by C C Roth
“I don’t know how long we have until they notice you’re gone. We have to move fast, got it?”
They nodded again, their eyes as big as the moon shining above us.
“Don’t make any noise and stay close.”
I peered around the corner, the building’s rough brick pressing up against my cheek. All clear. I led them across the lot and into the tree line I’d emerged from moments ago, every step we took echoed through my head as if it were a cannon blast. Suddenly I heard a truck’s engine idling on the opposite side of the building. That must be where they’d taken Mike. If we hurried, we could make it to the train shortly after them, but we’d have to haul ass.
“We have to run. Keep up or I’ll leave you, got it?” They nodded, terrified.
I scanned the lot one last time for any onlookers then motioned to the kids to move. They kept up pretty well as we darted in and out of shadows provided by the tree lines and soon we’d put enough distance between us and the building we’d escaped. We were nearly to the train depot when I heard the truck roar to life and begin moving down the road just to our left. I grabbed the boy’s arm and jerked him back into the trees just as his feet were leaving the curb. One second more and the driver would’ve seen him for sure. Our breath puffed up in front of us and floated away in little evaporating clouds of desperation. The truck passed and I waited until it had turned toward the station before we bolted as fast as we could to the train shack where I’d left Frank and Cecil. My prayers were answered as I saw his old pickup truck was still parked and silent. We skirted the perimeter toward the shack and I could see the militia’s large delivery truck was already parked alongside the train depot platform. Three soldiers were talking and looking north up the tracks, away from us. There was a rumbling in the distance like a soft thunder.
I looked at the two kids beside me, both terrified and exhausted as they leaned up against the pickup truck for cover.
“Good job,” I said in a hushed tone. “C’mon. I have a friend inside.”
Frank was visibly relieved when I scrambled in the front door and equally confused when he saw me drenched in blood with two little people in tow. He and Cecil looked at me expectantly, wondering who the new additions were.
“They were tied up and I couldn’t just leave them to be taken. Mike’s on the truck out there.” I tossed Noah’s ruined coat in the trash and hastily washed my hands, trying to scrub the rest of Scott’s blood off of me.
The kids still looked freaked out as Cecil offered them some water and a seat at the tiny table. They took the glasses and drank up between catching their breaths. The thundering sound I’d heard a moment ago outside grew louder and took on more of a chugging rhythm. It was the transport train. A shuddering whistle blew out one long call.
Cecil stood at attention, his face lit up with excitement. “Here she comes. Doesn’t she have a beautiful song?”
This guy was super weird about his trains.
We all went to the window and watched as the metal giant chugged up the tracks past our small shack and slowed at the platform where the soldiers were still standing watch. The train gave off several louds hisses and grunts before finally coming to a stop. The soldiers opened the back latch of the waiting delivery truck and started filing people out in a line. They all had their hands bound as well and I counted as each one hopped down and stood single file. I had only counted twelve, mostly young men but several girls as well. They seemed to be walking a bit unsteadily. I didn’t even want to blink for fear I’d miss him. C’mon Mike. Where are you?
Fourteen people had shuffled out before I saw him, a large frame with dark brown hair. He helped the girl next to him as she tripped and fell then he got in line with the rest.
“I see him! He’s there, that’s him!” Fighting the urge to run to him was next to impossible. Maybe I’d be fine. There were only three soldiers that I could see and I’d certainly have the element of surprise on my side. But there were too many unknowns and too many unarmed people in the middle. What if there were more soldiers on the train or waiting inside the depot? I couldn’t risk it. Or could I?
Move, now. We can do this.
It was like Frank could hear my thoughts. “Maybe you could take them out and get your brother. But then how do you get away? The whole town would go on lockdown. How would I get these two out of here?” He gestured to the boy and girl who may as well have been abandoned puppies with the looks they were giving me.
He was right. It was going to be tight as it was for Frank to get them out before their captors noticed they were gone. I looked again at the frightened kids, their eyes glistening.
Dammit.
“Right. I hear you.” It was clear what I needed to do. “Can you take care of these two?” I asked Frank, although it sounded more like an order. My cold friend was over waiting around and practically chomping at the bit to use its icy talents.
Frank nodded. “Absolutely. I’ll get them where they need to be or they can stay with Ellen and me. She’d be glad for the company I think.”
“I have to go. I’ve got a train to catch.” Shoving the extra ammo into my backpack I was ready to go.
Cecil chimed in. “You can’t just jump on that train, young lady. You don’t even know where it’s going.”
“I know my brother’s on it and that’s all that matters.” I turned to Frank. “Thanks for doing this. I wouldn’t have made it here without you.”
“You’re a good kid, Sam.”
“No. I’m not.” The words were out before I knew I’d said them. Frank looked sad for a moment then nodded.
“Is there anything I can say to talk you out of this?”
“Nope.”
He gave me a fatherly pat on the shoulder before going to sit with the little kids.
Cecil motioned me back over to the window and pointed at the train. “Look here, this is a diesel engine locomotive-haul—"
I sighed heavily to show my impatience. This was not the time for a train model lesson.
