Sanctuary

by Blake Brown

  ​A young Border Collie approached them, the fur on its back standing up. Bryce reached out his hand and let the dog sniff it before petting the animal’s head. “Emma, come here.” Another voice called out from deeper in the shop, and the dog disappeared into the dark store that Bryce’s eyes were still adjusting to. The shop was dimly lit by candle light, and Bryce could see stacks of grain, rice, and oats everywhere as his eyes recovered from the brightness outside. There were boxes of seeds and bags of soil and fertilizer as well filling the store, and Bryce could now see the young man that had called the dog standing behind the counter, wearing a green John Deere hat and pointing an old hunting rifle at them.

  ​“Zeke keep that rifle on ‘em. If any of them reach for their weapons or do anything you don’t like, shoot ‘em.” The man said as he lowered his shotgun. “Pick out what you need and make me an offer.” He continued, waving his hand over his merchandise.

  ​Bryce turned to Byark, knowing that he had more knowledge on the subject of growing food than himself. “Well, we’ll take any fruit or vegetable seeds you have. Anything we can’t grow in the spring or summer we can grow in the winter or fall, and whatever takes a long time to grow, like fruit trees, we’ll have to wait for, but some things should be ready to start eating very soon. We could also use some fertilizer and good soil to help speed up the process and give us a bigger bounty every time we harvest. Also, something to keep bugs at bay as well as materials to build the gardens like wood and wire mesh to grow stalks and vines on. I don’t suppose you’ll be willing to trade any of the grain, rice, or oats, will you?” Byark said as he looked through what the man had in stock.

  ​“Anything me and the boy can eat is off the table. I’m too old to go out looking for supplies and I ain’t putting my boy at risk. We already lost his momma. That stuff should feed us for a long time yet, the rest though, I can part with. The question is, what are you willing to trade for it?” The man responded, stroking his beard as he perused his wears.

  ​They settled on trading one of the 9mm Beretta’s with two spare magazines and a few of the boxes of ammo, one of the Mossberg shotguns with a few boxes of twelve gauge rounds, a few boxes of 20 gauge ammo for the man’s double barrel, a few boxes of 7mm rounds for his son’s rifle, a few bottles of whiskey, a few packs of cigarettes, a case of beer, and a few cans and bags of chew for the younger man. They brought everything into the shop first and then, began loading up boxes of seeds, bags of fertilizer and soil, bug repellants, and all the building supplies.

  ​“Ya’ll are good folks. Most people would have tried to kill me and my boy for what we had, but you folks kept your word. You traded us more than what was fair.” The man said, surprised by how much he was getting in return for his trade.

  ​“We just stocked up on a lot of good supplies, we don’t mind helping you out.” Alejandro said with a smile, shaking the man’s hand.

  ​“We have more than we need right now, and what we got from you ensures we can have a constant source of food without having to put our lives at risk to go out looking for it. It was a fair trade my friend, don’t you worry about that.” Byark said, clapping the older man on the shoulder.

  ​“You and your son are welcome to come with us. We can work together to survive, it’s got to be our best bet.” Bryce said hopefully.

  ​“No thank you. We’re safer here by ourselves than out there with people. You seem like good folks, but you never know when someone’s going to turn on you, and we have all we need right here.” The man responded. Bryce nodded even though he disagreed. He wondered how long the man and his son could truly survive on their own out here, though he was glad they could give him a better chance of survival with the trade. “Ya’ll get going before you lose the light.” The man said as he looked up at the setting sun, and then waved goodbye. He walked back into his shop and Bryce could hear him locking and re-barricading the door.

  ​The three of them made their way back over to the fleet of vehicles, seeing a very angry Randy approaching them. “Why the fuck would you trade away our weapons and liquor to that old fucker!?” He yelled at the three of them.

  ​“He needed those weapons and ammo. We still have plenty to protect ourselves and I don’t think anyone but you two are too worried about the liquor and tobacco.” Bryce responded flatly as Nathan approached as well.

  ​“We should have just taken what we wanted from that old fool.” Nathan butted in.

