This Would Be Paradise (Book 2) (12 page)

Once we were as settled in as we could get in this situation, Zoe practically shoved us out of the condo for our official tour. The good thing about the neighborhood was that it had its own integrated septic and water systems for the whole cul-de-sac, so the toilets and sinks worked. Their system ran off the nearby lake and streams and drained into swamp land a few miles away. The majority of it was solar powered, with the panels strategically placed on various front lawns and rooftops.

Roy was excited to find out how it worked, since he was the one who’d rigged the downstairs bathroom in the apartments. I’d asked what he did before the infection took over.

“A bit of everything,” he’d replied. I had assumed he was an engineer or something similar.

Chloe had introduced Ethan to Amanda and was telling her all about our life at the cabin.

“There are a few other kids here too. Some of the older ladies organized classes for ‘em,” Ethan mentioned, and Chloe’s face scrunched up.

“I am
not
goin’ to school.”

“That’s what
you
think,” Ethan said.

She crossed her arms. “That’s dumb. School is the last thing we need.” She looked up at me expectantly. “Bailey?”

I floundered for a second and fought the urge to say, “Listen to your brother.”

Instead, I went with, “You want to stay smart? Then you should definitely take those classes. Otherwise, I’ll have to dye your hair blonde.”

“You’re blonde,” Chloe retorted.

“Yes, but I’m the exception to the rule,” I said like I was the Queen of England.

Their laughter echoed around me.

“Hey!” I said defensively. “I’m smart. I just don’t make smart choices. There’s a difference, you know.”

“Well, I can testify to you not making smart choices,” Zoe said—pot calling the kettle black right there.

They were still laughing when we reached Ethan and Zoe’s condo. Ethan opened the door and quickly patrolled the space.

Chloe put down her pack on the kitchen island and scrutinized her new house. This condo was designed the exact same way, but lacked the
accent
pieces.

“I think I like the cat one better.”

“You won’t need to carry that around in here,” Zoe said when she spotted my gun.

I’d made sure to tuck my fully loaded Beretta into my waistband, since I didn’t know how secure this place was.

“Kind of a habit now. How exactly do they handle the weapon situation here?”

“If you need a weapon, they assign you one. They keep track of ‘em at the clubhouse and monitor who has what,” Ethan answered. “You have to hand over your weapons, but you can take ‘em out when needed if you pass their trainin’ course. Basically they want to make sure you can handle a weapon without hurting anyone. Most people feel better with less guns floatin’ around.”

I guess Wyatt would subject me to this training course soon, but I sure as hell wasn’t forfeiting my Beretta.

We left their condo and continued on with our tour. We passed one of the makeshift guard towers. A Filipino woman nodded at us from her perch atop the ladder platform, then returned to looking beyond the walls. She was decked out in camo and wielded a massive sniper rifle, and she looked like she took her job seriously.

Zoe and Ethan introduced Roy and I, along with the two little girls, to many wandering people, and I instantly forgot their names. There were five guard towers spread around the block in total. One for each wall, except for the front partition with the gate—that one had two watchtowers. A guard with a powerful sniper rifle manned each tower. Ethan explained that the guards took shifts during the day, and at night, they only had one person on duty as more of a lookout to sound the alarm should something happened. Any artificial light at night meant using more power, and the light would only draw in the infected.

Zoe said Darren sometimes took guard duty, but today, he’d decided to go out with one of the scouting crews. Obviously, he hadn’t been with Byron’s crew and still hadn’t returned. It seemed like everyone had a job to do, and I wondered where I would fit in. I had no desire to farm or care for the livestock.

Zoe mentioned that many of the women tended to various backyard gardens. There wasn’t enough space in the cul-de-sac to plant a large, proper garden, so they utilized most of the backyards to grow small crops. My mouth was already salivating at the thought of fresh vegetables. They also had a small chicken coop that provided eggs and meat, and they even had cows and a bull. I was thankful our condo wasn’t the one with the livestock in the back, which would stink.

