by Kate L. Mary
“Not a bad idea.” Jim chews on his bottom lip while he thinks it through, his eyebrows pulled together in concentration. “We’d only have to deal with the living dead in that area. Wouldn’t have to worry about more wandering in. Assuming this doesn’t get cleared up, we could easily destroy a bridge to keep us secluded.”
“You think this is long-term?” Tori asks.
It is, in one way or another. Even if these monsters die off for a second time, most of the population is gone. Things will never be what they were, at least not in our lifetime.
“Only time will tell,” I say, turning back to face the front.
My hands start to shake and the tremors move up my arms. When Riley reaches out to grab my hand, I don’t stop him. His fingers lace through mine and it helps me feel like I’m not going to bow under the pressure of this situation.
“Shit!”
I wake so suddenly I forget where I am, and my head jerks up before I’ve totally surfaced from my dream world. But the second my eyes land on the traffic jam in the distance and the figures shuffling through the throng of cars, everything comes screaming back.
Zombies.
Riley slows as I rub my eyes, and Jim shoves his head between the seats. In the back, Tori is swearing like a sailor.
“We’re gonna have to circle back,” Jim says. “Get off at the last exit and hope we can make our way around.”
“We need food,” Tori pipes in.
As if on cue, my stomach rumbles.
It’s still dark, and the clock on the dash tells me it’s after one in the morning. We’ve been driving for a few hours and I haven’t eaten since the eggs and bacon from early yesterday morning. Food would be nice.
“We’re going to need gas soon too,” Riley says, looking over his shoulder at Jim. “Please tell me you know how to siphon gas.”
Jim shrugs, looking totally modest when he says, “Not that hard, to be honest.”
Thank God.
Riley turns the wheel, making a wide arc in the middle of the road so he can turn around. “So maybe we find a place to hang for a bit? A house or something. We can get some sleep, look for supplies. We have nothing.”
He has a point. All we have with us are the clothes on our backs and a couple baseball bats. And whatever else we can find in this car, which doesn’t seem like much. I’m not even wearing shoes now that I lost mine in our escape.
“Sounds like a plan,” Jim says, settling back in his seat. “It would be good to find a house not too far off the interstate. Something outside town. Maybe we can figure out where we are and make a plan to run for more supplies.”
Riley and I nod at the same time. None of us says a word as we drive back the way we came. It’s eerily dark. No headlights, no lights on billboards or in the distance signaling a town isn’t far off. Nothing but us and the stars in the sky. It makes me feel like the world has disappeared.
A shiver runs through my body.
“You okay?” Riley whispers, glancing at me.
His face is illuminated by the soft green glow of the clock, but he still looks amazing. No wonder I slept with him on my birthday.
“Yeah. It’s just weird. All this nothingness.”
Tori lets out a little grunt that sounds like she agrees, but I keep my eyes on Riley. He grabs my hand, giving it a quick squeeze as he drives up the on ramp that will take us off the highway and into the unknown. With no lights, it’s impossible to know what lays ahead for us.
“I’m going to drive slowly. Keep an eye out for a place to stop. We’re in the middle of nowhere, so maybe we’ll come across a farm or something. That would be nice.”
I let go of his hand and lean forward, trying to see through the darkness. It feels like an impossible task.
We drive for maybe a mile, moving so slowly it makes me squirm with nervousness. I’m afraid if we run into a horde we’ll be in trouble at this speed. Like they can open the doors and pull us out or something, which is probably nuts. They couldn’t open the door to the closet Jim and Tori were hiding in, so there’s no way they could open the car door. Right?
Still, I can’t help wondering… Most people died in their houses, but there were an awful lot of zombies stumbling around my town. Just in case, I press the button on the door, making sure it’s locked. There doesn’t seem to be any zombies around to test out the theory, but I’d rather be safe than sorry.
“There!” Tori yells.
