Liam got it. The Umbrella Corporation was the name of an evil company that built a plague in a series of zombie movies and games. But he couldn't quite get himself to laugh at the joke. For all he knew, there really was an evil corporation behind all this.
“So, you guys are scavenging nearby houses for food and stuff? How are people holding up?”
Liam realized he was hogging the conversation, but no one else seemed interested in talking right now. The tension and disappointment of the text message seemed to have taken the wind out of their sails.
“Yeah, we have to. There's no more food left in the valley. There have even been a few riots from hungry campers who thought other areas were hording food. Mr. Lee set up the foraging teams to try to keep everyone fed, but they aren't coming back with much. 'Cept maybe zombies.”
“Have you had any more attacks?”
“Lots, actually. Remember those two kids who died when we were carrying your grandma off that hill? They ended up in camp that same night you left, and did a lot of damage before they were put down. After that we had to get serious about security everywhere. No one has really slept well since then.”
They arrived at a dirt two-track path off the main road to their right, into the property owned by the Boy Scouts. Preston indicated that was the way they needed to go.
Liam's father was rolled carefully off the smooth road onto the dirt and the jostling seemed to cause him a lot of pain. He insisted they continue. He wanted it to be over with.
“This dirt road cuts north and south across the whole property on this side of the camp. Out here where there's nothing but trees...and zombies.” He laughed less excitedly this time. “You can avoid the main valley out here. That's why we moved our roadblock out past this road. We didn't want people sneaking in our back door.”
After many minutes of walking, Preston indicated they needed to take a smaller spur heading up a steep rise. He said it would take them directly to Endor, and that it wasn't far.
They had a lot of trouble with Jerry on the hill. It got very steep near the top. They had to walk up the wheelbarrow first, with three people pushing. Then the bicycle with all the guns. That took four people. Finally, Jerry. That took everyone.
When they reached the top, Liam recognized where he was. The three-story wooden tower where he and the other Scouts had fought and protected Grandma against an onslaught of the undead. It was not a pleasant memory then, or now. The boys had dragged scores of the dead into a big pile and burned them. The ash pile was nearby.
“Liam!”
Mr. Lee waved at them from the top. He was a tall middle-aged man with a short black beard, and wore the typical dress uniform of a Scout leader: tan short-sleeved shirt loaded with patches and awards, khaki short-pants, and hiking boots. He descended to meet them. Several nights ago Liam had left this camp with an agreement he would try to return with his family and friends, and with a little luck, with weapons. Liam stood proudly by the bicycle with more than a dozen long guns hanging off its frame. He had kept his part of the bargain.
Mr. Lee, upon seeing Liam and his caravan of goodies, offered only one statement.
“Well done, Scout.”
4
There was no time for pleasantries, and almost no time for proper introductions. After their initial small talk, Mr. Lee got right to business.
“Liam, your family is here in the nick of time. We have several problems happening all at once. Where do I begin?”
He seemed to think it over while he paced back and forth, focusing on the ground the whole time.
“OK, our main problem is food. Most of the boys are going out in foraging parties to bring back food from abandoned houses. We team them up with adults, but it's still very dangerous work for these boys, and the yields have been meager to say the least. A lot of people are still in those houses.”
Liam wasn't surprised. Everything he'd heard about this disaster indicated it had been taking place for weeks before the final collapse. That meant people were consuming food, supplies, and fuel during a time where those items were all getting scarce, but before most people realized those things were never coming back in stock. This was most acute in gasoline, which was how most people's cars ended up stranded on the highways. They left the house with whatever remained in their gas tanks—often it wasn't much.
“Close behind food is security. We aren't sure why, but more and more zombies are penetrating our defensive ring and making it into the camp. Needless to say, we're all on edge here. Your weapons will help us reach out to cover more area out here. In the meantime, we've started on a wooden fence but haven't made much progress.”
“Have you had any additional visits from the military?” Liam was responsible for bringing the military to their doorstep three days ago when he was here. He was holding his breath for the response.
“No, thankfully that's one problem we haven't had.” He seemed to consider that statement.
“Actually, scratch that. The military hasn't been back at our front gate, but it has been on the property. I was saving the job for a proper fighting team, but as I said things have been thin here. Do you guys want to help me bring back an MRAP?” He wore a devious smirk.
“Say what?” Melissa's ears perked up.
“Yeah, we found the vehicle stuck in the mud further along on the dirt road you just left. There's a marshy section toward the north boundary, and it looks like they were trying to get a convoy up that path when they ran into some soft ground.” He chuckled openly.
“But I need some adults with guns to go with me to help get it out of the mud and provide security from any...un-friendlies.”
Melissa jumped at the opportunity. “I'm all for getting it, but if it's stuck in the mud how are we going to get it out? Those things must weigh as much as a small tank.”
“That's what's so funny. It's down to the axles, that's for sure. But the thing is 6-wheel-drive. It's almost like they didn't try. They just left it there to rot.”
“Maybe they were off taking a leak and got overrun?”
“Or they left it there as a trap.”
Victoria hadn't been very talkative since she was out-voted in contacting Grandma.
