Apocalypsis 04 - Haven

imprisoned cafeteria workers. I’d bet they’d all refuse to wear them.
    She shrugged. “That’ll work. I’ll send someone for them later. For now, this should do for you.” She reached into the bag in her hands and tossed me a small sack similar to the one that the bird feed was in. “It’s a broad spectrum antibiotic. A little rough around the edges but should fight most common infections. Four times a day.”
    I opened it and saw several pills inside. They were in the shape of regular medicine but not exactly uniform. “How did you make these?”
    “Supplies from my old work. If you have anyone in your group interested in chemistry, send them our way. I can get them trained in a couple months on some basics, and you can have your own in-house pharmacy. Nothing fancy, but painkillers, antibiotics and fever reducers for sure.”
    “Wow, that’s amazing. Thank you so much.” I gave her my first genuine smile of the afternoon. “I don’t really understand why you’re being so generous, but I appreciate it.”
    She walked over and put her hand on my shoulder. She was so much taller than me I had to look up to see her face.
    “Good people have to stick together, and most particularly, good women. This world belongs in the hands of those who will nurture and guide. You’re one of those people. I invest in assets that will give me a return. Haven is one of those places. If my place ever burns to the ground, I hope we can find a home with you here, at least until we find another.”
    I reached up and put my hand on her forearm. “Absolutely. Our home is your home.”
    “Cool.” She leaned in a kissed me on the cheek. “I’m outta here, chica. Tell the others I said goodbye.”
    Her compatriots came out the front door right on time and joined her at their pile of belongings. Once they were all suited up, they walked to the gate.
    Ronald came out with the keys. They jingled as he sorted through them to find the one that would do the unlocking.
    He turned the tumblers and I helped him push the gate open and then closed again. As he locked it back up, I stared at the Amazons through the links.
    “See you soon,” said Kirsten, her back to me.
    “Yeah. See you soon,” I said.
    Ronald and I stood side-by-side watching them walk away.
    “Everything go okay?” asked Ronald after they were well on their way. I turned to face him, and he stared at my bloodshot eyes, his own filling with concern.
    “Things with the Amazons went … well. Very well, I think.”
    “And things with you? How are they going?”
    “I guess that remains to be seen.”
    Ronald put his arm around me as we walked to the door. “God works in mysterious ways, you know. I know things are strained between you and Bodo right now, but don’t count love out of the picture just yet.”
    “I’m not counting love out. I have a lot of it around me. I just don’t know how this story is going to end.”
    “That’s what makes it interesting,” he said, opening the door for me. “If we knew the ending, we’d never want to do the middle part. It’s not the destination that matters anyway. It’s the journey.”
    “Sometimes I want to cheat and skip to the end.”
    “No. I don’t think any of us would like that. Just be patient. God has a plan for you, and it’s a good plan. I promise.”
    “Thank you, Ronald. I hope you’ll agree to be our church guy here at Haven. I don’t know who will come to be a part of your gig or your services or whatever, but I’m sure there will be some.”
    “It’s already in the works, don’t you worry about that.” He gave me a hug before gesturing for me to go into the building before him.
    We went inside, and I took Peter up on an offer to give me a tour of Haven. He wanted to show me everything they’d done to organize it, and I wanted to get away from all the people who were expecting me to make their lives good again.

    ***
    Two weeks went by with a flurry of activity. Jenny proved herself worthy of the title Code-Reader and she had two new birds in her flock of messengers, given by a happy compatriot over at the Amazon contact point. They were very happy with her progress as were we.
    Several more Miccosukee and Creek kids had joined us at Haven, bringing more animals and supplies. We added lots of stragglers too, who’d made their way down I-95, sent to us by the Cracker Barrel contact point and the Amazons.
    Everyone who came was offered a cell to make into an apartment. None of them