Turners | Book 1 | The Beginning

by Thomas, Ellis

  Sydney wondered if Savannah might have had something to do with their decision to come along.

  “Okay,” Jeremy said. “That settles it. We head out in thirty minutes.”

  23 On the Road Again

  One thing about being nomads of a sort, there was always the hope that maybe the next place would be a town that had survived and was flourishing. Those who stayed in one spot had to depend on whatever fell into their lap, and that included food and information.

  The departing group said their goodbyes and headed out. It was mostly desert on the way to the base, so Jeremy thought it would be a good idea for Christian and Mason to drive a little while. They had driven on the old logging trails, and this would be good practice for them. If things started looking weird, the adults could take over. Christian, Jeremy, Savannah, and Austin rode together in the lead, while Mason, Sydney, and Joshua brought up the rear.

  The more time Sydney spent with Joshua, the more she liked him. His demeanor was quiet, and reserved, yet his character exuded strength. His determination to protect those entrusted to him impressed her—he was someone she felt she could depend on. He was in a talkative mood and recounted some of his past to Sydney while Mason drove.

  “Savannah and I lost our parents in a car accident three years before the plague broke out in full force. We had all been close, but when I lost my father, I lost my best friend. We didn’t have any other relatives, so I enlisted in the Marines and Savannah moved in with the family of one of her friends. After the plague hit so hard, I decided not to sign up for another tour. I didn’t like the thought of Savannah possibly winding up alone, even though I knew she could take care of herself. Plus, I figured we both stood a better chance of surviving if we were together.”

  Sydney sensed that he missed military life and the relationships he had forged there.

  “We were getting ready to leave when Leesa knocked on the door of our apartment. She had gone through the building, floor by floor, by herself, to look for help for Rosie. That was gutsy, especially for a young girl.

  “Rosie was having severe stomach problems, along with arthritis flares, and she wasn’t able to travel. As a practicing nurse, Savannah knew she could help, so we decided to stick it out a few more days with Leesa and Rosie. At least we could offer them some protection, and Savannah could get Rosie back on her feet. Three days had passed by the time all of you came along.”

  Sydney liked that Joshua put others first. That was the kind of guy she wanted to get to know. Besides, he was handsome, and he was the first guy she had come across that knocked her a little off balance.

  As the conversation continued, Mason also seemed to feel more comfortable with Joshua. Sydney knew this was a good sign. It meant that she was reading Joshua correctly. Mason didn’t make mistakes when it came to sizing up someone’s character, and he couldn’t care less what Joshua looked like!

  Coming around a bend in the road, “getting to know you” time was over. Jeremy spotted an overturned truck blocking the road about a half-mile ahead. He had Christian pull over, and Mason followed suit. Jeremy and Joshua got out and walked toward each other, the boys automatically going on the defensive. Mason and Austin grabbed their guns, and Christian for some reason, decided his crossbow might be needed. Savannah and Sydney readied their handguns.

  “This doesn’t look good,” Joshua said as he assessed the situation.

  Agreeing, Jeremy said, “I don’t like all the high creosote and sage around here. Anyone or thing could be hiding in it. Let’s get closer and have the others cover us so we can check it out.”

  Driving up to within a hundred feet of the truck, Joshua and Jeremy got out of the Humvees again.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Joshua and Savannah had developed the same kind of target formation as Sydney and the boys had put in place. If anything looked out of place, they automatically sighted in on their targets in the order in which they were standing. This way, they weren’t all shooting at the same target and were less likely to waste precious ammunition.

  Nobody liked the thought of possibly shooting a human, but if those involved in the accident were freshly wounded, it would be impossible to tell if they were infected unless their actions were hostile or erratic. Jeremy and Joshua also knew that marauders often masqueraded as victims. On the other hand, if there were injured people, they might truly be in need and could be hiding nearby for safety reasons.

  So, Sydney and the others all fell into their familiar routine and watched intently. As Joshua and Jeremy got closer to the disabled car, Mason spotted movement to his far right. He signaled to those around him, and they all started scanning the area more carefully. The closer Jeremy and Joshua got to the ‘accident’, the more the movement increased. They noticed it, too, and started backing away. Sydney guessed that was a signal and people hiding in the grass suddenly made their presence known. Turners wouldn’t have been able to arrange themselves in a hiding position to wait for someone to get close, and, well, they weren’t exactly known for being discreet.

  Jeremy and Joshua had approached with weapons raised, but the aggressive way in which the group of “stranded” men suddenly came at them was a clear sign that their intentions were not good. Jeremy and Joshua turned around and ran back toward the cars. The boys, Savannah, and Sydney made short work of the six assailants pursuing them. Sydney figured the marauders weren’t expecting anyone to be so organized and well-armed, and they obviously had been blindsided by Joshua and Jeremy’s backup.

