The Collapse Omnibus

by V. A. Brandon

  Another crackling shot filled the air. Then another. But the Runners had come too close. The nearest one was only about twenty feet away.

  Justin leaped and grabbed Daniel’s hands, causing the man to lean dangerously over the railing. At this rate, both men would topple to the ground and become food for the ravenous Runners. Marie cried out and yanked on her husband’s trousers, muttering something in her native tongue. Seeing this, Amy jumped up and wrapped her arms around Daniel’s torso. She pulled hard, praying that they would make it.

  To everyone’s relief, Justin managed to pull one leg over the railing. With a concerted effort, he threw himself over and landed in the balcony with a dull thud. Amy rushed over to him, checking to make sure he was okay. They were all alive. She couldn’t believe it.

  A veiny hand suddenly clamped on the railing, its long, cracked fingernails caked with dried blood. Marie shrieked and stepped back just as Amy picked up the baseball bat and slammed it over the fingers, crushing them. The Runner fell back, but immediately got up on its feet. With a snarl, it jumped again, trying to reach the first-floor railing like it had before.

  “We are not safe yet,” Daniel said, his face drawn and pale. ‘We must leave before one of them succeeds and climbs over this railing.”

  “You kids all right?” Garrett called out, leaning over his balcony. His eyes were filled with worry.

  “Yes, we’re all fine, Garrett,” Amy said. “Could you let down a rope? We’ll tie the sacks so that you can pull them up.”

  Her gaze wandered over to the other apartment building across from theirs. She could see a few faces peeping out of the windows to look at them, their expressions shocked and frightened. It made Amy realize just how crazy and suicidal their actions had been.

  Though the whole idea had been hers, she vowed never to willingly put her friends and herself in such danger again.

  Chapter 10

  Once everyone had reached Justin’s apartment safely, they stood in the living room, the sacks of food lying on the floor. Amy noticed Ms. Wentworth’s eyes light up when she spied a can of seafood bisque peeping out from a sack. Slowly, Amy went and stood in front of the sacks, blocking the elderly woman from the view.

  “Understand this,” Amy said quietly. “We risked our lives to get this food. We almost died out there.” Her gaze landed on Ms. Wentworth and Patrick. “So don’t think that you can eat whatever you want, when you want. You eat what we give you, and I don’t want to hear your complaints, either.”

  Garrett raised a fist to his mouth, trying to hide his smile.

  Amy stared at Patrick. “Where were you? How could you desert us like that?”

  All eyes fixed on him, and he became nervous when he realized no one was on his side.

  “I panicked, okay?” he cried out. “There were so many of them running at us. What could I do with a measly knife? So I ran back, and Garrett let down the rope. I climbed up to the first floor, and then used the ladder to get back to my apartment.”

  Benson looked up. “This isn’t your apartment,” he said, his tone disapproving. “It’s Justin’s.”

  “Let the adults talk, honey,” Ms. Wentworth said with a forced smile. “It’s rude to talk back to people older than you. Why don’t you take your mutt and go play in the bedroom, hmm?”

  This interaction greatly displeased Marie. She came up and put a consoling arm around the boy.

  “Please don’t treat Benson like that. He is a good boy, and he has been very helpful to all of us.” Without waiting for an answer, she turned to address Amy and Justin. “We will return to our apartment now. You can decide what to do with the food.”

  Justin shook hands with Daniel. “I want to say thank you. You saved my life just now.”

  “We saved each other,” he answered with a genuine smile. “I will see you tomorrow.”

  When they left, Amy pointedly ignored Ms. Wentworth and Patrick and turned to Garrett. “One of the sacks is for the campervan. We’ll divide the food from the second sack and make sure that each person gets an equal portion –”

  “Are you insane?” Patrick blurted out. “Do you honestly think that a nine-year-old boy should get the same amount of food that a grown man gets?”

  Garrett crossed his arms. “If you have a problem with it, maybe you’d like to go out and get your own food.”

