“It’s a city behind a wall. That tells me rules. We also have to remember, one person’s utopia is another’s prison. When it was built it was created as a sanctuary, a safe haven. There’s no need for that now. Look at this world. The air is clean, green plants everywhere, and more oxygen. Personally, I don’t want to live in a replica of what we had.”
“Yeah, me neither. John says we need to go off and start our own town.”
“He has his reasons and they’re valid,” Meredith said. “There are others coming from The East and Blake has people meeting us. In a little bit of time we’ll have as many people as Rantoul.”
“I loved that place. If it were up to me, I’d say we move there.”
“Or become one of those communities that meet here. Either way, we should stay connected with those people.”
Jason agreed. He and Meredith covered a wide range of topics on the return trip to the fort. When he arrived back he was surprised to see Nora up and about.
“John and Blake are on fish gutting,” Meredith took the fish from Jason. “I’ll bring these to them. I want to cook it right away.”
“Thanks,” Jason said then walked to Nora. “You’re awake.”
“I am and wow, did you guys catch all that?”
“We did,” he answered proudly. “It was such a great time. We’ll have to go. Meredith came up with the idea to take the crackers from the MRE’s and make some sort of bread crumbs.”
“That’s an awesome idea.”
“So how are you doing?” Jason asked. “We didn’t get a chance to talk this morning. Last night…”
“I know. I know.” Nora held up her hand. “I had my freak out. My melt down. I think I just got scared. I like stability and I just don’t have it here.”
“Yes, you do. You have to see it. The entire country is ours for the taking. We pick a place, we settle in, and start planting like Rantoul. We stay close to here for trade. We’ll get through this.”
“So you think Salvation is that bad?”
“I don’t know. I just don’t think it’s for me.”
Nora nodded.
“Hey, I wanted to talk to you about something. About Rick.”
“You’re hurt because I want to see him.”
“Not at all. I understand. I just want you to know, I want, and plan to keep my promise to you.”
“What promise?”
“Whatever you decide, I’m with you. If you want to go to Salvation to find Rick, I’m next to you.”
“Even if Malcolm says we shouldn’t?”
“If you want to go even if Malcolm says that, then I’ll go with you.”
“Thank you. I need to resolve things. I think if I do, I’ll be better.”
“And you’ll get resolution.” Jason stepped forward taking Nora into his arms. “I promise you. There will be an end game to this.”
Trey wasn’t a natural, but he made an attempt to pretend he was. Awkwardly he put together the solar lamps that had charged all day during their drive. They made good time taking the same route as Malcolm. They were certain of it.
Just after crossing the Mississippi River on a bridge, that Maggie called the ‘scariest experience of her life’, they stopped at a strip mall that faced an aid station and made camp inside an old Starbucks.
The self-igniting heating shells were supposed to be easy to use. Pop this, move that, and voila! Trey had a hard time with those as well. But he managed and heated their meals. They reminded him of the quick meals his mother used to buy when he was a kid. Beef Stew in a little plastic tray that popped in the microwave.
Carrying the food he walked over to Maggie. She had been on her Aldervice, but Trey didn’t eavesdrop. He was curious when he saw her demeanor.
“What’s wrong?” he asked.
“Six out of forty had the virus, one carrier.”
“I would think you would feel justified.”
“No. Makes me worry about what is out there. The ones from California. It’s just worrisome.”
“Here. Eat your dinner. I think I got it warm enough.”
“Thank you,” she took it. “And thanks for setting up a camp.”
“Badly, but hey let’s face it, neither one of us are good at this.”
“No, we aren’t.”
“I would think I’d be better. After all, when I was teenager the world was obsessed with the apocalypse. Hell, there were television shows about it.”
“Really? How did they fare in their predictions?”
“Pretty good.”
Maggie sighed out. “You know, Starbucks was one of the last businesses to stop. I remember that.”
Trey nodded. “They stopped being the trendy place and became a place where you could get a cup of coffee and bowl of soup, or oatmeal. They never turned anyone away. After my family died I was always at Starbucks, and I volunteered there, too. Which is funny, because when they were in full swing before the virus, they were a billion dollar company charging people an arm and a leg for a fancy drink.”
“I was born after the first year of the virus,” Maggie said. “I was one of the first to go into Salvation and well, they started priming me for this job. I was maybe thirteen. I don’t remember what the world was like before the virus.”
“I do.” Trey said. “It bounced back a bunch of times. We’d get down, but right back up. Even after the war. I mean, sure you had cities like Nashville and Cleveland that were abandoned, but we were resilient. Until we couldn’t be anymore. It was like the virus was never satisfied and each time it came back it wanted more.”
“Until we had nothing more to give.” Maggie handed him a water.
“Yes. At the end, everything changed. Businesses stopped worrying about the almighty dollar and started worrying about people. Everyone was about helping. I thought, my God, in our darkest hour humanity shone brighter than it ever had. Why couldn’t it be like this before the virus?”
“What do you think of humanity now?” Maggie asked.
“I think the world is less human now than ever.”
“How can you say that? In Salvation we have food, medical care. Playgrounds.”
Trey snorted a laugh. “Play grounds… you say that like it’s a special thing.”
“It is. The children are allowed to play.”
“Children playing should be a given, not a privilege. What Salvation is, and to those of us outside that work for Salvation, that’s not humanity at its best, it’s humanity surviving.” Trey paused. “When you find my father what are you going to do?”
“I don’t know. Depends what the Council in Salvation wants. We need a solution before they take over. They don’t care if humanity shines, as long as it survives. As you know, they’ll want to ensure that… at any cost.”
A silence encompassed them as they ate their meals. Unspoken thoughts, they both knew what, ‘At any cost’ meant. At least Trey did, and he had to convince his father to avoid getting to the point where ‘At any cost’ included him.
EIGHTEEN – ARRIVAL
Day Thirteen AR
Maggie and Trey entered the city limits of Champaign from the south. Malcolm, in the stolen Salvation van went west. He never saw Maggie and Trey.
“Where are they going?” Trey stepped from the buggy. “They’re high tailing it. He had to have gotten here yesterday.”
“Maybe his friends left,” Maggie suggested. “Damn it.”
“Or…” Trey took a few steps forward and pointed. “They went there.”
Maggie turned around and looked at the store window with the message about Rantoul. “We don’t know that.”
“Yeah, I’m betting that Preacher is the same one that my father told me about.”
“Okay, so we know where he’s headed.”
Trey arrived at the buggy and grabbed a map. “Doesn’t make sense.”