Another scream, higher in pitch and more feral caught his attention and he focused on the man. “Hush. Be still.” He held his arms open and called to the men. “Come to me.”
A moment later, dirt and loose gravel rolled down the embankment on either side of him as the two feral men slid to his level. Both men eyed him warily as he held his hands out to them. “Come to me.”
He glanced at each man as they slowly approached him, their guard up. He could see the anticipation painted on their faces. He knew that both men wanted nothing more than to break loose of his spell and render his limbs from his torso, yet both held their urges at bay.
Two more screams had his head spinning to either side as more infected came running towards them. His first two soldiers were nearly upon him when he turned and faced them. “You may kneel, my children.” He stretched his hands out to them and watched as they both fell to their knees, their eyes on the ground in front of them.
Jedidiah then turned and watched as the three new additions sprinted towards him. His heart rate remained steady, and his breathing was shallow as the three closed the distance. He waited until the closest was under the overpass and in shadow before he spoke again. “Be still!”
He watched as the three men slid to a stop and stared at him, dumbfounded. He waved them closer. “To me, my children.”
The three men slowly approached, their eyes wide with wonder as Jedidiah directed them beside their newfound brothers. “You may kneel.” He turned his hands palm down and slowly lowered them, the men falling to their knees as he did so.
“Very good.” He allowed himself a brief respite and smiled as he walked amongst the newest additions to the Lord’s army. He lay his hand on each man’s head and watched as their bodies went slack, their inner rage calming.
“Come with me now. Let me deliver you to your brothers in arms.” He raised his hands and all five men came to their feet, their heads still bowed. “You each have the distinct honor of becoming part of the Lord’s army. Today you shall meet your brothers and fellow soldiers. Tomorrow, you shall face the first of many battles.” He paused and looked up at the bottom of the overpass, his eyes peering past the concrete and steel and searching for Heaven. “The great cleansing will be glorious.”
24
Rich took in everything. Every aspect of the greenhouses, the solar panels, the water wells, nothing was left unstudied. He made meticulous notes of every little aspect, and Hatcher watched him from the doorway as he quickly folded up one small notepad and pulled another from his pocket, immediately continuing his records.
“Looks like you’re being pretty thorough.”
Rich nearly jumped as Hatcher approached from behind. He quickly folded his notepad shut and slipped it into his shirt pocket. “You startled me, Daniel.” Rich grasped at his chest and feigned a heart attack. “You gotta go easy on an old guy.”
Hatcher glanced at his pocket. “Notes?”
Rich’s face flushed. “To be honest, my memory isn’t the best anymore.” He tugged the notepad out and opened it, displaying detailed diagrams of water fittings and sprinklers. “If I don’t write it down, I’ll never remember enough for it to be worth anything back home.”
“I’m feeling the same way lately.” Hatcher patted his shoulder. “I hope that Will has been helpful.”
Rich snorted a quick laugh. “That guy sure likes to talk.”
“You can say that again.” Hatcher knew exactly what he meant.
“He gave me the grand tour, but I tend to learn things better if I study them alone. Besides, he got frustrated as I tried to write everything down. I think he was happy when I told him I could carry on without him.”
“Well, if you need anything, you let us know.” Hatcher turned and leaned against the work table in the middle of the greenhouse. “If you like, I bet we could set you guys up with some seedlings to get you started.” He eyed Rich carefully. “Maybe work out some kind of trade?”
Rich’s expression changed and he slowly shook his head. “What could we possible offer your group? You have everything here.”
Hatcher shrugged. “I was thinking maybe some fish?” He watched as Rich’s eyes widened. “Your people seem to have no difficulty catching all you need. It could be a nice change of pace for us. Another source of protein.”
He slowly nodded. “I’m sure we could do that.” He tucked the notepad back into his shirt pocket. “We’re not positive, but we’re pretty sure they had just restocked the lake when everything went to hell. Our group isn’t big enough to put a dent in the fish population. We are always catching more than we need.” He gave him a crooked grin. “That’s why you saw so much being salted and smoked. Storing up for hard times.”
Hatcher pushed off the table and held his hand out. “For the record, we’d have helped regardless, but I like the idea of setting up a trade system with other survivors. As we find them, I mean.”
“I love that idea.” Rich beamed as he shook his hand. “I appreciate everything.”
“I guess I’ll leave you to your studies. Again, if you need anything…”
“I’ll ask.” Rich waved at him as he left the greenhouse then turned back to stare at the expanse of greenery. “We’ll definitely put it all to good use.”
“I found it!” David O’Dell stood in the doorway of the lower level lab, a huge smile planted across his face. “We don’t need the flowers themselves. We need the seeds.”
“For the psychedelic?” Carol asked as Andre removed his mask and gloves.
“Correct. Specifically, Heavenly Blue varieties. The bad part is, most seeds are coated in a poison that is intended to prevent people from abusing them.”
“What poison?” Andre asked as he dropped
