by Russ Watts
“He sure was,” said Rose. “Very dashing.”
It seemed almost as if Rose and Gabe were enjoying the action. Jonas noticed they were the only ones smiling. “Did you manage to get any gas?”
“No, not yet,” said Javier. “What with all the excitement, we got a little sidetracked.”
“I was going to ask you about that.” Mrs. Danick nudged Jonas’s arm. “I think we should ditch the van and take this camper.”
Javier laughed. “Yeah, sure, and we’ll stop for a picnic lunch later while I write the postcards.” He looked at Jonas and rolled his eyes.
“Actually, that’s not a bad idea,” said Hamsikker, ignoring Gabe’s sarcastic comments. “There’s still plenty of room for the supplies, and the windows and seats will make traveling a lot more comfortable for those in back.” It was smaller than the white van, but would provide a lot more comfort for traveling. Jonas was sure that Gabe would understand.
“Hamsikker, can I remind you that time is not on our side?” Javier was fed up of the distractions and eager to get moving. Hamsikker was too easily swayed by the others. Javier was beginning to doubt he’d made the right decision in letting the others tag along. Instead of inheriting a small army, it felt like he’d inherited a group of children, constantly demanding attention.
“It won’t take us long to transfer the gear if we all help,” said Mrs. Danick. “Plus, I checked the gas, and it’s near full. There’s a bit of a funky smell in there, thanks to our dear departed friend, but a few minutes on the road with the windows down should sort that out.” Mrs. Danick smiled at Gabe triumphantly.
“Fine, let’s do it then.” Javier bit his tongue and resisted the urge to slap Mrs. Danick in the face. “Then we really need to get going. I want to be much further north by sundown.”
It took them a further ten minutes to get everything organized, and they resumed their seats when everything was transferred into the campervan. Jonas returned to driving the SUV, while Javier took the camper. After a quick bite to eat, Erik got them back on track, and they spent the afternoon hours navigating their way north. The sun never managed to fully break through the cloud, and by early evening a drizzle had settled in, making progress slow. They avoided any more confrontation with the dead, and as they neared Indianapolis Jonas realized they were going to have to find somewhere to stop for the night. In the gloomy dusk, the dead were harder to spot, and he had to swerve around several at the last moment. Erik was struggling to navigate in the darkness, and when they passed a sign that stated Indianapolis was thirty miles away, Jonas called it.
“Erik, we need to quit while we’re ahead. Let’s get somewhere safe tonight, and call it a day. I’m straining to see much in this damn weather, and if we keep going into the night, we’re liable to hit something on the road.”
“Sounds like a plan to me.” Erik shuffled around in his seat. “That all right with you guys?”
Dakota, Quinn, and Terry all concurred, and they decided that Gabe would follow them wherever they stopped. The others would surely see it was too dangerous driving at night.
“There’s a town up ahead. Martinsville, I think,” announced Erik. “Commuter town for Indianapolis. We’re on the fringes now, so everyone keep a look out for somewhere to stay. We don’t want to go right into the center, that’s way too risky. I know we’d all like a decent bed for the night, but I’m inclined to say we take somewhere that’s likely to be empty. Maybe a warehouse or…”
“Or a factory?” asked Quinn. “Look over there to the right. There’s a small business park. I doubt we’d find much company in there, dead or alive.”
“Please let there be a mattress factory,” said Dakota as they turned into the side road toward the park, “my back is killing me.”
They slowed down to a crawl and monitored the buildings as they drove past warehouse after warehouse. Nothing moved, nothing came crawling out of the shadows, and nothing stirred when Jonas pulled up outside a textile factory. They sat in the car waiting for the camper to stop behind them and watched the building. It had a small brick office at the front, with two square windows and a lime green door that was wide open. Surrounding it was the hub of the factory, a huge oblong shaped building with a forklift parked up beside what appeared to be a delivery bay. A gantry ran up one wall where a signpost was being erected. Evidently the work had been stopped before completion, and the letters above the door only read ‘C.R.Lew’, before abruptly stopping.
“It looks quiet.” Jonas turned off the engine and waited. “The door’s open which makes getting in easier. What do you think? We could scope it out, and if it’s a go, we could bring the vehicles right up to that delivery bay. No one would even know we’re here.”
