The No Where Apocalypse (Book 1): Stranded No Where (18 page)

He was the man in control. He was the one with the guards. Smart to separate Violet and me, he proved his true intentions. As long as every detail went the way he desired, everyone would he happy. And by everyone, he meant himself and himself alone.

“I trust you can wait…Bob?”

I nodded. Like I had a choice. He had other plans, but I had no idea what they were. But something told me I wouldn’t be in the dark for long.

He snapped and pointed at one of the guards. Immediately the older man with the sawed of 12-gauge left the room.

Yeah, I wasn’t going to have to wait too long.

Day 321 - continued - WOP

The bastard had Violet brought to us, and that made me nervous. So far, as much as I knew, she’d kept her mouth shut. I wondered how long that would continue once Stuart Callies began in on her.

The self-appointed leader excused himself and left the room with all of his people following. The double doors were closed and I heard them walk away on the hardwood floor. Only then did I glance at the girl.

“Well?” she demanded, giving me a look of supreme anger.

“There’s a delay,” I answered, reaching to pat her hands on her lap. “We have to wait for the salt to arrive tonight sometime. I think we’ll have to stay one more night in our quaint accommodations.”

“That’s just great,” she snapped, slapping my hand away. “And you believe him. The man who kills people just for fun.”

I knew she wouldn’t be thrilled at the news, so her reaction was about what I expected. Pushing away from her chair, she began to pace behind me.

“This is bullshit!” she seethed. “We should have just let them kill us all in Grandma Lettie’s driveway. It would have saved us a long walk to our deaths.”

I needed to slow her worth down. Maybe a little logic would help. “I don’t think he plans on hurting us, Violet. Actually, I believe his story about the salt.”

Her eyes rolled one way as her head lolled the opposite. “Wow, you are stupid aren’t you? They never intended to trade us anything. Why can’t you see that?”

“That doesn’t make sense, Violet. If anything these people of his have been decent to us. Hell, even Callies himself has acted anything but severe. I think he wants the trade as much as we do.”

“He does.” Another voice entered the discussion from behind, causing Violet and me to jump. It was the woman in the white sundress.

“If you two would come with me,” she offered, opening the doors fully as she spoke. “I’ll take you to a room where you can get cleaned up a little.”

“I don’t want to clean up,” Violet countered with a dash of spite. “I want to go home, to my mother.”

The woman smiled grossly and nodded. “And you will. All in good time. Just follow me please.”

Waving us forward, I had to push gently on Violet’s shoulders to get her to move. She looked up at me timidly, fright covering her face.

“Don’t worry,” I whispered. “I got your back.”

We moved as one, Violet grasping my hand tightly with both of hers. As we followed Susan out of the office, I wondered if anyone had my back.

We were led out through the same hall I entered, still full of the same lifeless lot the originally greeted me. Out the front door, the woman turned right and peeked back at us.

“This way,” she said in a cheery voice as if she were leading a field trip at the zoo.

Pausing ever so slightly, I studied our surroundings. No guards bothered to follow us. The two at the end of the street behind us disappeared around the corner of a building, not giving us a second glance. Ahead a few townsfolk staggered in our direction, heads down, hands in their pockets as they passed. I almost ran into someone. It was her again.

“If you want to run off…” she stated in a terse way, “…go ahead. You won’t have your lids or salt. No one will give you back your gun or your wagon. But no one will stop you either.”

My confused look made her smile, a little.

“What exactly don’t you understand?” she asked. “What was it that my brother told you that didn’t make sense? Perhaps I can clear it up.”

First off, I didn’t know they were brother and sister. But that really didn’t matter at that point. “Where are you taking us? And what’s going on?”

She waved for us to follow again. “I’m taking you to a room where you can clean up and put on some fresh clothes. You both look like you’ve seen better days; I thought it was the least we could do for you while you’re delayed.”

Ah, her idea. He was the monster, she was her brother’s keeper…or attendant…or soul.

“We’re going to have a nice lunch in a little bit,” she continued as we entered the building next door. It was completely devoid of people, making it feel a bit creepy. “We’ve rigged up a fairly decent shower in here. There’s a large basin that has warm water, enough for both of you. There’s soap and shampoo. Even nice clean towels to use when you’re done.”

