Man Eaters (25 page)

Luke’s face fell. “You know, I’ve thought about it. I mean, a lot of guys and gals have bolted, refusing to carry out orders, but I’m a military guy. It’s all I know. Besides, I keep hoping maybe I can do some good.”

Dallas squeezed his shoulder before letting go. “You already have. Thank you.”

“I wish there was more I could do.”

“Actually, can I ask one more favor? Can you take Peanut and Safety to Butcher and let her know that we’re okay and on our way? He needs to get that gunshot taken care of.”

“Sure can.” His eyes lit up a little and Dallas wondered if it was at the sound of Butcher’s name. She’d noticed how his eyes never left her. “Any ideas where they could be?”

After giving Luke some pointers about where he might find them, everyone said their goodbyes. Roper hugged him for a long time and thanked him for crashing the party. She kissed Safety’s forehead and told him to hang in and that Butcher would sew him up in no time.

Peanut looked like a rag doll sitting next to Safety. She seemed paler than usual, but Dallas chalked that up to her sitting next to a black man. Zeus was none to happy to have to be in the back of the transport, but when they were all ready to go, Dallas saluted them and stood watching as they pulled away.

“He’s a good man,” Dallas said softly.

“Let’s just hope he finds Butcher sooner than later. Safety’s not looking so good.”

“Neither is Peanut. She’s awfully pale.”

“Living in fear is taking its toll on the kids. We need to remember to give them some down time. They’re not like the rest of us.”

When the three of them were back in the saddle, they walked along while Roper told them everything that had happened, how she’d come upon Safety and how he had been bitten but never turned.

“Don’t be alarmed. I told him if he started turning, he was as good as dead.”

“I’ve never heard of someone surviving being bitten. Do you think it’s because he’s black?” Dallas asked.

Einstein made a chuffing sound. “We’ve seen plenty of black man eaters.”

“Hmm. I wonder why then.”

“That’s what the military wanted to know. And they thought this horse bite on my arm was from an eater and so they were going to perform different experiments on the two of us.” Roper shuddered. “Speaking of ghoulish.”

“No shit. Still…I want to keep an eye on him. We don’t need him turning while we’re sleeping.”

Einstein nodded. “In some movies, people turn as soon as they are bitten while others takes a day or so.”

“It’s been longer than a day, kid. I think he’s survived it.”

“Strange. Well, we could use some muscle, but…” Einstein’s voice trailed off.

“But what?”

He shrugged. “We need to cut those other three loose. They’re bad news, only out for themselves. People like Tate and Coco get other people hurt. It’s time to cut the cord.”

Roper nodded, but said nothing.

“So, what do you suggest?”

“Simple. Tell them it’s not working out and we wish them the best of luck. See ya.”

Roper laughed. “Subtle.”

“We don’t really have time for subtlety, Rope. Would it make it easier if I told you Tate saw what was going down with Dallas out by the Hummer before you came along? He just stood at a window, watching.”

Roper glared over at Dallas. “Watching?”

Dallas shrugged. “Like it’s a surprise the guy’s a coward?”

“Are you sure, kid?”

“Roper, I saw him just standing there. He was never going to help her. Never. Asshole.” Einstein shook his head. “We need to be able to rely on each other, and I wouldn’t trust him to care for a bag of turds.”

“Tell us how you really feel,” Dallas said, feeling Roper’s fiery eyes still locked onto hers.

“You knew.” Roper said to Dallas. “You knew and still we’re carrying that…bag of turds.”

Dallas shrugged it off. “What could he have done? More than likely, he’d have gotten us all killed. It’s not like the guy has two brain cells to rub together.”

“That’s it, Dallas. I’m behind Einstein on this one hundred percent. Those three can find themselves another bus ride. I…we won’t let your need to help every Tom, Dick, and Harry put our lives in danger.”

“Now wait a—”

“I’m with Roper.” Einstein looked at Dallas intently. “You’re outvoted.”

“I see that. Fine then. We kick them to the curb the first chance we get.”

They rode until sundown, until Roper was too tired to go on. After taking care of the horses, she came back to a meal of spam, an energy bar, a bottle of water and, to her delight, oranges.

“Where did you get oranges?”

“There was a cottage a few miles east of here. Peanut and I found a tree full of them.”

