by T A Williams
He was still amazed at what New Hope had turned into. What had once been a group of old people had turned into a town full of young and old. Children ran about, dogs and cats were mixed in and the smells of livestock filled the air. Alec was certain he had been introduced to everyone but most of their names escaped him. The once-familiar place which had seemed so unfamiliar when he first arrived was beginning to feel like home again.
Trevor and Margie came walking out of the small building they had created to have their Council meetings and approached him. They had asked him to rejoin the council and he had asked for more time to rest. He had never enjoyed the long, boring meetings before but he understood their importance. Without their careful planning most of the things he was amazed by probably wouldn’t have happened.
“Out and about again I see,” Margie said with a large grin on her face.
“Just pushing my limits.”
Trevor stopped beside him and gave him a gentle slap on the shoulder.
“Anything important?” Alec asked.
“You’d know if you were willing to rejoin the Council,” Margie said, raising an eyebrow.
“Give him time,” Trevor said quickly. “A few maintenance items but we did talk about more trading with our partner in Columbia.”
Trevor had talked with him about the comings and goings of their settlement on multiple occasions and he had mentioned they had begun trading their excess food to someone in Columbia, but Alec had never asked too many questions. He knew they had traded once before and had gotten a healthy supply of medicine.
“You never really told me, but who is this group?”
“You remember the rumors that Columbia was nothing more than a warzone a few years ago?” Trevor asked.
Alec nodded.
“Well, it’s not exactly as calm as New Hope but it’s considerably better.”
“And this group is responsible?” Alec asked.
“More or less. A group of people were able to come together, pool their resources and bring some organization and order to the area.”
“Are they good people?” Alec asked.
Margie shrugged but nodded her head. “We went to their makeshift HQ and met the guy who seems to be running things and he seemed like a nice guy.”
Trevor nodded as well. “Still too early to let our guard down but from what I’ve heard they’re doing a decent job. I went up there a couple of times before to get to know them and a few times after our trade went through. A couple of rough types but I’m sure the same could be said about us.”
“How did this get set up?” Alec asked.
“They sent a few people to Centralia looking to trade for food. Whitford and Centralia don’t have an abundance of food so they brought us into the equation,” Trevor said.
Alec felt his legs starting to tire so he leaned into his cane a little more than before. “So they want to trade again?”
“They said they were always up for more trade,” Margie said. “Columbia used to have over a hundred thousand people in it. I don’t think they even have ten percent of that amount now but I know there are still a lot of people to feed.”
“What are you all looking to get?” Alec asked.
“Not sure,” Trevor said with a slight frown. “We could always use more medicine but they said they traded all that they could spare. We were hoping to talk with them more and see what they could offer. We could use another person if you are willing.”
Alec looked from Trevor to Margie, who couldn’t keep the smile from her face. “I’m getting around a lot better than I used to but it’s still pretty slow going.”
“It’s a quick drive there and not much walking once we get inside. It would probably be good for you to get out of here for a while,” Margie said.
“I spent a lot of time trying to get back here. I’m not exactly in a rush to leave anytime soon,” Alec said with a laugh, but the smile immediately dropped from Margie’s face. The woman hadn’t been able to even look at him for the longest time. Trevor told him about how Margie had done everything she could to round up enough people to find him. She had taken his loss hard and any reminder of where he had been caused all joy to flee her body. “But I guess it wouldn’t hurt to stretch my legs a little.”
The smile returned to Margie’s face. “We’re heading out tomorrow so get plenty of rest.”
In the morning they rode horses into Centralia. It was the first time Alec had been on a horse since he had been captured and somehow it was even more exhilarating. His weak legs and inconsistent balance didn’t matter on top of the strong beast and for once in a long while he was able to just enjoy the moment. It was also the first time he had been in Centralia since his capture, and the sight of it brought a smile to his face. The makeshift trading area had been transformed into an actual market where people were trading clothing and food, while others sat about and talked. The ramshackle houses had been repaired and cleaned up, making them look like the houses of old.
Whitford saw them coming and ran over. The man still had a beard that covered nearly the entirety of his face and he looked old beyond his years, but there was a smile in his eyes that Alec hadn’t seen before.
“Good to see you out and about, son,” Whitford said, patting him on the leg. “Anything you all need or is this just a courtesy call?”
Trevor and Margie came up beside Alec.
“Trade envoy,” Trevor said.
“Hmm, the same group out of Columbia?” Whitford asked.
“One and the same.”
The rumble of a truck engine echoed throughout the town and Whitford turned to see a large truck pull up to the nearest roadblock.
“Looks like you all are right on schedule,” Whitford said, eyeing the truck. “I take it you all need me to watch after your horses while you’re gone?”
“If you would be so kind,” Trevor said with a chuckle.
Getting off the horse was slightly more difficult than getting on and Alec felt a pang of disappointment when he had to hand the reins to one of Whitford’s people. He grabbed his cane and walked alongside Trevor and Margie as they approached the truck.
