by Sarra Cannon
The guy wrote it down on his paper. Man, they were really organized here. He hadn’t expected to have to pass some kind of entrance exam.
“And how long have you been together?”
“Well, three of the others have been together since the beginning. They lived on the same street,” he said. “The rest of us all got together about a week ago.”
“No one in your group has shown any signs of infection or illness?” the guy asked.
Crash shifted his weight. “Do you think I’d really bring sick people into your compound, man? Seriously. Where’s Tank? He said we were welcome here.”
“Just answer the question.”
“No, no one is ill or sick or rotting,” he said. “What else?”
“Do you have any weapons with you?”
Crash raised an eyebrow. Was this guy for real? He was wearing a freaking machine gun strapped to his back.
“Yes, we have weapons,” he said. “How else do you think we’ve made it this far?”
“You don’t have to get an attitude,” the guard said. “I’m just asking the questions I’ve been told to ask.”
“We have lots of weapons,” he said.
“I’ll need to ask you to surrender them to me now before I can let you inside.”
Crash shook his head. “No way. We wouldn’t be alive without these weapons. What if the fence is breached? How will we survive?”
“We have children and families inside the walls of that armory,” the guard said. “We’re not taking any chances with new people. I’m sorry. If you want to come in, you have to give them up.”
“And what happens to them then, huh? They become community property? Or we get them back when we’re ready to leave?”
“We put all weapons into a secured room for anyone to check out when they’re going on a mission outside the compound,” the guard said. “We share everything here. Anything you bring inside with you becomes part of the community property.”
“This is bullshit,” he mumbled.
He hated to give up his guns, but there was no way Parrish was going to give up her sword. Not a chance in hell.
“Can I please talk to Tank for a minute?” he asked.
The guard leaned to the side and studied the idling Humvee. He glanced around and nodded. “One second.”
He closed the steel door and spoke to someone on a two-way radio.
A few minutes later, the door opened again and the guard unlocked the main gate. “Pull her on in,” he said. “And make it quick. We’ve cleared out most of the Z’s around this place, but more of them just keep coming.”
“Then I can talk to Tank?”
“Sure.”
Crash nodded and ran back to the truck. He jumped in and waited for the gate to fully open before pulling it through. He parked it next to a row of newer Hummers and a couple white vans, sighing in relief as the gate closed safely behind them.
“What’s going on?” Parrish asked.
“They have a few requirements before we can go inside,” he said. “Including surrendering all our weapons and supplies.”
“Seriously?” Noah asked. “Everything?”
“Everything,” he said.
“There’s no way I’m parting with my katana,” Parrish said.
He sighed. “I know. Hold on, let me talk to my friend first and we’ll get this sorted out. Come on.”
They left their supplies and weapons in the truck and headed for the main door of the building. A tall, muscled man with shoulder-length salt-and-pepper hair stepped out and smiled.
“Crash? Is that you, brother?”
“Tank?”
“All right!” The man clasped Crash’s hand. “We’ve been waiting for you guys. We were getting worried. We thought you’d be here hours ago.”
He hadn’t expected his friend to be so much older, but that was one thing about making friends online and in games. Age didn’t matter.
“So did we,” he said. “A lot of the roads into this part of town are completely blocked off, but we managed to loop around the city and find a path in.”
“Well, we’re glad to have you. Tell those friends of yours to hurry up and get their asses in here before the Z’s get to ‘em.”
“Something tells me there aren’t any rotters getting through that barbed wire,” he said. “You’ve really set this place up, haven’t you?”
“Rotters, huh?” Tank said with a laugh. “That’s a new one to me. And, yeah we’ve worked hard to make it safe for our people. I’m glad you guys made it safely. I can’t even imagine what it must be like to be on the road. How long were you guys out there?”
“Just a couple days this time around,” he said. “There were some nasty fires blowing through D.C. and we had to leave.”
He didn’t mention the rats.
Crash turned back to his friends and motioned for them to join him. He laughed when Karmen practically skipped all the way to the door and barely said hello to Tank before asking him where she could find the bathroom. A petite woman with one long black braid down her back appeared to show Karmen where to go.
“That’s my wife,” Tank said. “Kaya. She’s good people. If any of you guys need anything, just let me or Kaya know. We’ve already got some beds set up for you and dinner was just about to start.”
“Believe me, that’s the best news we’ve heard all day.” Parrish stuck out her hand and Tank took it warmly. “Thanks so much for having us.”
“My pleasure.”
“There are just a few things I’m concerned about,” Crash said. He didn’t want to seem ungrateful, but giving up their weapons was a deal-breaker. “We’ve kinda grown attached to our weapons. We’re willing to promise to put them in our bags until we need them, but most of us don’t feel comfortable donating them to the community pool.”
Tank nodded. “I can understand that,” he said. “But you have to understand that this community only works because we’re all willing to pitch in. We’re all willing to share what we find and what we have. If everyone started laying claim to things they scavenged, we’d end up with a big mess on our hands.”