“Well, I would feel happier if we assessed the security situation first. Someone should go in there,” said Erik, unbuckling his seatbelt. “I’m happy to go, but I need someone to watch my back.”
“If I’m going to spend the night here, I want to know nothing’s going to go bump in the night. I am so coming with you,” said Quinn.
“Me too,” said Jonas.
“No,” said Erik firmly as he opened his door. “You stay here. If there’s any trouble you need to get your wife out of here, and let Gabe know too. Anyone but Quinn or me come out, get the hell out of here. It’ll be faster if there’s just the two of us anyway.”
Jonas opened his mouth to protest, but Erik gave him a glare, and he knew there was no point arguing. It did make sense. As Erik and Quinn jumped out of the cab, Jonas felt beneath his seat for his axe. He knew it was there, but he couldn’t help it. He had to touch it, to feel it, to truly know he wasn’t defenseless. The firmness of it made him feel better. It made no sense, he knew that, but logic went out of the window the day the dead started walking.
“Terry, you mind running back to Gabe and letting him know what’s happening?” asked Jonas.
“Sure. Honk if anything happens.” Terry got out, leaving Jonas alone in the car with Dakota.
“How’re you feeling, honey?” Jonas turned around in his seat so he could see her. He expected her to brush him off or to ignore him, but she actually looked directly at him and reached for his hand.
She stroked his hand and spoke in a low voice. “I’ve felt better. I suppose the stress isn’t good for the baby, but it’s hard to shrug it off. I keep feeling sick, and all I can think about is how this is affecting her.”
“Her?”
“Well, I don’t know.” Dakota smiled. “It’s just a feeling.”
Jonas looked at his wife, feeling more proud of her then than he ever had before. “I love you, Dakota. I’m going to sort this out. Get everything sorted out so we can be safe, once and for all. It doesn’t matter to me if it’s a boy or a girl, as long as it’s safe. I promise we’ll get through this. I’m going to do whatever it takes to make sure of that, you know that, don’t you?”
“Hm.” Dakota sighed. “Jonas, I apologize if I’m a little distant, but I’ve a lot on my mind at the moment.”
“I know, what with the baby, and…”
“No, just shut up for a minute will you? It’s not just the baby. I mean, I’m worried about it, but we’ve got a long time to figure out how we’re going to manage living with a child to look after. I’m worried about you too. The things you do, the way you are, the things you’ve done; you can’t do it again, Jonas. You can’t kill someone and just decide to take their life away.” Dakota didn’t speak accusingly or angrily, but softly, as if chiding a child for sneaking an extra biscuit from the meal table. “Jonas, I want you to promise me that you’ll never do that again. Ever. There’s no going back from that. Despite all this shit around us, we have to be better than that. When Tyler told me what you did to Cliff…”
“I get it, I do. I’m not going to go into what went on in that garage, but I hear you, Dakota.” Jonas knew that explaining it to her was pointless. She had her views, and she wasn’t about to change them.
“Killing zo
mbies is one thing. Cliff was alive. He still had something to offer, and whatever he did, you took away any chance he had at redemption. You shouldn’t have done it. I can’t reconcile what you did with the man I married.”
“I’m not sure I can either. But I can’t undo it. I did what I thought was right at the time. I can assure you it wasn’t easy, and I won’t be doing anything like it again. I was out there, not in control, trying to deal with too much. I know I was acting like an idiot, but…what happened at the garage really got to me. Seeing what happened to Anna and Mary. What happened to Cliff was…”
“Promise me,” said Dakota. “Promise me you won’t do anything like that again.”
“I do. I promise.”
The door next to Dakota swung open, and Terry jumped inside. “Gabe’s happy enough here. Mara seemed a bit sniffy, but I suppose she’s used to living in luxury after being in that golf club place for so long. The others are just happy to get out of the van. I’ve gotta say, it still stinks a bit in there.”
They waited in the increasing darkness, listening to the patter of the rain on the roof of the SUV. Jonas found it soothing, although he couldn’t fully relax until Erik was back and they were all tucked up safely for the night inside. It took a minute more before he saw movement. Quinn came running out of the open office door and ran up to them. Jonas opened the door for her, and she jumped in, beaming.
