The Divide: Origins (18 page)

“I
guess that’s true. It might be strange considering everything that’s happened,
but I think life is about as good as it could be right now. The only bad thing
is that I lost my birthday presents back there.”

“We’ll
get you another computer. Don’t worry about it.”

“No,
it’s fine. You gave me an even better present,” she said and glanced back at
Liam.

He
had finally fallen asleep. His relief wouldn’t last long, but for a short
moment, he was at peace. Throughout the day, he woke up many times in pain, but
it slowly got better. As they were entering the town where Jerome’s brother
lived, something became apparent that changed everything, however.

“He’s
burning up. I think he’s got an infection. I don’t know what to do. We don’t
have any medicine, and he’s not going to last much longer,” Rebecca whispered
to Max.

“It’ll
be fine. We’ve just got to find Jerome’s brother.”

“Do
you know where he lives?”

“I
don’t have an exact address. All I know is that he’s on the south side of town
in a gigantic house that should still be lit up.”

“How
do you know he’ll help us or that he’ll have medicine for Liam?”

“I
don’t, but he’s our best shot right now. I think we’ve found our destination,
too,” Max said and pointed to a white house in the distance that was lit up.

There
were several vehicles in the driveway. Max found that odd. Just how many people
lived there? Was Troy helping others, and if he was, did that mean they would
have his help, too? Zoe parked on the street, and then Max started to get out.
When Zoe opened her door, he shook his head no.

“Why
not? You don’t need to go in there by yourself. You might have known this guy’s
brother, but that doesn’t guarantee he’ll be friendly. You’ll need backup if
things go badly,” Zoe said.

“I
appreciate that, but things won’t go wrong this time. I can feel it. Let me
handle it, so we can get some food and Liam the care he needs.”

Zoe
nodded hesitantly, and Max got out. When he knocked on the door, a rather large
man came to it.

“What’s
your business here?” he asked.

“I’m
here to see Troy Leland,” Max said.

“You
and everyone else in this town. Get out of here. We’re not accepting new people
right now,” he said and started to close the door. Max grabbed it, however.

“Wait
a minute. I knew his brother, Jerome. Can’t you just let me speak to him? I . .
.”

“You
knew
my brother? Does that mean he’s
not around anymore?” Troy asked as he stepped behind his guard.

“I’ll
tell you everything that’s happened, if you just let the people I’m with come
inside. We have one who’s really sick, and he could use medicine, if you have
it.”

“That
sounds fair. Your people will have a place to stay for the night, and in
return, I want to know what’s happened to my brother. Come in Mr. . . .”

“I’m
Max Green, but you can just call me Max. I was Jerome’s cellmate.”

“Are
you actually going to trust a criminal?” the guard asked.

“Shut
up, Ronald. Come in, Max. My people will get the ones you’re with what they
need while we discuss everything that’s happened since this world went to hell.”

The
future wasn’t clear, but it appeared that Max and the people he cared about
were going to have a safe haven at least for a little while. With everything
they had been through, that was like paradise.

Chapter 18

An Intriguing Proposition

Troy
Leland showed Max to a back room where they could talk about his brother.
Before he could ask any questions, Max filled him in on their situation.

“The
boy is injured. He had a small hole in his intestines. I managed to close it,
but I suspect that at least some of the contents might have leaked out. If so,
that means he’s going to need antibiotics. I don’t suppose your people have
any, do they?” Max asked.

“We
have all the medicine the boy will need and even a doctor.”

“How
did you manage to . . .
”

“I’ll
answer all your questions shortly, but I want to ask you some things first.
Tell me what happened to my brother from the start.”

Max
was nervous, and he didn’t know what to tell Troy. Should he tell the truth?
That could completely destroy any chance they had of gaining him as an ally.
Then again, if Troy saw through his lies, it could drive a wedge between them.

“You
look worried. Just tell me the facts, and we’ll be fine,” Troy said.

“All
right. You might not like them, but I’ll tell you the complete story. Jerome
was my cellmate, and I was lucky for that to be true. As you know, he was a
massive man. He protected me more than a few times while I learned how to
survive in prison. Within a few weeks, we were looking out for each other.
It’ll probably sound odd by the end of the story, but he was my best friend.