I jerk my head around to find her pointing out the window behind me, then turn my attention to the dark landscape. It takes a moment for me to spot the shape in the distance, but when I do my heart rate picks up. It’s set a good distance from the road, so it’s hard to tell, but it looks like it’s a decent size farmhouse. In front of it are fields that look like they may have been for horses or some other kind of animal, and behind that are a couple barns.
Riley turns down the driveway, keeping his speed slow. I’m sure he’s doing it for a reason, but it’s making me so jumpy I feel like screaming. I want to get there and find out if this place is safe.
Instead of parking in front of the house, he pulls to a stop at the side next to a small shed. It won’t conceal the car totally, but it may mask it from anyone driving by. Especially when morning comes.
Riley throws the car into park and lets out a deep breath as he swipes his hand through his dark hair. “We need to be careful. There could be zombies, but there could also be people who are willing to kill us to defend their house.” He glances my way. “Or worse.”
A shudder moves through my body. Sounds like he was a fan of zombie fiction as well.
None of us says a thing as we climb out, Riley and Jim holding the bats while Tori and I walk behind them. The house is totally dark, not even the soft glow of flashlights in any of the windows. And it’s so silent I’m pretty sure we’d be able to hear the wings of a butterfly. Rocks poke into the bottoms of my feet, making me wince with every step, but the pain is nothing compared to the fear inside me.
We’ve just reached the porch when it hits me that we should have searched the shed for something to use as a weapon. That was dumb. I need to be smarter than this. Think like one of my characters. Plan ahead and take the Boy Scouts’ advice: always be prepared.
The men stop outside the door and Riley presses his face against the glass so he can look in. I hold my breath. In the distance, something like a moan breaks through the quiet night, and even though it’s far away, fear prickles over my skin. Tori whimpers.
“Looks empty,” Riley whispers, but surrounded by the quiet night it seems louder than a scream.
“Let’s go in!” Tori hisses.
Riley reaches for the doorknob but I grab his arm. “Wait! Knock first.”
Everyone turns to look at me, and even though it’s dark I can picture the expressions of disbelief they must have on their faces.
“Are you serious?” Tori says. “You want us to announce our arrival?”
“If there are people inside and we walk into their house in the middle of the night, they could kill us. If it’s a zombie, knocking will draw it out so we’re not surprised later on.”
“Damn.” Riley raps his knuckles against the door three times. “Good point.”
I hold my breath and wait, and everyone else is so silent that I get the feeling they’re doing the same. After a minute Riley knocks again, this time louder. A far-off moan answers the sound. I take a step closer to him, hoping his warmth will make me stronger. It doesn’t seem to work because I’m still shaking.
When nothing happens Riley grabs the doorknob a second time. “Better just go in or we’ll be standing out here forever.”
The knob turns and he slowly eases the door open. I listen for noises as we step inside, but my heart is pounding so hard I’m not sure if I’d even be able to hear them.
The old wood floors creak under our feet, and in the distance is the rhythmic sound of a clock ticking. It reminds me of the grandfather clock my mom and dad had in
their dining room. The one that had belonged to my grandma.
Other than that though, the place is quiet.
Jim shuts the door behind us and Riley lets out a deep breath.
“Let’s check out the downstairs and once we know that’s clear, Jim and I will check upstairs. See if anyone is home. Maybe sleeping. I don’t want to freak them out, but we can’t let them wake up in the morning to find us sleeping in their living room.”
“Good Lord, they’d probably shoot us in our sleep,” Tori mutters.
We move through the house slowly, constantly bumping into tables and chairs and couches that are impossible to see in the darkness. My thigh slams against the sharp corner of some piece of furniture and I suck in a deep breath. That’s going to leave a mark.
The floor groans with every step, and in the stark silence of the house it sounds louder than a gunshot. Downstairs we make it through two living areas, what seems to be a small office, a dining room, and a kitchen with no sign of life. Or the living dead. A good indication that we’re alone, but it’s the middle of the night and Riley’s right. The homeowners could be sleeping.
