“I’ll get the cutters,” said Lemon. Everyone waited while he headed to the back of the horsebox and began rooting around inside his baggage. Kirk and Sally stood side by side, discussing something quietly. Cat, David, and the others leaned up against the fence, pushing their faces against the mesh to see better. Garfield patted himself down and made sure all of his weapons were in place.
Lemon returned with his wire cutters and quickly got to work snipping the metal links. Garfield glanced around nervously while they waited. So far the journey had been damaging, and now that they were finally at their destination, he could not shake the feeling that something even worse was going to go wrong.
“We’re in,” said Lemon. He stepped back proudly to reveal a large hole in the fence wide enough for each of them to duck under. Kirk went first, with Sally close behind. The others quickly followed with Garfield going last. As he stepped through he made sure to make a note of his bearings. If they had to retreat there would be no time to cut a new hole. They would need to remember where this one was.
“Wonder where the goodies are,” Sally said, glancing around with his hands on his hips. “We’re looking for guns and ammo, right?”
“Primarily,” said Kirk. “But keep your eyes peeled for anything worth taking back.”
“Back to this pier of yours, yer? How many mouths you got to feed back there?”
“About another ten.”
Sally blew air into his cheeks and then said, “But it’s you guys that have to go out and risk your necks all the time, yer?”
Kirk shrugged. “The people back at the pier fish and look after the place.”
“Screw fishing. Anyone can do that. They should be out here risking their necks with you.”
“Poppy’s just a kid and old man Bob is…well, old. Not everyone can make it out here.”
Sally flapped his hands and slapped them against his thighs. “Then they die. Who made them your burden? Are you telling me that if we find heaps of treasure here, you’re gunna trek it all the way back to the coast and divvy it up?”
Kirk looked embarrassed, but Garfield was angry. “We look after each other, Sally. You might have been alone this last year, but some of us are still human.”
Sally put his hands up. “Hey, don’t hit me again, big man. Was just making an observation. Still allowed to do that, ain’t I?”
Kirk stared at Garfield. “No playing up, okay? Let’s just do this and get ourselves heading back for home.”
Garfield snarled, but didn’t push the issue. He was glad Kirk made the statement of heading back home. It sounded like Sally was in favour of banding together and becoming a group of marauding nomads.
“Where do we start?” asked Lemon. “This place is h-h-huge.”
“We start there,” said Garfield. “At that building. There’re guns inside.”
Kirk frowned. “How do you know?”
Garfield pointed. “Look there, can you see that narrow sandpit that runs all down one side?”
“You want to build a sandcastle?” asked Sally. “Somebody get this man a spade.”
Garfield ignored him “When soldiers return their rifles, they dry fire them to make sure the chambers are clear. They aim at the sandbank in case a round fires off accidentally. Also, that building is small with no windows and a big steel door. No easy way to break in. If you’re asking me, that’s where the guns are.”
“This place is huge,” said Sally. “That building isn’t big enough to hold all the guns for this place.”
Garfield shook his head and snorted. “How much of a good idea is it to put all the weapons together? If some gang of criminals with brass balls tried to rob an armoury, why make it easy for them? The guns will be placed in separate caches. Probably one per regiment.”
Kirk nodded. “Makes sense to me. Okay, people. We need to find a way inside that building.”
“What about that fire engine?” said Sally. “If we can get that sweetheart running, we could just ram into the side of the building.”
Garfield whistled. “Just ram the side of a building full of explosives. Smart.”
“Do you have a better idea?” asked Kirk. “That door don’t look like it’s gunna come loose with Lemon’s skeleton key.”
Garfield thought for a few seconds but was forced to shrug his shoulders. “I guess not.”
“Okay,” said Sally, clapping his hands together. “Let’s go jack us a fire truck. Reminds me of this time in high school when…actually, never mind.”
Kirk put down his backpack and started giving orders. “Okay, Cat, David, go check out those trucks parked over there, but be careful. Lemon, do you think you can hotwire that fire engine, or whatever it is you do?”
