by Tim Moon
Digging into one of his cargo pockets, Ben pulled out an important scrap of paper. He turned to face a window and held the paper to read the name of the thyroid medication his mom needed, levothyroxine.
Since the electricity had gone out, it was almost as chilly inside the building as outside. That meant there was a good chance any insulin they had was still good. Thank goodness for that. If this had happened during summertime his mom would have been in a tougher spot.
Scanning the shelves for levothyroxine was tedious. His mind began to drift. How long could he scavenge insulin for his mom? Without the daily injections, his mom would become ill and could potentially slip into a coma and die. Thyroid medication could be a problem over the long-term as well. The pills didn’t expire as quickly as insulin did, but it was another issue they had to deal with.
One thing at a time, he reminded himself.
Ben took a break from searching the shelves to stretch out. As he rolled his head to ease the tension in his neck, he spotted the refrigerated case where they would normally keep the insulin. Rushing to the case, he scowled at the thick padlock that gleamed silver in the light of the window.
Once again, Ben was on a mission to find keys. Unlike the Army’s Humvee in Kona, he knew for a fact it required a key. Thinking back on what they had gone through, it seemed impossible to have survived it all.
He began searching for the key at the counter where the pharmacists dispensed medication. On the counter were a pair of computers. Their darkened screens were ominous, like the eyes of the infected. Ben avoided looking at them and reached underneath the counter to rummage through the desk drawers.
As expected, he found pencils, rubber bands, sticky notes and random office supplies that they didn’t need. Ben opened and closed drawer after drawer, fighting the urge to slam each one shut. Instead, he gritted his teeth and moved on to the next one. Inside the next drawer he opened were reams of printer paper. To the left of the computer, he found another set of drawers. Anxiety grew in his chest, tightening it like a vice grip. There were no keys.
Nothing can ever be easy. Can it?
He thought about smashing the lock or finding something to pry it open but dismissed the idea since it would be so loud. The store might have a crowbar or some tool that he could use. That would be quieter than smashing it. A saw would take forever and was impractical.
A few minutes later, Ben gave up the search. He would check other stores first and if nothing panned out, he could come back and spend the time sawing the thing open. For now, he turned his attention back to hunting down thyroid medicine.
Dozens and dozens of medications lined the shelves. It was one of several times that Ben missed having internet access. Some of these could be very useful antibiotics or pain medications, but he’d never know it. Next time he would have to bring Charlotte.
He did recognize one label. It was the strongest medication he’d ever used. After a back injury from weight lifting, he’d been prescribed Tylenol 3 with codeine. He skipped it. There was no point taking potentially addictive drugs such as codeine and Vicodin. Their survival would only be compromised if someone began abusing them.
Finally, after what felt like hours, Ben found levothyroxine pills and loaded up his backpack. Satisfied with his haul, he left the pharmacy to find Anuhea and see what she’d been able to gather. The store was oddly quiet. He stopped and listened.
Did she go out to the van?
“Hey, where are you?” he whispered. Anuhea was inside somewhere. If she jumped out to scare him, Ben was going to give her a piece of his mind. His heart began to race. He raised his rifle and crept forward to search for her. If zombies had attacked, he would have heard something, and he didn’t really think she’d play a joke on him.
Ben’s shoes squeaked softly on the floor. There was a muffled sound. He paused to listen. The hairs on his neck stood up, something wasn’t right. He heard the swish of a jacket and another muffled sound, like someone trying to talk with a hand over their mouth.
Adrenaline spurred Ben towards the front of the store. He stopped at the edge of an aisle and peeked around. Three men stood back lit by the front doors. The man in the middle held Anuhea and was flanked by the other two who aimed their guns in his direction when they noticed him.
“What the fuck?” Ben said.
“Drop the gun, asshole,” one of the men said.
“Don’t try to be a hero,” another one quipped.
He couldn’t believe what he saw. Three men had gotten the drop on Anuhea. She was a tough fighter and great shot. A split second after that thought crossed his mind a chill raced down his spine. If they were good enough to ambush her, they likely outstripped his meager skills as well.
