Part II - The Unknown
-Six Weeks Later-
JuJu and Vonda are scouting the outer perimeter of the community. And to a nearby town just south, outside the walls. He's holding his Honey Badger, now with a mini flashlight attached to the side, while Vonda's holding her Bow.
"JuJu," says Vonda in a concerned tone. "I gotta talk to you about something."
"What's that?"
The two find a bus stop to sit as they both wipe the excess snow from the bench.
"Remember the night Richard left?"
He gives a slight pause before speaking.
"Y-yeah? Why?"
"I know you tried to kill him. I saw you."
His eyes open widely.
"W-what? I have no clue what you're talkin' 'bout."
JuJu's heart races as he processes Vonda's words. He thought no one had seen him while having flashbacks from that night.
"JuJu, I saw you behind the bush aiming your gun at him as he left. I saw it all from my window. You had the chance but let him go. Why?"
"I don't know, I just had so much anger in me I wanted to finish him then and there, but when I had the clear shot, I couldn't pull the trigger. I guess it was the thought of Lynn telling me to not try anything. I don't want to lose her as a friend. Why'd you bring this up now? Did you tell anyone?"
"No, I didn't tell anyone. I just wanted to talk to you first. See what was going through your head during that time. I would've told you the morning after but, you know what happened."
"Yeah, l-let's just finish what we were doing."
"You got it."
The two stand up from the bench as they continue walking around the abandoned town. Each building was either looted or boarded up. JuJu walks toward one of the boarded-up buildings and tries to break the boards to enter.
"Hey Von, help me with this."
She nods and helps JuJu with the planks.
"Okay, one, two, three!"
The two pull at the same time and the boards break off as Vonda falls to the ground.
"You good Von?" JuJu says as he puts his hand out to help her up."
"I'm good, thanks."
He helps her up as they enter the building. It was dark but everything seemed to be intact. JuJu turns on the flashlight on his rifle as they walk inside. Dust particles dance in the beam of light, revealing a room frozen in time. Old furniture, covered with sheets, stands as a reminder of the lives once lived there. The air is stale and heavy, filled with the scent of neglect.
"I still think it's crazy that life used to be normal. Now look at this. Nothing but darkness."
"Yeah, now we have kids like Lily who probably won't remember the old world. It's sad."
The two of them skim around the building, looking for anything that could benefit them.
"Let's check upstairs," says JuJu.
Vonda nods as she follows him. They walk up the steps, making loud creaks after each step, until they are met with a trail of blood on the floor.
"Woah," says Vonda. "You wanna keep going?"
"Yeah, Just be prepared."
They follow the blood trail leading to a room with a closed door.
"Shit," JuJu whispers. "It's locked but I can hear something on the other side."
Vonda puts her head on the door and hears growling.
"There's roamers in there, you think it's the people that lived here?"
"Most likely."
JuJu takes out his knife and puts it in the doorknob to pick the lock.
"What are you doing?"
"Relax Von, just get your bow ready."
Vonda takes a deep breath, her hands tightening around her bow. She positions herself near the door, ready to react swiftly if the situation calls for it. As JuJu skillfully works on unlocking the door, Vonda's mind races, considering the possible outcomes of what lies on the other side.
With a soft click, the lock disengages, and JuJu slowly turns the doorknob. The door creaks open, revealing a room dimly lit by the light piercing through the wooden planks on the windows. Vonda's grip on her bow tightens as they cautiously stepped inside.
The room is small and cluttered with various pieces of furniture pushed against the walls. The air is thick with the metallic scent of blood, making their hearts race even faster. Their flashlights reveal the source of the trail—a figure lying motionless on the floor, surrounded by a pool of dark, congealed blood.
Vonda gags at the smell of the decomposing bodies. It's evident that the person had met a grisly fate, but the growling they heard persists from a corner of the room. JuJu carefully trains his flashlight on the source of the sound, revealing two emaciated and snarling roamers.
