by Deb Rotuno
I sighed deeply at the word “simple,” but I stayed quiet. While Rich felt more comfortable taking the more military-minded people with him—just about the same people he’d crossed the country with—this scouting trip would be dangerous. Like Jack had pointed out, Medford wasn’t a big city, but it was bigger than anything around us. The hospitals alone would be riddled with zeaks—people who had turned while sick, not to mention the staff taking care of them. There was also the fear of survivors. We were all wary of the living more than the dead, which was sad to say but the truth all the same. There was no telling who or what they’d encounter.
However, Mose had a point. The kids did need clothes. Aiden, Zoe, Freddie, and Rina grew every damn day, it seemed. Poor Josh had shot up a few inches just over the winter, so all his pants were starting to fit too tight or too short. They were outgrowing what they’d worn before. Shoes alone were hard to come by for them. And he was right about the seeds too. Now that spring was well under way, we needed to plan, plant, and store food for the next winter so we wouldn’t struggle so hard. It was a long-term necessity.
Dottie, on the other hand, needed things that couldn’t be found anywhere but a medical facility. She had plenty of information to work with, but it was only theories and notes on paper so far. She didn’t have the equipment to physically work with the virus. She wanted to be able to mix chemicals, adjust the virus, and add to it, simply to test it on human blood and cells. She was hoping it would work like the flu shot, but she’d only come so far without the ability to actually manufacture it.
Looking around the room, I noted who was going: Rich, Joel, Ruby, Quinn, Derek, and, of course…Jack. It was the strongest team I could imagine going, but I wasn’t happy about it. And from the look on Lexie’s face, she wasn’t pleased either. In fact, both of us had argued fervently that the team should be bigger, that maybe we should wait or not go at all, but it was for nothing, because the reality was, we needed one last detailed scouting trip. If done correctly, we could possibly stop scouting altogether.
The chickens, rabbits, and the occasional deer provided us with plenty of meat, not to mention the fish caught in the lake. The goats alone had given us milk, cheese, and butter. The greenhouse was looking fantastic, but with a few more vegetables planted, we wouldn’t need to scrounge around for canned stuff anymore. And finally, there was Dottie’s work. If she could come up with something to stop, prevent, or guard the living against the dead, then providing her with what she needed was simply the right thing to do.
I was snapped out of my thoughts when Jack appeared before me, kneeling down with a worried expression on his handsome face. I was already shaking my head at him.
“Shortcake…”
“You’re taking Sasha.” My tone was pleading but firm. “Don’t argue—don’t even open your mouth, Jack. If you won’t take another person, then you’ll take her.” I heard my dad snort into a chuckle, but there wasn’t much humor behind it. “I’m not kidding.”
The dog in question heard her name, and her head popped up from where she’d been snoozing on the floor by the window.
I raised an eyebrow at Jack, who was studying my face with a touch of fear and worry. I could practically read his mind. We’d done our damnedest to stay together, not separating for more than twenty-four hours at a time, but this would take days. This would split us up, bringing doubts and worry and fear right back. And I knew him well enough to know that he’d swear to God, on a stack of Bibles, and on his own soul that he’d come back to us, if only because his family was bigger now. And that was the reason I couldn’t go. I couldn’t leave my son behind, and I wasn’t letting Freddie go with this dad. But there were two more little ones to take care of now. Rina and Aiden needed me, needed one of us to stay behind, stay steady in their lives, though Rina was going to be a mess when Jack left.
I knew for a fact that if I forced my hand, Jack would stay, but I couldn’t do it. They needed him. And I also knew he’d go crazy worrying about them while they were gone, and if they didn’t return or someone got hurt or even killed, he’d blame himself the rest of his life—although whether that would be worse or better if he were there and unable to prevent it, I wasn’t sure.
“Please,” I whispered to him.
Finally, his shoulders sagged a little. “Okay…fine. We’ll take Sasha.”
Sasha got up, shaking herself all over, and yawned widely, only to come plop her butt down next to him, which made him smile and pet her head.