“We’re going up,” Riley says in a loud whisper. “While we’re gone, search the drawers for matches or flashlights. There has to be some candles lying around somewhere. It’s even possible an old house like this will have a wood burning fireplace.”
He and Jim start to head out of the kitchen, but Riley stops after only a few steps. He doesn’t turn back to face us when he says, “If you hear gunshots, get out. Hide in the yard and wait. If we don’t come outside, I want you to leave.”
My stomach drops to the ground when he and Jim continue out of the kitchen. It hits me that we may not see them again. Not only that, but every time one of us leaves a room from here on out, it could be the last time anyone sees us. It isn’t a good feeling.
A drawer opens on the other side of the room, and when the contents rattle around it brings me back to the current crisis. We need light, and then food and water.
I make my way across the room with my hands out in front of me, feeling my way through the darkness. When my fingers brush something solid, I run my hand over the surface. It isn’t flat, and I can feel the cold metal of the burners. It’s probably a gas stove. This is an old place and the stove has the feeling of something not up-to-date. It’s possible they still use matches to light the burners, and logic tells me they might keep a box of them nearby. I feel my way over the stove to the wall, then run my hand to the side. When my fingers brush the cardboard box, I almost let out a shout of victory.
“Matches,” I say, picking up the box.
I open it slowly in case I’m holding it upside down. I get lucky and nothing falls out. When I have one of the little wooden sticks between my fingers, I shut the box. I strike the match against the side and a spark crackles in the darkness, but it doesn’t catch. I try it a second time and the flame sizzles to life.
“Quick!” Tori says. “Pan it around.”
I hold it out and pan it around as best as I can. It’s just bright enough to show me the counter, but only a little at a time. I move it to the side as the flame burns down the stick. The heat kisses my fingertips and I know I only have a few more seconds. I catch sight of a fat candle sitting next to the sink just as the flame bites at my skin and the match falls from my hand. I curse under my breath.
“Hold on,” I say, pulling a second one out. “I saw a candle.”
Footsteps pound against the ceiling above our heads, but they’re slow. It sounds like nothing much is really happening up there, which is a good sign.
I slide the second match against the box and it lights on the first try. Immediately, I head for the candle I saw, then use the match in my hand to light it. The small flame doesn’t illuminate much, but it’s better than it was.
I pull the candle across the counter to where Tori is standing. “This will help. Hopefully we can find a couple more candles and maybe a flashlight or two.”
Tori nods as she looks around, then heads across the room. “If this were my house, I’d keep a flashlight here.”
I pull open the drawer in front of me as Tori digs through a cabinet built into wall. I’m not finding anything but kitchen utensils and Ziploc bags, though.
“Bingo,” Tori says.
A light flicks on behind me, illuminating the room, and I almost laugh. Damn, I miss electricity, but a flashlight is better than nothing.
Tori sets the flashlight on the counter so the beam is facing the ceiling. It stretches across the room, casting shadows in the corners but making it possible for us to get a good look around. Tori grins my way and I return it.
“Let’s look for something to eat,” she says.
The footsteps of Riley and Jim are still audible, but nothing has really changed. They’re slow and easy, consistent. The sound of them doesn’t make my heart beat faster, so I suppose that’s my body’s way of telling me everything is okay. And I really am hungry. At the moment, it feels like my stomach is trying to eat itself.
“Okay,” I mumble as I open the nearest cabinet. There’s nothing in it but bowls and casserole dishes, so I move to the next. This one has spices, but still no food.
“Pantry,” Tori says.
I turn to find her standing in front of an open closet. When I catch sight of the boxes and cans of food, my stomach growls so loudly it causes Tori to arch an eyebrow at me. The beam of the flashlight glints off the metal in her eyebrows, and I’m so happy to see the food that I could kiss her
Tori and I are busy going through the pantry, which is loaded down with nonperishable items, when the beam of a second flashlight shines across the room. Riley and Jim follow it into the kitchen.
