“Every time I’ve seen ‘em jump, it’s nowhere near ten feet. I think it’s just because we never used to expect it, so it seemed higher than it was. When you think about it, it’s only five, maybe six feet at best. Not enough to get on top the buses, even with the flat tires.”
“He’s right,” said Gem. “And with the prize package Wendy brought us, we’ve got our distraction.”
“And the music,” said Charlie.
“What music?” asked Gem.
“You know.”
“No, I don’t.”
“Neither do I,” said Hemp.
Charlie pulled an iPod out of her pocket and smiled.
“That thing still works?”
“Yes, it does, because Apple’s Chinese child labor made a damned reliable MP3 player.”
Gem rolled her eyes as Carly jumped off Flex’s lap and returned to hers. Gem hugged her close and asked, “What’s the tune?”
“It’s gonna surprise you,” said Charlie, smiling.
“Sure,” said Hemp.
“It’s Red Eyes, by Switchfoot. Came out the year this shit started.”
“Appropriate,” said Gem. “Plus, I love that song.”
“Jon Foreman was talking about this song before he died or became a zombie or whatever,” said Charlie. “It was on some interview, and I’ve never forgotten it because it might have been the last interview I ever listened to. He said, ‘So here we are at the end of the world. And the beginning. Here we are at the dawn of the next generation. Y2K has passed us by. MLK, Kennedy, Elvis, Lennon, Cobain, MJ … they have all left the living – left us searching, wondering, hoping.’”
“That’s pretty good, and it ain’t even a song,” said Flex.
“Right. He wondered why so much of the new day had so much of the old darkness. To me, that says it all. If it’s not the right song for this crap, I got duped.”
As Gem received a face full of kisses from Carly, she said, “If you got duped, we all got duped. Set up the loudspeakers and let’s make this a fuckin’ party.”
The night fell soon after. It was the last night before the big show.
*****
The Hungerers were silent, standing, staring at nothing. They wavered back and forth, over two thousand of them, though they had not been counted by the more powerful Mothers. The issued commands did not change no matter their numbers. They would respond as they always had.
But they were not as strong as they had been before the diminishing. What the humans had called The Cleansing. It was when they had believed the Mothers and Hungerers had died.
All of the Hungerers had died then. Since that time, the few hundred Mothers had broadcast the word that they must create new armies; feed some, but allow them to rise and walk, and care for them so they might assist when needed.
The enormous hordes of Hungerers were something to behold, and they put fear into the hearts of the living by their sheer numbers, not to mention their incessant growling and gnashing.
The Mothers still had no concept of what gave them life; they only knew what caused their deaths, and they could control that.
With the new Mothers standing among the Hungerers, they were ready. Tomorrow night they would go to the meeting place and arrange their future. The Hungerers would be there in case things were not as they seemed. As long as one Mother remained, they were obedient.
If five remained, they could be directed with specificity.
*****
Night had fallen, and Flex was serving on watch duty. He sat atop the center bus on the east border of the new festival grounds. In the distance, he saw two figures walking in the shadows. The moon was a sliver, so most of the night consisted of shadows.
Lifting his binoculars, he peered at the two; it looked like both of the new girls. They’d teamed up earlier in the day to gather volunteers for their faux feast.
“Wonder what the hell these two are up to,” he mumbled.
He trusted them already, so he didn’t call Gem or Charlie to follow them. They both reached Carter Street and turned right, then took the next left.
That dead-ended right into the tree line.
“Be careful, ladies,” he said. “We could use you around.”
*****
“There’s flattened grass here,” said Wendy. “Gotta be ahead.”
“I don’t like doing this at night,’ said Eileen. “That’s their time.”
“Come on,” said Wendy. “Just a short ways in. Just until we see them.”
“How do you even know they’re here?” asked Eileen.
“Because the hot springs are all too far away, and they need to be ready to come to the fuckin’ party. There’s too many to travel far once it’s time.”
