Bringing his rifle up and stepping out of the tree line, Bruce aimed down the road to his left toward the sound. He saw a human figure running at a speed that should have been impossible for a human. The figure was nowhere as dark in his scope as a regular person was, Bruce noticed. Taking a deep breath and letting half out, Bruce aimed at the head and started squeezing the trigger. Then Bruce heard someone beside him start firing with a suppressed weapon. Whoever was shooting was sending a ton of hate downrange, and they were tearing the blue’s chest up, causing it to slow down. As it staggered from one of the shots to its chest, Bruce pulled the trigger, and he saw its head snap back.
Backing into the tree line looking to his left, Bruce saw Buffy stepping back into the tree line. After she was a couple of yards in the woods, she turned, checking on Bruce. Then she reached for a new magazine, ejecting the used one, Buffy let it hit the ground. After she put it in, she picked up the empty one, putting it in her pouch. Bruce smiled at her doing the same to his rifle. Turning back to the road, he listened and watched. From behind him, he could hear harsh whispers and hits to a body. Turning around he saw Lynn, Maria, and Susan had Jim backed up to a tree. Jim had his hands over his head and was leaning over while the women hit him and whispered in harsh tones. Hearing something from the curve, Bruce thumped his chest and motioned everyone down, not taking his eyes off the road.
Pulling his pistol, Mike walked over to Jim, putting it in his face and pulling him to the ground. Bruce eased to the ground, lying flat with his rifle pointed to the road. He could hear running feet coming down the road from the curve the same direction the one he shot came from. He then saw a group of twenty to thirty run past them on the road. They never slowed as they neared the body of the one Bruce shot. Bruce even saw several jump it. The group just kept running toward the dam. After Bruce waited for minutes and did not hear anything, he motioned for everyone to follow him as he led them away from the road. Glancing back after they had gone a hundred yards, Bruce saw Mike still had his pistol aimed at Jim.
Bruce led them further away from the road, crossing fences and almost running across any field they came to. After they moved a mile from the road, Bruce held up his hand. Looking around the woods around him, he could see about sixty yards in any direction. He knelt down on one knee, pulling out his map. The field he wanted to make it to was less than half a mile away. He wanted to make it there because it was only a half a mile to the bayou from there. He wanted to give them a lot of time to clear the bayou. Looking back at the map, he saw they would be in the woods until they came to the field, and it was at least a few hundred acres from the satellite map. The only road they had to cross was the driveway to the house that was at the far end of the field, and they would never see it. He folded the map, putting it back in his thigh cargo pocket. It was 5 p.m. now. They might just make it, he thought.
He stood up, turning around to tell everyone to move out, and stopped. Everyone was laying down breathing hard. They were spent. Even Mike was sitting down leaning back on his pack breathing hard. He still had his pistol across his lap and was looking at Jim with bloodlust. Bruce could not ask them to move any more. If he used what they had left and something happened, they would have to fight it out to the death. He felt Buffy lean on him, and he looked down his left side at the top of her head. He could see and feel her breathing hard. As he moved, Buffy pulled away to follow and wobbled on her feet. He turned to the group and thumped his chest with his left hand. Everyone looked at him and started to stand up. Bruce held up his hand for them to stop.
In a low voice, he told them they were camping there tonight. A look of relief could be seen on everyone’s faces. He told the boys to move all the leaves and sticks; they nodded and slowly moved to start. He told the girls to get the blankets spread out. He looked at Maria and Lynn, telling them to get some water and MREs out. He wanted everyone to eat a whole meal––no sharing tonight, not even water. They stood and started their tasks. Bruce walked over to Mike, who had stood up, putting his pistol in his holster with the seven-inch suppressor sticking out the end below his knee. Mike loosened his pack and let it fall to the ground as he walked toward Jim. Mike pulled out his knife and lunged at Jim, knocking him flat on his back. Mike had one knee on Jim’s chest and the point of the knife under his chin.
