by Lundy, W. J.
Charlie slid back from the edge of the roadway, ensuring that he was far enough back that the people below couldn’t see him before he stood up. He turned and trotted over to the two SUVs, where Sarah and Jack waited. He tossed the binoculars into the front seat of the black Isuzu and then walked back to them to tell him what he saw.
“Well, it doesn’t look like they’re going to be a problem. They talked to the driver, looked through his truck, and let him pass. Even waved to him as he left. I think we’ll be all right.”
“You don’t think they’ll ask about our cuts and bruises? They’re apt to be suspicious of anyone with an open wound,” Jack said.
“With all the shit going on, I bet there aren’t many who don’t have some scars, Jack. Just be honest about everything. Everything is a couple of days old, we fought our way out of the eastern side of the hills, and we’re making our way to the safe zone in Texas. We’ll be fine. Just don’t tell them you may have a deadly and contagious disease circulating in your veins.”
“If they were waving at each other, they probably knew him, Charlie,” Sarah said. “Are you sure there’s no way around this?”
“Sure, if we backtrack twenty miles, then take a longer route. And even then there’s no guarantee that we won’t hit another roadblock. People are on alert, and I get that,” Charlie said. “Look, they had this driver on his knees with a rifle on him while they searched his truck. I don’t think you’d do that to someone you knew. Guys, we do what they ask, let them inspect the rigs, and we’re on our way. Easy peasy.”
“All right, let’s get on with it,” Sarah replied. “I’m not exactly thrilled to be facing another roadblock. Things didn’t go so well last time.”
Charlie laughed. “For who? Everyone who was a part of that one is dead now, except you two. You just keep that belt knife of yours handy, just in case.”
She gave him a withering sneer and turned to Jack. “You okay taking the lead?”
“Sure,” he said. “Let’s do it.”
He started the Mercedes, put it in gear, and started down the road, going slow and making sure the Axiom pulled in behind him. He coasted down the hill, letting the transmission control the speed of the descent, and thought back to the last few days’ activities.
After they’d moved all the bodies away from the cabin, Charlie wanted to go into town to check things out. He said there were only forty or so people in the area, with others not returning to the hillsides until closer to summer, when Arizona got too hot to bear and the snowbirds came back to the Rockies.
“But first, we need weapons. We need more than my rifle, my couple of pistols, and your pistols,” Charlie said. “We’ve got the four AR-15s from Leland and the boys, but I don’t have any ammo for them.”
Sarah looked at the rifle that had belonged to Tim. It had a suppressor on it and had BAMF, short for Bad Ass Motherfucker, laser-etched into the magazine well.
Sarah raised her eyebrows at that. “Seriously?” she asked. “I feel less guilty the more I learn about these guys.” She looked at the two men, who just stared back at her. “It’s called ‘gallows humor,’ guys. Jeez, make it awkward. So, for ammo, what if we go to the source? Do you know where Tim lived? Wouldn’t he have some ammo there?”
“Good idea,” Charlie said.
“Rollie said they parked their truck down the drive,” Jack said. “We could take it, and I’ll ride in the back. You know, keep my germs away from you guys. Besides, if it’s blocking the drive, we’ll need to move it anyway.”
“Another good idea,” Charlie said. He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled out three sets of keys. “Took ’em off the, ah…bodies. One of these should start it.”
They packed some food and walked down the road to the truck that Rollie had told them would be just out of sight of the cabin.
Sarah looked warily at the filthy interior of the truck, the passenger seat covered in what she guessed was dried blood.
“Most likely from Jimmy’s nutsack,” Jack said, following her gaze into the cab. She turned and looked at him, her eyes wide with surprise. When she opened her mouth to say something, he cut her off. “Gallows humor.”
He smirked and stepped on the rear wheel of the truck, using it to climb into the bed. Charlie got the door open with the second set of keys, leaned over to unlock Sarah’s door, and a minute later they were on the road to Tim’s place.
After ten minutes and several miles of poorly maintained road, Charlie stopped the truck in front of a dirty trailer home. Trash and broken furniture littered the area in front of the trailer. The remnants of a children’s wading pool sat in front of a few old, folding lawn chairs. Only the massive propane tank behind the shack and the satellite dish on the roof looked new.
