the point where they threatened his hairline.
“Anyway, where are they now? I would have seen someone on the road and you’ve been here all morning. Chances are they heard me shoot the runner, so they’re probably hiding out right now,” I said, looking around.
“Maybe. Maybe not,” Charlie said. “You shot that Z on the road and we went a mile and a half into the woods to get here. If they are down in the canyon area, chances are pretty good they didn’t hear much. If they’re by a waterfall or fast creek, then they might not have heard anything at all.”
“Okay, so we have two options. Wait for them to return, or go looking for them,” I said.
Charlie shrugged. “I say we go find them. If we’re here when they return, things might get weird. If we go to them, at least we can announce we’re friendly.”
“True. All right, lead the way, Bwana,” I said, moving back outside and checking the area for any Z activity.
Charlie stepped out and went past the visitor center. I noted the doors had been broken into and there looked to be things strewn about a bit. I didn’t see any blood so I figured someone was just looking for anything of use or value. These days, money was worthless except for lighting fires, and we had developed a decent system of trade. Canned goods were always useful and so was ammo. Tools were good trade items and quality knives were always in demand. Funny thing, how-to books were very valuable as well. Toilet paper was gold.
We went past the center and walked down a dirt path to a small wooden walkway that took us along the edge of the canyon. The trees overhead were budding in the warm weather, and bright flowers dotted the ground. Here and there a squirrel leaped from tree to tree, and the creek noisily flowed on the canyon floor. There was a lot of beauty here and I could see why people came to this spot. But after the Upheaval, I tended to look at things with different eyes and this place offered no real defense if the dead came in force.
We walked down a ramp which took us to the floor of the canyon. Not having any real clue where we were going, we figured one way was as good as the next and headed north. We tried our best to keep out of the creek, but in spots we had to step in once quickly to get around a bend in the rocks. After about ten minutes, both Charlie and I were soaked up to our thighs.
We stepped up onto a flat rock which the creek flowed over and saw some fifty gallon drums in the water. They had been cut in half and filled with concrete, making stepping stones across the busy creek. I looked on both sides and saw evidence of the original trails, with rotting stairways leading to old paths.
At the top of the rocky shelf, we could hear the low roar of a small waterfall and stepping cautiously over the wet rocks, we rounded another bend and could see the spray of the cascading creek. The water fell a good thirty feet before it hit the pool at the bottom and even from where I stood, I could see it was clear and probably cold. I stepped up to the next rock and Charlie held up his hand. Ducking low and bringing up my rifle, I covered the area to the left as Charlie brought up his rifle and aimed at something up ahead.
Charlie tapped me on the shoulder and I swung back to the right, finally seeing what caused him to stop. A man was sitting on a rock on the right side of the waterfall, filling bottles and washing some clothing. He was tall, easily over six feet. His dark hair hung loosely about his shoulders, his thin arms looked wiry, but strong.. He looked competent, as anyone travelling alone would have to be and he had that wary look about him that the Upheaval had given most of us.
On his hip was a pistol, although I couldn’t make out what kind from where I was. We were going to have to be cautious, since I really didn’t feel like shooting a live person. I waved Charlie back and out of sight. I was going to announce my presence with Charlie covering me, and hope everything turned out all right. Any hostile move would get the man shot, so I wasn’t worried too much, but you never knew. He might get lucky.
Leaning my carbine against the rocky sides, I waited until Charlie had climbed into a shooting position. Given the thumbs up, I stood near the rock corner then called out.
“Hello? Hello?” Right after I said it I felt stupid, and I knew Charlie was going to give me hell for sounding like a doofus.
“Who’s there?” The man shouted. “Show yourself! I’m armed, so don’t be stupid!”
Too late for that. I walked around the corner with my hands held chest high. While it looked like surrender, I knew I could get my SIG out in a hurry if shooting started, provided I hadn’t been shot. The man was standing away from the water, pointing a pistol in my direction. I noticed he used two hands and the gun was not shaking. I figured if this went south I would be lucky to only be shot, if not downright killed. What I was not expecting was what happened next.
“I knew it! I don’t know how you bastards tracked me this far, but I’ll be damned if I’m going back! You tell the Major to go fuck himself!” The man was really worked up and I was getting nervous about his trigger finger.
I kept my hands up. “I think you’re confused. Who is this Major? What are you talking about?”
“Don’t lie to me! Survivors don’t dress like you. You’re one of his men! I ought to kill you right now!” He brought up the gun and I ducked as a shot rang out. I pulled my SIG and went around the corner to hear Charlie yell.
“You’re covered! Drop the gun now, or I will kill you.!”
The man screamed. “Damn you! Damn your Major! Fucking kill me, you shit! Do it! I’d rather be dead! Do it!”
This whole mess was getting out of hand. I stepped back around the corner and covered the enraged man, who still refused to drop his weapon. “All right, hold it! Just hold it!” I stepped out and the man’s arm twitched like he desperately wanted to bring up the pistol, but Charlie had stood up and there was no mistaking the intent of the AR now pointed at the man’s head. “Just calm down. Nobody wants to hurt you, but if you do something stupid, you’re in a world of hurt.” I stepped forward and could see the pistol more clearly. It was a standard. 45 auto, and had he shot me with it, I probably would have died, even if just wounded.
I stepped closer. “Holster your gun. I don’t want it going off accidentally.” The man stared at me but complied. I holstered mine as soon as he did and Charlie lowered his rifle. The man’s eyes relaxed and his narrow shoulders visibly sagged. “That’s better. My name is John Talon,” the man’s eyes shot towards me when I said that, but I let it pass. “And that gent up there is Charlie James. We’re not with any ‘Major’, we’re just survivors in this messed-up world, like you. We don’t want to hurt you. We just want to make sure you’re okay and to help you if we can. If you don’t want our help, we’ll leave you to your own devices and wish you luck.”
The tall man looked at me and gave me a sly smile. “My name is Simon Crays. John Talon, you say? I think I’m happy to meet you.”
2
We retrieved Simon’s things and rode slowly back to the lodge. Simon’s long legs allowed him to walk at a mile-eating pace, and he had no trouble keeping up with Charlie and myself. I rode on Simon’s left while Charlie brought up the rear. We talked briefly of the Upheaval and I learned that Simon was a computer software engineer, working out of Los Angeles. When the Upheaval hit, he managed to escape the carnage of the city and take refuge in the mountains. He had been living off the land and foraging through the ranches when he was ‘recruited’ by the Major. He didn’t elaborate and I figured we would learn more when we returned home. I told him about where we lived and how we came to be there. His eyes got wide when I told him of the towns and communities we had put together and he expressed a sincere interest in seeing those towns. Simon apologized for his behavior, but he thought he had been chased for hundreds of miles, thinking he had given his pursuers the slip when he crossed the Mississippi. When he saw us in all our gear, he immediately thought of the Major and therefore reacted the way he did.
The sun was high when we reached the outer gate and Simon was impressed with our earthen wall. I could see him running an experienced eye on its effectiveness and I saw him nod his head in approval. As we approached the lodge, I could see Simon openly nodding.
“Very nice,” he said. “Was this place a tourist spot before the zombies came?”
I gave him a short nod as I put my bike away. “This place has a lot of history, but the short version is we found it empty, realized its potential, and settled in. We could have done worse and nobody has laid a counter claim to it.”
