“Well, good luck,” Molly says. “I hope you guys succeed. If you do and you ever feel like looking us up, we’ll be here. Evan and Mary offered to let us stay as long as we’re willing to start working in a few days.”
“That’s great. I’m happy for you guys. Mary’s got a bit of a temper, so just make sure you follow any orders as best as you can. But she’s a good person. Evan, too.”
“You know, they also offered to let that girl with you stay here, too. Hannah? She said no, though. I’m not sure why.”
“I don’t know if I’d wanna stay in the place where my only friend died,” I say. “It would probably be too much for her to handle. She’s in kind of a delicate state right now. Side effect of coming back after being a zombie.”
“Any other side effects?”
“Perhaps one or two.” I don’t want to go into any detail about the possibility of PTSD or problems with extreme aggression. They need hope right now, not uncertainty. “But regardless of any potential side effects, this will be a good thing. Some people will get their loved ones back; some people will get a chance to start over.”
“Sounds too good to be true. How many other people know about this cure?”
“Just our group for now. We told another few people about the possibility of a cure, but you’re the only ones that know we actually have it right now. Just keep that in mind over the next few days. We’re going to change things for the better.”
“I hope so.”
We sit together in silence for awhile. Before I know it, the entire day is gone, as if it were nothing more than a blur. I’m not even sure what I did all day to pass the time, but soon its dark out and we’re all gathering around the dining room table for dinner. Mary has steaks out of the cooler for everyone, along with a vegetable mix that’s been grilled with olive oil, salt, and pepper, and a bowl of instant mashed potatoes and gravy. It’s amazing what she’s capable of making with their resources, and I’m really going to miss this food when we leave tomorrow.
Dinner isn’t nearly as subdued as breakfast and lunch earlier. Anders and I talk more about his interest in psychiatry while we eat, and I feel myself really warming up to him. After a little while, the conversation turns to me and Anders begins to ask me all kinds of questions. He wants to know who I lost and if I still have anyone. I tell him about my parents being taken from me, but that I still have Madison, and he’s surprised to find that we’re related to one another.
Then he asks me about Ryder, and how our group came to be. I settle into my chair, trying to get comfortable before I launch into this crazy story that starts out with a rooftop shootout and ends with us here on this farm. I tell him all about my apartment and meeting Ryder and Reese, deciding to try for some place safer and more isolated, meeting Tobe, the journey and nearly dying more than once, but being saved by Ryder just about every time. I choke up when I talk about meeting Naomi and losing Tobe, and Anders doesn’t rush the story.
While I talk about our cabin in the woods and finding Madison and her groups after their helicopter went down, I realize that everyone around the table is listening to me tell our story with rapt attention, as if they’ve never heard anything more fascinating in their lives. I glance at Ryder and he nods encouragingly, urging me to finish the rest of the story and get the truth out in the open. So I do. I tell everyone about our search for the cure, finding Dr. Richards hiding out in Montana to work in peace, and losing Naomi during the perfecting of the cure. Then Dr. Richards committing suicide after passing the cure off to us with further instructions, and our impending trip to Chicago to rest, before our journey into Detroit.
When I’m finished, the entire table is silent, but they’re staring at me in amazement, like I’ve just given birth to a two-headed hippo right here at dinner. I try not to squirm under their stares, but it’s hard when you suddenly become the center of attention. Anders is the first one to break the silence, and he whistles appreciatively. “You guys have been to hell and back. It’s really incredible what you’ve survived together.”
“And that’s just the parts I was there for,” I say with a smile. “Madison and her group have a story all their own about how they came to be with us. But you’re right. We’ve been through a lot, and hopefully it will all pay off soon. We can settle down somewhere and have a semi-normal life together, free from the dangers currently out there.” I look at Anders. “If it all goes as planned, there will be a lot of people out there that will require counseling of some sort. You might have a career after all.”
