Jessica had high hopes as well, although she worried what the gas station would charge. She and Matt had a decent amount of cash with them, but she expected the prices to be sky-high.
All four of them pulled into the lanes, stopping beside pumps, then got out.
A man with a bushy mustache and friendly smile came rushing out to greet them. “Howdy do.” His jeans sagged on his hips, but he didn’t seem to notice.
“Hi,” Matt said with a smile, the mask on his face.
Jessica watched the exchange, relieved to interact with a stranger who wasn’t interested in shooting at them for a change.
“We need some fuel,” Matt said, sweeping his hand toward the rest of their group.
Derrick, Emily, and Chris joined them, all masked.
“How much for a gallon of unleaded?” Derrick asked, his tone wary.
The man looked at Derrick. “Eight dollars a gallon.”
Though that was much higher than it had been before the pandemic, it wasn’t nearly as high as Jessica had feared it would be.
“We can do five dollars a gallon,” Derrick said. “For all of us.”
The man chewed on his lower lip a moment. “I’ll do six fifty.”
Derrick nodded. “Deal.”
“I need diesel,” Matt said. “Six fifty for that as well?”
The man paused a second. “Yeah. I can do that for you.” He looked at each of them. “Cash only. And I need a deposit of a hundred dollars per vehicle. That’ll get you…” He looked up as he did the math. “Fifteen gallons to start.”
At least he hadn’t asked for them to hand over their food.
Matt, Derrick, and Chris pulled out their wallets. Emily took a step forward. “Do you know of a doctor around here?”
The man stumbled backwards. “Are ya sick with that flu?”
She rapidly shook her head. “No no no. It’s my husband. He’s injured.”
Jessica noticed Emily hadn’t mentioned Jeff had been shot. No reason to alarm the man.
He seemed to relax. “Oh. I see. No. Sorry. I can’t help you.”
Emily’s shoulders sagged.
The man filling his car at the adjacent pump stepped forward. Jessica noticed Derrick reaching for his gun.
“I might be able to help,” he said.
Chapter 19
Derrick
Who was this guy and what were his motives? After all they’d been through, Derrick’s trust in strangers was completely gone.
“Thank you,” Emily said, her smile bright with relief. She turned to Derrick with hope-filled eyes.
He stared back. He didn’t like it, not one bit. But Jeff needed help. Where else were they supposed to turn? Still, things had not gone well that day, not by a mile. If Emily went, they all needed to go.
He clenched his jaw, his gaze going to Jeff, who was asleep in the back seat of the truck. He looked at the man who’d offered help, taking the measure of him. He had a streak of dirt on his face and his cheeks were hollowed out like he hadn’t had enough to eat. Was he hungry enough to lure them into danger?
Jeff moaned and all eyes went to him. His head turned from side to side like he was in distress.
“Please, Derrick,” Emily whispered.
He watched Jeff. They needed him. More than that, he was a friend. Derrick faced the man. “How can you help?”
“The doc. He’s helping people at his house.”
That sounded good. If it was true. Derrick considered the other option—keep going and risk Jeff not making it. That wasn’t a choice he was willing to make. Besides, it was ultimately up to Emily. He appreciated her looking to him for agreement.
Finally, and with great reluctance, he turned to Emily. “We’ll all go.”
She whooshed an exhale and spun to face the man who had offered. “If you can wait until we fill up?”
The man smiled, revealing straight white teeth.
Quietly sighing, Derrick turned away and went to his truck to fill it up. By the time everyone had filled their tanks and Matt had topped off his auxiliary tank, Derrick was slightly on edge. Even so, he led the way, following the man who said he could help Jeff.
As they pulled out of the gas station and turned right, back the way they’d just come, he picked up the walkie and pressed Talk. “Be on guard. We don’t know if this guy is legit. Over.”
