A Thousand Nights with You - 15. For the greater good

“Y-you… You can speak?” I took a step backwards, staring at the infected woman in shock.

She nods weakly and smiles. “I’m not Frankenstein, you know, even though I look like one.”

“Elena is resistant to the virus. She didn’t attack the soldiers on sight when they discovered her. The virus upsets the brain’s chemistry. It’s like amphetamines but a hundred times stronger. But somehow her immune system keeps the virus in check.” Grey explains.

“Then there is hope… for a cure?” My heart leapt and sank at the same time. The world we know may still have a chance. If only mom had lived long enough to see that day happened.

Grey remains silent, stroking her head softly. She is clearly struggling to remain in control. Her face is a mask cast in pain. He quickly refastened the strap on her and puts her gag back on. But he didn’t move away from her, sitting quietly until she faints from exhaustion.

He looks at me with pleading eyes, he says, “You need to help me, Daniel. They all say I’m crazy but you saw it for yourself. Elena is not totally gone.”

“W-Wait a minute, Grey… Help you with what?”

“Help me to save her. Craig says they are trying to cure her, but I know that they are lying.” His voice quivers and he puts both hands on my arms.

I’m totally freaked by him, looking half crazed and all.

“They are finding a cure, but they will kill her in the process. The C130 Hercules will arrive tomorrow, they will take her away to the aircraft carrier where the rest of the military scientists will harvest her organs and tissues. She will die a slow and horrible death.” He said.

“What? H-how do you know this?”

“Craig let slipped some time ago. He said there’s no way to completely understand the virus without studying the tissues from her brains and other vital organs. I broke into his office and listened to his recordings. He is giving her tranquilizers not to suppress the rage, but to take away her body parts, piece by piece.”

He lifts her shirt, revealing multiple surgical scars. Then he continues.

“I can’t stop them. For a long time, I had wanted to end her pain, and my own life. But you had given me hope, Dan. With the food you grew, we can run away and have a shot at survival.” He gasped.

“But how can you move her around without medical supplies? She needs tranquilizers, morphine, medicines.” I said.

“My friends have taken care of that.”

I stared at him in shock. I suddenly realized the truth.

“You plan to steal the food before I turn them in for the Colonel tomorrow. Aren’t you?”

He remained silent.

“I thought you were my friend.” I choked.

Grey shook his head, putting both his arms on my shoulder to calm me down. “Listen, Dan. I could have done that and leave you here at his mercy. But I didn’t. That’s why I’m telling you now. Run away with us.”

“How could you, Grey? The community won’t survive through the winter without the food.” I sobbed, feeling scared and betrayed.

“You believe the Colonel wants the food to stockpile for winter?” Grey flew into a rage, throwing up his hands and kicking a chair. He turns around and looks at me. “He is leaving tomorrow with his cronies for good. He needs the food because the base can’t feed their own as it is. The President only ordered to take Elena away, but the Colonel won’t give her up unless HE and his cronies are part of the evacuation deal.”

He cornered me to the wall, breathing heavily. Behind him, the Major holds a gun and sneaks up slowly. He looks at me and puts a finger over his lips.

“You don’t know Walters like I do, Greyson.” Major Craig said, shaking his head. “I’m so disappointed in you. I didn’t believe it when Walters told me you will flip. I convinced him that you can be trusted to do what is right.”

Grey snorted. “What is right? Like what you did to my wife was right? You lied to me, Craig. I thought you were my friend.”

“I did what I have to, Greyson.” The Major pushes up his glasses with a hand, sweat dripping down his temples. “You know that the virus is evolving as we speak. If we don’t stop it, even the rodents, the flies, the fishes, every living creature will be infected eventually. There will be nowhere left to hide in this world. Not even if you are in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean. We are not running away like cowards. This is for the greater good.”

“Save your spin for the President, Craig. I heard your research recordings, you weren’t even sure. But you’re damn sure about taking my wife apart like a car!”

“Listen to yourself Greyson. You have gone mad. How long have you known me?” The Major said.

