by Wade Adrian
Distant bird calls caught his ears. They were a bit out of place at this hour. Especially odd given that he couldn’t recall hearing more than a few on the way here, and those had always been in the morning.
Oh. Right. Signals. They were trying to get the posted scout’s attention.
He didn’t recognize the calls as any bird he had ever heard, but that was probably by design. Didn’t need actual birds mucking up the system with their inane jabber.
Smith returned to his notes as the others milled about. Two of the hunters took off, probably looking for food.
Baron’s head snapped to the left and he slung his bow down into his hands, an arrow readied. “Stay here. Try to keep quiet.”
Smith frowned, but nodded. “Consider it done.”
Baron wandered off, his bow held low. He disappeared into the overgrowth within twenty paces.
Smith tried to scribble up a few more words, but nothing seemed to come to mind. He didn’t know what was happening out there… and the bird calls had stopped.
23
Smith tucked the book back into his pocket and pulled the revolved from his hip. It took him a moment to get bullets out of the box and into the gun. He wasn’t exactly practiced in the process anymore. He’d never been fond of the things.
His father had instilled respect for firearms, but at the same time all his lessons had resulted in reluctance to use them. The world might have gone to hell, but this tiny bit of metal still resulted in death with nothing but an errant finger twitch. Respect was absolutely required.
He was so lost in his own thoughts that when he looked up his heart skipped a beat.
One of the scouts was seated across the fire, his hood up.
Smith let out a sharp breath. “Don’t do that.”
“Why?” The voice was unfamiliar. They hadn’t been the most chatty group, but it didn’t sound like anyone he had ventured here with.
Smith casually leveled the gun. His father wouldn’t approve, but his father wasn’t here. Had this guy stolen one of the capes from his people? His clothing wasn’t the right color at all. But if he wasn’t one of them, why not simply attack? Maybe he didn’t think Smith was a threat.
He could correct that.
The figure’s hood shifted a bit as the brush moved off to Smith’s right. A taught bow bearing an arrow was lowered as Baron emerged. “Damn it, Morei. Don’t do that.”
The figure lifted his head, a young man with a shoddy beard and an impish grin looked up at Baron from under the hood. “Why?”
“Because I was about to shoot you.”
“Nah.” Morei shook his head after he pulled his hood down. “You wouldn’t shoot me. Then you’d be stuck with Ross and his attitude.”
Baron grunted as he replaced his bow on his back.
Morei lifted his chin at Smith. “Who’s this?”
Baron seated himself by the fire. “Smith. He’s new.”
“Hunter in training?”
“No, he’s a blacksmith.”
“Smith the smith.” Morei tilted his head. “I guess that makes sense. We did have a hunter named Hunter, until he started working for Ross. Now we have a scout named Hunter, which isn’t nearly as much fun.”
Baron shook his head a bit as he held up his hands in front of his mouth and made some of the bird calls.
Smith put his gun away, but he left it loaded. He didn’t know what the next few days would bring, and there might not be time to do it again. Not with his fumbling fingers.
Ross was the first to appear. His scouts showed up a few seconds later from different sides of the little camp.
“Report.” Ross didn’t waste time with letting people get comfortable.
Morei gave an exaggerated salute and clicked his heels together, despite the fact that he was still sitting down. “Nothing to report. I’ve spent my nights in an attic, one of the houses closest to main street, there.” He pointed. “I’ve kept tabs on the perimeter each day. No one in or out. I avoided entering the town proper, as instructed.”
Ross nodded and crossed his arms. “Good. We’ll rest up tonight and do a full sweep in the morning, then.”
“There is one thing…” Morei tilted his head a bit. “I swear I’ve seen lights at night, though only once or twice since you left. Corner of the eye sort of thing. Nothing I could pinpoint or track down. Not without getting in closer.”
Baron frowned.
Ross shrugged. “Moonlight. Or fireflies. Even if it is something, we’ll investigate now that we have numbers.”
