“What is up with all the birds?” asks Janet.
“They come and go. They were set free by our aviary specialist Mr. Charlie, but they keep coming back here every couple of days,” says Darby.
“Is that a pair of owls?” asks Janet.
Darby says, “Yeah. That’s PB and Jay. They never leave each other.”
“What happened to Mr. Charlie?” asks TJ.
Darby looks at the birds and says, “He’s around. He helps guard this place.”
Bo, Barrett, and Nicky come over to Darby.
“How’d you make out Nicky?” asks Darby.
“Pretty good. Bo has a plan for bringing some of his crops back here and he’ll start planting new crops when he gets back,” says Nicky.
Bo looks at Barrett and says, “We will start planting them when we get back home. Right brother?”
Barrett looks at Darby with a sad look.
Darby walks over to Barrett and gives him a kiss.
“We will be safe honey bear. Don’t worry about us. The crops will help us here. We need them,” says Darby.
Aisha comes running over to Darby.
“We have another problem with Louie,” says Aisha.
Darby and Nicky run with Aisha into the primate sanctuary building.
TJ looks at Janet and says, “I want to see this.”
Janet and TJ run to the primate sanctuary building while Bo and Barrett stand outside.
TJ and Janet enter the primate sanctuary building and find it dimly lit.
The loud bang of something slamming into the ground is heard in the distance.
BANG!
“Stop that Louie!” shouts Darby.
Janet and TJ walk towards the back of the building where Aisha, Darby, and Nicky are standing.
“How long has he been doing this?” asks Darby to Aisha.
Aisha replies, “He’s been doing this more often since Mo died. He hasn’t been the same since Mo died.”
Janet and TJ walk to the back section of the building and find a large silver back gorilla looking at Darby through the large floor to ceiling glass window.
Louie is a large silver back gorilla.
Louie runs towards the glass and punches the window.
TJ steps back as Louie punches the window.
“Don’t worry, the window won’t break. It’s reinforced glass with unbreakable polymers in it,” says Nicky as she looks at TJ.
Janet asks, “Who was Mo?”
Darby looks at Louie, who know has his back to Darby, and says, “It was his gorilla girlfriend. She recently got sick and we had to put her down.”
Aisha says, “Louie and Mo grew up together. He’s heartbroken.”
Janet feels bad for Louie and walks over to the glass.
Janet puts her hand on the glass.
Louie turns around and walks towards Janet.
TJ gets nervous for Janet.
Louie slowly walks towards Janet and sits down. Louie looks at Janet and makes eye contact with her.
Janet whispers, “It’s okay. We will find you a new friend.”
Louie slowly reaches for the glass and puts his hand on the glass where Janet’s hand is.
Janet smiles at Louie.
Janet says, “Stay strong Louie. Everything will be okay.”
Janet takes her hand away from the glass.
Louie gets mad.
Louie runs away from the glass and towards the back of his indoor enclosure.
Nicky looks at Janet and says, “Louie likes you. I haven’t seen him like that in a long time.”
Janet walks over to TJ.
Darby looks at Aisha and says, “Let Louie outside today. We really need to clean his enclosure.”
Aisha says, “I will let him out in a couple of minutes and we will clean his enclosure.”
“Thank you, Aisha,” says Darby.
TJ and Janet exit the primate sanctuary and find Bo and Barrett sitting in the shade.
“You ready to get going or what?” asks Bo.
TJ replies, “Yes sir. I’m ready to get back to MacDill and my house.”
Bo says, “Okay then. We’ll get going shortly. Just have to figure out who is coming with us.”
Nicky and Darby exit the primate sanctuary building.
Bo shouts, “Nicky, you coming with us?”
“Where you going?” asks Nicky.
“Home. Home on the ranch. Where my horses and my cows roam,” sings Bo.
Nicky replies, “Not this trip baby. I have to do some things here before I leave. I’ll be back to my house and then your ranch in a couple of days though.”
