“We have two apples left,” Jessica said. “After all our hard work this morning, let’s celebrate by having those.” She turned to Kayla. “Will you slice them up?”
Excitement filled her eyes. “Sure.”
It made Jessica sad that the opportunity to eat an apple would bring her daughter so much joy. Before, Kayla probably would have said she didn’t want it—she hadn’t been the best about eating produce. It was too bad that it had taken something so drastic to make her children appreciate the things they used to take for granted.
Jessica worked on making sandwiches, using half of their remaining loaf of bread. What would they do once that was gone? Would she be able to get her hands on enough yeast and other ingredients to make her own? She’d never made her own bread before. Would she be able to figure out how to do it?
“Ow!” Kayla screamed from where she was working.
Jessica turned to see blood dripping from one of Kayla’s fingers. “Oh no.” She grabbed the first aid kit they’d stashed in one of the kitchen cabinets. After pulling out a gauze pad, she wrapped it around Kayla’s finger. “How bad do you think it is?”
Kayla grimaced. “I don’t know, but it really hurts.”
She put gentle pressure on the cut.
“What happened?” Matt asked as he joined them in the kitchen.
“Kayla cut her finger.”
“Let me take a look,” he said.
Kayla held out her hand and he carefully unwrapped the gauze.
“Looks pretty deep,” Matt said. He looked at Jessica. “She might need stitches.”
Kayla frowned. “Are the hospitals open?”
As far as Jessica knew, they were closed. She looked at Matt.
“I don’t know,” Matt said, “but Dr. Larsen should be able to take care of it.”
Jessica looked at Matt sharply. At the meeting the day before, the people running the neighborhood cooperative had made it clear that only members of the cooperative could go to Dr. Larsen.
“Maybe we should check the hospital first,” Jessica said. She didn’t want trouble with the cooperative.
Matt turned to her, his eyebrows furrowed. “If it’s open it’ll be filled with people who are infected with the virus.”
She hadn’t thought of that, but of course he was right. They couldn’t risk it. Not over a cut finger. “Okay. Can we go see Dr. Larsen now?”
Concern flashed across Matt’s face, but he nodded. “Yeah.” He wrapped the gauze back around Kayla’s finger.
“Look at all that blood,” Dylan said with obvious fascination.
Frowning, Jessica shooed him away. “Dad and I are going to get this taken care of. You and Brooke stay here.”
“Okay,” Dylan said.
Brooke nodded, then she smiled, “I’ll keep him in line.”
“Good luck with that,” Kayla said with a grin.
Jessica walked with Matt and Kayla to the front door. “Are we driving?” she asked.
“Yeah. Dr. Larsen lives a few streets over.”
As they drove to Dr. Larsen’s house, Jessica worried about her agreeing to treat Kayla. She was a doctor, but when she found out they didn’t belong to the cooperative, would she refuse?
A few moments later they arrived. A sign on Dr. Larsen’s front door said she was open to patients and to come right in. The welcoming sign made Jessica feel better, and as she opened the door and crossed the threshold, she felt herself relaxing.
“Knock, knock,” Jessica called out when she didn’t see anyone.
“I’m back here,” a female voice called out. “Come on back.”
Jessica led the way to the family room at the back of the house where she saw Dr. Larsen wearing jeans and t-shirt. It wasn’t the typical doctor’s attire, but these weren’t typical times.
"Hello,” Jessica said. “Our daughter Kayla cut her finger.” She motioned to Kayla, who looked a little pale.
Concern flitted across Dr. Larsen’s face. “Oh no. Let me take a look.” She led Kayla to a chair, and once she was seated, Dr. Larsen turned to Jessica and Matt. “What are your names?”
“Matt and Jessica,” Matt said.
Dr. Larsen nodded, then said, “Would you please sign the register?” She pointed toward a binder lying open on the kitchen counter, then she turned her attention to Kayla.