“If you ever put another member of the group at risk like that again, you are dead. Before I kill you, I’m going to let Bruce rape you. I don’t care if Satan himself is coming after us. You will be raped and then I will slit your throat,” Mike told him in a cold flat tone. Jim was looking up at Mike with tears streaming out of his eyes.
Alex and Angela were lying down not far from Mike and Jim. Angela called out in a weak voice, “Alex, Bruce is going to rape Jim. I don’t have a dick, so go rape him for me, please.”
“Bruce is not going to rape him now, baby,” Alex told her.
“Well, when he does, you will help Bruce rape him for me, won’t you?” she asked him.
“Yes, I will, baby,” Alex replied, trying to catch his breath.
Bruce smiled at the comments, but Mike never looked away from Jim. “Do I make myself clear?” Mike asked. Jim just nodded his head.
Mike stood up and walked back to his pack, putting his knife up. Bruce walked up to Mike, who had his eyes closed and was taking deep breaths. Bruce knew Mike very well and knew he was trying to get his temper under control. Buffy walked around Bruce and up to Mike, wrapping her arms around his waist. Mike jumped at the contact and looked down at Buffy. He put his arm around her and returned her hug. Mike turned to Bruce, smiling, as Bruce walked over to him.
“You okay, brother?” Bruce asked.
“Yeah, I’m okay,” he replied. “I really want to kill him, Bruce. If those kids were not here, I would have.”
“I wondered what stopped you,” Bruce said as Buffy let Mike go and came back to stand beside Bruce.
“When I heard that roar, I thought I was a dead man. All because I went back and grabbed that son of a bitch. I never even looked; I just prayed you had me covered. When I heard your gun start to cough, I knew you had my back as always,” Mike said, grinning.
“If Buffy had not jumped out and started putting rounds into its chest slowing it down so I could kill it, the situation could have gone bad,” Bruce told him.
“I saw her popping caps at that runner,” Mike said, smiling at her.
Bruce looked down at Buffy, “Why didn’t you aim at the blue’s head?” he asked her.
“He wouldn’t keep it still, and you said only shoot at what you can hit,” she replied.
“Little one, when you shoot at something, it’s not going to stay still. But you did a very good job, and I’m proud of you,” Bruce told her, chuckling.
Buffy jumped over and hugged Bruce. “Thank you, Daddy. I love you,” she said.
Just then they heard the gunfire start again. It was much closer but still over a mile away. Bruce was sure that it was coming from this end of the dam. He turned back to Mike.
“I have a hypothesis, and I want to run it by you. The blues stayed on the road, running to the gunfire. They did not run through the woods to take the shortest route. They did not stop at that one I killed, and I’m sure they heard it roar. They only leave defined areas to go after food, like they are scared to get lost. They have no reasoning ability––once they start after food, they don’t stop,” Bruce said.
“You killed those in the field,” Mike said.
“Yes, but they were chasing a cow,” Bruce said.
“Okay, so they follow roads because it’s the path of least resistance. They stay near or on the roads until they start chasing food. They may associate roads with food because people stay near roads,” Mike replied, sitting down and leaning back on his pack.
Bruce dropped his pack by Mike’s as Buffy started raking leaves and sticks away with her feet until she cleared out a large area. Then she dropped her pack, took off her gun, and laid down with her head on her
pack. Bruce looked at his watch; there was still several hours of daylight left.
“I’m going to scout around before dark. We have several hours before nightfall. I should only be gone an hour. I want you to stay here with the group,” Bruce said, looking at Mike. Buffy started to get up, but Bruce stopped her. “I want you to help Mike, Buffy. He is tired and will need your help, okay?” Bruce said to her.
She looked at Bruce, unconvinced, but said she would. Bruce told them both to stay awake until he got back. Leaving his pack, he moved off toward the dam with Buffy watching him. After he disappeared from sight, she turned to Mike.
“Can I ask you a question, Daddy Mike?” she said.
Mike looked at her. “Okay, but only if I get to ask you one,” he replied.
“You first,” she said.
