Humanity Gone: After the Plague

by Derek Deremer

  “A few months back we gave refuge to this whole school bus full of girls – some gymnastics team at a national competition when the virus struck. They were headed to that damn UN place all you travelers talk about, but they were about out of gas and starving to death.” Saul's eyes move between us, his voice peppered with madness. His grin grows and more blood bubbles between his words. “We gave them everything. We kept them alive. And what the hell did we get in return? Nothing. After a week, they smiled and waved and left. I was sick of being taken advantage of by damn women my entire life. We managed to make this perfect society without a single woman. We only knew one good use for them. So we swore to ourselves that the next group we helped we would take our thank you anyway we damn well pleased.” His bleeding grin returned after this statement. He’s an animal. “We've had that girl back there for three weeks. Too bad her cousins didn't make it that long.”

  Carter's rage built up beyond his control and again he was on top of Saul, punching him over and over. After a few moments, I gather myself and pull Carter off of him. Saul spits up more blood. His grin is gone.

  “What did you want with us?” Carter snarls at him.

  “My boys are to give the 'Sanctuary story' to any one who passes by with a girl who we think may be worth our while. Imagine my boy's surprise when you rolled up with three. Some terrible tragedy would have befallen you two in the next few days and then... well you know.” Carter back handed him across the face. Saul's eye is swelling shut.

  “Carter we have to get moving. They could already be looking for us in the darkness. I don't want to be in a fight.” Carter looks like he has calmed down. I start to walk away. We need to get out of here-get back to the girls.

  “Just one more thing, Jon.” Carter pulls back the hammer on his gun and points it at Saul's head. Even that warped confidence is gone from Saul's face as the silver steel presses again his forehead. Carter looks to me; I nod. Never before had I wanted someone to die so badly. I stare at the back of Saul's head waiting for the bullet to come through.

  Then I hear Sara's voice from behind us.

  “You guys are safe! Come on the car is out front. Jocelyn saw you guys come back here and pulled up. Let's get... Carter what are you doing?” She must have finally seen Saul before us. I quickly turn and bend down and tell her to leave, but her eyes are already filled with horror. “What are you two doing?” A tear is forming in her eye.

  Carter's hand shakes with the gun, and he brings it down. He has always been tough, but he isn't an executioner. I am, but Saul is broken and harmless to us at this point, anyway.

  “You're not worth it.” Carter says, spitting at Saul’s feet. He puts the gun away in his belt and picks up Sara before walking to the car. Sara stares at me over his shoulder all the way around the house. I am left with Saul.

  “She saved your life.” I turn and start to follow them.

  “Sorry it ended like this Johnny, I was really looking forward to getting to know that sister of yours.” Saul is up on his knees when I turn around. My hand brings my revolver back to his head. My finger tightens on the trigger. With Darry, part of me wanted to do it. Now, all of me wants to do it. What’s more, I know I can.

  No. I exhale, rather frustrated. Not with the girls right next door. The little humanity I have left holds back my finger.

  I flip the weapon in my hand and whip the pistol as hard as I can into the side of his head. One of Saul's bloodied front teeth flies against the brick wall. He drops. I leave him.

  I walk around the house and see the SUV in front. The twins are in the backseat and Jo is behind the wheel. She looks anxious. Carter shuts the door to the backseat and walks toward me on the front lawn.

  “Jon I'm sorry. I know that didn't go well and...” My fingers form a fist, but I don't use it.

  “Carter, I want you out of here. You put all three of them in danger and you knew we couldn't just leave you. You knew Jo would never allow that,” I whisper into his ear. “I want you to tell the girls that you will be leaving us at the next stop. That you just wanted to get us this far and have other things to tend to and will meet up with us later.”

  “Jon I think you are overreacting...”

  “No Carter, you are leaving.” He looks at me defeated. I almost feel bad. “I don't know what the rest of this road will bring us but I can handle it without you. I don't need a hero, just someone who will put those three above everything else.”

  “Jon, we are almost to the UN center.”