He threw his hands up in surrender. “Okay, fine. It’s just a big train. You’ll have to board from the opposite side of the tracks, got it? The cab is only pulling two cars. There’s a passenger car and a cargo car. They’re loading them onto the passenger car now so there’ll likely be no one in the rear cargo car but there’s no way to know for sure.”
“Got it,” I said with absolutely no confidence. “I’ll figure it out.”
“You’ll have to do it without the operator seeing you. See that ladder in front and the steps? That’s the cab where he’ll be sitting. It’s dark so if you’re fast, he won’t notice you.”
The soldiers on the platform had only a handful of people left to load on. I had to move. As I stood to leave the little boy grabbed me and held on tight, his bright eyes shining at me in gratitude. I should’ve kicked him off, he was probably crawling with the X virus, but he’d caught me off guard.
“Thank you.” His tiny voice was a sharp contrast to the dark one I’d been hearing lately, and it was a little unsettling.
I patted his arm, not knowing what else to do then threw my backpack on again as I propelled myself out into the night air once more. Things were about to get interesting.
9- All Aboard
The cab of the train was facing north, pointing away from the shack, but I had to go out of my way several yards so I could stay out of the lights when crossing onto the tracks. The train was enormous up close and I realized absently that I’d never ridden on a train before, well not since I was a kid and that was just a trolley. This thing was monstrous and intimidating. I ran in a crouched position, knowing I didn’t have much time left. There was some light inside the passenger car ahead of me and I could see two soldiers walking up and down the aisle and stopping at each prisoner, probably securing their hands to something. I ducked behind the back of the cargo car which was a muted red-ish color covered with markings and graffiti. The other soldiers’ boots hit the platform and walked off back to
the truck, so I knew I’d gone unseen so far. Turning the corner, I found the large cargo door on the opposite side just as Cecil had instructed and grabbed the massive handle. I took a deep breath and pulled slowly hoping to prevent a loud sound that would give away my position, but nothing happened. I tugged again, harder this time, and still nothing. I braced my foot against a bar and yanked with all I was worth heaving my body off the ground and still the damn thing wouldn’t budge.
Great. Now what? my cold friend taunted.
I guess it was annoyed with me. It was promised a slaughter, a chance to shine, but apparently, I’d come up short in that department so far. I couldn’t give up. If the train left, I would never see Mike again and I knew that to be true in the deepest part of my soul. If I couldn’t get on, I’d have to just start shooting and hope for the best. I looked at the cargo door frantically. There were bars here and there, a ladder going all the way to the top, and a small step below the door offering a leg up. But no welcome sign reading, Reserved for Sam. Open here.
No way was I going to hang on to the outside of a moving train, not even I was that stupid. Picking up my rifle and assuming my crouched position again, I ran up the length of the train cars. Pausing only for a second as I dashed alongside the passenger car, squeezing my gun to my chest and biting my lips for fear my breath clouds would give me away. Desperation is a hell of a motivator, I had to get on that train. Maybe I could sneak onto the passenger car after the soldiers stepped off. Maybe there was somewhere I could hide. The gravel under my feet was crunching as I made my way closer to the cab. I was running out of train, but I wasn’t finding a solution to my problem. There didn’t appear to be a door or anywhere out of sight I could board the passenger car unnoticed. The inside was just an open space with seating and there were two entrances both with an armed soldier sitting near. Suddenly a loud shudder went through the train and I jumped, slamming my back into the side of the passenger car making a clamoring thwack. There was an enormous hiss then silence. I could hear voices on the other side of the window right above my head.
Nice.
“Hey, did you hear that?” a man’s voice asked.
“It was nothing,” a woman responded. “Just the train starting. Relax.”
“No, I heard something right out here. Hang on.”
Shit. Times up.
I saw a large step just a few feet to my left attached to the operator’s cab that led to a ladder. I had no choice. There was movement behind me as the soldier was walking to the door and coming out to the passenger car landing. As quietly as I could I jumped up on the step and the narrow metal platform attached to the large cab, but I still wasn’t out of sight. I had only seconds.
“Hey,” someone said in a hushed tone. I turned to my left and a man was hanging out of the cab door a foot above me, his arm outstretched. “C’mon,” he rasped with a wave of his hand.
Without a thought I scrambled up the ladder and grabbed his calloused hand just as the soldier’s boots behind me hit the gravel with a thundering crunch. He yanked me into a tiny compartment filled with dials and handles and a million other things and pointed to a small spot on the floor behind a seat.
“Get down.”
I made myself as small as I could, and he threw a coat over the top of me. Then he hung out of the cab door and yelled down to the man below.
“Yo! You ‘bout ready to get movin’ or what? I turn into a pumpkin in a few hours ya’ know what I mean?”
I couldn’t see anything. My hand rested reassuringly atop my Remington, my fingers absently running over the stock. There was silence for a short eternity then a voice answered.
“Yeah, thought I heard something. Let’s go.”
“Of course you heard somethin’, man. It’s a damn train, it’s loud as hell. On or off, I’m going.”
