Hamsikker 3 (4 page)

“I can see you’re having a bad time with this, Hamsikker, and that’s fair enough. You probably think I’m crazy, right?” Bishop could see the wonder in Hamsikker’s eyes. It was a look he had seen several times. “You know, once Lukas wakes, you should have a chat with him. He’ll give you his own opinions about me. I’ve helped a lot of people. Some folks are just lost. There was a group of four I came across a few weeks back, trying to get to the east coast. They thought they could find a boat and skip on down to Florida. They figured they may as well live out their days in a condo with a swimming pool than try to scrape together enough to eat around here. They were solid folks, so I helped them. I gave them directions, some supplies, and gave them a good night’s rest in my very own private jet.”

“They make it?” asked Jonas.

Bishops shrugged. “Couldn’t tell you. I hope so. All I know is I did what I could for them.”

Jonas looked at Bishop’s sword. “You ever regret helping someone you shouldn’t have? You ever get tired of this nomadic lifestyle you have? Don’t you ever want to get on down to Florida or go somewhere else?”

“No, sir. I’ve got a job to do, and I intend to see it through. I’ve got regrets, who hasn’t? But I’m not going to let them stop me doing me what I’m doing. If I abandoned my post, I don’t think Annalise would ever forgive me. It was only a week or two ago I had to intervene with a gang down near Westport. I was just passing through, but I ran into some trouble with the locals. Seems they were having too much of a good time raping some poor young woman.”

Bishop shook his head and spat.

“Four fellas forced her. I was keeping an eye on them. Something about the group wasn’t right, so I kept my distance at first while I tried to figure out what they were up to. They told the girl they’d protect her Granddad if she slept with them all. I kept an eye on them, thought it was just bravado at first, you know? I thought there was a chance they might do the right thing. I ain’t a cold-blooded killer, I give people a chance. I should’ve known better. They bunkered down in some shit-pot garage outside of Westport. They raped and beat her, all while her Granddad was forced to watch; then they shot the old man and strung her up. I was too slow in getting to the garage to stop it. I wish it could’ve gone differently, but you do what you gotta do. When I called ‘em out about it, they said it was none of my business. So I made it my business. Luke six thirty-one: Do to others as you would have them do to you. People seem to think there’s no justice anymore, that they can do whatever the hell they want. I don’t see it that way. Some folks call it karma. Call it what you want, but I firmly believe you get what’s coming to you. And damn it, if those sorry excuses for men didn’t have something coming to them.

“I strung them up. I made damn sure that girl’s Granddad got to see ‘em suffer before he died. The poor man. I couldn’t bring myself to put one in his head. I left him there. Been here and there ever since, looking out for people. Don’t pay to stay in one place for too long. I’ve seen a few good people out there, but not many. Apart from you and Lukas, it’s been a while since I found anyone worth saving if the truth be told. Black Jack and Annalise keep me company, so I don’t mind so much.”

Jonas was stunned. He couldn’t decide if Bishop was insane, or the only sane person left.

“I was watching you folk for a little while. I wasn’t sure at first. I had my concerns, what with your group having women and children in, but I’ve seen enough shit to know when someone’s being treated well. The kid looked all right, that young girl, you know? I was about to leave when you had that falling out with…what’s his name, the skinny fella in the baggy clothes?”

“Gabe – I mean Javier,” said Jonas. “His name is Javier.” Just the mention of his name made Jonas angry. He had been fooled and hurt. He thought he could trust him, but it would be difficult to trust anyone again. Even Bishop had an edge to him. He meant well, but how far could Jonas trust him? How far should he trust him?

“Sounds like you’ve got it all figured out,” said Dakota as she hopped out of the plane to join them.

“You heard all that?” asked Jonas. “I thought you were sleeping.”

“And I thought you were resting,” replied Dakota, kissing her husband warmly. She embraced him, and looked him over. “How are you feeling?”

“Like I’ve been run over by a truck.” Jonas smiled. “How are you? How’s…” he patted her stomach, “you know? Mini-Hamsikker.”

“Mini-Hamsikker?” asked Dakota smirking. “I hope everything’s fine, but I guess there’s no way of knowing for sure. I feel okay. I mean I’ve felt better, but…we’ll be okay, so long as you come up with a better name than
Mini-Hamsikker
.”

A voice called out above their heads from within the airplane.

“Bishop, you want me to get Black Jack ready?”

