The Zombie Plagues: The Story Of Billy and Beth (15 page)

Billy scrubbed at the growth of beard that covered his jaw. “I'm good with it.”

“So what is this place you heard of?” Iris asked.

“Somewhere south. It was back when this whole thing started. I rigged up a C.B. Just heard talk of a place in Alabama. People were gathering together. I think Alabama, maybe it isn't, but it was south... not on the coast. Really it was just a snatch of conversation. I got nothing better than that, but it sounded real. And I heard it more than once.” Bear scrubbed at his own beard. “Okay. Well, I'm heading for it... and, well... fuck it, I got to come out with it because I don't want a mistake about it later; I don't follow. I'm just not built that way. I didn't do it in the old world, and I won't do it now. As long as that's clear,
you're
coming with me... I'm not coming with you.”

“Harsh,” Mac said.

“Maybe,” Bear agreed. “But we can't have a shit load of chiefs and no Indians. I don't mean I have the only say, I mean that I don't... Hell, I don't know a better way to say it. I can't sugar coat it. I
don't follow
. It doesn't mean I don't listen though. I do. It's that simple. I guess that means what it means.” He threw up his hands.

“I don't need a leader,” Beth said. “I lead me, as long as
that's
straight.”

“Do you?” Bear said.

“Wow... Can you feel the love?” Billy said. Jamie cut her eyes over at him where she stood next to David. She rolled her eyes once she caught his, and then turned and looked up at David adoringly. He turned away from her, his eyes looking for Beth, but Beth had eyes only for the big man, Bear. Billy sighed, looked down at the ground, and then back up as the conversation picked up once more. He ignored Jamie. He deserved her anger, after all.

Cammy laughed, put a hand to her mouth, and then took it away and laughed harder. A second later all of them were laughing.

“Hey,” Billy said after a moment. “The two of you lead. Sounds workable to me. And I don't have even a slight wish to lead. Not at all.”

“Peace,” Mac said. “Along for the ride. As long as it's stable, you know?”

Beth eyed Bear. “You and me then?”

Bear nodded. “I can roll with that. First thing though, we need better weapons. If this thing is south, we don't know how far, and it could be dead by now. Not saying it ever even got off the ground. So we don't know how far we're going. We need good guns. How bad did you see it in L.A.?”

“Oh, Christ,” Billy started. He handed Bear one of the machine pistols they had picked up.

~

The morning turned to early afternoon before the four trucks pulled up out of the field together, followed the service roadway back onto route three and headed toward Clifton.

~

ANNIE

Annie came to the others after being rescued from Sin and Murder, two gang members, in a gun battle that left two people dead (Book One). Annie's rescue is what set off the battle between the North side and the Public Square crews, and that ultimately dragged Mike, Candace and the others into the fight.

Annie was in school before the world went crazy, that's the way she thinks of it, the world went crazy. As the series matures Annie becomes one of the major characters. Even early on, in the first book, you can see her willingness to speak out, to be involved, and you can see her loyalty. Annie is still a child, sixteen , when the series starts.

Although it isn't expressly written it seems clear that it was Annie who kept Brian and Janelle safe in the midst of the violence and chaos they were forced to live in...

~

BEAR

Bear is the leader of the Outrunners just as Mike is the current leader of the Nation. Bear will lead the Outrunners through all the coming books. He, Beth, Billy and Pearl are the heart of the team. As the books progress, Mike Collins himself will take a turn as an Outrunner.

Bear came from New York where he lived with Donita before the plagues began. He is loyal. He is a loner and prefers to be. He and Donita were a couple, although she no longer remembers that life and he does not know what has become of her. He and Beth have formed a relationship that they will need to depend on.

In later books the Outrunners will have their own place in the Nation society. They will live somewhat apart from the others, and an air of awe and mystery surrounds them. Bear does his best in the future to reinforce that.

It is Bear and the Outrunners that will become the bridge between The Nation and its biggest rival, The Fold. It is also the Outrunners who will eventually unravel the mystery of how the Zombie Apocalypse became to be. They will protect The Nation, search out weapons and stock piled foodstuffs, and they will fight the Zombie Plagues. Bear is the key to all of it. The one man who lives on the edge and likes the view there. With Beth he is the major force behind the Outrunners, who keep the Nation safe and allow the society there to live in relative peace in the valley.

