by TW Brown
She exited the flat, and this time was able to travel down the stairwell all the way to the ground floor. When she arrived, she remembered the tactic that Mrs. Raye had taken and placed her ear to the door first. When she heard nothing, she opened the door just enough to peek out into the corridor.
Empty.
Easing out, she was surprised that the smell of the undead was more potent than that of the fires burning everywhere. Still, she had to pull her scarf up over her mouth and nose to help filter out at least some of the smoke. Having gotten a pretty good look at the surrounding area before leaving, as well as recalling with fair accuracy where the density of the fires was the worst, Shadiyah made for Wellington Road towards the big roundabout.
She made it a point to avoid the undead any chance she got and was surprised at how easy they were to get around without them taking notice. Before long, she was moving along the A58. When she passed the Leeds Harley Davidson shop, she regretted not knowing how to operate a motorcycle. While she doubted they were that complicated, she was smart enough to know that the combination of her lack of skill mixed with the amazing racket would be a recipe for her death. Still, she did think that the shop had something worth checking out.
She hopped over the barrier and crossed the empty lot to the large windows that fronted the building. She was not surprised to see most of the glass missing and a good many bikes already gone. She even began to doubt that she would find what she was looking for here, but decided to venture forth regardless.
She stepped through a busted window, the crunch of glass under her feet seeming even louder than normal. She tried to step around the worst of the piles of shattered safety glass, but it was impossible to avoid it all. At last, she was far enough inside that it stopped being a problem.
She wove through the store making a point of being careful and alert. She had to stop after every few steps because she was certain that she kept hearing something moving about in the building with her. Every shadow had the possibility of being one of the walking dead, but eventually she noticed a distinct lack of the smell that gave away the undead and so she relaxed, if just slightly.
At last, she happened upon what she was searching for and could not hide her smile. For one of the few times in her life, she was thankful to be so diminutive. The assorted displays of leathers and jackets had been tossed, of that there was no doubt. However, she had no trouble finding something small enough to fit her perfectly.
Not long after she had come across her little cache of protective clothing, she was back out on the A58 headed east. She was still warring with the choice she had made after dealing with Miranda, but for now, she would at least head in the direction of Micklefield.
She had reached the River Aire and was debating the best way to continue with the terrible snarl of abandoned cars and what looked like a few hundred of the undead weaving in and out in their midst when she heard something down by the water that had her rush to the rail.
Looking down into the dark waters below, Shadiyah’s eyes tracked the banks in the direction of the sound. Two men were paddling a canoe and heading her direction!
She considered her possibilities and enjoyed the fact that they did not seem to be aware of her as of yet. That allowed her to really assess them and decide on her options. The closer they got, the more that she began to suspect that these men might not necessarily be the cream of society. She could recognize the dark brown pullovers that she knew to be common attire for residents of Armley, the prison in Leeds.
The closer they got, the more she was able to feel comfortable with her assessment. One of them had dark blotches on his arms that would likely morph into tattoos once he drew nearer. Both men had shaved heads and poorly trimmed facial hair and were apparently interested in looking behind them more than in front.
Shadiyah climbed up on the rail and swung her legs over so that she was perched on it as they continued to draw closer. She could see a few items tossed carelessly in the bottom of the canoe, but they seemed to be very poorly supplied. The most important thing that she managed to glean from her observations was the fact that they had no real weapons other than perhaps their paddles.
“Oi! Lads!” she called down when they were almost directly beneath her, still comically ignorant of her presence.
The men both looked up at the same time and one of them craned so fast that the canoe rocked violently. This caused them to both overreact to try and steady the small craft. A second later, the canoe capsized, spilling both men into the water with an expletive-laden shout and tremendous splash.
She actually had to cover her mouth to stifle the laughter as she watched them both begin to splash around the canoe, but what happened next caught her so off guard that she was now the one staring open-mouthed.
“Help!” one of them called; Shadiyah could not tell which one.
At first, she was struck by the terrible thought that the zombies were in the water as well. But the man continued to thrash about and it became obvious that he was simply trying to keep his head above the surface of the water.
“I can’t swim!” he managed around a mouthful of water, confirming the conclusion she had drawn just a second before.
She watched and was more than a little surprised when the second man turned around and began to paddle towards his companion. From her vantage point, she could see the whole scene clearly. The canoe was upside-down and slowly drifting away from the pair of men. Both paddles were also floating, one of them vanishing under the bridge.
The man thrashing about was starting to sound frantic just as the other man reached him. He did what most drowning individuals do; he lunged for his rescuer and pulled the man down with him. A few seconds later, they erupted from the water again, the thrashing becoming even more intense as now both men were in a fight for their life.
They went under again but the water continued to churn and froth. Of course, all of this racket was now drawing the attention of more than a few undead. Zombies were moving towards the shore on both sides, but the growth was thick enough that they were having a slow go of it.
