Chapter 7 – Hypotheses
Five hours earlier
Meg
We had been on the road for about an hour and, according to my calculations after a quick look at the map before starting the bike again, we were less than halfway to Portland. Lev was excited about the imminent possibility of meeting Abby again, because not having any information about her whereabouts for days made him very tense.
"Don't worry, kid, we'll find her as soon as we can."
"All I hope is that they haven't hurt her." He replied. "Not like I imagine happened in California."
"What are you talking about? She's never told me that she suffered anything there when you two were in prison."
"Actually, I'm not sure if she suffered or not, because I never witnessed anything. But when we were forced to work harvesting food for the Rattlesnakes, I noticed that she often disappeared, especially at the end of the day, when she couldn't stand up any longer. And I knew that those people weren't benevolent enough to want to help her or provide her with at least a glass of water to quench her thirst... I saw them killing prisoners all the time and... I was afraid they would do it to Abby, but for some reason they didn't." He took a deep breath after telling me, as if doing his best to dispel a terrible memory. "To this day, I haven't had the courage to ask her what happened to her when she disappeared, because I think that if she wanted to tell me, she would have told me by now."
I remained silent for a few moments, trying to imagine what might have happened to Jerry Anderson's daughter during the months she was held captive by the Rattlesnakes, but no matter how terrible the odds, I knew it would be better to try and question her when I realized we could talk about it. Because even though we had lived together for more than four years, I never imagined that she had any significant trauma from the time she was held captive.
"There are delicate things for a woman to talk about so openly, Lev." I began cautiously. "Maybe she doesn't want to remember, or maybe telling means remembering and that's too much for her." I thought.
"That makes sense. But... That doesn't mean she doesn't trust us, does it?"
"Of course not. Abby knows we're family, maybe she just needs more time." I replied, before reading the worn sign that indicated we were arriving in Portland.
"Finally!"
"Hey, kid, I didn't even drive that slow." I retorted, pretending to be offended.
"No, I know you didn't, but I'm looking forward to seeing her again soon."
"All right then, let's make a plan." I parked the motorcycle for a few moments and looked at the map of the city, where the place where the Campbell community was established had been painted red. "If she's made a home base, it's certainly not far from their territory, so let's start there." I suggested, handing him the map. "Let's keep going."
Lev nodded at the same time as I started up the two-wheeler again so that we could continue with our objective: to find Abigail Anderson as quickly as possible, in order to bring her up to speed.
After more than forty minutes of driving through two nearby neighborhoods - Slabtown and Nob Hill - we stopped in front of a house that had two things that immediately caught our attention: a motorcycle very identical to the one I had delivered to Abby so that she could come to Portland, and her name followed by the letter A, both inscribed on the wall closest to the residence, which gave us absolute certainty that she had passed by.
"She was here." Said the boy, with obvious expectation in his voice.
"No doubt she was, but I don't think she is anymore." I completed his sentence, worried that we had arrived too late and that something serious had happened.
The sun was beginning to set, which would make it dangerous for us to walk through the city, as the infected would surely be out hunting for food. But we needed to get information about our colleague's whereabouts, whatever the cost.
"Should we search the house?"
"No. If I know Abby's modus operandi, she's locked everything up as a way of letting us know she's not staying here." I commented, as I tried to open the front door and couldn't.
"You're right. So what are we going to do?"
"We're going to visit the Campbells."
"Now?"
"Yep."
"Don't you think it's a bit late now?"
"Well, we're a bit tired, but I don't think we'll sleep well at night if we go on without any information." I pondered.
"I agree."
"Then get ready, we'll walk." I replied, while putting on gloves and a mask.
"Okay."
It took a few minutes for us to put on the protective equipment we needed, but soon the boy had slung his backpack over his shoulders and we started walking through the still empty streets.
As we walked along, I thought we would encounter hordes of infected, but I didn't imagine that they would be so prepared for combat and that they would display such a high level of intelligence, even though we had faced numerous hordes over the four years we had been helping people in general. Lev and I were very well equipped with long-range weapons, but the new behavior displayed by the horde made me wary. As the sidewalks were destroyed, they tore off parts of the structure to try to hit us.
