by Volante, KT
The trip was uneventful. We saw many LDs, but they didn’t clog the roads. They tried to chase us, but we left them far behind.
About five miles before the store, we saw an electric company service truck.
“Bingo!” Luke yelled. “I knew we would find one.”
He was like a little kid who had found his Christmas gifts early. He stopped the car next to the truck. We got out and searched for any close LDs—nothing. The truck had the equipment Luke needed, but the keys were gone.
“Terrific!” said Rachael.
“No problem,” said Luke. “Sid taught me how to hotwire a car.”
“As long as it’s not chipped,” Rachael added.
Luke forgot that part, but tried anyway. After the tenth failed attempt, Luke hit the steering wheel multiple times and down from the visor came a set of keys. We all looked at the keys in his hand.
“Really?” Luke said. Then he started the truck.
“Lacey, we can leave it here and pick it up on the way back.”
“Nope. We take it now. What if the road or the truck has too many LDs near it when we come back? We take it now. Remember, a bird in the hand….”
Rachael drove the car and I sat shotgun.
* * *
The store was huge. We drove around the store first. No signs of life or LDs. But we knew better. This type of store was a treasure chest of survival gear. Employees would hold out here if no one else, I thought. But how many were in there, and were they alive? Or were they LDs? Would they share or trade any supplies? After this many months, all supplies must be gone. I calculated the possible success and risk of what we intended to do. We had come all this way, so we couldn’t turn back now. The family needed those supplies.
“I think we should bang on the doors and run,” said Luke. “If there are LDs near the door, that will bring them forward. If there are people in there, I’m sure they’ll want to see who is banging.”
“I did see a few cameras in the back of the store,” Rachael added. “If we go back there and bang on the doors, then if people are in there, they’ll move the cameras to see us. And if the cameras don’t move, maybe the light will turn on.”
“Most likely there isn’t electricity, so the cameras won’t work,” I said, “but we have to try something. Let’s drive around the store again. If nothing happens, then we go to the front of the store.”
We drove to the back and slowly past the cameras. Nothing.
“I don’t think the store is empty; most likely LDs are inside. Let’s park near the entrance. Any problems, we retreat to the cars and get out of here. It’s going to be really dark in there. Luke, check for flashlights in the truck.”
Luke found two working flashlights.
“There are cars here, so someone has to be in there,” Rachael said. “Maybe we could siphon off gasoline. Fill up the car and the truck before we go in. Full tanks are always good.”
I was impressed.
“Good idea,” I said.
I walked up to the front doors. Very little light filtered through the fully tinted glass doors. The dirt on the glass didn’t help. I got a glimpse of what was in the front of the store. I saw some kind of barricade, so people did live here, at least once.
Luke and Rachael walked up behind me.
“Update?” Luke said.
“There’s a barricade in the front of the store, so people are in there—whether still alive or LDs, I’m not sure. No one peeped out that I could see. Get your game face on; we’re going in,” I said.
“What if there are living people in there?” Rachael asked. “Are we going to fight them for the supplies?”
“No; we talk to them. Maybe they’re willing to trade for supplies. If we think it would be good to join forces, fine; if not, we just leave.”
We banged and kicked the door until our hands and feet stung. We waited. We saw movement behind the barricade, but we were unable to see what moved; it was too dark inside.
“Whoever is in there knows we are out here, so what the hell.” I yelled, “Hello! Anyone in there? We want to talk! We mean you no harm!”
More movement. The doors were locked, and this time, no keys were over our heads. Luke got a crowbar from the truck and worked on the lock.
Again, I yelled, “Listen! We just want to talk! We don’t want to break the door lock! We mean you no harm!”
“No answer, so I am going with only LDs inside,” said Rachael.
I agreed.
Luke got the doors open. The smell of rotten flesh overwhelmed us. The smell burned our eyes and throats until we retreated and vomited. Then the LDs poured out. Not as many as I had thought but enough. We ran to the car and got in. We sat as still as we could until the LDs passed us by.
“I counted thirty-three LDs,” said Luke.
“I got forty,” Rachael added.
“Either way, it still smells,” I said, and we laughed, but not too hard. We didn’t want to hurl again.
We waited a half hour before we left the car. I yelled into the store again. Maybe my voice would bring more LDs out. I couldn’t imagine anyone living in the store with that smell.
Although the smell still overwhelmed us, we decided to push forward. The barricade was made from barbecue grills and outdoor furniture. Someone, an alive someone, had to have done this. Once we passed the barricade, we encountered a row of cash registers. Rachael noticed a display of bandanas and grabbed a few. She threw them at us. We tied them around our faces like bank robbers. It helped to block some of the smell, and any help was welcomed.
Past the cash registers was a barricade of shopping carts—lined up so only the first and last could be removed. It was a short and strong barricade. We stopped.
I thought for a moment and said, “Good idea, using LDs as defense, then these shopping carts. So there might be living people in here. Be careful!”
Luke and Rachael turned on their flashlights as it became too dark to see. We hopped over the shopping carts. As they scanned around, we saw no one, but we heard noises. Sooner or later, we knew we would see the causes of those noises. I didn’t want to yell again; I didn’t want to chance more LDs or bullets coming our way.
