needs more.”
I pushed the suitcases back and forth. “Wow, it’s great. Thank you.”
“Now, will you let me tote that for you?” He extended his hand for the case. “It’s the least I can do.”
I surrendered the suitcase, even with the ease of wheeling it, it was heavy.
“Good Lord, what do you have in this?”
“A lot of stuff. We’ll need it.”
“Yeah, I guess with the city shutting down first, picking are slim. That will change when we move further out. I hope.”
“Me, too.” I moved along with him at a steady, but comfortable pace.
“Tell me again, where are we going?”
“I wanna go home. My home is in Downing Park.”
He closed his mouth and nodded. “Not a bad place. About three miles from where I live.”
“Did you need to find your home?”
He hesitated before answering, then with an exhale, said, “No. No I’d rather not. Not yet.”
I was going to ask ‘why’, but refrained, the shake to his voice told me he’d tell me when he was ready. It wasn’t my place to ask. Of course, he wasn’t shy about asking things.
“Why are we headed north into town if we need to go south? Not that I’m griping, I’m just curious.”
“Because it’s easier to walk the expressway. Even with the road blocks, it’s a straight shot, but to get back to the expressway we have to go this way. Unfortunately. And my plan is to keep going south until we find a bridge that hasn’t been destroyed.”
“Yeah, I heard those.”
I quickly glanced at him.
“The day they did it.” He shrugged. “Was really the thing that nailed the reality of it to me. Just hearing it. The concrete falling, explosions. You could see it on the television, but to be right there, right near it. Hard to explain.” He inhaled. “So why don’t we just take the side streets ? The expressways may be a straight shot, but they aren’t a straight way through.”
“You mean walk the side streets? Kind of a longer way don’t you think?”
“No, I mean, drive. We may have to foot it over a bridge, but at least drive until we get there. Take the side streets in and out. I know the area well.”
“How are we supposed to drive?”
“A car, hopefully one that didn’t run out of gas while waiting.”
I laughed sarcastically at that. “I’m sure we’ll just find a set of keys in a car.”
“Um ... yeah.” He pointed to a car, the door was open, and a decomposing body was inside. “Keys.”
“Let me rephrase that. A car with keys and no body.”
“Just take the body out,” Dodge suggested.
“Go on.” I nodded. “Touch it., try to move it.”
He extended his hand in, then paused and glanced at me. “Why? What’s gonna happen?”
“Not like the movies. Go on. Hollywood made me delusional as well.”
He braved it up, covered his mouth and nose as he reached in. I watched his hand grab the body and then the big, tough, man from jail, squealed in disgust, jumped back and rubbed his hands frantically on the sides of his prison jumpsuit.
“And whatever happens to the body,” I said. “It just eats through the car fabric. It’s gross.”
“I heard something about that once. I didn’t think it was real. They said the body when decomposing, can be like an acid when it breaks down.”
“From what I saw, that’s real.”
He peered down to his hands playing with a substance between his fingers. “Feels like gooey honey.”
I blinked a few times. ‘I’ll never eat honey again.”
“Got news for you, fresh honey may not be an option anymore unless you find some bees.”
“Here.” I reached into my pocket and handed him the tiny bottle of sanitizer. “Use that.”
“Thanks.” He squirted a lot on his hands and looked around as he rubbed them together. “Ok, so, key in the car, probably means body in the car. So we have to find a moveable, working car, preferably a couple years old.”
“What’s the age have to do with it?”
“A lot.” He looked around as we walked, peeking in
I pushed the suitcases back and forth. “Wow, it’s great. Thank you.”
“Now, will you let me tote that for you?” He extended his hand for the case. “It’s the least I can do.”
I surrendered the suitcase, even with the ease of wheeling it, it was heavy.
“Good Lord, what do you have in this?”
“A lot of stuff. We’ll need it.”
“Yeah, I guess with the city shutting down first, picking are slim. That will change when we move further out. I hope.”
“Me, too.” I moved along with him at a steady, but comfortable pace.
“Tell me again, where are we going?”
“I wanna go home. My home is in Downing Park.”
He closed his mouth and nodded. “Not a bad place. About three miles from where I live.”
“Did you need to find your home?”
He hesitated before answering, then with an exhale, said, “No. No I’d rather not. Not yet.”
I was going to ask ‘why’, but refrained, the shake to his voice told me he’d tell me when he was ready. It wasn’t my place to ask. Of course, he wasn’t shy about asking things.
“Why are we headed north into town if we need to go south? Not that I’m griping, I’m just curious.”
“Because it’s easier to walk the expressway. Even with the road blocks, it’s a straight shot, but to get back to the expressway we have to go this way. Unfortunately. And my plan is to keep going south until we find a bridge that hasn’t been destroyed.”
“Yeah, I heard those.”
I quickly glanced at him.
“The day they did it.” He shrugged. “Was really the thing that nailed the reality of it to me. Just hearing it. The concrete falling, explosions. You could see it on the television, but to be right there, right near it. Hard to explain.” He inhaled. “So why don’t we just take the side streets ? The expressways may be a straight shot, but they aren’t a straight way through.”
“You mean walk the side streets? Kind of a longer way don’t you think?”
“No, I mean, drive. We may have to foot it over a bridge, but at least drive until we get there. Take the side streets in and out. I know the area well.”
“How are we supposed to drive?”
“A car, hopefully one that didn’t run out of gas while waiting.”
I laughed sarcastically at that. “I’m sure we’ll just find a set of keys in a car.”
“Um ... yeah.” He pointed to a car, the door was open, and a decomposing body was inside. “Keys.”
“Let me rephrase that. A car with keys and no body.”
“Just take the body out,” Dodge suggested.
“Go on.” I nodded. “Touch it., try to move it.”
He extended his hand in, then paused and glanced at me. “Why? What’s gonna happen?”
“Not like the movies. Go on. Hollywood made me delusional as well.”
He braved it up, covered his mouth and nose as he reached in. I watched his hand grab the body and then the big, tough, man from jail, squealed in disgust, jumped back and rubbed his hands frantically on the sides of his prison jumpsuit.
“And whatever happens to the body,” I said. “It just eats through the car fabric. It’s gross.”
“I heard something about that once. I didn’t think it was real. They said the body when decomposing, can be like an acid when it breaks down.”
“From what I saw, that’s real.”
He peered down to his hands playing with a substance between his fingers. “Feels like gooey honey.”
I blinked a few times. ‘I’ll never eat honey again.”
“Got news for you, fresh honey may not be an option anymore unless you find some bees.”
“Here.” I reached into my pocket and handed him the tiny bottle of sanitizer. “Use that.”
“Thanks.” He squirted a lot on his hands and looked around as he rubbed them together. “Ok, so, key in the car, probably means body in the car. So we have to find a moveable, working car, preferably a couple years old.”
“What’s the age have to do with it?”
“A lot.” He looked around as we walked, peeking in
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