by Mark Tufo
“Wait, so you want me to present your idea?”
“It’s kind of out there, so it will have more validity coming from you,” he said.
“I realize that’s one of those backhanded compliments.”
“Backhanded? I was going for full-on slap.”
“Just get on with it.”
“The people at Etna, most of them don’t deserve what’s coming.”
“No shit, BT. Probably why I won’t be able to sleep for a week and why everything I eat tends to lodge in my throat.”
“What if I told you I think I have a way around this.”
“I’d say talk faster so that if it’s any good, I’ll be able to eat this gruel while it’s still warm.”
“I’ve been talking to Walde and Reed. That behemoth sitting out in the bay has the capability to tap into Deneaux’s satellite.” BT paused as if I was going to be able to figure out where he was going with this.
“I graduated high school number two-twenty out of two-seventy-three.” I hoped that he could figure out where I was going with that.
“We can lock her out from gaining access, and we’ll be able to monitor her.”
“Great. I’d like to look at Etna as a glass-shattered parking lot from time to time, nothing like a constant reminder to all the atrocities performed.”
“I wonder if all the crayons you ate were laced with lead. We flush Deneaux.”
“Go on.” I sat up.
“By now, she knows her bomb failed. No matter how savvy and cool minded she is, she has to realize you’re going to make her pay for this. Shhh,” he said as my mouth opened. “Let me finish.”
“You tell him yet?” Tommy sat down next to me, eating what looked like a pop-tart but smelled like something found at low tide in Jersey during a mob convention. I pushed my food away and scooted to the far edge of the bench when I caught a whiff.
“I’m about to.” Even BT had to turn his head slightly.
“It’s ingenious.” Tommy was smiling as pinkish meat oozed from the edge of the pastry.
“Hold up, BT. Tommy, some desire for self-flagellation compels me to ask what flavor that thing is.”
“You’re holding up my plan because of that?” BT asked.
“Dude, I can only handle one distasteful thing at a time and, as disgusting as I’m sure that thing is,” I was pointing at Tommy, who was happily munching away, “it’s leagues better than what we’re about to do.”
“Gefilte fish with durian fruit glaze.”
“Durian?” I asked.
“That’s that smelly fruit. Was wondering what that was. Figured Henry was nearby.” BT was looking for the big dog, who was, last I saw, taking up over half my bed. Snoring so loudly it was like he was bragging about being asleep. “Anyway.” BT shook his head. “I’m pretty sure we can make at least one thing much more palatable.”
“This thing is delicious; you should try it.” Tommy extended his arm.
“I will disown you if you get any closer,” I told him.
“Can we get back to Deneaux?” BT asked.
“Go for it, man. I don’t know why you digressed,” I told him.
“Ass. Okay, so, besides trying to kill you, what is Deneaux’s favorite pastime?”
“BT.” I was done with fifty questions.
“Sorry. It’s preserving herself, plain and simple.”
“Above all else,” Tommy chimed in.
“What if there’s a way to flush her?”
“Get her out of Etna?” I asked.
“Exactly. We’ll have the satellite, so we’ll know where she’s off to.”
“Keep going,” I prompted.
“This is where you come in. You’re going to get her on the radio and tell her that you’re coming for her and you won’t stop until one of you is dead.”
It was starting to make sense. I could about hear audible clicks in my head as the pieces snapped in. “So, you want me to tell her we’re coming with a bomb? She won’t believe me. She’ll know that I won’t want to kill all those people—even if that is exactly what is going to happen…what has to happen.”
“You’re going to have to convince her.” Tommy was licking his fingers. My stomach tumbled like an athletic gymnast after downing three energy drinks and maybe taking a hit of crack to round it out.
“Let me know when we have control of the sat. I’m not going to Eastman until that’s done or he’ll never go for it. If he thinks she has even the remotest chance at escape, he’ll put me in chains before I can get anywhere near a radio. Now, if you two would be so kind as to leave me alone so I can get something in my stomach besides vodka, I would greatly appreciate it.” Much to my surprise, they did. I slept well that night; ended up on a couch as Henry was not relinquishing his spot, and I was fine with that because he must have found my discarded lunch from that afternoon and what he was expelling looked like a greenish-hued mist.
Tomorrow was drop-day. Eastman had sourced some fuel from fuck knows where. It was all I was going to be able to obsess over…cue Tracy to the rescue. She made sure our whole family, including all of the kids we were guardians of, were there for brunch. At first, I wanted nothing to do with it. When you’re despondent, you tend to want to stay in that particular mood, and it becomes a self-fulfilling condition. I’m sad, so I want to be alone, I’m alone, so I’m sad, perfect vicious circle. I’ll freely admit in my private journal that I was looking at the drawer where I kept my liquor, thinking that maybe I’d just grab it and escape before I was noticed.
“Hi, Papa T.” This was Angel’s new name for me. “Come on, momma T made eggs.” She grabbed my hand and led me to the table, good thing, too, because my head and eyes were still fixed on the drawer of temporary salvation. My squad was absent, which was somewhat strange.
“Just family this time,” Tracy said as she saw me looking at all the chairs filled with young people.