"We need to take care of them," JuJu whispers, his voice filled with urgency. "But let's make it quick and quiet."
Vonda nods, her focus sharpening as she prepares to engage the roamers. With a swift motion, she notches an arrow onto her bow, her eyes locked on the nearest roamer. She releases her hand, and it finds its mark, piercing through the roamer's head with a sickening thud.
Before the second roamer can react, JuJu lunges forward, plunging his knife into its skull. The creature collapses, its snarls silenced forever.
With the immediate threat eliminated, JuJu and Vonda take a moment to catch their breaths. The room falls silent, except for the distant sound of wind whistling through broken windows.
"We should search the rest of this place," JuJu suggests, his voice low. "There might be something of value, or maybe even more roamers."
"Fine," she replies. "Let's just be sure to get out of here and make it back."
Meanwhile, back at Houlton, Marcus, Byron, and Emmanuel are holding things down in the community with the Louds and the rest of the group. The three are with Bobby, Lincoln, David, and George trying to formulate plans to find Lori and the others that were taken from them.
As soon as they finish for the day, the three walk toward their house.
"Hey," Emmanuel says. "Who are these people we lookin' for? They important or some?"
"They're one of our people," Byron replies. "Those rogue soldiers tried to raid us but took them. Me, JuJu, and Marcus tried to save them but there were too many."
"Damn. Hope we can find them."
"I hope so too."
They decide to sit on their porch and continue conversating with one another.
"So, M. What was JuJu like when you met him? I'm tryna see somethin'."
"Uh, Aight," Marcus says. "I had my group with other people and B here. We were driving around Monroe, just outside Detroit, and saw those soldiers surrounding a gas station. We pulled up and shot them down, letting JuJu out of the store. He was being defensive until I told him that we were friendly. Ever since then, we've been family. He's a good kid. He has pride in the people he cares about. Puttin' himself ahead to protect others. Especially Lynn. Only God knows what would happen if she dies. Don't tell him I told you that."
"Oh, so he does like that girl, I knew it."
"Keep it on the low though, J get's pissed when people find out. You got me?"
"You got it M. It won't leave my mouth."
Byron butts into the conversation.
"JuJu needs to hurry up with it though. Clyde's chances with her are getting higher and higher each day. Have you seen them two together recently? Looks like JuJu is on a time limit now."
"True, but Clyde's been dealing with stuff. You know he's a fragile kid. Lynn's been by his side comforting him but I wouldn't think it's 'cause she likes him. She just wants to support him and make him happy. I don't think she's into him like that. Maybe she is. Either way, J tried to tell her a couple of weeks ago, but he got all choked up and didn't tell her."
Emmanuel listens intently, absorbing the details of the situation. "Sounds complicated, homie. But if JuJu cares about her that much, he needs to take a shot. Life's too short. He can't let fear hold him back."
"Exactly," Marcus replies. "But it's also important to respect Lynn's feelings. We don't know how she truly feels about him. We can't force anything. If it's meant to be, it'll happen."
Back at the abandoned building, JuJu and Vonda skim through each room with their flashlights piercing through the darkness. The discovery of the roamers serves as a reminder that danger lurks around every corner.
As Vonda searches a room, JuJu peeks from behind her door.
"Yo Von," He says. "You gotta see this."
She stops what she's doing and follows him out of the room.
"What is it?" Vonda asks.
"This."
JuJu opens the door he gets to and as soon as he shines the light in the room, There is a big red 'X' on the wall with bodies piled up right under it.
"Holy crap," she gasps. "What the hell happened here?"
"I'm just as surprised as you are."
JuJu walks up close to the bodies and looks at them closely with his weapon.
"JuJu! Don't get close to them!"
"They would've turned by now Von. They're dead."
While looking at the bodies, he notices something off about them.
"Yo, they weren't killed by roamers or by the Rogues."
Vonda slowly walks toward him.
"What do you mean?"
"Look," JuJu says as he shows her the scars and missing parts on the bodies.