~

BETH

Beth is quite often Bear's voice of reason. She is not the sort of woman who feels a need to be helped, or told what to do. She is a leader. She has strong opinions. She doesn't consider the loss of her arm to be a disability.

In many ways she is very much like Candace, Strong, Independent, Secure in her abilities. She is an important part of the Outrunners, not just a figurehead. And she will become an important part of The Nation. She is a singer, lyricist and that will bring her into closer contact and friendship with Candace who enjoys the same things. She misses L.A. Sometimes, but she loves Bear and the life they have, along with the security The Nation provides its peoples.

~

BILLY

For the time being, Billy will remain wherever Bear is. He is very loyal to him, The Nation, and the Outrunners. In the novel Billy Jingo we learn much more about him before the plagues, where he came from, what his life was before the apocalypse.

Once Billy met Pearl his goals, plans, and future outlook began to change. He realized he finally had someone that he needed, not just wanted. And he realized that that need was returned to him from her.

In the future books the two of them will have their own goals and plans that may eventually take them away from the Nation.

~

BOB

Bob doesn't say much about Bob. What we know comes from Janet, or observed behaviors and talents that are related to us from other characters.

We Know it is Bob who has the dream to start the Nation. His dream is not a new dream he has had it for years, believed in it for years. I wonder if Bob was thought of as fanatical back in the old world. He probably was.

Bob has knowledge of farming, living off the land, herbs, food that can be harvested from nature and how to do it. Bob has that knowledge because he took the time to learn it from his Native American brothers. He has taught a great deal to Janet, but it will be Bob that everyone depends on to know what to do in almost every situation: Farming; Living off the land; Herbal medicines; Preserving meat; making leather. The list goes on.

Bob is trained as a mechanic, but he is one of those people who know how to do almost anything they put their mind to. If Mike is the leader, Bob and his knowledge are the backbone.

Bob is very laid back. He is uncomfortable with praise. He is against violence, but when it came down to it in the standoff that ended in Annie, Janelle and Brian being freed, Bob didn't hesitate to kill the gang member Murder. Tom was still thinking about the situation. Bob sized it up and reacted. That speaks to Bob's character, consistency. It can be seen in almost everything he does.

~

CANDACE

Candace Loi would have started her new career as a dancer on the 11th of March had the world stayed the same. She had been working at a club on the north side of the city of Watertown New York run by organized crime. She had danced a few times, but had been relegated to tending bar because the club manager did not want her to throw her life away on dancing.

Her Grandmother Pan (Deceased) had lived in Watertown for years. Candace had Lived in Syracuse where she hoped to follow her father into Law Enforcement. She couldn't afford the college courses so she moved to Watertown where she believed she could dance, save the money for college, and no one would be the wiser.

She is Nineteen at the beginning of the series. She is strong willed, knows what she wants, and goes for it. She is an excellent shot, but on more than one occasion she showed restraint, didn't shoot when she could have. The few times she has killed someone she had no choice. Even so she didn't hesitate.

Her confidant early on is Jan. Jan took her under her wing. But once Patty comes into the picture she and Candace begin a relationship that grows in unexpected ways.

The most commented thing about her is her tattoo that begins on the back of her left hand, flows up her arm, across her breasts and then down across her stomach and beyond.

The second most commented upon thing about her are her looks influenced by her father who was African American and her Mother who was Japanese.

She wants to be pregnant, she can see herself as a mother, and she sees salvation for the world in children. She is a musician, singer/songwriter. She was told more than once that she could have made it as a musician. She, once they are somewhat settled down, but even as they travel, begins once more to write music and lyrics.

She and Mike Collins are the two main characters in the novels.

Other Information

In the Novel Billy Jingo Candace has a small part as a cashier in a grocery store.

In the Novel Alone she also has a small part as a cashier in that same store.

In the novel Kat and Pat she has a small part as a dancer that reveals a little more about her first few months in the club than chapter one of the first book shows us.

~

JESSIE

Jessie Stone brings a real doctor to the nation. She is level headed, pragmatic, and straight forward when it comes to her needs and her beliefs, but she also has a humorous side.

Jessie was serious when she told Mike that she wanted him. And, although Mike turned her down she did not change her mind. The feelings she had did not go away, in fact they grew stronger as she came to understand the leader of the Nation as he guided them back to the valley.

