Generation Dead (Book 3): Beyond The Gates (18 page)

Chapter 44

We headed to Jerome, taking the caution of the north road, and avoiding the towns to the south.  Blackfoot, Pocatello, Burley, and Twin Falls were all dead and gone.

The road was open and free of problems, and Kayla was able to make pretty good time. Idaho Falls and Jerome did a lot of trade back and forth, so the two towns kept the route open, even during the winter.  US 20 was a lonely road, and there wasn’t much to see.  The grass was nice, but the low clouds kind of put a damper on conversation. Every once in a while I caught Julia looking at my wound and give a little shudder.  I knew what she was thinking.  Just a little more to the right and I’d have been dead on that lobby floor.

Off in the distance, I could see the beginnings of the mountains again, but they never seemed to get any closer. In all honesty, this area of Idaho was flatter and duller than driving through the old cornfields of Illinois.

“Think this trip has been worth it so far?” Jake asked suddenly, breaking everyone out of their contemplations, which was probably his intent.

Julia fielded this one.  “We’ve seen several communities that have survived and thrived despite being cut off from the rest of the country.  They used the terrain and kept themselves alive.  I’d say knowing that alone would be cause for President Jackson to take down the gates, push back on the zombies, and maybe see if there was anything left of the West Coast.”

I nodded.  “It’s been a long time since the Upheaval, and there’s probably a lot of people still alive in the remote areas of the northwest.”

Kayla agreed.  “Might be good for people here to realize they aren’t by themselves, and give their kids a better chance.”

Jake nodded. “I was thinking the same thing.  Once we find out what’s going on at Enterprise that’s worth killing over, should we keep going north?”

I shook my head at that one.  “We’ve been on the road for a while, and have a ways to go yet, not counting the trip back.  If we’re lucky, we’ll get out before the snows keep us here for a few extra months.  I say we figure this one out, head back, report, and let another scout take care of the territory over the hills.  I’d like to settle into some comfortable married life for a while.”

I got unanimous agreement from Kayla and Julia, so Jake conceded the point.  That was when we drove past a national preserve called Craters of the Moon. It was a low grouping of hills that looked like the moon, appropriately. It was pretty cool, and the sun broke free at that time as well, casting some great shadows along the ridges and slopes.

We began to see civilization again, and it was a welcome relief. Several farms which were obviously still alive and kicking flanked the road we were taking.  I threw a wave to small boy who played out in a small fenced area near his house. The zombies were still a threat here, but not as much.  Several cows lined the fences, watching the big black Jeep go by with bovine patience.  I would have thought this place had emerged unscathed from the Upheaval, but then we passed the cemetery. 

The original cemetery was a nice, tree-lined affair, but towards the back there was a large mass grave.  About one hundred small white crosses decorated the front of the mound, and I could see small lettering on each one. 

The town of Shoshone was quiet, likely owing to the coming evening. Most of the town looked neat and tidy, but I could see where there had been some trouble.  We passed through, going by other cars that were on the road, and in all likelihood, we didn’t seem out of place.  I saw two other Jeeps that looked like ours, and one that was identical.  I looked at Jake and he made a note in a small notebook that he kept for when we reported back to the Capital.

The drive out of Shoshone was uneventful, and we even saw a few cars ahead of us travelling in the same direction.  If I didn’t know better, I’d have thought we were in the plains, riding through Kansas.

When we reached the outskirts of Jerome, I could tell things were a little different.  There were huge farms all around and several cattle ranches. We passed reservoirs of water and two windmills farms.  Jerome was very self-sufficient, at least from the outside.  What it might be on the inside was anybody’s guess.

About a mile outside of town, we passed over what looked like a huge ditch.  It went off in both directions, and the bridge we crossed didn’t look like it had been there as long as others.  As a matter of fact, it reminded me of the ditch that Uncle Charlie had dug a long time ago around what was now the capital.  This one was huge, going down ten feet and being at least twelve feet across.  The dirt from the excavation was piled on the town side, increasing the height of the ditch wall on that side to at least fifteen feet.  The whole thing was grassed over, and a small stream of water flowed along the bottom. 

