Sometimes We Ran (Book 2): Community (18 page)

“I know, I know. It sounds a little weird, but the association and I think it’s the only way to ensure our survival. I only hope that we can all work together to get food on the table. Our system will help make it fair. I am also instituting a system where ten percent of the food will be given back as a bonus. So if you hunt it, grow it, or find it, you give it to Sal for the group, and receive ten percent back to do with as you please.”

This seemed to quiet the crowd. “What about the water?” someone from the back asked.

“We are pretty lucky with water. The taps are still flowing, although I don’t know how long that will continue. Several of the houses had wells dug before the outbreak, and we have a large stream south of us that is reasonably clean. This is all supplemented with a few pallets of bottled water. So, I think we’re okay with water for now. We still need to conserve it though. For future consideration, I think we’re going to have to fit all the houses with rainwater collection systems. That will help our supply.”

The crowd quieted down a little. They seemed to be satisfied.

Denise went on. “Okay…weapons. I’m not going to take anyone’s weapons away. If you have any weapons at home, you can keep them. I also encourage everybody to start carrying something at all times to defend yourself. You never know when you’ll come face-to-face with something terrible. All the weapons in the storehouse are considered community property, and will be used for our defense. Ben? Where are you?” Ben stood up. Denise put her arm around him. “I put Ben in charge of the armory. If you need a weapon, see Ben. He also brought up a good point. We all should take some kind of weapons training, or at least become familiar with shooting a gun. You never know when we may need to defend ourselves against the living, or the dead. Thank you, Ben.” He waved to the crowd, and sat down. Denise stepped into the middle again, coming towards me.

“That brings us to security. It’s no secret that things are not so good outside the gates. Based on reports from Ben from his recent excursion, the zombies are getting smarter. I need someone to organize our defense. Someone who can make sure that we’re all safe and sound. Jenny, God bless her soul, did a terrific job. However, sadly, she’s gone.” Denise stepped beside me and put a hand on my shoulder. “I can think of only one man who could do it. Would you like to be in charge of our security, John?”
I didn’t know what to say. It would be a challenge, to say the least. It would also be an awesome responsibility, keeping everyone safe. I nodded, and said, “Sounds good. I think I can do it.” A ripple of applause that turned into a torrent filled the room.

Denise stepped back to the front. “Thank you, John. I believe you’re the man for the job.” She looked out to her people. “Okay, folks. That’s all I have to say for now. We will continue our meetings each month, or as needed. I’m not going to lie. A big challenge lies ahead for us. There’s about a million things we’re going to have to learn. I just hope we can pull together. I’m pretty optimistic about the future. I think we can do it. I think we’ll make it. We just have to stick together.” Denise paused to look around the room. “Like a family, I guess. Thanks for listening. If there are any questions, the association and I will be here after dinner to answer as many as we can. Are there any questions now that I can answer now?”

I raised my hand. I had a question. “Yes, John.”

I stood up. “You’re our leader. What should we call you?”

Denise smiled, and said, “You may call me Denise. However, the occasional ‘ma’am’ would be appreciated.”

The entire population of Cannon Fields stood and applauded. Denise also shook a few hands. “Okay…enough with the talking,” she said. “Let’s eat.”

The freshly sharpened axe head cleaved through the soft wood with a satisfying thump. Two perfect wedge-shaped pieces of wood fell to either side on the ground. Another two pieces to keep us from freezing to death in the winter. It was fuel to feed the newly installed wood-burning stove in the kitchen that cooked our food and heated my morning coffee. I picked up another log, and lifted the axe to split it like the last one.

Splitting wood was good therapy. It was now a few weeks since I had gotten out of the hospital, and my arm grew stronger with each blow of the axe. Doctor Connelly was right. It would never be the same, but at least it was coming back a little. To fight zombies, you have to be as close to one hundred percent as possible.

It was now July, I think, and the heat was in full force. After splitting a few more logs, I decided to take a break. I sat down on the only remaining grass in the yard to watch Karen plant her garden. Like a general putting her troops in the field, she crisscrossed the large dirt patch laying out the plants- fall vegetables, as we were getting closer to the cooler months of the year. I watched her in her big sunhat and tank top, placing her new plants in tidy rows, and smiled.