“Anything I need to know?” Alec asked.
“Not really,” Margie said. “The trip should only take about 30 minutes.”
As they approached a large brick of a man stepped out of the truck. The man was easily over six feet tall, with broad shoulders and a head full of black hair. As if his body wasn’t intimidating enough, a scowl marred his five-o’clock shadow-covered face.
“And this is?” Alec asked under his breath as they approached.
“This is Landon,” Trevor said softly. “Don’t worry; he’s not as bad as he looks. From what I have observed, he is basically number two in command over there.”
Landon gave a half-hearted smile as they approached. “You all ready to go?” His voice was deep and booming.
“Ready when you are. Landon, this is Alec, one of the founders of New Hope,” Trevor said.
Landon gave him a quick glance then reached his hand out. Alec shook the man’s hand, which seemed to wrap entirely around his.
“Nice to meet you,” the man said. He quickly let go and got back into the truck. “Let’s head out. I’d like to get this taken care of before nightfall.”
Alec raised an eyebrow at Trevor, who merely chuckled. “He takes some getting used to.”
They drove down the deserted roads toward Columbia, passing empty towns and abandoned houses on the way. Nature had taken back much of its former space leaving most gas stations and homes covered in grass or vines, barely recognizable. On the outskirts of Columbia were factories that had probably been crumbling before the world ended and were now nothing more than monuments of brick and steel.
“Kind of eerie,” Alec said.
“They aren’t as abandoned as you might think,” Landon said, scanning the area. “A lot of people have taken up residence in places like this.”
“Why?” Alec asked.
The factories gave way to abandoned commercial buildings. Cell phone outlets, former grocery stores, restaurants--all the staples of a decent sized city. Alec watched as groups of people walked about, most of them stopping to watch the truck drive through.
“I take it they don’t see vehicles coming through here often?” Alec asked.
“Gas is a rare thing,” Landon said. “Or I should say gas that is still effective.”
“But you all have plenty?”
Landon smirked. “I don’t know if plenty is the word but we have enough to last for a while. A little exploration and reclamation helped us gather a sizable amount.”
The truck drove through the heart of the city and they came out the other side. Once again they drove through more factories until they hit a stretch of land connected by a single road. Open fields surrounded the area and a large building sat in the distance. As they rounded a curve Alec spotted several vehicles blocking the road and three men standing behind the vehicles with guns clearly in their hands.
“Uh, is that normal?” Alec asked.
As they approached the men stepped aside and one of the men got in a car and pulled it out of the way so they could drive through.
“There are two roads leading to our headquarters; both are manned. Things aren’t as bad as they used to be, but there are still people out there that don’t want to work for what they get; they would rather take from others,” Landon said.
They drove toward the building, which was surrounded by parking lots where at one point in time hundreds of vehicles could have parked. The building was four stories tall and Alec noticed several men patrolling on the roof. These people were either very cautious or things had once been very bad. Landon drove through an open gate into a docking area and turned off the truck.
“What is this place?” Alec asked.
“Used to be a regional office for one of those large insurance companies,” Landon said as he put the keys in his pocket. “No need for those kind of things anymore.”
They got out of the truck and followed Landon inside the building. They walked through empty hallways until they got to a large atrium surrounded by large windows allowing them to see outside on both sides. The place was still impressively maintained. The windows were clean and the lawn outside was cut short and the bushes were trimmed. Before Alec could ask he saw a man outside pushing an old-timey lawn cutter near one of the sidewalks.
“That must take a while,” Alec said, gesturing toward the man.
Landon nodded. “Everyone chips in and has responsibilities.” He turned and began plodding up an out-of-commission escalator to get to the next level.
Trevor turned to Alec. “Are you going to need help?”
Alec looked up the stairs and took in a deep breath. “Depends on how many more sets of stairs there are.”
The first set wasn’t too bad, the second had him winded and by the third he needed to stop and take a breath. The smell of cooking meat found his nose and despite his exhaustion, his stomach grumbled. After a few minutes they continued walking through the building, past a large cafeteria where dozens of people sat at tables eating and talking amongst themselves, not paying them any mind. The smell of grilled meat rolled out of the room in waves and even Trevor seemed to lick his lips.
On the last set of stairs Trevor helped him up by allowing Alec to put his arm over his shoulder. Part of Alec was ashamed but he knew there was no way he was going to be able to do it himself. They entered a large office with a row of sofas on the right, a bar on the left and a large executive desk in the middle. Standing behind the desk was a man in a flannel shirt and pair of regular blue jeans. The man looked like he had just stepped in from working the farm.
“Noah,” Landon said as he entered, “our guests have arrived.”
The man looked up and gave them a warm smile. He was perfectly shaven, with short brown hair, and had the same creases that Alec saw on both Trevor and Whitford. He approached them like an old friend and shook both Trevor and Margie’s hands.
