by Sam Crescent
“You’re a fertile?”
Ashley pulled her hand away from the woman, hiding it behind her back. “I said I’ve got to go.”
“Wait. It’s too dangerous for someone like you.”
“Someone like me?”
“I don’t mean it as a negative. I mean that you’re precious. What you can do is precious.”
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She just wanted to run away right now. Ashley wanted to be safe, invisible, not some precious breeding vessel.
“You’re not going to make it,” the woman said. “My name is Luanna. Look, I’m not going to hurt you. You think that’s the first man that’s tried to rape me?”
“I’m sorry about that.”
“No, he’s the first one that hasn’t succeeded. He’s not the first one to actually try and do it.”
She saw Luanna’s pain, and it scared her. Tears pricked at Ashley’s eyes for the injustice of it all.
“I’m trying to get to Draven’s Kingdom.”
“Draven’s Kingdom?” Ashley asked.
“Draven’s this guy. Some people believe he’s ex-military. I don’t know what he is, but I know he’s been able to make something out of this shithole. This world isn’t safe for women, but I’ve heard he takes care of men, women, and children.”
“Children? I thought they all died.”
“Not all of them. Whatever the virus was, it preyed on the weak and vulnerable. Some kids, they’re strong. I don’t know what happened, but I know there are children living. Please, let me try to help you.”
“You want to help me?” Ashley asked.
Luanna grabbed her wrist. “This, it makes you invaluable, but it also means that men will fight for you. They’ll fight to keep you, and some may even use you.”
“What makes you think this Draven will be any different?”
“I don’t know, but I have hope. Don’t you have hope?” Luanna asked. “What have you got to lose?”
Ashley rubbed the back of her head, thinking about the men who’d tried to rape her. There really was nothing to fight for anymore. She had no one. Nothing. The life she once knew was a thing of the past.
“Can you at least tell me your name?” Luanna asked.
“Ashley. My name’s Ashley.” She held her arm close to her chest. “I don’t know what to do.”
“Then let’s go together. I don’t know about you, but I’m out of friends right about now. We can take care of each other. It’s better than going alone.”
“You don’t have one of these bands?”
“No. Only fertile women get those. I was tested and thrown out on the same day. Like trash.”
“I’m so sorry.”
“Don’t be. I imagine it’s not good for you either.” Luanna held her hand out, and they locked their fingers together. They started to walk.
Ashley had learned that trust had to be earned but, right now, she’d never felt so lost. She was going to take a leap of faith and hope Luanna didn’t turn out like all the others.
It was the best thing she could do right now.
****
Draven drove his blade into the rapist that had tried to attack one of the females under his care. What he’d created wasn’t much yet, but he had vowed to protect anyone within his walls.
He’d managed to create a safe haven within an old mansion estate that spread out across numerous acres of land. The entire property was surrounded by twelve-foot brick walls, a security gate, and the house had at least twenty-five bedrooms that he counted.
The moment the virus was released, he’d set out to make himself a safe place. The world quickly deteriorated to survival of the fittest. He planned to come out on top. This property had been ideal to start his safe haven. It was complete with a wine cellar, storage facility, and fields to grow food, not to mention the surrounding land under his guard.
The house was almost full, and some of the game rooms had been converted into bedrooms.
Most of the people who came to the house were alone. He was shocked when he saw his first woman and child.
He’d vowed to protect them, to keep mankind alive in a world full of death and destruction. Draven had come from a military family. As soon as he was of age, he’d joined. Before the world went to shit, he’d been an active Marine, and he’d seen his friends die. His tours had been in some of the worst war-torn countries, but they didn’t compare with life after the virus.
Draven was particular about who he let in his walls. Trust wasn’t something he gave easily. When he agreed to offer a man protection, they had to agree to look out for every person in their community.
He stood at the gate, staring down at the man whom he’d already injured. He was a traveler, just passing through, and Draven had been foolish enough to let him in.
Draven had been awoken in the middle of the night as this man had wandered into a woman’s room and she’d been screaming for help.
His place was supposed to be safe. He’d promised the women they would be taken care of.
This man had nearly made him break his vow, had put his reputation at stake.
Death was the natural order of life. And he wasn’t afraid to get blood on his hands to support his cause.
For a long time, he had fought for freedom and the chance for people to grow up in a safe place. He’d worn his uniform with pride. That had all changed when the first virus was released. He’d seen the land he loved so much torn apart. People changed, turned wicked in their desperation. The love he had, it was gone. He’d become hard, cruel, determined not to be a victim.
The land was a battleground for the strongest.
Those that couldn’t survive would either die or become slaves to the men and women who captured them. But it didn’t take long for him to realize not every human had turned evil. There were still good people out there, and his focus shifted from blind battle mode to the need to preserve the good left in the world.
Slashing the knife across the man’s throat, he watched him bleed out, waiting until the life completely drained from his body.
