by Jay Brenham
For a second, Sam allowed the thought of his family’s demise to fill his mind. What if they were already dead? Was searching for them futile? What good would getting himself killed do? He suddenly thought of driving over the bridge while Gloria swam desperately below, how he’d considered leaving her.
There was so much weakness in his mind. It disgusted him. But he knew if he didn’t try to find his family he would regret it for the rest of his life. Better to die searching than to die an old man, having turned his back on the people who mattered most.
“I understand what you’re saying,” Sam said quietly. “But I can’t do that. I have to find out what happened to them. Even if I find an empty house it will be worth it”
Norris nodded.
“But I didn’t come up here to talk about my family,” Sam said. “I came to tell you about my neighbor Jack and an abandoned military convoy I saw in Norfolk.”
Sam felt his throat tighten as he began telling Norris his story. Jack was depending on him and nobody was coming.
#
The water of the Chesapeake Bay was obsidian, reflecting the night sky. For the first time in recent history there were no city lights to hide the glow of the stars. The smell of the burning city still hung in the air but the smoke had finally lifted.
How many people had succumbed to infection or been killed by infected in this city alone? The number was unknowable, but Sam knew that whatever the body count was, it was bad. Probably close to a million. The military probably didn’t have enough bullets to kill all the infected. And that’s what needed to be done, no question about it. Those people were no longer human.
Sam’s shotgun remained in the small armory on board the craft. Chief Norris was willing to help Sam and Gloria but he’d made no pretense about their role on the boat. Neither Sam nor Gloria was allowed to sleep in the same compartment as the crew, which was smart on the Chief’s part. Instead, they slept in the supply hold, on the two mattresses Norris had mentioned.
They’d escaped the heat of the day in the air-conditioned common area, but once night fell they’d been given a large jug of water and told in no uncertain terms where their sleeping quarters were. Being relegated to sleeping among the tools was not something that Sam minded; after all, he could still be stuck inside his house. A full stomach, a bed, and safety. Besides his family, there wasn’t much more that he craved at that moment.
In the supply room, Gloria and Sam had been able to talk one-on-one for the first time since the rescue.
“Can you believe we’re still alive, and that the crew gave us each shorts and a t-shirt to sleep in?” Gloria asked.
“You know what?” Sam said with a smirk.
“What?” Gloria said, firmly aware by now of his sarcastic sense of humor.
“I can’t believe they gave us clothes to sleep in Gloria!”
“You’re such an ass!” Gloria said, laughing.
Sam grinned. “seriously though, I can’t believe it. We almost didn’t make it more times than we probably know and these guys have been damn nice.”
“Can I ask you a question?” she asked.
“Sure. Go ahead.”
“Why didn’t you tell those guys you’d been in the Navy? I know it’s none of my business. I owe you my life. More than one life, actually. If you don’t want me to say anything, I won’t. I was just wondering.”
Sam thought for a moment. What was a delicate way to put this? He didn’t want to seem like a deserter.
“Because I was in the Navy. I know the logic used to make little decisions and, let me tell you, that logic doesn’t always make sense. When I heard about how undermanned the ships were and how badly they need people, I knew I’d be conscripted if anyone found out that I’d been in the Navy. If that happens, I’ll never see my family again.”
Gloria leaned back and looked at the ceiling. The topic of family may have been an unspoken taboo with the crew, but it wasn’t with Gloria. “That makes sense,” she said finally. “As happy as I am that these guys were here to save us, I’m glad you didn’t tell them. Your family needs you.”
“Yours does too. What are your plans tomorrow?”
“I’m going to do what Norris said: stay on the craft and hope I can get a ride to the Outer Banks on a transport.”
“I bet you’ll find something to get you down there. The military won’t want to take refugees indefinitely. If you have a place to go then all the better in their mind.”
“I hope so.” She sighed. “Well, let’s get some decent sleep. It’s the first night we don’t have to worry about the infected since this began.”
#
The night had passed quickly. Now Sam stood on the deck of the craft and looked out at the water, deep in thought. Gloria had been his constant companion since the outbreak, but their paths would soon diverge. In all likelihood, they’d never see each other again. In the pre-infection world, they would have exchanged email addresses or friended each other on the latest social network, able to keep in touch through the wonders of technology. But technology was not the great uniter it had once been. Now the only relationships that mattered were the ones that kept you alive.
Sam walked inside to the small galley where some of the crew were eating breakfast. They would be arriving at Raft City soon.
Sam sat next to Robinson, who had a plate of eggs and toast. He was spearing his food methodically and shoving it in his mouth. No one was talking.
“Is there something happening that I don’t know about?” Sam asked. “Why do you guys seem so tense?”
“Well, boss,” Robinson said, “let’s just say some of the people in Raft City might see us as more of a target than a helping hand.”
Sam raised an eyebrow. “Why do you think that?”
“You can tell. The way they look at you. Like the only reason they aren’t attacking us is because we would mow them down. But I know they would take a shot if they thought they had a chance.”
“I didn’t realize it was like that. That they would have so little respect for the military.”
