Colony Z: The Complete Collection (Vols. 1-4) (11 page)

Eric and his clan of Warriors
only had to travel an hour or so before stumbling upon a house with the right tools for the job. They found that this beach house held over five canoes suitable for them to use to travel across the sea in search of a new home. They carted three of them to the shoreline and two piled into each one.

Complete with oars, these boats were probably the most useful transportation the team had gotten since leaving Boston.

After that, it took only a few miles of rowing, and until dark, to find what they needed. There, in the middle of the blue sea, was an island that looked to be perfect for their needs. Stretching, Eric guessed, at nearly three miles around and rising sharply in the middle, it was both large enough to inhabit, but small enough to be neighborly and keep a close watch from.

Eric sent the men to scour the island. They had to be certain there were no signs of infection or the dead here. If there were, they would have to get back into their boats, and cart off to another island. There was nothing else for it.

But the men did not find any signs of the diseased. In fact, no island had ever looked cleaner, in their minds. Eric guessed that it had been used as some kind of poster-island for the natural beauty of the area. There had to be at least one island that no one ever touched. Something had to be sacred. And this seemed to be it. It almost seemed too good to be true, honestly, but Eric knew at some point along the way, they would have to have a stroke of luck.

And this island was that stroke of luck. Nothing could have been more perfect. It was almost as if Owen himself had known this place existed, and had been marching the group along, just for that one little spot.

There remained only one problem. The Warriors had no idea where their companions were along the beach. While they imagined that, during the daytime, they would be able to see the shore from this distance, they were not able to in the blackness that was that night. No fire was lit to signal them.

“We’ll go search for them in the morning,” Eric said to the other men. “We can’t go back tonight. It’s too dangerous. And we might not be able to find our way back.”

“Do you think the girl’s woken up?” James asked boldly. “Do you think Owen will be able to handle it by himself?”

“Owen has been the leader for a very long time,” Eric responded, almost angrily. “I’m very certain he is capable of doing what needs to be done. And as for the girl, do I think she’s woken up? I surely hope not, James. I surely hope not.”

Robert and Carlos brought some tree limbs onto the beach and, in about an hour, they had a roaring fire going. The Warriors crowded around the fire, trying to keep warm. All of them worried about someone back at camp.

For Eric, it was Owen. He hoped to God that Owen would find the strength within him to do what was necessary. He had to kill Judith Marie. No father should ever be put in the position that Owen found himself in now, but there was very little that he could do to get out of it. Eric had a hunch that, odds were, immunity to the disease was not something that could simply be passed along by blood.

In fact, Eric doubted that Owen was even immune, come to think of it. Owen had to run from the dead, just as anyone else did. No, Owen hadn’t ever been bitten. Sure, he had come in contact with the blood or body parts of them. And many times he had taken them out up close and personally. But Eric could not pinpoint a single time where it wasn’t simply the sheer strength of Owen’s body that kept him safe.

Eric didn’t think the immunity actually existed.

James and Robert both worried about Martha, Robert’s wife, but for very different reasons. Robert worried for her life, and James worried that the wandering woman would find partnership with another man this evening, what with both of her muses away on an adventure.

Nathan and Carlos worried for their own partners.

But Aaron, who had no one back at camp, worried about Michael. What kind of life could this be for a child so young? Everyone worried for Judith Marie, but she was a lost cause. In worrying for her, they had not only lost Michael, but they continuously passed him off to others. What if he was left unattended again? The guilt that he would feel in years to come over Judith Marie would be overwhelming. Aaron could relate to his pain.

It was because of Aaron that his older brother had died. And he would never forgive himself for it.

But, even through their worries, the men forced themselves to fall into a restless sleep.

As the Warriors slept on, Owen was gaining the strength to make his return from the woods.

When Owen emerged from the woods with his dead daughter in his arms, Hannah broke down sobbing. The
Albion Tribe was glad she had not run at him screaming bloody murder. Martha comforted Hannah, who did not want to be soothed.

Owen laid his daughter’s limp body down and wrapped her in a blanket so he wouldn’t have to look at what he had done.

Michael stood and stared at his father, confused.

“Daddy, is Judith Marie sleeping again?”

At this, even Owen broke down into tears. He fell to the ground, his strength completely gone out of him. Michael was confused. Had he done something wrong? He tried to walk to take the blanket away from his sister, but his mother noticed and pulled him back, holding him to her. Her shoulders shook. Why was she crying?

This went on for several minutes, before Owen finally pulled himself together and crossed to his wife. He reached out a hand to her.

“Come with me, Hannah.”

Hannah gave Michael to Martha, who had the duty of explaining to him what had happened to his sister, and followed him into the woods once more. Owen did not want the others to hear this conversation. He did not want the others to see him as vulnerable as he now was.

“I didn’t want to do it, Hannah. Please understand that.”

But Hannah had tried for too long to remain silent when it came to her husband. She wanted so badly to be a good wife, but all she had left was Michael. And, so far, following Owen hadn’t saved any lives. Did she really need him to care for her anymore? Or could she say exactly how much she understood?

“Hannah, please…”

“You killed our daughter.”

“That’s not fair, Hannah. I had to…”

“You had to murder our daughter.”