“Victoria's right. Mr. Lee, you know we were being pursued the last time I was here, and this MRAP is probably the same one Hayes used when he came through here—actually now that I think about it, he did mention he lost an MRAP looking for the tracking beacon we took off Grandma. You put it on a deer didn't you?”
Mr. Lee smiled like the Cheshire Cat.
Liam smiled too at the thought of that small victory. Not only did it divert his attention while Liam escaped the camp with Grandma, but it helped deprive Hayes of his main offensive asset. If he'd had it when he showed up at Liam's house, things might have ended much differently.
“If Hayes had to leave his prized pony in the woods, I'd bet anything he left some nasty surprises for anyone who happens along. He's sneaky like that. He'd call it tending the details. Victoria's right. It will be trapped.”
She gave him a casual smile.
Well, it's something.
Melissa was undeterred. “I think we should check it out. Trap or no, having that vehicle would give us a tactical edge over any intruders. We have to think about our long-term survival. It's worth the risk.”
The group talked it through, and in the end only Victoria and Liam were against the risk of springing the trap.
Liam sensed the mood of the team; he pulled Victoria aside.
“I don't like this any more than you do, but I think we have to go to provide help for these guys. We can't split up now or we're going to die.”
“We could wait with your dad. Surely he isn't going?”
He hadn't considered that. Of course he wasn't going.
“No, I'm sure Mom won't go either now that you mention it.”
Victoria continued to look apprehensive.
Liam took a chance and grabbed her hands in front of him and looked
directly in her eyes.
“I'm sorry we overruled you about calling Grandma.”
She seemed to soften. “I'm sorry too. I'm so tired of all this death and destruction. I was hoping we would get to this camp and we'd have some time to rest before we went looking for trouble again. That's why I didn't want to call your Grandma at that exact time. I do want to rescue her. I do. And now we get here, and even before we see the camp itself we are already pursuing another dangerous goal. I'm scared, Liam. Scared of Hayes.”
He didn't blame her. She'd been shot by the man.
“Victoria, I'll back you up on this. I'll always have your back, even if we don't always agree on details of our planning and...stuff.” Not his best speech. “But you have to understand, I thought you were dead. Now that you're alive I feel I can conquer anything. No challenge scares me. I can face anything with you by my side.”
He felt her squeeze his hands. She pulled him in and gave him a hug. With everyone else around, he was kind of glad she didn't want to kiss him.
She spoke quietly, “Liam, I'll follow you anywhere. Just don't leave me alone. I kinda like having you around.” She gave him a burgeoning smile.
That was the old Victoria talking.
“Deal.”
They broke the hug, but as they stood there Liam found his own bravery and leaned in for a quick kiss. He was afraid of zombies, government agents, bombers, and breaking a leg—but he refused to fear his own girlfriend.
He ignored anyone who might be watching, and was very pleased to notice she met him half way.
It was decided. They were going for the MRAP.
5
It felt like a repeat of his last foray into these woods. He joined up with a team, this time without Grandma, and was out in the wilderness in no time. He traveled with what he considered the “A” team. Mr. Lee. Phil. Melissa. Bo. Himself and Victoria. Mom and Dad were back at Endor, tending to Dad's leg. He felt OK with that, knowing they were safe. The group also had several older Scouts and a couple of adults Liam learned were the dad's of those same kids.
Everyone had spears—there were plenty in the tower—and everyone had some kind of semi-automatic rifle along with extra mags and ammo. By agreement, Liam's dad shared his armory with Mr. Lee and the Scouts. The AK-47s found good homes with several of the men, though Liam kept two for he and Victoria.
The group also grabbed several of the dozen different backpacks in the tower. “We collected the things we thought we might need up here from the folks down in the valley. Nothing fancy mind you, but we always need packs when we head out for patrols so that was one thing people were willing to provide. Calls for food never resulted in donations.”
Liam knew the problem with this whole valley was food. They had plenty of fresh water thanks to an artesian well on the property, but the forest had little in the way of foodstuffs for so many people. Even the handful of deer culled from the nearby woods fed a few people out of thousands.
The Scouts were carrying two long wooden structures that looked like ladders. Mr. Lee explained they were going to drop them in the mud under the tires and use them as grips for the tires so they could back out. He said it was the best they could fashion given their supplies.
They were also pushing the wheelbarrow with some tools and equipment Mr. Lee had assembled from the cars in the valley.
“Anyway, enough about me. Who's your new girlfriend here? Didn't you lose...uhh.” He hesitated as if he'd just driven into the wrong neighborhood.
“Yeah, it's OK. I told you the military killed my girlfriend. This is her.” He let the paradox sink in for a few moments before he continued. “Well, actually I thought she was dead, but thankfully I was way wrong on that score. After I left here with Grandma and Drew we rode our bikes across the county until we reached my house. Hayes was holding Victoria as a hostage, then he blew away my house, and finally he took Grandma away in a helicopter.” He knew he was leaving a ton out of that story, but he didn't want to relive all the bad parts in the middle. One thing he did need to share: “Drew is dead.”
