Flash laughed bitterly. "Are you trying to tell me that you actually think they won't find us here sooner or later, if we just lie low and keep quiet?"
"I think we'll all live longer if we keep on the way we've been going."
"This man is telling you that it's everyone against everybody else," Alex said. "But we're all sitting here, without trying to rape, loot, or kill each other. All we're saying is that we ought to stick together. When we strike at the colloids, we'll do it so they can't trace where we came from."
"Safety in numbers, huh?" Jill said in a rasping voice. The pronouncement of this platitude seemed to animate her. "We just might be able to do something in a bunch, Elvin."
The thin man said nothing, seeming to have fallen back into a stupor. Riquelme was now paying strict attention to what the woman was saying.
"I mean, what have we got to lose? There's hardly any food even when the weather's good. And winter's coming on, sooner than any of us would like to think. What are we gonna do when its freezing, and we can't find a can of beans to keep us going?"
"Look," Elvin said, hardly moving a muscle in his face, "if one of us does find a can of beans, then he'll have to share it with everybody else. If he keeps it for himself, what happens then? I'll tell you what—somebody'll shoot him for it. Only instead of one guy killing him, it'll be the whole goddamn group. And they'll claim they've got the moral authority to do it."
"Well, maybe a man ought to be shot for holding out on his fellow human beings, if they're starving to death," Riquelme argued.
"We all have to look out for each other," the woman said. "But the Lord helps those who help themselves."
The argument went on, the three newcomers almost oblivious to their hosts. It seemed to Alex a positive thing, even if they disagreed vehemently. At least they were communicating. People were hungry for this kind of thing. Three years without social discourse had been very painful for everybody. Alex remembered how it was before the colloids—even in the hospital, conversation had been a major part of everyday routine. After the world had fallen, there was little communication besides bartering. People had simply become too fearful to associate with each other except when absolutely necessary, and most had kept their human contacts to a minimum. Alone, a few had survived, but the masses had been swept away like dust. Could the colloids have understood this from the first? Could they have analyzed the group dynamic of the human race and planned accordingly? It didn't seem plausible, but then, neither did a telepathic virus.
"You talk about fighting back," Elvin said, addressing Alex. "But some of us don't even have weapons. And ammunition's in short supply even for those who have guns."
"That's true," said Jo, arching an eyebrow at Alex. "But we know where we might be able to come up with what we need."
Elvin frowned, and the two others listened intently.
"I think I know what you're driving at," Alex whispered to her. "Maybe it's time we went back to look for Victor's stash."
"You read my mind."
"Not hard to do, in this case."
Jo smiled, but there was a hint of anxiety in her eyes.
"We should head out at dawn. Try to get some sleep first."
"Yeah."
"What's the matter, Jo? A couple of days ago, you were the one who was gung ho about taking another trip to West Philly."
"Don't remind me."
Riquelme and Jill ended up staying. But Elvin decided that he would continue on his own. When it became evident that he was not to be dissuaded, the others wished him well. Riquelme and Jill were already lying on a mattress together, dozing, when Elvin cautiously opened the door and slipped out. It occurred to Alex that Elvin had been odd man out in a romantic triangle.
"Maybe it was a mistake to tell him so much," said Dr. Siegel.
"You think he's infected?" Flash asked. "No blue blotches or other signs."
"I don't know, but there's something odd about him . . . and he seemed determined to discourage us."
"I think I'll follow him for a while," Alex said, shouldering the Ingram. "Just to see where he goes."
Outside, Alex was dismayed to see that Elvin had not bothered to cover his route of egress. A wide path cut through the dead branches and logs like a trench. Alex quickly rearranged some branches and took the stone steps two at a time.
There was a new moon, and the shadows cast by trees made the darkness so deep that Alex was afraid to move very quickly. There was a chill in the air, and he felt himself shiver involuntarily.
At the top of the hill, he stopped for a moment to get his bearings. Through the foliage, he could see the river. Beyond it were the husks of destroyed buildings, protruding like gigantic tombstones in the night.
