The Farm

by Carter, Stuart

  The other driver narrowed his eyes suspiciously. “What are you offering?”

  “I’ve got a feeling that this will go better in the long run if the guy with the gun is involved in the discussions.”

  The driver looked insulted by this, but also seemed to agree with the point. He directed his words back to the crowd standing not far in front of the police car, “Jed, they want to make a deal with us. Give the gun to one of the other guys to cover us and come and talk.”

  The guy called Jed looked reluctant as he passed away the gun, but took the deference to his opinion as his due. John could immediately tell he was going to be a problem. They guy they had been talking to seemed sensible. Able to recognize a good deal and a long term future when he saw it. It should have been a simple case of pointing out that they had a place that was as well defended as anywhere likely to be found. A place with a secure food supply. Equipped to survive, with people willing to make it happen. The farm had far more to offer to this desperate group than they had to offer to the farm. But John suspected that a no brain decision was going to turn into a dangerous discussion. A large part of him was screaming to let them go, but he knew that their best chance of survival was at the farm. He was not ready to deny them that. Cooper, on his own would have made a more rational decision and avoided this situation, but this was where they were.

  “So what are you ready to offer for your lives?” Was Jed’s opening gambit.

  “We are offering you your lives.” Cooper told him, unrattled by the hostility.

  “”You don’t seem to have noticed the numbers around you. We decide who lives or dies.”

  “Without our help all of you are going to die. It’s just a question of how quickly. If you want to see out the year we’re the best hope you have.”

  Cooper’s assurance was starting to have an impact. John could see how close his hand was to a hidden gun, and how quickly he could throw the car forward into the crowd in front of them. They were both expecting Jed to respond aggressively, but the driver managed to get in first,

  “Trust is at a premium at the moment. We’ve given up our guns. How about you switch off your engine so we can talk.” To John’s surprise, Cooper complied immediately, despite guns still pointing at them even if the men talking weren’t holding them. “Thanks. We’re after a safe home. If that’s something you have to offer then let’s talk.”

  “We’ve got a farm near here. It’s secure, and we’re able to grow the food we need. If you join us you’ll have to work same as the rest of us.” John said. “We can teach you all you need to know about farming.”

  “What if we go back there and don’t like what we see. Don’t want to take orders from you?” Jed interjected.

  “You’re free to leave and try to find somewhere better. The country’s big enough to do what you like. It’s just far more dangerous than it used to be.” Cooper replied.

  “OK, we’ll take a look.” Jed answered. John was sure that there was a pause and a glance at Jose to make sure there was no reason to reject this offer. Minutes later the cars were in convoy returning to the Farm.

  London

  It was early in the morning when the attack happened. Jose had wanted them to have a good rest, but the two newcomers to their group had insisted on being part of the watch through the night. They didn’t show much confidence in the gang’s ability to stay vigilant through the night, or in the strength of the barriers that had been set up in their defence. As it turned out, their lack of faith was justified.

  The boy, who Becky identified as Craig, took first watch alongside Tim. Jose thought that the newcomer might feel more at ease alongside a familiar face from the drive. Jed had been happy to leave Jose in charge of organizing this. They were on a two hour rotation. When he was nudged awake after two hours Jose knew that his attempt at bridge building had failed miserably. The look of disgust on Craig’s face aimed at Tim made it clear that the latter had slept through much of his shift. As they exchanged places, Craig exchanged whispers with the girl, Charlotte, which were clearly not complimentary.

  Jose was determined to make a better impression. Before she could start ignoring him and acting independently, he tried to start a discussion on their best approach,

  “We know that the crowd that were behind you were coming from that direction, so we should focus our attention that way, but there were decent sized towns to the North and South that we need to be careful of… We should keep a broad patrol overlapping to the west.”

  “Feel free to take a nap. I’ve got this.” There was poison in her voice as well as her words. Jose swallowed his irritation in his response,

  “Like it or not, we’ve survived just as long as you have in this new world. I know what we need to do to keep safe, and that needs at least two people on patrol. We need to cover a wider area than you needed to when it was just the two of you.”

  “Fine. We’ll do it your way. But if you let us down we won’t be saving you. We’ll leave you for dead if you can’t protect yourselves.

  “Fine.” He replied. “But likewise, if you don’t keep up with us we’ll leave you behind.” He didn’t feel the bravado in his voice, but felt that it was important to show it.

  “You might be able to run, but have you taken a look at some of your friends. I’ve seen zombies with broken spines that run faster than some of them will be able to. You need to keep them slobs closer to the cars if you want to keep them alive.”

  Before he could answer. Long before he could think of a good reply, she was off. She was following the path that he had suggested for their patrol, which was some consolation. He had thought that he was making some progress, but she tore his group to shreds. And what was worse, he knew that she was right. Luck more than judgement had kept them alive, and still they had plenty of dead behind them. He thought that he’d done well thinking on his feet, but it was one crisis to the next. He needed someone with a plan to learn from. These two seemed smart, but no more in control than he was. They had survived a lot, but he suspected that it was as much on instinct as his own group had. They had learnt faster though. He hoped that it was just down to more desperate circumstances, but he suspected that far stronger intellects backed them than what was behind him or his friends

  The two of them got on with their patrols, making sure that their camp remained safe. Each time, as they passed, Jose tried to think of something to say that would shed a better light on their group. As the encounters grew he just tried to say anything that would form some king of rapport. Some connection with this stranger. But on every pass they remained silent.

