Chapter 2 – Memories
Not far from the spot where they had picked up Sophia Penny found a place to stop.
´Let's have an early lunch,´ she suggested. ´Will you help Howard to make soup Sophia?´
Question her, she mouthed to Howard when she handed him her mug.
´We will stand guard,´ she told the girl.
Behind her Howard got devices and supplies from his Vespa.
´This is something I designed Sophia.´
´Are you an inventor?´
´I'm an engineer. It's a bit like being an inventor. These are solar cells, see?´
Penny watched the surroundings ahead of her and recalled how excited the men had been when Wolowitz had shown them his designs. Sheldon paying Howard a compliment had made her realise that Howard had done something truly clever.
´We're not used to having young ladies around,´ Howard said, ´And I hope you don't mind a casual introduction. Penny you know. The yawning guy is Leonard. The tall one is Sheldon and the one with the cap is Raj.´
´Hi,´ Sophia shyly said.
´Hi Sophia,´ Leonard replied pleasantly at the same moment Sheldon stiffly said ´Hello.´ Raj managed a greeting also.
´Why are they not facing us? Are they angry at me?´
´It's safer this way. We now cover all sides see?´
´You would if you faced each other.´
´You're a smart girl, aren't you?´
Sheldon huffed. ´We won't be distracted by facial expressions this way,´ he explained.
´We'll have soup in a moment. Want an energy bar now?´ Howard said.
´Yes please.´
´Here you are. So little one, how come you're all alone here?´
Penny only had eyes for the surroundings but her ears were focused on Howard and Sophia and on the familiar sounds of a warm lunch being prepared.
´We were hiding under cars and they passed by and I got scared and I run,´ the girl said with a mouthful. ´Mr Rick came for me but there was another walker and he told me to hide.´
´Uhuh?´
´I did but then there was another one nearby and I run. I lost them.´
´So you call them walkers, do you?´
´Not now Sheldon!´ Howard said.
´I wonder why,´ Sheldon continued, ´I mean they move all right but one can hardly call it walking. It's more like stumbling. We call them zombies Sophia for that is what they are.´
´Who is Rick?´ Howard asked the girl.
´He's Carl's dad. He's a policeman just like Mr Shane. Mum and I met them on the road. Mr Shane said he was glad to see Mr Rick, who came to us in Atlanta, but I don't think he was.´
´Oh?´
´Everyone now listens to Mr Rick you see.´
Two policemen. That could be good. Then again: when on occassion Penny had picked up her brother from the police station she had experienced that some cops were power hungry bastards.
´So you came from Atlanta?´ Howard asked.
´No. But we stayed near Atlanta for a while and then we were attacked by walk- zombies. Mr Rick said we had to go to the CDC then.´
´Excellent choice.´
Ignoring Sheldon Howard asked: ´Did you walk to the CDC?´
´No. We travel by car.´
´That must be crowded: you and your mum and Carl and Rick and Shane in one car.´
Penny privately admired Howard's interrogation skills.
´We have several cars. And Mr Daryl's got a motor bike. He has a crossbow just like Miss Penny.´
´It's a hand-bow.´
´Sheldon!´
´Really Howard, no need to get sloppy.´
´Could you hand this mug to Sheldon and this one to Raj Sophia?´
Sophia did as she was bid and it was silent for a moment except for a bird singing. Penny loved the sound of it: animals always kept quiet when zombies were near.
When Sophia returned to Howard he told her that her soup was ready too. Before the girl had a chance to taste it Howard asked her after the size of her group.
´There's eleven of us now. Will you help me find my mum please?´
Silence.
´Can you bring this mug to Penny?´
It's my decision huh, Penny thought. Fair enough.
Sophia handed Penny her soup.
´Thanks sweetie. Do you like your group, besides your mum of course?´
´Like them? If they look after her they can be the Dalton brothers for all she cares. Of course there aren't ten Dalton brothers or eleven if she excluded her – ´
´Hush!´ Penny said. ´Are there other women besides your mum Sophia?´
Slurping.
´There's Carl's mum. And Miss Andrea.´
Five or six men.
´Are your people armed?´ Leonard asked.
Penny smiled for her ex-boyfriend didn't sound afraid. After they'd encountered some living freaks a couple of weeks ago Leonard had left Leonard-who-gets-bullied behind him.