I grabbed her arm, spinning her to face us. “Why are you doing this?” I demanded. My eyes searched for any treachery in hers.

“Because we’re not bad people, Mr. Reiniger,” she implored. “Apart from what you may have heard about Stuart, he’s not an evil person. He is trying to help.”

“Could’ve fooled me,” Violet inserted, tipping her head to the right. “He’s killed plenty, I was here. One of his men tried to rape my friend. Sounds evil to me.”

“And that man was punished,” the woman responded quickly. The slight lines on her face told me she was Stuart’s older sister. Spread amongst her auburn hair a few sprigs of gray showed through. “I knew you think things were all right here before we showed up. But they weren’t. No small town would last without food, fresh water, basic supplies, and a plan.”

Violet stepped closer to argue with her. “I just don’t think—”

The woman reached and stroked Violet’s dirty face. “You’re such a beautiful child,” she cooed, wiping a smudge of dirt away. “This world has turned our lives upside down, and in an instant. One moment we were watching TV, chatting on our phones and computers. Then, so quickly, everything turned ugly.”

Violet’s expression softened hearing the sincere words from another.

“When Matt and I arrived we told my brother the only way we’d help is if we did things the right way,” she said, turning her attention to me. “I’m Susan Weston, Matt’s my husband. Stuart sent for us last winter. Said he needed our help. Help doesn’t include starving, or raping, or killing. Help means compassion.”

“Well, you’re a real angel of mercy then,” I said, perhaps a little sarcastic. But from what I’d seen thus far, Covington wasn’t a very compassionate place.

“I don’t expect you to believe me,” Susan went on. “Not with the history that Violet and her family have told you. But give it a chance, give us a chance. And you’ll see. This isn’t a bad place, and we’re not bad people.”

I shrugged and she led us deeper into the building. The jury was still out on this place, and these people. All of these people.

Day 321 - continued - WOP

She led us up a tight stairway and onto the second floor. There, in a small room, was the shower she promised. On a desk outside the bathroom door sat clean clothes for each of us.

“I guessed at your sizes,” she stated, patting the clothes. “They may be a little large, but they’re cleaner than what you have on. The door locks, so you’ll be safe.” She stepped closer to Violet. “And no one will enter this building while you’re in here. You have my word.”

Violet nodded once, swallowing hard. I knew she was skeptical; hell, I was skeptical. It all seemed too good to be true.

“There’s a toothbrush for each of you in there.” Susan pointed into the steamy room. “And some powder that I hope you find refreshing. When you’re both done, go back downstairs and into the building we just left. Someone will lead you to the dining hall. We have a nice lunch prepared, and I’ll be sure it’s kept warm until you join Stuart and I.”

The slap of her sandals disappeared slowly as she left us and descended the stairway. I listened and heard the front door snap shut.

Glancing back at Violet, I saw her fear rising.

“I don’t trust her,” she said, pulling on her lower lip. “I don’t know what she’s up to, but I don’t trust this whole place.”

I turned her for the bathroom, handing her a pile of women’s clothing as she entered.

“Neither do I,” I stated, reaching to pull the door shut. “But I really want a shower. Don’t you?”

Studying the room, she shrugged several times. “Okay, but you stay by the door. Don’t leave me.”

I found a chair and sat it in front of the door, protecting my friend. I wasn’t going anywhere. I was about to have my first shower in almost a month. Wild horses couldn’t drag me away from that chance.

Clean and freshly dressed, Violet and I made our way out of the building. Standing on the shaded sidewalk, I watched as she flipped her long wet hair several times.

“What I wouldn’t give for a blow dryer,” she commented, following me back to the first building.

“What I wouldn’t give for one of Lettie’s brownies right now,” I replied, leading her past the single female armed guard by the front door. “I’m so hungry I could eat dirt.”

She stopped me by jerking at my arm. Her eyes darted around the room, checking for danger I assumed.

“Just be careful,” she whispered. “They might try to poison us. Maybe we should tell them to trade plates once we’re served.”