“Let it be known now, if any of you think to take what is not freely given, you will face the same punishment. Women are not here for your fucking pleasure. They have a right to survive just like everyone else.” He wiped the blade on the man’s shirt and entered the gates.
He waited as the men who had assisted him stood over the man’s body. Draven’s following was loyal, but he’d never put one hundred percent faith in any man. His strength was only relying on himself.
Slowly, one by one, they entered the gates.
“What are you going to do about repopulation?” Luke asked.
Luke once had a wife and child, whom he’d lost on the same day. They all had a story to tell, and one day Draven intended to hear them all.
“You know the drill. No repopulation without women who are fertile,” Draven said.
“But we know some are,” Benjamin said. “That broadcast. It told us what to do if we find a female wearing a distinctive band.”
Draven laughed. “You think they’re going to allow those women out to anyone? They’re going to be for the rich, the wealthy. The men in high places. They’ll probably be auctioned off to the highest bidder.”
“Money doesn’t buy anything.”
“For us right now, it doesn’t. We don’t know what kind of currency there is. Just be happy that right now you’ve got a safe place to sleep, warm food, and someone to keep you company, which is a damn sight more than I can say for a lot of people.”
With that, he entered the mansion. He didn’t stop to make small talk with any of the women who had been vying for his attention. Everyone was looking for power in one form or another.
He wasn’t interested in sex, or in anything but surviving. Death would come for them all. But he didn’t intend to go easily.
He walked up to the loft, pulled down the stairs, and entered the roof through the small door. He made his way toward the edge a
nd looked all around.
There were a few garden pots lying all around, and he imagined they once belonged to a gardener or maybe a wife in the house, or someone who liked roof gardening.
The plants were all dying anyway.
Running a hand down his face, he took several deep breaths and stared up at the night sky. It had been nearly a year since the virus was unleashed.
He sat on the edge of the roof for the longest time, lost in thought, feeling alone even though the house was full. He watched the sun start to rise, sleep once again failing him. He’d not slept a lot in recent weeks. He didn’t like the uneasy feeling that kept him up at night.
Having been on the front lines, he knew that more trouble was coming.
What he wanted to know was how bad and when it was coming. He had to be prepared, to protect what he’d created here.
With the sun finally up, he got to his feet and left the safety of the rooftop, heading back down to the main kitchen.
“It could be worse,” Anna said. She was one of the few women who’d come for sanctuary.
“How could what be worse?” he asked, entering the kitchen.
He saw at least ten people were already down for breakfast. The coffee was on. The one good thing about this place, there seemed to be an endless supply of coffee and food. He wondered if the person who once lived here was a doomsdayer, the kind of person to prepare for a potential apocalypse.
“Our situation. I mean, yeah, it’s bad. Our population has dwindled, and a lot of people have died. There’s no active government or head of state, but I mean, at least the people who are dead are not coming back to eat our brains.”
“She thinks that because there are no zombies around, we’re all good,” Luke said.
“Hey, it’s not funny. I’m being serious,” Anna said.
“So am I. There’s nothing about our situation that’s good.”
“I don’t know, I’m glad we don’t have a couple billion people knocking at the gate wanting to suck our brains out,” Draven said. “That’s a plus.”
He took a sip of his coffee and tried to hide the disgust. Whoever had made it couldn’t make coffee.
“See, I told you.”
“Draven, we’ve got company,” Benjamin said, coming into the kitchen.
Everyone tensed.
“What kind?”
“Two women. They look tired.”
Draven reached for his gun. The men followed him out, and they all approached the gate. He held the gun up. It wouldn’t be the first time a gang had tried to take his land by using a woman as bait. He had no interest in finding out if that was the case now.
“Whoa, whoa,” one of the women said.
The other one remained quiet. Her wide blue eyes stared at the gun in his hand.
“We don’t take in just any strays. You’re alone?” Draven asked.
“I want to make sure this is Draven’s Kingdom.”
“What?” He didn’t have a name for his place, but hearing that, it was weird.
“Ashley and I, we’re looking for Draven.”
He assumed the sexy blonde was Ashley.
“You’re looking at him.”
“Really?”
“Yes. Now, what the fuck do you want?”
“I’m Luanna. This is Ashley. We need a place to stay. We can earn our keep. I promise you. We’ve been traveling all week, and look, she’s a fertile.”
Before Ashley could stop her, Luanna had grabbed her wrist and showed them the status marking.
The men took a step closer, but Draven saw the fear in Ashley’s eyes. She jerked away from her friend, her loose bun coming undone. Damn, she sparked something inside of him.
Luanna had no right exposing her friend, but he also couldn’t allow the two women to leave his premises now.
“Open the gate,” he said, giving the order.
Like always, the gate was only opened a short distance, just in case someone decided to try to sneak in or to ram it open.
He pushed his way through the men and went straight to Ashley, who kept backing up until the closed gate stopped her.
“Please don’t hurt me,” she said.
He reached down, grabbing her wrist and inspecting the band that declared her as fertile.
“Welcome,” he said.
End of sample chapter
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