Find too many blocks and unfriendlies, and the only friendly gave me back nothing, except the will to push on. Yeah, I gave up my first aid kit to the mother and son. Expecting nothing back.
Then I came upon that miser with a banner over her door 'We Don't Share!' Hard to read since it's all dusty and heck. Well, time to move on.
Cars litter around the city, as far as the eye can see. Can find nothing in them, though. Except for dust. The damned dust is everywhere, blocking the sun, making me hard to breathe, and the furthest I can see is probably 50 feet. Beyond that is just dusty skyline. That's what I'm thinking as I cross a broken stretch of road upon a fallen traffic sign. And before you know it, there she is. The apartment.
I go in, and find the apartment... empty.
***
They are not in the apartment.
I checked the apartment once, twice. I did, however, find a can of fruit cocktail, and the fact that they both had left in a hurry. The bedroom upstairs had suitcases that were not fully packed in, and clothes strewn everywhere.
I sit at the livingroom, facing the fireplace. Hang my head between my legs, feel the heaviness of my backpack for the first time. It pulls me down, and I want to stop, but something draws me to the mantelpiece. It's our picture of a very happy day. I walk toward it and take it, look at it, and notice a letter beneath it.
I won't say what Julie wrote, but it's enough for me that they both are safe, relatively. However, the date.... it was almost a year ago. Goddamit...
Turn on the cam, talk a bit, then a tremor passes. Throughout the building. I don't think it safe to stay any longer here. So I walk out, and either too much dust screwing up my brain or I'm dreaming in broad daylight, I hear a girl calling for her mommy. Coming from the playground, where Mary used to play with her mother.
Dammit, it's Mary!
***
She wasn't Mary. But she is real, though. Her name is Mei.
What a chase she led me to, and dammit. Another bunch of idiots, what do you know... And what do they want with a child? Practically a baby? I don't want to think too much. Besides, that makes cutting them down much more bearable. I'm ridding the city of its idiots.
She came out when I showed to her the camcorder. I let her use it for a while, even made myself look stupid. When she gestured at the dead (and one unconscious) idiots, I should've sugarcoat it more, but I just said 'they won't hurt you anymore'.
That kid had a walkie talkie with her. Now I understand why the men wanted her so bad. Her father, Henry, was wary at first when he talked to me. I said I want nothing. I just want information, like now, storm's coming. He guided me to a shopping mall where Mei and me can weather out the storm safely.
Before I strap her onto my back, Mei utters something about her mother. I caught earlier on that 'Mommy is never coming back.'
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