WILL
He didn’t move from the Phillips 66/Burger King until nine in the morning, about an hour after Gaby and Nate had left in the Mustang. When his watch clicked over to nine, he turned on the F-150 and pointed it out of the strip mall and back toward I-49 in the distance.
Zoe sat quietly in the front passenger seat through most of the trip. She didn’t speak until they were almost at the highway.
“You’re going to follow them to the town, aren’t you?” she finally asked.
“What makes you say that?”
“All those questions last night.”
“I guess there’s a reason they gave you a medical diploma.”
She snorted. “Are you always this much of an asshole?”
“Pretty much, yeah.”
He turned left, merging back onto I-49 and slipping into the mostly barren northbound lane. They were the only thing moving for miles, which both comforted and concerned him. The fact that Josh hadn’t bothered to pursue them remained in the back of his mind. He had hardly slept at all last night, and had spent most of it listening for the sounds of car engines that never showed up.
What are you doing out there, Josh?
“So who’s Lara?” Zoe asked.
He thought about not answering.
“I’m just going to keep asking,” she said.
He sighed. “She lives on the island.”
“Is she your wife?”
“No.”
“Girlfriend?”
“I guess.”
“You guess? So you don’t know?”
“I haven’t really thought about it.”
“Oh no? I bet she has. A lot. That’s what we do, you know. We think about these type of things.”
“Good to know.”
“Wow, you must have majored in asshole in college.”
“Greek history.”
“Greek history?”
“Yeah.”
“You majored in Greek history in college? That was unfortunate.”
“Yeah.”
“You don’t talk much, huh?”
“No.”
“So Lara likes the strong, silent type, is that it?”
“You’d have to ask her.”
“Is that your way of telling me you won’t kill me after this?”
“I’m not going to kill you, Zoe.”
“No?” She stared at him for a moment, as if trying to gauge his trustworthiness. “I can take that to the bank?”
“Why do you think I’m going to kill you?”
“How the hell should I know. I never met you until yesterday, and back then you were named Givens. I don’t know anything about you. Why you’re doing what you’re doing, or how you could so cold-bloodedly shoot those two men back in the tent.”
“I had no choice.”
“You could have wounded them.”
“Too risky.”
“You’re good at it,” she said. It wasn’t a question. “The killing part.”
He didn’t answer.
“I guess everyone has something they’re good at,” she said, turning her head into the breeze outside her open window. “So why Greek history?”
“What do you have against the Greeks?”
“Nothing. Some of my best friends are Greeks.”
“Is that right?”
“No.”
“Hunh.”
“You’re a real conversationalist, Will.”
*
He went back to Sandwhite Wildlife State Park, but this time he didn’t take the off-ramp. Instead, he stopped a half kilometer from the exit and climbed out, then scanned the flat, gray concrete highway for signs.
Zoe looked at him strangely when he settled back into the Ford twenty seconds later. “What are you doing back here, Will? Do you have a death wish?”
“Not the last time I checked.”
He put the F-150 in drive and continued up the highway.
“So what are we doing back here?” she asked.
“You’ll see.”
“Great. Another surprise. You’re full of them, aren’t you?”
“You have a very acerbic sense of humor for a doctor.”
“Do I?”
“Yes.”
“I’m just trying to piss you off.”
“Hmm.”
“Not working?”
He shrugged and kept driving.
He didn’t stop again until he had almost passed Sandwhite completely, and only when he saw another on-ramp. He put the truck in park, climbed out, and saw what he had been looking for.
Large tire tracks caked in mud, curling from the on-ramp and onto I-49 heading northbound. They weren’t quite faded yet, so they weren’t more than a few hours old. The tracks overlapped, but not so much that he couldn’t tell there was more than one vehicle driving in a convoy. He guessed Josh was using either all or most of the military five-tons he had seen back at the camp.
Will climbed back into the Ford.
“Tire tracks,” Zoe said. “From the big transport trucks. You’re using the mud falling off them to track them. You’re smarter than you look.”
“I’m sure there’s a compliment in there somewhere.”
“They’re not going to last, you know. The tracks.”
“They’ll last long enough. I don’t see Josh moving that many people for that long of a distance. Like you said, it can get pretty hot in the back of those transports.”
“How did you know they would be heading north and not south toward us?”
“South takes them back into Lafayette. There aren’t any towns big enough to settle everyone at the camp between here and the city. There was always only one direction for them to go—north.”