Jonas looked up to see a young man stood in the doorway to the cabin. He was dark-skinned, sporting a grey T-shirt, skinny jeans, and black sneakers. The boy had close-cropped hair and was probably no more than twenty.

“No, I think we’ll take a leisurely breakfast today, Lukas,” said Bishop as he hopped up into the cabin. “Let’s see what we can rustle up for our new friends. You’ll be pleased to see that Hamsikker is up and about on his feet now.”

“Pleased to meet you, sir,” said Lukas, as he nodded at Jonas.

“Likewise,” replied Jonas.

As Lukas and Bishop disappeared into the aircraft, Jonas turned to Dakota. “Are you
really
okay?”

“I’m just pleased you’re back in the land of the living. I don’t know what I’d do without you, Jonas. Last night was awful. I kept thinking about what was going to happen to you, to me, to our baby…to Freya.”

Jonas sighed heavily. “I take it you’ve been able to talk to Bishop and Lukas. They on the level?”

“For sure. Lukas is a sweet kid. He dotes on Bishop. I know Bishop says he likes to be alone, but I think he enjoys having Lukas around.”

“We have to go, don’t we?” asked Jonas. The question had been weighing on him, and now they were alone, he had to get it out, to know how Dakota felt. “No matter what, we have to go. Bishop will understand.”

Dakota nodded in agreement. “You know Javier took Quinn and Erik with him. There’s no guarantee we’ll find them, but we have to try. If he gets his way he’ll kill them. Christ knows what he’d do to Freya.”

“We’ll eat, thank Bishop for his hospitality, and then get going.” Jonas winced as a barb of pain shot through his arm.

“Maybe we should stay another day,” suggested Dakota. “You’re in no fit state to hit the road so soon. Maybe we should…”

“No. He’s already got twenty-four hours head start. We can’t sit back and relax while he’s out there with Freya. I know if Quinn and Erik get a chance they’ll get away from him, but what if they can’t? I remembered something else too. Something Javier said to me yesterday.”

Jonas surveyed the landscape spread out in front of him, the dusty ground soaking up the last of the autumn’s sun underneath a vast orange sky. Wispy clouds clung to the sky, and a fireball hidden behind the arching hills in the east disguised the sun’s rising path. It would soon be overhead, and the day was draining away. Jonas knew he couldn’t afford to wait. It would be time to leave soon. Beyond Black Jack, who was snorting and grazing patiently, there was a treasure trove of vehicles. Jonas hoped that Bishop had collected them for a reason. Some of them had to work, surely, and he could part with one couldn’t he? Bishop had been good to them, good for Jonas, enabling him to rest, to regroup, to gather his thoughts; to let his wounds heal. Yet it wasn’t enough, he could sense that. Janey was out there waiting for him. He had even more reason to hurry to her now: Javier.

“He said he was going to find Janey. He knows where she lives, Dakota. He knows how to find her. If she is still alive, then…”

“Jonas, he wouldn’t waste his time on her. He’s looking for his brother.”

“Can you be sure about that? You know as well as I do, that he’s a vindictive son of a bitch. I think he would go out of his way just to make a point. Given half a chance, he’ll go looking for her, and then…well we know exactly what will happen. I can’t risk it, Dakota. I have to go. For Erik, Quinn, Freya, for Janey; for me. If anything happens to them…”

Dakota kissed Jonas lightly, and forced his face back to hers. She stared into his eyes. “I’m with you, okay? Through all of what’s happened, whatever will happen, I’m with you, forever. I swear I must be crazy to love you, Jonas Hamsikker, but I do. So let’s eat, thank Bishop for his hospitality, and get going. He says he likes to help people on their way, right? Well he’s helped us already. It’s time we helped Javier get to where he belongs - in Hell.”

Jonas kissed his wife back, and she hopped up into the cabin. “Coming?” she asked, holding out her hand for him.

“Yeah, just give me a minute. I need the fresh air in my lungs.”

“Okay, well don’t be long.” Dakota went deeper into the grounded airplane, looking for Bishop and Lukas.

Jonas didn’t know if Javier would truly waste his time looking for Janey, but it seemed like just the sort of sadistic thing he would do. What had become of Erik, Quinn and Freya? Were they still alive? Jonas couldn’t just forget about them. He and Dakota would make their way to Janey’s house, and hope to find the others on the way. Perhaps he would find them all there. With any luck, Javier would come to his senses, forget all about Janey, and go and look for his brother on his own.