“You’re damn straight it’s like that. You know better than me what it’s like out there, and you know better than most of the people living in Raft City too. I’m not saying all of the people in Raft City are like that, but they’re looking out for themselves in a very different way than you did.” Robinson spread his hands. “Let’s take you as an example. I can tell you want to survive. You have a steely fucking center. I saw how you acted under pressure when those infected were after you. But I also saw you when the pressure was off. I saw how you looked at us and how you interacted with us. You don’t want to take what isn’t yours just because you think it will help you survive. You want to earn things. A lot of the people in Raft City aren’t like you. They’ll gladly take what you have; they’re just waiting for the right moment. So when you go there, what you need to do is take that steely center of yours and project it. Don’t let them see anything that can be misconstrued as weakness. Because they’ll act on it and then you’re gonna have to use that steel that I saw when you were getting attacked.”
Sam frowned. “Thanks for the warning. And thanks for the advice.” He shot a look around the table. “Have they ever tried anything when you checked on them? Besides the way they looked at you, was there anything that made you think they would attack?”
“They haven’t tried anything, no. But I’m telling you: I know people. To some, the military means safety because we’ll help protect them. To others, the military is a resource. We have guns and a lot of ammo. Those weapons will go a long way when bartering for supplies. By no means is this craft considered well-armed, but compared to what those civilian boats have on board we are an armada. Hell, just the shitty ass M16s and 5.56 ammo alone would make some of those people want to attack us. Throw in the two M240 machine guns, four fifty cals, and the two shotguns and you have yourself Fort fucking Knox.”
“I guess I hadn’t thought of that,” Sam said quietly.
CHAPTER SIX
The LCU blew its fog horn as it approached Raft City, warning of its arrival. Sam could see lookouts perched in boatswain’s chairs attached to sailboat masts or standing on the tuna towers of the larger Raft City power boats. They all held guns.
At the sound of the horn, the decks of the rafted vessels were overcome by a flurry of activity, along with the ringing of what sounded like a ship’s bell. It reminded Sam of a documentary he’d once seen about meerkats. If one meerkat spotted a threat it would chirp a warning so the entire clan could face the danger together. Like the meerkats, everyone in Raft City watched the approaching LCU.
The motors groaned as Chief Norris idled the craft fifty yards from the mass of tied up boats. Despite having met with the people of Raft City before, he was clearly following some sort of already-established protocol.
One of the boats dropped a small dinghy into the water and a man began rowing toward the LCU. As the rowboat got closer, Robinson lowered the craft’s bow ramp so that it was parallel with the water and Hilton walked out onto the end to tie the dinghy up and steady it as a man from Raft City came aboard. Hilton was armed with an M16 and escorted the man to the base of the con tower, where Sam, Gloria and Norris waited.
“Quinn,” said Norris. “Good to see you again.” He’d climbed down from the con tower once the dinghy had tied up.
“Likewise.” Quinn was about forty and fit-looking, with dark brown, shaggy hair. He shook Norris’ proffered hand.
“How are your people doing?”
Quinn ran a hand through his mop of hair. “I run security and that’s it. You make it sound like I’m the president of this little island.”
“I don’t know how you guys work things. All I know is you’re the one they send over every time I come out here. Seriously, how are you doing? I can’t make any promises but if you tell me what you need I might be able to come up with something.” Chief Norris motioned for Hilton to come forward.
“People are scared.” Quinn shrugged. “But we’re doing well, considering.”
Hilton came around the corner carrying a large black bag with a stitched red cross on the front and a trash bag full of pouches filled with liquid. “Saline IV pouches, antibiotics, and first-aid supplies,” he said, handing the bags to Quinn.
“It’s not much—certainly not as much as I’d hoped to get——but it’s all I could convince the ship to part with,” Chief Norris said.
“I understand.” Quinn slung the med bag over one shoulder and held the garbage bag in his hand. “Anything helps. Do you have any news about the rest of the country?”
Norris shook his head. “Nothing. I wish I could say otherwise but Raft City is doing the best out of places I’ve seen. There are some small groups like yours but all we really see is what’s on the water. We don’t know what’s happening inland. Any luck finding a fresh water supply?”
Quinn shook his head. “Nothing great yet. We are surviving on what people have in their ballast tanks. It seems like we barely have enough people to help out with security on a reasonable shift, let alone people to send out in search of water.”
Norris cleared his throat. “Speaking of having enough people...” He nodded toward Sam. “We found Sam on the Little Creek base. He was running from a pretty big pack. He survived in the heart of the city with the infected all around him.”
“Sounds like he was pretty fortunate. Why are you telling me this?” Quinn said.
“His family is just south of Annapolis and we aren’t going that far. He said he would be willing to help out in Raft City until he had an opportunity to go north.”
Sam hadn’t exactly agreed to any of the things Chief Norris was saying but it was all true, so he didn’t correct him. He needed to get north any way possible.
Quinn shook his head. “We’re fine with taking refugees but they need to have their own boat. I don’t have anywhere to put him and I doubt any of my people are going to want another mouth to feed. I’m sorry, but we simply don’t have a place.”
