“I didn’t see anything,” he said.

  “So, they could be dead or gone home,” Caine said.

  “Or still coming,” Lana added.

  “So we’re in the same boat as yesterday,” Caine said. Pun fully intended.

  No one gave him the satisfaction of a groan.

  “Not quite the same,” Andy said. “Now there’s also the possibility that they’re ahead of us. Maybe still looking for us. Or maybe setting up an ambush.”

  “Perfect,” Caine mumbled. “So we’re worse off.”

  “We’ll have to keep an eye out,” Jerry said. “Everyone keep a weapon close. Someone make sure Caine knows how to use it.”

  Caine dropped his fork and made sure it clattered on the plate. “Why are you calling me out? What about Lana?”

  “Sure,” Jerry said. “Lana can show you. We need to be ready. Something doesn’t feel right.”

  They finished eating and took the Boomer back down the creek. They proceeded into the cove with caution. Jerry killed the engine frequently so they could listen for any other motors. There was nothing but the sounds of the lake and the surrounding wildlife.

  They finally reached the lake itself and floated silently for several minutes while they scanned the water.

  Still nothing.

  “I hope it killed them,” said Lana.

  “I kind of hope they killed it,” Caine said. “We have to go back that way at some point.”

  Lana amended her statement. “Well, then, I hope they died killing it.”

  “As long as we never see them again.” Jerry turned the engines over and piloted the Boomer back into the lake and turned her south toward Andy and Laura’s home.

  They rode in silence, armed and alert. Everyone had taken a position somewhere around the boat. Caine and Andy were certain that the pirates had passed in the night and were waiting downriver to ambush the Boomer. Andy thought it made the most sense strategically. Caine thought it would make for the most exciting scene. Lana and Eve were in the back of the boat making sure the pirates didn’t sneak up from behind. Fidget ran between all four people, asking, “See any pirates yet? See any pirates yet?” until Caine tried to kick him.

  They didn’t see any pirates.

  They didn’t see anyone. No boats. No one on the shore. There was nothing. Not until the smoke.

  “Smoke!” Andy called from his position on the starboard side.

  There was nothing particularly notable about the Jimmy Mann Evans Memorial Bridge before the world ended. It wasn’t very long, only half a mile, and carried two lanes in each direction. It was notable after the end of the world only because it was still standing. A rare feat for many Interstate bridges. The fact that it was currently on fire was of particular, immediate interest.

  It wasn’t the bridge itself that was smoking, but a town that had been built on top of the structure. Smoke rose from several points along the town’s length and drifted west where the individual trails combined into a thick column of black and gray.

  “Those aren’t campfires,” Eve said as she joined Jerry in the cabin. “Do you think it was Marco?”

  “I don’t know,” Jerry said, and turned the boat to port.

  The change in direction startled Caine and he spun to face the captain. “What are you doing? You’re not going up there?”

  “No.” Jerry pulled the knife from its place next to the captain’s chair and dropped it in his belt. “We’re going up there.”

  “We have to know what happened,” Eve explained.

  “No, we don’t,” Caine argued. But that was the extent of his argument.

  “We have to find out what happened to Marco’s men,” Jerry elaborated. “There might be a clue up there.”

  “If you’re right, there might be pirates up there.” Caine was whining now.

  Eve was running out of patience. “Why don’t you just do your little hand wavy thing and become Rambo or something?”

  “Hey!” Caine said.

  The comment had hurt him, but she didn’t feel the least bit guilty. “You wanted to be a part of this.”

  “Saving his town,” Caine said, and pointed at Andy. “Not this town. I only signed on for one town.”

  The Boomer reached the shore and Jerry dropped the anchor. Andy and Eve leapt onto the shoreline. When Jerry returned to the cabin, Caine was behind the wheel.

  “I’ll watch the boat,” he said. “Someone’s gotta watch the boat.”

  “Fine.” Jerry reached behind the actor and retrieved his own rifle. “You and Fidget watch the boat.”

  “Right!” Fidget barked. “We’ll watch the boat.”

  “Oh, don’t make me watch the dog,” Caine pleaded.

  “Don’t worry. I’m not.” Jerry leaned over and pet the beagle. “Fidget, will you watch him for me?”

  “Yes!” He barked again and his tail wagged so fast it seemed to propel him forward.

  Caine sat down in the pilot’s seat. “Don’t be ridiculous.”

  “Just to be clear, Fidget. You’re in charge,” he said with a final scratch.

  “OhmyGodohymyGod,” he inched toward Caine. “You hear that? I’m in charge.”

  “He was only kidding,” Caine said.

  Fidget snarled, his hackles swelled up and he barked at Caine, “Shutyourdamnmouth!”

  His tail started going like crazy and he turned back to Jerry. “I’m going to like being in charge.”

  “Good boy,” Jerry said, and joined the others on the shore.

  “Don’t leave me with this dog.”

  Fidget growled. “Get back inside and shutyourdamnmouth!”

  An access road led from the riverbank to the highway. Sasquatch and Chewy led the way with Eve and Jerry following close behind. They made it to the highway and ensured the coast was clear before stepping onto the road surface.

