Apocalyptic Beginnings Box Set

by M. D. Massey

  “There are two people across the way. I can’t make out any features. One may even be trying to attack the other. I can’t even be sure they are normal. There are bloody handprints all over the window. Please! Please, I need help!”

  “Sir, you need to try and stay calm.”

  “Calm? Calm? Are you serious? Have you any clue what I am facing here?”

  “Yes, I do. But it’s best for all of us that you stay calm.” I looked at Claire. Did he mean what I thought he meant? “Tell me where you see the people.”

  “Um, they are across the way. Next to Heritage, behind the lot gates.”

  “One more question. Are you bit?”

  “Bit?”

  “Yes! Bit! Did an undead bite you?”

  “Undead?”

  “Yes! The people eating people.”

  “No! Please hurry.”

  “I’m not that far from you. I’ll be driving a black Tahoe. Whatever you do, do not leave the shop. I’ll come in to get you.”

  “Okay, I will wait here. Please hurry!”

  Henry ended the call, then turned to me. “Elaina. I need you to wait—”

  “The hell I am! I’m going with you.”

  “No. Absolutely not!”

  “Henry, it could be someone from my family!” I practically stomped my foot like a child.

  “No. I will not let you go.”

  Really? “Try to fucking stop me. Let’s go, Claire.”

  I turned toward the door, picking up the double-sided axe, as Claire turned the knob. Henry reached out and slammed the door shut. “Don’t be a prat!” I think I saw a vein pulsing in his forehead.

  “A prat? What the fuck is a prat?”

  “A fool. An ass…” He pushed his hand through his hair, then put both hands on his hips, staring me down.

  “Wow. Look who is the prat. Liar.” I wanted to add “liar, pants on fire”, but I decided it may piss him off even more.

  “Bloody hell.” Henry rolled his eyes. “Elaina, it’s far too dangerous for you two. You don’t know how to take care of the undeads.”

  At that moment, a whole new Claire showed up. “Listen up, asshole!” We both whipped around and saw her pointing Henry’s shotgun directly at him. “My Marc was there. Elaina’s family could still be alive. We are going with you, and you are going to like it. We clear?” Henry swallowed hard. We stood in silence for a few moments.

  Henry barked out a few obscenities. “Fine. But before we go, let’s see if I can get you two into different clothes.” Henry looked us up and down, then focused on my bare feet. “And both of you need shoes.” He stopped talking. I looked over at Claire, smirking.

  I was proud, like a momma bird watching her fledgling fly for the very first time. I mouthed, Thank you to her and she nodded. Her eyes looked dark and sad, but I could tell she felt empowered.

  Henry walked back toward his room. “Come on, the both of you.”

  Claire put the shotgun down and we followed behind. He went through his drawers, pulling out t-shirts and workout pants. “Here. They’ll be a little big, but they will be better than those dresses.” Then he headed to his closet and found a couple pairs of boots. “These, too.” I grabbed one pair of boots and Claire, deciding she probably should change out of her heels, grabbed the other.

  Then he headed back to the living room. As we changed, I could hear him going through his cache of weapons in the trunk.

  Chapter 2

  Guns ready, we crept down the back stairs to the garage. We all had backpacks full of weapons. I wasn’t a fan of guns. I had never even picked one up until that day.

  Henry gave us both a quick lesson before we left his apartment. It consisted of here are the bullets, here is where you put the bullets, this is the trigger, point and shoot. Henry was like a regular Boy Scout. He liked to be prepared.

  We didn’t see anyone: true dead, undead, or human. I couldn’t help but wonder where everyone was on a beautiful fall Saturday afternoon. The quiet felt a bit eerie, my hair standing on end.

  Henry stopped in front of the door leading to the garage. Without turning around, he said, just shy of a whisper, “I’m going to cover you. Here are my truck keys. I need you to run to it and drive over to me. I’m going to pick off any I see.”

  My stomach roiled. “Okay. But who’s going to cover you?”