She set out from Washington State to form a haven like the Nation. She and her followers called that place The Fold.

The months ahead will determine Jessie's place in the Nation , and quite possibly change several relationships in the process.

~

MIKE

Mike Collins is the leader of the people and remains the leader through nearly all the novels.

We know Mike used to do Web Design work, that he had a great deal of money in the old world, but that he was unhappy (He says so in retrospect). He had no girlfriend and was pretty much wrapped up in making money that he didn't need. He just socked it into a bank account and left it there, when he explains this towards the end of book one he gives the impression that knowing that money was there (He talks about a few million dollars) was a big deal to him, as though it may have ruled his life.

Mike didn't set out to be the leader. It was the dynamic formed by the relationship with Candace that pushed him into that role. As though the relationship bought the responsibility with it. Later in the series the role is a bigger responsibility than he wants to handle. The people he's responsible for number in the thousands, and continue to grow.

Mike is mixed race, Native American, White, African American. He spent some time on the streets as a kid. Candace is his first real love.

Later in the series Mike will go through many changes, first trying to find himself, then trying to find his place in life. His search may take him away from Candace.

Other Information

In the novel
Alone
Mike has a small part finishing up some computer work for one the main characters.

~

PATTY

Patty comes into the series in the first book and becomes Candace's best friend immediately. She admits in her diary writings that she has never had a friend like Candace.

She doesn't tell us much about her life in the old world. Married, divorced and married again and that was on the verge of failure too.

She talks about Ronnie in some of her writings as if he is all she ever wanted, but in some of her writings she's not so sure. In a few of her writings she seems to be hinting at some sort of realization she has come to too late. That may become clearer in the later books.

In any case she is completely devoted and loyal to Candace, and she plays an important part in the lives of all the characters right to the end of the series.

Patty plays one of the Title Roles in the novel
Kat and Pat.
In that book she reveals a great deal about herself in her previous life.

~

PEARL

Pearl comes to us from England. She doesn't say how she happened to be in the United States when the apocalypse started.

She made her way to The Nation with another group of people and met Billy shortly after. It is only after she is there for some time that she reveals information that she has about the apocalypse.

Pearl likes her life with Billy, but she longs for England, and wonders what has become of her home. For now she is content to be a part of the Outrunners.

~

RONNIE

Ronnie came to us in the first book already involved with Patty and seemingly happy with his situation. There are references to conversations between him and Mike that cemented their relationship, but no actual written record of those conversations.

Ronnie is Mike's right hand man. Mike says he is a completion of himself and he depends on him and seeks his advice. Mike discuses nearly everything with him. Several times he and Candace are the only ones that Mike takes into his confidence or seems to trust with the really big things.

We know Ronnie came from
Pritchard Alabama
.
Pritchard
is a small city on the outskirts of
Mobile Alabama
. He came to Watertown to build houses for the Army base expansion and stayed.

He is a carpenter by trade. Quiet, solid, loyal are apt descriptive words for him. His relationship with Patty probably would not have happened had the world not changed drastically. Patty was waiting for something else she didn't even know she was waiting for at the time. Ronnie saw her regularly, they lived in the same apartment house, Ronnie lived in 2c, patty lived one floor below in 1b. They both shopped at the same supermarket on State street, Ronnie didn't like to shop at all. But as often as he saw her in passing he never asked her out, although he admits he had thought about it a few times.

~

TIM

Tim is Patty's brother, or at least that is the way she presents him and he doesn't correct that perception. A little more on that down the road...

Tim is really not much more than a kid when we meet him in the first book. When Annie comes along he is immediately attracted to her. They are both about the same age.

Tim looks up to Ronnie. He views Ronnie as the man who came along and saved himself and Patty. Most likely that is exactly what happened as they were on the North Side and would have been picked up by the North Side gangs before long. Traveling with Ronnie probably stopped that from happening. Tim looks at him as an older brother he never had. Stability in a bad situation.

Tim also looks up to Mike and Mike is fond of Tim. That is evidenced in the things Mike trusts him with.

~

TOM

Tom Evans comes into the first novel as a man who really doesn't know himself. He goes from a position of leadership to last in line for responsibility once Mike Collins is leading.