His apparent sorriness for Anne and Rebecca was surprising. If he had had any concern he should have actually made an effort and spoke to us. It wasn't in him though. He was filled with hate and self loathing...for whatever reason. The mention of a family that didn't want him. Maybe he was orphaned or abandoned or given up for adoption. Or it's likely he just became an asshole alcoholic and his family just gave the hell up on him.
As for his ex wife, well....who's to say. It's hard to imagine someone with him. Maybe it was before he turned into what we all knew him as. If so, then obviously she left...who could blame her. His cruel words....I hope he was wrong. I hope she's okay out there somewhere.
Suddenly, I wondered about my few exes. Like my highschool sweetheart, Mallory. We dated from freshman year to junior year. A carefree girl from a stereotypical suburban type family. Dad was an insurance salesman and her Mom worked evenings at a small diner. They were really nice. Also had a younger son...Henry. I enjoyed our time together, but for some reason, that was neither her fault nor mine, we just started to drift.
For a couple years after graduation I was seeing a woman named Taylor. She cheated with a friend of mine at the time, Dan Harris.
There were a couple others. Most recently last year. Sally. We met at the mall while I was on duty. She worked at a small stand selling cellphones. She had recently been through a shitty breakup, so we decided to just be friends for a little while longer. This past May we started talking less and less. Just busy. I didn't hear from her at all last month. Then of course came the end. Now I wondered where they all were. If they were even alive. Except Dan.
In the morning we gathered in my livingroom and began a conversation about Stan. As cold as it may sound, I suggested we just leave him to hang. What is it our concern? His drunken letter said he hated us all anyway. Reggie agreed with me. Jim nodded. Kelly gave Jim a look of disdain. She was very clearly disgusted. Seems it's always the female that's more compassionate to people that, to me anyway, don't seem deserving of it. Maybe it's the females that help keep some of us males morally in check with such situations. Even though, push them too far and they can be far worse than us, that's a fuckin' fact.
Kelly heatedly scolded us all about the fact he was still a human being and should be treated with dignity. Dignity...not a word usually in the same sentence with Stan. She started to get emotional. Clinging to a world that was dead and gone. Hopefully she didn't want to burry every corpse we would undoubtedly come upon.
In the end we ended up feeling bad for her and decided to just get it over with so we could plan our exit from Akron. Kelly stayed inside.
Once inside Stan's room we all stared at his stiff corpse hanging like a fat drunk white trash pinata. I'm sure they felt the same thing I did. Disgust. But morally, I guess Kelly was right. Despite his foulness and uselessness, he was one of our neighbors. He was a pathetic bitter bastard....but I guess he was our pathetic bitter bastard.
Using one of his own kitchen knives, while standing on his dirty bed, I cut the rope quickly and cringed as his body crashed into the floor.
We wrapped him in one of his filthy sheets and carried him through his back kitchen door into the backyard. I was starting to dislike the man even more for his death causing this strife. Kelly would have slapped me for that fleeting thought.
We dug a shallow grave, more than we wanted to do and it was good enough. Kelly wouldn't know anyway. Nor did it really matter. He was buried. She'd be happy. Or content. Appeased. We then concurred that tomorrow would be the day we left the city. We didn't know what awaited us out beyond our city limits but it was due time we found out.
The previous evening after we buried Stan, we searched every garage and gathered all the gas cans we could find. We filled Reggie's small blue Toyota and my gray SUV and loaded the remaining cans within Reggie's trunk. We all could have fit in either vehicle but it was just smarter to take both. One, in case one should break down, and two, to carry more supplies.
We loaded gallons of water and boxes of canned goods. All our ammo for the rifle and pistol. Some blankets and tools. It wasn't a far drive but we had no way of knowing what kind of road blocks we'd come across....from abandoned vehicles, a swarm of Roamers and, hopefully not, any looters or bandits.
In the morning....we set out.
AUGUST
The main roads were, as expected, clogged with car upon car, miles down the road. Some were in accidents that were never cleared. No one had come to help. Panic set in. Countless doors were left open. Cars left. Some had clothes or suitcases nearby that had been dropped or possibly fought over. Some were charred and burnt out from fires. Some had bodies in them.
Kelly looked away from those ones. We all knew what she was thinking when we'd stop to discuss routes.
Ever so slowly the city infrastructure began to fade into a more serene, albeit eerie, surroundings.
On the back roads we'd past small hordes of roamers. Some were on the side fields or light woods. Sometimes a few on the roads we quickly sped past. And one pack of five Bolters. We drove extremely fast when they burst from the woods behind my vehicle giving off Dead Calls. Jim and Kelly were in the car in front of us and they sped up immediately once they heard the call. We floored it until they were out of sight. Once we were out of their sight, they'd lose interest and wander wherever.