  Both dogs knew well how to sound an alarm if they thought anything was wrong, but they remained quiet as they approached the town’s gate.

  Or what used to be the gate. It looked as if the town had been running a toll operation of its own. Its location made it ideal. All you needed was a gate and a bucket to keep the valuables in.

  The gate had been torn off its hinges and tossed aside. The metal panel was twisted and scorched as if it had been struck by an explosive. A defensive position to the side of its old mount fared no better and was still smoking.

  They made their way in cautiously, pausing and clearing all firing angles, but it was soon evident that there was no one left in town. No one left alive. Bodies burned along with everything else. Others lay where they fell defending the town, weapons still in their hands.

  Jerry indicated the weapons and whispered to Eve, “Odd.”

  She nodded and they continued to sweep the town.

  Somewhere close to the middle of the bridge was where the townspeople made their last stand. It was the largest building on the bridge and appeared to be a town hall or other communal structure. The town’s name had been painted above the door, but it had been crossed out and the Penance sigil had been spray painted over the door. The phrase “All will pay” was painted beneath it.

  Jerry tried the door and found it unlocked. The building had served as a storeroom for the town. And it was full. Food and goods filled the shelves. Medicine, booze and everything else of value in the post-apocalyptic world had been left undisturbed.

  He looked at Eve and could tell she was thinking the same thing. “This doesn’t make any sense.”

  “They totally looted this place.” Caine stood in the storeroom filling a bag with medical supplies.

  “No,” Andy said. “They razed it.”

  “Same difference,” Caine said.

  “It’s not, though,” Andy argued.

  “Well, I use it the same way.”

  “And you think that makes it right? Just because you’re ignorant, we should update the dictionary?” Andy was getting upset. It was easy to see how he could be worried for his own town after seeing the destruction on the bridge. It would have been wise for Caine to back down. So he kept going.

  “Who are you now, Daniel Webster?” Caine asked, and stuffed some gauze into the bag.

  Andy grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around. “Noah Webster! It’s Noah Webster, you stupid shit.”

  The expression on Caine’s face showed the surprise they were all experiencing. Andy had been even-keeled since they met him, and this outburst was out of character. Caine tried to pull away, but Andy held him in place.

  “You could say they razed the place. You could say they raided the place. Hell, you could say they fucked this place seven ways from Sunday. But the one thing they didn’t do was loot it.

  “Words matter. Definitions matter. They’re what make conversation possible. You start making up your own definitions and you’re basically telling me you don’t want to actually communicate. You just want to run your damn mouth.”

  Andy shoved Caine against the wall, rattling the entire storehouse, and turned away. “You did this.”

  “What? I⁠—”

  “People like you. You had your ideals and twisted words and their meanings and then blamed others when they didn’t agree with you. You had your own definitions for everything. And if people didn’t get on board with them, you shut them out and closed them off. Blamed them for not seeing things your way. And twisted the definitions again to make them sound even worse. Right up until everyone stopped talking and everyone started fighting. Your bullshit drove a stake so far between people that someone finally lit the world on fire and it came crashing down. But even then, it didn’t matter did it? Because you were still right. According to your own definition.”

  It looked like Caine wanted to defend himself. Or maybe apologize. But he was hesitating to say anything to the older man.

  “Now it’s all gone. And the people that destroyed it are too stupid to put it back together because the shit that really matters, they don’t think matters.”

  Caine looked at the others for suggestions. There were a few shrugs but not much help. It was up to him to say the right thing. Surely, he would screw that up. “It’s just a word, man.”

  Andy charged at the actor. Jerry stepped in front of him and stopped the attack. “Listen, Andy. He’s frustrating, I get it. But let’s be fair. His intentions weren’t to undermine the fabric of communication, leading to the downfall of civilization. It’s just that he’s an idiot.”

  Andy glared at Caine but backed away. He cleared a shelf of its contents with an angry swipe and stormed out of the building.

  Caine stepped away from the wall and straightened his shirt. “I really don’t think that was about me.”

  Jerry ignored the comment and told the others to keep gathering the supplies.

  “Why would they do this?” Lana asked. “Why would they say all will pay and then leave everything?”

  “Scary version?” Caine asked.

  “Scarier than senseless slaughter?” Eve offered.

  “Oh, yeah. Much scarier. They call themselves The Penance, right? Maybe this town just paid for their sins.”

  “A cult?” Lana said.

  “Or something worse,” Caine said.

  “Their vocabulary is as bad as yours,” Jerry said. “Penance is self-administered.”

  “Well, maybe you and Professor Andy can sit down and correct them.” Caine zipped up the bag he had been filling and threw it over his shoulder. “It should be an interesting class.”

  Caine opened the door to the building and stepped out into the sunlight.

  “Shutyourdamnmouth!” Fidget barked.

  “Oh my God, you’re not in charge anymore, dog!” Caine stepped around the beagle but Fidget began nipping at his heels. “Lana!”

  Lana sighed and quickly filled her own bag. She made a quiet apology and ran out the door to help.

  “What do you think?” Jerry asked Eve.

  “I’m not buying it. I don’t care who you are, you don’t leave all this stuff behind. There’s no one that doesn’t need at least some of it. And the pageantry just doesn’t make sense.”