Sophia said they had guns and knives and bats.
Well, Penny said to herself, can't blame them for that. She finished her soup. Dealing with other people was risky these days. Then again, having a girl in tow wasn't safe either. And there was the thing of a child needing a mother.
´We'll help you Sophia,´ she said. ´Howard will ask you about the place where you got lost.´
´But first,´ Howard said, ´I will ask my young assistant to give this mug to Leonard.´
´Would you say that your people are looking for you Sophia?´ Sheldon coolly asked.
´Yes?´
´That is not an answer. But let us assume that they will. You are part of their social group after all and your mother will most certainly not give up on you. Biology beats the brain far too often.´
´Sheldon.´
Sheldon sighed. ´This Rick Sophia mentioned seems fairly smart. Let's assume he checked the place where she got lost and -´
´Dude, there was a group of zombies hanging around.´
´I know that Raj. Sophia's people could have found themselves a house to use as a command centre. From there they could check the road every day, in case the girl would return to it.´
´Makes sense,´ Penny admitted. ´But we need to find the location were Sophia got lost first.´
She wished they could leave. Though everyone kept their voices down, it seemed to her that they were making far too much noise.
´I'm spreading out the map right now,´ Howard informed them. ´Where was your group heading for Sophia?´
´Fort Bening,´ the girl replied.
´Did you travel on a one lane road?´
´Three. It was blocked by empty cars.´
´Uhuh. From your arrival point of view, did you run to the right side or did you run to the left side of the road?´
´The right side.´
´How long were you in the forest by yourself?´
´I stayed in trees for three nights. And I slept in an abandoned house for one night.´
´Did you see many houses?´
´No.´
´What did you do during the day Sophia?´
´I tried to find mum.´
´Did you ever cross a road?´
´No.´
´Was there a river or stream or so?´
´Yes. It wasn't deep but it was wide. I didn't cross it.´
´Do you think you walked far away or did you perhaps walk in circles?´
´I saw a heart in a tree a couple of times. It said Dennis loves Meryl. I never thought to leave a message too …´
From Sophia's tone of voice Penny guessed she was trying hard not to cry. Howard's gently reply confirmed her idea: ´For a child all alone, without a weapon, you've done wonderful Sophia. Your mother will be proud of you.´
It was silent for a while. Sophia, possibly at her own initiative, came to collect the empty mugs.
´Thanks to Sophia's good answers I think I can locate the place where she lost her group. I've marked it with an X Sheldon. Our location is marked with a red dot. Could you confirm my idea?´
´Change of guard,´ Sheldon formally announced.
Penny heard the shuffling of feet. It didn't take long before Sheldon spoke.
´I agree,´ he said. ´It's at three point eight miles. As the crow flies. Over seven by road.´
A distance of nothing. On their arrival they might walk into a herd of zombies though. And there really was no way to tell where Sophia's people were right now. Penny looked at the grey sky. They needed a command centre of their own.
´Are there houses nearby Sheldon?´
´I must object -´
´Can you guide us to the nearest house?´
´Of course I can Penny.´
OoOoOoO
After another day of training with her marine it felt like heaven to Penny to slouch on the couch in 4A. By the time she started eating her Chinese food at a slower pace, she was able to think again. She knew that Howard had worked on his technical devices. Unlike him Sheldon didn't have lubricating oil on his hands and clothes. Leonard and Raj had followed a first aid course and they'd shopped for gear. Unlike them Sheldon didn't look tired. Unlike her he wasn't bruised.
´Say Sheldon. What did you do today?´
Sheldon raised his eyebrows. ´I memorized Penny.´
´Yeah, I read so in the schedule, but what did you memorize? An instruction book on how to repair a broken down Vespa? You know, I still don't get why we can't fly to Nebraska.´
´One zombie in the aircraft and we will be gone.´
´There are no zombies around now. Not here.´
It was three weeks after her first fighting class and Penny no longer believed that her men were making fun of her.
´At Call Tech we have the facilities to make the future easier for us. If we go to the farm now we will lack that opportunity.´
´But we'd be alive!
