Empty Bodies (Book 5): Damnation Read online

  The question threw Jessica. She of course knew that Gabriel was speaking of his wife and daughter. Was she supposed to tell the truth? That, no, he wouldn’t find them. That the chances that they’d survived all this were astronomical. From how he’d described her, Gabriel’s wife didn’t seem built for a survivalist world.

  But, in this new world, hope was all they had. It was, perhaps, the only thing keeping air in their lungs.

  “I do,” Jessica said. “I do think we’re going to find them.”

  Gabriel frowned, looking down at the sidewalk.

  She asked, “What’s the matter?”

  “What if I’m not sure that I want to find them?”

  “What?” Jessica asked. She’d heard what he’d asked, but couldn’t believe it.

  Gabriel looked up. “I haven’t been the best father, and I damn sure haven’t been a great husband. And look around us. Look at what the world has become. Look at what we’ve become. We’re goddamn animals out here trying to survive. This isn’t a way to live. I just wonder if it would be better for them to be dead. How am I supposed to have a family in a world like this?”

  Jessica found herself at a loss. She really wasn’t sure what to say.

  “Gabriel, that isn’t true. Look at what you’ve done with Dylan. You had no responsibility to take care of that child, yet you protected him like he was your own.”

  Gabriel looked away, unable to make eye contact with Jessica any longer. She grabbed him by the hand, and he turned to face her.

  “We’re going to get to Alexandria, and we’re going to find your wife and your little girl, all right?”

  It took a few moments of staring vacantly into Jessica’s eyes, but he finally nodded. She wrapped her arm around him, just like she would have if he were her brother. She smiled.

  “Come on,” Jessica said. “Let’s go wake those rocks up.”

  ***

  With Thomas and Claire now awake, and everything loaded into the SUV, Gabriel went to the two picnic tables at the far end of the Welcome Center. Jessica sat at one, writing in her journal. As Gabriel approached, she closed it, almost as if she didn’t want him to see what she was writing. He wondered what she wrote about, but also knew that it was none of his business. She stood up.

  “We ready to go?”

  Gabriel nodded. “Yeah.”

  “Thanks for letting me have a little bit of time to myself,” Jessica said.

  “No problem.” Gabriel cleared his throat. “Thanks for your encouragement earlier. You have to understand that, in a way, the closer to home I get, the more scared I become. I have to find my family.”

  Jessica hugged Gabriel.

  “We’ll find them.”

  Gabriel broke their embrace, then looked Jessica in the eyes and smiled. They turned around and headed back over to the SUV. Thomas and Claire stood near the back of it, watching as the two approached.

  “You guys ready?” Thomas asked.

  Gabriel nodded.

  Thomas smiled. “Then let’s blow this joint, shall we?”

  ***

  Gabriel sat in the back seat, chewing on a tough piece of jerky. He’d never been a fan of the stuff, but now the dried meat may as well have been a tender slab of filet mignon. Thomas had several packs, and eating it in-between the cans of processed soup had become a luxury. Gabriel reminded himself of how fortunate they were to have any food at all. That they weren’t to the point yet where they were hunting rabbits and squirrels.

  Thomas sat in front of Gabriel, taking the first shift at driving. Gabriel had offered to drive, but Thomas had adamantly said he was driving. Whatever. Gabriel had no issue riding along, just as long as he made it home. That’s all that mattered.

  “Any idea how far we are from Alexandria?” Thomas asked.

  “God willing, we should be there by day’s end,” Claire said.

  Gabriel snorted to himself at the word ‘God’. He then said, “Yeah, if we’re lucky and don’t come up against a ton of resistance.” Other than the occasional straggler, they’d so far only run across one small herd of Empties. Thomas had been able to easily maneuver around it.

  They’d passed a few gas stations since leaving the Welcome Center, but hadn’t stopped at any of them. They'd each looked like they'd been empty since before The Fall, with windows busted out, random auto parts and trash outside, and gas prices that Gabriel hadn’t seen in a decade. The weather was nice, but clouds in the eastern sky said that they could hit rain within the hour. So they’d driven on, trying to get as far as they could before the sky fell open.