Chapter 45

Inside the barrier was a big, thriving community.  Down the streets we passed, children played outside and neighbors talked outdoors.  In every home there was at least one light on, although we didn’t see too many with more than one.  I guess the windmills could only provide so much power.

In the town, tree-lined streets gave way to small businesses and shops, with a few being boarded up and idle.  Others were centers of activity, like the bar and the local cafes.

Kayla pulled into a small place called the Holiday Motel, and no one objected.  The sun was nearly set, and I was actually feeling very hungry.  I told Julia to take my bandage off, since I didn’t want to attract too much attention.  

Jake looked around and decided it would be a better idea to reduce the armament a bit, so we left our guns in the Jeep as we headed over to the office to see about a couple of rooms.

In the office, a short, bald man sat behind a desk reading a thick book.  He looked up and smiled as the four of us suddenly crowded his small space.

“Well, howdy!” he said, standing up, dropping his book on the chair.  “Visitors?  How can I help you?”

Jake answered, since he was closest. “We need two rooms for the night, and a suggestion on a good place to eat.”

“Fine, fine.  Just fill out this form, and we’ll get you set up right away.” The man bustled a bit around the desk and produced two small cards.  Jake pushed one over to me and I filled out the name and home city parts, not being entirely sure what to put for ‘occupation.’

“All right, Mr. Talon and… Mr. Talon.  We have rooms 206 and 208, top of the stairs outside the office; head right and you’ll see they are right about in the center.”  The man beamed and placed his hands on the counter, likely happy to have some customers.

“Thanks,” Jake said.  “About that place to eat?”

“Oh!” The man slapped his bald head. “Sorry, I’m so forgetful.  Across the street, at the Choate Family Diner.  Good place, just avoid the biscuits.” He smiled and laughed softly at his own joke.

I nodded, and we headed out the door, eager to unpack and unwind.  As we left the office, I looked back at the man as he went back to his chair.  On the back of his skull, four white scars ran a ragged race from the top of his left ear to beneath his collar.  If I had to guess, our beaming host had seen some zombie action up close and personal.

We took our belongings out of the Jeep and brought them to our rooms.  I wanted to rearrange things to make the Jeep more comfortable.  The front seats were fine, but the back seat tended to share with supplies.  After a good hour of reorganizing and repacking, we all were in a decent hunger for dinner.  Taking the advice of the motel owner, we walked across the street to the Choate Family Diner.

The building was long and single storied, and as we entered, I could hear loud laughter coming from within.  Kayla walked in first, followed by Jake, then Julia, and then myself.  We liked to enter buildings that way, although we traded off which of the women went first.  Jake’s reasoning was the women distracted, allowing the men to walk almost unnoticed.  I thought it was silly at first, but Jake was able to carry a lot of weaponry without notice when we did that.

As expected, the girls caused a stir.  The place had a few patrons in the eating area, and several more in the bar area.  The two were separated by a low wall that ran from the front of the building to the back wall of the bar.  One of the men at the bar started to whistle in appreciation, but swallowed it when I entered. 

After the fight with Ben and his followers, my father and my Uncle Charlie took a focused interest in my training.  My father thought I could use a few more lessons in marksmanship, and my uncle felt I was a little puny to be defending and marrying his daughter.  To that end, I found myself in a month’s training with my Uncle Charlie, lifting and fighting.  My father showed me the finer points of shooting, and my Uncle Duncan tutored me in swordmanship.  Even my marriage didn’t stop the training, and my Uncles weren’t satisfied until I had put on an additional twenty-five pounds of muscle.  My shoulders, which were broad to begin with, were now broader with muscle.  My arms and hands were stronger than ever, useful themselves as weapons. 

