The Aging: A Novel

by Jack Hunt

  The last place he checked was the attic.

  There was nothing but lots of brown boxes.

  Convinced that it was safe, he made his way down and told Josh to come inside. He went into the kitchen and searched the drawers for candles. He lit a couple and set them on the table. Then he went to the cupboards to check for food.

  They were bare.

  Josh entered the kitchen. “So what’s the plan?”

  “We’ll stay a few hours. I need to find some gas. Get fueled up and we’ll continue.”

  Lily came out of the bathroom. The toilet had rattled the pipes in the house as it flushed. “Are we staying?” she asked.

  “For a little while.” She took a seat at the table and stared at the flame.

  “I’m going to check the barn. You good here?”

  Josh gave a nod as he lifted his gun.

  Ryan went out the back of the house and crossed the large grassy area between the two buildings. All the while he scanned the terrain. It was possible the family had heard them coming up the driveway and had hidden, so he wasn’t taking any chances. He held the gun low as he entered the barn. There were no horses inside. He went from stall to stall, shining the light around.

  That’s when he saw them.

  He stepped back, startled.

  Hanging from the rafters. High above him. Two bodies. Both aged beyond their years. They look mummified. Ryan’s jaw clenched. He was glad he came alone to spare Josh and Lily the horror. He grabbed the rung of the ladder and was about to climb to the upper tier when he heard a scream.

  Ryan bolted out of the doors and hurried over to the house.

  He burst in. “Lily?”

  She was no longer screaming.

  They weren’t in the kitchen. “Josh?”

  “Up here.”

  He bounded up the steps two at a time until he found them in the master bedroom. Josh had his hand over Lily’s eyes. On the far side of the room, there was a dead dog. It had been shot in the head. He hadn’t seen it when he cleared the room as he’d only checked the closet, which was immediately to the right of the door, and seen the bed was made. It was on the far side, hidden in the darkness by a thick blanket.

  “Did you touch it?” Ryan asked.

  No reply.

  “DID YOU TOUCH IT!” he bellowed.

  “No,” Josh said.

  There was blood splatter on the wall behind it.

  Ryan beckoned them outside. He’d hoped to spare her the horror of witnessing that.

  He crouched down in front of Lily. “Hey, butterfly. Don’t be going in there again, okay?”

  She nodded. He led them downstairs.

  “Look, I need to see if I can find some gas.”

  “Should we go with you?” Josh asked.

  “No, you’re probably safer here.”

  “Probably? Were you just in the room with us?”

  “Look, whoever did that is probably long gone. Lock the doors and stay out of sight. I won’t be long. Oh, and don’t go in the barn.”

  “And what if you don’t come back?”

  “Nothing will happen to me.”

  “Yeah, I expect Ella thought the same.”

  “That was different. Look, Josh, you wanted me to trust you. This is me trusting you. Okay?”

  “You know what. Just go. We’ll be fine.” Josh walked into the kitchen and fished out of his bags some snacks they’d collected from the grocery store. Ryan stood in the hallway contemplating staying, but they needed gas. They still had miles to go before reaching Florida and if today was anything like the previous ones, they could find themselves arriving just as the boats were leaving. “I won’t be long. Lock the doors.”

  Ryan exited and collected the ten-gallon canister. First, he checked the tractor that was nearby. It was bone dry. There were no other vehicles on the property. He glanced at the house then took off at a jog, cutting through the tall, green sugarcane field as he headed to the closest neighbor’s home. If he couldn’t find any there, he would head back and wait until morning and see if they could find some vehicles on the way.

  The truck wasn’t entirely empty but it was close.

  In the quiet of the house, Lily chewed on a granola bar, then stuck her hand into a packet of gummies, pulling them out and filling her mouth. Josh had collected a couple of cans of soda pop from their stash and was listening intently to every sound. Outside, there was only the chorus of crickets. “Do you think he’ll leave us?”

  “What makes you say that?”

  “Because mom did.”

  “Bean. Ryan’s not mom. He’s got our backs.”

  “You didn’t think so back at the barn.”

  “That was different.”

  “How so?”

  “Just eat up.” He needed a cigarette, or a beer, something to take his mind off things. He opened the pantry and went inside, shining a small flashlight around. There were some bags of flour, and the rest was pickles. Whoever lived here had gone on a canning spree and had put everything but the kitchen sink in a jar. He unscrewed the top and took a whiff. His eyes widened, and his face twisted. “Shit, that is bad.”

  “Do you think about her?” Lily asked.

  “Who?”

  “Mom.”

  “Of course,” he said, peering out the back window. It was pitch dark outside. If anyone was lurking he wouldn’t have been able to see them. He turned. Shadows danced on Lily’s face from the flicker of the candle’s flame.

  “You don’t talk about her.”

  He set the can down. “You talk too much. Aren’t you tired?”

  “No. Can we go upstairs?”

  “We’re not going back to that room.”

  “No, the other one looked like a girl’s room.”

  “No. We stay here,” he said, feeling agitated.

  Lily lowered her chin and he caught the expression on her face. “All right. Just for a few minutes.” A smile spread and she got up and hurried up the stairs.

