“Man, where to start? I pretty much devoured whatever I could get my hands on. Nancy Drew was a big favorite of mine.”
“Nancy who? I’ve never heard of her.”
Haven smiled. “What about her guy friends, Frank and Joe Hardy? They had their own series of books. Mysteries. I actually think you would’ve loved them.”
He thought back, trying to recall if he’d heard those names before. “Were they superheroes or something?”
“Not exactly. But they solved a lot of crimes using this,” she explained, tapping the side of her head. “One of these days, I’ll try to find some for you.”
He nodded appreciatively. “Thanks. I’m getting tired of reading the same books anyways.” Shifting back and forth on his feet, he bit his lip and pensively stared at the floor. “I was just thinking...”
“What’s up, kiddo?” she prodded when he didn’t finish his sentence.
“Well...” He dusted around the crumbs on the floor with the tips of his shoes. “Do you know what day is coming up?”
Surprised he was keeping track of the days, she answered, “I wish I could tell you. But I lost track a long time ago. I’m sorry.”
Mark frowned a little, but didn’t lift his head. “That’s okay. It’s stupid to remember the days anyways. One day we’ll forget all of them.” His shoulders drooped, and he gave a heavy sigh.
Haven didn’t like seeing him upset, and it was one of the first times she’d heard him say anything pessimistic. She was almost going to ask him to elaborate, but the boy waved to her and started to walk away. “I have to get to class. See you later.”
After she said goodbye to him, she gathered her belongings and headed back to her room.
She was becoming antsier with each passing day, needing to do something other than sleep, eat, and read.
She wanted to hunt zombies.
But Vetta still hadn’t cleared her to do anything other than rest and recover, even when she pleaded with her that she felt fine. In response, Vetta agreed to give her the green light to join the others on runs if she could do a series of simple stretches to include reaching her arms over her head and bending over to touch her toes.
Much to Haven’s disappointment, she only proved the nurse’s point that she wasn’t ready when the exercises had her wincing in pain.
She nestled into her bed, flipping open Salem Falls for the second time. As her fingers hovered over the pages of the first chapter, she paused, her skin prickling as she reflected on what Cade had told her the night he attacked her.
What had he said before Kennedy and Johnny B. broke into the room to stop him? Something he wanted her to know, something he had done...
She should have visited him when he was locked up and forced him to finish what he’d started to tell her. But she had been too scared.
Now he was gone, and she would never find out.
The door opened and Houston walked in. “Hey, how are you feeling?”
“Fine.” She pulled the sheets away, eager to greet him.
He gently pressed her back into the bed. “You just need to rest up, and take it easy,” he said. His fingers went to her face, examining it tenderly. “Swelling is almost gone. Bruises, too.”
He turned away. Every time he saw her, he felt a surge of anger flood his senses. He wished he could have smashed Cade’s face in with a hammer. He’d fantasized about it more than once.
“I’m tired of doing nothing,” she protested. “I feel so useless sitting around like this.”
Someone knocked at the door, and Houston stood, moving protectively in front of Haven.
“Hey, it’s me,” Kennedy announced from the other side.
Houston’s shoulders visibly relaxed, and he unlocked the door. “Hey.”
Kennedy peered around him and nodded at Haven. “I’m not interrupting anything, am I?” When they shook their heads, she asked, “How are you doing today?”
“Good as new. I want to start going out again,” Haven answered determinedly.
Houston gave her a cynical side glance. “She says the same thing every day. She’s still not ready.”
Haven gaped at him. “Can we not talk about me like I’m not in the room?”
“I’ll be the first to admit you guys have upped our game since you joined us. But right now, you aren’t in any shape to come with us—you’d just slow us down,” Kennedy replied.
Haven narrowed her eyes at her. “Try me.”
“Haven,” Houston interrupted, “you’re not coming. End of story. You’re going to rest and get better. You think you’re getting cabin fever now? Imagine if you go out and hurt yourself worse. Then you won’t be able to do anything for a lot longer.”
