She ran for it just as a small pack of Generates cleared the corner of a building and raced towards them.
He leaned across the cab, unlocked the door and pushed it open.
She reached the door, put the small infant down on the seat and went to get in herself but was prevented when a Generate grabbed her arm and pulled her out. She hit the ground and screamed.
Kyle shot the Generate several times.
She rolled to her side and went to get up but three more Generates tackled her. She wailed in pain as they began to plunge their knives into her.
Kyle emptied his magazine into them but more came. She was dead and he knew it. He heard more cries from Generates and looked ahead to see what could only be described as a herd coming his way. Unable to save her, he slammed his foot down on the accelerator and turned the steering wheel hard to the left. His plan to save time by going through Grand Junction was over. If he wanted to live through the night, he’d have to take the longer route south.
Through the altercation, the baby cried and wailed but there was nothing Kyle could do to comfort it until he was well enough away.
The bright glow from the city grew more distant with each mile he took. Feeling he was at a safe distance, he pulled the truck over. He tore off the night vision, reached down and picked up the crying child and held it in his arms. “Ssh, baby, ssh, it’s okay now,” he said softly rocking the baby in his arms. By the size, the child was no more than three or four months old. After several minutes of rocking and shushing, the child grew quiet and began to coo.
“What in the hell am I going to do with a baby?” he asked himself out loud. “Am I cursed?” Not only had he tacked on additional time to Salina but he now had a baby to care for.
“I don’t know how you do it, but you managed to turn regular canned beans into a gourmet meal,” Gunny gushed patting his belly.
Chef nodded, a big smile stretched across his face.
Through the meal, Jacob kept an eye on Chef.
Leigh picked up on this and was also being watchful.
“You don’t look that much older than me. How long were you a chef before the war?” Portia asked.
“Not long, I had just graduated culinary school and was on my way to my first real chef’s position when it began raining nuclear weapons. I was just west of Albuquerque when I started getting the reports on my mobile phone and on the radio. I never made it to Phoenix, thank God. I first went to a FEMA camp but that quickly deteriorated, I then spent a couple years migrating from place to place with a small group of others. One by one we began to get picked off by marauders and what not. A couple more years pass, I’m working for a warlord in northern Arizona. I run into Gunny here, he took a job working security for this warlord. What was his name?”
“I shit you not, he called himself King David, this dumb ass literally thought he was a decedent of the great Kind David,” Gunny answered.
“Yeah, King David. What a character he was. Liked his food cooked until it was burned,” Chef said.
“You were his cook or chef?” Portia asked.
“Yeah, it’s strange but warlords like having their own chefs, it’s like a status thing, very odd. I thought I was doomed having that as a skill set, but so far, it’s worked,” Chef said.
“How did you end up with everyone else?” Portia asked.
“Me and Gunny were running together after leaving King David, we met Crusher in a bar about a year later then about a year later we found ourselves prisoners to another warlord who operates or I should say, did operate out of southeastern Nevada. We were sent to a slave market but never made it to auction. Next thing I know, I see Jacob here shooting the lock off my cage.”
“You saved them from slavers?” Portia asked.
“Yep,” Jacob nodded.
“And what about Leigh?” Portia asked.
“He saved me a couple years later. I was being chased by some guys and before I know it, Jacob here is saving the day,” Leigh said.
“And Leigh, what is the deal with the pink grenade?” Portia asked.
“I found Sally years ago, she’s been with me a long time.”
“Sally?”
“I like the name,” Leigh replied.
“Why don’t you use it…sorry her?”
“I just don’t want to toss her for nothing, if I ever use her, it will have special meaning,” Leigh said prideful.
“I was a slave once too. A man by the name of Michael, one of the original Leviathan saved me. He was an old Marine, like Gunny here. He’d lost his family to marauders after the war. With nowhere to go, he dedicated himself to bringing justice to an unjust world. Some say he was the first Leviathan, but I don’t believe it,” Jacob explained.
“Who was?”
“There’s a lot of rumors, but I don’t think Michael was even though he was the oldest Leviathan I’d ever met before.”
“Who started the other teams?” Portia asked, genuinely curious.
“I helped get others started. While others have just sprouted up on their own,” Jacob answered.
“Fascinating,” Portia said, her tone clearly excited by the conversation. “What does one do to become like you?”
Chef blurted out, “No need to worry about that, soon enough it will all be over.”
Jacob gave Chef an odd look.
“Over?” Leigh asked.
“Yeah, like soon we’ll be sailing for Paradise,” Chef replied.
The crackling of a radio came from the kitchen.
Everyone got quiet and looked at each other.
Jacob jumped to his feet, followed by Chef, who had the look of fear in his eyes.
“We have the house in view, just trying to make contact with the mole,” the gruff voice radioed.
Chef sprinted for the kitchen but only made it a few feet before Jacob tackled him to the ground. “Who is that?”
Leigh raced past them and into the kitchen, she returned holding the radio.
“We’ve got the place surrounded, just still waiting on our contact to let us know what it looks like inside.”
Jacob punched Chef in the face and yelled, “What have you done?”
Blood streamed down Chef’s face from a busted lip, he opened his blood stained teeth and replied, “I did what you should have done. Made a deal. I’m sick and tired of this cat and mouse game. I’m tired of fighting, I’m tired of our stupid fucking code. I just want to live in peace. I want to do nothing but eat, fuck and drink and they promised me that.”
“In exchange for us? You gave us up to be killed so you can eat, fuck and drink? That’s all our years of friendship have come to equal?” Jacob asked, his face showing the huge emotional toll this was having on him.
“Teams one and two, just go, fuck this guy,” the radio boomed.
Another voice came over the radio and said, “I’ve got sights on the big fucker, taking it.”
“No!” Leigh yelled running for the front door. She threw the door open and screamed, “Crusher, get down!”
Crusher looked over at her and cocked his head, surprised that she was screaming at him.
A single shot cracked in the distance.
Leigh ran towards Crusher but it was too late. The single shot struck him in head. He slid down the side of the house and was dead before he hit the ground. Leigh ran to his side and cried out, “Ah, no, no!”
Hearing the gun shot, Jacob sprang to action, he ran for his weapons near the dining table.
Gunny did the same, while Chef got to his feet and ran out the front door. “Don’t shoot, it’s me, Chef, don’t shoot!” he yelled waving his arms.