The Next Ten: Beginnings Series Books 11 - 20

by Jacqueline Druga

  “Dan!” Frank yelled. “Do you want to be in Security or the fuckin’ fields forever?”

  “Security,” Dan answered.

  “Then quit crying. You’ll get your chance to fire paint pellets at someone’s head when the next male survivor is ready to get out.”

  “Am I getting out soon?” Happily Dan looked at Ellen. “Am I?”

  “Sort of,” Ellen answered. “We’re supposed to get more people in today, so you may be in here part-time in case of trouble.”

  “I can handle that.”

  Frank bobbed his head. “Yeah, right, if you can stop being a baby.”

  Ellen would have defended her survivor, but she realized she didn’t have time. “Frank. I have to go. You’ll have to get this cleaned up.”

  Frank saw Ellen race from the skills room. “Where are you off to?”

  Ellen stopped. “Robbie and George are bringing people in and I have to get supplies to take to the Examining Room.”

  “I’ll see you up there I a little bit.”

  “Thanks.” Ellen started to run. “Oh.” She stopped, raced back to the Skills Room and popped her head in the door. “Forgot. Good job Greg.”

  Greg lowered his head in a blush.

  Ellen continued to run, smiling at Frank, and taking her usual five or six attempts to put in her security code before she was able to get out.

  <><><><>

  It was a little house, set in the middle of an overgrown and wild corn field. Smoke came from the small chimney.

  “There it is again,” Robbie pointed.

  “We really should stop,” George said. “This is the third time we passed this house and the third time we’ve seen smoke.”

  “Someone definitely lives there.”

  “Wanna drop down?”

  Robbie shook with a chill. “I don’t know. I get a spooky feeling like I been here before, or seen this before.”

  “It’s the isolation factor of the place. Let me know now. I’ll swoop around before we hit where we saw those survivors in Laurel.”

  Robbie thought for a second. “You know what? How many could be down there? If there are too many, we’ll just save Laurel for the next run.”

  “Sounds good.” George tilted the helicopter and turned it around.

  They had to land a distance from the small farm house to find a spot clear enough to set down. George looked so official as if he dressed for the occasion in a buttoned up dress shirt and brown dress slacks. He carried a clip board and wore a pair of hundred dollar sunglasses he received from his wife years earlier. His revolver was hooked onto a belt around to his waist.

  Robbie on the other hand, looked like he had years before when he was in the service in his plain military pants bloused at the boots and a green tee shirt to match. In black letters, the name ‘Slagel’ was written on the back pocket of his pants. Robbie wore sunglasses also, but he carried an M-4.

  They walked through the high corn stocks, following the only indication they could see of the house, the small trickle of smoke that lifted to the sky. The closer they got, they more they heard it. A fragile, female voice quivered and sang ‘What a Friend We Have in Jesus’ and a guitar played notes that didn’t even form chords.

  Robbie looked oddly at George as they both emerged from the field and faced the front porch of the house. “Fuck, I told you I was here before.”

  “Is she for real or is she screwing around with us.” George asked.

  “Maybe she’s whacked. She’s old, but at least she’s not an old black woman,” Robbie lowered his sunglasses and whispered to George as they drew closer to the porch. “This is too eerie. If she says she’s been expecting us, I’m fuckin’ running and leaving her ass here.”

  “Oh, you’re nuts. It’s a coincidence.” George took a deep breath.

  The little old woman stopped randomly strumming the strings of the guitar. She set it down next to her. She was so small and petite as she stood up, wearing a pink flowered housecoat.

  “Ma’am.” George nodded.

  The old woman clapped her hands and smiled with enthusiasm. “Welcome. Welcome. I’ve been expecting you.”

  George held back a snicker and cleared his throat. “Yes. We’re uh ... we’re from Beginnings, Montana. I’m George and this is ...” George turned his head. Robbie was gone. He spun around only to see the swaying corn stocks from where Robbie had just bolted through.

  <><><><>

  Ellen finished pulling her hair back into a ponytail and looked at her reflection in the mirror above the sink in the examining room adjacent to Joe’s office. “They should have been back.”

