Chapter 19 – Aiden

I have never seen anything like this before in my life. Two large buildings, equidistant from each other, sit below us like a mirage. I’m terrified maybe that’s all this is. Each building is made of red brick with a green, Spanish-tiled roof. They look like something straight out of a magazine. In front of each is a garden with a multitude of flowers in a rainbow of colors—white, red, orange, purple, blue, and yellow.

The gardens appear to be too well-kept. Everything about this feels wrong, and Emily is wrong, too. This isn’t God’s handiwork. This is evil. I suppress a shudder.

“Do you think people live here?” Emily asks.

“If we’re lucky, yes,” Larry says.

Tom turns to face us. “That”—he points behind him to the buildings—“is exactly what we’ve been hoping to find. And I know we’re all excited and curious, but we have to tread carefully because we have no idea who lives down there.”

“You honestly don’t think whoever’s down there is dangerous, do you?” Marjorie crosses her arms.

“I don’t know, but I don’t think we need to take any chances. The quicker we can get down there and assess the situation, the better. Which is why I suggest we divide and conquer the exploring duties.”

“Wouldn’t staying together be safer?” Emily asks.

“Ideally, yes, but it’s already mid-afternoon, and we need to cover as much ground as we can before the sun sets. It’s the only way we’re going to cover everything. While that down there is our salvation, to whomever lives there, we’re probably going to appear as crazy people looking for food and shelter.”

Emily laughs, and I can’t help but smile.

“I mean, look at us.” Tom waves his arms down the length of his body then nods to each of us. “We’re plane crash survivors. We haven’t showered in a couple of days. Our clothes are dirty and ripped. We’re covered in sweat and dirt. I’m sure we’re going to look terrifying to them.”

“But if we approach cautiously and tell them what happened, they’ll help us, right?” I ask. They have to help us, because if they don’t, who will?

“Hopefully,” Marjorie answers.

“All right, so there are two buildings and five of us. Larry, you take Aiden and Emily into that first building. Marjorie and I will take the other. Knock three times then wait a full minute before knocking again four times.”

I adjust my backpack and shift on my feet. My stomach is in a knot, and my eyes burn from lack of sleep and the glaring sun. I press the heels of my hands against my eyes and rub the exhaustion from them. Or rather, I try. It doesn’t really work, and I end up yawning much too loudly.

“We’ll each do three cycles of knocks. After the third time, I think we can safely assume no one is home. That or they’re deliberately hiding from us, but I’m guessing it’s the former. At that point, feel free to enter the building and look around. Leave the door open,” Tom says emphatically. “And if you encounter anyone, scream.”

“I don’t like this.” Larry crosses his arms and shakes his head. “We have no idea who or what is down there, and we don’t have any way of protecting ourselves. What if they have weapons?”

The mention of weapons has my heart racing. It’s something I hadn’t considered, but it makes perfect sense. Living out here, in the middle of an island, of course the owners of those buildings would have weapons—probably guns.

“After what we’ve seen and what happened to Sienna, we’re not alone out here,” Larry says.

“We’re not exactly unprotected, either, remember?” Tom rubs the back of his neck. Then he holds up his right leg and lifts the hem of his pants. Strapped to his ankle is a gun. “Federal air marshalls are armed.”

Emily’s eyes widen, and she takes a big step back. I don’t know why she seems so shocked by this information—Tom told us this before we left the beach.

I move to stand beside Emily. “It’s okay,” I whisper. Doesn’t she realize this is a good thing? We’re protected.

“Then that solves it. You’re the only one with a gun, so we’re sticking together. You can clear the buildings first, and then we can search them,” Larry says.

Tom is silent for several moments, but then he finally nods. “All right, fine. We’ll approach the first building together, as a group. Once we know it’s empty, I’ll clear the second one before Marjorie and I search. Everyone okay with that?”

I nod. So does Emily and everyone else.

“Good. Our priority right now is food, water, and medicine. Grab as much as you can. When you’re done, bring the supplies outside and wait for us.” Tom pulls the gun from his ankle.

I follow as the group descends upon the buildings, but I don’t get too far before a hand touches my shoulder. I turn slowly to find Emily staring at me with a frown. “What’s wrong?” I ask.

“Are you sure we should be doing this?” she whispers.

“It’s kinda late to turn back now.” I put my arm around her shoulders and pull her closer. “Don’t worry. If we stick together, we’ll be fine.”

She gives me a small smile, but I’m not sure she believes me. I’m not sure I believe me. None of us have ever been in a situation like this before, so none of us can say with any certainty what will happen. But I have God on my side, and I say a prayer for our safety.

The embankment down to the valley is steeper than it looks, and we have to tread cautiously. Tom reaches the bottom first, and he extends his hand to help Emily and Marjorie down. Once I hit the ground, I help Larry.

“Thanks, man,” he says.

“No problem.” I glance at Emily, who’s staring at me with a strange look. As best I can tell, it’s a mix between pride and confusion.

“Let’s go.” Tom motions for us to follow.

“Wait,” I say, and everyone freezes. I point to the roof of the buildings. “Do you guys see that?”

“Solar panels,” Marjorie says, her tone full of disbelief.

“Does that mean…?” Emily looks at me.

“Electricity.” I grin.

Tom resumes leading the way, and I’m more eager than ever to get inside. The closer we get, the more I realize how similar the buildings are. They’re each two stories with no porch, just three cement steps leading to the front door. There are two windows on either side of the door, and a small, brick chimney juts out from the roof.

Tom climbs the steps while the rest of us wait at the bottom. He knocks loudly three times and then stares at his watch, counting one minute. I hold my breath. The seconds tick by so slow, it seems like the minute will never end. Finally, Tom knocks again, and I blow out the breath I’ve been holding. Another minute passes, and no one answers the door. After the third round of knocking, Tom opens the door and steps inside, gun raised.

