AFTER (Book #3)

Chapter Two

The courtyard stretched a good twenty metres on every side, all caged in by the looming, wooden walls, but it soon filled up once Val put out the word. Within ten minutes or so, a seemingly endless stream of bodies emerged from the hospital doors; men, women, children, old, young, even babies. It was like a breath of normality for Max and Lizzie.

Val had clambered up a ladder next to the main gates and urged Max and Lizzie to follow her up to a platform that looked out upon the entire courtyard.

"I told you that I wouldn't risk my people by sending them out on your rescue mission," Val recapped. "And I meant it. But I also said that anyone is free to come and go as they please."

The steady outpouring of survivors gradually eased, leaving only a few stragglers occasionally joining onto the back of the captivated crowd. A strange buzz of both excitement and nervousness spread through them like a ripple, emulating from Val's emotionless, unreadable lips.

Once she was clearly satisfied with the turnout, she began to address the people of Novus.

"I have asked you all to gather here today for two reasons," Val began, her confident tones booming around every corner of the sanctuary. "Firstly, to introduce our newest family members, Max and Lizzie, who we hope will be staying with us for some time."

A spattering of applause emerged from the crowd, before an approving nod from Val sparked an eruption of clapping and cheering. After a few seconds of celebration, Val calmed the congregation once more with a subtle raise of the hand.

"The second reason I have called you here today is a request, from our newest members..." Val continued, ushering Max and Lizzie forwards.

Max coughed, completely overwhelmed by the sheer size of the crowd beneath his feet. He had never been much of a people person before the outbreak, and this was the largest group of people he had seen since it all began. His hands shook, and his palms grew sweaty as he cleared his throat.

"Hi everyone," he tremored. The crowd responded with greetings in turn. "I realise that we haven't met any of you properly yet, and I realise that our arrival hasn't been the calmest or quietest...but I'm here to ask for your help."

"Max and Lizzie were ambushed in the city, along with a group of their friends with whom they were travelling," Val interjected. "While these two were able to get away, their friends were left separated, and their fates left unknown."

"We know that at least some of them made it out, but we don't know where they went after that," Max explained.

"How do we know they're even alive?" a voice from the crowd challenged.

Max sighed, "We don't. We can't know for sure."

A rumble of murmurings commenced after Max's admission, and he could already feel the crowd slipping away from him.

"They are our friends, and we're heading back out there with your help, or without it," Lizzie chimed.

"Without!" one man cried, to a few hushed sniggers.

Lizzie ignored the comment and the laughs, using her anger to drive her on further.

"We were travelling with five people, and one of them was called George. George is only four years old. Now, I can see plenty of children amongst you today, and I bet I'm looking at plenty of parents too. We just want to get little Georgie somewhere safe, that's all," Lizzie tailed off, her anger turning to sadness, and her sadness bringing with it tears.

Val placed a somewhat comforting hand on Lizzie's shoulder, stepping forwards by her side, creating the image of a united front. She knew that slapping her face on a cause was always an effective way to rally support.

"I'm not ordering anyone out after these people, I would never do that. My personal opinion is that we are stronger here, together as a unit, in Novus. But... I am also of the opinion that children are the future. It was our generation who put us into this shitfest, it shouldn't be kids like George who are left to face it alone," Val bellowed, her voice carrying like thunder atop stormy clouds. "Anyone who wants to volunteer to leave with Max and Lizzie will be sent off with a salute. Having said this, I would urge that anyone with medical training hold their tongue and remain within our walls. Your knowledge is an extremely limited and valuable resource that we simply cannot afford to lose. Thank you."

The majority of the crowd dispersed immediately, returning to their daily chores without a second's thought. Max didn't blame them, he couldn't, many of them had a family of their own, he didn't expect them to risk everything for a group of strangers. He didn't expect that of anyone, he just hoped for it.

As Val led the way down the ladder, back to ground level, a noticeable flock had formed at its base, seemingly waiting for the new arrivals to descend.

"Looks like you two made quite the impression," Val whispered, nudging Max as he jumped the final few rungs of the ladder.

One woman eagerly stepped out from the pack to shake the hands of both Max and Lizzie, as soon as the latter's boots hit the pavement.