  “I don't care if we are fifteen minutes away. I want you out. This incident just shows that anything can still happen. We last track of what the world turned into while we were in the cabin.”

  “Fine.” Carter’s emotion surprisingly vanishes and he responds coldly. “I'll find my own way.”

  The girls want to know what happened and Carter manages an abridged version of the events. When it comes to the girl he tried to save, he tells them that she went her own way. I think the twins buy it. The two of us don't share any words until we find some abandoned cars.

  As we siphon for gas, Carter explains that he must leave. I don't even completely understand the story he makes up. The twins get a little upset. Sara cries. Jo handles it just as poorly, and glares at me. She knows why this is happening, and no matter what words she uses, Carter continues to do what I ask. Jo puts up a fight, but after a half hour Carter is finally gone.

  Jo is going to hate me for a while. It's best for us.

  In another time, I would have given my life for that girl, her fallen body flashes again in front of me. Now though, it's different. We can't save everyone and it's dangerous to be around someone that thinks we can.

  I will sacrifice anyone and kill anyone who endangers these three.

  Chapter 29: Caitlyn

  I pretend not to know what is going on. If Jon and Jo knew that I’m aware of all of it, they might try to talk to me about it or something. I don't need that. I'm not a stupid child. I understand.

  I know what those boys were doing to girls back there in the Sanctuary. It doesn't take a genius to put together the words I overheard when Carter explained it to them in the bathroom.

  I know Carter left because he didn't listen to Jon and put us all in danger. His “searching for a friend” excuse may have fooled Sara, but that was it. I will keep playing along.

  Carter headed off in some hot-wired blue car at the gas station. I think I will miss him. He gave us a strength I will miss. His car flew into the distance while we all loaded back into the SUV. Sara's and Jo's eyes are still red from their tears. I just shut the door and stare out the window. Jon gets in the driver's side and we return to our goal – getting to the UN center. We have around a half a day ahead of us according to him.

  We drive along and pass the outpost where the Sanctuary boy first waved us down. Several flipped over cars in front of a house make a pretty good station. I think I would do a few things differently. The hill on the other side of the road really makes it hard for them to see if anyone is coming up. I could even sneak up that hill. I press my forehead against the glass and peer down the slope as Jon guides us around the now abandoned station. Below are more houses and streets. It reminds me of where Sara and I once lived. I look over to Sara and give her a smile. She struggles to give one back and continues to pick at the bottom of her blue shirt.

  We drive for hours until the sun beams straight down.

  “We have maybe two hours of travel left. Let’s stop for a few minutes to stretch,” suggests Jon. The rest area is tucked away among the trees and looks vacant. He needs to stop for a few. I would keep driving. That's probably what Carter did. The SUV pulls along the side of the road and Jon and Jo immediately get out. They didn't share a single word the entire trip. They both fade into some nearby trees and I make out the shouts of their argument. Usually I try to listen, but I know what it’s about. Who wouldn't? I climb out of the back seat and walk over to a picnic table. Some names are carved into the wood, a
long with some hearts and a few random designs. I run my fingers along one of the cuts. When were these markings made and how different of a world was it then?

  “What are they yelling about?” Sara comes up to me and asks. She sits on the bench and holds her hands in front of her.

  “I'm not sure,” I lie. “They are probably just upset that Carter didn't tell us that he was planning on leaving us so suddenly.”

  “I can't believe he did that to us.” Sara looks sad and she tilts her head down. I sit closer to her, our shoulders touching. “I mean, we don't have much farther, right?”

  “No. We don't. This will be over soon. Carter will meet up with us later. Why don't you go lie down in back and try to sleep?” She nods and disappears into the car.

  I look down the road. The shadows of the trees stretch across it, leaving the whole highway in shade. I pull my pen knife from my pocket and begin sharpening a nearby stick to take up my time. The shavings form into a pile on top of the picnic table. I have it notched into a pretty sharp stake when Jo walks out from the woods; Jon comes out several paces behind her. He stops at the SUV and leans against the hood. Jo keeps walking a ways down the road and sits on the guardrail. I throw the stick back onto the grass and join her.

