“So that sign said Route 299. Any idea where we are?” questioned Rose.
“Well I’m not sure where on 299 we are, but this is it right here,” Aaron said, pointing to a long road line on the map in the extreme upper right hand corner of a map of Maine. The road was in a very undetailed portion of the map, likely included as an afterthought as the focus of the map was the State, not northern Quebec. “This highway goes right up into the center of the Park.”
Rose wasn’t thrilled to be on a highway that led right to where she thought her sanctuary might be, but there was nothing she could do about that. She’d found these cabins online so she probably should have assumed they’d be relatively easy to get to. “Alright, I think we’re heading north,” said Rose, turning the key in the ignition and starting up the truck. “This is a main road so keep your eyes peeled. There could be other people out here, infected or otherwise so we need to be careful.”
“Are you sure this is north?” said Adeline looking over Aaron’s shoulder. “If we go all the way south on this highway, it will take us toward the coast and there are several cities down that way. Some as big as Paimpol.”
“Then we need to be extra careful. Everyone keep an eye on our surroundings and if it seems like we’re headed toward the coast, then we will turn around,” said Rose.
“Shadow Tip!” said Aaron suddenly. Rose and Adeline both looked at him, confused.
“I forgot about the Shadow Tip method,” said Aaron.
Rose and Adeline were both confused so Aaron continued, “It’s a way to find north if you’re lost without a compass. I’ll show you,” said Aaron, jumping out of the truck.
Turning off the truck again, Rose and Adeline exited and followed Aaron to the side of the road. He’d gathered two sticks and had jammed one into the ground. “Alright we just need to wait ten minutes so the shadow the stick casts moves, then we can figure out north.”
As they waited, Rose returned to the truck to get Adeline’s shotgun incase they needed it. Stopped by the side of a main road, they were sitting ducks. Rose grabbed the shotgun and looked back over to Aaron and Adeline. They both had their backs to Rose. They were holding hands, fingers intertwined and Adeline had her head resting on Aaron’s shoulder as they looked down at the stick and its shadow. Rose was happy for them, she truly was. Aaron and Adeline had known each other for a long time but it had taken tragedy and loss for them to discover the feelings they had for one another. Rose missed that and wondered to herself if she’d ever find love again. She’d never forget Kate, the love of her life, but that time was feeling more and more like a previous life. Was she now destined to die alone? Perpetually the third wheel? An argument for another time she supposed, they were closer than they’d ever been to a safe place but they still had to get there first. Rose could worry about her future once she was sure she was going to have one.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
It had taken Aaron a little while to get enough movement in the sticks’ shadow since it was an overcast day, but eventually he announced that Rose’s left turn had been accurate and they were headed north. They piled into the Humvee and resumed their journey north toward the park. Highway 299 would be scenic under any other circumstances, but they were constantly on guard for anyone waiting to take them by surprise or groups of infected to come at them. They passed a few abandoned cars early on their trek up the highway, but not once did they encounter any people.
They’d been driving for about an hour and it was getting into the afternoon when a sign on the road announced they were entering the Parc National De La Gaspesie. Rose could see Adeline and Aaron visibly relax as if crossing into the park was like crossing a finish line. Rose wasn’t so sure and knew that finding the park was only one part, they still had to find a place to stay.
Being a park, there were lots of helpful signs to guide tourists to the locations of cabins in the woods and other amenities. Unfortunately, that meant that anyone could follow these directions. As a precaution, whenever they found a sign directing them closer and closer to the cabins, they pulled over and took turns smashing the signs off their posts with a tire iron before gathering up the pieces and continuing along. Rose knew that maps still existed somewhere, but this made finding the cabins that much harder. They traveled along Route 299 through the park for about ten minutes before approaching signs for the Gite Du Mont-Albert Hotel. “There is a hotel in this park?” asked Rose turning to the back seat, suddenly panicked.
“I thought you knew that,” said Aaron, surprised.
“That place could be filled with people!” said Rose, now getting angry. “We need to get away from people not move in next door!”
“They aren’t open all year long, I think. They may have been closed when this all started or maybe never opened? I’m sorry, I thought you knew they had a hotel,” said Aaron sheepishly.
“Any other surprises in this park? A hospital maybe? Oh, maybe an airport too?” asked Rose sarcastically. “Shit,” she muttered to herself. They were going to have to clear an entire hotel themselves that has a possibility of being filled with infected people. Rose had cleared buildings found to have open doors many times when she worked in Green Forks, but she’d done that with other police officers and if someone was inside, they typically didn’t carry an infectious disease that just wiped out the human race. Rose wasn’t looking forward to this.
Rose drove as close to the entrance to the hotel as she dared before pulling over and turning off the Humvee. Rose patted her hips making sure both her handguns were still there. Adeline grabbed her shotgun and Aaron his machete and they headed out to clear the hotel. Gite Du Mont-Albert was a typical ski resort/chalet type building in the shape of a big U with several floors, a large triangular glass atrium on one side of the U and a swimming pool in the center courtyard. At first glance, the hotel appeared to be abandoned aside from a broken-down looking old green truck parked in a far corner of the lot, but Rose wasn’t going to be fooled again. As far as she was concerned, this place was packed to bursting with infected and she would continue in that mindset until proven otherwise. The last thing she needed was to lose Aaron or Adeline after coming this far.
