“Wil promise me! I will not be the reason you get hurt again!” She yells.
I shake my head and start to walk past her. I don’t want to even think about this much less talk about it. The flesh eaters are getting closer and closer the longer we stand here and talk. I wince as I move the makeshift brace on my arm and continue to walk.
“Let’s go Liv,” I snap. I hear her mumble something under her breath followed by her heavy footsteps behind me.
Oh shit! They are so close now I can hear their moans. I turn to look at Liv and give her a small nod as if to ask if she is ready. She nods back and lunges forward knocking one smack in the face with her large stick. Oh fuck fuck fuck! I quickly jump to the left as one lunges for me. It misses and falls flat on its face. I ram my stick into another one’s ear just as it is about to make Liv’s back its afternoon snack. She has three of them coming at her and she is doing her best to keep them at bay. I have one more coming at me. A big mangled tattooed guy who looks like he could snap me in half with one flick of his wrist. I look down at my puny stick and then back at him. Oh shit! He lunges for me and I jump back stumbling over the fallen flesh eater that I jabbed in the ear earlier. He quickly descends on me.
“Ahhh! SHIT!” I yell out. He is snarling and biting at me. I quickly shove my stick in his mouth keeping his nasty flesh filled teeth at bay. I hear Liv scream out and I try my best to look and see if she is okay. I know I am not in the best position to help her, but I will try my damnedest to get to her.
She is on her stomach reaching for a knife that is in one of the fallen flesh eater’s chest. She has one climbing up her legs as she struggles to get the knife. Suddenly I feel a sharp pain in my arm and my first thought is I am big guys’ main course. I quickly look up and to my relief he is just pulling at my hurt arm. I cry out in pain as he twist and turns it trying to get it in his mouth. I wiggle my right foot free and give him a swift kick. I put everything I have into that kick and to my surprise it knocks him off of me just enough so I can scramble away. Just as I am getting up off the ground I hear Liv yell.
“WATCH OUT!” Before I can turn around I feel big guy tackle me from behind pinning me to the ground once more. Liv is quick to my rescue as she jams the knife in the top of his skull. His body falls on top of me as the blood seeping out of his fresh head wound drips down onto my face.
“EWW!” I desperately try and push him off of me but he feels like he weighs a ton. Plus I only have one arm so that makes it even more difficult.
“Stop before you hurt yourself even more,” Liv says as she shoves the flesh eater off of me and helps me to my feet. She is covered in blood herself and instantly I think the worse.
“Oh my gosh! Are you hurt?” I ask reaching out with my good arm and hold her by her shoulder and looking her over.
“I’m fine!” She snaps, yanking away from me. “Let’s get going before more show up,” she says as she stomps off.
“What are you so pissed about?”
She wipes around and gives me a death stare. “Really?? Why am I so pissed? You almost got yourself killed Willow! You had a clear shot to run before Mr. Tattooed Mess got to you, but instead you stayed. YOU COULD HAVE BEEN KILLED! All because you are too stubborn to listen to me!” she barks.
I shrug and shake my head and walk past her. I told her I wouldn’t and I meant it. She should know that I don’t lie. If nothing else I am an honest person.
“Just walk Liv.” I say and shake my head.
My hands are shaking and I want nothing more than to lay down and cry and ask why, but not moving means dying and I am not ready to do that just yet. I have to make it to Devin, there is no question there. I look around us and keep my eye on each flesh eater to make sure that we don’t have the same thing happen again. Liv is pissed enough.
“Liv do you see anything yet?” I whisper.
“Once we are out of this field we will be at the edge of town. Shouldn’t be much farther from there,” she replies.
I roll my eyes and keep walking. I can’t help but let my mind flash back to that party in high school that changed it all.