  This promptly shut the man up, but his outburst raised an interesting thought. Amy looked at Ms. Wentworth.

  “I seem to recall that Patrick ate all the food last time, leaving you with only a can of chicken soup.”

  “Half a can, dear,” Ms. Wentworth corrected at once. She glared at Patrick. “But he still complained and said he was hungry.”

  Justin disappeared for several seconds, then reappeared later, holding up two sets of keys in his hand.

  “My desk and the small cabinet in my study have locks on them. You can put your food in there. That way, you can’t steal from each other.”

  Ms. Wentworth seemed pleased with this arrangement. Not only would she have her own food, but no one would be able to take it away from her. She took one of the keys, cradling it to her chest with a protective hand.

  Garrett, Amy, and Justin began to go through the contents in the sack. Despite the limited time they had in the shop, Marie had chosen a wide selection of much-needed products. She had avoided canned soup, favoring chunky stews and chilies, beans, and pasta. A lot of the dry packaged meals were rice-based. Feminine products, aspirin, cough medicine, toothpaste, bottled water, powdered milk, a small bag of kibbles for Walter . . . Amy sent a silent “thank you” as she pulled them out one by one.

  About half an hour later, they had neatly arranged everything into eight small piles. Amy and Justin put them into plastic bags. When they finished, Amy handed a bag to Garrett, and then placed two bags on the island counter for Ms. Wentworth and Patrick. Lastly, she and Justin carried the rest.

  “Three of these bags will go to Daniel’s apartment. The remaining two will be ours. Are there any objections?”

  Patrick didn’t speak up. Maybe it was because Garrett was watching him closely, and the younger man was well aware of it. The silence continued on. With a satisfied nod, Garrett moved toward the balcony.

  “It’s been quite a day, especially for you both. Why don’t you get some rest? And I’d like to invite you all to my place for dinner. How does that sound?”

  “Well, I don’t know if I can climb down that ladder,” Ms. Wentworth said, wincing. “I have bad hips. And my heart . . .” She trailed off. “I think it’s best if we eat here.”

  Patrick paused, then said reluctantly, “Would we have to serve dinner from our portion?”

  “Of course not,” Garrett answered at once. “I have extra camping stuff we can eat. I’ll bring them up, along with the powdered eggs. Probably best to finish them, anyway.” He leaned against the railing, thinking. “Now that we’ve got extra groceries, we should start thinking about moving. I don’t want to make my daughter wait any more than she has to.”

  “We’ll talk later,” Justin agreed. When he and Amy went to join Garrett at the balcony, Justin paused to throw a glance over his shoulder.

  “By the way, Patrick, you should do something about that barricade. Find something to replace the bookshelf we broke up. That door’s looking pretty vulnerable.”

  “Don’t worry about it. I will,” Patrick answered dismissively. He plopped down on the sofa and stretched out his body. “I’m going to take a nap. It’s been a rough afternoon.” And he promptly shut his eyes and rolled over to his side, showing them his back.

  Garrett raised his brows, looking faintly amused. Then he turned to Justin and Amy. “I suggest you do the same. I’ll see you both tonight.” He climbed down the ladder, quickly disappearing from their sight.

  Chapter 11

  Dinner was once again enjoyed by all, despite the circumstances. Garrett had made macaroni and cheese and scrambled powdered eggs, and he’d brought up a large
thermos flask of steaming cocoa for everyone. Unlike the previous night, Walter had his own kibbles and warm powdered milk for supper.

  Amy had no idea why, but she felt a strange premonition that this could be their last meal together. Of course, maybe it was because Garrett was already planning to leave on his campervan. Judging by his words, it sounded like he wanted to leave the next day.

  “Don’t you think that’s too soon?” Amy asked as she sipped her cocoa. She understood his urgency; after all, he had a daughter to go to. Her life depended on her father finding her . . . if she was still alive.