“Bless you.” Roper said, holding the leathery fruit to her nose and inhaling deeply. “God, that smells wonderful. Like a little piece of heaven.”

“I’m gonna wipe the horses down,” Einstein said, winking at Dallas.

When he was gone, Roper asked, “I saw that. What was that about?”

“You know, I have no clue. I think he wants to give us adult time and space.”

“Cool kid.”

“Absolutely.”

Tearing open the orange, Roper savored the first juicy section. “We’re gonna miss food like this if this thing goes south.”

“Don’t you think it already has?”

Sticking the second section in her mouth, Roper nodded. “It can always go…souther. We have to get moving, Dallas. This pace is far too slow.”

“What do you suggest?”

“Well, I had plenty of time to think about that when I was cable tied to a god damned hospital bed, and I don’t know why I didn’t think of it sooner. I say we trailer the horses at night and take our chances during the day. We’re just not covering enough ground this way.”

Dallas nodded as she laid the sleeping bags on the ground and tried to ignore the sucking sounds Roper was making with the orange. “I hesitate letting the horses go, Roper. We need them for getting over the mountain pass faster, but trailering the horses is a really sound idea.” Scrunching into her sleeping bag, Dallas looked at Roper’s silhouette in the growing darkness. “When we get back, we’ll take Butcher, Safety, Peanut and Zeus and continue on our way.”

Sucking her juice fingers, Roper nodded. “Something tells me it won’t be so easy.”

****

When they reached the rest of the group, Roper’s instincts had been spot on.

Luke, Butcher, Peanut, and Zeus were on watch duty outside of town at a masonry facility just off the frontage road. They would probably have ridden right on by if Butcher hadn’t been leaning against the stone wall in the shade, a rifle across her lap chatting Luke up. Peanut and Zeus were playing fetch with a slobbery tennis ball. The others were nowhere to be seen. Dallas wasn’t at all surprised to find Luke still there. She thought he was a little smitten with the good doctor.

“Luke! Still here, I see.” Dallas slid off the saddle and shook his hand warmly.

Butcher grabbed up Roper in a massive bear hug and lifted her off her feet. “Damn, it’s good to see you!”

Roper yelped. “My wound, my wound.”

Butcher set her down gently. “Damn. Sorry. It’s just…I never thought I’d see you again. You had us worried.”

Rotating her shoulder, Roper replied, “It’s all good. We’re back and we’re keeping it this way. No more separating. It’s all good.”

Butcher shook her head. “I wish that were true.”

Luke joined them.

“Why? What happened?”

“Tate and Coco took off with the transport last night.”

Roper looked at Dallas with an “I told you so” grimace. “Damn them.”

“Yeah, well, nothing we could do. It was bound to happen sooner than later. Good riddance, I say.”

Butcher’s eyes softened as she looked over at Luke. “I think we need to get Luke back to his unit. We were waiting for you guys before we take him back.”

“I’m so sorry, Luke.”

Jamming his hands in his pockets, he shrugged. “No worries. It’s not like it was mine. If you guys wouldn’t mind giving me a lift, though, I’d be grateful.”

“Not at all. Glad to oblige. As far as those other two being gone, there’s one less problem to deal with.”

“We were going to ditch them soon anyway. Did they take anything else?” Roper asked.

“Couple rifles, some food. Not bad. Quite frankly, the rest of us are thrilled.”

Dallas looked into the masonry for Cue-Ball and Safety “Everything else okay? How is Safety?”

“You mean the Giant? My god, he’s huge. He’s still sleeping. He was exhausted when Luke helped him from the transport, so I pulled out the slug and put him to bed.”

“He saved my life. Our lives. He’s staying.”

“Good. I’m glad we have a gentle giant on board. I’ll change his dressing when he gets up and give him something to eat, but…well…there’s no delicate way to put this. You guys know he’s been bitten?”

Dallas and Roper looked at each other before Roper answered. “We know. If he hasn’t turned yet, we’re going to assume he isn’t going to.” She held up a hand. “I know it’s a risk, but I’d be dead if it weren’t for him.”

Butcher tilted her head as she thought. “He seems fine to me. Lost a lot of blood, but he’s in great shape. He’ll heal fast.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out her keys. “Those things are scattered about. Luke told us what happened to you guys and we figure some of them made it this far.”