  When the dust settled, the small group went together to examine the damage. Fortunately, the boys and Savannah were dead-on shots. Sydney had dropped one with a gut wound, but he was still alive. He didn’t have a chance of surviving a wound like that, and if they left him there, the Turners would smell him and be on him like flies. Mercifully, Jeremy finished him off. Up till now, Sydney had only dropped Turners. Realizing that she had just shot another human, even if he was a bad egg, made her ill. She walked over to the side of the road and threw up next to a green van.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  After clearing the roadblock, they dug shallow graves and buried the bodies. That way at least the Turners wouldn’t be able to get at them, since they couldn’t dig. Animals were another story, but these men had been unconcerned with others’ lives, so no one was too concerned about what happened to their dead bodies. When the bodies were adequately covered’;/, they stopped to take a short break and then started walking to the SUVs.

  That’s when Sydney heard the voices.

  She backed away. Taking Joshua by the arm sleeve, she spoke in a low voice.

  “We didn’t get them all.” Quickly glancing around, Joshua asked what she meant since he couldn’t see anything.

  “I heard voices from the van over there” she said tilting her head discreetly in the direction she was referring to instead of pointing.

  “Stay here” Joshua said then casually walked over to Jeremy and Savanah.

  “There are others in the green van. Time to finish the job.”

  Jeremy motioned to the boys and they all spread out around the van.

  Jeremy and Savannah covered the side doors and Joshua and Sydney went to the rear doors. When Joshua was in position, Sydney jerked open the door and jumped to his side with her gun pointed. They could only stand with their mouths open.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Joshua called for Jeremy and Savannah and looking inside, she immediately jumped into action.

  Flipping the blanket to the side, she looked into the eyes of two very thin little boys. They were dirty and scared but other than that, seemed to be unharmed.

  She smiled and spoke softly to them.

  “It’s all right. We’re not going to hurt you. What are your names?”

  The older boy had his arm protectively around the younger one so Savannah assumed they might be brothers although the older one was blonde and blue eyed, and the younger was brown eyed with dark hair.

  “I’m Brandon” s
aid the older one, “and this is Joshi, my brother.

  Savannah’s heart was smitten. Brandon’s protection of his little brother touched her deeply.

  “Are you both all right?” she gently asked.

  “Those are bad men” Joshi blurted out.

  Holding his brother closer, Brandon reassured him. “It’s all right, Joshi. I’ll take care of you.”

  “You’re both going to be just fine. The bad men are gone, and you can come with us if you like.” Savannah didn’t want them to think they would be forced into something as they apparently had in the past. “Why don’t we get you out of here?”

  Brandon and Joshi looked at each other then, Savannah. Her gentleness persuaded them, and they crawled out from under the blanket they were hiding in.

  Joshua stepped up and helped them out of the van. Everyone gathered around the orphans and Austin squatted down next to Joshi.

  “Hey buddy, looks like you’ve had a rough time.”

  Joshua looked at Brandon, then at Austin, without smiling, his big brown eyes, wide with apprehension.

  Then Austin asked Brandon, “What do you think, Brandon? We’re a pretty great group of people. Would you like to come with us? We’ll protect you and you can help fight the bad guys.”

  Brandon pulled his little brother closer to him.

  Everyone could see the he was trying to assess the situation, his mind and heart wanting to make the best decision for his little brother.

  Suddenly, he put his hand out to Austin. “It’s a deal.”

  When Joshi saw his big brother relax, a big smile crossed his face.’ How resilient children are’, thought Sydney, her heart captivated once again.

  Savannah put her arm around Brandon. “Why don’t we get you boys something to eat and drink? I’ll bet your little brother is hungry!” Joshi’s big brown eyes grew wider. She put her arm around him and the three walked over to the SUVs.

  Jeremy looked at Joshua and the boys. “Well, I guess they’re ours now!” They all agreed that the little orphans were indeed part of their pack now.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  Being in the companionship of such good people made Sydney start thinking about the future. She couldn’t help it. She started thinking of Joshua as a possible mate, and then she began to wonder what kind of a future they would have. What if children came along? And what about the boys? Would they have a future, and would they find someone to share their lives with? Were there others who had built lives again, and if so, where were they? Would they welcome new people as part of their community? And then there was the million-dollar question: would this scourge on humanity go on indefinitely, or would it eventually burn itself out?

  Once they’d all unwound, they got back on the road again.

  Brandon who was 8 years old, had a keen mind and didn’t seem to miss a thing. He asked a lot of questions and filled the group in on how they ended up with the people they had just been rescued from. Apparently, the men had happened upon them right after their parents had turned a few months ago. They were used mostly as servants, being fed only leftovers when there were some. His mind seemed to move so fast that he had a difficult time getting his thoughts across.

  At six years old, Joshi thought he was cool because he shared the same name as Joshua.

  They both brought color and life to the group as children will do and everyone, adults and boys were drawn to them.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  A couple of hours later they came to the outskirts of the Yuma Proving Grounds near the Mexico border.

  Joshua and Jeremy took over the driving at that point, with Joshua in the lead since he was most familiar. They were still in the open country, and at this distance they couldn’t get an impression of the condition of the base. The sky was cloudy, and a strong wind was kicking up dust and sand into the air, so he slowed down.

  Twenty minutes later they spotted the first set of gates, which were wide open. Sydney wasn’t sure if that was a good sign or a bad one. Since there were only barrier gate arms that swung up and down, maybe the soldiers thought there was no need to secure the initial entryway, since Turners didn’t have the capacity to drive. Then again ….