Morei saluted again. “Very good, sir. Shall I show you my attic? Safe from the rain, secure. Only two ways in, and I blocked them both. Haven’t heard so much as a rat in the house underneath.” He turned his head back and forth. “Should be room for six.”
“Eight.” Baron stood up and dusted off his knees. “Including you.”
“Eh, still fine.” Morei nodded.
Ross held up a hand. “We can wait for the hunters to return. Starting a fire in an attic isn’t the best idea.”
Morei shrugged. “I was using a hubcap to contain it. Granted, smaller, but it was plenty for me.”
Smith tugged on his beard. “You notice anything with decent wheels in town we can use? Shopping cart? Wagons? Wheelbarrows? Hell, a motorcycle sidecar would work.”
“Sure.” The scout shrugged. “Pharmacy has some carts left. Metal ones look a bit rusty, but the plastic ones are warping these days. Sun is a bitch on that sort of thing.”
“Cool.” Smith pulled out his pad and made notes about the carts. At best, they’d only need a few, but if they could get one all the way back… it might help people moving things around town.
Morei hooked a thumb at Smith as he looked up at Baron and Ross. “What’s his deal?”
Baron held out a hand to keep the firelight from hitting his eyes. “He’s here to secure assets, because he knows what is an asset, and what isn’t.”
Smith shrugged. “I know what’s an asset to me. I have notes on what are assets to everyone else.”
Morei nodded. “Cool. As long as you’re helping to carry the stuff. Figured they would have sent Wilson or Rawlins.”
Ross’ face twisted up a bit. “They sent Rawlins. He’s laid up at about the halfway point with a few of ours.”
“Bummer. But that might have made things crowded anyway.” Morei climbed to his feet, his eyes scanning the sky. “If it gets much darker you’ll have a hell of a time climbing to my kick ass loft apartment. I know the way, but it’s a bit tricky until you’ve done it a few times. And I don’t exactly have a porch light or welcome mat.”
Smith hopped up, not that he had a lot of choice when the scouts started breaking down the leanto with him under it after a swift gesture from Ross.
“Let’s see this attic.” Ross doused the fire by filling in the little dirt hole with the dirt they had stacked up around it. Not exactly removing all traces, but when it was smoothed over Smith would have had trouble finding it.
“Of course.” Morei bowed. “Mi casa es su casa.”
The trip to the loft was a lot like their trip from the road to their camp sight. Stay low, be quiet, don’t ask questions.
Yeah, Smith definitely preferred his work to all of this nonsense.
They ran across one of Baron’s people on the move. He tagged along until they were in sight of the house Morei pointed out, at which point he and Baron took off again to find their fellow and hopefully to find something edible.
A good thing, too. Smith had the sneaking suspicion his rations were really just wrapped up bricks. They were starting to feel like it.
Morei went up first, with Smith right behind. The scout pointed out places to grab and place one’s feet, which Smith managed with something less than grace as he scrambled onto the roof. If anyone had been looking this way, there was no way in hell they had missed his flailing.
The scouts made it up without a lick of trouble. Maybe they had better shoes.
Morei’s attic was accessed through a small round window with a broken lock. Smith was the first one inside, his hand resting on his revolver.
It was dark inside. Well, it was dark outside. Inside it was black as pitch.
Morei brushed past him and flipped on a little battery operated lantern. “Don’t trip. You’ll probably fall through.”
Smith looked down, only just noticing he was standing on loose boards strewn over pink insulation. “Oh, good. I was afraid I wasn’t going to get to die of cancer.”
“Don’t be a ditz. This stuff doesn’t cause cancer… I don’t think so anyway. It is itchy as all hell, though.”
Once the others filed in they started up Morei’s little fire pit. It was stationed on solid boards at the center, far from the exposed insulation. It consisted of a round hubcap resting on four bricks.
Huh. Smart. Smith hadn’t considered it before, but a hubcap would be easy enough to carry if you had a backpack or something. Hell, he could put it on his head.
