Darren Wearmouth - First Activation

“I can make a stew with the vegetables and a couple of those cans,” Lea said.

“Sounds good to me, I’m going to clean my arm and put on a new dressing,” I replied.

The grave digging had slightly opened the wound again and I was conscious that I needed to keep it clean. I walked upstairs to the bathroom and peeled off my t-shirt and the bandage. I wiped my arm with a sponge; blood seeped slowly from the cut down my arm. I checked the cabinets and discovered a small roll of bandage, then wrapped it around the healing wound. I headed back into the kitchen and found Bernie peeling a carrot, with Lea leaning over a large pan on the camping stove.

“Jack’s outside on the lounger, go join him if you want?” Bernie said.

“Are you sure? Is there anything I can do to help?”

“What is it you guys say? Too many cooks spoil the broth. Go join Jack, you deserve a rest.”

“Cheers, Bernie.”

I walked outside and sat on the spare lounger next to Jack, he passed me an open tin of pineapple chunks and a spoon.

“It feels strange chilling out, I feel like I should be doing something,” he said.

“I know what you mean, but we need some down time.”

Jack nodded and folded an arm behind his head, he was reading, ‘Day of the Triffids’, which he had picked up from the bookcase inside earlier.

I settled back on the lounger and started watching a brightly coloured bird, busily hopping around a tree. As I wondered what species it might be, the smell of cooking wafted over from the kitchen and my mouth watered. I momentarily closed my eyes and tried to capture this single moment, away from the events of the last few days. I felt calm until I opened my eyes again and caught sight of the two graves in my peripheral vision.

We still needed to stay alert, so I walked around the house, enjoying the breeze on my face and the sound of the wind whispering through the trees. With space around us, an apparent lack of people, a reasonable amount of supplies in the kitchen, and a secure house, I started to believe our long term prospects were good.

I returned to the lounger and said to Jack, “It’s a great place. Maybe we should forget about trying to find other survivors for a while?”

“To deprive a gregarious creature of companionship is to maim it, to outrage its nature,” Jack smiled.

“You’ve just read that haven’t you?” I laughed.

Jack nodded.

As the light began to fade, Lea called from the kitchen, “Are you guys ready to eat?”

We both enthusiastically nodded and made our way back inside, Lea directed us to the dining room.

Bernie lit the candles on the dining room table and we sat in the comfortable seats eating bowls of stew. The food was good and we ate in companionable silence.

We discussed the plan for the next day after dinner. The general agreement was that we should rest, scout the area, and take some time to recover.

“Once we have acclimatised, I think we should try to find others who survived,” I said.

Jack nodded and puffed out a smoke ring from his cigar.

“We should go and see how Greg is getting on, if he hasn’t come over by tomorrow night,” Bernie replied.

”Fine with me guys, but I’d like to head into the centre of Montgomery and get more supplies,” Lea said.

“There’s plenty here for the moment,” Jack replied.

“Not for what I need,” Lea said and narrowed her eyes.

Bernie, Jack, and I, looked at each other then realised what she meant. Jack changed the subject.

“We need to confirm it’s over, so why not set fire to a car and observe it from a distance?”

I didn’t think this plan would cause too much harm, but Lea and Bernie were both against it.

“If one or two killers are still around, then we shouldn’t give them any encouragement to get near us,” Bernie replied.

“It would get us off on the wrong foot with anyone we met if they knew we’d spied on them,” Lea added.

“I’m just pleased to be relatively safe for the time being. Let’s visit Greg in the morning and then have a scouting trip around the edge of town. If it looks safe, we could then go in further as Lea suggested,” I said.

“Right, time for a cold shower and then some whisky,” Jack said.

He walked upstairs and left the three of us around the table.

Lea started talking to Bernie about Linda, so I decided to have a dig around in some of the drawers that were in both corners of the room. I thought it was good for Bernie that he had somebody to talk to, other than Jack and me. It was much better that he talk about Linda with an understanding woman, than the two people he had initially blamed for her death.

I couldn’t find anything of interest in the dining room cabinets, just ornaments, coasters, silverware and china, — I decided to go upstairs and see if there was another bathroom free. I found an en suite in the master bedroom, so I stripped and jumped into the shower. The water was freezing, but I quickly acclimatised, happy to be clean again.

While drying myself with a towel that I found hanging on the wall, Jack shouted through the door, “I’ve put some fresh clothes for you on the bed. See you downstairs.”

“Thanks,” I called back.

My old clothes were balled on the floor, so I scooped them up to take downstairs and clean. I opened the en suite door and found a grey velour tracksuit laid out on the bed with socks, underpants and t-shirt. I laughed at the sight of the tracksuit; something like this would only be available in charity shops back home. The clothes were clean though, and I was grateful for a change. I grabbed the Glock and headed downstairs.

Jack was sitting in the dining room with a whisky in hand and another waiting for me. He was wearing a cream shirt with a bright purple cravat and a pair of trousers that were about 2 inches short. He took one look at me in my stylish velour and we both broke out into laughter.

Bernie and Lea didn’t understand the joke and gave us a disapproving look. The army gallows humour was something Jack and I would just have to share.

“I’m taking a shower, and then going to bed,” Lea said. “I’ve hardly slept since landing in Newark.”

“Me too. Are you guys okay?” Bernie yawned.

It was only eight in the evening, which meant our watch would last an extra 4 hours, but after all the cleaning and cooking, it seemed fair.

“You two have a good night’s sleep,” Jack replied. “Bernie, we’ll be waking you up at four in the morning, so don’t try to strangle us!”

“I won’t.”

Both he and Lea left the room and went upstairs.

“Leave the doors of the bedrooms you’re not using open,” Jack shouted after them.

“Let’s go out onto the porch and have a drink,” I said to Jack, holding my whiskey up to clink with his.

We settled into the two comfortable chairs out front with our glasses and the bottle of whiskey on a small table between us.

“So what do you think happened to Dave and Andy? They wouldn’t have had much of a chance in Manhattan,” I said.

“I’m almost one hundred percent sure they are dead, I accepted that over a day ago.”

“Yeah, I agree. After what we saw around the city, and heard from Lea, I doubt they would have lasted long. One of them might have even killed the other.”

“Family and friends? Do you think anyone back home made it?” Jack said, as he poured another whisky.

“I don’t know. If back home was the same as here, then I doubt it. In fact, I think we should assume that they didn’t pull through. To find out otherwise would be a bonus.”

We both sat quietly, reflecting on this and sipping our whisky. It was the first time I had thought about what the long-term future had in store, and who was going to be around to share it. Until now, my main concern had been surviving each individual day, now our prospects seemed healthier.