August Burning (Book 2): Survival (16 page)

What were the chances of that? Then, Elvis was a believer. He was a zealot, convinced that the fates had reached down in a final offer of clemency. He had to pay for the crime. He had to restore the balance. His boot slid to the man’s neck. The feeble jaw gnawed on his steel-toed boots. He raised the heavy wooden stock of the gun, and brought it down with a fanatical will. It exploded the skull, and stained the wood in the dark.

Elvis knew what had been asked of him.

….

Bennett watched them skin the deer. One of the new men, a bearded ruffian with a husky voice, showed them the proper technique. He was a civilian.

They had taken a baby doe, and a male crowned with a pitiful rack. A four pointer. It would take time for the deer population to fully rebound, especially while the infected were still hunting them. The tennis courts were stained scarlet in the torchlight. Bennett didn’t like it. Turning away, he ran into Agis’s chest.

“What did I tell you?”

Bennett retreated. “You certainly delivered. We were barely getting anything before.”

“Everyone has a place. Some of the men with me have been hunting all their lives. We wont starve this winter.” He had a black cap on against the chill; winter was almost on them.

“We might kill each other, though.”

Agis turned his chiseled facial features and clean jaw to Bennett, in question.

“Some of the others, they think you’re being a bit heavy handed.”

Agis shrugged casually. He clapped Bennett on the shoulder and grinned. “There was no order when I first arrived. That has to change. It will take some time getting used to. Everyone has a place.”

Bennett found himself wanting to help the man, to be his confidant. “I know. I’d suggest taking it easy though, some of the hot-heads are used to doing whatever they want.”

“Sound advice.” Their mouths produced little plumes of visible air. “Can I count on you? To be my inside man? We both want this to be as smooth as possible, no?”

Bennett rushed to agree. “Of course. You, you can count on me. So, what town were you an officer in?”

Agis’s nose twitched. “Little place called East Lilac. In Jersey, actually.”

“Interesting name.”

Agis laughed. “Sounds intimidating, I know. Well, for a while after the outbreak we followed every order from the Army. Every order, to the letter. It took us a while, to realize, their orders were all part of a design. A design to minimize panic, and keep us out of the Army’s way. By the time the orders did stop coming, we had long since ignored them.”

Bennett nodded, feeling his hopes had been affirmed. “Most of the people here, they have feel betrayed, as well.”

“And they should. I hope you don’t associate us with them? Do you?”

Bennett shook his head aggressively. “No, Agis, I…No. We trust you. You’re like us. Not the other.”

Agis seemed pleased, and convinced. “The infection started popping up all across the country, last I heard. The continent is overrun.”

“What was it like, out there? Outside this little haven.”

“There are far more of them outside this valley, Bennett, far more. Loyalty extends only as far as the family. Blood ties run deep. They are bound with instinct. A father, or mother, will never hesitate to protect his children, even in the face of certain death. That can’t be taught. Loyalty to friends is much more complicated. Those decisions generally require thought. A cost-benefit analysis. No one wants to die.”

“We need to rebuild those ties. The bonds that held us together once, as a society. Anarchy is evil,” Bennett said bitterly.

Agis chuckled. “That’s because people are evil. You must learn what motivates them. Some are bound by shame, by fear of letting down those they hold close. Others, by love, by that intoxication, that lunacy of love. And some people, some people are bound by nothing at all.”

“Surely, they aren’t the majority.”

Agis’s eyes narrowed as he surveyed the skinning proceeding in the tennis courts below him. “Maybe not. But they must be weeded out, without remorse. They can infect a society, and bring it down. You understand?”

“I do. There are some here, that I think of immediately when you say that.”

The nametag shone in the starlight.
Agis.
“You’ll have to keep me informed,” Agis said, his eyes keen.

“That I will.”

