by T A Williams
The Remnants
By T.A. Williams
To My Wife
For allowing me to hide in a corner and plug away on a keyboard at all hours of the day. Your support and optimism kept me going.
Ben
The dark clouds sat overhead blocking out the sun and casting a dark shadow as far as the eye could see. The cold winds swirled all around flinging the tree limbs from side to side, and the leaves that were torn off the branches and caught in this windy maelstrom danced around aimlessly. In the middle of this dark and gloomy world sat a single boy.
A few rain drops started to fall combining with the cold wind which created a cool mist that covered everything, yet still he didn’t move. He sat on his knees with a look equally as dark as his surroundings. He rejected this reality and all the pain and misery it was throwing at him. Before the world ended he was good at escaping into his own reality where he was a hero or a sports star; he had created these realities to bring excitement into a world he found horribly boring. Yet now he created these different realities in order to survive, because to accept this current world meant acknowledging that his mother, father, and youngest brother were dead, his sister had been kidnapped and his only remaining brother had abandoned him.
The hastily put together wooden crosses in front of him were a constant reminder, an anchor that held him down and continued to bring him crashing back into this dark reality. Their placement reminded him of the people he lost, and their hurried creation reminded him of the brother who fled before their bodies were even cold.
“You’re going to catch a cold if you stay out here.” Jacks voice sounded concerned but comforting.
Ben rejected the comfort the man tried to give him; he didn’t need comfort because nothing was wrong.
The old man’s hand ended up on his shoulder and gave him a firm squeeze. Ben twisted away from him.
“I’m fine.” He spat out. Still the man didn’t leave. He stood over him, watching, waiting.
“I’m cooking up some nice size rabbits for lunch if you’re interested.”
He wasn’t.
“Sitting out here catching a cold isn’t going to make anything better. Take your time son but just know I’m here when you need me.”
Ben didn’t need him. The people he needed were gone and nothing was going to change that.
Alec
He pulled the truck off the lonely road onto what used to be a gravel parking lot but what now looked like an overgrown field. The truck’s tires made a crunching noise as they went over the old gravel and the brakes gave a groan as the truck came to a stop.
For a second Alec just sat in the hot truck looking at the rusted out shed that sat in front of him. The only sound was the truck clicking away as it cooled down and the sounds of crickets in the nearby brush. Three days had past. Three days had come and gone and his sister was nowhere in sight. The first town was deserted. Nothing more then boarded up buildings and wild dogs. The second town appeared deserted but wasn’t. He could feel eyes watching him when he entered and saw constant movement from the corner of his eyes. Whether animal or human he wasn’t sure but he knew they hadn’t stopped there.
He now found himself on the edge of a crossroads. Up ahead the road spilt into three directions, four if he turned back around, but he already knew what was behind him, a home with the remnants of his family. He refused to return there until he found his sister. The crossroads sat there staring back at him. Three choices and only one that was correct, the other two took him further away from reuniting his family.
He would have plenty of time to choose which way to go, for the moment he needed to find supplies. All that was left in his bag was a can of beans, a can without a label, and an empty canteen. Alec wiped the sweat off his brow and opened the truck door, the door hinge groaned in protest.
With his rifle slung over his shoulder he trudged through the knee high grass towards the rusty shed. The grass all around it was undisturbed which was a pretty good indication there hadn’t been anyone around the building for a while. He found the door on the side and with a swift kick knocked it in. For a moment he stood outside and watched as the dust particles floated just outside the darkness that was the shed. He swung his rifle around, clicked off the safety and went inside.
Silence, the sheet metal walls blocked out the rhythmic sound of the crickets. He allowed a moment for his eyes to adjust to the darkness and as everything slowly came into focus he let his rifle barrel fall to the ground. All around him were shelves of old rusty tools. He kicked around a few fallen boxes and was greeted by nails and screws.
Alec walked back outside and rested his head back against the building. He didn’t honestly believe he was going to find a hidden cache full of food and water, but he was hoping to find something.
I love you and I’m proud of you. His father’s words returned to him.
Alec pushed off the building and walked back to the beat up pickup truck. He reached in and grabbed the can of beans.
“Might was well have dinner before I make my choice.” He had gotten used to talking to himself.
His eyes glanced at the gas gauge showing he had less than half a tank. He ignored it just as he ignored the gas tank in the back of the truck that had been emptied earlier in the day. There wasn’t anything he could do about that now.
Alec sat down with his back against the front tires of the truck and used his knife to open the can of beans. As he took a bite out of the warm, hard, pathetic excuse for food his eyes rested on the crossroads in front of him.
As the sun began to make its slow descent towards the horizon Alec still had not made his choice.
Jess
Sweat matted down the hair on her forehead, even with the windows down she couldn’t escape the heat. The air that blew through the window was heavy and seemed to warm her skin instead of cooling it. She had decided to head south in order to escape the inevitable winter however the heat was beginning to make her regret this decision.