“Where’s Cue?”

“Sleeping it off in the shade. He found some beer and drank it all. He’s paying the price for it now.”

“Luke warm beer? Ugh. I wonder why he didn’t go with the other two.”

“He said they asked him to. He replied that he was safer with people who have two brain cells to rub together. They were too stupid to realize he was dissing them.”

Dallas smiled as she examined the masonry grounds. The place had a stone wall of various flagstones ringing it and an iron gate that swung inward. It was like a little fortress. “Stone fence all around is safe. Smart choice. Let’s get Luke back to his people and then we’ll have a meeting and see what our next step is going to be.”

Butcher and Luke looked at each other, and something passed between them that did not go unnoticed by Roper or Dallas.

When they gathered around the Hummer, Dallas started to work out who would go with the Hummer, but Roper stepped up and shook her head. “Uh uh. We said no more separating.”

“The horses?” Einstein asked.

Roper hesitated, and Einstein picked right up on it.

“I’ll stay. The horses need to be watered, fed, and combed. Peanut and I will take care of them while you’re gone. She loves combing them.”

Roper messed up his hair and gave him a little shove. “Thank you. Bring Cue-Ball out to post watch. I don’t want you guys out here without a guard.”

“And make sure he stays awake,” Dallas ordered.

“Ten-four. You guys take Luke home. We’ll tidy up the horses…maybe even make dinner.”

When they came to a place safe enough to drop Luke off, everyone said their goodbyes—Butcher’s was the longest and their hug was far more intimate than two people who had just spent the evening chatting.

“I think they’re smitten,” Dallas said as she watched Butcher hugging Luke goodbye.

“He’s a good guy. My heart hurts for her if she’s fallen in love with a military guy.”

“Fallen in love? That’s a little premature, don’t you think?”

Roper shook her head. “His eyes never leave her. They have that military connection you and I can’t begin to understand. Trust me on this. She’s smitten.”

When Butcher returned to the car, they both sensed something off—something deeper than just a sad goodbye.

Butcher looked at them through red-rimmed eyes and said, “Luke told me that getting out of California isn’t enough.”

Dallas blinked. “What does that mean?”

Butcher rubbed her face with her hands. “He said the other states have lost their battles and they’ll be pulling out in a couple of days. The whole country has gone to shit.”

Roper faced her in the back of the Hummer. “So, the desert?”

Butcher shook her head. “It’s out. He thinks it would just be a band-aid for us and we’d have to be on the move again.”

“Mexico?”

Another shake. “The Federales, local police, and people from all over Mexico have flooded the borders, guns in hand, to keep us in. Honduras, Guatemala and Nicaragua have also sent troops to help stabilize the border between us and Mexico.”

“You mean to keep us out.”

Butcher shook her head. “In. Canada and Mexico are scared shitless we’ll bring this to them so they are doing everything they can to keep us in. Both countries are shooting first and asking questions later. He said the California-Mexico border looks like a war zone. Dead bodies scattered everywhere, baking and rotting in the heat.”

“Canada would be easier to slip into,” Roper said. “Maybe we’re heading the wrong way.”

Butcher reached into her pocket and pulled out a slip of paper. “Luke thinks the easiest way to get out of here is through the Gulf of Mexico.”

“Texas?”

She shook her head. “Louisiana. The bayou makes it nearly impossible for the eaters to maneuver, and its way too hard to keep any sort of patrol there. It’s a virtual maze of waterways. He thinks we could hunker down out there until we got enough provisions for a boat. Even then, he thinks staying hidden in the bayou is preferable to being blown to bits by some battleship.” She handed Dallas the address of the dock.

“A boat. You want us to get on a boat.”

Butcher shrugged. “Cue brought it up once and we sorta let it go, but if you think about it, it’s a decent plan. We could sleep without being on watch, and we could try to make it to one of the Caribbean islands after everything settles down.”

Dallas looked to Roper, who shrugged. “Always wanted to go to Jamaica.”

“Luke said he and his buddies only know part of what is really going on, but one thing was certain: The borders are killing zones and the body count is stacking up.”

“What about help from other countries? Have our allies completely deserted us?”

“That’s why he says he only knows so much. Our allies are aiding Mexico and Canada to keep us from spreading the virus. That’s hearsay, by the way. He’s not certain.”