Are You with Me?
1
“Drive her straight to the brig,” Angela ordered tiredly, signaling for the evening gate sentries to open them wide.
“Traitor!”
“Killer!”
The people of Safe Haven were not happy to have been woken with the news that someone had tried to hurt Marc.
“Hope you get a bullet!”
“Die, you traitor!”
Angela didn’t like the ugliness, but her people needed to vent a little and the woman in the van needed to be scared for her life. It was definitely in danger here.
The van threw dust over the small crowd of angry people and Angela hid a smirk. Billy didn’t like their hang ‘em high attitudes either and as an Eagle, his disapproval was as powerful as hers was.
She sent a hard look over the crowd that had come at Billy’s radio call, and they sullenly left. That instinct to hurt anything that might disturb their lives was one that Adrian had encouraged, even though it had seemed the opposite from outward appearance. Angela hoped to calm those fears in time, but as long as they had people hunting them, it was impossible to do it now.
“What type of security do you want on her?” Zack asked.
“Just you,” Angela stated, sweeping the waking camp. Dawn had come two hours early. “Handle it like Adrian would have.”
Zack’s brows furrowed, but he didn’t protest. He hated Adrian, and the fact that their routines and plans came from such trash rankled Zack.
He left her side and Angela waited for the locks to click on the gate. The future hadn’t been revealed to her, again, and Angela suspected it was because of what she’d done. Her guilt wouldn’t let her make plans to do it again, even if it was needed. Only for Marc or Charlie’s life would she ever murder and that made her tension worse. She knew trouble was coming. Marc’s demon hadn’t been wrong. She will have to let them die by the hundreds before the truth can be accepted.
You could try again, the witch suggested, meaning to convince everyone to flee south now.
I will, Angela answered, making eye contact with each of the relaxing men on the gate. “And some of them will listen.”
The ones who matter, will save themselves, the witch tossed out a platitude.
They all matter! Angela snapped. Every life matters to the Creator, and to me, so don’t forget that!
I did not mean to–
Stop. Angela sighed, calming down while also finding it troublesome that she was arguing with herself again. Life is the only thing that truly has value. Evil, good, in the middle–all of them. Some deaths serve a purpose and some are needed, but don’t mock their sacrifices. They all matter.
2
Angela swept the vicinity again, spotting Peggy moving through the darkness without Doug. She was avoiding him, not even stabbing the big man anymore. Doug was confused, but Angela wasn’t. If she didn’t want to talk to Doug, she was trying to keep him from discovering her other secret.
In the mess, Kyle and Jennifer were enjoying coffee and cocoa for their end of shift time. If they followed the new pattern Angela had noticed, they would go to the sleeping area next and spend time with three families there. The men that had died in Kyle’s wreck left people behind and Kyle was now caring for them personally. But for his one flaw (a young girl), Kyle would be a perfect man. It could still happen for him, in time, but Jennifer would have to get him over that obsession and Angela wasn’t positive that was even possible. People didn’t get over their obsessions. They learned to avoid them, much like children touching fire. It often took the burn, to learn the lesson.
Behind the mess, the sniper shifts were changing and Angela’s heart clenched as she spotted Charlie climbing down from the perch the Eagles had built. She wanted to keep staring, to give him the chance to acknowledge her, but she knew he was still furious and she turned away so that he couldn’t reject her. Her emotions liked to get out of control and while being pregnant had a little to do with that, it was mostly the stress of knowing what was coming.
In the front parking area, teams were already prepping to leave on new runs, including the men who were picking up Shane’s group. All of those men would be placed into Zone B for testing when they arrived, and so would Marc’s crew. Enforcing the quarantine laws was important, and they’d had contact with multiple strangers. The Eagles were assigned to Zone B, which had been emptied as new people were brought into the inner adjustment zone last night. None of them had been sent on their way and that had emptied both outside zones.
It wouldn’t be that way again while they were in these mountains. Until the snow comes, Angela corrected herself.
Their men would be clear in time to empty the space for Brittani’s group, but still be around when those people arrived–to add comfort.
“Can I talk to you?”
Angela found Cynthia behind her. “What’s up?”
“I’m worried about Samantha. So is Neil. Jeremy hasn’t said so yet, but he’s noticing stuff too.”
“She’s been sick,” Angela answered carefully. She wasn’t sure who all Samantha had told, but it appeared it had been few people and that her methods to keep such an awful secret had succeeded. Much like John and Doug, who had hid their illnesses, Samantha had gotten better at distracting people from the truth.
“She’s also reckless,” Cynthia said, glad Angela already knew there was a problem. “Conner told her not to go in.”