“Easy, big girl,” he told her. “Not yet.” He turned back to me. “If we do this right, we won’t have to go again. We’ll have enough to—”
“I know,” I interrupted him, cupping his face. “No, I get it. One last trip. It’s the best course of action, but I don’t have to like it. We’ll be okay here, but…” I shook my head, letting out a deep breath again, but I didn’t finish that thought.
Jack nodded, standing up in front of me, but he dropped a long, hard kiss to my forehead. When he faced his dad, he stated, “We’ll have a plan for every fucking scenario we can think of, and only when we’re all on the same damn page will we head out. I also want those staying here to have some sort of idea which way we’re taking.”
Joel stood up. “I agree. We’ll plot out two maps with an estimated timeline.”
My dad nodded. “I like it. We’ll plan today and tomorrow. You’ll head out the next morning.”
JACK
Medford, Oregon
“Welcome to Providence Medford Medical Center,” Joel muttered under his breath as I pulled the truck to a stop.
We were all quiet as we took in the rather large building. What once would’ve been a thirty-minute drive had taken us four days. Four fucking days of fighting zeaks, scrounging for gas, camping in the middle of the street, towing cars, and raiding everything we saw along the way.
We’d stripped the Humane Society of everything it had left, including pet food and medicines. Sadly, there were animals that had been trapped. The place was a mess. Actually, everywhere was a fucking mess, with zeaks trapped in stores and homes or wandering down 140 and I-5. We’d raided several stores of what clothes we could shove into duffels and boxes. We’d even cleared out a hardware store—one of those big-ass chain stores—for all the seeds we could get our hands on. Luckily we’d brought the trailer. We’d just left a small clinic, and this was the last stop before we started the journey back home.
The thought of home made me clench my teeth and crack my knuckles on the steering wheel. It had been harder to leave than ever before. I’d done my best to keep my family together once we’d finally reunited after almost six long months apart. I’d never left my wife and son for more than a day, but now it would be pushing a week before I’d get back.
Freddie had been pissed, looking just like me as he told me that he should go, but I’d needed him with his mother. I’d made him swear to take care of her, of Rina and Aiden. Rina had been the one who almost stopped my going. She’d been in hysterics. Her attachment to me had grown by leaps and bounds since Olivia had died. She loved Sara, but it was me she’d come to, and to see her lose it when we were loading up the truck, attaching the trailer, and packing up ammo was almost too much. Her mother had left and not come back, so I knew that she’d think the same of me…and I was taking Grandpa Rich and Sasha with me. She hadn’t been hearing reason when I held her for the last few minutes.
Sara had been resigned at my leaving. She didn’t want it, though she knew it was necessary. It was a means to an end. This trip would be the last of the raids, the scouting trips, to salvage temporary supplies. I’d barely slept the night before we left, simply because I’d been unable to stop myself from taking my wife over and over; I’d wanted to drown in her touch, her smell, her sweet, sexy giggles at my touch. I’d needed it more than sleep. Fuck, I’d needed it more than air. However, as the sun came up, the giggles turned into tears, whispered fears, and endless professions of love, and when I tried to promise her that
I’d come home, she wouldn’t have it. She’d kissed me stupid before I’d even finished the sentence and simply told me that I needed to swear to be careful. That’s it, nothing more.
My eyes caught movement on the sidewalk, snapping back to reality at the sound of Derek’s voice.
“We got company,” he stated as I pulled the truck underneath the awning of the hospital.
“Boof,” Sasha added, making Ruby reach over and scratch her head with a smile.
Looking into the rearview mirror, I asked my dad, “How you wanna do this? Do you know the layout of this place?” I gazed up at the building in front of me, shaking my head. “We’ve got movement in the upper windows. We’ve got a construction tube from the third floor down to a Dumpster. And we’ve got several sections to clear to get everything you’re wanting, so…talk to me, Dad.”
“Construction tube?” he asked, leaning out the window of the truck. He settled back into his seat, letting out a deep breath. “We could send some things down the chute…” He was thinking aloud, but I could see we needed someone to stay with the truck and trailer.
