Iron Mike (10 page)

Mike sighed, tugging the elastic band out of his hair and setting it on the console beside him. “I thought about that, Kari,” he told her. “I promise, I did. But think about this part of it. The odds of me hiking ten to fifteen miles without that thing moving around inside me and doing even more damage are nil. If it was arterial and I was going to bleed out, I needed to do it and get it over with, so you could do whatever you needed to get the kids – and my sister – to safety.”

“That’s –“ Kari sputtered.

“Brave,” Stephen said softly from the seat behind them. Kari started – she didn't realize the boy was awake and listening to them.

“And stupid,” she snapped back.

“No,” Stephen replied, his tone more thoughtful than argumentative. “It was actually pretty logical, Miss Kari. Iron Mike is right – he would have ended up slowing us all down and still died before we ever got there.”

“Smart kid,” Mike approved, and then, for the last nail in the coffin, he quoted Spock. “The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few – or the one.”

Kari shifted in her seat, turning her back to them and looking at the moon outside her window. “You can both shut up anytime,” she huffed grumpily. Mike grinned, meeting Stephen’s eyes in the rear view mirror. After a while, they all slept.

Norfolk, Virginia

Sandra
             

Sandra Anderson cried, off and on, for two days. Her eyes were puffy and swollen, and they burned when she blinked as though the insides of her eyelids were coated with sandpaper. She buried her little mutt, Tricksy, in the small back yard of her condo, Homeowners’ Association be damned. There was probably no one left to complain, anyway.

She tried calling into work after Tricksy collapsed, but both her cell phone and the landline were down. That’s when she turned on the television and saw the coverage of the strange black airplanes flying in a tornado-like formation and wreaking hell on downtown Norfolk. The coverage then shifted to NAS Oceana, Amphibious Base Little Creek, and the Norfolk Naval Shipyard. The destruction was catastrophic; sailors died by the thousands in mere seconds. She watched for hours and then the coverage cut off abruptly, replaced with static on all the channels. Not even the Home Shopping Network tried to sell anything.

That’s when Sandra realized it was the Apocalypse.

The thing was … she didn’t much care, one way or another. She didn’t have her best friend and companion to face the end of the world with her. As far as she was concerned, it already ended when Tricksy died – the rest was only detail. Sandra curled up on her couch, staring at nothing.

January 4.

Kasoniak

SFC Frazier, formerly of the Military Police, stood at ease in front of Col. Kasoniak, who had finally taken over his predecessor’s desk.

“We’re too spread out here and vulnerable,” Kasoniak stated, turning the diagram his staff sergeant sketched the night before so Frazier could see it. “We need guard towers built here –” he stabbed a finger at the diagram, “here, and here, before anything else. Then we need shelters built according to these plans and the portable generators moved into position for the MASH and mess halls.”

“That’s … the depository, Colonel?”

“Yes, Sergeant. I already have a crew trying to access the building, but it’s locked up tighter …” He shook his head, not finishing his sentence. “Not a single Mint Police officer has reported in, so I’m working on the assumption they’re dead or AWOL. In either case, that land is the most defensible with an army of our size. It’s completely flat terrain for two square miles and there is the double fences and the razor wire. Until someone in higher authority contradicts me, I am re-negotiating the deed to the U.S. Mint.”

Frazier nodded thoughtfully. “Yes, Sir. It’s a good plan. It’s got the no-approach zone and the tightest perimeter we can patrol. I’ll get my men on it right away, Sir.”

Kasoniak nodded. “Thank you, Sergeant. Dismissed,” he said, and turned to the next report awaiting his review. Dear God, he was tired. And this was only the beginning.

Hershey

Hershey and his human played all morning long, getting into and out of the truck dozens of times. Clare carried tools with her and several containers that stunk and burned his eyes with the acrid smell of gasoline. She went to all of the cars in their neighborhood, breaking off a small square piece of metal from the back panel of each vehicle and sticking the clear hose she brought with her down into the smelly hole. Then she sucked on it! Several times she spit, and Hershey knew that gasoline must taste as bad as it smelled.

