by C C Roth
“What is this place?” Navin asked.
“I have no clue. Cookie Monster’s secret lair? Whatever it is, let’s get our gloves and masks on and for god’s sake don’t touch anything. Keep your guard up. Wyatt could still be right about them being cannibals.”
Wyatt winked at me in confidence and Luis chuckled before realizing some of us were pretty serious about the threat of being eaten. We exited the car together as a team, guns up and eyes darting. The pick-up truck had pulled in behind us along with the van, but they did leave us an escape which gave me a little comfort that maybe we weren’t walking right into a trap.
Mitchell approached and looked at each one of our guns, frowning. “Friends, I understand your caution, but you won’t need those here. You are our guests today.”
Karina walked up behind us. “Don’t waste your breath, Mitchell. This one won’t do anything without her rifle. Isn’t that right?”
I gave a defiant shrug and Mitchell smiled back at me. “Alright, no trouble young scholars. Just please try not to point them at anyone inside. Our group here can be a bit edgy sometimes around strangers. I would hate to see this tour turn into an unnecessary scene.”
We all nodded and held our weapons down at our sides as Mitchell stood at the front door of his building. Like the rest of the exterior, even the door had been painted over with what appeared to be fairies aiming machine guns at a dinosaur. Whoever these people were they certainly weren’t lying low. A bronze sign was mounted by the door which read, A Home for Everyone. Yes, You Are Welcome Here. We watched each member of Mitchell’s group throw their gloves and masks into a charred metal barrel on the sidewalk before approaching the door. We left ours on and followed them in reluctantly where we were met with another surprise. The building wasn’t just any building. It was an enormous house bustling with life from every nook and cranny. Kids ran up and down the stairs in front of us, shoes were piled up near the door and there were old metal lockers that ran all the way down the long main hallway. It was noisy, and cluttered, and kind of awesome. A little boy came running down the hall and jumped onto one of Karina’s guys, it must’ve been his big brother. They hugged, then the two ran off together somewhere in the back of the building.
“Okay, I give up. What are we doing here and what is this, Mr. Rodger’s neighborhood?”
“This is our home, Samantha. Four posts and a roof with a lot of love in between. This is where I grew up and where I now live with my 100 or so family members. How many are we now, Karina?”
“150,” she beamed like a proud momma. It was clear Karina was important around there. She carried herself with authority, as Mitchell’s equal.
“That’s right. I now have 150 family members.”
Wyatt started looking a little twitchy. “So, what are you guys? Like a cult or something?”
Mitchell burst out in a deep belly laugh and threw his head back. “Ah, my child. I suppose you could say that. We all live together, we all share a simple belief system, and we all take care of one another. So in a way I suppose, yes we are a cult…but without all the human sacrifices or drinking the Kool-Aid so you can level up.”
A cluster of kids ran down the stairs chasing each other and screaming at the top of their lungs. “Children! Children! Please, take it outside,” he said as he waved them to the back of the house, smiling as they ran past. “Is there anything more joyous than the sound of children’s laughter?”
Yes, silence.
Okay, this dude was balls crazy. My head was running through a list of possible scenarios and I was starting to get dizzy trying to keep up.
“I see that I have overwhelmed you with all of this so let’s go and talk somewhere a bit quieter.” He raised his arm like a tour guide as if to steer us along and we followed.
The wall of lockers went on forever down the main hallway, each adorned with someone’s own personal decorations. There was a strange, alien feeling of warmth and love spreading from every room we passed. Ick. Children’s drawings covered the walls, there were height markers on just about every door frame, and most rooms we peeked into had been converted into bedrooms stuffed with bunk beds. Some were packed so tightly it barely looked like there was room to turn around.
“We live modestly as we always have and how most Avian-X survivors do now. We are cramped but we are lucky. Our numbers keep growing which is both promising and a challenge. Soon we will have to expand into neighboring buildings, and we are excited for the new adventure. Perhaps you’ll stay to help with the renovations if things go well,” he eyed me hopefully.
The long hallway ended at a T with an office door dead center. We all entered after Mitchell who took a seat behind a no-frills desk. “Forgive the lack of space but try to make yourselves comfortable, please.”
Mike and I took the two chairs opposite him and the others stood behind us. It felt exactly like I’d been called into the principal’s office, something that used to happen a lot. The walls were cheap fake wood paneling and covered in framed awards, diplomas and photos of Mitchell standing next to just about every single major politician I could recognize and many more I couldn’t. The one that caught my eye was of him shaking the former President’s hand and smiling for the camera.
“I knew you looked familiar!” Luis shouted as he pointed at the photo.
Mitchell chuckled, “Yes, it’s possible you’ve seen my face before but not likely you’d know why. I was never really popular with teenagers outside of this place. Not many kids are concerned with politics as I’m sure you understand.”