  Henry turned and grabbed my chin. “Don’t worry about me, love. I’ve got this. Trust me. I know what I’m doing.” He kissed me on the forehead, dropping the keys in my hand. Both Claire and I took a deep breath, looked at each other, and ran like we had never run before. Henry’s boots were clunky and too big for my feet, and the workout pants slipped, heading south. Thank fuck the truck wasn’t that far from the door.

  Mid-stride, I hit the unlock button on the fob. We looked back for a brief moment when we heard several rounds go off.

  I jumped in the driver’s seat, Claire getting in behind me, catching my bag when I tossed it to her. Locking the doors, I turned the key, the engine roaring to life. I wasn’t used to a vehicle of that size.

  I had a compact, craptastic car. Henry kept insisting I pick out a new one, but I didn’t want to accept that from him. He said one day, he was just going to pull up in one and drop the keys in my purse, steal the other car, and set it ablaze in an empty parking lot. I never thought he would actually do something like that…but I wasn’t so sure anymore.

  He even had the audacity once to take me out on a date to a car dealership. Days prior, he and the salesman spoke about what he thought I would like and would accept. As soon as I realized what was going on, I refused to even look at the cars he had lined up, ready for me to take a test drive.

  Henry apologized profusely to the salesman before we left the dealership without a new car. On the way to dinner, he ranted at me in his own soft manner.

  Startled by emergency tones coming out of the radio, I listened to a recording telling everyone to stay inside their homes until further notice. Being the rebel that I am, I ignored the directions and shut off the radio.

  A few more shots rang out. I looked in the mirror back at Claire. “Ready?”

  “Ready.”

  I threw the truck into drive and hit the gas, the tires spinning. I sped over to the door where Henry waited, whipping the truck around and slamming on the brakes. Henry hustled over to the driver’s side, moving like he was in combat. I was still confused as to how he was able to hide all this from me.

  “Move over.” He waved at me to move to the passenger side. Oh, there it was again. That bossy attitude that I adored, but would never admit. Was he ever going to learn that I didn’t take directions very well no matter the situation?

  I put on my best angelic face. “I can drive.”

  He raised his left eyebrow. “I see that, but…just…move over, would you?”

  “Fine.” I climbed over the console to the passenger seat as Henry jumped in, tossing his bag to me. I tossed it back to Claire.

  “Buckle up, ladies. We’re going for a wild ride. Elaina, I want you to have your gun ready.”

  “Just remember, I’ve never shot a gun before.”

  “Now is a perfect time to learn. Just don’t shoot me accidentally on purpose.” When he winked at me, I couldn’t help but throw a soft smile back at him. I have to admit that his real voice was a bit sexy. I just wished I knew the real Henry—or was it Liam?

  “Hey!” Henry and I jumped. “Look!” Claire frantically pointed in front of us. There was an undead man staggering around like he was looking for his car, but he was probably in search of a meal. He must have been rather new because his suit wasn’t too messy…besides the giant hole in his neck and the bloodstain down the front. I shuddered.

  “Oh, bloody hell. Claire, hand me that shotgun.” Henry rolled down his window, put the truck in drive, and gunned it toward the undead man.

  My heart tried to escape through my chest. I could hear Claire’s quick breathing. Henry slammed on the brakes and threw
it in park. Nothing like a little whiplash to make the day even better. I grumbled and rubbed my neck.

  “Keep your windows up. I’ve got this. Hey!” Henry yelled out the window. The undead man looked toward us, snarled, and stumbled in our direction. Henry jumped out.

  I panicked and belted out a scream. “Henry! Get back in!”

  Without turning around, he yelled, “Shut it, Elaina! I’ve got this!”

  “Henry! Henry, please!”

  He pumped the shotgun and, without aiming, shot the undead man. He jumped back in, buckled up, and jammed the shifter into drive. He floored it and ran over the newly true dead man. Claire and I screamed.

  “What the hell did you do that for?” I asked, shocked.

  “Insurance policy. Let’s get the fuck out of here before we attract any more attention.”