“And what good is it to know?”
“Jesus, girl! It’s called recon.”
“I get that, but normally you have a reason to scout shit out. Mothers are Mothers. Rotters are rotters.”
“You’re on WAT-5 – mellow out.”
“You should’ve just let me stay knocked out.”
“I’m thinking the same thing.”
They moved into the woods. When they finally found the horde, both had to hold their gasps.
They were uncountable.
*****
Wendy and Eileen did not stay there long; when one of the hundreds of Mothers appeared to turn their way, they trusted their concealment and remained graveyard still until she turned away.
“We gotta tell someone,” said Eileen.
“I’d normally argue with you, but … who? Flex and Gem maybe?”
“Like I said, everyone seems to trust them with their lives,” said Eileen. “You should’ve heard Jim and Doc Scofield talk about them on the way here. It was like they were gods.”
“They survived the apocalypse this long, and they’re no worse for wear. I know you can say the same thing about most of us, but after all these years of this shit, I gotta say, my creativity is shot. Not a lot of great ideas are pouring through this brain.”
“You? I was best buddies with a fucking child rapist and murderer. And get this … his goddamned name? Steven Smith. Such a dumb fucking alias it slaps you across the face. Turns out it was Ray Dell Doughty.”
Wendy turned to stare at her. “That Ray Dell Doughty? I thought they executed him.”
“Missed it by that much,” said Eileen, holding two fingers up about an inch apart. “Heard he was scheduled to die a couple months after everybody started turning into zombies.”
“I wonder how many scared little girls ended up dead ones from 2009 until he died,” said Wendy.
“He was killed by Mila,” said Eileen. “Did you meet her?”
“Maybe,” said Wendy. “Told ya. My brain’s shot. I’ve met a fuck ton of people since I got here.”
“Let’s go see Flex and Gem,” said Eileen. “I know this is all the plan, but they need to know what to expect.”
*****
CHAPTER FORTY -TWO
“This isn’t what it seems,” said Flex. “I know damned well we look like fools, but we’re not dumbasses.”
“Did we have any idea how many Mothers would be coming, Flex?”
Flex shook his head. “I think we figured a couple hundred, max. Sounds like we got about a Benjamin more than that from what these girls say.”
“I’m not sure we could see all of them, they were pretty clustered,” said Eileen.
“My night vision sucks,” said Wendy. “But now we know, you let me know what I can do to whoop their asses.”
Gem looked at Flex and Flex returned her gaze. They had made these plans, and now both were unsure.
Flex scooted to the side and turned to stare at Gem. “Babe, think of Travis controllin’ Lilith.”
“Lilith?”
“They’re all Lilith,” said Gem. “Weird, huh? They’re all connected. That being the case, they undoubtedly know of Travis’ powers.”
“Doesn’t mean they can do anything about it,” sai
d Flex. “We need Hemp. Either of you got a radio handy?”
They sat under the stars on the front porch, with Wendy and Eileen in Adirondack chairs and Flex and Gem on the bench swing.
Flex and Gem had been engaged in some living room sofa lovemaking when the knock came on the door, and Flex about fell off the couch. Colton was asleep in the back corner room, and he slept like a corpse, so they didn’t worry about a little frivolity in the front room.
One day they might get busted, but so far their luck had held out.
They had lit a Yankee Candle beforehand, and with the smell of sweat and French Vanilla, it was a bit too obvious what had been going on. They decided to avoid the scrutiny and just go out on the porch to talk.
“Do me a favor. You know where Hemp’s place is, Wendy?”
“I do.”
“Hop on that golf cart there. Give him the Cliff’s Notes on the situation and tell him Gem and I think we need to get Beauty and Travis in on this situation, pronto.”
“I’ll go with her,” said Eileen.
Flex pulled out a partially crushed pack of Marlboros, sliding one out of the box. Gem took it from him, and he slid out another. “Take your time,” he called, as the two mounted the cart and took off.
