Four days and multiple apartments after the fall.

We continued disturbing the restful slumber of the dead long into the afternoon. By the time we returned to camp and left the city behind, the sun was well into setting. It turns out that spending hours digging through the belongings of the dead was oddly therapeutic. I even managed to find a pair of black boots to go with my new clothes. It wasn’t often you found a pair of comfortable boots for free. Unless you were looting them from a dead person’s home.

It was easy to see who they placed at the top of their new society, and who was at the bottom. No one would come out and say the scavengers were below cooks and builders, but the implication was clear.

In the center of the camp, there was a rudimentary command tent with everything you could want to survive the end of the world. There was a table, chairs, radio, propane stove…

Wait…

Radio?

It was nothing special. Clearly something from a child’s science experiment, but it worked, and they were using it.

“If you are alive, if you are alone, come find us. We survived the attack. There aren’t many of us, but our number grows every day. If you’re on the planet and can hear this message, come to Central Park. We have food, clothing, and shelter. If you’re willing to work, we are willing to share. If anyone on the Luna Base can hear this, humanity is not gone. We hope you survived the attacks. If you can get here, we will do what we can to survive together.”

This was a nightmare. These boneheaded idiots couldn’t be so stupid they’d willingly announce their presence to anyone in range, could they? I honestly didn’t know what to say. Didn’t they realize that if they could find a radio, so could the bad guys? I mean, come on, is it that hard to recognize the inherent danger?

They repeated the message.

Apparently, it was that hard to see danger. This was more disappointing than watching my brother try to play with the ‘nice doggy’. I still think he got out of that one too easily. I mean, really, who plays with a wolf and doesn’t get eaten?

I honored him by spreading the legend of Romulus and Remus, but it's an exaggeration to say we were raised by the she-wolf. When we were children, a massive mother wolf found our cave in the mountainside. She was in pain, and it was a kind of pain that only comes from losing something you loved very much. When she saw the four of us playing with the scraps of a meal, she walked right up to us and lay on her side. Right then, my brother inched his way closer until he could touch her face and handed her one of the broken bones we’d been playing with.

Instead of ripping his arm off, the she-wolf let out a small whimper and pushed her nose under his hand. Our other brother was terrified, but we were not. It was clear to the clan elders that she’d lost her pups and they repeatedly suggested we kill her for the furs. But anyone that tried to take her away from us quickly found themselves missing the hand they raised.

We spent every night curled up beside our surrogate mother, warmed by her fur and a softly glowing fire. When she died, our sister pointed to the stars and showed us how our mother wasn’t gone, merely watching over us from the great beyond. Logically, I know it isn't true. Logically, I know she was just a wolf. But in my heart, she will always watch over me.

Looking at my dinner, I recognized the boxed macaroni we’d found in nearly every home. Why was it that every single kitchen in America had this abomination? I mean seriously, powdered cheese with boxed pasta? The only fresh part of the meal is the half gallon of milk dumped on top to make the powder into liquid. But despite what I thought of America’s most persistent dish, it was an easy and quick solution to feeding a large number of people in a short amount of time. And they even included little hot dogs so you could feel like you were five years old.

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“I repeat, if you are a survivor and in New York City, come to city park. We have a camp near the old lake with food, water, and shelter. It’s not glamorous, but it’s something.”

Oh joy, now the genius gave out our exact location. At least before, we had some protection due to the size of the park. But this? This was a way to get everyone in camp killed… or worse. I’ve said it before and I’ll say it until the last star burns out: Human morality will get us all killed.

And yes, I know I’m contradicting myself. Sometimes you greedy, self-serving, stupid bastards can have a genuine selfless and moral thought. Don’t look for it too often though, you’ll go insane trying to find the good in everyone you meet. Trust me.

Laying back, I gazed up at the hazy sky. This had once been my favorite pastime. I loved losing my problems in the vastness of space and knowing the wolf was looking back. Sadly, that was rarely possible now with all the pollutants in the air. Maybe a few decades without people would be good for the planet. But no, I had to stop them from getting themselves killed. The radio needed to be destroyed, but it needed to be done so that I avoided the blame.

Climbing to my feet, I stumbled toward the operator like a man well into his drink. It was an act, but I was a former United States Senator, and I could lie better than most professionals. Was it dirty? Yes, but it had to be done. I couldn’t have more blood on my hands. Stumbling, I tripped over a rope laying near the operator. To sell the fall, I flailed my arms and grabbed the radio before slamming it into the ground under me. A satisfying crunch filled the air moments before the camp erupted into chaos.

“What the actual fuck!” The operator screamed, holding a bleeding hand to his chest. I wasn’t sure how I cut him, but apparently, I did.

“What happened?” Chuck said, stepping out of the command tent to survey the situation.

“This bastard broke our radio!”

“Do we have another one?”

“Yeah, but that’s not the point! That’s how we reach out!”

Dammit.

There was no reason to think they didn’t have a spare radio on hand. In my haste to stop the suicide call, I hadn’t even considered that my efforts were for nothing.

“I’m sorry. I… I’m not well.” I lamely excused, getting to my feet and retreating as quickly as I could.

Would they kick me out for this? Maybe. Was it worth it? If they survived… Yes.

“What the fuck was that, Vandre?” Chuck shouted, walking over to my tent. “I know you’re not drunk because we don’t have enough booze to get drunk. So, tell me this wasn’t on purpose.”

“It wasn’t on purpose,” I lied.

They say the truth will set you free, but I’ve found that a well-placed lie can set me free a whole lot faster than the truth.

“Bullshit.”

Fuck.

“Look, Chuck, I won’t say it was on purpose. In fact, I’ll continue to say it was an accident. But you have to see how terrible this idea is.”

“What? No, I don’t see how trying to find people that are lost, scared, and alone is a bad thing. Just yesterday, you were all three of those.”

I couldn’t admit that I was only one of those things without giving away more of myself than I was ready to divulge. Perhaps I could spin this so that I looked good.

“I’m not saying that we stop taking people in. What I’m saying is that leading them directly to our camp is stupid. Especially since we know people are out there that would love to wear you like a hat.”

“I don’t understand. Why wouldn’t we want people to find us? Even if these unsavory types are out there, they’re still human. They could easily join our cause… most people just want a home. Don’t you understand that?”

Oh, I understood the desire to have a home. I understood it better than he could ever imagine. In fact, it was a little insulting that he thought I didn’t have that desire deep in my chest. I just wanted my cave back. And my family.

“Civilizations have fallen because of poor security, hell Rome was sacked at least six times. People have died because leaders like you couldn’t understand the need to keep a location secret. You’re lucky I broke that radio. By accident. If I hadn’t, it was only a matter of time before you and everyone else here was dead.” And I, of course, would be in an even worse predicament. But I couldn’t say that… they couldn’t know.

“Agh!” Chuck shouted in frustration, storming back to the command tent. Before he was out of earshot, I heard the man asking the operator to get the radio working again.

They refused to learn… They refused to be helped. Maybe I should just leave? Maybe these people were not worth the help I could give. Maybe… Maybe the earth would be better off without humans.

No. I couldn’t think like that. I promised myself that I would try to reintegrate with society again. It had been too long… Last time I tried to help humanity; I was still President of the United States. And that ended with a bullet in the head… It’s almost funny how often I get shot there.

Laying down on the twisted remains of my tent, I pulled the fabric over my body and tried to sleep. I hadn’t fixed the problem, but perhaps I had bought one more night of life for the people in this camp.