He shrugged mentally, doesn’t really matter I guess, the people that have had those dreams are motivated and their morale is up and that is a good thing. He almost grinned thinking about that, there were times a leader had to let his people lead him while keeping up the pretense of having made the decision.
What he dreaded was when their luck ran out and it would at some point, when one or more people died morale was going to go into the crapper and he wasn’t sure if he could bring it back up after that. You don’t have a choice, if you can’t then the group wills splinter, and best case split up, worst case they will all die.
Which leads me to another thing, this being on the road constantly is wearing us all down. We need a place to stop for a while, at least for the winter. Get our crap together for the next push towards the coast.
“what are you doing Mr. Jared?” Jared turned and looked down at the Billy. He hadn’t even heard the kid come up. Which either meant he had not been paying enough attention or the boy was as quiet as Ori when he wanted to be.
“Aren’t you supposed to be helping Ms. Beth?” Jared asked trying not to smile at the boy. There was something about that kid that just made Jared feel better.
“Yes” Billy replied scowling. “but Sally was being a booger again.”
Jared keyed his radio, “someone let Beth know that Billy is with me, so she doesn’t turn the camp upside down looking for him.” he said then turned his attention back to Billy. “Billy, you can’t sneak off like that. If the zombies showed up and no one knew where you were at—”
“It’s okay I’m with you, you would kill them all.” Billy said confidently. God, I can only hope that I could Jared thought. over the last several months he had grown close to the boy. Maybe too close, he thought.
Jared squatted in front of the boy “I want you to promise me that from now on you ask Ms. Beth before you run off. A Soldier keeps his word” Jared said. For whatever reason Billy idolized soldiers. I wonder if his dad had been a Vet, Jared wondered.
Billy shuffled his feet and looked like he was about to protest but then nodded slowly. “I promise Mr. Jared.” Billy said. I will believe it when I see it, but I hope you do keep that promise, Jared thought.
“What were you looking at.” Billy asked, shoving his hands in his pockets.
“The sunset” Jared replied.
“Why?” Billy asked.
“Because sometimes it makes me feel better.” Jared said, which wasn’t much of an explanation, but he couldn’t really explain the complex feelings a beautiful sunset roused in him.
“My momma liked sunsets too. She had pictures of them on her puter.” Billy said. “Daddy had pictures of women on his. Made momma mad sometimes.”
Jared barely managed not to laugh. I just bet it made her mad, Jared thought. “Come on kid, let’s go see if dinner is ready.” Jared said rising to his feet. Billy stuck out a small hand, Jared smiled as he took the boys hand then together they headed for the camp kitchen.
✽ ✽ ✽
“what do you think?” Kyle asked as he studied the pile of scrap metal near the large metal building that the group was using as dining hall.
Rob played his light over the pile. Jared insisted that any flash lights used be fitted with a blue or red lens which apparently made it harder to see the light from a distance and didn’t screw up their night vision. “we can use the expanded metal, and…” his voice trailed off as an idea occurred to him. “and some of the smaller sheets of plate steel.” He said a moment later then picked up several metal disks and rings looking at them thoughtfully.
“okay what’s the idea?” Kyle asked. He had grown to respect Rob; the man was sharper than a tack as his dad had used to say. Rob had a habit of trailing off when some new idea popped into his head. “a modification to the Deuces, but nothing I’m going to start on right now. But if the stuff I need is here, might as well take it with us so I can work on it later.”
“Let’s talk to Jared about that first. Rooms tight already, and he might want to save the space for something like food or ammo we might stumble across.” Kyle said.
“you’re the one that dragged me over here to see if we could use any of this stuff.” Rob pointed out.
“I know, but I just thought about the limited space and I’d rather not piss Jared off by just assuming.”
“He wouldn’t get pissed” Rob said absently as he picked up another piece. “not about this, the worst thing he would do would be to tell us to unload it all.”
“Maybe not at you, but me” Kyle replied. “that’s a different story.”
Rob turned to face the tall black man. “No, it isn’t.” Rob said quietly. “believe it or not he likes you.”
“I get the idea he doesn’t, especially when I argue with him.” Kyle said shining his light on another pile of metal salvaged from some old machinery.
“Naw, besides Steve argues with him and Steve is nowhere near as polite about it as you are.” Rob commented. Rob cocked his head. “do you blame him for what happened to Deacon?”
Kyle was quiet for a moment, “I did, even though I know there was no way he could have known what was about to happen.” He shrugged slightly. “but now, not really.” He admitted.
“Good, Deacons and Mark deaths eats at him.” Rob said thinking about what Jill had told him not long ago. “anyway, let’s go talk to Jared and see if he wants to haul this stuff off with us, so we can get it loaded and then get some sleep.” Rob said.
Chapter 5
By sunrise, they were back on the road and had made their way west then south and were heading into the areas around the Smoky Mountain National Park, hopefully leaving the dense population of zombies behind for now. Even with the hikers and campers that would have filled the park last summer there still wouldn’t be a lot of undead up here, and nothing like the numbers in and around Gatlinburg and the towns along the tourist corridor. The miles rolled under their wheels carrying them towards whatever waited in their future.