“Why do you stand on Bruce’s left side all the time?” Mike asked her.
She looked at him like it was a stupid question. “You remember when we rescued Susan and her babies?” she asked.
He noticed she did not mention Jim as Mike said he remembered. “Well, when Daddy started shooting, I was following him. I was on his right, and all the shells coming out of the gun were flying behind him hitting me. Let me tell you, those things are hot,” she replied as a matter of fact.
Mike chuckled. That was a good reason. “They are called brass or cases,” he told her.
“Well, whatever you call them, they are hot when they hit you,” she informed him.
“Okay, now you,” Mike said.
“Did I make Daddy mad? Is that why he wouldn’t let me go with him?” she asked Mike.
“No, baby, he knows you are tired and need to rest. We have a long way to go, and it’s going to be hard,” Mike answered.
“I’m scared if I make him mad or not do good, he will stop being my daddy. I always wanted a daddy like the other kids. My mom had boyfriends, but they were mean,” Buffy told Mike.
Mike looked at her, and he could feel tears coming to his eyes. This little girl was willing to push herself to death just for Bruce’s love. He was going to talk to Bruce about that. Then Mike chose his words carefully.
“Buffy, it does not work like that. Bruce will love you no matter what. He told you he would be your daddy, and he meant forever, baby. I will tell you this: if you push yourself too hard and hurt yourself, that would hurt him more than anything,” Mike told her.
“Really, he will still love me and be my daddy even if I disappoint him?” she asked.
“Yes, Buffy, all you have to do is your best. He will take that and be proud of you, but he will always love you,” Mike said, looking at her. Buffy had always followed Bruce no matter where he went. She was learning how to shoot and move like he did. With her actions, Bruce had looked at her as being a young adult, but she was a little girl who was scared of losing something she always wanted.
“Thank you, Daddy Mike,” she said.
“Lay your head down and go to sleep,” Mike said.
“Daddy said not to,” she said.
“I said you could, so it’s okay,” Mike replied.
“Tell me about my new family,” she asked.
Mike started telling her about the farm and each of the kids. After a few minutes, he looked at her, and she was sound asleep. Mike looked around the camp and noticed everyone was asleep. No one had even opened an MRE. He just sat there watching the birds and squirrels in the trees. He heard Bruce coming back long before he saw him. He still had his rifle pointed in that direction until he saw it was Bruce. Laying the rifle across his lap, Mike watched Bruce walk back. Watching Bruce, Mike could see he was moving slowly, and Mike still heard Bruce before he saw him. That made Mike feel much better––if Bruce could not sneak up on them without being heard, neither could anyone else.
Walking through camp to Mike, Bruce noticed everyone was asleep and no one had eaten. Looking at the passed out bodies, Bruce was glad he stopped for the day. Reaching Mike, he looked down and saw Buffy asleep. Bruce smiled as he sat down. Mike told him of the conversation he had with Buffy, and it sent a chill through Bruce’s heart. He had been treating a little girl like a soldier. Bruce would set the record straight tomorrow. Bruce had to admit he wondered why she always stayed on his left side.
Mike asked him what he saw, and Bruce told him nothing; that made Mike very happy. Bruce told Mike to take the first watch; he would take the shit watch. The 11 p.m. to 3 a.m. shift was called the shit watch because that’s what you feel like the next day. He pulled out his NVG, laying them by his rifle so he would not have to dig in his pack during the night. He turned around and pressed his back against his pack to make sure it would not slide out from under his back. Buffy was lying on her back with her head on her pack. Bruce lifted her up, putting her between his legs with her head on his lap. She never even stirred. He picked up her gun, laying it on his left side where she would be when he got up. Bruce closed his eyes and was asleep in seconds.
Mike smiled, looking at Bruce and Buffy. He then started using every technique he knew to stay awake until he woke up Bruce.
Chapter 34
Bruce woke up with Mike shaking him awake. Opening his eyes, Bruce looked around; it was good light out tonight. He looked up and through breaks in the trees, seeing a clear sky full of stars with a full moon. Turning to Mike, Bruce could see his face clearly. After he told Mike he was awake, Mike leaned back on his pack and was fast asleep.
