Pops radioed in to the compound when we got close. The Major was standing there by the open back gate waiting for us along with his wife, Emma, and Dr. Johnson. We rattled through the gate, and I saw Pepper standing by her father. She waved at me as I passed and I waved back.
We parked by the big garage and Pops decided to leave the ammunition and food in the trucks. Buck and I hefted the two big guns and took them down to the bunker. Buck had a key to the big locker, and he opened it, allowing us to put one in the rack. The other, the one I had been forced to use, was disassembled and cleaned before being put away. Buck was a stickler for keeping his weapons cleaned, oiled and “ready to rock and roll.”
Upstairs, I grabbed a shower and donned some clean clothes before making my way to the kitchen. Most of our little group was there asking questions about our foray into town. Pops had also showered, so he had wet hair just like me. I stepped into the middle of the conversation.
“…many of the infected did you encounter?” The question had come from the Major.
Pops was gnawing on an apple, and he held up a finger as he chewed and swallowed. “Surprisingly few. There was one group of forty or so, but Virgil took care of them. We did notice a surprising number of dead bodies lying around. I can’t be certain, but most of them looked like Ragers instead of their victims. We didn’t get close enough to tell if they died from gunshots or if the disease is finally killing them off.”
Everyone in the kitchen turned to look at me after Pops’ mentioned my part in taking down the horde by Costco. I blushed at the sudden attention. I met Pepper’s eyes, and she gave me a sweet smile.
Dr. Tashnizi was sitting at the table with a glass of wine in front of him. He loudly cleared his throat to get everyone’s attention. “That information is useful. With the numbers of infected that we know are down there I would think they would be everywhere. The fact that they were not, leads me to believe that their illness might be making them sensitive to light.”
His guess seemed right to me. We all knew that the Rage turned people into mindless animals, but we had no idea what else the bug or virus did to their brains and other organs. We had seen only empty streets until we made a lot of noise breaking into the Costco. Maybe the group we encountered had been avoiding the daylight until the racket we caused spurred them to come and investigate. Whatever the case, it was useful information, and it justified Pops’ decision to do a daylight run.
I was not in a mood to listen to all of the questions and answers, so I headed out. I purposely passed by Pepper and used my eyebrows to gesture for her to follow.
“Where are we going?”
“I have something I want to show you. It’s kind of my little secret place.”
She looked intrigued but didn’t ask any more questions as I led her to one of the staircases leading down to the bunker. The LED lights clicked on as we passed through sub-level one. We had already given everyone a tour of the living spaces here, but Pepper asked if we could take a few moments to look around again. I smiled at her delight as she peeked into each of the fourteen bedrooms. The door to the bunker-suite for Pops and I was locked, and I didn’t offer to open it. Pops had emphasized to me the importance of keeping some secrets, even from our houseguests.
When Pepper entered the oval-shaped common room, she gushed over the big flat screen television and the big, semi-circular couch that sat in front of it. It was comfortably large enough for all of us to sit on.
“I love the color. Whose idea was it to go with yellow?”
“It was Pops’.” I pointed at the walls with both hands. “He was really into the survivalist culture. He studied books, magazines, anything he could find on the subject. He built this bunker for the possibility that we might be living down here for months at a time, maybe years. He read that a soft yellow color on the walls would have a calming and reassuring effect on anyone who might be here for extended periods.”
I led her out of the common area past the clinic and a few special-purpose rooms until we reached yet another set of stairs. Pepper looked surprised. She had never been below the first sub-level, only The Major, Buck and her father, Dr. Johnson had been allowed to tour it. Pops was still playing his cards close to the vest, careful not to reveal too much to too many.
I started down, and Pepper followed without any questions. The steps curved into a circular, winding pattern before ending at sub-level two. Again, motion activated lights clicked on when we entered the space.
I grinned as I took in the astonished look on the girl’s face, her first look at the cavernous interior of our subterranean warehouse. She stood on her tiptoes trying to gauge the total expanse of the construction.
“How did they ever build something this big under the ground? It seems impossible!”
I knew the answer because I had watched the construction of Dragon’s Lair for over a year. “They deconstructed the entire top of the hill, taking all the earth and piling it up on the east side of the rise. Then they just came in and built the bottom two levels. All of the plumbing, electricity and other essential utilities for down here? Pops put in duplicate backup systems in case the primary systems failed.”
I pointed to the banks of LED lights overhead. “Our electrical needs are supplied by city power from Clovis. If that ever fails, and it probably will, we have banks of generators which vent to the outside and an ingenious system of solar energy generation. The panel arrays for the system were hidden all over our property in locations that would be difficult to find. We disguised some panels around the property in tree limbs, rooftops, and many other places. Whatever happens in the future, we should still have electricity. After the builders finished the two bottom levels, they just reconstructed the hill, complete with new trees and grass.” I pointed up. “The mansion was then built on top of everything. I still think it’s cool.”
The expression on Pepper’s face had not changed. She turned in a complete circle to take it all in then she turned to me. “It really is wonderful, Virgil. Is this what you wanted to show me?”
