“I…I came to bury the…bodies.”
The crazy-eyed man glared at him, unsure if he should believe a word. “Why here?” He stepped out of the house and onto the concrete patio. “Who are these people to you?”
Buck slowly shook his head, his hands still held in a surrender position. “They…” He glanced at the yard then back at the man. “I had only met the man yesterday.”
“Where is he?” The crazy-eyed man stepped off of the patio and into the tall brown grass.
Buck glanced upward to the second floor of the house. “We brought him home yesterday. We thought he was just getting a few personal items.”
The crazy-eyed man’s face fell. “He’s dead, isn’t he?”
Buck nodded. “Holding a picture of his wife.”
The Zulu collapsed to the ground, his hands trembling as he cradled his head. “I was too late.”
Buck lowered his hands and stepped forward. He could feel the gut wrenching sobs coming from the pasty man. He reached out tentatively and put a hand on his shoulder. “They were family?”
The man nodded between sobs. “My parents.”
Buck sat down beside the man and pulled his knees up close, resting a hand on the fellow’s back. “I’m sorry.” He kept his voice low and sympathetic. “I’d only just met Nick, but he seemed like a nice enough fellow.”
The man looked up at him and through the tear streaked crust of dirt, he recognized him from the photo in the house. “You’re Mathew, aren’t you?”
Matt nodded. “As soon as I could think straight, I went home.” He sniffed back a tear and wiped at his face. “Then I came here.”
Buck hung his head low as Mathew sobbed. “I think maybe your dad felt guilty for what happened to your mom.”
Matt looked up at him and slowly shook his head. “It wasn’t dad.” He leaned his head back and squeezed his eyes shut. “Mom was watching my son, Derek.” He cupped his face in his hands and took deep breaths. “Dad had called to tell me that Derek was acting out and had bitten mom. The news had all of these warnings about…” He choked on his own words. “I tried to warn dad to call the cops, but he insisted on going himself.”
“I’m sorry,” Buck whispered.
“Who were you to them?” Matt asked.
“I’d only just met your dad, but it didn’t seem right not to give them a decent burial.”
Matt wiped his face with the back of his arm. Tears, snot and slobber smeared the filth into a dark stain. He pushed himself up and leaned on the side of the house. “I should help.” He took a deep breath and blew it out shakily. “They were my parents.”
He glanced back into the house then turned to Buck. “Did you find a little boy?”
Buck shook his head. “A friend of mine came in and covered the bodies before we brought Nick in.” He gave Matt a worried shrug. “I didn’t actually see anything.”
With dread trepidation, Matt pushed off the stucco wall and stepped back into the house. Buck hung back, unsure what to say or do. A moment later he heard the sobs again before something shattered.
Fearing the worst, he stepped into the house. “Mathew!” He watched as the man snatched everything in reach and threw it against the far wall. “MATHEW!”
Matt froze and turned to him, his attention temporarily diverted. “What?”
“Let’s not do anything stupid.” Buck stepped closer, his hands up. “Let’s lay them to rest. Then you can come with me.”
Mathew’s eyes narrowed. “Why would I do that?”
“Look, we have a community. Food, water, clothes…even electricity.” He held his hand out to him. “Just calm down a bit. I’ll tell you all about it.”
Mathew hung his head and slowly shook it. “I have my own place. He sniffed back tears again as he squared his shoulders. “You should go.” He wiped at his face then turned his back on Buck. “They’re my family. I’ll take care of it.”
Buck stepped forward again. “I don’t mind helping. That’s why I came.”
“Go.” Matt’s voice was barely a whisper, but he extended his arm and pointed towards the door. “Now.”
Buck sighed and stepped around the covered body. “If you change your mind, we’re at the assisted retirement home on—”
“GO!”
Buck bit back a curse and turned for the door. He stood in the entry from the dining room to the living room and paused. “Your parents would want you to survive this.” He glanced back at Matt. “Just like you would want Derek to.”
With that he turned and walked back out to the truck. He climbed inside and started the engine. For a moment he stared at the house and debated on going back inside. Mathew was too thin to be much of a threat.
Buck squeezed his eyes shut then put the truck in reverse. “You know where we’re at.”
Dr. Broussard lay on his narrow bed and stared at the ceiling. He grew weary of doing nothing and closed his eyes, praying that sleep would come and remove these awkward emotions that were plaguing him.
He had just gotten himself calmed down when a low frequency vibration could be felt through the ship. He sat up suddenly and stared at the door. He heard no sounds of panic, but it didn’t quell the fear rising in his chest.
He stood and reached for the knob. With nobody in the hall to interrogate, he began working his way forward and upward. He eventually came to a bustling area where men seemed to be hyper-focused on the tasks at hand.
He cautiously approached the closest sailor. “What’s going on? I heard a low rumbling below decks.”
The man gave him a quizzical stare. “I don’t think you’re supposed to be here.”
“Probably not, but we are a