Barrett looks at Darby and asks, “What about you Darby? You ever leaving this place?”
Darby looks at Barrett and replies, “Someday I’ll leave, but not today. We got too much going on around here.”
TJ looks at Darby and says, “I just want to get our weapons and belongings from your office Darby.”
Darby says, “Go ahead. We’ll meet you guys right back here.”
Janet and TJ walk to Darby’s office and get their belongings.
Nicky, Darby, Bo, and Barrett talk.
“You got a good thing going on here Miss Darby,” says Bo.
Darby punches Bo in the shoulder and says, “No thanks to you though. Why are you bringing other people around here?”
Bo replies, “What? Janet and TJ are good people. Those other three soldiers weren’t with us.”
Barrett says, “Just be more careful with bringing people around here and to the ranch. Be smarter with your decisions.”
Bo looks at Barrett and says, “If you didn’t just leave one morning without telling me what your plan was, then I wouldn’t have to go all over the place looking for you.”
Barrett says, “Sorry about that. I was just worried about Darby is all. My nerves got the best of me.”
Darby looks at Bo and Barrett and says, “Enough you two. Just don’t be bringing everyone here. This is our home. We already fought off a large group to keep this place safe. We don’t need another battle in here.”
“Yes ma’am. We won’t let that happen,” says Barrett.
Bo replies, “I’m sorry Darby. I won’t let anything happen to this place.”
Nicky says, “We should be fine now. We have Isiah and his group watching this place, and Mr. Charlie also has eyes on this place.”
Darby says, “We are good for now, but it only takes one wrong decision to destroy this place. We have come too far to mess this up.”
Janet and TJ come walking back over to Darby, Nicky, Barrett, and Bo.
“All ready to go?” asks Janet.
Bo says, “Yes ma’am. Just need Darby and Nicky to show us how to get out of here.”
Darby says, “Follow me.”
Darby and Nicky take TJ, Janet, Bo, and Barrett towards the back of the property.
“Where is your truck Barrett?” asks Nicky.
Barrett replies, “I’m not sure.”
Bo says, “I saw your truck, Barrett. It’s right outside the wall on the East part of the property.”
Nicky asks, “You sure? When was that?”
“A couple of days ago. Didn’t you hear the gunfire and big explosion a couple of days ago?” asks Bo.
Darby says, “We hear explosions, gunfire, and screams all the time.”
Darby and Nicky take TJ, Janet, Bo, and Barrett towards the East part of the property.
The zoo is at the Southern part of the property, the supermarket and shopping center are at the Northern part, and homes are at the East and West parts of the property.
Nicky points to a large metal door.
The metal door is secured to strong thick concrete walls.
“Remember, once you leave this place, you can only get in by one of our hidden entrances. There is no handle outside or clear markings to an entrance. The doors are covered with objects and debris to blend in with the other parts of the wall,” says Nicky.
“How can we g
et back in?” asks Barrett.
Darby hands Barrett something and says, “Take this duck whistle and blow it three times near one of the entrances.”
“How will I know where the entrance is?” asks Barrett.
Darby says, “We put a sign at each entrance, plus an X will be written on the center of the door. The sign on this entrance should read, DO NOT ENTER LIONS WILL EAT YOU.”
TJ and Janet get their guns ready.
Barrett and Bo hug Darby and Nicky.
“I will see you again honey bear,” says Darby to Barrett.
Nicky kisses Bo and says, “See you soon baby. I’ll come by your ranch in a couple of days.”
Darby looks at TJ and Janet and says, “Nice to meet you TJ and Janet. Take care.”
TJ and Janet say goodbye to Darby and Nicky.
Nicky opens the large metal exit door slightly.
“The coast is clear. Be safe everyone,” says Nicky as she opens the metal door a little more.
TJ, Janet, Bo, and Barrett run out the exit.
Darby and Nicky close the metal door.
Bo says, “There is your truck Barrett.”
Barrett and Bo get into the truck, followed by TJ and Janet.
