The compromise was to set up the supplies in fall back positions inside the Battery and keep what we needed for day to day living under the casemates next to the parade ground. That way no one felt trapped inside but they could retreat to great defensive positions in the event of an emergency.
Out here, I believed the threat wasn’t zombies but other humans.
We weren’t much of a group anymore. Ten adults, three children and one dog. Tony had been shot through the thigh two days prior and was down for a while. And someone had to watch over the kids. Assuming Tracie could fight, that left 8 adults who could fight. The only thing that would keep us from being overrun during a determined assault was this great defensive fortification. It once withstood a 587 day bombardment from Union troops. It would now keep us safe.
The mood at dinner was still upbeat. Most people seemed to feel safe and happy even after the events of the last few days. Even Thor seemed happy as he ran and played with Mal.
I didn’t share their feelings. We left more supplies at the house than we took. And that was after losing some supplies in the fire at Tony and Beth’s house.
But, what comes first? Getting supplies or prepping for defense. The fort was sturdy but the doors would have to be reinforced. Crossbows would be useless against humans. I needed to make sure everyone was proficient with their firearms. But, without supplies… Well, without supplies there was no point. We talked over an early dinner.
“After the horror and loss of the last few days, today was a good day,” I began. “We found and secured a new home. And we found another survivor.” I indicated toward the pregnant woman sitting with Lois. “This is Tracie if you haven’t met her yet.”
Tracie waved a little wave but didn’t stand. I paused and she looked nervous. I was about to continue when she stood. She was crying as she spoke.
“I was fairly sure that I was the last person alive on Earth when I heard the horn from your boat. Thank you for finding me.” With that, she sat back down, put her head on Lois’ shoulder and cried.
I felt bad for what she’d been through especially with losing Sam. But I was also concerned about having a pregnant woman in the group. I doubted she could fight and without a real doctor the delivery was a potential problem.
“I know you guys look to me for leadership but speak up if you disagree. With the rest of the afternoon we need to accomplish two things: we need to reinforce the doors and we need to get our supplies organized so we can do inventory and plan supply runs.”
Everyone nodded.
“Supply runs just got a whole lot more difficult and important. We need to plan each one carefully. Also, I think that out here our threat is from humans not from zombies. So in the morning we are going to make sure everyone can use their AR’s and handguns. Everyone. I need to make sure we can all put rounds on target.”
Again, everyone seemed to agree.
“Good, let’s finish our dinner then we’ll split up and get to work.”
Mal tugged on my pants leg.
“Can I shoot the rifle, too?”
“No, Mal. I don’t think so. How about we practice with the crossbow some more?”
He nodded and seemed content with that. I’ve learned that I can make him happy by giving him something when I have to tell him ‘no’ about something else. He’d be happy shooting the crossbow.
“What about me?” asked Tabby.
“You’ll shoot.”
She looked happy and scared at the same time.
“I’ll watch over her,” said Mike.
I nodded as Karen came over and sat down.
“Do you want me to coordinate the organizing?” she asked.
“Yeah, that’d be great. But do me a favor first. Would you ask Pat and William to come over here?”
She nodded and went off. I reached down and petted Thor. I wonder what was going through his mind. I think as long as he’s with me and the kids, he’s fine.
A moment later, Pat and William arrived.
“Karen said you wanted to see me?”
“Yeah, how are you and William holding up?” I asked.
“About as you’d expect I guess.”
I reached down and ruffled William’s hair.
“William do you know my son, Malcolm?”
The boy shook his head.
“Mal, this is William. Say ‘hi’.”
He did and there was the slightest glimmer of something from William. Pat realized what I was doing
“Mal,” she said. “We managed to keep ahold of a few of William’s toys through all this. Would you like to come play with us for a while?”
Mal looked up at me. I could see he wanted a friend but was scared.
“Go ahead, Mal. I think I can look after myself for awhile.”
Mal nodded. As they got up to head out, Pat looked over.
“I’ll watch over him.”
“Thanks.”
Tom and I helped Tony over to the doors to get his opinion on the best way to block them and still leave one usable. We went back and forth but ultimately decided to block the larger door and leave this narrow one open. This would make getting supplies in more difficult but both doors would be easier to defend this way.
Some of the heavy equipment was dragged from under the Battery and placed against the door. We were proud of ourselves for getting it up there but it wasn’t going to work. We moved it again to open the doors and bring something in from the pier.
When tour boats like the Beauregard brought visitors by the hundreds to visit the fort, the people would exit the boat by walking down an aluminum walkway that could be raised and lowered depending on the tide. Without power, it was not only useless, it was in the way of us getting to the boat. With a few tools and some elbow grease we were able to remove a section and bring it inside.
Now, we pushed the heavy machinery back up against the door. But, this time we then wedged the walkway section in between the equipment and part of the fort itself. It would stop a truck. The little door was barricaded by taking some scrap metal and wedging it between the door and the floor. Removing some bricks made it more secure.
There was still about an hour of light left when the fort was secure. I grabbed a shovel and headed up the steps to the top of the fort. Thor padded along beside me.