Everyone agreed and on they went. The town was tiny, and after only a few minutes and several turns down residential streets, the man pulled into the driveway of a modest house. Eyes scanning, Derrick felt a modicum of relief when it looked like no one was hiding around corners ready to ambush them. The street ahead looked clear—no roadblocks or dead ends. He pulled to a stop at the curb. The others stopped behind him in a long line.
The man got out of his car and looked at Derrick, waving an arm to follow.
He picked up the walkie. “I’ll check it out and let you know if it’s safe. Over.”
Hooking the small walkie talkie onto his back pocket and making sure his Glock was locked and loaded, he got out of his truck and cautiously strode to the front door, where the man was already knocking.
An older man opened the door, a tired smile on his face. To Derrick’s surprise, he wasn’t masked. “Good afternoon, Tommy.”
“Hi, Doc.” Tommy jabbed a thumb in Derrick’s direction. “Brought some folks over who need some help.”
Doc lifted his gaze to Derrick. “That so?”
Everything seemed on the up and up. Derrick felt his body relax. “Yeah. Ran into some nasty people earlier today. My friend…” He gestured toward Jeff’s truck, “he got shot.”
Doc didn’t look surprised. “Been a bit of that going on, I’m afraid. People gettin’ desperate and all.”
“Can you help him?”
He nodded and waved him in. “Bring him in.”
Derrick spoke into the walkie, telling his group to bring Jeff in. He turned to Tommy. “Thanks for helping us.”
Tommy smiled. “Glad to.”
“Tommy’s good folks,” Doc said.
To Derrick’s surprise, he felt a burst of warmth in his chest, like he’d forgotten there were actually good people in the world, people willing to help without expecting anything in return.
Tommy turned and walked to his car.
“Hold up,” Derrick said.
Tommy spun around, a question on his face.
Derrick held up one finger, then jogged to his truck and dug around. A moment later he held up several cans of chili. He trotted over to Tommy and handed him the cans. “Thanks for bringing us here.”
Tommy cradled the cans to his chest as a smile lit up his face. “Thanks. This…this means more than you know.”
Derrick nodded. It felt good to share by choice instead of by force. “Take care.”
Tommy nodded, then climbed into his car and drove off.
By then, Matt and Chris had reached the porch with Jeff between them and Emily right behind them.
“What’s going on?” Jeff asked. “Where are we?”
Derrick smiled at him. “Getting you some help, bro.”
He shook his head, but he was clearly weak. “I’m fine.”
Derrick rolled his eyes. “Right.”
“Come on in,” Doc said before turning and walking inside the house. Derrick went in first, scanning for trouble before he motioned with his head for the others to follow.
Doc’s front room had been turned in to a make-shift doctor’s office with an exam table in the center and supplies on nearby shelves and the curtains pulled wide to let the light from the sun stream in.
Derrick helped Chris and Matt get Jeff onto the table, then he turned to the men. “I’ll stay with Emily. You guys keep watch outside.”
They nodded and left.
“Is he going to be okay?” Emily asked as she hovered near Jeff’s head.
Doc leaned close to the bullet wound, angling a flashlight that was hanging overhead so that the beam hit Jeff’s left shou
lder. “Let’s take a look.” Jeff was awake but calm as Doc examined his shoulder. “Good news is, I don’t see any bullet fragments.” Doc straightened and frowned at them. “Bad news is, he needs antibiotics.”
Derrick looked at the supplies on the shelves, which was when he realized there weren’t any bottles of pills. He lifted his gaze to Doc. “I take it you don’t have any.”
Doc shook his head. “With all the people who caught that flu, I’m plumb out.”
Derrick frowned.
“What’s going on with the flu?” Emily asked. “I mean, are people still dying?”
Doc smiled. “Now that’s where the flu being a fast killer was a good thing.”
Emily’s eyebrows shot up. “A good thing? How so?”
Doc shook his head. “People who caught it started dying so quick that they didn’t have time to spread it. It’s burning itself out.”
Emily smiled. “That’s great news.”
“Yep.” He turned his attention back to Jeff. “I can get this cleaned up and sutured, but if he doesn’t get those antibiotics, infection is a real concern.”
