Will looked at him for a second, then as he did when Malcolm entered the room, he turned his back to him.
It was a good hour after his talk with the president, that Malcolm met up with Maggie. After she escorted him from the room, to the bubble and to decontamination, she waited for him in his room.
“Sorry about all the decontamination and such,” Maggie said. “I know you aren’t a hundred percent yet and…”
“It’s fine. It really is. I had some time to think after the talk and of course, our talk through the plastic shell.”
Maggie nodded. “So what do you think?”
“I think you should map it out.”
Maggie smiled and exhaled in relief. “That’s excellent. It’ll be a team, so it will be safe. I would like for you to rest and then we’ll leave. I was thinking of inviting your son, since he did bring you to us. Now…” she walked to the table and opened a folder with enthusiasm. “He told you five United States locations. You were in G3 or Genesis Three. One of them, G5 won’t be any use to us. It’s North East, New York. That’s post war zone.”
“I understand. What I don’t get is why it is so important for me to go.”
“You know the projects. The labs where they kept the units.”
“Hardly.”
“You were there for several days, awake. You know more than us. You had time to learn at least one set up”
“I’ll give you that.
“And that’s all we need.”
“Listen, we were a group. We split up. We were supposed to meet. If I don’t show up that’s not fair to them. We have a bond.”
“I realize that. But we need you. When are you supposed to meet them?”
“About two weeks.”
Maggie nodded. “We can’t wait that long to take them.”
“I not suggesting… you know what? Never mind. We had a plan. They’ll leave word there if they leave. I’ll find them.”
“You may not have to. With the world the way it is, they may still be there when we get done.”
“Then let’s do this.”
“Good.” She motioned her hand to the folder to show him what she had worked out. “We appreciate your help. What’s left of this world cannot face another outbreak. We won’t survive it.”
John had a breakdown. Something just snapped. He couldn’t pretend or live in fear. Just as Meredith was about to administer some medication to the child, Bada, John lost it. His mind flashed with memories of the attack and he grew outraged.
“Stop,” he grabbed her wrist.
“What are you doing?”
Ana looked on with confusion.
“This.” John stormed over to the MRE. “This.” He held it up with a strong voice. “We…” He indicted to Meredith and himself. “Have these.” He brought the MRE to his chest. “Ours. We…” He pointed to his bruise then to Meredith’s bruised face. “Taken.” He mocked the MRE being snatched from his hand. “Taken.” He showed an angry face.
Immediately, as if she got it, Ana held up her hands and waved them frantically, shaking her head. “Ter ade.”
“I don’t understand,” John said.
“Ter ade.” She repeated, touched her chest, and then lifted a blanket. “Ter ade.” She handed John the blanket and reached for the MRE. She nodded calmly. “Ter ade.”
“John?” Meredith whispered his name. “She traded for it.”
“Bull.”
“No. Seriously. Ana… Ter Ade.” She pointed to the MRE and then lifted her hands with question.
Ana lifted the blanket once more. “Ter ade.”
John knew it was apparent he didn’t believe the woman. To him she was lying or so he thought. Trying to convince him they traded some random person for a blanket. Unless they traded one of the violent Wreckers for it. To John there was no difference. Like a mutant racist he saw them all the same. “Who?” John asked. “Really who did you Ter ade?”
After setting down the blanket, Ana took hold of John’s arm. Repeating her word for trade and led him from the Subway sandwich shop home.
“Where is she taking us?” John pulled from her grip and reluctantly followed.
“I don’t know.”
“Probably to take us to a corpse.”
“John.”
“Wouldn’t surprise me if that was the meat they were hanging. Oh wait, we’re on to her, she’s leading us to slaughter.”
“Can you please just…?”
Ana stopped at a tent like structure. She opened the flap and pointed in. Just as John was about to step through, Ana stopped him and frantically grabbed John’s hand bringing it to cover his nose and mouth.
She did the same to Meredith.
John stepped in with the mindset he was covering his nose and mouth because of some sort of smell, he was wrong.
Laying on the ground, covered with blankets, a light by his head was a man. Not a Wrecker, he looked normal to John. He was barely conscious and his body shook with a steady cough.
Meredith, hand still over her mouth crouched down. “He’s sick. Look at his eyes. He has whatever Bada has.”
“Or Bada has what he has,” John said. “It’s the chicken and egg thing. “
‘Where did he get the MRE?”
“That’s an easy answer. Look at his clothes.”
Meredith lowered the blanket a little more. The sick man wore the white over shirt and drawstring pants. The same exact clothes that were left for John, Meredith and the others when they came out of stasis. With the MRE, the clothing, it was obvious he was rebirthed through Genesis. He wasn’t part of their group, so where did he come from? Wherever it was, had to be close.
“They’re all here,” Jason finished sorting and counting the playing cards as he sat at a table in the employee lunch room.
“Good and…” She stepped back from the old vending machine. The glass was covered with a black substance and dirt. When Nora popped the cover with a screwdriver, the inside looked as if time and the elements never touched it. “Holy cow it’s filled.”
Jason laughed.
“How long do you think it’s been?”
“Since they filled the machine?”
“No, since everyone left.”
Jason shuffled the cards. “Well, the letter at your house was at least fifteen years after we disappeared. Rick was living there, so it has to be another fifteen or twenty. At least.”
“You think?”
Jason tilted his head. “It’s a very wet area. Snow, rain, humidity. So it could be ten. But honestly, that much growth, I can’t see it being any less than ten. I’m sticking with twenty. I saw the pictures of Chernobyl.”
“You are obsessed with that.”
“That’s the only one I know.”
Nora walked to the table. “There was an amusement park here in Ohio called Geauga Lake. It was overgrown too. I loved looking at the pictures. Just can’t believe I’m living it now.”
“Me either.” Jason noticed Nora looking again at the wallet size double frame she found on Malcolm’s desk. “Why do you keep looking at Malcolm’s family?”
“Because I have no pictures of my own. Rick took them all. Everything. Every picture. If for anything, I want to get to Salvation to get pictures. It’s hard to process, you know. I mean. It’s been almost two weeks since I saw them. Alive. How am I supposed to believe they are dead? It doesn’t feel it. It’s like we’re on this apocalypse vacation and I need to get back home to share the adventure.”