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Chapter 6 – Impromptu Meeting of the minds.
“Phew. That was close.”
“What?” he asked as he came back to the edge of the truck looking down.
“The group is sneaking through all the parked cars, and I thought Mariah was a….. I almost shot her.”
“Well you’ll have to learn to figure out who is and isn’t a zombie. You’ll never know. Any one of these guys can be turned into one. You have to make sure they are still norms before they get too close. After Isobel, I don’t know who to trust anymore.”
“K..”
And that’s how the group met up that warm October afternoon. We confirmed that it was us shooting earlier and why, and then we told them about the attack on our hideaway.
“There were only two people here in the group who knew where I lived…….” Brice started…..
“What do you mean WERE?” Said Stephen, and older vet who we both knew.
“Isobel led a large group of zombies and vampires right to our front door, and she’s no longer in the group. You could say we expelled her.”
“What.. huh? She did what……. “ the murmur from the group as this bomb hit.
“So fellows, there’s only one more of you here that knows where our hideout is. If we are found again…………”
“Brice!” Stephen said “I resent that. You know damn well that I am the only other one here that’s been to your place.”
“Stephen, I know, but it’s hard to figure out who to trust now a days because most either want to eat you, suck your blood or stab you in the back because you have more food and ammo than they do.”
The crowd murmured some more when Mariah walked up to them.
“I thought we all were low on ammo. Did you find a place to stock up?”
“You could say that.”
“Well, let me know. I need more for my 30-30.”
“Hey Brice, where did you find all that ammo? You must have shot off a hundred rounds today.”
“Let’s just say until I sort some stuff out, I am going to keep that information private. Besides, haven’t you been out looking for it like we talked about last time?”
“No, you’re the only one crazy enough to go out all the time. I hear you roaring up and down the streets like you’re mad max in that jalopy of a van your sitting on.”
“Then I guess I am the only one crazy enough to keep on living.”
“Hey Brice” it was Mariah “next time you go out prospecting, can I ride along to help out? I need to resupply, and being on my own its hard.”
“You’re alone out here?” The shock In his voice was pretty evident. I guess what was unspoken between the two of us was we figured that she lived with some other survivor of Lights-out. Being only a couple of years older than me, and being on her own… Maybe she wasn’t so much a troll as I had thought before.
“Yeah, ever since last year when Fat Mary went missing from the group. I’m pretty sure the Vampires got her.” She said matter of factly. Wow, I never knew. I guess there isn’t much we really did know about people when we stopped to think about it. Heck, I didn’t even know the names of most of the group here.
“You got it kiddo. Hang around a minute after words so we can talk.”
“Sure.” She said as she shot me a look that was pure venom.. She might be pretty, but I still didn’t trust her.
The group mumbled and grumbled and we outlined how today worked out, and we were trying to figure out how serious some of the others were about cutting the numbers down. What we didn’t tell them was how much equipment and explosives we’d snagged from the Armory and stashed at our place.
In the end, Stephen and another guy named Jake volunteered to do daytime hunts with us. The reasoning was, they wanted in on it, but without the safety of numbers they felt it was suicide to try to do alone. With four guys everyone could keep an eye out for each other.
“I want to help too.” Mariah said softly to me. Was she really talking to me?
“Can you shoot?”
“Yeah, I learned how to right before Lights-out and got my hunter’s safety permit. My dad was going to take me out hunting the next year.”
“I don’t know. You’ll have to ask Brice Ok?”
“Hey Tres, I overheard. If she wants to, I don’t see why not. Hey Mariah, where are you staying now a days?”
“I move around a lot. That’s why I don’t stock up on a lot of supplies; it’s too much to move when it’s time for me to split.”
“What do you mean?”
“Somehow the vampires always find my hideouts. If I wasn’t being careful they would have gotten me a long while back. As it is I spend half my days looking for a new place to hide and how to fix it up so they can’t get in at me when it gets dark outside.”
“Do you know where you are staying tonight?”
“Sort of.”
“Hop in the van, we’ll go pick up your stuff. So far the suck heads haven’t been able to beat their way in our place.”
“Wait a sec..” I started and I got the stink eye from both of them.
