The Dog (15 page)
“A couple more have been spotted about two miles from here,” Doctor Evans continues, as he and Julie sit next to the medical tent the following day, eating bread and meat. “I think they're drawn to us. I can't even begin to imagine how that works, but it could become a problem.”
It's almost noon, and the sun is bright in the sky above. Julie has spent the morning working with Evans, helping the injured, but this time she's kept me close. I'm not actually allowed into the medical tent itself, so instead I stay at the entrance and keep guard. Most people who come past take a moment to pat me and say a few words, and so far I've seen no sign of Thomas, Melissa or any of the others from yesterday. Hopefully they won't ever come near me again.
“Do you think the worst is over?” Julie asks Evans. “Those things... I don't want to call them zombies, because that just sounds too crazy, but whatever they are... I mean, they must have a finite limit, right? There's only so long they can keep moving before their bodies just rot away and they collapse.”
“That's the theory we're working with at the moment,” he replies. “There's definitely evidence to suggest that it's the case. The creatures that have been seen coming this way have always dropped before they can get too close.” He takes another bite of bread and chews for a moment. “When all of this is over, I really want to get involved with some kind of study, to really understand what this sickness is, and how it works and where it came from. That's the only way we can make sure it never comes back.”
“You and me both,” she continues. “After I lost...”
Her voice trails off.
“You lost people you loved?” he asks.
She nods.
“I lost my wife and my two sons,” he tells her. “I saw them after they'd come back. I keep thinking I should have done something, I should have destroyed them, but I couldn't bring myself to do it. I just drove away. Now I'd give anything to go back to that moment and put them out of their misery. I left them stumbling about in our town.” He pauses. “They're probably gone by now. They probably collapsed and rotted away. I hope so, anyway. Better that, than to think of them still on their feet.”
Hearing raised voices nearby, I turn and see that a small crowd is gathering not far from the tent. Some kind of argument seems to have arisen, and I instantly tense as I realize that people seem angry.
“Great,” Evans says with a sigh, “looks like it's time for the daily dose of panic.”
“What do you mean?” Julie asks.
“Every day some new rumor spreads,” he continues. “Someone says they heard that zombies are surrounding the camp, or that the sickness has reached us. I swear, people around here actually seem to
enjoy
panicking. I guess if they've got nothing better to do with their time...”
“No-one's coming to help us!” a woman shouts in the distance. “We're sitting here, waiting for some kind of miracle to arrive, but we're all alone! We need to come up with a plan and haul our asses out of this valley, or we're just a bunch of targets!”
“The government might still show up,” a man replies. “They can't have just vanished.”
“They told us to gather here!” the woman yells back at him. “We did our part, so where are they? In case you hadn't noticed, we only have enough food for about six more days, and that's assuming we don't get a whole load of new survivors showing up!”
“Maybe they told us to gather together so they can finish us off,” another woman suggests. “This was a planned extermination!”
“Give it a rest,” a man says with a sigh. “If I hear one more conspiracy theory from you...”
The arguments continue, and eventually the man with the megaphone starts talking again. There was a discussion like this yesterday, but this time people seem a lot more agitated and worried, and it sounds as if a physical fight might break out at any moment. Even Julie seems concerned, as she and Doctor Evans join the back of the crowd and listen to the growing clamor from all the arguing voices. The man with the megaphone is still trying to keep order, but he's starting to get drowned out by people shouting at one another.
Eventually Evans pushes through the crowd and starts speaking from the front, using the megaphone. He seems to be trying to calm everyone, although he doesn't seem to be having much impact. Limping over to join Julie, I stand with her and watch her face, hoping to see some sign that she's less worried, but it's very clear that something is causing her a lot of concern. Finally, feeling as if the atmosphere is turning increasingly hostile, I glance back over toward the medical tent just in time to spot a figure sneaking through the entrance.
I look up at Julie again, but she doesn't seem to have noticed. I nudge her leg, but she's too focused on listening to Doctor Evans, so I turn and head over to the medical tent's entrance.
Looking inside, I see that Melissa is taking some small bottles from a shelf. As soon as she sees me, however, she freezes.
“Don't bark,” she whispers. “There's nothing wrong, you little shit, so keep your mouth shut.”
