Roads Less Traveled (33 page)

“We knew this would happen eventually and prepared for it like Kasey instructed. Don’t worry kids, we’ll be alright,” Nancy said soothingly while smiling at the others, whom she had come to think of as her own children. She had been through tougher times during her sixty-five years, and was confident she could get them through this.

“Good thing we cooked all the meat, and that it’s cold enough outside now at night to keep the food cold,” Ben said. That morning they had taken everything out of the refrigerator and stored it in boxes, coolers, and anything else they could find, and then tucked it all away in the barn. Everything else they kept in the house; dried and canned goods, soda, water, whatever wouldn’t spoil without electricity. They had heat; the huge woodstove in the basement would serve them well enough this winter, and Kasey had already stocked the woodshed out back with enough firewood to last them until spring. That was something she did every summer, having already experienced the unreliability of electricity in the mountains during the winter months.

When the lamp finally died and cast the room in darkness, Nancy walked to the kitchen and started lighting the oil lamps. She left one in the kitchen and brought another into the living room. Ben and the others had taken seats on the couch and recliner, trying very hard not to give in to despair. The older woman did her best to say the right things; words of encouragement, or small pats on the shoulder. But after realizing that they would have to get through this on their own, she went upstairs to check on her patient. At least there was one person she knew she could help.

Shannon sat at the desk by the window, still and quiet in the darkness, as if she was waiting for someone to turn the light back on. Nancy had already put a battery powered lantern in Kasey’s bedroom, and turned it as she passed by. Shannon jumped, slowly turned her eyes to Nancy, then once again picked up her crayon and began drawing.

The day Kasey and Jake left, the girl had graduated from coloring to drawing, and what she scribbled on the paper with her multi-colored crayons terrified Nancy. Granted, she wasn’t a psychiatrist, but she knew sickness when she saw it. Shannon’s crude drawings depicted what Nancy could only describe as bloody massacres, and the killer in these pictures wasn’t a zombie as one would assume. It was Shannon herself, or so the drawing was labeled.

One drawing portrayed her brother Tommy being skinned alive while hanging from what looked to be ceiling rafters by a length of his own intestines. Another drawing showed the female members of the household - this household - being tortured and killed in various ways. All extremely disturbing. Nancy dismissed these drawings as the twisted musings of a very sick young girl. It wouldn’t occur to her until much later that they might be more than that.

* * *

Mia had kicked the covers off in her sleep and was now lying on her back with her eyes open. Nancy sat on the edge of the bed and took her hand.

“How are you feeling, dear?” she asked. Mia’s breathing was harsh, but not ragged and still coming evenly. She turned her head slightly and looked up at Nancy, then tried to force a smile.

“Not so hot, Granny. I’m thirsty,” she said, her voice hoarse. Nancy filled the glass on the nightstand from the jug of water she had filled and set by the bed that morning, then helped Mia raise her head so she could put the glass to her dried and cracked lips. Mia took a few painful sips, and then pulled her head back.

“Thank you,” she said. Her fever had been coming and going for the last day or so, forcing Mia through a rollercoaster of severe sweats and chills. At the moment, her fever was down and she was more lucid than she had been. Nancy set the glass back on the nightstand, picked up the washcloth, wrung it out into the bowl of cold water she also kept on the stand, and wiped Mia’s face clean of sweat.

“Oh, you’re welcome sweetie. I’m just happy you’re feeling a little better this evening,” Nancy said.

“Where’s Kasey?” Mia asked. Nancy tried to smile, tried to hide her fear, but failed miserably.

“To be honest, I’m not sure Mia. A few days ago she and Jake headed out to Gibson, to find medicine for you, and they haven’t come back yet. I’m sure they’re fine, probably just ran into some roadblocks or something, and had to take the long way around.” As she spoke, her confidence began to return. Mia, however, did not share her optimism.

“They did
what
?” she asked and tried sitting up. Nancy took her by the arms and gently pushed her back until she was resting against the bed again. “No, this is bullshit! I’m not worth that, not that! She’ll get her damn self killed,” Mia said. She may have been sick, but there was still a lot of fight left in her. Nancy was glad to see it.

