“We heard about the deaths,” said Liz.

  Joe looked at Greg. “The government forces took you as well?”

  “Sure did, but I didn’t know what for at first.” He looked at Groves. “Turns out, they had the same idea for both of us. Take the kid from you.”

  Liz shook her head. “She’s not a thing to be experimented on.”

  “They see her as the answer to this crisis. But they’re not the only ones involved. There are others, other governments who will come for her as well…”

  Joe placed his hand on his wife’s, that was on her lap.

  She looked at Groves. “Is there nowhere we can be safe?”

  “Actually… there might be one place. The IFSA.”

  “Uh?”

  “Independent free state of Alaska, it has declared itself independent of the new configuration of western states. There’s no wall there, and rather than euthanizing people, they did the opposite, they helped as many as they could. From the bits of news I saw, they are surviving pretty well. They may protect you and your children if you go there.”

  “Alaska?” said Grace. “That’s…”

  Groves nodded. “A very long way away. You would also have to cross that wasteland you mentioned. Officially, it’s called the deadzone, and it covers roughly a hundred-miles, depending upon where you cross.”

  “We crossed an ocean, we can cross a wasteland,” said Joe.

  “After that you will need to need cross the rest of Canada, which has affiliated itself with the western states. So you’ll be in hostile territory until you get to the IFSA.”

  Silence fell across the room, Greg being the first to speak. “Well, this shit is what I was born for. I say we go to—”

  Creaking of floorboards outside the room, heralded Ember opening the bedroom door, and before he could fully react, rushing across the room and giving Greg a hug. She backed away, looking at his arm. “Oh, it’s still hurting? How did you get here?”

  He nodded. “Yup.” He held his mug up. “The whiskey in this, is helping. As for the rest. I’ll tell ya in the morning after I’ve slept.” He looked around the room. “So how long until we go to Alaska?”

  “Alaska?” said Ember, looking at the others.

  “We need to find the rest of our people,” said Grace. “Lauren is with them.”

  “Lauren?” said Groves, her face for the first time showing some semblance of happiness.

  Grace smiled. “Yes, she’s with us, as well as Nell.”

  “Do you know where they are?”

  Joe looked at the ceiling. “With the people that own this place.”

  Greg leaned back on the bed he was on. “Well, until they turn up, I’m going to get some sleep. I’m knackered.”

  CHAPTER FIVE

  BALDWIN

  Baldwin stood at the edge of the rocks and looked down at the cascading waters. A silver snake which cut across the moonlit landscape of towering boulders within the ravine. There was no hint of death in this place, only a glimpse of what might lie beyond. The sound of the crashing river which emerged from somewhere within the mountain, masked the figure walking towards her.

  The light from the woman’s lantern though made her swing around.

  Marge lifted her hand. “Don’t fret, this is one of my favourite places as well. I often come here during the early hours. Mind if I join you?”

  The more pleasant demeanour of a woman who had only demonstrated the opposite, took Baldwin a little by surprise, but she nodded and sat back down on the boulder which jutted out over the river below.

  Somewhat awkwardly, the older woman sat next to her. For a moment neither spoke.

  “If you haven’t already been told, I’m Ron’s sister.”

  Baldwin nodded in silence. She hadn’t known, but now the family resemblance was obvious.

  Marge looked at her. “You don’t really talk much do ya?”

  Baldwin smiled, looking away. “Hasn’t really been much of a need for words lately.”

  “Ah, you’re Scottish?”

  “I am.”

  “My grandmother came from the old country. Came here in the 20s and married my grandfather, who bought some land a few hundred miles, south of here. Turned it into one of the biggest farms in that part of the state. And it stayed that way until the 80s when we have to sell off a lot of it to make ends meet. Now it’s a few hundred acres where we show tourists what living on a farm is like… or we did. That’s gone now as well.”

  “How you end up here?”

  “Harper, the woman who runs this place, also handled the marketing for the farm. When it looked like everything east of Kansas was going to go to shit, she suggested we bring everyone up here. It’s remote, has a natural source of water, has plenty of space and they got the energy situation taken care of by a mini dam further up the mountain as well as some solar on the lodge. It’s a perfect place for folks to try and make a go of it.”

  “I got the impression you and Ron ran this place?”

  Marge smiled. “We have an understanding with Harper. She takes care of people’s living needs, and we take care of everything else, including finding the stuff we need, which includes more people. It’s a partnership which has kept us all alive so far.”

  “No problems with the undead?”

  She nodded. “In the early days, we did. You realise how many folks live out in these mountains when they start dying and trying to attack you. But… nothing like the towns or the cities. Nothing like them… Otherwise, I wouldn’t be talking to you now.”

  “Military been here?”

  “We saw some vehicles heading north during the first week, but they didn’t even know we were here. Drove right on by. Since then, nothing. Not even in the skies. From what we hear, they all gone west of the wall. Was surprised to hear from Clara that the government still got their people on the east coast doing what they’re doing there…”

  “You don’t think we should rescue the women there?”