I just smiled and shook my head. I took her hand and led her through the rows of shelves stacked high to the ceiling with different types of non-perishable food. She marveled at the banks of huge, industrial type walk-in freezers in one area and the burlap bags containing massive quantities of seeds.
Pepper saw a bag of seeds that had a slight tear in the side. She gathered up a handful of the loose seeds and let them slowly trickle through her fingers. “I understand that we may be forced to grow crops eventually but, wow! I don’t think you could ever use this many seeds.”
“You’re right, but they’re not all for us. Pops stashed enough seeds here to distribute to other survivors so they could grow their own food. We also have fences all around our property and Pops has put in herds of cows, goats, chickens and, most importantly, horses.”
Pepper frowned. “I don’t think I could ever eat a horse.”
I laughed. “The horses aren’t for eating, silly. We have a huge supply of gasoline and diesel fuel out behind the compound to the east. Pops put in four underground tanks the same size as gas stations use. But eventually, even that will run out or go bad because fuel doesn’t last forever even with the stabilizers we have mixed in with it. In the future, horses will once again be the major mode of transportation.”
“I look forward to that day, Virgil.”
When I looked confused, she said, “I am…was…an avid equestrian. I even competed in barrel racing and other events.” She gave me a mischievous look. “I could rope you from horseback and hogtie you in thirteen seconds.”
“Wow. Remind me not to run from you when you’re riding. C’mon, though, I want you to see something.”
I led her toward the far end of the warehouse. It was a considerable distance and electricity shot up my arm as Pepper folded her hand into mine.
We went to the back wall on the north side of the warehouse. She stopped and turned back to see the rows of heavy duty shelving
stretching out behind us.
“Just how big is this place, Virgil?”
“The square footage is the same as the bunker living quarters; twenty thousand square feet. The difference is that the ceiling height here in the warehouse is twenty-five feet. We even have electric lifts to get things off of the higher shelves when needed.”
Pepper was beginning to look overwhelmed. It reminded me of my feelings when I first glimpsed the place.
“How did Mr. Cole ever accomplish this? It seems impossible.”
I shrugged. “Money. Pops hit a huge jackpot in the lottery. You’d be surprised what can be accomplished when one has obscene amounts of wealth.”
I changed the subject by turning back to the wall. “I need you to close your eyes.” I waited as she looked at me curiously then complied. I found the hidden release button to the escape tunnel and pushed it. The wall clicked loose from its railings and slid open a few inches.
“You can look now.”
She took down her hands, and I couldn’t help enjoying her reaction.
“What the heck is this, Virgil?”
“Watch.”
I pushed the wall and it swung inward enough to allow a single person to pass through. I smiled at her and offered my hand. She smiled back, and I led her into the tunnel. She was amazed when I told her we were passing under our swimming pools. Small LEDs overhead illuminated the passageway, and the entire shaft was cement with arched ceilings. Hidden vent fans activated the moment we entered, keeping the air fresh.
We continued until we reached the end. I turned back to my astonished partner. “Have to close your eyes again,” I said.
Pepper didn’t hesitate, and I opened the small door which held the security pad and entered the code.
“Okay,” I said.
Pepper watched as I slid another panel away from the wall and revealed a monitor. At the entry of the code, the monitor flashed a few times, then showed a view of the outside. “We’re inside the wall on the north side of the compound.” I pointed to the picture on the monitor. On it, we could see Mrs. Morrison and her two boys frolicking in the biggest pool.”
“Virgil, this is incredible.” She stepped close to the screen and noticed the toggle switch in front of it. “What’s this for?”
“Move it around, and you’ll see.”
She grabbed the controller and moved it to the left and squealed in delight as the camera swung in that direction.
“It seems like Mr. Cole really did think of everything.”
Pepper was still enjoying the novelty of our situation, but I couldn’t help noticing that the tight confines of the tunnel were forcing my body up against hers. I could feel the heat rising in my face, and I fought the urge to tremble.
Pepper must have felt the same thing because she turned around until she was facing me. She lifted her face until she was staring directly into my eyes. The dim light accentuated her black hair and dark eyes, and her white skin almost glowed. I slowly put my hand to her face and swept an errant lock of hair back over her ear. Pepper took my hand in hers and gave it a gentle kiss. That dissolved all of my shyness. I leaned into a kiss that was tender at first but quickly grew in intensity.
We engaged in some heated making out for a solid ten minutes before Pepper made it known that she wanted to leave. I led her back into the warehouse and back upstairs. My head was spinning, and we were still holding hands when we emerged into the mansion. Dr. Johnson just happened to be walking by the stairway at that time. He raised his eyebrows at us, and we both responded with a guilty look, but he didn’t say anything. He just walked away as we did our best to suppress a bout of giggles.
