“Hi,” I said extending my hand toward her, but she didn’t oblige. She glared at me, like I was some kind of diseased mutant.
Awkward.
“Excuse her rude behavior, Abi.” Rhett gave his wife an admonishing look. She matched his gaze and then huffed. “Apparently, my wife doesn’t take well to strangers.”
“Well, you just had to rescue the young pretty one, didn’t you?” she said loudly.
I couldn’t tell if she was joking, or really not happy about me being here. I felt completely uncomfortable, so I tried to settle the situation.
“You’ll all get to meet my boyfriend soon,” I said, drawing out the word boyfriend a little longer than I should have.
She glanced at me for a few moments, and then her face relaxed.
“Peggy Sue,” Rhett sighed.
She exhaled loudly and then turned to me. “I’m sorry. We haven’t had contact with the outside world in a long time. I don’t trust outsiders, especially pretty ones.”
“I don’t blame you,” I said.
She wiped her hands on her apron and walked over to me with an extended hand.
“Welcome, Abi. My name is Peggy Sue,” she said with a smile. She had a bit of a southern accent.
“Hi, Peggy Sue. Thanks for taking us in.”
“So how did you find our town?” she asked.
“By accident,” I answered. “We were on our way to a landing zone about thirty miles southwest of here when, our chopper went down. We walked approximately fifteen miles to get here. We came here hoping to find a secure place to rest, but when we entered the town, we were attacked by the Arvies.”
“Arvies?” she questioned.
“I’ll explain it to you later,” Rhett said from the corner.
“Yes, the monsters outside,” I said.
“So how many are with you?” she asked.
“We had fourteen, but lost three before we were rescued.
She nodded. “Well, let me introduce you to the others.”
She held her hand out, addressing the older woman.
“This is my mother, Nely. She was, and still is, the best cook in town.” Her mother looked to be in her fifties, and had raven black hair which was twisted into a tight bun. She smiled and nodded at me, but her eyes were distant.
“And, these are the other women of Sanctum. My sisters, Jamie, Laura, and Shelley.
“Hi,” I said, waving, feeling a bit out-of-place.
“Hi,” the three of them echoed.
“Shelley is the youngest. She was a few months old when we came down here. She’s thirteen now.”
She reminded me so much of my cousin Lily. She had the same long, dark-brown hair, and dark features, but Shelley had dark brown eyes. Lily had beautiful blue-violet eyes. The thought of her made my heart ache, and made me realize how much I missed her.
“I love that you’re all sisters. I don’t have any siblings,” I said.
“Well, we have kept it all in the family. Jamie is married to Rhett’s brother Reed, and Laura is married to his cousin Revek. They actually had a dual ceremony a few years back. It was beautiful, considering our circumstances.”
“That’s awesome. So how long have you and Rhett been married?” I asked her.
“Rhett and I fell in love before we came to this place, when I was still young. My daddy allowed me to marry him as soon as I turned eighteen. That was eleven years ago. We couldn’t wait, if you know what I mean,” she grinned.
“Yeah, we were glad the two of you finally got a room of your own,” Jamie teased.
They all burst into laughter.
“So where is your dad?” I asked.
They all turned to their mother, who didn’t look up.
“Please excuse me,” Nely said, and then walked away. The room became deathly silent. Jamie, Laura, and Shelley kept their heads down, slowly stirring their pots, but Peggy Sue turned to me and spoke softly.
“When we first went topside, we never expected to encounter those monsters. We lost two wonderful men. My father was one of them.”
My heart suddenly sank, and I felt horrible. “I’m so sorry,” I said, shaking my head. No wonder. His death was still fresh and new.
“It’s alright. You didn’t know. My father was our world, but he was also very sick. He was battling what we believed to be cancer, and had become very weak. His dying wish was to see the topside one last time, and he did. His wish was granted, but when we least expected it, we were attacked. It was dusk, and we thought we were alone when those monsters came up behind us. My father and our priest rushed into the middle of them. They died saving us.”
I didn’t know what to say, or how to answer.
“They both sound like amazing men. Your father must have really loved you.”
“He did,” Peggy Sue answered. “He will always be our hero.”
I nodded.
“Do you need some help?” I asked, trying to change the subject.
“No, I think we’ve got the stirring down to a science,” Jamie smiled. She and Peggy Sue seemed like the talkative ones. Laura and Shelley remained quiet.
“Well then, I won’t mess with perfection,” I smiled.
“You’re our guest, you shouldn’t be stirring a pot,” Shelley said softly.
I turned and smiled at her. “Thank you. Well, I guess I should head back to the rest of my group and make sure they’re all okay. They’re probably wondering where I am,” I said. “It was nice to meet all of you.”
“Nice to meet you too,” they all repeated.
“And, thanks for letting us stay here tonight. We’ll be leaving tomorrow to our pick-up zone.”
“Really? Leaving so soon?” Peggy Sue asked. “Why don’t you stay a few days? Maybe your people can help us get rid of the monsters, so we can take back our town?”
I paused, and then nodded. “I’ll have to discuss it with the rest of my group. We have a few wounded who need attention. I can’t make any promises, but I think that’s a great idea.”