He gazed up at the soaring mountains with the wooded slopes covered in blue grey mist. The fall colors once brilliant were faded and dead, the remaining leaves falling slowly to the road with every breath of wind. A mournful rain of reds, browns and dimmed golden glory that was slowly burying the works of man. They lay like a carpet across the newly fallen snow.
In his mind the song “sound of silence” played but this version was a soaring symphony of loss, and anger that hammered at the brilliant blue sky and reverberated in his soul. Like humanity nature was dying, and hopefully humanity like nature would see another spring.
He glanced at Jill who was slumped in the passenger seat, she hadn’t slept well since they had left the last camp. Now she just stared out the window at the passing landscape, silent and lost in her thoughts. One hand resting on the sword that was between her legs.
“you okay?” he asked seeing a tear slide down her cheek. She wiped it away and nodded her head.
“just thinking about Family thanksgivings” she replied after a moment. “I guess it finally hit me that no one is left in my family.” She said her voice husky with pain. “Stupid I know, everyone has lost family and friends.”
“it’s not stupid,” He assured her, his voice low. He reached over and laid his hand on her shoulder. He wanted to tell her he would never leave her, that she could count on him to be at her side till she no longer wanted him. instead he remained silent, who could make those kind of promises in the world of the dead. She reached up covering the large rough hand on her shoulder taking comfort from his touch.
There was silence for a few minutes as she clutched at his hand, then squeezed once and let him go. Unspoken words hovered between them. Three simple words that no one wanted to utter while the dead walked.
Up ahead he saw a sign announcing the Parks visitor center was just ahead. A minute later he could see the parking lot. The Visitor Center had seen better days, he thought. One of the plate glass windows had been shattered, the wall b
ehind a burned-out car was blackened. Someone had wrapped a car around a light pole. A Rangers truck was parked at an angle across two parking spots in the front of the building, next to the ambulance. There were no bodies in sight and no zombies either. I could use a new topo map of the park and there might be medications and supplies we need in that ambulance, He told himself. “we are stopping” He transmitted then turned into the parking lot. Jared came to a stop and grabbed his rifle before getting out.
“Everyone else be ready to roll.” Jared told his passengers as Steve’s truck pulled in behind his van. The rest of the convoy came to a stop on the road waiting.
As he waited for Kyle and Steve to join him, he watched the doors to the public bathrooms off to one side of the Visitor center, but nothing emerged.
“Ready?” He asked as the two men reached his side. The pre-entry jitters were already dancing along his nerves.
Steve nodded sharply glancing at the RV where Bridget waited, then steeled himself. Kyle merely shrugged, if he was worried or scared it didn’t show on that battered face.
They walked slowly thru the snow, every sense alert, stopping to peer into the ambulance. Snow had drifted inside, covering the floor almost to the wall that separated the driver from the back. The interior looked intact, there was no Stretcher, which to his mind meant the Paramedics had entered the Visitor center. He pointed to the visitor center and Steve and Kyle nodded in understanding. He led the way stepping thru the broken window into the dim interior. Glass crunched under his feet, hidden under the soft carpet of snow that had been blown through the broken windows.
The Lobby if that’s what it was rightly called was large, filled with displays, racks holding maps, and information pamphlets. To one side and further back was a frosted glass wall with a doorway that opened into the “old Sugarland store” a place that sold a variety of things including books, maps and cheap souvenirs, well cheaply made, not cheap to buy. Jared had never minded the prices since the money was used to help keep the park going. Not that he had every bought any, his trips into the center had only been to the desk, where he got his permits and sometimes new maps and then was out the door again.
The central desk where you could get back country permits, maps and other things, sat empty. Dried blood covered the blotter. To his right a large rack that had held pamphlets lay on the floor, and a hallway led back to the offices. To the left another hallway led to more offices. a map with the parks trails hung on the wall next to warnings and instructions. Spotting a rack of topo maps, he scooped up several and shoved them into a thigh pocket on his cargo pants.
Movement drew his attention to the hallway on the left side of the desk. Something was back there in the shadows. Odd that it hadn’t started for the lobby when we first pulled in, Jared thought as he slung his rifle across his back and drew his Tomahawks.
The zombie dressed as paramedic shuffled down the hall, the front of his white uniform blouse was brownish and stiff. There were bite marks up his right arm. Jared saw nothing behind the zombie, so he cocked his arm back and sent the axe flying. It hit the skull with a hollow cracking sound of breaking bone. The zombie swayed for a moment then fell over.
“Way to go, inventing new ways to disarm yourself” Steve whispered as Jared walked over and pulled the tomahawk free and peered down the hallway. There was more movement back there now so Jared backed away slowly drawing the thing towards him. As it shuffled past an open door, a bar of dim light fell across the bluish white face and he almost gasped. “Roger Gern” he said aloud.
