Before reaching our new homesite, we stopped in Rolla and found two building supply stores. Roofing shingles must not have held any interest to the people who had been there before us. The heavy duty lowboy equipment trailer we pulled with a tandem dump truck would easily carry the two hundred bundles of asphalt shingles we wanted. We were lucky to find all of the rolls of felt and nails and plywood sheeting we'd need for the installation. Surprisingly, there was even a good stock of lumber to choose from. Before we left, I ransacked the small office space. On a book shelf, I discovered a local phone book with yellow pages that was in good condition. That would make locating stores we needed for other items easier than driving blindly from town to town.
A mile from the second store, we saw three naked zombies about seven hundred yards out. I stopped the Expedition, opened the moon roof and squatted on the seat to steady my arms on the roof. Three shots later, an adult male and an adolescent zombie lay prone to the tall grass covering the ground beside the highway. The female escaped in high leaps like a gazelle chased by a pride of lions. Close examination of the downed zombies revealed an adult that compared to a fifty-year-old human, and what I'd taken for an adolescent looked to be about thirty years old.
It was well past dark when we finally reached the new homesite. Everyone was tired from the heavy lifting and carrying it took to gather materials.
At sunrise, we broke into three crews. Each group began stripping shingles from different cabins. As soon as the first roof was bare, that crew started installing the new roof components. The other two crews moved on to strip shingles from all the remaining cabins.
By day five we were running ahead of schedule. I sent two men to the nearest lumber yard with a material list for building our first communal crapper. Two others began digging a six foot deep excavation. After lunch, we began precutting the lumber and spreading dirt and rock from the hole to make a flat area for the outhouse to sit on. The building would consist of two sections, each with two holes cut in the board seats and a simple divider between them. It wasn't fancy or private but it was simple and functional.
It was early afternoon on our sixth day when we finished. Everyone was tired from a fast-paced six days of hard work from dawn to dusk. But we were all proud of the work we'd accomplished and were in a good mood. We decided to head out and drive after dark to get home and share our good news with the rest of our people.
Midnight fast approached when our three trucks stopped in front of the gate at Deliverance. A call on the radio got the watchtower guard to open the gate. I was apprehensive when Barlow Jones added, "I sure glad you're back. There's been big trouble."
Ed Jarnigan pranced excitedly outside the entrance as we parked. He wore a serious frown and spit a chaw on the gravel as we approached the group surrounding him. Several began to speak when we were still ten feet away.
Ed waved his arms. "One at a time, and I'm first..."That damned Majors group stole from us and left. I assume they're headed back to Master's place."
I shook my head. "Now I know what all the sneaky looks were about before we left. They planned this when they learned so many of us would be gone at once. Were any of our people hurt?"
"A couple got roughed up, but nothing serious. Tim punched Doc's jaw when Doc tried to stop them from releasing Joe and Ronnie from confinement. Morgan, Andrea and Kira were shoved around when they stood steadfast and resisted. They took our people’s weapons first, then they were all locked in the holding cells while the cowards stole what they wanted. A few firearms and a lot of ammunition are missing and half or more of the food was taken."
"Was anything else taken?"
Kira skirted the group and moved to stand beside me. I assumed our kids were asleep in their room. I encircled her waist with my arm and pulled her close, glad she was unharmed.
"At least three trucks and trailers and the five hundred gallon fuel tank are missing. About half of the seeds for planting next year's crops are gone too. My group arrived late this morning today, released our people, and started the inventory at noon. There may be other things missing to add to the list."
"Let's move inside and gather everyone in the dining room. I know it's late and everyone's tired, but we need to assess the extent of the damage they've caused."
Over the internal speakers, Morgan asked everyone to gather with us. Before taking a seat, I saw the large coffee urn was still a third full. I didn't know how old or thick the coffee was and didn't care. As I drew a full cup from the spigot, several others from my crew lined up behind me. I surveyed the crowd and didn't see Shane.
