Chapter 5

We left the G.M.H (Galaxy Mega Hotel) very early the next day. Mike has our truck loaded with supplies of food and ammunition. He told us we're welcome anytime we come around, said we should tell the guards at the checkpoint that we want to see him. 

We hit the highway and Gary was driving at a very high speed. Nancy and Wayne must be worried by now 'cause we didn't tell them we won't be coming back.

"I think I'm beginning to like Mike" I told Gary who chuckled

" I told you he's someone we can trust" 

" You're not getting it" i said

" I like him doesn't mean I trust him" I replied sharply.

" So what do you think?" He asked

" About what?" 

" Are we going back to the hotel or not?" He asked while taking a bend. A few infected were on the highway and they foolishly staggered towards the car but Gary only hit the gas not minding the brainless beings.

" I'm not to decide" I replied

" Wayne and Nancy will speak for themselves" I added.

The rest of the journey was in silence and in no time, we got to Wayne's house. He was working on the mini van when we drove in and he raised his head up from the bonnet. Gary parked the car and we both got down just as Nick burst out of the house running to meet us with happiness in his eyes. He hugged me and sobbed on my shoulders.

"I was worried, I thought I would never see you again" he said amidst sobs. By now Nancy has come out of the house and Wayne wiped his greasy hands on a dirty handkerchief he got from the tool box on the floor.

I carried Nick and turned to face Wayne who kept looking from Gary to me for an explanation I guess. 

"Where the fuck have you guys been?" Wayne asked me.

"It's complicated" I replied.

"What do you mean it's complicated?" Nancy asked angrily

" Do you know how many times we kept coming outside during the night to see you guys are coming?" She added.

" Did you run in trouble?" Wayne asked directing the question to Gary

" No!" He replied

" Like he said, it's complicated" Gary said.

Wayne exhaled heavily and moved to the back of the truck. He whistled loudly at the sight of the supplies he saw at the back of the truck

" Where do you both get all this from" Nancy inquired while she assisted Nick who has come down  from my hands.

"I'm gonn' tell you when we're done offloading the truck" Gary said shutting any other questions they might want to ask.

               ****☠️Later That Day☠️****

 

We were having dinner at the dinning room when Nancy asked the question she asked in  the afternoon. 

 

Gary took his time to narrate the whole thing that happened to Nancy and Wayne. I just watch Gary blabbing on and on about the Hotel and Mike's kindness. He told them about the offer Mike gave us and also about Bryan.

"So what's your say?" Gary asked at the end of his story. No one said a word and he kept looking from Wayne to Nancy who seems to be in deep thought.

"Well I say we give it a try" Nancy said at last

"You're kidding?" Wayne replied

 "We don't know who they really are" he added

"And it's not safe here either" Nancy argued

"We've been here for weeks now expecting the goddamn help the government promised but where the hell is it huh?" She said

"Help's coming okay" Wayne assured

"And till when are we gonna wait?" She asked looking him straight in the eyes.

"Every time we kept reaching out to them on the radio, no one replies anymore. Don't you get it?" She asked with tears in her eyes

" We're on our own, we're fucking on our own!" She yelled as the tears kept flowing freely from her eyes.

" Hey, hey! C'mon, come here" Gary said drawing her to himself as she sob in his chest. Wayne sighed and looked at me, but I only shrugged.

"Okay.... I'm sorry okay" he apologized

"I didn't mean it the way you think, I'm only thinking 'bout our safety" he said apologetically.

"So what are you driving at?" I asked at last 

" I think we should at least give it a try" he replied

"Since that's what y'all want" he added. I wanted to protest, but I kept quite. I don't need it, I thought. 

My mind drifted to my family and I really missed them immediately. I brought out the small sized family picture I've always kept with me and looked at it as tears cloud my eyes. We were all smiling in the picture and I thought about when we would have time so smile like that again. 

When will all this end? When will I see them again? Where are they? Are they still al....No! I really shouldn't be thinking like that. But I can't help it. I'm gonna find them no matter what, even if it meant leaving this group.

I saw a small hand touch the picture in my hand. I looked up and saw Nick beside me, he touched the little girl in the picture and smiled at her. 

