After The End (6 page)

He shifted in his skinny jeans and winked at
Daemon before walking away. The vampire spoke through the corner of
his strained grin.

“Someone please protect me from that guy.”
Cal chuckled and patted his protégé’s shoulder. “Even if I was into
dudes, that Dane guy weirds me out.”

Cal sat at the table for the night’s errand,
ignoring the plea. I took the fledgling’s arm and led him to a
seat. We spent the next hour planning our foray through the
suburban nightmare and further on to the urban unknown. Our
shopping list grew from the usual items we always looked for –
medicines, bandages, weapons, etcetera – to include a large variety
of other things. Our raiding party was now also searching for:
dental floss, spices, clothes, a cooler, Ziploc bags, canteens,
blankets, pillows, seed packets, ink pens, condoms, nails, a
skillet, birth control pills, and a storybook for Ellen.

The sheer number of folks who requested birth
control or condoms appalled me; I have no idea how they all found
the time, energy, and privacy to use them. I was aware of how many
couples and single adults were in our community, but it never
occurred to me that they were actually managing to have sex.

Maybe it’s become a way to entertain them or
to find comfort despite the zombies and communal living.

I joked that it was good everyone was at
least being responsible, last thing we needed now was an epidemic
of STDs. Daemon seemed unnerved by the whole situation.

Once the list was finished, everybody went to
sit watch or crash for the night, except for the two vamps and
myself. Cal went out to patrol while Daemon helped me write out
copies of the potentially fatal scavenger hunt.

“Aren’t you at all concerned about this?”

I looked at the vamp quizzically.

“About what? Did we forget something?”

He furrowed his brows to match his sulking
expression.

“Every adult in this town of ours is
desperate for birth control. Doesn’t that bug you?” I set down my
pen and pondered for a minute why this would upset the guy so
much.

“I don’t see why I should be worried about
all the condoms and pills. It’s not like we can tell everyone not
to screw. Why is it bothering you?”

Daemon brushed his dark hair out of his waxen
face.

“I don’t care that everyone is having sex,
that’s fine. Actually, I’m a little jealous. My fear is they all
want to avoid pregnancies.” He stared at me like it should click in
my head and I should be frantic with anxiety.

I was a deer in the headlights.

“So, you’re worried because there won’t be
any babies in camp if everyone’s practicing safe sex?”

He beamed and nodded.

“That makes no sense to me. Babies are cute
and all but…”

“No, it’s not like that. I understand not
wanting to raise a kid in this kind of world, and a screaming baby
would probably draw fleshies to us in an instant; no arguments
there. In the long term, though, some people are going to need to
start having kids if the human race is going to survive. Without
kids, this whole pact and fortification is just a stall.

I worry because no one’s willing to just let
things happen so life can go on. How is there a fresh start without
new life? Besides, if all humans die out, us vampires go extinct as
well.”

He fiddled with his pen as he focused on the
list he was copying.

All I was able to do was roll mine back and
forth next to the papers, taking in the surprisingly profound
remarks.

“I can’t speak for the others, but I do know
that birth control isn’t always effective and I will probably be
unable to find any tomorrow.” I caught my fellow scribe’s gaze. I
got the impression Daemon wouldn’t be finding any Trojans
either.

As we finished the list, Daemon hummed a song
I recognized as Rockabye by Shawn Mullins, and in short time we
were having a horribly off-key sing-a-long. Tomorrow would be an
interesting adventure.

The next morning, I woke early to gather some
extra provisions for the camp to use while we’d be gone. It seemed
half the community was driven by the same impulse; we sat together,
sharing a quiet breakfast around the dying fire. It would be put
out soon. The wood supply was safe again until lunch was being
prepared.

With the temperature already moving the
mercury up into the mid 70’s, I doubt anyone looks forward to
starting the fire.

The sun warmed our skin as it crested over
the gleaming barricade. One by one, we finished eating and dove
into work. My mind raced through checklists of what was left to do
tonight and who was going; the pressure of keeping them safe turned
the muscles in my neck into pretzels. I walked through the camp
rubbing it and found Sunny near the gateway. She must have been
waiting for a partner to exit the barrier.