´We'd live like Neanderthalers Penny!´
´And what you did today is going to prevent that?´
´No, but it will help us during our journey. I am memorizing all routes from here to our destination and from any given point between here and our destination. Naturally I am also filing the locations of important buildings, such as research institutions: knowlegde. Police stations: weapons. Pharmacies: medicines. And in case of need: supermarkets. For the rural areas I will also include houses. You can question me. I've covered the first hundred miles.´
Penny accepted the challenge. With the help of Google maps she named a village and asked Sheldon how to get from there to the nearest hospital. When he got to the third option she begged him to eat the last dumpling.
´Oh, I will miss dumplings,´ Sheldon said with a sigh.
OoOoOoO
Of the first house Sheldon brought them to nothing but a few blackened walls remained. Halfway the driveway to the second house Penny, who rode ahead, spotted a zombie. Its ankle was caught in a trap. Sophia shrieked and Penny was sorry that she hadn't told the girl to shut up. The zombie, though it looked hideous, wasn't threatening but Penny planned to leave for the driveway ahead of them was a muddy trail without tyre tracks. Howard thought differently. He parked Roheryn and told Sophia to remain seated. Taking his bat with him he walked to the hungry zombie.
My friend smashes a zombie's skull and he looks calm and dangerous. The horny engineer is gone, Penny thought.
Property number three was a trailer. It stood on a square of asfalt and a bird hopped off the roof as they approached. Penny took a small stone from her coat's pocket and threw it against the trailer. Nothing happened. She rode to the back side where the door was situated. Her friends followed her.
´Now listen Sophia. Raj and I will check the trailer. You will stay here with Howard and be really silent, OK?´
´Yes Miss Penny.´
Penny readied her hand-bow. Raj held his manchette and he looked determined. The others stood guard, prepared to fight if need be.
We've changed, Penny realised yet again. In the week after their escape from Pasadena she had feared it would never happen. Despite the preparations her men had made the horror of living in a zombie infaded world had shaken them to their core. Penny had needed to be the strong one. She had gladly accepted the part: it helped to act like a warrior queen when you had to eliminate zombies. As she had grown into her role her friends had slowly adjusted to reality. Penny wished with all her heart that they could still be discussing Stan Lee's contribution to syfy or bicker over which of Professor X's men was the coolest.
There were no flies on the inside of the trailer's windows. All seemed clear. Raj slowly opened the trailer's door. The house wasn't big but it took several minutes before they had searched it. They checked behind every door and under every piece of furniture. They opened every cupboard and drawer. When they were done Penny nodded at Raj who wiped his brow and went to the door to whistle the gather signal.
Sophia held Howard's hand as they walked to the entrance.
´OK,´ Penny started, ´The trailer is clear. Bottles of water, canned food, clothes. It's a good place to start our quest. It also has a clean functional bathroom.´
Sheldon, overcome with joy, announced that he'd be the first to have a shower. The others helped themselves to some canned fruit and bottled water. Raj, standing guard in the doorway, exclaimed: ´This is so yummy!´
Penny agreed with the sentiment though she thought the word "divine" was more fitting. Because shopping areas would be crowded with zombies they tried to avoid them. With the food they gathered from field, forest and the occassional house combined with the dried food and vitamin pills they had taken with them there was hardly a need to visit stores. As a result they barely ever drank water without purifying chemicals added to it. Penny had learned the hard way that Sheldon had a point in insisting they would not drink "soiled" water.
Penny savoured her last sip and went back to business. ´You haven't slept properly in days, have you Sophia?
The girl shyly shook her head.
´There's a small bedroom at the back. Why don't you have a shower and then go to bed. There are some clothes here that I think will fit you just fine.´
´Won't that be stealing?´ Sophia asked, looking at Howard.
´Some months ago, when the world was normal, it would have been,´ he replied. ´But would you mind if a girl found shelter in your house and changed her torn, stained clothes for something clean?´
Sophia shook her head.
´See? The child who lived here won't mind either.´
´It's a bit like trading,´ Penny added.
Sophia kept smiling at Howard.
Look at that, Penny thought. If I were her I would make an adult like me too. But why didn't she pick me? Am I not likeable anymore? Or is Sophia old enough to understand that men have a thing for a damsel in distress? Or was she daddy's little girl?
´Say Sophia, you haven't mentioned your father have you?´
´He got eaten,´ Sophia said.
Not bitten. Not killed. Eaten. Leonard and Howard looked as shocked as Penny felt.