  Marge looked back at Baldwin. “I feel for those ladies, I do, but they’re a long way from here… Anyway, you going to be awake for the fuel trip in four hours?”

  “Yup.”

  “Good.” She held up the lantern. “You want me to leave this here?” She looked up at the rock face and trees beyond. “Got us some black bears out here.”

  “I’m good. Faced worse.”

  “Ha, that you have. Okay then.”

  Marge got back up, then slipped away into the woods as Baldwin returned to staring at the glittering, tumbling waves.

  She didn’t show any sign of it, but she agreed with Marge. Going that far to the east was suicide, but it was obvious the brother felt sorry for Clara, and he was the one out of the siblings that was steering the ship. Marge, at least, seemed to realise how good they had it here.

  Clara was right about one thing though. They needed to get the others in the small town and bring them to the camp.

  She leaned back a little on a trunk of a wide tree and let the natural din take her mind elsewhere.

  CHAPTER SIX

  JENN

  The General sipped her coffee, which was pretty decent. She was sitting in the lodge’s dining area, with a few others that were going on the trip west. Ron poured himself a mug and sat opposite her, both looking at the map that had already been laid out between them.

  He pointed at three points which did not have any pen marks on them. “These three towns, to the west, we’ve not been through yet. We’ll check them out on our way south, to the farm.”

  She nodded. “Have you come up against any major undead presence yet?”

  He smirked. “You don’t think we got what it takes to fight the dead?”

  “Not saying that. But I’ve lost a lot of people to them. I don’t want the same to happen to your people.”

  He nodded. “Yeah, well, we got weapons, we can take care of any that come our way.”

  “They’re changing,” said Baldwin, seated to the General’s right. Everyone looked at the marine.

  “What’s that meant to mean?” said Lucas, sat opposite her.

  “It means, they’re harder to kill than before.”

  Jenn nodded. “Shots to the skull don’t put them as easily as it did. These… things can take a lot more punishment. But I’ve got no idea if they are all like that now, or it was just peculiar to where we were before. Some kind of random mutation.”

  Ron nodded while taking a sip of coffee. “Good to know.”

  “I… was hoping we could reach out to my people when we’re at the farm? They probably will have people manning the radio station which will hear any message we send…”

  He rubbed his stubbly chin. “We can try but I don’t want any trouble with them.”

  “I’ll do the talking,” continued the General. “I’ll tell them we chose to come here. Sound good?”

  He looked at Lucas and Kelly to his left. “You see this? She’s smart, this one. I can see why she’s a General in the British army!”

  Footsteps came from the hallway and Marge appeared with a shotgun under one arm. “Truck’s fueled and ready to go.” She looked at Baldwin. “How you feeling?”

  “Ready to find fuel.”

  Marge smiled then looked at her brother. “Had enough of that awful coffee?”

  He nodded and the group of seven made their way through the camp, towards the first, internal parking lot. As they walked, Jenn observed those just beginning to emerge from their shacks and tents amongst the tall pine trees. Some were already washing inside basins, others hanging clothes, and still more were sitting in small groups, watching the newcomers walk past them.

  Ron noticed the General paying attention. “Pay them no mind. Folks are always watchful of who we bring in. At least until they get settled.”

  “I can’t imagine they’re happy to do what you are asking of them…”

  They walked off the forest path as birds chirped amongst the branches, onto a sandy flat track. “I’ve kept this place going since the start. They trust me to make the right decisions. Rescuing these people from this place out east, is a win win for us.”

  “You get the vaccine…”

  He smiled while briefly looking down, then looked back at her. “Like I said, win win. And I’m counting on you to help make it happen. You give these people a way to be safe from the dead, and you’ll have a place in this camp forever.”

  Before she could reply, they moved into the parking lot and headed towards a large truck. Some of Ron’s people got in the bed at the back, while Jenn and the others got in the cabin. Ron driving, while Marge sat in the front passenger seat.

  The gate was opened and they drove through a narrow channel which Jenn hadn’t noticed when they were brought in the day before, and onto the two-lane road.

  She was glad to be out of the camp. Despite the comforts it offered and the supposed chance to leave, she couldn’t shake the feeling that they were captives and she and her people were just pawns in a game that the brother and sister were playing. For now though, there was little choice but to play along.

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  EMBER

  Sunrise was almost complete as Ember looked east across the paddocks, to the tree line, roughly two-hundred feet away. She held her baby in a sling across her chest, rocking her slightly, the movement second nature to her now.

  A horse box sat empty, near the closed gate of the field, while in a muddy area to her left were large open trailers, their contents long since gone. It was a beautiful spot, with no hint of danger. This was a place she could see herself staying. The only problem was it was still occupied. Whoever the owners were, they obviously returned to it from time to time, and probably wouldn’t be thrilled to find a young woman and her baby living there, at their expense. Maybe she could convince them that she could be the place’s caretaker? It was an idea, she thought.

  This was if they hadn’t killed the General and the others. That would definitely be a fly in the ointment.