              Still, he was happy to be outside with her, and walking in the brisk air. The day was cold, but Hershey had a thick winter coat so he didn’t mind. When it started to drizzle, his human turned back for home, putting the stinky containers in the back of her truck. She and Hershey had unloaded most of the bags of dog food the night before, and today she was able to keep the smelly containers of gas far enough away from the food so it wouldn’t get ruined. Finally, when the sun was high in the sky again, they went to work!

Kari

Kari woke as the sky lightened and watched Mike flexing his arm experimentally. “It’s better,” he told her, but he accepted the ibuprofen she handed him without complaint, so she suspected he was lying.

“I should check the bandage,” she offered, but Mike shook his head firmly.

“Nope. We’re going on a hike, remember? We’re getting an early start so I figure we’ll be at Fort Knox by sunset. Let their docs check it.”

Mike opened his door and stepped out. He was pleased it hadn’t snowed any more during the night. He walked off a bit into the woods to relieve himself. By the time he returned, Jenn and Kari were passing out chicken and country fried steak. He was pleasantly surprised at what a little mother hen Jenn was turning into. As he passed her, he nudged her deliberately with his hip, almost knocking her off balance.

“Watch it, Iron Mike!” she grumbled.

Mike turned to her, a surprised scowl on his face. Jenn smiled innocently. For a moment, she had her stupid big brother back, not the strange grown-up that had taken over his body since they left Gran’s. She made a mental note to call him “Iron Mike” as often as possible – at least until the barb wore off.

“Dork,” he replied, popping the cargo hatch and reaching in for his quiver.

“Dork? Is that all you got? You buy that comeback on eBay?” Jenn teased, and turned away before he could retort, handing a chicken leg to Ariel and grinning at Kari, who winked back.

Mike worked on consolidating the backpacks, pulling out nonessential items and re-packing everything, even the small backpacks the children would carry. He considered the tent but left it and most of the camping gear in the SUV – they wouldn’t need it today, and he could always come back for it later, if no one stole it in the meantime. He threaded the sheath of his hunting knife through his belt and hooked his quiver to a loop on his jeans.

The stock of one of Poppa’s rifles poked out from the backpack. He double checked to be sure his takedown kit was at the top of the pack, glancing around to ensure everyone was occupied. Everyone was busy going to the bathroom or finishing breakfast. Mike unlocked the console and stuffed the Ruger into the small of his back. He was as prepared as he would ever be to get the kids to safety.

“Iron Mike, Iron Mike! Miss Kari!” It was Nathan’s voice, shrill with excitement. Mike looked over at the boy who was standing at the edge of the woods.

“What is it, Nathan?” he called.

“You gotta see this!” the boy shouted back. “It’s the biggest worm ever! It’s ginormous!”

Mike frowned, looking at the other children still getting ready to leave. “I’ll go,” Kari smiled at him. He nodded gratefully. She was a lot better at the parenting thing than he was. Hell, Jenn was a lot better at it.

Mike pulled both sleeping bags from where they were wedged into the window and rolled Jenn’s up tightly, strapping it in place. He was pulling out the heavy tarp when he heard Kari call him.

He walked over to her. She had both hands on Nathan’s shoulders, and was obviously holding the boy back. “What’s going on?” Mike asked, and then he looked. “Holy fuck.”

“That’s a bad word,” Nathan reprimanded, but there was no heat in the accusation.

It
was
the biggest worm ever. And there was absolutely no way it was indigenous to Earth. It made the hairs on Mike’s arms stand up, pebbled by gooseflesh. It was about eight feet long and four feet around, grayish in color. Rings of muscle lined its skin and it undulated repulsively, its head swaying as though it were trying to scent the air. As Mike and Kari stared at it, it moved toward them. Mike instinctively stepped back, pulling Kari and Nathan with him.