Charlie and Sarah climbed out of the cab and looked at the trailer.
“Okay, Rollie said that Jimmy came in all bloody, and they left him here to come after you two,” Charlie stated. “So he’s probably still in there. I don’t think this place has a back door, so we’ll have to go in the front. He could be waiting for us, so move fast and if he makes a move, shoot to kill. Pistols only, you know those better than the rifles.”
Sarah looked at Jack for a couple of seconds before she said, “You should wait out here. You know, if Jimmy starts shooting, God forbid, and he hits you, um, your blood will, you know…”
“I got it,” Jack replied. “And you’re right. It would put you two in even more danger.”
Charlie and Sarah crept up on the door, walking softly up the three steps. Charlie gave the knob a turn to see if it was locked. It turned, and he leaned away from it, expecting a gunshot any second. Nothing happened.
“On three,” he whispered to Sarah. “One…two…three!”
He threw the door open and rushed in, scanning the area to the right of the door. Sarah was right behind him, looking to the left. Two seconds later, she rushed out, stumbled down the stairs, and threw up on the ground.
Charlie was a few steps behind her, wearing a sour face. “It’s clear,” he said. “The ol’ fella’s dead.”
“I can taste it,” Sarah said, retching again, and spitting to clear the bile from her mouth.
“His bowels must have let go,” Charlie offered, looking at Jack. “Feel like searching the place with me?”
“You make it sound so appealing, how can I refuse?” He looked down at Sarah, who was wiping tears from her eyes. “Your turn to wait out here, I guess.”
“Ugh, thanks. That was nasty.”
Jack climbed the steps and entered the trailer. The day was warm—maybe sixty degrees—but with no air conditioning, it was hot inside. Jimmy’s body lay on the couch to the left of the entry. His bloody jeans were on the floor, and blood-soaked gauze and linen packed against his groin. The overpowering stench of feces filled Jack’s nostrils, even though he was trying not to breathe through his nose. Flies already buzzed around, landing on Jimmy’s partially open eyes, crawling in his nostrils and walking along the edge of his lips. Jack felt the bile rise in his throat, so he rushed past the body and into the bedroom.
He could breathe a little better in the room, taking deep breaths through his mouth to gain control over his urge to vomit. He was afraid he would hyperventilate, but as his stomach settled, he was able to slow his respiration rate down.
He looked around the room, his eyes settling on a massive gun safe. It took up a third of the closet, and the door hung wide open. Inside, was a treasure trove.
“Dad,” he called out. “In here!”
Heavy footsteps thundered toward the bedroom then Charlie burst into the room. “Holy shit, that’s gross,” he said. “I almost blew chunks just walking past him. So much grosser than the other guys.”
Jack pointed at the gun safe, and Charlie’s mouth went slack for a minute. In the closet were several boxes of .223 ammunition, one thousand rounds per box.
Charlie was counting the boxes. He smiled at Jack. “Six thousand rounds. I think that’ll
carry us a long way. Let’s see what else he’s got.”
They started ferrying the loot out to the truck. In addition to the ammunition, they retrieved another AR-15 with a suppressor attached to it, another 9mm pistol and a few hundred rounds of matching ammunition, a tactical vest with pockets for multiple magazines for the rifle, and twenty thirty-round magazines.
Charlie closed the door to the trailer on their way out but didn’t lock it, deciding that some unfortunate soul may need the shelter at some point.
The older man took Jack and Sarah through a quick tutorial on the use of the AR-15s, showing them how to change magazines, how to clear a jam, and had them practice swapping magazines for a few minutes.
After they were comfortable with the gun’s operation, Charlie smiled once again. “Okay. Let’s go to town!”
As Jack rounded the last curve, the roadblock came into view and brought him back to the present. The woman Charlie had seen earlier walked to the middle of the road and motioned for him to pull to the side and stop the car. Jack slowed to a stop and rolled the window down, keeping his other hand on the wheel.
“Hello!” Jack called out.
