Beyond the Barriers (Novella): Ghouls by Timothy W. Long Page A

lucky. Maybe it would have been better if we all bit it at the start of this mess.”
    “Bullshit. Staying alive is what we do. Fighting is what we do. If we give up what kind of world are we going to leave?”
    “Didn’t know you were such a philosopher.” I chuckled. “So what’s the situation out there today?”
    “Nothing’s changed. They’re antsy to get moving but something in the woods sent a recon team back to ask for assistance. Oh and that asshole Chris turned up last night. Almost got his ass shot off.”
    “What did they do with him?”
    “I don’t know. I told Lisa to keep an eye on him but she said she wasn’t a jailer. I told her that he has a grudge against you. She said she’d have someone watch but she didn’t seem to care much about a grudge. Something about the new world sorting itself out,” Scott said. “Anyway, I guess they let him wander away. Heard he was gone this morning.”
    “He left?” I said.
    “Yeah. Guess he didn’t like the food,” Scott said. “Or maybe he just doesn’t like people. Guy’s a jerk. Let it go.”
    We polished off the beans and Scott let me dig out the last of the pork. Chris was gone and that was a plus. I didn’t need that kid constantly taking up my peripheral vision. There were enough dangers out there to worry about.
    “Are Jon and Janet doing okay?” I asked.
    “Seem to be. Jon has already started helping them with logistics.”
    “What about that little kid that was with us?”
    “He didn’t make it out of the ambush. Sorry, man.”
    I sighed and fought the urge to pound the earth with my fist. So many people gone. Innocence didn’t matter when the dead came for you.
    “So what’s this situation you were talking about?”
    “Don’t know. They’re having a meeting in a few minutes. That’s why I came to wake you up.”
    “Great,” I said. “You know all I want to do is search for Katherine.”
    “I know, but whatever happened to that recon team, I thought you might want a heads up before we head off again.”
    “You don’t have to go with me, Scott.”
    “I know, brother. But you got my back and I got yours. Let’s see what’s up. Sounded to me like they think it will help find the remains of the caravan.”
    I nodded, grateful he was still willing to stick by my side. The way things were going, I was just as likely to get us killed as find Katherine.
    I rose and went to find a latrine.

    * * *
    I wanted to lick my wounds while I headed out to find Katherine. As Scott and I continued to talk, a complete picture of what had occurred in the last few weeks appeared. Lisa and her crew had deserted their location, fully intending to setup a new one. They’d been beset by ghouls who were assisted by humans. They’d fought and some of the trucks had been captured or destroyed. It was only by sheer chance that Thomas’s group had stumbled on the remains of the destruction and, a few hours later, ran into Lisa’s group. They’d been in a pitched battle with a small army of the dead when Thomas had flanked the zombies and made short work of them.
    The ghouls faded into the woods and hadn’t been heard from since.
    I joined the debriefing and listened in from behind a couple of other men and women who looked familiar.
    “Okay people,” Lisa was saying. “We know some of our own were taken a couple of days ago, and this is the first hint we’ve had so far as to their whereabouts. I need five or six who are willing to investigate. You’ll be outfitted with full kits and ammo, food, and water. But this is an extended recon. Not a full assault force. We need to know what the ghouls are doing and where they’re going. If you can free the prisoners then do it. Bring them back here.” Lisa said as she looked around the little group.
    The group broke up and I approached Lisa. She looked harried. Her hair was done up in a tight bun. She wore a set of hunting camouflage and carried a large caliber handgun on her hip. She was a far