This was Sam’s chance to get off the ship and find his family. If he stayed here, he’d be forced to become a ship-bound refugee with little hope of finding Jill and Grant.
“The thing is,” Sam interjected, “I’m not just dead weight. I can be useful.”
Quinn raised a skeptical eyebrow. “How’s that?”
“I’m a hard worker. Every group needs a person like that.”
“We already have hard workers, and we already have enough mouths to feed too. Look, even if I wanted to, I’d need to find someone to let you live on their boat. To drink their water and eat their food. Not too many people are keen on taking in strangers these days.”
“I can contribute. I can help the person who takes me in. You said you needed more security. I have my own weapon. I don’t need anyone’s protection and, unlike a lot of your people, I’ve fought the infected on land. I know what it’s like out there. I can help plan and lead people to find supplies. You just said you didn’t have anyone to search for fresh water. I could be that man.”
Quinn crossed his arms. “And why would you come to Raft City and live this life when you could just ride back to a ship and be taken in as a refugee?”
“Two reasons. The first is that I don’t want to leech off someone else when I can work. On a ship I’ll be a zoo animal. The second reason is that, like Chief Norris said, I need to find my family. I’m not planning on staying in Raft City for good. I’ll help out as much as I can but when I find someone who’s willing to take me, or I find a usable boat that I can pilot up the coastline, I’m leaving.”
Quinn looked like he was deep in thought. “Any military experience?”
Sam didn’t blink. “Nope. Not a day.”
#
Sam watched Quinn rowing back to Raft City. He’d left promising to see if anyone was willing to host Sam on their boat.
Quinn was halfway back to Raft City, when Chief Norris leaned against the wall beside Sam. “You lied to Quinn, when you said you’d never served a day.”
Sam didn’t take his eyes off the departing dinghy.
“I had my suspicions before: your hair is cut short and a couple of times you called me Chief. No civilian would do that. But when Quinn asked if you had any previous military experience I saw the truth in your eyes. What ship are you supposed to be on?”
“I’m not on a ship. I’m not in the Navy.”
“Well you’re sure as hell in some branch of service. There are ships out there that need you. Don’t turn your back on us right now; don’t turn your back on your country. Tell me what’s going on and I can help. If you’re afraid of being punished for not showing up to duty, that won’t be a problem. You were stuck in the city. It can all be explained. You need to start being honest with me because in a minute I’m going to have my guys take you into custody. Then we’ll figure out what’s really going on.”
Sam clenched his fist, considering his options. He could keep lying, but Norris seemed convinced that he was AWOL. Once he was in custody, they would take him back to one of the ships, no matter what. Even if they figured out Sam was no longer in the Navy, the ships might conscript him anyway; they were desperate for people.
Sam took a breath. The truth would set you free, right?
“I’m not in the Navy. I was though. I separated the day before this mess started. My wife and son are in Maryland and I’m going to find them.”
Quinn had reached Raft City now. He was speaking to a group of people and gesturing back at the LCU, though Sam couldn’t hear what was being said.
Chief Norris sighed. “Look, I understand where you’re coming from. I really do. My own family is out there somewhere.” His voice broke a little at that last part. “But we need you. We have a duty.”
Sam shook his head hard. “Does the Navy need another deck hand more than my wife needs her husb
and? More than my son needs his father?” Even as he said it, Sam knew his argument was selfish. If everyone thought like this, wars would never be won. One family couldn’t be held above the good of the country; people in the military had to make sacrifices.
But that was the thing, Sam thought. He’d been discharged. There’d been no attempt to call him back to service. Granted, this was probably because the people who were responsible for calling up the reserves were dead and the phone lines were down. It might be a gray area, but he would take it. He wasn’t derelict in his duty; he’d received no orders.
“You think I don’t feel the same way about my wife? About my kids?” Norris asked. “We have a duty to defend this country from enemies foreign and domestic. We took an oath.”
“We did take an oath and you’re probably a better person than I am. But I’m not in the military anymore. I have no duty, except to my own.”
Fifty yards away, Quinn boarded the dinghy for a second time and began rowing back to the craft.
“I’m not AWOL,” Sam said before Chief Norris could respond. “I haven’t gotten any orders. Has word gone out that the reserves are being called up?”
“You know no one is sending out any word.”
Sam shrugged, unapologetic.
Chief Norris looked pained, as if the decision was a war being waged behind his eyes. “That’s because nobody can send out word. Everyone is dead.”
Sam didn’t take his eyes off Quinn. Where did Chief Norris’ sense of duty extend? Was he willing to imprison someone for a violation that hadn’t even occurred? Sam looked to the water. A fifty yard swim between Raft City and the craft was not the problem. Would the people standing watch shoot him if he violated their rule of quarantine? Would the men aboard the craft shoot him if Chief Norris gave the order? His fist clenched tighter.
Quinn arrived back on board before they’d reached a resolution. “I found a man willing to house you,” he said, as he came up the ramp. “The only condition is that you help supply him with food and fresh water. You also have to help with security just like every other person in Raft City. Deal?”