  “Do you have all that you need as far as supplies go?” Frank asked.

  “Yeah, I’m good. It’s just a matter of waiting.”

  Frank picked up his shoulder harness. “I have to go. I’ll make another set of rounds and meet them at the hanger.” He moved to Ellen. “You don’t mind?”

  “No.”

  “Those six people keep coming back. I don’t trust them and they annoy me. So … Gotta go.” He kissed her quickly. “See you in a little bit.” Harness in hand and ready to fasten it, he moved to the door. It opened as soon as he reached for it. “Dad,” Frank said shocked.

  “What uh ...” Joe’s eyes shifted to the both of them. “What are you doing up here, Frank?”

  “Helping Ellen get ready.”

  Joe looked to the shoulder harness Frank fastened on himself. “I’m sure.”

  “I’m the helpful guy.” Frank looked back at Ellen, smiled to his father, and walked out.

  “Hey, Joe,” Ellen said nervously. “I have everything ready and I can’t understand what’s taking Robbie and George so long. Did you hear from them? Did they radio ...”

  “Ellen.” Joe halted her rambling. “What are you doing?” he questioned fatherly.

  “Getting ready for the survivors.” Ellen answered in a ‘don’t be silly’ fashion.

  “No, I mean with Frank,” Joe said.

  “He was helping me carry things up.”

  “Dean was looking for you.” Joe expected it and then he saw it the horrified look Ellen could never hide. “Tell me again, Ellen, that nothing is going on between you and my son.”

  “We were talking.”

  “Ellen, don’t bullshit me. All right? Do you ...”

  “Joe,” Ellen said with eyes closed. “We were talking.”

  “Ellen, Dean is your husband. Don’t do this to him.”

  “Do what Joe? Talk to Frank? Spend time with Frank? Frank is my ... my ...” Ellen turned from Joe and fiddled with things that were already arranged on the counter. “He’s my friend and he needs me. I can’t let him be alone.”

  Slowly, through his nostrils, Joe took a heavy breath. “Just keep your talks and time spent in perspective. I know your history with him and I know this community is too small for waves to start.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind.”

  “All right.” Joe had a disappointed tone. “I’m gonna try to radio Robbie and George and see what’s taking them so long. I’ll check back.”

  The moment he left, Ellen released the breath of tension she was so diligently holding in.

  Even if they only talked, Ellen felt guilty about being alone with Frank.

  <><><><>

  Plunk-plunk was the sound of the old, out of tune guitar and the old out of tune voice sounded nearly the same as she sang, ‘What a Friend We Have in Jesus’ and it carried out of the open side door of the landed chopper.

  Robbie’s hands slammed on the door as he stuck his head inside. “Josephine, quit fuckin’ singing that!” He yelled.

  “Scared huh?” She winked and giggled. “There’s a storm brewin ...”

  “Don’t.” Robbie held up his finger and walked away. He could hear her instigating snicker coming from the chopper. “I’m dropping her off again,” he told George as he approached him while he interviewed a man.

  “She’s old, Robbie. Your dad will h
ave a fit.”

  “Ask me if I care if my Dad gets mad.”

  George shifted his eyes to Robbie. “Do you care?”

  “Um ... pretty much so. Yes.” He watched the smile cross the male survivor’s face. Robbie knew instantly, no matter what George wrote down, the man was putting up a front and he wouldn’t even make it to Containment. A gurgling cough carried across the silence of the camp site and Robbie followed it. In the distance, a small campfire burned with a cot nearby. It was a summer day and more warmth was needed? How sick was this person?

  Symptoms, symptoms, kept running through Robbie’s head, what to look for and what to avoid. As soon as he neared the cot, a woman jumped out in a protective mode. She turned her back to Robbie and hovered over the man on the cot. “Hey.” Robbie kept his voice low. “I’m not gonna hurt him.” His hand reached out and she skittered. Her hair, long, auburn and tangled, hung over her face. “Can I see him?”

  She shook her head, jolting her body at Robbie in a signal to get him to leave.