Barrett starts up his truck and asks, “Where are we going?”
TJ says, “To MacDill Air Force Base. I have to get my jeep and talk with my father.”
CHAPTER 8
ST. PETE
“They don’t have anything around here!” shouts Lauren’s father Keith as he sits down next to Lauren’s mother Fran.
“Hey dad,” says Lauren.
Keith looks at Lauren and says, “Hello. How are you?”
Keith hugs Lauren.
“Where is Ryan?” asks Keith.
“Hey Keith,” I say to Keith as he hugs Lauren.
Keith shakes my hand.
“How are you doing Keith?”
Keith looks at me and says, “We are doing okay. We lost some people, but we are making it.”
Lauren looks at Fran and asks, “What happened to Melania, Lainey, grandma, Aunt Ruth, and Uncle Todd?”
Fran replies, “Grandma, Melania, and Lainey didn’t make it. They were gone pretty quickly. Your Aunt Ruth and Uncle Todd could still be alive.”
“What happened with them?” asks Lauren.
Fran says, “They were going to The Villages near Ocala and we haven’t seen them since. They ran out of food and left their home in Boca for The Villages. Aunt Ruth wanted to try her luck with Aunt Jessica at The Villages.”
“Good luck with that. There are so many people at The Villages. That place must be crawling with zombies now,” says Keith.
I look at Keith and ask, “How long have you guys been here?”
Keith replies, “I don’t know. What’s today?”
Lauren replies, “I have no idea what day it is.”
“Me either.”
Keith says, “I really don’t know how many days we have been here. It could be close to a week now.”
“How did you get here?”
“We were leaving Boca to either go to Orlando or Tampa. We planned on coming to see you guys or a friend of ours who lives in Orlando. Fran picked Tampa to see Lauren. During the drive here, our car broke down,” says Keith.
“Is your car okay?”
Keith replies, “We got a flat tire. When I was trying to fix it, I hurt my shoulder fighting off a group of zombies.”
“Did you get bit or scratched?” asks Lauren.
“No. I didn’t get touched by a zombie. I killed a couple of zombies before a car came and helped us. We killed the zombies, but my shoulder was injured,” says Keith.
Fran says, “I had to drive us here. The people in the car helped us put the spare tire on the car and told us about this place.”
“That was lucky. I’m glad you guys are safe. I was worried sick about you,” says Lauren.
“What did they say about your shoulder Keith?”
Keith replies, “They don’t know. They suck here. It could be a torn rotator cuff.”
“We are going to get you out of here and to our house today,” says Lauren.
Brian walks over to me.
“Can I talk with you for a second?” asks Brian.
I excuse myself from Lauren, Fran, and Keith. “What’s up Brian?”
“Two things actually. Keith is a diabetic and he really needs his insulin. I got you two pens of insulin, but that’s all I could get,” says Brian.
“Thank you, Brian. I appreciate it. Insulin is going to be tough to find.”
“The other thing is that we are having some trouble with the local area of St. Pete. I was wondering if you could help us out. The guards won’t leave their stations and don’t really do much around here. I’m worried about this place,” says Brian.
“I’m not set up for taking on zombies today, but I can come back another time with my team.”
Brian says, “That would be great. Today, I want to show you the streets of St. Pete with the drone you gave me. It’s pretty awesome. We can stay inside the fence of The Grove and send out the drone to show us what’s going on in St. Pete.”
“Phil and I will help you if you can take care of Keith, Fran, and Lauren until we leave.”
Brian replies, “No problem. Whatever they need.”
“Where is Phil anyway?”
Brian replies, “I think he is with Kat. They were going to see if they could meet Dr. Morris. I’ll call Kat over the radio.”
I walk over to Lauren and talk with her.
“I’m going to go with Brian for a second. He wants me to check out the streets of St. Pete and hopefully I can meet the head doctor here, Dr. Morris.”
Lauren asks, “You are going outside?”
“We are using the drone to see the streets of St. Pete. I’ll be outside but not outside of the fence. I will be safe.”