“Looks, pretty old. I’m sure it won’t be difficult.”
Kirk nodded. “Do it.”
Lemon tottered off towards the shed containing the fire engine, carrying his bag of tricks over his shoulder. The man was never happier than when he had something to break into.
“What about the rest of us, mate?” asked Sally. “You want us to go explore?”
“That would be a bad idea,” said Garfield. “We need to stay close in case we get cut off.”
“I was asking the boss, fella,” said Sally, turning and smiling at Kirk.
Kirk chuckled. “Stop trying to wind Garf up, will you? Anyway, he’s right. I think it’s better if we take things slow and stick close. The rest of us can set up a cache here for everything we find.”
Garfield agreed with the plan. It wasn’t the quickest, but it was the smartest. Maybe Kirk wasn’t as impetuous as he thought. “We need to be ready if Lemon gets that truck moving. The noise of the engine alone will bring any dead in the area to come running.”
Kirk nodded. “I know. I’ll have someone go back to the minivan, make sure it’s ready to go the second we beat a retreat.”
“Or we could stay and fight,” said Sally. “There’re enough of us to handle a few moaners. Are we men or possums?”
Garfield sighed. The Australian was really beginning to get on his nerves. “Perhaps, but what if we lose someone. Is losing a person worth it? We don’t fight the dead. We avoid the dead.”
“What’s one life if it means getting this place locked down? This place is a goldmine. We could set up a camp here and defend it till the end of time.”
“Then why is it empty?” asked Garfield. “The entrance is barricaded up, so people were here once. They’re not no more, though. Why?”
Sally kicked a stone across the floor with the toe of his boot like a surly teenager. “I dunno, mate. Old age?”
Garfield rolled his eyes. “The infection hit less than a year ago. I don’t think anyone died of old age.”
Sally shrugged. “Aliens, then?”
“Aliens? Genius.”
Kirk waved a hand. “Shut the hell up, you two. You’re giving me a headache.”
Garfield flushed with anger, but then remembered that he wasn’t in charge anymore, Kirk was. “Fine. I’m going to go see if Lemon needs help with anything. That okay, boss?”
Kirk nodded.
Garfield spun around and marched to go find Lemon. On his way he passed the three trucks that Cat and David had been told to check out. Neither of them were anywhere to be seen. They must have jumped up inside the truck beds for some rumpy pumpy. It wouldn’t be the first time the two of them had snuck off for some alone time. Who could really blame them?
Garfield wondered if he would ever have a woman in his life again. It would be nice to have another heartbeat beside him while he slept, but it just wasn’t something he could imagine right now. His priority was Poppy. There would be time for his own needs later, when she was grown.
The fire engine was up ahead, it’s nose poking beneath the shutter of the open shed. Garfield eyed the front passenger seat but couldn’t see if Lemon was inside. Knowing Lemon, he would probably be rummaging in his rucksack somewhere inside the shed, trying to find the perfect tool for th
e job at hand.
Garfield reached the shed and stepped inside. It stunk of engine oil and petrol. Lemon’s rucksack was laid out on the floor, just as he had suspected, but Lemon wasn’t beside it. “Hey, Lem,” he shouted. “You need a hand?”
No answer.
Garfield turned and walked further into the shed, towards the back of the fire engine. There were tools lined up on the back wall above a workbench. He went to get a closer look and couldn’t help but smile at the pristine tools and blades. “Hey, Lemon,” he shouted again. “There’s some grade-A stuff here. You should take a look when you’re done.”
No answer.
“Hey, Lemon. You deaf?” Garfield turned around, frustrated. He walked around the back of the engine and headed for the driver’s side door. He placed a foot up on the running boards and felt the air shift behind him. He spun back around, yanking free the carving tongs he had strapped to his triceps at the farmhouse.
There was no one there.
Garfield frowned. After so many days surviving on the road, sensing danger had become like a sixth sense. He couldn’t say why, but something was unsettling him.