“She didn’t listen to her protection?”
“Protection?” Cynthia gasped. “You sent him down to protect us?”
“Of course,” Angela answered without offense. “He’s a healer and it was a group of women carrying our future. The question is, why didn’t you guys know that?”
“He didn’t tell us,” Cynthia muttered, hating how Angela always managed to twist it around and come out on top. “Was he supposed to?”
“Yes. He’s young. Probably forgot.”
“Well, she wouldn’t have listened anyway,” the reporter stated. “She’s acting odd. Her guys are going to talk to you about it soon.”
“I know.” Angela waited for more and wasn’t surprise when it came.
“I need to interview Adrian for my paper, but I’d like to take a guard along.”
“A witness, you mean,” Angela clarified.
“Yes. I won’t have people thinking I’m like Kendle or worse, Daryl feeling betrayed. I’ll need about an hour, I think, and that’s it.”
“It’s fine,” Angela granted. “You can even take Daryl if you like.”
“Really? Won’t that cause tension?”
Angela glanced over at Cynthia. “Worse than the questions you plan to ask?”
“No, but I…”
“You aren’t going to stay on business,” Angela finished when Cynthia paused. “Take whoever you trust, Cyn. It’s fine.”
Grateful and yet, still resentful, the reporter left, casting long looks over her shoulder. How can I like Angela and dislike Angela, at the same time?
I don’t know, but I do, Cynthia answered herself. There’s something going on with her and I won’t like it when I discover what it is.
No, you won’t, Angela agreed sadly, scanning Cynthia’s thoughts. I can’t let you give birth and you’ve sensed the ticking clock.
That bell was set to go off in a few weeks and Angela didn’t intend to stop it. That baby was worse than dangerous. He was true evil and he already liked to hurt people.
3
“What the hell is wrong with these people?” Samantha whispered in disgust. Adrian had dropped her off at the bottom of the mountain road and she had made her way on foot to be positive she was undetected. She had followed the bike trail from David’s capture location while Marc let the chaos happen, and she’d found the den. On the front, on the porch, were naked men chained to the railings and dying of hunger, dehydration, and exposure. In the side yard of the wide farmhouse, under a giant willow tree, there appeared to be a bone pile. Samantha was afraid to sweep the rear.
A large fire in front of the house glowed brightly, illuminating the filthy tools lying around the sparse grass and the personal effects of victims. Two large people dressed in all black stood on the porch with shotguns, sweeping the darkness, and Samantha stayed down. Marc wanted her to be a surprise and she hadn’t spotted David at all. She was hoping dawn, which was closer now, would help her with that before it exposed her.
One of the chained men slumped over and the two guards on the porch nudged each other in obvious happiness. They didn’t leave their posts, but one of them banged on the front door.
Are they eating them? Samantha wondered, stomach twisting. She didn’t see tools for that, but the rest of the scene fit the part.
The door opened and another black-clad person came out and dragged the collapsed man inside. Samantha wanted to be glad he was out of the cold, but worried that the fate inside the house was worse.
Not sure how she would stay hidden when the sun rose, Samantha hunkered down and tried to keep warm. There was little cover here and the icy wind was relentless as it reformed the landscape into a crystalized quarry.
Come on, Marc. I’ve never done this before and I’m getting nervous.
4
“Ready?”
“Yep,” Adrian replied, hands full of Marc’s ammo. I’ve been reduced to gun boy.
Marc grinned and fired.
The grenade hit the vehicle behind the house and exploded, taking the old wagon with it. There weren’t any people here, not even sentries, and Marc took advantage of it.
“Let’s go.” He took off running, aiming for the side yard and Adrian followed, slamming the grenade home as they went, reloading the launcher. It was another variation of the way he had trained the Eagles to do more damage, and the former leader tried not to grumble.
They reached the side yard as the rear door opened and the yard flooded with activity.
Marc opened fire as soon as they were in range, hitting the giant tree. Shrapnel flew over the yard, bringing screams.
Marc ran for the front porch next, aiming at the door as the chained man shouted for him to stop. Marc had no intentions of firing, but he let Adrian reload it for the appearance. He wanted the house cleared–quickly–and this would do it.
“Get out!” a man shouted as he saw Marc and the launcher in the doorway. “Breach! Get out!”
“Now!” Marc ordered through his belt radio.
Outside, rifle shots lit up the stillness to compliment the screams as Marc and Adrian dropped the launcher and ammo, and opened fire.
Taken by surprise, the eight men and women were quickly killed, but it was too late for the naked man on the floor. They’d already begun to chop him up.