“I’ll stay out here,” Quinn volunteered. “You whistle from that window when you’re sending something down. I’ll fish it out and load it up. If I get company, I’ll duck inside the front doors…or the Dumpster or some shit. If it’s a straggler or two, I’ll deal with it.”
“Fair enough,” Dad agreed with a nod. “Then I think we’d be quicker to split into groups. Once we’re inside, I’ll tell you what to look for and what ward you need to find.”
The unmistakable sound of grunts, growls, and dragging feet met our ears, and I sighed wearily, shutting off the engine and opening my door. “C’mon. We’ll clear these assholes and get this shit done. I don’t want to stay here any longer than we have to.”
It took us a few minutes to eradicate the small swarm of zeaks wandering up the street. Quinn was alone but safer when we finally left him outside and made our way into the front doors of the hospital.
One glance around the lobby, and I groaned, gripping my hair. “This is gonna really suck.”
Joel snorted, smacking my shoulder with the back of his hand before pulling out his sword, because the place was straight out of a horror movie. “Indeed, Jacky. So…you take Sasha, and Dad and Derek can stick together. Ruby and I will hit the lab. You hit the pharmacy, and Dad can hunt down the equipment he needs.”
We all turned to my dad, who was nodding as he pulled out his knife. He pointed to me. “Second floor, son. Derek, we’re heading for the south end, third floor. Ruby, Joel… You’re looking for the fourth floor, this end of the building.”
We all armed ourselves, opting for quiet weapons, though we were all strapped down with automatic rifles, handguns, and shotguns. The compound bows, swords, and knives tended to make the job easier, without pulling more in with noise.
Sasha and I separated from everyone when we reached the second floor. Pressing my ear to the stairwell door, I glanced to Sasha, who was alert, twitchy, and flashing her teeth.
“If you say so, big girl,” I sighed to her, slowly and carefully opening the door.
The entire corridor was a walking, growling mess. I saw zeaks in scrubs, hospital gowns, and street clothes. They were subdued until the two of us stepped out of the stairwell, and then they rounded on us almost in one swift motion.
“Sasha, on me,” I commanded, simply because the area was too tight for her to try to round them up. She’d get trapped.
The path to the left was clearer than the path to the right, so I readied the compound bow, nailing the closest zeak, only to snatch the arrow back out of his head and slam it into the one behind him. I heard more coming behind us, but I kept moving forward, eliminating all the bastards in my way.
There was a sign at the end of the hallway, the pharmacy arrow pointing to the right, so I took it. We just kept moving until I found the door I wanted, and the fucker was locked.
“So much for quiet,” I stated, pulling out my .45 and aiming at the lock. The gunfire was loud after trying to keep silent, but I pushed the door open, waiting for Sasha to dart in before shoving a desk in front of it to keep the dead out until I could empty the shelves.
The duffel I’d been given was huge—like football-equipment huge, which I assumed it was. It reminded me of the bag I’d carried in high school with my pads and uniform. Dropping it to the top of the desk, I started at one end of the room filled with shelves. Despite the locked door, some of the stock was depleted, but I didn’t stop long enough to count. I had a list of meds my parents wanted, not to mention a few requests. Pain meds, cough syrups, bags of IV fluids, alcohol, peroxide, iodine, and antibiotics were top of the list, and then there were things I had no idea about—powders and chemicals my mother needed. Lastly, I hit the birth-control shelves. I took it all. Sara wasn’t the only one worried about pregnancy back at the lodge. Lexie, Ruby, and Lucy had all asked for something…anything. There were vials with liquids that my mother said would work, not to mention endless packs of thirty pills that I’d recognize anywhere. All of it was still on the shelf.
I snorted, shaking my head as I grabbed boxes of syringes, gauze pads, and rolls of medical tape. “Damn, Sasha… I see once again that safe sex is not an issue in this new fucked-up world.”
Sasha sat down at the end of the aisle, her tongue hanging out the side of her mouth as she watched me, which made me grin. But my smile fell when the desk suddenly jumped forward an inch or two. Sasha spun around, her growl low, forceful, but I shoved the desk back, going back to the work at hand, only moving a hell of a lot quicker.