Kennedy shifted her focus from Haven to Houston. “Now you, on the other hand, we need.”
He crossed his arms. “I’m not leaving her alone on here.”
Her jaw firmly set, Kennedy told him, “You had a good excuse when Cade was still on this train. But now that he’s gone, and your family is still here, you’re going to have to pull your weight. We don’t have many people who can fight rotters on the ground, hand-to-hand combat, and make it out alive. You and your crew are some of my stronger passengers, and I’ve decided you’ll be joining us on our next run. Brett can stay with Haven if that makes you feel any better.” When he seemed just as averse to it as he was before she continued, “Look, this isn’t up for negotiation. If you want your family to stay on my train, you will be going out with Team Alpha at oh-six-hundred tomorrow morning.” She strode to the door. “Rest up, Haven. We’re going to need both of you soon.”
Houston watched her leave and sighed when she closed the door, then sat on the edge of the bed beside Haven. When he did, she rested her head on his shoulder.
“Go. I’ll be fine,” she assured him.
“I don’t like it. She’s taking Johnny B., Colin, Grady, and Jackson. The guys most capable of defending the train while we are gone. What if something happens?”
She pressed her lips against his flannel shirt. “Then I’ll defend the train the best I can. I’m not a fragile butterfly, even though everyone seems to think so right now.”
“It isn’t about whether or not you can defend yourself. I’ve seen what you can do; you don’t have to prove anything. It comes down to what I should do, what I want to do, and it’s my duty to protect you.”
“I’m okay,” Haven insisted. “He caught me off guard. I made a mistake. I won’t make that same one again.”
He ran his hand over her back, but his eyes were dark and brooding at the mention of Cade.
“Hey, what day is it?” she inquired, remembering Mark’s question to her earlier.
Houston shrugged. “Another beautiful day in the apocalypse?” He glanced at her guiltily. “Is it bad I don’t even know?”
She smiled ruefully. “Don’t feel badly. We’re in the same boat.”
“Why, what’s up?”
“Mark asked me. He seemed disappointed when I didn’t know the answer.”
Houston stood and began gathering items to put into his backpack. “Maybe it’s his birthday. Who knows?” Shoving a couple of extra pairs of socks into the front pocket, he frowned. “I feel like birthdays and holidays will be a thing of the past now.”
Haven felt her heart sink, imagining Mark existing in such a world. Her gaze shifted to the window in their room. Snow was coming down steadily, the snowflakes sweeping past the window as the wind blew them along.
She thrummed her fingers against her leg contemplatively. Then her face fell. “Houston.”
He stopped packing and looked at her. “What is it?”
“I think I know why Mark was upset.”
He shook his head, confused. “Why?”
“Christmas.”
She groaned and put her face in her hands. Growing up, even without her parents, Christmas had always been so special. Her siblings looked forward to it months in advance, and not that long ago, she had been sitting in
a canoe with her sister and grandmother making plans for the holidays.
Now, the thought of celebrating Christmas seemed bleak and meaningless. Haven had lost her parents, her grandmother, her sister, and her dreams. She knew she should be grateful for what she did have, but how long would it be until one bite was the end for the rest of them, as well?
She looked up and took a deep breath. She couldn’t keep dwelling on the past, not only for her own sanity, but for that of Houston, Brett, and Mark.
She still had them.
Mark gave her hope, reminded her of everything good left in the world.
Haven wanted to do something special for him, for her family, and she knew just what it could be.
She watched Houston finish packing, her instincts telling her to discuss her idea with him. But given her injuries, there was no way he would be on board with it.
Instead, she waited for him to shower and started packing her own things for a separate mission.
Even though her heart pounded, her palms sweaty as she zipped up her pack, once Haven set her mind to something, even heaven and all its angels wouldn’t be able to stop her.
Early the next morning, Houston kissed Haven’s forehead as she slept and quietly left their cabin to meet Team Alpha in the dining car.
