Roads Less Traveled (20 page)

“Grandma is indisposed at the moment, go ahead,” Zack answered. Jake was stopped at the gate and throwing his door open by this time, so Ben took the mic.

“Go open the gate. We need to hurry,” he said, then began explaining the situation to Zack. Jake was back in the Jeep and hitting the gas just as Zack was replying.

“We’ll be ready,” he said, then signed off.

“Should we worry about shutting the gate?” Ben asked. Blood was still flowing from my shoulder, soaking the front of me and running down his arms.

Jake chanced a glance in our direction and shook his head once he saw all the blood. “Screw the gate, we’ll get it later.” He eased off the pedal when the house came into view and skidded to a stop in front of the garage, rolling dust and pinging gravel off the vinyl siding. Shannon turned her head slightly and watched Jake jump out to meet Nancy, who was already running off the porch with Zack and Kyra. Ben couldn’t move, too afraid to take his hands away from the gunshot wound to open his door.

“Kyra, help the girl into the house. Zack, you and Jake help me with Kasey,” Nancy was instructing as she opened Ben’s side. “Come on honey, I’ll take it from here.” She had a handful of gauze and slipped it over the wound as Ben took his hands away. Jake gently pulled him back and out of Nancy’s way while Zack stepped in and slid his arms under me.

“Ok…one, two,
three
,” Nancy counted down, keeping her hand pressed tightly against my shoulder and stepping back as Zack lifted me out. Jake ran ahead and opened the front door; Ben followed behind, covered in blood. Kyra waited until we were inside before opening the back door and smiling at Shannon.

“Hi, my name’s Kyra. Do you want to come inside with me?” she said and held out her hand. Shannon turned her head away from the house and gazed at Kyra, her eyes still vacant but at least responding to her voice. Kyra nodded and took the girl’s hand, then gently pulled and helped her out of the car. She placed her other hand against Shannon’s back and led her to the porch.

“Everything’s going to be okay now, don’t you worry. We’ll get you cleaned up and get you something to eat. How’s that sound, huh?” Kyra was talking softly to the younger girl as she led her through the open door, closing it behind her and shutting the bars. She continued in that soft, comforting voice, shielding her from the dining room as she took Shannon upstairs.

In the meantime, while I was fortunately still unconscious, Zack had laid me on the dining room table and Nancy was cutting my shirt away. Her first aid gear was on a chair beside her, and she was firmly giving orders to the others. After she got my shirt cut back, she rolled me over to check the back of my shoulder.

“Straight through,” she muttered to herself as she eased me back against the table. She did what she could to clean the wound, which turned out to be just what I needed to wake up. I gasped as she poured whatever the hell it was all over my shoulder, then cried out and gritted my teeth when she flipped me over again to wash out the exit wound. The good news was that my arm was no longer numb.

“Dammit, Nancy, do you have to be so rough?” I barely mumbled when she let me down on my back again. I was staring at the ceiling when her smiling face came into view.

“Well hello there, nice to have you back,” she said gently. I smirked and snorted, my jaw clenched and my cheeks flushed. Damn, that stuff burned worse than the actual bullet had. Zack (a pre-med major before the shit hit the fan), assisted Nancy as she went about stitching and bandaging my shoulder. I nearly passed out two or three more times before she finally instructed Jake to get the whiskey from the kitchen cabinet. Zack tilted my head up as Nancy opened the bottle and brought it to my lips.

“Here you go, take a few sips. It might help,” she said. I made a face but did as I was told. I gagged and coughed as the stuff burned all the way down, but kept taking small drinks until Nancy decided I’d had enough. I was beginning to feel numb again, but this time it was mercifully not caused from blood loss.

“God bless you, woman,” I mumbled and smiled, closing my eyes and rolling my head to the side. Zack and Nancy shared an amused look before she went back to work.