“We’re good to go,” she said. “The place is deserted. We couldn’t get any power on, so we’ll park up close by. There’s plenty of room inside, and a vending machine still stocked up with crap. If anyone’s got a hankering for a Hershey’s, you’re in luck.”
“Pregnant ladies first,” said Dakota.
Jonas moved the SUV closer to the office door and let the others go inside. He waited for Gabe to pull up alongside, and then the rest went inside carrying a box of food and drink each.
“Thanks,” said Jonas. He and Gabe were the last ones outside, and he held out his hand to shake. “We sure appreciate your help, Gabe. I’m not sure that anyone else would’ve welcomed us as much as you and Mara have. We owe you. I just wanted you to know that.” He noticed Gabe hesitated in taking his hand, but when he did it was a firm handshake. The man was probably a little intimidated by them. Seven people had just turned up on his doorstep demanding sanctuary, and less than a day later they were back on the road. It was perfectly understandable that he might keep his guard up for a while. Jonas would’ve done exactly the same thing if the roles were reversed. He remembered the house in Jeffersontown they had been staying in, and when Randall and Quinn had showed up. It had taken a few days for them to be accepted into the group. They had surrendered their weapons and been so weak that they couldn’t possibly have posed any danger. Yet living on edge all the time kept you on your toes, and Jonas wasn’t about to accept anyone into their lives easily. Trust had to be won these days, and blind naiveté led you down a dangerous path. Gabe was right to be careful. He had a wife to think about.
“Don’t mention it,” said Javier. “What did I tell you? I’m all sweetness and light.”
Jonas picked up a pile of blankets from the campervan, and brushed past Mara coming back out as he entered the building. “Don’t be too long,” said Jonas, “we’ll want to close up soon. Best not to stay outside too long in case we draw attention to ourselves.”
“Thanks, Hamsikker,” said Rose. She watched Jonas disappear inside and turned to face Javier.
“Let’s leave them. Let’s take the van, and get out of here. I’m sick of them already. I thought I could do this, but their whining is driving me insane. What happened to you and me? What happened to you, Javier? The girl, Freya, she’s cool. I love how freaking quiet she is. We could keep her, but the rest of them? Let’s just go, or get rid of the others now, please? Especially that cop and his goody-two-shoes wife. I want them gone.”
“Be patient,” said Javier, making sure that no one was listening. “I know it’s difficult, but we have our own little army now. You won’t need to get involved in any dirty work with the zombies any more, we can send our minions out to do it for us. If they happen to run into trouble, perhaps get bitten, well bad luck for them. Until we don’t need them anymore, just wait and go with it. I’ll keep them in line. If anyone gets out of order, I’ll see to them. The cop’s nothing but a big pussycat. He looks tough, but he’s a softy. Hamsikker’s the one to watch. He likes to make out he’s a nobody, but he’s a threat, for sure. I’ve noticed he doesn’t back down when the going gets tough, but if he starts making waves with you and me, he’ll soon find himself on the end of something sharp and pointy.”
“You promise?” asked Rose.
“Promise. These people will only be around as long as they are still useful to us. Once we hit the border, they cease to be of any use.”
Rose laughed, and in the silent gloom of the office, Jonas stopped dead in his tracks. He was going back to help bring in more supplies, and he paused before stepping outside. He wondered what Mara could possibly find to laugh about in their predicament. Seeing Gabe and Mara stood at the back of the campervan, he decided to stay in the shadows for a moment and try to hear what they were talking about.
“I just think we can do better than this, you know? Look at us, squirrelling away food and water, playing Mom and Dad, and driving around in a damn campervan. When did we turn into the Brady bunch? I want to be with you, not a bunch of strangers. I’m cold and wet, and…”
“I don’t need to hear another litany of complaints, Mara. Just remember who’s in charge. You don’t need to tell me what needs doing, or what I should be saying or feeling. I’ve got it covered. We’ll get a fire going inside and get warm. Just learn when to keep your God damn mouth shut. Got that?”