When Battery Huger was built across the middle of the fort, the rest of the fort was filled in with sand. In the early 1960’s the western half of the fort was excavated down to the parade ground. The eastern side, or ocean side, was not excavated. Up there were the flags that had flown over the fort over the years and several displays.
It was under the flags that I began to dig. I’d already dug a grave once before; for Mike’s father. It was only two weeks ago but it felt like two lifetimes ago. After a few minutes, I took off my AR and crossbow. After a few more minutes, I had warmed up enough to take off my coat.
“I didn’t think we were allowed to be unarmed out here, Boss Man,” said Mike.
“I think we’re safe now,” I said, not looking up.
“You want some help, Daddy?” asked Tabby. I didn’t realize she had come up with Mike. Geez, what type of long term damage do you cause when you let your daughter help dig her mother’s grave?
“No, Tabby. Thank you.”
They stood quietly holding hands while I continued to dig. When I finished the sun was not quite down.
“Tabby, would you get the word out that we’re going to have the funeral in a few minutes? And have people bring lights, please.”
She kissed me on the cheek and headed off.
“Mike, I need some help getting Sam up here…”
“I’d be honored, Ryan.”
By the time Mike and I got back from the boat everyone had gathered near the grave. We had to use our headlamps to navigate the stairs. Sam was placed gently on the ground next to the hole I’d dug.
Once I put her in the ground I’d never willingly leave this place. Leave her side.
M
ike stepped back and took Tabby’s hand. She was crying. Karen was holding Mal and they were both crying. He was trying to hide his head. Everyone else had their heads bowed.
I began to think about the day I met Sam. How beautiful she was. How her smile just lit up her face. Then I realized that everyone was looking at me. I was expected to speak. I could reminisce later.
Looking up I could see that everyone was now crying, including Tracie. This funeral was for the ones she had lost too.
“When the world ended a few weeks ago most of us decided to keep going. To keep on living. We didn’t have grand ideas of defeating the zombies and creating some brave new world. We just wanted our families to be safe.”
“We have all suffered horribly. Wives, mothers, husbands and children: all lost. Every one of those deaths has touched me more than any of you realize. As your leader, I feel responsible for all of them. I swore to my wife and children that I would keep them safe. I failed. I’m sorry Tabby, Mal. I’m sorry buddy. Karen, I’m…”
Karen was shaking her head. Tabby left Mike’s arms to come put her arms around me. I knew that I had to be a leader for these people but I didn’t care. The kids, Karen were all that I cared about. Then, I could hear other voices.
“It’s okay, Ryan.”
“You’ve done the best you could.”
“It’s not your fault, Ryan.”
I shook my head and shook Tabby off of me as gently as I could and looked up to Mike’s eyes and nodded. He took Sam’s feet and I took her arms and we gently laid her in the grave. He stepped back and took Tabby’s hand again.
“I’m sorry Sam. I love you, wife.”
Grabbing the shovel, I gently placed a shovel full of dirt onto Sam. One, then another and another as the tears fell. Tabby took the shovel from me and startled me as she did. Looking into her teary eyes I could see the woman she’d become over the last few weeks. I let her take the shovel and place a few shovel fulls of dirt onto her mother. Karen did the same, taking the shovel from Tabby. Mal came over and held my hand. I asked him if he wanted to do what we did and he just shook his head. Thor lay down at Mals’ feet and whined. The boy sat down and put his arms around the dog.
I took the shovel back from Karen and continued to fill in the grave. It didn’t take long.
When I finished, I let the shovel drop. Tabby was crying into Mikes’ shoulder. Karen cried as she held Mal’s hand. As I looked around I could see that everyone was crying and some were holding hands. Surrounded by all these wonderful people I’d never felt so alone.
One by one, the people in the group left to settle in for the night as best they could. Each one came to see me and expressed their sorrow in some way. Some spoke, some just put their hand on my shoulder. Karen tried to leave but Mal wouldn’t let her go. Mike left Tabby with a kiss so she could be with us.
Tracie was the last to leave. She stopped next to me.
“I’m sorry for your loss, Ryan.” I just nodded. “But, thank you for saving me today.”
I looked up and met her eyes.
“I wouldn’t be alive if it wasn’t for you. And these people are all alive because of you. That’s obvious. They need you. Remember that.”
I nodded and dropped my gaze. I heard her go.
The four of us sat on the ground next to the grave. No one spoke. What do you say?
After some time, I realized that Mal had cried himself to sleep next to Thor. I asked Karen and Tabby if they would take him down to our living area.
“I love you, daddy,” said Tabby.
“I love you too honey.”
Alone now, I thought of the good times Sam and I had. Laughing about nothing, holding hands, exploring new things.
I knew that I’d failed to keep her safe. There was no way I was going to lose Tabby, Mal or Karen. The rest of the group was important, but family came first.
I got up, stretched and started down toward the parade ground. As I walked I knew we’d be safe inside the fort.
