Chapter 18
My flashlight illuminates the backs of camouflaged people who are leading us into the tunnel’s entrance. Once we knew the looters were long gone, the Guerrillas took us down into the basement where I had hidden the kids earlier. The moment we enter the dark tunnel, through the brick archway, the temperature drops. I glance to the side where Travis and I had hidden from the looters. We were so close to them and didn’t even realize it.
Once we are all crammed inside, two men push a brick door cutout back into the archway, filling the cracks. I search for the crease around the sealed door, but I can hardly tell there is one. It’s nearly impossible to see unless you’re looking for it. That’s why I hadn’t noticed the tunnel when I hid the kids here earlier. The door must not have been opened yet.
As we walk deeper into the darkness I shine my light around the tunnel. The brick walls are sealed off completely to what looks like it could be multiple basements. And since the only light is from our flashlights, it’s virtually impossible to find any creases for entryways.
“Why is it so dark in here?” Billy asks, breaking the silence.
“These tunnels were built in the eighteen fifties. Even if we still had electricity, there are no lights set up down here. That’s why we use flashlights and lanterns.” One of the men replies from up ahead. I recognize his voice from the radio. He was the first person I had heard; in the barn.
“Where are we going?” I ask.
They ignore my question, continuing to walk down the narrow tunnel. I repeat the question, this time I say it even louder, “Where are we going?”
“We’re almost there.” The same man replies.
“Okay, but where is that exactly?” I ask. My hand grips the dagger a little tighter. I have no idea who these people really are. For all I know, Steven and his family were right and they could be looters. Or worse, helping the Grey Ones.
The man keeps walking, ignoring my question. This irritates me even more, so I stop walking and raise my voice angrily, “I’m not going any further until you tell us who you are and where the hell you are taking us.”
Everyone in the group stops walking, including the man in the army camouflage. He lets out a heavy sigh. His body spins around. With his brown eyes bouncing around us, he says, “I am Staff Sergeant Chris Lee, you can call me Chris. And, I cannot divulge the location until we know if you can be trusted.”
“Until you know if we can be trusted?”
“Yes, ma’am.” He nods before turning around. His group follow him, walking further into the tunnel. Away from us.
Travis remains focused on the group walking away. Without looking at me he says, “Come on, let’s go.” I step alongside him and whisper, “What if we can’t trust them?”
“They had Ty and Allie and they didn’t do anything to hurt them.” Travis consoles me, “If they wanted us dead they would have left us out there to die at the hands of the looters.”
He’s right about that. I glance around at who is left in our group. Jace, Luke, Lilly, Allie, and Billy are the only survivors - besides our family and Cano. When they came to help us fight off the looters, a female Guerrilla gave her camouflage coat to Lilly to wear over her torn shirt.
The sound of multiple voices from down the tunnel catches my attention. I stare past the people leading us and find a light shining. It’s coming from a basement door that’s been left open. As I near the opening, the multiple voices get louder and louder. I watch as Chris and the others turn and walk into the lit up basement. I don’t know where we are, but I believe that these people may be our only hope at fighting back. When Jace and his family step inside, I pause. It’s now or never. I take a deep breath and step closer to the entrance.
The basement is full of people. Some are wearing camouflage while others are dressed in more casual clothes. There are people covered in tattoos from head to toe. And there are others who are carrying bibles on their side. A few kids a little older than Ty and Allie laugh while playing freeze tag in the basement. I scan the room and see most the camouflaged adults are in great shape.
“Attention!” Chris announces loudly from the entrance to the crowded basement.
Everyone stops what they’re doing and looks up at him. The room fills with clapping while the returning men and women are welcomed back by family and friends. Once they’re all reunited a few people begin to realize that there are newcomers here. They begin to nudge each other and the clapping is soon replaced by whispers. Everyone in the room shifts their eyes to our group. They stare us up and down, a few even begin to size us up.
The room falls silent again when Chris speaks up, “These are the people we have been speaking with on the radio. When we found them, looters had already gotten to them. Please show the same respect and kindness that was extended to you when you first arrived. I’m not sure how long they’ll be staying, that is something that has yet to be discussed.” Some people appear to be excited for new comers, while others continue to glare at us with suspicious eyes. There has to be around fifty people in here. This is the first time I’ve seen so many survivors since before the attack.
When he’s finished speaking to the large group, he turns back to us and says, “Leave your things, including your weapons, and follow me.”