"Who are they?" Nick asked 

"They're my family"  I replied sniffing he took a closer look at the picture and I noticed his focus was on the little girl.

"The girl, what's her name?" He asked again

"That's my daughter Shirley" I replied 

"Shirley" he repeated "She's beautiful" he added innocently. I smiled and ruffled his hair as he kept looking at the picture.

"You didn't tell us you had a family" Gary said 

"You didn't ask" I replied. I really don't wanna bother anyone with my personal issues.

"Where are they?" Wayne asked. I stared down at the picture in my hand and sighed.

"I really don't know" I replied sadly. How will a husband and father not know the whereabout of his family, that's too bad I thought.

"Can I take a look?" Nancy asked and I gave her the picture. 

"What a happy family" she said smiling at the images in the picture.

"What happened?" Wayne asked. I exhaled deeply. This is what I've always wanted to avoid.

"Well, when the virus broke out, I was just coming from my tour in Afghanistan and we had to stop at the barracks as instructed. I was among the soldiers deployed to combat the infected when the outbreak was still fresh and after things turns shitty and the government were moving civilians from the areas where the virus hasn't affected, i was betrayed by my captain who used me as a bait to escape from a horde of infected." I paused for a while seeing that they were listening with keen interest, I continued.

" He shot my leg and pushed me out of our get away vehicle and sped away leaving me to the mercy of the horde of infected. I managed to escape from the horde to a nearby pharmacy were I stayed for two days. I treated my wound there and after two days, I decided to go home. On getting there, I couldn't find my wife and daughter. My house was littered with clothes and I think my wife had to leave with my daughter in a hurry 'cause her car wasn't outside. I saw an infected dead with half of his head blown off with what I think is a shotgun and that was when I realized that they were attacked. I've been trying find them in every government aided camp ever since" I concluded

Wayne sighed softly and looked at my wet eyes. 

" I'm sorry man" he said 

" It's okay" I replied. Nancy gave the picture back to me and left the table without saying a word.

" We'll talk about when to leave later in the morning" Gary said leaving as well. Wayne took sleeping Nick from my hands and left for his room also. They're a nice set of people I thought to myself left for my room also.

*****

                     The Next Day

I left the house early in the morning to hunt for fresh meat in the woods. That's what I told them, but I actually wanted to be alone and also to clear my head a little.

I armed my self with a shotgun Wayne gave me and some shells for it, I brought my Beretta and Joe's lucky axe with me. You should have known I never l go out without my Beretta. I took some canned food and water in my backpack as usual and left in Wayne's truck.

I've been driving for hours now and I stayed on the road that went round the woods. The road was lined with tall giant trees on both sides of the dusty road and I left a trail of dust as I sped down the narrow road. 

I was deep in thought thinking about my family and my discussion with the rest of my group the previous night that I didn't notice a deer heading straight for my truck with full speed. It was too late when I saw it and we collided with hits horns shattering the wind shield. 

I got down from the truck to see if the deer is still alive and I was shocked to see that it's throat had been ripped off and half of its face has decayed it was trying to get up even with it's broken limbs. I covered my nose because of the awful smell coming from it and went back to the truck to get my axe. I cut off it's head with my axe and hurried back into the truck.

I hit the road back driving home this time around as fast as I could. I wondered if the virus affect animals too and I knew immediately that the house is no longer safe for us to live in, I need to inform the others. 

I saw a few infected on the road heading straight towards where I'm headed and that got me really alarmed. How the hell did they get here? I thought. I heard a shot from far away and then another.

"Oh shit!" I cursed stepping on the gas. The gun shots continued for about two more minutes and then there was silence. I pray they're safe, I thought. 

I noticed that the more I get closer to the house, the more the infected on the road increased. This isn't right.

I drove into the compound to be welcomed by a horde of infected.

"Holy cow!" I exclaimed. The last time I saw such a number of infected was when my team went to rescue civilians from a church, that was when the outbreak was still fresh.

The front door was swarming with infected and I realized I can never go in there and come out alive.

...

... 

...

TBC.