Gritting his teeth again, Ben glared at the men. He couldn’t give up. Not after what they’d been through. Ben aimed at the head of the guy hiding behind his friend.
“I said drop it,” the man on the left said.
The man holding Anuhea took his hand away from her mouth and pointed at Ben. “Don’t even think about it. You put the gun down or we’ll kill this bitch.”
“Don’t do it,” Anuhea snapped.
“Shut your mouth, bitch.” The man tightened his grip around her neck and pressed the blade of his knife against her skin, eliciting a wince of pain.
Ben kept his aim as steady as he could. With one guy on either side, he knew he could shoot one, possibly two if their reactions were slow. It would be risky though.
The thought of losing Anuhea sent a jolt of pain through his heart. He glanced at her, and she mouthed something to him. At first, Ben wasn’t sure what she was trying to say. Anuhea mouthed it again slowly.
It clicked, and he gave her a slight nod.
The man on the left said, “What are you nodding about? Ricky, did you see that? She was saying something to him.”
“Don’t use my name, idiot,” the man named Ricky said from behind Anuhea.
Ben glared at the man and his finger twitched ever so slightly on the trigger. He wanted to shoot him so bad. The only thing keeping Ben from doing it was the knife pressed against Anuhea’s neck.
Then the decision was made for Ben when the man on his right moved suddenly, taking a large side-step to flank him. Ben dropped to one knee, turning as he did. He took a hasty aim at the man’s chest and squeezed the trigger three times.
At the same time, Anuhea flew into motion. She slammed her palm into the elbow of the arm around her neck, popping the man’s arm overhead, as she dropped all her weight, allowing her to slip underneath before the man could react. Anuhea spun around, head-butted him square on the nose and then kneed him in the groin. A stunned expression was frozen on Ricky’s bloodied face as he tipped over backward to the ground, gasping for air.
The third guy had totally frozen. His mouth dropped open in shock.
Ben swiveled back the other way. He had to traverse more than forty-five degrees to get a bead on the last man. A shotgun blast boomed overhead. He heard the shelf behind him come apart as his instincts made him flinch away. He lost balance and flopped to the ground, squeezing off a few rounds as he went down, hoping to get lucky.
He did. Although two rounds missed, one smacked into the man’s leg, just above the knee. The dude crumpled to the ground in a blink. Ben scrambled back to his feet, grimacing. He had struck his elbow on the ground when he tipped over. The least funny bone had smashed into the tile floor and left his hand was numb and the joint was tingling.
Ben looked down at the scene as he flexed his hand to work out the numbness. All three of the troublemakers were down. One was dead. One was still curled up, clutching his man bits. The third sat on the floor, howling in pain and horror at the blood pulsing out of his leg. It oozed between his fingers and dripped on the floor in an ever-widening puddle.
“Shut up,” Anuhea said, kicking him in the face.
His hands flew up to clutch his nose and a sob escaped his lips. Blood gushed from his nose, covering the fron
t of his jacket. More leaked from his leg. The screaming turned into a dull groan.
Ben kicked away the man’s shotgun and turned to Anuhea. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.”
“Watch him,” Ben said, gesturing to the man bleeding out.
Ben was mad at himself for not thinking to at least shut the front door after they had cleared the place. An ambush in a place like this seemed so obvious now. Almost inevitable. That mistake could have cost their lives. Only sheer luck kept them alive. The weight of that realization bore down on Ben like a ton of bricks.
Scum like these men, were left for people like Ben to eliminate. He wouldn’t play Russian roulette with his friend’s safety. These guys had crossed a line by grabbing Anuhea. He wouldn’t run away from this as they had in Hilo.
Nope. Ben and his people were here to stay. He walked over to the guy clutching his nuts; the one who had held Anuhea. The guy looked up at him, pain etched on his face. Hatred burned in his eyes. Without hesitation, Ben shot him in the head.
Anuhea slapped his arm. “What the hell, Ben? What are you doing?”
“I can’t let it happen again,” Ben said. “Assholes like this, we let them go, and they’ll come right back at us. Just like on Hilo. I’m not going to risk losing anyone else to these pieces of shit.”