This store was a treasure of survival gear. The shelves weren’t full, but we found a lot of things we could use.
Then we saw small lights near the ceiling. There was a second floor.
“LDs didn’t turn on those lights,” whispered Luke.
“Nope,” I answered. “You two go around and look for supplies. I’m going upstairs. If you hear shots, leave immediately.”
“No, we’re not going to split up; we sure as hell aren’t going to leave you!” barked Luke.
Rachael nodded.
“Look,” I said. “We don’t have much time to check out this store. We need to know whether the supplies we need are here. One person going upstairs is less threatening than three. Rachael, I need your flashlight. Turn your flashlight on just enough to see but not give away your location. I plan on coming back. Alive,” I added, trying to sound confident.
I left before they could say anything more or try to stop me.
I turned on the flashlight and made a complete arc to catch a glimpse of the store. I turned it off as I slowly made my way to the stairs. I walked into a few display boxes. Thank goodness they were heavy enough not to fall and give away my location. I noted Luke and Rachael’s flashlight. They were safe. I turned the flashlight on to see how many stairs I would need to climb. As quietly as possible, I climbed the stairs. I was nervous. My gut said this might not be a good idea! But it was too late to back out now. Again, I saw a small light go on and off to my upper right. As I reached the second floor, I hugged the wall and walked toward the light. Then I jumped when I heard a crash from below. I froze. The familiar growl and smell rose from the first floor.
Oh, my God; let Luke and Rachael be okay. Then silence. I took a deep breath and continued. I stopped where I thought the light came from. Tarps were used as a doo
r, and a soft light came from beneath them.
I stood against the wall near the tarp.
Softly, I said, “Hi. Just want to talk.”
No answer, but I heard soft noises from the room. The LD smell was less up here, so people could live up here.
“Okay, listen to me. I just want to talk. Talk to me.”
Nothing.
“Go away and we will not kill you,” said a male voice.
“Thank you for answering. I was wondering whether you were a figment of my imagination. Can we have some supplies or trade for supplies?” I asked.
“No.”
“Okay, that was simple. I’m leaving.” I said nothing more.
I started to back away, not putting my back to the room. Then the tarp moved, but no one came out.
“Stop! We changed our minds. We want to talk.”
This worried me. This felt like a trap, a big one. Do I trust them? My gut said, No, but we needed walkie-talkies in the worst way.
“Okay,” I said. “You stay there and I will stay here. No one moves.”
“Sure. How many are you? What do you have to trade?”
“We are looking for walkie-talkies. What do you want to trade?”
Silence.
I hoped Luke and Rachael had got what we needed and headed out. But I knew they would wait for me.
“We need food and water,” said the man.
“And you broke our front door,” said a female voice.
“We broke the lock on the door. The door itself is still whole. We didn’t know you were here. I yelled a few times. If we had known, we would have left.”
“So you breaking our front door is our fault?”
“Again, we broke the lock, and no, it’s not your fault. Just saying. We mean you no harm and we will go now.”
“Wait; you said you wanted to trade,” the male voice replied.
“Yeah, well, we don’t have much food; only enough for a day or two. So trading is no longer an option. We are going.”
My gut said, Get the hell out of here. I don’t know why, but I knew I was in danger.
“What about our door?” the female voice asked again.
“What do you want us to do?” I asked.
“Umm. Fix it!”
“Fine, you have a lock and we will fix it. In return, we want flashlights, batteries, sleeping bags, and a barbecue grill.”
I heard laughter.
“No food, but you want a barbecue grill? Something doesn’t add up.”
“We don’t have any food now. But we have hunted and gotten deer. Easier to cook on a barbecue than open fire.”
“Where did you find deer in this town?” the female voice asked.
“We have a small camp near the woods. Deer and other wildlife are starting to enter towns now that people are gone,” I answered.
“How many are you and where are the others?” the man asked.
“Three of us; the other two are at the foot of the stairs.”
Reluctantly, I asked, “How many are you?”
“None of your business,” answered the female voice.
This was a tough bunch. I took a deep breath.
“We have to go. It’s getting late. We’re outta here. Good luck.”
I heard soft arguing.
I started to move quickly when the tarp opened more. Soft light poured out and a man and woman stood there.
“Wait,” he said.
I stopped and raised my gun.
“Hey, I thought you said you meant us no harm?” exclaimed the woman. “Pulling a gun on us isn’t friendly.”
“You came out fast, and I don’t know your intentions. What do you want? I am tired of this, and we’re leaving.”
“There are four of us. There are supplies here, but we finished the food long ago. You are not the first people to find us. But you are the first to break in,” he said. “Come in and we can talk.”
“I’ll call my friends up here.” I turned the flashlight on and called, “Luke, Rachael, it’s okay. Come on up.”
The flashlight turned on and they headed up the stairs. Luke looked at me.
I turned to the man and said, “Let me update my friends.” Then I told Luke and Rachael, “There are four of them here. They’re upset that we broke the lock on the front door. They have supplies but no food.”