“We know you long enough, Craig.” Grace hobbled up behind him, pointing a gun into his head. “I was on your medical team. You let Walters whore me to the rest of the men.”

“Grace? I thought you are still bed-ridden…” I gasped.

“What better way to pilfer morphine supplies?” She smirks. Her face is visibly pale, even with her dark brown skin.

“None of you will get away with this. The guards will come-”

The red-headed soldier appears from the shadows and interrupted Major Craig. “The guards have been told that they are relieved from the shift.”

Suddenly, everything falls into place.

The Colonel suspected Grey all along, I thought he was being paranoid. The ginger jarhead was his accomplice to steal medical supplies for him. The only thing left that he needed for his plans was food, and I had solved the problem for him. Had Grey been using me all along? I felt like an idiot.

Cold sweat breaks from the Major’s forehead. His voice cracks with fear. “Don’t be a fool, Greyson. Think about the greater good.”

“The greater good you said.” The red headed soldier spat on the Major. “Just like how the Colonel chained my little sister on the fields, letting the infected turn her because she bit a soldier who RAPED her?”

I back myself to the wall, horrified by this confrontation.

“Pete, are the medical supplies ready?” Grey asked.

“Yup, and I’ve fixed up the truck at the dumpster. All that gas you brought back will get us pretty far. All we need now is the food.” The ginger jarhead said.

While Tristan and I were distracting the infected on the bridge, Grey had been pilfering gas from the abandoned cars. I thought he took them in case we are forced to circle around the city to shake off the horde. That’s why it took him so long to refuel. I stared at the tall, blond man. He looked so earnest like Mark, but can I even trust him anymore?

Peter, the petite soldier throws a glance at me. “What’s up with the little faggot?”

“He’s a friend. Don’t hurt him.” Grey said.

“And Craig?”

“He was a friend, a good man, if not a coward.” Grey narrowed his eyes, watching the older man trembled. He paused to think, and then he looks up and says, “Tie him up. We’ll be gone by the time they find him.”

Peter knocked out the Major. While he’s tying up the Major, he looked at me and said to Grey, “We can’t let this little cunt run loose, Greyson. He might tell on us.”

“Watch your foul mouth, asshole.” Grace hits him on the back of his head. “This little ‘cunt’ saved my life.”

Grey turns to me and said. “Come with us, Daniel. The Colonel will kill you if you have no food to give him tomorrow.”

What can I do now? Grey had been lying to me all this time, probably using me just like the Colonel did. He is going to rob my food, whether I like it or not. But I can’t leave without Mark and Tristan. And what about Jody? All of them will be implicated if they leave with me. The Colonel will hunt us down with everything he has. I will be risking everyone’s lives.

“How can I trust you? I don’t even know if you are truly my friend anymore.” I said.

Grey looks at Peter and then at Grace. She says, “We saved your friend, Daniel.”

“My friend?”

“The young girl who came with you.” Grey said.

“Felicia? She’s still alive!”

“Barely,” Peter said. “She’s lucky that it’s me who took her out. They would’ve thrown her into the furnace, even if she still has a pulse. Grace did what she could to patch her up, but she wouldn’t have lived without the medical supplies we stole.”

“You stole.” Grace corrected. But it was meant to give him credit.

Peter flashes a sly grin, he says to Grace, “I couldn’t get the morphine though. If it wasn’t for Grey stalling them, I would’ve been caught and executed. But you-” He pointed at Grace, “milked your injury for what it’s worth and hit the goldmine.”

“And it was Dan who saved me that night.” Grey said to Peter and Grace. “That’s he should come with us. The Colonel will think he’s guilty anyway.”

“Where is Felicia now?” I asked them.

“On the truck, inside the dumpster. She’s weak, but she will live.”

“So what is your decision, Dan? Are you with us, or not?” Grace asked.

What if the Major was telling the truth? What if the virus will take over every living thing on this Earth unless they find a cure? Am I prepared to sacrifice Grey’s wife for that? If not, will l risk Tristan and Mark’s life by throwing my lot with Grey? I don’t know who to believe right now.

