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It was time to start facing his problems.
“Harry Boy, I take it you’ve been informed of our grave situation?”
Harry entered the bar area to find Lucas still watching over Damien. “Yeah, they told me. Nothing’s going right tonight is it?”
“You can say that again. Still, I’m guessing you’re a fella with a plan.”
Harry nodded. “And you’d be right. Kath and I are going to go raid the supermarket for supplies. I wanted to ask you to come along.”
Lucas’ reaction was unexpected. The man seemed afraid. “Well, um, you sure that’s the best course of action now, Harry Boy? Should I not stay here and keep an eye on the womenfolk?”
“Nigel will do that. Plus, Jerry is over by the fire with Peter.” Harry moved forward and placed a hand on Lucas’ shoulder. “I really need your help, Lucas. We need the bags of coal they sell at the supermarket and I won’t be able to carry them all on my own.”
Lucas shuffled uncomfortably, but slowly seemed to come round to the idea. “Well, okay, I guess. I have little choice in the matter, do I? Can’t let an honest fella like yourself down. Bring on the snow, I say.”
Harry patted Lucas on the shoulder again. “I really appreciate it. Anyway, we’ll be fine. Quick in and out, military style. Like you said earlier, I’m Major Jobson and you can be Captain Fergus.” Harry snapped off a mock salute and stood straight.
Lucas chuckled. “Sounds like a plan. I just can’t help but worry about bumping into something unpleasant out there. I’m not the bravest man, you know?”
Harry understood the man’s fear; in fact he felt it himself. “I’ve been trying not to think about it too much,” he admitted, “but it’s either a quick trip to the supermarket or waiting until we all freeze to death. Besides, we’ll go out there armed. Anyone – or anything – that tries it on will soon regret it.”
Lucas clicked his fingers and did a little jig. “I like your spirit, Harry Boy. When do we depart?”
Harry shrugged. “No time like the present.”
Chapter Twenty-SEVEN
A baseball bat and a handful of kitchen knives – that was the best they could do. Harry hadn’t expected guns or a flamethrower, but still hoped for something a little more intimidating than kid’s toys and cutlery. Still, what they had was better than nothing.
“Right,” said Harry, handing the baseball bat to Kath and arming himself and Lucas with a chef’s knife each. “The plan is to get across to the supermarket quickly and quietly, sticking together at all times. Once we get there it’s over to you, Kath, because you know where everything is.”
Kath nodded and took over. “Our main priority is, of course, the coal, so we will gather that first. There’s some on the shop floor, but it would be prudent to ignore that and get the main supply from the warehouse. However, once inside, no one touches anything without my say so.”
“Would you mind if we breathe the air,” said Lucas.
Kath planted her hands on her hips. “If you’re not going to obey my rules then we can just forget the whole thing.”
“Fine,” said Lucas. “Although, we could just tie you up like our young friend, Damien, and take the keys for ourselves.”
Kath stared at Lucas and seemed worried.
Lucas chuckled. “Just pulling your leg.”
Harry slid off his stool and straightened himself up. “Okay, Nigel, you keep an eye on everything here and we’ll be back as soon as we can. Jerry, you make sure that Damien stays tied up nice and tight.”
“No,” said Jerry. He was holding the fire poker down by his thigh and shaking his head. “I’m coming with you.”
Before Harry had time to object, he found that Jess had beaten him to it. “Are you insane?” she asked her friend.
Jerry was still shaking his head. “No, I’m not. Just tired of being useless. That’s all I ever was when Ben was around and I’ll be damned if I’m going to carry on being like it now he’s gone.”
“That’s very noble,” said Harry, “and we all understand you wanting to honour your friend, Jerry – but there’s no need to take the risk. We’ve got it covered.”
“Dude, I don’t really know you and you sure as hell don’t know me, but one thing you’ll learn real soon is that all of the shit me and Jess told you about is real. None of you have seen the dude in the hood up close, but I have.”
Harry rolled his eyes. “What’s your point?”
“My point is that I am more qualified than you to go out there and face the crazy, so what right do you have to tell me anything?”
Harry shrugged and started to wonder if he actually had the energy for this. “We don’t have time to argue,” he said wearily, “so I guess you’ll be coming along too.”
Harry watched Jess put a hand on Jerry’s shoulder and turn him to face her. He couldn’t hear their conversation so he decided to take the remaining time to check up on Steph. She stood behind the bar, relighting any candles that had gone out.
“You okay?” he asked her. “You’ve been through a lot tonight.”
She smiled at him, her features so delicate and faded that she almost seemed like a shivering ghost in the candlelight. “No more than normal,” she said. “This place was never exactly Disneyland to start with.”
Harry took her hand and felt a jolt run through his skin when he felt her squeeze back. The room was freezing, but her palm throbbed out heat. He smiled at her. “You don’t have to pretend, you know?”
Steph’s eyes welled up as though a tap had been turned loose somewhere inside of her. “You mean I should just be honest and say that I think we’re all going to die tonight?”
Her words hit Harry like a haymaker to the kidneys. Just when he’d started to find some strength and positivity inside of himself, Steph had lost hers. It was tragic because he knew that his strength had, in part, come from being around her positivity. He’d taken advantage of Steph’s emotional strength and now the poor girl was drained. He squeezed her hand tighter. “No one is going to hurt you, Steph. I promise. I agree that some weird business has been going down tonight, but things only seem bad because we’re all afraid.”
Steph laughed and wiped at her nose and face. The skin of her wrist glistened as she pulled it away. “There’s nothing to fear but fear itself, huh?”
Harry smiled. “Something like that.”
“You just get back here in one piece, okay! Then I’ll stop crying.”
“Okay, deal!”
Steph let go of Harry’s hand and pushed him away. “Well, get going then.”
Harry turned around. The others were waiting; Jerry, Kath, and Lucas forming an orderly queue by the door. Lucas still seemed reluctant to go outside and Harry wished he had more time to find out why. But time was something none of them had while temperature continued to drop. Crisp layers of frost had started to form on the wooden surfaces of the tables and a pile of snow had formed at the foot of the exit door. The weather was coming in to get them.
Harry moved to the front of the queue and placed a hand against the lock, ready to unbolt it and push open the door. For one quick moment, Harry lost the nerve he needed to continue, but he took a breath, swallowed, and managed to continue. “Let’s go,” he said, pushing open the door and stepping out into the snow.
###
Outside, the landscape was featureless and blank like an unused canvass. Harry looked about himself but could see nothing but whiteness, so pure that its gleaming intensity made his eyeballs ache. But despite the blankness, there was movement everywhere; shifting, dancing specks of snow fluttering in the air; each flake individual but also part of the same never-ending whole. Harry thought about rushing back inside the pub, regretting the whole idea, but when he looked over his shoulder he could no longer see it.
Lost already!