Dust: Before and After (17 page)

“’Cause they need it for their powers,” Todd said without thinking. He flushed when he realized what he had said. “Sorry, Dust. Sorry, Josie.”

“What powers?” Raymond asked with a frown.

“You might as well tell them, Dust,” Josie muttered, opening a can of soda and taking a long gulp before she wiped a hand across her mouth. “They are bound to find out sooner or later if they are with us.”

Dust released an exasperated breath and ran his hand through his disheveled hair. He winced when his fingers caught in it. He needed to see if Sammy or Josie could cut it soon. He looked warily back and forth between Raymond, Martha, and Denise. Josie was right, if they were going to be traveling together, it was only a matter of time before they found out about what he and Josie could do.

“What are we bound to find out about?” Raymond asked, gripping the gun in his hand.

Dust briefly glanced at Josie. She was watching Raymond with an intense stare. She might act like she wasn’t paying attention to the way the older man was holding the gun, but he could see the red flames in her eyes.

“After the comet hit the earth, some strange things happened to some of us,” Dust replied.

“You mean like the bugs?” Martha asked.

Dust nodded. “Yes, like the bugs and other – creatures – that we have encountered. Josie and I were also affected by whatever it was,” he said with a calm that belied his true feelings. “Josie can control fire.”

“Control fire…?” Martha whispered in confusion, glancing at Josie.

“Yeah, like this,” Josie responded, rubbing her fingers together until tiny blue flames danced from the ends of them. “And, this….”

Dust grimaced when Josie closed her hand for a moment before opening it and tossing a small fireball into the fire barrel.
Leave it to Josie to set the stage on fire,
he thought in exasperation. He glanced at where Martha, Denise, and Raymond had scooted together until they were practically on top of each other.

“What… What can you do?” Raymond asked in a trembling voice.

“Different things,” Dust admitted. “What matters is that we won’t hurt you. We’ll use our talents to help protect you. I promise.”

“It’s true,” Sammy said, stepping closer to Dust. “He has saved Todd and me numerous times since we first met him.”

“And Josie can roast marshmallows over her fingers,” Todd added. “They are really good.”

A nervous giggle escaped Denise. Her gaze moved from Todd to Josie. Her lips were parted in wonder as she stared at the flames.

“Can you do anything, Sammy?” Denise asked in a soft, husky voice.

Sammy shook her head. “Not like them, but I can use this,” she said, lifting the bow.

Raymond was silent for several long seconds. Dust heard the slight tremor in the man’s voice, but he looked him square in the eye when he finally spoke. There was a hint of respect and awe in the man’s gaze that made Dust a touch embarrassed.

“That’s how you took care of the remains back in town,” Raymond said.

“Yes,” Dust replied with a sharp nod.

“I hate to break this up,” Josie interrupted. “If we have company coming, I’d just as soon be there when they arrive so I can know if they are friend or foe.”

“You’re right,” Raymond said in a hasty tone. “Martha and I can greet them. Denise, you and Todd stay hidden. Dust, perhaps it would be better if you, Josie, and Sammy covered us. I can shoot a gun, but I’m not as good as I used to be.”

“Josie, you take the left side of the building. Sammy, you take the right,” Dust instructed, grabbing the soda and draining it before he handed it back to Josie.

“Where will you be?” Raymond asked.

“Behind them,” Dust said, fading.

“Shit!” Raymond muttered, stumbling backwards.

“You haven’t seen anything yet,” Josie promised, stepping around them. “Let’s see if there are going to be any fireworks or not.”

Dust left the small group. He hurried through the building and out through the front doors. He could see the large truck moving closer. They may just be survivors looking for food and fuel. There was no way that was going to happen if the bus started.

Dust settled on top of the bus and re-materialized. He lay down flat. From the angle the bus was parked, he could see both the front door of the gym and the road leading up to it. Josie came out a moment later and darted to a small pile of dirt that had been dumped to fill in the pot holes. Sammy came out and glanced around before moving to stand near the remains of an old shed. Once the truck stopped, he would move up behind it.