While Dr. Larsen examined Kayla’s finger, Jessica followed Matt to the binder. He picked up the pen, and without speaking, he pointed to the column headings. They read Name, Address, Co-op Member #. Then, with the pen resting on the last column heading, he looked at Jessica with raised eyebrows.
She bit her lip. They didn’t have a member number. Was that going to be an issue?
Matt gently set the pen down and turned away from the register. Jessica’s heart pounded. It felt like they were at the hospital with no insurance.
They stood with their backs to the binder and watched as Dr. Larsen cleaned the cut and expertly stitched it up. When she was done, she wrapped the finger in a fresh gauze bandage and smiled. Then she handed a bottle to Kayla. “These are antibiotics to prevent infection. Take two per day until they’re gone.”
“Thank you so much,” Jessica said.
“Yes,” Kayla said. “Thank you.”
Before Dr. Larsen had a chance to look at the register and discover they hadn’t filled it out, Jessica and Matt hurried Kayla out the door.
Chapter 34
Matt
As they drove home, Matt felt a little bit like a thief. He’d taken medical services from Dr. Larsen without giving her anything in return.
“Maybe we ought to bring Dr. Larsen some food or something,” he said.
Jessica bit her lip. “What about giving her one of our first aid kits? We have several.”
“Good idea.”
After dropping Jessica and Kayla off and grabbing one of the small first aid kits, Matt drove back to Dr. Larsen’s house, then walked inside. “Dr. Larsen?”
“I’m back here,” she said.
With the first aid kit in hand, he walked into the family room. When she saw him, she frowned. “You didn’t fill out the register earlier.”
Maybe coming back had been a mistake. “Uh, yeah. We, uh, we don’t belong to the cooperative.” He held out the first aid kit. “But I brought this as payment.”
She looked at the first aid kit a moment before taking it from him. “Thank you. I can always use more medical supplies.” She set it on the counter, then turned back to face him. “However, I will have to report this to the cooperative.”
Well, crap. “Can’t you just, you know, let it slide? This once?”
She smiled sadly. “I wish I could, but if they found out, it would be a problem for me.”
An image of Tony with his skull bashed in filled Matt’s mind. Had the cooperative threatened Dr. Larsen?
Knowing he couldn’t stop her from telling them he’d been there, he softly sighed and shook his head, then he turned and left.
As he drove home it occurred to him that all Dr. Larsen knew about them were their first names. For all he knew, she wouldn’t remember those and their family would manage to fly under the co-op’s radar.
Just to be safe, when he got home, he told Jessica and the kids his concern, instructing them to lay low. Then he closed all the blinds. He wanted to be able to see any visitors before they saw him.
That afternoon a loud knock sounded at the front door. Cleo barked wildly.
“Do you think it’s them?” Jessica whispered, wide-eyed, as they stood frozen in the living room.
Matt didn’t know, but he feared that it was. “Let me see what I can see.” He went to the blinds covering the front window and lifted a slat slightly, peering out. Russ and Eric stood on the walkway in front of his door. He didn’t see Chris, the head of security. Not sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing, he debated whether or not to open the door.
Dropping the slat back into place, he turned to Jessica, then looked at the kid
s, who had joined them in the living room. His gaze went to Kayla. Her finger was wrapped in gauze and was on its way to healing, thanks to Dr. Larsen. Maybe he could make a deal with the cooperative rather than join it.
“Let me handle this,” he said. He glanced at Cleo. “Come, girl.” He put on a face mask before going to the front door and pulling it open, letting Cleo stand beside him. He held her collar, but when she growled at the men, he didn’t correct her. “Good afternoon.” Neither man smiled, but Matt noticed them glancing at Cleo with nervous looks. Good. “What can I help you with?”
Russ focused on Matt. “We understand your family utilized Dr. Larsen’s medical services. Is that correct?”
Should he deny it? He was certain these guys already knew the answer. Besides, if they saw the gauze bandage on Kayla’s finger, they would know that they had.
Lifting his chin in defiance, Matt nodded once. “Yes.”