“C’mon man, why don’t you go get cleaned up,” Jake quietly urged Ben. Both of them had been standing away from the table, silently watching Nancy work after bringing her everything she needed. Ben shook his head, crossed his arms, and fought to hold back the tears. Zack looked up from helping Nancy and nodded to Ben, then tilted his head in the direction of the staircase. Jake patted, then firmly grasped his friend’s shoulder and led him away.

“You look like hell. Won’t do Kase any good to see you this way when she wakes up again. She’ll think you’ve been mauled or somethin’,” he said, chuckling. Zack watched as the two disappeared upstairs, then turned his eyes back to me. I winced now and again as Nancy quickly stitched. He kept a smile on his face for me while he helped the former nurse, handing her gauze when she asked for it, soaking up blood when she couldn’t see to stitch. I was half-drunk from the whiskey, but not so drunk I didn’t know I was in deep shit. And Zack’s eyes confirmed it.

Thunder rumbled, the wind howled, and darkness had fallen by the time Nancy was finished. She wasn’t happy with it, but knew she had done the best she could with what she had. She and Zack had fought the bleeding the entire time she stitched; at one point it had begun flowing so heavily she had considered cauterizing the wound - still might, if it opened up again. I had lost too much blood, and they both knew it would be touch and go for the next several hours. The whiskey was starting to wear off, and the first coherent thought I had was of Shannon.

“Where is she?” I asked weakly. I was still on the table; Nancy and Zack were cleaning up and letting me rest a few moments before moving me. Nancy whispered something to Zack, who then turned and went upstairs.

“She’s just fine, dear. We’re taking good care of her, don’t you worry, alright?” she crooned. I nodded and listened to the thunder boom. Panic suddenly rose up and blossomed in my chest. I grabbed Nancy’s arm and tried to sit up.

“No, no, no, you just lie back now. It’s only thunder,” she said as she struggled with me. I shook my head.

“I have to get water brought into the house. If the power goes, we won’t have water. We’ll have heat, but no water,” I whined, my weakened state obviously causing me to behave irrationally. Nancy pressed me back against the table and smiled.

“Shh, it’s alright. We’ve already taken care of that. Don’t you worry about a thing, Kasey. You need to rest and lie still. If you start bleeding again, it may not stop,” she warned with a raised eyebrow. Zack had come back downstairs, and the other two guys were hurrying through the back door.

“Crap, it’s really putting it down,” Ben said as he and Jake shook out of their raincoats. He saw that I was awake and rushed over to my side.

“Hey, how ya doin?” he asked, smiling faintly and brushing the hair away from my face. He took my hand and squeezed it when I didn’t answer. I only shrugged my good shoulder and looked at Nancy.

“You’d have to ask her,” I croaked.

“Alright, alright, I want to get her upstairs so she can rest. Back up now, give her some room,” Nancy said, mothering me as she shooed everyone away from the table. “I want two of you to carry her, and please be careful? We’ll take her to her room, come on,” she said as Jake and Ben rushed around the table and began sliding their arms under me.

“You fuckers drop me and I’ll kick both your asses, gunshot wound or not,” I muttered hoarsely as they lifted me. I grunted and moaned as they carried me up the steps; it hurt worse that I had expected. I didn’t anticipate I would feel like dancing the two-step, but I really was feeling a great deal worse than I thought I should have been. I remembered the look on Zack’s face, and the urgency in Nancy’s voice earlier. No, things didn’t seem to be boding well at all for the ole Kasemiester.

After the boys placed me on the bed, Nancy took them both by the shoulders and herded them out, ignoring their adamant protesting. She spoke softly to Zack again, then turned back to me.

“Everything is going to be fine.” She smiled and patted my hand. I heard a whining sound coming from the floor beside me. I twisted my head as far as I could and saw Gus; I had forgotten about him.

“Ohh, hi baby,” I said quietly and started to cry. He very gently put his front paws on the bed and stretched his nose out, sniffing my cheek and licking my face. I smiled and Nancy patted his head.

“Can he stay here with me?” I asked. Nancy nodded and took Gus’s floppy face in both her hands.