“You finished?” asked Gem, nodding at the smoke.
“Close enough. You need some more stimulation we probably got a few minutes. I think I can get you there.”
“I came in the first five minutes,” she said. “I was just being quiet for Colton.”
“We are efficient lovemakers,” said Flex. “That comes from years of practice. And yeah … I finished.”
They smoked in silence.
*****
When they returned, there were two golf carts. One carried the wide-awake Travis and Beauty in the back seat, with Charlie driving and Hemp holding on for dear life.
Wendy and Eileen returned on Flex and Gem’s cart.
As they all walked up, Beauty said, “I’m a little hurt you didn’t want to tell us about the plan.”
Gem got up and went to her, wrapping her arms around her and looking at Travis. “It’s not that we didn’t trust you. It’s that we didn’t know Travis’ ability to draw a shade. Block his thoughts.”
“Travis has a Hybrid mother,” she said. “Me. I was exposed to the Mother’s vapor while I was pregnant, by Maestro’s design.”
“Yes, and for that reason, your son is unique in this world as far as we know,” said Gem. “Because we know so little about his abilities – and he may not even understand them all yet – we thought it might be best to keep our plan under wraps.”
They reached the porch and they all sat. Gem continued, speaking to Travis and Beauty. “Hybrid children – at least Max and Isis – were powerful but really undisciplined when they were little. It wasn’t their fault, it just took them a while before they weren’t beacons, drawing the Mothers to us. We had no idea about all the other telepathic shit until later.”
“Travis?” asked Flex.
“Yes, Mr. Flex.”
“You know how to draw your shade?”
The boy nodded. “I keep it down always. As long as I can remember.”
“How good are you, exactly?” asked Hemp.
“What do you mean?” asked Travis.
“Do you think you can summon Max and Isis here? Right now?”
“Sure!” said the boy, excited.
“Then do it, rock star!” said Charlie.
Gem put a finger to her lips and said, “Shh. Colton’s asleep. Poor kid worked his ass off today.”
“Then he’s out,” said Charlie, turning to play drums against the wall of the house.
Gem grabbed her hand, laughing. “Stop that, you bitch!”
No more than fifteen minutes later, it was an 8-person affair. Max and Isis rode bicycles over and leaned them against the porch railing.
They ran out of front porch seating, so Flex had to get another couple barstools from inside, on which Travis and Beauty agreed to sit.
“Okay, so we have gathered the Hybrid crew for a reason, and I think the four of you are smart enough to figure out why,” said Hemp.
“Because we’re powerful as fuck,” said Max.
“Language, young man,” said Charlie.
“Oh, my God, that’s the pot calling the kettle a dirty fucking asshole,” said Max, rolling his eyes.
They all laughed, which was a good release. Eileen and Wendy shared their story of the Mothers in the surrounding woods.
“They did not indicate there were that many of them,” said Beauty.
“No, and even in their minds, they didn’t,” said Travis. “Sometimes they say one thing, but I hear another. Not when we talked to Lilith.”
“Which means they can lie, Travis,” said Hemp. “Or conceal the truth. You didn’t think they could.”
“I really didn’t know,” the boy said. “I guess I don’t know too many people who lie.”
“You never met Ray Dell Doughty,” mumbled Eileen.
“The serial killer?” asked Gem.
“Later, Gem,” said Eileen. “That’s a story for a bottle or two of wine.”
“Okay. Four corners,” said Hemp, leaning toward Travis. “That’s the name of the plan so you’ll remember it. The four of you will be posted there, hence the name.”
“At the corners?” asked Travis.
“Exactly. Travis, we know how you were able to contain Lilith in the garage. That means you can control at least one, possibly more. They are interconnected, after all, so it may work where you control one, you control all.”
“Is there a way for all of us to work together?” asked Max. “Isis is awfully powerful, and so is Beauty. For a male, Travis is way powerful from what I can tell. I’m the weakest of the bunch.”
