Nasira can’t help but laugh.
“I’m sorry,” William says, rubbing his eyes. “I didn’t mean that. I’m just very tired. It’s been a couple of long fucking days.”
“I know,” Nasira says, smiling. “And there are many more long days to come.” She looks at Ali, who looks back up at her. His eyelids are fighting to stay up.
Nasira breathes deeply and closes her own eyes as the car keeps moving through the night. Her left thumb goes to feel the tiny scratch on the inside of the ring finger. It still feels the same, maybe a tiny bit more tender, but that could be because she has been rubbing it now and then all throughout the day, ever since the dead girl tried to get into the car through the window and Nasira tried to push her hand back out and the girl’s nail grazed Nasira’s finger.
She should be feeling a torrent of emotions; fear of what’s to come, despair at the thought there’s nothing to do, grief for the life she’s losing.
But she feels none of that. In her heart is only hope and love. Her mind is quiet, resting in the assurance that it is all in God’s hands, and that He will make sure what happens is right.
Whatever that may be.
DAY 5
The following events take places on
Wednesday, July 30
ONE
“Sweetheart?”
Mommy’s voice, somewhere nearby.
“Sweetheart, are you awake?”
Christine can’t open her eyes; she is too tired. And the soft, low rumbling of an engine nearby doesn’t make it any easier. The sound also reminds her where they are; not at home, but in the car. The whole family. In the middle of the night. How strange.
Christine remembers dimly she was sleeping at home in her bed earlier this evening, when things were still normal—kind of normal, anyway. Mommy had tucked her in like she always does, reading a chapter from one of the H. C. Andersen fairy tales Christine loves so much. She doesn’t recall actually falling asleep, though, but she must have, because suddenly, Daddy came bursting into the room, turning on the lights and pulling clothes from Christine’s closet.
“Wake up, honey,” he told her with a rushed, not-quite-genuine smile. “We need to go on a little trip.”
“Right now?” Christine had asked, sitting up and squinting against the light. “But it’s nighttime, Daddy.”
“I know, it’s a little strange, but we have to go,” Daddy told her, moshing the pile of clothes into a sports bag and zipping it. “Come on, let’s go.”
He held out his hand, and Christine was just about to take it when she heard a sound from the window. It was almost like someone dragging their fingers across the glass. There was a moaning sound, too, like someone in distress.
“Who’s tha—” she was about to ask, when Daddy grabbed her hand and cut her off.
“It’s okay, honey, don’t worry about it. Someone’s just playing around out there.”
There was something in Daddy’s voice Christine couldn’t quite place, but it sprouted a tiny, gnawing sensation in the pit of her stomach. A feeling of worry. Was Daddy scared? Daddy couldn’t be scared; he wasn’t afraid of anything.
Then, things got even stranger.
As Daddy dragged her out into the hall, where the lights were also on, she was met by the sight of Anton already standing there, still in his pajamas, hair messy, eyes wide and confused.
Mommy came out from the bathroom at that moment, stuffing something into a bag. “Okay, I think I got everything.” She was looking at Daddy and talking very fast. “Toothbrushes, phone charger, sleeping bags, Anton’s inhaler. Am I missing something?”
“How about food?” Daddy asked.
“I took the tuna and the crackers. I filled two large bottles with water. I don’t know if it’ll be enough.”
“It’s fine. We can stop at a gas station and get more. Get your coats, kids. We’re going on a trip.”
“Where are we—” Anton began, but Daddy cut him off like he did Christine.
“No questions, Anton. Just please, do as I ask.”
Normally, Anton could very well have decided to argue—after all, he was seven now, and had just entered what Mommy called the “stroppy sevens”—but apparently, Anton seemed to also pick up on the trace of fear in Daddy’s voice, and he simply grabbed his coat. Christine did the same, while Daddy unlocked the door and opened it.
“Stay in here just for a second, okay?” he said, glancing back quickly. “I’ll get the car.”
Christine felt Mommy’s hand on her shoulder, and Christine looked up at her. “What’s going on, Mommy? Why do we have to go on a trip?”