“All clear upstairs,” Riley says.
Something thumps against the counter, and I turn to find a box of shells and a shotgun. My stomach twists uncomfortably and it has nothing to do with hunger. Seeing the gun brings reality screaming back. We are in the middle of a crisis, and we need weapons. Badly.
“Is that the only one you found?” I ask, looking back and forth between the two men.
“Yup,” Jim says with a nod.
Tori sets two jars of pickled eggs on the counter in front of me. “Protein.”
Even though I’ve never been a fan, my stomach gurgles.
“Sounds good,” Riley says with a yawn. “I’m beat. Let’s get some food in our stomachs, lock the place up, and get some sleep. Jim offered to take first watch down here.”
Chapter 6
Riley and I find ourselves in the master bedroom. It’s small, and most of the space is taken up by a large canopy bed that’s way too frilly for a farmer. I’m so tired my muscles hurt, and even in the faint glow of the candles we carried upstairs, the exhaustion in Riley’s eyes is clear. He looks like he can hardly stand.
“Is it safe to get undressed?” I ask as I pull down the sheets. “I hate sleeping in clothes, but with everything that’s going on…”
The idea of waking up to a crisis and not being dressed makes me feel like I’m going to hurl.
“I think we’re okay. We didn’t see any of them once we got off the highway, and even on the interstate it was only a few stragglers. I think that as long as we’re not in a town, we should be relatively safe.” Riley pulls his shirt over his head as he talks. “But what do I know? It’s not like I’ve ever been in a zombie apocalypse before.”
I snort. “It’s a first for me as well.”
Even though it makes me uneasy, I pull my dress off. My underwear follows, but that’s mainly because they feel so grimy that I’m tired of wearing them. I washed them in the sink at the school a couple days ago, but it didn’t help much. Tomorrow I’ll go through the dressers and see what I can find. Even granny panties would be better at this point.
Riley crawls under the covers wearing nothing but a pair of boxers, not even seeming to notice that I’m naked. I swear his eyes are half-closed already. The rest of us dozed in the car, but
he drove, so I can’t blame him for being beat. Even with my little nap I got, I’m exhausted. Emotionally and physically. My body feels like I’m underwater as I lean forward to blow out the candle, and the darkness seems to add to the feeling. Like Pavlov’s dogs and their little bell, my body craves sleep as soon as the lights are out.
I slide in next to Riley, pulling the scratchy lace comforter up to my chin. It may be rough fabric, but sleeping in a bed for the first time in days is like being in heaven on a fluffy, white cloud. We were using the gym mats at the school.
“Goodnight.” Riley’s voice is muffled with sleep.
I scoot closer until my back is pressed up against his side. His body heat is comforting. “Night.”
Riley’s hand runs down my side to my hip. “Are you naked?” he asks, sounding much more awake than he did a second ago.
“Of course. I told you I don’t like wearing clothes to bed.”
Riley groans and turns his body toward me. Magnum is awake. “Damn. I was almost asleep but this…”
His lips brush against my shoulder as he moves his hand down my thigh. He traces his fingers along the inside of my leg, tickling the skin as he moves up. His lips press against my bare shoulder, and when he bites me softly, I gasp.
“Did you bring those condoms?” I whisper into the darkness.
We held off last night in my English class, but we’re out now. Free and possibly on our way to safety. It feels like we should celebrate.
I roll onto my back and Riley’s mouth finds mine in the darkness, moving over my lips for a few seconds before pulling away. The bed dips and a second later the floorboards groan.
“You bet your ass I did.”
I laugh and it feels good.
He’s back in seconds, his boxers now gone and his hands moving up my stomach to my breasts. He kisses me again and I pull him closer, urging him on top of me. Riley’s warm body hovers over mine as we kiss and explore each other in the darkness. His lips move over my skin and his fingers tease me until I cry out, then he’s pushing his way into me until I’m writhing in ecstasy.