There was a moment when I managed to push the boy just in time, because otherwise he would have been hit in the forehead by a piece of concrete that had been ripped out of a building, which could only mean one thing: it wasn't just us who were equipping ourselves, but the enemy hordes too.
"Did you see that, Meg?!"
"Yeah!" I replied in the midst of the commotion, while killing two other runners with precise shots. "Are you all right, soldier?"
"Yeah! I just don't know if we're going to make it out of here."
"Don't be pessimistic." I said, pointing to an alleyway. "Come on, run!"
"But what about you?"
"I'm right behind you, just trust me and go!"
My answer was quick, but just before I started running, an infected man jumped down from the top of a partially destroyed truck and grabbed me violently by the neck. He searched for my hair for some reason that I can't say, but because I often shave my head, he failed in his mission. Those seconds were crucial for me to gain the time I needed to reverse the situation, because I managed to knock him out with two punches and then kill him with one shot.
Lev?" I shouted for him, as I had just run into the alley without being able to spot the boy. "Hey, soldier!" I called out, but got no reply.
Unfortunately, I knew practically nothing about the city of Portland because when my family and I visited the city was before the outbreak – I was only three years old –, but I knew from the location on the map that we were near the Willamette River, which meant that we would soon reach the Campbell community.
Without being able to stop running, I left the alley and turned left onto the next street, only to see the boy inside a house taking cover. I smiled reassuringly as I realized that my mission colleague was collecting items and went inside too.
"I didn't think you'd find me here." He said, as he caught his breath. "And where is that damned horde? Don't tell me they've caught up with us?"
"No, nope... It took me a while to reach you, I had some problems back there." I replied briefly, as soon as I had taken my backpack off my shoulders and dropped it on the ground. "But the horde must be on our trail, we have to be quick. And I confess that my forty-one years already put me at a disadvantage if we have to run any further."
"Hey, don't say that! You're in top shape! You and Abby are, too." The boy argued.
"Why do you make that comparison every time you get the chance, huh?" I asked in an amused tone after laughing, in an attempt to lighten the mood a little.
"Because I like you two." He replied simply, as he watched me reequipping the weapons I had at my disposal on a workbench inside the house.
The genuine manner that Lev had retained since I first met him, despite the passage of time, was the most precious thing about him, because there was no doubt that the boy was much more skilled than me in the art of expressing himself. I smiled at him as I refitted my rifle so that we could set off. I noticed him looking at the map he had in his hands, as soon as he took it out of his backpack, to make sure we were on the right track.
"Come on. If we follow this street without a sign, we'll reach the front of the community."
"I just hope we didn't get lost..."
"Hey, come on, where's your enthusiasm!" He smiled.
"Well, if this is the right way, we'll be near the river, too."
"Yeah."
I wiped the sweat from my brow and took a deep breath. "Good, because my feet are killing me. I guess that's why I'm not as excited as I should be."
"And you're sweating even though it's not hot... Is that nerves?" He probed.
"A bit, yes, but we'll be fine."
He smiled at me as if to encourage me to keep going and I knew that we were closer than before, so we had to try until the end and not get discouraged, as long as we didn't endanger the locals with the threatening proximity of the infected. As we walked, I thought about how our enemies had become more dangerous over the months, precisely because they had acquired new abilities.
Perhaps it really was a natural selection by the fungus, which fortified runners, making them more intelligent and capable of attacking us, even as a way of eliminating us as a enemies species, or perhaps it was something more specific that only affected the region of Oregon, Wyoming, Seattle and Utah.
As I was carrying in my backpack the files belonging to Abby's father that Emily and the other soldiers had managed to find in Cannon Beach, the seaside town where she had been born, I hoped to get the answers I needed as soon as I could read them. Perhaps the doctor would indicate something in his research, but until we had nothing, the future was uncertain, which made me uneasy.
"Hey Meg... Over there!" The boy pointed, visibly relieved. "I can see the gates now."
"Well done, soldier." I said, stepping forward so that I could talk to the guards.
I immediately dropped my weapons and raised my hands in a clear sign of peace, while Lev did the same soon after. I looked again at the trio of guards carrying rifles with scopes and immediately recognized Abby's guidance. I had taught her everything I knew about the weaknesses of the toughest runners and, whenever I passed through a new community to instruct them, she did it in exactly the same way as she had learned from me, which I was very proud of.
