by AR Shaw
Bishop chuckled, and suddenly Yeager looked embarrassed.
Smiling, Walt said, “She’s something. She’s tough as hell and loyal. It’ll take her some time to transfer her loyalty. Just give her a few days. I’ll talk to her before I go back.”
“I think Yeager can deal with her. Probably the only one who could,” Bishop said and chuckled.
Walt laughed. “I’d like to see him try. She’ll eat him for lunch.”
Glancing behind him at Yeager, he had his doubts, but the blush on his cheeks, even in the dark tunnel, made him think Yeager was already caught in the web.
Climbing back up the stairs, they were met by Alyssa in the hallway. Walt’s attention was riveted to her, and Bishop looked at him for explanation. There was a dynamic he wasn’t privy to. Her line of sight switched suddenly from her husband to him, and her smile disappeared.
With one hand on her hip, she said, “Well, since you murdered the others, I guess I’ll have to take care of your housing arrangements.”
Meeting her glance Bishop asked, “How’s Maeve and the children?”
She nodded her head, but that hand was still cocked on her hip. “They’re fine. I think the girl will survive, but she needs constant care. We’ll know more soon. I’m sure the flight helped to dry her damaged lungs out even more. That wasn’t a good idea. She could have died.”
“She would have died there too. We didn’t have much choice at the time.” God knows he would have done anything to spare the child’s life. Suddenly he felt the weight of the world having moved the child before she was ready.
Sensing this, Alyssa said, “Well, what’s done is done. Follow me, and I’ll show you where they are. I’ve moved them to a suite that should be big enough for the four of you.”
Not expecting her to treat him with kindness, he said, “Thank you,” and he meant it.
Turning to Yeager he said, “Can you check with the others and make sure this facility is secure? I’ll come up top in a few minutes.”
Yeager nodded and peeled off up to the top floor while he followed Alyssa and Walt down the hallway. “We probably need to brief everyone and set a few goals like defenses and get organized.”
Walt nodded in agreement. “I’ll go back and talk to Cassie; she’s instrumental with the soldiers who are left. Without her, I doubt they’ll listen to you or anyone from this side of things.”
Alyssa stopped suddenly at a metal doorway and rapped it with the back of her knuckles three times. Maeve opened the door with a creak and then wider when she saw Bishop. The door opened to a wide-open space. The overhead lighting cast an electric glow—you could even hear the buzzing. Though there were no windows to look out of, the space was bright enough. They walked inside into a kind of living room. There was a couch in the sitting area, where he found Ben kneeling on the carpeted flooring next to Louna lounging on the couch. Her frail eyes stared back at him. He smiled.
At the other end of the triangle was a modern kitchen with all the latest amenities. It looked like something you’d find in any cookie-cutter suburban neighborhood, with stainless-steel appliances and dark woolen cabinetry. Maeve walked ahead of him and opened one of the cupboards. They were prefilled with dishes, utensils, and even boxed food.
“We…um…hand out rations once a week, but you should have enough in there for a few days for the four of you at least. We have no fresh produce obviously, but there are canned vegetables and a lot more in storage.
“There’s enough paper products in the bathroom, but when you need more, there’s a supply closet. I’ll show you where, later.”
Her voice trailed off as she and Walt headed for the door. He couldn’t believe the room was like this. He looked at Maeve; she was wide-eyed, as if to say, Can you believe this?
His response after he heard the door click behind him was “Wow!”
“There’s two bedrooms, and they even have extra sheets, and it’s actually warm in here. Can you hear the forced air on?”
“There’s a few generators running this place. It must be huge.” Even so, the lights flickered a little when he heard the power kick on. For both of them, it was a surreal moment. Taking this place was one thing, but keeping it, he knew, would prove to be quite another. They’d already arrived when another faction was vying to take the place.
Still staring dumbstruck with awe, Bishop backed away. Lifting his arm, he said, “Just the same, lock the door behind me, and I’ll be back later.”