I
was in the medical bay when all hell broke loose. We had just been in a fight with
some of the more troublesome inmates because Jerome was being released. Some of
them wanted to try to make sure he didn’t leave the prison alive. When the
disaster happened, I ran to our cellblock and freed him, along with two more
guys. We took one of the prison transport vehicles for ourselves and drove
until we found a house that had smoke coming out of the chimney. I couldn’t
have been prepared for what they were going to do once we were inside. They
killed the man of the family and raped his wife before killing her. Then Jerome
raped and killed their little girl. Zoe, the girl with me now, was her friend.
She had spent the night there, and I had already allowed three people to die. I
couldn’t let them take her, too. To make a long story short, Jerome killed the
other two men we were with because we viewed them as threats. I thought I could
control him from there, but he was sick in a way I didn’t fully understand. He
tried to hurt Zoe, so I did what I had to.”

“And
what was that?”

“I
shot him. I killed the man who was supposed to be my best friend. If you want
me to leave, I will. I’m asking you to look after my friends, though. Liam will
die without medicine.”

Troy
sighed and looked down. He should hate Max for killing his brother, but he had
seen the sickness in Jerome many times. Rather than watch his brother hurt a
little girl, he might have shot him, too. That still didn’t stop him from feeling
like he should kill Max. Even if he had a good reason for taking Jerome’s life,
Troy’s brother was still dead.

“Is
there any way you can understand why I killed him?” Max asked.

“I
understand perfectly. I knew my brother had his demons, and before I let him
hurt someone else, I would’ve put him down, too. Understand that this is hard
to take in, though. You’re in my house asking if I can help you after you
killed the man I looked up to as a child. That’s hard to swallow, even if I can
see where you’re coming from. How did you even know who I was?”

“He
used to talk about you all the time. He said you two discussed what was going
to happen with Ira. Jerome told me you had been stocking up on food and gasoline
for weeks. I figured if there was a safe place in this world, it was with you.
I just hate that Jerome couldn’t be here with us.”

“Me,
too.”

“Let
me ask you something. I expected you to be well stocked, but this is more than
I ever thought I would find. You have food, medical supplies, full electric
capabilities, and a doctor. You even have guards. How is that possible?”

“I
had a large stock of everything we could need from the start. My family and I
were going to be okay. Our neighbors were a different story, however. After the
first day, they came to us. We could’ve turned them away, but I had a better
idea. My supplies weren’t going to last forever, and if I could get them to
work with us, we might all have enough for a long time. I supplied them with
guns, and with a little leadership from me, they were able to take two places.
We took the hospital and the gas company. Most people raided the grocery stores
after the disaster, but I knew those were the places people would forget. When
anyone needs medicine or gas, they have to come to us. We trade for food, and
given that we have the only supply of medicine for miles, we’re able to ask a
fortune for it.

Over the last few days, we’ve been taking
on new members. Most people in the surrounding area have decided that given we
have control of some of the most important places in this
town,
it might be easier to join us than fight. It’s happening slowly, but we’re
developing a way to live in this new world. Everyone is given a job, and in
return, we get all the food, medicine, and gasoline we need. We have people who
scavenge, work security, and even planners.”

“Planners?”

“Yeah,
that’s mainly my area. I decide on the operations we’ll undertake. Right now,
it’s all theories, but I know it’s going to amount to something.”

“What
do you mean? What exactly are you planning?”

“Some
simple things and others that could be very complicated. The most pressing
thing we have to do is take ground in the next town. We need a bigger supply of
medicine and gasoline, or we’ll lose the power we hold over the people here. We
might even be able to spread our influence to more people if we have a foothold
in other places.”

“That
doesn’t sound simple at all. It sounds like the beginning of a war with
neighboring towns.”

“You
could call it that, but it’s different than you think. The world is in chaos,
and people are looting everywhere. People will kill you for a day’s worth of
food. That’s not a society. It’s a regression back to cavemen days. What I hope
to do is establish a trade system throughout the area that keeps people from
having to steal. If there’s a clear way to survive humanely, then I think
people will take it. We might be taking supplies by force, but what we’re
really doing is giving people stability.”

“I
can’t argue with that, but who were you before the disaster? It doesn’t sound
like you were just a normal guy, considering you’ve been able to do all this in
such a short time.”

“We
haven’t actually done anything yet. Everything I’m saying is just one big theory.
We only have fifty-two members right now. It’s expanding quickly, though. I was
the mayor of this town, and before that, I worked in architecture. I know how
to get people to follow you, and I can build things and societies that will
stay together.”

“So
what’s the complicated part of your plans?”

“It’s
all theoretical right now.”

“That’s
not a problem. I’m intrigued.”

“All
right, but I’m not even sure if it would work,” Troy said and stood.

He
retrieved some blueprints from a closet and spread them out over the table. It
took a second for Max to truly understand what he was looking at. When it
became clear, he thought it was genius, however. It was an enclosure that
stretched for a little over a mile. He didn’t know how actually building it
would work, but it could be the answer to a lot of people’s problems.