She takes a few more bottles, before coming back over to the entrance.
“That's right,” she continues, keeping her voice low. Reaching down, she starts patting the side of my face, although after a moment she starts holding my mouth shut, as if to ensure that I stay quiet. “Just mind your own business, okay? You're just a dumb little asshole, and none of this concerns you.”
“What have you got there?” Julie asks suddenly.
Melissa steps back, startled as Julie comes over to join us.
“Have you been in the supply cupboard?” Julie continues. “Melissa -”
“My friend's in pain,” Melissa replies. “Please, he needs these...”
“I'm sorry to hear that,” Julie says, “but we don't have enough supplies to go around. Bring him to see me, and I can work out what to do for him. You can't just take medicine.”
“But my friend -”
“Please, Melissa,” Julie continues, stepping closer, “put the bottles down. Don't make me tell you again. No matter how worried you are about your friend, stealing supplies is not the answer.”
“It's not stealing,” Melissa snaps, her voice filled with anger. “The whole camp owns the medicine supply. We're entitled to our fair share.”
“There are people who -”
“Why are you always such a bitch?” Melissa adds.
Julie flinches, and I can tell she's annoyed.
“You think you can just tell everyone what to do, don't you?” Melissa continues. “You think your smarter than the rest of us.”
“I really don't think that. I just want to try to make sure our supplies are reserved for the people who really need them, and that there's no -”
“If you're such a good doctor,” Melissa mutters, interrupting her, “then why did you let Scott die?”
“I did everything I could for him,” Julie replies. “He was very badly hurt. You must have seen that for yourself.”
“Whatever.”
Pushing past her, Melissa tries to head into the crowd, but Julie grabs her arm and pulls her back.
“What's your problem?” Melissa asks.
“My problem is that you're taking medical supplies,” Julie says firmly. “There are people who need those, and I can't let you walk away like this. Please, Melissa, don't make me force you to put them back.”
“And how would you do that?” Melissa spits back at her.
“I'll find a way.”
Melissa stares at her for a moment, before suddenly moving her arms to her sides and letting the various items tumble down onto the ground.
“Happy?” she sneers, shoving Julie back before turning and hurrying into the crowd.
Sighing, Julie gets down onto her knees and starts gathering the supplies.
“Who put you in charge, anyway?” a nearby woman sneers, eyeing Julie with obvious disdain. “Just because you and that other doctor know how to bandage up a few scrapes, there's no reason why you should get to decide who's given pain-killers and who's left in agony.”
Julie sighs. “We have limited supplies and we have to ration all the -”
“Don't tell us what we have to do!” a man shouts angrily. “You're a doctor, right? So you're here to help people, not to act like some kind of dictator!”
Julie opens her mouth to reply, but the crowd is breaking up angrily now and finally she turns to me.
“I'm just trying to do what's best,” she stammers. “You understand that, don't you? If I give pain-killers to everyone who asks for them, we'll be out of stock by the end of the day.”
“I guess the guard dog needs a little more training,” Doctor Evans mutters as he comes over to join us. “I don't know how much longer people are going to stay calm around here. Some of them are talking about leaving today and going off to find a better place. I can't entirely say that I blame them. The mood's deteriorating fast.”
“So let them go,” Julie replies. “No-one should be forced to stay.”
“They're demanding to take their share of the supplies.”
She pauses for a moment. “We need to stick together,” she says finally, while reaching down to stroke my flank. “We
do
need to find somewhere better than this, though, and maybe -”
Suddenly there's the sound of an engine roaring to life, and I turn to see that several cars have been started.
“Great,” Evans says with a sigh, “now people are getting ready to leave. They think they'll be better off on their own.”
Over the next few minutes, five or six cars pull away from the camp and head off across the valley. Then there's a lull for a while, followed by some more arguments in the distance, and finally a couple more vehicles leave. Julie and Doctor Evans get back to work in the medical tent, but I can tell that the atmosphere all across the camp seems to have changed and soured, and eventually another car leaves. At the same time, the man with the megaphone is talking again, and I think he's trying to make people calm down.