The rest of us remain outside, waiting. I glance around. Despite the cool breeze, everything is so still. Not so much as a blade of grass moves with the wind. A few birds circle in the sky, but I still don’t see any other animals.

“It’s so peaceful here,” Marjorie says.

More like eerie, but I don’t say that.

“Who do you think lives here?” Emily asks.

I shrug. Even though we’re keeping our voices low, every spoken word sounds amplified, like they’re being broadcast through a bull horn.

“This building is clear,” Tom says as he steps outside. His face is pale and sweaty.

“C’mon, let’s get this over with,” I say. Standing out in the open like this makes me nervous. My skin tingles, and my palms itch. I need to get inside.

Tom nods. “Be safe, and stay together. We’ll be right next door.”

I take Emily’s hand and lead her inside. Larry follows. The minute I cross the threshold, I’m hit with an odor strong enough to knock the breath from my lungs. Mold, dust, and something else I can’t name hangs heavy in the air. I gag and cover my mouth with my arm.

“Ugh, gross.” Emily covers her nose, too.

The front door opens to the living room, which is sparsely furnished. A fireplace sits in one corner. There are no pictures on the mantle or on the walls, and everything is covered in a thick layer of dust. A small couch and a single recliner are the only pieces of furniture in the room. No coffee table or end tables or lamps. I look up at the ceiling to find a single overhead light.

“It doesn’t look like anyone’s lived here for months,” Emily says.

“More like years,” Larry says.

I trail my finger across the mantle, and it comes away black. I wipe my finger on my shorts and find the only light switch in the room. “Think it works?”

“Only one way to find out.” She grins.

I flick the switch, and the room fills with light. “They have electricity!” I can barely contain my excitement. Power means working appliances. We can cook food. Maybe even take a shower.

“I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy to see a working light.” She laughs.

“Hallelujah!” Larry says much too loudly, and I wince. If there is someone hiding inside, they know we’re here now. “I’m going to check upstairs.” He points to the stairs a few feet away. “You two stay together.” And then he disappears from my view before I can remind him that Tom told all three of us to stay together.

“Come on, let’s go see what else we can find.” We leave the living room and head into the kitchen. It’s much the same in here, too. No décor, just a long table with six chairs and the standard appliances—all covered in the same dust. The smell in this room is much stronger.

Cabinets line the far wall. Emily opens them, one by one. “They have food.”

The shelves are full of canned goods, boxed cereal, crackers, chips. My mouth waters at the sight, and then my stomach growls. I walk to the fridge and open the door. “Oh, gross.” I slam the door just as quickly as I’d opened it and force back a gag. Instantly, my stomach recoils, and I’m no longer hungry.

“What is that?” Emily asks.

“Everything in there is spoiled. The milk, eggs, all the food. Covered in mold. And I’m pretty sure I saw maggots, too.”

She gags. “That explains the smell.”

I nod. “C’mon.” There’s a door off to the right. I push it open to reveal a bathroom that looks like something straight out of dorm room—multiple stalls, stand-up showers with discolored, moldy curtains, and a wall of sinks. It’s as dirty as everything else. I turn on the sink faucet. “Running water.”

“Thank God.” Emily sighs. She turns around as if she’s looking for something else. “There have to be bedrooms somewhere, right?”

I raise a brow. “Uh, yeah, I would think so.” Why is she so concerned about finding the bedroom?

Her face turns red, and her eyes widen. “I didn’t. I was just…” She turns her face away and clears her throat. “We should grab the food from the cabinets and wait outside for everyone else.”

“Good idea.” We return to the kitchen, and I take my bag off my back. “We’ll put all the clothes in your bag, and we can fill mine with food.”

“Okay. I wonder if there’s a box or something around here we can fill up and carry back.” She heads toward the living room.

“Emily! Don’t wander off alone.” I chase after her.

“Why? I doubt anyone’s coming back anytime soon.”

“Still, I don’t think we should split up.” I follow her through the building, searching for something to use to carry food back to the beach.

She pushes open a door, and the hinges squeak. I cringe at the sound, hoping no one else hears it—which is ridiculous considering the only people in this building are me and her and Larry.

“Found a bedroom,” she says, smirking at me over her shoulder.

I shake my head and step into the room behind her.

“All that’s upstairs are bedrooms and a bathroom,” Larry says. “Everything’s covered in dust, just like down here.”

His voice startles me, and I jump a little. I scowl at him, hoping he realizes how much of a jerk he is for sneaking up on me like that. “How many?” I ask.

“Five.”

Six chairs at the table six bedrooms… Either there’s a large family living here, or it’s some sort of communal living situation. Either way, that’s a lot of people who could possibly return at any moment. “We should hurry up,” I say.

Emily picks up a rectangular laundry basket and holds it up proudly. “This will work, right?”

“Work for what?” Larry looks back and for the between us.

“Carrying food,” I say to him. Then, to Emily, “Yeah, that will work really well.” I take it from her and head back to the kitchen. “Is it just me or is the smell getting worse?”

“It’s definitely getting worse. Let’s do this fast and get out of here.”

We work quickly and silently to fill the laundry basket and my backpack with all the food we can fit. I put my backpack on again and lift the now full basket. The weight is much more than I expect, and I end up dropping the basket. The cans and boxes scatter across the floor.

I mutter a curse before I can stop myself, then silently apologize to God and ask for forgiveness.

“Okay, here.” She takes off her pack and hands it to me. “You take this one. It’s lighter so you can still carry the basket. Then I’ll take your pack with the food.”

“Are you sure?”

She nods. “Hand it over and let’s get out of this stink hole.”

“Deal.”

“Come on, you two.” Larry stands at the door, holding it open for us.