Society: After It Happened Book 3 (6 page)

ESTABLISHING TRADE

The week went quickly, and on the day their first trade caravan went out Dan met an excited Chris ready with a Land Rover and the horsebox trailer.  He towed the bull with a lividly aggressive chicken in a cage sat on the back seat.  Ana was driving a pickup not dissimilar to Thunderbird Two, only hers had a tin cover on and half a dozen sheep in the back instead of a huge machine gun.

Dan left Ash with Leah, which caused him more worry than giving her guns did.  He was satisfied that they would be fine as he would just spend the day in Ops waiting for her to feed him.

They wove their way through the towns and villages until Dan recognised a familiar vehicle sat on an approach to the road.  He pointed out to Eve, who had remained annoyingly silent the whole journey.  As he slowed down near Gregory’s car, allowing him to pull out and lead the way, Eve sat up.

“I’ve seen that car before” she said.  Dan looked at her.  “Just before you turned up, that was the car I saw the soldier in”

Dan thought for a minute.  If she had stepped out and spoken to Gregory instead of hiding, then she and the girl would have probably been brought here months ago and saved him from hearing her whine.

They pulled up after bouncing along the track, and Eve’s eyes lit up.  She got out of the car and walked slowly as if in a daze.  Dan got out and waved the others through to the farm area, hoping to get done quickly.  Zachary shook hands with Chris and, maybe Dan imagined it, flinched from the strength of his grip.  They spoke briefly, then organised the loading and unloading of animals.

Dan walked to the visitors centre or whatever they called it now to find Eve sat with Scarlet and her two flanking clones.  They were drinking some kind of herbal infusion, which boring people like him would probably call ‘tea’.

He had never seen Eve smile, and she was smiling now.  He was invited to sit down and a cup of infused something or other was poured for him.  He tried it, and found it to taste like shit.  He politely swallowed and put the cup down, resisting the urge to spit it out.

“Well, ask him child” urged Scarlet with a false smile of serenity.

Eve straightened herself in her carved wood seat, then looked at him.  “I want to stay” she said with a grand amount of drama.

“Ok” he said, then turned to Scarlet “They’re swapping animals now.  Shall we make this a yearly thing to keep our herds healthy?”

Scarlet seemed taken back that he hadn’t made more of an issue about Eve’s big news.  “Yes, that seems like a wonderful idea” she said, recovering her poise.

Eve tried again to get a reaction “I won’t need any of my things, everything I could want will be provided here” she said.

Except shampoo, conditioner, razors, toothpaste… thought Dan.

“That’s fine” he said, not bothering to be as false as the hippies and make up rubbish about how she will be missed and blah, blah, blah.  Truth was, she constantly moaned, wouldn’t lift a finger to help and instead of looking after the traumatised girl who clung to her, she tried to dump her off on anyone else. She had finally succeeded and if she wanted to go and live in a tepee or whatever and dance in the mud with no shoes on then that was fine by him.

Dan got up to leave “Thanks again for your hospitality” he said to Scarlet, receiving an annoying slow nod like she was the oracle of all things.  If he didn’t like her much before, then he certainly wasn’t under her spell now; Henry had overheard them talking once and it turn out she was a cleaner there and served the overly expensive tea to the visitors.  He walked to the door and said over his shoulder, “In case you were wondering, the kids wanted to stay with us” and left without waiting for an answer.

He found Chris had loaded the bull without issue but the cockerel he had in exchange was even more foul-tempered than the one they had brought.  It was a similar story with the young ram.  Its little horns had just started to grow and looked out of place; like a teenage boy with a light fluff of a moustache.  He displayed a bit of attitude to Ana until Chris picked it up bodily and slid it into the back of the pickup.

“Good to go” he said to Dan with a satisfied smile.

“Me too” he replied, smiling wider “I’ve done my own trade”

They looked puzzled, until he couldn’t contain it any longer “I’ve swapped Eve for the kids!”

They were still confused, and he explained that Eve had made a huge drama about announcing that she wanted to stay and be at one with nature.  They both laughed with him, and began the journey home.

So was established Dan’s settlements first official trade route. 

FISH OUT OF WATER

Emma gave up on the idea of using a vehicle after a week. She eventually found a working car on the third day of her journey, living off the remaining food and water she found in abandoned shops still hosting the desiccated remains of the former owners.

The problem was the roads; they were blocked in most places. She hadn't driven in nearly seven years since she had first learnt, having lived in university accommodation and used public transport ever since. She didn't know the city from the road perspective, and using trains was clearly no longer an option.

In the end, she had to travel over thirty miles to the south to escape the built up areas before she began to look for transport again. She travelled lightly, with only the small rucksack containing a few items. She kept the handgun and spare things of bullets - magazines she believed they were called - and kept the precious laptop safe.

Three times she had to hide when she heard the sounds of other people; she couldn't afford the delay or the inherent risk of interacting with them.