Russ clenched his jaw and Eric’s eyebrows rose like they were surprised he’d admitted it. Had they expected him to deny it?
Cleo seemed to calm, sitting beside Matt. He released her collar. If she lunged at the men, he wouldn’t stop her.
“As you’re aware,” Russ said with a quick glance at Cleo, “only members of the neighborhood cooperative are allowed to go to Dr. Larsen.”
The way he said it, like he was in charge of everything in the neighborhood, rubbed Matt the wrong way. Especially when there weren’t other options for medical care. What was he supposed to do? Put a band-aid on a deep cut and hope his daughter didn’t get an infection that could lead to her losing her finger, her hand, or even her life?
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became.
Forcing himself to remain calm, he said, “I disagree.”
Now Russ’s eyebrows shot up. “You disagree? With what? The rule is the rule.”
Normally Matt avoided confrontations, but this was ridiculous. It was time to tell these guys what was on his mind. Heart pounding, he said, “You may think you’re in charge, but it’s an illusion. No one’s in charge anymore.”
“Wrong,” Russ said, his tone showing his absolute certainty, which just riled Matt up all the more. “We made a deal with Dr. Larsen.”
“I already paid her,” Matt said.
Russ laughed. “Yeah. She showed us that pitiful first aid kit.”
It wasn’t the biggest first aid kit, but Dr. Larsen had only spent about twenty minutes on Kayla. In this world, the payment had seemed generous.
“Since you used the co-op’s medical services,” Russ went on, “you’re required to either join or make a payment we determine.”
Even though it irked him, Matt wanted to try to resolve this amicably. “What payment do you have in mind?”
Russ tilted his head. “That depends.”
Unease growing, Matt asked, “On what?”
“On what you have.”
He narrowed his eyes. “What do you mean?”
“Eric and I will take a look at your supplies and determine payment.”
Matt’s hackles rose. “No.”
Cleo must have felt the tension, because she growled deep in her throat. Matt didn’t do a thing about it.
Russ glanced at Cleo before meeting Matt’s eyes, then he crossed his arms and lifted his chin. “I think you’re misunderstanding us, Matt. You’ve already used the services. Now payment must be rendered.”
Matt didn’t want to have to get ugly, so he would give it one last try. “Fine. Let’s negotiate a price.”
Russ shook his head and frowned. “That’s not how this works.”
Okay. He’d had enough. He was done trying to be reasonable. Gritting his teeth, he glared at Russ. “Get the hell off my property.”
Cleo barked, but even so, neither Russ nor Eric moved.
With adrenaline surging, Matt reached into his waist holster, grabbed his .45, and drew down on the men. “Now.” His voice was deadly calm.
Both men raised their hands like they didn’t want any trouble and began backing up. “You want to do this the hard way? Fine.”
Matt kept his gun pointed at them while Cleo barked in her deep, threatening voice. Once the men were out of sight, he holstered his .45 before closing and locking the door.
Shaking slightly as the adrenaline seeped away, Matt turned to his family, who all looked terrified.
Chapter 35
Jessica
Were those men for real? Had they really thought Matt would allow them to waltz in to their house and let them rummage through their things? She hated that he’d had to point his gun at them to make them leave, and now she was terrified that they would be back. Maybe they wouldn’t. But she knew that was a false hope. Of course they’d be back. They weren’t going to let Matt’s defiance stand. If they did, it would topple their entire operation. Why would people go along with them taking their stuff if they found out the Bronson family had gotten medical care without joining the cooperative?
Jessica looked at her children. Brooke—who she now considered one of her own—knelt on the floor with her eyes on Cleo, then opened her arms. Cleo raced to her. Kayla had a deep V between her eyes and Dylan looked like he couldn’t decide if he was scared or excited about what was happening.
“It’s all my fault,” Kayla said.
“No,” Matt said as he went to her side. “It was bound to happen sooner or later.”