“Now you listen to me. You know Kasey better than any of us, so you know if anyone can get into Gibson, fight through whatever it is that I’m sure they’ve had to fight, and get back here safe and sound, Kasey can.” Nancy was firm as she spoke, and her grip on Mia’s arms was tight enough to let the younger woman know her elder wasn’t just blowing smoke up her ass.

Mia quieted down and studied Nancy for several minutes before asking her about the others, and what was being done to safeguard the house.

“I was just about to send Zack and Ben down the driveway, into the woods, to keep watch. With the power out, we can’t see anything coming until its right on top of us. Don’t worry; we have a few backup plans in place in case something happens. You need to rest now, don’t get yourself in a tizzy,” Nancy answered. She waited a moment until she was sure Mia was satisfied with her answer, and then left the room quietly, casting a quick glance at Shannon as she stepped out the door.

Downstairs, Zack was pacing the floor. Ben sat with Kyra on the couch, his arm around her shoulders, and tried to think of something positive to say. The truth was, he was absolutely worried sick about his friends. All three turned when they heard Nancy coming down the stairs, Zack meeting her at the bottom with his hands on his hips and his face set in grimness.

“Zack, you and Ben should go down the mountain, not too far, but far enough you can get back here to warn us in time if something comes our way. And stay in the woods,” Nancy said, weariness finally beginning to take over. Zack nodded and immediately went for the rifles. Kyra started to argue with Ben, but he shook her off and prepared to leave.

“Take walkies, so you can keep in contact with me. If anything happens, you let me know ASAP. Then get your asses back here,” Nancy said as the two boys met at the front door. Each had a walkie and a rifle, and was bundled up in coats and gloves. It wasn’t winter yet, but cold enough for late October. Gus swaggered over from his bed in the corner, sat at Zack’s feet, looked up at the man, and started whining. He also was worried, in his own doggy way.

“Alright boy, you can come with us. But you have to be quiet, stay close, and do as I say,” Zack said as he rubbed the dog’s head, knowing full well he couldn’t understand English. Gus answered by licking his hand and wagging his tail.

“Alright, you boys be careful. Report back in an hour,” Nancy said and hugged them both. Gus was scratching at the door as Ben unlatched the bars. No one noticed when the dog suddenly stopped his nervous scratching, or when the hair stood up on his back. Ben barely had the door open when Gus let out a growling bay. Everyone jumped, and Zack scolded Gus before he could stop himself.

“Gus! Shut up!” he hissed. Gus simply stood in the threshold, hair up, teeth bared, feet planted apart, and growling ferociously. The three of them shared nervous glances, now sure the dog wasn’t messing around. Kyra jumped up and walked over to them, leaning around Ben to look outside. It was dark, but she could make out the faint outline of a horse.

“Are they back?” she asked, her voice sounding a bit too disappointed. Gus was still being extremely aggressive, even urinating down his leg as he growled.

“No, it’s not them. Gus wouldn’t be acting like this if it was them,” Ben said. Without saying another word, Zack turned and went straight for the back door, raising his rifle as he left and crept around the back of the house. Ben did the same, only out the front door and in plain view. Nancy told Kyra to get her gun, then stood in the doorway, waiting, until Kyra returned with it.

“Stay inside. Go upstairs with Mia and Shannon, make sure your rifle is loaded,” Nancy said and stepped onto the porch, the barrel of her twelve gauge pointing at the figure now riding past the garage. The door shut behind her and she could hear Ben telling the rider to stop.

“That’s far enough, stop right there or I’ll shoot,” he said. The rider stopped, still hidden in darkness, but close enough to Ben and the house to hear his orders. Zack had made his way around the corner of the garage and had his rifle aimed at the back of the rider.

“My name is Teresa. Jake sent me. I have a walkie talkie he gave me, but the batteries must have gone dead. He told me to radio you before I got here, but I couldn’t,” Teresa said, very nervous and expecting to be shot any second. Ben was shaken when she mentioned Jake; he hadn’t been expecting this. Nancy left the porch and joined him in the driveway, her shotgun still aimed at Teresa’s head.