Karen and I were now living together.

The small spark of romance that had flashed into life at the hospital, was now a full-fledged fire. We were now living together in a medium-sized brick house, across the street from Claire and Ryan. I asked Karen if she wanted to live together one night during a visit to Claire’s house, and she agreed. Claire was pretty excited, as well. I thought she was going to blow the roof off the place with her girlish screams.

Karen and I wanted to keep it low-key, but Claire wouldn’t hear of it. She told Denise, who planned a little cookout to celebrate all the new couples. We didn’t have any holy men to conduct a ceremony, but Denise had us stand in front of the community. We said our vows to each other as our new friends stood as witnesses. Claire and Ryan went first. I actually felt a slight tugging at my heart as I watched my friend declare her love to Ryan. She was so grown up. We had both come so far.

Then, it was my turn. I stammered over my words, finally throwing the page with my speech on the ground. I decided to wing it. It wasn’t exactly Shakespeare, but it did the trick, and then, the cookout commenced. We ate well, sampling some of the food that had been brought in by hunters and expertly prepared by Sal the butcher. It was a feast.

Karen looked up from her work on the garden. “Are you okay, John?” She hurried over to where I was sitting. She was still worried about my condition, even though I was free of the infirmary. “Do you feel sick?”

I didn’t answer. Instead, I quickly got to my feet, and grabbed her by the waist. Before she could say anything, I planted a kiss on her sweet lips. It knocked the floppy sunhat off her head.

“Oh, yeah. You’re fine,” she said, throwing her arms around me in a big hug. She smelled great, like the earth after a good rain. We stood and kissed like two teenagers in our front yard.

“All right, you two. Get a room.” It was Claire, coming up the walk.

We stopped kissing for a moment. “Actually, we have ten rooms in our spectacular new house,” Karen said.

Claire looked over our house. “It does look good. The garden will be great.” Claire looked a little nervous and pale, like she was holding something back. “Can I talk to your lover boy here for a minute, Karen?”

Karen looked puzzled. “Okay.” She gave me another quick kiss, and went back to her work.

“Karen is a real nice lady. I’m glad I took your advice, Claire,” I said.

“You guys are definitely made for each other.”

I sat on the ground to continue my break. “What are you up to today, kiddo?

“Nothing much. Just got back from the doctor.”

I handed her a water. “You’re not sick, are you?

“No. I’m fine. Just a check up.”

“Good to hear.” I stood up to retrieve my axe.

“I’m pregnant,” Claire said in a thin voice, tinged with tears.

My axe fell to the ground. The splitting of wood was over for the day. “Say what?”

Tears began to well up in her ice-blue eyes. “I’m pregnant, Tiger. I’m going to have a baby. I missed my period, so I went to Doctor Connelly. I’ve never been very regular, so it wasn’t a huge concern. She brought up the possibility of me being pregnant, so she gave me a test, and it was positive. Besides me and the Doc, you’re the first to know. I haven’t even told Ryan yet.”

My head started to pound. Claire was pregnant. Claire, my little zombie-fighter, was going to have a little zombie-fighter of her own. I couldn’t help myself, and touched her belly. “It’s in there right now?” I immediately felt less intelligent for asking that question.

She giggled as tears rolled down her cheeks. “Yes, John. It’s in there right now. What do you think, huh?”

It was probably the best news I had heard since this whole zombie thing started. The human race had a chance. The one thing the zombies couldn’t stop, no matter how much they tried, was humans having more humans. As long as we could have babies, the human race would make it through.

“What do I think? It’s wonderful. Going to be a good-looking kid.”

Claire started to cry a little. “I’m so scared. I don’t know if I can be a mom.”

I gave her a little hug, and a handkerchief to dry her eyes. “You’re going to be fine. You’ve faced scarier stuff than this. Now, go tell Ryan the good news.”

Claire dabbed her eyes. “Okay, Tiger. I will.” She began to walk away to her house. “Tell Karen goodbye for me.”

Claire went down the concrete path, and across the street. She paused at the front door to wave, then went inside to talk to Ryan. I still couldn’t believe her news. Our time on the road together fighting the undead seemed like a long-ago dream. Now, she was carrying the future of the human race.