Ok, I know when to shut up.
“Phew. That was close.”
“What?” he asked as he came back to the edge of the truck looking down.
“The group is sneaking through all the parked cars, and I thought Mariah was a….. I almost shot her.”
“Well you’ll have to learn to figure out who is and isn’t a zombie. You’ll never know. Any one of these guys can be turned into one. You have to make sure they are still norms before they get too close. After Isobel, I don’t know who to trust anymore.”
“K..”
And that’s how the group met up that warm October afternoon. We confirmed that it was us shooting earlier and why, and then we told them about the attack on our hideaway.
“There were only two people here in the group who knew where I lived…….” Brice started…..
“What do you mean WERE?” Said Stephen, and older vet who we both knew.
“Isobel led a large group of zombies and vampires right to our front door, and she’s no longer in the group. You could say we expelled her.”
“What.. huh? She did what……. “ the murmur from the group as this bomb hit.
“So fellows, there’s only one more of you here that knows where our hideout is. If we are found again…………”
“Brice!” Stephen said “I resent that. You know damn well that I am the only other one here that’s been to your place.”
“Stephen, I know, but it’s hard to figure out who to trust now a days because most either want to eat you, suck your blood or stab you in the back because you have more food and ammo than they do.”
The crowd murmured some more when Mariah walked up to them.
“I thought we all were low on ammo. Did you find a place to stock up?”
“You could say that.”
“Well, let me know. I need more for my 30-30.”
“Hey Brice, where did you find all that ammo? You must have shot off a hundred rounds today.”
“Let’s just say until I sort some stuff out, I am going to keep that information private. Besides, haven’t you been out looking for it like we talked about last time?”
“No, you’re the only one crazy enough to go out all the time. I hear you roaring up and down the streets like you’re mad max in that jalopy of a van your sitting on.”
“Then I guess I am the only one crazy enough to keep on living.”
“Hey Brice” it was Mariah “next time you go out prospecting, can I ride along to help out? I need to resupply, and being on my own its hard.”
“You’re alone out here?” The shock In his voice was pretty evident. I guess what was unspoken between the two of us was we figured that she lived with some other survivor of Lights-out. Being only a couple of years older than me, and being on her own… Maybe she wasn’t so much a troll as I had thought before.
“Yeah, ever since last year when Fat Mary went missing from the group. I’m pretty sure the Vampires got her.” She said matter of factly. Wow, I never knew. I guess there isn’t much we really did know about people when we stopped to think about it. Heck, I didn’t even know the names of most of the group here.
“You got it kiddo. Hang around a minute after words so we can talk.”
“Sure.” She said as she shot me a look that was pure venom.. She might be pretty, but I still didn’t trust her.
The group mumbled and grumbled and we outlined how today worked out, and we were trying to figure out how serious some of the others were about cutting the numbers down. What we didn’t tell them was how much equipment and explosives we’d snagged from the Armory and stashed at our place.
In the end, Stephen and another guy named Jake volunteered to do daytime hunts with us. The reasoning was, they wanted in on it, but without the safety of numbers they felt it was suicide to try to do alone. With four guys everyone could keep an eye out for each other.
“I want to help too.” Mariah said softly to me. Was she really talking to me?
“Can you shoot?”
“Yeah, I learned how to right before Lights-out and got my hunter’s safety permit. My dad was going to take me out hunting the next year.”
“I don’t know. You’ll have to ask Brice Ok?”
“Hey Tres, I overheard. If she wants to, I don’t see why not. Hey Mariah, where are you staying now a days?”
“I move around a lot. That’s why I don’t stock up on a lot of supplies; it’s too much to move when it’s time for me to split.”
“What do you mean?”
“Somehow the vampires always find my hideouts. If I wasn’t being careful they would have gotten me a long while back. As it is I spend half my days looking for a new place to hide and how to fix it up so they can’t get in at me when it gets dark outside.”
“Do you know where you are staying tonight?”
“Sort of.”
“Hop in the van, we’ll go pick up your stuff. So far the suck heads haven’t been able to beat their way in our place.”
“Wait a sec..” I started and I got the stink eye from both of them.
Ok, I know when to shut up.