The ninth man ran for the rear of the property and dove into a small hole Marc assumed led to an underground area.
After Samantha came to cover them, Marc and Adrian freed the captives they found and then headed for the hole.
Samantha stayed topside, lurking in the shadows in case anyone had been drawn to the noise.
5
The tunnel was made from sewer piping and once they climbed down, it was tall enough for the two men to stand up. Neither of them flipped on a light that would make them a target in the darkness. Adrian used his night scope and Marc sent out his grid.
Marc spotted half a dozen still-warm bodies and three heartbeats. He’d learned to tell the difference over the years and he went forward with his gun in one hand and knife in the other.
“There!” Adrian called, spotting their prey.
Marc lunged forward through the darkness, and was immediately knocked against a dank wall as a bullet went through his jacket and stopped against the triple plates. Marc staggered around, still coming and his would-be assassin screamed, firing again.
Adrian shoved by Marc to club the man with his own rifle and Marc let him, chest aching. The plates stopped the bullet, but not the force. He felt like he’d been hit by a truck.
“Good to know I’m not alone in that,” Adrian stated wryly. His shoulder and arm hadn’t stopped throbbing, though the trim had clotted on its own.
“Yeah, but you deserve it,” Marc complained lightly. He was feeling good, like always after winning a fight, surviving. “Let’s get our guy and go.”
They found David and another man in the farthest room under the ground and neither of them looked good. Both of them were unconscious. Marc and Adrian each carried one from the cellar.
Samantha hurried to go get their wheels without being told. For all the running around, the house was only a few minutes from the spot where David had been taken. The mall was a trap they’d been using to draw in refugees. Samantha still didn’t know what they’d been doing with them, but the survivors they’d brought out would tell the stories.
Because there had been captives here, Samantha wasn’t feeling as bad about David’s injury.
Until she returned, and found him still unconscious and covered in blood. Then the guilt overwhelmed her and she burst out crying as she stumbled from the van. “I am so sorry!”
Adrian caught her around the waist before she could go to David, rotating her toward the vehicle. “We want to leave now. You drive.”
Too upset to notice who was giving her orders, Samantha climbed into the van and started the engine.
Marc gave Adrian a nod of approval that he didn’t want to deliver, but felt was deserved. David didn’t need her tears. He needed a doctor. The arrow through his leg was ugly enough that Marc wasn’t positive he would walk on it again. Marc also wasn’t sure the leg would be saved and he knew when Sam realized that by the way she opened the van door and vomited.
6
“They’re back!”
Angela met the van at the gate and saw Samantha, Billy, and two injured men. “Where’s Marc?”
Samantha was too busy helping one of the men to reply–Angela assumed it was David–and Billy came over to her after waving for Eagles to help the two injured people to the medical bay. The third man had lived long enough to feel the chains come off, and his body hadn’t been brought in.
“Marc made me stop at the bottom of the road. Said he and Adrian felt like walking.”
“Did they? Feel like walking, I mean?” she asked, instantly worried.
“Adrian didn’t,” Billy said tiredly. “He was looking like I feel.”
Angela motioned him on, saying, “Get a report in by evening mess.”
Billy tiredly vanished toward the showers.
Angela also left, not wanting to be near the gate when the two men made it up the hill. The witch’s warning came to mind, but Angela was worried about more than a possible fight or death attempt. She had secrets and both men had clues. It wouldn’t take much to put them together. Both of her men were incredibly smart.
Calling them your men, now, the witch observed. Interesting.
I don’t mean it the way you took it, Angela tried to defend.
The witch, refusing to accept any excuse for Adrian’s betrayal, stormed from her mind and rattled doors all the way down the hall.
Angela went to the medical tent to ask if the doctor needed any help, and found Samantha with her knife against the doctor’s throat.
“Well, this is a new one.”
Samantha slowly eased away from the cowering physician. “We had a difference of opinion on David’s treatment.”
David was still unconscious and the arrow was still through his leg, with light blood drips trailing across the floor and onto the cot. In the lantern light, David looked bad.
Angela gaped at the doctor. “You chose not to even try saving the leg?”
“It’ll be awful,” the doctor snapped guiltily, reddening. “Blood and screams, and sweating and it won’t work.”
“You lazy little–”
“Samantha.”
Angela’s tone said to Get Out.
Samantha shook her head. “I owe him. He isn’t losing his leg because of me.”
“It doesn’t look good, Sam. You know that.”
“Are you siding with him?” Samantha asked incredulously, hovering in front of David’s prone form.