"
Get away from me!
"
The shout came from nearby. From his right. Alex began to run in that direction, a tree limb slapping him painfully in the chest. He couldn't slow down, though. The urgency of that cry convinced him that Elvin was in serious trouble.
The ground sank quickly on the other side of the hill. At the bottom of the hill, Alex almost ran into their late guest. Something crawled through the darkness toward them. Something that gleamed and slid like oil in the darkness.
"Get out of my way," Elvin bellowed, running full tilt back toward Alex.
Alex stepped to one side, clicking the safety off the Ingram as he did so. He fired a quick burst at the undulating colloid, turned, and ran after Elvin.
He caught up with him at the top of the hill.
"It's all right," Alex said. "There was only one of 'em, and it can't move fast enough to get you now."
"I almost stepped in the fucking thing," Elvin said. In spite of his agitation, his voice remained calm.
"Why didn't it attack you, if it was that close?" Alex nudged him back toward the hideout, still suspicious.
"Beats the hell out of me," Elvin shrugged. "Maybe I'm not a choice cut of meat."
Alex chuckled, but as they made their way back down the stone steps in the dark, he considered Elvin's comment. Maybe it was true. Maybe the colloids left certain people alone, for some reason. But if so, why? He shook his head. The colloid had probably been lethargic, maybe because of the cold air.
Elvin never thanked Alex for saving his life. He merely allowed himself to be led through the trees to Flash's place. They went inside, Alex appreciating the warmth very much.
The others were surprised to see that Elvin was with him.
"Welcome back, Elvin," said Riquelme and Jill.
The hypnoidal man looked disapprovingly down at his two erstwhile companions, still enjoying each other's company on a mattress.
"Everything all right?" Flash asked.
"Our friend here almost tap-danced on a colloid," Alex replied. "Other than that, just ducky."
"Still want to make it on your own?" Dr. Siegel said to Elvin. "Does the idea of being on the team strike you as more appealing now than it was a half hour ago, Mr . . . ."
"Considerably," Elvin said in flat tones. He went to a mattress on the other side of the room from Riquelme and Jill and sat down cross-legged. "My name's Elvin, like I said before."
"Charmed, I'm sure," Siegel said, offering a sarcastic sidelong glance at Alex. "Doubtless, you're going to be an invaluable addition to our little group."
Ironically, Alex thought that she might be right. An unarmed man who had come that close to a colloid and survived might indeed be an invaluable ally.
The sun was climbing toward its zenith by the time Alex and Jo stood on the hill overlooking Ishan Street, but they could see their breath in the cool autumn air. Flash was with them, and so would Dr. Siegel have been, if they hadn't prevailed upon her to remain at HQ with the others. Alex thought there was a strong possibility that word had reached other survivors, word of a place where one could go for help and companionship. Such rumors would doubtless prove powerful incentives to the homeless few that still roamed the city's back streets and alleys.
Indeed, Alex wished that he and Jo and Flash were back in the park now, instead of here in the wasteland of West Philly, about to risk their lives.
"I don't see anything stirring down there," Jo said. "Maybe they've moved on."
"Yeah, and maybe they found Victor's stash
before
they moved on," Alex added.
"Pessimist." But Jo knew that he might be right.
"The question is," said Alex, "can the infected, while they are still more or less human in form, learn to use firearms?"
"There were rumors about that during the war," Flash said. "But I don't know anybody who ever saw them using weapons."
"Yeah, they don't have enough brain power left to use a gun. And even if they could manage it, why should the colloids destroy their own food supply? They can't feed on corpses."
"Logical enough, but what's to stop them from wasting us if they can't get to us any other way?" Alex said.
"Huh?" Jo said. "What does that mean?"
"I don't know. I've just been thinking about something sleepy old Elvin said last night."
"What did he say?"
"That he wasn't choice enough meat for the colloids, or something to that effect."
Flash chuckled. "He might be right."
Alex nodded. "Well, we can talk about Elvin's undesirability later. Right now, let's go down there and see if we can find something useful."