She had taken to travelling on foot during darkness; a darkness so complete as she had never seen before. The lack of light pollution made her see the skies over the city as she never had.

Eventually she found a working vehicle, having used the hill it was parked on to get the engine going.

She began her long, looping journey around the country to find her way north. She had never driven on a motorway before, and found that she had to go slowly and weave between abandoned and crashes cars, their drivers showing skeletal remains where they were exposed.

After she had escaped the city limits she took to travelling during the daylight, twice in the first day having to go back up the motorway to find an alternative route as the pile ups had blocked the lanes entirely. She made slow progress, made worse on the fourth day of driving when she struggled to siphon enough fuel to keep going. She tried the radio as she drove, finding nothing but static on every station. Not even an emergency broadcast remained and she wondered if the system had ever even been activated.

She crept northwards, sticking to the centre of the country and using the blue road signs to direct her. 

NEW LIFE: OLD LIFE

On Dan's instruction the Rangers had been hunting in pairs further afield. The farms were a hive of activity, with crops being planted and animals being bred. Chris was happy and excited, claiming that the herds would be doubled within a couple of years. There was fresh meat and fresh vegetables were starting to ripen.  Apple and plum trees were sprouting and every square inch of greenhouse space at the gardens was either already planted or earmarked for planting soon.

Dan was sleeping off a night shift spent awake in Ops when he woke around lunchtime to noise downstairs; more than normal noise – there was some excitement going on.  He dressed in trousers and boots with a t-shirt, fitting a gun behind his back as habitually as lacing his boots.  He made his lazy way into the dining room, thinking caffeine thoughts.

A woman and two men were sat at the tables surrounded by those not out at work. Three new pairs of hands were a good thing, Dan thought as he poured a coffee. He turned and rested against the long table as he sipped. Heads moved in the small crowd and he saw the profile of one of the men.

A flash of recognition hit Dan, making him feel sick to his stomach. He knew his man from his distant past. 

He put down his coffee cup without taking his eyes away, and reassured himself that the gun was seated just behind his right hip before he stood.

"Kelvin Parkes" he announced in an icy tone that cut through the noise like a razor.

The room was instantly silenced.  One of the inexplicable customs of their new world was that nobody ever used a surname. The man went pale and turned towards him.

"Me?" He said "that's not my name!" adding a disarming smile.

The reply gave Dan all the confirmation he needed. That wheedling voice, the slight lisp, the utterly obsequious tone.

It was him, and he absolutely had to go.

"Stand up" Dan commanded. Others started to speak, to question what he was doing. Some of them had heard that tone of voice before. Andrew watched in confused fear; the last time he heard Dan speak like this he had nearly killed a man in a supermarket with his bare hands.

The man didn't move. He looked around smiling at the other faces in the room in silent appeal for help.

Dan took a step forward and drew himself up.

"Stand up.  Now" he said, fighting to contain his rising anger.

"What are you doing?" Marie hissed at him.

He didn't take his eyes off the man and replied "I'll tell you in a minute"

He stepped forward, now within reach of the sitting man. "Get. Up." He growled.

The man stood, panic evident on his face, and started to speak. Dan's temper finally snapped. He grabbed the man by his jacket and dragged him from the room on his tiptoes promoting shouts and screams from others.

As he dragged the man out of the room, he threw himself on the floor, holding up his hands to fend off Dan's aggression.

He dragged him to his feet again, locking his arm behind his back with his left and using his right hand to pull the opposite shoulder. The man moved in pain, arching his back to try and relieve the agonising pressure on his right arm and shoulder.

He pleaded with Dan as he was marched out of the house and into Ops. Rich looked up in surprise as the disruption burst into his peace.

He threw the man into the room, making him stagger to remain standing.

"Rich, search him and don't let him out of your sight" Dan snarled. Rich did as he was asked.

Dan turned to see Marie stood in front of him, furious, and a small crowd gathering behind her.

“What the hell…?” she began, lost for words at his sudden violence.

Dan had no choice but to admit what he knew, exposing his history in doing so.

"Because he’s a fucking sex offender" he said loudly, silencing them all.

"I know this. He was sentenced to ten years in prison."

The mixture of shock and disgust at the revelation left them stunned.

"He will not stay here.  I will not allow it" he finished.

He saw Cara at the back of the crowd, ushering the growing gaggle of children away into the house.

"You're sure?" Marie asked quietly.

"Positive. Hand on bible." He replied. She knew what that meant.

She thought for a moment before asking Rich to watch the man. She nodded her head back inside to indicate that Dan should follow. She walked towards the dining room. Sending runners to collect the other council members.

A tense wait ensued whilst the others were gathered and Marie sent everyone else from the room.

When they were gathered, Dan asked for a rundown of how the three came to be there.

"Lexi and Joe found them travelling south, told them about this place and brought them here. As we have before" she added, warning Dan not to lay blame.

"Where were they coming from?" He asked. Nobody knew. He suggested bringing the other man in.

He was called Rob. He and the woman had been travelling south to escape the next harsh winter. They found the other man alone, coming from the North East.

