Authors: Justin Gowland
I finished my rant and everyone stood and clapped, I went bright red and looked down. Rees put his hand on my shoulder and looked down at me smiling. The only person not clapping was John, and you could see the cog’s in his head turning, while he tried to think of a way to turn this situation to his own advantage.
After the clapping ran out, everyone looked at John to see what he had decided. I am sure there were those of us who were hoping that he would choose the latter option and just go away. To tell you the truth, I was hoping for the same, but I knew that he was one to choose the option where he was safe and looked after so it didn’t surprise me when he said.
“I’ll be sleeping in the shed then.” Standing, he went to the door and turned to look back in the room and said “I will become a valued member of this community.” Turned, and left the room, after a few minutes we heard the front door close.
“I’ll be honest with you if he becomes a valued member of any community I will be amazed.” Said a gravelly voice.
We turned to see who had spoken and found it had been Dave. To be honest, I was shocked to hear such a deep voice coming from him. I think it embarrassed him that he was the center of attention and went a lovely shade of red.
“The only time I should feel like this is when I am singing.” He said.
I looked at him and said what everyone else was thinking “You were a singer?”
“Well, nothing that you lot would have heard, I was a pub/club singer, you know the ones that get hired for weddings and stuff.” He said the color on his face going back to normal.
Jamie held his hand up and said “I used to be a delivery driver round Durham and Newcastle, that’s my van outside.”
“Well, if everyone is telling people what they used to do, I might as well chip in.” It was Mary, “I used to be a fitness instructor for the gym in Royal County Hotel in Durham.”
I looked at the two girls sat together holding hands on one of the couch’s the blonde girl held my gaze and did a short nod and said “I am Jane and this is my sister Amanda, we were in our last year at school, and were due to take our exams next year. I don’t think exams are going to be that important anymore.”
I looked at her and replied “No, I don’t think that exams are going to be important, but what we are going to teach you might be.”
“What do you mean teach us?” she replied.
“Well, once everyone has settled in, I would like everyone to learn how to use the rifles and handguns. I want everyone to be able to strip, clean and fire them. Sorry to say no one get’s to use my rifle, though, lol it’s my baby.”
Everyone smiled and started to sit on the couch’s seats and the floor in the sitting room, in front of the fire that was in the hearth. Ollie was snuggled up in his grandmothers arms, his eyes slowly seemed to be drooping and were soon closed fast and his breathing had deepened. Bet looked up from resting her head on Ollie’s and looked round, with tears in her eyes she mouthed ‘Thank You’.
I looked at Becky and Maddie “Could you help Bet take Ollie to bed and sort out the rooms for the others.”
“Yeah, no problem Jay.” Becky answered.
When the ladies had left the I sat on the couch and Rees sat next to me and we looked at Jamie and Dave sat on the other. Marc pulled a chair up so that he was looking at both couch’s.
“Are you two going to be ok with using this room, I mean every night I want everyone to meet in here for a small meeting. So that means it has to at least look tidy guys.” I said.
“Before you answer that guys, I had an idea on the way here in the van. We could always build some sort of cabin, we have enough land to do it the only down side is that you will have to sleep here till it is done.” Said Rees.
“I think I can answer for myself and Jamie, when I say that would be fine. It just seems bizarre that you have electricity and a place like this.” Said Dave.
“Well, you have to thank my brother for that, Jay came up with this place back when it all started.” Said Marc.
“Then I am really glad to meet you all, I would love to hear all about what happened to get you here.” Said Dave.
“I’ll tell you what I will leave it to these two gob shites to fill you in on how we all got here. I am going to head to bed, I am knackered. Night Guys.”
Chapter Seven
With that I stood up and walked through the dinning room and into the hall, I walked into the kitchen before going up to bed and saw Bet and Becky with their heads together holding cups of tea, talking. I said goodnight and climbed the stairs and headed for my room at the back of the house. Opening the door to my room, I saw Maddie lying under the sheets. Walking over I sat on the edge of the bed and started to get out of my gear. She helped me take my shirt off and I winced a little because of the gash that was still healing. Lifting the sheets I swung my legs up and in. Yup, she was naked under the covers and (surprise little man said hello.) I rolled over to hold her. That night I made love to her and we took our time, she was hesitant and I was scared of not being good enough, but because of that we took our time and didn’t rush it. When we had finished covered in a thin layer of sweat, I held her till we fell asleep. To be honest, it was the first time in weeks I didn’t dream of Reapers coming out the dark to take me. (and I don’t mean in any sexual way mind you, that would be more scary than the other way.)
The morning came and I woke with Maddie’s arm and one leg across my body, I felt her warm against my side and if I didn’t have to go for a pee, I wouldn’t move, but I had that pressure you get from an all night drinking session. I managed to squirm out from under her and stood and stretched, feeling the stitches and scabs on my side strain to open. Grabbing a pair of boxer shorts I went out into the hall and knocked on the toilet door. No one answered so I pushed the door open and went inside, turning I turned the lock and did my business.
I walked back to my room (I suppose I should be thinking of it as our room now.) and opened the door to the most sexy sight I have ever seen. Maddie was bent over facing away from the door trying to get her underwear on. When she had straightened up I said “Hello, you.” and gave her a hug from behind,she leaned back into me and I wrapped my arms around her. I could have stood there breathing her in all day.
She turned round and we kissed, when she drew back she had a smile on her face.
“What?” I asked.
“You have no idea of the way you make me feel just by holding me. Do you?”