´I'm so sorry.´
´I'm not. He hurt mum.´
Sheldon entered the living room. ´I feel positively revitalized,´ he said, ´And please don't worry: I only used the shower for two minutes. There will be plenty of water for all of you. I also left it spotless but that goes without saying.´
´We expected nothing less Sheldon,´ Leonard said.
Sheldon poured himself a glass of water. Sophia waited whether the adults were going to say more. When they didn't, she said: ´That tasted really good. Thank you. But I liked your soup even better Mr Howard.´
´Right,´ Penny said. ´Now let's get you a nice hot shower and then you can go to bed.´
The girl looked doubtful about the bed part but when Howard said that it didn't matter that it was only early in the afternoon she followed Penny to the bathroom.
Fifteen minutes later on Penny returned to the living room. She found Howard sitting behind his laptop. Leonard was asleep on a folding bed.
´Raj and Sheldon are guarding,´ Howard said.
´I'm sure they both wanna play with the toys. I'll relieve one of them.´
Howard cast her a rare smile and Penny decided to stay for a while.
´Sophia is smitten with you.´
Howard shrugged.
´You're her hero,´ Penny added. Her friend's smile faded instantly.
´I'm a coward.´
´No you're not.´
´Ask my mother if she agrees with you. ´
Howard had arrived at 2311 all alone. He had said four words: she didn't make it. In the following months he had never mentioned his mother again. He had avoided his friends' attempts to comfort him but everyone knew that he missed his mum: he always made sure that the name of his Vespa was visible even if he had to use saliva for it.
´What happened?´
Howard's hands moved over the keyboard. His jaw was clenched.
´If you don't wanna talk…´
Howard sat back and stared at his folded hands.
´It's about time I talked. I've been a coward about that too.´
Penny opened her mouth but Howard raised his hand to stop her from replying.
´Near my house the first zombies were out already. People panicked, it was crowded. I took a short cut, through an alley. My mother lost her bag. She yelled that I had to stop. I did. What an idiot I was.´
He swallowed. Penny listened for any suspicious noises coming from outside. Apart from Leonard's soft snorring it was quiet.
´I let her get off,´ Howard said, talking even more slowly than he had before. ´From behind a carbage bin a zombie came for me. He still looked human Penny. Wearing a suit, a key-cord with a company pass around his neck. I felt like a bunny staring at a snake. Then he moaned and I got off and I hit him with my bat. I didn't aim for the head. I just couldn't. He tried to bite me. I was only aware of him and me. ´
Howard stopped talking for a moment.
´Anyway I hit him again. He came back. I peed my pants.´ After clearing his throat Howard added: ´I hit him once more and he happened to fall head first on a piece of glass. You know what I was thinking?´
Not waiting for a reply Howard continued: ´I feared that the cops would come and arrest me for killing an innocent business man. For all the preparations we'd made, for all we knew, I had never pictured how it would be. The way they look and smell. The feeling of being prey. I stood there and I stared. I don't know how long it took me to become aware of the surroundings. My mother shrieked and I turned to tell her that yeah, I was all right. Turned out she was fighting a zombie who was feeding from her leg. I smashed its head again and again and again and again.´
Howard's fist hit his upper leg with each again.
´She was dying. I told her I loved her. And I left.´
Penny held her crying friend. She didn't plan on letting go until he was ready for it.
´I couldn't prevent her from turning. I couldn't even face seeing her turn. I left her to die all alone.´
When Howard's sobs died down Penny said: ´You made sure she could flee with us. You killed her attacker even though you were scared. You are not a coward Howard Wolowitz. Cowards don't fight for their friends.´
Howard moved a little and Penny lessened her hold on him. He sat up straight and used the back of his hand to remove some mucus. ´If this were a TV series I would say: common guys, don't just sit there, go and find the girl's people.´
Penny ruffled his hair. ´I'd better go and get you an assistant then.´
She was about to walk away when Howard grabbed her hand.
´Penny. If I should get bitten I can't picture myself to shoot my brain out. Will you do the honours then?´
Penny's instinct was to say that he wouldn't get bitten; that they'd all arrive safely at her family's farm. Seeing the desperate look in her friend's eyes and knowing deep down that they might not even make till the next day she nodded.
´I will.´
Howard looked as if something really nice had just happened to him. It pained Penny to see it but she was an actress and she made it outside without shedding a tear.