“Nice to see the both of you again.” He stopped at Alec and grasped his hand. “I’m sorry but I don’t think we’ve met.”
“This is Alec,” Trevor said.
Noah nodded then his eyes widened. “The…Alec?”
“I…guess,” Alec said.
Noah looked to Trevor, who simply shook his head.
“It’s a long story, but he’s back.”
Noah let out a laugh and patted Alec on the shoulder. “Sorry my friend, you are at a bit of a disadvantage. I know plenty about you but you probably know next to nothing about me.”
“Oh,” Alec said, caught off guard. “Well, I hope it was all good.”
“It was, trust me. Please come take a load off,” Noah said, gesturing toward the row of sofas.
Alec tried to walk over causally but as soon as he got within a few feet he collapsed on the nearest sofa. His legs cried out in relief as his butt finally hit the seat.
“Landon, if you could please go grab our friends some water,” Noah walked over and sat on a couch directly in front of the others. “No problems with the trip, I presume?”
“No, everything was fine,” Margie said.
“Centralia still doing well?”
“Great, thanks,” Trevor answered.
Landon came back and handed everyone a glass of water. The cold liquid felt good going down Alec’s throat. Alec caught Noah staring at him and the man laughed.
“Sorry, I don’t mean to stare. It’s just that Trevor has told me all about what you’ve done for your people. I’m glad you’re back and doing ok.”
“Thank you,” Alec said, trying not to appear uncomfortable. “This is quite the setup you all have here.”
“Thank you,” Noah said, taking in a deep breath. “A lot of work went into it and we still have a lot of work to do but we are heading in the right direction.”
“You seem…well-guarded.”
“Yeah, I’m sure that is a little off-putting at first. You’re not in any danger; we just like to be careful. The fight to take this city back was a bloody one and there are still groups of people out there that would love to hit this place and take everything we have worked so hard to get.” Noah took a drink of water and closed his eyes for a moment before he opened them again and placed his drink on a coaster on the table. “We have put the food you all traded to us to good use out there. It has helped pacify some of the unruly groups and hopefully made them realize the easiest way to get help is to contribute to the whole.”
“That’s why we are back,” Trevor said, sitting forward. “We were hoping to do some more trading.”
“That is music to my ears,” Noah said with a wink.
For the next hour they talked about needs. Noah and his group were wanting to get seeds so they could start farming on their own, along with a few more shipments of food. Trevor and Margie asked for more medicine and Noah was able to give up a few more boxes of basic supplies. Alec piped up and convinced him to include sixty gallons of fuel and the treatment tablets that would make them usable. By the end both groups seemed to be satisfied with the arrangement. During the discussions Alec watched Noah carefully. The man was charismatic. His attention was always on the person who was talking, he acknowledged what was said and he seemed to take their thoughts into consideration. Alec barely knew the man but he could see how people would be willing to follow him. The sun was beginning to set and Noah offered to let them spend the night but Trevor declined. As they walked out Noah pulled Alec to the side.
“It was nice meeting you, Alec. You have been able to do for New Hope what I am still trying to do here in Columbia. From everything I have been told, you have made some incredible sacrif
ices.” Noah offered up his hand and Alec shook it. “You’re the type of person this world needs. I hope this isn’t going to be the last time we get to talk.”
“Uh, I’m sure it’s not. And thank you,” Alec said.
As they walked down the hallway away from Noah’s office, Alec caught up with Trevor. “What exactly did you tell him?”
Trevor smiled and continued walking, “Only the truth, my friend, only the truth.”
Alec
Alec listened to the pitter patter of rain drops hitting the awning above them. He sat on a lawn chair, staring out the empty marketplace of Centralia, with Whitford sitting beside him in one chair and Mason sitting on the ground a few feet away. Centralia had changed almost as much as he had. What had once been a collection of empty and deteriorating buildings with a few malnourished souls hanging about had been turned into a thriving community. Alec hoped his change hadn’t been as dramatic.
“So what do you think of him?” Whitford asked. The man ran his fingers through his beard as he stared intently at Alec.
“He comes off as genuine,” Alec answered.
“Yes, he does. I’ve only met with him once and he comes off as a nice guy, but there is no way he is.”
Alec laughed. “How is that?”
“No one who brings peace to a war-torn area can be a good person. Good people aren’t able to make the kind of decisions that need to be made in order to do that,” Whitford said seriously.
“I thought I was jaded,” Alec said, looking back out at Centralia. “You helped bring this place back from the brink.”
“Exactly my point.”
“Where and how did he get all his supplies?” Mason asked. Much like Alec, Mason had begun to put on weight. His cheekbones were no longer sunken in and his clothing no longer seemed to hang off him. Still, with the man’s large frame it was obvious he still had a ways to go before he filled it back out.
“I’m not sure,” Alec said, looking to Whitford, who merely shrugged. “Why do you ask?”
“Just interested,” Mason said.
A man came running around the corner out of breath with a look of panic on his face. “Whitford, people are coming on horseback.”