“I’m not saying we won’t do our part in here,” Crash said. “Anything we find if we go outside the gates is yours. We’re willing to share our food and water. But the weapons stay with us. My friend Parrish here has a sword that’s been in her family for a long time. It’s saved all our lives more than once. I’m sure you can understand why she wouldn’t want to give that up.”
Tank took a deep breath in through his nose and ran his hands along the belt on his jeans. “Alright, I can accept that,” he said. “The weapons are yours, but they don’t come into the building until we’ve built up some trust between our two groups. We don’t want to risk any accidents or arguments getting out of hand. Put your things in your vehicle and lock them up. You can take them with you if you go out on a mission or God forbid, anything gets inside the gates, but other than that, keep it to yourself that they’re in there. Deal?”
“Deal,” Crash said, shaking his friend’s hand. “Thanks.”
“Now come on in and get settled. Everyone’s anxious to meet you.”
Crash and the others ran back to the Humvee to lock up their weapons and grab all their bags and other supplies. Once they were all safely inside, Tank locked the door. He was using six deadbolts, which Crash thought might be a little bit of overkill with the fence outside. He liked it. If it were up to him, he’d have overkilled the crap out of this place.
“Let me show you where you guys are gonna sleep, then I’ll give you an official tour and introduce you around.” Tank led them to a small room that was already set up with five cots, each one with a blanket and pillow neatly on top. Crash was relieved to see they’d still be together, instead of separated by gender. “A buddy of mine owns an Army surplus store. He and his wife brought over the cots and blankets and such. He also brought a few spare pairs of boots if you’re looking for some sturdier shoes. They’re all diffe
rent sizes, so you’re welcome to check them out and see if any of them fit.”
“Thank you,” Crash said.
“You said something about food?” Noah asked. “Sorry to interrupt, but I’m starving. We haven’t eaten all day.”
“Of course, let me show you to what we’re calling the mess hall,” he said. “It’s really just a section of the main room of the armory. ”
Crash was impressed. They really had a sweet setup here. It gave him hope that maybe there were other survivors who had grouped up around the country, making the most of it with safety in numbers.
“You guys still have power out here? Or are you guys running off generators?”
“We’re lucky to still have power in the whole area,” he said. “No telling how long that will last, but we’ve been stocking up on gasoline for the genny’s once it goes out.”
Tank walked the group through the main room of the armory, pointing out the different stations they had set up. A medical tent. Entertainment area complete with a TV and a Playstation 4 that a group of guys were playing. The boys looked up and nodded as Crash walked by. They looked about his age, only maybe a couple years younger.
“As soon as the news that people were rising from the dead hit the wires, I put the word out that anyone who wasn’t sick was welcome at my place. After about a week, Kaya and I had so many people sleeping in our little house that we had to find something new. That’s when I thought about this place. It was deserted, most of the government around here destroyed pretty quickly, so we made it our own. About a week later, we had nearly fifty people bunking here,” Tank explained. “Everyone who came brought something with them. Food, water, supplies. One guy came rolling up in a big eighteen wheeler with these metal sheets loaded up on the back. Man, we worked up a sweat that night, welding those sheets onto every weak place in our defenses. We scrounged the barbed wire and fencing from various places around town and constructed that guard shack out front, and we’ve been locked up inside tight as a drum ever since.”
“This is amazing,” Noah said.
“Wait, I thought you said you only had about thirty people here now,” Crash said, jogging a couple steps to keep up with Tank’s big strides.
Sadness darkened Tank’s features. “It hasn’t all been roses and rainbows, my friend,” he said. “We have patrols going out every day looking for more supplies and clearing out the Z’s in a radius around our compound here. Sometimes, our guys just don’t make it back.”
“I’m sorry, I wasn’t thinking,” he said.
“That’s life these days,” Tank said with a shrug. “We’re all just doing the best we can, trying to survive the best way we know how. We actually have a few guys who just returned from a run yesterday. They got pretty banged up.”
“Bitten?” Crash asked.
“If they were bitten, we wouldn’t have let them back in,” Tank said. “I’m not willing to take that kind of risk for anyone. But they got overrun and had to bust their way through a big window and jump down two stories. They’re cut up and bruised. The doctor thinks one of the men’s legs might have a small fracture.”
“You have a doctor here, too?” Parrish asked.
“She’s technically a nurse, but she’s a godsend,” Tank said. “I think nurses actually have more practical knowledge than most doctors these days. We’re lucky to have her, but the one thing we don’t have is medical supplies. We have a few things, but we’re already out of antibiotics. Painkillers are getting low. We’ve already cleared out every pharmacy in the area, but most of them were looted long before we got there. Anyway, if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to check on our men and make sure they’re doing okay. I hope you guys enjoy your meal. Make yourselves at home.”
“Thanks, man,” Crash said, shaking his friend’s hand again.
Kaya reappeared with Karmen at her side and showed them to the very back of the armory building where a set of long tables had been pushed together in rows, metal chairs evenly spaced along each side. About twenty people stood next to their chairs, paper plates loaded with food on the table in front of them.