“I didn’t want to. She would have killed you, damnit!”

“…no…”

“Hannah…”

But he didn’t finish, because Hannah broke down in his arms and sobbed.

“Our baby girl…”

“I know, Hannah…I know…”

“She’s gone…”

“I know…”

The couple stayed like that for most of the night. It wasn’t until mid-morning, when Eric arrived with the Warriors and claimed he had found them an island that the two snapped out of their trance long enough to listen.

Judith Marie’s funeral was a sad, silent affair. No one spoke much. No one had anything to say.

They had waited until the boats had come for them and everyone had made it on the island. The finding of such a place should have represented a time to celebrate. But, instead, it was a time of pain. 

“Does anyone have anything they’d like to say about Judith Marie?”

Silence.

And then Michael, with his most somber face, stood up and walked to where Eric stood, leading the funeral.

“I do.”

Eric looked shocked, but stepped aside and let the child stand in front of the group. The box with Judith Marie’s body within it was already buried deep into the Earth. But it seemed that Michael did not feel any better, even with it gone. Something troubled the boy greatly.

“I’m Michael. I’m Judith Marie’s brother.”

Hannah didn’t know how to watch what was happening without breaking down into tears. Owen’s hand held hers tightly, trying to be a comforting husband, even though his own hands shook. Michael, it seemed
, the most brave of them all, continued.

“I got lost. Judith Marie got left alone. She got bit. If I hadn’t gotten lost, she wouldn’ta gotten bit.”

Nobody intervened. Nobody knew how. Hannah wanted to pull him away, but Owen pulled her back down when she tried. This was something they had to let Michael do himself. He might have been three years old, but he understood the situation more than most of the adults gave him credit for.

“I’m sorry, Judith Marie. But I didn’t get lost. I got left. I couldn’ta done nothing else. I’m sorry.”

Michael, with no sign of tears on his face, nodded to Eric to signal that he was done and went back to sit with parents. Hannah pulled him close to her, holding on for dear life. She didn’t think she’d be able to stand it if anything ever happened to him. She would never lose him. Not Michael.

“Thank you, Michael,” Eric said, taking his place once more at the front of the group. “Is there anything anyone else would like to add?”

Owen was prepared for this moment. He had planned it in the days they had spent bringing their things to the island. As everyone picked out areas to make their homes, Owen thought carefully about how best to take back his position as the leader of the Albion Tribe. Eric, however, beat him to it.

“While I have all of us here,” He began. “I want to make something very clear. Over the past weeks, I’ve taken over leadership of the Albion Tribe. And I hope that I did you all right by that.”

The women, men, and children all nodded encouragement to Eric as he went on.

“When we first got the colony together, I was cold towards Owen. I didn’t think a seventeen year old had any right leading a bunch of men and women when one of the worst disasters in our history hit Earth…but I was wrong. I think the best thing that could have happened to us was Owen. And I know how much he’s been through, and I hope that all of you will give him the respect he deserves. He’s strong and he cares about all of you more than you know. The burden put on his shoulders is incredible. This island, this brilliant island, was his idea and his work. Because of Owen’s determination, we’re all safe now. We will all be able to raise our children in a place where they won’t have to worry about the night. Where they won’t grow up fearing the dark. And you have only Owen to thank for that.”

At the conclusion of this, Owen stood and walked to the front as the colony clapped for him.

“Thank you.”

Owen stepped up, Eric stepped down.

“I can’t begin to describe my feelings right now. We’ve accomplished an amazing thing, and yet I’ve lost more than I ever could have imagined. But, because of all of you, I’m still here. So I thank you all for that.”

The crowd was silent.

“I don’t know if we’re the only ones left on this planet. I’d like to believe we are not. I’d like to believe we’re safe from anything in the outside world and that somewhere, someone is working on a cure. But I can’t promise anything to any of you. But I can promise you that myself and my family will always be here to lead you. We will always be here to help you.”

James stood and began to clap. In an amazing movement, the rest of the tribe followed in unison. Soon, everyone was standing, clapping, and crying for Owen. James walked to the front of the group and stood next to their leader. Everyone sat and quieted themselves.

“Owen, four years ago you found me hiding in a building, ready to die. You saved my life. You were my hero. And, for all of these others, you are a part of their story. You saved them. If you hadn’t come, we would still be hiding or worse, we would be one of the infected. You were brave enough to bring us all together. You were brave enough to bring us to a new chapter of our story, one that seemed impossible. You are a hero, Owen. I know you may not feel it. But you’re a hero. You’re my hero.”

Michael, at this, ran up to his father and jumped into his arms.

“I love you, Daddy.”

Owen smiled for the first time in weeks at the thought of raising his children here. The long journey was over. He would grow an old man here. He would die here. His grandchildren would be born here. Owen realized in that moment that he had accomplished what he set out to do four years ago when he brought the colonists together. He swore to take them north, to safety. And now, they were finally there. Safe.

This small group of people had never felt so comforting before. James may have only been looking for all eyes on him, but his words meant everything to Owen. He had brought them together. He and Hannah had come so far.

And even through all of the guilt on his heart, for a few beautiful moments, Owen told himself what may very well have been the truth.

This wasn’t his fault. And he deserved happiness.