“Bloody hell,” he cursed, almost indifferent. “Well if I can’t enjoy Thompson’s warehouse, neither can anyone else.” Blood from his chest wound poured down his large frame and pooled on the ground where he sat cross-legged. He reached for the RPG.
“Oh my God, the whole time Max knew us, our family, and he started helping us before we even knew him? That’s hard to believe…” Lisa trailed off in thought after Bill had told her and Maria his story.
Gunfire erupted right outside the window, albeit muffled by the thick insulation and heavy glass. They all stepped closer to see what had happened. Amid the debris, a fat naked man with fire-blackened skin slowly rose up and then sat cross-legged. A red hole in his chest attested to his having been hit by one of the shots they heard. He reached out for something, which he picked up from the debris of Max’s exploded house. It was an RPG. He pointed it right at them. His face, a repulsive mix of fat and charred skin, wore a vindictive grin.
They were about to hit the floor, knowing immediately that they were in trouble, when another sound came from the left side of the house. Judas tried to turn that way, but was bent as far as his broken, bulbous body would allow. He had dropped the RPG and now struggled to pick it up again, when Sally’s Blazer burst onto the street. She barreled over him and the weapon before he could fire, screeched to a halt, and backed up to make sure the job was done right.
Lisa had never thought she would be in a position to cheer on the killing of another, but she was now. “Way to go, Sally!”
48.
The Proposal
They estimated their own dead to number over one hundred, although they wouldn’t know for sure for a few days. The important statistic was that every one of the invaders was dead. They now had their town back, and they would rebuild.
Their losses were enormous; the biggest was that of Frank Patton, one of the great heroes of the “Siege on Fort Laramie,” as some of the townies were calling it. As everyone congregated in the streets, they offered congratulations and thanks especially to Melanie and Dr. Carrington, or Doc as they liked to call him. Overwhelmed by exhaustion, Carrington and Melanie retired to their room, off their workshop, where a couple of the town council members were still sitting and discussing plans for rebuilding.
Melanie lit two candles and Carrington sat, watching her intently.
“What?” Melanie blew out the match. “Did I say or do something wrong?”
“No, you were amazing today. That was so brilliant with the water tank.” Carrington smiled, but then the smile went away.
“Thanks, though I’m sure you would have thought of it too… Wait, what’s wrong?” Concerned, she took a step toward him.
“You better sit down. I need to tell you something, which I haven’t really discussed with you, since we have been focused on this one goal of protecting the town together.”
She put hands on hips and tilted her head, arching one brow. “And so?”
“And so … Laramie was not my destination when I found you.”
“I know, you were headed to some sort of research facility …” She could see where this was going, and the whole thing lit her anger.
Carrington looked down at his shoes. “Well, that wasn’t entirely correct. It’s called Cicada, and it is a small city of pre-selected researchers and scientists and their families, but only them and their families, all working together to find answers to save humanity. I had not planned to be gone this long and should have been there long ago.”
“I know, I know, you have to go.” Melanie’s tone was very detached. “I’m not going to keep you here. And don’t worry about the town, they’ll forgive my little fib; it was mine after all. So, you don’t have to worry—”
“I want you to come with me.”
She was silent for maybe a minute. Hope started to pour through her like a warm elixir. “You already said that it was only pre-selected researchers and scientists and their families. I’m neither.”
He held up a little box. Tex, the only one who knew their secret, had arranged the ring and the box for him, only yesterday. He tried, but his lips were unable to form the right words; he had thought he had a couple of more days to practice.
“What’s this?” Melanie asked expectantly.
“I want you to come with me as my wife, my real wife this time.” He liked the way this came out; much better than his proposal to his first wife.
“Are you serious? Sorry, that was just a slip of the tongue, y’know, to keep the men away until I found my place in this town. You’re much older than me and…and…” She was running out of excuses.
Carrington’s face dropped. That wasn’t the answer he had hoped for. “Look, I’m a widower and I never expected to care for another woman again, mostly because I didn’t want to suffer that pain again. But, something happened with our working together. And… well, I think I have fallen in love with you. More to the point, I cannot imagine being apart from you as I look forward every day to sleeping in the same room as you. Yes, I’m older, I admit that, and you are certainly young and beautiful, so I would expec—”
She interrupted him with a kiss, his mouth curving into a smile against hers. “Yes. The answer is yes,” she said, and kissed him again.
49.
Sadness and Signs
They walked up the driveway after scrambling over the gate, Steve and Darla ahead of Joselin. Steve carried Danny. There was a little light left from the sun, which had set twenty minutes ago, but the skies again illuminated the world below in green auroral light. It was Doc Reynolds who saw them first and called out to Wilber. “Yo Wilber, Steve is back and he brought some guests.” He stopped when he saw Steve carrying the body of a child and the two women wearing the olive green tees of God’s Army. Maybe Steve was being held hostage or something. “Whoa, wait right there,” he said holding his gun on Darla and Joselin.
“It’s all right.” Steve spoke up first. “This is my…” He fumbled, trying to find the right words.
“Girlfriend,” Darla answered.
“Yes, girlfriend, and this,” he said as he lifted the body a bit, “is her little brother, Danny, who was shot by one of God’s Army, because they were deserting.” Steve’s eyes wandered to three dug graves and three bodies. One looked like his father.
“Is that …”His eyes darted around looking for another possibility. “Is that my father?” He could feel his throat tighten, and his words were choked.
“I’m afraid so,” said Wilber, coming up behind the doc. “He killed the leader of their army.”
“Disciple Thomas?” Joselin asked.
“I don’t know, but everyone from your army left and there didn’t appear to be any other leaders coming forward, so I’m just guessing.”
“It’s not my army, not anymore. Can I see?” Joselin walked up to the other adult and pulled back the blanket covering him. There was a hole where his eye socket had been, and part of his face was missing. The rest of him was badly burnt, but there still was no mistaking him. “Yep, that’s Thomas, and he was the leader, only second to the Teacher, who doesn’t go into battle. The Teacher is the spiritual leader of God’s Army.”
“Well thank you for that,” Wilber said. “You are welcome to join us, if you are no longer a part of that group. And Steve, why don’t you let me take him and you pay your respects to your father.” He took Danny’s body gently into his arms. “I’m sorry, miss?” he said, facing Darla.