"Identify yourself!" One of the men demanded.
"My name is Megan Robinson, and this is my friend Lev, a soldier on my team. We've come to your community because a colleague of ours is helping you."
"We don't know what you mean." The guy retorted, suspiciously.
"Listen: we know Abby Anderson." It was Lev's turn to speak up."
"And we know the names of the local leaders." I added. "So, please, could any of you three call one of the Campbells?"
I noticed the guards talking to each other briefly, until one of them, a young man of no more than eighteen, walked away, probably to tell the main leaders that we were there. While we waited for him to return, I sat on the ground, even though I was looking at my belongings lying on the floor, because I feared the infected were approaching, but judging by the delay, I thought that perhaps the enemies had found an alternative route – at least that's what I wanted.
"Do you think they believed us? Lev asked me in a whisper.
"Yeah, even more so after they heard Abby's name."
We remained quiet for a few moments, until we heard two people approaching the guard who had gone to the local leaders. The two women accompanying him were brunettes and quite pretty, I thought. I didn't know them, but I noticed that Lev did, because he smiled slightly at one of them, seeming to remember something in particular.
"You!" He pointed to one of the new arrivals. "You were pregnant ten years ago at the theater in Seattle..."
"Lev?" Her tone was a little unsure as she questioned.
"Yes."
"You can have it opened, it's them, Lexi."
As soon as I heard the brunette girl he recognized whisper to the other, I noticed the gates open and we entered the community. We were carrying our backpacks and for a moment I feared that we would be left without them as a security measure, since we didn't even know each other, but the two women pointed to a nearby field, as if silently asking us to settle down inside.
I followed the boy closely and as soon as we entered the hovel, I felt an intense pain in my back. Perhaps it was due to the fight against the infected who had grabbed me by the neck in an attempt to immobilize me? I couldn't say for sure. But in any case, if we were received as hospitably as it seemed we would be, I could take a painkiller as soon as I had the chance.
"My name is Alexia Campbell." The taller brunette woman began to speak as soon as she stopped outside the hovel we were in. "Abby has mentioned the two of you several times, even citing you as her mentor." She completed her reasoning by pointing in my direction.
I smiled slightly when I heard the last sentence. "Well, I was lucky enough to instruct her years ago. Now Lev and I have come to help you leave Portland. We can collaborate in training the people you've selected, so that we can get out of this seething city as soon as possible."
"All help is very welcome." She replied, reassured that we were people who would cooperate in the task. "But unfortunately, as it's late, I'm afraid Abby has already gone to rest."
"I imagine so. Don't worry, Lev and I will do the same. We can even sleep outside your community if you like."
"No, please... Make yourselves at home. Dina has already gone to prepare a better house for you to sleep in." Alexia commented, her tone friendly. "How are the surroundings, have you faced many dangers?"
"Yes. I still can't understand exactly why, but hordes and hordes of infected are gathering nearby."
"Can I ask you a question that will sound a bit strange, not least because we don't know each other personally?"
Visibly curious, I nodded, because I had no idea what the community leader was going to ask, nor did I know if I would have the answers the girl so desperately wanted. Even so, it was good to know what she was thinking.
"They're not here because of Ellie, are they?"
Suddenly, my brain sparked with this information. The immune girl could be the explanation for why the infected flocked together, since this new class of runners - which wasn't given another name because I never had the creativity or time to rename the enemies - used to communicate as if they were interconnected. I had made this observation four years ago, when I trapped two of them in a farmhouse, left them alive inside, walked away and when I returned a week later, the place was surrounded by a small horde trying to break into the farmhouse.
As the immune girl had the fungus in her brain, the other infected people had probably interpreted her as part of the group and had therefore left Wyoming to go after her. However, even if the conclusion had made sense, saying it to Alexia would have been frivolous, because I would have needed more tests to prove it, which would have been impossible given the circumstances in which we found ourselves.
"It's too early to say. I need to re-read some of Doctor Jerry Anderson's files and compare them with the notes I've made. But we mustn't forget that, whatever conclusion I come to, the number one priority is to guide your residents to help us ensure the survival of everyone here."
"I completely agree. Well, come on, I'll take you two to the house that Dina is fixing up."