The train had been stopped for a couple of hours already, and he could hear footsteps above his head as Team Bravo paced back and forth, spearing any zombies that showed up.
When he got to the dining car, Kennedy, Johnny B., Grady, and Jackson were already strapping on their gear and checking their magazines and reserve ammunition. Colin was there, too.
Houston groaned. He didn’t feel like spending any quality time with the Scotsman.
“Morning,” Kennedy greeted him cheerfully. “Get your stuff together. Only a few rotters outside right now. We want to leave before any others have time to catch up.”
He gave her a small salute and walked to the counter where the train’s cook had prepared foil-wrapped rations for their trip. He took a handful and put them in his backpack, then filled his canteen with water from a bucket on the floor.
Ten minutes later, they were outside picking off the zombies that had wandered up to the train while Johnny B. went to get the fuel truck from where they hid it in the forest.
“It’s a little tight in the cab, but we’ll be picking up another vehicle on the way and can stretch our legs a little,” Kennedy explained as they waited.
Houston noticed a pack of zombies in the distance.
Kennedy whistled to the passengers standing guard atop the train and pointed. This morning, she’d scheduled Jeremy and Stewart Glass together for sentry duty. Now that Cade was gone, Stewart still had to do his fair share of work. He would never make it to Team Alpha given his constantly sullen attitude and poor survival skills, but it was slim pickings on the train for able-bodied folks, and Team Bravo needed more hands, especially when Kennedy and her men went on supply runs.
“I see ‘em,” Jeremy promised her.
“Just makin’ sure,” Kennedy answered and gave him a thumbs-up as Johnny B. pulled up alongside them. “Shouldn’t be more than two days. We might stay at Mitch’s tonight as there’s a snowstorm coming in.”
Jeremy nodded. “Don’t worry about us. We’ll take good care of the train. You guys be safe out there.”
“Ten-four,” she replied. She jumped in beside Johnny B., followed by Grady. Jackson opened the back door of the cab and stepped up.
“Hurry up; we ain’t got all day,” Johnny B. hollered.
Houston looked at Colin. “I’m not sitting in the middle.”
Colin scowled. “Well, neither am I. I’m taller than you anyways.”
Kennedy turned around in her seat, watching the two of them bicker over where to sit. She rolled her eyes. “Oh, for the love of God.” She placed both hands on the headrests and climbed into the back. “Honestly, you guys are like children fighting over the front seat. I’ll sit in the damned middle. Houston, get your ass up front.”
They pulled away from the train and headed down a dirt road near the tracks.
“We’ll be getting an SUV or pick-up along the way since our last one didn’t do so well. J.B. is an expert at hotwiring,” Kennedy told Houston.
Johnny B. chuckled. “Colin’s the back-up.”
Colin glowered at him from his seat.
“Half of us gets fuel, and the other half grabs a new ride to fill with supplies,” Kennedy said.
“Why not just put supplies in the fuel truck so you don’t have to get another vehicle?” Houston asked.
Johnny B. sneered at him. “Where in the hell are we going to put everything? On your lap?”
“Fair point,” Houston conceded.
“When we’re done getting what we can, we all meet at Mitch’s and usually stay there for the night since I don’t want our people unloading everything when it’s pitch-black outside,” Kennedy clarified.
“So we’ll be back tomorrow morning.” Houston watched the train disappear from his view, obscured by pine trees. Before Cade, he would have felt better knowing Haven was on the train, safer there than out on a supply run with them. He wondered if he’d made the right choice leaving her, but Kennedy had been clear; if he didn’t come with her team, they’d be forced to get off the train.
“If all goes as planned, should be back before noon.”
Houston nodded in acceptance.
Once they were on a main road, they drove several miles further before they hit a town called Stanley. Johnny B. pulled into a strip mall with a handful of shops.
“Is this where you usually get your vehicles?” Houston queried, looking around. There were maybe a dozen cars in the parking lot.
