Sometimes We Ran (Book 3): Rescue (11 page)

Claire smiled a bit. “You know this place. Word travels fast around here.”

“What do you think? I need your help,” I said.

Claire got that little smirk on her face. It was the smirk that told me she was not going to make this easy. “Now, John. That's not how it works.” She stood up, grabbed my arm, and turned me towards the yard. “Every guest who comes to my school has to meet the kids.”

“That's okay, really. Don't make a fuss.” I was okay with kids, but was a little uncomfortable when I was the center of attention.

Claire tugged at my arm. “I insist.” She turned to the children playing in the yard. “Hey guys! Come on over here and meet somebody,” she called out.

The children stopped their wild game, and came towards Claire's voice. In a few moments, we were surrounded by the future of the human race. Front row center was dark-haired Amy. She walked up and took my hand. Amy and I had a special bond. I was part of the rescue mission that brought her back to Cannon Fields, along with Doctor Connelly.

When the kids had finally assembled and quieted down, Claire said, “All right, children. I would like you to meet a good friend of mine. All of you know him, but this is the first time he has visited our school.” She swept a hand in my direction. “Say hello to John Linder.”

The kids all responded with “Hello, John!”

“Hey guys. How is everyone today?” I said.

“We're fine,” the kids all answered. That pretty much exhausted all the conversation I had. I didn't know I was going to have to make a speech. I had nothing else prepared.

Claire put the meeting back on track. “John, why don't you review our safety rules for when we meet one of the bad guys with the red eyes?”

“Oh, okay.” I turned to the assembled children. “What do we do if we see a bad guy with the red eyes?” I asked.

The children all shouted out at once. “We run!”

“Good. What do we do next?” Miss Louise, the other teacher, and Elizabeth stifled some laughter at the back of the crowd. They thought this was a hoot.

“We hide in a safe place!”

The kids knew all their rules. Claire had taught them well. “Excellent. What do we do next?”

“Wait for an adult to take care of it!” the kids shouted.

I was impressed. “Good job. You have good teachers.”

Claire picked up her son, Alex, and began to shuffle the other children back inside. “Okay you little zombie hunters, back inside. Miss Louise will hand out some paper and crayons. We're going to make get-well cards for the sick kids in the infirmary. I have to talk to John.”

As the kids lined up to go inside the house, a young man of about ten passed me and asked, “When do I get to fight the zombies?”

It was the Coleman boy. Sam, I think his name was. His real mother and father had been killed in Huntsville. He wandered south where one of our scrounging parties found him, thin and half-dead. Doctor Connelly nursed him back to health, and the Colemans had taken him into their house as their son. Now here he was growing up in a world with no guarantee of a future asking when he can go out and fight undead monsters.

I touched him on the head. “When you're old and gray like I am.”

Sam ran inside to join the other children as Claire cleaned up a little in the yard. She folded her chair, and gathered some of the toys together in a small pile.

“So, what's the mission?” she finally asked after a few tense minutes of silence.

“Lyle's got some people hiding up north outside Huntsville. He needs a van to get them back here to Cannon Fields. Shouldn't be too bad, but I need a partner to keep an eye on him as we ride.”

We began to walk slowly around the yard. Claire and I often took slow walks together when we talked about things. A habit from our days on the road, I guess. We did a lot of walking back then. When we weren't running for our lives.

“Do you trust him?” Claire asked.

“He seems harmless. Says he has some medicine for us if we help. Denise and the Doctor want to take a chance.”

Claire stopped walking. “Can't just hand him the keys and tell him to bring it back with a full tank, huh?”

“I wish. Can't trust him with the van,” I said.

Claire sighed. She seemed sad and depressed. The bare trees and cold wind probably didn't help her dark mood. “You sure I'm the right person for the job? I know you caught my discussion with Michael in the infirmary. In case you haven't heard, all I may be good for is watching kids.”

“The hell with him.” We started walking back towards the house. “I need your help. You're one of the few people I trust not to get me killed out there.”

We paused at the patio door to the schoolhouse. Inside, I caught the laughter of the kids as Miss Louise passed out the art supplies. Claire turned, and tapped me on the chest with her bat. “If it was anybody else but you, I'd kick you right out of the yard. All right. I'll go. On one condition.”