Monday, December 29, 2014
My muscles cried out as soon as I tried to move. Between the exercise of the day before and sleeping on the ground, my body ached. It took a minute before I could sit up but when I did the camp looked to be already awake. Someone had built a fire in the center of the parade grounds and a few people were around that. Others were eating or arranging their areas.
Mike appeared next to me with a cup of coffee.
“Here, thought we’d let you sleep in this morning.”
“Thanks, any problems?”
“Nope. Tabby is up on the top as a lookout. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Her eyes are as good as anyone’s.”
“Beth and my mom are helping Karen work on the inventory. They have done it before so I figured they’d be quicker. I think Tracie is helping them, too.”
“Good thinking. Is Mal with Karen?”
“No, I saw him playing with William. Pat was with them.”
“Good. That’s good.”
“Ryan, we didn’t get away with a lot of supplies. I think we got everything out of the vehicles back at the dock. And I went back through the boat this morning just be sure we got all of that.”
“No point worrying about it Mike. We’ll take a look at the inventory and go from there.”
“Glad you’re so calm about it.”
“Look around. We’re pretty safe out here. People are relieved and a little happier today. Supplies were always going to be the problem out on the fort.”
Mike nodded.
Lois, Beth and Tracie brought me the inventory about an hour later. I sat in the sun on the parade ground and looked over it. The report was bleak. We had about three week’s supply of food and water. Weapons, ammo and medical supplies were good. Someone did a good job getting those from the house when we left. Firewood was a problem.
With Karen and Mikes help we got everyone together and discussed the supplies and the plan. Today we would focus on defense and tomorrow we would get supplies. I sent Mike up to relieve Tabby and asked Pat to watch Mal and William for a little longer so I could watch Karen shoot. Then she’d watch the kids while Pat shot.
We started off with a basic safety talk. I couldn’t afford an accident. Then we did some dry firing with the handguns and some dry firing with the AR’s. Dry firing isn’t the greatest for the guns but it was great for practice. Plus we couldn’t afford to waste ammo. And these guns are really, really loud. That’s something they don’t show you on TV and movies. Once you fire one of these your ears are ringing and you’re down to communicating with hand signals.
I surprised Tabby with her pink camo gun and she shot well. Tracie had never fired a gun before so I spent extra time with her.
Then we set up targets with duct tape on the side of the fort. I felt bad about damaging the fort but it had certainly seen worse. We fired ten rounds from the handguns at 20 feet. Headshots only. Then we moved back to fifty feet for the AR’s. Ten shots again. I was pleased.
About an hour later we got back together for lunch. John was on lookout. Thor came over from where ever he’d been hiding from the noise.
“Everything ok, Boss Man?” Mike walked up with Tabby. They sat with me around the fire in the center of the parade ground. It had been getting colder rather than warmer as the day went on.
“Just thinking about the plan.”
“For the fort?”
“Yeah, how to defend it.”
Tom and Beth were helping Tony over to where were sitting.
“You need a cane, Tony,” I said.
“That would help, I think. Now that I can put some weight on it.”
“Well, we will keep our eyes open for something tomorrow.”
“Good, thanks. What are you thinking of doing for our new home?”
“The first thing is more ladders. I don’t see how zombies could really get to us. But, if they did get here we could just be up on the top of the casemates and shoot down. Easy peasy.”
“Ma
kes sense.”
“I agree. The problem is humans. They’re sneaky.”
“They could be up to the wall before we knew they were her,” said Mike.
“And shooting down from the wall at people who are shooting back is a problem,” said Tony.
“Right. I don’t think there is a fort in history that has ever held out indefinitely,” I said. “So, our best defense is an early warning.”
“So, we have to have a lookout at all times,” said Mike.
“Yep, 24-7. If we see someone coming then we can get people up on the wall and down on their bellies. They’d make difficult targets lying down,” I said.
“Makes sense,” said Tony. “Are there any weak points?”
“Well, the doors are good. The openings for the cannons have wooden covers but they should be shored up some. The problem is that wooden section of the wall.”
“What do you want to do about it?”
“Nails, I would think. Drive some through the wood to act as spikes. Then drive some into the top and snip the heads off. It would be all spikey like something to keep pigeons off, but more heavy duty.”
“I think we came away with some tools and nails,” said Tom. “I’ll go take a look.”
“I wish we had some early warning besides a lookout,” I mused.
“I think we’d be hard to sneak up on,” offered Karen. “We’d hear a boat.”
“A motorboat, sure. But not a sailboat. And on low tide you can walk from here over to James Island. But, I don’t know what to do about that.”
No one else seemed to know either.
“Well, there’s stuff to do. Let’s get to work. Make sure John gets some food up at the lookout spot.”
The work went well till about 3:30 when a cold rain began to fall. The casemates kept the rain off our heads but it quickly became apparent that a heavy rain would put a lot of water up under the casemates where we had our stuff. I added pallets to the list in my head of what we needed to pick up. Then we all headed for the museum to keep dry for the night.
Knight Terrors: A Zombie Apocalypse Survival Tale Page 3