Lev and I nodded and silently made our way to the house that had been properly organized to receive us. As it was already late – certainly past dinner time – both women wished us good night, just before the boy and I started eating the protein bars we had brought in our backpacks.
"You didn't think she'd ask that?"
"Why, kid?"
"Because you were very quiet before you answered. She doesn't know you like I do to understand that it's a characteristic of yours, so I know you were pondering the question."
"Actually, her question made perfect sense, considering that Doctor Anderson had already observed the ability to connect in some infected people. Perhaps the fungus manages to do this through the spores, because when we started eliminating them, I felt that the infected individuals became more susceptible to attacks."
"Does this mean that the immune girl is in danger?"
"Probably yes, but Abby will be the one to tell us tomorrow."
He nodded and took a closer look at the house that had been allocated to us. It had a spacious bedroom, a bathroom, a kitchen and a living room. It was a reasonable home, given that we intended to make our way first to Newport and then to Cannon Beach once the people had been properly trained.
We were so exhausted that I said goodnight to Lev and went into one of the bedrooms. I lay down on the bed after taking a bottle of water out of my backpack and taking a long sip of two painkillers I had found in a pharmacy that had belonged to the now-defunct FEDRA. I closed my eyes and, before sleep overtook me, I thought again with visible apprehension about the question that the community leader had asked.
I woke up early the next morning, as I always did when we had a relevant mission to continue. Lev was still sleeping soundly, most likely because of the wear and tear he had suffered to get us to the town, so I opted to let him rest and left the house as soon as I found one of the copies of the key.
A quick look around showed me that the community had indeed been redesigned from two gated communities into what it was today, with the skill of the residents who knew how to build. I knew a little about them because Emily had lived with the Campbells for a good part of her life, until she chose to go her own way by organizing her own group in order to help more people, although she established a relationship of deep respect and friendship with Mr Gregory and his children, to the point where they constantly exchanged goods.
I walked a few more meters, where I saw several very well-built houses until I stopped in front of a larger place with a sign that read 'cafeteria' on the front door, with an intense coming and going of residents.
I imagined that the Campbells might be there even if it was early, so I entered the place, which was full of people. Some were getting ready for their morning meal, others were already out doing their routine chores...
It was the most important demonstration that, despite the Cordyceps, our species had never given up on survival. As soon as I approached a table where the brunette girl Lev recognized last night and Alexia were sitting, as well as other people I didn't know who they were at first, I was hugged from behind by someone I immediately recognized without even seeing her face: it was Abby.
"Straight ahead, soldier!" She said in a friendly tone.
"Straight ahead!" I returned the greeting in an amused manner and turned to face her, hugging her back before stepping back to raise my hand to my head as she did the same.
Next to her, I noticed that a woman in her thirties with attentive green eyes was watching us curiously and a little annoyed, which is what I could tell as we touched hands in the usual gesture of greeting and even celebration. I didn't know who she was either, although her face was slightly familiar, so the blonde immediately tried to introduce me to everyone present.
The gray-haired man was Gregory, Alexia's father; the dark-haired boy sitting next to him was her brother, Alexander. On the other side were two children, a radiant boy and girl named JJ and Serena, as well as the already familiar Dina and Alexia, who I now knew were married. And the girl accompanying Abby was the much-talked-about Ellie, who I would have liked to meet.
I had heard the girl's name long before the attempt was made to make a vaccine. It was something that the Fireflies had designed and intended to make, in order to make it available to society or to the people who had remained and who didn't have any kind of insane behavior. Because unfortunately many people showed their cruel side after the outbreak, especially those who had lived in the previous period and exhibited certain traits of violent behavior, but who, because of the dantesque scenario that the fungus left in their neighborhoods, cities, states, countries, became people completely taken by neglect, practicing every kind of evil they could.
I was in charge of a prosperous community in the year 2034, a time when the Fireflies were trying to obtain the vaccine through the arrival of the immune girl in Salt Lake, but even so I didn't think it was right that they should simply kill her without being able to study a better way of obtaining the much-dreamed-of cure.
Anyway, I found out that Joel didn't allow them to sacrifice her, carried out a slaughter that I don't know if I wouldn't have done if my son had been there – but he probably would have –, and went to live with a young woman called Ellie in Jackson.