  Jessica sat in the back seat with Gabriel. She had her head buried in her journal.

  “What’re you writing about?” Gabriel finally asked.

  Jessica looked up from her journal and glanced over to him. She shut the book, leaving her pen inside. “Nothing,” she said.

  “I’m sorry,” Gabriel said. “I didn’t mean to pry. It’s none of my business. Go on, keep writing.”

  Jessica turned away from Gabriel, and stared out her window. “It’s okay. I was finished anyway.”

  Gabriel looked out his own window. Nothing but vast open fields covered the landscape. He had spent so much time traveling and living in the city that he often forgot that his home state of Virginia had such beautiful scenery.

  “Hey, look,” Thomas said.

  A large gas station sat in-between the eastbound and westbound lanes of the highway. It had at least one fast food restaurant joined to it.

  “We’ve gotta check this place out,” Thomas said. “We’re in the middle of nowhere, and there’s hardly any cars in the parking lot. Maybe this place hasn’t been raided.”

  Gabriel doubted that. But Thomas was right that the gas station didn’t appear to be a threat—at least not from the outside. And it had a restaurant attached that might have food.

  “All right,” Gabriel said. “Let’s stop and have a look.”

  CHAPTER THREE

  After a period of screaming, Dylan finally passed out.

  “Check his pulse,” Will said.

  Charlie placed his index and middle fingers on Dylan’s neck. “He’s alive. Must’ve passed out from the pain.”

  Outside of the SUV, Mary Beth sat on the ground and cried.

  “Go take care of her,” Will told Holly. “I’ll keep pressure.”

  Holly wiped her own eyes and stepped out of the vehicle.

  “Come on, sweetie, let’s get out of the rain.” Holly led Mary Beth to Charlie’s cabin.

  Ten minutes later, the bleeding had almost completely stopped.

  “I think it worked,” Will said.

  “Where did you learn that about cayenne pepper?” Charlie asked.

  “My old boss, I think. He was one of those survivalist types. Loved being outdoors and shit, and always read a lot of books about Navy SEALs and the military. I thought I remembered him saying one day in the break room that you could clot blood with cayenne pepper.”

  “He’s still going to need medical attention,” Charlie said. “If that thing is infected, he’ll—”

  “I know,” Will said. “The bleeding’s stopped, so let’s just be thankful for that. We’ll tackle one problem at a time. For now, hand me that first aid kit so I can dress this wound.”

  Charlie opened the box and passed a large bandage to Will, who dressed the wound. The white of the bandage showed spots of blood, but not nearly as much as the t-shirt and the towel had. He tied the extra shirt around Dylan’s arm, just above the wound, using it as a tourniquet. When he’d finished, the two men backed away, allowing the boy to rest.

  Outside, the rain had stopped, and Holly and Mary Beth sat on Charlie’s porch. The young girl appeared to have calmed down some, and Holly’s eyes were dry, as well. She looked over to Will and he gave her a thumbs up as a signal that the bleeding had stopped.

  “Thank God,” Holly mouthed.

  Charlie had moved ten yards away from the front of the SUV, standing near the playg
round. His hands gripped his hips, and he looked down to the ground.

  Approaching Charlie, Will asked, “Do you know of any doctors around here?”

  Charlie shook his head and looked up. “There’s not even a hospital around here that I know of. And even if there was, I doubt we’d have any luck finding a doctor.”

  “Then we’re gonna have to load up in the car and leave. We can’t afford to stay here.”

  “Agreed,” Charlie said. “But where are we gonna go?”

  “I suppose we’ll head North for Roanoke.”

  “You still want to go and try to find that preacher?” Charlie asked, puzzled.

  “I want to get him help,” Will said, gesturing toward the SUV. “That is my only priority right now. But if we’re able to find him help, then yes, I want to go and try to find Father Bartman.”

  Charlie nodded. “I just hope that we can find a doctor, and soon.”

  Me, too, Will thought.

