“I can’t take the chance that something might happen to you on the road, Sis,” Alex said. “I promised to keep you safe.”
“Oh, come on,” Amy protested. “Stop coddling me. I’m not a child anymore!”
Alex threw his hands in the air. “Fine. I’ll give you two days to prove to me you’re fit enough for the road. Deal?”
“Deal,” Amy said before surveying his clothes and weapons with narrowed eyes. “Where are you off to?”
“On a supply run. I just dropped in to say goodbye,” Alex replied.
“Will you be gone long?”
“No, this is a short run. We’ll be back by noon.”
“Be careful, Bro. I’d hate it if anything happened to you,” Amy said with a tinge of worry.
“I’ll watch my back, Sis.”
They hugged, and he left the room with brisk strides. Around him, the nurses and other medical staff went about their duties with calm composure. A patient shuffled past him with an IV drip on a stand while another sat reading in a wheelchair. A pregnant woman waited in the reception for an exam, and a group of kids played in the children’s playroom.
It was all very normal, and he marveled that it was even possible in the apocalypse. A couple of changes had taken place since he’d arrived, however. After the fall of Fort Knox, Officer Brown had quizzed him at length about what had happened. Alex had been able to tell him quite a lot thanks to Saul and Tara, and Officer Brown had taken several steps to ensure the Radcliff hospital community didn’t meet the same fate.
All roads leading to the place had been blocked off, and sentries placed at strategic points. Surrounding buildings were cleared of the undead, and the entrances closed. Volunteers with bikes stood ready to lead any hordes away from them, and the hospital was fortified to the max.
It was now impossible to see into the grounds. Movement and noise were kept to a minimum, and all the windows had been blacked out. Even the animals were kept secluded and away from the road, walled off in an enclosure. Lastly, an evacuation plan had been set in place in case of an emergency.
Alex reckoned all the extra preparations gave the community a fighting chance, at least, and he hoped they’d not only survive, but thrive. There has to be something left once it’s all done — something of humanity.
He stepped outside and shaded his eyes from the bright sun. The sky was blue, and birds tweeted in the bare branches of the trees overhead. Despite the beautiful day, a chill breeze swept through the grounds, and he was grateful for the thick jacket he wore.
In the parking lot, Officer Brown and Tony milled about checking weapons and organizing the group gathered for the supply run. He counted seven people, excluding himself, which brought the tally up to eight. Two double-cab trucks with trailers stood ready to go, their tanks fully fueled, and their engines checked.
As a rule, Officer Brown was a man of few words and stubborn opinions. Alex had to hand it to him, though. The former policeman was an expert leader. He knew how to motivate people to get the best out of them, and he also knew how to deal with troublemakers.
Tony, on the other hand, was a tough nut to crack. Ever since their first meeting, he had refused to warm up toward Alex. They rarely spoke to each other, and Alex avoided the man as a rule. He didn’t want to start a fight when he wasn’t planning on staying for very long.
He strode over and joined the group. “Morning, guys.”
A couple of replies echoed around him, and Officer Brown nodded. “Glad you could make it. How’s your sister?”
“She’s doing much better, thank you.”
“Happy to hear that. Are you ready to go? You’ve checked your gun? Magazines?” Officer Brown asked.
“I have, and I’m all set.”
“Good. You can ride with me in the Toyota along with Jax and Molly,” Officer Brown said. “Four people to a vehicle.”
“Sounds good.” Alex heaved an inner sigh of relief that he wouldn’t have to ride with his nemesis, Tony, and climbed into the front seat of the Toyota with haste.
Tony favored Alex with a sour look as he walked past, his fleshy lips pressed together in his round face. His bald head shone in the sun, and despite the cold wind, sweat beaded on his forehead.
Alex was distracted when Molly, a pretty redhead, got into the cab behind him. She was young, around his age, and a good fighter. While he didn’t intend to make a move, he appreciated the way her long lashes fluttered at him in the rear-view mirror.
At least, he did until Officer Brown climbed in. With a pointed look at Alex, he adjusted the mirror away from her face. “Eyes on the road, boy. No distractions now,” the cop said with a wry smile.
A hot flush crept up Alex’s neck as he looked away, and he swore he heard Jax snicker from the backseat. Jax was also their age, a good looking jock who made no secret of his interest in Molly. Or anything that wore a skirt.
Alex tried to hide his embarrassment by checking out their surroundings as they pulled out of the parking lot. Armed guards waved them through the gates before locking up tight again, and a couple more swept aside the barricades a block further down. Buildings flashed past his window, and the streets were devoid of any signs of life. Even the packs of feral dogs that used to roam about had been eradicated. Now only the rats flourished in the abandoned structures.
Alex cleared his throat. “Where are we going?”
“We’re hitting a strip mall on the other side of town. It used to house that group of bad apples we spoke about before. The ones your friends wiped out.”
“Are they all dead?”
“It looks like it. We’ve had guards sitting on it for days now,