"Has Shane and his crew returned from Chicago?"
Several people said no or shook their heads. Morgan added, "The crews looking for horses and equipment aren't back either."
"Okay. Let's start at the beginning. Morgan and Andrea, please add details to what I heard outside."
Andrea spoke, "There were seven of us adults and nine kids below sixteen. They separated us and locked us in the six cells. It was tight and uncomfortable, but we were only in there for two days until Ed and his crew returned. They fed us and left plenty of food and water before they cleared out. Several people I was surprised to find joining the rebellion apologized sheepishly. Morgan and I talked about who left with Masters and we made a list." She passed copies around. "It looks like eighteen left plus Joe and Ronnie."
Morgan cut in. "But from what we heard while we were locked up, Suzie Robard, Glen Whycoff and his boys, Allen and Adam, were roughed up and forced to go along. Apparently, they didn't know about Tim and Nate's plan until then. Kim Whycoff was adamant about going with her brother, but Glen and the boys didn't want to leave. They shouted and resisted to the end."
Ed spoke loudly, "Now the question is, when do we go after what they stole and rescue the four that were kidnapped?"
I was tired. "My gut feeling is soon. But we need to get rested and discuss the situation at length before we go off half-cocked. The leadership committee will meet tomorrow afternoon at two. Think about our options and try to reach a decision by then. You folks working on inventory, please try to complete it before then, if possible."
My buddy wasn't in the crowd. "I'm surprised Shane and his crew aren't back from Chicago."
Ed completed a yawn then replied, "Haven't seen them. They should have been back today at the latest unless they had problems." He put his arm around Marilyn's waist and they headed upstairs to their room.
After a late night shower together, Kira and I lay in bed. I turned to her. "If those knotheads, Nate and Tim, had been forthcoming and said they wanted to leave. I would have split the food supplies with them seventy/thirty. Instead they stole about half; that's a lot more than their rightful share. Ed's hot to chase after them to get it back. He's willing to kill some of them if we have to. All that just to bring some food and ammunition back. I don't like it."
Kira pushed me over onto my back and straddled me. She kissed and licked down the side of my face and neck. "You need to relax and get rested. And I know just how to make that happen."
The orange globe of the morning sun poked above the treetops as I turned and walked back inside Deliverance. The cool silence helped clear my head before I strode to the dining room for breakfast. Although Kira had relaxed my body in a most enjoyable way, my mind continued to wrestle with our plight for several hours until it finally shut down from exhaustion.
After gauging the two fuel tanks that weren't empty, I learned less than nine hundred gallons of gasoline and ninety-one hundred gallons of diesel fuel remained. Tim's group had taken five hundred gallons of diesel. I would have gladly allowed the people who left twenty-five hundred gallons as their rightful share. That's what they got for sneaking instead of asking.
A few minutes after noon, Shane's group called for the gate to be opened. I met him outside at his truck and learned they'd had two flat tires on a set of duels on the over-the-road box trailer. "We lost most of a full day finding new tires and changing them by hand. Once
we got to the warehouse, everything proceeded as planned." He leaned back against the warm hood of the pick-up. "It's a good thing we took the diesel-powered fork lift from here; those battery warehouse lifts were all dead. They're ruined from sitting idle for so many years."
I asked, "Are there enough food items left to make another trip worthwhile?"
He shook his head but then added, "We about cleaned out the dry foods. But in the sporting goods section, Verlie found pallets of survival food. You know, the stuff those doomsday preppers used to buy. It's the Patriot Pantry brand that advertized the food was guaranteed to be good for twenty-five years. We brought one pallet just in case it's needed, but there's eleven more still there." Then he asked, "How did your trip go; did the repairs you planned get done?"
"They did, and I'll tell you about that later. But first we have other problems. There's a leadership committee meeting scheduled for less than two hours from now, at two p.m."