Jonas twisted his feet and hopped up and down, alternating from foot to foot, putting all his body weight on either leg. He wanted to check he wasn’t about to crumble. Going back out there meant he was going to have to be able to protect Dakota. If he couldn’t even walk, how was he going to do that? Despite the pain reverberating around his body, he felt like he was strong enough. He only had one working arm, but that was all he needed. Dakota could drive, and Jonas suspected that Bishop might have a stash of weapons hidden around the place. Some of the vehicles out there in the compound were military, and he hoped that Bishop might be able to spare something to help them. They were going to need more than luck and faith to catch up with Javier.

There was a mean streak running through Javier’s soul, an evil that couldn’t see reason, wouldn’t let him understand empathy, love, or sacrifice. Jonas knew what he was going to have to do when he caught up with him. Dakota was right. Javier was going to Hell.

CHAPTER FOUR

“I understand,” said Bishop, after listening to Jonas and Dakota explain their plan. “I think you need more time to recover, but I can also see why you want to get going so quickly. If that’s what you want, then I’m not going to stop you. Lukas and I will join you for the first part of your journey, but I have responsibilities here that I’m not prepared to abandon just yet.”

Jonas remembered the garage in Westport and wondered what would have happened if they had arrived there earlier. Would Bishop have even entered their lives? Would he have made a different judgement call? At the time it had appeared to be a horrible crime, that perhaps the men hanging in that garage had been the victims of someone evil. Now Jonas knew that he shouldn’t have felt sorry for them. They deserved what they got. Jonas was glad Bishop found them. He was a little unhinged undoubtedly, and the way he talked to his dead wife was unnerving, but his heart was in the right place. Even now, after only just meeting, he was generously offering to help them even further. They finished breakfast and went outside to let the sun warm them up naturally. They all looked at the array of vehicles Bishop had collected.

“Over time I’ve picked up what I can. Most of them still have gas, and the batteries should be fine. I keep them ticking over when I can spare the time,” said Bishop. “Of course, nothing compares to Black Jack. Whatever you need, you can take. I’ll travel my own way.”

“What about that one?” asked Dakota, pointing to a station wagon. “It’s got plenty of space for us, and any provisions we pick up along the way. Once we find Janey we can’t guarantee her place will be okay. It could be compromised. If so we’re going to need lots of space for her and the kids.”

Jonas was pleased that Dakota was finally on board with the whole idea. She had begun talking about meeting Janey and his three nephews. If Dakota did have any doubts, she was hiding them well.

“Nice idea, but it’s no good. We need speed, and she wasn’t built with that in mind,” said Lukas. “We need something with space, and the ability to outgun a pack of zombies. If I’m coming along, I want to be sitting in something with a bit of grunt.”

“There,” said Jonas. “We might also need something with some power behind it, not to mention strength if we have to batter our way through a horde of those things. How about that?”

Jonas pointed to a black armored van. The truck was unmarked, had a mesh grill at the front, and looked impervious to attack. It would have plenty of space inside and be strong enough to cope with anything they threw at it. Jonas couldn’t afford to take any risks now they were on the home straight. It was less than a day’s ride to the border and from there only a few more hours to Thunder Bay. He had to make the right decisions from now on. There was no room for error. Javier had a head start on them and that worried him.

“I picked her up in Aurora,” said Bishop. “She was sitting there with the keys in, just begging me to take her. Seemed rude not to. This was before I found Black Jack, of course. I thought it would come in useful someday.”

“Can I drive?” asked Lukas, flashing Jonas a cheeky smile.

“Actually, yes,” replied Jonas, to Lukas’s surprise. “I take it you know how to?”

“I know I’m young, but I’m not completely wet behind the ears. I can drive. Never had so much as a parking ticket.” Lukas admired the black truck they were about to set off in. “Yeah, that’s good. You sure you don’t want in, Bishop? I can’t see how you can possibly feel safer out on Black Jack when we’re in that thing.”

Bishop shook his head. “No, thanks. I prefer to be in charge of myself. I trust Black Jack. I’ll ride ahead of you when I can; check out what’s up ahead. That way, if there is anything, I can double back and let you know.”

“Like a scout?” Lukas whistled. “Nice.”

“All right then, it’s settled,” said Bishop. “Let’s pack up some gear, and we’ll get going. I’m quite sure there’s no talking you out of this, is there?”