Something was wrong.
“Lemon,” he shouted a third time. “Say something, man.” He crept back up onto the running boards and peered through the driver’s window. There was the shadow of a man inside that could have been Lemon – it had the same stumpy shape – but if it was Lemon, he was making no effort to answer Garfield’s calls. What’s wrong with him?
Garfield placed his hand around the door release and took a breath.
When he opened the door he found Lemon inside as he’d hoped, but had not expected to find him gagged and bound. Before he had chance to try to process the situation, a gloved hand covered his mouth and dragged him backwards off the running board. He tried to strike out with the carving tongs, but his arm was quickly yanked behind his back and he dropped them. He pulled out his wooden tenderising mallet with his other hand but that was quickly taken from him too. Violently, he was yanked around, smashed in the temple with a fist, and then tripped head over heels. Before he even knew what was happening he was on his back with a boot at his throat. Who…what?
The man glaring down at him was like death: two white eyes gleaming out from behind a black mask. Garfield tried to plead with him, but a gag went in his mouth and his arms were suddenly zip-tied behind him. The whole thing had taken about five seconds. I’m dead. Whoever has me is meaner and badder than anyone I’ve ever met.
When Garfield realised that there were three men wearing black balaclavas, he knew once and for all that he was done for. Cat and David had also been bound and gagged and were lying at the rear of the shed by a side door. There were tears in David’s eyes, but Cat wore an expression of steely determination. Garfield knew the woman would never give into a man easily. She had survived the early days of the infection all by herself, fighting off a half dozen rape attempts of desperate men. She would not allow her female sensibilities to weaken her.
The three men produced assault rifles and Cat’s eyes went wide, but still she did not weep. Garfield eyed the assault rifles anxiously and imagined how quickly they could tear him apart. Their muzzles were polished metal with thick plastic grips positioned beneath. The scopes on top of each rifle were like menacing eyeballs staring at him. We’re so screwed.
Garfield struggled against his bonds and tried to shout a warning through his gag, but one of the soldiers gave him a tap with his boot and then placed a finger over his lips to shush him. Kirk and the others are outside. They won’t know what hit them. He started to shimmy along the concrete floor like a worm, trying to reach the edge of the shed where the others would see him. Before he even got half way, he was yanked to his feet by the soldiers and frogmarched forward. They took him to exactly where he had wanted to go: out into the road where Kirk would see him.
Lemon, Cat, and David were marched along behind him, their unsteady legs wobbling. Kirk spotted them immediately, but just stood there confused. Sally was crouched down on the floor, swigging from a bottle of water. When he saw the armed men marching Garfield and the others along, he smiled and shook his head. He thinks this is funny.
“Nobody move,” said the lead soldier. He grabbed a hold of Garfield’s hair and shoved him to the ground. The other two soldiers did the same with Cat, David, and Lemon. All four of them sat bound and gagged in a line.
“Who are you people?” Kirk asked.
“That’s a question you need to answer first,” said the solider, “and if you say Jehovah’s Witnesses, you’re dead.”
Kirk had gone pale, likely from the sight of the soldier’s assault rifles. He stuttered as he spoke. “W-we’re just people. We wanted to find some guns.”
The soldier pointed his rifle. “Well, you found some, mate. I’ll show you the bullets, too, if you want?”
“No, please,” said Kirk. “We’re not here to cause trouble. We didn’t know anyone was here.”
The solider pointed with his rifle. “You people make that hole in our fence?”
Garfield shuffled on to his side to get a better look at Kirk. The lad was clearly scared, but he was dealing with things in the best way possible: by being polite. “I’m sorry,” he said. “We thought this place was abandoned so we cut through. We can barricade it back up if you’d like.”
“Good as new,” said Sally. “You won’t even know we were here, mate.”
“We’re not your mates and we’ll deal with the fence. You people are leaving.”
“Come on,” said Sally. “You three fellas don’t need all this stuff to yourself. Surely you can spare a few rifles and one of those trucks.”