Crash and the others went to stand by a few empty spots at the end of the table.
Kaya moved to the head of the group and held up her hands. All conversations came to a halt.
“Thanks for waiting, everyone,” she said. “As you know, we’ve been expecting some special visitors. I’m happy to report that they have arrived safely. We’ll make more introductions later, but this is Crash, one of Tank’s good friends from before. He’s brought Karmen, Parrish, Noah, and Lily with him today.”
The group around the tables cheered and a large elderly man patted Crash on the back.
“Welcome, son,” he said.
“Before we sit down to enjoy this meal, do we have a volunteer to say the blessing?”
“I will.” A young girl who looked to be about twelve or thirteen raised her hand and Kaya smiled at her.
All along the rows, people joined hands and bowed their heads. The old man next to him reached out and took Crash’s left hand. On his right, Karmen held hers out to him and smiled.
“Dear Lord,” the girl said, her voice clear in the sudden silence of the large room. “Thank you so much for bringing our new friends safely to us today. We ask that you watch over survivors all over the world. We thank you for giving us the strength and guidance to make it through another day. Lord, we ask that you bless this food we are about to receive and that you continue to keep us safe. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.”
The humble prayer touched his heart more deeply than he expected. Despite his mom often working two or three jobs, she’d always made it a priority to be home to have dinner with him, and she’d always started it off with a prayer similar to this one.
He missed her more than words could express. He’d never been religious, but as everyone around him took their seats, he sent up a prayer of his own, thanking God that his mother had never had to know the world as it was now.
And while he was at it, he thanked God for bringing them to the safety of this place.
There was something touching about this group of survivors taking the time to thank the Lord for their blessings, despite the messed-up state of the world. To his surprise, Karmen gave his hand a light squeeze before letting go. He looked up at her and smiled. Their eyes locked for a long moment before she stuck her tongue out and sat down to eat.
Sleeping on a cot had never been her idea of luxury, but she’d never been so grateful to be sleeping somewhere other than the floor. There were no zombies pounding on the walls. They had power and hot showers. Food.
She’d actually slept a full eight hours without interruption. Other than a beautiful dream about an island with a pristine white-sand beach, she’d been completely out of it.
It was heaven, and she never wanted to leave.
They’d been at the compound nearly a week, and there hadn’t been a single breach of the fences. It was safe here.
As soon as she was dressed, she made her way to the main room for breakfast. Parrish was already there, sitting by herself and writing in a journal. Karmen made herself a plate of scrambled eggs—still amazed they were actually getting real hot food for every meal—and plopped down next to her.
“Heya,” she said.
Parrish didn’t even look up. She just kept on writing. “Hey.”
“What are you up to this morning?”
“I think it’s called writing,” she said.
Karmen glared at her, but instead of her usual snarky come-back, she tried again.
“What are you writing about?”
Parrish studied her for a second before going back to her notebook. “I’ve been keeping a journal ever since we got on the road. It helps to get my feelings down on paper.”
“That makes sense,” Karmen said, taking a bite of her eggs. They were warm and fluffy and perfect. “So, what are you doing after that?”
Parrish sighed and closed her notebook. “Wh
y don’t you just say whatever it is you’re dying to say?”
“Okay,” she said, wiggling in her chair from excitement. “I want you to go somewhere with me.”
“Where?”
“You see that lady over there? The one with the cute red dress?” Karmen pointed to a middle-aged woman standing by the TV. “She was telling me that there’s an outlet mall across the street. A week or so ago, a big group of them went over there and cleared out all of the zombies that were stuck inside. She said we could go shopping for anything we need.”
“What do we need?” Parrish asked.
“You know, clothes and stuff.”
“We have clothes.”
Karmen finished off her eggs and briefly wondered whether chickens could get infected with the virus. “Yes, but all our clothes stink and half of them are covered in blood. The woman was saying they have a Coach store and a Saks Off Fifth outlet over there.”
Parrish chewed on her lip for a second, but Karmen could tell she was interested.
“Come on,” she said, leaning forward. “The guys are going to be playing with guns all morning. We may as well go have some fun girl time while we still can. Clean clothes? Clean underwear? You can bring your sword if you’re worried about safety.”
Parrish smiled. “Okay, let’s do it.”
“Should we ask Lily to come with us?” Karmen asked, looking around for her.
A strange look passed through Parrish’s eyes. “Let’s just make it the two of us,” she said. “For old time’s sake.”
“Fine by me,” she said with a smile. “I’ll go tell the guys where we’re going.”
Getting over to the mall was a piece of cake. Tank’s group had routinely done sweeps of the area, and the guard at the gate assured them he’d keep an eye out for them if they needed help.
They walked along the sidewalk in front of the stores, peering at the window displays and talking about what they should look for first. Karmen caught sight of the Saks outlet and nearly jumped for joy.
“Here,” she said. “We can probably find everything we want in here.”
Karmen opened the door and made a swooping motion with her hand.