Anuhea stared at him with sad eyes.
Maybe she understood, maybe she didn’t. Only time would tell.
Ben turned away from the body and walked over to the first guy he’d shot. He was face down in a pool of blood, but Ben wanted to be sure he was done. Turning the body over, he was pleased to see that all three shots had stitched him from the gut to the left shoulder.
Tic-tac-toe, motherfucker.
He still placed two fingers along the guy’s neck to feel for a pulse. Nothing.
The last survivor clutched his leg, letting blood drip from his nose. He watched Ben approach with wide eyes.
“Anyone else with you guys?” Ben asked.
The guy couldn’t seem to find his voice, so he merely shook his head no.
“Is there anyone outside waiting to ambush us?”
The man glanced at the two of them. Tears streamed from his eyes and spit dribbled off his lip onto his shirt.
“Answer me,” Ben said with a growl.
“No.” He shook his head. “There’s no one outside.”
“Where did you guys come from?”
The man spit out a mouthful of blood onto the tile. “I don’t know.”
“How do you not know?” Anuhea asked.
The man shook his head and gave a weak shrug.
“Here’s how this works,” Ben said, narrowing his eyes. “We ask, and you answer. Don’t play games. Don’t jerk us around.”
He shifted his rifle sideways on its sling and pulled out his pocket knife. He wasn’t sure that he could stomach torturing the man, so he hoped a simple threat would work. The man’s eyes followed Ben’s hand and widened when he saw the knife.
“I don’t know, okay? I don’t know where we stayed,” he begged.
Ben raised the blade in front of his face. A whimper escaped the man’s quivering lips. Before he threatened to cut the guy, Ben reached over towards the injured leg. He paused with his hand over the gunshot wound.
“Tell me honestly. How many people are in your group and where do they live?”
“I’m not from here. I don’t know the address. I probably couldn’t find my way back. Please don’t hurt me. This is my first time scavenging with these guys, I swear.”
“How many are in your group?” Ben repeated.
The man bit his lip and wavered.
Ben pointed the knife blade at the guy’s face. “I’m not playing around.”
“Seventeen back at home,” he gasped.
“Any other groups out scavenging?” Anuhea asked.
The man shook his head again. “We have twenty in all, if you count us.”
“Does your group know about us?” Ben motioned to him and Anuhea. “Or any other survivors?”
“No.”
Ben slapped the man’s leg with the back of his hand. “Don’t lie to me, man.”
His scream was so loud that Ben quickly cupped his hand over the guy’s mouth. A few seconds later when the screams subsided he removed his hand.
“I’m not, I’m not lying,” the guy said, panting. Sweat glistened on his brow like Christmas lights. “Trust me. We didn’t know there were any other survivors. You were the first we’ve seen.”
“So, why did you attack us?” Ben asked.
“It was Ricky’s idea. He thought you’d be easy prey, and maybe a little fun.” He glanced up at Anuhea. “I told him he was being stupid. He doesn’t listen for shit though.” Sweat trickled down his cheek as he tried to force a smile. It looked more like a grimace. “I guess it’s too late for I told you so.”
“Guess so,” Ben said. “You didn’t want to attack us. Ricky did. You’re an innocent victim then, huh? Just following orders?”
“That’s right.” He wiped his face with the back of one hand. It left a red smear across his cheek. “No need to kill me, man. We’re cool.”
“We are most certainly not cool,” Ben snarled, slapping the guy’s leg again. His howl of pain renewed.
“Ben, stop. Let’s just go,” Anuhea said.
Ben glanced at her. “Can you collect their weapons and ammo and put them in the van, please? Grab anything interesting too, like a wallet or an ID. Something with an address.”
Her expression hardened but she didn’t argue.
Ben patted down the injured man to check for weapons. He was huffing breaths, fighting to stay conscious and didn’t put up any resistance. There were no other weapons. All he found was an extra magazine for the rifle, and a pack of smokes, which he crushed and threw over his shoulder.