  Their two hours passed with no further words, and no incident. At the end of it he wasn’t sure if she had any respect for him, but at least she spared him the obvious distain that her partner had shown to Tim. She woke Craig up to take over from her again. He looked fresh after two hours sleep, in a way that Mark didn’t after four. Jose knew who he trusted to keep them safe as he curled up next to Becky. He thought about volunteering himself for another shift. Looking at the woman he had just laid down next to he thought he should be doing more to keep her safe. Was it right for him to be sleeping so long as there were monsters afoot in the world?

  His tiredness soon decided the case in favour of taking some sleep. Any threat was miles away. People were on patrol. Nothing was going to creep up on them. He had built barriers. He had no illusions that they were strong, but they wouldn’t be passed quietly. The cars were close, and even a cheetah couldn’t keep pace with a human in a car.

  He dozed off, knowing that it would start getting light at the end of the next shift, and they would be on their way. As he fell asleep he thought about the North of Scotland as a destination. He was sure that Glasgow and Edinburgh stood in the way as two pillars of danger across the narrow neck of the country, but beyond, endless miles of emptiness awaited. If only they knew how to make those miles yield food and warmth. Lack of knowledge was the barrier behind every path.

  He wasn’
t sure if he was asleep and dreaming, or awake and hearing when the attack started. Everything began with a scream. Jose struggled to get out from under his blankets and grabbed the torch that he’d left next to him. It was still too dark to see anything without it. He swung it is an arc across their makeshift campsite. All around him people were starting to move as well, but no one looked like they knew what was going on. If nothing else, it proved that he hadn’t dreamt it. It took a second swing of the torch before he picked out the source of the scream.

  Twenty meters away, Charlotte was pinned down, fighting to avoid the teeth of her infected attacker. In the moment that Jose hesitated Craig was there grabbing the man from behind and throwing him off her. The man was rolled a couple of meters, but was immediately back on his feet. Craig was unarmed. He tried to side step the attack that was now aimed at him, but the man stumbled in his charge, bringing him crashing into Craig’s new position. The two tumbled to the floor, teeth sinking deeply into the skin on Craig’s forearm. Jed was there an instant later, putting a bullet into the man’s skull. The damage was already done.

  That man may have been the fastest, but he was not alone. They heard, before they saw, an infected crowd scrambling over their makeshift barriers. As torches concentrated on the area the noise that was coming from it made it obvious that they were soon going to be completely overran. Over all of the other noise, Jed’s voice was heard yelling, “Get to the cars now!”

  It was a disorganized, panicked rush that followed. If the cars hadn’t already been loaded they would have lost everything. As it was the only thing that saved them from a host of casualties was Craig. Already bitten and infected, he threw himself at the crowd making their way over the barriers. It was enough to slow them down and distract them for long enough for the others to get away. Alone he threw himself into the breach. Dozens of sets of hands and sets of teeth tore through his skin. Frenzied mouthfuls of bloodied flesh were torn from him. A few moments was all it took for him to be stripped clean. He barely had time to scream before there was nothing left of him. Every shred of flesh was torn from him. Every organ ripped from its home. Every ounce of soft tissue swallowed. A broken skeleton was left behind.

  Jed was first to the cars, getting into the driver’s seat of the front one. The keys had been left in the ignition of each car, so he already had the engine started and was pulling away as his passengers clambered through the other doors. Someone momentarily clung to the side of the car as the available seats were filled, before realizing that there were spaces in the other two cars available. Jose was behind the wheel of the second car, and showed only slightly more patience than Jed had before pulling away. Craig had brought them time, but not much. Zombies were already crowding around the third car as it lurched to a start and pulled away.

  Jed wasn’t hanging around. He accelerated fast, barely making it around the corner at the end of the drive. Jose followed as fast as he dared, and behind him the third car made ground fast. The infected were chasing them, but they had no chance of keeping pace once the cars were up to speed. It took several minutes before they accepted that they were clear, continuing to drive recklessly in the dark until Jed narrowly avoided planting his car in a ditch and slowed to a fast, but controllable speed. The other cars caught up, then fell into line behind him.

  As they slowed, Jose finally took the time to see who was in the car with him. He didn’t take much time to consider who was with him, only recognizing that none of them was Becky. He tried to think back over the attack. She had been sleeping beside him. They’d been woken by the first scream, then he’d left her, running toward its source. From there, he’d turned and ran for the car on Jed’s instructions. He hadn’t even looked for her, just got himself behind the wheel of the nearest available vehicle. He tried to convince himself that she was safe. That she was closer to the cars than he’d been, so had to be in one of the other two, but still his gut told him he should turn back and look for her.