He had known the Ranger well from the trips he had led thru here, a good man, with a wife and four kids. His throat had been ripped out leaving a ragged gaping hole. Milky white eyes locked with Jared’s, Rogers’s hands came up as he lumbered forward.
Jared moved left, slamming a tomahawk into the zombie’s knee, he rolled along the outside of the outstretched arm of the zombie and planted the butt spike of his tomahawk into the back of its head as it started to fall. There was more movement in the back of the hallway as more zombies came into view.
“It’s like a damn clown car” Jared muttered as he backed up far enough so that all six of the zombies would follow him into the main area. He watched as they emerged from the hallway, another EMT, a man dressed in cargo pants and hiking boots, his shirt gone. A woman in cargo shorts and a sports bra, Another Ranger, and a teen aged boy that had worked as a volunteer for the park, dried blood splattered across his name badge. Jared remembered him well he had talked often about going to college then becoming a ranger. The last was an old guy who had been very fit in life. There wasn’t a mark on him that Jared could see.
“Take them down” he said softly, hoping he could get over the slaughter that was about to occur. It was something he had to do, not something he enjoyed. The only thing that helped was to not think about what they had been, who they might have been they were tango’s and that was it. Except for Roger, I knew him, I liked him. That one will be hard to forget.
Half an hour later, they sat in one of the offices watching Rob through the window as he tried to get the Ambulance running. Logan, Chris and Ori were guarding him while he worked. “I still think we should just strip it” Steve said.
“We might if he can’t get it running” Jared responded as he gazed at the pistol in his hands he had taken it off Roger. Roger had been a good man, he had taken his job seriously almost as seriously as he took being a husband and father. He’d also had a wicked sense of humor. Jared couldn’t help but wonder what had happened to Rogers’s family, he had met them once several years back. Don’t think about them or you will lose it, Jared told himself.
Once they had finished off the undead in the center they had dragged the bodies into one of the back offices, he had felt dirty searching the corpses for things they could use but that was the way the world worked these days. Honestly, I am damn tired of feeling like a vulture living off the carcass of a dead world. What have we come to that robbing the dead was just part of a normal day. He looked at the paramedic’s bag next to his leg and wondered if surviving was honestly worth the shit they were going thru.
Jared shook that thought away, it didn’t matter if he was doomed, cursed or hated by god and fate. He had to keep those kids alive. Not because of dreams but because it was the right thing, the decent thing to do. The rest either God would accept or not, nothing he could do about it either way just muddle on and hope for the best for himself.
But no matter what his own fate might be, he would do whatever he had to do so those kids could grow up, their hands clean of whatever sin and doom Jared had to earn to give them that chance. In his minds eye’s he saw Billy giving him that gap toothed, dimpled smile. his innocent blue eyes wide with wonder.
“Hey Jared” Rob said as he stepped into the visitor center. “I see how it is, you sit here out of the wind and snow and leave me to freeze my balls off.” Rob said entering the room shaking his head with Mock disgust.
“Better you than me” Jared said forcing a smile. “gonna have to strip it are you.” Jared asked nodding his head towards the ambulance beyond the window.
“No actually, turns out it’s a simple problem” Rob replied.
“Okay why aren’t you fixing it” Jared asked, Rob smiled, though there was little trace of humor.
“It was out of gas, no one thought about it. Paramedics pull up, the ambulance usually stays running. It just sat there running till it ran out.” Rob explained, as he shook his head in disgust at his own stupidity.
Jared felt a touch of stupid himself. Half an hour wasted on something that simple. “At least all I’ve done so far was clean the plugs, try to jump it etc. It wasn’t till I started thinking about a blocked fuel line and bad fuel that I thought about it might be out of gas. Ben is drawing a gallon right now. If we can get it started I’ll pull the damn thing up next to the tanker and fill the tank. But what I wanted to bring up, is we can’t really afford to have another fuel guzzling vehicle. If we can
find a place to hole up for a week, I can strip the ambulance down for parts and medical equipment and install all the stuff from the ambulance into the RV that Linda is using for a Medical center.”
Jared thought about all the equipment inside the Ambulance and nodded, it was a good idea. But could they find a place safe enough for a week. “All right, I’ll work on thinking of a place we can use.” He replied, Rob nodded and walked back outside humming to himself. Ten minutes later they heard the heavy diesel motor of the ambulance turn over.
Jared rose and slipped Rogers gun belt over his arm and then scooped up the Paramedics bag. “let’s get out of here” he said leading the way.
✽ ✽ ✽
Those who were of a mind to appreciate the beauty of nature, peered out the windows of their vehicles, taking in the winding road, the mountains and the faded red, gold, orange and even silver leaves on the trees that occasionally filled the air like rain as the wind dislodged them. The snow of the last two nights had vanished with the dawn, remaining only in the shadows. All of the Survivors knew that the snow was going to come back with a vengeance