Mommy looked down at her, blinking, then smiling. “It’s just for fun. It’ll be like a vacation. You remember when we went camping? Well, this is the same, just that we didn’t really plan for it, we just … decided to go.”
“In the middle of the night?” Anton asked, and now Christine could hear that old, familiar tone of defiance in her brother’s voice. “Couldn’t it wait till the morning?”
“No,” Mommy simply said, and when Anton asked her why, she didn’t reply.
Then Daddy was back, waving at them, telling them in a hushed voice to hurry up, to get into the car, and as they left the house, Christine was surprised to find that Daddy had driven the car all the way up to the front door and parked it right below the stairs so they didn’t need to walk more than a few steps. She only got a whiff of the cool, clean night air, before they were all inside the car, Mommy in the front and Christine and Anton in the back. Daddy got in behind the wheel and sped out of the driveway, turning down the street, driving a lot faster than he normally would, and Christine noticed him constantly checking the rearview mirror, like he was afraid he had forgotten something back there.
Anton asked a few more times where they were going, but neither Mommy nor Daddy answered, and finally, Anton just found his phone and began playing some game.
Christine didn’t have a phone—she had asked Mommy when she could have one, and Mommy had told her when she turned six next month. That was a long time away for Christine. So, she simply resolved herself to looking out the window at the streetlights gliding past and the dark lawns and just as dark houses behind them. Only a few other cars were also out driving for unknown reasons; other than that, the town seemed to be asleep.
Christine began nodding off, when she saw something strange.
It happened just as they stopped at a red light. A movement caught her eye, and she saw an old man come walking across the street. He wasn’t using the sidewalk, but was straddling along in the middle of the road. There was something odd about the way he walked, too; he seemed to be dragging one leg, as though he had hurt it, and his arms were stretched out, like he was reaching for something. Then, as he entered the light from one of the posts, Christine got a better look at him, and she could have sworn there was something dark smeared all over the man’s white T-shirt, like Nutella or something.
Then Mommy noticed the man too and let out a gasp.
“What?” Daddy asked in alarm, and, following Mommy’s gaze, he whispered: “Fuck!” Then he drove right across the intersection, accelerating so fast Christine was pushed back in her seat.
“Dad!” Anton exclaimed. “The lights were still red!”
“I know,” Daddy murmured, checking the mirrors again.
“It’s illegal to run a red light!”
Daddy didn’t answer.
“Dad? Didn’t you hear me?” Anton persisted. “I said it’s illegal to—”
“I know!” Daddy shouted, causing everyone—including Mommy—to jump in their seats. “I know,” he repeated more softly, sending Anton a quick glance in the mirror. “I’m sorry, son, I didn’t notice the lights were red. Luckily, nothing happened. Okay?”
Anton seemed too surprised to answer.
Mommy turned in her seat. “It’s okay, Daddy is just a little tired. We all are. Try and see if you can get some sleep, all right?”
Anton just n
odded and turned away.
Mommy looked at Christine at smiled. The smile was only on her lips; it didn’t reach her eyes. “You okay, sweetheart?”
Christine nodded.
Then Mommy turned back around and put on the radio. She found a station playing very soft music and turned the volume all the way down low.
Christine looked at Daddy, his hands restless on the wheel. And suddenly, she remembered seeing Daddy like this before. It was the time Anton fell very ill with fever and almost couldn’t breathe because of his asthma, and Daddy had to rush him to the hospital. Daddy had been afraid back then. Afraid that Anton might die. He didn’t say so, but Christine figured it out later.
And this situation seemed eerily similar, except Christine couldn’t tell what Daddy was afraid of this time. Anton wasn’t sick, and neither were Mommy or Christine.
But she was pretty sure it had something to do with whoever was outside her window back at the house. And the old guy at the intersection. Daddy saw him. And that was when he decided to run the red light. Daddy would never do such a thing.