Hargrove was fairly well put together, considering the circumstances. The rest of the people volunteered for scavenging trips to gather more supplies. That was the thing about communities: more people meant more mouths to feed. Large groups were great, until you had to think about the logistics. Zoe had mentioned that the official population of Hargrove was eighty-three with us here.

“What exactly do you do here?” I asked Zoe.

“Well, I teach the kids’ classes and take care of some of the gardens.”

I gawked at her.

“I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Yeah, well, the arts degree was just because my parents said I had to go to university. I wasn’t particularly interested in it.”

“You never mentioned that before.”

“Never really wanted to think about my future before, so I had no idea what was out there.”

“Fair enough.” I hadn’t thought past graduation before all this either.

“My job’s a lot less exciting than Ethan’s.” Zoe nodded toward Ethan.

Ethan waved her words off. “Naw, it’s not excitin’. I help out Wyatt with anythin’ that needs gettin’ done.”

“So you’re kind of in the inner circle then?” I asked. That could come in handy.

Ethan looked at his feet. “I dunno ‘bout that. I do a bit of everythin’ instead of just one job.”

“If you’re looking for an in, Byron and the sergeant are Wyatt’s right-hand men,” Zoe added.

“That’s not what I meant, but I’ll keep that in mind.”

“Is Wyatt the one doing the broadcasts?” Roy asked.

Ethan nodded.

“How come he never gives directions to Hargrove?”

I wanted to know that as well.

Zoe answered, “He did at first, but then too many people showed up at once, so he stopped giving directions to avoid overcrowding. This place is designed great, but the space is limited.”

Just as Roy had speculated back at the apartments.

“What kind of job do you think I should take?” I asked, redirecting the conversation.

“Do they still need a handyman?” Roy asked.

“You guys don’t have to worry about that right now. Wyatt prefers that people get adjusted before they start contributing,” Zoe said.

“You guys can’t have been here that long, two weeks at most, but you’re already doing jobs,” I pointed out. “How did you guys all end up here anyway? The cabin was in chaos when I got back.”

Zoe and Ethan shared a look.

Chloe tore away from her conversation with Amanda to butt in. “Yeah, let’s hear!”

“Darren and I arrived here first,” Zoe said, her voice thick. “When we realized infected had overrun the cabin, Ethan ran out to find Chloe. He was gone for a long time before Darren demanded we leave, so we took the truck and hoped we would run into you on our way out. There were so many infected, and we had no idea what else to do. And once we got in the truck, we couldn’t spot any of you, so we left.”

She bowed her head, and Ethan placed a hand on her shoulder. “There’s nothin’ you guys could’ve done against that many infected, especially with us scattered ‘round like we were.”

Zoe looked at me, her eyes pleading. “I didn’t want to leave you, but we had no choice.”

“Zoe, I left when I didn’t see you guys too, so I’d say we’re even.” I gave her an awkward one-armed hug—my go-to comforting gesture.

“We’re together now,” Chloe said. “That’s what matters.”

“You’re like a little fortune cookie,” I teased.

Chloe narrowed her eyes at me, but before she could retort, Ethan started his story.

“As you can guess, I wasn’t goin’ to leave without Chloe. I spotted John headin’ back from where ever he’d been. He was screamin’ like a mad man ‘bout bein’ surrounded, like we were in the middle of a battlefield or somethin’.” Ethan took a breath. “John convinced me to check by the cabin since he hadn’t seen any sign of Chloe that far out. Once we got within range of the cabin, the crazy bastard knocked me out cold.”

“What?” I stepped back in shock as if someone had actually pushed me.

“Yeah, he knew I wouldn’t stay put, so he knocked me out and locked up the cabin. When I came to, I was so mad I swung at him. It was dark out, but there were still lots of roamin’ infected. He claimed he could tell from the tire marks and foot prints in the dirt driveway that you’d come back and that Chloe was with you in the car.”