“I’ll let you stay, but you have to behave. No jumping on the bed, ya hear?” She kissed the dog’s nose and let go. He trotted over to the corner and curled up in his bed, but kept his eyes open and on me.

Kyra and Zack stood in the doorway, waiting patiently. Nancy stood and walked over to them, leaving me to rest.

“Kyra, I need you to help me with Kasey. I want to try and get her out of these clothes and into clean ones. Zack, you should probably take Jake down with you to shut the gate,” she said. He nodded, spared another glance at me, and left quietly.

“Shannon is asleep for now. She’s still not talking, but I think she’s coming around,” Kyra was saying as she and Nancy pulled fresh pajamas from my dresser drawer. I was beginning to slip in and out of consciousness, the sound of rain and the occasional rumble of thunder lulling me to sleep. I couldn’t even find the strength to help them undress me; instead I just sort of rolled around limply as they took my bloody clothes off and put my clean pj’s on.

Before turning to leave, Nancy walked across the room and turned on the lamp, while Kyra pulled the blankets Zack had already turned down up around me. I remember Nancy kissing my forehead, telling me to rest, she would be back later to check on me, before finally closing my eyes and drifting away.

Chapter Thirteen

October 9
^th

They had traveled pretty much nonstop since leaving the rest area, only taking short breaks for Ashton to nap or to grab something quick to eat. Mia was running on fumes by the time they crossed into West Virginia, and was desperately trying to find a place they could hole up for the night and sleep.

They’d had a few close calls on the way; every exit they passed on the interstate had been clogged with the undead, including a massive horde where 66 met 81. Each time they came upon one of these, Mia would direct Ashton off the road and they would carry their bikes around, sometimes walking a mile or more and wading through mud and water to get by. So now, after leading the kid through all that and keeping them both alive, and doing it all on no sleep, Mia’s nerves were shot and she was close to passing out.

She got off 55 at her first opportunity and started traveling the county routes south. Just east of Lost City, she finally found what she had been looking for: an old farmhouse surrounded by empty fields. She turned her head and saw Ashton pedaling behind her. The kid impressed her, that much was certain. Not once in their long journey had he complained or broken down. She caught his eye and jerked her chin in the direction of the house, then turned back and pedaled up the long driveway.

The place looked deserted; no vehicles outside that she could see and no lights on inside. She stopped in front of the porch and knocked the kickstand down with her heel. She heard Ashton doing the same as she dismounted and approached the steps.

“Wait here,” she whispered and motioned for Ash to stay with the bikes. She listened closely for sounds on the other side of the door before deciding to knock. The door swung open and creaked loudly on rusted hinges after only the first tap of Mia’s knuckles. She stood in the doorway and looked around the darkened living room; she noticed a heavy coat of dust over everything. She motioned for Ash, and then stepped inside with her gun raised.

The boy’s footsteps as he followed behind were the only sounds in the old house. After searching the place Mia figured it hadn’t been lived in for years. She found there were still beds in the upstairs rooms and, although dirty, they would do for now. They went back outside and brought their bikes in, then shoved the old dry-rotted couch in front of the door. She went through the kitchen and checked the back door; it was locked and rusted shut. She shrugged, decided they didn’t have much of a choice, and led Ash upstairs.

She chose a bedroom that faced the road so that she could keep an eye on things until she went to sleep. After shoving an old dresser in front of the door, they sat down and ate some of the snacks out of their packs. She was starting to get sick of beef jerky and candy bars, but again, it would have to do. She thought that maybe they could find some real food in the next town. If she dared taking them into one, that is. Sooner or later, she knew they wouldn’t have a choice; they were running low on rations and were still seventy-five miles or so from Kasey’s, and even longer if they had to detour.

Ash volunteered to take the first watch. Mia felt guilty having the boy take on such responsibility, but was grateful to him and was fairly secure in their location. She fell asleep quickly just around noon, and slept deeply until Ash shook her awake at dusk.

“What is it? Something outside?” she asked. Ash shook his head and went back to the window.