“No, I’m not. He’s going to try or I’m going to relieve him for dereliction of duty. But you have to be prepared to face the truth. Without intervention, the leg might not be savable.”
Angela scanned the other man, who was slumped in a chair in the tent and awake, but not alert.
“Marc had us give them both a sedative from the medic kits you’ve got us all carrying now. He, uh…” Billy gave the rest silently. He started screaming while Samantha went for our vehicle. Marc said she didn’t need to hear it, that she would torture herself enough over it.
“Agreed,” Angela said, going to check on the man. She gave the doctor a harsh glower and the man forced himself to go to David. Samantha, busy removing David’s gear and pants, didn’t react.
Angela helped the man in the suit onto a cot. He needed a complete workup, but it would have to wait until the leg had been handled.
“I need help,” the doctor stated, still studying the arrow as if it was the plague. “And send someone who can hold him down.”
“You are not cutting off his leg!” Samantha growled.
“Lady, I have to shove that arrow through the rest of the way. Drugged or not, he’s gonna fight and scream. You can’t hold him.”
“I’m staying,” Samantha stated stubbornly for lack of a better answer.
“You can hand me things. All the other medical assistants are on cave shifts or sleeping. I wasn’t expecting new arrivals.”
“New arrivals,” the gate guard called over their radios.
The doctor jumped and Angela sighed, wondering if the newest people had passed two brawling men on their way up the mountain.
7
“Can you be bought?” Marc asked as they reached the halfway point. They’d let the small truck of refugees pass them without being detected, but now, they were striding up the middle of the cracked road again.
Adrian was surprised by the question and not sure how it was meant. “Can you?”
“Everyone has a price,” Marc answered, enjoying the walk in the dark. He didn’t get this much privacy very often.
“What’s yours?”
“Angie and the kids,” Marc replied immediately. “Your turn.”
Adrian realized he’d been led into an oral trap, and sighed at his blindness. I am getting old.
“Yes,” Marc agreed cheerfully. “You are.”
Adrian didn’t take the bait this time. Instead, he answered the question with one of his own. “What would you give me to tell her I have to go away and then do it? Because I am capable of that.”
Marc didn’t doubt it. If Adrian got some of what he wanted out of this humiliation, he would flee and never look back.
“You think highly of me,” Adrian commented bitterly.
“With good reason,” Marc reminded. “Now answer the question.”
“What would I be paid to do?”
“Leave the state and forget she exists.”
Adrian studied Marc in the darkness, trying to figure out where this was going. “You can’t give me what I want.”
“We both know that’s not true,” Marc denied. “She’d do anything to erase the guilt she feels.”
“You’d do that to her?”
“To get you out of our lives forever?” Marc shrugged. “Maybe. Is that your price?”
“I’d have to think about it,” Adrian stalled, decision already made.
“Fine. We’ll be at the gate in about ten minutes.”
Adrian grunted at the time limit, but didn’t protest. “She needs time out of those gates.”
“Not safe out here,” Marc denied.
“My site is safe as it can be,” Adrian hinted. “And you could send Eagles along.”
While Marc was enjoying some of Adrian’s eager groveling, the fact that it was time with Angie they were bargaining for made him put an end to it. “It won’t happen unless we make a deal, and even then, I’ll need time to consider your request.”
“Requests,” Adrian corrected. “If I’m being sent away, you have to take responsibility for my son.”
“No,” Marc denied. “Conner goes with you.”
“Safe Haven needs him!” Adrian insisted anxiously. “Angela needs him.”
Marc didn’t respond. None of this was up to him anyway and they both knew it. Angela would make the final choice and they would all try to live with it.
“Why can’t you share her?” Adrian asked suddenly. “Others are adjusting to the idea. Can’t you even consider it?”
“I’ve done more than consider it, you self-righteous prick,” Marc snarled.
“You told her you would?” Adrian asked, shocked.
“And she shut me down quick enough to make my balls hide, so save that shit. I’ve always been willing to do whatever it takes to make her happy. You want to rut like a dog and gloat.”
“I’d never gloat,” Adrian muttered. “I’d love her as much as you do.”
“Oh, shut up!” Marc ordered, increasing his pace. “You don’t know how to love.”
The two men fell silent as the gates appeared, full of life and light.
I miss that, Adrian thought, and quickly hid his misery.
Marc could have felt sympathy, but he knew better than to trust the former leader. Adrian was a coiled rattlesnake, waiting for the right moment to infect his prey with poison.
