“Fuckin’ A, huh? He’s fucking immune. Our duty is to get his sorry ass to the fucking doctors at the CDC. How’s the fucking veggie oil fuel shit work?”
“Diesel engines will run on cooking oil as long as the oil doesn’t get too cold. If it gets cold, it will sludge up and the motor won’t start. Keep the oil warm and pump it out of any restaurant’s holding tank. They classified cooking oil as hazardous waste, so it’s all stored on site in containers until the restaurant could dispose of it properly. Easy as that.”
“Aren’t you so fucking smart? How fucking soon until your asses are ready to head out? We need to get our shit together and get our asses on the road.”
“Hold on now. We never said we were going with you. We said we would talk about it. Seems like too many risks to me. How do we even know the CDC is still operational?”
“Shit. Then I don’t have any fucking use for you three. Get the fuck out now. Too much fucking risk? We get Mikey’s ass to the CDC and this shit is all fucking over.”
“Both of you, calm down! I’m not sure I want to go to the CDC either. Would any of you want to become a human lab experiment? What do you think they’ll do to me once we get there? They’ll study me and stick needles into me 24/7.”
Donald, Michael, and Diana stared each other down. All three breathed heavy like they ran a marathon and none looked like they would give in. Gwen spoke up to break the tension in the room.
“Michael, thanks for the food. You’ve given us something to think about, Diana, so let’s find a place to spend the night and we’ll talk it over in the morning. After we’ve all slept on it and calmed down, we can decide the best course of action for us all then.”
“You can stay here with us tonight. No need to go running off.”
“Shit, Mickey. You a dumbass.” Malice dripped from Diana’s words, and she stormed away from the rest of the group.
“She’ll be fine after she calms down. Diana runs away from me most nights, but then calls me back to her bed. Please stay here. We can sleep soundly as we watch each other’s back.”
The sun was already setting, and they weren’t familiar with the area, so the oncoming darkness decided for them. Gwen and Donald split the night on watch so the other could get some sleep. Michael slept in the center of the room, away from both them and Diana. It would be a long chilly night for them all, even with the warm summer weather outside.
###
Early the next morning, Donald, Matthew, and Gwen sat together and pondered their future. Michael’s sleeping spot in the middle of the room was empty, so he must have been right about Diana’s nighttime booty call. The sun shone bright with no dark clouds spoiling the bright blue morning sky.
“I think we should go to the CDC with them.” Matthew spoke first, before either adult.
“Matthew, you’re only an eleven-year-old child. You don’t have any say in what we do. We need to get to Virginia and stay safe in my bunker. It’s time to look after ourselves and not worry about everyone else. Besides, these two are nuts and their mission is foolish.” Donald said as he crossed his arms in front of him and stared daggers at the boy.
“Donald, if she’s right, then we could have our old lives back. No zombies wondering around anymore. Maybe baseball could even return? Don’t you remember watching the Red Sox play at Fenway?” Tears formed in the corners of Matthew’s eyes and his chin trembled. Gwen marveled at how fast Matthew matured for an eleven-year-old.
“Don’t you remember what happened after that game, Matthew? Stop being such a child. Gwen, you need to handle this. I’m not taking survival advice from a little boy. You’ve both stayed alive this long, because of the decisions I’ve made.” Donald stomped away from them after he finished speaking. She could see the truth behind both their points of view, but she thought it was time to do something greater than themselves. They had hunkered down for over a year and did nothing but hide out and survive. Besides, it might not have been the soundness of Donald’s decisions, but a stroke of good luck they all stumbled into that saved them. What had Donald done to save their lives?
Tears flowed freely down Matthew’s face, so Gwen took him into her arms. She would do everything in her power to smooth this conflict over. Even if it meant parting ways with Donald. It might not be a smart move if his place in Virginia had the supplies and security of the camp in Maine. Then it would be stupid not to shut up and go with him. On the other hand, ending the zombie threat would make Donald’s second fortress obsolete.