Rose quickly checked the truck in the parking lot and found it empty and locked. Moving to the hotel, Rose could see the front of the hotel had the typical buildup of leaves indicative of no one being around for some time. Coming up near the front doors, Rose quickly looked around and found every window she could see to be closed as well as every door. There was a sign on the main door that said “Closed for the Season - Will Reopen December 1st” in English and French. Rose was still not convinced but was now feeling a little more confident. The prospect of clearing an entire hotel was a daunting one and she wanted to avoid making any mistakes if she could.
Checking the main door to the hotel, she found it to be locked. Unholstering her handgun, Rose prepared to smash the window like she’d done previously. Just as Rose was about to start, Adeline spoke up.
“Do we really need to do this?” she asked.
Rose stopped inches from the glass and then lowered the gun. “What do you mean?”
“Do we need to go through this place? It looks huge,” said Adeline looking out toward the courtyard.
“This place could be filled with infected,” said Rose.
“She has a point,” said Aaron to Rose. “If all the doors and windows are still locked, why can’t we just leave whatever may or may not be in there, in there.”
Rose considered this. They did have a good point. If there was no way out and no one had smashed through a window yet, they probably weren’t going to.
“Alright,” said Rose, holstering her gun. “We’ll check all the windows and doors. If they’re all locked and not broken, we’ll move on.” Rose wasn’t too keen on searching the whole hotel anyway so this seemed like a good compromise.
Adeline and Aaron went around one side of the building and Rose went the other way to check the building faster. As Ros
e moved along the building she checked every window and door handle she could find. Every one she checked appeared to be locked. Rose looked into the windows of the rooms she could see into and all the rooms appeared dark. This was no surprise as there didn't appear to be any power coming to the hotel anymore. The hotel rooms near the pool all were empty and there were no sheets on the beds. The rooms appeared to have been stripped when the hotel closed for the season. With every window she looked in, Rose expected there to be the face of a snarling infected waiting for her, ready to bust out and attack her, but each time it was just another empty room. Room after room, door after door, all Rose found were empty rooms and locked doors. As Rose neared the middle of the back side of the hotel, she could see Adeline and Aaron up ahead. Their arrival at about the same time as her meant they probably didn't find anything open either.
“Find anything?” asked Aaron as Rose was reunited with them.
“Nothing, all locked,” said Rose.
Rose turned her attention to a large shed at the rear of the building. The shed had a set of front steps and a door that was facing them and a garage door on one side of the building. “I suppose we should check that building as well,” pointing to the shed.
Rose, Aaron and Adeline walked over to the shed and Rose climbed the steps to check the front door. The door was locked. Rose looked through the window of the door and saw that the building was for storage. She could see racks of bedding, blankets, pillows and other items for guest rooms in the hotel. Aaron and Adeline had already moved over to the side of the shed to check the garage door while Rose had been checking the front. As Rose moved back down the steps, she could hear the groan and scream of metal on metal as the garage door was lifted up, apparently unlocked. As Rose rounded the corner she heard both Adeline and Aaron yell out in panic at the same time the garage door slammed into its open position.
Rose almost tripped as she sprinted rounding the building’s corner to cover the distance between her and her companions, drawing her handguns at the same time. By the time Rose reached them, Aaron was bent over from laughter and Adeline was angrily punching him in his arm barely able to contain her own laughter. Confused, Rose stopped short and lowered her guns.
“What is it? What is so funny?” asked Rose quickly.
Neither answered and continued to laugh, Aaron just pointed inside the shed. Moving next to the two of them, Rose got a better look inside the shed. In the middle of the doorway facing out was a giant stuffed black bear standing on its hind legs, front paws extended out and mouth open in a silent roar. Rose couldn’t help but join in the laughter. Rose wasn’t sure if she’d been the one who’d opened the door, if she’d have been able to resist shooting the bear.
It felt good to laugh. It’d been a long time and they’d endured so much loss. The laughter felt therapeutic and probably lasted much longer than any of them had expected for exactly that reason. There had been so few opportunities to truly laugh, Rose wanted to squeeze every last ounce of enjoyment out of it.
Once the laughter had subsided and the bear had been pushed aside, they set to work gathering bedding that they might need in the future. Rose also found some cross country skis and boots that could come in handy once the winter came as well as travel bags of toiletries they piled into an empty pillow cases. Once fully loaded with supplies, they made their way back to the Humvee. Stocked up and moving away from the hotel on Route 299, Rose once again found herself glad she had her companions with her. If it’d just been her alone, she probably would still be searching that hotel and who knows what she might have found in there. Now they had pillows and blankets to help them through the looming winter. All that was left to find was that most important last piece: shelter.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As they approached a new section of the park, they turned off the main road and began down a smaller back road. They’d been informed by other signs that they were on the right track to the cluster of cabins ahead. After stopping and dispatching each of the signs, Rose could eventually see the entrance to a long driveway, hopefully for the cabins. “We’re going to want to scout these cabins before we drive up to them. We have no idea what’s there,” said Rose as she parked nearby.
