others piled into the now cramped SUV. When Mike gave the all-clear, Shane threw the car into drive and sped down the street, once again weaving his way through the obstacles.
The Tils had been able to keep pace with the deliberately slow moving truck before, but now at top speed, those that chased the refugees vanished in the distance. Two miles into the drive, Mike ordered a halt.
“How are we on gas?” he asked Shane.
Checking the gauge, he informed Mike that the truck now held slightly less than a quarter of a tank. Even without the added excursion to distract the Tils, the truck had been unlikely to make it back to the mountain without a refill.
“Okay,” Mike said as he stepped out of the truck and gave Shane his instructions. “When you get outside of the city siphon what you can with the kit. You should only need another quarter of a tank to make it back; more if the Tils occupy the trail we used and you need to use an alternate route. When you get to the base of the mountain, send up a flare so the others know you need them to meet you.”
“And where will you be during all this?” Paul asked.
Looking his second-in-command eye to eye, he replied flatly, “I still have three more men out there somewhere. I’m going back to get them.”
Without pause, Paul gathered his pack and exited the truck, saying, “And I’m going with you.”
“So am I,” both Lisa and Andrew spoke in unison.
Mike did not argue. He knew that spending a night in the city was dangerous at best. While he would not order them to accompany him, he was willing to accept their volunteering for the mission. Besides , he thought with a smile, if I said no the three would have just gotten dropped off further down and doubled back to me anyway.
The four took whatever food, water, and weapons the others could spare and filled their packs. Mike then went to the driver’s side window for a word with Shane. The young man, recently turned twenty-four, looked nervously towards Mike.
“You can do this. I wouldn’t leave you guys if I didn’t think you could,” he spoke softly, his words measured and filled with authority. “You’re in charge of them now. Get them back safely.”
As he nodded his head, Shane seemed to relax. “Yes, sir,” he replied, his voice was strong, saturated in pride and a desire to serve his leader well.
Mike stepped back from the truck and watched them drive away. Taking a deep breath, he turned to the others. They stood before him, these soldiers of the new world, awaiting instructions.
“Let’s secure a location, then we’ll discuss the plan,” he announced, hoping that in the interim he could come up with a plan to discuss.
In their scouting of the surrounding streets, thankfully empty of any infected, they found several locations that would serve as a secure shelter for the night. Mike settled on a bank two avenues over from where they were dropped off. Between the vault and the tellers’ cage, the bank afforded them reasonable protection in the event of a Til attack. As Lisa and Andrew cleared the cage of discarded debris, Mike and his second-in-command began barricading the front door.
He was deep in contemplation when Paul, his voiced hushed so the others could not hear, said, “So, no plan, yet?”
Mike huffed a laugh and replied, “That obvious, huh?”
Lifting one end of a desk, while he hefted the other, Paul reduced some of Mike’s concern by saying, “To me, yes. To them, probably not, but I can tell when you’re turning things over in your mind.”
In the time that Paul had been with the camp, Mike had sought his counsel on numerous occasions. While he begrudgingly accepted the role of leader, he was self-aware enough to know when he needed the input of others. Even when he was a teacher, in what seemed a lifetime ago, he had sought advice from the veteran educators regarding lesson plans, classroom management, and various teaching techniques. One of his best skills had been
The Tils had been able to keep pace with the deliberately slow moving truck before, but now at top speed, those that chased the refugees vanished in the distance. Two miles into the drive, Mike ordered a halt.
“How are we on gas?” he asked Shane.
Checking the gauge, he informed Mike that the truck now held slightly less than a quarter of a tank. Even without the added excursion to distract the Tils, the truck had been unlikely to make it back to the mountain without a refill.
“Okay,” Mike said as he stepped out of the truck and gave Shane his instructions. “When you get outside of the city siphon what you can with the kit. You should only need another quarter of a tank to make it back; more if the Tils occupy the trail we used and you need to use an alternate route. When you get to the base of the mountain, send up a flare so the others know you need them to meet you.”
“And where will you be during all this?” Paul asked.
Looking his second-in-command eye to eye, he replied flatly, “I still have three more men out there somewhere. I’m going back to get them.”
Without pause, Paul gathered his pack and exited the truck, saying, “And I’m going with you.”
“So am I,” both Lisa and Andrew spoke in unison.
Mike did not argue. He knew that spending a night in the city was dangerous at best. While he would not order them to accompany him, he was willing to accept their volunteering for the mission. Besides , he thought with a smile, if I said no the three would have just gotten dropped off further down and doubled back to me anyway.
The four took whatever food, water, and weapons the others could spare and filled their packs. Mike then went to the driver’s side window for a word with Shane. The young man, recently turned twenty-four, looked nervously towards Mike.
“You can do this. I wouldn’t leave you guys if I didn’t think you could,” he spoke softly, his words measured and filled with authority. “You’re in charge of them now. Get them back safely.”
As he nodded his head, Shane seemed to relax. “Yes, sir,” he replied, his voice was strong, saturated in pride and a desire to serve his leader well.
Mike stepped back from the truck and watched them drive away. Taking a deep breath, he turned to the others. They stood before him, these soldiers of the new world, awaiting instructions.
“Let’s secure a location, then we’ll discuss the plan,” he announced, hoping that in the interim he could come up with a plan to discuss.
In their scouting of the surrounding streets, thankfully empty of any infected, they found several locations that would serve as a secure shelter for the night. Mike settled on a bank two avenues over from where they were dropped off. Between the vault and the tellers’ cage, the bank afforded them reasonable protection in the event of a Til attack. As Lisa and Andrew cleared the cage of discarded debris, Mike and his second-in-command began barricading the front door.
He was deep in contemplation when Paul, his voiced hushed so the others could not hear, said, “So, no plan, yet?”
Mike huffed a laugh and replied, “That obvious, huh?”
Lifting one end of a desk, while he hefted the other, Paul reduced some of Mike’s concern by saying, “To me, yes. To them, probably not, but I can tell when you’re turning things over in your mind.”
In the time that Paul had been with the camp, Mike had sought his counsel on numerous occasions. While he begrudgingly accepted the role of leader, he was self-aware enough to know when he needed the input of others. Even when he was a teacher, in what seemed a lifetime ago, he had sought advice from the veteran educators regarding lesson plans, classroom management, and various teaching techniques. One of his best skills had been
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