Ross kept watch from the window with a curtain drawn behind him to keep light from giving away their position… if anyone was looking. Which was unlikely. Still, protocol and whatnot.
There was a torn up couch in the attic, its feet resting on boards that were themselves resting on the folded stairs that offered access to the house.
“Don’t get comfy.” Morei pointed at Smith when he sat down. “That’s my bed.”
Smith glanced around. “Okay. Where’s mine?”
“Wherever you like, aside from my couch.”
Smith climbed to his feet. It took some effort, the couch was old and soft. Easy to sink. “Fair enough.” There were boxes and a few old trunks stacked up around the place. An old armoire stood against the far wall from the window they had entered, no doubt blocking another window.
Well, no time like the present. Smith started poking around, careful to keep his feet on solid boards. He flipped open boxes that looked promising, but there really wasn’t much. He was looking for books mostly, no tools or medicine to be found up here, leastwise not any worth having.
There was an old trunk full of camping gear. The scouts laid into that, though Morei had already poked through it by his own admission.
Smith mostly found photo albums. He frowned as he pulled one out, only to find yearbooks underneath. His spirits dropped as he flipped through the pages.
Smiling people. Lots of them. Pages and pages of smiles.
A better time.
Movement at the window got everyone’s attention. Smith could barley hear the scouts practically run, weapons appearing in hand.
He set the photo album back where he had found it. Somehow it seemed wrong to disturb it. They weren’t his memories.
Smith drew his knife as his heavy boots followed the others, the boards creaking under his feet.
Morei gave him a dirty look.
He shrugged.
Ross moved aside the curtain a few moments later. Baron and his hunters entered all but silently.
Smith really wasn’t cut out for this work.
Baron glanced around. “Good, good. Didn’t notice any light from outside.”
Morei manged to look offended. “No shit. This is my job, man.”
“It was a compliment.”
“Sort of.”
Ross shook his head as he walked between them. “Okay, secure space out of the weather. Good starting point. Give me a diagram of the layout.”
Morei picked up a clipboard from beside the couch. “Been working it up. Interior is based on what I can see from here and a few other elevated points. Lots of vegetation built up, so some of it is guess work.”
Ross nodded as he took the clipboard and sat on the couch. “Of course.”
Smith raised an eyebrow at Morei.
He shrugged.
Well at least Smith knew where he stood.
Baron leaned over the back of the couch, pointing at the crude map. “This is the main street?”
Morei nodded. “Yup.”
“Then we’ll head out in the morning, divide our people. I want two of you with Smith at all times. He’s not a field man. He doesn’t know what to look for out here.”
Ross nodded. “Agreed. Bishop will have my head if we lose both of them.”
Smith wanted to complain, say he wasn’t a child and didn’t need extra attention… but they were probably right, and if something bad did happen he’d be glad to have the help. “Well, it’s nice to be appreciated.”
They talked about duty rotations, keeping someone at the loft to watch and signal if something went wrong, and how to divvy up the town for exploration.
Smith found it all rather dull, but got enough of a look to know the hardware store wasn’t far from the pharmacy. Handy given he was pulling double duty now.
He sat on the ground, his back to the arm of the couch, Morei’s little fireplace in front of him. It looked like he was using a phone book for kindling. It worked. Morei seemed quite resourceful. Smith made a note of it. He’d probably be the guy to ask about finding things in the future. Ross seemed a bit… disinterested.
“Alright people.” Baron stood up, setting the map aside. “Typical night rotation. Smith, you want the couch?”
He glanced up. “Nah, I’m good.”
Ross’ eyebrow crept up. “Softest place you’ll find, townie.”
“I’ll be fine.” He snatched one of the back cushions. “Grown accustomed to sleeping sitting up the last few days.”
“Suit yourself.”
Supper consisted of berries and lizards cooked over the tiny fire. He might try lizard some day… but not today.
24
Smith’s neck ached as he shook his head a bit, banishing sleep. The fire had burned down to to a few glowing embers.