Bruce reached over, putting his NVG on and flipping it down over his left eye. Then he turned it on. He could see just as far as he could have during the day with all the moonlight and starlight. He turned it off and swung it up off his eye. Looking around, he could see about thirty yards past camp. Looking at his watch, he saw it was 11:08.
Looking around camp, he saw no one had moved much and everyone was still fast asleep. Bruce just sat and listened to the woods. A little after midnight, he saw Cassandra sit up, look around, then lay back down by Susan, to go back to sleep. A few minutes later, he saw John stand up, grab his staff, walk the edge of the circle they had made, and pee. Then John went and laid back down holding his staff. Bruce just sat there and started rubbing Buffy’s head. She might be a little girl, but she was a good soldier, Bruce thought. He would make a point to try to take it easier on her, but he had a feeling that the time of little kids playing was over.
He sat there listening to the woods when he heard something crash to his front and off to the right. It sounded about a hundred yards away, but it was moving toward the group at a fast pace. Bruce reached up and turned on his NVG, flipping it down. He reached down and turned the thermal scope on with his heart racing. He saw something coming right at them, bouncing through the woods. It sounded like an army moving toward them. Just then, Bruce saw a doe and two fawns stop forty yards away, off to the right of the camp area. Bruce almost shot them for scaring the shit out of him. The three deer sat there looking at Bruce then turned and ran past him at a dead run on his right side.
Just as his heart was starting to slow down, he heard a sound that froze his blood. Roars sounded off to his front where the deer had come from. Bruce reached over, grabbing Mike and squeezing hard. Mike sat up, grabbed his rifle and put his NVG on, flipping it over his left eye, and turned on his thermal scope. Bruce woke up Buffy. As she sat up, he said in a normal voice, “They’re coming.” Bruce put her gun on her lap as he stood up. Crouching over, Bruce walked over to where everyone was sleeping on the blankets that were spread out. Everyone but Jim was sleeping on the blankets. Reaching down, Bruce shook Maria awake and felt Buffy on his left side. Maria sat up and saw Bruce looking off to the right as fear gripped her heart. Bruce quickly told her to wake the others and keep them quiet––infected were coming. He told her they may pass by them but, if they didn’t, not to shoot her gun unless she had no choice. Bruce told her to relay what he said to Lynn, and they needed to stay down so they would not get shot.
Bruce looked over where Alex and Angela were sleeping. Mike had a
lready woken them up, and they moved over to the group. Angela put Cade in Julie’s arms and whispered for her to watch him. In the area they were in, the trees were no bigger than twenty inches around and spread out. About thirty yards out, they became thicker and bigger. Bruce motioned for Mike to take his position and for Alex and Angela to come to this side of the group. Bruce moved forward to the edge of the circle the boys had cleared. Bruce had formed a firing line on the group’s right side with him and Buffy at the front of the line. Alex and Angela were the middle and Mike the anchor.
Bruce heard someone behind him waking up Jim and leading him back to the group. He risked a quick glance and saw it was Marty leading Jim back to the group. Well, better Jim being awake now instead of waking up and drawing attention to the group later, Bruce thought.
Bruce turned back around and could hear a lot of movement to his front. The deer may have sounded like an army running through the woods. The infected sounded like an army of tanks, and they were getting closer. Bruce could see four or five running as a small group in the direction the deer had run, about sixty to seventy yards out, catching glimpses through the trees. A larger group of runners of about twenty stopped about fifty yards off to the right of Bruce, looking around. Bruce was lying down on the ground praying. His heart was beating so fast he was sure the infected could hear it. Bruce could still hear a lot of movement in the woods behind where the infected had come from. A roar sounded off to his right where the small group had run after the deer. Then, as one, the entire stopped group started moving off at a slow pace following the small group of runners. “Well fuck me,” he mumbled.
Blue Plague The Fall Page 30