“You really are smarter than you look,” she said.
Will grunted and drove on.
*
It wasn’t hard to track the trucks. The trails were visible from the high perch of the F-150, and he drove for thirty minutes or so, doing forty-five miles per hour because of the lack of traffic. After a while, the tracks turned right onto an off-ramp, then merged onto State Highway 106.
“Have you been here before?” he asked Zoe.
She shook her head. “No. But like I said, they have camps and towns everywhere. I’m sure there are more that I don’t even know about.”
He drove along the two-lane state highway for another ten minutes, passing mostly overgrown farmland, with the occasional stables or abandoned silent tractors, reminders that at one point people used to live and work here. Wild grass had begun to reclaim the land, and as soon as the buildings were covered up, there wouldn’t be any reminders at all that man once tilled them.
He passed a small bayou and kept going for another ten minutes. Houses began cropping up on both sides of the road. A pair of two-story farmhouses, one white and one slightly brown—or maybe it was faded or dirty white—stood next to each other.
Soon, the tracks told him to turn left along a new stretch of state highway.
More farmland, until he saw smoke rising in the distance. Will slowed down and, purely out of habit, pulled over to the side of the two-lane road.
There were three columns of smoke drifting lazily into the air farther up the road—two kilometers, give or take. Close enough for the sound of a car engine to be heard, especially with so few noises, except for the chirping of birds and clicking of crickets around them. He thought about Josh and how smart the kid was. An ambush or two wouldn’t be out of the question.
“The town,” Zoe said. “Looks like you found it.”
“Looks like it.”
“So what now?”
Will looked around at his surroundings.
More overgrown farmland, a long ditch, and the bayou curving slightly to his left before evening out to run parallel with the road again. He remembered passing a couple of farms back down the road.
“When was the last time you went for a walk, doc?”
*
Like most barns in rural America, the one he chose was painted red, with a slightly burnt orange shade. It was wide and long, and he had no trouble driving the Ford F-150 inside once he opened the large twin front doors.
There was enough darkness inside to worry about ghouls hiding in the shadows, forcing him to spend a few minutes poking around the old bales of unused hay on the first floor. He started breathing through his mouth against the metallic mold smell, stepping around spores along the back walls and floors that were visible in the bright pools of sunlight spilling in through holes that pockmarked the building. He finished by climbing up the rickety steps to the second floor and scanning in a complete 360.
Satisfied, he returned to the Ford and slipped on his pack, then shouldered the M4A1.
Zoe followed him out of the truck. “Are you going to kill me, Will?”
“You already asked me that.”
“I wanted to make sure you hadn’t changed your mind.”
“No,” he said. “I promise, I’m not going to harm you, Zoe.”
He pocketed the key fob and left the barn. After Zoe followed him out, he swung the big wooden doors closed, then made sure the latch caught.
“I don’t know what you expect to find here,” Zoe said. “It’s a town. With people. What else is there to see?”
“We’ll see.”
“Oh, clever.”
He started off, Zoe following behind him. He expected her to bolt at any moment, take her chances anywhere but with him, but she didn’t. Instead, she followed him quietly, the only noise coming from her footsteps.
Will glanced at his watch: 10:45 a.m.
He pointed them toward the smoke, keeping to the field of tall grass along the roads for cover.
“I should have worn hiking shoes,” Zoe said behind him.
“Stop complaining.”
“Says the guy with boots. I only have tennis shoes.”
“Tennis shoes are all-purpose.”
“Not when you’re walking across farmland. What kind of shoes does Lara wear?”
He didn’t answer.
“You don’t happen to have a pair of boots in that bag, do you?” she asked.
“I had a pair of shoes I picked up for Lara, but I had to throw them away.”
“Boots?”
“No.”
“Too bad. I could use a pair of boots. Even those clunky army boots. Tell me about Lara.”
He ignored her.
“Come on, you know you want to. Is she pretty? Blonde? Brunette? Probably pretty. I also bet you have a thing for blondes, don’t you?”
He pretended he couldn’t hear her.
“Who doesn’t like blondes? Everyone likes blondes. You wanna ask me if I’m a natural blonde?”
He didn’t.
“I am. In case you were wondering. Lara’s a blonde, right? I knew it. You don’t know it, but you have a type. You wanna know what it is?”
