Valli : Personal Journal of Valli Pillay, a Living Dead Pandemic Survivor

Entry 30

Following the announcement by the Malaysians, Dad thought we should try to find an easy-to-use weapon. We had a few knives, hammers, and so on, but they weren't enough. So, he came up with an idea; guava branches. They were thick and commonly used as handles for hoes, they also didn't rot, he turned them into clubs, like the one I used to hit the eels but bigger. Satish showed me how to use the rifle. He didn't really use any firearms in the Coast Guard but remembered his basic training. He taught me how important it was to breathe properly when aiming and firing. We had to practise without bullets because we didn't have many.

"If you've got your breathing right, you'll be fine," he said.

We also kept an eye on the large group of living dead that were at the airport. They were the ones we could see with the binoculars. We didn't think it was a clever idea to check the roads. It meant driving and we didn't want to attract them.

Although we managed our supplies the best we could, we had more mouths to feed. We were growing vegetables. We had breadfruit and bananas, but they took time to grow. The breadfruit was already ripe on the trees. They only came into season once a year; we tried to store as many as we could. At some point the adults felt it was time to go and get more supplies. Dad and Satish knew a lot of the stores in the area, but the group did not want Dad to go.

"You got a kid," Satish said.

Dad argued he should go but the rest of them agreed that Dave, Satish and Mrs. Kalichurn would go.

"You need a woman with you," she said.

The men didn't argue. Mrs. Kalichurn was a tough lady.

They took an SUV they had been using. It had enough fuel to get them into Rose Belle and back. They left us at the farm and headed for Wholesale Mauritius, a store that sold products for cheap and in bulk. We all hoped it had some supplies left. It was a ten-minute car ride from the farm, not taking into account hordes of living dead or bands of bad people.

The rest of us spent the day doing our chores, washing clothes, preparing dinner, and collecting vegetables from the garden. Although we were busy we were all waiting anxiously.

They had been gone for most of the day and when the afternoon came we started to get worried. Dad debated whether we should send out a search party. Stephan volunteered to go. He had found an abandoned motorcycle and said he could ride out as close to Rose Belle as possible, staying only on the outskirts of the village. Going into the village itself was too risky. Maya was not too happy about him going. They argued about it. I understood where Maya was coming from. When the only thing you have left is your husband and your son, when you don't know what is waiting for you, then you have a right to give your loved one a hard time when they want to put themselves in harm's way.

"You can't just go," Maya said.

"They might need our help," Stephan said. "I'll be faster on the bike. I'll be back before you know it."

Maya turned to Dad.

"Stephan let's both go," Dad said. "In the truck."

"We're risking too much." Stephan, who had given Murali a hug, put on his helmet. "With this, I'll be faster and less noticeable." He patted the bike.

He pulled Maya close to him. "Baby, don't worry, I'll be back before you know it."

"You better get back," Maya said. "Or I'll come get you. You hear?"

He gave her a kiss.

"Tamil women, eh Mani?" Stephan said to Dad smiling.

"Yeah." Dad wasn't smiling. "Let's go in my truck, Stephan."