  “You okay?” I ask.

  “Yea. I will be glad when this world is behind us.” She answers. I don’t agree. Jon turns to us from the car just a few dozen feet away.

  “We had better get going,” he yells to us.

  “Give me a few more minutes before I wanna be next you again,” she yells. She gets up and starts to walk along a path that leads into the forest.

  “Where you going?” I question.

  “I can see a stream down there. I’m gonna splash my face with some water and then we can get going.” She starts to head into the woods. I sit at the base of a tree and watch her slowly escape my view. A few birds land in the grass a few feet away, and they peck into the grass. One stares at me and then up into the sky. My eyes look up too and squint when they meet the sun’s rays. Closing my eyes, I breathe in the air.

  Being out here feels right. It feels like home.

  Between everything I learned from Jon and Carter, I could survive out here. It would not be hard at all. I would be away from all of this…this nonsense. Sara isn’t cut out for this though. She needs to be somewhere safe first; then we will see.

  The birds suddenly fly away. It startles me for a second, and one even seems to catch my hair as it flies by. Looking down into the path, I can make out the stream but Jo is nowhere in sight.

  “Jo?” I say rising to my feet and beginning to walk down the path. “Jo? Jocelyn?” I accelerate to a run, and soon my feet touch the side of the creek. She is nowhere to be seen. “Jo?” I get louder, cupping my hands around my mouth.

  Where did she run off to? Why are girls so hysterical?

  I follow the creek around the bend. Then I see her.

  Well, I see them.

  Three of the Sanctuary boys are quickly walking to the back of a car. The one in the middle has her slung over his shoulder. Instantly, I duck behind a bush and watch as they throw her into a trunk. All of them get into the car except one. His gaze peers around.

  Saul.

  He is soon back in the car and it takes off along the dusty trail. I want to run back to Jon, but I hesitate. I freeze. Fear grips me. That monster, Saul: he… he scares me. My left hand shakes. What Carter said they – he – did… I imagine Jo. I imagine Sara.

  I imagine me.

  A few seconds pass, but it feel like minutes, and I sprint back to the campsite. My legs take me as fast as they possibly can up the dirt trail. My toes catch a root and I fall.

  Jon and Sara hear me stumble. Both of them can already tell something is wrong and they meet me halfway.

  No one will scare me like that again.

  Chapter 30: Jocelyn

  My head smacks into something metal and my eyes shoot open. I see a few moments of light, a blurry face, and then the trunk slams shut. My screams are muffled by the metal and the roar of an engine as it comes to life. The car seems to take off down the road as I bounce around the trunk. My hands struggle to find a latch of some sort, but they are bound by some rope and I am face down against the carpet. I am trapped.

  Wait, I am trapped. They’ve captured me. I remember now; I was hit on the head when I was at the creek. I start to scream louder and louder. My feet pound into the steel, the backseat, anything. It takes a few moments but I calm down. The abrasive carpet hurts my face and the kicking isn't helping. The Sanctuary's boys weren’t hard to identify with their navy blue coats. I hope they didn't get anyone else.

  Walking away from Jon was a mistake. Sara wasn't far. I hope she hid. My wrists rub back and forth, trying to undo the rope. I soon give up and try to lower my pulse. They have me and there is nothing I can do about it right now.

  I think several hours pass as I bounce around, keeping claustrophobia at bay.

  Suddenly, daylight pours into the trunk. As my eyes focus I see a few of the boys who once greeted us into the Sanctuary. Their expressions are now much different. They grab me by my shoulders. We are at the outpost where we first met them. They drag me past the turned over cars and into the house. Boys with rifles follow the ones dragging me. I would struggle, but even if I could break free it would still be worthless. My feet drag across the threshold of the front door and they slam me into a chair. I soon find my bonds attached to the back of it. Surprisingly, they leave me alone.