  Holly and Mary Beth approached from behind them.

  “How is he?”

  “I wrapped the wound in bandages. He’s still passed out, but he’s breathing steady.”

  “What’re we gonna do?” Holly asked.

  “Charlie and I both agreed that it’s best for us to leave. We still have good shelter here, but we really have no choice but to try and find a doctor. Salt, aspirin, and bandages are only going to take us so far. We need to get him checked out for an infection, and see if we can find someone who can properly close that wound.”

  “We need to raid the two cabins and grab anything that we can use,” Charlie said. “Clothes, more medicine, food—anything that we can take with us.”

  “You and I can do that,” Will replied. He looked at Holly. “Stay out here and keep an eye on the kids.” She nodded and took Mary Beth by the hand.

  Charlie went to his cabin while Will checked on the only other one still standing, which had been vacant when The Fall had happened. He wasn’t sure that he would find much inside. At most, he hoped that he would find some more medicine, or more canned food.

  The door was already unlocked when Will turned the handle. The fire hadn’t made its way over to this building at all, and the place was clean like it hadn’t been touched in weeks. There were no empty bottles or cans left on any of the tables in the living room. In the kitchen, the counters were spotless. The trash next to the refrigerator was empty, and the sink was clear of any dirty dishes.

  Will opened the refrigerator, and shut it almost as fast. A rotten smell permeated out of the appliance. It smelled of a mix of spoiled milk, aged meat, and rotten vegetables.

  He checked the pantry next. Inside, he found a few cans of beans, canned vegetables, and some spices. He looked for cayenne pepper and didn’t see any, but he made sure to pick up the container of salt. This one was almost full.

  Next, he walked to the cabinet above the sink. It was also mostly empty, but he found a bottle of aspirin, some cough syrup, and a first aid kit that was even smaller than what they had. He set the first aid kit down on the counter and popped it open. Inside, he found a large bandage, gauze, some tape, and Band-Aids. He closed it and put it under his arm, stuffing the bottle of aspirin into his pocket and carrying the cough syrup.

  Two bedrooms were located in the back of the cabin. He’d hoped that he would find some clothes, as he’d lost most of his in the fire. He checked the closets, the bathroom, and the laundry room, but found nothing useful. Even still, one of the beds had clean sheets, a comforter, and four pillows. All the linens on the bed in the second bedroom had been stripped, likely by the survivors at the campground. Will removed the blankets and the pillows from the bed, and set them down near the front door.

  He made one last sweep through the building, looking to see if he could find anything that would be of use to them. When he didn’t, he headed back out the door.

  Outside, Holly was playing with Mary Beth in the middle of the campground. For the first time in hours, the child finally appeared calm. It put a smile on Will’s face to see her happy.

  “You guys want to come over and help me carry some of this stuff to the car?” Will asked.

  “Sure,” Holly yelled back.

  Will threw the bedding onto the porch and asked Mary Beth if she could carry the pillows to the vehicle. Her arms weren’t quite long enough to grab all four of them, but she managed to grab three.

  “What else did you find?” Holly asked.

  Will sighed. “Not a lot. I found a little food, more aspirin and bandages, and those blankets and pillows. That’s about it.”

  After handing Holly the bag of food and the first aid kit, Will picked up the blankets and the remaining pillow. As he stepped off the front porch, he heard Charlie come out of his cabin. Will stopped in the courtyard to wait on him.

  “Did you find anything?” Will asked.

  Charlie carried a duffel bag and two reusable grocery bags.

  “Pretty much just my clothes and some food. I cleared out the rest of the medicine cabinet. Never know when we’ll need that stuff. I’ve got one more load just inside the door.”

  “I’ll grab it,” Holly said.

  Charlie nodded, and he and Will made their way to the SUV.

  The back door of the SUV was open, and the two men set their things in the rear cargo area. Will peeked over the top of the seat and saw Dylan still fast asleep, his stomach rising and falling. The bandage on his arm showed red spots, but it wasn’t soaked.

  “Still hard to believe that cayenne pepper actually worked,” Charlie said.

