Homeward Z

Five

I woke with a cold sweat, 10k up looking down from his scope at the sound I must've made. The sun was gleaming hot, god how long had I been out. He nodded his head down from the roof we camped on to the food depot that was run over a few days ago. It's been years, three now since the fall, both of us unable to find a ship going across the ocean.
"There's a group inside, glad we crashed up here before hand," he whispered and slid the canteen of water over. Hearing him speak like that made me sigh in relief a bit. The more time alone we spend out here the more I worry about him. Not so much that he's losing his marbles, but rather not keeping his fathers promise eats at him. By now I'm afraid to go home, to see what's become of my country. If it kept him sane though I'd go. "Damn, these guys have no clue what they're doing..." he breathed and pulled the trigger as a Z went for an older man's neck. "Go," he said pushing me down the ladder and back onto the road. "Guess on to the next depot south," he grumbled, sweat dripping off the back of his hair. He threw an arm over my shoulder, the stringy-ness of youth had left him completely now. How much of it was from black summer I don't know. "Hey? You're being awfully quiet Bridge."
I shrugged glancing over my other shoulder as the trucks started fuming our way. "Hey kid," one of the drivers said, pulling to a stop.
"You're that sharpshooter who saved my butt, need a ride?"
He looked to me momentarily and pulled his arm away with a nod. "You're friend can come too of course."
"Oh, don't worry, I already gathered that," I snorted and his eyes widened at my accent as I jumped into the back with 10k close behind.
A girl in a crop tank glanced up puzzled, "oh hi, you guys new?" I nodded and her gaze drifted to the fading leather of my brace and to the black head of hair 10k wielded. "You have a name?"
"Lord don't ask the name thing," I grumbled accent flaring enough to get an eye roll from him. "You know cussing at me ain't going to take it away."
"Bloody hell 10k, I get the point of the name but can't we."
"Meh, keeps you yelling at me doesn't it. Need someone yelling at me not to run off a cliff."
"Americans," I grumbled, covering my eyes with my hat and getting some extra sleep.