"It's so nice to meet some new faces, been a little while now since we had anyone show up here. My name's Kimberly, this is my husband Zac, and our two girls Jess and Rachel. Zac and I would be honoured to come with you, and to help bring little Georgie home!"

"W-wow," Max stammered, struggling to find the words to respond with. "We really appreciate that! But what about your girls?"

"I'd like to think that other people here would risk their lives to save my kids, I'd be a hypocrite if I didn't at least try to do the same. And that goes for all of us!" Kimberly said, with ten or so other Novus residents nodding and murmuring in agreement behind her.

"Thank you so much," Max purred, astonished by the response. "Have any of you got much experience with fighting the clickers?"

"Clickers?" Kimberly questioned. "You mean the others?"

"Yes, sorry, the others," Max clarified.

Kimberly's confidence wavered a touch, "Not as such. We've all seen them, up close too, so we know what we're dealing with," she assured.

"How long have you been here at Novus, if you don't mind me asking?" Lizzie enquired, suspicious of the credentials of their volunteers.

Kimberly wavered, knowing that her answer wouldn't fill Max and Lizzie with confidence. After a few seconds of silence, Zac stepped in. "We've been here since the start. We came to make sure that we had enough medication for Rachel's epilepsy, with everything going to s**t, we didn't know when the hell we'd be able to get more, you see? Well we saw the set up here, the army guys milling around, figured it would be the safest place for us."

Max's heart sank, but he tried desperately to prevent his face from portraying his disappointment, these people were offering to risk their lives after all. "So, since everything went down, you haven't been outside those walls?"

Zac glanced away, "No," he admitted.

"But that doesn't mean we don't want to volunteer!" Kimberly insisted. "All of us do!"

"Have any of you stepped foot outside Novus since the start," Max asked the group. Silence.

He flashed Lizzie a worried, defeated glance, with an ever so slight shake of the head. They couldn't ask these people to leave the safety of the walls, there was no way for them to even comprehend what they would be getting themselves in for. Their only hands on experiences with the disease would have been at the very start of the outbreak, it had escalated to a scale beyond even the bleakest of imaginations.

"Are any of you even immune?" Lizzie asked. Silence again.

"Look, guys," Max exhaled. "We can't thank you enough for stepping forward, you're all incredibly brave and just wonderful people, but we can't ask you to do this."

"But you asked for any volunteers...we're volunteering," Kimberly stated, bewildered by Max's change of heart.

"I know, I know," Max conceded. "But you haven't been out there, you don't know what it's like. You have no idea what you would be getting yourself into."

"We barely made it out alive last time, and we've been on the road for months," Lizzie added.

"Have you had any kind of combat training?" Max pushed further. "Any teaching on how to deal with the...others?"

"Well...no," Kimberly admitted. "But-"

Max raised his hand to usher her into silence, "Thank you, but I think we'll have to tackle this one alone." He turned to Val and extended his hand, "Thanks for your help. If we manage to-"

"Hey! Am I too late to sign up? I've been dying for a decent after school club around here," an Italian voice quipped from the rear of the group.

A short man, with a cheeky, toothy grin, shimmied his way through the group until he finally appeared in front of Max.

Val groaned slightly under her breath before introducing the latecomer, "Max, Lizzie, this is Giovanni, one of our more...eccentric members."

"Oh, don't be like that," Giovanni grinned. "She loves me really," he insisted, offering his hand for Max and Lizzie to shake. "Call me, GiGi. Giovanni is just what Val likes to refer to me as to keep our relationship spicy."

GiGi winked at Val, who stared icily back at him, her lips not quivering into a smile for a second.

"What about you GiGi, have you got any more hands on experience beyond the walls?" Max prayed.

"Giovanni is actually one of our top scavengers," Val clarified. "I'm not thrilled at the idea of putting his life on the line like this."

"Well then, Valerie, my love, you know what this means," GiGi purred, with a child-like glint in his eye.

"You are not getting the keys to the f*****g vault," Val snapped.

"I'm getting the keys to the f*****g vault," Gigi beamed.

Lizzie looked from Val to Gigi, and then back again, "What the f**k is the f*****g vault?"