Page 36 of Worth the Ruin
We play the game for a bit longer until we finally pull off the highway onto a small, two-lane road with not much of anything for miles and miles. Eventually, a little town emerges.
“Alright, game time is over,” Traeger says. “Be alert.”
Wynn nods, and we all transition easily into survival mode. Heads on swivels, ready for anything. We drove slowly, winding around abandoned cars. The town is tiny, even smaller than that last one I’d hit with Jonah and the Coveys before everything went to hell. It looks like everything had come to a grinding halt as soon as the Bloodies made their appearance in the world here.Thick layers of dirt and dust cover the storefronts and cars, and vines had grown over most of the buildings and benches. It looks entirely abandoned.
“Ghost town,” Wynn mutters, voicing my unspoken thought. We drive around the square that makes up the main part of the town several times to be sure there aren’t any traps or anyone waiting to ambush us. With no signs of life, we decide it’s safe enough to start exploring on foot. We park the vehicles at the end of one street leading out of the main square, towards what looks like some farmland maybe, and prepare for the first step of any run: Bloody clean up. We’d seen several wandering around and they’re edging their way towards our group, drawn by the noise. They’re slow moving, so they probably haven’t fed in a while.
I hate being out in this with no weapons, but I have to trust Wynn and Traeger to keep me covered, as they’d promised. I know if I cooperate with his little probation period, Traeger will give me full privileges eventually. It grates on my nerves, but I understand his reasoning and I’ve even done the same thing to newcomers at The Cove. They had to pass tests and get my approval before they were allowed on security detail or to touch a weapon of any kind. So, I get it, and I’ll do my time, but it doesn’t mean that I like being a sitting duck.
The two other groups with us parked on other streets and we’ll all meet in the middle of town square after we all clear our respective areas.
Traeger talks into his walkie. “Holloway, whatcha got?”
“Three in the street so far.”
“Mendoza?”
“Eight on this end. A handful more trapped inside this coffee shop.”
“Alright. Be fast and quiet.”
He clips the walkie to his belt and checks his pistol, silencer attached, as Wynn grips a machete in his left hand. It’s always better to try blades before bullets if possible, but Wynn and Traeger both have semi-automatic rifles strapped to their backs too, just in case. I ease out of the Jeep behind them and tug my backpack on my shoulders. Traeger eyes it and I give him a challenging look.
“Where I go, the bag goes,” I say. It’s my only absolute rule. “I’ve already told you this and if you want to argue about it, I will, but it will not be quiet and it will not be easy.”
He holds up a hand in surrender. “I didn’t say a thing,” he says defensively, though his lips quirk up on one side. “Just want to make sure you can maneuver with that thing.”
“I’m good.” I’d spent months training with my pack, getting used to moving with the weight of it and accounting for the additional bulk when fighting. It might as well be a part of my body at this point. Traeger cuts his eyes to Wynn who hikes a shoulder. No one but Jonah knows how truly important having the pack with me at all times is, but everyone else just goes with it and assumes I like to be extra prepared to be on the run if it comes to that. One of the worst things you can do in the apocalypse is be caught on the run with no supplies.
Trager nods to both of us. “Alright, let’s get this done.”
The boys walk ahead of me and I go on scouting duty. As they take care of the few Bloodies roaming the street, I ease onto the sidewalk, checking in storefront windows for signs of life or the undead. I wipe dirt from a window and cup my hands around my eyes so I peer inside an ice cream parlor with cute little bears with overflowing cones painted on the walls.
“Front of this one looks clear!” I call over my shoulder. I continue on down the left side of the street, dubbing four out of the six shops clear, at least at first glance. The other two have bloodies inside and they’d begun clawing at the glass when theyheard the commotion and saw me outside. There aren’t enough to break through, so I’m not too concerned with them at the moment. We’ll handle them once we get the street cleared. Easy day.
“Wynn, on your right!” Traeger shouts. Wynn quickly moves out of the reach of a Bloody who had managed to sneak up on that side and he takes her down. After confirming that Wynn is good, I jog towards the other side of the street to start my job over again. I squint at the glass of a little boutique as I approach, unable to see inside because of the glare from the sun, but once I’m close, I suck a breath and back hastily away.
“Fuck. This one isfull,” I say as Traeger takes out the last Bloody. Something cracks beneath my boot, broken glass or something, but when I glance down, the hair on the back of my neck stands on end. There are footprints within the dust and dirt on the sidewalk.Freshfootprints—and they aren’t from Bloodies.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I mutter, looking up and down the sidewalk. There are printseverywhere. People had been here and recently. I can’t believe I hadn’t noticed them until now. My thoughts go into overdrive, and I jerk my head around, glancing upward.Best vantage point is on the roofs. They’ll be up there if they’re still here…
Sunlight glints off of a rifle scope and I scream “Down!” just as shots ring out. To their credit, both of the men listen to me without hesitation and it probably saves their lives. A bullet whizzes past Wynn and he rolls out of the way, quickly scrambling to his feet.
“Rooftop, my two o’clock!” I yell as I fling myself behind a big mail bin, more shots ringing out and pinging against the metal at my back. Others begin to pop on the other streets as well, yells echoing from all around. I tentatively peek my head around thecorner and a bullet slams into the ground just a few feet away, sending rocks and dirt flying into the air. I grit my teeth.
“Melody!” Traeger yells from across the street. It looked like he and Wynn had managed to wedge themselves into a small alley between two shops from what I saw before someone tried to shoot me in the face, so I think they’re relatively safe from fire. The gunmen are only on the roof on the left side of the street, so for now, I’m the easiest target, but I don’t know how long that will last.
“Melody, I’m coming!” Traeger calls.
“No!” I shout. “I’m alright! Get the Jeep and get us the fuck out of here!”
“Fuck!” he yells in frustration, knowing damn well that I’m right. Getting to the Jeep is the better plan. We need to get out of the immediate line of fire and then we can regroup. Even so, I hear bullets spraying the asphalt and him returning fire with his pistol as the idiot sprints for the mail bin. He somehow makes it without being hit and I yank him down beside me.
“You are a fucking moron!” I hiss at him. He searches me over for injuries, as he if he doesn’t even hear me, his jaw set into a hard line and his green eyes blazing and…frantic. He grips my shoulder before sliding his hand to the side of my neck in an almost tender gesture. I’m not sure he even realizes he’s done it.
“Are you alright?” he asks me, voice rough. I blink at the intensity of it.
“I’m fine,” I tell him. “I’m alright.”
