United States Of Apocalypse Page 13

  “Joe doesn’t have as much property as I do but he has a lot more room,” Herbert said.

  The pair sat in the car and stared at the house.

  Herbert finally opened the door after beeping his horn again once.

  “He usually comes out if he’s home. I don’t see his pickup truck, but he might be out back doing some work,” Herbert said. “Joe is a good man but he doesn’t like strangers on his property, so stay close.”

  Darlene gripped the rifle and stepped out, following Herbert up the steps to the front door.

  “Joe, you home? It’s me, Herbert. Your neighbor. I came to ask if you would let me use a power tool or three. Hello?” Herbert banged on the front door.

  After another knock a minute later, they decided to go around the porch to the back.

  Darlene thought this house was lovely, and it was obvious Joe had put a lot of hard work and time into making the property gorgeous, from the planted bushes to the bird feeders on the side of the house.

  “I don’t see his truck or Sandra’s car. I can’t imagine neither of them is home,” Herbert said.

  He banged on the back door and waited, staring at the door. It looked to Darlene like he was trying to will it open. After a couple of minutes, Herbert went to the nearest window and tried to look inside. He shook his head. “They have all the blinds closed.”

  “Now what?” Darlene asked.

  Herbert frowned. “We go inside and hope Joe doesn’t shoot me in the heart.” He bent and pushed aside one of the small planters set on either side of the door, revealing a key.

  Darlene smiled. “You always hear about no one locking their doors in places like this.”

  “We always lock the doors but the neighbors know where the extra key is in case of emergency. Oh, speaking of which, if there’s ever a time you need the extra house key, check in the red barn. It’s right over the doorframe on a hook.”

  “Good to know.”

  Herbert unlocked the door and swung it open. “Joe? Sandra? Anybody home?”

  After a pause, he stepped inside and Darlene followed, happy to be out of the sun. But it was warm in the house, as if the air conditioning had been turned off or set very low.

  They went to the kitchen. Everything looked in place. The table was clear and so were the counters.

  Herbert walked down the hallway, calling out every couple of steps.

  The rest of the bottom floor was clean and not a knickknack looked to be out of place.

  “Let’s go upstairs. I don’t smell anything funny, which is always a good sign,” Herbert said.

  Darlene thought it was morbid but realistic. Bad things had been happening. She didn’t know if the Sawyer family also held a grudge against the Boyette family and what they were capable of. Herbert and Pheebz were friendly with them, so it might be a mark against the Boyette clan.

  Upstairs was quiet as they went up. All of the doors were closed. Herbert started to his left and opened a door slowly, which led to a guest bedroom. Nothing out of place.

  The bathroom was next, and it was clean, although Herbert pointed out that all of the shampoo, soap, and anything else normally in the shower was missing. So were the couple’s toothbrushes, and when Darlene opened the medicine cabinet, she saw it was empty.

  “I think they left,” Darlene said. “When we go back downstairs, we need to check the kitchen and pantry.”

  Herbert hesitated at the closed bedroom door. He looked at Darlene and frowned. “I’ve known Joe and Sandra for years. Their daughter used to come over to play with...” He turned and opened the door.

  The bedroom was undisturbed, the bed made and everything in place.

  Darlene sighed. The last thing either of them wanted to find was a couple of bodies, especially people Herbert knew and cared for.

  Darlene led the way back downstairs after a quick search of the rest of the top floor yielded nothing but a tidy home.

  In the kitchen, Herbert pulled a slip of paper off the refrigerator and put it on the table for Darlene to see. “At least they might be safe.”

  Darlene read it, guessing Terri was their daughter. She smiled and looked at Herbert. “This is dated three days before everything happened. They flew down to Miami, which means they might be safe.” Then she re-read it. “Do you think their daughter came to check on the house though?”

  “She was supposed to water the plants and feed Sandra’s goldfish according to the note,” Herbert said and walked quickly into the living room.

  There had been three goldfish in the bowl but only one was still alive and it looked sluggish. Darlene found the goldfish food and sprinkled flakes on top of the water, watching the fish eat.

  “It looks like their daughter never got here,” Herbert said quietly. “I know where she lives in town. It’s only a few miles.”

  “When we do the trip into town, we need to swing by and see if she’s around,” Darlene said. She went back into the kitchen and opened the refrigerator. There was some food, leftovers in bowls, and a twelve-pack of Coke. Cheese slices were in a drawer, and the freezer was packed with food, too.

  “I feel like I’m violating them,” Herbert said and pushed the freezer door closed.

  Darlene nodded. “I say we leave and lock the door behind us. Once we figure out about their daughter and if they’re safe we can come back if need be.” She glanced at the cabinets but didn’t open them out of respect for Herbert. She knew there was more food to inventory, and it might make a real difference now that John was back and they had seven mouths to feed.

  They went to one of the barns behind the house and Herbert opened the doors with a smile. “Joe won’t mind me borrowing the tractor as long as I fill it with gas and make sure it’s running better than when I borrowed it. You can follow me home.”

