Free Wormwood Dawn (Episode V) by Edward Crae Page B

could hear Max say, “Melanie will not like this at all.”
    Drew put the Hummer in park and the three of them exited. They were greeted by the large men that were by the fire. One of them, a much older man resembling a tall Jerry Garcia, was the first to greet them. His companion, an equally large but younger man, stood behind him, shyly nodding.
    “Max, Eric, Travis,” Cliff said. “This is Dan and Drew. I met them up in Oolitic. There’s some crazy shit going on there, but they helped me get out.”
    “How’s it going, guys?” Travis, the older man, said.
    “Travis here’s a doctor,” Cliff said. “Or, he used to be. Eric is his son, like I said, and Max is the resident genius.”
    Dan and Drew shook their hands. They seemed pleasant.
    “Where is Melanie?” Cliff asked.
    “She’s pouting in the office as usual,” Travis said. “But I’m sure she’ll be out soon.”
    “Speaking of Satan,” Max said.
    They all turned to see another figure walk out the door of the nearby building. She was about Dan’s height, slim, and somewhat unpleasant looking. Her face was curled into a scowl, and her posture was aggressive and guarded.
    “Who are these guys?” she asked, accusingly, as if blaming Cliff for bringing mutants into the gates. Her voice was just as unpleasant as her face.
    “This is Dan and Drew,” Cliff said. “I met them on the road.”
    Melanie shook her head, scowling even further and shaking her head in anger. “And you just brought them back without asking me?”
    “They have supplies that we need,” Cliff replied. “And they need a place to go. They have weapons, too. Lots of them.”
    “We don’t need any more guns,” Melanie said. “And we especially don’t need any more rednecks running around carrying them.”
    Cliff sighed. Dan felt uncomfortable, and he noticed that Drew seemed to be shifting, too.
    “We need more people,” Travis spoke up. “They’ve obviously survived for a reason.”
    “Whatever,” Melanie snapped, scowling at Travis for a moment. Eric put his hands in his pockets, looking at the ground and kicking his foot. He wasn’t about to speak up.
    “Do you guys have medicine?” Travis asked.
    “Just about everything,” Dan said. “Whatever you might need.”
    A dog came strutting out of the building, boldly approaching Dan and Drew and sniffing them. It also seemed unpleasant and growled a bit when it returned to Melanie, growling threateningly at the two of them like an annoying, poorly-disciplined dog does.
    “We have plenty of weapons and food, too,” Drew added. “And other things to help us all relax and get to know each other.”
    Melanie said nothing, but folded her arms across her chest and turned away. The dog followed, giving them one last smart ass look before skulking off with its master.
    Travis snickered, shaking his head in disbelief. “She doesn’t like you,” he said, grinning. “But who cares? Come on in and enjoy the fire.”
    “What’s her problem?” Dan said, truly repulsed by her attitude, and her face.
    “She’s a troubled soul,” Travis replied, leading them toward the center of the camp. “We all are. But I think maybe she had problems before.”
     
    The fire was small but cozy. Wooden deck chairs of various types were arranged around it, and there were opens cans of food here and there. Travis sat down on one of the chaises, picking up a bottle of water near him. Eric sat down in an arm chair beside him, still quiet. Max remained standing, nervous and darting his eyes around.
    “Have a seat,” Travis said. “Whatever you’ve got, we can worry about it later. You boys look tired.”
    Dan was definitely tired, and the thought of just relaxing in one spot for a while sounded good. He and Drew had been without a home since his house was destroyed, and even compared to the shit they had gone through to escape from Bloomington, being homeless was probably the worst part.
    Now, with a place to rest, he might be able