  “I just want to help. What’s wrong with him?”

  A male voice answered. “Insulin has gone bad.” His dark long hair and beard nearly covered his face. “He’s diabetic. He’ll die soon.” The man walked to the woman and moved her. “Melissa.” He spoke in her ear. “It’s all right. He’s not gonna hurt you. I won’t let him hurt you or Glen.”

  “I’m not,” Robbie said. “How old is he?”

  The man thought for a second. “Sixty-five, I think. I don’t know. Melissa.” He laid his hands on her shoulders. “Let the man take a look.”

  Melissa moved behind the man, burying her face in his back.

  Robbie was clueless. “Look, I’m no doctor. I don’t know what I’m looking for as far as illness goes.” He stared at Glen, a bigger pale man who was shaking. “We have doctors in Beginnings and medication to help.”

  “Then you take him and get help. Please,” The man said. “I would appreciate it.”

  “No,” Melissa whimpered from behind him. “Don’t take him. No. Don’t let him take him.”

  “Melissa, honey.” The man turned around to face her. “He needs help we can’t give him. O.K., I’m sure they’ll bring him back.”

  Robbie tried to see the woman. “Is she O.K.?”

  The man nodded. “Yes. She frightens easily of people. We just joined this campsite yesterday when Glen got too sick to travel anymore. There was some trouble in the last place we were at. People scavenged it.”

  Robbie nodded. “And your name?”

  “Mark,” he answered.

  “You three have been traveling together?”

  “Actually we were living together. We had settled about thirty miles south of here at an old farm house. We were doing well until, well, like I said.”

  “We’re from a place we call Beginnings,” Robbie told him. “We’re taking people in but I’m going to be honest. We’re being very selective about who they are. We’re self-sufficient, our own civilization. There’s a process you have to go through in order to stay. Step one is this one. You’ve made it this far. If you want, you’re welcome to try the rest of the way.”

  “And if we don’t make it?” Mark asked.

  “We’ll bring you back here.”

  Mark could feel Melissa’s hands digging into his back and again he turned to her. “We should go with him. At the very least we can see where they’re taking Glen. O.K.?”

  Melissa nodded.

  Mark faced Robbie. “Can we get our things?”

  “Sure but everything is checked prior to entering.”

  “No problem. “I’ll get our things and me and Melissa will carry Glen to the chopper for you.”

  “I’ll help you do that. Let me just tell my partner in crime I got the three of you.” Robbie pointed back to George. “I’ll be right back.” Getting agreement from Mark, Robbie walked over to George.

  “Picking them up?” George asked.

  Just as Robbie was about to answer he heard Josephine’s voice from the chopper yell something about a dark man. Robbie cringed. “If we have to take her, can I at least gag her?”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  Long clumps of red auburn hair fell to the floor of the women’s locker room at Containment. Ellen stood behind Melissa, repeatedly lifting her head. “Just a little more.” Ellen ran the comb down as far as it would go. “I’m not taking much off,” she spoke softly. “Just the really bad ends. Your hair is too pretty to not be long.”

  Melissa reached up and touched her hair. “Soft.”

  “Yeah it is. We’ve redesigned conditioner here in Beginnings. Actually Henry and my husband re-invented it. It works great. I don’t use it much because my hair is too thin and I look pitiful.” Ellen snickered. “Henry is the residential inventor. You’ll meet him.”

  Melissa shook her head.

  “Sure you will.”

  Again, Melissa shook her head.

  “You don’t want to?” Ellen received another shake of a head. “Then you don’t have to. Not yet.”

  “Mark.”

  “Is that the man you came with?”

  “Yes. Mark.”

  “He’s still being processed. Robbie should be here with him shortly. Robbie says you two lived together with the ill man.”

  “Since the plague.”

  “Did you meet after?” Ellen asked.

  “Worked ... worked together.”

