by C M Hoffmann
Ronson, “It’s ok, we’ll miss her more than anything, but I think she’d rather us survive with our new family than dwell.”
Abbey, “Of course, Dad. I’d say you still have me but honestly we have a whole big ass family now.”
Gavin, “That a fat joke?”
Abbey chuckles, “Not this time, maybe later though.
Justin, “Mr. Gavin, you’re not fat, you’re cozy.”
Cane, “Not sure which is worse.”
Scarlett, “Y’all hush and come over here. Get the food situated then you can make fun of each other.”
Justin, “Mr. Gavin, can I have a piggy back?”
Gavin, “Sure if you think you can carry me.”
Justin laughs, “NO! You’re too big! You carry me!”
“OH, I get it. Sure climb on up.” Gavin scoops Justin and swings the little guy onto his back. Gavin promptly dumps him onto the couch next to Mallory and Justin giggles. Gavin sits on the couch next to him and soon he, Justin, and Mallory are deep in conversation and jokes. Justin’s laughter fills the night air.
Fred, “Troops! Why don’t you take Emma and go in the backyard with Justin.”
Emma, “Let’s play tag!”
Lynn, “Just be careful, and no one leaves the backyard.”
“Justin, want to come play with us?”
Justin, “Can I, Mom?”
Mallory, “Of course, just be careful, if you see anything come tell one of us.”
“I will. Steve doesn’t stand a chance against all of y’all.”
Gavin, “No they don’t. Now go play.”
As the children go out to play, Gavin and Mallory again fall into conversation.
_
Cane pushes Wade, “So, you got to play hero today?”
Wade pushes Cane back, “Wouldn’t say hero...”
Abbey walks up, “I would. He’s my hero for sure. If not I wouldn’t get to smell what I hope to be barbecue chicken.”
Cane, “Indeed, lots of chicken to go around.”
“Good, I’m starving.”
“So what do you think of your new guardian?” Wade gives Cane a mortified look.
“Easy on the eyes, tatted, pretty muscular, strong enough to toss me a few feet, and got that protective air about him. I think he’ll do just fine.” Wade turns red again.
“Probably because he’s highly over protective of his sisters. Honestly, you’ll probably have to save him more often than he saves you.”
“Nah he’s got you.”
Cane slaps Wade’s back, “That he does. Well, I’m off to check on the food, you two enjoy your conversation. Wade, play nice.”
Wade, “Shut your face.” Cane gives a big goofy smile to Wade and trots away.
Abbey, “Best friends, huh?”
“How could you tell?”
“Because he cares about you. If he didn’t he wouldn’t have coached me on how to talk to you.”
“Figures. The scrawny kid is always right.”
“That’s what I keep hearing. Wanna know what he said about you?”
“Probably something mushy and touchy feely.”
“Actually, he told me you needed me. Gave me a quick rundown of your family. Thinks you need someone with a level head. Plus he said you’d love to hear about my tattoos, because you probably already noticed them.”
“Always right, but like I said mushy and touchy feely.”
“So you gonna ask or what?”
“About what?”
“My tattoos, slowpoke. And ask nicely.”
“Oh, um, will you tell me about your tattoos? If you were hoping for a ‘please, oh, please, with sugar on top;’ you’d do better looking for a ‘hurry up with the blood of my enemies on top.’”
“That definitely seems more your style. I guess I can tell you, since you asked...” Soon Abbey and Wade are locked in conversation, completely enrapt with each other.
Cane skips up to Scarlett smiling broadly.
Scarlett gives him a confused look then catches sight of Wade and Abbey over his shoulder, “Did you do what I think you did?”
Cane, “Why whatever do you mean, dearest?”
“Not a bad match.”
“No indeed. I think I did good.”
“Or, ya know, the whole apocalypse thing. I imagine it’s bringing people together all over the place.”
“Nope, this one was all me.”
“Smart ass. I feel bad for her and her dad.”
