The man smiled again and nodded. “You’re both armed, but neither one of you has started shooting. I think that’s a good first step.”
Hatcher nodded slowly. “Apologies, friend. I’ve had bad luck with motorcycle gangs in the past.”
The man’s eyes widened and he shook his head. “Oh, we’re not that kind of cycle club.” He laughed and pointed behind him. “Larry was a dentist. Rich was an electrician.” He turned back and pointed to himself. “I’m a carpenter, myself. We all used to get together on weekends and ride. Now…well, it’s easier to get around on two wheels than four.”
“Unless it’s four wheels like this one.” Hatcher startled as Missy replied directly behind him.
“I told you to stay in the truck.”
She rolled her eyes at him. “I couldn’t hear.” She stepped forward, the rifle hanging loosely in her hands. “Where you out of?”
“We’re set up just outside of Orem.” He stepped forward slowly. “You’re more than welcome to swing by and take a look. Stay a night. See if you like what we have to offer. If nothing else, you can get a hot meal before you take off again.”
Hatcher paused and glanced along the highway. “I don’t know.”
“We’d love to,” Missy called back. “Thank you.”
The man nodded, smiling. “I’m Willie.” He stepped forward and held his hand out. “I’m sorry we spooked you back there.”
Hatcher stepped forward and took his hand. “Like I said, I had a bad run-in with guys on bikes, so…”
“I understand completely.” Willie motioned them towards the motorcycles. “That red haired fella, there, that’s Larry. The big guy with the bald head is Rich. The lady in the back with the resting bitch face is Glenda.”
“Up yours, Willie,” Glenda yelled back. “It ain’t a resting face.” She glanced at Missy and grinned. “I’m always a bitch.”
Missy smiled back then nudged Hatcher. “My new best friend.” She leaned back and gave him a surprised look. “And possibly your soul mate.”
He groaned. “I’m Daniel Hatcher. This is Missy Butler. She’s a pain in the ass.”
“Your daughter?” Willie asked.
Hatcher opened his mouth to argue as Missy burst into laughter. “I’m not that young.” She paused and looked at Hatcher. “Although, he could be old enough to…”
“We’ll follow you.” He glared at Missy then slowly walked backward toward the truck.
Andre marched between the soldiers, most had their weapons at the ready. “Hold your fire!”
The few infected people who had followed the sounds of the vehicles stood cautiously at the edge of the property, their hands up or clearly at their sides. “We need help,” an older man croaked.
Andre pushed the narrow chain link gate open and stepped out. “This way. We’ll do what we can.” He motioned towards the small group and held the gate open for them. “Is anybody still infected?” he asked even though he was confident the answer.
The older man shook his head and Andre had to hold his breath as each stepped past him and into the facility grounds. “We saw one fellow who…” his voice trailed off and he turned sad eyes to Broussard. “It was bad.”
“I understand.” He shut the walk-through gate behind them and led them to the facility. “We’ve only just arrived and our resources are sparse, but we’ll do what we can.”
Carol ushered the people into the building and gave Broussard a worried look. “We’re likely to see a lot more people coming to us before things are settled. We need real food and clothing for them.”
“Agreed. Those military rations may be nice for short term, but I wouldn’t want them for any duration.”
Carol waved a soldier over and kept her voice low. “I know that we have other priorities at the moment, but could some of your men go into town and maybe hit some of the stores? Gather any food stuffs that look good?”
“And clothing,” Andre added. “Thrift store, if nothing else.”
The man seemed hesitant at first and glanced to his lieutenant. “Sir?”
His superior nodded then added, “Be careful. Take Simmons and Pike. In and out, no dicking around out there.”
The soldier nodded then jogged off and the officer turned to the two researchers. “We can’t know their intentions. It’s not safe to open the doors to just—”
“Lieutenant Davis,” Andre interrupted, “I mean no disrespect to you or your men, but the president himself told me how badly he wants to get the country back on its feet. We need people to do that.” He motioned back towards the building. “Those people may have been infected at one time, but now they aren’t. Their hungry, cold, confused…they need help.”
“I understand that, sir,” the lieutenant countered. “However, my primary mission is to provide utilities and protection,” he tapped Andre on the shoulder, “for you and your people. We aren’t running a Red Cross center here.”
Carol quickly interrupted to prevent Andre from saying something that might burn current bridges. “We understand that and we appreciate the added burden we are putting on you and your men.” She lowered her voice and added an almost flirtatious lilt as she spoke. “But all of this will be for nothing if we can’t get people situated to the point that they can start providing for themselves. They’ll be looking to us to give them a hand up, not a hand out. Once they get their strength back—”
“And their dignity,” Andre added.
“Yes, and their dignity.” Carol patted his arm. “Once they have their feet solidly under them again, things will start getting better everywhere. We can’t just turn people away when they are suffering.” She stepped closer and gave him her best sad eyes. “What if it was one of your family members asking another soldier for the very same help?”
The lieutenant sighed and glanced away. “Very well. But we have to have some kind of protocols in place to ensure we aren’t bringing in a disease or…something.”
“We’ll get right on that.” Carol beamed at him. “Thank you.” She grabbed Andre by the arm and rushed him inside.
“I could have