The operator came back in the cab and plopped down in his seat. “Whew! That was close, sweetheart. You got some nerve sniffin’ around this train. You got a death wish or something?”
Yes.
“You know what this train is, honey?”
I pulled his coat from the top of my head and exhaled deeply. “My brother is back there.”
“Ooo-wee that is bad luck, honey. And here you are comin’ after him? You are a wonder.”
This guy was a character. I couldn’t place his accent but it was almost comical the way he spoke in a sing-song manner.
“What’s your name, sweetie?”
“Sam.”
“Alright, Miss Sam. I’m Mr. Chey and you better stay put and hold on.”
He started pulling levers and moving things around on the control panel in front of him. The ceiling of the cab lit up but he quickly dimmed the lights. There was a lurch forward that shook me around a bit then we were moving. The floor underneath me was hard and unforgiving but I didn’t care. I breathed a huge sigh of relief as I took stock of where I was. Mike was only a few feet from me, I was safe for the moment, and had apparently made a new ally. All the adrenaline flooded out of my body and I suddenly felt very tired.
“Okay, sweetie, we’re clear. You go ahead and pull that seat down behind you and get a little more comfy. Mr. Chey wants to know your story.”
I smiled as I sat in the fold down jump seat behind his and pulled a bottle of water from my bag. “I don’t really have a story. Maybe you tell me yours?”
“Oh Mr. Chey has a lot of stories, honey. Which one you want to hear?”
“What kind of name is Chey, anyway?”
“It’s short for Chiasson but Yankee mouths can’t handle French so people called me Chey.”
“Huh. And why are you driving this train?”
“Because I am the Train Man and the trains must keep running.” He chuckled, amused with himself.
He went on to tell me in great, lengthy, overly-exaggerated detail how he’d been operating trains for years and once everything happened he was recruited, forced more like, to keep working the trains but for the government instead of his previous employer. He also shared that the most upsetting part of this whole deadly viral outbreak was he could no longer get to his salon to get his hair done. He then apologized for the state of his hair…twice.
“So our government is operating this train? That’s who wants the people in the passenger car?” I was confused.
“Yes, baby. And before you ask, I do not know anything else. I just drive.”
“Well where are we going?”
“You have a one-way ticket to the magical land of…” he paused for dramatic effect, playing a drumroll on his legs. “Northern Ohio!”
I laughed, truly laughed, for the first time in a long time. “Right, or a one-way ticket to crazy town.”
“Yes, honey, there too.”
“So if you don’t know why the government is collecting people and having you transport them then what can you tell me?”
“Well I can tell you that shirt is doing you no favors, honey.”
I rolled my eyes, it was the only possible response to such a comment. “It’s not mine and it’s actually a man’s shirt so that’s why it doesn’t fit.”
“Oooo, what man? Tell me everything.”
“What? Oh, no not like that. Gross. I’ve never even met him. Here,” I said pulling the tiny school photo from my pocket and holding it up. “This is him. His parents were hoping I could find him when I went to look for my brother. They only gave me his shirt because I had blood and dirt all over me from earlier.”
“What? Blood and dirt? Now I insist you tell me your story, this is going to be good. I can tell.” He wiggled in his seat with anticipation.
“Fine, I’ll give you the abridged version.”
I talked as quickly as I could and left out as much as I could about my parents. After all, I didn’t know this guy and he didn’t need to know everything about me. He listened to the whole story and only responded with gasps and an occasional “what!”
“Holy shit, girl. You broke that man’s nose then hunted him
down to finish him off? You are scary, damn!”
I couldn’t help the chuckle that escaped me. “I didn’t hunt him down, well…not exactly.”
“Yes you did and that’s exactly how I’m going to tell it. Crazy ass teenager huntin’ down grown men and chopping their heads off. You are a badass, honey.”
“What? No, don’t tell it. Don’t tell it to anyone. Look…just…” he had me a little flustered. “Just tell me where we’re going please?”
“All business with you, Miss Sam. Fine. The train stops at another station in Freemont, another small-ish white people town at the northern most tip of Ohio and people in uniforms with big guns remove the people from the train and sometimes they load large crates of supplies into the cargo car in back. I don’t look in the boxes or crates and I don’t follow the people with big guns either.” He looked sideways at me with an arched brow. “But it’s possible that I know someone who knows somethin’ and it’s possible they may have said somethin’ about a big scary lab with doctors in hazmat suits guarded by more soldiers with big guns. Possibly.”
“That’s it? That’s all you know?”
“Well let’s see. No one is supposed to talk about anything or we get killed so yeah, that’s all I know. Damn. Not to mention the world only went all craptastic a few months ago so it’s not like we’ve had the company holiday party or anything.”
I considered what he had said about the lab.
“Why does our government, in the midst of all-out war, want to kidnap our own people and transport them to a lab? What are they doing with them?”
“Uh-uh. The very same people who are trying to create a vaccine for the crazy, mutant virus that was engineered to wipe out pretty much all the mouth breathers and you’re wondering why they’re haulin’ people into labs? Honey, please. Didn’t you ever watch the SyFy channel?”