  24 Aftertown

  Arriving at the main entrance to the base, the group encountered a reinforced barrier of barbed wire securely attached to a rollaway gate. The fencing looked like it ran all the way around the structures, completely enclosing them. Watchtowers appeared at intervals, with what looked like an expanded guardhouse near the entrance. The area had been cleared of all brush and trees within a 500-foot radius of the fencing. Inside the fencing was a clean row of hedges and trees that served to obstruct a view of the interior.

  They drove up to the gate slowly and stopped. The base looked like it had human occupants, but only time would tell if they were friendly.

  Joshua got out of the car and walked closer to the gate.

  “Is anyone here?” he yelled out. “Hello? Anyone here?”

  A voice suddenly boomed over the PA system. “Who and how many are you?”

  “There are nine of us. Two men, five children, and two women. We’re all in good health, with no trace of the virus. We just came from the base up north and are looking for survivors.”

  A full minute went by with no reply. “Are you still there?” Joshua called out.

  “Wait,” was the answer.

  About five minutes later a man walked out to them from the guardhouse. “Don’t think of doing anything that might be taken as an action against me. You’re in the scopes of some pretty good marksmen.”

  “I can assure you that we have no intention of aggression,” Joshua said.

  “Why are you here?”

  “I went through boot camp here, and I had hoped there might still be a military presence. Is there?” Joshua asked.

  “I doubt I would be standing here if there was!” the man replied.

  “I thought maybe the military had opened up the base to clean civilians because of the crisis.”

  “We’re all clean here, but there’s no military presence.”

  “May we enter?” Joshua asked.

  “You said you have three women and four children with you?” It was obvious that he was double-checking their story, to see if they would contradict themselves.

  “No, nine total; two men, five children, and two women.”

  The man walked over to the cars and peered into both, verifying the head count.

  Then, after a brief conversation with someone on a headset, he said, “Follow me in.” A Jeep pulled up and the man got in.

  They were escorted to a small Quonset hut at the perimeter of the community, where they were told to park. They got out and Joshua began making the introductions.

  Aaron Thomason was the name of the man who had met them at the gate. He was over six feet tall and rugged looking, with a neatly trimmed beard. He looked like he spent a lot of time outdoors. Sydney guessed that he was somewhere in his mid to late thirties. Evidently, he had decided they did not pose a threat, so his gruff nature was now gone and he was quite amiable.

  “There are quite a few survivors here in Aftertown, as we now call this place. We’ve been working hard for almost two years trying to make it sustainable, somewhere we can call home that’s relatively safe,” he explained. Then he added, “Anyone who even looks like they might have something up their sleeve is turned away, pronto. If they don’t leave, our marksmen encourage them to make the right choice. We don’t take any chances. The rest usually don’t argue with us.”

  “We appreciate you taking a chance on us,” Joshua said.

  Apparently, Aaron was the designated leader of the community. Sydney could see why. He had a commanding presence about him, yet he also seemed kind. The name of the man who appeared to be second in charge was Ron Bruski. Ron was much shorter than Aaron and very stocky. His heavy beard made him look a little intimidating, and his arrogant manner made Sydney uncomfortable.

  “We’ll see if it’s des
erved,” he said bluntly.

  “You said you were trying to make this place sustainable. What exactly have you done?” Jeremy asked, taking the higher road and ignoring Ron’s remark.

  “Let me show you,” Aaron replied as he turned and motioned for them to follow. Ron excused himself with a grunt, apparently satisfied for the moment that there didn’t seem to be any ill motives.

  Shortly into the tour, Sydney started seeing other people going about their business, including—much to her surprise—children. Could this place be what she had been dreaming of for so long?

  Their first stop was a huge Quonset hut, about a hundred yards in length. Nobody in the group was expecting what they soon discovered inside.

  ~~~~~~~~~~~~

  They entered the building through double doors and were immediately enveloped by intense humidity. They were in a large greenhouse! Sydney was amazed at all the variations of vegetables and fruits she saw growing there. Everything from potatoes to papayas. Whoever created this had intended it for long-term use. Aaron invited each of them to pick a fruit as a treat and was it ever! It had been so long since they’d had anything but dried or canned fruit, and from the looks on everyone’s faces, they were all thinking the same thing.

  Brandon picked a couple strawberries for Joshi.

  “Here you go, Joshi. I know you’ll like these.”

  Sydney was taken by the way Brandon took care of his little brother first, before helping himself.

  Back outside, they saw an abundance of solar panels rigged up for electricity and hot water. Generators were numerous, and Aaron said there were two gas pumps on the base. Windmills also generated electricity and drew water from the wells.

  Sydney noticed barnyard smells coming from one of the other huts. Aaron said it was where they raised chickens and rabbits for meat, adding that in the hut farthest from the residential area, they also raised pigs. He explained that it wasn’t practical to raise large livestock—even if they could find any—because Turners would make short work of them if they were in a pasture, and it would be impossible at this point to secure an area large enough for grazing.