I was impressed with John. All the tracking and hunting wisdom Taylor had attempted to pass on to me had come from John, so I wasn’t surprised that he’d fitted the puzzle pieces together. I did think knocking out Ethan was a bit much though, but leaders always had to make the toughest choices.

Ethan continued, “I knew John would know what he was talkin’ ‘bout and trusted him. But I’m still pissed ‘bout him knockin’ me out. We waited for two days in the cabin with no lights on, tryin’ not to make a sound until the infected had mostly moved on. Then we combed the land surroundin’ the cabin one last time for any sign of you guys. After that, we started out on foot with any supplies we could carry and one canister of gas. We found an old dirt bike on another property ‘bout seventeen miles away. Would’ve preferred a car, but it was better than nothin’. We rode the bike to John’s shop, hopin’ you guys would show up there too.”

“I’m glad you left me my present. I don’t know what we would’ve done if you hadn’t,” I said.

Who knew what we would have done had John’s store been empty. Roaming unprotected in the city was like being dropped in a tank full of sharks. We probably wouldn’t have run into Byron, and thus would have never found Hargrove. With so many possible outcomes, we’d gotten lucky.

“From John’s shop, we checked out nearby places and ran into Byron, who brought us here to Hargrove. Zoe and Darren had been here ‘bout two days at that point. We went back to John’s shop every other day to see if you’d found the Berretta and map.” Ethan stopped and hugged Chloe again. “I still can’t believe you two are here.”

“That makes—”

“Ho-ly shit, Bailey!” a familiar voice with a southern accent hollered.

I turned to see John’s cowboy hat bobbing toward me, with the man himself underneath. He jogged over and gave me a giant hug. The heavy duffle bag on his shoulder swung around and whacked us.

“Ouch,” I said as I pulled away, pushing the bag off.

“Sorry ‘bout that. Forgot I had the thing on. Can’t believe my eyes.” He walked over and gave Chloe a hug too.

“What do you have in there? Bricks?”

John grinned, the tan skin by his eyes crinkling. “Guns and ammo from trainin’.”

John hefted his thumb to the entrance. Various people, including a larger man decked out in full military attire, were filing out of two large SUVs.

“I see you noticed Sergeant Grant. I’m helpin’ him run the gun trainin’. Some people just can’t handle a weapon worth a darn. You get to meet Wyatt and some others yet?”

“Yep, just coming off the official tour. Pretty good setup here.”

“Who’s your friend?” John jerked his head toward Roy.

My introductions were severely lacking today.

“Sorry, John, this is Roy and his daughter, Amanda. I met them at another survivor hideout.”

They shook hands. “So you’re the gun store owner I’ve heard about. Nice to meet you.”

“Likewise. Any friend of Bailey’s is a friend of mine.” John tipped his hat. “Guess I should introduce you to the others.”

He started back toward the group at the entrance, expecting us to follow. He seemed more like the old John now. The last time I’d seen him, he’d been a shell of a man filled with grief over losing Taylor. No doubt he was still struggling with losing his son, but he seemed renewed with purpose.

I caught up to John. “So what’s this I hear about you knocking out Ethan?”

After yet another round of introductions, my eyes were starting to cross. I was officially tired of meeting people. Sergeant Grant briskly shook our hands before walking off. He wasn’t very personable. Everyone else seemed nice though. One teenage boy around thirteen was being teased by the others from the training group about his crappy shooting. His face turned red. I could relate.

A girl with dark red hair sidled up to Ethan and asked with a flashy smile, “Are these two the famous Chloe and Bailey I’ve heard so much about?”

Ethan told her about us? About me?

He smiled back at her. “Yep. Sheri, this is my little sister, Chloe, and this is Bailey.”

“Hi,” Chloe said.

I nodded and crossed my arms. When Chloe saw this, she mimicked my stance and crossed her arms too, like a little mini-me. Sheri frowned, and Ethan’s mouth fell open at my cold greeting. Admittedly, it wasn’t very mature, I was acting like I was back in high school. Maybe I should start a rumor that she was into girls?