Sitting in the passenger sit next to her was the little girl she had saved. Despite the unrelenting humidity the girl was fast asleep. She couldn’t have been more than six or seven years old, Jess couldn’t say for certain and wasn’t even aware of the girl’s name. They’d been on the road for days and the girl hadn’t said a single word, she just sat quietly staring out the window. When the men that kidnapped her threw the girl into her cage she had simply curled up into a ball on Jess’s chest. It wasn’t until the girl’s father came to rescue them that Jess had heard the girl speak.
Jess had no idea what she was going to do with her; she wasn’t capable of taking care of herself let alone another life. The girl’s father had saved her and the least she could do was take her away from the men who had murdered her family, and find people who would be able to take care of her.
Her grip on the steering wheel tightened and it began to feel like she couldn’t breathe. Suddenly she was back there. She could feel the rope tied around her wrists, cutting into her skin. One of the men was standing over her; she knew he was going to hit her even if she gave him want he wanted. As he reared back she tied to cover her face and then she heard a scream that wasn’t her own.
The girl’s scream brought her back to reality just as the truck ran over a stop sign. The impact jerked the steering wheel slightly but she was able to take control back and steer back onto the roadway.
For a few seconds the only sound was the humid wind gusting through the windows and her own ragged breaths. She looked over at the girl who was staring at her like she was crazy. Was she crazy?
“I…I’m sorry.” Was all she could muster.
The girl turned back to the window and stared out in the distance.
Jess’s couldn’t stop her hands
from shaking and was afraid she was going to lose control again. As calmly as she could she slowed down and pulled the vehicle to the side of the road. Once they were at a complete stop she put the vehicle in park and jumped out.
You’re not in a cage, you’re free.
Jess squatted down on the road and placed her head in between her legs. She sat there taking in deep breaths until her body stopped shaking. Soon the musty smell of her cage was replaced with the stale baking smell of the blacktop road. She was on the road; she was no longer in the cage.
The sound of footsteps caused her to panic again briefly and she fell back against the hot roadway. The little girl stood a few yards from her just watching, the expression on her face was one of weary curiosity.
“Are you ok?” The girl’s voice was soft and helped to anchor Jess in the present.
“Yes…yeah I’m fine. I’m just feeling a little sick is all.”
The girl stood there looking even smaller in comparison to the endless road that lay behind her.
“I don’t have any pink medicine.”
“Pink medicine?” Jess asked.
“When I had an upset stomach my mommy always gave me pink medicine. It tastes like the chalk at school but it helps.”
Jess couldn’t help but smile. “That’s ok honey. I don’t need pink medicine, I’ll be alright.”
She pulled herself back up and got her bearings. The sun was beginning to creep down towards the horizon and she estimated they only had a few more hours before that sun disappeared under it completely.
The little girl began walking back around to get into the truck, Jess fumbled for something to say. “Are you doing ok?” she asked.
The girl stopped and turned back around her gaze focused squarely on the ground and shrugged her shoulders.
Jess had nothing else. She had never been good at keeping a conversation going with adults let alone children, but she had to try. “Are you hungry?”
Again the girl shrugged her shoulders.
Jess was glad she hadn’t said yes because they didn’t have anything. The stale granola bars they found in an abandoned car had been the last of their food. She looked off in the distance and saw what looked to be a gas station. Most of the ones they had come across had already been looted but it was worth a shot.
“What’s your name?” the girl asked.
“Jess, Jessica, but you can call me Jess.”
The little girl nodded her head and started to turn away again.
“What’s yours?”
“Ally. My momma always called me by my whole name, Alya, but I like Ally better.”
“Ally, that’s a very beautiful name.” The corner of Ally’s mouth moved up just slightly revealing the smallest of smiles. It wasn’t much but it gave Jess strength. “Alright Ally, let’s hit the road and see if we can find some food and a place to sleep.”
The little girl nodded and got back into the truck.
Jess paused before climbing into the truck and looked back out across the open road. She had no idea what she was doing or what she was going to do. Focus on what you can do she told herself; first find food, then shelter, and then sleep. She would figure the rest out later.
Alec
The first sign of life was a man sitting all alone on a porch. He sat there looking straight ahead intensely yet didn’t appear to be looking at anything at all. As Alec drove down the road he saw other people walking about on the sidewalk. He followed them down the street until he came to a series of cars blocking the road. He pulled the truck over to the side of the street, grabbed his backpack, rifle and locked the door.
There was a time when a person walking down the sidewalk with a gun would have caused a panic, as he walked down the sidewalk the people didn’t even give him a second glance.
“Excuse me,” Alec tried to grab the attention of an older man who was walking by. “Excuse me, where is everyone going?”
