Patrick D'Orazio - Into the Dark

Frank made a move toward Megan, his anger instantaneous.

“You little skank! I’m gonna beat the shit outta you.” Before Jeff or George could move to protect Megan, Michael reacted.

The punch was quick and efficient, connecting with Frank’s nose. Michael kept his palm flat and drove it upwards. Frank’s head rocked back, and blood poured from his face. He slumped to his knees, his hands grasping at the damage.

“Jesus Christ! I think you broke my nose, man! What the hell? I wasn’t gonna hurt her, Michael. I was just gonna scare the shit out of that little bitch.” The words were pinched, painful and honking.

Michael’s punch had been on a pivot, but now he faced the other man. Frank was busy squeezing his nose and didn’t see the foot before it drove into his shoulder, knocking him flat. In an instant, Michael was on top of him, a large knife that seemed to come out of nowhere at Frank’s throat. The nose forgotten, Frank’s eyes bugged out, and his hands dropped to his sides in a supplicating gesture.

“If you threaten her or anyone else like that again, I’m going to feed you to one of the stiffs.”

Michael pressed the razor-sharp knife down on Frank’s throat. A trickle of blood, a small echo of the one coming from his nose, formed a line where the knife pressed against his skin. The fat man looked as if he wanted to melt into the pavement as his eyes remained glued to the maniac on top of him. He blinked away the tears and gagged. He nodded, careful not to move the knife still pressed to his flesh.

Jeff gaped, dumbstruck. Megan backed up and bumped up against him. He put his hands on her shoulders to hold her steady.

Michael, apparently satisfied, got to his feet and extended a hand to Frank. Like a dog that had been whipped too many times, Frank flinched at first. When nothing happened, he reached out and got to his feet with Michael’s assistance. He turned from the others, moving toward the far side of the van. Michael slapped him on the back as he left. The other man stiffened for a moment, his expression hidden and his back ramrod straight. Then he started moving again.

Michael shrugged. Everyone was staring at him like he was some sort of alien, especially Megan. He smiled at her as he pulled a small cloth from his pants pocket to wipe his blade clean of Frank’s blood. Afterwards, the knife found its way into a sheath attached to his left wrist hidden by the long-sleeved shirt he wore.

He moved forward slowly, carefully.

“As you can see, I don’t tolerate insubordination.”

Michael’s eyes were stern as he glanced meaningfully at Jeff and then down toward Megan. They softened slightly.

“I feel as if all I’m doing is apologizing. Now for Frank’s actions. He’s a loyal man. I’m sure you’ll find this hard to believe, but he’s a good man as well.” His smile widened even as the look of trepidation on Megan’s face grew.

She detached herself from Jeff, regaining some of her composure. He tried to hold her back, but she wriggled free, her eyes flashing angrily as she did. Sullenly, she faced Michael.

“Well I don’t like him and I don’t know that I like you much either.” She stared him down. “And I’m not apologizing for slapping you.” Megan stood with her hands on her hips, daring him to challenge her.

Michael continued to smile, unfazed by the terse statements. “I wouldn’t expect you to. All I can ask is that you give us a chance to prove our hospitality.” His gaze encompassed all four of them. “I think you’ll find we’re a bit rough around the edges, but we’re not really all that bad.”

They stood waiting. Jeff noticed Ben leaning against the back of the van. Jeff was not sure how long he had been watching, but the smirk on the brute’s face indicated that he had probably seen everything. Ben caught Jeff looking his way and, without hesitation, winked at him. Jeff did a double take and tried to smile at the huge man, but he was already looking elsewhere.

“Okay! Let’s get moving! Boys, you’re on foot. Ben, you drive. Marcus and Frank! Move the cars out of the way so we can get rolling.”

Jeff gritted his teeth. Whether he liked it or not, they were headed to the lair of this small group of survivalists. And as he looked over at Megan and George, he knew he wasn’t the only one who was nervous about the idea.

Everyone jumped into action. Michael ushered the newcomers toward the minivan, and Jeff felt a simmering of resentment at the loss of the vehicle, but forced it down. As they climbed on board, he noticed Ray and Teddy running in the flat field behind the gap between the buildings. They were south of the railroad tracks already and making good time as they scanned the area. Jeff did as well and was surprised to see no infected anywhere.

With the second row of seats removed and the back row folded down, the vehicle resembled a cargo van. All the supplies they had collected were stacked to the roof in the very back. Michael took the passenger seat, which forced Jeff, George, Jason, and Megan to sit on the floor behind him. Frank and Marcus took off to move the car in front of them out of the way.

Ben started the van, and soon they were heading in the direction of one of the gravel parking lots on the south side of the road, out of the corridor of vehicles. They avoided several other abandoned cars and moved toward the flat grassy space behind the buildings. Ahead was a set of train tracks elevated by a patch of gravel. Ben carefully drove the van over the tracks and followed a makeshift road that had been carved into the dry earth of the barren field beyond. Rocks and other debris had been cleared away, and two barely visible ruts gave the van a runway down which to roll. Ben pointed the van in the direction of a wooded area about a mile from the road, and it looked like they would run right into it if they stayed the course. There were no visible breaks in the tree line, and Jeff wondered whether they were going to have to get out and walk before they got to whatever hideout Michael had set up.

At the last moment, Ben turned the van at an angle as he brushed up against the stand of trees. At first, the view remained the same, with trees to their left and an open field to the right. After a few moments, Jeff saw a gap in the woods that seemed to sprout up out of nowhere. It was more than wide enough to accommodate the van, and he saw the tire ruts making up the “road” they were following merge into the opening.

As they made their way down the narrow tunnel of trees, he wondered out loud about something that had been bothering him for a while.

“How come there aren’t any of those infected bastards around here?”

Michael turned and looked at Jeff. “Oh, they’re around all right. They’re in town, to the south, to the north…” He grinned as he waved his hand in every direction. “We’re completely surrounded.”

Jeff stared at him, but before Michael could elaborate, the van came to a stop.

“Welcome to our humble abode.”

Michael’s smile took them all in, but his eyes focused on Megan as he said it. She felt uncomfortable with the attention and looked away.

Michael and Ben opened the doors, and they all piled out.

Before them was a clearing. There were trees at a distance, but where they stood past the wooded entryway were several acres of clear-cut space. It was squared off and took Jeff and the others completely by surprise. A large wooden sign stood nearby, but everyone was too busy taking in everything else to pay it much attention. Instead, their eyes were drawn to the huge recreational vehicles parked before them. Off to the left were a bulldozer and backhoe, situated near the wall of trees. Jeff walked forward, trying to absorb what he was seeing.