I briefly brought him up to speed on the Masters and Robard situation. He was as disappointed in their sneaky, ungrateful, behavior as I was. Shane's crew went inside to join the lunchtime crowd. Before we joined them, I told him to leave the dry foods on the trailer instead of hauling them inside Deliverance. I hoped we had enough food stored inside to last past spring when we'd make our move to Missouri. Then the trailer could be hauled south without the food being rehandled several more times.
The leadership committee was seated in the conference room as requested when I entered.
"Okay, we all know what happened while many of us were gone this week. The question is what, if anything, will we do in response."
Shane sat to my left. I nodded to him. "You go first, and then we'll move around the table until everyone has a chance to speak."
"Before I give an opinion, I'd like to hear Doc's take on what's going to happen with Joe and Ronnie and how that might impact the whole group that left."
Doc smirked lightly. "You people are always asking for data that there's no information on. Nothing has changed on that front. I can only tell you that I truly believe Joe and Ronnie are infected, and they will turn at some point. Since we'd never dealt with a long drawn out transformation in the past, I can't predict when they will become a danger to the people around them. It could be next week or another month or more; but at some point they will turn and attack whoever is near them."
Shane had his elbows on the table and his face cupped between his palms. It was obvious he was struggling for a decision. "I say let it go. They stole more food than they deserved, but they took less of other things we would have given them." He sat silent, waiting.
Ed spoke softly. "I don't like to let anyone steal anything from me. They took two machine guns and one of the RPG launchers. Plus an unknown amount of ammunition and rockets are missing. That said, I feel Vera, Mable and Willie, and probably Sam and Zeb, just made a bad choice. If we can get by without the food, I say forget it. I think with some effort I can replace the weapons from armories and military bases."
John said, "I agree with them."
Morgan simply nodded and looked to Andrea.
"I agree, especially since four of the twenty were forced to go and two more are children. They'd likely be killed if we go in bent on revenge."
The discussion had gone around the table and was back to Doc. He nodded. "We can only pray they watch Joe and Ronnie closely and deal with them before they turn and infect the others. If several of the humans become infected and turn quickly, there's no hope for the others in close quarters."
I stood to say, "Thank you. Once again I'm proud to be part of this group. I agree with our decision. We'll take the high road."
I sat again. "Now for our immediate direction. We need crews harvesting the last of the crops from the garden and the orchards and continuing with the canning. After that things will hopefully settle down going into fall and winter. Vivian and Grace have done a great job of shuffling people to fill all the projects we're working. Continue to let them know your manpower needs on a weekly basis. I'll help make the final decisions if there aren't enough bodies to go around. We still need at least one procurement crew to gather miscellaneous items for our move. The last time I checked, we were short seven kits to run the wood stove's exhaust stacks through the walls or ceilings. If you need materials or supplies for your work let, Vivian know, and she'll add it to the list."
Several people stood to leave before I said, "I'm concerned about our planned move to the Ozarks. We need to have the barn raisings and livestock pens completed before we can transport the livestock. That means pouring foundations, gathering building materials, and erecting the barns. That should be started soon and continued during the fall and winter instead of waiting till spring." Several members threw curious glances at me as they digested my statement. "We'll talk about this at length soon."
We settled into individual routines and things ran smoothly and without incident for eight days. The first week in October, we were hit in the gut with a new dilemma that again changed our direction.
That evening after supper and half an hour before darkness would cloak us in its ebony blanket, a pickup sat at the gate honking for it to open. The tower guards announced its approach half a minute earlier, and I and a handful of others were headed that way.
The truck's occupants exited the cab as the gate moved. The first person I recognized was Suzie Robard. From thirty feet, she looked sad but moved with purpose. Next I saw Glen Whycoff slide out from the driver's seat followed by his sons, Adam, and Allan, stepping out the back door. Eleven-year-old Molly Bales was the last one out, and she sniffled as she clung to Suzie.