Marc studied the changes that Angela had made during his short absence, approving. The long fences provided a path for new people to follow and Zone B was now the closest to the main gate, indicating that it had now been rotated to be the ‘good’ area. Marc liked that, knowing strangers couldn’t use that knowledge against them if it was always changing.
Tarps of plastic hung over the long tunnels that would provide shelter for the herd while they waited. The ends were staked into the ground and covered with brush so that they would stay down. In just a few days, the shifting winds would have sent enough dirt and debris to bury the edges in inches of thick padding that would also keep in the warmth. It was a brilliant setup, but it implied too many people were coming their way and Marc realized she must be ready for the camp to know about the flood of refugees coming their way.
The gates swung open, Billy and Zack coming out to greet them, and Marc lifted a brow toward Adrian. Well?
Adrian was staring at what he could discern of the inside, and his voice was like the rock that surrounded them as he answered, “Kill me or share her, but I’m never leaving. I’ll be in your mirror for the rest of our lives.”
Adrian strode for his site with his head up and his anger held in check. If Marc thought he could be bought off with a night or two of sex, he was sorely mistaken. I’m in it for the long haul. When your clock runs out, I’ll be all over that and she’ll be complete for the first time in all her lives. She deserves that and so do I. Not every man on the planet has the strength to accomplish what I have.
8
“Safe Haven is a place of second chances,” Zack stated, already chilled to the bone after spending a short time with the lunatic woman. Marc’s brig had real bars and real cells, and Zack had locked her muttering form inside with relief.
“If you change your ways, you could eventually be allowed to be one of us,” Zack lied. Even if Angela wanted this looney, Marc and the Eagles would never allow it.
“I’ll ask you some questions and you need to tell me the truth. After that, you’ll get a blood test to make sure you’re not ill. You won’t be mistreated or–”
The woman interrupted him with a long laugh that sent chills down his spine. When she stopped, she turned empty orbs on him and went quiet.
Zack hid a shudder behind an itch and knelt down to be at eye level. “Who was the man underground?”
“Did he survive?” the woman demanded, surprising Zack. He instinctively said, “No.”
“Good!” the woman spat. “We were going to eat him, but he swore he was a state governor and we kept him for a bargaining chip with the bunker.”
“There’s a bunker still in use?” Zack asked, surprised again.
“Not now,” the woman admitted. “There were riots, revolts, something like that. We were all sent out ahead of it.” She examined Zack with a sane, pitiful expression. “Could I really stay?”
Zack nodded. “I need to know one more thing. How many of you are still out there?”
“We had ten in our group,” she answered, retreating from the bars. “You didn’t say maybe, if I follow the rules. You’re lying!”
“Yes,” he admitted. “You’ve been found guilty of attempted murder, murder, kidnapping, abuse of a corpse, and a lot of other terrible things. The sentence is death.”
She opened her mouth to scream, or maybe to laugh again, and Zack quickly shot her.
He holstered the weapon with a suppressor that Eagles were supposed to carry. Was that right? he asked himself, gun hanging limply as he stared at the body. Was it just?
“Yes,” Marc stated, entering the brig and locking the door. “Besides all the evidence at that farm house, I’m sure you noticed she was bat-shit crazy.”
“Yeah,” Zack grunted.
“She was guilty. You carried out the sentence.”
“Do I…hide the body?” Zack asked reluctantly. He wasn’t sure about Kyle’s methods.
“No,” Marc answered, opening the cell door with his master key. “I’ll take the hit on this one.”
Marc lifted the body over his shoulder and took it outside.
The shocked expressions and justified shouts greeted him as he marched to the gate, and Marc agreed with them. He was tired of being shot at, of being hunted, and this was how those people needed to be treated.
Marc went through the gate when Zack opened it, the former trucker curious as to what Marc had planned.
Marc dumped the body on the ground near Zone C and then began the revolting task of tying it to the fence. Marc was glad there were only a few refugees in Zone A to witness him take a marker from his smallest kit and draw a word on her forehead.
Killer.
It was a warning to those hoping to get inside their gates, and also to those who already had that honor. Safe Haven would no longer show any mercy.
9
Samantha held David’s hand as he bit down on the rubber ball. His screams were burnt into her brain and Samantha couldn’t stop saying how sorry she was.
The doctor had broken off the shaft and was attempting to drive the rest of the shaft through the leg to get it out.
“Bone, I think,” the doctor muttered, shoving harder. “Can’t cut it out. Has to go through.”
“Pull it,” Angela ordered. “We’ll treat the side effects of that.”
The doctor reversed his force and the shaft slowly inched out of David’s ankle.
The wooden shaft popped out with a nauseating sound and blood gushed from the wound.