  ​“That’s not how we’re going to do things.” Alejandro stated.

  ​“Come on, I’m not letting that son of a bitch keep our shit.” Nathan said, pulling out one of the 9mm’s before starting towards the farmers market with Randy close behind, carrying one of the shotguns.

  ​Byark pulled out his axe and swung around, swinging the weapon at Nathan’s throat, stopping less than an inch away from his flesh. “Try it and you’re dead.” He said.

  ​Nathan stopped in his tracks, swallowing nervously before turning around and heading back towards the vehicles, staring at his feet. “You fucking idiots are going to get us all killed.” Randy said as he turned around and followed his friend.

  ​The three of them shared a frustrating shake of their heads before walking back to the fleet of vehicles. Nathan got into the Navigator, Randy got into one of the RV’s, and Byark climbed into the other, Lauren got into the pickup that was hauling the trailer, and Sarah begged Bryce to let her drive the Corolla. He agreed, on the condition that Alejandro would ride shotgun and keep an eye on her driving. Tara hopped into the back of the Corolla, sticking with her big sister. Bryce helped the weak Grunt into the back seats of the GMC and then walked over to Greg and Matt. Greg was leaning against the bed of the truck, seeming out of breath, and Matt was trying to make sure he was okay. “Everyone’s ready to go, how are you feeling Greg?” Bryce asked as he approached them.

  ​“Not too great.” He replied weakly, and Bryce noticed that his voice seemed to change as it grew harder for him to speak.

  ​“Maybe you should ride in the bed of the truck. I promise not to drive too crazy and bang you up. I think the fresh air could do you some good.” Bryce said, forcing a smile. He wanted to keep Greg close, where he could watch him and intervene if he became a threat, but he didn’t want him riding in the cab with anyone else.

  ​“Yeah, that’s a good idea.” He said, looking up at Bryce.

  ​“Then I’ll ride back there with you.” Matt said.

  ​“No.” Greg responded aggressively. Bryce wondered if the man was starting to realize the change that was happening within him.

  ​“But someone needs to keep an eye on you. You’re really sick dad.” Matt tried to reason.

  ​“Ride up front with Bryce, its… safer.” He said stoically.

  ​Before Matt could respond, Bryce cut in. “Come on, let’s help your dad into the back of the truck.” They helped lift Greg into the back, and once he had settled himself and gotten comfortable, they walked back around and got into the cab. Bryce instructed everyone to roll down their windows as he started the truck so that he could talk to all of them at once. “Alright, follow me, it’s not a far drive but the roads start winding pretty drastically. Some of them are even on the edge of cliffs so I’ll go slow, that way the trailers and RV’s won’t have much trouble.”

  ​“Let’s get a fucking move on already.” Randy called out impatiently.

  ​Bryce pulled out of the lot and started towards Forest Hill, keeping a close eye on everyone trailing behind him. When they reached the town, the light was completely gone, except for some glow from the moon, and their headlights. The mass power outage meant there were no streetlights, home lights, or business lights to illuminate the roads anymore.

  ​Bryce started to hear something banging around in the bed of the truck, so he slowed to a stop and turned back, seeing Greg seize and thrash about in the illumination of the Corolla’s headlights. Sarah started to honk the horn, and Bryce put the truck in park.


  ​“Dad!” Matt yelled as he hopped out of the truck, leaving his door open and rushing to the back.

  ​“Wait! Be careful!” Bryce called out after him, grabbing his rifle and jumping out to follow him. The rest of the group pulled over in turn, getting out of their vehicles to see what the hold-up was. Bryce reached the tailgate just after Matt had opened it, the teenage boy now climbing into the bed of the truck. Bryce grabbed Matt’s shirt and yanked him back, wrapping his arms around him tightly as he pulled him back to the ground.

  ​“What the fuck are you doing? Let go of me! Dad?! What’s happening to him?” Matt called out in a panic as his father violently banged around in the bed of the truck, slapping his arms against the walls and bashing his head against the floor, clenching his teeth and groaning in pain as saliva and pink, bloody foam leaked out of the corners of his mouth.