Colin scoffed at him. “Consider yourself lucky. The first time I went out with this crew, they insisted on getting a vehicle in a dark parking garage when there were plenty of perfectly good ones outside in broad daylight.” He turned to face Kennedy while still talking to Houston. “And guess who we ran into while we were down there?” She smiled sweetly at him. “A nice, luscious pack of flesh-eaters. It was just a grand old time,” he recounted with feigned enthusiasm.
Kennedy patted him on the leg. “And look at you; you made it out just fine.”
After they selected a black Ford Explorer, Johnny B. hopped in to begin hotwiring it. Grady and Jackson stood on either side of the SUV, eyes focused on their surroundings and guns ready.
Kennedy gestured to Colin and Houston. “Let’s do a little shopping, gentlemen.” She remembered that one of the newest passengers, the dead man’s daughter, was pregnant. “And keep your eyes open for baby formula. Once that baby comes, she’ll need it.”
The windows on most of the storefronts were shattered, obviously looted. There was a small supermarket, a laundromat, a pawn shop, a Dollar Tree, and a Subway.
She pointed to the minimarket. The thin metal gate over the front door had been yanked to the side, and the glass door itself was shattered.
Houston stepped over the threshold, his boots grinding against the glass on the floor. It seemed dark and empty. Broken bottles and rotting food littered the ground. But aside from that, there seemed to be no signs of anyone, living or dead.
“I don’t think we’re going to find much in here,” Colin whispered, opening a freezer door and pulling out a lone can of Red Bull from the very back. “Is this a good beer?” he asked them. “Because I could sure as hell use a drink.”
Bemused, Houston seized the can from him. “Have you been living under a rock? This isn’t beer; it’s an energy drink.”
Kennedy nodded toward him. “Let him try it. It’s cold enough outside I bet it’ll be good.”
Colin pulled the tab and took a sip. “Pretty good,” he admitted, wiping his mouth with the back of his hand.
“Red Bull ‘gives you wings,’” Kennedy told him.
“I won’t say no to that. Cheers.” He handed the can to her, and she tilted it back.
When she was done, she sighed. “Man, that tastes like heaven.” If she closed her eyes for even a moment, she could pretend she was back in Texas at her brother’s barbeque.
After they combed through the market and filled a few bags with canned goods and a case of Red Bull Colin found in a back room, they dropped the bags off at the SUV.
Johnny B. had gotten the vehicle working and was busy siphoning fuel from other cars in the lot while Grady and Jackson stood watch.
“Since he got it running,” Kennedy suggested to Grady, “why don’t you and Jackson head on to the fuel terminal? We’ll meet y’all at Mitch’s after we’re finished checking out Stanley.”
“Roger that.” Grady waved Jackson back to the fuel truck. “Be safe out there.”
“You, too.” She tapped the door of the truck after Grady got in and started up the engine.
Colin and Houston waited for her, then the three of them went to the laundromat and emptied the single vending machine by smashing the glass and pulling out the few snacks and sodas within.
When they got to the pawn shop, they were disappointed to find that nearly all of the guns had been taken. Looters had also stolen jewelry, shattered glass from the display cases all over the store. Houston rested his hands on the edges of the broken cases and searched what was left.
They heard gunfire from the parking lot, and Kennedy took a quick peek outside. “Let’s get going; we’re drawing a crowd.”
Houston was out last, pausing to look at something that caught his eye on the floor behind the cash register.
“Hurry up, man,” Colin called to him.
“I’ll meet you out there,” Houston replied. He leaned down to grab the item he’d found and then dashed out the door.
Don’t worry. I’ll be back before we leave tomorrow. Just need to do something first. I love you.
Haven sat back to read the note she’d written to her brother once more, her fingers lingering on the paper. Her breath quickened, almost to the point of hyperventilation, and her mind filled with crippling doubt and trepidation.
The Good, The Dead & The Lawless (Book 2): The Hell That Follows Page 23