Lauren says, “Okay, I’ll wait here with Fran and Keith. I love you.”
I kiss Lauren.
A little girl watches me kiss Lauren and smiles as she plays with her little doll in the tent next to Fran and Keith.
Brian walks over to me and says, “Kat is with Phil at Dr. Morris’ office. We will go there right now, then go outside with the drone.”
“Who will take care of these people while you are gone?”
“Felicia and Cami will take over my section while I’m gone with you,” says Brian.
“Okay great.”
I say goodbye to Lauren, Fran, Keith, and the little girl who watched me kiss Lauren.
Brian takes me to the big enclosed premium luxury box section that is located in the center part of the outfield seats at The Grove.
I walk up the steps with Brian and am nervous to meet with Dr. Morris.
Brian opens the door to a luxury box, I see Phil and Kat talking with a woman in a white lab coat.
“Hey Ryan,” says Kat.
“Hey everyone.”
Phil asks, “Everything okay?”
“Yeah, everything is good. Lauren’s parents are here and safe.”
“Very cool,” says Phil.
Kat introduces me to Dr. Morris.
Dr. Morris is sitting in a leather computer chair at a large desk in the center of the room. The room is very big and has several large floor to ceiling windows that look directly on to the baseball field.
Dr. Morris is a tall olive skinned skinny woman that has long brunette hair tied back into a ponytail.
“Nice to meet you Ryan. Kat was telling me about you. You are an orthopedic doctor? A surgeon?” asks Dr. Morris.
“Yes, Dr. Morris. I.”
“Please. Call me Jenna,” interrupts Dr. Morris.
“Sorry. Jenna. I’m an orthopedic surgeon. I worked at Tampa Hospital for the past 10 years.”
“Impressive. We could use a man with your talents around here,” says Jenna.
“Thank you, but I can’t commit to a job right now. I’m trying to get a hold of things in this new
world and protecting my family and my group are my priorities.”
Kat interrupts, “Ryan is the leader of a group in Tampa. He has some connections in this new world and should be very helpful for us.”
Jenna says, “Great. I’m sure Ryan and Phil will be great additions around here.”
I look at Phil and say, “We aren’t staying here. Jenna. I was just dropping off some supplies and checking out your facility.”
Jenna takes off her white lab coat and puts it on the back of her leather computer chair.
“Like anything you see?” asks Jenna with a seductive tone.
“Your place is very nice. You have a nice operation here.”
“Thank you, Ryan,” says Jenna as she looks out the big glass window onto the baseball field that is filled with people, tents, and cots.
“I was wondering if you could tell me anything about the zombie virus, how things are looking in the U.S., and really any pertinent information?”
“I would love to talk with you about things and the state of the world. When would you be available to discuss things?” asks Jenna.
“How about right now?”
Jenna turns around from the window and looks at her desk.
Jenna says, “Unfortunately, I can’t right now. I would love to talk over dinner some time.”
Kat says, “Ryan, is just looking for some answers and not some big meeting, Jenna.”
Jenna glares at Kat and shouts, “It’s Dr. Morris! Kat!”
Kat apologies to Dr. Morris.
“I would just love to have a nice conversation with a fellow doctor about things. We can discuss what we both want in this world and what we know about this world,” says Jenna.
“I’ll meet with you Dr. Morris,” says Phil.
Jenna replies, “Thank you, Phil, but Ryan and I can discuss medical topics that you probably won’t understand.”
Jenna takes her brunette hair out of her ponytail and lets her hair down.
I feel awkward with the tone and sexual nature of Jenna.
I try to diffuse the situation, but I don’t know how to talk with Dr. Morris.
Dr. Morris is a very attractive woman, but I could never cheat on Lauren. Lauren is my soulmate and I would never want to hurt her.
Jenna picks up a pencil from her desk and says, “Well, let me know when you can meet with me Ryan. I’ll pencil you in.”
Fight 4 Us (Book 6): Keeper Page 8