Five minutes later, the truck slowed down before pulling to a stop about twenty feet from the gym. Dust couldn’t see through the windshield. It was coated with a thick layer of grime. Only a thin section of streaked glass from the windshield wipers gave the driver and passenger enough space to peer through.

Dust’s head turned and he watched as Raymond and Martha cautiously stepped out of the gym. He turned his gaze back to the truck as both doors slowly creaked open. From his position, he could see a dirty boot emerge from the driver’s side before the rest of the man’s body followed. His jaw hurt and his eyes narrowed when he saw the long rifle in the man’s hand. The man’s face was shielded from his view by a wide brim hat.

The man slammed the door to the truck and took several steps forward, stopping in front of the re-enforced front grill and bumper. Dread built up in Dust when a second man with a more slender build walked around the side of the truck to stand next to the man.

Sometimes,
he thought silently.
Sometimes, I just wish life could be normal for more than a day or two.

“Hello,” Raymond called out in greeting. “Where did you come from?”

“I’ll tell you where they both came from,” Josie growled, her hair swirling around her in dark rage. “I’ll tell you where I’m going to be sending them back to, as well.”

“Hello, Josie,” the big man said in a quiet voice, raising his shotgun.

“Hello, daddy,” Josie sneered, raising her hands. “I thought you and brother dearest were dog food.”

Beau’s lips twisted. “We almost were,” he admitted.

Dust was surprised when Beau suddenly lowered his shotgun. The old man lifted his hand and removed his hat. One side of his face was ravaged with long, deep scars. His right eye was covered with a patch.

“Ouch, that looks like it might have hurt just a little bit,” Josie replied unsympathetically.

“It did,” Beau finally said. “I’ve been looking for you.”

“Why?” Josie demanded, clenching her burning fists. “To finish off what you started? I’m not going to let you chain me up and starve me again. I’m sure as hell not going to let you kill me.”

Beau carefully reached down and propped his shotgun up against the front of the truck. He murmured softly to Randolph to do the same. It took a moment for Josie’s brother to comply.

“I was wrong, Josie,” Beau said, stepping away from the truck. “This world… It needs creatures like you in it. We need creatures like you. There’s no way normal humans can fight against those beasts and win. It came through a twelve foot thick wall, Josie. Not even the silo is a safe place to be.”

“You know Randolph is like me, don’t you?” Josie snarled, not moved by her father’s confession. “Let him save you.”

“Dad knows, now. I’m not as strong as you are, Josie,” Randolph muttered.

“It was Randolph who saved my life,” Beau added. “He knew when the creatures were coming and from where. It was the only thing that saved us.”

“Yeah, well, if you’ve got him. That still doesn’t explain why you’re looking for me,” Josie replied nastily.

“Do you know if Maria and the kids got out?” Beau asked instead.

“Yes, they did, along with Alex. They aren’t with us, though,” Dust answered as he reformed slightly behind Beau. He quickly realized that Josie could very well torch her father and brother. While they might deserve it for what they did to her and the others like them, killing them wouldn’t change the past and would only leave more scars on Josie. “What do you want, Beau? We haven’t forgotten what you did back at the silo or that you held a gun to Todd’s head and threatened to kill him. It doesn’t make much sense coming here looking for our help after you’ve threatened all of us like that.”

Beau jerked around, his one good eye narrowing on Dust. His lips tightened into a crooked line, the right side of his mouth pulled at the still pink scars of healing tissue. He rubbed a hand down the left side of his face.

“I figured you must have been different,” Beau muttered. “Randolph wasn’t sure. He sensed something was off with you, but we couldn’t tell for sure. He can’t read you like he does the others. I shouldn’t have threatened the boy, I’ll admit that. It was wrong.”

Dust didn’t reply. There was really nothing to say. Asking for forgiveness didn’t go far if you didn’t really mean it. Still, if Randolph could sense the She Devil, it might come in handy in preventing any more deaths. Dust glanced over at Randolph who was looking down at the ground.