Eventually I saw a sign for Portage County. We were there....in the county at least. It took us nearly two hours of careful moving to get this far. Soon I would know if my Uncle and Cousin were alive. If they were there at all. They may have fled. Maybe went to one of the refugee centers, which meant they were almost certainly dead.
At this point I pulled up and took the lead of our little caravan. I knew the area and knew the areas we should stay clear of. A few towns are decent in size and would be infested with those creatures (Kelly sometimes hated when we referred to them as that. They were once people, she'd say). The key words here: Were Once People. They're not anymore. Eventually she gave up on that argument. I think she knew she had a big enough victory with the burial of Stan. And she did. We all had to adjust to this new dark world. The prospect of what we may face over time was overwhelming.
We should have made better plans. We planned the routes perfectly, but that was about it. What if my two family members were dead? The only family I have...or possibly now, had. My family was small. I was raised by an elderly great aunt after my parents abandoned me when I was twelve. She's dead. Her husband had died a year before her. The rest were just extended family I really never much knew.
If they were dead, and I hoped they weren't against all odds, we could still have shelter. They lived on a back road in a two story house down a quarter mile driveway away from the road. Most of the front was shielded by trees. At night it wasn't noticeable at all.
But what if it was gone? Not once did we plan for that. If my family was not there, it could have burned to the ground for all I knew. Worse yet, it could have been taken over by a group of marauders. My home away from home turned into a criminals den.
If any of those hypotheticals were to be true....then where the fuck did we go? How stupid we were. Plan our exit to the letter and fuck up our own safety plans. No backup plans, no plan B's or C's. Nothing. I kicked myself. This was my idea. It was our best chance, yet I could have killed us all. Not that I was the only one at fault here. No one else shouted out our ignorance.
As I drove I mentally scouted Hiram. They lived a few miles outside of the main town. If the dreaded situation I was panicking about became a reality....where do we go? Hiram College was out. Large buildings potentially filled with a number of infected. We'd be passing the school on our way through so we'd get a glimpse.
Rows and rows of houses. There weren't many nearby locations to squat. The homes could house some Bolters or trigger happy survivors that shoot first, question later. The next nearest town was Garrettsville. It was slightly larger which risked more likely encounters with infected. The day the
Bolter population dwindles will be a good day. No less dangerous, but at least less running overall.
Soon we came upon an intersection in the heart of Hiram. I lead us close to the college to at least take a look. It was basically as I thought it would be. Some bodies strewn around, along with some Roamers wandering the grounds, weaving themselves among the many buildings.
I led us out of town past the aforementioned rows of homes lining both sides of the road. Slowly they became sparse. My nerves began to ratchet up as the street I sought became visible on my left. I turned down it with a sense of dread and a high level of anxiety.
Finally the house came into view. It still stood. I let out a deep sigh but kept my hopes from springing too high. They could be dead inside, gone, or overtaken.
I pulled into the long gravel drive and slowed my speed of our caravan to a crawl. Ken and Tim were gun owners and I didn't want to spark any friendly fire between us.
There wasn't any sign of movement or activity of any kind. I stopped the SUV within fifty feet of the house. Just then, the door opened at the front of the home and I grabbed for my pistol.
Tim emerged aiming a rifle in my direction, clueless of course to my identity. He shouted for me, and only me, the driver, to step out of the first car. I had to admit, Tim was gutsier than I thought. I mean, he was never a coward by any means, but two cars pulling up and he's that fast to step out and take aim. I was glad...though terrified at that moment of him getting too trigger happy.
I rolled my window down and held my hand out calmly. Slowly, with my right hand, I opened the door and slid out of my seat. Upon seeing my face he lowered the rifle and relief was visibly washing over him. He uttered "shit." Inside the SUV I heard relief wash over Reggie as a long, drawn out sigh escaped his mouth. He may have been holding his breathe that entire time.
Tim rushed toward me and gave a strong hug quickly and then stepped back looking shocked. I asked about his father. He shifted his gaze to the ground, shaking his head.
***
Inside I introduced him to the others, who were extremely grateful for the shelter and hospitality he bestowed graciously without hesitation. He told them to make themselves at home. He and I left them in the kitchen and took ourselves to the large livingroom at the left of the dinning room, which was directly in front of the kitchen doorway.
He gave me an awkward look of complete bewilderment when I casually, out of habit, tossed my recorder on the couch. I explained why, to which after he just shrugged, content with the explanation and convinced I was still stable. The others were used to it from the start...but after my Cousin's awkward look I decided in the future with people I'd just click it on in my pocket. It was a high end recorder that had a feature to filter out background noise anyway and focus on vocalization. So white noise from my pocket wouldn't matter. The marvels of technology! Now obsolete.
Recording:
What happened to Ken? Where is he?