“Where can we get antibiotics?” Derrick asked.
Doc lifted his head and looked at Derrick. “The pharmacy in town should have some.” A deep crease formed on Doc’s forehead. “Only problem is, a group’s taken it over.”
That couldn’t be good. Derrick highly doubted this group would just hand over what they needed. “What about the neighboring houses? Do you think they’d have any meds?”
Doc shook his head. “I’ve already had some people search for me. This neighborhood is cleaned out. They all are.”
Of course. “How far to the next town? Maybe they have something we could use.”
“Doubtful. Anyway, it’s a long drive.”
Yeah, Derrick had noticed that towns were few and far between along I-80. Looked like they had no option but to deal with the people who had taken over the pharmacy. “What do you know about these guys? Will they negotiate?”
Doc tilted his head. “Hard to say. From the rumors I’ve heard, they’re not real friendly. Taking what they can get for not a lot in return.”
Suppressing a sigh, Derrick got the directions to the pharmacy from Doc. “I’ll see what I can do.” He turned to Emily. “I’ll take Chris or Matt and see about getting those antibiotics for Jeff.”
She nodded, her expression pinched. “Thank you, Derrick.”
Frustrated with all the issues they’d already faced that day—and it was only early afternoon—Derrick turned and left.
Chapter 20
Matt
Matt leaned against his truck and watched Dylan throw a ball for Cleo, who chased after it before retrieving it, a wide doggie smile on her face.
“Good girl, Cleo,” Dylan said, ruffling the fur on her head.
It made Matt happy to see a moment of normalcy. At least it seemed normal. Until he looked around at the unfamiliar neighborhood and remembered why they were there. Still, he would take whatever moments of joy he could get.
“Do you think Jeff will be okay?” Kayla asked. She stood near him, as did Jessica and Brooke. It seemed as if no one wanted to stray too far from the relative safety of their group.
He pushed a smile onto his lips. “He’s with a doctor, so his chances are good. And the bullet isn’t lodged in his shoulder, so that helps too.”
Derrick came trotting out of the house wearing that look of all-business he got when there was a problem. Matt straightened and took a deep breath, preparing himself for whatever bad news Derrick was bringing.
“What’s up?” Chris asked Derrick, joining Matt and the others. “Is Jeff okay?”
Derrick rubbed the back of his neck. “Yeah, but there’s a problem.”
Of course there was. Nothing could ever be easy. Not in this new world.
“What’s wrong?” Chris asked.
“Jeff needs antibiotics, but the doc doesn’t have any. We need to get some from the pharmacy in town.” Derrick sighed.
Matt narrowed his eyes. “And?”
Derrick’s lips flattened. “Some group took it over.”
“Group?” Matt asked. “What group?”
Derrick shook his head. “Not sure.”
“Wonderful,” Chris muttered.
“Can’t we look for antibiotics somewhere else?” Jessica asked, her eyebrows bunched in concern.
Derrick frowned. “Already thought of that. Doc says there’s nothing anywhere else. Besides, we need to get Jeff started on them right away.” He paused a beat. “If we wait, infection could set in.”
It sounded like there wasn’t much choice. But what about their recent interaction with Tyson? What if these men were just as bad? What if these people killed one of their group?
“I’m gonna go there.” Derrick pursed his lips. “I don’t want to endanger any of you, so I’ll go by myself.”
“No,” Matt heard himself say. “You should have backup.” He looked at each member of the group. “None of us should ever go into a dangerous situation alone. We should always have backup.” He paused a beat. “I’ll go with you.”
“Matt,” Jessica whispered urgently from beside him.
He looked at her, saw the concern on her face, and clasped her hand with his, squeezing gently. “What if it was one of our kids that needed medicine? I know Jeff would do it for them. For any of us.”
Her shoulders slumped and she stared at the ground before lifting her eyes to his. “Please be careful.”
He kissed her on the lips. “Always.”
He shifted his gaze to Derrick, who stared at him and asked, “Are you sure?”