I watch the crowd for a moment, before spotting a familiar face. Melissa is staring at me, and once again her face seems strangely blank. I wait for her to look away, but she continues to keep her eyes fixed on me until finally, unnerved, I head over to the medical tent's entrance and settle on the ground. I try to rest, but eventually I glance back and see that Melissa is still out there, still watching. I know I can't be the first to look away, so I hold eye contact with her, but she doesn't look away either.
She wants something.
“Twenty-one cars departed today,” Doctor Evans says later, as the sun begins to set on the horizon, “carrying a total of forty people away from the camp. And they took supplies with them. Worse, there are plenty of other people talking about leaving tomorrow. I think Simmons is losing control of the place. The camp is falling apart.”
“They have every right to leave,” Julie points out.
“They're scared,” Evans continues. “That's all it is. They're acting irrationally because they're letting their fears take control. Most of them will be dead within a couple of days.” He pauses. “We're running low on almost every key supply. Unless we start rationing the pain-killers and antibiotics more strictly than ever, we'll be all out in about two days' time. Maybe even sooner.”
“And then what?” Julie asks.
She waits for Evans to reply. When he simply looks over toward the horizon, however, she reaches down and strokes the back of my neck.
“Someone'll come to help us,” she says finally, with a hint of sadness in her eyes. “I don't know how I know. I just do. Somewhere right now, the surviving members of the old government are getting together and working out what to do next. They know about the rendezvous points, so we just need to stay here until they show up. They'll have supplies, and then we can start getting back to normal. We just have to be patient and keep going until then.”
“You don't really believe that, do you?”
“I believe people are fundamentally good,” she tells him. “I also believe that some remnants of the old world are still in place. They have to be.”
As they continue to talk, I turn and look back toward the medical tent. I heard a faint scrabbling sound a moment ago, but now I don't see anyone. I've worked out over the past couple of days that no-one is supposed to be in that tent unless they're accompanied by Julie or Doctor Evans, but I'm certain someone else is close. Getting to my feet, I walk over to the tent's entrance, but the door is still zipped shut. Still, after a couple of seconds, I hear the scrabbling sound again, and this time I realize it's coming from around the rear of the tent.
I glance at Julie and Doctor Evans.
They don't seem to have noticed.
Heading around the side of the tent, I hear a faint whispering sound. When I get to the next corner, however, there's still no sign of anyone and the whisper has abruptly stopped. Now all I hear is the chatter of people around nearby camp-fires, and all I smell is meat cooking on grills. I'd dearly love to go over and beg for some of that meat, but I know I can't abandon my post at the tent, so I make my way all the way around until I get back to the front, where Julie signals for me to join her.
“Are you okay?” she asks, stroking my flank again as soon as I'm back with her. “You seem like you're on edge, Harry. Are you picking up on all the bad vibes?”
I nudge my nose against her arm, before turning to once again look over at the tent. Sometimes my instincts tell me that something is wrong, even though I can't work out
exactly
what's setting them off. Right now, for example, the tent looks completely safe, yet I can feel deep down that something or someone is hiding from me. I let out a faint growl, before turning to Julie and seeing that she's smiling as she watches me.
I glance back at the tent again, before turning to Julie and placing a paw on her arm.
“What's up?” she asks. “Are you trying to tell me something?”
“Why don't you just call him Lassie and be done with it?” Evans asks.
Julie watches me cautiously for a moment, before getting to her feet.
“Show me,” she says, as if she's starting to realize that something might be wrong. “Harry, what is it? Show me?”
“Ignore the dog,” Evans mutters. “He probably just wants food.”
“I think it's something else,” she replies. “I think he's trying to tell me something.”
I turn and head toward the tent, and I'm relieved to hear that Julie is following. Stopping at the door, I look at the zip, and a moment later Julie reaches down and pulls it open I step inside, but I can immediately tell that no-one has been in here since we left a few hours ago. I take a quick look around, before hurrying out and making my way around to the tent's rear. Whereas a moment ago there were no unusual scents here, now I realize that Melissa has been here very recently, most likely in the past few minutes, along with Thomas and the others.
I let out a faint whimper.
“Harry?”
Julie stops as she reaches me.
I look down at the spot where I think Melissa was standing, and after a moment I paw at the ground.