David’s scream cut off abruptly as he passed out and all of them were grateful.
The doctor hurried to pack the wound and control the blood loss, and Angela squeezed the blood bag gently. She hadn’t trusted Samantha or the doctor to be reasonable enough to be left alone together for long, but she hadn’t interfered with his choices. He was trying to do his job and she had to let him.
The doctor wiped sweat from his brow and then smeared a gob of antibiotic ointment around the wound. He also shoved a generous amount into it, quickly replacing the soaked packing.
“I can’t stitch it…no staple would hold it… I’ll cauterize it!”
Angela nodded when he surveyed her for approval.
“It’s what I would do, if that helps you,” she stated calmly. “After you check for splinters.”
“That’s good.” He nodded. “Yeah. Okay.”
He rushed from the tent that had been set up behind the main medical tents to give them privacy, and Angela spent a minute observing Samantha. The storm tracker looked healthy despite the events she’d been a part of. In a few weeks, that could really matter.
“I’m so sorry!”
David groaned weakly and Angela placed her hand on his shoulder. She didn’t have the spare energy to send out the healing orbs, but she was able to dull his pain a little. David was allergic to morphine and they didn’t have many other painkillers that would work during surgery.
“Thank you,” Sam whispered as David’s body relaxed and his teeth let go of the bit.
Angela transferred her hand to Samantha’s shoulder. “Sleep for a while.”
Samantha felt her lids shut and she obediently lay down on the bloody cot by David’s arm. She faded into sleep while yawning.
Angela let go of her and found David sleeping also. Approving, even though she hadn’t meant to do that, Angela stayed with them. She wouldn’t leave them alone with the doctor, the same as Samantha wouldn’t have left her if the situation had been reversed. As she stood vigil, Angela listened to her waking people.
A small group walked by, talking about the pancake breakfast with five types of syrup for folks to try. They’d had pancakes a lot over the last couple of weeks, and Li Sing was busy introducing new items to keep people happy.
Not far from the flap where she was standing, Angela heard Doug and Darian discussing the rules for the Eagles. They left easy hearing range too quickly for her to pick up more and she let it go in favor of listening to the next group complain about the colder weather they had today. She had plans to open the winter supply truck next week, but she would do it sooner if necessary. She needed Safe Haven people to stay as healthy as possible.
“It’ll be soon,” a cheerful voice stated as they walked by. “We’ll have the new teams list and restart the in-depth training. You’ll love it.”
“And hate it, right?”
“Oh, yeah,” the Eagle joked with his rookie trainee. “You’ll remember it.”
Those lists would be going up this afternoon, at the same time they were moving people into the cave.
“They’re coming soon,” a young voice said, coming from the opposite direction.
Working crew, Angela thought.
“And they’ll win?”
Angela narrowed in. Who did that scheming voice belong to?
“That has not been revealed.”
“You’d better not…”
The pair got out of range and Angela stored it. She’d recognized the voices.
After a little while, there were too many threads to keep memorizing without missing details and Angela took a book out to make notes. She passed the morning listening to her people and adjusting plans, even when the doctor returned and his patient woke. There were important items to be covered and it was a good use of this time. Later, free minutes would be nonexistent for them.
“I need to show you something before we go in quarantine,” Marc said, joining her in the tent. He ignored the sleeping patients, but waved at the doctor. “You need a cup of juice or something, don’t you? Go see your boys.”
The doctor didn’t argue. He hated it when Angela was here and to have her mate in these close quarters too, was too much.
Marc quickly played the video for her, and Angela automatically counted the number of people. Ten, she decided. We’re short one.
The woman they’d executed was standing where she would be captured fully by the camera and she held up a sign that said, “Give him to us or die.”
“Meaning Adrian?” Marc wanted to clarify.
“I would guess so,” Angela answered as he shut it off. “But Conner is a healer, so it might be over him.”
“What do you want done about it?”
Angela sighed. “Nothing. Unless it comes to us or attacks a crew, we will not engage this enemy yet.”
10
Moving an entire camp of three hundred people into a cave was backbreaking, tedious labor. Long lines formed an assembly for most of it and a few hours of labor saw a dent. Once the small items were inside, the larger furniture had to be lowered with ropes, pulleys, and sweat. Small injuries and constant complaints were the tune of the day and the medical staff stayed busy applying band aides and stitching gashes. Angela was relieved it wasn’t worse. She had the ants on the bottom floors, helping to lug equipment into place, but she’d chosen not to have the strong insects do the heavy lifting up top.