I looked at the three of them, and I realized I don’t really have a choice. If I refuse, they will tie me up with the Major. The Colonel will probably kill me if I can’t deliver the food tomorrow. After all, like what Grey had said, I am already guilty when I defended Grey that night.

“I will help you. But my friends come with me.” I said.

“We can’t risk too many people knowing about our plans.” Grey said.

“Tristan needs to come. He is my brother.” I said.

Grey looks a little surprised, but he nods in the end.

“And Mark too, I won’t leave without him.”

“We can’t last long with so many mouths to feed.” Peter said.

I turn to Grace, looking to her for help. After all, Mark saved her as well. She looks at Grey, saying, “That boy got guts, he can carry his own weight.”

“Fine, Daniel. They can come.” Grey said.

“No wait, there’s Jody too. He saved our lives.” I said.

“It’s too risky, Grey. What if he spills? And now that our little posse has doubled, it means our food is going to last us half as long.” Peter said.

“He has a point, Daniel. We know Tristan and Mark. But we don’t know if we can trust Jody. From what I’ve heard, you barely knew him before you came.” Grey said.

“Yes, and he still saved us nonetheless.” I said. “Besides, Felicia won’t leave without Jody. She has known him as long as I have known Mark.”

The three of them looked at each other, still hesitant about him. I threw in my weight and said, “Look, I won’t leave without Jody. And without me, the food is going to run out at some point. You need me if you want fresh supplies of food and water. Only I know how to do that.”

I am desperate.

I can’t believe I just threatened a group of seasoned soldiers. I just pray Jody won’t lose his shit and get us all killed. Or perhaps I shouldn’t tell him the truth until we leave this place.

“Very well, Daniel. But still, how can we trust this Jody?” Grace said.

I thought for a moment, then I said, “Bring him to Felicia, let him see her. He will leave with us. If not, tie him up at the dumpster. He won’t be able to call for help until it’s too late.”

The sky is almost dark when we left the medical centre. I stared at the southern wall construction near the medical centre, finally understood why the Colonel wanted it built so urgently. It wasn’t meant to protect the community from the infected. It’s not even meant to extend the school perimeters. It was built to house a runway for the military aircraft to land safely. The turbo engines will attract entire hordes towards the school. People will swarm towards the plane when they see that there is an evacuation. The extended wall is barely four hundred yards, which is the minimum landing strip for the plane. That means the Colonel may open the southern gates for the plane to land, even if it means allowing the infected to come in.

Peter stayed behind at the medical centre, preparing to get Elena to the truck. Meanwhile, Grace, Grey and I head towards the rooftop terrace, on the pretext to help them pack the food for the Colonel’s inspection tomorrow morning. By the time we arrived, only Jody, Mark, Tristan and Martha are still packing the things. Mark and Tristan seem to be hitting off pretty well ever since our run together. They were chatting happily until they saw me and waved at us. The few soldiers who are on their way out of the terrace, cheers as they see us approaching.

“Hey, if it isn’t Grey and the suicide squad!” They smile and salute us as we walked in.

Grey smiled and chatted with the soldiers. I can’t bring myself to do the same. I feel disgusted by the whole thing, for being a fraud. They treat us like we are heroes, but we are just as ready to let them die as the Colonel is willing to sacrifice all of them. Even if the plane doesn’t bring on the horde, winter is going to kill them if either side takes all that food away.

I can’t hide my feelings, I’m not a grown up after all.

Grace was her usual self, sullen and quiet. I guess she has no love for these soldiers. Most of them had probably had taken advantage of her at some point.

“Are you all right sweetheart?” Martha came over and offers me same baked yam, being her usual motherly self. “Don’t worry, it’s my treat. You must be hungry.”

I hold on to the yam, unable to bring myself to eat it. She was nice to me all this while, watching out for me in little ways. I look at Grace, pleading her with my eyes. She shakes her head at me quietly.

“What’s wrong, honey? It’s just a piece of yam, no one will tell on you.” Martha pulls me into a hug and I sobbed like a kid in her embrace.