The worm stopped, and then it sank into the ground. It didn’t dig or tunnel its way down – it simply sank. As they watched, the grayish color gradually faded and the worm took on the colors of the ground – the white of the snow, the brown of wet leaves and the green of the few sparse patches of grass. When he blinked, Mike could no longer see the beast unless he concentrated directly on where it was.

“Let’s move,” Mike said abruptly, turning back toward the SUV and pulling Kari with him. She held tightly to Nathan as the three of them made their way back to the vehicle.

“Two minutes, guys, and we’re moving out!” Mike called, his voice carrying the parental tone that brooked no argument. Kari helped Nathan put on his backpack while she assured him several times that yes, she had seen it, and yes, it was the biggest worm ever.

All of the children were out of the vehicle, standing around. Mike finished rolling the tarp and distributing the supplies, saddling Jenn with her own sleeping bag, backpack, and Barbie case. He took Ariel from Jenn’s arms, planning for Kari to carry the tiny girl when he noticed Kayli hopping from foot to foot. Mike looked down at her feet and flushed in anger. What the hell?

“What kind of mother would let her kid wear sandals in January?” he muttered to Kari, his voice angry.

“I know, right,” Kari murmured back.

“She likes Dora the Explorer,” Nathan explained helpfully, not bothering to lower his voice. “And she’s spoiled rotten. Even Miss Annie says so.”

Kayli scowled and punched Nathan in the chest. Kari grabbed Nathan before he could hit her back. “No hitting!” she exclaimed. “I know you both learned that already. No hitting!”

“She hit me first!” Nathan howled indignantly.

“Enough!” Mike snapped the word, and there was sudden silence. He stood still for a moment, trying to control his temper, and when he spoke again, his voice was calmer. The children weren’t fooled, though; even Ariel remained silent, staring up at him. “We need to start our hike,” he said. “We have a long way to go, so we need to get a move on.”

Mike handed Ariel to Kari to hold for a moment and pulled on his backpack, which held the majority of their supplies and food, in addition to the weapons. He then picked Kayli up and lifted her over his head, settling her on his shoulders. She giggled happily and kicked him like a pony. Mike went pale and grabbed her legs. “No!” he growled, and she stopped. He picked up Anthony and set him on Kari’s shoulders, taking Ariel from her. The girl was a tiny wisp of a thing. He could carry her in his arms ... for a while, anyway.

Stephen stepped up in front of Mike, turned his back, and wordlessly held his arms up over his head. Mike was surprised – the boy already carried a full backpack. He set Ariel on Stephen’s shoulders with a grateful nod, and they all started walking south along Dixie Highway.

Mike pushed them hard. By noon, it stopped being a fun hike or an adventure and became a misery. Several of the children were whining or crying when Mike finally called a halt for break. He set Kayli down and shifted out of his backpack, wincing in pain. He pulled the heavy tarp out and unrolled it, giving them a dry place to sit. His movements were stiff. Kari watched, but didn’t say anything. She gave him two ibuprofen, which he took and swallowed dry. Jenn changed the babies while Kari started handing out lunch. Gran’s food was going fast. Kari pulled some granola bars from her pack and distributed them with the pork chops and cold hot dogs. Mike passed out bottles of Gatorade, telling the children to share with their neighbors. They ate in silence, all of them cold, tired and miserable.

“We could sing the furrer song,” Nathan offered helpfully. Mike smiled at the boy, but shook his head.

“How about we save that for when we get there, buddy?” he suggested gently. Nathan nodded.

They bagged their trash and left it on the side of the road. The children wandered a bit, some moving into the trees to relieve themselves, some just standing around waiting to move again. Mike rolled up the tarp, stuffing it back into the loops below his backpack. He looked around, doing a quick headcount as he picked up his heavy pack and buckled it in front.

“Where’s Nathan?” he asked, lifting Kayli and putting her on his shoulders.

“He was right –”

Nathan shrieked, the sound carrying from the trees just in front of them. Mike ran toward the sound, something in his gut promising him this time it wasn’t the garrulous little boy’s theatrics. It was a shriek of pure terror.

