by Kirby Howell
It’d taken time for Daniel to forgive me for my outburst, but in the end, we’d found our way back to the way things were before. Still, with every sign of the life growing inside Connie’s body, the nervous energy in our house grew stronger, too.
Even Rissi was scared. She was old enough now to understand most babies didn’t live and had begun trying to take care of Connie in her own way. For the most part, Connie appreciated Rissi’s constant attention, and when her patience was wearing thin, I did my best to distract Rissi so Connie and Daniel could have some time to themselves. Rissi never asked me about Grey’s “special powers” again, though I did catch her staring at him from time to time.
I got into the routine of bringing Grey food at the lab, just to make sure he took enough time to eat. On a few nights, after we were certain everyone was asleep, he projected us back to Hoover. We searched the rubble near the dam with flashlights, sifting through endless mounds of rocks and dust, hoping to find his lost vial of E-Vitamin. Grey was certain that if he could synthesize it, he might be able to crack the code to making an inoculation. But we never found it, and Grey had to continue working with the virus sample we stole from Karl the same night we’d lost his E-Vitamin. Grey said the virus itself should be enough for him to figure out an inoculation, but I saw doubt in his eyes.
With each passing week, Grey’s nerves became more frayed, and it was dismaying to see how his emotions were beginning to get the better of him. It also didn’t help that the lingering question of who New Burbank was sending to Paris was still unanswered.
There was only so much gardening for me to do, so to stay busy, I asked Ben to join the team to help solve the fuel crisis. It’d been Ben’s idea to begin refining fuel again. Once cars were back on the road and planes back in the air, we’d have means to re-connect the country and possibly, the world. We thought that if we hurried, and had a little luck, we might be able to have enough fuel ready to ferry our representative to Paris for the Summit.
Ben suggested we start by sending an exploratory team out to an off-shore drilling rig to see if it could be made operational. With crude oil coming in, it could be transported to the mainland, where they were trying to initiate the refining process again. When an oil rig was chosen, I volunteered to be part of the expeditionary trip. I was eager to get out of town for a few days.
I woke early on the morning of the trip. I found myself nervous but didn’t know why. My room was still dark, and when I looked at my alarm clock, it read 5:15 a.m. I tried to fall back asleep, but it was useless. I dressed and went down to the kitchen. I was surprised to see a pot of coffee already on and Connie sitting at the massive kitchen table, staring out the window into the dark yard.
“Morning,” I said, pouring some coffee into a mug.
“Oh, hey. Did I wake you?”
I assured her she hadn’t and sat down across from her. I motioned to her cup of coffee and raised an eyebrow. “Isn’t that a no no?”
She laughed quietly and shook her head. “It’s decaf. I can put on the fully loaded stuff if you need a little caffeine to wake up.”
I waved away her offer. “Nah. I don’t know why, but I’m wide-awake. No coffee necessary this morning.”
Both of our eyes gravitated to a hummingbird flying to a feeder just outside the window. I thought about how good it was to be able to be with Connie and not say a word. It reminded me of Sarah, back in the days before The Plague... and my mother.
“Do you think he’ll do it, Autumn?” Connie broke the blissful silence.
“Sorry?” I asked, not knowing who “he” or “it” was.
“Grey. Do you think he’ll be able to make a vaccine before my baby is born?” She rested a hand on her ever-growing stomach. “I know he’s a capable doctor, but he’s still so young. Seems like if doctors three and four times his age couldn’t figure out cancer or AIDS back in the days when they had thousands working on it...”
“Connie,” I stopped her. “I know it seems impossible, but I swear to you, if there is anyone left in this world capable of solving this problem, it’s Grey. And I’m not just saying that because I love him.”
Connie looked over to meet my eyes. Hers were full of tears.
“I can’t tell you for sure that he will save your baby,” I continued, “but I will tell you I have faith in him. And I’m not the only one.” I took her hand in mine. “And if, for some reason, the vaccine doesn’t come, we will all be here for you. We’ll get you through this. I promise. And, you know, the fact we’re still here is a miracle, so that should be proof enough for you that anything is possible.”