  “Thank God it did,” Will said. “I don’t know what I would’ve done if he would have...” Will stopped the sentence short. “Gabriel left him with me, and he trusted that I would take care of him.”

  Charlie put his hand on Will’s shoulder. “You can’t beat yourself up over what happened, man. We didn’t know those things were out there, or that they would come here and start a fire. We just didn’t know. We’d been here all this time and hadn’t seen any. It’s not your fault.”

  Will sighed. “I know.”

  A few moments later, Holly returned, carrying the remaining bags.

  “This was all I saw.”

  “That’s everything,” Charlie said.

  “So, does that mean we’re ready to go?” Holly asked.

  “I think so,” Will said.

  “Where are we going?” Mary Beth asked.

  “We’re going to go and try to find a doctor for Dylan.”

  “Is he going to be okay?”

  “Yes, sweetie, he’s going to be fine. He just needs a doctor to check some things.” Holly grabbed Mary Beth by the hand and led her to the rear of the truck. “You’re gonna have to squeeze in back here. We need to let Dylan lay down on the back seat.”

  “Okay,” Mary Beth said.

  With Holly’s help, she loaded into the cargo area of the truck in a small area they’d left clear for her.

  “Comfortable?” Holly asked.

  Mary Beth shrugged.

  “Would you rather sit in my lap?” Holly asked.

  “I'll be fine here.”

  “All right, sweetie. It’s just until Dylan gets better.”

  “When will that be?”

  Shaking her head, Holly said, “I’m not sure. Now, watch your hands.” She shut the back door.

  Five yards from the SUV, Charlie stood with his back to the vehicle, his hands on his hips. Will stepped up behind him.

  “You ready to go, man?” Will asked.

  Charlie didn’t respond. He raised his hand to his face and wiped his eyes. Will walked around to face him and saw that he was choking back tears.

  “I really thought we’d have this place forever,” Charlie said. “I can’t believe it’s gone. I can’t believe they’re gone.” He looked at the cabins that had burned, clearly thinking of the friends they’d lost within the campground.

  “Nothing is forever,” Will said. “Especially not now. But we’re going to be
all right.” Will put his hand on Charlie’s shoulder. “Come on, man. Let’s get out of here.”

  Charlie turned around and walked with Will back to the SUV. The passenger side rear door was open, and Holly sat inside.

  “I’ll sit back here with Dylan,” she said. “You can ride up front with Will.”

  Will got into the driver’s seat, adjusting it so that it was comfortable for him. He looked over to Charlie, who stared outside at the destroyed cabins, his hand on his chin.

  “It’s gonna be all right, brother,” Will said.

  There was a moment of silence, and then Charlie said, “For us, it’s possible.” He shook his head. “But not for them.”

  Will drew in a deep breath, put the truck into drive, and headed for the campground’s exit for the last time.

  CHAPTER FOUR

  They headed East on I-40—the same way they’d gone when they’d driven to Durham.

  “We should hit I-77 in about an hour,” Charlie said. “Between here and there, we aren’t going to pass through any cities. Just a lot of rural areas and smaller towns.”

  “I know we didn’t see many people on our way toward Durham last time, but let’s just keep our eyes peeled,” Will said. He glanced into the rearview mirror at Holly. “How’s he doing back there?”

  “Still passed out and breathing fine,” Holly said, speaking low.

  “I can’t believe he’s still out,” Charlie said.

  “Just enjoy it while you can,” Will said. “It’s gonna be hell when he wakes. How are you doing back there, Mary Beth?”

  Whispering, Holly answered, “She’s asleep.”

  “Oh, sorry,” Will said.

  “Poor girl went through a lot today,” Charlie commented.

  “Yeah,” Will said. “More than any girl her age should have to.”

  As they cruised down the interstate, they looked around for any signs of life. They saw no moving cars, no live people walking. Nothing but abandoned cars and the occasional Empty. The farther away from the camp they moved, the dryer the roads became as the rain had apparently avoided this area.

  They reached I-77 in just over an hour and headed North.