“Start talking stranger, and don’t make me tell you twice,” Nancy said. She was angry, scared, and tired. Not a good combination in any grandmother.

“Like I said, my name is Teresa. Jake and Kasey found me a day ago, just this side of Gibson. They fed me and cared for my injuries, and then after camping overnight with them, they decided to send me back here. Said they had business in Gibson, and it would be safer if I came here.”

Ben and Nancy whispered back and forth to one another, neither one of them wanting to trust this stranger. How did they know she was telling the truth, that she hadn’t just killed them both and taken one of their horses? They both dismissed that possibility pretty quickly, each of them secure in the fact that this woman couldn’t have taken both Jake and Kasey without getting killed in the process.

“Step down off that horse and come closer. Slowly,” Nancy ordered once again. As Teresa dismounted and started walking towards them, Zack came around the corner, showing himself, and stood a few feet behind her, his rifle aimed neatly at the base of her skull.

“How do we know you haven’t been bitten?” Ben asked. They could see Teresa a little better now; she was standing less than five feet from them. She looked pretty beat up, so it was easy for them to assume she had been attacked by deadheads. Although, they also knew if that had been the case, Kasey would have shot the woman as soon as she saw her.

“I haven’t been. You can examine me, if you need to. Jake told me to let you, that you’re a nurse.” Teresa was slowly poking holes in all their doubts, and convincing them she was telling the truth.

“Alright, come inside. Ben, you and Zack go ahead with what you were doing. I’ll take it from here,” Nancy said, sharing a look with the men that said
be quiet, be still, and don’t share any information as to what you were in the middle of doing when this stranger showed up.
They hesitated, not wanting to leave the older woman with someone who could potentially be dangerous, but also knew there could be trouble coming. Zack jerked his chin in the direction of the woods, then moved off. Ben led the horse to the barn, unsaddled her, and then put her in the stall before running to catch up with Zack.

Nancy watched until the two had disappeared into the woods next to the driveway, and then motioned for Teresa to walk ahead of her to the house. She wanted to keep this one where she could see her, and never lowered the barrel of her shotgun.

* * *

“Did you do as I told you?” Nancy whispered to Kyra. The two stood in the kitchen around the coffee pot, while Teresa sat in the living room. So far, everything the woman had said made sense. She even knew a few things she shouldn’t have. Still, Nancy had a bad feeling about her.

“Yeah, they’re as ready to go as I could get them, considering one is bedfast and the other is, well, whatever she is,” Kyra said. Nancy nodded once and filled another coffee cup. Kyra followed her into the living room and sat in the chair next to the couch. Nancy handed the coffee to Teresa, then went to the study to monitor the radio. Kyra was supposed to stay with Teresa and watch her, but she ended up bullshitting with her instead.

Nancy sat in front of the radio, which was now running on battery-power only, praying to hear from Jake or Kasey, and praying not to hear from Zack or Ben. She had indeed examined Teresa, and had confirmed her story. She also made sure the stranger didn’t have any weapons on her. Only thing she had was the walkie Jake had given her, and the battery wasn’t dead. Nancy had checked it before putting it in its charging cradle. Either the woman was lying, or she was stupid and didn’t know how to use a walkie talkie. Nancy was swaying towards the former. Her instincts never failed her, and every one of them was screaming for her to run. Of course she couldn’t, she was responsible for the safety of everyone here. She couldn’t and wouldn’t abandon them. But she knew trouble was coming.

* * *

Ben hit the light on his indiglo watch and saw it was only 8:30. It sure felt later than that, but of course sitting out in the cold, dark, and damp night had a way of making it feel much later than it really was. He and Zack had set up watch half a mile from the house and about two hundred yards from the driveway on the steep and rocky hillside. They were nestled between two big oak trees, trying to stay warm, and hadn’t said a word to one another since picking out their spot. It was so damn dark in the woods, there was no way they would see anything if it came knocking. They would have to depend on their ears to alert them.