“Yes,” said the soldier. “We could. We could spare a lot. But what’s to say you people won’t take our rifles and use them to kill innocent people? That’s the problem, you see? Most men get their hands on a gun and they start misbehaving. Even the men at this base headed off on the road to become kings of their own fiefdoms. I don’t know what happened to them, but I know it wouldn’t have been good for anyone who got in their way. There’s been enough death, without us letting a bunch of weaponry fall into the wrong hands.”
Garfield frowned. They’re good guys. But, despite the fact that the three soldiers seemed to endorse non-violence, they’d still taken Garfield and the others captive. There was no telling what could still happen, so he reached down into the shin pocket of his cargo pants and pulled out the can opener Anna had given him. Then he got to work, sawing at the zip-tie around his wrists.
“You need to leave,” said the soldier. “Once you’re back in your van, we’ll send our prisoners after you. You can pick them up at the end of the road.”
“Screw that,” said Sally. “We came a long way to get here. We have a pier full of people on the south coast that need protecting.”
The soldier shuffled and readjusted his rifle. It was obviously getting heavy in his hands. “You have a camp? Huh, I thought all that was left was a handful of bandits.”
“Yeah,” said Sally. “We have a little girl there and an old man. We’re a community.” Garfield gritted his teeth as Sally spoke about his home; the home the Australian had never even visited.
Kirk took a step forward. “Actually, Sally here has never been to the pier. We picked him up en route here. That’s what we do; we help those in need. We only wanted weapons to protect our people. Nothing more.”
Garfield nodded. Kirk was handling the situation well. The soldier started to relax a little. Even so, Garfield continued sawing at the zips around his wrists. The can opener was blunt but it was slowly biting through the plastic. Nearly there.
The soldier took a step forward and shook his head. He raised his rifle and pointed it right at Kirk. “Leave. I won’t ask you again. You’re not taking our guns. Just be glad you’re leaving in one piece.”
Kirk took another step forward and went to speak, but a loud clack of gunfire cut him off. The noise was followed by absolute silence. G
arfield stared in horror as he waited for Kirk to fall. Damn it. He pushed too far. That step forward had been a mistake. But he was taken by surprise when the soldier in front of him tumbled backwards, clutching his gut. Garfield couldn’t see the blood, but he could smell it, along with a foul smell that must have been coming from the man’s pierced bowel. What the hell just happened.
The two other soldiers opened fire. Kirk threw himself through the air and to the ground, which was when Garfield spotted Sally holding a smoking pistol in his hand. Where the hell did that come from? Instead of trying to work out the answer, Garfield slit the last shred of plastic zip-tie and sprung his wrists free. He leapt up to his feet and barrelled into the nearest soldier, yanking a metal pole from his inside pocket and clonking it against the man’s head. The soldier fell to the floor unconscious. Garfield grabbed his rifle just as Cat leapt up and charged the remaining soldier. Her hands were still bound but that didn’t stop her from knocking him off-balance. By the time the soldier recovered, Garfield had the rifle aimed squarely at his face. “I have no idea how to use this thing,” he said, “but if I pull the trigger you die, right?”
The soldier snickered. “Way you’re holding it, it’ll take your shoulder off.”
“But you’ll still die, right?” The man scowled and then nodded his head, defeated. “Then drop your weapon and I’ll keep my finger of the trigger.”
The soldier did as he was told and Kirk and the others came rushing over to secure him and the other soldier that Garfield had bludgeoned. They tied the men up with their own zip-ties.
“They killed Tom and Gavin,” said Kirk, shaking his head.
“You fired first,” said the uninjured soldier. He pointed down at his dying comrade. “You shot Haltek in the stomach.”
Kirk looked down at the man. “I’m sorry about that.”
Garfield wasn’t sorry, he was angry. “What the hell were you doing, Sally?” He shoved the man backwards and fought the urge to open fire on him with the rifle. “Where the hell did you even get that gun from?”
Savage: An Apocalyptic Horror Novel Page 21