Chapter Twelve

“He has everyone doing something. Idleness is not allowed, unless its been scheduled. There are guards at all hours of the day. Hunting parties go out daily. Some are assigned to the kitchen, others to that doctor, Annabelle.” Wilder’s hands moved quickly as he spoke.

Adira sat up on her bed, groaning in pain. “Why…why is this bad?”

Wilder thought her face looked better. Anything would have looked better than it was before. “Because he isn’t one of us, Adira. I’m telling you, there’s something wrong with them. They’re used to getting their way. There’s something lurking beneath the surface. I don’t even think they’re real police officers.”

Jaxton sighed, the shadows beneath his eyes standing out on a gaunt face. “Don’t go looking for trouble, Wilder, if there is none.”

The young lad threw up his hands. “Something isn’t right, I’m telling you.” A handful of condoms landed on the carpet. “They handed out these. Said there would be consequences for any pregnancies. Agis told us he would not tolerate babies being brought up in this world.”

“I heard that from Annabelle.” Adira croaked huskily. “She says they think people should just take extra precautions…till things have quieted down.”

“I don’t like it. I don’t like it one bit,” Wilder snapped.

Adira chuckled, but stopped short when the pain seized her abdomen. “You’ve taken over Jaxton’s mantle.”

Jaxton sighed appreciatively and laid his shaggy head to rest on her breast.

“I have not. We need you back, Jaxton. Adira too. Not everyone is comfortable with an outsider issuing us commands like they have any authority. They’re all the fucking same.”

Jaxton opened his bleary eyes. “Let’s keep an eye out, alright? I value your opinion more than most others. You were there for me in the beginning.” He sat up. “I will never forget that.”

“I’m still here for you, for you both. What do you need?”

Adira smiled. “Nothing at all, bud. Rest easy, ok? Annabelle is helping me. I trust her.”

Wilder nodded, and hefted his shotgun. “I’ll check in on you guys soon.”

As Duke followed Wilder out, Wilder muttered to himself, “I think we’ve lost him.”

Duke laid a hand on his friend’s arm. “Don’t forget what you saw. Don’t forget what happened to her. They aren’t the same. Who would be? They may come back to us, and they may not. And if they didn’t, I wouldn’t blame them.” His eyes were burning. Wilder nodded, moved by the conviction in his friend’s words. He would have to pray for them, and for the return of their leader.

…

Liam racked the weight. It clanged loudly in the lonely gym. He could see his breath, as his chest heaved with the exertion. Like always, he longed to hear music. Longed to hear a thumping bass, or a soaring chorus. It had been absent from his life for over 6 months, and it was awful. A little bit of fire had evaporated from him when the last battery was used up. Just once, he wished they would use some of the last gasoline to fire up the speakers and drown the fear away.

He wished he wasn’t alone. He had seen Jaxton almost daily, when he visited their room. But his friends were not the same. More than ever, he felt alone as they turned inwards, to each other.

A figure strode among the weights. It was difficult to see in the poorly lit room. He felt he could see the mustiness hanging in the air, and there was Joseph cutting through it with a small smile.

“I heard I might find you here. No Harley?”

“Joseph. Uhhh, well no. No she’s not here.” Liam blinked in subdued surprise. He had avoided the small man with the kindly eyes, believing him to be a peon of Bennett. Liam’s loyalty to Jaxton still ran deep.

Joseph’s eye contact never wavered, though it was never overbearing, “I’m creating a group…and I was hoping you would help me out.”

Liam stuttered and laughed. “What, like an extra-curricular?”

“Something like that. I think you could assist me.”

“What kind of group?”

Joseph took a seat on a pad of cracking red leather. “A spiritual group, of sorts.”

“I’m out.”

“Hold on, hold on. It’s nothing too intense. As you know, I’m a spiritual man. I just think it would be beneficial if some of us got together sometimes, and talked about all this, about what we think comes next, how to prepare for it, things like that.”

“I don’t believe in blindly following one book.”