Connie took a gulp of air, trying to contain herself, but failed. She burst into tears. I wrapped my arms around her, and she buried her head into my neck. Despite wanting to be strong for her, I felt tears gather in my own eyes.
“You know I love you?” I said.
“I love you, too. Thank you so much, Autumn.” She pulled back and used the back of her hands to wipe her tears away. “Won’t you just look at what a mess I’ve made of myself?” She started to laugh. “I forgot how hormonal I get when I’m pregnant.” She pointed a finger at my tears. “What’s your excuse?” I joined her, and we laughed through the tears.
A couple hours later, Connie and I were both cleaned up, and everyone was awake. Now the coffee was the full-strength kind, and the mood was surprisingly light. Ben’s wheelchair was rolled up to his space at the end of the kitchen table, and papers covered the entire surface within his reach.
“Is that an alien spaceship?” Rissi asked, staring at the giant set of blueprints in front of him.
“No, silly. There’re no such things as aliens.”
I hid my smile as Ben continued. “This is a blueprint for Castor and Pollux, the two oil rigs the team is going out to see today. There are two of them, connected by this big bridge, about ten miles off the coast of Malibu.”
Rissi crinkled her nose. “Those are dumb names.”
“No they’re not!” Ben protested. “Castor and Pollux are names from Greek and Roman mythology. They were two brothers. There’s a constellation named Gemini, of two brothers side by side, remember that from school? Well, the brother’s names are Castor and Pollux. That’s probably why they named this rig after them.”
“Whatever,” she said and walked off, unimpressed. Ben looked up at me and grimaced.
“Don’t encourage her,” he said. I shook my head and smiled. It was so good seeing them back to normal after everything Ben had been through.
The back door opened and Rissi exclaimed, “Look! Look! Grey is here! You never come for breakfast anymore. Why don’t you eat with us like you used to?” Rissi was at full speed ahead. I smiled and stood to greet Grey with a quick kiss.
“Ew,” I heard Rissi say as she finally went back to the table. “So why aren’t you here anymore, Grey? Don’t you like us?”
Grey grinned and sat beside her and began to pour a bowl of cereal. “I like you all a lot. I’ve just been really busy at the hospital lately.”
“With sick people?”
“I’m working on keeping people from getting sick,” he said. She nodded and took another big bite of cereal, as if she understood exactly what he meant.
“It is unusual to see you here for breakfast lately, though,” I said.
“I wanted to see you all off... and remind you to try and go easy on Diego.”
“That’ll be the day,” said Ben, not looking up from his plans. Grey turned his head to see what Ben was studying.
“I remember this rig being on the news a lot a few years ago,” Grey said, tapping the blueprints.
“They were trying to shut down the drilling,” Daniel chimed in. “I once joined in a protest myself.”
All eating paused as each of us looked up at Daniel. He gave a sheepish gesture, “What? I care about stuff. Or, I used to... back in college, you know?”
Shad clapped him on the back. “You’re a real saint.”
“You
wanna be cleaning the 501’s, while the rest of us are in the flight simulators today?” Daniel warned Shad.
“Couldn’t train with you today if I wanted to. I’m going with the expedition team, remember?” Shad reminded him. “Gonna be a few of Diego’s boys, Autumn, and me, ‘cause you know, someone’s gotta lead this merry band.” Shad winked.
“God help them,” Daniel said dryly before downing the last of his coffee.
“You guys be careful out there,” Connie said. “If the seas are too rough, please turn around and go back another day.”
“They’ll be fine, Connie,” Ben said. “They’re just going out a few miles to take a look at it. Odds are, they’ll be back in two or three days. If anything, the trip to Malibu will be the tricky part. But Karl’s promised,” Ben used air quotes to emphasize the word, “The Front has cleared a path to the ocean for us and will stay back while they’re en route.”
