Empty Bodies 6: Revelation (Empty Bodies Series Book 6)

by Zach Bohannon

  He would, he told himself. There would be time to grieve her later.

  Will was still sitting next to the lake when the others began to wake up, not long after sunrise. He allowed them time to stretch and fully open their eyes before he stood up and met them at the campground.

  The night before had been awkward, and the others were clearly unsure what to say.

  “Morning, guys,” he said.

  “Morning,” Jessica said.

  “How you feeling, man?” Gabriel asked.

  Will shrugged. “I’m all right. I think sleeping helped a lot.”

  “Good," Gabriel said, short and muffled.

  No one could keep their eyes on Will. The children’s faces were blank and pale. Jessica looked more tired and defeated than Will had ever seen her. And he could tell that Gabriel was anxious to leave, all while at the same time trying to be respectful to Will regarding what had happened the day before.

  “You all need to know that I appreciate everything you’ve done in the last 24 hours,” Will began. “I really don’t know what to say at this point regarding what happened. I’m not even sure if there is anything really to say.”

  He looked down at Mary Beth and Dylan. Mary Beth stared into the distance, her face contorted into what looked like a permanent frown. Dylan would occasionally look up at Will, but then he’d glance the opposite way of Mary Beth.

  Will kneeled down beside them. “I’m so sorry I wasn’t there for you guys last night. You two loved Holly just as much as I did, and it was selfish of me to want to be alone last night.”

  The kids looked up at him, eyes watering.

  “I love you both so much, just like Holly did. She saved your lives, and she’s a hero.” He shook his head, choking back tears. “We can’t ever forget that.”

  Both children were full on crying now, and when Will opened his arms, they spilled into them. Will held them tight, caressing their backs.

  “I miss her so much,” Dylan said.

  “Me, too, buddy.”

  He held them a little longer, then pulled away.

  “You guys honor her by staying strong, all right? It’s what she would want.”

  Both children nodded, and Will stood up. He went over to Gabriel.

  “I’m here for you,” Will said. “There will be time to grieve later, but for now we’ve gotta finish what we started and find your family.”

  He offered his hand and Gabriel took it, pulling Will in for a hug.

  “Thank you, brother,” Gabriel said. “I’m so sorry.”

  “I know.”

  Will pulled away and went to Jessica. He didn’t say anything to her. Instead, he just leaned in and hugged her. “Thank you for being there for me last night,” he said.

  She didn’t respond, only continuing to hold him in her arms.

  When they were finished hugging, Will and Jessica stared into each other’s eyes for several moments. Will smiled. Bending down, he picked his gun up off the ground.

  “All right, let’s hit the road.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  Today is the day.

  Gabriel repeated it to himself over and over again.

  The anxiety he felt was ten times more than that of when he’d arrived at his house in Alexandria.

  Since waking up from the plane crash, Gabriel’s thoughts had wavered regarding his family. Some days, he knew he would find them, and others he felt hopeless. But today, he knew he would find them when they arrived at the cabin.

  The image of his broken home was burned into his mind. Barring a miracle, he would never return to his house—he was almost sure of it. The last memory of his home would be his room rotting with Empties, covered in blood. He would have to try to remember the many good memories he’d had there. Like holding their first Christmas celebration in the home, having both his parents and Katie’s there to celebrate. Or the morning Katie opened the shower curtain while he was getting ready for work to show him the positive pregnancy test. The evening they brought Sarah home for the first time. His daughter’s first birthday party, which they’d held in the backyard.

  All these and so many more memories which had been made in that house.

  But it was only a house, and the most important contents of that house had left, and were alive in the cabin they were heading to. He clutched the photo album in his hands, looking down at it and remembering what mattered.

  “Can you hear me, Gabriel?”

  “Huh?” Gabriel said, shaking his head and looking to Jessica, who was driving.

  “I’ve said your name like eight times trying to get your attention.”

  “Sorry, I was zoned out.”

