Pressing her freezing fingertips to her face, Minji resisted the urge to grab the little girl and shake her. It was difficult to find her voice, but she said, “Stop it.”
Ava’s eyes flicked toward the gruesome violence outside the shuttle bus. Lifting one hand, she pointed at the scene. “Moommy.”
Returning her attention to the frenzied mesmerized, Minji seized upon Ava’s comment and snapped it into the puzzle she’d been piecing together in her mind. “Oh, my God!”
“They’ve stopped,” Simone whispered in a fear laden voice. “Why?”
Like a wave crashing onto the shore then retreating into the sea, the mesmerized stilled, then staggered away from the pickup. There were so many it took several minutes before the sad scene around the vehicle was exposed. Numerous bodies haloed by pools of vibrant red decorated the long strip of asphalt. The desert wind kicked up dust devils that danced among the dead like wraiths.
“I need to go see what the hell is going on,” Alec said, then exited the bus.
“Simone, can you watch the girls?”
“Be careful, Minji. This isn’t a good sign.”
Leaving the other woman to deal with the crying baby, Minji sprinted down the steps and out into the bright sunlight. Despite the time of the year and the clear skies, the air was freezing.
Further along the highway, large herds of the mesmerized continued to cross over while the group that had attacked the
truck resumed their hike into the desert. None of the mesmerized took notice of the man with the cane and gun. Minji shadowed Alec, shivering in the cold.
“You should stay on the bus,” Alec said, realizing she was trailing him.
“No,” she answered.
“Right,” he grunted. “I keep forgetting you’re stubborn as a mule.”
“Exactly.”
They reached the outer ring of bodies. All were dead, riddled with bullet wounds and appeared to be from all walks of life. Near the front of the pickup, Alec bent over a figure covered in blood and gore. Parts of the body looked like raw meat.
“Don’t look, Minji,” Alec said. “He’s torn apart.”
“Torn apart like eaten?” For a second she doubted her own theory and feared Arthur’s zombie speculation was more feasible than she’d imagined, then she dismissed those thoughts.
“I don’t think so. There are bites, but honestly I think they were just trying to kill him. His head is bashed in.” Alec crossed himself, then searched through the man’s blood-soaked pockets. “Nothing. From his uniform I can tell he was a private and his last name was Hernandez. I wonder if there is something in the truck that would explain why they attacked him. I’ll check.”
Minji pointed her attention away from the grisly remains in the direction of the mesmerized herds. “They’re not even aware of us. Why attack them, but not us?”
“Damned if I know,” Alec said distractedly, crunching the glass from the shattered windshield underfoot. He jerked the cab door open.
Drawn by curiosity, Minji walked along the side of the pickup to the truck bed. The vehicle had severe body damage and was slathered in blood. To her disgust, she saw that a corpse was wedged into the wheel well of the rear tire. Pressing upward onto her tip toes, she looked into the truck bed to see the female soldier’s mangled body. Minji climbed onto the tailgate, and gingerly stepped into the bloody mess. The rubber soles of her boots squelched in the red liquid causing her to cringe with revulsion. Carefully, she inched her way to the body of the woman taking extra care not to slip, then crouched to search through the woman’s uniform. The warmth of the fresh blood and the reek of copper, urine, and feces made her task even more harrowing. Gritting her teeth, she fumbled about until she pulled a white card from the woman’s pocket.
It matched Dr. McCoy’s.
“Alec, I got something,” Minji called out.
“Me, too.” Alec flattened a white card against the rear window.
Minji flashed the one she’d found. “What the hell?”
“Get her dog tags. I’ll get his. It’s the least we can do.”
Swallowing any trepidation, Minji bent over and gently worked the chain over the woman’s head. Her hair was cut very short and was a cloud of silky black against Minji’s hands. The female soldier had lost so much blood her dark skin looked gray. Minji noted the tattoo showing through the woman’s torn uniform. It was a heart with a cross.
When she rejoined Alec, Minji was close to losing her calm demeanor. Alec peered at her face as she approached and held out his arm, offering a hug. Minji shook her head, delivered the dog tags, and set her hands on her hips.
Dropping his arm, Alec sighed while storing the tags in his jacket pocket. “The tank was running on fumes and the truck has severe body damage.”