"What story did he give you?" Marie asked.

"Not much really" said Rob "he said he'd spent a few years up there working but had no family around. He asked to come with us"

Rob was thanked and invited to leave.

"You all have my word that this man is a dangerous, predatory paedophile" Dan said. Nobody answered.

"How do you know, mate?" Asked Neil quietly.

Dan sagged. "Twelve years ago I worked not far from here. I was a police officer. A young girl went missing, and by the time we got into her laptop at home it was too late. He pretended to be her age and arranged to meet her. She got in his car and he took her and repeatedly raped her. We threw everything we had at it, and found his car on cctv picking her up. I found him and locked him up. He still had her blood on his trousers.” He said, swallowing hard at the images flashing in his mind.

“She killed herself just after the trial" he said flatly “tablets”.

Marie broke the silence.

"Does anyone here doubt Dan?" Nobody did.

"So what do we do with him?" She asked.

Cara, for once, found her voice. "He's not coming anywhere near my kids!" She said. A murmur of agreement rippled around.

"All in favour of banishing him immediately?" Dan said, rising.

All hands were raised.

Dan strode from the room back to Ops. He threw on his equipment and transferred the Walther to his vest, screwing on the short suppressor.

"Rich, with me" he said. Rich put on his own equipment vest, watching the cowering man at all times.

"Please!" He begged "you've got this all wrong! I'm not a paedophile!"

"Shut your fucking mouth" snapped Dan "I know exactly what you are; I caught you, remember?"

A slow veil of recognition washed over his face, quickly hidden behind more denials.

He wasted his breath.

"Your name is Kelvin Parkes. You are a convicted sex offender who should be serving a life sentence" the man opened his mouth but couldn't speak. He turned out his pockets, finding an almost empty wallet. It contained a debit card in the name of Mr K L Parkes. Dan smiled triumphantly, holding the card out as further proof to the others.

"Rich, empty their car and follow us" Dan said, grabbing a roll of black duct tape and wrapping it around his wrists roughly as he twisted them into the small of his back.

"Stop! Please!" Whined Parkes, pointlessly.

He was thrown in the boot of the Discovery, watched carefully by Ash from the back seat. Rich threw the handful of bags out of the car as Rob picked up his own.

"That's his" he said, pointing at a bag. Rich put it back in the car and drove after Dan.

They drove for nearly two hours, at times with Rich struggling to keep up. Eventually Dan pulled up at a quarry on waste ground and got out.

He dragged Parkes from the boot and dropped him heavily into the ground. He was crying.

Dan pointed to Rich where he wanted the car. He dragged the man to his feet and slammed him against the side of his discovery.

"Where are we?" He said to him.

Parkes moaned and closed his eyes tightly.

"TELL ME WHERE WE ARE" he screamed in his face. He drew the knife from his shoulder, seeing eyes widen in front of him. He spun him around and slashed through the bindings, cutting him in the process.

He turned him again and hit him hard in the stomach.

As Kelvin Parkes gasped for breath in the dirt, Dan walked to Rich.

"This is where he took an eleven-year-old girl" he said "he made friends with her through the internet. He groomed her for months, pretending he was her age. They agreed to meet up and he brought her here." He walked over and stood above him.

"Tell my friend what you did to her" he said quietly.

"Please! No!" He begged.

"Tell him. Now." Dan said again.

"SHE LOVED ME!" He sobbed, pitifully "they made her say those things about me!"

"She was a child. You lied to her and then you raped her. She killed herself because of you"

Dan looked at Rich, seeing silent agreement in his face.

He drew his gun, pointing it at the man's head.

"Get up" he said, intensifying the begging. "Get up and get in the car. We're letting you go" he said. Parkes stopped crying, barely able to believe what he had heard.

Nervously he got to his feet and walked towards the car with the engine running, never taking his eyes off the gun.  Dan twitched the barrel at him, indicating that he should climb behind the wheel. As he did so he glanced once at Rich.

He nodded.

Dan stepped round and fired once into his right hand, the bullet destroying bone, tendon and ligament as it tore through his flesh.  He screamed in agony and shock. Rich ran to the passenger door and shoved the car in gear as Dan forced the man's legs onto the pedals. The car went into gear and the engine howled as it revved highly.

They shut the doors, cocooning the screaming man inside the car. Dan leaned the gun into the window and shot him again into his left leg, making him flinch his foot off the clutch.

The car leapt forward, hopping as it went. The momentum of the slope took the car in its inevitable grip, and slowly it rolled to the cliff edge where it tipped to crash end over end into the dirty water below.

"Technically" said Rich as casually as he could as they both looked at the sinking car below them "I saw him drive off on his own.  You?"

"Yep" said Dan as he lit a cigarette with shaking hands "rode off into the sunset all by himself. I doubt he'll be back"

They climbed back in the car, Rich to return to his peaceful day and Dan to go and avoid explaining why he hid his past from everyone.