“Come on, man. I don’t even get a smoke before I die?”
Ben slapped the guy’s leg in response. He moaned in agony.
“Please, stop,” he begged.
“Is anyone from your group outside waiting for us?” Ben asked.
“No, I told you.”
“Where is your base, huh? Where is your group staying?”
“I don’t know that, I told you.”
Ben saw a glimmer in his eye though. He was holding back. Cupping one hand over the guy’s mouth, he pressed the flat of the blade over the wound. Blood welled up, covering the blade. The man shrieked like a pig, squirming under his grip. Ben pressed his knee against the man to hold him in place.
“Jesus! Come on, Ben,” Anuhea said.
“Give me directions.” Ben pointed the blood drenched blade at the man’s face. “I can see that you’re holding back.”
“Don’t hurt them, please,” he whined.
“Tell me where they are.”
The man began sobbing. “My daughter is with them. Please, please, I beg you. Don’t hurt her.”
“I’m not that kind of man. Now tell me, where are they?” Ben growled. “I just want to know where they are, so we can avoid them.”
He groaned softly and choked back his tears.
“It’s… it’s a blue house with a big tree in the front yard. There’s a school about three blocks away,” the man said. His shoulders trembled, and he let out a sigh. “Seriously, that’s all I know.”
His last few words were slurred. The color had left his cheeks and his skin glistened with sweat. His breaths came in short, quick gasps. Time was almost up.
Ben stood and turned to Anuhea. “All set?”
“Yeah.” Her voice was soft, hoarse.
Ben put his knife away and looked down at the man. “Any last words?”
“N-n-n-n-no,” the man stuttered, shaking his head.
“Ben, what are you doing?” Anuhea asked. He ignored her.
The man began pushing himself away until his back hit the front counter. A streak of blood marked his path across the floor. Sweat trickled down his forehead and drippe
d of his nose like a leaky faucet.
“Please, don’t. I didn’t want to hurt you guys,” the man said.
Ben stared at the man for a moment then nodded his head and raised his rifle. “I believe you.”
“Sarah, I love you,” the man said, even as he stared into Ben’s eyes.
Ben stared back, clenching his jaw, and then squeezed the trigger.
The man’s head snapped back and then slumped forward onto his chest. Blood poured out of his nose, mouth, and the hole the bullet made above his right eye socket. It was a necessary but gruesome action. Still, it chilled him to the bone.
“Holy shit,” she said, gawking at him.
“It had to be done.” He met her gaze and waited.
Her mouth snapped shut and she turned away.
Ben bit his tongue, but he had a hard time feeling bad about killing the man. He would do anything to protect his friends and family. Playing things cautiously, as he had before had cost people’s lives. He could see that now. In a way, Ty had been right about Ben and some of the decisions he made. They had to be ruthless to survive.
“Are you sure you’re okay?” he asked.
She rubbed her neck, a swirl of emotion playing across her face before she nodded.
“Were you able to get any supplies?” he asked gently.
She motioned off to the side where a few shopping bags of gear sat on the cold tiles.
“I’ll help you carry them.”
“I’ve got it,” she snapped.
Ben’s eyebrows shot up, but he held his tongue. Instead, he collected the weapons that she had taken from the two dead men. Altogether, they came away with three rifles, two knives, a pistol, half a dozen magazines of ammo, matches, a lighter, and a flashlight.
Not a bad haul, he thought. If seventeen others were out there and armed as heavily as these dudes, Ben knew that his group would be in a tough spot.
Out of the corner of his eye, Ben caught Anuhea giving him another curious look as they worked. Again, she didn’t say anything. He sighed and moved their loot to the van. If she had a problem with his actions, she would eventually talk to him about it. She wasn’t a shy woman.
After he had loaded the weapons and a few bags, Ben took on the unsavory task of removing the bodies. There was no doubt in his mind that they’d be back to scavenge again, and he didn’t want to let the bodies rot inside. He dragged them outside, lining them up beside an old Movie Box machine. He looked wistfully at the mini-movie posters on display above the machine advertising the latest titles. What he wouldn’t give for a movie night.