At last, one of the men surfaced. He was looking around now, trying to locate the original source of their distraction. Shadiyah had already moved away and was hurrying to the other side of the bridge as the canoe emerged. She had to fight her way down to the water, but she was able to grab one of the oars first and then pull the canoe to her.
She could hear the shouts and sputters of the apparent sole survivor of the pair, but she paid it no heed. Turning the canoe over proved to be more difficult than she had thought would be the case. At last she had managed it, her eyes glancing back up the river towards the man who was now obviously swimming her direction.
She unshouldered her pack and hopped into the canoe, giving a little wave goodbye as she did. Pushing away from the shore, she saw a few zombies starting to gather up on the bridge as well as those coming down to the river’s banks. A few were just now starting down by her location as she began to paddle away. The curses began to fade as she found her rhythm.
***
“Looks like we got out of there just in time,” Cedric said with a sigh.
Simon was relieved, but a much bigger part of him was fighting with a sense of guilt that was taking deep root—its icy tendrils threatening to destroy his already nagging conscience. He knew that it was impossible, but a part of him still wanted to return for Shadiyah and make her join them.
“Yes,” Mrs. Raye finally spoke, “but we still have a great deal of nastiness to work our way through before we reach Mickelfield.”
As if to emphasize that point, a distant explosion to their east sounded. They turned to see a small cloud of black smoke rising from the row of residences that lined the far end of the footie pitch that sprawled alongside the motorway.
The group began their trek east, following the A64 for as long as they could until it became obvious that they needed to get clear of being in the open. Somehow, it seemed as if the undead
were managing to spot them as they passed through what had once been a densely populated area.
At last, as they reached the Selby Road roundabout, they moved over to the train tracks. While they would still be passing through relatively the same general area, since the tracks ran almost parallel to the motorway, they had the advantage of being walled in by dense trees and foliage. It wasn’t quite like being in a tunnel, but it was as close as possible without the utter blackness.
All of them began to relax after a while. Annie moved away just enough from Mrs. Raye to the point where they were no longer holding hands, but Simon noticed that she was not so far apart that such things couldn’t change in a heartbeat.
They did not see another zombie for over an hour. It had reached the point where Simon had allowed his gaze to drift down so that he watched his feet more than anything else. There was still enough apprehension so that nobody really seemed much up to talking.
That allowed Simon to seep further into his guilt over having left Shadiyah. Every so often, his gaze would drift over to Cedric who seemed to have practically no cares in the world as he trudged along with his new companions. Once in a while, the two men made eye contact and it was always Cedric who broke off; usually pretending that he spied something interesting up ahead or some such nonsense.
Simon had no idea how much longer they walked when Mrs. Raye gave him a tug on the sleeve. He stopped and looked around. At some point, they had entered the lush, green, English countryside. Rolling hills rose like waves on both sides of where they were walking.
“I think that is the M1,” Mrs. Raye said, pointing off to their right. Simon glanced over, shaking his mind clear of the daydreams that had been flitting in and out—mostly regarding Shadiyah.
Annie had actually strayed far enough away that she was walking in the grass that grew alongside the tracks. She moved in and out of the shadows cast by the trees and almost seemed like a ghost the way she would drift between the sun and darkness.
Simon called for everybody to stop and then took a seat on a fallen log that sat in the shade. Everybody gathered around, each giving him expectant looks as he sought to sift through his best recollections on their location. He had certainly made this journey enough times over the years. Of course those trips had been by car, certainly not on foot. At last, he believed that he had a good idea of where they were and which direction they might be able to go to reach their ultimate destination.
“If memory serves, Garforth is just south beyond the M1. If we stayed on the train tracks, we would end up passing right through the heart of town. That would not be my choice. We could follow the M1 until it hits the Great North Road and follow it straight in, or we could cut south once we pass Garforth. There is a country road that brings us in from the east using Church Lane.” Simon looked from one face to the other.
What he saw made him almost smack his forehead in realization. These people were all exhausted. Even Mrs. Raye looked on the verge of collapse. Shooting a glance at the sky, he wished he could actually see the sun, but the clouds were being tenacious in their desire to keep the world shrouded in a gray blanket. Still, it was obvious that it was growing late. Even if they pressed on, they might not make it to Micklefield until well after dark.
“I miss cars,” he mumbled and then clapped his hands to get everybody’s attention. “So, I propose we pop over and see if we might be able to spend the night someplace close. I seem to recall there being a football club nearby. Might even find a few things worth taking along since I doubt many have come this way to loot and pillage.”
Simon pulled out one of his last bottles of water and took a long drink He felt they had at least a fair chance of finding something to drink in a place like that. If nothing else, athletes did like having a plentiful supply of beverages.
There did not seem to be any voice to the contrary and so the small group cut through the trees on the north side of the train tracks and began making their way across a large, grassy field. The herd of sheep grazing in the pasture paid them almost no mind as they continued nibbling.