Clicking safeties off, the three of them held their weapons as if they were newborn babes, and advanced down the hill. Each time they passed the wreckage of a rowhouse, Alex peered down the debris-strewn alleyways. Nothing moved, not even a rat.
Methodically, they began to search the rubble for the planks covering the basement that Victor had described on his deathbed. There were several bombed-out basements, which could be discounted immediately. The house they searched for must have an intact ground floor, or there could be no hiding place. Thus they were able to eliminate half the buildings on the street immediately. Several of the remaining houses were little more than piles of bricks. These, too, could be eliminated. That left them with a few dozen houses to check out. Speed was essential, since infected people or colloids could show up at any moment.
The sun was overhead before they had gone through the first series of rowhouses. And though the light was blinding, the air remained crisp. Even so, Alex found himself sweating profusely. He remembered all too clearly the night he had been trapped in the tower in Center City. But if the colloids intended to ambush them here on Ishan Street, they were taking their sweet time about it. He tried to take comfort from this thought, telling himself that the enemy would have attacked by now, if aware that three likely victims were within striking distance.
"Alex!" Jo shouted.
Shielding his eyes from the sun, he scanned the rowhouses, but she was nowhere in sight. He ran to the house where he had last seen her. It was one of the least damaged structures in the neighborhood: most of the second floor was intact. He entered through a doorjamb—the door itself missing—and found Jo standing in what had once been a back yard.
"Look!" she said. She had already removed the planks, revealing concrete steps that descended into shadow. "This has to be it!"
"It looks that way," Alex agreed. "But let's not be hasty."
He withdrew a stoppered bottle of kerosene from his knapsack, and a box of matches. If there were any colloids lurking down there, he was ready for them. Infected humans would be shot unceremoniously, but he would reserve the pleasure of burning any crawlers alive.
Cautiously, he went down the steps. Jo followed closely, her .32 in her right hand. At the bottom, they found themselves standing on a solid concrete floor, with enough light to show them that the basement was empty, devoid not only of enemies but of Victor's stash as well.
"I don't believe it," Jo said. "How could this
not
be the place? There's nothing else on this street like this, with the planks and everything. Alex, this has got to be the right house."
"Maybe it's hidden," said Alex, his voice rebounding from the cellar walls. "Or picked clean by the infected."
Flash was standing on the stairs, watching the streets for signs of movement. "Why would they cover up this cellar entrance, if they'd picked it clean?"
"Good question. Logically, they'd have no reason to do that . . . unless they were expecting somebody to come back here. In which case, they'd have them trapped."
"There's no sign of colloids so far."
Alex had to admit that Flash's point was well taken. Most likely, the basement had remained undisturbed. If so, the stash must be here somewhere. In the dim light, he studied the floor and walls.
"That section of wall over there," Jo said. "It looks as if it were built to accommodate a stairway, but the steps are over here."
Alex looked at the diagonal protrusion in the far wall, and saw what she meant. It seemed innocuous enough, but it might be what they were looking for.
"Okay, but how do we get to it?" said Flash.
"Maybe you have to go up to the ground floor and climb down," Alex reasoned.
"Then why cover the basement steps with planks?"
"Just so nobody would wander down here who wasn't supposed to, probably."
"I'll take a look." Flash disappeared, and a moment later Alex heard lumber being moved above them.
"Holy shit!" came Flash's muffled cry. "C'mere and have a look at this!"
Jo and Alex took the stairs two at a time. They joined Flash, who was on his knees before a section of floor that had come up like a trap door.
"I'll have a look," Alex said, climbing down into the secret room. "Not enough room down here to swing a cat."
It took his eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness, but he was delighted when he saw what was stacked on either side of the coffinlike space.
"Paydirt!" he yelled.
Boxes of ammunition lined one wall, and the other held medical supplies: first aid kits, Ace bandages, hypodermic needles, bottles of antibiotics, and even vitamins. There were several rifles and semi-automatic weapons leaning against the narrow wall at the end, four handguns, and—perhaps most useful of all—two drums marked "flammable."