I had a feeling I was not going to like what she said next. “I'm afraid to ask. What condition?”

Claire touched my cheek. “You get rid of that damn beard.”

“No promises. We'll meet at my house to make a plan, then leave tomorrow after breakfast.”

“Sounds good. See you then,” Claire said. She turned and walked into the house.

A few hours sleep and many discussions with my wife Karen later, I was standing with Sidney as we prepared Monique the van for the trip outside. Sidney had done a good job repairing the minor damage from the last trip. He massaged out the slight zombie dents on the side and touched up the scrape in the gleaming black paint. Sidney had even been able to give the van a quick wash, but he still couldn't get the side door open. We would have to load Lyle's friends from the back doors.

We were putting in some supplies when I spotted Claire coming up the road. Her bat was on her shoulder. She had chosen a brand new silver one to take on the trip. The late morning sun reflected off the surface.

Claire stowed her weapon in the cab, then walked around to the back. “Where's Lyle, our guest of honor?”

I slammed the van doors. “Finishing up breakfast. Then, he's going to the armory to get a gun.”

Another funny look from Claire. “You trust him with a weapon? What if he tries to blow your brains out?”

“That's why I'm bringing you,” I said. Sidney snickered as he walked by us.

“Very funny. How did Karen take the news you were going on yet another mission?” Claire asked.

“She thinks I'm cheating on her with someone on the outside. That's why I leave her all the time.”

Claire shook her head. “That Karen. What a card.”

I leaned against the van to wait for Lyle. He better step it up. Time was wasting. “How did Ryan and Alex take the news?”

Claire leaned next to me, and placed a small bag on the ground. It contained our road trip survival supplies. “Ryan wasn't exactly thrilled, but he understood.” She unzipped the bag, and started rooting around, taking an inventory. “Alex was less understanding. My ears are still ringing from his yelling.”

“You'll see him again soon.” I almost added,
I hope,
but decided to keep it to myself. Got to keep positive about our success outside the fences. “You got everything we need?”

“Think so. Water, food, flashlights with extra batteries, and first aid.” Claire handed me a small handful of maps. “These were the only maps I could find.” They were used and abused, marked up with so many notations they were hard to read.

“We'll stop at Safety Two and grab some better ones. You have your lock-picking tools?” Claire was our champion lock-picker. She was teaching the skill to all her kids in school. We brought her different locks from the outside to test her. She could usually open every lock we brought inside.

Claire patted her sleeve. “Right here on my wrist. You remember your extra ammo?”

I patted one of my pockets, my hand coming to rest on the four extra double-stacked magazines. Fifteen rounds each. “Right here.”

“No rifle?” Claire said.

“No, not this time. We should be able to get in and out quickly,” I said.

Lyle appeared in the distance, flanked by Denise and Michael. When he saw the van, he broke into a slight jog and came up to conversation distance.

“Hey, John. Good morning.” He showed me the gun and holster that we gave him. “Thanks for trusting me. I'm not the best shot, but I manage.”

“It's in case we get separated. I don't want you walking around out there without some protection,” I said.

“Right.” Lyle turned to Claire. “Good morning, Claire.”

“Morning Lyle. How are you?” Claire looked him up and down, gauging whether or not he was going to kill us.

“I'm fine. Ready to go,” Lyle said. “Before we do, I just want to say to you two that I really appreciate this. You're the first people I've met that were willing to help me.” He broke down a little. “I just hope my people are still there when we show up.” Lyle turned away to wipe his eyes.

Claire and I looked at each other, wondering if it was all just an act. I nodded at her, and she nodded back, understanding what I was thinking. I would drive, and Claire would watch Lyle for any bad behavior.

“We're glad to help. We'll do what we can,” I said.

“That's all  I can ask,” Lyle said.

We got in the van, Claire first so she could get in the back. I took the keys from Sidney and slid into the drivers seat. Lyle took his place on the passenger side. I started the engine, and the reassuring beats of the strong diesel engine filled the cab. I cranked the heater to full and turned the seat warmers to max. Claire would have to be a little chilly, as the seats in the back of the cab were unheated. I was sure I would hear about that in a moment.