Jonas noticed that Gabe’s hands were down by his side as he spoke, but they were curled up into fists and trembling. If he struck Mara, then Jonas was going to have to confront him. It seemed so out of character, though, that he felt he must be reading the situation wrong. He had never seen a man actually hit a woman, forgetting the endless procession of violent Hollywood movies that he’d watched, and he wasn’t sure if he needed to get ready to intervene. Gabe had been nothing but, well, sweetness and light, so to hear their raised voices was concerning. Gabe spoke quite forcefully to Mara in a tone that was not reassuring to Jonas at all.
“What’s up, Hamsikker? You coming inside or what?” Peter brushed past Jonas as he went out to the van. “Freya’s cold, so I thought I’d grab some extra blankets. I’m glad you prepared for an emergency, Gabriel, you’re a lifesaver. If you hadn’t pre-loaded this van, we’d have nothing right now.”
As Peter lifted a box from the back of the van, Javier watched as Jonas stepped out into the rain.
“I was…just coming to help,” said Jonas. He grabbed a random box from the campervan, and followed Peter back inside. Jonas could feel Gabe’s eyes burning into his back as he walked and hoped Gabe didn’t suspect he had been eavesdropping on him. It was the truth, but he didn’t want to upset Gabe now, not when they were just starting to get to know each other.
“You think they heard?” Rose pressed herself up against Javier. “You think…”
“I doubt they heard much. If they did, they would’ve said or done something about it. Still, we can’t be too careful.” Javier wasn’t convinced they were in the clear, but he didn’t want to take any chances and wake to find a knife at his throat in the middle of the night. “I’ll speak to Hamsikker.”
“I wish we could find some private time tonight. It’s been too long,” said Rose. She licked her lips and rubbed Javier’s back.
“What about the boy?” Javier looked at her. “We need to contain this first, make sure the group is still on our side. Why don’t you play a little game with Peter? Get him to take watch with you or something.”
“A game?” Rose ignored the rain dripping down her back and suddenly felt warm again.
“What’s that game you like to play?�
�� asked Javier playfully, knowing full well what it was. He curled Rose’s hair around his fingers. “Stick, or twist? Im sure Peter would love it if you played with him.”
Rose reached up to kiss Javier, and he grabbed her, cupping her face in his hand. “Just be discreet. Make it look like an accident. If it works, you can do the cop next.”
Rose twisted herself free from Javier’s grip, and grinned. “I can’t wait.”
CHAPTER SIX
“So come with me. Come with us to Canada. I should’ve been honest with you from the start, I get that, but Gabe asked me not to say anything until he had spoken to Mara.”
Erik continued stroking Pippa’s hair as she lay beside him.
“I don’t waste time holding grudges, Hamsikker. I always suspected you would try to help Janey at some point. I haven’t been sitting around with my finger up my ass, you know. I’m always thinking about Pippa and my kids; what I can do for them and where I can take them that’s safe. I thought Saint Paul’s was going to be that place, but it didn’t work out. Since then, I’ve been trying to decide what to do. Canada? Maybe. I’ve thought about Terry’s plan, too, heading for the coast, but I’m not sure it’s for me. It just doesn’t feel right.”
“I think he’ll make it. Don’t ask me how, but he’s made it this far. He’s tough.”
After securing the building they had set about creating separate areas to sleep in. The office was cold, but the blankets they had with them helped, and they managed to start a fire in a waste paper basket that gave them a little warmth. It was burning now beneath an open window that sucked the smoke out. The warehouse had a staircase leading to a series of ladders and rails that crisscrossed the floor, suspended high above the machines that lay silent below. The front door was secured behind a large filing cabinet, and the only windows in the place were high up, well away from any prying eyes or curious zombies. They ate and then moved to their own private areas to rest. They decided to leave at first light, so an early night was called for. Terry indicated to Jonas that he still wanted to leave, and Jonas had even gotten as far as filling a backpack for him with a little food and water, but when it came time to say goodbye, Terry hesitated. Jonas was so sure he was going to leave, but they talked, and eventually Terry decided he would wait another day. He told Jonas he wanted to make sure they were safe, on their way north, but Jonas thought it was more likely that Terry was scared. Going it alone wasn’t a prospect to savor, and Terry was going to need a bit more time to summon up the courage he needed to make it on his own.