Christine kept mulling it over until her eyelids grew heavy and her thoughts began to drift away. The last thing she saw was the city lights fading, as they exited on the highway, now only accompanied by the stars overhead in the black night sky.
And now—
“Sweetheart?”
Mommy’s voice, insistent.
Christine finally manages to raise her eyelids. The car has stopped, the doors are open, and Anton is gone. Instead, Mommy is leaning in, looking at Christine with a faint smile.
“Good, you’re awake. I need you to get out of the car, sweetheart.”
“Are we … are we there?” Christine asks, yawning.
“Yes, well, no. We need to get on the boat now.”
Christine frowns. “What?”
“We’re going sailing,” Mommy explains. “Come on, please. We need to hurry.”
Christine fumbles with the buckle, gets it open and slides out of the car. She rubs her eyes and looks around. She doesn’t recognize the surroundings at first, because she has only been here a few times in her life, and never at nighttime. But the smell of the water and the fact that Mommy mentioned a boat helps her along.
The boats are lined up neatly along the piers, all of them tied to separate poles. Some are larger than others. The water is black and almost completely still, only tiny waves making the boat move gently up and down. Somewhere out over the water, a seagull cries shrilly.
She looks to the side and sees Anton dragging a sports bag. Farther ahead is Daddy, talking to another man who’s the exact same height, but has a potbelly.
“Is that … Uncle Kent?” Christine asks as Mommy takes the last suitcase from the car, then shuts the door.
“Yes. Come on now, sweetheart.”
They walk over to Daddy and Uncle Kent, who are talking in low voices. Christine catches some of it.
“… haven’t seen any of them, but can’t be too careful,” Uncle Kent says.
“… just a matter of time,” Daddy says, his voice grim. “… saw at least three going through town … spreading like wildfire.”
“Who are you talking about?” Anton asks, dropping the bag on the ground. “It’s the sick people, isn’t it? The ones they’re talking about on TV.”
Christine is glad he asked, because she also wants to know.
“It’s nothing, son,” Daddy says, brushing him off. “Don’t worry about it.”
“Stop telling me that!” Anton insists, and to Christine’s surprise, she can tell Anton is close to crying. “I want to know what’s going on! Why are we out here in the middle of the night? Where are we going?”
Daddy looks at him, and for a moment, Christine is afraid he might shout at Anton again. Then his expression softens, and he looks at Christine, too. “I guess it’s better you both know.”
“I’ll start her up,” Uncle Kent says, climbing aboard and beginning to untie a rope holding the boat to the pier.
Christine is very confused by that, and she’s about to ask Mommy who “she” is—did Uncle Kent get a girlfriend? Is she aboard the boat right now? And why does she need starting up?
But before she can ask, Daddy looks at Mommy, throwing out his arms. “Would you tell them?”
“Sure. You take this.”
Daddy takes the suitcase from her and follows Uncle Kent onto the boat. He begins helping him untie the ropes.
Mommy crouches down in front of them, and both Christine and Anton look at her with anticipation.
“Okay, listen. You both saw the news, right? Where they told about the disease spreading in Viborg?”
“It’s in Aarhus, too, now,” Anton interjects promptly. “That’s what they said.”
Mommy nods. “The policemen and the soldiers tried to keep it in Viborg, but it got out, and now … now Daddy and I decided we’d better leave town for a while. Just until the policemen and the soldiers get things under control. Okay?”
“So, where are we going to stay?” Anton asks.
Mommy takes a deep breath. “We’re going to England.”
“England?” Anton exclaims.
“Sssh!” Mommy darts a look around. “Keep your voice down, please. No one can know we’re leaving.”
“Why not? Is it illegal?”
“No, it’s just … it’s just better that way. We don’t want to draw any attention. Other people might get the same idea.”
“But why are we going all the way to England?” Anton asks. “Like, couldn’t we just stay outside of Aarhus somewhere? At Granny’s place, maybe? She lives all the way over in Struer—there are no sick people there!”
“We could,” Mommy admits, glancing towards the boat. “And your Daddy and I spoke about that. But we decided it’s better to leave Denmark altogether.”