He wasn’t sure about anything, except that it wasn’t right that Derrick was always the one jumping into danger. They all had to take risks. For each other. That was the only way to survive.
Matt nodded. “Yeah.”
A grin tugged up the corners of Derrick’s mouth. “Okay then. Let’s go. We’ll take my truck.”
While Matt gave Jessica and the kids a hug, he heard Derrick telling Chris how to get to the pharmacy in case they didn’t return within an hour.
“Hey,” Matt said with a grin, “just pull it up on your phone.”
Everyone laughed. Those days were long gone. It had only been two weeks since their world had shifted, but Matt dearly missed the technology that had been part of his daily life. Ah well, nothing he could do about that now.
As they pulled away from the curb, Matt watched his family recede in his sideview mirror. “How far is it?”
Derrick glanced at him. “Not far. We’ll park a couple of blocks away and go the rest of the way on foot. Check things out before we approach these guys.”
“Sounds good.”
Chapter 21
Derrick
Though Derrick had been more than willing to go to the pharmacy alone, he was actually glad that Matt had volunteered to come along. Even though Matt wasn’t experienced in combat, he was learning quickly and becoming a real asset.
Derrick pictured the route to the pharmacy that Doc had shown him on a map. They were close, but they needed a place to hide the truck. A restaurant came into view. Derrick turned into the parking lot. The place looked abandoned. No people. No cars. Perfect.
He parked the truck, then dropped the magazine from his Glock. Fully loaded. He slammed it back into place and looked at Matt, who was checking his weapon as well. “Ready?”
Matt nodded, his expression serious.
They got out of the truck. Derrick tucked his gun into his waist holster, then after grabbing a few cans of food, he and Matt began walking. When the pharmacy came into view, he glanced at Matt. “Follow my lead.”
Two people—a man and a woman—stood in line at a long table just outside the entrance to the pharmacy. The man held a box and the woman held a grocery bag. On the table were cans of food, bottles of water, and other assorted items. Two men stood at either end of the table—one bald and the other smoking a joint. Ano
ther man—the clerk?—sat behind the table talking to the customer. A fourth man stood behind the clerk. All four men were armed.
When Derrick and Matt were twenty yards away, Baldy looked their way, hand resting on the butt of his gun and sunglasses obscuring his eyes.
Ignoring him and the other guard, Derrick and Matt walked to the end of the line and stood behind the woman. Wearing sunglasses himself, Derrick kept an eye on every person within view. His gaze went to the glass doors that led to the interior of the pharmacy. There were at least two people inside—a man and a woman.
A moment later, the clerk handed a slip of paper to the man behind him, who opened the door to the pharmacy and went inside. Errand Boy came out a few minutes later. The clerk looked at him. Errand Boy nodded once.
“Looks like we have what you want,” the clerk said to the man holding the box. His gaze flicked to the box. Derrick couldn’t see what was in the box, but he assumed there was food in it. “That’s not enough to pay for what you want.”
The man shook his head. “But it’s…it’s all I have.”
The clerk smirked. “Not my problem.” He looked past the man to the woman. “Next.”
The woman took a step forward, but the man blocked her. “Wait!”
Looking bored, the clerk shifted his eyes to the man.
“My wife needs that medicine.” Pleading filled the man’s voice.
The clerk frowned. “Apparently not or you’d pay the full price.”
The man’s shoulders went back as he stood straighter. He set the box of food on the table. “This is a fair payment.” He palmed his hips. “I demand that you give me that medicine.”
The clerk’s eyebrows rose, then he began to laugh. “You demand?” He shook his head. “The price has doubled.” He grabbed the box of food and handed it to Errand Boy. “That’s your deposit.” One side of his mouth tugged up. “Non-refundable.”
The man began to tremble. With rage or fear, Derrick didn’t know. He couldn’t see the man’s face, only the back of him. The man’s right hand slowly slid from his hip toward his back. That’s when Derrick saw a bulge under his shirt. He was reaching for a gun.
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