Baron was standing watch at the window with Morei. Everyone else was bedded down around the room.
He tried to be quiet as he climbed to his feet and wandered over.
Baron gave him a nod. “Would have woken you in a few minutes anyway.”
“Guess I’m getting used to waking up before the sun does.”
Morei rubbed at his chin. “I’m told you make stuff. What do you make, Smith?”
“So far? A knife and some bows. And some brick work. And general wooden building construction.”
“Bows? Blacksmiths don’t make bows.”
“This one does.” Smith shrugged. “You’re the first guy I’ve seen use a hubcap as a fire pit.”
“Whatever works, man.”
“Exactly.”
Baron chuckled as he shifted his gaze back outside. “He did make a few bows. Out of PVC pipe, of all things. They work, too. Tried them myself.”
Morei tilted his head a bit. “Okay, I’d like to see that.”
“You’ll have to come in, then.”
The young man rubbed at the back of his neck. “Yeah… sometime. I’m sure.”
“You can’t keep hiding out here.”
“Sure I can.”
Baron shook his head.
Smith felt a bit left out. “Okay, I’m lost.”
“No you’re not. You’re in my loft apartment in Queens.”
“Cute.”
Baron didn’t bother looking at them this time. “He had a bad run in with a young lady, so he’s hiding out here under the pretense of Ross being a hard-ass boss.”
Morei held up a finger. “It’s only a slight exaggeration.”
Smith grinned a bit. “Hiding? From who?”
The young man narrowed his eyes at Smith. “None of your beeswax.”
Baron chuckled. “One of the Wilson girls. The youngest one, I think.”
Mary was the oldest according to the ledger. “Really? I’ve only met Mary.”
Morei rolled his eyes. “Well lucky you. She seems much more mentally stable, but that’s a low bar.”
“Mentally stable?”
Baron shook his head. “Nothing wrong with the kid, jeez.”
Morei cro
ssed his arms. “Bullshit. She wants me to stay inside all the time. As if we don’t do important things out here.”
“She doesn’t see what you do out here. She just knows you’re gone all the time.”
“She knew that going in.”
Smith tried not to get involved… but he shrugged a bit. “What’s so wrong with hanging out inside from time to time?”
“It’s dull.” Morei sighed. “Besides, that means I’ll get passed up for good jobs. End up being just another messenger boy.”
Baron waved dismissively.
Smith pointed at the hunter. “Why not work for him? He comes and goes.”
Morei shook his head. “Nope.”
Before Smith could inquire, the rest of the residents were shifting about and climbing to their feet.
Ross sat up on the couch, rubbing at his neck. “Morei complaining about his girlfriend again?”
The young man scowled. “It’s not like that.”
“Which part?”
Morei threw his hands up. “Either! Both!”
Baron smacked Morei on the shoulder. “Keep it down.”
The scout looked crestfallen as his shoulders slumped.
Smith was just glad this wasn’t about him. He’d had about enough of people planning and plotting. But it inspired some sympathy. “Nothing to worry about. I’ll talk to Mary, sure she can talk to her sister.”
Morei raised an eyebrow. “How do you know Mary, anyway? She’s got a bad rep for rejecting suitors after the chess incident. I didn’t even bother.”
“Chess incident?” That was new.
He shrugged. “Cooper and her were close at first, in a best friends kid sort of way. Chess was like the one game the place had and Mary was a prodigy before all this, or some such. Supposedly had a scholarship lined up, not that that means anything anymore. Cooper got tired of losing so he stomped a bunch of the pieces. Everyone brushed it off as him just being a dick head. Mary didn’t let it slide. Was years ago. She has been pretty distant since. Well, I guess ‘had been’ is more accurate now, eh? You didn’t answer, by the way.”
Huh. “Well, I sort of… accidentally ran into her my first night. Was a problem at the fence, boards out of place. She found me and dragged me over to help, I was the closest person.”
