Chapter 11
ELEVEN
Asia
“You think they’re going to roll out a red carpet for us?” Caitlin said.
Jack checked his weapon. The click of the magazine sliding into place was answer enough.
Caitlin blanched, but didn’t say anything else.
We piled into my uncle’s dusty four-by-four.
It looked exactly like the one he had when I was a kid.
That truck had been totaled, but Uncle Levi had driven all the way to Delaware to get the same make and model.
Aunt Kathleen said he spent twice on this truck what a brand-new one off the lot would have cost, but she said nothing because she knew how much he loved that thing.
We’d been at the farm for a while, and after using every skill I had in my defense attorney’s tool box, I finally convinced Jack and Uncle Levi it was time to make the trek.
I knew Hayes well enough to know that he would be back at the farm soon enough, wanting to make his presence felt.
Part of me wanted to avoid him as long as possible, but the other part knew it was best to get it over with. We needed to know what we were dealing with, so going to Hayes before he came to us seemed like the best move.
Jack was surprised when I said we should bring Caitlin along. Honestly, I was, too. The drive to town was usually less than twenty minutes, but we didn’t know how the roads were going to look, so committing to quality time with Caitlin was definitely a sacrifice.
But as irritating as she could be, she could read people, and vapid assholes like Hayes might be so taken with her looks that they gave away more than they should.
As if sensing my thoughts, Caitlin grimaced. “I don’t know if I like being recruited as a honeypot.”
“Caitlin, you’re not a honeypot. I just want you to be another pair of eyes. Give us your impression of things.”
“You think I’m capable of that?” she said snidely.
“Caitlin, I do not now and never have doubted your intellect or your insight. Your personality, though…” I glanced in the rearview mirror and met her eyes. “You’re annoying as fuck, but since we’re trapped together here at the end of the world, maybe we could try to make the best of it.”
She shook her head, a smile playing on her lips. “Finally, some damn honesty.”
“Good,” Jack said from the passenger seat. “Now that we got that out of the way, let’s go over objectives again.”
I drove, and Jack was still pissed about it, but it was the right call. I knew this terrain better than he did.
“We’re here to get information,” I said, scanning the road as we passed. This road wasn’t as heavily trafficked after the government built a new four lane highway two towns over, but it was never this empty. Other than the leaves and overgrown shrubs clawing at the edge of the road, we were alone.
The jury was still out on whether that was a good thing or not.
“Be more specific,” Jack said.
I glanced at him quickly. Jack was just being his usual meticulous self. I reminded myself he wasn’t quizzing me because he thought I was dumb. This was about making sure I was ready.
“We want to find what they know, and hopefully find out anything we missed on the road,” I added.
As far as supplies went, we had food, means to grow more, ammunition, water, and a water purification system. Jack was overjoyed to see it, but it only reminded me of how swiftly—and irretrievably—the world had fallen.
But even as well-stocked as we were, that stuff would run out eventually, and we needed to know what was left of the world.
“We are close to Main Street,” I said as I eased the truck closer to town.
I passed the pharmacy that also served as the post office, a diner with boarded up windows, the town’s only bank, and the sheriff’s office.
“I’ll park here—”
The screech of tires tore through the quiet. A silver sedan shot past us, barreling down Main Street at what had to be ninety miles an hour.
“Christ,” I said on a low huff as I slammed on the breaks.
“What are they doing?” Caitlin said.
“Running from something,” Jack said.
The girl driving the car couldn’t have been much older than twenty and looked panicked, her face a mask of terror, and when I glanced behind, I saw three of those things shambling behind her.
“Is that…?” Caitlin said.
“Yeah,” Jack responded.
He was already out of the truck, weapon aimed, but before he could make a move, there was another screech. The brown SUV with a sheriff’s star on the side swerved to a stop, blocking the road.
Sheriff Hayes got out of the SUV, and moved with cold, economical precision. He raised his pistol and fired two shots. Two of those things dropped like someone had flipped a switch. The third lunged at Sheriff Hayes and was met with a bullet to the right eye.
It was over in seconds.
A crowd gathered, no doubt drawn by the noise. It was probably fifty people, and it looked like they were gathered in the town’s only bar. We all watched as the sheriff stormed over to the sedan.
“You trying to get us all killed?” he bellowed to the frightened woman sitting behind the steering wheel.
“I couldn’t, Sheriff. It was my brother and my grandmother,” she said.
“And that gives you the right to lead them straight to Main Street. We have rules for a reason.”