He kept walking, looking forward.
“You know you wanna,” she said. “Admit it, and I’ll tell you. Will? Can you hear me up there? God, you suck.”
*
“Is it everything you expected?” Zoe asked.
It looked like something out of an old Western, sections of the place separated into grids, all connected by one long main street. Brick and mortar buildings lined the sidewalks, their signs re-purposed with simple names like Bakery, Supplies, Clinic, and one for Administration. There were more he couldn’t see from his vantage point. Smoke drifted out from chimneys.
Apartments were interspersed among the businesses, and people were moving leisurely on the other side of open windows and fluttering curtains. A woman was hanging laundry, while a redheaded kid leaned over the windowsill watching the streets below. A pair of preteens in shorts raced along the sidewalk, dodging adults.
What end of the world?
There was a fountain in the town square, where a big white tent had been set up. Transport trucks were parked nearby, and a line of people stood in a semi-organized circle that snaked around the tent. Armed figures in hazmat suits moved among them, but unlike back at the camp, these men looked alert.
They’re expecting trouble.
He was lying flat on top of a small hill about 200 meters from the edge of town, peering through binoculars. Zoe sat behind him, rubbing her feet.
There were no gunmen on the rooftops that he could see, which made the place look more accommodating than it really was. Or maybe it really was that welcoming? He remembered what Jenkins, the man he had met yesterday in the camp and who had tried to squeeze him for information about the towns, had said. The man was anxious, even eager, to finally get settled.
“I think I made the right decision. Still, it would be nice to finally get to one of these towns I keep hearing about. Get on with living.”
A low rumble preceded the appearance of two military five-ton transport trucks, entering the other side of town. They moved through the street, coming to a loud, crunching stop behind the other parked vehicles next to the white tent.
People hopped out of the back of the first truck. Men and women stretching, shaking hands and hugging. An air of happiness, of a long journey finally come to a fruitful end, showed on their faces. A pair of women with clipboards appeared, greeting the newcomers, while teenagers pushed carts and handed out bottled water and food. Pregnant women were helped down the back of the second truck, and they automatically became the center of attention.
“What’s happening in the white tent?” Will asked.
“The one with everyone lining up outside?” Zoe asked.
“Yes.”
“Processing. It’s where they sign in to the town and get assigned housing. Later, they’re given work details.”
“Work details?”
“It’s a town, Will. People have to run it. They’re given work based on their qualifications. For instance, I would get assigned to the clinic.”
“So what poor slob gets garbage duty?”
“I guess whoever doesn’t have a skill they could use somewhere else. Isn’t that what you do on the island? Delegate jobs?”
She had a point, but he decided to keep that to himself. He said instead, “And anyone can come and go as they please?”
“That’s the idea.”
“But you don’t know for sure.”
“I’ve never seen anyone leave. Why would they want to? Everything they need is there. Food. Water. Shelter. And they don’t have to be scared at night.”
“Bottled water?”
“The towns I’ve been to all had spring wells. I’m guessing this one does too, or they wouldn’t have settled here.”
“And the creatures, they don’t come into town at nights?”
“I’ve never seen them.”
“How do they know to stay away?”
“Probably the same way they know not to harm the guys in hazmat suits.”
Kate tells them. Or one of the other blue-eyed ghouls.
The line outside the tent moved slowly, but no one seemed to mind. He couldn’t hear their chatter from where he lay, but their body movements told him everything. This was where they wanted to be, and the overwhelmingly positive energy emanating from them was hard to miss.
Will watched them in silence for a moment.
“It’s a good deal,” he said finally, grudgingly. “As long as the townspeople keep feeding them blood.”
“Donating,” Zoe said.
“Po-tay-to, po-tah-to.”
“They’re not like you, Will. They’re not soldiers. They’re just trying to survive the end of the world the best they can.”
“Why did they choose the small towns? Why not the bigger cities with all the supplies still on the shelves? Just for the well water?”
“I never asked.”
“You don’t have any theories?”
“You’ll think I’m crazy.”
“Indulge me.”
“The others and I were talking—the other medical staff—and we think it’s because they want us to start over. A fresh start. The cities are filled with reminders of the old world. Our achievements, our art, our evolution as human beings. Out here, surrounded by farmland, woods… It’s like going back to our roots. No power, no electricity… It’s easier to believe the last two centuries never happened.”
“Back to the olden days, is that it?”