  “Well, I need you to tell me where we are and when I need to turn off.”

  He looked outside. To his surprise, most of the highway and countryside was clear of Empties. It was all very familiar to him, and especially the oncoming exit. The large travel stop at the top of the ramp was somewhere his family had stopped each time they’d gone to the cabin. It stocked more general groceries than a common convenience store, so Gabriel and his family had been able to pick up some extra food and snacks before heading up to the secluded cabin.

  “It’s the next exit after this one,” Gabriel said.

  He peeked into the back seat. Will was asleep in between the kids, who had their heads on each of his shoulders and were passed out, too.

  “I don’t think he got much sleep,” Jessica said.

  “Can you blame him?” Gabriel asked. He had hardly slept either, lying by the fire most of the night and seeing the faces of his wife and daughter in the flames.

  “We’ve all suffered great loss,” Jessica said. “But today is going to be a day of redemption.”

  Gabriel stared at her for a moment before putting his hand to his chin and staring out at the passing landscape.

  “This the exit?” Jessica asked several moments later.

  “Yeah. Go right at the end of the ramp and the turn is about four miles down the road.”

  “All right, just tell me when.”

  “Are we almost there?” Dylan asked from the back seat in a groggy voice.

  “We are,” Jessica said.

  Will yawned, and Mary Beth stretched.

  Gabriel turned his attention back out the window as Jessica turned at the end of the ramp.

  I’m almost there.

  Today is the day.

  ***

  Gabriel had driven up the winding road leading to his in-laws’ cabin so many times before, but he’d never felt like he did now. The two-hour drive South had usually been filled by singing songs with his daughter and plenty of laughter and excitement for the stay at the cabin. Once there, they’d camp, fish, hike, and relax as a family. Now, Gabriel shook almost uncontrollably as Jessica pulled up the familiar gravel path.

  The cabin stood at the top of a steep, winding road. Trees crowded the gravel path, making it narrow. Katie’s father had hit the jackpot on some tech stock in the 90s and made a small fortune. He’d bought the cabin with a plan to retire there, but Katie’s mom had wanted to spend their old age on the beach, so the cabin had just become a vacation home.

  The leaves on the trees had started to fall with the season, making it easy to look for Empties in the woods. Nothing was out there.

  Ahead was a bend in the road, and when Jessica veered around it, Gabriel knew the cabin would come into view. He hoped to see his daughter swinging in the tire swing on the tree out front, his wife smiling as she watched her. He pictured Katie wearing the yellow cardigan she always threw on at this time of year.

  Gabriel closed his eyes as Jessica punched the gas to round the corner where the incline steepened.

  When he opened them again, the cabin was there. A Jeep was parked out front, but Katie and Sarah were nowhere to be seen.

  “Pull up next to it,” Gabriel told Jessica, speaking of the Jeep.

  As when they’d gotten to his house, Gabriel opened his door first and while they wer
e still rolling, but only slightly this time. He had no intention of hopping out of a moving vehicle again.

  But when Jessica parked next to the Jeep, Gabriel threw the door open and ran for the front of the cabin.

  “Gabriel, wait,” Jessica said.

  Gabriel ignored her, trying the handle on the front door. It was locked. He thought to break through, but instead ran around the side of the cabin to look for another door or open window.

  “Stay with the kids in the car,” Will yelled to Jessica as he chased Gabriel around the side of the cabin.

  Gabriel quickly checked the windows on the side of the cabin as he passed by, but they were closed. He arrived at the back door, where he was about to peek through the curtains. He couldn’t see anyone inside. He tried opening the back door and found that it, too, was locked.

  “Katie?” he called out, banging on the back door. “Sarah?”

  No response.

  “Here,” Will said. “Let’s see if we can get in through one of these win—”

  Before Will could finish, Gabriel had picked up his leg and kicked the door as hard as he could, breaking it off its hinges.

  Gabriel entered the house.