“Yea me too. She seems to be handling well; wonder how her dad’s doing.”
_
In the dining room, Pops watches Ronson stare at the ground. His concern for the widower is increasing. He walks over and sits in the chair next to him, “You gonna be alright?”
Ronson, “One day. At least I still have Abbey. For now we’re as safe as we can be. Thanks to you and your family.”
“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: You are our family now.”
“Thanks, I really do appreciate it. For now, we have a war to win and a city to secure. They’ll be time to mourn later.”
“Glad to know you’re with us. Let’s see if the foods ready.”
_
Tina, “It’s so nice having everyone together.”
Raquel, “I know right? It feels like it’s been forever since we were all really together.”
Lillian, “I don’t know how we managed to only lose one after all this time.”
Scarlett, “It’s a miracle. At least now, I’ll be dispatching for them so I can keep an ear on them.”
Tina, “I think we all feel better knowing you’re on the other end of the radio.”
Lillian, “Yep, that’s definitely a plus.”
Raquel, “How’s that going to work anyway?”
Scarlett, “I get two portables: one for the regular radio traffic for the whole city; and one just for our guys, Since electricity is only somewhat steady, I’ll have a big dry erase board to keep track of them. I’m kind of excited to be back on the radio, it’s been so long.”
Tina, “That’s cool, mind if we stop by and see it?”
“Of course. It’ll probably take me a little while to get situated. And with Mallory at the house, I may see if I can get her to write down and keep track while I talk.”
Raquel, “Sounds like a good plan. Speaking of Mallory, her and Gavin seem to be getting pretty close.”
Tina, “And look at Wade over there talking up the new girl.”
Scarlett, “Yea, Cane’s been playing ‘Apocalypse Matchmaker’.”
Raquel, “Well those two deserve good girls.”
Wyatt pokes his head in the back door and shouts, “FOODS READY!!!”
Abbey groans cheerfully, “Finally!”
_
Everyone lines up to get their food. Several shoving matches start over line placement and who cut who. Eventually each gets their plate of food and they take seats outside around the fire pit.
Pops, “Now before we start eating, I imagine it’s time for a toast.”
Trey, “To the Two-Six! The baddest mofos in the apocalypse!” Hoots and hollers resound all around the group.
“You got it. We’ve all done exceptionally well. This city would probably be lost without us. I just want everyone to remember the stakes here.” Pops motions with his cup to Ronson, “We lost a wonderful woman today. May she watch over us. God knows we need all the guardian angels we can get.”
Wyatt gets a phone call and hurries inside.
Pops, “I want everyone to thank Ronson for the time he’s been with us. Thank his wife, Denise, for the sacrifice she gave. Always remember, we’re not above the law or the universe. Bad things can happen at any time.”
Wyatt returns, “And sometimes good things happen. Hate to interrupt but for anybody who doesn’t know: this is Marie, and this is Beau.” A cheerful reunion is had with the arrival of Wyatt’s girlfriend, Marie, and yet another family friend, Beau. Introductions are made and small talk ensu
es as the newcomers get their plates.
Pops stands back up to regain the soapbox, “Now that everyone is together again and settled. To end the toast: Here’s to family, may we always stick together.” A chorus of cheers erupts through the night and soon a quick silence follows when everyone begins to eat.
After several minutes, Rapp finally breaks the silence, “You know, we never did get a chance to hear about how y’all made it back from across the lake.”
Gavin laughs, “Well it is one hell of a story.”
The darkness interrupted solely by firelight is soon bursting with laughter as each takes their turn to tell of their adventures of the beginning of the Turn. For a few hours, it’s as if nothing has changed. This large strange family sitting around a fire telling stories and laughing. The night is at peace. Except for the occasional shooting in the distance.