She didn’t react. Instead, she waited for the two men to catch up to her. Behind him, Sarah and his dad slowed the Isuzu to a stop.
“Please keep your hands where I can see them,” the woman called out. “Reach out with your left hand and open the door, then climb out with your hands up.”
Jack did as the woman asked and could see Sarah doing the same thing.
“Gun!” one of the men called out. The woman nodded to the man, and he moved forward, explaining to Jack what he was doing. “I’m taking the pistol from your holster. I’m going to clear it and put it on the hood of your vehicle.”
“I have one too,” Sarah said, angling her hip toward the trio. The man collected Sarah’s gun, removing the magazine and ejecting the round from the chamber, placing them all on the hood of the Isuzu. He looked Charlie up and down.
“I’m not carrying anything,” Charlie said.
“Frisk them,” the woman directed.
Once they were patted down to the woman’s satisfaction, she directed them to line up twenty feet from the vehicles and ordered them to get on their knees and place their hands on their heads.
“Have you all been through this elsewhere?” she asked.
“Something like this, yes,” Sarah said. She had a bit of an edge to her voice.
“Well, this should be pretty simple. I’ll ask you a few questions, you answer them honestly, we’ll verify your answers, and if everything checks out, you can go on your way.”
“Easy peasy,” Charlie said.
The woman smiled. “Yeah, easy peasy.”
“I’m Charlie.” He nodded toward Jack. “My son, Jack, and his wife, Sarah.”
The woman tilted her head slightly.
“Forgive me,” she said. “I’m Robin Mitico, Pitkin County Sheriff’s Deputy. Apologies for my lack of a uniform. From the looks of you all, I think you can understand, things have been, ah, messy I guess is a good word for it.” She nodded at the man who’d disarmed and frisked them. “That’s Marcus. He’s just a good friend, and the other guy is Sebastian. He helped us out of a jam a couple of days ago, and he’s stayed with us ever since. He’s going to keep that rifle pointed in your direction, and if you drop your hands or make a move toward us, he’ll drop you. Just nod if you understand.”
All three nodded their heads.
“Good. Let’s start with the basics,” the deputy said. “Where are you all going?”
“Texas. El Paso,” Charlie replied.
“Why El Paso?”
“I have a radio in the trailer, and I’ve been in contact with several different people—one in New Mexico, one in Arkansas—who told me there’s a safe zone there.”
“Fort Bliss?”
“Yes. That’s what they said.”
“Where are you coming from?” she asked.
“The front range. A wide spot in the road called Hobb’s Valley.”
“Near Nederland?”
Charlie nodded.
“I’ve heard of it,” she said. “Why’d you leave?”
“It’s not safe there. It was a hard fight to get clear in one piece.”
“I can see that. Were any of you bitten or scratched by the screechers?”
“Screechers?”
“Yeah. The people infected with the virus,” Robin said, her tone indicating she thought Charlie was dense.
“We’ve been calling them crazies. No, none of us were bitten or scratched.”
“When did you leave?”
“Two days ago.”
She looked at Marcus, a silent communication passing between them.
“Why’d it take two days to get here? It’s just a few hours’ drive.”
“We’ve been taking back roads. A lot of them, as you’re probably aware, are still snowbound, so we had to double back several times. Got stuck in a few places and had to dig out. It ain’t easy turning that trailer around on some of these logging trails. We’ve just been going slow and careful.”
Robin nodded, considering Charlie’s answer. “Okay, Sarah, let’s hear from you for a minute. What are we going to find in the vehicles?”
“Supplies. Food, some clothes, camping gear, a few more guns, some ammo. Things you’d expect to find in someone’s car when the world is ending.” The last sentence sounded snippy.
“That’s twice you’ve given me that tone. Take the edge outta your voice for me, or I’m going think you don’t like me.”
Sarah was reminded of dead Leland telling Jack to take the “bass” out of his voice at the first roadblock. She stifled a comment, deciding silence was the better option. Marcus walked over to the Isuzu and started looking through it.
“You, sonny boy,” Robin continued. “Are we going to find any other people in that trailer? Anyone we should know about, someone maybe who got a bite or a scratch, or a weapon ready to use?”