“Get me out, get me ouuuut!” Nathan sobbed when Mike and Kari pushed through the trees. The children crowded around, staring in shock. Nathan was ankle-deep in … what? It didn’t look like anything was holding the boy.

“Oh, Christ,” Mike muttered, realizing why the boy was stuck. “Okay, Nathan, don’t worry, we’re here now. We’re going to get you out of there, okay, buddy?”

Nathan swallowed his sobs and nodded his head. Mike pulled Kayli off his shoulders and handed her unceremoniously to Jenn, who staggered under the child’s weight. Mike dropped his backpack and began digging through it for the rope. Frustrated, he turned the backpack over, dumping all of its contents onto the ground, finding the neatly looped nylon rope at the bottom of the bag. He quickly tied a bowline knot to ensure the loop he made wouldn’t tighten and walked over to Nathan. He stopped about six feet from the boy. He could see the ground in front of him and he stopped dead. It was ... throbbing and quivering, like camouflaged gelatin.

He shook himself. “Okay, Nathan, you need to put this around you, under your arms,” He tossed the rope gently. Nathan caught it on the second try and put it over his head, tucking his arms down.

“Good deal,” Mike said, trying to smile reassuringly. He carried the other end of the rope and looped it around the trunk of a thick pine tree.

“You ever play tug-of-war?” Mike asked.

Nathan grinned, his eyes lighting in excitement. “Yes!” he exclaimed. “And my team always wins, cuz I’m the strongest boy!”

“Okay, well you have to be super strong now, Nathan, because I’m going to be tugging on you,” Mike said. He tightened the rope, expecting the resistance as he pulled the boy free.

Only … that wasn’t what happened.

Nathan didn’t come free. He didn’t move at all, although his face showed the strain of the rope pulling under his arms. Mike looked over at Kari, and she wordlessly handed Anthony to Stephen, moving behind Mike and taking up the rope. She wrapped it around her body twice and nodded at him when she was ready. Mike began pulling again, the cords in his neck standing out. He braced a foot up on the tree and pulled with his legs and back. Kari dug her feet in hard to anchor him, pulling with all of her weight as well.

Nathan screamed in pain and began sobbing earnestly.

Mike and Kari eased up on the rope and looked at each other. It should have worked. Mike glared at the ground around Nathan.

“It got solid,” Stephen said quietly. “When you were pulling, it got solid, and then it went back to Jell-o when you stopped.”

Mike nodded grimly at Stephen’s words.

“Don’t leave me here!” Nathan sobbed hysterically.

Mike walked closer to the boy and knelt down, looking him in the eye from the edge of the now-solid mass. “I will not leave you here,” he promised. Nathan calmed, still crying softly. Mike turned back abruptly and handed the end of the rope to Stephen, lifting Anthony off the boy’s shoulders and setting him down on the ground beside Kari. The red-haired boy stared at Nathan, a puzzled frown on his baby face. “I’ll give you a leg up to that branch,” Mike told Stephen, nodding at the thick branch of a deciduous tree that stretched out over the trapped boy. “I want you to crawl out until you’re right on top of Nathan, straight on top of him, okay? And then loop the rope and come back. Do not pull, you got it?”

“Got it,” Stephen said, moving over to the tree Mike indicated. Before Mike could clasp his hands together, Stephen was up the tree and halfway out on the thick branch. He looped the rope over and kept hold of the other end, climbing down the tree as quickly as he’d climbed up. He grinned at the look on Mike’s face. This kid was turning out to be quite helpful!

Mike accepted the end of the rope and stepped as close to the gelatinous ground as he dared. He wrapped the rope around his body as Kari had done, and then looked over to Kari. Stephen picked Anthony up while Kari walked over to Mike and took up the slack, wrapping her end of the rope around the tree and locking her arms. She braced a foot against the tree as Mike had done earlier and nodded to him. “Ready,” she said quietly. Mike wrapped the slack of the rope around his wrists and began to slowly pull, taking baby steps backward as Nathan’s body began to rise, inch by inch, from the gelatinous mass.