  Ellen paused in her cutting. “Then you have a bond. Last bit here.” Ellen snipped. “Done.” She looked up when she heard the buzzing. “That must be them.” Ellen reached for a robe for Melissa who only wore undergarments. “Want to get dressed or greet ... hey.” Ellen chased Melissa who flew from the locker room. She stopped her before she ran out. “You have to put something on. Now if you were wearing a wonder bra, then I’d say go for it but you aren’t. Here.” She extended the robe. “Cover up.”

  Melissa took it. “My clothes.”

  “We have clothes for you. You can put them on if you’d like or wait, whatever makes you comfortable.”

  “Mark.”

  “Mark makes you comfortable?” Ellen watched Melissa nod. “Then let’s get comfortable.” She tied Melissa’s robe for her and opened the women’s quarters’ door.

  Robbie was standing at the men’s room quarters. “Hey El.”

  Melissa flew right past him, into the room with Mark, grabbing onto him and clinging.

  Ellen motioned her head to them. “She doesn’t want to leave his side huh?”

  “She was stuck to him like glue,.”

  Ellen looked in the room at Mark. He had neither beard nor hair. “I see he got the Slagel trademark hair cut.”

  “Always. Where’s Josephine?” Robbie asked.

  “Eating and speaking of which ...” Ellen popped her head in the door. “We have food for you two. Would you like to eat?”

  Mark peeled Melissa from him slightly. “Would you like to eat?” He looked to Robbie and Ellen. “We would. Thank you.”

  “This way.” Ellen waved her hand and led the pair and Robbie to the small dining area. “This is the kitchen. We will cook for you and provide you with three meals a day. Have a seat.” She pointed her hand to the table. She then lifted a basket of bread. “Home made. Your first meal is not a biggie. We found out the disgusting way that we need to feed you something light so soup it is.” She walked to the counter where a kettle sat.

  Robbie slid in at the table where Mark and Melissa sat. Josephine looked up to him and smiled. “Don’t,” he told her.

  She grinned. “I’m teasing you. You’re a cutie.”

  “Thanks,” Robbie replied.

  “I like the way your name goes across that rear end of yours.”

  Ellen snickered as she set down the bowls for Mark and Melissa. “He does have a cute rear, doesn’t he Josephine?”

  Melissa looked at Robbie then Ellen. “Husband?”

  Robbie answered. “No. Lover.” He grunted when Ellen sma
cked him. “Actually, El and I have known each other for, what? Fifteen ...”

  “Eighteen years,” Ellen corrected.

  Robbie whistled. “You’re old.”

  “Thanks.” Ellen sat down and joined them. “How many years have you two known each other? Melissa said you worked together.”

  Mark looked at Melissa. “I guess five years. We worked in accounting together. Weird huh? We found each other after the plague and stuck together.”

  Ellen smiled “That’s nice. Were you both married before?”

  Mark shook his head. “I wasn’t. Melissa was. No children though. Lucky, I guess.”

  Ellen nodded “You don’t know how lucky you are for that.”

  “So we’ll live here?” Mark asked.

  “Yes,” Robbie answered. “Actually, it’s a just process to break you back into civilization, like I told you. And ... there are three others here besides you three, two little boys and man named Dan, but I think he’s leaving to go into the community in a day or two.”

  Ellen agreed. “Dan is a great guy.”

  Mark had more questions. “We live in a community here, but with separate sleeping quarters?”

  “Yes.” Ellen said then noticed the panicked look on Melissa’s face. “What’s wrong?”

  “No.” She shook her head and clung to Mark.

  Ellen looked lost. “It’s the rules. It’s for a short time.”

  “We haven’t been apart,” Mark told Ellen. “Not for a minute.”

  “You’ll still be together,” Ellen tried to explain, “just not at night. See, if Melissa was the only woman, I could let you two have the woman’s quarters but she’s not.”

  Josephine spoke up. “I could stay with the men. I have no problems with that.”

  Robbie snickered. “Josephine, you’re bad.”

  “Yeah.” Josephine grinned as she ate her soup.

  “El.” Robbie looked to her. “The rule was set up for the women’s protection. Dan is safe and until they get out or we bring more men in why can’t they just crash at night in the Skills Room together? It’s like they’re married and they should be together.”