“Let me deal with this, go make sure the boys don’t slack with the packing.” Grace said to Martha and hugs me real close. She presses her lips close to my ears and whispers, “I know how you feel kid. But you will do her no favours by bringing her along. Martha isn’t like us. She won’t survive out there.”

“But she will die here for sure.” I sobbed into her breasts.

“Trust me, kid. Death is not the worse fate.” Grace takes a deep breath and steeled herself. “You can’t save everyone, kid. Think about those you can save.”

“Are you all right, bro?” Tristan walks over when he sees me cry.”

“He’s just being sentimental.” Grace said, being uncharacteristically sweet. Then she turns to me and said, “You and your brother have a lot to talk about. Remember what I’ve said.”

“What was that about?” Tristan raised an eye at me.

“We need to talk Tristan.” I said, involuntarily throwing a glance at Mark at the same time. I led him to the side of the terrace where I can talk him more or less in private. I didn’t know where to begin. I don’t even know if I’m doing the right thing.

“What? Feeling morose about your almost boyfriend?” He said with a goofy grin.

For the first time, I didn’t really feel like talking about Mark. Now is not the time to mope over this. I need to find a way to break the news to my brother without freaking him out. Not while Martha and the other soldiers are still here.

“What did you guys talk about?” I asked casually, trying to stall for time.

“I asked him why he took the bullet for you.” He said.

“What bullet?” I asked.

“When Sharon was about to shoot you, he dived in without even thinking.” Tristan explained.

“You would’ve done the same too, Tristan.” I shrugged.

“Yeah, but I’m your brother. He’s not.”

“That means nothing. I saved him before and he’s just being grateful or pseudo-brotherly. Whatever.”

“You’re really dense aren’t you?” My brother shakes his head. “I haven’t got to the best part yet. I asked him what’s with him throwing all that micro-glances at you for the last two weeks. Guess what he says?”

“W-What? He has?” I perked up.

“Now I got your attention, didn’t I?” He smirks, teasing me with his non-answer until he can see that I’m clearly annoyed. “He said NOTHING. He just smiled and blushed like a horny schoolboy!”

He laughed out loud, but suddenly stopped when he realized I wasn’t smiling at all. “Listen, Tristan. We need to run away tonight. You have to trust me on this.”

“Why? Aren’t things good right now?” He said.

“What’s wrong Dan?” Mark approaches us. He must have seen the grave look on my face.

From afar, Grey threw me a look. It didn’t go unnoticed by Mark, who didn’t seem very pleased at all. Jody left with him and Grace, pushing the trolleys that are stacked with all of the food supplies that we have grown. I surveyed the Greenhouse, they didn’t even leave the solar panels and LED lamps behind. All that are left are the original pathetic batch of vegetables that were grown.

Jody is still smiling away, clueless about what’s going on. He will find out soon when they bring him to the dumpster. They left me alone with Mark and my brother. Grey and Grace actually trusted me not to rat on them. They must have thought I won’t betray Jody and Felicia.

Now that they’re gone, I suddenly felt unsure.

The virus is evolving at unprecedented speed. The infected now runs when all they could do in the beginning was hobbled. They don’t even need food and water to survive nowadays and they look less human with every passing week. If the Major is telling the truth, then sacrificing Grace’s wife is the only way to find a cure. Wasn’t he prepared to end her life just a few days ago? Was he desperate or was that just an act to gain my sympathy. Finding the cure might be the only way to save Mark and Tristan. If it comes to the point where the virus will spread to every living thing on Earth, then there is no point to run away without a cure.

If I tell the Colonel, he might even allow us to evacuate along with him. If, I play my cards right. Mom used to say people are born good, but I don't believe that now. Everyone only cares about those who are close to them. Grey is the same, so is the Colonel. I am not different from them as well.

But I am torn.

Am I willing to betray Grey? Was he ever really my friend? Right now, I wished I wasn't a retarded fifteen year old who understands so little of this world. Because no matter which side I choose to trust, I am going to condemn a hundred people to die.