As the morning became afternoon and the bigger things disappeared from their main encampment, Angela made notes for downsizing the topside. With well over half of the herd moving in today, it would clear a lot of room for new projects–like the fuel facility she hoped to have Theo and Jennifer design around the wood gas generators. Then, there was the solar farm and the winter crops. She wanted those things in place before the chaos hit. There was still a small chance that the tide would flow west and miss them, and if that happened, they might be able to stay here, underground, for as long as winter wanted to rage. The temperatures underground stayed at a constant 50°-55° below ten feet, and they could blow a new entrance to accommodate the larger animals and trucks if needed, then seal it up with bricks and mortar. It all depended on the north runs, and what may or may not come from them.
“Angela to Level One,” her radio crackled.
As Angela keyed her mike to show she’d heard, she could feel Marc’s tension from across the camp. He had slept for a few hours and then got up to help with the transfer. He was currently supervising the lines to make certain the items coming through were approved for this stage, but also to make sure the people weren’t getting too tired to keep hefting things along. He was switching them all out every couple of hours, sending them to have a meal or nap, and he had no trouble keeping track of where people were or who was supposed to be doing what.
Below them, Theo and Jennifer had control of the cave, with Kyle on their heels as an enforcer and protector. Angela was positive he would end up being labor instead of those. The people wanted this–they wanted to be inside and feel safe–and they wouldn’t goof off or cause trouble during the move. Afterward, when the need to celebrate a great day’s work came, was when Zack and his men would have to stay on their toes. She had that shift sleeping in a large common tent along the cliff right now, hoping if they were over there, they would be undisturbed enough to rest up for tonight’s duty.
Angela made it to the cave entrance before Marc appeared. She entered the cavern without a rope for the first time and felt a hand settle firmly around her arm.
“Me or the rope?”
Angela grinned. “You, of course.”
Marc kept a good grip on her, especially as they went down the metal fire escape-like stairs that now led into the cave. It took them down the first forty feet, past a wooden floor and then another. This was the main entrance and it led straight to their homes. To reach floor one or two, you had to take a different set of stairs that ran up to each level from the third floor.
The stairs circled down another twenty feet and Angela beamed in delight at the living quarters. She hadn’t been down here since assigning the rooms. “Wow!”
Theo and Jennifer were waiting for her, and they both wore expressions that said they needed to hear her gush over their labors. It wasn’t a problem, as Angela was thrilled.
Marc listened with half an ear, scanning the other people. Despite the grumbles over the labor, everyone was in a good mood and they were right on schedule to be able to settle them down tonight at close to the normal time–in the caves. It would be a long evening of walking these caverns to make sure people were behaving and equipment was functioning properly.
All the builders were now fixers and testers. For the next two weeks, that group of people would stay in the cave and do exactly what the job title implied. As with any new home, the cave would have problems. Marc thought the first one would be the dampness. Drying things out down here was a key to good health. People didn’t do well in prolonged damp conditions and Marc would be glad when the vents made a noticeable dent in the moisture. They might even have to upgrade to a more powerful setup for that.
Kyle, with Autumn snuggled securely in a carrier on his chest, gave Marc a gesture. He twisted around to find Shawn and Greg waiting by the stairs.
Marc waved them over, not leaving Angela’s side. “What’s up?”
“We’ve got the video to clear a bit, enough to be sure in the count,” Billy stated, coming down the last few stairs to join them.
Marc took the camera and hit play. He saw the landscape where he’d placed the camera and the edge of the alarm disc sticking out from an under the rock he’d used for cover. For ten seconds, nothing moved except the weeds in the wind. Then a bike came into view and behind it, a whole group of them. Marc counted ten all together.
“How many bodies from the house?” Marc asked, already certain it was nine.
“Nine,” Billy answered. “I asked Samantha.”
Marc gave him the camera. “We’ll handle it.”
The men were positive that Marc would and each of them put it out of their minds in favor of admiring the huge cavern around them. If not for the tops of the walls and the ceiling, it might be a basement with paneled walls and carpeting. Everyone had done good work here.
“We need a few more hands on level one,” Theo hinted, pointedly sweeping the stationary men with Marc.
The men chuckled and went to help.
“Can you help me with these blueprints?” Theo asked, looking at Marc. “I want to make sure we’ve left enough room for a few vehicles.”
Theo and Marc examined the papers while Angela and Jennifer walked through the main living area. Along the hard walls were the beds–all bunks that were three-deep. Each had a rail and a long ladder nailed to it. There would be curtains to separate them soon, and then they would finish the couple’s area. Within a few days, there would also be chairs and shelves of books and games. If they did get to spend winter down here, they would all need activities to keep from going stir-crazy. Angela was hoping they might even get to construct an Eagle training area, but that was too far out to count on. If it happened, it would be in the dead of this coming nuclear winter, when they couldn’t do anything else.