Karen returned from the garage, where she was storing some extra plants. She had missed all the excitement. “How’s Claire?” she asked. “She kind of looked like she was crying. Did she and Ryan have a fight or something?”

I was still looking wistfully at the house across the street. “Claire’s pregnant.”

Karen nearly dropped her plants. “Well, isn’t that something?” Our work in the yard was concluded for the day. We went inside to digest the good news.

A few more months passed. November was approaching fast. At least, I think it was November. I had kind of lost track. I knew it was autumn because of the chill in the air, and the leaves were changing colors. Soon, the winter would be upon us. Cannon Fields had settled into a routine. All of the residents were busy and working to ensure the continued survival of the group. So far, everyone was working together.

I was still on light duty, but I was able to start the process of assembling a security team. I set up guard schedules and found recruits for missions outside the gates. I sent groups to libraries for information that we needed to survive. Other missions involved trips to nearby stores and malls to find supplies. We took as much as we could. The shelves in the stores were getting a little empty in the world outside the gates.
One of our greatest missions in the early days was a rescue. I sent Ben and a few others to find and retrieve a farmer and his family. I wanted to go, but Doctor Connelly insisted I stay home. I hung out near the gate till they returned. Thankfully, everyone got home safe. We added Peter the farmer, his wife Angie, and his two teenage daughters, Elizabeth and Lisa. Ben was also able to save a skinny, black and white cat named Tic-Tac, and two goats, who had no names. It would take months before the car smelled better.

Now, on a cool fall day under a deep blue sky, Karen and I had drawn the best duty in Cannon Fields: watching the kids. We stood near an open field while the rambunctious children ran to and fro, playing some sort of tag. Claire sat on a little folding chair nearby, her belly slightly swollen by the growing baby inside. She had volunteered to help the teachers with the kids. She read to them and taught them some basic things. It seems Claire had found her niche as well.

Karen and I stood a few feet apart. Karen had a rifle, but I had to settle for my handgun. My left hand was still a little weak. She looked at me and gave me a big beautiful smile. I had to admit, Karen looked dead sexy with that rifle in her hands. She wasn’t a bad shot, either.

Claire gathered the children and began to read them a story. She made all the voices and sounds of the characters. The children sat at her feet, enthralled in her storytelling. She had been worried she wouldn’t make a good mother, but I think her fears were unfounded. The kids loved her, and called her, “Miss Claire.”

Claire’s bat was in her lap, always ready for action She never brought the children outside without it in her hand. Even as pregnant as she was, there was no doubt she could still bash a few zombie skulls.
Karen walked over, and put her arm around me. She sighed heavily.

“What’s the matter?” I asked.

“It’s the children,” she said. “No schools, no colleges anymore. Who is going to teach them the things they need to know?”

I glanced at Claire reading to the children of Cannon Fields. She was reaching the end of the little storybook, and the kids were acting all silly as Claire made funny faces. Someday these innocent children might be the ones who would step out from behind the gate and take the world back from the undead.
Someone had to give them the knowledge to survive, and rebuild the world. I looked at Karen, and said, “We’ll teach them. They’ll learn everything they need to know from us.” Karen gave me a big kiss, and I kissed her back. We definitely weren’t watching the kids anymore.

“All right, you two. Not in front of the children,” Claire said as she walked up. The children orbited around her like small moons. “Hey, Tiger. Amy wanted to ask you something.”

“Did she, now?” One of the very best things that had happened so far was that Amy, our little orphan, had finally found her voice. I bent down to talk to the little dark-haired girl. “What do you want to know, Amy?”

She smiled, then hid her face behind her hands. Still too shy to talk to me, I guess. Claire answered for her. “Amy wanted to know if you and Miss Karen would help me get the little ones back to their parents before it gets dark.”

“We’d be glad to. Let’s go,” I said.

Claire herded the children in front of her, and Karen and I fell in behind as we began the short walk to the admin building and the waiting parents. The sun was fading, and soon the chill of night would be upon us. It was time. Time to lock the windows and block the doors against the monsters that sometimes came in with the darkness. The monsters with the terrible red eyes.