It was the party that Liv had been begging me to go to for weeks. She said that we needed to go to one party in our junior year, it was prom night and everyone was going. Grant was a senior and I was a junior I had a crush on him most of my junior year and Liv knew that. So she invited me to prom as her date. Grant finally talked to me at prom saying I looked great. So Liv mentioned the party to him and he agreed to come. He had finally talked to me. Liv’s parents told her to be home by midnight, she complained all night that she felt like a princess that had to leave the ball at the stroke of midnight. Once it was time for her to go I wanted to stay. She offered me a ride, but when I told her no she made Grant promise to take care of me. He agreed. After she left he took me upstairs where he said he could get to know me better in the quiet. As soon as we entered the room he grabbed my hand and led me to the bed.
“You are so beautiful,” he cooed. I instantly blushed and couldn’t believe he really thought I was beautiful. Out of all the girls here he picked me and I was so ecstatic about that. He slowly leaned in and cupped my face in his hands and kissed me. I felt like I was the luckiest girl in the world. He slid his tongue over my bottom lip seeking entrance in and of course I opened so his tongue could explore my mouth. My arms went up around his neck as I deepened the kiss. He slowly slid his hands down my face and neck and eventually landed them on my perky breast. At first I was surprised so I jumped back a little.
“Baby don’t you want me like I want you?” he sweetly asked. I couldn’t find my voice so I just nodded. He looped his hand around my neck and pulled me back to his mouth, his touch a little more rough this time. He moved his hand back down to my breast and pinched my nipple through my dress. It hurt. I let out a squeak and he must have mistaken it for a moan because within seconds he pinned me to the bed. I remember telling him no many times and he would just laugh and say I am teasing him, that he knows I really want him. I can still hear his laugh as he rips my dress down the back. I screamed and no one came. The music was too loud for anyone to hear my pleas for help.
When he was finally finished with me he got up, pulled his pants back up and walked out of the room laughing feeling like he was a king. I slid to the floor and dug around for my clutch purse calling the one person I needed at that time.
“Hello?" Olivia answered on the first ring.
“Ol….ivia...bring..m...me clothes,” I cry in to the phone hoping she can understand me through the tears.
“Willow? Is that you? Are you okay?” she asked.
“No...I...ne..ed you.” I cried into the phone.
“Where are you at? Are you okay?”
“Party...I will explain...when you…get here.”
“I am on my way.” She hung up the phone and was there in a flash.
I hear a knock at the door and instantly tense up thinking it is Grant coming back for seconds.
“Willow are you in there?” I hear Olivia call out.
“Y...eah,” I try to stop the tears and wipe my cheeks before she walks in.
She opens the door and sees me lying on the floor in my torn dress. She rushes over to me and kneels down beside me.
“Wil what happened? Who did this to you? Where is Grant? He swore to me he would watch over you for me or else I wouldn’t have left without you.”
“Grant did.” I sit up and take the clothes from her wanting to cover myself up.
I want nothing more than a hot shower to wash away the smell of Grant and the feeling of his hands on me. I can still feel his hands rubbing along my body. I shiver at the thought of his hands on me and quickly yank the remainder of my dress off and slip into the clothes she brought me.
“Grant did this to you?!” She stands up. “Answer me. Did Grant do this to you?” She demands my answer.
“I just want to go home Liv please. I want a shower.”
She walks over to me putting her arm around me. �
��Okay WIl. Let’s go home. I can deal with that dick head tomorrow.”
I am yanked out of my thoughts as Liv says, “Not much farther now.”
It’s then I realize we are walking down a back ally and I can see the hospital sign getting close. As we get closer I can see that the parking lot is full of cars. I hope I get to see a doctor. We make our way to the front entrance and as the doors slide open I can see this place is full of people with gaping bite wounds.
“This can’t be good,” Liv leans in and whispers in my ear.
“Don’t think there’s a doctor in here that can help.”
“Oh yes there is. We didn’t fight off a swarm of flesh eaters and walk miles for nothing.” She stalks her way to the front desk.
“Hey lady!” She barks at the receptionist behind the desk. “My friends needs to see a doctor.”
Without even looking up from her paperwork she says, “Yeah so does half of the city. Take a seat.”