I looked around the room, catching the eye of a large man at the bar.  I held it for a second, then followed my wife as we sat at a table.  Jake, of course, took the seat facing the door, and while he was not as large as I was, there was something about the way he carried himself that caused men to second guess themselves when they considered facing him.  While I was lifting, Jake was practicing his speed.  He was strong, make no mistake, but even our father said Jake had the fastest hands he had ever seen.

Chapter 46

We ordered a heavy dinner, then focused our conversation on figuring out how we might have a conversation with whoever it was that came from the town of Enterprise.  Jake was for talking to the authorities, since they would likely know everyone, and I thought it might be a better idea to go to where people bought goods, like at the market.  Julia thought it would be a good idea to ask the bartender, since they usually knew everything, and Kayla figured it might be best to ask the motel owner who she thought might be a good source of information.

Talk ceased when the food arrived, and I enjoyed the meal very much.  It had been a long time since I had tasted a good steak, and this one was perfectly cooked.  Julia ate a smaller version of the steak I had, and Jake and Kayla both had a rather aromatic stew.

Our dinner was interrupted briefly by the arrival of four men taking a table next to ours.  Their conversation, while loud, was of no consequence, yet difficult to ignore.  One man seemed intent on catching some sort of reaction, and made a crude joke, bringing his hand down on Jake’s shoulder.

In flash, Jake grabbed the man’s fingers, twisting them back towards the man’s throat.  Jake continued the twist, and the man cried out in pain. There was a shocked silence before two of the men stood up, likely to lend assistance to their friend. I moved my chair back, but Jake suddenly let go.

“Sorry about that,” Jake said, staring into the man’s eyes. “Zombie grabbed me like that not three days ago, and I’m still a little jumpy.”  Jake held the stare until the man, who was shaking his hand, nodded.  His two friends sat down, but there were ugly looks in them.

“Hey!” A shout came from the bar, and the big man, followed by three men, came lumbering into the room.  He came over to the table and stood behind Jake.  I held my hands in my lap, keeping an eye on the man and his friends.

“You hurt a friend of mine, stranger.  That’s going to cost you.” The man was easily over six feet, with a thick neck and barrel chest.  I could see he was used to using his size to intimidate people.

Jake turned his head slightly.  “I already apologized.  Like I said, I was just jumpy from having a zombie do the same thing to me just recently.”

Julia looked at me, and I gave her a slight shake of my head.

“Keep your fucking hands to yourself, then, asshole.  You touch my friend again, and you’ll regret it.” The man leaned over Jake, and I knew it was a matter of seconds before Jake either maimed or killed him.

“We’ll keep that in mind after you apologize for your language in front of our wives,” I said in the silence.

“What?” The man laughed as he turned to his friends. “Not a fucking chance.”

I brought my hands up to the table and dropped the knife I had held underneath.  While he was making his bluster I had twisted a steel knife several times around, leaving a spiral in the center.  I looked at the man and repeated what I had said.

“Apologize.  Now.” I shifted in my chair, and my tone was quiet.

The man’s eyes nearly bugged when he saw that knife, and being a strong man himself, understood what kind of strength of wrist and hand that knife would take.  A second look at my own size, and I could almost see the calculations taking place in his head.  The math didn’t add up, and he certainly didn’t like the sum.

With his voice barely above a whisper, the man said, “My apologies to the ladies.”  With that he walked back to the bar, leaving his henchmen looking foolish as their hero retreated.

The waitress came back after the tension settled and smiled at us. She placed fresh apple pie in front of all of us, and when we protested, she explained.

“Thank you for that.  That bully has been a nuisance for a while.  The owner would like you to have this dessert as thanks.” The waitress smiled again and started back towards the kitchen.  Kayla called out after her.

“Wait!  Can we thank the owner ourselves?”  she asked.

The waitress smiled. “You just did.  And you’re most welcome.”

We finished our meal in peace and left quietly.  We decided to head back to the motel and catch some sleep.  The search could keep until the morning, and I was actually very tired.  My head hurt a bit, and I was looking forward to not sleeping in the Jeep again.