As the van warmed, Denise stuck her head in the window. She had her gray sweater draped across her shoulders to ward off the cold. “You guys be careful. Doctor Connelly will be waiting to take care of any injuries to Lyle's group.” She shifted her gaze to the passenger seat. “And Lyle...I'm trusting you, and I know you're not planning anything, but John and Claire know how to defend themselves. They won't hesitate to ensure they return safely to Cannon Fields. Do you know what I mean?”

Lyle looked pale. Maybe it was the cold, but maybe it was Denise's not so subtle warning. “Yes, ma'am.”

“Okay.” Denise patted my arm. “Good luck, John. Be safe.”

With that, I rolled up the window and pulled away from the curb. For better or worse, we were on the way to another mission outside. Cannon Fields was in the rescue business again.

I drove up the road to the front gate. The sun was now out full, and winter started losing its grip on the Alabama countryside. Soon it would be spring, and planting and hunting season. Lyle and his people might be here to help us out.

After a quick check for roaming zombies, a guard opened the gate. I pressed down on the accelerator and exited Cannon Fields. I turned right and headed for our first checkpoint. The gate closed behind us as we drove away. We were back in the big, bad world.

I
made the turn onto the main road, and headed for the nearest small town. It was a simple little town near the gates. We at Cannon Fields just called it Safety Two. A nice safe place to get off the road for a while. Lyle looked out the window as the distressed countryside passed by. He didn't talk much at first, Claire's laser-beam eyes were making him nervous. “Such a waste.”

“What's that?” I said.

Lyle turned away from the window. “All these cars and trucks on the road. All these buildings and houses, abandoned to the zombies. I guess it's like this everywhere, huh? New York, Chicago, Paris. All over the world.”

“Probably. I've toyed with the idea of taking a road trip. See what other cities are like. Meet other people, take in the sights,” I said.

“That would be neat. Except for the man-eating zombies, it would be a hell of a trip,” said Lyle. We all shared a nervous laugh.

Lyle began to relax a little, and started tapping his knees with his fingers as we drove along. “You and Claire seem to have a special bond. Denise told me you shared some time on the road. How did you two meet?”

Our story was told so many times and to so many people. A few years ago, we made a deal and now took turns when we were asked. It was Claire's turn.

“We met in North Georgia, about eight months after the outbreak. I approached John in a zombie-infested intersection. He smoked two Yellow-Eyes with a big, fancy rifle.” Claire said. It occurred to me as Claire told our story that I hadn't seen a Yellow-Eye zombie in a long time. Probably more than three years ago now. Maybe the Red-Eyes and the dogs ate them all.

“I took a chance and walked up behind him. It was stupid and reckless, and he almost shot me in the face, but I was desperate.” Claire paused to let her words sink in to Lyle's mind.

“Desperate?” Lyle asked.

“I was starving. A few more hours and I probably would have been dead in a ditch.” Claire paused again. I looked at her reflection in the mirror, and she gave me a smile. The old days were a tough memory.

“John saved your life,” Lyle said, admiration in his voice.

“We saved each other. I was pretty near the end of the road,” I said. “I fed her, and I haven't been able to shake her yet.”

Lyle laughed. “Yeah...friends are good to have. North Georgia? So you're not from Alabama?”

I made a quick turn around a minivan in the middle of the road. It was turned over on its side, contents spilled all over the road. “No, Cannon Fields rescued Claire and I from some maniac near Birmingham. I'm actually from north of Atlanta. I lived there with my first wife, Gia.” To my surprise, I choked up with the mention of my dead wife. Maybe it was the words “first wife” that triggered the response. Tears began to sting in my eyes. Thoughts of Gia had not come up in a while. I zoned out and stopped talking for a moment to collect myself. Five years, and I was still in mourning for my Gia. Her image was still crystal clear in my mind, and the hurt of her loss was still there.

“Karen is not your first wife? What happened to Gia?” Lyle asked.

“I don't know,” I managed to say. “Never found her.”