Jonas looked at Dakota. She didn’t need to answer his questioning gaze.

“No. We need to go. Our friends are relying on us. My family is relying on us. We need to hurry.”

It didn’t take long to pack up what they wanted. Bishop insisted they take some food and water, as he had plenty stored away in the hold of the airplane. Bishop packed up some medical supplies too. Jonas still wasn’t feeling great and was prone to dizzy spells, so Bishop threw a variety of pills into a bag for him. There was a question that nobody wanted to ask and seemed to hang in the air, unspoken, uncertain if it wanted to be spoken out loud.

The baby.

Dakota said she felt fine, but Bishop was concerned that at such an early stage in the pregnancy the beating might affect her and might even have terrible consequences. He could do little more than give them support as he knew next to nothing about pregnancy. Having never had children himself, he just hoped nothing was wrong. Dakota seemed fine, but Bishop knew that any problems with the baby she carried might not manifest themselves for a while. He tried asking Annalise for guidance, but she was quiet on the matter. It was as if she couldn’t, or wouldn’t, help.

When they were ready to go, Bishop opened the rear doors of the armored truck and prepared to load up the supplies. He had given them more than enough. He reckoned they could be in Canada by nightfall if they got lucky and didn’t run into any trouble. Problem was that they always ran into trouble. Experience told him that when things seemed easiest, they suddenly got a lot harder than you could possibly imagine.

Jonas joined Bishop. As he picked up a bag, he looked inside the back of the van, expecting to see it empty. “What the hell?” The van had half a dozen sacks in the rear which Bishop began to drag out. As he dropped them onto the ground, they kicked up dust, and Jonas could tell they were heavy.

“I figure there’s probably around half a million in each one,” said Bishop, as he dragged another sack out.

“Shit, we’re rich,” said Lukas, as he watched Bishop drag the final sack out of the truck. “And you got us eating canned food? If I’d known you were loaded, Bishop, I would’ve made you at least take us out for tacos.”

Bishop jumped down and saw the surprised faces that were looking back at him. “What? It’s not like you can do anything with it anymore. When I run out of things to burn, this will do nicely. If I hadn’t kept it in the truck it could’ve gotten damp. Plus, it’s far too heavy to go lugging around the place.”

“You realize that you’re technically a millionaire, Bishop?” Lukas knelt down beside one of the sacks, and began examining it. “You think they picked this up from a bank?”

“I’d say. The truck was parked up by one when I found her.”

Jonas picked up a bag loaded with food and put it in the back of the truck. “Well, you can keep it Bishop. If this world ever comes back to what it was, you’ll need it to fix that plane of yours.”

Lukas’s eyes widened. “Hell, yeah. Then you can fly us down to Miami. I’ve always wanted to go. Maybe we can get a place by the beach. That would be sweet.”

“You can probably put Black Jack out to pasture too,” said Jonas, laughing. “Find a nice boy for her, you know? Raise some little Jacks?”

“All right, boys, that’s enough. When you’ve finished dreaming up ways of spending money that isn’t even yours, we need to hit the road.” Dakota pushed the rear doors closed and looked at Jonas. “Shotgun.”

Jonas rolled his eyes in his head. “Damn it. Fine, I’ll squeeze in between the two of you. No way am I rolling around in the back of this thing on my own. I want to see where we’re going.”

Lukas hopped up into the truck and got behind the wheel as Dakota climbed into the passenger seat. Before Jonas could jump up with her, Bishop held onto his arm.

“Hamsikker, take this.” Bishop held out a revolver and a cache of bullets. “I’ve got one myself so it only seems fair you should be armed too. There’s a couple more guns in the back of the truck. Just in case, right?”

“Just in case,” said Jonas as he tucked the revolver into his pants. Giving him the gun told Jonas that Bishop truly trusted them. It was refreshing to finally meet someone he could trust, even if Bishop was a bit of an oddball. He was wearing another trademark brightly colored shirt, a largely red color decorated with orange flowers. Bishop always seemed to be thinking about the next thing, as if he couldn’t just relax and be in the moment. “I’m grateful for your help, Bishop. Truly.”

“Don’t mention it,” said Bishop. “Now get on in there with your wife. We’ve a long way to go today.”

Jonas squeezed in beside Dakota, and got in the middle of the truck so he could talk to Lukas easily. The truck wasn’t designed to carry three people, and it was going to be an uncomfortable day.

