Yesterdays Gone: SEASON TWO (THE POST-APOCALYPTIC SERIAL THRILLER) (Yesterday's Gone)

thought of him.  
    Will sported a wild look from the moment Desmond met him, with unevenly cut hair, shorn close, and a couple of days worth of stubble. But lately, it appeared that grooming his hair or beard was the last thing on his mind.
    Will’s hair wasn’t especially long, but it was much longer than anyone else’s in the group, including Luca’s, who had his overgrown locks trimmed just two days prior. And what it lacked in length it made up for in general wildness, jutting out from his head, thick tufts in every direction. The hair on his head made Will look untamed, but what really added to the old dog’s feral appearance was his barbarous looking beard. Will’s beard was mostly white, but the black thatches that peppered his whiskers looked almost angry, the way they smothered the white around them. And the hairs were thick, like wire. Will had a habit of running his hands through his hair and tugging his beard when making a point, which happened most times he opened his mouth. It made him appear extra wild, along with the way his eyes would fade along with his voice as he fell deeper into thought.
    Even Desmond would agree that Will was the smartest of the group, but he was also the looniest. And he seemed the most likely candidate to piss off the powers that be at The Sanctuary, something that Desmond was constantly preparing to defend, if needed.
    “What’s up?” Desmond said.  
    “You’re wanted outside,” Will replied. “They’d like us to go on a supply run.”  
    Desmond raised his eyebrows. “A supply run? You mean they’re letting us free range birdies out of the coop?”
    Will laughed. “Apparently so. And Old Man Testament must be warming to us, too. We’re supposed to report to the third floor to check out firearms.”
    Desmond’s eyebrows lifted higher, the bewilderment on his face telling.
    “I know,” Will said. “Crazy. Seems I was right about the weapons being on the third floor, doesn’t it?”  
    “I never question whether you’re right or not,” Desmond smiled, “I just wish you’d enlighten us more often.”
    Will ignored Desmond’s comment; he just ran his hands through his hair, then tugged on his beard and said, “They’re waiting, so head on up to the third floor and get a gun from Rei. And see if they’ll give you something with a clip.” Will held up an old fashioned revolver. “This is fine, but I’d prefer something faster in a fight.”  
    Desmond nodded. “Anything else?”  
    Will shook his head. “No, not for now. Still trying to figure what in the hell is up between Rei and John. Can’t get my finger anywhere near it.”
    “Not sure I even want to know,” Desmond confessed. “This whole place makes me feel, I don’t know, like I’m in a bad horror movie version of Catholic school.
    Will’s half-laugh wasn’t reassuring. Will pivoted and strolled toward the door only to stop halfway. He turned and said, “Remember, something with a clip if you can.”  

    A minute later, Desmond was knocking on the locked door atop the third floor. “Brother Desmond,” Rei said, opening the door, blocking access to the room beyond, his smile wide and scarily genuine.
    Desmond returned a smile thin enough to see through and said, “Will told me to report for a firearm; he said we were going out on a supply run.”  
    “Brother Will is correct,” Rei said, “Please wait here.”
    Rei closed the door, locked it, then came back a minute later, unlocking and opening the door and handing Desmond a Colt Revolver, identical to Will’s, along with one box of ammunition.
    Desmond held the revolver in his hand. The weight felt good, great even, but it wasn’t his gun, one he was very familiar with. “I’d like one of my own guns, something with a bit more power,” he said.
    “This is your gun, assigned by the New Unity. It’s what’s best.”  
    “Look,” Desmond tried taking a step forward, but Rei blocked the entrance with his body. “You all are holding onto a lot of my guns. I understand the need for safety, security, and all that, so I surrendered my arms like a good boy and haven’t said boo since. But if you’re sending me outside, and giving me a gun anyway, I see no reason why I can’t have one of the guns I came in with.”  
    There was a long moment of silence, then Rei shook his head sadly as though the answer was simple and Desmond was simply too dim to see it.  
    “Sometimes,” he said, “you must accept