  “Three years ago, maybe,” he agreed. “When gangs were still laying claim to their territory. But now, they’d rather not have a list of crimes that somewhere like Cairo can tie to them.”

  “How does something this big happen this quietly?” Eve said. “They’re everywhere.”

  The door swung open and Andy rushed back into the room. “There’s more smoke downriver. We have to hurry. Please.”

  Jerry nodded. “If we push through, we can make it tonight.”

  25

  The closer they got to Clifton, the more the river began to wind.

  Andy joined Jerry at the wheel and pointed at the map on the consoles display. “It’s just around this next bend. We need to hurry.”

  Jerry looked at the map and zoomed in on the area. Calling charts outdated was an understatement, but they occasionally helped. On the map, a small branch broke off on the western bank and ran deep into the peninsula. Once he spotted the entrance, he turned the Boomer toward it.

  “What are you doing? We’re almost there.”

  “I may just be the driver here, but I want to make sure I’m not dropping you off in a trap.”

  “We have to hurry,” Andy said again.

  Jerry sent Caine to the bow to keep an eye on the stream and said little else as he maneuvered the Boomer through the tightening channel. He could understand the older man’s impatience, but they had to be cautious. He took the Boomer as far as he could while still leaving enough room to turn her around in a hurry.

  “We don’t have time for this,” Andy insisted.

  “It won’t help anyone if we walk into a trap.” Jerry gathered his gear and draped the binoculars around his neck. “I’m goin’ to go take a look at things. I won’t be long.”

  “You’re not going alone, “Eve said as she slung a scoped rifle over her shoulder.

  “No, I didn’t think I was.”

  Andy grabbed his rifle as well. “I’m coming, too, Mike.”

  There was no use in arguing with the man, although Jerry felt that the fewer people peeping on the town the better. But it was his town. He couldn’t tell him no. Jerry nodded and the three of them made their way inland.

  Like so much of the land on the river, they were walking on what used to be farmland. The branch they had followed served as irrigation for the crops, and they could still feel the furrowed field under their feet despite the resurgent growth of native grasses. The trio worked almost a straight path to the south until they came to the edge of the river.

  Evening was well under way, and what was left of the sun was on their right, casting more shadows than light. They felt well concealed in the tall grasses and moved as silently as possible into a position where they could see the town across the river.

  At first glance, things were quiet and still across the river. The calmness gave Jerry hope that they had made it in time to help. A glance through the binoculars brought that hope crashing down.

  There was plenty of activity in the town. Men in mohawks, dressed in leather and hiding behind what could only be called war paint, were all over the place. Many were currently filling metal trash cans with fuel and lighting night fires. Others laughed and shouted in tones that only alcohol could produce. Not only was every man armed, their weapons were almost uniform. This gang must have found an armory somewhere along the line because, almost to a man, they held identical weapons that, from this distance, appeared free of duct tape repairs or bailing wire mending.

  “We’re too late,” Andy said, fighting the urge to shout. He tried to push his way to the front of the group, but Eve put a calming hand on his shoulder.

  “It will be okay,” she whispered.

  He wanted to argue and tensed up like he was going to charge across the river.

  Jerry stopped him. “Get back to the boat, Andy.”

  “The hell I⁠—”

  “Now,” Jerry said. “Tell everyone to get ready. We’ll watch for a few more minutes and get back to you with a plan. We’ll save them.”

  “I thought you were just our ride,” Andy snapped.

  Jerry pointed back toward the Boomer and then turned back to surveilling the town. He listened as Andy struggled with what to do. He didn’t blame the man, but he also didn’t need him giving away their position in a burst of righteous anger. The man finally huffed and backed away from the vantage point.

  “He’s gone,” Eve whispered a minute later.

  “Good,” Jerry said. “Because something’s not right here.”

  “That’s a bit of an understatement, isn’t it?” She peered through the scope, and he watched her scan the town from behind the rifle. The barrel passed over the men standing watch along the shore. Those men and women gathered on the porches of the older homes that lined the river. Those engaged in raucous laughter near the end of the town’s Main Street. Several were finishing painting The Penance sigil on the end of a building.

  She lowered the scope and nodded in agreement. “They have some pretty impressive hardware for a gang who makes their clothes out of old tires.”

  “Pretty impressive posture, too,” Jerry added.

  Eve peered through the scope once more. “You’re right. Something is really off.”

  A group of men along the bank began raising an alarm. Jerry found them quickly in the lenses and was relieved to find that they hadn’t been spotted. Whatever had drawn the men’s attention was coming from downstream.

  The rest of the men and women in the town dropped what they were doing and raced toward the river with their weapons in hand. The gunfire started a second later.

  “What are they shooting at?” Jerry wondered aloud.

  The answer to his question came racing in as the Your Mom skirted the town’s riverbank, peppering the raiders with small arms fire and the occasional grenade. It moved at full speed until it had passed the town.

  “It’s Marco,” Eve said.

  The pirate flagship was followed by several other boats who further engaged the men on the shore. They finished their run in the same fashion and sped off upstream as Your Mom returned to flash the men on the shoreline once more.