He smiles back at me, clearly liking the idea of putting his learning to good use. “I’d love to help as many people as possible. If everyone goes back to the way they were, they’ll need a place to stay, and there’s lots of farmland around here to accommodate them. We could form our own farming community, where everyone works and everyone has enough food and supplies to get by. You’re right; I could counsel anybody struggling to adjust and help them cope. Evan could teach them how to farm, and we’d have all the help around here we’d need to really make this place thrive.”
“Just remember that not all people are good,” Reese says. “When these people come back, there’s a chance some of them might be prone to violent outbursts. The first person reanimated had a mental breakdown after realizing he killed his husband. He even attacked Dr. Richards and could have killed him if we hadn’t been there, then ultimately took his own life because he couldn’t face the horrors.”
“Well, those will just have to be the first people I help,” Anders says determinedly. “I’ll have to start really buckling down to study in my spare time if I’m gonna be of any help to these people.” He looks at Evan, his eyes bright and open. “Next time we run into town for something, I’m gonna have to stop at the library and see what else they have on psychiatry. Nothing will be as good as going to school and learning from an instructor, but I’ll still be better than nothing.”
Evan nods. “We can do that if you want. I think it’s a great idea. We should start stocking up on more supplies in bulk for when these people come. More seeds, more animal feed, more cans for Mary’s canner, and anything else we can think of.”
“Clothes,” Madison says immediately. “These people have been wandering for months, and might not remember much about their past life, like how to get home. They’ll have the clothes on their backs and nothing more—if they even have that. They’ll need coats and boots and other winter stuff, work clothes if you expect them to pitch in eventually. Probably not a bad idea to start stocking up on cots or sleeping bags and bedding, either. They’re going to need a safe place to stay. You can put several people in a room to start, but they’re gonna need their own bedding.”
Evan nods. “I’ll start a list and add to it as we go along. But that’s a good idea. There’s a Goodwill in a nearby town, along with a couple of smaller thrift shops in the area. We’ll find some good clothes and anything else we’ll need.”
“How many people do you think will survive the change back to human?” Molly asks. “If anyone with severe life-threatening wounds just turns around and dies again, that’ll be a lot of dead bodies to deal with. Do you think we’ll have more survivors, or more dead bodies?”
“Dead bodies,” Reese says. “A lot of these guys have been decomposing for too long and there won’t be many of them left that are healthy enough to turn back. But for any of the newer ones, or any of them that just have a bite or two, we’ll be able to save them. That’ll be enough. Even if only say ten percent of the population came back, that’s still a large chunk of people to rebuild society, and that’s ninety percent of the population that aren’t ravenous flesh-eating freaks anymore. It’ll be sad to see so many people come back only to die again, but for those that survive, they’ll all be safer. Us, too.”
“Unless a majority of the people that come back are super aggressive and start slaughtering people,” Molly points out.
Reese shrugs. “It’s a chance we’ll have to take. The worl
d won’t last forever the way it is. Eventually the last person will be infected, and that’ll be the end of the human race. We have to think about what’s best for humanity as a whole, and spreading this cure is it.”
“Wow, Reese. It really sounds like you’ve come around on this whole cure thing,” Madison says.
“I was never opposed to a cure,” he defends. “I was opposed to traveling across the country on a whim, without knowing whether or not the cure even existed. I was wrong, and I’ll admit that. Now that we have the cure, spreading it is what’s best. But I still stand by my earlier reservations. Leaving that cabin was the wrong thing to do based on the information we had at the time. Sorry if you don’t agree.”
She shrugs back. “Like you just said, it was a chance we had to take. For the greater good.”
“So are you guys set on leaving tomorrow?” Evan asks, looking to Ryder for his answer.
“Yes. We wanted to take an extra day, but we really do need to get going. We have a long way to go and the sooner we get there, the better.”
“I’ll have some supplies to send with you,” Evan says. “You guys won’t have to worry about surviving off your canned goods. I’m sure they don’t provide the kind of energy you need to keep going in such dangerous conditions.”
“Evan, that’s very generous of you, but you don’t have to—”
“I know, but I want to. We have more than enough to spare a little here or there. Don’t you worry about taking from us.”