“Yes, that is a great idea, Pegs,” Rhett said, stepping back in the room and winking at his wife.
“I know. Someone has to have some brains around here,” she winked back.
“Abi, you can follow me if you want to rejoin your group,” he said.
I couldn’t wait to get back and see Finn.
I followed Rhett out and back down the hall, where I heard Finn’s voice coming from the wash room.
“Shit! How long does this take to wear off?” he griped, wiping his eyes. He came stumbling out of the room.
“Hey,” I said, running to him, wrapping my arms around his waist.
“Abi, I was looking for you, but someone said you’d already come in,” he squinted, trying to focus his red eyes on me. “Why aren’t you in excruciating pain?”
“I was rescued first and already washed it all off. Get back in there. I’ll help you,” I said, pushing him back into the room.
“Where are the others?” I asked.
“They’ve already washed off, and have been taken to our meeting room,” Rhett said. “I’ll escort you there when you’re finished.”
“Thank you,” I said. I grabbed an extra towel, soaked it with water, and placed it on Finn’s face. He moaned in relief.
“Finn, are you being a wuss?” Pike teased. He and Dr. Fox were also finishing up.
“Man, I don’t know about you, but I sucked up half of a canister. That bastard was melting me from the inside out,” Finn argued.
“Wuss,” Pike laughed.
“Call it what you will, but that shit is torture.”
“Give me that towel,” I said, taking it from him, rinsing it off and soaking it cold water again.
Finn pressed the towel to his face again. “Abi, you saved me,” he said through the wet towel, which made me laugh. He carefully wiped his face, neck, and arms.
“Wow,” Finn said. He came up close to me, pressing his hard body against mine. He tossed the towel behind us in
to the sink.
“Better?” I asked.
“Much,” he said. He quickly wrapped his arms around me and gave me a kiss on the lips.
“Get a room you two,” Pike huffed.
“I would, but I think the rest of our group invited themselves over for a slumber party.”
We all laughed, including Dr. Fox and Rhett.
“Finn, I want you to meet the leader of this hive,” I said, turning his face toward Rhett. “This is Rhett Miller.”
Finn extended his hand to him. “Thank you, sir.”
“It was our pleasure,” Rhett answered. He then shook Pike and Dr. Fox’s hands.
“Please, once everyone gets washed up, I’d like to take you all to the meeting room, and go over a few things.”
“Sure,” Finn answered. “I think we’re all ready.”
Pike and Dr. Fox nodded consent.
We followed Rhett down the hall to a larger room. At the center of the room was an extra-large, round, wooden table with chairs set around it. It reminded me of King Arthur and his round table.
The rest of our group was already there, but after doing the count, we’d lost four men. Our pilot, navigator, and two soldiers. My heart ached, trying to picture their faces in my mind. A few moments ago they were alive and breathing, and in a blink, they were gone. Their lives stripped away from those murderous creatures outside.
I said a silent prayer for them and their families.
My stomach turned, and I began to feel nauseous. This world was filled with so much death and horror.
The two injured men were lying on cots and being attended to by Dr. Lee and Dr. Banks. The patient with both the casted arm and leg was moaning loudly as Dr. Banks searched though his medical bags.
“Oh no,” he breathed. His brow deeply furrowed, and then he closed his eyes tight, looking as if he was wishing for something with all his might. “This can’t be happening.”
“What’s the matter?” I asked.
“We are missing a few of our medical bags. They are carrying very important medications, and pain killers, which are necessary to treat these patients.”
“There is no way we are going back out there tonight,” Rhett said. “At night, those monsters rule the town. We were lucky to have brought you all back here alive. I won’t risk any lives going out into that hellhole one more time. We have some pain pills here, however they are very outdated.”
“No. That won’t work. What they need is out there in the middle of the madness. Without it, none of us will get any sleep tonight,” Finn added.
“I’m sorry,” Rhett said shaking his head. “We’re not going out there. Our best bet is to wait until morning, when the sun is high.”
The wounded man began moaning even louder. Dr. Banks tried to comfort him, but his efforts were futile. The man was in need of his medication.
“Sir, would you mind if I went out and retrieved the medication? I would need to use some of your gear,” Dr. Banks asked.
“Doctor, do you have a death wish?” Rhett asked. “These patients won’t die tonight.”
“Without his medication, this patient will die, and both will suffer. Besides, we aren’t guaranteed the medicine will still be there tomorrow. What if the Arvies destroy it?”
“How would they even know what it is, let alone have any need to destroy it?”
“We can’t underestimate these creatures. They are highly intelligent.”
“Intelligent? Shit. All they need is one blast to the brain and lights out,” Rhett huffed.
The injured man began to cry out in pain.
“Sir, I need to go retrieve that medication,” Dr. Banks reiterated.
“And risk your life for them?” Rhett asked.
“I’m a doctor. My job is to save lives and help those who have been injured. I lost my wife to one of those Arvies. I am not afraid of dying, but I do need to get that medication. It will be beneficial not only to these patients, but many more.”
“I’ll go with you,” I offered without even thinking about it. He obviously needed the medication, and was willing to risk his own life to get it, so I was going to help him.