“What’s he doing here then?” I asked, pointing at BT.
“Love you, too!” He smiled as he ripped a chunk of bread off a large loaf.
That’s the thing about being around those you love and those that love you. It’s like a hardened steel chisel and mallet to the cement casing you have encased yourself in. Ten minutes after sitting down, I’d forgotten about the vodka and smiled, genuinely smiled—something that I felt like I hadn’t done in a while, except those forced ones I use to make it seem like I am all right. We stayed in that room for over an hour, the little ones running around like banshees. I got to sit and talk with my kids. Some was bittersweet remembrance, most just thankful that we were still together. It was when I noticed Walde sheepishly standing by the door that I realized that all one needed to do to see beyond the façade was to take two steps around the thin veneer.
“Sorry, sir,” she said as she came over to me. “We’ve got control of the satellite.”
“Do you know where Eastman is?” I asked.
“He’s about to head out to the airfield for a maintenance check. If you go now, you can catch him before he leaves.”
Tracy was watching the exchange, it’s a good thing the woman can’t throw daggers from her eyes.
“I have to go,” I told her as I stood. “I’ll be back soon.” And likely I would be, but the cast spell of happiness would have dissipated by then.
She didn’t say anything. I saw Lyndsey shake her head at BT when he said he was going too. He ended up staying; I always knew he was the smart one.
“Major Eastman.” I had to hail him down just as he was getting into his transport. “Got a minute?”
“Little busy, Captain. Can it wait?”
“Probably not.”
He looked at his watch. “Okay.” He stepped away from the vehicle and his driver.
“You’re sure about the satellite?” he asked after I laid the whole thing out for him.
“Reed is out there now, sir,” Walde said. “Says it’s his to do with as he pleases, and she cannot recapture it.”
“Interesting. And
you think you can force the Lemon Queen from her throne?” He was looking at me.
“I do. If she thinks I’m coming specifically for her, she’ll run.”
“Why? What could you possibly say to her that would lead her to believe you could succeed? Getting into Etna is most likely an impossibility.”
Where did I go with this? The truth wasn’t going to work.
“I don’t like the idea of giving up the element of surprise, and the moment you contact her, she’s going to know something is up,” he added.
“We’ll be able to follow her wherever she goes,” Walde said.
“Ever seen the Italian Job?” he asked both of us. Walde looked confused. I wasn’t.
“Yes, sir. It’s possible she could send out multiple helicopters in her escape attempt, each going in different directions.”
“We have one chance at this. We set sail after this mission is over; I need her to be dealt with.”
“At what cost, though?” I asked. “Don’t we at least owe those people inside a fighting chance?”
“Collateral damage has always been a part of war, Captain, and make no mistake, we are at war with Deneaux and thusly, Etna. Now I have to go.”
“Sir, most of those people, if given the chance, would have happily relocated with us. There are families, kids, pets.” I tried desperately.
“Captain….. Michael.” He softened. “You’ve seen the zombie horde surrounding Etna. Those people, God help them, are already dead. We’ll just be hastening their departure.”
“Major, you and I are always going to have fundamental differences on how we view war. I’m not saying what you do is easy, but it is vastly different, dropping ordinance from heights that don’t allow you to be witness to the event. As a ground pounder who has lived through the filth of personal conflict, I would rather go out on my own terms than from some anonymous god complex on high.”
I could see the decision tree growing in his mind, from the tough roots, where he was about to tell me he was a major and me, being a captain, would do whatever he told me to. To the softer leaves, knowing that just because you were some fourteen thousand feet high didn’t make it any less personal to the ones you were bombing. He was caught somewhere in between, maybe sliding down the trunk, like his balls were being sanded away from the rough bark.
“Fuck.” He broke. “One shot at removing her from her perch, Captain. If we lose this advantage, you will go and kill her, personally. Do I have your word on that?”
“I’ve never made a promise I haven’t tried to keep.”
He looked directly at me for a few seconds. “That’ll have to do.” He got into the truck and didn’t look again at me as he told the driver to get going.
“That went better than I thought it would,” Walde replied.
“Yeah? You’re not the one that promised to hang your ass out on a flagpole if this doesn’t work.”
“You seriously think we’d let you hang up there alone?”
“Naw, just like to complain. Suppose it’s time to have a chat with my arch nemesis.”
“Do you know what you’re going to say?”
“Not really. I’m better at off-the-cuff bullshitting than having anything scripted. I don’t want it to sound rehearsed. Walde, when you get Etna on the line, I’m going to want to do this alone.”
“Of course.”
“I mean, like, I want the room empty and no one else on the line.”
“Sir?”
“Deneaux and I have a history.”
“You didn’t….”
“What?” I asked, clearly confused. “Oh god, no! Ew!” I spouted when I figured out what she was talking about. “There’s things, umm, I’m not proud of that no one else needs to know, and it’s likely she’ll try to use that against me.”
“I understand, sir, but just so you know, there’s not one person here that hasn’t done things since the zombies came that they’re not proud of—even beforehand.”
“I appreciate that, Walde, I do, all the same.”