Liv looks at me and gives me that Oh-hell-no-she-didn’t look. I brace myself for what’s about to happen because I know Liv and she will not take no for an answer.
She reaches over the desk and flips the clipboard out of the lady’s hand.
“Look bitch we have been through hell to get her here. She needs a doctor to look at her arm and I WILL NOT take a seat you WILL get a doctor here to look at my friend and you WILL do it now!” she screams.
The lady is looking at Olivia like she has two heads. “Like I said have a seat,” she snaps back.
Just as Liv is about to swing on her a tired looking older man walks around the corner and ask, “What seems to be the problem here?”
Liv snaps her attention to the man. “My friend needs a doctor to look at her arm and this,” she gestures toward the receptionist, “dumb bitch can’t tell us anything besides have a seat.”
He walks around the desk and up to me taking my makeshift sling off my arm examining it.
“This may hurt,” He says as he yanks down on my arm then back up making a loud pop as my elbow slides back in its intended slot. I can’t help but scream out. I can’t tell if it’s from the pain in my arm or the shock that he just jerked it back into place.
“Son of a bitch!” I yell.
I watch as he turns to a nurse and whispers in her ear, when he turns back to me his eyes are serious.
“I am going to give you a bottle of pain medicine and a sling I would advise you to only take them when you have to.” His eyes grow sad and he looks to the floor.
The nurse comes back and hands him the things he asked for. When he hands them to me his hand lingers on them for a second and he looks back up to me and Liv.
“That might be the last of the medicine we see in a long time.” He turns and walks away to help another man who walks in limping.
Liv loops her arm in mine and leads us towards the door. When we make it to the door she looks around and then nods like she is talking herself into leading us back outside the doors of the only safety we have had since we left her house what feels like days ago.
Once we make it outside she tugs on my arm to stop me and waits until I look at her.
“Wil we need a car. We have got to get to Dev and Tony. And I sure as hell don’t want to walk the whole way and I highly doubt the busses are doing their routes today,” she quips.
“Okay, how do you want to do this?” I ask trying not to let the shakiness show in my voice. I don’t want to be separated.
“What do you mean how do we do this? We look for a car with keys in it and we leave. And don’t even think about splitting up,” she replies.
We walk into the parking lot and up to the first car. The car is a piss yellow bug and as bad as we need a car I pray the keys are not inside it. Even in the apocalypse I don’t want to ride in a bug. Liv leans towards the car and looks in the window shaking her head.
“Nope no keys,” she says not looking disappointed at all. “I think we need to look at some of the bigger cars anyways,” she says pulling me over to a blacked out escalade that is parked right beside the God awful bug.
I step up to the window and cup my hands around my eyes and look inside. When I lean back Liv is looking hopeful and I shake my head no.
I look around the lot for another SUV and quietly shake Liv’s arm. Across the lot is a black Range Rover, the car of my dreams. I can remember joking with Liv that when I get famous I would buy us both one. She smiles and motions towards the car. If I knew it wouldn’t draw attention to us I would scream my happiness.
“Go check her for keys,” Liv encourages me.
I nod my head and try not to dance towards the Range Rover praying there are keys inside. I lean towards the window and almost scream with joy.
“Keys Liv! Keys!!” I chime.
“No way! Really?” she says trying to peer through the window herself to confirm.
Liv opens the driver side door and looks inside while I walk around to the passenger side. I can’t help but smile at the feeling of the seats under my hands as I rub them before I sit down. When I look in the backseat my heart hits my feet.
“Oh my gosh, Liv! Backseat!” I slap at her arm to get her attention.
She peers around the side of the driver seat and her eyes goes wide as she sees exactly what I see.
“I… Is she alive?” Liv whispers.
“I...hope. You check.” I shake my head and back out of the car holding my hands up in surrender.
She lets out a heavy sign. “Fine.”