“Matthew, I’ll talk to him. Don’t worry, everything will be ok.” Now she wondered if she lied to Matthew like Donald had to Michael and Diana the night before.
###
A short time later, Mathew cried himself out, Michael appeared and started breakfast, and Donald sulked off in the corner all by himself. Diana still hadn’t emerged from her hiding place. Her over the top personality didn’t respond well to any rejection.
“Good morning, Gwen and Matthew. I hope you both slept well.”
“Thanks, Michael. We’re fine. How about you?”
“Like I told you last night, Diana called me back to her bed. She needs me as much as I need her.”
“Are those eggs?” Matthew asked while he watched Michael cook on the flat top grill. Gwen hoped the bed comment went over his eleven-year-old’s head so she wouldn’t have to explain it to him later. It would be much worse if she let Diana explain it to Matthew.
“Yes, Diana discovered some feral chickens living at a farm close by. We keep them in the gate across the tarmac from here, so we don’t have to put up with the noise or stink they make.”
“Cool, I love scrambled eggs.”
“Good thing. It’s the only kind of eggs I know how to cook.” Michael winked at Matthew and they both laughed.
The eggs were good, and the three of them sat at the snack bar enjoying them together. Both Donald and Diana brooded alone at separate ends of the building. After seeing Michael in this light, he didn’t appear crazy, like Gwen originally thought.
“Michael, what do you want to do?” Gwen asked him, since this trip to the CDC would have the biggest impact on his quality of life. If anyone still existed there, then they would make Michael a lab rat for study.
“What do you mean?”
“This trip to the CDC. It’s your life, so what do you want to do?”
He sat quietly as he wrinkled his forehead and rubbed his hands together. Time passed and Gwen became certain no response would come, but then he spoke.
“I think it’s unlikely the CDC still exists. Diana and I have seen no other living humans for months now, so why would they still be alive and well down there? If there’s a chance, though, I should do what I can to help the other survivors. But I’m afraid. I’m afraid of what they’ll do to me and of what we’ll find during the trip itself.”
A frown filled his face, and he appeared close to tears. What would she do with such an enormous burden as his? Gwen reached out and took his hand in hers.
“If you want to go, Matthew and I will have your back. We just have to convince the two bone headed grumps to back your decision, regardless of what it is.”
###
Matthew and Gwen helped Michael clean up the mess from their breakfast. They spent the time laughing and joking, trying to forget the major decision they all needed to make. The time seemed to invigorate Michael because he stood up tall and straight and moved with a purpose. Once they finished, he spoke to the entire group.
“Gwen reminded me that this decision to travel to the CDC affects me the most. I’m the one that has to live with becoming a human lab experiment. My contributions to life so far have been fresh cut grass and writing children’s books. Neither has much worth anymore in the apocalypse. So, I’ve decided to take the chance and go to the CDC. I hope you’ll all accompany me.”
“Fuckin’ A Mikey. I always knew you was a fucking hero!”
“You can count the three of us out. We’re going our own way!
” Donald shouted from across the room.
“Look, Donald, Matthew, and I have decided to go with them on this trip. This is much bigger than the three of us. It’s a chance to start over. Press a restart button for the entire world.”
Donald’s nostrils flared, and he pointed wildly at the four of them while he spoke. “You four deserve each other. Go on your fools’ errand and die. See if I care.”
He stormed out of the building, and Gwen heard the door slam on the Suburban as the diesel engine roared to life. Donald left the two of them behind with strangers.
CHAPTER TWENTY
JAMES “BIG JIM” Richards
Big Jim worried about the deteriorating state of their camp in Tennessee. Things had been good when he first arrived a year ago, but lately everything had gone downhill fast. Max continued to lament both losing contact with Donald and his off handed comments to this Amy person. He wasted his time on imaginary threats and lost focus on the real threat which sat right on their doorstep.
