Love and Decay, Vol. Four

by Rachel Higginson

  I would be divorced before I ever lost my virginity.

  Then I would obviously throw myself into a horde of Zombies because there would be no point in living after that.

  “Where you going?” Tomás shouted at us as we dodged his men’s bullets and raced for the door.

  “You’re at war!” I told him. “The Rat King is coming for you!”

  His sweaty face broke into a wide grin. “The Rat King? Let him come!”

  “We’re leaving!”

  “No!” Tomás disagreed. “We need you!” he waved his hand at the advancing horde.

  “No,” I mimicked him. “I have to get my sick friend to safety! If we wait, we’ll get trapped in this fight and he will die.”

  Tomás bounced his head back and forth from shoulder to shoulder, thinking my argument through. “Where can you possibly take him? There is nowhere to go south of here.”

  “There’s one place,” I answered. “But if we don’t leave now, we’ll never make it in time!”

  “I should make you stay!” His face had taken on a stubborn quality that I recognized. Maybe from Diego. Maybe from myself.

  “He was bitten!” I confessed. I hadn’t been willing to tell Tomás before because I was afraid he would shoot Vaughan or kick us out. Now I needed him to kick us out, so it was time to play the wild card.

  “Bitten?” Tomás pretended not to understand.

  “By a Zombie!” I pointed towards the horde. “He didn’t change into one, but he’s still really sick!’

  “Impossible.” Tomás took a step back and looked at me like I was the devil.

  I nodded. “It’s true. He was bitten, but so far he’s survived. We have to get him help or he’s going to die.”

  “Did you bring that vile sickness into my home? Into my people?” he demanded.

  “No!” I was adamant with my response. He needed to know we would never put him at that much risk. “No, it’s not contagious unless he turns into the Dead!” I used the Spanish word for Feeders so that he would understand. “And then he has to bite you. And he hasn’t bitten anyone! He’s just sick! He’s immune to the Zombie part!”

  Tomás stared at me with a baffled look widening his eyes. I wasn’t sure he understood all of my rushed speech, but I didn’t have time for him to sort it out.

  “We have to go!” I yelled at him. “You have to fight! Thank you for your hospitality!”

  His big eyes narrowed into slits. “I can see why you got along so well with my cousin. He too is a sneak.”

  I couldn’t help but smile. “We’ll repay you one day, Tomás. I promise.” That was a lie. I had no intention of ever seeing Tomás again.

  Honestly, I wasn’t sure if he would live through the day.

  “Go, then!” he ordered. “Take your people and go. We must fight the Rat King.” His face broke into a smile and humor danced in his eyes. He didn’t take the Rat King seriously.

  Honestly, I didn’t blame him. The name was ridiculous.

  But he wasn’t a slight threat either. “We’ll leave some weapons.” I surprised myself with the offer.

  “Send more of my men out with you. We will cover you until you can escape.”

  Tomás really was one of the good guys. I truly hoped he survived today and that his people could have the chance to rebuild. Humanity needed more leaders like him. We needed more communities that trusted each other and treated each other with dignity and respect.

  Haley pulled on my arm and we tumbled inside the darkened sanctuary. I breathed in the stale air and the heady scent of candles and incense. My head swam with the difference. The cloying, too-sweet smell filled my nostrils and clogged my throat, but I would take it time and time again over the rotten smell of dead bodies and putrid Zombies.

  We ran to our designated area. Haley wheezed by the time we got there. “I’m so out of shape,” she huffed. “That baby destroyed my body!”

  Hendrix was watching when we approached. He immediately jumped to his feet. I saw relief flash in his eyes for a brief moment before he demanded, “Where are my brothers?”

  “With the car,” I gasped.

  “The car?” Nelson was at Hendrix’s side with a fussing baby in his hands.

  “We have to go,” I continued to explain with short breaths. “The Rat King showed up to fight Tomás. There’s going to be a war. We need to get Vaughan out of here before we’re caught in it.”