“If you’re planning on leaving in the morning, you make sure you turn in early and get a good night of sleep. You need to be well rested if you’re going on such a dangerous trip,” Mary says. “I’ll have a hearty breakfast ready for ya’ll before you leave.”
“Thank you, for everything,” Ryder says. “We really appreciate it.”
*****
In the morning, after a large breakfast of eggs, toast with homemade jam, and dried fruit and milk, we start packing our supplies back into the vehicles. While I’m loading up the last of our ammunition, Madison approaches me. Her face is so pale the dark circles under her eyes look more like bruises from a boxing champion. “I think we should stay with our own groups for today,” she says quietly. “I want to be with Todd and Aaron. I hope you don’t mind.”
“Of course not. I’ll let Ryder know. Do you wanna take Hannah, or do you want us to handle her for today?”
“You should take her, if that’s okay with you. I just think our group should be alone for right now. It’s a pretty even break down, with me and Aaron in a group with Todd, and Ryder and Reese with you two. We’ll be alright split up like that if anything bad happens.”
I nod. “You’re right. We’ll all be fine.”
She puts a hand on my shoulder and squeezes. “Thank you for understanding.”
“Of course.”
She leaves to head back inside, and I head over to where Ryder, Reese, and Aaron are leaning over a map spread out over the hood of the jeep. They’re pouring over it, looking for the easiest route to get us where we need to go. We’re hoping to meet up with this community in Chicago that Dr. Richards briefly mentioned, but Chicago is most likely going to be just as dangerous as Detroit, and it won’t be easy. But if we can find another safe place to rest before making the last stretch of the journey, it’ll be worth the risk.
I clear my throat and all three of them look up at me, their hands still spread out across different sections of the map. “Madison just asked me if we could stay with our own groups today, for a little more healing time. I told her I thought that would be fine. We’ll be evenly protected that way and we can all be with our closest friends.” I look at Ryder. “I also told her we’d take Hannah. I hope that’s okay.”
He nods. “It is. It’ll be good for us to be together, too. I miss having the two of you with me at all times. Plus it’ll be easy for us to keep an eye on Hannah. You guys have too much on your minds right now,” he says to Aaron. “You might miss something. No offense.”
“None taken,” Aaron says, brushing it off with a slight wave of his hand. “We’re in no condition to be babysitting today and we know it. Hopefully a day of peace together will get us back together. It was smart of Madison to think of splitting our groups up this way, at least for now.”
“So Molly and Alyssa are definitely staying?” Reese asks. When I nod, he continues. “Good. Not that we couldn’t have provided for them, but I’m glad we don’t have anymore strangers to introduce to the group. I like us being closely knit and trustworthy.”
“So what supplies did Evan give us?” I ask. “Is it already loaded in the vehicles?”
Ryder nods, returning his attention back to the map in front of him. “He gave us two very large Ziploc freezer bags of homemade beef jerky, along with a bag of their dried fruit. Apple rings, I think. Todd already put one bag in each truck just in case something does happen, but I think he kept the fruit rings with you guys.”
“We won’t eat them all,” Aaron says with a tiny smile.
“So, what’s the plan?” I ask.
“Well, nothing really for today. Most likely this drive to Chicago is gonna take at least fifteen hours, probably much longer depending on how the roads are. I expect the closer we get to larger cities, the more abandoned vehicles will be littering the road, making it harder to get through. Also, the elements are fighting against us, and there are no snowplows or salt trucks to keep them clear and drivable. We might have to sacrifice some speed for safety.”
“So we’ll be driving all day, stopping somewhere for the night, and then continue driving for half the day tomorrow?”
“Most likely,” Reese says. “Possibly longer. It depends on if the Chicago area is getting as much snow as we are here. Hard to tell without the weather channel, as inaccurate as they can be.”