  The ropes hold my hands together and the bandanna in my mouth restricts the scream that is trying to escape my throat. I cough. I try to shake lose. Worthless. Accepting defeat is not always that easy. I look down at my clothes. They are covered in dirt, probably like my face and the rest of me. We were so close to the relocation center.

  If Jon wouldn't have flipped out on Carter this wouldn't have…

  The door to the room swings open and Saul is standing there. A pistol is holstered to his hip and he seems dressed in new, clean clothes. He gives me a smile. There's a hole where one of his front teeth had been. He probably has Jon or Carter to thank for that. Probably Carter. Jon doesn't have the strength to really hurt anyone.

  “Surprised we managed to find you so quickly?” He says. I grunt through the gag in my mouth. I don't care. I need to get out of here. “My boys had been tracking you since the second you left our little home. Jon was pretty naive to think he could get away so cleanly from us. Within an hour of you all leaving me I was packed up in a car and blazing down the road to get a little payback.”

  He pulls another chair away from the wall, flips it around, and sits down on it, leaning forward against its back.

  “I was a little worried we would never catch up to you. But then there you were, sitting along the side of the road. You made it easy when you decided to wander down a little further. Too bad that little one didn't come with you. We would have liked to have her, too.”

  With all my strength I try to pull my hands loose from the back of the chair. I yell through the gag. The rope does not give way. I collapse back into the chair. Saul moves closer. He licks his upper lip and looks me over.

  “Man was I pissed when I thought I lost you, but now that I have you back, I can take what is mine.” His hands go down my body. My feet struggle to free themselves, but they are also lashed together. Struggling against the rope seems pointless, but I keep trying. This can't happen. He steps back.

  “I imagine that coward of a brother and your boyfriend will be here soon. Guessing their type they will be here within the hour without a plan or preparation. When we are finished here I will pull you up against a window and maybe you will be lucky enough to watch them die.” He puts his hands on his hips confidently. I shut my eyes for a second. He is right. Jon will come in here raising hell the best he can. He'll be determined, but he won't get far. And Carter. Carter is probably already enjoying it at the UN station, sitting back and waiting for us to roll up and h
oping Jon will have calmed down.

  Saul leans in close. He presses his lips against mine. I bite as hard as I can into the bandana and try to turn away. He grabs the sides of my head and forces me toward his. I struggle. He punches the side of my head. The force knocks me and the chair to the ground. My head slams into the hardwood floor. I taste blood.

  With my head against the floor, I look up. I try to struggle, but the rope is still tight. His hand moves along his gun holster. I imagine the girl Carter tried to save at the compound. That would be me soon. I feel a tear stream down my eye.

  BANG.

  A gun shot. Then, another one.

  Saul stands upright alarmed. “Boys, what the hell is going on?” He looks down at me. “Well that was sooner than I expected.”

  He grabs me and with alarming strength, pulls both me and the chair upright.

  “You hold tight for one second.”

  Please Jon. Don't kill yourself.

  Chapter 31: Sara

  I have never seen Jon look like this. He almost scares me as he tells us to get in the car.

  “Jon we will get her back.” I say.

  “They took her. Those...” he swears a lot, but I understand. I guess they followed us all the way out here. They must have been pretty mad at Jon. I never was completely clear why we had to leave, but Jo pretty much got the point across to Caitlyn and me. Those men were bad people, and we had to run away from them.

  Houses fly past us as our car goes down the road. Caitlyn speaks up, “Jon, what are you going to do?”

  “They are going to stop at their outpost house, I am sure of it. They know I'm coming and don't want to take a chance of ruining their damn Sanctuary. This road will take us to the neighborhood right beneath that house. I can probably sneak up the hill and take her back.” Before we left the park, he pulled out one of Carter’s maps and figured out our path. The flash of anger goes across his eyes again. I don't like this Jon.

  I answer him. “I wish Carter was here.” He looks at me. He sees my face and his anger seems to fade. I think he saw that he needed to calm down.