. The pirates continued firing, their backs against the walls.
There was a squeaking noise, loud even over the sporadic firing. Flint Nose looked up to see a series of bowls perched on the walls. It was the last thing he ever did see, as the bowls tilted over and something hot and sticky burned into his eyeballs.
He screamed. He wasn’t the only one.
Chapter Twenty-Seven
THE REFUSAL to join forces from the scumbag Captain Shih did not sit well with the Overlord In Black.
Sure, he planned on turning on the captain the moment he was strong enough, but that didn’t mean he liked for his plans, obvious though they were, to be thrown in his face.
A skeleton crew had been left behind aboard The Red Flag, an opportunity begging to be exploited, should the opportunity arise.
Right now, the captain’s men were battling a Spinner behind a pair of walls. The Overlord In Black knew what was going to happen. He’d seen the plans for the walls. He smiled to himself, knowing how the Overlord In Black could have avoided this attack had he only heeded him.
The Overlord In Black kept his troops, what few he had left, on the fringes of the clearing that housed the Flowers’ home. Something was happening and they were up to something, but what? He wasn’t sure. He had been watching them for the past few hours, always keeping back, watching from a safe distance, and not attacking.