“So, who are you?” Luis asked. “How did you know the president?”
“I used to be the Secretary of Urban Housing and Development. I worked and lived in D.C. for four years, four wonderful years. We made a lot of progress but not nearly enough. Once the Republican party took over the majority and the new president was elected, I had to sit idly by and watch as they tore apart everything I had worked for.” He looked up at the photo sadly.
“So, what are you doing here if you’re some D.C. politician?” Navin asked.
“Well this is where I grew up. This used to be a halfway house for the city of Toledo. Once upon a time, it was a sanctuary for run away or abandoned children. A place they could be safe, have a free meal, do laundry, and get help with their homework if they were still in school. A completely open-door policy, truly a home for everyone.”
We all exchanged looks not knowing what to say. This guy sounded like a flipping infomercial.
“I get it. It’s hard to understand if you come from upper middle-class white America, but there is an entire population of forgotten people that need help and have always needed help. If it weren’t for this place, I would never have been successful in life. I worked here my entire adult life, aside from the years I was in D.C. After my job in office ended, I came back here with my family, purchased the building and reclaimed my position as president of the A Home for Everyone Organization.”
“But how are you still here?” Mike asked. “That doesn’t make any sense. It looks like the rest of the city was destroyed after the outbreak.” He was apparently having some serious trust issues.
“These kids are survivors and they always have been. Not much has changed for them in that regard. It’s always been them against the world but now that concept is a bit more literal in context. When the outbreak happened, we stayed put because there simply were too many people to move safely by myself and I couldn’t organize a pickup for 100 children that I wasn’t a legal guardian to, even with my connections. I could stay or abandon them. I chose to stay. So here we all are, and we have been growing ever since. Now more than ever there are young people that need a place like this, and I have no intention of closing those doors. Figuratively speaking of course. Obviously, we have a protocol and the doors are locked for safety purposes.”
“But the virus,” Navin asked, “how have you managed to keep that out of a group this size? Especially if you have people coming and going
all the time.”
He hung his head so briefly I almost didn’t catch it. Regret. “We had our losses in the beginning. It has been a challenge, but we take precautions such as the burn barrel at the door you passed. Everyone is issued masks and gloves before leaving and only a certain group of people are sent on gathering runs. Usually the older more experienced ones volunteer and they all go through a brief training with Karina beforehand. Besides, we have the powerful shield of love to protect us. All of us here have someone we love like a sibling or cousin, so we all are motivated to work hard to keep each other safe. It did help tremendously that we didn’t leave the house until two months ago when the spread had died down significantly. I simply didn’t let anyone leave until we had no other option. We remained locked in here and watched while the city burned down around us.”
“Locked in a house with over 100 kids? That sounds like a nightmare,” I huffed.
“Perspective is everything, Samantha.”
This guy was a hero. An honest to god hero. The world was going to shit and here he was saving actual orphans and keeping them safe. Geez, he needed another medal for his wall.
Mike shifted in his seat, agitated. “What you’ve done here is great, Mitchell. But I don’t understand what it is you want from us. You told my sister that we might be able to help each other. Why are we here?”
He cleared his throat and folded his hands in front of him suddenly looking somber. “As I said, I have connections in the political world, what’s left of it. There is a strong movement happening right now which is pushing for an election. Our president died one month into Avian-X and the nuclear blast eliminated his next three successors. People are done waiting for a real leader and there is going to be an election announced soon.”
“An election? You’re joking. But how?” Mike asked in disbelief. “Last time I checked we’re sitting in the middle of the Red Zone surrounded by death on one side and closed borders on the other. A lot of people are totally on lockdown still. How would something like that even happen?”
“Michael you are a smart man and I applaud your mental agility. I cannot share all of the details with you yet but there is going to be an assembly of state officials and I’m sorry to say that a majority of our good intentioned and level-headed leaders have been eradicated. We are in uncharted, unstable waters and if we do not act there is a chance that we could end up with some dangerous people in positions of power. People with outdated thinking and outdated ideals that don’t care about anyone in the Red Zone, especially the children in this house. This country could end up taking a devastating step backwards if we’re not careful.”
I shifted impatiently in my chair. None of his ramblings meant anything to me. “We’ve already taken a huge step backwards in case you haven’t noticed. And that wasn’t an answer. What do you want from us?”
“I believe that the people wielding our military are acting solely out of fear and there is one man in particular who is responsible for quite a lot of illegal, unconstitutional, and immoral acts since the Avian-X outbreak. Unfortunately, some of our own have found themselves at the mercy of this man and I am powerless to do anything about it. I can raise a small number of militia, men and women who were in the Armed Forces but chose to leave after witnessing certain atrocities.”