✽✽✽
Lobo was walking in a circle within the cavernous hangar with his hands in his pockets. His footsteps echoed off of the metal walls making each step sound ominous to Juan. The leader of the team that had been sent to secure the Clovis Costco was sitting in a plastic chair which was in the center of Lobo’s circular path. The gang leader wasn’t saying anything, but fury was showing in his expressions. Juan knew punishment was coming; he just wasn’t sure what form it was going to take. He resolved to himself that he would submit to a beat down. That was no big deal; Juan had gone through plenty of them in his life. But he wasn’t going to let anyone tie his hands or feet and render him helpless. If it came to Lobo deciding Juan was to die for his failure, he was going to fight. He would try to kill the gang leader and take over his position as Jefe. That was how things were usually solved in their neighborhood.
The only reason no one had challenged Lobo before was that, even though he was undeniably insane, he was also a genius, albeit an evil one. He had led the gang for years because of his ability to provide money, women, guns and whatever else they needed or just wanted. No member of the Mojados ever had to work at a job to survive. Lobo was always finding them vulnerable targets for burglary, robbery and even ransom demands. Life had been good for the gang.
Then the Rage had hit. It was Lobo who had gotten everyone armed and led them to the Air National Guard armory in Fresno, right outside of the Clovis city limits. The place had been defended by only six ‘weekend warriors’ whom they quickly disposed of. The big hangar was being used to service the helicopters used by the Guard, but it also held an armory with plentiful choices of rifles, handguns, and explosives. Attached to the hangar was a two-story barracks which was designed to house the citizen soldiers when they served their weekend duty once a month.
Lobo was smart enough to see what was happening to the country and the city. He ordered his people to bring their old ladies and families into the facility and remain there, avoiding any contact with the wretched victims of the sickness outside the anchor fences surrounding the hangar.
With food looted from undefended stores and warehouses, the gang simply hunkered down and waited for conditions to change. As the majority of the population of the country fell victim to the Rage sickness, Lobo’s people passed the time eating, playing cards and playing basketball using the hoops that had already been put in place by the Guardsmen. In all, if he included the women who had always been sympathetic to the gang and came in willingly, he had saved sixty-eight people.
After a few months of keeping an eye on what was happening in the city, Lobo noticed that Rage packs appeared to be reluctant to come out in the daylight. Each night the streets would be filled with hordes of mindless predators searching for uninfected people upon which they would vent their fury. When daylight broke, the packs would wander off, undoubtedly to find a dark place to spend the day. He had seen them emerge when a loud noise attracted them but, mostly they stayed inside. That was when Lobo began organizing daytime forays into the city looking for things they needed or wanted. Several times women would hear them passing and, being unaware of their nature, come running out of their hiding places to beg for food or assistance. If the women were young and attractive, they wound up living in the hangar complex. If these women had husbands or boyfriends who objected to their new roles, they never fared well.
Juan was aware of all of this as he waited to make his move to either accept his punishment or launch himself at his leader try to beat his brains out on the cement floor. Lobo was purposely taking a lot of time, making Juan sweat. Finally, he stopped circling and stood in front of his subordinate and looked down at him. Juan refused to drop his eyes.
“I gave you five soldiers. Five soldiers and yourself, all with automatic rifles. The same kind of rifles used by the Seal Teams and all you had to do was watch the place until we got there.” He knelt until he was on an even eye level with Juan. “What happened, Juanito?”
Juan desperately wanted to stand and stretch his legs. He’d been sitting for over an hour while Lobo was deciding what to do about the Costco thing, but Lobo had not told him to stand up yet, so he ignored the lack of circulation in his legs. “I had the place covered, boss. Had the entire team trying to get the doors open so it would be ready when you got there.
“Thes
e guys came out of nowhere. This big truck thing came backing up around the corner of the building with a big ass machine gun pointing right at us.” Juan searched his leader’s face trying to discern his reaction to the information. Lobo just made a circular motion with his hand, prompting Juan to continue.
“Even then, I was gonna tell the boys to fight it out. You can ask them, Jefe. We were just about to throw down, then three more of them showed up on the frickin’ roof! They had another big ass machine gun up there pointing down at us.” Juan shrugged. “I promise you, boss, there was nothing we could have done.”
Lobo looked thoughtful for a moment. He nodded his head and put his chin in his hand. “Yeah, you’re probably right. I mean how could you know that these guys would drive up in trucks behind the store, unload a big machine gun and carry it up to the roof while more of them backed up to the store and caught you all with your balls in your hands? I mean you had someone in back to make sure nothing like this happened.” He leaned in until he was inches from Juan’s face. “Right?”
Juan held Lobo’s stare. The lower level gang chief genuinely thought that the situation at Costco had been unavoidable. Now, however, Lobo’s assessment had shown him that he actually had been at fault. He should have watched the back of the store. Yes, he decided, it was his fault. But he still was not going to die for it. If Lobo busted a move, he would fight back.
Lobo held his gaze for a few more moments then shook his head in disgust. He looked up and over Juan’s shoulder.
“Whatchoo think, Turo?”
Juan was terrified to discover that Lobo’s hulking lieutenant had been standing silently behind him since Lobo had entered the hangar. With Arturo to back up his boss, Juan knew he had no possible chance.
Virgil's War- The Diseased World Page 9