As the night comes to a close and the family has all had their fill, everyone says their goodbyes and heads home. With the recent addition of Marie and Beau, Cane makes up the man room as a semi-suitable place for Marie and Wyatt. Beau takes over the couch as his new home
TASK FORCE RECOVERY
In the morning Fred leaves his family at home to go over the formation of the newest task force.
Chief, “Come in, sit, sit. Since you know the lay of the land why don’t you tell me what you know?”
Fred, “Well, obviously you already know there’s a military transport depot in Laplace. There’s also a high school on the way there. Honestly I don’t know anything really.”
“Well before all this the population of Laplace was about forty thousand people. Reports out of that area are all saying that they have anywhere between a two and a half percent to a seven percent survivability rate. That being said, that’s allegedly the people who survived both the airborne and physical MRF Virus. So roughly there are approximately one thousand to twenty eight hundred people still alive. Those reports are more than a week old now. Unfortunately more likely than not more people have died and essentially Laplace is the worst affected area around us. Despite that New Orleans burned to a crisp with a mixture of violence and steve, with only the criminal element thriving, and then there’s the large urban residential area of Metairie which has mostly been overrun. Still, Laplace really took a beating. Tell me how we can make this work.”
“Well you said it would be a force of forty to fifty people. If they’re armed, I need to know how. I need to know what vehicles we’re taking. And most importantly I need to know if any of them have been trained how to use a firearm. Also, I need to know who my best drivers are and who can handle one of those military transports.”
“It just so happens that I have most of that information.” Chief rifles through a file folder on his desk, “This is a list of the volunteers and next to each of their names is a brief overview of the type of firearm they have and how much ammunition they can supply. As you can imagine some people thought I was just trying to get a list of who has weapons in the city. Morons, it’s not a damn gun registry, it’s a damn rescue and procurement mission that they volunteered for.”
“Well there’s always bound to be people who think that someone is out to get them. Especially the government.”
“Fred, that’s the other thing. Once you get the task force to the base, if there’s no one there, I need you to look for some sort of official document giving an evacuation order.”
“Shit, you’re thinking government conspiracy, aren’t you? If there is an evacuation order then depending on when it was issued means the government had knowledge if not a forewarning of the Turn.”
“You got it. Hopefully I’m wrong but with the news that the base is empty, living or otherwise, something just isn’t sitting right with me. You are the only person outside of myself I’m sharing this theory with and I’d like to keep it that way.”
“I’ll see what I can find.”
“So when do you think you can be ready to go? Pretty sure every day counts now.”
“Try and get word to the volunteers to show up with whatever pickups they have and everyone bring the weapons they’ll be equipped with for the trip. Once I see what I’m working with maybe we can leave in the morning. I definitely don’t want to be flying blind and in the dark.”
“I can have them here in a few hours, grab that map in the other room, should encompass whichever route you choose. I need you to mark it in case the worst should happen. And remember westbound interstate ten is gone, you’ll be on contraflow. And as a good measure, try and see if we can have at least one if not two alternate routes.”
“Roger that, I’ll get to it.”
♦ ♦ ♦
The rest of Task Force Two-Six meets at Mom and Pops’ house in the morning.
Cane stretches, “Gooooooood morning, everybody.”
Mom, “And how are you doing?”
“Just another day in paradise.”
Wyatt, “You know I’m thinking that phrase is even more unusual now. We’ll make sure in the hopefully distant future to put it on your headstone.”
“The quality of your day starts with the quality of your perspective.”
Wade, “Must be why my days are filled with destruction and rage.”
Gavin, “Yea, big tough dark lord over here.”
“And don’t you forget it.”
Trey, “As long as you don’t start viewing it as just a bunch of death then everybody we know starts dying.”
Cane, “Yep seen that movie, doesn’t end well for us.”
Fitz, “Always got a catch phrase don’t you?”
“Something like that.”
Pops, “Alright, anybody want coffee before we get to work?”
Rapp, “You know I do.”
After a quick cup of coffee... or two, everyone moves around to further wake themselves up.