Autumn woke up and began to fuss against Kyle’s chest, and Jennifer went to her, cooing softly.
Angela kept going, taking notes and making plans. She dug through her knowledge of setups, wishing she had more experience in this. It was important that they got it right the first time.
Angela eased into the short tunnel off the living area, wanting to determine how much they’d accomplished on the bathrooms. Next to the living space, this would be the next most used spot, and it had to accommodate hundreds of people, multiple times every day.
Angela was impressed with the plumbing, the sinks, and the wash area in the center of two dozen small stalls. The Eagle booth next to the washstands already held a guard and Angela nodded to Brandon.
Brandon returned the gesture, but didn’t take his attention from their surroundings–especially not while the boss was in sight.
Angela approved the room quickly, and gave in to the urge to use the facilities.
The stalls were barely wide enough to be comfortable, but it had allowed a well-constructed wall that could have shelves hung on it.
And a toilet paper roll, Angela thought, blowing dust from one before gathering what she needed. All these stalls would be outfitted with hooks and racks for people to hang guns and gear on during their pit stop, and hand sanitizer dispensers would be installed.
Angela acknowledged the sentry as she left, listening to the fans and engines that were running. Some were pulling air, some were delivering air, and some were bringing power. Lanterns would remain a common item for a few more weeks, and then the cave would have full power–much like an apartment building.
Angela went to the living area and made eye contact with Marc, able to feel his unease that she had gotten out of his sight. As soon as he glanced down at the blueprint, she strolled down to level four. Now that it had been secured, cleaned, and had a guard and cameras, Marc hadn’t given orders for the sentries to stop her. She made her way down the next level, where there was a guard and little else besides their equipment. This would be a compost heap if they could get the right venting system set up. Next to it, where the tunnels were unlit, would be a garden plot and behind that, a small pasture. Angela wanted a load of dirt spread down here, grass seed plants, and then their calmer animals brought down. The lamps and constant temperature would allow the animals to eat and get fat in comfort. She had much the same plan for the garden, except everything would be in pots and planters so they wouldn’t have to be left behind if there was trouble.
Angela scanned the last tunnel–the one she hadn’t even viewed pictures of yet–but she didn’t enter it. The sentry near the stairs was frowning at her, hand on his radio, and she didn’t want to listen to Marc’s lesson on security. She shined her light into the tunnel, trying to determine the size of the room it held. She still needed a sturdy place to store the gas and water that they were collecting.
The cavern appeared to be huge, with a high ceiling and a small stream of water trickling down the far wall. Perfect, she thought, shining her light into the other cracks and crevices. We’ll test it and then go from there.
Angela rotated to leave and an eerie moan sounded. It came from the cavern she’d been scanning and the guard hurried over to take her arm. “Head up.”
“Don’t go in there yet,” Angela ordered, allowing him to guide her to the stairs.
“Nope,” Dexter agreed, and was glad when she disappeared up the stairs. It wasn’t safe down here.
Angela lingered on the third level, enjoying the time alone. She hardly ever was now.
She spotted a drop-off that should have been covered by now, and took her book out. She spent a moment listing things for this level and then slowly rotated to go up the stairs.
“Boo!”
Angela flinched, dropping the book as she scrambled for her gun.
Marc grabbed her hands. “Damn. Sorry, baby-cakes.”
Angela let go of the weapon and clutched his arm. She didn’t speak, letting him know he’d really scared her.
“You’ve been doing so well, honey. I didn’t think.”
Angela smiled, a bit sadly. “You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Then why does it feel like it?” Marc asked, rubbing her cold shoulders.
Angela hugged him tightly and they went up to level one together.
Behind the couple, bright green orbs glowed from the shadows and then vanished.
Before they reached the next level, two people came down the stairs toward them, and Marc stopped, placing his arm over Angela to make certain there was no chance anyone would be tripped. The rails on these stairs were only the basics down here.
Tara and Shawn continued by them with words of greeting, but neither of them sounded happy. Tara was starting her job down here today, helping to prepare the next levels. She looked disappointed.
“Be ready with a new job for her,” Angela said in a discrete whisper, but she didn’t care if the woman heard. Tara wasn’t the type to labor in a dank cave for long, no matter the reason, and Angela was well aware of it. She had Tara pegged now and it wasn’t pretty.