  “Bean. Hold up.”

  He blew out the candles and used his flashlight to light the way. Lily had stopped halfway up, waiting for him. As soon as he had made it a few steps up, she raced to the top and ran into a room on the east side of the home. When he entered, he shone the light around. There were posters of TV shows and movies, and guys with their shirts off. There was a stack of records against a vintage record player. Lily made a beeline for some makeup on a table. She opened it and unscrewed some lipstick. He snatched it out of her hand before she could put it on her lips.

  “Hey!” Lily protested.

  “You don’t know where that’s been,” he replied, putting it back.

  “I just wanted to...”

  “Look, don’t touch. That’s the deal.”

  “We can’t get the bug by touching things.”

  “Lily, just listen to me.”

  “You ate from that can. Someone touched that.”

  “Yeah, but they didn’t smear it on their lips.”

  “How do you know?”

  “Bean, you ask a lot of questions. Do I look like I’ve aged?”

  “I don’t know. In this light, you look kind of scary.”

  “I do, do I?” He pulled a face, shining the light up under his chin, and she chuckled.

  As Lily looked through a series of books using a mini light, Josh roamed the room shining the beam over shelves of collectibles. He opened the closet. It was full of clothes on hangers. There was only one palette. Black. He was shining the light up when he caught a glimpse of something moving. That’s when he jumped back. On the top shelf contained within a glass cabinet were two tarantulas. “Who the hell keeps spiders and especially ones that size?”

  Lily whirled around. “What? Let me see.”

  Josh closed the closet. “I think not. You have bad dreams as it is.”

  He took a seat on the bed and scooped up what looked like a diary. He flipped it open and began reading the first few pages. It mostly contained small snippets of
the person’s day. What they did, where they went, how they felt. It was only when he flipped through to about halfway that he began reading accounts related to the outbreak.

  Dad had to bury Keith today. He lit his body on fire. God, I miss him.

  We’re running out of food. I took a trip to the grocery store with dad. People were fighting over the last remaining items on the shelves. It’s getting scary out there.

  The news keeps showing images of people spreading the pathogen. Mom wants to head north to her parents in Canada. Dad won’t go. He thinks it’s safer here.

  Dad got sick today. He sleeps in the barn now. Mom won’t stop crying.

  I had to go into town by myself. I barely escaped. I had to leave the truck behind.

  Every day is harder than the previous one. What happens if the power goes out? I’m losing hope.

  Mom is sick now. She won’t say how it happened but I think she touched him. They’re aging fast and at this rate will be dead before the week is over.

  I can’t handle listening to them groaning in pain. It’s unbearable.

  What will I do when they are gone? Where will I go?

  They hung themselves today. THEY HUNG THEMSELVES!!!!!!

  I cried all day today. I haven’t gotten out of bed. I just want to die.

  There’s so much I haven’t gotten to do with my life yet.

  Why is this happening? If it wasn’t for Jasper I don’t think I could get through each day.

  I hate him. I hate him so much. I wish he was dead.

  Three times I put the gun to my head today, considering pulling the trigger. I can’t do it. I’m such a chicken shit.

  Josh was about to turn the page when he heard a noise downstairs.

  A clunk. The door groaned open.

  Chapter Twenty

  He’d locked it. His father didn’t have the key, he did.

  Lily was humming while reading a book when Josh closed the diary and put it back where it was. He clasped a firm hand over her mouth. She dropped the book on the bed. He spoke quietly in her ear.

  “Don’t make a sound. Someone’s in the house.”

  Lily tensed.

  He released her and without making a sound crossed the room to close the door. Before he did, Josh paused and peered into the darkness. He could hear movement. One person. They weren’t trying to stay silent. Every footstep was heavy. Did the person even know they were here? The stranger strolled into the living room and stopped. Were they listening?

  He heard something get picked up and placed back down.

  What were they doing? Who was it? They headed into the kitchen.

  “What do we have here?” a deep booming male voice said. “Oh, Ren, I thought you were smarter than this.” Josh’s brow furrowed. “Leaving your gun behind?”

  The gun. He reached around to the small of his back.

  No. No. NO.

  It was gone. Shit. He must have set it down on the kitchen counter when he was pulling items out of the pantry. Josh squinted as he shut the door, trying to stay quiet. He brought a finger up to his lips as he made his way over to the window. He was about to shimmy it up when he saw movement outside. Under the canopy of the blackest night, he couldn’t see the face but the person stopped and looked up at the window. Quickly, he stepped back, hoping not to be seen, but his hip nudged a low shelf and a snow globe toppled off. Time seemed to slow. Almost bending backward in a Matrix-style pose, he caught the globe before it hit the hardwood.

  His heart raced as he registered Lily’s reaction. Her mouth was wide, her hands cupping the lower half of her face. Josh set it back down.

  “C’mon Ren! Are we going to keep doing this? Look, I know you’re mad about Jasper. Maybe I took things a little too far but you wouldn’t listen. What I suggested is only fair. You know, being siblings and all.”