The people who'd been forced to leave Deliverance were back, and I was pleased with that. But what on earth had happened, and why was Molly with them?
Glen spoke, "Doc Sparrow was right. Ronnie and Joe crossed over and attacked people before lunch this morning. They'd been confined in Tim's back room. I don't know how they got out or what happened. Tim and Nate made the four of us stay in one of the little houses. We don't know how many were infected before we escaped."
Glen stopped for a breath. Allen said, "Uncle Tim took our guns away before we left here and wouldn't give them back. The four of us were in the barn mucking out stalls when we saw Uncle Tim and Aunt Georgia chasing Willie and Mable. They caught them in seconds; it was terrible to watch, and I'll always remember their screams before they turned."
Suzie squatted beside Molly. "We ran to the nearest truck. When we left, I saw Molly hiding in the weeds along the lane, or they would have attacked her too. My mom and both her parents didn't make it either. I saw Mom chase a dog until she caught it." She closed her eyes and cried openly."
"Did you hear any gunshots during the attacks?" Ed asked.
Adam said, "I heard three, I think."
Glen nodded. "Yeah, there were three or four shots from Tim's house. Then I heard one other later on as we got to the truck."
They hadn't eaten since breakfast, so we escorted them inside and arranged for food and drinks. By then, word of the escapee's arrival had spread. Molly's grandparents, Verlie and Morgan, found her and were overjoyed that she'd escaped a vile death. Vivian assigned a room to Glen and his boys and Suzie agreed to bunk with Brittney Holescheck. I called for an immediate meeting of the leadership committee.
As soon as we were all seated and brought up to speed, I broached the reason for the meeting. "There are possibly fifteen zombies running around Tim's place in Nebraska. They all turned about mid-day, and I bet they'll hang around there for several days before they get hungry and wander off. I propose we send a dozen people there and wipe the zombies out. If we don't, they'll feast on other humans and multiply. We have the opportunity to eliminate them now, and I believe we should. When that's done, we can bring back the items that were taken from us. How do you feel about it?"
Several remained silent but nodded their agreement. Eventually, everyone committed. Ed looked around the table before speaking, "It's
going to be somewhat dangerous, but it's the right thing to do." He turned to me. "When do we leave?"
"Early tomorrow morning. Let's pull out at seven and be there between ten and eleven. I think we should ask Mitch Robard, the Jones brothers, Jesse Pitchford, Dean Thibodaux, and Glen Whycoff, if they want to go since those people were their kin."
Ed said, "Agreed. I assume you're going and I want to go, that's eight. My recommendations for the others are Martin Sr. and Jr., Vince Gonzales and Verlie."
I looked down the table. "Some time ago we agreed to limit the number of this team's members who went on missions like this. I'd like to have all of you with us, but instead I'll ask you to keep this place running while we're gone. After we gather everything of use at Masters’ place, I expect to be back the following day before supper."
I went back to my room and told Kira what had transpired. I expected her reaction. "I want to go, too."
I shook my head. "Not this time. Six of the people Ed chose are top marksmen, and the others are good enough. The last six are all relatives of the people who were at Tim's place. I'm sure they'll want to know firsthand what happened to their loved ones. Dean Thibodaux surely has feelings for his wife even after she shot him and chose to leave. If he declines, you can take his place."
She nodded and kissed me on the cheek. "I understand. I don't have to like it, but it makes sense."
I left then to talk to the people picked for our little foray into Nebraska. Everything went as anticipated until I spoke to Dean.
"Look, Tom, my relationship with Rhonda was rocky for the last year or more. That's why I became attracted to Brittney. She's calm and cheerful and pleasant to be around while Rhonda had become downright mean and combative. Nothing pleased that girl. I don't hate Rhonda, but there's no attraction left between us. The reason she left here was simply to get away from me. As far as I'm concerned, we're the same as divorced, and I'm done with her."
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