  ​“What’s happening? Shouldn’t we help him?” Sarah asked, not knowing what to do.

  ​Lauren ran up and locked eyes with Bryce. “He’s infected.” Bryce said, loud enough for everyone to hear while facing Lauren so that she could read his lips.

  ​“He’s just fucking sick! We have to help him, let me help him!” The boy yelled as he kicked out at Bryce’s legs, tears streaming down his face.

  ​“I’m sorry Matt, but we can’t help him.” Bryce said, feeling horrible for the boy and his father. Bryce was now thankful for what his own father had done, feeling lucky that he didn’t have to see him like this.

  ​“That’s bullshit!” Matt yelled in desperate frustration.

  ​“Was it the bite that did him in?” Randy said.

  ​“You’re a piece of shit. You caused this.” Alejandro said, punching Randy in the jaw and sending him sprawling to the ground.

  ​Randy got up, ready to fight back, but then thought better of it, knowing it was a fight that he couldn’t win. “It’s not my fault, I didn’t bite the fucker!” He yelled back. Greg’s groans of pain turned into shrieks and screams.

  ​“Both of you fucking stop, this isn’t the time!” Bryce yelled angrily. “I thought that he might be infected from the bite, but now we know for sure that’s at least one way of getting infected.” Bryce said, knowing that everyone needed to know the information.

  ​“Dad?” Matt said, no longer fighting to break free from Bryce’s grip. Greg slowly got up, looking at all of them with eyes that seemed not his own. Bryce let go of Matt and pushed him behind himself, raising his rifle. Greg looked at the group quizzically for a few moments, scanning from person to person as bloody saliva dripped from his gaping mouth. He eventually locked his gaze onto Matt. “Dad, are you okay?” Greg shrieked violently as his son spoke, jumping off the truck bed and sprinting towards him with feral aggression. Bryce fired a round through his left eye, blowing that whole portion of his face and skull off in a spray of pulpy gore. Greg’s corpse collapsed to the ground with a wet smack.

  ​“I’m so sorry.” Bryce said, turning to face the teen boy as everyone else went silent. Matt seemed in shock as he slowly approached his dead father, kneeling next to him before putting his hand on his back. Byark grabbed a large comforter from the RV he was driving and brought it over to the corpse. Matt took his hand off his father and let the big man wrap the blanket around Greg. Byark then hefted his body up and carried it back to the bed of the GMC.

  ​“He’s in Valhalla now. We’ll bury him at the cabin so that you can visit his grave.” Byark said.

  ​Matt walked back to Bryce, no longer crying. “You killed him.” He said coldly.

  ​“It wasn’t your dad anymore Matt.” Bryce said, reaching out and grabbing the young man’s shoulder. Matt slapped away his arm and then swung upwards, punching Bryce in the face and causing a stream of blood to start pouring from his nose. Matt then walked back to the truck and hopped into the bed, sitting next to his father’s corpse. Byark closed the tailgate and walked back his RV. Everyone except Lauren piled back into their vehicles solemnly, not saying a word. Lauren walked up to Bryce and tried to put a cloth to his nose.

  ​“It’s fine,” Bryce said, pushing her hand away. “let’s get out of here before any infected are drawn to the sound of the gunshot.”

  ***

  ​They reached the cabin after a little while, and Bryce unlocked the gate, allowing everyone to pull inside. Byark helped Matt carry Greg’s body over to a corner of the grassy yard, while Bryce went and grabbed the two shovels that were stored in one of the tool sheds, bringing them back and handing one to Matt. Matt took it and then reached out, snatching the shovel from Bryce’s hand and throwing it to the ground. Byark moved to pick up the shovel and Matt snapped, stopping him in his tracks. “I’ll do it alone. Just leave us alone.” Byark dropped the shovel and walked away with Bryce following close behind. No one was in the mood to talk or make plans for the future, so they all just found a place to sleep, and lied down. Matt dug, alone in the dark.