“You’re still taking precautions though?” Daniel asked.
“Of course they are,” Ben said. “I don’t trust Karl for a second. But for now it seems like it’s in his best interest to keep the peace, so I think they’ll be fine.” Ben paused a moment and looked down at his plans. “God, I wish I could go, too. I really want to see what kind of shape this place is in. Shad, are you sure you remember everything I’ve been telling you about Castor and Pollux?”
“Yeah, yeah. Between you drilling all that stuff in my head, and Daniel making me spend all the rest of my time in the sims, I fall asleep thinking about oil traps and wake up thinking about trimming flaps.” He rolled his eyes. “I didn’t have this much homework when I was in school!”
“Don’t forget to take lots of pictures,” Ben said, handing Shad a digital camera. “I want this thing loaded when you come back.”
“Yes, mother,” Shad muttered, stuffing the camera in his pack. “You guys ready?”
“I’m ready,” I said, standing and giving Grey a firm hug.
“I wish I could go with you,” he said.
“We’ll be fine. I think Ben is right, on all fronts. No pun intended,” I added, rolling my eyes. “We’ll be home as soon as we can. Maybe when I’m back you could come to dinner?”
“If I make enough progress, I’ll come round,” he promised, then gave me a gentle kiss. “Please be careful.” I promised I would, then followed Shad out.
We rode our horses to meet Diego and the rest of the group at the equestrian center at the edge of Griffith Park. I was looking forward to spending a day or two riding Snicket. Everything in New Burbank was so close together that I generally only spent about ten or fifteen minutes a day actually riding. Most of our quality time happened during feeding or when I brushed her down. The thirty-mile ride to Malibu would do her good.
Sixteen of us were making the trip. Ben was the real brains of the operation, despite not being able to come with us, but he’d prepped Shad, and me to some extent, so we could be his eyes and ears. Diego took point, leading our long trail of horses to our destination. Shad and I rode at the back of the pack, keeping an eye out.
In his continued effort of fooling everyone but my friends and me, Karl had arranged for his people to push cars to the sides of the roads on the course we gave him, making our travel easier and faster. We intentionally strayed some, just in case, though we never saw another soul. The alternate streets still had dead cars blocking the way, but it was worth the price of safety.
The sun was setting when we spotted the marina in Malibu, where we planned on borrowing two boats belonging to The Front. To everyone’s surprise, Karl was waiting for us.
Diego jumped off his horse and approached him. I moved Snicket closer, so I could hear most of what was said.
“I’m not interfering,” I heard Karl reply. “I promised you our assistance, and you have it. A cleared path between New Burbank and Malibu, two fueled boats and no problems from any of my people.”
“Then what are you doing here?” Diego demanded.
“I want to know what’s out there as much as you do. None of my people have explored that far, and if there’s crude oil, I think both parties should benefit.”
“That wasn’t the bargain,” Diego replied. “Whatever’s out there, New Burbank’s done all of the research and the –”
Karl cut him off. “Whatever’s out there is ours to share. The way I see it, if we go to war over what resources are left, no one wins. If we cooperate and share, we all win. Come on, Diego. Be reasonable. I could have just blocked off the Westside and declared it an independent country and taken the coastline and all of its resources with me. But I’m not doing that. I’m cooperating. So should you.”
Diego pinched his eyes shut in frustration. The sad truth of the matter was that Karl had a point. Even I saw it. And if we declined to let Karl go, the shaky peace we had with them would break down. There weren’t too many Frontmen left but enough to cause major problems, especially with a cunning leader like Karl.
“In the spirit of cooperation, I invite you to stay with us, and go to the oil rig,” Diego said. “But I have a condition.”
“Pray tell,” Karl replied.
“Just you. None of your men.”
“Agreed. However, I warn you, if I am harmed in any way, or don’t come back from this trip, my men have orders to wage all-out war on New Burbank.” Karl gave a tight smile.
“You won’t be harmed,” was all Diego said in response. Karl looked past him and saw me.