I turned from them to John. “So John, do I have to take your shooting course, or do I get your seal of approval thanks to the training you already gave me?”

“Sergeant Grant has final say, so you’ll have to show him. But I’ll put in a good word for you.” John winked.

“Bailey knows how to use the AR-15 now!” Chloe said, outing me.

One of the people from their training group asked, “And how do you even know that’s what the gun is called, little girl?”

Chloe cocked out a hip. “I grew up country.”

People chuckled. Chloe certainly had a way of stealing scenes.

“All right guys an’ gals, trainin’ is over for today. Head home and wash up for dinner,” John announced.

The crowd dispersed and people, including Sheri, trickled back to their condos.

Zoe leaned over to me. “Well, that was rude.”

I couldn’t help but notice the smirk on her face.

“Shut up,” was all I could say in my defense.

“Sheri’s actually pretty nice.”

“Sheri, pfft. That’s a stripper’s name.”

Zoe laughed.

“I’m gonna log in my guns, and then I’ll meet you guys for dinner.” John tipped his hat and took off toward the clubhouse.

After another hour of catching up, Zoe and Ethan led us to the clubhouse for dinner. Apparently dinner was at four p.m. every day. At least they were keeping some traditions from the old folks’ community. The clubhouse had three large picnic tables in the center, with various other plastic tables and chairs all over. It still didn’t look like enough seating for the eighty-three people Zoe said resided here.

“Are there enough seats for anyone?” I asked as I followed Zoe and Ethan.

From the smell of cooking food wafting out here, I guessed the kitchen was in the back.

“A lot of people just grab a plate and take it home,” Zoe explained.

A line had formed by a large serving window, with aluminum trays of food set out like a buffet. I copied what Zoe and Ethan were doing and grabbed a plate with utensils, getting in line behind them.

“Smells good,” Chloe said as she sniffed the air. “But I bet it won’t be as good as Mac’s food.”

Mac’s cooking would be hard to beat. “Once we go get all of them, Mac can cook up some of his recipes for Hargrove.”

“Who’s Mac?” Ethan asked. “And what do you mean you’re goin’ to get ‘em?”

“He was the chef at the apartments we were at before coming here, and I promised we’d go back for them once we found this place.”

The sound of a plate crashing to the floor made us jump.

Roy leaned over to pick up the broken shards. “Sorry.”

Ethan bent down to help. “No problem. Every house in Hargrove had dishes, so we’ve got tons.”

I had a sinking feeling that Roy had dropped the plate at the mention of bringing the apartment crew here. They would undoubtedly recount what had happened to Tim.

The line started to move once they’d cleared the floor of the broken plate pieces, and we finally reached the food. One pan had lasagna with cheese melting on top and smelled heavenly. One of the kitchen workers was serving, ensuring everyone got their fair share—nothing more.

The next section had a real garden salad full of fresh vegetables, and I couldn’t remember a time I’d been more excited to eat lettuce. In the end, I had one of everything. We waited for the others to fill their plates and headed to an empty table. I dug into my food before everyone had sat down. I was starving.

“Oh man, this is good!” Chloe said around a mouthful of lasagna.

I could only nod, as my own mouth was full as well. The lasagna tasted like it had real meat.

I swallowed and asked, “Is this really beef?”

“You bet. Every once in a while, they cook up one of the older cows when a new calf is born. They use all the meat and keep the rest in freezers,” Ethan informed us.

I could have cried tears of happiness. Going over four months without fresh beef or fresh vegetables made me realize how much I’d taken going to the supermarket for granted. Sure, you could raise your own cows and grow your own vegetables, but that was a full-time job in itself. And when you were constantly on the lookout for infected, farm work became impossible—unless you were in a guarded place like Hargrove.

We finished the rest of our food in silence, too busy chewing to talk. It reminded me of the big family dinners my parents had forced me to go to over the holidays. I was starting to get full, but made myself to finish all the food on my plate. You didn’t dare waste anything edible now-a-days.

