Week 5, Day 3 - Grace and Maria Enter

Adam Smith

Again, I manned my station. I monitored closely as four figures approached my bunker doors. Two men and two women.

Mr. Johnson was one of them. The other man, from my talks with Mrs. Johnson, was Jimmy. The woman was none other than my former professor, Grace Garcia, or Grace Davis now, I can’t remember. Grace was now deep into her pregnancy, having trouble walking to the bunker. Beside her was Maria, one of Jill’s classmates and about the same age. Grace was a stately woman with some Hispanic heritage. She had dark hair and dark eyes but pale skin. Her daughter looked far more Hispanic than Grace, with a bit of a tan with lovely small eyes and dark hair and dark eyes as well. Jimmy looked like the twin brother of Mr. Johnson, just shorter. They both had shaggy hair now and were unshaven.

The intercom buzzed, and I picked it up.

“Adam,” Todd said.

“Mr. Johnson,” I said back.

“Adam, let me in and see my family. Grace here is in bad shape, and we need food. I promise on my word as a man I won’t harm you if you just leave my family alone.”

I clicked my tongue.

“If you go back to my house and drop all your weapons there and return with no bags, I’ll consider it,” I said.

“We’re as good as dead if we don’t keep our weapons boy,” Jimmy said. “You act like we the untrustworthy ones when you're the fucking rat.”

Good point. “I agree, but that doesn’t mean I’ll let you in with the way you are. I can take you two at a time, maybe. No more. I can’t keep eyes on all of you at the same time.”

“Goddamnit Adam!” Mr. Johnson said.

“Listen, Grace is very close, all right! She is going to die here if you don’t help her? Okay, say me, and Todd will stay out here, and Grace goes in. She is going die if she doesn’t get no shelter, no food or no medical treatment and Todd says you got all that in there.”

I considered. This was an obvious trap.

“Adam, do you have no human decency in you left?” Mr. Johnson said. “Look, we’ll be out of your hair if you let Grace through her pregnancy period, okay? She’s due in a week or month. We need to go scavenging anyway. We’ll come back later, and Grace will be in your care.”

I raised my brow at that. I had always wanted to fuck Grace or Professor Garcia, or is it Davis now?

“Okay, but before I can open the doors to her, I’ll need you to go to all the way to the gates of the complex. Do you understand? Grace will also need to leave all her bags and weapons with you.” I said.

Grace nodded at Jimmy, who looked nervous at this.

“Same for Maria,” I added with a smile. “Maria can come in as well. I told you I can keep an eye on two at a time.”

At this, all four looked at each other and talked in low whispers.

They finished and said, “Sure, she’ll probably be safer in there though keep your mitts off her Adam!” Mr. Johnson blurted.

Grace and Maria dropped their bags and Jimmy, and Mr. Johnson took them and parted. Jimmy hugged Grace before they left and they made their way to the end of the neighborhood. Grace and Maria both looked petrified looking around for danger cautiously, they were wearing cargo shorts and jeans and rain jackets.

When Jimmy and Mr. Johnson were finally out of sight, I went to the entrance and opened it. I braced for a punch or the two women ganging up on me, but nothing happened.

Grace looked at me like a lizard, and her daughter ignored me and helped her pregnant mother inside. The door slid back close.

“Hello, Grace,” I said.

“Adam,” Grace said back blankly a note of disgust in her words.

“Hi, I’m Adam Smith,” I said to Maria.

“Don’t talk to her, please, Adam,” Grace said again.

They made their way down and into the lounge. I would have to go get a pitcher, I thought.