“No, ma’am,” Jack responded. “It’s just us three.”
“Why are you in two vehicles?”
“Insurance,” he said. “Never hurts to have a back up when your life is on the line, you know?”
“And you don’t want to ride with your wife? Seems odd.”
“I’m not a good driver,” Charlie interjected. “It’s safer this way.”
Marcus opened the door on the teardrop trailer. “Holy shit!” he exclaimed.
“Sebastian, watch them!” Robin ordered. She ran to Marcus, and he pointed inside the trailer. Robin whistled and came back to the group.
“You guys are a rolling armory, aren’t you? Where’d you come up with all that ammo?”
“A friend,” Charlie said. “He was a prepper.”
“He was a prepper. Past tense.”
“I’m afraid so. Everyone in Hobb’s Valley is past tense now.”
“Except you three.”
“Yes, except for us.”
Marcus walked past the group, taking a position behind them. He nodded at Robin as he passed.
Sarah could see Marcus out of the corner of her eye. She saw him doing something but wasn’t sure what it was. Was he drawing his pistol?
“Eyes up here, sweetie,” Robin said. “Don’t worry about Marcus; he’s just fine back there.”
Sarah focused her eyes on Robin but had fleeting thoughts that were clouding her judgement. Were they going to execute them to take their ammo? How far could she get if she tried to get to Robin? Could she get to her belt knife before they shot her down? If they were going to execute them anyway, wouldn’t it be better to go out swinging?
“Here’s the deal, folks,” Robin said. “Everything you said checked out, right down to the ham radio in the trailer. I can tell by your wounds and bruises they’re a couple of days old—believe me, I’ve seen a few scrapes and bruises run their course in my time—so I think you’re telling the truth about having been on the road for a coup
le of days. Our task here is to try and keep any more screechers—crazies—from getting beyond this point. I’m sure you can understand, especially being the lone survivors of Hobb’s Valley.”
They all nodded, except Sarah. Her mind was whirling, trying to develop a plan. “Honey, you look like you’re about to burst,” Robin said to her. “What’s the matter? You need to tell me something? Need to get something off your chest?”
“We barely escaped a roadblock back in Hobb’s Valley, run by some…less official, less savory characters,” Jack said. “They put a rifle butt to the back of my head, knocked her out, and were planning to, uh…”
“They were going to rape me,” Sarah said.
“Oh,” Robin replied, taken aback. “Oh, my. I’m sorry, honey. Nothing like that’s happening here, I assure you. Marcus, come around the front here. Put her mind at ease.”
Marcus walked around them, taking a long drink from a canteen before putting it back in a pouch on his belt. Sarah felt her breath slow down.
“So, that’s where you got some of your bruises and scrapes, then,” Robin stated. “Good for you.”
Sarah started to shake, and Robin waved Sebastian off. He lowered his rifle, letting it hang from a sling. “Put your hands down. You two,” she pointed at Jack and Charlie. “Stay here. Sarah, come with me, please.”
The two women walked over to the Isuzu.
“You have some water or something in there?” Robin asked.
“Yeah, in the center console.”
Robin opened the door and grabbed the bottle, then handed it to Sarah.
“Take a drink, dear. Settle your nerves. Let me ask, did they, uh…”
“No, they never touched me. They’re dead. A few days ago my biggest worry was planning a summer vacation, and now we’ve fled our home, and I’ve killed two men.” Her eyes were welling up, and her voice quivered. Robin put a hand on her shoulder.
“Honey, you did what you had to do. I understand why this made you so nervous. I’m sorry I did that to you, but it’s habit. As a peace officer, you have to control people, or they’ll take advantage, and right now I have to assume anyone is capable of anything. You probably have some PTSD, and if we were in normal times, I’d suggest you see someone, get some counseling. As it is, you need to push that all down and focus on getting to El Paso. You’re a fighter, and that’s good. You’ll need that in the days ahead, I’m sure. For the record, we’ve heard the same things about the safe zone, so I think it’s legit. Hell, we should just go with you.” She looked over Sarah’s shoulder at the roadblock. “But we can’t. We have to hold this spot. Get back in your car, honey. Relax.”