“This
is the structure I’ve been thinking about over the last few days. Picture
building a stadium with no seats, and now multiply that by about fifty.
Obviously, it wouldn’t be one structure because the roof would crumble in the
center if it were, but we could build fifty separate structures side by side
that were then connected to one another to act as one big area. We would then install
lighting at the top that would allow grass to grow within. We could build an
entire city with a controlled environment inside. It’s just a pipedream right
now, but I know this can be built. It would take a huge group of people to do
it, though, and even then, it might be too ambitious.”

“What
about electricity? How would you power a city that big?”

“That’s
the simplest part. We would build the covered city just south of this town.
There’s an area with nothing around for miles out there. We can have our
scavengers go out and collect any solar powered products, like windmills and
solar panels, and use them for ourselves. People aren’t exactly raiding the
factories for things like that at the moment, so it’ll be easier to obtain than
you might think. From there, we’ll see just how much power we can generate. The
last step will be creating a source of food for everyone. It’s nearly
impossible to get anything to grow in this new world, but we can create
enclosed gardens with electricity generated by solar power to make enough food
to feed the people of our city. At the same time, our hunters can find fresh
meat for us. By my calculations, it would take nine to thirteen years to
accomplish it all, and that’s if we had over five thousand people working to
make it happen. That’s the main reason why I’m trying to recruit new people.
Maybe I’m crazy, but I think there’s still a place where human society can
flourish. We just have to build it.”

“You’re
not crazy. All we’ve been looking for since this happened is a place that
resembles what we used to know. With a plan like that, it’s not going to be a
problem finding people to follow you. I don’t know if what you’re planning is
actually possible, but if it is, we’ll be able to get it done. People will do
anything to get their old lives back. Promise them a place that resembles the
old America, and they’ll do whatever you say. I’ll help you do it, if you’ll
have me.”

“How
would you help?”

“Right
now, you recruit people by taking key locations that hold supplies and then
using those to gain their cooperation. That works, but it also makes enemies.
Give me a vehicle, and I can travel all over the region. I’ll tell people what
you’re building here. Most won’t join our cause willingly, but a few will. If I
hit enough places, maybe I can get your five thousand. Just make sure you have
enough supplies to support them by then.”

“We
would have to move slow, but I like your approach. We could devote an entirely
new group of people to just getting others to join us. It would be risky on the
road, though. Are you sure you’re up for it?”

“You
don’t know what I’ve already gone through to get here.”

“I
noticed the wound on your arm. What happened?”

“What
didn’t happen is the better question. I’ll tell you everything in time. Our
trip here was filled with more than I can tell you in one conversation. What do
you say? Can we stay here and recruit for your vision of the future?”

Troy
looked away for a moment. In his heart, he knew that what happened to Jerome
was of his own doing, but something was still holding him back. This man killed
his flesh and blood. Then again, he was the first person who hadn’t looked at
him like he was nuts when he mentioned the possibility of building an enclosed
city. Max could be a valuable ally, if he could ever learn to live with what he
had done.

“We’ll
do a trial run. You and your people can stay here for now, and we’ll review
this again at the end of the week. That should give the kid time to get the
treatment he needs and you a chance to see what you’re getting yourself into.
How does that sound?”

“Like
a dream. Thank you. Can I see how Liam’s doing now?”

“Yeah,
he’s upstairs with the doctor. He’ll need to stay here to be monitored. We’ll
get you and the others a house close by to stay in temporarily, and he’ll join
you when he can.”

Max
agreed and walked upstairs to find everyone in a room that was filled with
medical equipment. It looked more like a hospital than an old bedroom. Still,
Max was impressed. They had everything they would need to get and keep Liam in
good shape. This was a place where they could make a future, and despite his
makeshift surgery job on Liam, he had hope that he was actually going to pull
through.

“How
is he doing?” Max whispered to Rebecca.

“He’s
sleeping right now, but the doctor seems to be confident that he can get the fever
down. I think he’s going to be fine. How did things go on your end? Are we
staying?”

“It’s
a long story, but we’re doing a trial run. They’re giving us a place to stay
that’s close to here, and I’ll be doing a job for Troy in the meantime.
Hopefully, that will be enough to keep us here.”

“What
about Liam? He can’t come with us in his condition.”

“He’ll
stay here.”

“Do
you trust these people that much?”

“What
could they do to him that hasn’t already been done? Besides, I don’t think they
would waste medicine on him if they were just going to hurt him. These people
want to help, and I think we should let them. We deserve this.”