  As he found himself incapable of convincing himself that Becky would be safe, he started flashing his lights at the car in front and indicating to the left. Jed soon got the message and pulled his car to the side of the road. The other two cars pulled up behind. Jose got out and walked to the driver’s door in the front car. Jed didn’t get out, but lowered the window, “Problem?”

  “We’re safe now. Thought it would be worth having a bit of a head count. Make sure everyone made it out.”

  “Feel free to count, but fucked if we’re going back to try and save anyone who didn’t make it. They’re already dead.” Jed replied. “Out of my way. Since we’ve stopped anyway, I’m going for a piss.”

  As Jed stepped out of the car, Jose peered through the window at the three passengers. The young girl they had picked up was there, along with the dog. James and the woman who owned the house they had been staying in made up the rest of the car. He didn’t stop to make pleasantries, turning quickly and running to the other car. They had started getting out of that car before Jose turned towards it. It was the most crowded of the three. The four people getting out of the back had probably been extremely uncomfortable, and they looked pissed off. All Jose noticed was that Becky was among them.

  “What the fuck were you guys thinking? You fucking left us for dead!” Jose didn’t see who said it. He barely registered the comment, until, as he approached Becky and saw the outrage in her face as she said,

  “He’s right. I thought I could trust you, but as soon as it got dangerous it was every man for himself.”

  He ignored the anger of the others surrounding them, only addressing her, “I’m sorry. I thought that you were closer to the cars than I was. I thought you were ahead of me in Jed’s car.” He was ashamed at the lie, but he could almost believe that it was true. It made sense for him to assume she was closer to safety than he was after he had ran towards the source of the first scream, subconsciously maybe it was true that that calculation had been made, but his conscious mind had not given her a thought until he was safe. In the dawn light, with the sun rising brightly behind his back the brightness of his shame could not be seen. She seemed to believe him, even if he doubted himself.

  “I followed you. I was almost beside you when you turned the other way and ran for the cars. I didn’t react as quickly. They were so close to me as I ran, I didn’t think I was going to make it. Thank God Tim waited long enough for me to dive into the back of the car.” She was crying by the time she finished this, and buried herself in his arms. He held her tight, ignoring all of the evil looks aimed in his direction for his haste in driving away. All of her gratitude should have been directed towards the driver of her car, but she had not abandoned her faith in him yet. He silently promised himself that he would do something to re-earn that trust that she had in him.

  “Let’s get moving.” Jed shouted, breaking the moment. The looks directed his way did not suggest that he was at the height of his popularity, but the obedience showed that his leadership was still accepted.

  “I’ll move to the other car so everyone has a bit more space.” Becky said. Tim gave an irritated shake of his head, but didn’t argue. It made sense to even out the numbers, but it was obvious that he was not as ready to forgive the other two drivers for their haste.

  The drove off. Becky took the passenger seat beside Jose, but didn’t seem very talkative. He wasn’t sure if she had forgiven him, or was angry. He admitted that he had been wrong about the amount of distance the infected could cover, and that he should have listened to her and apologized for it. He stopped short of apologizing for abandoning her when the attack happened, as that would have been a confession to both of them that it had happened like that. She had every reason to feel that he had let her down, but he hoped that she didn’t feel it, as he had no idea how he could make it better. While they sat in silence he did a mental head count of who had made it out of there. He checked a few times, and concluded that Craig was the only causality of the night’s attack. He didn’t say anything, as he
didn’t want it to sound like a celebration when someone had died, but the results could have been vastly worse. He was glad that he wasn’t sat in the same car as Charlotte, as he was sure that she would see their escape very differently given Craig’s fate.

  They drove on for a couple of hours in an aimless manor, generally heading towards the rising sun. It was painful on the eyes, but a turn in any other direction felt like it was bringing them closer to what they were fleeing. At some point on the road Jed had let Jose past so he was leading their little convoy, but he couldn’t remember it happening. It was probably not safe to be driving. He couldn’t keep his focus on the road for long. But there was no traffic, and it seemed that the further East they travelled the less there was to see. The land was flat, with endless fields and farmland, and occasionally a small village or town. Not so long ago he had thought about escaping London and coming to a place like this to make a clean break. Getting away from the gang and the life he’d been living. He could never have guessed that it would turn out this way, with him leading the remnants of the gang here in the midst of an apocalypse, with no idea what to do. It was definitely a break from his old life, but he was definitely not living the dream.

  He glanced across at Becky. He couldn’t tell if she was tired or angry. Probably both. But looking at her he couldn’t help but wonder if this was the dream. The new life with her, if only he could be the man he needed to be to take it. Since this had all started there had been moments when he had felt more confident, smarter, more in control, more respected than he had at any point in his life. Before now he had known that his parents thought highly of him, but he had let them down. Until that morning he had felt a growing respect from his peers. Alongside Jed, they had trusted him as their best chance of survival. That morning he may have taken a knock in their estimates, but if he got things right next time he hoped it would be forgotten.