Dead Ones

Chapter 18: Recon

Morning came after a sleepless night. I walked into Sophie's room to check on her. She sat upright in her bed, smiling at me. "Good morning!" she said brightly. I half smiled back. Her smile faced and her face turned to concern. "You have deep circles under your eyes. Did you sleep?" she asked. "No," I said plainly. I walked over to her bedside and handed her the letter I had written for her. She began to open it. I put my hand in the way to stop her from doing so. "I'm giving this to you in case I don't make it home," I said. "Don't read it if I come back," I said. She put it onto the bedside table next to her. I began to leave the room. "Wait," she said. I turned back and looked at her. "If you don't make it back, who do you want in charge of this place?" she asked. "You," I said simply. I turned and left without another word. I walked from the medical building to the church. I entered quietly. Elijah sat in the middle of an isle. He was alone. I approached him and gently placed my hand on his shoulder. "Oh man of little faith, what do you request from me?" he said. "Matthew 17:20-21, 'For truly I tell you, if you have faith the size of a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.'" I replied to him. He looked at me, raising his eyebrows. "You've done your reading," he said. "Indeed father. But that isn't why I've come here," I said. "Have you done something that needs forgiveness?" he asked. "Always," I said. He squinted at me. "What I've come to talk to you about is very important," I said. "Continue," he said. "Since Sophie is injured, I want you to take her place for the time being. Just until she is fit to lead once more," I said. "I will do my best," he said. I patted him on the shoulder. "Sophie has the armory key if you are ever in need of weaponry again," I said. I turned and left him. There was one more thing I wanted to do before leaving. Get another tattoo. I walked into the shop. "Back for some more ink?" the artist asked. "You know me well," I said. "What would you like?" she asked. "A skull on my right shoulder, and a smiley face on my right hand," I said. I sat down in the chair and let her go to work...

After she had finished, the areas she worked on were sore and weak. I stood from the chair. I reached into my pocket for some of the money that Cyrus had given me long ago. My pockets were empty of such things. "It's alright chief," she said. "Those are on me. You are fighting for us after all," she said. I smiled slightly. I bid her farewell and left. I walked to the town bell and rang it once. The people gathered. "If you are standing here and you do not wish to fight, leave now," I said. A few people stepped away. Many stayed. "If you are here and wish to fight, go over to the forge to pick up some body armor, then visit the armory to pick up a weapon. We meet at the gate by noon," I said. I dismissed them to go and do as they were told. Elijah stood by idle. "I will await your return," he said. "Yeah," I said plainly. I had no intentions of returning.  I left him and walked back to the medical building to pick up my gear. I walked inside and saw Sophie, still sitting upright in her bed. She was quiet. Too quiet. I began picking up my weapons and strapping them onto myself. The knife in its holster. The pistol in its holster. The armor on my limbs and chest. The rifle around my torso. The mask on my face. When I had finished dressing, I bent down and picked up the bat. I admired the rusty spikes protruding from its hardwood frame. I tucked it in the rifle sling on my side, with the spikes out of reach of my body. I turned to leave. "I read your note," Sophie said. I stopped dead in my tracks. "Grim don't do this to yourself," she said. "It must be done. I cannot live. I will destroy this place and everyone I love," I said. "Don't go!" she said. I turned back and looked at her. "If you wish to live, you will let me go," I said. She didn't speak again. I turned away and walked out of the building and to the front gate...

I stood with the great number of people awaiting my arrival. "We're going to get into another caravan like before and drive to the place we formerly had control of," I said. "Once we're there, we will deal with things as they come our way", I continued. People nodded in acknowledgement. We made our way as a group to the car lot. David was standing there waiting. He was wearing a piece of his own armor. He held a compound bow. He had a pistol and a makeshift mace at his sides. "Change your mind?" I said. "I want my daughter to have a place to grow up in, and call her home. I am willing to fight for that," he said. I smiled slightly. "Welcome aboard soldier," I said. We were getting into our cars when someone stopped me. The woman I had rescued from the shed approached me. There was another woman beside her. Both of them were wearing armor. "You want to join the fight?" I asked. "I do," the one said. "My name is Abby, and this is my best friend J," she said. J didn't have any weaponry on her. "Can you fight?" I asked both of them. "No, but I have weapons and I'm willing to learn," Abby said. "I cannot fight, but I can prepare food that scavengers bring in," said J. I hesitated for a moment. J would at least need to carry a weapon. The more people operating weapons the better, but I did not want these people to die for their community when they would be better off within the safety of the walls, contributing to the Refuge. "Come along then, but don't slow us down," I said. Abby grinned. She handed me a paper bag. "What's this?" I asked. "Deer jerky. A thank you for saving me the other day," she said. I tossed the bag into the vehicle I was taking and hopped inside. "Find a car with room in it and join them," I said. They did. John was in the passenger seat of my vehicle. Maria sat in the back seat this time. I fired up the engine and revved it. I sped out of the lot and towards the gate. It opened slowly for me. There were a few of the dead roaming around nearby. "Hold on," I said to the others in the car. I pressed the gas down hard. The vehicle sped up and flew forward. It collided with the small group of the dead ones. Their weak bodies recoiled off of the front bumper of the vehicle. Once the way was clear, I let off the gas slightly so that the rest of the cars following behind could do so easier. "John," I said. "What's up?" he said. "When we get to the town and settle in, I've got something to ask you," I said. "Why not now?" he asked. I glanced up slightly in the rear view mirror at Maria. She looked back at me through the mirror. "Wow, okay," she said. "Nothing personal," I said. "I just wanted to have a private talk with John that might change the tide of the war," I added. "And I can't know?" she asked. "Not yet," I said. She crossed her arms and slid down in her seat slightly. None of us spoke for the rest of the ride...