Them

A Clean Slate

Chapter Three:
A Clean Slate

After we had all eaten, I threw the empty cans into a large bush. I feel someone nudge me with their elbow, and I find Gregory frowning at me when I turn to look to my right. Looking away, I continue to throw all of the cans into the air as if they were footballs. "I know it's all gone to ruins, but can't you respect nature a bit?" Gregory chuckles and I just grin, watching the metal can fly beyond a group of trees. I hear the group talking quietly, but it was disturbing my peace.

"Oh yes, I know which road to take." Ray says very cockily and I wanted to gag. I roll my eyes and see that Gregory caught that. "You shouldn't have asked for me to come."

"That wasn't my plan." I snapped back at Greg. He raises a brow at me and places his hands on his hips, "Then what was your plan? To get us killed? You know we aren't coming back."

"Isn't that what Frank wants." I made it sound more like a statement than a question for Greg to think about. Greg shakes his head and gets closer to my face, "This is your chance Luis, you can show them you can be trusted. Then you can stay. Don't screw it up or I'll be kicked out as well."

"Why you?" I look at him in confusion and throw the last empty can of beans into the air. "You don't think you asking me to come along raised suspicions? They don't have an idea of what happened to Kal, and they would't understand. They'd kick me out too if they find out I let you kill Kal."

"He killed your daughter; how could you say that and be so selfish?!" I spat, and my face was rising with heat. I began to walk away and I heard Gregory call after me. I kept on walking, staring at the ground and then I bumped into Jamie. He looks at me, as if worried, and I shove his pity aside. "Luis-"

I spun around and raised my arms, "What?!" Jamie looks away and shakes his head, "I'm sorry." He doesn't even look at me in the eye to tell me he's sorry for forcing Frank to ask Gregory to come with us. I thought Frank would change his mind after realizing he'd have to risk his best man's life. Stupid.

I got into the truck, slammed the door really hard, and it makes a really loud noise... Not even a second passed when a Beep slammed it's self onto the windshield, smashing it's head into the glass. I had no choice but to honk the horn to get Ray's attention so we could get moving. Once the Beep got it's head into the glass far enough, I take out my hand gun and blast it's skull. Blood splatter all over my clothes and I almost wanted to throw up at the smell.

Ray finally opens the door to the passenger seat, and starts the engine. He stomps hard on the gas pedal, and the truck zooms through the empty highway. Ray's hands were covered in the Beep's blood since it was splattered on the steering wheel as well." "You slammed the door, fired your gun, and honked the damn horn! Do you know how many Runner's are coming after us now?!" He was furious, I know, but the face he put on gave me satisfaction.

~

It was an hour or so when Ray started to slow down the truck to a stop, just meters away from a mossy gate. "That's the entrance to verify ourselves and then the quarantine is just a few miles after." He parks the truck next to a building that hides the truck from the guard's sight. "No way they'll let us in." I tell him, crossing my arms. "I know, that's what we have Ben and Charles for." Ray then knocks on the wall that separated us from the group in the truck with his elbow. Soon, Ben and Charles come running on both sides of the truck and then to turned over cars on the street where the gate was. I watch them load their snipers from my seat in the truck, and I grow tense by the minute.

"What are they doing?" I blurted and Ray shushes me as he keeps his eyes on the both of them. Charles makes the first shot and then Ben made the next one. They both motion their hands at us to come forth and I was confused as to what just happened. Without question, I got out of the truck and saw that everyone else was out of the truck and making their way towards Ben and Charles. I walk right next to Ray, searching for any signs of emotion on his face. He then looks at me, brows scrunched and then he raises them. "Oh yes! You need a weapon too. I almost forgot. Natasha!" He calls his wife over and she jogs over to us with the crate of weapons. Ray takes out a sniper, that was just like Ben's and Charles', and gives it to me.

Still confused, I continue to walk next to Ray and my eyes widen at the sight. Ben was dragging a body out of a little hut that had the mechanics to open the gate. Charles had already set the other body to the sidewalk and was working on how to open the gate. "What the hell." I muttered and found Gregory staring at me. "You're all pale, man." He comments about my face and I look at him angrily. "Did you know this was part of the plan?" I asked him, pointing to the dead bodies. "No, but does it matter?" He shrugs. I look at Ray, and he seems to be nervous at my reaction to this whole situation.

"Are we killing our way in?" I ask him and he hesitates to answer. "What the hell?! We don't have to do this. We could have just tied them up and have some of us stay behind to watch or--"

"Separation, is not part of the plan, Luis." He says this sternly and I grind my teeth, clutching my sniper really hard. "Go and be helpful for once." He motions me away and I stand at my spot, glaring at him as he walks towards Jamie. It was obvious they were speaking about me because Jamie kept on glancing over Ray's shoulder to look at me. I head over to Charles to see what he need help with, not that I wanted to carry on with this mission. He hears me walk inside the hut and he points to a rope that was lying on the ground. "Pull that to open the gate." I nod and start putting all my strength into pulling the gate open. It screeched as it moved and once there was enough space for us to get through, I stop pulling and pick up my belongings.

The group walks beyond the gate, and I'm stopped by Gregory. When the group was far enough, Gregory makes me face him and I keep my eyes on the group. "Don't screw it up, got it?" He doesn't say this rude. He says this like he wants me to stay alive, like I'm the one who's keeping the group alive.

Well, shit.

~