“You're starting to freak me out a little,” Julie says as she comes over and pats my head. “Whatever's bugging you, there's clearly no-one here now. What do you say we head back to the car and get an early night? I've had a hell of a day, and -”
Hearing another engine nearby, she turns and looks back the way we just came. Following her gaze, I see another car driving away.
“More people abandoning the camp,” she mutters, sounding disappointed. “They're losing faith.”
She hesitates for a moment, before turning and heading back around the tent. I follow, but when we get to the front she stops and looks toward the spot where she was sitting with Doctor Evans.
“Where did he go?” she whispers.
Picking up his scent, I make my way to the tent's door, although I stop as soon as I pick up the familiar smell of blood. A moment later I hear a faint bump from inside, too, and I immediately take a step back and start growling.
“What is it?” Julie asks.
There are more scents in the air now. Melissa is in the tent, along with Thomas and at least one other person besides Doctor Evans. The hairs on my shoulders are standing up and I step back, letting out a rumbling growl.
“We just looked in there,” Julie mutters, before stepping past me and heading inside. “There's no -”
Suddenly she lets out a gasp, and there's a heavy thump as she's dragged through the entrance. Rushing after her, I see that she's struggling with someone, and she's quickly pushed down onto the ground.
“Don't make a sound,” Thomas whispers, placing a finger against his lips. “It's in your best interests to keep quiet, okay? We're only taking what we need.”
I snarl at him, and he glances at me with a hint of disdain.
“Don't challenge me, mutt,” he sneers. “I'm leading my people away from this hellish place. We just need some supplies for the journey.”
“You can't take the medicine,” Julie says firmly, getting to her feet. “It's for people who -”
Before she can finish, he punches her, sending her thudding to the ground.
I rush forward, but suddenly Alex grabs my collar and pulls me away.
“I told you she'd interfere,” Melissa mutters, as she loads more bottles into a box. “She just can't leave well enough alone.”
Gasping with pain, Julie sits up.
“I told you not to trust people,” Melissa tells her. “What did you think this was, some kind of magical utopia where people would suddenly
not
be complete assholes to each other?” She smiles. “Human beings are cruel and vicious and monstrous. They always have been, and they always will be.” She puts some more bottles in the box. “It's survival of the fittest these days, and that means getting away from places like this. Thomas has a plan.”
“The only people I've seen being cruel and monstrous around here,” Julie replies, her voice tense with pain, “are the ones who've been saying people are cruel and monstrous all along.”
“Is that right?” Melissa asks, before pausing. “Huh. Well, I guess maybe you have a point. Still...”
Her voice trails off.
Suddenly Thomas smashes the handle of a gun against the back of Julie's head, sending her slumping to the ground.
I immediately lunge at him and start barking, but Alex pulls me back and wraps a length of rope around my mouth. I struggle and try to kick him, but he pulls the rope tighter.
“Like your new makeshift muzzle?” he asks, holding me firmly. “From now on, you bark when we want you to bark. Got it?”
I try again to get free, but he kicks me hard in the side and I stumble back. Julie is on the ground, not moving at all, and a moment later I spot Doctor Evans slumped in the far corner of the tent. There's blood on the side of his face.
“Let's just focus on getting everything packed up,” Thomas mutters. “I want to get away from this dump before anyone else notices what we're doing. Let's leave this miserable place to die. We're gonna head west, 'cause west is where the ocean is, and I figure it's always best to go toward water. And when we get there, I'm going to establish a new colony of enlightened souls.”
Alex turns to him. “But what about -”
“You don't have to come,” Thomas adds firmly. “No-one's making you do a fucking thing.”
Alex mutters something under his breath, while still holding my collar tight.
“I'm gonna get the cars ready,” Thomas continues, reaching down and grabbing my collar before leading me toward the exit. “You guys get your asses moving, okay? Food, water, medical supplies, anything you can lift, bring it all to our two cars. The future is waiting for us, and I know how to get there.”
Keeping hold of my collar, he starts pulling me out of the tent. I turn to go back to Julie, but Thomas quickly yanks me outside. When I turn to growl at him, I find that I can't open my mouth, and I remember that my jaws have been tied shut using a rope. No matter how hard I struggle, I'm powerless to stop Thomas as he drags me toward a nearby car.