I never heard anything about her after that, only when I met Abby a little over four and a half years ago. Jerry Anderson's daughter told me how their lives were intertwined by violence at the time and how she would like to change the situation, to which I replied that, when she felt ready, she could seek out and help the community Ellie was in as a way of redemption.
Unfortunately, we made an attempt in Wyoming as soon as we heard from travelers that a horde was approaching the region, but we were too late. So our second chance came in Portland, where we sat around the table to share breakfast and then start the day.
A few moments earlier, I was introduced to Ellie, who looked at me with what seemed to be suspicion, but there was something else that I couldn't identify at first, but which I was sure I would discover when the time came. As for Abby, she had gone to get me a coffee, while the children looked at me curiously.
"You two are very strong!" JJ exclaimed with visible admiration.
"Yeah, nobody can take you in a fight." Serena added amusedly.
"It's because of the training. We'll even need a mini-gym when we settle in."
"We'll want one too!" The boy commented excitedly. "Can we, Mom?"
"I don't know, JJ, but we can talk about it later." Dina replied.
He nodded and then the little girl and he said goodbye to me, as they explained that they had a lesson in fifteen minutes. Alexia and Dina accompanied them, while Ellie also left the cafeteria. Before she left, she exchanged a few quick words with Abby, who approached the table where I was alone, as Alexander and his father had also gotten up and bid me a cordial farewell.
"I didn't think you'd come here." She began, as soon as she handed me the tray with eggs, bread, meat and salad. "Did something happen in Newport? Where's Lev?"
"Don't worry... Calm down. He's sleeping in a house here.
"Not bad." I noticed that she sighed with relief before analyzing my expression. "But... You look worried."
"There's been a change of plans as to where these people are going to settle, so Lev and I have come to help you more quickly. Emily and her group will be leaving Newport for Cannon Beach by tomorrow at the latest, which means the Campbells and the people who live in their community must do the same."
"What happened?" she asked again.
I looked around to see if anyone was listening to our conversation and, when I realized they weren't, I took a deep breath to organize my thoughts. I didn't know how she would take what I was saying, mainly because I had no idea how the immune girl and she were getting on, but I had to try anyway, especially after Alexia's questioning the night before.
"The hordes are all coming here, as if something is attracting them." "I still don't know the reason for this unusual behavior, but it won't take many days, maybe a week at most before Portland is surrounded by a gigantic horde, so we'll need to leave before then." I took a short break to chew my food and continued with an inquiry: "How are you getting on with Ellie?"
"Not bad. I mean, sometimes things go off the rails and we end up slapping each other, it's a bit awkward, but it hasn't been as brutal as I thought it would be." Abby analyzed my expression again and I already knew that when she acted like this she was trying to pick up on something. "You believe that the infected are coming here because of her, don't you?" The blunt question surprised me. Because even though we'd known each other for a few years, I was still surprised at how easily she was able to face problems without flinching.
"There is a possibility, I won't lie to you. The problem is that Alexia is already suspicious."
"Why?"
"Because she asked me last night, when Lev and I arrived, if the assholes might be after Ellie."
I replied with concern. "And if that's what it is, because if they're after her they'll somehow interpret that she's part of their group..."
"We have to put as much distance as possible between all of us and the new infected."
Abby completed my speech. "Exactly." I liked her practical and agile way of understanding the difficulties we would be going through. "I'm only telling you this because I need you to focus more on her than on the group you've been training."
"Lev and I are going out with you today to help with the training and speed up the process of preparing these people so that they can leave the city safely, but you need to, as well as continuing with the task of instructing them now together with us..."
"I need to protect Ellie."
Abby interrupted me to say the sentence reflexively, her indecipherable gaze showing something I couldn't quite grasp, but which made me curious. However, I knew it wasn't the best time, because we needed to hurry in order to organize everything for the day's training, which would begin in a few hours. All I could see was the determination on Jerry Anderson's daughter's face in a way I never thought possible, especially when the subject in question involved Ellie.
So, as soon as we had finished our morning meal, we both got up so that we could wake Lev. As we walked, I thought about Ellie and how surprising it was to see her, especially given the secret that I had kept for a long time and that I intended to keep to myself at least for the time being, since I hadn't even spoken to my colleagues about the matter that I had tried so hard to keep secret, despite my mistakes.