  More silence.

  Plates shattered, a glass hit a wall and what sounded like the kitchen armoire being overturned put both of them on high alert. “Ren, you are pissing me off!”

  Josh didn’t dare look out the window again, out of fear of being spotted. Or had he already been?

  Think. Think!

  If the person was infected, he couldn’t get near them to fight.

  One touch, that’s all it took and he’d have a different battle.

  His eyes scanned the room for anything that could be used as a weapon — something long, firm, and liable to cause massive damage — a baseball bat, an award trophy, or… He snatched up a tall floor lamp. He took the end off, unplugged it from the wall, and wrapped the wire around the pole. It was solid metal. A good six feet long. It wasn’t ideal but it might keep whoever was out there at a distance at least until Lily could climb out the window.

  Out the corner of his eye, he caught a dark mass move past the pane of glass. He glanced at it but there was nothing there. Was his mind playing tricks on him? Was fear getting the best of him? The stranger continued to bellow. “You and I both know how this ends. Now be a good sister and come on out. I’m getting a little tired of your games.”

  Josh inched over to the window. Part of the lower half of the roof jutted out. At least Lily stood a chance. He could hold off the stranger if it came to it. He stared into the ink of night. No one was out there. Whoever was on the ground was gone.

  He scanned the sugarcane field.

  What the hell was taking Ryan so long? This was just like him, leaving them in their hour of need.

  Josh heard footsteps coming up the stairs.

  He couldn’t wait any longer.

  He set the lamp down and rushed to the window and was just about to lift it when on the other side a girl shuffled into view.

  Their eyes locked.

  Behind him, outside the room almost at the top of the landing, the stranger cried out.

  “I can hear you, Ren!”

  What was probably less than a second, felt like minutes.

  In an instant, he locked the window.

  The girl slapped a hand against it, shaking her head.

  Josh stepped back and snagged up the tall floor lamp not taking his eyes off the girl. “Lily. When I say open the door. Open it and run over to the master bedroom. You hear me?”

  She nodded and didn’t hesitate.

  Even at her young age, she knew the inherent danger.

  Josh adjusted his grip on the lamp, wielding it like a jousting spear.

  Lily stood behind the door, gripping the handle and waiting for the word.

  The stranger on the other side got closer. “I knew you’d eventually come back. I knew you’d come to your senses.” A steady knuckle rap on the door. Josh gave a nod and Lily pulled back the door. Josh was already in mid-sprint. Had she not opened fast enough, he would have driven that lamp through the door. He burst out, driving the tip into the stranger sending them reeling back.

  “Lily. Go!” he yelled.

  It was too dark to make out who it was but they were an adult, that’s for sure.

  Caught off guard, dealing with the pain of having a lamp jammed in their gut, they didn’t stand a chance. Josh drove the individual back to the top of the stairs only a few feet away. They struggled to clasp the banister before they toppled backward down the stairs.

  Behind him Lily shot by, entering the main bedroom.

  Josh followed, closing the door and hurrying over to the window. He set the lamp down and tried to open it but it was locked. He fumbled with the latch but it didn’t matter what he set it to, it wouldn’t budge.

  That’s when he noticed nails.

  Someone had hammered nails into the outside frame. Even if it was unlocked he wouldn’t have been able to open it. Had the other window been the same?

  Outside the room, he heard groaning.

  “You didn’t tell me we had guests, Ren! I would have baked a cake, put on a clean shirt, brought a welcome gift.”

  Lily was staring at the dead dog.

  Doing the only thing he could, Josh took the lamp and smashed the wi
ndowpane. Shards of glass exploded outward, rolling across the lower roof like tiny pebbles. All the while he heard the stranger struggling to climb up the stairs.

  “All right, Lily, out you go.”

  “But that girl...”

  Josh stuck his head out. There was no one there.

  “I want you out the window. Now!”

  “What about you?”

  “I’ll be right behind you.”

  As he helped her out of the window, she caught her skin on some glass, cutting her hand.

  “Are you okay?”

  She grimaced, clutching her hand. Josh was just about to follow her when the door burst open. The stranger filled the opening like a dark, looming demon of darkness. “Going somewhere?” Josh had no choice but to snatch up the floor lamp. He wouldn’t have made it out in time. He jabbed it at the guy as he entered the room, slamming the door behind him.

  “Stay back,” Josh said.

  “Oh, I can’t do that.”

  The stranger darted left trying to get around the tip, but Josh was quick and flipped the end piece around like a dragon’s tail, whipping him across the top of the head and knocking him onto the bed. “Stay back or I’ll kill you.”

  The stranger brought a hand up to his face. “So will I.”

  As quick as a flash, the stranger bounced up, this time trying to go under and tackle Josh’s waist. It failed. Josh sidestepped and kicked him in the face.

  Circling him, Josh now had his back pressed to the door, he went for the handle, planning to go out that way, but the stranger had another idea.

  Desperation drove him up and forward.

  Josh lunged again, this time driving the stranger back toward the window. The upper half of his body bent out of the opening, leaving only the lower half inside. That’s when he got a better look at him.