A few men walk up with their chests puffed out, armed with handguns on their sides. All three have a tense expression when they reach their arms out for our bags. As I stuff the extra daggers in my backpack I notice the man reaching for mine has an arm bandaged up; there’s blood staining through the white wrap. I take a step back and slide the red handle down the back of my shorts.
“What are you trying to hide?” He yells. Both of his hands squeeze my arms. His grasp is tight as he whirls me around.
Out of instinct, I throw an elbow back at his face. I spin around to his bloody nose only inches from my head. As his eyes narrow in on me, I rip the dagger from my pants. His hand reaches for the gun on his side holster, but he’s not fast enough. I press the sharp blade against his throat. The room erupts with the sound of guns cocking and Cano’s barking.
“Everybody calm down and lower your weapons.” Chris says firmly.
I wait until the man moves his hand off his gun before pulling the blade away from his skinny neck. The red handle still has dried blood specks crusted on it from the looters.
I turn my sights to Chris and state, “We bring our weapons until we decide if you can be trusted.”
Chris’s thin lips form a small smile. As he glances around our small group, he replies, “Okay, then follow me.”
The old brick walls have begun to crumble around their edges. You can tell by the way they’ve been decaying that these tunnels hadn’t been used for a long time. Until now that is.
We walk silently past a few basements with only flashlights to guide us through the darkness. All the buildings are completely sealed, except for a few that have a small window sized opening. Suddenly, Chris stops and turns to face a wall. His fist clenches, then he pounds on the bricks three times. Curiously, I stare closer at it. There’s a faint glimmer of light peeking through the cracks.
The secret door scrapes as it’s being pulled away from the bricks. I have to hold Cano back by his chain collar when the door opens up, revealing a teenage redheaded girl. Her dark brown eyes widen when Cano snarls and bites at her.
“Who brought the mutt?” She says. She tosses her curly hair over her shoulder, turning away with a disgusted expression.
“Cano, fall back.” I demand.
He instantly stops barking and sits down next to me. He looks up and lets his red tongue fall out the side of his mouth playfully. With a smirk, I whisper, “Don’t take it personally, she’s probably a cat person.”
“Go in. We can talk here.” Chris says, waving us inside.
This basement is a lot smaller than the first one they took us into. There’s only enough room for ten people to fit inside with everything else. Smack dab in the middle is a
wooden table with a ham radio, a CB radio, a cell phone, and a box of walkie-talkies. The skinny girl sits down at the table and continues to glare at Cano. He glares back at her, his body tense.
“What are we doing here?” I ask abruptly.
The door scrapes as Chris pushes it back into the wall. Once it’s secured, he turns around and says, “We’re going to see if we can be of help to one another.”
He moves with a sense of urgency as he walks past us. When he sits down at the head of the table the girl, finally shifting her eyes from Cano, smiles widely. He sits tall and lifts his callused hands up, gesturing for us to join them.
“Ty, take Allie and Cano by the door. You two can try to teach him some new tricks.” I say.
“Okay, come on Allie. Come on Cano.” Ty calls out.
As I plop down at the old wooden table, beside Travis, my eyes scan the basement; which is appearing more like a cellar the longer I sit in here. There are maps laid out on the table with cities marked off. It isn’t until now that I notice the small globe with pins sticking out. What is all this? Sitting on the wooden shelves that line the walls, are guns, bullets, and other weapons.
“We are the Guerrillas. Started by myself, Kirk, and Chad.”
“Who are they?” I ask.
“You met Chad. He was the one you elbowed in the face… and your dog attacked in the basement.” Chris replies with a faint smile.
“When did he attack him?”
“When they entered the basement where we found your son.”
That’s why his arm was bandaged. Cano must have attacked him to protect the children. A grin spreads across my face as I glance back at the muscular dog. He’s playing with Ty all while keeping an eye on the strangers sitting at the table with us. Rhett trained him well.
Rhett.
I shake the thought of his body torn to pieces in our backyard. “And Kirk? Who’s he?”
“You’ll meet him if we find you useful to our group.” The girl replies. Her voice sounds condescending as she stares down at me.