  The ride back to the farm was slow and uneventful, although Darlene enjoyed the smells and sights of being in such a pretty and secluded place. She thought it funny in a way because if this had never happened, she would have never known how beautiful this area was. To her and most people, it was a blip on a map and a minor road to traverse to get from point A to point B.

  Darlene wondered how long she’d be here, though. What if the world only got worse? What if, when the smoke cleared, there was no home for her to go back to? She’d been pondering these things so often the past few days her head hurt.

  By the time they got back to the farm, she was sweaty and on edge. There was too much work to be done, and even with the Cat to knock down some of the trees, it was still going to be hard work.

  John was still outside, using the chainsaw to cut down the trees. He didn’t look up when they arrived.

  Chapter Twenty

  Day 21 - Manhattan

  Not long after the destruction of Boston, Mike went from the one being comforted to the one offering comfort. It was a role he wasn’t quite ready to fulfill, but needs dictated otherwise. Tynes had generously offered Mike his bedroom while he stayed in the guest room. It had been nearly a week, and Mike had not done much except occasionally eat dinner and hold the cat, who genuinely seemed all right with that. Electricity outages had become the norm, and while it was on, Tynes would cook.

  They sat at the kitchen table, Mike absently putting raviolis into his mouth while staring into space. This was one of the few times they’d had power on for more than two hours. Both had made sure to take showers, although Mike had to be reminded gently that perhaps he was now dirty enough that this was something he needed to do, especially since he was sleeping in the Tynes’ bed.

  Landlines had been a complete loss and cell reception had been nearly as bad. When the phone rang, both men hesitated at the rare sound. Tynes shot up as if he were a sixth-grade math teacher who’d just sat on a tack. He raced into the living room, oblivious that he’d dropped his plate onto the floor. Mike noticed that Baggie seemed to be particularly fond of Alfredo sauce. He could hear Tynes in the other room.

  “Linda? Linda? Is that you? Margery? W
hat? Slow down—I can’t understand you.” There was a pause. “You’re cutting out. Tell me again what’s happening. Where’s Linda?” A longer silence. Mike stood up and went to the archway between the kitchen and living room. Tynes had the phone gripped tight enough in his right hand that the screen began to twist, buckle, and then crack. He let his arm fall to his side, his hand opened and the phone clattered to the floor. Tynes slid down the wall, his legs splayed out in front of him. His head hung low; Mike could not have missed the heavy tears that threatened to fall from the corners of the man’s eyes.

  “What’s going on? Is…is she dead?”

  “She’s been hurt. She was trying to come home—thickheaded woman. She’s in the hospital.”

  “She’ll be okay, man.”

  “How can you possibly know that?”

  “She’s got to be tough. She’s married to you.” Mike sat down next to Tynes.

  “I should be there with her.” Tynes looked on the verge of tears again.

  For a long time, neither said anything. Eventually, Mike reached his hand out and grabbed Tynes’ clutched one. They sat that way for nearly three hours. Baggie joined them, though he slept for most of it.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Day 21 I-70

  Darlene, sitting on the tree stand, at first thought a deer had wandered into her line of sight. She raised the rifle and looked through the scope, trying to find the movement near the creek.

  It was two men, and they were hunched over and coming fast.

  Darlene put her finger near the trigger but didn’t shoot.

  In the last week and a half since they’d cleared out the trees, John had come around enough to take a shift on guard. It rotated, with one person in the stand to guard the rear and one on the porch to watch the road. The third man slept six hours before relieving someone. It was an unspoken rule that Herbert didn’t have to climb the tree.

  There was just enough moonlight for Darlene to use to her advantage. Both men were armed and wearing dark clothing. They slowly hopped the fence and started moving through the field, heading straight for the house.

  Darlene knew if she fired it would set a war into motion, but what choice did she have?

  She scanned the creek again to see if there were any stragglers or anyone watching the approach. Once she fired, she’d be a sitting duck if they knew where the blast came from.

  When she didn’t see anyone else lingering, she waited until the two men were far enough away with their backs to her. It might be a cowardly move, but she couldn’t chance the one she didn’t hit getting a shot off, and she was assuming her first shot would find the target.

  “Dad, help me with my aim,” she whispered.

  Darlene was about to kill a man or at least wound him. She closed her eyes, counted to three in her head, and knew what she had to do. She inched the rifle’s angle down so she could hit one of them in the leg rather than kill him. If she was quick enough she could incapacitate both of them quickly.

  She hesitated. The two silhouettes were getting farther away and closer to the house. Within seconds, she might miss her chance at not be able to get the shot. She wasn’t nearly as accurate with a rifle as she was with the Desert Eagle at closer range.

  Despite the cool night air, she was sweating.

  Darlene gauged how fast they were moving. If they got too far and she missed, they would run up to the house and put everyone inside in danger.

  Stop wasting time and pull the damn trigger, she thought.

  Darlene fired and saw the man fall to the ground, his partner immediately dropping to one knee and looking around. She could tell he had no idea where the shot had come from.

  Before John or Herbert could come out to investigate, Darlene lined up the other man’s knee and fired. The shot was high and punched him in the chest.

  Shit.

  Darlene scanned the area with the scope one more time to make sure there were no surprises before climbing down and going to the two men, ready to shoot if she saw any movement.