  Another idea was to head north with the others, but she didn’t really give much credence to the plan to get to Alaska. Look how many of the group from the trawler had already died? Just moving inland? And that was without the military chasing them. And then there was the ‘deadzone’ whatever that was.

  She shuddered, the early morning chill biting through the few jumpers she was wearing, which she had found in the small bedroom she was sleeping in.

  Footsteps came from behind, making her turn around. Not fast, though. By now, she knew the difference between the sound of approaching death and just a living, breathing human.

  She smiled at seeing the old Australian, and he responded in kind.

  “Can’t sleep, too?” he said.

  “I sleep when the little one does, and she tends to like to be awake at this time, although…” She looked down. “Not right now.”

  Greg stood alongside, leaning on the fence with the arm which lacked a hand.

  “Still hurting?”

  “Grace gave me some painkillers. That and the good selection of booze they got here, gets me through the worst of it.” He breathed in a lungful of air. “Freedom.”

  She smiled. “It’s nice here. Shame, whoever owns it, took my friends.”

  “Meh, I wouldn’t be bothered. They’ll return, and when they do, unless they ate them or something, we’ll get your friends back.”

  She smiled again. She’d missed the old guy more than she realised, but then a memory of him together with Mavis came to her.

  He noticed the change of expression and knew exactly what had caused it. He swallowed, turning away to face the field. “I… must admit, the news of Mavis’s passing hit me harder than the axe.”

  There had never been any affection between the two, but she took a step and briefly laid a hand on his arm.

  He let out a deep breath. “I’m going to the humvee to get…” He looked back at the house and Aaron appearing. “To get the weapons they got in the trunk.” He took one last look at the field. “It’s alright here.”

  She nodded and both men walked away.

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  LAUREN

  The truck’s engine rumbled as it moved along the two-lane road, past lush fields, collections of trees and small-holdings. Single-story homes, nestled amongst the woods. Lauren wanted to enjoy the lack of danger. This place wasn’t like home, the threat not as obvious, but it was still there, lurking behind the wilderness. She glanced to her right, at the women sitting there and wondered what the General’s plans were? She appeared to be happy for this family to be in charge, but Lauren knew it wasn’t a long-term solution. The brother and sister appeared to mean well, but just like those who ran the camps in Scotland, things could easily fall apart, especially with the plan to rescue the women at the government facility. She felt for them and Clara, but the idea was insane to her. They should be doing the opposite, laying-low, hiding. Doing what they could to not be noticed. Then they might survive.

  But it was obvious Ron wanted the vaccine. She couldn’t blame him. Who wouldn’t want a way out of this madness? To not be in constant fear? But would it be worth it? As she looked out across the landscape, she wasn’t sure.

  “We’ll be at the first town, in about five minutes,” said Marge sitting in the front passenger seat.

  The homes quickly became closer and more numerous, until the truck stopped at an intersection in the centre of the small town.

  Large colonial style houses sat on both sides of the street, some with stores at ground level. Other buildings were more stately in appearance, being hotels and public buildings.

  “Which way?” Ron said to his sister.

  “Looks like a hardware store over there.” She looked right. “Gas station over there. Let’s park here, and we’ll split up.”

  “That’s not a good idea,” said Jenn.

  Marge frowned, pushing the door open without comment.

  Ron looked back. “It’s okay, we got this. These towns don’t have much of their people still in them. Dead or alive.”

  Some of the men got out the back and Marge looked back to Ron, still inside. “You take the gas station, see if you can find fuel. Kelly, Lucas and I will look in the hardware store.”

  “Sounds good,” said Ron, steering right and travelling the short distance to the gas station’s forecourt, driving onto it and stopping near one of the pumps.

  Baldwin jumped off the back, picking the nozzle up and tried to trigger some of the fuel, but nothing happened. “Not working,” she said to Ron who had his window down.

  Lauren didn’t want to get out, but knew there was no choice. She looked to her right. “I’ll explore with Nell.”

  Jenn nodded in agreement and the colonel got out, walking with the marine towards the store. Both women scoured the nearby grassland, bushes and trees, and other buildings for any sign of movement.

  “Looks dead,” said Lauren. Baldwin nodded, but remained silent and pushed open the glass door to the shadow ridden aisles, and a counter at the far end.

  “I’ll see if it’s possible to turn the pumps back on,” said Baldwin, walking away while Lauren perused the still mostly stocked shelves of chips and candy.

  It was plain to her that the people of the town did not have much time to absorb what was happening, and must have just upped and left. That was why everything looked so untouched by the calamity that befell everywhere else. She thought about the others in the town they had left, a few hundred miles to the south, and wondered how they were getting on. They needed to get back to them, at least get them a message that they were alright, she thought…

  She looked in the direction of the truck, not at the vehicle itself with the General and Ron still sitting in it, but at the large house someway back, on the opposite side of the road. It was a three story building with an arched roof and a central window at its centre. A figure was standing on the other side of the glass. Due to the distance, it was impossible to see who or what it was, but it was not moving. Perhaps a mannequin? A wooden torso, catching the early morning sunlight?