I was on my last fork full when a single shrill alarm sounded. Everyone looked up from the table.

“What was that?” I asked.

Before I could get an answer, Wyatt’s voice carried throughout the hall. “Remain calm, everyone. The guards will take care of everything. Please go back to your dinners.”

“When a guard spots more than a handful of infected, they sound the alarm to let the others know they might need backup,” Ethan said, his eyes glued to the clubhouse’s front door.

“Should we go help?”

“No, they can usually handle it. If they can’t, they’ll sound the alarm again to signal others to grab a gun and help. Since we’re in the city, we get plenty of infected outside the walls on a daily basis, and the guards are used to dealin’ with it.”

“Have any infected ever gotten in?” Roy asked, his hand on Amanda’s head.

“Since we’ve been here, only one has snuck in,” Zoe said. “But no one is sure how it got in. The perimeter is checked every day for weaknesses, and the gate is constantly guarded.”

I opened my mouth to ask another question, when the alarm went off a second time. Ethan stood, his chair scraping against the floor.

“I’m gonna go take out a gun and check it out,” Ethan said and then turned to Chloe. “You stay here.”

Chloe silently agreed, not having any intention of leaving her first real meal in months.

“I’ll come with you,” I said as I got up.

Ethan looked at me. “I dunno if that’s a good idea.”

“And why not?”

He sighed. “Fine, but you can’t take out a gun since you haven’t taken the course. Follow me.”

Ethan took off toward the door on our far right. He knocked then let himself in. John was already inside with Wyatt and a couple others. They were all grabbing weapons. They stopped what they were doing and stared at me. Way to make a person feel out of place.

“Sorry, Miss Bailey, but unless you’ve taken our training course, you can’t have a weapon,” Wyatt said.

“That’s fine,” I replied, not offering the information that I had my Beretta on me.

John and Wyatt exchanged looks, and John nodded, vouching for me. Wyatt led the way back out once Ethan had grabbed a newer model hunting rifle. All the guns had been painted with red stripes, likely for identification purposes.

The rest of our group must have handed over their weapons when they’d gotten here. I wouldn’t be revealing my Beretta unless I absolutely had to. If the guards had it all under control like Wyatt said, then I wouldn’t have to anyway.

Most people were still sitting in their chairs, while a few had gathered around the clubhouse windows. Outside, some people with weapons had gathered around the gate, and the guards in their towers were shooting silenced rifles. Ethan ran to one of the makeshift guard towers, John to the other. With two people up there, they were squished, but they could still shoot unimpeded. With John and Ethan at the helm, I felt marginally better.

Byron was packing a gun that hadn’t come from the supply room because it lacked the red stripes. Looked like there was a double standard to that rule. Byron made a point to flash me one of his wide-mouthed grins before heading back to the gate. He peered out the wide slit at the approaching infected, and when Wyatt approached him, he whispered something in Wyatt’s ear.

“Looks like there aren’t as many as we thought. Guess one of the guards got twitchy and sounded the alarm again,” Wyatt said.

“Truck!” one of the guards bellowed and the gunfire stopped.

“Is it one of ours?” Wyatt yelled up at the guard.

She grabbed a pair of binoculars and took another look outside the walls. “It’s ours!”

“Shit, we can’t open the gate while the diseased are out there,” Wyatt said, then yelled up to the guard towers, “take out as many as you can before opening the gate!”

They didn’t need me, but I wanted to see how they handled this type of situation. Trying to make myself look less out of place, I headed for the tower Ethan was perched on.

“Everything okay out there?” I yelled at him.

Ethan glanced down at me. “Yeah, we got a bunch, but the rest are all followin’ the truck. Don’t wanna risk hittin’ our people.”

Our people.
Ethan already thought of these people as his group. I felt kind of dejected. I mean we’d only been separated for just over two weeks. It was kind of like when you went through a breakup and the other party started dating another person after a week. It … hurt.