“Okay, I guess I’ll see what I can make for dinner.”
“Yeah. That’s a thing, right? Actual dinner. I’ll check back later. I wish we had radios still. I’ll look into that. I’d like you to be able to signal me if you have any problems. We’ll radio the others and start flying them in tomorrow.”
“That’s good. Alyssa said she’d check in on us later to see Louna. I think we’re fine for now. I know that’s odd to say.”
“Yeah, that’s what fighting for your life does to you. In normal times, it’s hard to turn it off.”
“The surviving?”
“Yeah, the surviving.”
She nodded, and he thought maybe she might understand what he went through in his nightmares, even just a little. It was the surviving that made the quiet times less so. Once you lived through such events, you can’t just turn it off. The mind doesn’t work that way.
He glanced at the three of them once again, all safe and well as can be expected under the circumstances in an underground apartment with all the modern conveniences, including electricity, which was something they had not seen in a long time, and he doubted they’d ever again up on the surface.
28
He was inclined to believe that Jax was out of his mind, though Austin thought he was probably right and was willing to trust his experience, at least give his crazy plan a chance, though he was the one who was standing now, waiting for the rest of the residents to gather in the lobby for his important announcement on the evacuation plan. They weren’t going to like it, though, he thought. Getting out of the room alive and unharmed would be a challenge.
As the families gathered, he couldn’t help but notice fewer in attendance than the last time they’d met as a group. When they’d started out, the lobby was filled to capacity. Children sat on their parents’ laps bundled up in random knitwear or any fiber available.
Knowing a few people tried their chances and trekked to Spokane hoping for more resources, he’d worried they’d never made it. The highways were impassable now that their journey was made by snowmobile, on foot, or by sled. He’d heard from a few coming in that frozen bodies lay along I-90 across the state line.
Humans were not made like they used to be. They were no longer the pioneers their forebearers were…like the original settlers who came by wagon train to this area long ago. No, Austin knew many would die…he just didn’t realize they would die off so quickly.
A few parents had already succumbed to starvation by choice. They’d barely noticed as a mother took her rations every day. Though they’d never witnessed her consume a bite. Instead, she was saving the food for herself and feeding her share to her children later in the evening. So much so that it was too late when Cook finally took notice. The mother collapsed on her way to the hotel, in the street outside. The children had run into the hotel for help. Cook had been the one to run out to find her lifeless body. Though the rags she wore shielded the view, they soon learned why she’d died. And she shouldn’t have. A senseless death, and now they had three orphaned children to add to the growing mix.
These were Austin’s thoughts as he stood before them, nervous. He’d been the one to write the speeches for Geller. He’d been the one to help aid in the right words to give to the hotel employees. He’d never been the one to deliver the speeches; only the cadence was his, only the words…never the speaker.
Someone called for a hush in the room. The empty spaces filled in, and those closest to the lobby doors huddled closer, while others made more room by th
e fireplaces. The spaces in between people eventually closed up as the crowd huddled closer for warmth.
Like something out of a Wild West movie, Jax appeared finally at his side dressed like a mountain man in furs. Feeling conflicted, Austin both wanted him there and then, again, did not.
The man was so argumentative that Austin wished he’d just go away, but his skills and knowledge were indispensable. He needed him. There were bound to be questions, and he had to have him there to answer them, because, though he could run things himself, he wasn’t Bishop, and he certainly wasn’t Jax.
His own skills were more relegated to behind the scenes, and he knew that. He’d never be a great warrior or have the knowledge of Jax. He would never be a hero. It wasn’t his place in life. No, he only played a supporting role. He held up the hero, wrote the speeches, and organized the background. It was what he was comfortable doing, and he was okay with that knowledge.
Clearing his throat, he decided to get started. And knowing the content ahead of time, the crowd quieted quickly.
“We have a plan,” Austin announced to the crowd. Then he added, “You’re not going to like it.”
Jax cut his eye over to him with a warning look.