“Count me in,” Finn added, turning to me and winking. “It seemed like the tear gas worked to keep them away. If we could have a few of your canisters, I’m sure we could do this quickly,” Finn said.
“But you don’t even know where the bags were dropped. We only have about ten canisters left, and would like to keep handy as a last resort.”
“Could we use two of them?” Dr. Banks asked.
He paused and exhaled. I could tell he wasn’t in agreement with this mission, which probably meant usage of his canisters would be a waste. They’d already used a few saving us tonight.
“What if we help you clear your town of the Arvies before we leave? Would you allow us to use a few then?” I asked.
Rhett looked at me and a grin formed on his face, but the other people in my group, including Finn, looked horrified.
“Abi,” Pike sighed. “We need to get to the pick-up zone.” I knew all he wanted was to get Tina to safety.
“Well, we should help them. Right now we’re alive because of them. The least we can do is help them. The Arvies don’t like the sunlight. If we use that to our advantage, I think we could do it,” I said.
“Abi, have you seen how many buildings there are in this town? There are at least fifty,” Pike added.
“There are fifty-two, including Sanctum,” Rhett corrected.
“I think we could clear the town out in one day,” I said.
“I don’t think it will be as easy as you say,” Pike said.
“What about getting the injured to the pick-up zone? What about your parents? They need to know you are safe,” Dr. Banks said.
“My father would want me to help. He taught us, and trained us to be survivors. If he was here, he would be going out and helping so they could begin to live and rebuild. A few days won’t kill us, and if it does, then at least we’ll go out doing a good deed.”
Dr. Banks smiled and shook his head. “You remind me so much of your father.”
Rhett interrupted. “If you stay and help us rid our town of the Arvies, you can take as many canisters as you need.”
“We won’t need many. We just need enough to get us there and back,” Dr. Banks said.
“Dr. Banks, I think you should stay. We need you to tend to the sick. Rhett said they have a sick member, which you can attend to. We’ll go get the medicine,” I said.
“She’s right, Dr. Banks. We will need your help if any of us gets injured,” Finn agreed. “So, what exactly will we be looking for?”
“We are missing two black duffel bags. They aren’t too heavy, but they carry a ton of gold in medicine,” he answered.
“Great. So, we’ll be searching for black bags in the pitch black night. That shouldn’t be too hard to find,” Finn laughed nervously.
“We have a few night vision goggles. Those should help,” Rhett said. He motioned to his brother Reed, who nodded and stepped out of the room.
“Does anyone else want to join the adventure?” Finn asked.
“I’ll go,” Pike said.
“Pike,” Tina shrieked. She grabbed hold of his arm.
“It’s alright. I’ll be with Abi and Finn. We’ve already survived two run-ins with the Arvies. We make a pretty good team,” Pike assured her.
“I’ll go,” one of our soldiers said. He was the one who lost his friend, and Finn handed him his dog tags.
Everyone else remained still and quiet.
“Well, that should do it. I guess this is mission for the fantastic four,” Finn said, clapping his hands together. “Let’s hope it’s quick.”
I nodded.
“I will have a few of my men at the door of Sanctum, to cover you, in case you need it on your way back.”
“Thank you,” I said.
Rhett’s brother, Reed, returned with two night vision goggles.
“
Abi and I will take the goggles and go for the medicine. Pike you and—” Finn paused, realizing he didn’t know the soldiers name.
“Tim,” he answered.
“Tim, you and Pike will cover us. Each of you will have a canister. Use it only if you have to, and shoot at anything that moves. We will be backtracking down the street we came in on. It has to be somewhere near there. As soon as we have the bags, we hustle back.”
“I just hope it’s as easy as you make it sound,” Tim said. “Those things are no joke. They scare the crap out of me.”
“You don’t have to do this, man. I totally understand if you don’t,” Finn said.
Tim nodded. “No, I’m with you,” he said.
Finn reached out and shook his hand. “I admire you, Tim. You’ve got guts.”
“Thanks,” Tim smiled.
Chapter 8
We all unpacked our radiation suits and masks from our packs, but I quickly realized we couldn’t use the full-faced masks because of the night vision goggles.
“We have half face masks you can use,” Rhett said.
“I’ll go get them,” Reed said, and immediately left the room. In a few minutes he returned with the masks.
“Abi, are you sure you should be going out there?” Rhett asked. He was looking at me like I was fragile. Like I was a girl.
“Her looks are deceiving. This girl is kick-ass, and has a wicked kill-shot with her firearm,” Finn interjected.
I smiled. I hated when I was bragged about, but hearing Finn talk me up made me love him even more. I mean, I was good at combat and shooting, but I’m sure there were many more women out there who could probably outshoot me.
Rhett stared at me. “If you say so,” he said, shrugging his shoulders.
“It’s true,” Dr. Banks added.
I blushed.
“Well, I won’t doubt you then,” Rhett agreed. He handed me and Finn the night vision goggles. “Do you both know how to use these things?”
“Yes,” I said strapping it to my head, keeping the scope lifted until we were outside. “My uncle was a navy seal. He trained us well,” I bragged a little.