“Oh man. I'm so sorry. Did he have family here?”
“No, he was alone. That's why he went with me.”
Mr. Lee looked at Victoria, perhaps to change the subject. “Well, I'm glad you made it alive. Liam was distraught at your loss.”
She smiled and nodded. Evidently she didn't want to share any more of her story.
Mr. Lee took the hint and continued speaking to Liam as they walked. “In the few days you've been gone, the place has grown quite a bit, but fewer and fewer of the new people are Boy Scouts. It's caused problems with those who have been here from the beginning. I'm afraid we're in for rough times as food gets harder to find. Part of my desire to secure that MRAP is to have some security inside the wire if you get my meaning.”
They talked about trivial things for the remaining few minutes until they reached the stranded truck. It wasn't all that far from the watchtower, which was itself about a mile or so into the woods outside the main valley. Mr. Lee pulled them into a circle before they got too close.
“From where we are now the dirt road goes to the left and right of us. If we go straight down this hill the MRAP will be visible. Half of us are going to sweep around to the other side so we have eyes over there. We'll all stay behind the truck as it sits now, so if we need to shoot anything near it, we aren't firing across the road directly into each other. Always keep that in mind.”
Lee looked at Melissa and suggested she lead the team going across the road. She and Phil took off with Bo, and three or four of the Scouts. They took one of the ladders too. That left Mr. Lee, Victoria, and himself on this side, along with a contingent of two Scouts, plus their fathers.
They agreed to start moving toward the truck in twenty minutes, which went by quickly. Soon enough they descended the last small hill and could see the MRAP as promised.
It was a beast of a vehicle, designed to protect its occupants from being blown up by large explosions set beneath it. Liam recognized it from one of his books. This one had six big tires and was painted in the light and dark colors of the local woodlands, instead of the sandblasted tan common in the desert. The primary weapon was a high-powered Gatling gun on the roof. Liam saw what it could do to his own house. It would be an awesome weapon to control.
The rear doors hung open, as if they were flung wide in a hasty retreat. If this was a trap, it seemed a dumb thing to do. All six wheels were up to the axles in mud, but much of the mud pit had dried since it became trapped. Someone could easily walk up to the rear doors at least.
They studied the area for other people, or zombies, but the only movement was their own group in the woods across the road. They moved closer to the truck from their respective sides. Their weapons were hot, but were pointed down at the ground as they walked. In a few minutes they peeked into the back of the truck; there was no one inside.
Mr. Lee held them up about twenty yards from the open doors. He told everyone to hold where they were and fan out to keep an eye away from the truck. The real threat now was zombies sneaking up behind them as they focused on the extraction.
“Liam, I want you and Victoria to come with me.”
The three of them moved closer. At the same time, Phil and Mel were doing the same on the other side of the road. They met at the truck. Liam and Victoria climbed inside the open back door.
Once inside Liam couldn't help think it. “Wouldn't it be funny if this was an elaborate trap to capture the two of us?”
What if?
Victoria chuckled uneasily.
Liam recognized this as his MRAP. The very same one he had survived riding in for nearly a day. It had been abandoned in haste on his last ride when it was disabled at a roadblock by an unknown group of attackers. Hayes said they were looters, but he lied about everything.
Liam hunched his way into the front compartment. The security netting which had kept he and his elderly friends packed in the back was now pulled to one
side. He could freely access the driver's position. He plopped in the seat, while Victoria did the same on the passenger side.
“Where should we go?”
“Denver?”
“I hope your credit card still works. We're going to need a ton of gas!”
They both laughed at the thought. Liam kicked open his door slightly so he could talk to Mr. Lee now walking up the driver's side exterior, on the other side of the muddy section of the trail.
“How's it look down there?”
“The mud doesn't look that bad. I think they just didn't want to put in the effort to get it out. We should have no problem with the tools we brought. The ladders should help.”
Liam felt relieved. The whole operation was going surprisingly well.
He looked around the dashboard, wondering how to start the big vehicle. Surely Mel or Mr. Lee knew. He noticed the key was still in the ignition down and to his right. It also had a piece of paper attached to it. Someone had taken a sheet, folded it over several times, then skewered it with the key so it hung in place. The message was obvious: “Read this note!”
He motioned to Victoria, and invited her to open the note.
“Things are going so well. I just know that note is bad news.”
She looked at him like he was crazy, then grabbed the paper and began unfolding. Quickly she skimmed it.
“Dang it. Liam, you win the award for smelling bad news.”
6
“To whom it may concern. If you find this MRAP and can get it out of the mud feel free to take it for a spin. Just be aware we're coming to take it back. Thank you for your attention.—DH.”
“Douglas Hayes. It has to be.”
“PS. Please return with a full tank of diesel. That's all it says.”
Liam was crestfallen. “I wonder if anything has changed now that we killed most of his team and sent him running? You think he'll still have the resources to come get this thing?”
“I don't know. I think we have to assume he'll be back. We can't underestimate him,” she replied.
Mr. Lee stood outside the open back door.
Stop the Sirens: Sirens of the Zombie Apocalypse, Book 3 Page 6