I don't know. A week ago tomorrow he said we needed some more canned goods and water, along with batteries, lights, and matches....who knows what else, I can't remember his list. Hiram was completely ransacked and looted to its last amount of....anything! [sigh] Anyway, he said he was going to take a look at Garrettsville. I said alright and went for my boots and he said I was staying. I said that was stupid but...you know how he is. It was my duty to watch over the house. He didn't want to risk anyone coming near here. He promised he wouldn't take any risks. Just check it out from a distance and only get a closer look if it looked okay. He said he'd be back in an hour or so, and well....he never came back.
Have you stayed here the whole time?
Yeah....I have come so close to going there myself and looking. I almost feel like a fuckin' bitch for not going....what kind of son am I? [long pause] I was scared of what I might find, is all. I didn't...I don't know what to do, Jack.
Me and Reggie can go look for him tomorrow. I don't expect you to come....like you said..afraid of what we may find.
I'll go with you. I have too. Part of me was afraid to go alone, but you're here now. I have family here....I never thought I'd see anyone I knew ever again. Especially you...all the way from Akron. That place must have gotten dangerous fast.
It did. For the most part we dodged a lot of trouble in our neighborhood and somehow lucked out getting here with only minor issues. But we lost people. Our neighbors, two elderly sisters....it was bad. One infected. She killed her sister, who of course also turned. That was hard. Guy across the street hanged himself.
Fuckin' A. Did you have to put down your neighbors?
I put down one of them. Jim killed the other. If that's what you want to call it. Not sure how you kill something that's already dead....
I donno. Guess there's no word for killing living death. We just...put it down. What about the hanged guy?
Total bastard. We heard a sound in the night from his place. Long story short, we went in and found him hanging in his room from his fan.
Shit, man. That's...fucked up. I donno what else to even say to that. You've already seen some shit.
What about you? Have you had to deal with any infected? People?
Not directly face to face, no. A few slower walking ones wandering down the road, some halfway up the drive going through the yard into the woods.
Roamers.
Huh?
Oh, we call the slower ones Roamers. Fast ones Bolters. See any of those sumbitches?
Already coming up with names for them. Guess it's a good idea to have an ID to them so to speak. Being out, calling out what's around so you can properly react. Smart thinking...and to answer your question, yes. Those fast fucks scare the living shit out of me. Saw three of them running down the fucking road chasing a cat.
None infected cat. That'd be nice to see these days. An infected one is what attacked Anne, one of the elderly neighbors. Messed her up bad.
I can only imagine...and I don't want to. I haven't seen any infected animals.
You keep watch on the porch?
Fuck no! You think I'm crazy? I keep my ass on the roof.
We did the same.
Can't say I've gotten much sleep this past week. I stay up all night on watch and take short little naps during the day. I can't sleep too long...I jump awake scared shitless. Threats can show up day or night.
Well, tonight you can sleep as soundly as possible. Let your guard down a bit. Reggie and me have been doing the night shifts for weeks now. Your dad's gun locker still in the basement?
Yeah. I have guns loaded and hidden in every room of the house. Shotgun under Dad's bed. 9mm under my mattress. Every room...I'll show you. His locker still has plenty though. I loaded them all but left them in there. I threw the keys in the washing machine. Things useless now and who the fuck would look in a washing machine, anyway?
Someone looking to loot clothes....
Eh.
Tomorrow we'll head into G-Ville. We should expect the worst....I'm sure you know that. The odds are....the odds aren't good at all. The town was populated enough to be a hazard.
I know. I've already thought about it for days on end.
You, me and Reggie. Jim and Kelly will stay here and watch the house. We play it cautiously and smart. If it looks infested we turn around and come back. We'll wait for them to disperse before checking again.
[nods]
End of Recording.
That night Reggie and I climbed out of a second floor window onto the roof of the porch. It was deathly quiet, with the exception of a few distant Dead Calls. They made their Calls when they spotted anything. Anything living. Be it man or animal. I remember there was a breeze that night. A warm summer breeze that's always welcomed on hot summer nights. It was near eighty degrees at least. Fireflies lit up the fields around us. That's something I loved about the countryside. That, and being able to see the stars. You were neglected that in the city. A shame.
As Recorded:
You think we gonna find your Uncle to
morrow?
I'm not counting on it....it's not likely. Not alive anyway.
Who's to say, man. For all you know he got stuck in some place surrounded by those fuckers and just can't get out. Waiting for them to go away...get distracted by something.
That's a nice thought...to think we just find him holed up somewhere and waiting....really nice thought. But...against all odds. We may not find any sign of him. If we do he'd almost certainly be dead. Gunned down my some assholes or attacked by infected. Those two scenarios are the heads and tails I'd flip on. I'm trying not to even think about it. Distracting myself from it until we set out tomorrow afternoon.
Sorry, man. I shouldn't have even-
No, no. It's fine. Just...hard. Hey, how you liking the country, anyway?
Just as damned creepy as I was expecting it to be. Hearing Dead Calls echoing around isn't ideal for me, Jack. Not fuckin' ideal at all, sir!
The Dead Lands Diary (Book 1) Page 4