“You feel like a little fishing, Squirrel?”
She held a spear with a long thin point in her right hand – I
assumed she wasn’t looking for bass this time.

“Sure, I’m game.”

We began to stride down the familiar path to
the water’s edge. Sunny looked around at everything, only it wasn’t
with a look of concern for danger, it seemed she was taking in all
the details of the dawn. Her smile shone calm and natural; it was
almost creepy. As we reached the water, she took the lead, turning
towards the marshes downstream – yep, she intended to catch a gator
this morning.

“Felt like starting out rough and tumble
today, did we?” I taunted as I saw the downed bait line.

“Is there any other way?”

Cautiously, I went around to the wood
planking we set down for a foothold and grabbed the line. When I
glanced up, Sunny had the spear lowered to just above the bubbles;
her face was all business.

I began to draw the line out hand-over-hand
until the gator on the end jerked and the fight was on. I braced my
legs, leaning my weight back as I strove to get the reptile’s head
above water.

It wasn’t that big – three maybe four feet –
and in a matter of minutes, our battle was done; Sunny had jabbed
the spearhead through the top of the skull. She must have been
training with Chase and Cal recently; the kill spot is only the
size of a quarter.

“Nice poke there, Ahab.” I groaned as we
pulled our catch from the water.

“Thanks, but I don’t hunt whales; I hear
they’re endangered or something. Wouldn’t want to get a fine.”

We laughed as we began hauling the alligator
back up the trail, eyes ever watchful for fleshies who may hear us
or smell the fresh kill.

We made small talk as we labored up the hill
with our prize; the air was already humid, making breathing more of
an effort.

“I miss take out. There’s something wonderful
about just calling a number and having food appear. I would settle
for drive thru, though.”

“Don’t forget the hot & fresh donuts.
What I would give for a real donut, or a warm shower. But mostly,
its donuts and ice cream.”

We could see the others gathering vegetables
from the gardens up ahead.

“Maybe one day. Who knows what will happen
when the Dead finally die off?”

Sunny’s response bothered me; it festered
below my ribs and kept me awake on long nights when I sat
guard.

“How do you know we’ll still be here then?
Maybe if we still exist, what about the vampires? They may not all
be as nice as Cal and Daemon. We could just be putting off the
inevitable.” She started glancing around again; her smile looked a
little forced this time. “I’d love some food I didn’t have to kill
first, though.”

By lunchtime, we’d already: turned over our
catch for preparation, gotten cleaned up in the small wash bins,
changed clothes, added our overnight gear to the pile near the
tower, and helped put away supplies. Everyone was bustling about,
readying for the next couple of days.

Baskets and plastic ware containers of
cleaned berries, roots, oranges, and assorted veggies were being
loaded into the storehouse. Two people marched towards the cooler,
each toting long strands of shimmering bass. This morning was
turning out to be a good haul all around.

Ellen was busy helping her parents load a
Jansport backpack for her father’s use on the trip. As we searched
for Chase, I overheard her advice.

“No Daddy, you can’t pack the lucky rabbit’s
foot! You have to keep it in your pocket or it’s not any good.”

She had her hands on her hips.

He chuckled while asking the blue-eyed
Blondie.

“And who told you that?”

“Gammy did back when I was littler. And she’s
your Mommy so you know she’s right.”

Ellen stamped her foot, emphasizing her
point. He put the trinket in his pocket and hugged her before
continuing his task.

I couldn’t hear the rest as we found Chase
with several of our more skilled chefs. Sunny and I surveyed their
progress with lunch like critics for the Zagat’s guide before
pitching in. Chase beamed at Sunny as he gave her a kiss. They were
vigorously carving up the alligator into strips for jerky and
tossing random chunks into a few pots of boiling broth nearby.

