I headed up to the galley sometime before dawn. I didn’t bother checking my watch. Upstairs, Jase was kneeling on a bench, his hands clasped and his head down. Clutch sat at a table nearby, cleaning his rifle. I took a seat next to him and watched Jase. I hadn’t seen him pray since we’d buried his dog, and it worried me to see his façade gone.
Clutch glanced up before turning back to his work. “He’s been at it all night,” he said softly, also looking worried.
Seeing Jase’s ragged appearance, it was clear the stress was getting to him. His hair was mussed and dark circles underlined his eyes. I headed over to the countertop and poured a cup of coffee, and then set it down next to him.
He looked up, startled. “Oh. Thanks.”
I sat and wrapped an arm around him. After a moment, his tension gave way and he leaned into my embrace. “It’ll be okay,” I murmured. “We’re safe here.”
He nodded slightly before reaching for the cup and taking a drink. Holding the cup, he watched me for a moment, and then placed his forehead against mine. “I hope we’re safe.” When he pulled away, he put the cup down and traced the fresh scar on my face and he winced. “That’s still a doozy.”
“Do you think it’ll hurt my chances at getting a date?” I asked.
He gave me the smallest hint of a smile before he looked back out the window and wrapped his hand around the cross he wore.
I sat there, with my arm around Jase, while he prayed. Clutch eventually joined my side. We watched the night sky turn from black to dark gray with hints of gold in the east. As light gave definition to the shapes and trees, any hope I had plummeted.
I could make out the zeds filling the bridge and road to either side. Not a blade of grass remained. They’d filled in the entire area to the west, disappearing into the trees, and were still spreading out. Our Humvee at the boat ramp was being rocked as zeds fought to get whatever they smelled inside.
A leaf in the wind caught my eye, and I noticed it was blowing north, which meant the wind had switched direction sometime during the night. My eyes widened, and I grabbed Clutch’s arm. “The wind.”
He looked. After a moment, he nodded tightly and then pointed at the zeds. “I think we just entered hell.”
“No,” Jase said.
Clutch wrapped an arm around him, then another around me. I clung to him but could find no comfort in the embrace. My stomach clenched with terror. A tear rolled down my scarred cheek as I held onto Jase and Clutch and stared outside. One hundred thousand pairs of eyes were focused on Camp Fox, and they looked ravenous.
GLUTTONY
The Sixth Deadly Sin
Chapter XXII
Two very long weeks later
“It seems like the ones in back and on the edges are moving on,” Tyler said as he walked down the steps and into the crew quarters. “Only problem is that there’s still at least fifty thousand or more out there sticking around.”
“Figured that was the case,” Clutch said while he did another lunge. “I have to hand it to them. Once they zero in on something, the bastards are persistent.”
“It really sucks being at the bottom of the food chain,” I said, matching Clutch’s lunge.
Eight of us were going through daily exercises. We’d just finished several sets of push-ups and sit-ups. We tried to keep it interesting by having each scout come up with an exercise, but after a while, even that got old. There were only so many variations to a push-up.
But the herds outside just kept coming. Even though it seemed like tens, if not hundreds, of thousands continued on their journey, enough stayed behind, seemingly too hungry to continue for the slight chance for prey. Two herds currently surrounded the Aurora from the bridge and both sides of the river. They couldn’t reach us, not through the water, but at least a hundred tried—or were pushed—each day, and at least a couple dozen of those made it onto the island. I’d quit looking out the window on the fourth day. It made it easier to pretend that we weren’t caught in the middle of the world’s worst shit storm.
“C’mon. Just one.”
I turned to see Griz with his open hand stretched out.
Jase shook his head. “No way. Go find your own.”
“Why? You have a whole case of them.”
“I risked my life for them.” He held up a half-eaten candy bar. “These Snickers are my one and only joy in life so you’ll have to pry it from my cold, dead hands.”
“Don’t tempt me.”
When I turned back to Tyler, he had moved closer to Clutch.
“We need to ration harder. Vicki says we need to move to a diet of at least ninety percent grain,” Tyler said in a low voice. “Without fresh meat and vegetables, we’re going through our food stores four times as fast as we calculated.”
Clutch’s lips thinned. “People aren’t going to like to hear it.”
I winced. They weren’t going to like to hear that news at all, but we had no other option. Heading to the mainland was out of the question. Worse, enough zeds had fallen in the water and scared the fish away, not that I could yet take a bite of fish without gagging. More and more zeds were washing ashore and now lingered on our island.
As long as the zeds were out there, we were stuck in what could easily become our tomb. “We need to get the zeds away from the Aurora,” I said my thoughts aloud.
Tyler chuckled. “Want me to get on the bullhorn and order the zeds to leave?”
Clutch was watching me all too closely.
“I’ll do it,” I said after a moment. “I’ll lead the herds away from the river barge.”
“Cash…” Clutch warned.
I gave him a pleading look. I knew the odds. I’d been an actuary before the outbreak, but I figured the odds out on the river couldn’t be any worse than staying on the boat. Staying on the boat was only delaying the odds. “If we don’t do something, who knows how long the herds will stay. If we wait until we are out of food, it’ll be too late. You know how long it took to build up the reserves we’re burning through. The winter may kill the zeds, but without our livestock, it’s going to kill us, too. I’ll take a boat and run the Pied Piper plan.”
“We’ve only tried that with tiny herds, a few dozen zeds at most,” Tyler said.
“The plan hasn’t failed yet,” I countered.
Clutch watched me for a moment—it was a calculating gaze—and then turned to Tyler. “I’ll lead the mission. I want Cash and Jase to stay on the Aurora.”
“Like hell,” I said. “Camp Fox needs you more than it needs me.”
Clutch grabbed my arms. “What happens when you come up against a lock or a dam?”
“I’ll figure out something. What would you do?”
He shook his head. “Leading them away is one thing. How are you going to turn around and get past them and back to the boat?”
“I’ll bring plenty of supplies and hide out until the coast is clear.”
His brows rose and his lips tightened.
“The idea could work,” Tyler mused. “But it’s dangerous. It’s awfully dangerous.”
“What other option do we have?” I asked. “If I fail, you still have time to figure out other options.”
“If we fail,” Clutch added. “We’re a team.”
I tried not to look relieved, but the idea of not having Clutch along terrified me. I smiled and gave a single nod.
“I’m in,” Jase said, and I looked around, realizing we’d drawn the attention of everyone in the room.
Clutch glared at Jase. “Now, hold on a minute.”
“This is a Charlie team mission, right?” Jase asked. “I’m a Coyote. You’re not going to make me sit this one out. We’re in this together.”