“I know you don’t. I don’t know how many people do, any more. That’s why we’re going to use all three of them.”

“All three?”

“That’s right. To see what they, together, can offer us, if anything. I don’t know how much more casual I can make this,” Joseph said, laughing genuinely.

Liam found himself liking the man. He didn’t know much about him, but his warmth was infectious. He forced himself to stay wary, however. “Why did you come to me? We haven’t spoken much before.”

Joseph exhaled loudly.

“I always pride myself on my honesty, so I’ll just tell you.”

Liam interrupted. “I can’t tell if you’re a good manipulator, or just a foolish, good man.”

Joseph laughed again, and spoke frankly. “If you feel like I’m in some way lying to you, by all means do not join me. If I feel genuine though, give it some thought.”

Liam shrugged begrudgingly; content to answer with his body language.

“But the reason I came to find you. Liam it’s no secret you’ve been a bit of a loner these past ten days or so. Your friends are…well they’re taking different paths, or they’re sitting on the side of the road for a bit, for a rest. But you’re still here. I thought we might benefit from your point of view.” He rose, and patted the barbell affectionately. “Let me know.”

As he neared the exit, Liam found himself answering. “I will.”

…

Bennett watched the crowd carefully. They looked cleaner, more attentive, and bright-eyed. Their confident body language was a stark contrast to the times of hardship, more than twelve sunsets past. Someone had figured out that today was November 29
^th
. Not that it mattered.

He could count the number of weapons he saw on two hands, in a crowd of over one hundred. It was another severe divergence from the bristling forest of rifles one would have seen a month prior. There was a whiney, and Bennett grinned. The horses were still here, living behind a partition, on beds of hay. When the hay had run out, someone had moved rubber mats up from the field house. At first, the four animals chose to doze off standing, a tactic from their days as prey that only allowed them to enter light sleep. They had soon learned to love the mats.

Bennett spotted several officers in blue striding among the crowd, strutting confidently with that air one puts on when he knows he is being watched. They were armed, to a man, with simple pistols at the hip. Bennett’s wandering eyes locked with a pair plainly content to stare back at him. Layla’s eyes still looked vapid, even from this distance. He had been spent every night with her since Agis forced their introduction. It made things easier. He didn’t have to think about Adira, and what he had done. No matter- he had given her the opportunity to be with him. And a price had been paid. Layla was exceedingly devoted to taking care of his every need, which she did with skill and hunger. That was about where her talents ended.

“Order!” One of the officers screeched. Will “Hernandez”. The nametag didn’t fit the man. He was odd.

Lieutenant Agis mounted the wooden bleachers, looking exceedingly crisp in a tight-fitted police sweater. Bennett had never seen him out of uniform.

“My friends,” he began, “I have asked much of you over the past few days….and I honestly could not be more proud of your effort.” There was a smattering of clapping that echoed in the musty gymnasium’s high ceilings.

“You have exceeded my expectations. We are on our way. A few announcements. From this point on, canned food rations will be cut in half. The hunting parties will be doubled. I aim to save as much of the canned as we can, to be stockpiled in case of true emergency.” He grinned. “For those of you who haven’t met him, I’d like to introduce our resident hillbilly, Billy.” The crowd laughed. They felt comfortable sharing in his humor.

The bearded man Bennett had seen that night on the tennis courts mounted the bleachers, shaking them with every step. He was stout, with a brow that was constantly furrowed. Here was a meat and cheese man, one who believed in simple solutions, hard work, and an anthology of Praise Jesus stickers for the back of his pickup. His frown only got deeper, and he stared out at the crowd for a long silence. “Lieutenant’s got a lot of big ideas… he generally wrong bout most things, but he is right on one, one particular accord. If I ain’t the only white trash here I sure am the proudest.” Billy continued to peer out at the silent crowd from under thick brawny eyebrows. Someone started laughing, and then everyone was. He was making a joke. They liked him already. Billy grinned wildly in response.