“How about some roast mutton for dinner?” Cedric whispered as they made their way to a small collection of buildings.
Simon nodded his agreement. “If we can find a spot to hold up for the night and can build a suitable fire, I think you may be on to something.”
As they got closer and closer to the small cluster of buildings, it was clear that something was a bit off. A feeling began to nag at the back of Simon’s mind, and he finally came to a stop, everybody doing likewise and turning to him with obvious questions etched on their faces.
“What’s the rub?” Cedric asked. He shot a look back to the buildings, but his eyes kept drifting to the sheep that were grazing nearby. As if to emphasize his own thoughts and priorities, his stomach growled loudly.
“Something seems peculiar,” Simon said, his voice dropping almost to a whisper as if he might be worried that somebody or something might hear. He squinted as if that might help him be able to see clearer. There was definitely something out of place, but that was when he realized just how tired he was as well. He simply could not see it; at least not clearly.
“I think you are just overly fatigued.” Mrs. Raye gave him a pat on the arm. “What could be wrong out here? All I see are a few rundown buildings, an old farmhouse, and…” Her voice trailed off as she stepped up beside Simon and took a better look.
Simon fixed the woman with a quizzical eye and could see her studying what was ahead of them. Maybe she could make sense of whatever it was that had him so uneasy.
“Everybody, very casually turn around and head back to the train tracks.” Mrs. Raye took Annie by the hand and pivoted on her feet, heading away from their proposed destination. She leaned over to Simon and whispered, “We can discuss this later.”
At last, they reached the tracks. When they drew near to the M1, Simon had everybody stop and wait while he went up to take a look around. When he found what he was looking for, he swept the area to be sure there were no zombies lurking and then jogged back to the group.
By the time he returned to the others, the shadows of the end of the day were stretching out and connecting as night made its slow but steady approach. Annie was leaning up against Mrs. Raye, her eyes closed, and Cedric (who was supposed to be keeping a lookout) was propped against a tree, his eyes shut as well. The only person alert was Mrs. Raye. She shot a nasty glance in Cedric’s direction and then returned her gaze to Simon.
“Well?” she asked, causing Annie to stir and snuggle in closer.
“It won’t be very posh, but I think it will keep us safe for the night.”
“That is the best we could hope for,” Mrs. Raye said, climbing to her feet and running her hand through Annie’s hair to comfort the girl when she started at the sudden movement.
Simon shot a look over at the man who was pulling himself away from the tree he’d been dozing against without even the slightest look of embarrassment on his face. He was becoming more and more certain that they would have been better served to bring Shadiyah and leave this lazy oaf of a man behind.
They all made their way to the M1 and Simon ushered the group to a small, white van that sat in the very center lane sandwiched in between several other vehicles that were all part of what looked to have been a nasty accident. There were no windows except for those up front and the pair on the back of the wide open cargo doors. Once everybody climbed in and became situated, Simon pulled himself up and in.
The quarters were a bit cramped, and with everybody somewhat soggy from the weather, it was not long before a musty smell permeated, but that was the tradeoff for them being warm and relatively safe. A voice woke Simon just as he started to drift off to sleep.
“I need the loo,” Annie grumped.
7
Choosing
Shadiyah had never really paid attention to the river that cut through the city of Leeds. Now, it was positively the only way that she could see having a chan
ce to get out. The zombies were everywhere and in massive numbers. She looked up at the dead faces that peered down from some of the walkways that ran along the gently winding river and could only shake her head.
“How?” she asked the breeze since there did not seem to be anybody else to hear her.
By the time she reached what she knew had to be Leeds Station, she was actually thankful to dip into the darkness of the tunnel that ran underneath, allowing the river to continue on past the heart of what had once been a beautiful and vibrant city. Now, as she pulled in the paddle and allowed the canoe to drift along with the gentle current, she felt much like the tunnel she was currently navigating. She could not, nor would she try, to deny the darkness that was settling on her heart.
When she emerged on the other side, she glanced back at the curved white roofs of the train station. She let her eyes drift over the many tall buildings and she wondered if perhaps there might be a single living being that could see her. She wondered if maybe that person might be just wishing and eager to catch her eye with the hopes that she would somehow be able to come to their aid. She also wondered if there might be some malevolent part of the dregs of humanity that watched her and imagined doing terrible things to her in this new and lawless world that existed…at least for the time being.
That last thought was what took greater purchase in her mind as she continued on, occasionally using the paddle to correct her course and keep her in the middle of the waterway. She had seen the evil of man with her own eyes. She knew that history was full of tales from the Middle Ages regarding how those in power had often abused it at the peril of the poor, the innocent, and quite often, the women.
She had taken back a small bit of the power that was stripped from her sister in that moment when she executed those terrible bastards that had hurt and abused Assi. Could she hope to take back even more?