“You’re talking about The Resistance, right?” I asked.
He nodded. “But I don’t need an army, not yet. A show of force will only make the political divide greater and turn our noble cause into a villainous blunder. What I need is a surprise, an underdog, an unknown who is willing to fight for the people.”
“You don’t want to get your hands dirty,” I blurted out.
“To be completely transparent, yes. You see, I need help because it can’t look like the force is coming from me or from the Resistance. I need someone not affiliated with my organization. It would…”
“It would make you look bad during elections, right?” Navin offered. “Just another crazy Resistance member with a gun threatening the safety of our country.”
“Yes, quite. No one wants to elect a man who has blood on his hands but unfortunately these days no one’s hands are clean. The CDC has been stretched across the Midwest and placed into satellite locations for the safety of their employees as well as to ensure the safety of their research. Essentially our government has taken over facilities and moved the CDC in. There is a government lab here just outside Toledo, Quantum Medical Research, not unlike the one you daring souls visited in Freemont. I have been given first-hand accounts of the goings on and you have witnessed for yourselves what they are doing to people. I believe they have some of our kids. A group that went out scavenging and never came back. It’s been three days. I don’t need to tell you everyone is quite worried.”
We all eyed each other. He was talking about the same lab we had scouted only four days before. The same lab that was surrounded in barbed wire fencing and patrolled by armed military. The same lab Mr. Chey had delivered Noah to over a month ago.
“Well maybe they weren’t taken at all. Maybe they left and headed for California. A lot of people are doing that now or trying to,” Mike offered.
“No. They wouldn’t do that. No one here is being held against their will so there is no reason to sneak off without saying goodbye. Besides, one of them left behind a little brother and he would never have done that. They must have been taken, or worse.”
“What would be worse?” Wyatt asked.
“We have a pact here. If you believe that you’ve been exposed to Avian-X while out on a run, then you don’t come back. There is a safe house that is stocked regularly so any of us can wait to see if symptoms arise. If you’re sick, you don’t come back, a self-sacrifice for the greater good. Karina has checked the house and their route several times. They’re just gone.”
I thought it over for a minute. “So why do you need us? If you think they’re in there, then why not send a group of your child soldiers down there? You seem organized and you obviously have people here who can handle themselves.”
“It’ll come out. The truth always does. Once people catch wind that dependents of this home were sent on a tactical mission…I simply can’t be affiliated with something like that so close to the election. If someone goes in there by force then there won’t be any negotiations, no easy way out, and no way I’ll be able to sway any voters from the other side once people know I authorized it. I’ll be labeled as part of the Resistance and then we won’t stand a chance at making a difference for the rest of the country.”
“But you are part of the Resistance,” Mike jabbed.
“Yes, but you see while I’m on the side of the Resistance, I can’t exactly advertise it. People simply do not understand what it means, it conjures images of uneducated, violent, traitors and nothing could be further from the truth. The best chance we have for making a change in our future is to work within the system. If I’m labeled a violent Resistance member, I won’t stand a chance. Can you help us? We just want our family back.”
Mike put his hand up before I could answer. He was ready to leave. “Look, Mitchell. We’ve seen the lab you’re talking about and it’s crawling with military. What you’re talking about would be a suicide mission for us. What makes you think we could even do this?”
“I have someone on the inside. In their haste to set up these satellite operations the CDC made some errors in judgement. In a way, they’re also being held hostage by our government who won’t stop until we can publicly announce a victory over Avian-X. My contact will be able to get you in and get you back out undetected. If we can be stealthy then there is no reason we won’t be successful. However, if you are caught then…”
“Then you don’t know us, and you won’t be coming for us?” I asked already knowing the answer.
He nodded grimly.
Everyone searched each other’s faces, trying to feel out the mood. I stared Mitchell down and even though his plight seemed sincere enough, I couldn’t shake t
he feeling he wasn’t giving us the whole story.
“This is a lot for anyone to digest so I would like to extend to you another invitation, though far simpler to mull over. Stay with us for a day or two. If after that time you don’t feel compelled to help us, then you can go on your way in search of whatever adventures your hearts’ desire. But my will is strong, and I would venture that our family will be able to sway your timid souls in our favor.”
His conversation was tedious, but I really liked this guy and for the life of me I couldn’t figure it out. My cold friend was ready to jump in the car and head to the lab right then and I could feel the urgency growing within me. I needed to move. The past few days of doing nothing but hiding out was torture for me. I was imagining what it would feel like to use my icy talents again as we searched for Noah and these missing kids. I could feel the adrenaline making my heart thump and my lungs vibrate with tension. I was in. It wasn’t smart and I’d probably die trying…but I was in.
I started to leave when Navin cleared his throat. “I only have one question. What’s in it for us? Why would we agree to help you?”