“Miss Winters,” Karl said, noticing me for the first time. He walked toward me and put a hand on Snicket’s reins. She made me proud when she recoiled and snorted at him. An extra carrot tonight, I thought.
“Hello, Karl,” I said, trying to sound bored and not frightened. “Fancy seeing you all the way out here. How ever did you manage it?” I wanted to subtly remind him I knew his secret, and he wasn’t the only one holding cards at this poker table.
“Oh, I managed just fine. I’m looking forward to our expedition in the morning. Better get some rest,” he said, giving a sideways grin, then he walked through the rest of our group, greeting everyone and trying to make small talk. I stifled a laugh when he got to Shad, who just ignored him.
Everyone started making camp, including Karl, apparently our new camping buddy. Shad helped me put up my tent, and we sat around a fire he’d made. He’d gotten very good at the art of fire making. He credited it to his love of reality TV and proceeded to list all of the places he thought he could probably survive.
“Drinking my own urine is where I draw the line, though,” he finished.
“Gross, Shad.”
“What? I said I wouldn’t do it!”
Across the camp, I saw Karl sitting with Diego. I couldn’t hear what they were saying but saw the big shadow puppets Diego’s hands were casting as he spoke with large gestures. Karl seemed almost as animated, which was odd. Like Grey, most of the time he was very in control of his emotions. Most of the time.
“What do you think they’re talking about?” I asked Shad.
“Probably debating the best college football teams of all time,” Shad said. “By the looks of it, I think Karl just said Nebraska circa 1995, while I’m thinking Diego is a Bama fan. He’s probably going with Alabama circa 2012. I tend to agree with Diego.”
“Will you be serious for a second?” I squinted through the darkness at them.
“Cool your jets, Winters. They’re probably talking about how we divide the crude oil if the rigs are still functioning after all this time.”
“And what if they’re not functioning? This might all be a moot point,” I said. At that moment, Karl turned and caught my eye. I was suddenly reminded how Grey could hear better than most people because of the E-Vitamin he’d taken for so long. Karl would be the same way. He’d heard us talking about him. But I didn’t care, and I didn’t deflect my eyes.
Karl ended his conversation with Diego and walked over to us. Shad instantly stood, meeting him with his head held high and shoulders back
.
“What do you want?” Shad said in a voice I’d never heard from him before. It was almost frightening. But he didn’t scare Karl.
“I was hoping for a word with Miss Winters here,” he said looking down at me. “In private?”
“I don’t think so,” Shad said, taking a step in front of me, putting himself between Karl and me. Karl’s eyes narrowed.
“How’s the lovely young Connie? I heard she’s expecting. Congratulations.” Karl’s voice sounded sincere, but the meaning landed hard with all of us.
Lightning fast, Shad slugged Karl right on the jaw, knocking him back three steps.
Everyone in the camp reacted. I jumped to my feet as Karl raised both of his hands in a “calm down” gesture and backed away.
“What’s going on over here?” Diego said. Karl moved his hand away from his jaw, and I saw a small trail of blood from the corner of his mouth.
“Just a little misunderstanding. I was trying to apologize to Autumn, and the boy here got in the way. Think maybe he has a crush on the actress’ daughter is all. Trying to show off a little.”
Shad tightened his lips and moved forward to hit Karl again, but Diego interceded.
“That’s enough. I think it’s time for everyone to call it a night. Karl, you’re over here on the other side of the camp. Shad, Autumn, keep your distance. We don’t need to make this situation any worse.”
We were more than glad to stay as far away from Karl as possible.
Early the next morning, we set out for the oil rigs. The two small boats were just big enough for us all to sit down, with not much room for our gear. Diego and eight other volunteers crowded into the front boat. Shad and I, Karl, and seven others made up the last boat. Shad sat next to me on a bench seat. I wasn’t sure how Karl had talked himself onto our boat after the skirmish last night, but I wasn’t surprised either. I knew more than most how crafty he could be.