I looked at the concoction; carrots, herbs,
pale gator meat, and what looked like orange rinds were bobbing to
the surface intermittently, only to disappear as the bubbles
popped. I became somewhat leery of the meal.

“Looks, uh interesting guys. What is it?”

Chase gave me a dumbstruck look as he
quipped,

“Supper.”

Without further detail, he went back to his
butchering. I stared at him and then at Sunny, who merely shrugged,
before I sat and started drying the strips on the frame. Riotous
laughter broke out behind me, erupting from Chase and the other
cooks.

The frantic shouting of the sentry on the
tower cut off the happy sound.

“Looks like three strangers coming towards
the gate; everyone inside the walls! Hurry, get the gate, one has a
rifle!”

Ellen was scooped up and rushed into the main
cabin; her mother grabbed a long knife before barricading herself
and Ellen inside. Several others took up positions outside the
door. Our people bolted into the fort and the gate was slammed.

Arrows were notched on the platform and
swords unsheathed below. Shaking hands carried extra weapons. Dane
loaded a small stone into a slingshot, accidentally shooting his
own foot in the process, before being sent to watch lunch.

I was at the top of the tower in an instant,
pressed to quicker speed by the clanking sounds ringing out within
the walls. This was not the time for unknown persons to arrive.

I saw the outsiders through the spare
binoculars Chase carried up with him. There only appeared to be
three of them, but we couldn’t be sure. The trio had stopped when
the guard had yelled out and they now stood around 100 yards from
the wall of our fort.

They were between two of the spike pits. The
tallest was holding a rifle out to the side; he placed it on the
ground in front of him and hid the other two strangers behind him
as they backed up a few paces.

I realized the small ones were children –
although not likely his – both had snowy skin where the tall man
was a Tyler Perry doppelganger. The group stood still. It occurred
to me it could be a trap, but this man was clearly doing his best
to protect the kids in case we responded with violence.

“What should we do?” someone yelled from
below. I peered at everybody’s faces, looking for some inkling of
what they all thought.

Chase spoke to the crowd.

“There only seem to be three people, one man
and two kids. The guy has already laid down his gun and stepped
back. I say we check them for infection and go from there. We just
keep weapons at the ready in case it’s a setup. Anyone
disagree?”

Shaking heads answered the pink-tinted man
wielding an axe.

“I’m coming down to the gate, open it slowly
and I’ll go out to meet them.” I stated, climbing down.

“Once we know they aren’t infected, we should
bring them in. I say we keep the outsiders in camp and under watch
until we can get to know them and decide the best option to take.
If they’re infected, well…we can take the necessary measures.”

There was no doubt in anyone’s mind what that
entailed.

“Correction, we will go out to meet them. No
one goes outside without a buddy.” Chase added. “Especially, in
this kind of situation.”

We both turned after descending the tower and
were stopped.

Sunny glared at us with her spear at her
side.

“Ahem. And I’ll be beside you two ‘brave hero
types’ with a spear and machete ready to keep you from getting
yourselves killed while rushing headlong into danger.”

We both agreed, scolded children that we
were, and followed her down the ladder. We passed through the exit,
keenly aware that the entire throng within was armed and ready. I
was also aware that if it was a trap, the three of us were royally
boned; I suddenly wanted to borrow Ellen’s rabbit foot.

Sunny took the lead, crossing between the
traps to approach our visitors. The man looked concerned as he
spotted our weaponry; he retreated back two steps and pressed the
children further from us, shielding them with his own body in case
of attack.

She slowed to a halt a few yards from the
intruders. After quick look askance, and we all set our arms on the
ground. My eyes never left the man. The kids looked terrified and
kept searching the woods from behind their guardian; fearful of
Dead or living, I couldn’t tell.

Sunny spoke first, her eyes easing from the
man’s to each of the children’s in turn.

“Hi. Sorry about being so defensive and
off-putting, but we can’t be too careful these days. My name is
Sunny. This is my husband Chase and our friend Squirrel. We came
out to meet you. What are your names?” She knelt down to soothe the
children’s fears, her smile gentle and inviting.