Rose received no argument and they exited the truck. It’d gotten much cooler since they’d been in Sainte-Marguerite-Marie. It was starting to darken as the evening was approaching and a light snow was starting to fall from the sky. It wasn’t sticking to the ground, but it was making everything wet. Keeping their weapons under green rain jackets taken from the hotel shed, the three set off down the driveway leading to the cabins. Rose couldn’t see anything from the driveway but trees and forest as they snaked their way through the woods. This was good because it meant that if anyone was looking out for them, they wouldn’t be able to see the Humvee on the road. Their trek down the driveway was a slow and cautious one. Rose could see that this road had been driven on by tire tracks that were present, but they were likely at least a week or two old, if not longer. She wasn’t sure if the tracks were going in or out, but there appeared to only be one set of them in the mud and dirt.
They pressed on for some time but still had no sign of any of the cabins. Rose was starting to question whether this was just another road that led to another part of the park. But as they came around a bend and over the tops of some trees, Rose thought she caught a glimpse of smoke. People. If there was smoke coming from a cabin, that could be the only reason why.
Rose signaled for all of them to stop immediately. They’d walked about a quarter mile down the road from the entrance. Thoroughly scanning the area, Rose could still not see the cabins or any movement in the woods so she signaled for them to slowly move forward again. Moving very carefully, they came around a bend in the driveway. The woods opened up slightly and the road became wider. In the distance through the trees, Rose could now see the outline several cabins. She looked back at Aaron and Adeline and both silently signaled they saw the cabins as well. Rose moved in close to the two of them. “I’m going to move in for a closer look,” she whispered softly. “You two wait here and keep an eye out for any movement.”
“Okay, but I’m going to move up with you slightly so I can get a better view. Adeline can stay here and watch the rear,” said Aaron turning to Adeline. “That okay? I won’t be far away.”
Adeline looked less than happy she that was being left alone but agreed nonetheless, “Yeah, I can do that,” she said softly.
Rose and Aaron moved toward the closest cabin very slowly and very quietly. About half way to the cabins, Aaron stopped and laid down in the brush, very carefully pulling out a pair of binoculars. Once he was set, he gave Rose a thumbs up and she continued forward. The snow was making everything wet and cold but helped to muffle Rose’s steps as she slowly crept in. As Rose got closer, she could see there was a line of four cabins along a ridge and beyond that, Rose could hear the rushing water of a stream or river. The two closest cabins appeared to be slightly smaller than the far two and appeared to only be one level while the larger two had two levels. All four cabins were sided with wooden shingles and topped with grey slate roofs. They had green shutters on each side of every window which appeared to be more decorative then functional. The road leading to the cluster formed a cul-de-sac with the four cottages on one side of the circle. Off in the distance, there appeared to be another large building, possibly another cottage or house but it was too far away for Rose to be sure. Rose focused her attention on the building that had smoke coming from its chimney. Of the four cottages, it was the third in line away from her, the closer of the two larger cottages.
Rose continued to creep forward, straining her ears for any sounds, her eyes scanning for any movement ahead of them. She could see the back and side of the cottage, there appeared to be some sort of porch on the front that faced the river, but Rose’s view was blocked. Not wanting to get any closer, Rose leaned against a nearby tree while squatting down and observed. There were several windows on
the back of the house but Rose couldn't see any movement in any of them. As time dragged on, Rose wondered if maybe the resident or residents were sleeping or doing something else inside that wouldn’t bring them out. The weather wasn’t exactly ideal and Rose conceded she’d have prefered to have been inside by a fire right now instead of out in the freezing snow. It was now more dark than light and their chances of observing whoever was in the house were fading quickly. After a few more minutes of scouting, Rose decided to call off the operation for the night. She pushed herself off the tree she’d been leaning on and slowly made her way back to Aaron. “See anything?” she asked.
“I saw a little movement in the house while you were making your way up there but nothing since you stopped moving,” said Aaron. “It’s too dark now, I can’t see anything.”
“Yeah, me neither. Storming the house now would be bad, I think. We have no idea how many people are in there,” said Rose.
“Good point,” said Aaron, shrugging. He didn't appear to be very interested in spending much more time laying in the cold, wet, and increasingly dark woods.
“Alright, let’s head back,” said Rose.
Slowly, both Rose and Aaron made their way back and collected Adeline before heading back to the Humvee. Adeline was cold and wet but no worse for wear. The darkness was pitch black by the time they reached the road. All three were shivering and glad to be back in the shelter of the Humvee. They changed clothes and cranked the heat as they drove away. Agreeing that they didn’t want to spend the night right at the end of the road for the cottages, they decided that the best place to spend the night in the truck would be at the hotel. Rose had to slowly navigate through the woods as she didn’t want to turn her headlights on but once they were far enough away, they figured it was safe. The drive back to the hotel went quickly after that, and Rose decided to park behind the shed at the backside of the hotel to be as hidden as possible.
Break Away (Jordan Rose Duology Book 1) Page 23