  “Where will we go, Reagan?” Tyler demanded. Her voice sounded furious and threatening, but I recognized the fear underneath. She was worried about Vaughan.

  We all were.

  “Colombia,” I told them. “Original plan. They might have something to help Vaughan.” If he made it that long.

  No. Don’t think like that.

  Sickness swam in my stomach and I felt the urgent need to throw up. I closed my eyes and held it together.

  “We have to go,” I ordered. “For no other reason than Harrison and King are waiting for us and there are Feeders in every direction.”

  “You think we can get out of the city?” Nelson demanded.

  Since when had they started to look to me for answers? Damn it, Vaughan. This was all your fault.

  “We have no other choice. Tomás is letting us go, but if this heats up, he’s not going to want to.”

  Hendrix nodded and his old-self snapped into place. “Let’s go,” he ordered. “Grab your things. We’re leaving now.”

  I lunged for my backpack and when I stood up I was face to face with Miguel. Adela had her hand on his shoulder and a sad expression on her face.

  “He’s staying,” she translated quietly. “He wants to fight the Rat King.”

  I nodded. I had known that. But I was still worried about the young kid. “Be careful,” I told him. “Stay alive.”

  His permanent frown turned up at the corners. He spoke with his lilting language and held my eyes even though Adela was the one speaking for him.

  “He plans to,” Adela said, also smiling. “He wants to say thank you. He knows you kept him alive. He knows you saved his life. He is in your gratitude.”

  I shook my head. “We fight for each other,” I told him. “We are humans and we must stick together or the Zombies will kill us all.” I waited for Adela to translate and added, “And if the Dead kill us, you won’t get your revenge.”

  His small smile broke into a huge grin. He liked that idea. His hand landed on my shoulder and with a levity that surpassed his age, he said, “Hasta luego.”

  That was one I could translate all on my own, “Hasta luego, Miguel.”

  I turned around and didn’t have a chance to look back at him. Hendrix swept me away with the rest of our group as we sprinted for the exit.

  I had just enough time to take in one more lasting memory of this incredible cathedral. Gold statues and intricate detail told the story of a more civilized time, a time when humanity flourished and culture was important. I tried to soak in every ornate mural and elegant piece of furniture. I didn’t know when I would see beauty like this again.

  I didn’t know if I would ever see beauty like this again.

  I blinked when someone pushed the door to the outside open and stepped into the stormy afternoon.

  We were on the run again. Only this time I hoped it was to our final destination.

  Chapter Three

  We had plenty of cover as we ran to the moving truck. Harrison hung out the driver’s side window and King leaned out the passenger’s side, making sure we could get to the truck without being eaten.

  Nelson had passed the baby to Haley and together with Hendrix carried Vaughan. Tyler ran alongside them squawking orders to be careful. She held Page’s hand, dragging the little girl alongside her frantic pace.

  The whole scene reminded me of something out of MASH when I used to watch it on late night TV with my dad.

  Like a Mexican/Zombie/No-helicopter version of MASH.

  Tomás’s men followed us to the sidewalk and helped cover us
while we jumped in. Hendrix disappeared with Vaughan to the back of the truck. Tyler, Page and Adela pulled out useless furniture until Hendrix and Nelson could set Vaughan down on a couch and help the girls throw out the rest to make room for everyone. Miller stood by my side and together we created cover.

  The Rat King and his army of teenage soldiers had moved closer while we were inside. They stood across the street with their weapons raised but not shooting. The Zombies moved around them, not interested in them at all.

  We had seen that behavior in the northern territories. It was the same way Diego and his enemies had managed their Zombie armies.

  It seemed like as long as the Feeders were promised food, they could be ordered around. That would put those of us with consciences at a serious disadvantage in the future. I momentarily wondered what Tomás would do in this situation.

  Would he hold his ground and stay away from the Zombie-slaving? Or would he succumb to the ease of having a deadly army at his fingertips?