“To trade for supplies.” The old man answered without stopping.
Alec followed behind him at a distance. The city was eerie. He could see over a dozen people all walking in the same direction of the old man but not a word was said between them. They all kept a respectful distance and seemed to be in their own little world.
After a few minutes the sidewalk led him to a giant empty parking lot that used to house a Wal-Mart. The doors had been removed and Alec was sure the building had been emptied long ago. The parking lot on the other hand was full of tents and people.
Alec stopped on the outskirts and stared, it had been a long time since he had seen so many people, especially in the same place. There had to have been nearly a hundred people, some with what appeared to be everything they owned on their back, walking from stand to stand.
“A market.” Alec said to himself with a smile on his face.
As he walked into the middle of this hive of activity he felt, for a brief second, that everything was back to normal. People walked past not paying attention to each other only paying attention to what was laid out on tables and in handmade display cases. It reminded him of every grocery store and mall he had ever been to, before everything went black.
As he walked down the crowded aisles he saw rabbits strung up like mistletoes, worn out boots, can openers, and many other things he could have picked up for a couple of bucks back in the old world, but were now valuable supplies.
A large collection of water bottles caught his eye. A woman who looked to have seen a little too much sun sat behind the table on a nearby bench. She sized him up as he approached.
“Whatta ya got?” her voice sounded like someone rubbing two pieces of leather together.
“I’m sorry?” he asked.
“I said what, do, you, got? You can see what I have so you either offer something or back away from my stuff.”
Alec had a few extra articles of clothing but he had left them in the truck, all he had on him now was a backpack with a single can of food and an empty canteen. He could always go out and set some snares to attempt to catch some food to trade but that could take days to yield anything useful.
“Nothing huh?” The woman shook her head. “Get out of the way then.”
There was only one thing in his possession that he could possibly use to barter, but losing it was going to put him in a rough position.
“Wait,” Alec took the rifle off his shoulder and held it in front of him. “Something like this has to be pretty valuable.”
The woman’s eyes lit up. “You sure you want to give up your piece?”
No he thought. “For the right price.”
“Well all right,” the woman groaned as she got off her bench and pulled out a chest from the corner of her tent. “Let me break out the good stuff, what are you looking for?”
Alec wanted to say everything. “Food, water, gas and information.”
“Water I have, food I can get, gas is in short supply, and I’m not the best source for information.” The old woman opened up the chest where only she could see what was in it. She reached in and pulled out a large bottle of aspirin and set it on the counter. “Something like this is as good as gold around here. I have a dozen bottles of water, I can get you a fresh raccoon and I’ll throw in this can of aspirin.”
“What about gas?”
The old woman looked in up and down and let out a I don’t know sigh. She shook her head. “Gas is a scare commodity around these parts.”
“So I take it a rifle doesn’t go for much around here?” he asked.
“We got plenty of guns,” the woman said casually. “The demand isn’t what it used to be.”
Alec nodded and slung his rifle back over his shoulder. “You’re probably right, might as well see if someone else around here could use a good rifle.”
Before Alec could turn to go the woman was calling him back.
“Alright, alright don’t go off like your negotiating with a used car salesman, just give me a second.”
Alec hid his smile.
; The woman went around to the far side of her area and lifted up a blanket. Underneath that blanket was a medium sized plastic red gas container. The red color on the container was faded and cracked from years of exposure to the sun but from where Alec was standing he could see there was gas inside.
“I’ve got nine gallons total, don’t try to haggle for more because I don’t have no more. And you can go wondering around all you want, I doubt anyone else here has much more than this in one place.”
“That will work and information?”
“What kind of information you looking for?” she asked.
“I’m looking for a truck and some people that might have passed through here. There is a young girl, around seven years old, and she would have been with a middle aged woman.”
The woman eyed him suspiciously. “What you looking for a woman and her daughter for?”
“The young girl is my sister, the woman she’s with is not her mother.” He said a little too curtly.
She didn’t seem to notice or mind his tone and the answer seemed to satisfy her. “Well can’t help you with that. Lots of people pass through here, not many stay. As you can see there isn’t a lot here. Hundreds of buildings to live in with no food to put in your mouth, not a good combination.”
“Is there anyone that might know?”
“Not really, I’d just keep asking around. Most people here keep to themselves, or try to at least. So what do you want for that rifle?”
“A better deal then you’re giving me. You have a knife you can throw in there?”
Once again she leaned back and looked him over. The woman reached back around and got a large knife with a six inch blade and sat it on the table. “Good condition, doesn’t even need to be sharpened.”
“Anything else.”
The woman slammed her hands on the table. “Now don’t go thinking I’m some idiotic woman. This isn’t my first rodeo. That bottle of aspirin and nine gallons of gas could get you a feast and then some from the right person.”