“I can handle this, Heather.” Chris snaps. His tone sounds similar to a parent’s scold. When he turns back to us, he continues calmly, “The night they invaded I was out at the bar getting a drink with Kirk. We were celebrating his upcoming retirement. Chad was our bartender that night. While Kirk and I were talking war stories, chaos broke out in the streets. An emergency broadcast came on over all the channels and told everyone to stay inside, lock the doors, and hide. Before the owner could reach the entrance to lock it, a Grey One had broken in through a window. We watched in horror as the thing mauled him to death in front of everyone. Then more came running in and began attacking the other people inside. Chad showed us the hidden tunnel, and we set up camp. We’ve been recruiting other survivors any way possible. We want to take these monsters down!” He pounds his fist on the table before standing back up. The young girl smirks as she peeks over at him. When he turns back, she shifts her gaze down to the ground.
“I’m sorry, but what do you do here, Heather?” My voice sounds more irritated than I mean for it, but it works. She stops smirking and looks back up at me. Her eyes squint only enough to give off a dirty look.
“I am Radio Control.” She tells us, her voice filled with attitude. She continues to stare me down with her dark brown eyes. When she shifts them to the side, her sights stop on Billy. Suddenly, her glare is replaced by a confused expression. With a raised brow, she turns away and rolls her eyes. I peer over my shoulder at Billy. His shoulders shrug once, like he doesn’t understand what’s going on either.
“So Heather, when did you join the Guerrillas?” Jace asks flirtatiously.
She doesn’t try to hide her disgust when she replies, “A couple of days ago… Why?”
“A couple of days ago?” Billy asks abruptly.
“Yes.” She replies, grinning from ear to ear. Her teeth practically sparkle, they’re so white.
Billy throws his arms in the air and sinks back into his seat. He drags both palms down his face and groans loudly.
“Do you guys know each other?” I ask.
They both shake their heads quickly. Heather bites her lip and crosses her arms across her chest before looking away. I lock eyes with Billy and raise my eyebrows, waiting for an answer.
He moves his eyes back and forth between Heather and me. His mouth opens, then shuts tightly. Finally, he stutters, “Wh-why would you think that?”
“Um, you guys are being pretty obvious.” Jace cuts in with a chuckle.
When I look back at Heather, who is staring at Billy with narrowed eyes, I say, “Hm?”
She ignores my stare and stares at the lanky teenager. I shift my focus to him too. His jaw drops open slightly as he tries to find the right words. “She uh… She’s my um... Well, you see?”
“I’m his girlfriend.” She replies, forcing a smile.
“Yeah, she’s my girlfriend.” He agrees with a crinkled nose.
“Well, actually I’m his ex-girlfriend now.” She says staring at me. Turning back to him she continues, “Since you left me behind.”
“Wait, what? You left her behind?” I’m shocked that he never mentioned Heather. Probably because he left her behind. But, why would he do that?
“Yup, totally did. We were on a date the night the Grey Ones invaded. At the zoo.” Heather replies tilting her head with a fake smile.
That’s weird. We were at the zoo that night. I guess we could’ve missed them during all the chaos. But, I thought Billy said he was at a museum with his friends when they attacked. Why would he lie?
“Yeah, I had to fend for myself. Even got bit by one of those bastards.” Heather rolls up her pant leg, revealing large teeth mark scars. We all stare at her bite before she rolls her jeans back down to her black chucks.
I can feel Travis’s body tense up next to me while he listens to Heather. He already thought Billy was a coward, but now… This is not going to be good. I slide my hand over his clenched fist and rub my thumb over his. He relaxes and opens his hand, lacing his fingers with mine.
“Maybe we’re not getting the full story.” I whisper quietly.
Before I can ask Billy for more information Chris begins to speak again. “Travis, right?”
“Yes, sir.” He replies looking up at Chris.
“You’re a marine correct? I mean, you were?”
“Yes, sir.” Travis replies. As he rises to his feet, his hand drops mine.
“Do you think that everyone here is capable of helping us fight back?”
Travis hesitates before replying. His eyes shift towards Billy. After a moment he says, “I think everyone here could help in one way or another, sir.”
“How many of you are going to be able to fight with us?”
“At least four of us, sir.”
He looks past Travis at the rest of our group and says, “Whoever is going to be fighting by our side please stand up.”
I hop to my feet quickly, standing side by side with Travis. When I glance around I find Jace, Luke, and Lilly have also stood up. Billy and Heather are still sitting while avoiding making eye contact with anyone, including each other. I shake my head before turning my attention back to Chris.
“Alright,” he replies taking his eyes off Billy. With his eyes focused one rest of us standing up, he continues, “Welcome to the Guerrillas. Let me show you how we do things here.”