She slowly opens the driver side back door and leans in close to the small child that is curled up in the back seat. I watch as she gently shakes her. The little girl springs up quickly looking around with a look of pure horror on her face.
“Who….who are you? Please don’t hurt me.”
Liv gives the little girl a gentle smile. “I’m not going to hurt you. My name is Olivia but my friends call me Liv. What’s your name?” She kindly asks.
“My mommy says don’t talk to strangers,” she pouts.
“Where is your mommy?” Liv ask sweetly and looks around expecting to find her in the car too.
"She tried to bite me even when she knows biting gets you a timeout. I tried to tell her to stop, that it wasn't nice b..but she didn't listen so I ran. Am I going to be in trouble?" she cries.
Liv looks at me then back to the blue eyed blonde haired little girl. “No baby you are not in trouble. Where were you when your mommy tried to bite you?”
“M…My house. What was wrong with my mommy?”
“Umm…” She looks to me for help explaining.
I shrug my shoulders, what do you tell a kid about what is going on in the world around you when you’re not even sure yourself? I look around us checking for flesh eaters and turn my attention back to the little girl in the backseat.
“How old are you sweetie?” I ask.
“I am five,” she shyly says.
“Wow you are a smart girl for five. You did the right thing to run. Your mommy is ….sick. And she sent us to look after you but she forgot to tell us your name,” Liv says.
She looks between the two of us and I nod my head smiling.
“Em...Emily Brooke King,” she says smiling.
“That’s a very pretty name. Would you like to go with us Emily?” Liv asks.
She doesn’t say anything just nods her head yes.
We climb in the range rover. Liv looks over at me and smiles.
“This is awesome! I have always wanted one of these and I know you have too.” She is rubbing her hands along the wheel like its precious gold or something. I don’t blame her though, I would do the same thing if I was behind the wheel. Stupid arm!
Just then we hear shrieking and piercing screams coming from behind us. We quickly look over our shoulders and out of the back glass to see the mass of people that was in the waiting room of the hospital are now spilling out into the parking lot with flesh eaters fast on their heels. Where did they come from? There wasn’t any in ther
e when we walked in. Then it hits me.
“OH MY GOD LIV!”
She looks at me.
“It’s the bites! The bites will turn you!” I am shocked that that is actually true. This shit is only supposed to be in movies right?
Just then a loud bang on the back glass of the Range Rover grabs our attention. Emily screams out.
“Quick close y’alls doors!” Liv screams as we scramble to close the doors, but little Emily is having trouble with hers.
“It’s…too…heavy,” she says as she is pulling with all her little might. Just then the flesh eater stumbles its way around the car to find Emily’s open door. It surges forward and its upper body falls on the seat with Emily. She jumps back and pushes herself all the way against the opposite door screaming as the flesh eater scratches at the seats trying to claw its way to her. His moans and Emily’s screams fill the car.
“HELP ME!!! PLEASE!” she begs. Before I can think about doing anything Liv is already out of the car and yanking the flesh eater back away from Emily and out of the car. She throws him to the ground and takes her foot and smashes it in his temple. His moans instantly quiet. She slams Emily’s door shut and jumps in the front seat quickly closing her door as well.
“Are you ok?” Liv asks as she looks back at the terrified little girl.
Tears rolling down her little round cheeks. “Y… You saved me,” she whimpers out.
Liv surprises me by reaching back and taking the girl’s small hand in hers. “I will always save you. You are safe now,” she says as she gently squeezes the tiny hand.
Liv has never been the mushy type of girl. I have never seen her act like this toward any child. She usually tries to stay away from them and avoid them completely. I wonder what it is about Emily that makes her different. I give Emily a reassuring smile.
“She’s right. She will always keep you safe. She has saved me more times than I can count. You are safe with us Emily I hope you believe that,” I say sweetly.
“I do,” she says and jumps up wrapping her arms around Liv’s neck. “Thank you Liv!” she squeals in delight. Her little singsong voice bounces off every window in the car causing a smile to spread over my face.
Surviving This Life Page 2