“Why?” Anton demands.
“Because maybe they won’t be able to keep it from spreading outside of Aarhus, just like they couldn’t do it in Viborg,” Mommy says.
Anton is about to ask something else, when Mom quickly adds: “It’s probably just for a few days. We’ll be back before you know it. Until then, we’ll be staying in a cozy little motel in England. It’ll be nice, you’ll see. They have delicious food, and we can go for walks in the forest. And people are talking English, just like you’re learning in school, Anton.” Mommy is smiling now. “Maybe you’ll be able to understand what some of them are saying. Wouldn’t that be cool? You’ll get to practice, and once we get back and school begins again, you’ll be better at English than anyone else in class.”
Anton smiles vaguely, as the prospect of bragging to his friends apparently appeals to him.
“But, Mommy,” Christine asks, “what will happen to all the people who stay in Denmark? Are they all going to be sick?”
The smile fades from Mommy’s face as she looks at Christine. “I don’t know, sweetheart. Some of them might.”
“What about Alma? And Ida? And Freja? Will they all be sick?”
“Yeah,” Anton adds, “and what about Granny?”
Mom shakes her head slowly. “I’m sorry, but I just don’t know. Nobody does. Some of your friends might become sick, but I’m sure the doctors will find some medicine that works soon, and then they might be able to cure everyone again. And don’t worry about Granny. They’ll take good care of her at the nursing home; she’s safe there.”
A low, coughing rumble behind them, as the boat’s engine gradually comes to life.
“Come on, it’s time to go,” Mom says, ushering them towards the boat.
Just as they’re about to cross the board going from the pier to the boat, Christine hears someone scream. It’s coming from behind her, and it’s not that far away. She turns to look, but she can’t see anything on the dark pier.
“What the hell was that?” Anton says.
Mommy apparently doesn’t even notice him swearing, because she doesn’t scold him; she just grabs him by the arm and p
ulls him aboard the boat.
Then, she turns to Christine and reaches out her arms. “Now you, sweetheart. Come on!”
Christine walks onto the board as there’s another sound from behind. This time, it’s not a scream but more of a growl. She can’t help but turn her head again, and it causes her to lose her balance.
Mommy leans forward and grabs her, lifting her onto the boat. Christine looks back and just has time to see a skinny lady wearing nothing but a robe. She comes staggering out of the dark, headed right for the boat. Her skin is awfully grey, and her eyes are turned towards the black night sky, showing nothing but white. Her mouth is open and she’s groaning like she’s got something stuck deep down in her throat, something sticky.
“Holy shit!”
Daddy’s voice. He’s suddenly in front of Christine, kicking at the board just as the old lady steps onto it. It doesn’t move at first, but then Daddy kicks hard, and it slips sideways. The lady disappears, and Christine hears the splash as she hits the water.
“Get ’er moving, Kent!” Daddy shouts in a way Christine has never heard him shout before.
Somewhere, Anton is crying, asking questions about the lady. Mommy is breathing fast in Christine’s ear, whispering something Christine can’t make out. Daddy is shouting to Uncle Kent who’s shouting back up from inside the boat’s cabin.
Then, the engine roars loudly and the boat lurches forward with a jerk, causing Mommy to stumble and scream out, and both her and Christine would’ve no doubt fallen over if Daddy hadn’t caught them.
Anton, on the other hand, isn’t that lucky. Christine sees him tumble backwards and disappear over the railing. There’s another splash.
“Nooo!” Mommy screams, causing Christine’s head to ring. “He fell off! Get him, Steffen! Get Anton! He’s in the water! Stop the boat, Kent!”
“Shit!” Daddy shouts, running to the place Anton fell over. He leans over the railing, reaching down. The boat has stopped again.
Christine can hear Anton splash and gurgle. He knows how to swim, but he doesn’t like it.
“Grab my hand, Anton!” Daddy says. “Grab it!”
Dead Meat Box Set, Vol. 2 | Days 4-6 Page 19