Austin cleared his throat as the crowd settled down.
“We’ve discussed the best move to take. Our rations are lower today than they were yesterday. Things are getting tighter. And because of that, we’ve come up with an evacuation plan that we think is the best for our survival as a whole.”
Looking into the faces of the crowd, some parents held their children just a little closer. He cleared his throat again.
“This is how it’s going to work. Let me be clear—if you don’t agree with the plan, you can stay here. Just know that your survival isn’t guaranteed. Nor will it be in Deer Trail, but at least there’s a chance there. It’s a decision you must make with your family.”
Someone shouted, “Get on with it!”
Nodding, Austin looked down at his notes again—the paper—trembling.
“Children go first.”
“Women and children?” a female voice shouted for clarification.
Shaking his head, Austin clarified. “No. Babies and the oldest teenage girls will go first. Then toddlers with the next teenage girls and so on and so forth.”
Murmuring in the crowd rose as people talked among themselves.
Austin held up a sheet of paper.
“I have all the birthdates here…we’ve set it up this way to ensure the greatest survival as a whole.”
Protests grew louder. “You’re going to take our children there first? Without their parents?”
This time, Austin shot his eyes at Jax before he answered, “Yes. That’s the plan.”
“No! You’re not taking my kids. No. Not without me!” shouted a young mother of three.
“Calm down,” Austin urged, though the residents showed no signs of doing so, and a few even got up and headed for the door.
Jax came forward, and Austin was only too happy to let him do some of the explaining.
“Listen up!” Jax bellowed, catching a few people off guard. Most had seen the man but had never heard him speak, and they were all just a little bit afraid of him then.
“Enough of this nonsense! You want them to survive, don’t you?” he grumbled. “How selfish can you morons be? Another three weeks of this, and you’ll all be devising ways to chop up those little ones. I know what you’re thinking, see. I can see it in your eyes. The babies go first. Then the women and then the men. That’s how it’s going to be. Anyone have a problem with that…don’t come talk to me. Pack up your crap, and head out. I don’t give a damn what you think. This is not a democracy. This is how we leave.”
No one said a word as Jax stepped away. Instead, they redirected their blank stares back to Austin.
“You have one evening. I’ve posted the list for those evacuating, there on the wall. Be here first thing in the morning. Make sure the babies and young ladies are dressed in their warmest clothing. Maeve and Bishop are waiting on the other side. They even have a nurse there. I’ve been assured they will be well taken care of while the rest of us make the trip over.”
Still the crowd was stunned into silence, so much that Austin noted the audible sound of himself folding up the crisp paper he held in his hands and placed it in his pocket.
A young mother, holding her infant son, wandered over to the wall and looked at the paper announcing those who would leave first and found her son’s name. She cried, holding him closer. Then Austin watched as a few more wandered over, and even a few teenage girls checked for their names on the list. One turned quickly after seeing hers and ran back into her father’s arms. The father looked up at Austin as he held his daughter sobbing in his arms, ready to murder him.
As the murmuring increased, Austin’s only consolation was, This was never going to be easy. It didn’t matter if they held a lottery or any other number of ways to move them there.
29
“What can we expect from them?” It was a rhetorical question, one that Walt issued to those standing in the bunker’s conference room. Leads from each department stood propped against the walls, arms crossed in defensive measures. The florescent lights above cast sharp shadows onto the concrete flooring, giving the appearance of sucking all life up a beam while leaving their casings erect but failing.
Walt had pointed to Bishop, and behind him Yeager and the others stood. Behind Walt, along the wall, was Cassie glaring back in his direction. Bishop kept his eye on her as Walt continued.
“Look, we can’t help what happened. But we all knew Geller didn’t exactly run this place fairly. We’ve all had questions and fears for our families. I’ve gotten to know these people…they at least have a heart. Their people need us, and they’re dying out there. They’re a whole community. We have room here. We can help them, and we need their protection. Because without them, those people who attacked us this morning…that will happen again. We’re on a skeleton crew here.”