“Is it true that you can sense where the devil dogs are and when?” Dust asked instead.

Randolph glanced up at him and nodded. “Yeah,” he responded in a quiet voice. “Especially….”

Dust frown when Randolph’s voice faded and he glanced at his dad. Something was going on. He glanced at Josie. Her whole body was glowing now. In the background, he could see Raymond and Martha staring at Josie in terror and fascination. He finally turned back to Randolph.

“If you want us to trust you, you need to be honest with us,” Dust stated in a cold, calm voice.

“Trust! I’d sooner trust that She Devil than those two,” Josie growled.

Dust didn’t miss Randolph’s jerk of surprise or the flush that flared up his cheeks. Beau grunted and turned to glare at Josie. For a moment, Josie and her dad looked so much alike that Dust had to keep the twinge of amusement from showing on his face. Two hardheaded, hot-tempered forces were clashing head-on. Unfortunately, Beau didn’t stand a chance against his pissed-off daughter.

“Darn it, girl, I’m trying to tell you I’m sorry,” Beau snapped. “You were always too hardheaded for your own good. Randolph thinks the beast that attacked us is coming after you. I should have just left you to deal with it on your own for all the appreciation you are giving us for risking our necks to come save you!”

“Save me!” Josie flared, turning from a vivid orange and red flame to a brilliant blue in her anger. “I could turn you and that damn devil dog to ash with a snap of my fingers.”

“Josie,” Randolph replied, raising his hands up and stepping in front of their dad. “You’re right. I just… I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

Dust didn’t miss the way Randolph’s eyes shifted from Josie to where Sammy had stepped out from behind the old shed. A dark look of regret flashed through his eyes before he glanced away again. While he didn’t like the idea of Randolph and Beau being around, he also knew that if Randolph could sense the She Devil coming, maybe they could use that to their advantage. Dust could sense her, but it was hit or miss.

“Randolph, can the devil dog sense you?” Dust asked, stepping closer.

Randolph turned and looked at him. After a brief second, he shook his head. Dust breathed a sigh of relief.

“No, but I can tell she is headed this way,” Randolph said. “She was to the southeast of us. For some reason, I can lock on to her, but I don’t think she is aware of it. She knows where you are, though. It wasn’t hard to figure out where to go based on that. The only advantage we had was that she seems to stop pretty frequently.”

“She has to feed,” Dust stated in a grim voice. “Her body is changing too fast for her to keep going.”

“We already know she’s coming,” Josie snapped, stepping closer. “Move aside, Dust. I’ll give them to the count of twenty before I start throwing fireballs at them.”

Dust turned and grimaced at Josie. “You can’t kill them, Josie, no matter how much they deserve it,” he informed her with a wave of his hand.

“Why not? I don’t see anything stopping me but you,” Josie replied. “We can always see if you’re fire proof now.”

“Knock it off, Josie,” Sammy interjected. “We need him, don’t we, Dust?”

“Yes,” Dust replied.

Josie glared back and forth between Sammy, Dust, and her brother. The flames covering her body flickered before dying and she placed her hands on her hips and violently shook her head back and forth.

“Oh, no.
Really?!
Are you kidding me?
After all they have done, you’re just going to welcome them with open arms?” Josie demanded in disbelief.

“Josie, we know that creature is coming,” Sammy said. “If Randolph can give us even a small advantage, it could be the difference between life or death for some or all of us.”

“I… Don’t… Care!” Josie replied vehemently. “I’ll take my chances.”

“You might be willing to take the chance with your life, but I’m not prepared to do that with Todd’s,” Sammy said in a soft voice. “Once she is dead, they can go their own way. Until then, as much as I hate it too, we need their help.”

Josie’s jaw worked furiously as she stared at her father and brother. Dust could see the conflict in her expression. She finally threw her hands up in the air and turned sharply on her heel. He watched as she strode angrily back toward the gym.