“We may be trapped in this room, big girl,” I told her, dumping another armload of shit into the bag. I made one more trek up and down the shelves, making sure I’d gotten everything we could use and then some, only to eye the exit as the pounding of hands and scratching of nails continued nonstop. “Maybe,” I mumbled, eyeing the door, the desk, and the ceiling tiles, but then my gaze fell back to Sasha. “No, that won’t work…unless…” I dragged the word out as I thought it through.
The desk shifted again, making the dog jump back and let out a soft, “Boof.”
“Sasha, stay!” I snapped, once again pushing the desk back, taking a few greenish-colored fingers with it. “Don’t move!” I told her, jumping up on the desk and punching my way into the ceiling.
Using the wall that separated the room from the corridor, I pulled myself up into the ceiling. My weight would destroy the flimsy ceiling tiles, but the walls would hold me. I shifted a few out of the way on the other side to see how big the group of dead assholes was outside the pharmacy door.
“Ten…twelve…fifteen. Hmm,” I huffed, rolling my eyes, but I pulled my rifle around to aim at their heads from my vantage point. The silencer on the end kept the noise down, so I took them all out, only to slip back down into the pharmacy and shove the desk back before opening the door. “Much better, big girl. Now we stand a fucking chance.”
With a grunt, I pulled the now-full duffel bag across my shoulder and stepped out into the hallway. There were a few zeaks shuffling our way, but one was crawling, another seemed strapped to a wheelchair, and the third couldn’t seem to find his way out of the damn nurse’s station.
I looked to Sasha, who was eyeing them with a tilted head, and snorted a little. “Third floor, right, big girl?”
“Yes,” I heard behind me, and my weapon was engaged and pointing at my dad’s highly amused face before my brain caught up.
“Fuck, Dad!” I exclaimed, leaning back against the wall. “Way to scare the shit outta me. I almost shot your sneaky ass.”
He grinned, gripping my shoulder. “Sorry.”
“No, you’re not.”
“Nah, not really… But thanks for not pulling the trigger.”
“I still might,” I warned him in jest, and he grinned again. “Did you find everything you need? Where’s D?”
He nodded, leading us back down the hallway to the stairs. �
��I’ve already sent it all down to Quinn. He had a few more zeaks heading up the street, so I also sent Derek down to cover him.”
“All right.” I nodded, and we continued up to the third floor.
Suddenly, he turned to me, placing a hand on my shoulder before we could step all the way out. The humor from his face was gone, and he shook his head slowly. “Son, I’m warning you now… Do not look in these rooms. Don’t even glance through the fucking windows.”
“Why? Where the hell are w-we?” I looked up at the sign on the wall to see we were in the pediatric ward. “Oh fuck me… How…”
“Oh, it’s bad,” he murmured darkly. “It’ll take me lifetimes to get the memory out of my head. No matter what you hear, just…ignore it.”
“Copy that,” I sighed, keeping my eyes in front of us or on Sasha as we worked our way down the hall. I focused on Dad’s back or the floor, but the growls—higher-pitched and eerie—coming from either side of us were…disturbing. I hadn’t seen a turned child in a long damn time, and I had no desire to see them now. It only made my worry for my family ratchet up a notch or two on the panic scale. “Jesus Christ… I really just wanna go home.”
“No shit, son,” he replied, shoving open a door at the end of the hall. The window was missing, and the construction around us looked like they were renovating a waiting area or break room, but Dad stepped up to the window next to it, sending a shrill whistle down to the sidewalk below.
Quinn rushed to the Dumpster, whistling back, and I lifted the duffel off my shoulder and sent it down through the chute. Dad and I leaned out the open window as Quinn fished the bag out of the Dumpster, running back toward the front awning, where we’d left the truck and trailer.
Shuffling of feet behind us made us both spin around, but it was Ruby and Joel. There was blood staining the front of Ruby’s jeans on her thigh, and she was limping.