“Bishop,” called out Lukas, “stay safe. We’ll see you soon.” Lukas closed his door and watched as Bishop jumped up onto Black Jack.

Bishop sheathed his sword, pulled his cape tightly around him, hiding the bright shirt he wore, and then began to ride north at a canter.

Jonas watched Bishop draw ahead of them. “Will be he all right out there, like that?” he asked Lukas.

“Yeah, he’ll be fine. I’d bet my life on it. As long as he’s got Black Jack with him, he’s good.” Lukas ground the gears, and then finally pulled off, heading for the nearest road that headed north. They were parked up in a dry, barren field, and at first the going was slow and bumpy.

“Black Jack. I feel like I know that name,” said Jonas. “Wasn’t that a military horse?”

“Sure was,” replied Lukas. “Bishop took great pride in telling me all about her. Apparently Black Jack was present at the funeral of JFK, Hoover,
and
Johnson, and when she went she was buried with full military honors. Bishop told me he found her and named her after the original Black Jack. She’s got a fine temperament, and doesn’t get spooked easy. Reliable too. Doesn’t break down, never complains. I can see why he prefers her to riding in a hot truck.”

The truck lurched onto the road, and instantly the ride became smoother. They began to pick up some speed. Bishop was already well ahead of them, but Lukas knew they could take things as they came; there was no need to hurry to catch him. If Bishop wanted to make his presence known, he would.

“So your sister, Janey, she had two kids right?” asked Lukas. If he was going to tag along, he wanted to know what he was heading into.

“Three. All boys. Ritchie, Mike, and Chester,” recalled Jonas. He was pleased that he hadn’t forgotten their names. Many events of the past few days had been kicked out of his head, but remembering his family was easy. “They’re cute as hell. Janey’s a good Mom. She’s doing it all on her own too. You have no idea how badly I want to see them all again.”

“And this place she lives at, it’s good? You think it’s somewhere…safe?” asked Lukas.

Jonas got the hint. “Yeah, it’s a small place, so I’m hoping it’s good. Her place is close to the lake, and we should be able to make a go of it. I don’t really know you, Lukas, but Dakota tells me you’re okay. If this works out, and you want to, you can stay, you know. I get the impression Bishop likes his own space.”

Lukas laughed quietly. “You could say that. Look, Hamsikker, the truth is I don’t really know what I’m going to do. My life was back in Chicago, so now I guess I’m open to offers. I’ll come with you for now. I’ve nothing else to do, and if there’s a chance of a fresh start, then why not?”

Jonas waved his hand, indicating the vast expanse that lay ahead of them, a desert landscape of burning buildings, crashed cars, and dead bodies. “Before all of this, what did you do? Were you married? Kids? You grow up around Chicago?”

“Hamsikker, you leave him be,” said Dakota warmly, shooting Jonas a wry smile. “Lukas, don’t let my husband pressure you into answering a heap of questions. You focus on driving. Jonas should be resting, not giving you the third degree.”

“It’s all right, Dakota, I don’t mind.” Lukas took a deep breath. “Before all of this? I was lost even back then.” Lukas smiled at the memory of his previous life. “Teleconferencing, networking, meetings, marketing strategies, matrix strategies for development chart, more meetings, client liaisons, meetings about meetings…” Lukas laughed. “When I think back to it now, it’s like a dream. I can’t believe how I was so sucked into it. I was raised in Chicago — well, Highland Park actually. Thought I was going to be the world’s best basketball player before I realized I sucked at it. Thankfully my Mom and Dad made me work hard at school, and after I graduated, I landed a job at a telecommunications company. Thought I had hit the big time.” Lukas shook his head. “We really lost sight of what we should be doing though, don’t you think? I don’t miss it slightly. Not the job, the people, or even the money. It was all a waste of time. When the dead rose, we were clueless. We’d lost all sense of ourselves. Nobody knew how to survive, how to really live when the power went off. If it wasn’t for Bishop, well, I’d be dead for sure.”

“Your parents. Are they..?”

“Gone,” said Lukas plainly. “I don’t have any family now. I lost my friends too. There’s nothing back there for me now.”

Jonas knew how painful it was to lose friends. He had lost a lot recently. He’d lost his Mother a long time ago, but the funeral of his Father was still fresh in his mind. Lukas’s grief was real, and the tone of his voice told Jonas that it was still too raw to talk about.