Chapter 18
The group spent some time in the town, scavenging for what supplies they could find. While the trip was meant to be longer, Nick cut it short as the sound of Josh’s sniveling began to drive him insane.
When they arrived back at Fort Vanguard, Josh started the intake process. Marcus was busy preparing to mobilize, so the task was passed on to the others working the administration building.
Nick wished that Josh would fail to prove he could be a citizen in good standing. Maybe those in charge of the resident intake would discover something problematic about his past or an illness they could not risk among their constituents.
Nevertheless, Josh had no genetic flaws. Nothing came about in the process that blocked him from sharing the same space as him and Kate. Fort Vanguard turned away the physically unfit, not those plagued with cowardice.
Marcus had an entire looting expedition planned; Nick was certain it was another military installation, though the confrontation between Kate and Norman had distracted him from remembering the details.
Marcus was hopeful they would find everything from food to weapons and even medical supplies.
Yara worked out the logistics, as usual.
She assigned people from Fort Vanguard who would accompany Marcus and decide what vehicles and supplies would be taken.
Norman’s refusals to go on the mission were vehement. He was not a dense man. Nick and Kate had made it clear that their plans for him were ominous. Marcus brushed it off as Norman being difficult, assuming he would relent at the last moment.
Marcus was skeptical about having Kate along.
The level of danger surrounding the location was undetermined, and while he did not say as much, it was clear that he was uncertain what skills or expertise Kate could lend to the venture.
None of that mattered to Nick. He would not leave Kate behind with Norman.
Nick remained adamant that she go, so Marcus allowed it.
When the day came to mobilize, Norman suddenly came down with some unknown illness. He would not be joining the looting crew.
Nick and Kate stood outside of a Humvee after the last of the gear had been loaded.
Yara insisted the group take enough ammo to level out a firefight, but not so much that it would put a deficit in the fort’s stock if it were to be commandeered.
Along with rifles and ammo cans, medical supplies and sustenance were packed into the vehicles.
Kate bit her bottom lip, and her brows were pinched in distress.
“Don’t worry. I know what you’re thinking about. It’s going to work out.” Nick tugged at Kate’s shoulder, then took his place inside the vehicle. Kate scooted in beside him, and the Humvee rumbled through the fort.
A group of Marines guarding the front opened the gates, and the vehicle rolled through.
Kate looked out the window, watching the landscape race by, passing vacant buildings and environments frozen in time.
A feeling of loss tugged at her heart, though it felt disingenuous.
Humanity lost a world that Kate was not allowed to be a part of, and she felt guilty for feeling justified by its decline.
She would have taken freedom in any other form.
The fact that it materialized through a fatal disease that killed off millions was unfortunate.
Kate often needed to remind herself that it was not her fault.
The looting adventure promised to be bountiful, and Kate was looking forward to bringing valuable items back to the fort. The feelings were overshadowed by her disappointment that Norman did not join them.
Nick slid his hand into hers, delivering her back into the present and out of the confines of her thoughts. He was calm, collected, and composed. Kate even thought she saw the hint of a smirk in his expression. How could he not be even the slightest bit stressed over Norman’s absence?
The vehicle bounced across the bridge and distracted Kate from everything inside the Humvee.
They were driving across the bay. The water beneath them was azure.
Kate imagined stepping up onto the concrete barrier and balancing on the wall.She envisioned the freefall, wind rushing past her before colliding with the ice-cold water and letting the bay swallow her whole.
Just another body claimed by a world torn to shreds.