  I looked back at the church just in time to see Miguel punch through the doors. He held his automatic rifle high in the air and screamed something in Spanish at his former leader across the street.

  The Rat King responded by laughing loudly, which only prompted more yelling from Miguel.

  I nudged Adela when she rushed by me. “Tell him to be smart! Tell him to stay alive!”

  She gave me the oddest look, like I was crazy for wanting to protect Miguel. But acting like an idiot was only going to get him killed. I didn’t want that. He was a sweet kid.

  Or as sweet as you could be with circumstances like these.

  “Please,” I begged her.

  She faced Miguel and shouted in Spanish what I hoped was a direct translation.

  His furious gaze flickered to us for a second before he returned to fighting this war. He didn’t acknowledge me in any way, but I noticed he stopped yelling.

  “Up front with me,” Hendrix commanded after he’d closed the back. He took my elbow and helped me hurry to the passenger’s side.

  Adela had gotten stuck outside with me while I made her translate so she was forced to squeeze in with Harrison and King. Hendrix demanded that he drive, so the four of us squished together on the long bench seat.

  It was not comfortable.

  Eventually Harrison moved so that he hung out the window again. We needed the gunfire to hold off the Rat King’ army so we could weave through the stopped traffic. Tomás continued to provide cover too. If he hadn’t ordered his men to help us, we wouldn’t have made it.

  I could count on one hand the number of times it had worked in my favor to have met someone new during the end of the world.

  The Parkers.

  Tyler and Miller and eventually Kane.

  Gage.

  Joy and Andy.

  And now Tomás.

  I watched the side of the street with the Rat King. When he motioned toward his men, they started running after us. More Zombies moved around them, intent on getting to Tomás and his men.

  “We need to go!” I told Hendrix. “Now!”

  He slammed into a parked car, reversed, righted his angle and squeezed through the tight space. Metal scraped on either side of the moving truck. My chest tightened and my stomach clenched against the piercing sound.

  Finally, he bullied his way through and had a clear stretch of ground. He shoved the long stick shift jutting up from the floor and picked up some speed.

  It wasn’t enough.

  Bullets pinged all around us and the side mirror on Hendrix’s side exploded with shattered glass and cracking plastic.

  Adela let out a surprised scream and King wrapped his arms around her. The gesture looked comforting, but I was pretty sure King’s main concern was shutting her up.

  “Damn it,” Hendrix growled when more cars blocked our path.

  The Rat King’s men continued to pursue us, only delayed by Harrison’s gunfire. When he ran out of ammo, King passed his gun off and Harrison kept shooting.

  Hendrix jerked the car to the right suddenly and jumped over a curb. Harrison let out an explicit curse word and just managed to catch himself from launching out of the window.

  “You okay?” Hendrix shouted over the roar of the engine and the men chasing us.

  “Golden!” Harrison yelled back. He twisted around so that he stood up, his legs braced in the window frame to keep from falling. His gunfire boomed over our head as he shot back at the men that could no longer keep up.

  Hendrix barreled the huge truck over the plaza and then onto whatever clean sidewalks he could find until the gunfire was a faraway crackle and Feeders no longer filled every open space.

  Harrison slid back down and sat on the open window, since there wasn’t any other room. His hands braced on the roof overhead and he ducked his head in to finally suck in a calming breath.

  “I thought you said it was just a little thing,” Hendrix accused dryly.

  I kept my gaze forward when I said, “That wasn’t little to you? That felt amateur compared to our most recent battles.”

  Hendrix was not amused with my sarcasm. Although he didn’t say anything else.

  “Has Vaughan improved any?” I asked after ten minutes of open road.

  Hendrix didn’t answer. I knew what that meant.

  “How will we know where to go?” King asked after another twenty minutes of battling the congested but quiet streets of Mexico City.

