They Will Run You Down

Four: Dreamcatchers

"Look, you stay here and I'll go back. I'll see about the car, and if there really is one, I'll get it running and come get you. All you have to do is stay put. I won't tell them where you are, so you'll be safe, yeah?"

"And what happens if you don't come for me?" She asked.

"If I'm not back here by nightfall to let you know how things are going, you get the hell out of this town," John asserted as he removed his backpack and opened the large compartment.

"Here. Take my food and water. If I don't show up, just go. But please, Harley, wait until nightfall," He continued as he pulled out several cans of food and bottled water.

"You have until sunset," Harley agreed wearily.

○

John zig-zagged back to the station, taking the least obvious route, so as not to give the men any hints of where Harley was hiding. As John walked, there seemed to be no screamers in the small town. He assumed it was because the town had already been abandoned for years prior to the outbreak. The men were smart in choosing Higginsville for refuge, but it also meant there was no food, supplies, gasoline or vehicles to be found, so they would have had to gather what they needed from neighboring towns.

John approached the gate to the station, and Marcel walked out to let him in.

"Where's Harley?" Marcel asked.

"She's going to stay elsewhere for the night"

Marcel stared at John for a moment with an unreadable expression, before smiling lightly and opening the gate to allow John entry.

Once in the station, John was introduced to Frank, the mangy looking man who had opened the gate earlier in the day. He was shifty, had a difficult time keeping eye contact, and habitually wiped his palms on his jeans.

"Hi, n-nice to meet you," Frank stuttered and spoke quickly as he fidgeted with his hands.

John nodded.

The fourth man in the group was Dilan. When Marcel introduced them, Dilan was sweaty and out of breath, "Hey, John is it? Nice to meet you man," Dilan smiled and offered his hand for John to shake. John obliged.

"I was just getting the car moved into the garage," Dilan explained.

"Good, thanks Dilan. Let's go have a look, shall we?" Marcel asked John.

He nodded and feigned a smile before Marcel led him out of the station and over to a garage, which would have been used as a car impound when the town was still in use. There were three cars altogether, but John could see that two of them were being used for parts. The car John and Harley would be taking was a dusty, red Subaru, with rust spots and a smashed headlight. John and Marcel lifted the hood to take a look at the guts of the vehicle.

"As far as I can tell, she needs fluids, a new headlight, battery and a new belt," Marcel explained.

"Have you got all that?" John asked.

Marcel led John to the corner of the garage, showing him a stock pile of car parts, tools, fluids, batteries, and all other manner of car paraphernalia.

"We take what we can when we find it," Marcel smiled.

"Good. I'll get to work then," John stated.

○

Harley spent the better part of the day cooped up in the dingy basement of the post office, with only one small window to keep the space lit. She felt like a coward for letting John go on without her. She still wasn't totally convinced that John had been truthful, but either way, hiding in a dark cellar and waiting to be whisked away made her feel small and weak. However tempted she was to take off and leave John behind, Harley couldn't bring herself to do it. It was uncharacteristic of her to give anyone the benefit of the doubt and yet there she was.