"Those wounds... they're not like anything we've seen," Vonda whispers, her voice filled with a mix of horror. "It's like they were tortured."
JuJu's face twists in a mixture of anger and concern. "Who would do some shit like this?"
As they stand there, contemplating the horrifying scene before them, a chilling thought creeps into their minds—the possibility that there are others out there even more dangerous than the roamers and rogue soldiers they have encountered so far.
"We need to get out of here," Vonda says, her voice trembling slightly. "This place gives me the creeps. We'll report this to the others when we get back."
"I wouldn't tell anyone about it yet."
"What? Why not?"
"It'll start more problems. Plus, we don't know who or what they are. Maybe they're not even near us anymore."
Vonda hesitates, torn between the urge to share the gruesome discovery and JuJu's cautionary words. She understands his point about avoiding unnecessary panic, but the sight of the tortured bodies weighs heavily on her mind.
"JuJu, I get what you're saying, but we can't just ignore this. What if there's more of them out there?"
"Von, trust me. Right now isn't a good time to put everyone in panic mode, especially when the rogues still have some of our people."
"Fine, but if something similar to this happens again, I'm gonna tell them."
"Okay."
The two exit the room and head back down the stairs toward the front door of the building. As soon as they leave, the cold breeze hits their faces like a truck. They both zip up their jackets and walk together back to Houlton. As they were walking, they come across more roamers on the road. They both take them out swiftly and continue walking. As they make their way back to Houlton, their minds are preoccupied with the unsettling discovery in the abandoned building. They can't shake the thought of who or what could have been responsible for the torture and killings they witnessed. Meanwhile, the presence of roamers on the road serves as a grim reminder of the constant dangers lurking outside the community walls.
Upon their return to Houlton, they decide to keep the gruesome findings to themselves for now, heeding JuJu's advice to avoid causing unnecessary panic. However, they both feel a growing sense of urgency to find out more about the perpetrators and ensure the safety of their community.
"I'll see you later JuJu," says Vonda.
"Aight Von."
"Yo!" Yells Marcus as he walks up to JuJu. "How'd it go? Y'all been gone for a while."
JuJu stands there in silence for a couple of seconds before speaking.
"Uh, it went decent. Didn't find anything but more roamers. Thought we could get a lead on finding Lori and the others."
"Did ya find any Rogues?"
"Nah, just a ghost town down there."
Marcus raises an eyebrow, sensing something is wrong. He studies JuJu's expression, noticing a hint of unease in his eyes.
"Everything good, J?" Marcus asks with concern lacing his voice.
JuJu takes a deep breath, contemplating whether to confide in Marcus about the disturbing discovery they made in the abandoned building. He trusts Marcus and knows that keeping secrets won't benefit anyone in the long run.
"Marcus, there's something I need to tell you," JuJu finally admits, his voice tinged with seriousness. "But promise me you won't spread this around. It could make shit worse around here if it was let out."
Marcus nods, his expression reflecting his readiness to listen and keep the information confidential.
"Let's go somewhere no one can hear."
JuJu leads Marcus to their home. As soon as they enter, they both sit on the couch and JuJu lets out a loud sigh.
"Vonda and I found something fucked up in one of the buildings in the town South of here," JuJu continues, his voice low. "There were bodies, M. They weren't killed by roamers or the Rogues. It looked like they were tortured."
Marcus's eyes widen in shock and disbelief. He struggles to find words for a moment before responding.
"Tortured? What do you mean? Are there others out there we don't know about?"
"I don't know, bro," JuJu replies, his voice filled with concern. "But it's clear that there's a real threat beyond the roamers and the Rogues. There was a fuckin' huge 'X' on the wall made in their blood."
"Are you sure you not just seein' shit?"
"Bruh, I know what I saw. I'm not playin' right now."
Marcus leans back on the couch, trying to process what his friend is saying.
"We gotta figure something out, this changes everything. Who knows what we're gonna be up against, or if we even do."