  Looking into the living room from the kitchen, his mouth fell open and he had to catch himself on the wall so that he didn’t fall over and pass out.

  “Katie?”

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  When Will entered the cabin, he saw Gabriel slumped against the refrigerator, the gun still in his hand at his side. He was crying, his hand over his mouth.

  Will heard the snarl and looked into the living room.

  An Empty with long hair stood on the far side of the room near a closed bedroom door. Will had seen enough of the creatures now to know which ones had recently turned versus which had been Empty for several days, or even weeks. This creature wearing a yellow cardigan over a dark blue blouse was newly Empty, perhaps only turned within the previous few days. It had spots of blood around its mouth, hinting that it could’ve eaten some, but not a lot.

  Gabriel was sobbing now, pulling Will’s attention away from the beast. Then it hit Will, and he realized why Gabriel was falling apart.

  “Oh my God,” Will muttered.

  Sarah, Gabriel’s wife, snarled as she pulled away from the bedroom door and headed for the kitchen.

  Will looked back to Gabriel, who stared at the creature, his mouth covered and tears pouring from his eyes. With the Empty that had been the love of Gabriel’s life heading his way, Will knew he had to do what Gabriel could not.

  He raised his Glock and stepped in front of Gabriel so his friend wouldn’t have to watch the Empty receive a bullet to the brain.

  His finger inched over the trigger and he aimed.

  “No!” Gabriel yelled.

  Before Will could fire, Gabriel tackled him, sending both of them to the ground. The gun flew out of his hand, and his shoulder hit the linoleum so hard that he thought it might’ve dislocated.

  “What the fuck?” Will cried.

  The weight left him, and he looked up to see Gabriel, red-faced and scowling at him. Before Will could make a move for the gun, Gabriel had kicked it to the other side of the kitchen.

  “What are you doing?” Will asked.

  Eyes bloodshot and teary, Gabriel said, “That’s my wife, man. We can’t kill her.”

  “That’s not your wife and you know it. Your wife is gone.”

  Gabriel raised his handgun, pointing it down at Will.

  Will’s heart raced a hundred miles per hour and he raised his hands.

  “Don’t you fucking say that about her,” Gabriel said.

  Will looked past Gabriel to see an oak dining room table sitting between the wall and the end of the bar, blocking the Empty from getting into the kitchen. Someone had apparently moved it there, leaving Will and Gabriel safe for the moment.

  His hands raised, Will got to his knees and then stood.

  “Put down the gun, Gabriel.”

  Gabriel didn’t abide. He kept the gun pointed at Will’s chest. Behind him, the Empty continued to growl as it ran into the table. It banged on the top, trying to continue forward but without having the sense to push the table out of the way.

  “You don’t know that she’s gone,” Gabriel cried. “You should know that more than anybody. What if we had just assumed there was no saving you, huh?”

  “That was different,” Will said, raising his voice now. “You weren’t even there. You didn’t see what that preacher did to save me. And there’s no one here who can do what he did to me.” Will looked past Gabriel again to look at the creature. It still couldn’t make it past the table. “We don’t have to kill it, all right?”

  “Her,” Gabriel said. “Kill her.”

  “Right,” Will said, his hands still raised. “We don’t have to kill her. But we can’t stay here.”

  Gabriel shook his head. “I can’t leave her. And I’ve gotta find my daughter. She’s gotta be here.”

  Will feared Gabriel would find his daughter and that she’d also be Empty, like her mother. Perhaps she was on the other side of the door, already turned. Or worse, perhaps Empty Katie had turned their daughter into something Gabriel wouldn’t even recognize. Will pushed the thought aside and refocused his attention on Gabriel and the gun.

  “Look, Gabe, just give me the gun, all right? I promise you, I’m not going to shoot your wife. But you don’t need to have a gun in your hands right now, and you need to stop pointing it at me.”

  “I can’t do that, Will.”