  As we headed out of the garage, I was a bit baffled by his nonchalance.

  “Henry.” I became more nervous. I wanted to ask more probing questions, but he was focused on the road.

  “Yes, my love?” His voice was calm and soothing, like it used to be, but with his British accent.

  “I need more info. I’ve shared my life, my love, my bed with you. I nearly married you today, but now I feel like I know nothing about you. When were you going to tell me about all of this shit?”

  “I hadn’t found the right time yet.” He sounded regretful and sad, but that statement made me angry. Big shocker right there.

  “Wow. Okay. So, before we went out on our first date wasn’t the right time? You could have told me everything, allowing me to decide if I wanted to have a relationship.”

  “I couldn’t tell you! And once I got involved with you, I couldn’t lose you. You know I’ve loved you from the moment I locked eyes with you.”

  For real? That was all he could come up with? “Lose me? How is that your decision? And how selfish are you to bring me into this blindly!” Rage burned through my body. I thought about the probability that my entire family had been eaten. “Damn you, Liam!” I slammed my fist on the dash.

  “Don’t call me Liam! I’m Henry! Henry, damn it! In case you’ve forgotten, this is not my fucking fault! I didn’t make this. I’m just here to fight it, trying to protect you!” he shouted, full of rage, punching the dash. I was startled. He was used to my outbursts, but he had never reacted to me like that before.

  “Why? Tell me why I can’t call you Liam?”

  “Never mind,” he muttered, focusing back on the road.

  “I want to know! I deserve to know!”

  “You do, but now is not the time, Elaina.” He grumbled something, then slammed on the brakes. He cursed to himself and looked at me. “I need to talk to you about a few more things before we go back to the church.”

  “Great. Are your mummy and daddy from Neptune?” There. I mocked him in his own accent, but it didn’t make me feel any better. It made me feel like I was two.

  He growled. “This is hard for me, too. I wanted to tell you so many bloody times who and what I am, but I couldn’t! I wanted to be completely honest, but I didn’t have that luxury. You have given me everything. I have given you nothing but doubt and anger.” He was upset with himself, his eyes filling with tears.

  “You got that right, asshole.” I was pissed. Pissed at everything. Fuck it all.

  “Both of you need to stop this! I want to get to the church!”

  “Right.” Henry put the truck in park.

  “Umm, putting the truck into park is not going to get us to the church.”

  “I realize that. Listen, after the church, we need to get back to our place.”

  “No! We need to go check out my place and my family’s home!”

  “Elaina, please, let me explain.” Henry reached for my hand, but I crossed my arms in front of my chest. “Elaina,” he whispered. “We need to go back to the flat. There’s another agent coming, and she will be here later tonight.”

  “She?”

  “Yes. Her name is Sophie. She trained with me.” I couldn’t help but laugh. “What’s so comical?”

  “A girl trained with you to fight this? She must be more truck driver than I am! Can’t wait to see this chick. Does she rock a mullet?”

  Claire’s impatience was very evident from the sounds she was making in the back.

  Pursing his lips, Henry shook his head. “No.” He seemed angry with my reference. “Anyway, she’s on her way and we are going to devise a plan for this area. We have other plans in place, but dealing with this area is a priority at the moment.”

  “Devise a plan? What kind of plan?”

  “I’m not exactly sure yet. That’s why Sophie’s coming.”

  I looked at Claire, laughing. “Perfect. The secret agent here doesn’t know what to do.”

  “Whatever, Elaina! I don’t have time to argue with you about all this. Can you please ditch the sarcastic attitude for once and just go with the flow?”

  I admit that I did feel bad. Kind of. Just a teensy bit.

  “Yes. I guess.” I rolled my eyes.

  “Thank you!”

  He slammed the Tahoe into drive and practically stood on the gas pedal. We rounded the corner, seeing evidence everywhere that the undeads had been around. Crashed cars, pools of sticky blood in the street, body parts strewn about, and let’s not forget the obvious…the roaming undeads.

