“Thank you,” said Jared, sounding distracted.
“Tomorrow, I’m going down to the Zoo and run a sweep,” said Jack. “I’d like for you to come with me, Jared.”
“The zoo? But I want to stay—”
“I know you do. But there’s nothing more you can do right now. You need to get your mind and your butt out of here. You can help me get things ready. For Anna.”
Jared nodded. Still, a worried look crossed his face. He looked away to avoid Jack’s gaze. “I’m worried about my parents, too,” he said. “I haven’t heard from them in almost two weeks.”
Carla and I locked eyes in surprise. She sat down next to the boy and took his hands.
“Why didn’t you tell us about them earlier, Jared?”
“There’s been so much going on,” he answered, his voice cracking. “And when Anna got bitten, suddenly the focus was on her and our security sweeps, and then our supplies and... two weeks got away from me. And I don’t know where they are. Or even, if they’re alive and okay. I feel so frigging guilty because I am... I am letting go of them. Moving on. Making all of you my family.”
“But, they’re your parents.”
“Only in name,” said Jared, sounding bitter. “I was a source of constant disappointment for my dad. Mom and I never really connected. She always worked. She always took his side. There was no....”
“No what?” asked Carla, gently.
“No love, I guess. Nothing like what I see in this family.”
His words touched Jack, and appeared to affect Carla even more deeply. Jack drew in a deep breath. “I always try to put a positive and honest spin on all things, kid. And, you’re right... there is love here. But I think you should prepare yourself for some rough times ahead.”
Jared nodded glumly. “I know. I can feel it. As for my parents, I know in my heart I won’t find them. Or, if I do find them, I’ll wish I hadn’t. They’ll be like... like the others.” Jared pushed his untouched soup aside.
“All the more reason for you to come with me tomorrow,” said Jack. “I’ll be with you the whole time. We’ll see what there is to see. You never know, maybe they left in the face of danger.” As he spoke the words, he couldn’t imagine the boy’s parents leaving without at least trying to get a hold of him. “And you can help me with some of the zoo animals. I have no clue who else is there anymore. I haven’t heard from Brice lately, but maybe he’s still around.”
* * *
The next morning, the guys decided that Jack and Jared would check the animal traps while Mike and Joe would set the new door in place to hold Anna during this, the worst phase of her infection. Neither Jack nor Jared spoke as they exited the building.
Carla was up next. First, she emptied Anna’s temporary room, an office, of all its supplies: staplers, papers, the one chair, the calendar on the wall. Anna was left with nothing. She wouldn’t need anything. But they all had witnessed the damage that could be done with something as small as even a paperclip. Or a nail on a beam.
Mike and Joe carried out the desk, leaving the room completely bare. Anna had become less and less coherent, and increasingly susceptible to sounds. She took a swing at her uncle as he tried to give her one last hug. Carla pulled him away.
Then they closed the door and secured it with a huge wooden beam.
Anna was left to express her rage in total darkness.
Chapter Eight
During the drive from the observatory to the zoo, Jack attempted to kill the quiet with bits of conversation with Jared. “Would you like to know the best thing to use in getting rid of that stench?” Indeed, the smell of rotten meat seemed to permeate the air everywhere.
“Oh, yeah?” Jared stared out the window; he wasn’t really listening.
“Yeah. Perhaps you already know, since we use it all the time. But most folks don’t know about lava rocks.”
“I guess not.”
“Not quite sure how it works, but you put a few of those rocks outside and they’ll get rid of any scent. Pretty cool. Doesn’t hurt the animals either.”
“Right,” Jared answered. “We’re gonna need a lot of those.”
Jack chuckled, finding himself growing to really like this kid. They soon reached the zoo’s employee entrance, left open, and parked in Jack’s usual spot. He cut the motor, but neither one exited the vehicle yet. Instead, they listened... all was still and quiet.
“Look, Jared, Anna’s going to be all right,” said Jack, finally. “She’s strong. She’s got you, and me, and the rest. We won’t let her down.”
Jared sat motionless, but Jack could tell he was listening. “And your parents, you know... they might be all right. Maybe it’s a communication issue.”
“Maybe,” was all he offered in response.
“Seriously. Cell phones are down, everyone is scattered around. They have no idea where you are. I’m sure if they did...”
“They didn’t care, Jack. Not before all this and certainly not now. Truth is, I haven’t talked to them in about a month.”
Jack studied him, struggling to comprehend such a thing, even though he realized the world was full of neglected kids. Jared’s life had been fairly invisible. As long as he passed his home-school tests, that was all that mattered, apparently. The notion that Jared loved a different part of Anna than most dad’s fear—and that he might actually love Anna’s family, too—dawned on Jack clearly for the first time.
He put a hand on Jared’s shoulder, and the young man let it stay there. “We’ll try to find out, son. If we don’t find them, you’ve got family right here.”
Jared nodded and wiped away a tear. Jack patted his shoulder again, then reached behind the seat for their rifles. Jack also produced two pistols with silencers attached. “We’ll use these when we can,” he advised. “We don’t want to make any more sound than we have to.”
Jack was surprised when the kid knew how to load the ammo clip and checked the scope to make sure it was ready. How many brains had the kid already blown apart? he wondered. Too many for someone that young...or old.
“Come on, son, let’s see what we can get done today.”
Chapter Nine
Cole took Julie’s hand just as she was about to come out of their hiding place. He pulled her close to him.
“Don’t disappoint me,” he said, his voice cold.