“Even more so after they massacred a few of us this morning. And those people out there…they just want shelter!” Cassie yelled out, her voice harsh and bitter as pith.
For a second, as he stared into her glaring eyes, Bishop thought she might even spit. He almost snorted but thought better of it. And then, next to him, very quietly, Yeager did just that. Bishop cast him a disapproving glance.
“That…was regretful what happened here with our own. But they did warn them.”
Suspecting Cassie was about to launch another verbal attack, Walt continued before she could.
“And…that’s exactly why we need more defenses. The attack may have come from those scavengers, and they would have killed us all, I suspect, just to take what we’ve got here. These people…they want to join us.”
“Those people you call scavengers…why are they any different than where these people come from? Why should we trust what you say, Walt?” Cassie said. “We don’t know them. You don’t even know them very well.”
Hanging his head before he answered, Bishop thought Walt could go either way here, and they needed these people to trust them.
“Cassie,” Walt finally said, “you remember Jeremy?”
She shook her head. “Don’t go there. That’s not fair.”
“It is fair!” Walt shouted so loudly Cassie even jumped back a little, as well as everyone else in the room.
“That man was my friend,” Walt seethed through clenched teeth. “And his family!”
Noting the abrupt rise in tension in the room, Yeager looked to him questioningly, hand gripped tight on his weapon. Whatever had happened with Jeremy and his family was something these people remembered with a searing brand.
“Who the hell is Jeremy?” Yeager whispered.
With lifted eyebrows, Bishop just shook his head.
“Okay? Are you with me now?” Walt yelled again.
Looking around the room, many nodded their heads, including Cas
sie, who, Bishop could swear, was even fighting back tears.
“There are too few of us to defend this place. I’m headed out in the morning to bring more in. It’s like a tomb in here, and it will be so while there’re enemies at the gate. These people are good people. They freed us of that monster. You don’t know that, but I do. You’ll have to trust me. You’ll have to take my word for it.” Walt raised his arm and pointed directly at Bishop. Everyone in the room looked toward him.
“That man fought off an army to save his people. Geller saved only himself. Drop your attitude before you leave this room. You step outta here, and give these people a hard time; I’d better not hear about it when I get back tomorrow night.”
Bishop felt all eyes on him. He stood as tall as the legend commanded. He only hoped he lived up to it.
30
The next morning, Walt again said good-bye to his wife and two boys. He’d hugged them tight in their unit, just after breakfast. Alyssa cried, but she was the sort who wouldn’t let her children see her weakness. He liked that about her. So, as his own throat seared in held-back emotion, he knew hers was too.
“I’ll be back tonight. The Osprey’s checked out. We have enough fuel on both sides. I’ll go there, get everyone on board, and head back. Stay strong, baby,” he whispered, knowing she didn’t like him to say those words too loudly for the boys to hear them.
She nodded, still not about to trust her own voice, he suspected.
“Check out the extra units. I’m not sure how many families will be on board. I only got word that they had a load ready to go. It’ll be this way night and day until we get them all ferried over.”
Able to trust her own voice then, Alyssa smiled. “Okay. I’m bringing the boys over to Maeve’s to play with Ben while I work on getting the rooms ready.”
He kissed her on the forehead once more, furled the hair on each boy’s head, and turned to the door before he could talk himself out of it.
Danger…there was always danger present both here and there and in between. From the moment the weather turned, and everyone realized there was just something more menacing about the cold wind that didn’t cease this time, and to come to find out, it only became worse as the days went on. And now, months later, worse still was the danger. The fact that he could fly the Osprey at all through the gusting wind was a miracle. Not many would take the chance. Up above, past the air currents, things seemed normal, but coming up and down proved a challenge every time. He suspected that even he would have to declare him and Osprey out of commission, the danger ever increasing. But until then he’d save as many as he could, because those who remained there were dead already; they just didn’t know it.