President Carl Stevens and the New United States (NUS) Army had closed in on their mountain location. Times were tough, and the new regime needed both new soldiers and supplies. Isaac and Big Jim were the prime candidates for their army, but this mountain fortress held an abundance of food, medicine, and weapons. All these items were worth more than gold in this economy of death. Max held firm to the fact the camp remained camouflaged on the side of a mountain, but Big Jim worried their time was fleeting.
Donald wouldn’t be their savior, whoever he was, and the NUS had only evil intent toward them. The solution to their problems would have to come from Big Jim. Max dwelled on his fears, and Corinne and Isaac were too simple to help or care about anyone except themselves. Those two lucked into finding this place with Max because they’d both be dead on their own.
Today’s problems were two-fold. First, half of their solar panels had failed because of a defective circuit board in the controller. They needed to get the panels working again to keep the camp’s other systems functioning. The second problem focused on enemy intelligence. Big Jim needed to know what the NUS Army had planned to stay one step ahead of them. A hopeful defector fed them regular information, but Jim needed to leave the camp and travel to town to speak with him. With Max losing it, everyone looked to him for leadership. It was a burden he accepted without complaint.
“Isaac, I need you to go into town with me today. We need to find some parts for our solar panel controller.”
“Can’t you take someone else? He’s a father, you know.”
Corinne’s voice had a high-pitched whine he couldn’t stand. What did Isaac see in her? It had to be she was the only woman his age in the camp.
“Do you think Max, the teenagers, or one of the children would be a better candidate to accompany me, Corinne? Get your stuff together and be ready to go in ten minutes, Isaac. This isn’t up for discussion.”
“You think you can boss us around just because you’re so big?”
“Corinne, stop.” Isaac finally put his pants on and spoke up for himself.
Jim decided not to stick around for their fight, so he turned his back and readied his gear for the mission. He knew Isaac would come along, even if Corrinne had him whipped. Isaac knew his place and did his duty, since Isaac knew they couldn’t survive on their own. Their baby made it impossible.
###
Isaac and Big Jim rode matching ATVs down a twisty mountain trail toward the nearest town, Wheresville Valley. No one would confuse this place with New York City, but the state of Tennessee gave it city status. An electronic supply warehouse in one corner of the town was their destination. If it didn’t have the circuit board they needed, it would have the spare parts Jim needed to make the repair. He had many life skills the other survivors knew nothing about. They all thought of him as a tall, muscle-bound country hick, but he was much more than he appeared.
Their second stop of the day would be a meeting with their spy from the NUS Army. He would give them the intelligence they needed to remain one step ahead of the NUS threat. So far, President Stevens’ efforts had concentrated on shoring up the CDC, clearing the area of zombies, pillaging any nearby survivor’s strongholds, and expanding the territory of the NUS. They controlled a large section of Georgia, South Carolina, and were expanding into Tennessee. Their mountain camp would be a nice feather in the new president’s cap.
On a previous visit to town, Isaac and Jim encountered a squad from the NUS Army. That encounter didn’t go well for the soldiers. Big Jim rendered the group of ten men unconscious before they knew what hit them. Some people may have killed them all, but Jim figured they were men trying to survive and acting on orders from others, not evil of themselves. They took all their supplies and Jim disabled all their weapons, so they wouldn’t have been welcomed back to their base with a victory party. Depending on the wrath of their superiors, they might all be dead now, anyway.
Even though Jim was big, he knew how to move in a stealth manner. Isaac moved with all the caution of a three-legged elephant on crack. It shouldn’t have been a surprise when the NUS Soldiers surround Isaac as he paraded down the middle of the street.
“On the authority of the NUS, I order you to halt and surrender.”
The squad encircling Isaac consisted of fifteen soldiers (they must have learned a lesson after their last encounter in the town). Soldiers were too kind of term for them since these men showed little training, or discipline and all sported dissimilar gear. They looked more like a group of thugs playing vigilante or children playing war. President Stevens couldn’t be too picky about who he recruited for their army with a zombie apocalypse going on, and it showed.