“I hope it’s a good way!”
“More than a good way, the only problem I have with you is the stupid risks you take.”
I shrugged my shoulders and said “The stupid risks I take are for us and I won’t send anyone to do something that I won’t do myself.”
“That’s what makes us all love you, but you’re also the one who stresses us the most as well. You have become the one who has the ideas and the one who leads us. You brought us together and made us into this family, we need you to try and not take too many risks please.”
“Ok, but I am still not going to let others do things that I would do myself, ok?”
“That’s all we ask. Now kiss me, because I have to go make food with Becky for all these extra mouths you brought home last night.”
I gave her the kiss she wanted (I did want to give her more, but!), she put her clothes on and went out the door. I went to our bed and fell on to it, it was still warm and I just wanted to fall back to sleep.
When the door opened and Rees stuck his head in “Oi, Walker you left yer combats in the Land Rover last night.” And a pair of combat trousers flew through the air followed by boots which just missed my head.
“Morning Rees and how are you this morning?” I said smiling.
“The only way you ever call me Rees first thing is if you got laid the night before, jammy fucker.”
“What we got planned for this morning?” I asked, as I got myself ready.
“Well, I would like to get the new lads and Marc, started on how to shoot the Brownings. Then when they get used to using them, we get them started on the rifles. To be honest, we also need to make another run at the TA Centre the problem we have is I am sure we left left some Reapers in there.”
“How about we do this get them started on the pistols today and work our way up to the rifles with them. Then we choose the two best shots and they can come with us when we go back. That way we have the extra firepower, that we might need.”
“That’s my skinny little mate is why you are in charge and I am an advisor.”
“You my friend are slowly becoming a pain the arse this morning.”
“Is that what Maddie was saying last night?” He said laughing.
I shook my head and stood up “Come on lard arse let’s go see if any of this lot can shoot. ‘Pain in the arse’ funny, very funny.” (I am scared of sweet corn you can figure that out cause I am not going to tell you.)
We walked down the hallway and through the pantry and outside. It was overcast and the sky was that gray color you get before a downpour. We walked down through the garden and went through the fence. We walked out about fifty yards and marked off the area with some long sticks stuck in the ground. We were going to set up a sort of range. When we had gotten some of the fencing that was left from making the paddock for the horses. We roughly had the area marked out and decided that as long as the range pointed away from the cottage and into the trees it would be ok safety wise. Of course we would have to tell people that when we were firing that no one was to be walking down here.
Turning to go back and get the materials to make the range, we saw Mary coming down the garden path toward us. She stopped at the gate and we met her there.
“Hey Mary, how are you this morning?” I asked.
“I want to learn to shoot as well.” She replied.
“Well, good morning to you. I was planning on having everyone who could handle a rifle trained. What made you think we were not going to train you?”
“I heard that one..” and she pointed at Rees “say that you should get your brother and the lads to see who could shoot. So I thought you were only going to train the men.”
“You misunderstood me Mary, when I said lads, I was meaning in the military sense.” Said Rees.
She turned a lovely rose color when she had realized that she had cocked up.
“We noticed that women can sometimes be as good a shot as men if not better. What we are going to do first though is to get you all trained up on the handguns, then we will move on to the rifles. But the main task or today is to get a range set up and then have some of you shoot some rounds without help, then go through some pointers to get you better. We will also go through how to strip and clean them.” Said Rees.
We walked back to the cottage and went round to the shed to get the materials we needed to set up the firing range. Marc and Dave came over to give us a hand, Jamie was at the paddock watching the horses. Jane and Amanda came outside to hang some clothes on the washing line. Whilst carrying all the stuff for the firing range, I couldn’t believe how much the new people had seemed to settle here.
I asked Mary that and she said that the last few days at the apartments seemed to be a constant battle with food, water and the Reapers, and the fact they had arrived here and everything was as close to normal as it used to be. I gave her a quick run down on what had happened since the beginning, and that we had been very lucky in that we hadn’t been found or attacked by any Reapers. Hopefully with the extra people we had now things would be easier for us all and with us all working together, then I couldn’t see a reason why we wouldn’t be safe. With that, we continued to carry the fence rails and lumber to the firing range. Marc and Dave seemed to be getting on quite well, I could hear the odd laugh here and there. When we had enough fence rails and lumber, Rees started to set up where we were going to set up the backstop.
Rees and Mary started to place the posts, after we had got about a rough fifteen foot stretch done, this fence was going to be covered with the lumber and then behind was going to be a large mound of dirt, that was going to be the backstop.
Before we got round to starting the rest of the backstop Maddie came out the cottage and shouted that breakfast was ready. So it was down tools and we all trooped back into the house, by now I was a bit sweaty and I went to the bathroom to clean up. I took my jacket and shirt off looking at my bandaged side for the first time in a few days I noticed no fresh blood. So being careful not to pull anything I slowly pulled the bandage free. The first thought that crossed my mind when I looked at the long gash on my side was ‘Oh! Fuck’. The stitching was well done and the redness along the edges had gone down, but the thing that had me more concerned was the gray skin that seemed to leak from the edge of the gash.
Great just fucking great, I had just got a woman I was actually happy with, I had my brother safe and my best mate here, and now I was probably going to have to give it all up. If I was infected then why had I not changed? Anyone that had been infected up till now had changed within a matter of hours or at the most a day. I got injured weeks ago and I don’t feel any different, I can’t keep this from the group, but I’ll tell my lot first then see what happens.