I turned to the couple, “Did I forget anything?”
“Hey, you came in uninvited. Don’t get pissy with us,” the female said.
She was definitely the strong one. Maybe not the leader, but I bet she could bend the leader to her will.
“Sorry, but I don’t think we’re getting anywhere. The lock is broken, but you can still chain the door. Right now we have nothing to trade. If we go hunting and bag a deer, we will be back to trade. Oh, and here’s a hint. Those things don’t like ammonia. Pour it around the parking lot. This little side trip is costing us hours. I don’t like to travel after dark and now we will have to. Stay safe and, hopefully, we will return in a month or two,” I said.
Now I was out of patience.
“Wait, wait,” said the man. “I’m Martin, and this is Eva. We are, or were, two department managers. The other two are Sammy and Tabitha. They were shoppers here. We had others but, you know, they died. We have things to trade. We will give you the flashlights and batteries, sleeping bags. When you return with the deer, you can have the walkie-talkies and barbecue grill.”
He knew we wanted the walkie-talkies, so he used them to guarantee our return. Something in my gut said not to ask them to join us. Eva was abrupt, but there was something else that made me uneasy.
I nodded. “Deal.”
Tabitha and Sammy joined us, and we all went downstairs right to the flashlight section.
“Wait, do you have the kind that you wear on your head?”
Tabitha nodded and showed us where they were.
We each took one. Next we walked to the sleeping bags.
“We need three,” I said.
“Take them,” said Martin.
“Thank you for all of this. We will be going hunting in a few days.”
We shook hands and left.
* * *
Once on the road, Rachael took out a walkie-talkie. I looked at it with wide eyes.
She giggled. “We each took two walkie-talkies. Not as many as we wanted, but it’s a start.”
As if on cue, the walkie-talkie crackled. “Rachael, this is Luke; come back.”
“This is Rachael. Go ahead. Over.”
“Let me lead. And let’s move it. I want to cover as much distance as we can while it’s light. Over.”
“Lacey is driving. Take lead. Over and out.”
Luke passed us and we increased our speed. We passed LDs, anywhere from a few to a few dozen.
“Rachael, it just hit me. They let us have a lot of stuff without asking for anything now. Do you think they’re following us?”
Rachael’s eyes bugged out and she turned her head with a snap to look out the rear window.
“I don’t see anything, but the road curves so much.”
“Radio Luke,” I told her. “Let’s stop and talk.”
We stopped in the middle of the road. I pulled next to Luke and rolled down the windows.
“What’s up?”
“They gave us a lot of supplies and let us go without any resistance,” I explained, “especially since in the beginning they were difficult to talk to. I’m afraid they’re following us. I can’t explain it, but they gave me a bad feeling. Frankly, I don’t trust them. We can’t lead them home. They will know we took these walkie-talkies. Let’s drive around in circles to see whether they’re following us.”
“This truck burns a lot of fuel,” he replied. “I can make it home, but not much farther.”
“Okay. You head home. We’ll stay here for a few minutes, and if we see them, then we’ll drive in circles. In case, they’re monitoring the walkie-talkies, let’s change channels on the hour by two chan
nels. Do not answer; just click. If they’re listening, the less information we give out, the better. Oh, and to confuse them, we’ll be giving out wrong information. All true info, we’ll say—”
I looked at Rachael.
“Hmm. We’ll say Jade. It’s green for okay and it could be a name,” Rachael said.
“It’s a plan; see you at home,” Luke replied.
“If we don’t make it home tonight, it’s because we found a safe place to hide out and stay the night. Don’t worry. Tell everyone what happened,” I continued.
“No, don’t stay out all night; it’s too dangerous.”
“If we find a safe place, we’ll be okay,” I replied. “Besides, we’ll communicate with you. We’ll be fine. We can’t risk leading them home.”
Luke wasn’t happy, but he realized it made sense. Life was not safe anymore or anywhere. He drove off quickly.
* * *
We stood outside and watched for any signs of a car.
“Lacey, look; there to the right. I thought I saw a reflection,” Rachael said as she pointed to a speck on the road.
I looked and also saw it. It didn’t move.
“Got it!” I said. “Did it just show up? It’s not moving. They must have seen us stop so they did the same thing.”
I took a deep breath.
“Get in the car, Rachael,” I said. “I’ll drive. Get the maps out. Let’s go through a few towns as long as they’re not too clogged by LDs. Hopefully, we can confuse them enough that they can’t follow us.”
“Really? I’m not sure they’ll give up that easily.”
“I don’t trust them, and I’m thinking there are more than four of them. We can’t lead them home,” I said.
* * *
Sure enough, within a minute of our starting to move again, we saw a car following us. Rachael navigated us through the same two towns over and over. Even the LDs started to look familiar. We twisted and turned; we’d lose them, but then they would find us. They were determined.
The sky darkened. I didn’t want to turn on my headlights, but it was getting harder to see. The gas tank was almost empty.
“Rachael, we have to stop soon. We’re almost out of gas, and it’s too dark to continue. Look for anywhere there are a lot of cars.”