  I was in shock about how rapid the virus spread. Henry looked back at Claire, then over at me. “Listen. I know this is hard to see and understand, but you just have to trust me. I am not going to let anything happen to either one of you. I promise. Remember, I still love you, Elaina, no matter what you think. And Claire, you’re like a sister to me. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do to protect both of you.” Claire nodded, her eyes welling with tears.

  I stared at all the carnage, fearing for my family and friends. I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

  Henry weaved around crashed cars and the undeads roaming around, looking for a mid-day snack. We saw more and more abandoned cars just sitting in the middle of the street.

  More bodies.

  More blood.

  More gore.

  The closer we got to the church, the more death and despair we saw. My stomach churned. “I don’t feel well.” My face heated, sweat beading on my forehead. Henry looked over at me when I slapped my hands over my mouth, trying to suppress the need to vomit.

  “Do you need me to pull over?” I nodded, trying not to puke all over the interior of the truck. “Let me find a safer spot, then I’ll jump out to cover you.”

  I tried to hold the lurching demon in. It fought me every step of the way, working to escape. When he finally pulled over and jumped out, I whipped opened my door and dropped to the ground. In seconds, Henry stood over me, his gun ready.

  It felt like every ounce of food I had from the past week tried to come out. I didn’t think I would ever stop. Thankfully, it finally did. I sat there on my knees, sweating and shaking.

  “You all right, love?” Henry stroked my hair. I nodded, then wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. As tough as I tried to be, all the blood and guts really got to me.

  Henry grabbed my arm and helped me back into the truck. Luckily, we weren’t noticed by any of the undeads. They were too busy snacking to realize there was fresh meat in the area.

  “Claire, reach in back there and grab a bottle of water out of that bin, please.”

  Claire dug through the bin, pulling out a couple bottles water. “What is all that in there?” She handed me the water. I rinsed my mouth out, then took a long sip.

  “Proper supplies we may need. I always keep it in here because you never know what’s going to happen. I’ve got medical supplies, like needles, vials, antibiotics, bandages; food and drinks; extra clothes; weapons; and a variety of other survival items.”

  Feeling a little better, I looked at him. “Are you going all doomsday on us?” Henry rolled his eyes as he shifted the truck into drive and continue
d to the church.

  We came up to the street where the church was located. I took a deep breath, trying to prepare myself for what I would see, hearing Claire doing the same. I looked back to her and grabbed her hand. Tears ran down her face.

  I kind of understood how she felt. I also lost the man I loved. It knew it wasn’t the same, though. In fact, it was a bit selfish for me to compare the two situations. I had a new Henry to get to know, if I desired, but she didn’t have a new Marc with whom to move forward.

  Henry slowed down and stopped. The street was impassable, littered with bodies and crashed cars. The church was still five blocks down. “We’re going to have to walk from here.” He unlatched his seat belt. “Both of you will need your guns.”

  “I’m all right. I don’t think I could shoot anyone anyway.” I couldn’t tell if Claire didn’t want to use the gun, or if she was afraid of what she may have to do with the gun.

  “Trust me. You’ll want it and will learn quickly. We have to stick close together. I will be in the back, covering you. If you see any undeads, aim for the head. Remember, the only way to kill them is to destroy their brains.” I grabbed my stomach again. “Sorry, love.” He looked over at me and, with a tenderness I was familiar with, brushed my cheek with his thumb. That was my Henry that I knew so well…sweet and apologetic.

  I loved that Henry. I hoped that part of him would never go away. If I chose to stay with him, of course. I was still unsure.

  “It’s okay,” I said in a nearly inaudible voice. I took another sip of water, hoping my stomach would calm down.

  “Ready?” Claire and I both nodded. “On three.” He took a deep breath. “Three!”

  Claire and I both narrowed our eyes. What the fuck happened to “one” and “two”? Did they count different in England?

  We all hopped out and I ran to the driver’s side, since it was closest to the buildings. My hands sweated. I was so nervous about having a gun in my hand and, more than likely, having to use it on someone I knew.