“I’ll make sure of it,” she replied.
Ten minutes later, I was in the headquarters. “Corporal Amells is getting her now,” Walde said as she handed off the microphone and went out, closing the door behind her.
“Thank you,” I told her.
“Michael,” Deneaux said so frostily I swear I could feel the handset freeze up.
“I bet you’re surprised to hear from me. I mean, but how could I not respond after you sent me such a warming gift?”
“Is there a reason for this call?”
“I’m coming for you, Vivian. Your violent death is now the sole mission of my existence. I will not stop until that is accomplished. Are my words coming across clearly? I want to make sure you can hear me.”
There was hesitation in her response. “If you but wait a few years, nature will take its course. And what are a few years to someone such as yourself?”
“We both know that’s not going to happen. Perhaps, if you had just let us go, let me go, you could have lived out your sorry life, finally in charge of your own castle. I wanted nothing more to do with you, Vivian. But I will not allow you another opportunity to harm those I love. I am going to make you suffer. It will be a long, drawn-out, painful affair, something that would have left streaks upon my soul once upon a time, but, well…now that’s not something I’m so concerned with.”
“What if I were to ensure you that I am done with this personal crusade?”
“First, I wouldn’t believe you. Even that you’re speaking it is strange; it’s kind of beneath you. And secondly, it is a natural survival instinct to sue for peace after emptying your entire magazine in my direction and come to realize you are out of ammunition. Of course you wish to facilitate a ceasefire; doesn’t mean you don’t intend to reload at a more convenient time. It’s not going to happen. I’ve been relieved over a few of the people I have had to kill, but I can’t say that I ever necessarily wanted to kill someone, that changes with you. Get your affairs in order, Vivian. I am coming for you and there is not one goddamned thing you can do to stop me.”
“Michael, wait.”
I shut the radio off.
“How’d that go?” Walde asked as I stepped outside.
“She’s going to run for the hills.”
“Do you think she’ll try that multiple escape thing the major was talking about?”
I looked up into the sky. “I don’t think so. Even if she does, we bomb one of the potential decoys and then I’ll parachute to the next. Like I told her, killing that woman is now my sole purpose in life.”
“The carrier sets sail in a few days.”
“I know,” I told her as I headed back home, hoping the brunch was over so I could stew in some fermented potato juice.
27
Mike Journal Entry 16
“Why are you going tomorrow?” Tracy asked as we were lying in bed. I didn’t realize she was still awake; I’d been staring up at the ceiling for over an hour.
“I have to see this through.”
“You could watch from the satellite link.”
“I could.”
“But you’re not.”
“But I’m not,” I repeated her words.
“Are you ever going to be able to come home?”
I knew what she meant; she wasn’t referring to this mission. My head was a scrambled mess. “I hope so,” I said softly before she rolled into me and placed her head on my chest. We stayed like that for a while. When her breathing became regular and I was certain she was asleep, I gently moved her to the side and exited the bed. I was not expecting Henry to be standing in the doorway, looking at me. I got down on bended knee and pet his head.
“Want a snack, big dog?”
I swore he replied with. “Don’t you?”
I grabbed him a fistful of beef jerky, and sat down on the floor with my back against a wall, Henry next to me, happily devouring every piece I gave him. “Did you lock Ben-Ben in a closet?�
�� It was unusual the little dog was not here; I swear he could smell meat encased in a lead-lined cooler. After we killed off the jerky, I found myself more and more distracted, to the point Henry would gently paw my leg to make me remember he was still there and that I should be paying the proper homage to him, which I diligently did each time. The sun was just sneaking into the window when we both finally closed our eyes.
28
Iggy
Iggy had moved to a different part of the base. He’d quickly learned that eating the humans dressed in the clothing they thought made them harder to see caused restlessness among the others dressed similarly. And they carried weapons. More than a couple of his prey had fired at him; one struck his thigh, the other his shoulder. Neither wound would kill him, but it had hurt, and he’d had enough pain inflicted on him in his life. He did not wish to add more to the ledger. He was now at the part of the base that stored the flying machinery. Not many of the soldiers came here and when they did, he made sure to avoid them, even when his stomach screamed at him to eat. Now he knew better and besides, this area was right next to the part of the human habitation that contained the non-soldiers, what Iggy signed as the forgotten. They were hungry, afraid, and, more importantly, unarmed. In other words, helpless prey, unable to fight back. He’d killed and eaten an entire family, then, from the safety of his makeshift home, he’d watched the next day to see how the humans would respond. When nothing happened, he knew he’d chosen his location wisely.
Time to eat, he signed. The sun was going down and he knew the humans could not see well in the dark. Their dwellings were not lit up; some had candles, but that did little to push back the darkness. If anything it was the beacon that attracted him. Candles meant humans and humans meant food. He quickly climbed up a fence and onto a low roof, the open window just large enough to allow him to pull himself in. He sniffed; he could smell two humans, though neither was in the room with him. He pushed the door open and looked, seeing a flickering light coming from another room down the small hallway. If you’re happy and you know it clap your hands! he signed excitedly before loudly smacking his palms together three times.