10k snorted loud enough to wake me a bit later, jumping at the empty car lot, "looks like a ghost town," I grumbled, punching him sideways as we walked with the bearded man who had originally invited us, "so you really go by 10k kid?"
"That's what she calls me, I voted for ten thousand but she thinks it's too wordy."
He put out a hand toward me, "I'd have to agree, they call me doc, what's your name?"
"Bridget," he snorted at the obvious heritage in my tone.
"Irish, lord knows you're the first one I've seen since the end."
"Ireland locked down a few weeks before day one, but I managed to get a flight to London and I'd take a ship across the channel. Except our flight went down near New York."
10k nodded, "it's how we met her, my dad and I found her in the wreckage while we scavenged."
"Sheesh, you must be trying to get home then?"
I nodded though it felt forced. "Who knows, maybe we all will be heading on our way to Islands like it, so much easier to clear and defend."
"Except when the potato blight strikes," I grumbled, looking out toward the ocean of cars.  "Bridge," 10k muttered, tossing his scope up, "you see what I do?"
I still had a hard understanding how good his eyesight was, mine was trash on these distances he could make out in detail quite well. "Motorcycles, you think they're those bastards that got the depot?" He shrugged, sliding the scope back onto gun.
"I thought it was just a rumor about food getting out?" Doc asked and we snorted, "sure, someone's been spreading rumors to get the military out of their territory. Three more depots are like that."
10k's mouth pressed together, "they're stopping by Warren, best get back."
"Who's Warren?" I asked in a whisper as doc ran ahead. "There's Garnett and Warren, they're in charge of the group here. Ex national guard and then the young girl is Cassandra. Three others, Addy, Mack and Murphy. Murphy seems to be rather guarded for something we're not hearing."
"You are the worlds dumbest snoop," I grumbled punching his arm and he smiled over at me.
"Had to do something with you snoozing all the time. Not my fault you don't sleep through the night..."
His smile faltered at my reaction, "sorry, it's not your fault either Bridge."
I glared, "I think it is," I whispered and leaned back against a bit of wreckage glaring up at him. "I don't want to go home anymore," I whispered and he went completely rigid.
"What?" He asked in disbelief, his face an inch from mine, radiating some kind of frustration I didn't understand.
"I don't want to go home," I breathed even softer and he turned cussing, kicking a tire. "Why didn't you tell me?! All this time?!"
My hands fidgeted, "because you wouldn't hear anything else."
"Never mind... this isn't over though," he fumed ahead and I followed, struggling to keep from screaming my throat raw at his own sheer stubbornness.
It wasn't like I ever had a say in the matter, not with him better off looking for a way East.
But the spine found rigid made me freeze, we did know them...
The man laughed after mocking Cassandra for something we didn't know. "Look who finally showed up, thought you two found a ship by now."
"Cannibals," I whispered low and cruel, "do not deserve to be treated with respect."
"Shoot, what?!" Doc exclaimed backing away quickly. "Bridget as fire like as ever, last time we crossed paths you lit my brother on fire."
10k snorted, "we'd of done worse but you filthy pigs have too many innocent."
He went to walk toward Doc and I shook my head, "move it, I think we've cleaned out enough rats nest to take you out too."
The woman who must've been Warren looked to me shocked, "we'll see kids, we'll see... best of luck."
"10k," I said we got back into the truck, "I know, he's not alone, get them to another truck fast."
"No, all on foot, you don't have enough bloody ammo."
"And you do?" A brown haired man asked.
He was standing closest to Warren. Ok this was Garnett, "I'm not like him," I whispered and 10k sighed in relief, "if she was I'd of shot her a long time ago."
"Lovely as ever prick," I grumbled pushing them forward. "But he's right, they travel in packs, this car lot is a perfect place for a trap too."
"How do you know all that?" Cassandra asked, her lips as white as sheet rock.

"Because we've been freeing people trapped inside their gates," 10k grumbled, as if it was all my fault we had started that mess to begin with. His gaze narrowed to the 45 Henry Mares rifle strapped to my leg, It had become a part of me surprise surprise, it was the only gone I shot reliably with which used to crack 10k up. It wasn't as easy as bloody twenty two or something with a laser dot in the middle. But that's not why he stared at the gun, the fact is I had killed a few more people than he had expected with it. It had been his... something he found on the road and I had become so attached, he hadn't ever asked for it back.

A motorcycle raved its engine behind us as I pushed half against the truck and the other half was pushed into a narrow crack by 10k. He tapped his arm three times, a system we've used for awhile now, numbering enemies. Garnett frowned from my right, "what's he saying?"

"three people," I whispered extra soft careful to avoid anything noticeable. "You're going to stay with him, Make no noise, I'll be right back."

They tried to protest, but by then I was already climbing up the pile of cars, keeping low until I found them talking. "She's worth the most to the boss, she killed his son. I doubt he'll care though if Ten Thousand gets a bullet to the head.

I slid my gun from its holster, jumping down with my own kind of deadly agility. "No boys, that's not going to happen," I breathed and shot out two heads before putting one of my knives through their throat. 10k snorted at the disaster zone, "as usual Bridge, you're my hero," He mocked. I looked down at the one who suggested putting him down... it shouldn't bother me so much. "Alright, who are you two kids?" Garnett asked, putting some distance between the others and my blood soaked boots. "they've just been trying to get off the continent, run into our level of trouble," Doc said and I looked down ashamed. It was never that simple. "My dad's from Oregon, mom's in Ireland but... I doubt my home is much better, thee Trouble be nothing on this disaster," I breathed and 10k glanced over surprised. My mothers parents had both died in an IRA bombing and, and he knew her brothers blood had poured in the civil war. I was... I was a prime example of what Irish fire was and it still terrified me. What had happened the night his father died, with those men had changed me so bad I couldn't go back.