Ah, that same compassion Sheriff Hayes was always known for.
“I’m sorry, Sheriff,” she said.
“Well I guess that fixes everything.” He glared at the woman. “Don’t pull any more stunts like that. And stop wasting gas.”
The girl nodded again, putting the car in gear and driving away, slow and shamed.
While the sheriff was speaking, a group of five men matching brown shirts jogged toward the bodies, carrying heavy canvas tarps. Without a word, they rolled the corpses onto the tarp and hauled them away, disposing of the corpses almost as quickly as the sheriff killed them.
Hayes turned, his gaze sweeping the tense but silent crowd, before he landed on us.
“What are you doing here?” the sheriff asked, his gaze moving from me to Caitlin.
“I…” I started.
“I’m new to the area,” Caitlin cut in smoothly, leaning toward the sheriff, “and Asia was nice enough to bring me for a look around.”
The sheriff nodded, not even trying to hide the way his gaze lingered on Caitlin. “What do you want to know?”
“How safe is it here?” she asked, her wide, innocent eyes giving no hint of the shark underneath.
“You’re talking about those things?” He jutted his chin toward the now-empty street where the bodies had been. “We’re fine,” he said.
“Do they get into town often?” she asked.
“Often enough that we know how to handle things,” he said. His gaze was cold, hard, and focused squarely on Jack. “The question is, do you?”
Jack
The sheriff looked at me, and I had been around enough to recognize a challenge when I saw one.
Most days, I wouldn’t back down from it, but I felt Asia’s presence next to me.
More importantly, I knew this situation was wrong.
Still, I bristled. Reminded myself that I needed to keep control.
“I’m not sure,” I said to Hayes. “Why don’t you help me out?”
“If it becomes necessary, I will,” he said. His eyes flared with something, and Asia tensed.
There was a story there, and she would tell me. But for now, I kept my gaze squarely focused on Hayes, wondering how he managed not to sweat wearing a brown shirt buttoned all the way to the top and a matching suit jacket.
The kind of I’m-official-respect-me outfit that was a fucking joke before, but was macabre comedy these days.
“You already said you’re not from around here, so I imagine getting here was no walk in the road.”
“But we made it,” I said.
“And I assume that is because of you,” he said.
He looked at Asia, then. “Or maybe she helped you.”
He said the words as if it was the most ridiculous thing in the world, but Asia, to her credit, didn’t respond.
Or maybe she was just focused on the deputies. They’d formed a semi-circle around us. Hands hovering near their weapons.
Textbook containment formation.
I took a step back, angling my body toward Asia.
Didn’t miss the way the deputies tightened their holds on their weapons.
I did the math.
I could take four of them, but Asia would be dead before I hit the ground.
Soft fingers closed around my forearm and I looked at her.
Her eyes were wide.
Pleading.
She knew the math, too.
I looked at the deputies.
The sheriff.
I’d kill him first, make this count.
But Asia…
She gripped my arm.
Her eyes weren’t pleading anymore.
They were demanding.
Stand down.
Could I?
I looked at the deputies.
Looked back at Asia.
How could I not?
The moment stretched.
Tense, thick, ready to snap.
And snap it did.
Just not in the way I expected.
Caitlin, deciding to be useful for once, slid into the sheriff’s periphery.
“It was terrifying,” she said, her brow furrowed.
That wasn’t wrong. She even got her lip to tremble on demand.
And it worked.
Hayes’s impromptu dick-measuring contest was over in an instant. Type like him couldn’t resist a damsel in distress.
“Why don’t you tell me all about it?” the sheriff said.
“Sure,” Caitlin said, blinking, and then looking at Asia.
“I’ll take you over to the diner and get some food in you. Asia knows her way around,” the sheriff said.
Caitlin looked at Asia, but then turned her wide eyes back to the sheriff.
“I’d appreciate it,” Caitlin said.
“It’s my pleasure,” the sheriff responded.
He walked away, intently staring at Caitlin, who was by his side.
The crowd and deputies that had gathered faded, and Asia and I were left on the dusty streets alone.
At least for a moment until that fucking coward Christopher approached. He stopped in front of us, and smiled.
The expression was friendly.
Welcoming.
I wanted to smash every tooth out of his mouth.
I shifted, partially blocking her body with mine.
He noticed, but he didn’t comment on it.
Still, he kept that same pleasant smile on his face.
“Good to see you again, Asia,” he said.
“You, too, Christopher,” she responded.
Her voice was wary, but had an undertone of something else that I couldn’t describe.