At the door, people were talking and moments later the crowd broke into smiles. They then ushered two strangers into the room: two men soon stood in the center of a circle of the townspeople.
I watched them from afar. I knew without a doubt that something about them was not right. They smiled in a very pleasing manner, but it was a false smile. Physically, they were both very attractive. One was tall, muscular, and had shoulder length sandy hair. The second was shorter and darker in complexion. His head was shaved, and he had heavy eyebrows and wore a hawkish expression. They were both dressed rather oddly. Their dark clothing looked too tight, buttons closed too close to the neck, and the fashion seemed outdated. My hands trembled.
Jamie was standing a bit back from the crowd, and I could see from the expression on his face that he was not sold either. Regardless, Tom led the men to the front of the room. Everyone had risen from their seats to get a closer look.
“Layla, these men have come to speak to us,” Tom said excitedly. Tom’s jubilant nature overcame him, and he didn’t wait for my reaction but pressed the two men forward.
They paused and looked at me, but I said nothing. I slid off the stage.
The two men looked around the room. I noticed the tall one pause when he saw Kira and Susan. He stared at them as the other began to speak.
“My name is Corbin,” the dark haired one began.
I stepped between the girls and the fair-haired man’s gaze and pulled the shashka from its scabbard.
Startled, the stranger looked at me. His eyes were icy blue. He tried to feign a smile.
I lifted the sword and set it on my shoulder.
He looked away.
“This is Finn,” Corbin said, referring to the fair one. I noticed that Corbin’s eyes were also ice blue. “We have just arrived by boat. As you know, the lake has thawed, and we are going around looking for survivors.”
“Where are you based?” Pastor Frank asked.
Corbin looked the pastor over in great detail before he answered. There was something odd in Corbin’s movements, a sort of strange control. “There is a very large group of us on Enita Island at the HarpWind Grand Hotel. The island is isolated. The disease never came there. We have been able to keep the hotel running using much of its Victorian era equipment. We’re trying to collect as many survivors there as possible.”
“Why?” Jamie asked.
Enita Island was famed for its seclusion and opulent Grand Hotel. I’d once seen a documentary about it but had never been there myself. Unreachable by land, one had to take a ferry to get there. The story was plausible. The storytellers were not.
Corbin considered Jamie. “There is survival in numbers. We are well armed and have considerable supplies. We also have three doctors.”
I looked back at Ian who was still sitting. He’d heard.
“The island is completely sheltered. These creatures cannot reach the place. It is a place of safety, a place to begin again. Our goal is to find people to join us there,” Corbin added.
“What about help from the outside, the government?” Kiki asked.
Corbin shrugged. “There is no government. Everything has fallen.”
“How did you find us?” I asked them.
They both turned and looked at me and then exchanged a glance between them. In that moment, I heard a strange murmuring sound in my head.
“We were cruising the shoreline and heard the sound of gunfire. Was there an incident?” Corbin asked.
“Yeah, man, but we whooped ass,” Jeff replied.
Corbin smiled at Jeff as one might smile at a small, stupid pet. “We can keep you safe from such onslaughts. Last I knew, these creatures cannot swim.”
Several people laughed.
Ian had risen and was standing at the back of the crowd. He was listening intently as the townspeople began shooting a barrage of questions at the strangers: how many already there, kinds of supplies, space available, plan for the future, etc., etc. Corbin and Finn had ready answers. Too many ready answers. And all of the answers they had were good ones. In that moment, I remembered something my grandma used to say: “I ran from the wolf only to run into the bear.” Whatever they were selling, I wasn’t buying.
The questioning went on for what seemed like an eternity. They had heard nothing from the outside either. They were gathering what survivors they could. They already had more than 100 people at the hotel. They heard the cities were overrun. They had no idea what caused it. We weren’t safe where we were. They wanted to hit the reset button on civilization, starting over on their island.
Ethel invited the strangers to stay the night and eat with us, but they insisted they return to their boat. They promised to return the next day and asked us to be ready to go. Everyone was in an excited jitter. That night, people left the gymnasium full of dreams. Who wouldn’t have?
Back at the cabin, the girls crowded around their mother in the kitchen.
“Will all three of us stay together in one room at the hotel?” Kira asked.
“I want the hotel!” Susan yelled happily.
“I think so,” Frenchie told them.