  She shone her flashlight once quickly, followed by two more flashes. Her message was returned backwards from the house, telling her John or Herbert was on his way.

  Neither man moved. Darlene held her breath and turned on the flashlight beam, shining it into where she thought their eyes would be. In the event they were playing possum, she could momentarily blind them.

  They were both dead.

  “Good shots,” John said as he approached at a jog.

  “I didn’t mean to kill them.”

  The first man she’d hit had taken a bullet to the back of his neck, most likely killing him instantly. The second man had been hit in the chest and through his heart. Two great shots to kill, even though Darlene had been aiming to wound.

  “We need to move them to one of the barns,” John said.

  Darlene could hear Herbert running from the house now.

  “I didn’t aim to kill anyone,” Darlene said.

  “Well, you did. And I’m glad you killed them, Darlene. Better than waking up to the sounds of men shooting women and children or never waking up again,” John said.

  He stooped and began going through the first man’s pockets, putting the man’s weapon off to the side.

  “Who is it?” Herbert asked, panting.

  Darlene shined the light at the two bodies.

  “Not the Sawyer brothers.” Herbert pointed at the one with the neck wound. “Jerry Shines, a second cousin to the Sawyers. This other one is a Sawyer, but another cousin. Willie. Damn Sawyers were too chicken to come themselves, so they sent these two idiots to see what our defenses were.”

  “They know about the tree stand then. I’m sure there’s at least one of them out there,” John said. He reached over and took the flashlight from Darlene, who was staring at the two bodies. He turned it off. “We need to get them to the barn and out of the open field. I don’t feel like being shot.”

  Herbert went to Darlene and hugged her. “I’m sorry it’s come to this. Can you hold it together a few more minutes? I need you to help us.”

  Darlene thought she was holding it together, but when she touched her face it was wet. She’d been crying. “What do you need me to do?”

  “Get back in the tree and make sure no one comes to get their kin. There might be a second attack tonight, and I don’t want to be caught carrying a body and unable to fight back,” Herbert said.

  Darlene went back up into the tree and stifled a sob with her hand. She needed to be strong for the next few hours, at least until it was daylight.

  She scanned the terrain outside the fence but didn’t see any movement. She wished they had infrared binoculars or scopes. Maybe Herbert knew where to find a couple.

  Between looking through the scope for trouble, Darlene cried. She kept shoving her hand over her mouth whenever possible, and both of her sleeves were drenched.

  She needed a good cry, for the men she’d killed and her dad and the situation and John’s wife and everyone dead in the world and—

  “I’m coming up. Don’t shoot,” Herbert said.

  “No, I’ll come down.” Before Herbert could protest, Darlene climbed down and met him on the ground. “I haven’t see anyone, but it doesn’t mean they aren’t there or weren’t there before I killed those two men.”

  “Two men planning to kill all of us,” Herbert said.

  “Are you done with the bodies? What do we do? Bury them?”

  “I’m not sure. I’d hate to put them in the ground and then have to explain to their families why we hid them. But we can’t let them sit in the hot barn for more than a few days, either. I’m not sure just yet,” Herbert said.

  “Why are they doing this?” Darlene asked, more to herself.

  “Because they’re as scared as we are. They weren’t prepared for anything like this. No one was.”

  “You were.”

  Herbert shook his head. “Not really. I stored enough food for Pheebz and I for a few weeks. Nothing signi
ficant. We’re eating nice meals now because my wife is scared to death and the only thing that calms her is cooking. But soon enough we’ll be wondering what else my sister has to eat. The berries and fruit on the land will come in handy.”

  “I’ll go back up and watch until it gets light out. I doubt they’ll come back during the day,” Darlene said.

  “John will take the next shift. He wants to get up there. Between you and me, John was a little disappointed you got to fire at them. I think something in the man’s head isn’t right. I didn’t know him too well before, just his brief visit, but he came back dark. Real dark.” Herbert shifted back and forth on his feet. “I think I’ll go to the porch for a bit and you can get some sleep.”

  “There’s no way I’ll be able to sleep,” Darlene said. “You look exhausted. I’d rather sit on the porch and cry for a bit. Get it all out. It will be quieter and more private for me. Doing it in the living room on the couch will just wake everyone anyway.”

  Herbert looked up at the tree. “Alright. I’m not going to pass up sleep at my age. I’ll let John know to relieve you. Shouldn’t be more than a few minutes. I think he’d argue if you said you wanted back in the tree, anyway.”

  Darlene watched Herbert walk away into the shadows before turning and using the scope to scan the area. Down on the ground she couldn’t see much but she didn’t feel like climbing back into the tree and having to come back down when John arrived.

  She walked slowly around the trees, listening after each step for any movement.

  Something rustled in the woods on the other side of the fence and she froze, searching slowly for a target. The Sawyers hadn’t gone away. They were still out there and waiting for them to drop their guard before launching another attack.

  Darlene didn’t want to kill anyone else tonight, or any night.

  She took three quick steps, glad there was nothing underfoot to make a sound. She leaned against a tree and steadied herself, moving the scope slowly to see what was out there.