  Hendrix patted the dash where a small orange S lit up beautifully. “I’m going to keep driving south until we get there. That’s the only plan I have right now.” The engine shook and sputtered, jolting us from side to side. “Shit,” Hendrix grumbled. “This gas is old. We have almost a full tank, but it’s not going to last us long.”

  He was right.

  Two hours later the engine started vibrating so roughly that he was forced to slow down and finally stop.

  Hendrix slammed his hands on the steering wheel and I felt every ounce of his frustration. We weren’t even out of the city yet.

  It was slow going with cars blocking most of the streets and debris and dead bodies in our way.

  The only good thing about our escape was that we hadn’t seen another living person since we left the Cathedral.

  We knew they were here. We could see signs of life in boarded up buildings and the occasional shadow as someone fled down an alley. But nobody in the southern part of the city seemed interested in us enough to stop us.

  Whatever war had ravaged this place had made the city’s inhabitants terrified of other humans.

  At least we had something in common.

  “There’re more cars over there,” I suggested, pointing to the side of the street where several had been involved in an accident. The ones toward the front of the line were in pretty bad condition, but there was a conversion van at the back that just had a bashed in front end.

  “The couch in the back was nice for Vaughan,” Hendrix lamented.

  “We’ll stretch him out on the floor of that van,” I said. “He’ll be all right.”

  We took our time scoping out the situation. Hendrix and Harrison checked out the van, while King and I gave them cover. The streets were eerily silent. Even while I hoped they would stay that way, I didn’t trust them to. It was just a matter of time before someone came after us.

  It could be old enemies or new. Living or dead. It could be just about anything, but I knew they would come if we didn’t hurry.

  It took twenty minutes for Hendrix to get the van started. The keys had been left in the ignition, like so many other vehicles abandoned in the middle of the road. But the engine had been sitting too long for it to want to start.

  Hendrix and Harrison worked under the hood, syphoned gas from other cars and finally coaxed the stubborn machine to life.

  Hendrix looked up at me with the most relieved smile on his face. I felt hot tears sting my eyes as I realized we might be able to escape this place after all.

  It had felt im
possible before this moment.

  Adela and I moved to the back of the truck, where we opened the doors and helped our friends get out. Haley sat in the back corner, nursing Lennon underneath her shirt. Nelson had his arm around her and a grim expression on his face. Page and Miller sat huddled together in the other corner and Tyler sat on a dusty, but soft looking couch with Vaughan’s head in her lap.

  “We have to change vehicles,” I told them. Even though the sky was continuing to darken, they blinked at me, their tired eyes adjusting to the light. “Hendrix got a van started. They’re waiting for us.”

  They silently gathered what little belongings we’d managed to bring with us and stepped on to the street. We moved quickly across the road and piled in the old van. It smelled like must and rust, but it would carry us for a while, so I couldn’t complain.

  I climbed into the passenger’s seat next to Hendrix and put my hand on his shoulder. “Good job.”

  “Didn’t have a choice,” he answered shortly.

  I felt the tension stretch and pull between us. I didn’t doubt we would struggle through this day, but the extra pressure and unknowns of where we would end up, how we would find food and more weapons, weighed on us with depressing strength.

  I couldn’t do this much longer. It was too much for us to bear.

  We had nothing. How would Haley continue to feed Lennon if she couldn’t feed herself? How would Vaughan get better if we couldn’t find a safe place to stay and medicine to help him through this?

  Was there even a medicine that could help him survive?

  But we had been here before.

  There was hope. There had to be.

  We had lived without food and water. We had lived through a Feeder bite before. We had lived without anything.

  At least we had a van that could hold us, even if it was barely. At least we were all still alive and breathing, even if it was barely.

  We fought and ended Matthias; we survived the Mexican territories and Mexico City. We could make it to Colombia. All of us.

  We could stick together and we could survive.

  The heart of the city slowly gave way to buildings that were spaced farther apart. The road smoothed out and less dead traffic bogged our path.