"Shit." Looking down the street there was a gas station in sight, probably the very one this rental place used to fill up their vehicles with a hefty surcharge when customers returned them empty. But no power. Katie hadn't seen a light on anywhere yet and no power meant no gas. She went back to the high end SUV, leaving the other sets of keys on the dash of each vehicle. Following a hunch she made a fast trip back into the building for a moment, where she spotted a two and a half gallon gas can in the back room, she took it, even though it felt mostly empty, and made her way back to her new wheels. Tossing in her bag she shut the door and started the car again. Cool air blew into her face as she pondered her next move.
"Randy? Gimme a sign here buddy, if you are up there. I could still use a little help." Katie said out loud, half as a prayer, half as a jape. "All I am asking for is a little direction…"
Her voice was drowned out as a military helicopter traveling low and fast buzzed over the dealership heading south east.
"Fuck." Katie said, "I'll remember to ask again next time I need something. How about a nice gun and a brick of ammo? Can you work that in?"
Putting the car in gear she turned onto the street and made her way south east, following the direction that the helicopter had flown.
Chapter 9 — Max
It had to be Draper of course. Max didn't like the man much; ever since the Colonel left him high and dry at the train station in Chicago he had a burning desire to kick the man's ass, or at least to wipe the smug smile off of his face. Yet here he was, in another helicopter, hovering over the building helping Max and the people with him into his already overloaded bird.
"Of course it is you." Draper yelled at Bill as he helped the man inside. "Lucky does seem to suit you as a nickname."
"It's one I can live with, Colonel." said Bill. His feelings about the man were not as antagonistic as Max.
"Still slumming with the magician, I see." Draper said referring to Max. Draper had seen Max demonstrate his abilities before they left Iowa, but had not been impressed. Whatever was happening to the humans who came into close contact with the zombies, Draper preferred to use the skill God had given him over those inherited by being in the proximity of zombies when they were killed. "At least you had the good sense to bring the cop with you."
"Yeah and I kept the old man and the kid with me too." laughed Bill referring to Ruben and Javier.
"You lost the Oriental though."
"Couldn't find him."
"I'm surprised you looked. He was a bit of a whiner. Probably he made it out with the others." said Draper in a voice that denied what he was saying.
"Others made it out?"
"A few broke out east and headed to the beach, they got picked up by boats from the ship. A bunch more headed west, we haven't heard from them."
"You won't. Max says there were zombies there, thousands of them."
"He would know." said Draper.
Bill nodded and settled onto the floor, trying to shrink into himself and not take up so much room. He didn't bother trying to communicate with Draper again, the helicopter noise made talking to each other almost impossible without headsets, which Bill didn't have. Draper, however, did and he pulled away from Bill to talk to someone else using the radio.
Max took that moment to lean over and shout in Bill's ear, "Where are we going?" Bill just shrugged and shook his head.
None of them had to wait too long, their destination was a strange looking ship a short ride into lake Michigan, there were two spots for the helicopter to land and they had to hover while they waited for another to take off and make room for them. Once they were down they were dragged below deck almost immediately and put in the galley, or the lunch room for landlubbers like Max. The group of those who had been snatched off of the top of the building was isolated pending a medical screening by the ship's physician and they waited in uneasy silence for the man to arrive. It turned out the 'man' was a woman and she cleared the cooks out of the galley so she could use it as an impromptu screening area to give her patients a small amount of privacy. Stewart was pulled in first and two nervous looking young sailors were stationed to watch over the rest of the group.
"We're not zombies, so you guys can relax." Bill said by way of opening a conversation with the sailor closest to him.
"Sorry, ah…sergeant, but until you are cleared we have to treat you as possibly contaminated."
"Oh I figured that, I've done my share of clearing people too." said Bill, thinking back to Sioux City, where his squad had screened refugees that made it across the rail road bridge they had been guarding.
"We aren't supposed to talk to you." the sailor said.
"Can I ask why?"
"We might have to shoot you."
Nodding Bill shut up and sat back down next to Max, "Makes sense, when you think about it."
"Yeah, I guess it does. I feel like I've spent half my time traveling going through checkpoints and being screened though. So I don't have to like it."
"You ladies bitching about the screening?" asked Stewart who came in buttoning up her shirt.
"Ma'am." said the doctor sharply, "That side, no mingling until I clear them."
Stewart nodded and walked to the side of the room away from Max, "You gotta keep 'em separated." she said in a singsong voice. "So who's next boys?" Pointing at Max she said, "If you take him make sure to use two fingers and be extra thorough."
Max beat Bill to volunteering and a few minutes later he joined Stewart.
"Thanks for that 'two fingers' remark, I didn't know I might have a bite on my prostate. How'd you get through? I thought you had some problems back at the base?"
"She just checked for bites, scratches and other breaks in the skin. Same as for you."
"But I thought you had…"
"Had. That is the word Max. I had some injuries, my head, mostly, does it look damaged to you?" Stewart tilted her head down and Max gingerly touched it where she had been hit a couple days before. He felt a small lump, but couldn't see any damage or breaks in the skin. Moving from her head he traced his finger down to her shoulder and looked pointedly at her breast, where blood stained the front of her shirt.
"Gone. Hardly a bruise now. It's been less than an hour."
"Geez Stewart, it's like you're in overdrive now."
She nodded and said, quietly, "Let's keep that on the down low, shall we. The doc there didn't have access to the medical records for us, I didn't feel like going back into a holding cell and as remember you had some injuries that seem to be all healed up now too."
"Yeah, I kept quiet about it." said Max blushing.
"Did you blush when she made you strip in there?"
Max shook his head, "No, I am used to getting naked in front of doctors now."
"But you still blush when you are caught in bad behavior, like withholding information so you don't get put in lock down."
Max turned even redder.
"That's so cute!" Stewart said, reaching across the table to grab his hands in hers.