“Fortunately I think the drive itself will be pretty uneventful today. Not much between here and Chicago but open roads and some pretty sparsely populated areas. But as we get closer to Chicago, that’ll probably change. I can’t believe one of the last possible strongholds is surviving in an area like that. You’d think it’d be somewhere high in the mountains or in a place like this,” Aaron says.
“True, but maybe being in such a populated area works to their advantage,” Ryder says. “An area like that will have all kinds of shops and supplies. I imagine it’s a nightmare getting around town with so many abandoned vehicles, but if they can get past that, I’m sure there’s nothing they can’t find.”
“But how do you think they manage the massive zombie population?” I ask. “Even with all the guns and supplies in the world, eventually I’d think they’d be overrun.”
Ryder shrugs. “I guess we’ll find out when we get there.” He glances up at Aaron. “Is something on your mind?”
“Huh? Oh, I was just thinking. A man that helped our group while we were still in New York said they were trying for a safe haven in Chicago. If they actually made it, we might have an in with the other survivors. Might make getting help easier.”
“That’s good to know. I hope this friend of yours remembers you guys. What’s his name?”
“Allen. He took in some of the other survivors from the school after it burned, and he gave us some supplies while we were down on our luck. We met up again later, and he helped us get to the helicopter we used to get as far as we did. We owe him a lot.”
“Alright. When we get there, I’ll let you do the talking, and you can see if your friend made it. Maybe you can talk our way in.”
“I’ll do my best,” Aaron says. “If we’re all set, we should probably get out of here soon. We’re just wasting daylight standing around like this.”
“Get the others while I go thank Evan and Mary for their hospitality one more time. We’ll be out of here in the next ten minutes. Sooner, hopefully.” Ryder takes off to track down our gracious hosts, while Aaron leaves to round up everyone that’s coming with us. Unsure of what to do, I look around to see if anythin
g still needs to be packed away, and I spot Anders hanging around on the porch, watching us bustle around.
I head over and he smiles. “Taking off so soon?”
“Yeah. There’s no point in hanging around any longer. We’re rested, we’ve got more supplies thanks to you guys, and we’ve got a mission to complete,” I say with a smile. “Why? You gonna miss us?”
He shrugs. “Maybe. You guys are definitely an interesting group. If you’re ever in the area again, stop in and see how we’re doing. Or if you ever need a psychiatrist, I’ll give you guys my time for free,” he jokes.
I chuckle. “I’ll remember that.”
He offers me his hand, and I take it, gripping him tightly. “I hope you guys succeed, and I wish you all the best, Sam. Take care of one another while you’re on the open road. It’s gonna be dangerous out there, but you already know that.”
“I do, and we will. We always watch out for one another as best as we can. It’s what a family does. Good luck to you guys out here. I hope you get to help a lot of people in the future.”
“I’ll do my best.”
I head back for the jeep. Hannah and Reese are already waiting to leave, and the others are starting to pile into the truck. Unlike before, where we had all of our ammunition, food, water and gas in one vehicle or the other, we’ve got it all split up pretty evenly now, in the event that we get separated. This way, neither vehicle will be stuck without food, water, and some kind of ammunition. We all have a decent chance of surviving.
All too soon, it’s time for all of us to pile into our vehicles and get back on the road. I watch Evan’s farm disappear from the rearview mirror, wishing that we could come back someday. I don’t know for sure what our plans our after we spread the cure—if we’ll try to make our way back to the cabin or just find a place in Detroit to settle at—but this would be a nice place to return to. We could help Evan and Anders set up their farming community.
Ryder and Reese sit together up front so Reese can help navigate. I’m not the best with actual paper maps and relied far too much on the GPS on my phone in the past, so I sit in the back with Hannah. She stares out the window at the scenery as we pass it all by, and I wonder if I should engage her in some conversation or just let her mourn in peace and quiet. I know I’d probably want some alone time at first, but I’m not sure if that’s what Hannah needs. Daisy was really the only one to make an effort to get to know her and be her friend, and with her gone, Hannah might feel like nobody else cares.
Zombie World (Zombie Apocalypse #3) Page 36