  Will could see in Gabriel’s eyes that he’d mentally checked out. He wasn’t thinking. Will himself had been in a similar situation after he’d watched David Ellis throw his mother into the room with the Empty, so he understood how Gabriel felt, whether Gabriel knew that now or not.

  But he had to get the gun from his hands.

  He saw his chance when Gabriel turned back to look at the Empty.

  Will lunged forward, and Gabriel looked back to him just as Will grabbed onto his wrist. Gabriel’s grip on the pistol tightened, and Will couldn’t get him to drop it. He grabbed onto his friend’s wrist, twisting it and trying to get him to let go.

  The two men jostled for another few moments before the gun went off.

  Will fell back, clutching his shoulder where he felt a deep burn. When he pulled his hand away, it was covered in fresh blood.

  Gabriel looked down at Will, stunned at what he’d done.

  “Shit,” Gabriel muttered.

  Will sat against the wall, putting pressure on the wound. The bullet had gone into his right shoulder in almost the same place Holly had been shot at the school. It wouldn’t be a life-threatening injury, so long as he could stop the bleeding. Right now he was only worried about the pain, while keeping his eyes on the Empty that had been Gabriel’s wife and who still trying to make its way to them in the kitchen.

  Gabriel took several steps back, eyes wide and hands trembling.

  Will used his good arm to push himself up to one knee. He remained there, trying to garner the energy to rise all the way to his feet.

  The creak of a door sounded from the living room, and Will watched Gabriel’s gaze redirect that way. His eyes went wide and his hands trembled, the gun still held firm in one hand.

  “Daddy?” a voice called from the living room.

  “Sarah?” Gabriel called back.

  Will stood all the way up to look into the living room and see a young girl standing in the doorway.

  “Mom?” she said next.

  The girl took a step into the living room as the creature turned around and snarled at her. Sarah’s eyes went wide and she lost her footing, falling backward to the ground.

  “Sarah,” Gabriel called, the gun still down at his side.

  He finally raised it, arms shaking, and tried to aim it at the beast who’d been his wife. Even with his daughter now in danger, he still couldn’t bring himself to take the creature down.

  With me
re moments before the Empty pounced on the little girl, Will ran toward the end of the kitchen. Even if he would’ve been able to raise a gun with his dominant arm or fire with his healthy but non-dominant hand, there was no time to take it from Gabriel and try.

  Will slid across the top of the table and landed in the living room. The little girl was crawling backward, trying to get away from the beast, all while calling out for both her mom and her dad.

  Will took one quick glance over to Gabriel to see if he was going to shoot, but Gabriel’s hands trembled more than before, and his face was pale as he looked on.

  With no other choice, Will ran toward the creature.

  It was just about to fall down on top of the girl when Will wrapped his arms around the creature’s neck. He pulled back, meaning to throw the Empty down onto the ground, but lost his balance, sending them both falling together.

  The Empty twisted around as they fell, and when Will landed on his side, the creature was lying next to him, facing his way.

  The beast snarled and lunged its head toward Will’s face. In a desperate effort to block the blow, Will punched the creature in the back of its head. But while the move deflected the monster’s teeth from Will’s face, its head banged against his ribs.

  He screamed as the Empty sank its teeth into his side, tearing away flesh.

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  Jessica had just been working to keep the kids calm and distracted when she heard the first gunshot. She couldn’t leave the kids in the car, but she also couldn’t risk putting them in harm’s way, not knowing exactly what was going on inside the cabin.

  But when the second shot went off, she had to make a decision.

  Pulling the handgun from her side, Jessica said to the kids, “You guys stay here. Keep the doors locked.”

  “Don’t leave us,” Mary Beth said. “I’m scared.”

  Jessica grabbed a nearby handgun and checked that it was loaded. When she was sure it was, she handed it to Dylan.

  “Take this, and don’t use it unless you absolutely have to, all right?”

  Dylan accepted the weapon and nodded.