Chapter Six

“We have a problem,” Arthur said with concern as he bounded into the house.  Setting his hat on the kitchen counter, he accepted the steaming cup of herbal tea that his love offered him while kissing her on the cheek. 

Olga slid onto the stool at the counter opposite him. “Does it top Rex bringing my niece home with a zombie head embedded into her arm?”

He nodded.  “I believe it does.”

She closed her eyes and filled her lungs with air.  As she slowly let it out, she said, “Tell me.”

“As you know, I sent Alice to warn the town council about the zombie threat.  Now, they’re in an uproar.  I tried to find her to hear exactly what she told them, but she’s nowhere to be found.”  He scowled while slowly shaking his head. “They’ve got it in their heads that you and your family are cursed and have brought evil to our doorstep.”

“They’re blaming the zombie invasion on us, then?” Olga asked with a steady voice that lacked emotion.

“It seems so,” he replied.

She shrugged.  “I can’t blame them.  You’d never seen a zombie before we arrived and now, they’re at your doorstep.”

“That doesn’t mean that you brought them,” he complained.

“There’s no guarantee that they wouldn’t have eventually found their way here,” she offered, “but it is a good possibility that we spurred things on when we released the virus on the aliens.”

“You’re accepting responsibility?” he asked with surprise.

She shook her head, “I’m not accepting any blame, nor am I rejecting it.  I’m just saying what’s possible.”

“They’re terrified,” he grumbled.  “I worry about what they’ll do.”

“Try to do,” she corrected him.  “I’ve been feeling something was amiss for a while.  That’s why I’ve been planning our trip back to the surface.  We’d have left this morning if Kendra hadn’t been bitten.”

“I had no idea that you were ready to leave,” he said with surprise.

“I was going to discuss it with you last night,” she explained.

“Of the best laid plans,” he mused.

“After observing Kendra, I’m convinced that the virus deposited in her system by the bite in her arm enhanced the immunity factor,” she said.  “I want to take some of her blood to study and possibly inject the rest of us with a serum made from it.”

His eyes filled with hope. “Does us include me and the other residents of Hopeville?”

Her brows knit together in thought.  “I don’t have the resources to create a full blown inoculation.  I was thinking booster for those of us who have already been inoculated.  Once we get to the surface and I inoculate you, I’ll give you the booster.”

“That’s not much help for the residents,” he moaned.

“The zombie virus was here when we arrived,” she said with impatience. “I can’t be expected to provide protection for everyone in such short time and without adequate provisions.  The best I can offer is to get to the surface and finish what we started here so that the final elimination can be done.”

“Which is?” he asked.

“I told you already,” she grumbled.  “I have a formula that will kill anyone infected with the virus, but I won’t release it until all of the aliens are infected.”

“It could take years,” he mused.

“The faster we work, the shorter the time that it will take,” she offered.

“What’s your estimate for leaving now?” he asked.

“I should be able to have the booster created within a day or two,” she said with a voice that sounded patient again.

He sipped on his tea.  “I’ll do my best to hold the villagers at bay until then.”

Her brows raised. “It’s that bad?”

He frowned.  “Listening to them babble their fears, I thought I was back in the middle ages.”

“Fear can make you do crazy things,” she said, thoughtfully.

He drained his cup and set it down on the counter.  “That’s what I’m afraid of.”  Leaning over the counter, he placed a light kiss on her lips. “I’m going to take care of a few things in preparation of leaving. I need to make sure that this place is watched over while I’m gone.”

“Will you ask Alice to stay here?” she asked.

He gave her a look of confusion. “I thought that she was going to come along.”

“Oh,” she said with genuine surprise. “After what happened with Ari, I didn’t think she’d be up to it.   It won’t be a walk in the park, you know.”

He nodded.  “She was a wanderer on the surface.  Her exposure and experience might come in handy.”

“Has she expressed a desire to join us?” she asked.

He thought for a moment. “I just assumed.  I suppose I should ask her.”

Olga chuckled.  “I suppose you should, but, before you do, let’s talk about things.”

“Such as?” he asked.

“It’s a lot different on the surface than it is here,” she said. “You left before the aliens took control and the true effects of the nuclear bombs were felt on the planet’s landscape and population.  I want to make sure that you understand what you’re going into before you go.”

“Don’t you want me to come with you?” he asked with concern.

She shook her head.  “I never want to be separated from you again, but I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t fully prepare you for what awaits us on the surface.”

“Is it that bad?” he asked.

“You’ll miss a good deal of the amenities that have managed to make their way to inner earth.  There are few humans who are skilled enough to make and create things that aren’t forced to live and work in servitude of the regime.  Those of us on the outskirts are lucky to get our hands on such luxuries as you have here,” she said.

“I’m not worried about that,” he informed her, “but what about the risks?”

“In some ways, it’s better,” she replied. “Or, it seems so to me and my family. Perhaps it’s because we were used to it, but, even with the threat of the aliens, it felt safer there than here.”

“The aliens have pretty much kept to themselves here,” he admitted.

“We’ve encountered a good deal of peril here even if it wasn’t from the aliens.  It’s like they’re a pilot location or something,” she offered.  “Not so on the surface.  They dominate the planet.  Humans are looked upon as no better than cattle.  They are bred and raised for food.  Some are placed into servitude, but the majority are not.  The men and women are forced to procreate until their bodies wear out and then they are disposed of.”

“Surely, this wouldn’t apply to us.  You and I are too old,” he nervously said.

“We’re both in good health. We’d make a good meal,” she said in a flat tone. She didn’t want to remind him that she was still capable of childbearing.  Besides, she doubted the aliens would use her for that, should they get caught.  “Kendra and Rex have already suffered their breeding program. I want to make sure that doesn’t happen again.  This means that everyone who goes on this mission has to be on the same page as far as how it’s done and what we mean to accomplish.  That includes Alice if she chooses to join us.”

He nodded.  “Understood.  Perhaps we should gather everyone together for a meeting to make sure we’re all in accordance with the plan.”

She smiled.  “My thoughts exactly.”