Laughing away her fear, I urged her forward. I had noticed Susan waiting on the far end of a hall when we first walked in, so I figured the food was in that direction.

“We’ll just watch them take the first bites,” I said, mostly to myself. I don’t think Violet was listening all that closely. However, I doubted I would be waiting for anyone else to begin eating, not with the amount of growling my stomach was doing.

Baked chicken, mashed potatoes with butter melting on the top, and bright orange carrots adorned the center of the table. I winked at Violet. If they were trying to kill us, we’d all be dying.
 

A beautiful white linen cloth covered the large oval table, making me pause before I sat. The dichotomy of our surroundings was pronounced. Outside, people worked in the sun, dirty and hungry. They struggled each day for another meal, another sip of water. Inside was a world from almost a year back. All existing in the same place, changed by the unknown.

“Tell me, Stu,” I began after taking a large bite from a greasy chicken thigh. “What happened late last summer? What caused our world to become like this?”

Wiping his mouth first, he posed for his answer. “I have several theories, and none of them involve the worn out idea of an EMP attack.”

I glanced at him, confused. “Why not an EMP attack? Seems like the most logical choice.”

He shook his head. “A man came through Ironwood several months after the attack, shortly before I came here. Riding an ancient motorcycle from the 50s. He was from the southwest somewhere. Arizona, New Mexico; makes no difference. He said it was the same down there. Shortly after we arrived here, a group of travelers came through headed west. They came from somewhere in southern Ontario, over near Sudbury. Same thing there.”

Well, he had half of North America covered. That would have been a number of high-level EMPs. That seemed unlikely.

“If you ask me,” he continued, “and you have, I say it was high-intensity solar flares. Something in the magnitude we’ve never experienced before.”

I nod while taking a large spoonful of potatoes, the butter coating my tongue. Up until that moment I had no idea how much I’d missed that one dairy product.

“Where do you get butter from?” I asked, licking the back of my spoon to get every last drip.

I saw Susan dab at the corners of her mouth with her white linen napkin. “We have a woman with a small herd of cattle. We agreed to product her property and she graciously offered to provide us with milk and butter. She has some chickens as well. Quite a few actually. Thus, our noontime feast.”

“Would you like to hear my other theory, Bob?” Stuart begged for my attention from the other end of the table. I shot him a small smile. There was something about these two didn’t make sense.

“Aliens!” he shouted. Like a child at a carnival, his face exploded with glee. “Someone from a far off distant galaxy has other plans for our world. Throwing us back into the dark ages was just the first step.”

A fist pounded the table at the other end. “Stuart!” Susan cried out. “Please stop with you childish thinking. Our guests don’t want to listen to such drivel. Be an adult.”

His face shrank along with his shoulders. Going back to his plate, I watched him pick at his carrots with his fork.

“You’ll have to excuse my brother,” Susan apologized. “Sometimes he lets his brilliant mind wander to places that it doesn’t belong.” She set her hands in front of her face. “Say, how would you both like to stay with Matt and I tonight? You don’t deserve to waste your time in that horrid place my brother insisted you stay in last night. Wouldn’t nice soft beds with clean sheets be better?”

I nodded blankly. What didn’t make sense before became clearer in my mind. Both of these people were trouble. But who was running this place: brother or sister? Which one was our real enemy?

Day 321 - continued - WOP

“Maybe you’re not listening, or maybe you’re just too stupid to see what’s going on,” Violet shouted, taking aim at me once again. “There is something really weird about these two. And we shouldn’t trust them at all. I say we leave now, and forget about the salt.”

Lunch was over and Susan encouraged Violet and me to take a stroll around town. Stuart didn’t seem happy with the idea at first, but it grew on him when my teen traveler asked if we could go visit her old house.

For some reason, one thing that almost floored me most as we excused ourselves was we were allowed to roam freely…sans guards. But I knew people would still be keeping an eye on us.

Violet led the way and within minutes we stood in her parents’ former living room. Most of the house had been thoroughly searched I could tell, most likely looking for the missing drugs. If they had left any food behind, Violet couldn’t recall, it was gone now. Even the beds and linens had been removed.