  ***

  ​The following morning, Lauren woke before any of the others, the sun just starting to rise over the large trees surrounding the property. She stepped out of the trailer and looked to the corner of the yard where Matt was sitting next to the freshly packed mound of dirt that he had just finished covering his father’s grave with, obviously still awake from the night before. She walked over and gently put a hand on the boy’s back. He shrugged, causing her hand to slip away. She knelt beside him and said, “Do you want to have a funeral for him today after you’ve gotten some rest?” Hoping that hearing her voice for the first time would show him that she really cared about the boy and his father.

  ​Matt said something that she couldn’t make out as he stared down at the grave, not turning to face her. He then turned his face up to hers and said, “What’s the point? None of you even knew him. I’ve said all I had to say. He’s dead anyway, not like he can hear us now.” with his face set in stone, expressing no emotion as he spoke. The boy stood up and walked away. Lauren thought it best to give him his space to grieve, so she let him go without saying anything else.

  ​She sat there for a while, with her hand on the mound of dirt, rubbing it as if she were petting a dog. “I’m so sorry you won’t get to see him grow up… I promise we’ll all watch out for him as if he was our own. I hope you’re at peace wherever you are.” She said tearfully.

  ​After a few more minutes, Alejandro walked up next to her and pulled a silver cross out from inside of his shirt. He whispered a few prayers while standing over the man’s grave before heading off. Throughout the rest of the day, Lauren saw everyone from their group go up to the grave and pay their respects, even Randy and Nathan, which surprised her. No one saw Matt the rest of the day as he stayed in one of the RV’s by himself, and everyone thought it best to leave him be for now.

  CHAPTER 7

  ​Over the next few days, everyone spent their time differently. Bryce spent most of his time organizing their supplies and making a list of all the items they had, as well as the quantity of each, adjusting it as everyone ate and drank. He would also observe the group and what everyone was doing to try and get to know them better from a far, given the fact that he didn’t feel much like opening up with everyone after Greg’s death.

  ​Matt and Sarah seemed to spend a lot of time together. Bryce would always see them walking in the grass together or sitting next to each other in the cabin while they ate. Bryce guessed that their similar age and the recent death of their parents gave them a lot to talk about and bond over. He hoped that they found solace with each other and have someone to open up to with this new friendship.

  ​Matt avoided Bryce like the plague, refusing to even make eye contact with him when the two passed each other in the yard. He hoped that would change someday, but he gave the boy his space and didn’t blame him for it regardless.

  ​Alejandro spent most of his time working on the vehicles, making sure that they were ready for supply runs or incase the group needed to escape from an attack. He also spent a lot of time
keeping watch and walking the grounds, putting it upon himself to guard the perimeter, constantly checking the fence for weak points and the surroundings outside for hidden threats. Randy and Nathan spent most of their time drinking and using up the tobacco products, but since they mostly kept to themselves and didn’t cause any trouble, nobody seemed to care enough to intervene.

  ​Byark spent most of his time building the garden, planting seeds, and caring for their future source of food. He made level patches on the ground, built planters out of two by fours with a wire mesh backing, and then laced the inside of the planters with a tarp before filling them in with the soil and fertilizer, planting the seeds once his project was completed. They had seeds for different fruit trees that he planted around the fence, knowing that even if this was to be their permanent home it would take years for the trees to grow and start producing fruit. Bryce, always trying to think of their survival in the long term, noted that the full-grown trees would also give them an extra layer of defense if their home was being shot at.

  ​Tara would spend most her time watching Byark work, learning everything she could from the wise foreigner. Lauren would sometimes come by and help on the gardens as well, wanting to learn the useful skill and spend time with the orphaned girl. When Bryce watched the three of them working together and laughing, they appeared to be a normal, happy family. Bryce couldn’t help but grin from ear to ear every time Byark flicked little sprays of soil into Tara’s face, causing her to giggle uncontrollably.

  ​Besides the gardening, Lauren took on the role of the group’s house chef, making three meals a day to conserve food and to get the group together to eat so they would become more comfortable around each other.