Trey, “Well today is going to be a long day. Anybody got a preference for how to run it down?”
Pops, “I think we’re going to team up today. After last night’s meal I feel like we may be a tad sluggish. Legacy and Basher, Ninja and Spartan. Everyone do radio checks, so we know Scarlett is ready.” Pops keys up his radio and instinctively all the regular police officers cover their shoulder mikes. “Out there headquarters?”
Wade, “Why’d you cover your mic?”
Trey, “Habits, there’s always a time delay of at least a second when the transmission goes through. So to avoid an echo over the radio you cover your mic.”
Scarlett over the radio, “Ten four, go with it.”
Pops, “You got some help over there?”
“Yes sir, Mallory and Marie are going to be my location keepers for today. Beau is topside playing security.”
“Sounds like you’re all set, we’re going to do radio checks, let us know how you read us.”
“Not my first day, Pops.”
Cane, “That’s my baby.”
Pops rolls his eyes, “Legacy One, checking in.”
Scarlett, “Roger, Legacy One.”
Gavin, “Legacy Two, radio check.”
“Roger, Legacy Two.”
Trey, “Basher One, checking in.”
“Roger, Basher One.”
Wade, “I guess I’m Basher Two, uh, checking in.”
Scarlett laughs over the radio, “Loud and clear, Basher Two.”
Cane, “Morning, dearest, Spartan One.”
“Good morning again, Spartan One.”
Wyatt, “Makes me, Spartan Two.”
“You’re good, Spartan Two.”
Rapp, “Ninja one, headquarters.”
“Ten nine?”
Wyatt looks at Cane, who clarifies, “Ten nine means repeat. Don’t worry we’ll get you and Wade up to date on the codes.”
Rapp, “Ninja One, Headquarters, how do you read me?”
Scarlett, “Little static but you’re good.”
Fitz, “Last but not at all least, Ninja Two to Headquarters.”
“All clear, Two-Six, reading you
all just fine. Don’t forget to update you’re locations.”
Pops, “Got it under control, Headquarters. Ten-forty-nine: Legacy and Basher will be together today; as will Ninja and Spartan.”
“Ten four. Be safe Two-Six; watch your backs.”
“Two-six let’s get to work.”
♦ ♦ ♦
Scarlett spins in her chair in the impromptu communications section set up in the dining area, “Mallory, did you catch all that?”
Mallory, “I think so they just all talk so fast. And what in the world are ten-nine and ten-forty-nine?”
“You’ll get the hang of it, just takes practice. Ten-nine means repeat; ten-forty-nine just means extra information. Marie, I need you to help with the standard traffic, it’s bound to be more hectic but it’s not really necessary information. We’re only here for our guys and to keep track of them. If the shit hits the fan then I need you to start relaying me information. Take this notebook and just jot down notes until you get the hang of it.”
Marie, “I can do that. Never thought I’d end up being a police dispatcher when the zombie outbreak started.”
“Just don’t let Cane hear you call them zombies, he’s very hooked on calling them ‘steve’.”
Marie laughs, “I’m not surprised he named them.”
Mallory, “So what do you need me to do again?”
Scarlett, “I’ll tell you what to write and you write it. So for today, write up on the top half of the board Legacy and Basher, draw a line across, and on the bottom write Ninja and Spartan.”
Marie, “Which one is Wyatt in?”
“He’s with Cane in Spartan. Actually, Mallory, write one and two under each subgroup. Then write the names of each member next to the numbers. That way we can keep track.”
Mallory, “Alrighty.”
Beau, “Well it seems like you’ve got everything under control. I’m gonna head up to the roof. Hopefully I don’t fall off.”
Scarlett, “Yea don’t do that. Why don’t you see if you can make some sort of platform out of all the spare wood in the back, just so you’re not completely on an incline.”
Justin, “Ms. Scarlett, can I do something?”
“Mallory, can he be up on the roof alone?”