“Something like that,” Zoe said. “I know you don’t approve of this, Will. But those people down there, they want to be there. What right do you have to tell them they can’t?”
“It’s unnatural.”
“According to you. Who gave you the power to decide for them what they should or shouldn’t do with their lives? Look around you, Will. The world as we know it is gone. It’s not your place to tell anyone what to do with however many days, weeks, or months they have left.”
Goddammit, she makes a good point.
Will crawled back to her and slipped the binoculars into his pack. He pulled out a bottle of water, took a sip and offered her the rest. She drank hungrily from it and didn’t stop until she had almost drained it.
“Maybe you’re right,” he said.
She gave him a surprised look. “Really?”
“Don’t be so surprised.”
“Sorry,” she smiled.
“I don’t have the right to tell anyone down there what to do with their lives.”
He saw her face softening, maybe even looking a little bit pleased. “So what happens now?”
Good question. What happens now?
He didn’t answer her right away. Will looked up at the cloudless sky. It was bright and warm, with barely anything resembling a breeze. It would be different on the island. There was always a nice wind blowing across Beaufont Lake. Cool lake water and soft, mushy sand under his feet. And Lara. He missed Lara most of all.
“Will?” Zoe said. “What happens now?”
“I go back to the island and you can head into town. The people down there are from the camp I took you from, so they’ll know you didn’t go with me willingly. You shouldn’t have too much trouble fitting right back in.”
“Thanks.”
“You really think I was going to shoot you?”
She smirked. “You did shove a gun against my temple the first time we met.”
He chuckled. “Point taken—” he started to say, but stopped when he heard the crunch crunch of heavy boots against dry, brittle grass behind him, coming from the other side of the hill.
Will unslung his rifle as Zoe froze, alarmed by his sudden movements. He crawled back to the top of the hill and looked down.
Three men in hazmat suits were moving steadily up the other side, the sun reflecting off their bright white suits. Two of them were wearing their gas masks, while the third had his clipped to his hip. They were near the very bottom of the hill and seemed to be struggling with their footing.
He saw them about a second before they spotted his head peering over the crest of the hill, and instantly one of them opened fire with an AK-47. When that happened, the other two began shooting, too.
Will ducked his head as the dirt and grass around him exploded, chunks flickering into the air. He slid his way back down to Zoe.
Her eyes were wide and glued to him. “What’s happening?”
“I’ll see you around, doc.” He leaped to his feet and raced down the hillside, then threw a quick look over his shoulder at Zoe. “Stay down so you don’t get shot!”
Will hopped the last three meters down to the bottom of the hill and continued running at full speed. It didn’t take very long for gunfire to fill the air again, bullets speckling the ground to the left and right of him.
But they were lousy shots, and as amazing as it seemed, each subsequent new round seemed to land further and further away from him. He didn’t bother to return fire, and instead concentrated on adding more distance between him and the hill. He pretended as if he weren’t running away from gunfire, but running back toward Lara.
Yeah, that’s the ticket.
After thirty seconds of nonstop sprinting, he had extended his lead enough that the shooting stopped. That allowed him to slow down to a nice, unhurried pace.
Like running in the park…while being shot at.
He thought about Lara and the island again. Sarah’s cooking, Danny’s corny jokes, and watching the girls, Elise and Vera and Sarah’s daughter Jenny, being girls. But most of all, his mind’s eye was filled with images of Lara.
It didn’t take long before he felt shooting pain from his thigh, the everlasting gift from the helicopter crash. It had been so long since he noticed he was even injured down there that the sudden jolts took him momentarily by surprise. He pushed it into the back of his mind, then away entirely.
It worked…for a few seconds.
Lara could take care of that. Back on the island.
Back to Lara…
Out of the corner of his eye, he caught the glint of blue metal and heard the loud, familiar roar of man-made machinery before he even glanced to his right side and saw it.
It was a big blue truck, emerging from around the wide base of the hill.
It was moving fast—and was pointed right at him like a heat-seeking missile. There were two men in the back of the truck, wearing hazmat suits and holding on for dear life as the truck slid, crunched, and spun against the loose ground under its massive tires.
The truck sped right at him, gobbling up the distance between them in the blink of an eye.
FUBAR. Definitely FUBAR.
Will spun around, lifted the M4A1, flicked the fire selector to full-auto, and pulled the trigger.