Isaac froze and raised his hands high above his head. His head swiveled around, looking at the threat encircling him. Jim hoped Isaac wouldn’t give him away, since he was now Isaac’s only hope to survive this mess.
“Using your left hand, put your weapon on the ground in front of you. Then take three steps backward and lower yourself on your knees with your hands clasped behind your head.”
“Look, we mean no harm. We’re just trying to… Ugh!”
The soldier standing nearest to Isaac crashed the butt of his shotgun into Isaac’s stomach, interrupting his speech. Isaac doubled over and collapsed to the ground.
Big Jim hoped the stupid crew hadn’t caught Isaac’s use of the word we when he spoke. The element of surprise would be a valuable thing to lose, since the soldiers outnumbered him.
“Pair up and fan out. He said the word we, so there are others here somewhere. Find them and bring them back to me. If you have to, kill them all.”
Shit! The game was on now. Jim turned away as two soldiers pummeled Isaac where he laid on the ground. He’d have to handle the remaining men who searched for him before he could save Isaac from the beating. This time, Big Jim wouldn’t be as kind to these soldiers. These NUS guys were becoming too much of a nuisance to let them live.
A large assortment of weapons were available in their armory, but Jim preferred to travel light. He carried a Glock 19 with five extra magazines and a compound bow with a quiver of arrows. Isaac carried an AR 15 along with his sidearm, but neither served him today. A lot of unnecessary flash.
Jim rounded the corner and jammed himself into the shadows to wait for the first group of two. It wouldn’t be a fair fight for them. The first two soldiers entered Jim’s alley, making enough noise to wake the dead. He stepped from the shadows and struck the first man square in his face with one of his fists. People compared his fists to whole baked hams, so the impact snapped the man’s neck back unnaturally before he collapsed in a heap. Before the second man could react, Jim incapacitated him with a backhand strike. After exercising mercy last time, Jim would make sure these two never recovered to rejoin the fight.
The next four soldiers dropped as easy as the first two. Six men down and Jim hadn’t even broken a sweat. Two engines roared and interrupted his thoughts. Jim ran and discovered two pickup trucks speed
ing away from him. Splashes of blood covered the last place Jim saw Isaac laying, but he disappeared along with the remaining soldiers. He needed to find out what the NUS Army knew about them.
Their meeting with the NUS informant would take place behind the town’s library. It was five blocks west from Jim’s current location, so he jogged to the meeting site. Jim needed to know if this attack had been a coincidence or if the NUS Army knew about their camp and had planned it. He hoped the spy would know where they had taken Isaac to. Isaac proved to be an idiot repeatably, but Max still considered him important for some odd reason. Even with Max racing toward a breakdown, Jim didn’t want to let him or anyone else back at camp down.
The one-story stone-faced library building had been built during prosperous times, and the grand neoclassical architecture style showed it. Columns lined both the front and the back of the building, while the sides looked plain. They had picked this spot to meet because of its central location in town, and the fact the columns on the back porch hid their clandestine meetings from any prying eyes. With the surprise attack today, Jim hoped the decorative columns did their trick of concealing him.
Jim approached the back of the building but detected no movements on the porch. It’s possible the combat activity in town spooked the snitch and he ran off too. He drew the Glock and continued to slink forward. His contact would normally make himself know by now, so no accidental shootings occurred. There was still no movement, but Jim couldn’t leave until he knew for sure the spy had stood him up. As he eased past the first column, Jim found the informant. No additional information would come from him, because someone put a bullet through the center of his forehead.
Things were adding up, but Jim didn’t like the sum. A team of soldiers waiting in town for them, Isaac kidnaped, and now the spy dead at their rendezvous point. As Jim contemplated his next move, a shot rang out and the stone facade splintered above his head. He dropped to his belly and crawled deeper into the cover of the porch.
Retribution: Operation Z Book 2 Page 11