“It’s possible,” Bill said, wiping his mouth with his sleeve. “The other zeds will join up with the herds, so they’ll all be gone. We can focus on rebuilding, finally, instead of just watching and defending ourselves against the infected every day.”
“You really think the herds are migrating for the winter?” I asked, sure that the doubt bled through my words.
“After seeing it with my own eyes, I’m convinced of it,” Manny said before taking another bite.
“I think it’s a good idea to check out those herds for ourselves. What do you think?” Tyler asked me. “Can you make the flight without a fuel stop?”
I shrugged. “It shouldn’t be a problem.”
“You’re a pilot?” Manny asked.
I gave a quick nod. “If the herds are getting that big, they’d be easy enough to spot from a distance. I wouldn’t even have to fly low. Plus, I could make a wide arc back to see if there are any other groups headed our way. It’ll give us some idea where the herds are and where they’re headed.”
Bill’s eyes widened. “You have to take me with you.”
I held up my hands. “Whoa. I’m scouting the herds. That’s all. I’m not touching down anywhere.”
“If you could at least fly over Marshall, we can at least see if the herd did much damage,” Bill pleaded.
I sighed before turning back to Tyler. “If the flight goes without any hiccups, I suppose I could check out Marshall the same way I did Mason City.”
Tyler thought for a moment, and then nodded. “If the weather changes or you get any kind of bad feeling in your gut, turn back. This run should be as straightforward as they come. I also want Clutch with you to check out the herds. We’ll wait until he’s feeling better if we have to, but I need his experience on this one.”
“So, you aren’t going to check on Marshall?” Bill asked, each word climbing in pitch.
“I didn’t say that,” I said. “If everything goes as planned, I’ll fly over it. If the heavens align, I’ll consider landing. But if it is in any way unsafe to land, all I can do is drop a bag with any messages you and your friends want to leave.”
Using bag drops had been Tyler’s idea to improve morale. The first bag I’d dropped had worked like a charm at Mason City. It looked like no survivors had made it in the ravaged area, but that didn’t matter. Even if no one came to claim the bag, Tyler was right. The action had brought hope to the families back at the park.
Manny smiled and patted Bill’s shoulder. “That’s a grand plan. If you have some paper and pens around here, I’ll bring notes from my people in the morning. We’d done similar things over the Twin Cities when we still had a pilot with us. Though, I’m guessing Bill would be more than happy to ride along if you have room for an extra passenger.”
Tyler looked to me to answer. I didn’t like taking people I didn’t know on a flight, especially one as desperate as Bill. Too many things could happen in the air that could turn everything to shit. I’d learned that lesson by watching my dad. He’d been a doctor and an avid volunteer in the Doctors Without Borders program. He had learned to fly to get into some of the world’s most inhospitable places. He’d taken me with him one summer, where I became hooked on flying but also learned first-hand how easily a single passenger with a panic attack could nearly crash a plane. Now, I never flew anywhere without having someone I trusted on board to handle any passenger.
“Okay,” I said and Bill’s face lit up. “You can ride in back only if we have an extra seat. Jase is my co-pilot and rides shotgun. We’ll try for tomorrow morning. If Clutch isn’t up for it or the weather doesn’t look perfect, we’ll try again for the next day. If any other Fox scout wants to ride along, you lose your seat.” I pointed a finger at him. “I’m in charge. You do everything I say. No questions asked. No arguing. I will not risk my plane or my life because you decide to do something stupid. Got it?”
Bill gave a fervent nod, smiling widely. “Yes, yes. I’ll do whatever you ask.” He cupped my hands. “This means so much. Thank you, I mean it.”
I gave a weak smile. “Listen. There are no guarantees on this trip. Chances are, even if we make it to Marshall without having to turn around, there won’t be any safe landing strips, so we’ll only manage to make a bag drop. You’re signing up for what will likely be a dull three- or four-hour flight.”
“I understand,” Bill replied, his eyebrows high. “We had a road cleared at the university for our pilot to land. You can land there.”
“I’m not making any promises,” I cautioned.
“Even if you can’t land, I can at least get a note to my family,” Bill quickly replied. “They’ll know I’m safe and on my way back to them. They’ve got to be so worried right now.” Bill reached into his pocket, grabbed a pen and notepad, and started drawing something.
“Much obliged, ma’am,” Manny said. “Bill’s been riding my back ever since we pulled out of Marshall.”
“I’m not surprised,” I said with a smirk. “And the name’s Cash.” I watched Manny for a moment. “What can you tell me about these herds? How are you so sure the zeds are moving south?”
“A scout told us he’d followed the herd for fifty miles before he figured out they were heading straight south. One of our radio contacts in North Dakota noticed zeds all started walking the same direction about the same time the birds started migrating. We put two and two together and figured they’re migrating for the winter.”
I shook my head. “The zeds around here aren’t showing any signs of migrating.”
“You’re farther south. It’s warmer here, so they might not have gotten the itch yet. Or, maybe they’re just waiting to join up with other herds.”
I thought for a moment. I dreaded seeing if this pair was telling the truth, but I also wasn’t going to be an ostrich with my head in the sand. If there was danger headed our way, we needed as much advance warning as possible. Flying was the safest and most efficient way to do that. I sighed, came to my feet, and grabbed my tray. “Well, if I’m going to do this, I better start my flight planning.” I turned to Bill. “Be at the park gate by sunrise. Don’t bring more than five pounds of gear with you. I like to keep the plane as light as possible when we head out.”
“Here.” Bill handed me a piece of paper. “Here’s a map of the university.” He pointed to a long line. “Here’s where our pilot used to land.”
As I pocketed the paper, Tyler gave me a smile. “Get some rest. I’ll try to catch you before you leave in the morning. If you leave in the morning, I mean.”
“Good night.” I gave Tyler a slight smile before stepping back and then paused, thinking of another problem of being cooped up in a small, enclosed space with a newcomer. “Oh, and Bill? Be sure to wash up. You guys really stink.”
Tyler’s smile widened into a big grin, and I couldn’t help but return his smile. I turned and headed toward the food table. After dumping off my tray and grabbing a bag of nuts and an apple for Clutch, I walked back to the cabin. My leg needed the exercise, and I needed the fresh air. Aside from the random raider and zed herd, life had returned to something that vaguely resembled normalcy. I tried not to show fear, but if Manny was right about huge herds headed this way, I was downright terrified. We couldn’t take out a single herd. How the hell could we defend the park against something ten thousand times the size of the herd we ran from today?
By the time I reached the cabin, the sun had set. Jase was doing push-ups on the floor while Clutch was sprawled out on the bed sound asleep, with a bottle of pills still in his grip. For a moment, my stress disappeared. These two guys were my family now. Like so many other “families” of survivors in this new world, we were just as close as any real family, and I loved them no less than if we were related.