“You’re more powerful than you think,” said Isis. “You won me over despite my apprehension.”
“That was my daddy’s good looks and my mama’s raw charm.”
“Why raw?” asked Charlie. “Oh, never mind.” She blushed.
“So, what is the four corners plan?’ asked Wendy, looking back and forth between them.
“Yeah,” said Eileen. “It sounded like he just made it up.”
They all stared at the two newcomers. “That’s it,” said Hemp. “They’re there. If things get out of hand, they do everything they can to subdue them.”
“I was talking to Tommy Watson yesterday,” said Gem. “He’s perching on top of one of the buses with his shotgun. Big 50-round magazine full of buckshot shells in his Saiga.”
“The trench is done. All of our sacrifices will be stripped down to their skivvies and zip-tied loosely together – just for appearances,” said Flex. “They’ll lay on a table just over the tunnel. Once one of ‘em drops in, the rest can slide off and follow. Distractions are all set up.”
“I even picked the music,” said Charlie, smiling.
“Oh, yeah. You gotta hear this,” said Gem.
“Red Eyes by Switchfoot - and I just decided, followed up by Ozzy Osbourne’s Mama I’m Coming Home for the main event.”
“Nice last minute addition bitch,” Gem said.
“I thought so too,” said Charlie as she fist-bumped Gem.
Everyone nodded.
“Hopefully they’re all going home,” said Hemp. “Alright,” he said, turning to Max, Isis, Travis, and Beauty. “Since you do not sleep, I expect you all to utilize the time we have remaining before tomorrow night as efficiently as you can. I suggest tonight you practice working together, however that might be achieved. If you have doubts, keep working on it.”
They all nodded.
The plan, as sparse as it really was, was in place. All of it.
*****
The next morning, Colton sat at the table across from Gem. She was cleaning her Uzi, which she had in pieces, and he was eating a breakfast burrito Gem had made with homemade tortillas and homemade chorizo. Colton loved it and could eat it every day.
A shirtless Flex walked out from the bedroom yawning. He looked at his Rolex. “It’s late,” he said, stretching. “Hey, Colton.”
“Hey, dad,” said Colton.
“I can’t believe you wear that thing,” said Gem.
Flex held up his wrist. “What? This old thing?”
“You couldn’t afford one before the zombies went wild. Now you act like you paid for it.”
“Killed a couple zombies in that jewelry store,” he said. “I was their first customer for months, and look what I did.”
Colton smiled, then laughed. “You’re hilarious, Dad. Hey, how did you get the name Flex, anyway?”
“My mom used to tell me it was a mistake. They meant to call me Felix, but somebody fucked – ‘scuse me – messed up on the birth certificate. My mama didn’t believe in doing anything over, so that was that. Flex I was.”
“I wouldn’t have married a guy named Felix,” quipped Gem.
“If I can marry a girl named Gemina, you can marry a guy named Felix.”
“Meanwhile, Colton’s got the coolest name around. And he’s coming into his own, so the girls are taking notice,” said Gem.
“No, they’re not!” he said, blushing. “You’re crazy.”
“Crazy she is, but you haven’t seen that Monique chick eyeballin’ you – what is she, like two years older than you?”
“Just a year,” said Colton. “I dig older chicks.”
“A man after my own heart,” said Flex.
“After your heart? I’ll remind you I’m younger than you by a long shot old man. And Colton, older women will never disappoint you.”
“Scoot over,” said Flex. “I need to clean the Daewoo while you got the shit out.”
“You’ve had so many opportunities to trade that thing in. Why do you keep it?”
“Because it kicks ass. Bigger than the Uzi, but solid in my hands.”
“You still don’t have a name for it like my Suzi.”
“Yeah, I do. Figured it out a while back when you were shoe shoppin’.”
“Please share.”
Dead Hunger | Book 10 | The Remnants Page 35