“Yeah, but because I cut my finger,” she held it up to emphasize her point, “it happened sooner.”
Jessica joined her and Matt. “We’ll deal with it, sweetheart.”
A look of determination came over Kayla. “Yes.” She looked at Brooke and Dylan. “All of us will. Together.”
Brooke looked scared, but Dylan nodded and said, “Count me in.”
That worried her more. She didn’t want her children caught in the middle of this. She turned to Matt, but he was looking at the windows. Without comment, he walked to the nearest one and grabbed the security bars, shaking them in an apparent attempt to make sure they were securely latched. He checked each window on the first floor before heading to the basement stairs.
Jessica followed him. “Maybe we should barricade all the doors.”
He turned to look at her, his expression saying he was glad she wasn’t under the illusion that they were safe. “Yeah.”
“Do you think we ought to hide some of our food? In case they, uh, they get in?”
He nodded. “That’s not a bad idea.”
With the kids’ help, they barricaded the front door and the sliding glass door as best they could. Next, they took all of the freeze-dried food, which were stored in buckets, and carried them out through the garage to the RV, stashing most of them under Matt and Jessica’s bed and some of them in the RV’s lower storage area. The last two buckets wouldn’t fit anywhere, so they took out the mylar envelopes and stashed them in various places within the RV.
“Now we just have to hope no one breaks into the RV,” Matt said with a frown. Jessica thought the same thing. With the RV behind their fence, hopefully that would deter thieves, but nothing was certain in this world.
When they were done, the five of them went into the house and barricaded the door to the garage, then put as many cases of canned food under their beds as they could fit, leaving a small amount in the pantry and just a few items in the basement storage room.
“Now, if they get in,” Matt said with a frown, “they’ll think we only have a little bit of food left.”
Jessica hoped he was right, but what if they did get in and didn’t believe that was all they had? What if they wanted to search the house?
The idea of strangers ransacking their house in search of food to steal made her furious. “Can I talk to you?” she said to Matt. “In our room?”
“Of course.”
The two of them went into their bedroom. Matt turned to her with a questioning look. “What’s up?”
“I was wondering if I should, you know, carry a gun.”
The idea actually scared her, but what if those men got in and things got out of hand?
Matt’s eyebrows shot up. “I think that’s a great idea. If you’re comfortable with it.”
Softly chuckling, she said, “I’m not super comfortable with it, but what if they get in?” Dread at the thought of those men becoming violent made her heart pound, “I need to be able to protect our children.”
Matt nodded. “I agree.” He went into the closet and took out a small case, setting it on their bed. He opened it, revealing a pistol. “This is a 9 millimeter.”
Jessica stared at the gun. With its matte black finish and solid barrel, it looked so deadly.
“Hold it like this when you rack it,” Matt said, demonstrating. “Right now it’s not loaded, but you should always treat a gun like it is.”
She smiled warmly. “I know. That’s what Derrick said at his class.”
He chuckled. “Well, he’s right.” He held the gun out to her.
Gingerly, she lifted it from his hand. She hefted the weight of it, then she gripped it in her left hand and tried to rack it with her right. It wasn’t as easy as Matt made it look—she wasn’t nearly as strong as he was. Struggling to rack it, she kept working at it until she felt comfortable. Then she sighted it, pointing it in a safe direction, before turning to Matt. “Where should I keep it?”
“Somewhere you can access it quickly but where it’s out of sight.” He frowned. “You wouldn’t want the bad guys to grab it first.”
An image of the gun getting into the wrong hands filled her mind. “I also don’t want the kids to mess with it.”
Matt frowned.
Was he worried about the kids getting their hands on the gun, or, more likely, did he want them to have their own so they could help defend their home?
“Let me show you how to load it,” he said.
Closely watching how he did it, then trying it herself, Jessica found herself becoming more comfortable with handling the gun. Shooting someone was something else entirely, but at least she would know how to use the gun.
Pandemic: The Beginning (Pandemic Book One) Page 14