  “Maybe tomorrow is too soon,” Garrett admitted. “We could give ourselves a few days to prepare and come up with a solid plan. But I don’t want to delay this any longer than we have to. We might get too comfortable here.”

  Justin’s gaze traveled over to the door. “Why haven’t you strengthened your barricade yet?” he asked Patrick.

  The older man sighed heavily and pinched the bridge of his nose. “For Pete’s sake, Justin! I said I’d take care of it. Stop nagging at me, okay?”

  “I won’t mention it again,” Justin said dryly. He turned his attention to Daniel. “What do you think? Will you be ready in a few days’ time?”

  Daniel nodded solemnly. “Yes, I think so. I hope it will be easier than facing a Runner outside.”

  “I’m positive it will be,” Garrett said with conviction. “At most, we’ll probably encounter three or four Runners in the hallway and on the stairs. Daniel and I will be in front, leading the way.” His gaze landed on Justin, Amy, and Patrick. “I want the three of you to watch the back in case there’s a stray Runner coming after us. Ms. Wentworth, Benson, and Marie will be in the middle.”

  “Where did you park your campervan?” Patrick asked, his eyes darting around nervously. “I mean, is it close to the basement stairs?”

  Garrett scratched his head. “To be honest, I’m not sure.” He paused for a second, then added humorously, “But more importantly, let’s hope no one has trashed or stolen it.”

  They moved the discussion to extra weapons and protective gear.

  “Judging by the fact that I wasn’t infected even though I got Runner’s blood on my exposed neck, I think it’s safe to say that infection doesn’t spread through skin contact,” Amy said. She glanced at Justin. “You had some Runner’s blood on your face as well.”

  Daniel smiled. “This is good to know. I did not feel safe with the plastic wrap anyway, and it was very uncomfortable.”

  “What about weapons?” Marie asked. She stared at Benson, who was sitting on the floor and playing with Walter. “We don’t have enough.”

  “Anything can be a weapon,” Garrett replied. “We could attach long screw drivers to the ends of broomsticks, make a flamethrower using hairspray and a lighter – although you might want to be careful with that one – or even use a good old ax if we have it. Just need to use a bit of imagination, that’s all.”

  Benson’s eyes lit up at the word imagination. “Hey! Maybe we could also cut up cardboard boxes and put them around our bodies. That can be our protective gear.” He smiled up at Marie. “Can you make me a cardboard armor?”

  Marie smiled and ruffled his soft hair. “I will try.”

  “That’s the most ludicrous thing I’ve heard all day,” Patrick said, snorting. “As if cardboard could protect us from cannibalistic crazies! We need to think of something that has more endurance.”

  “Like what?” Amy asked. She couldn’t help the sneer forming on her lips. “Chainmail? Leather? A copper breastplate?”

  Patrick nodded. “Yes, something like that! Now that’s real protection.”

  “Where would we even find them?” Daniel asked, his expression dubious. “At a museum?”

  Garrett made an impatient noise. “This is a waste of time. Unless you have medieval chainmail tucked away in your closet, Patrick, I suggest we use what we have to protect ourselves. I vote for Benson’s cardboard armor.” He grinned at the boy, who grinned back. “It’s far from perfect, but at least it’ll give us a few precious seconds of protection. Better than nothing at all, I’d say.”

  The discussion was over. Amy felt a lump growing in her throat. They were actually going to do it. They were leaving the city to go to a safe place.

  Garrett yawned loudly and padded over to the kitchen. He paused, then reached for a pamphlet lying on the kitchen counter and doodled something on the back. He pocketed it and then tucked his empty thermos flask under his arm.

  “I’m beat,” he said. “Think I’ll go back to my place now.” His solemn gaze landed on Justin and Amy. “Could you young folks accompany me to the balcony? I want you to pull up the ladder once I get down. I don’t like it dangling in the open like that.”

  Confused, Justin and Amy followed after him. Once they stood in front of the railing, Garrett pulled out the folded pamphlet he’d put into his pocket and handed it to Justin.

  “I drew a crude map to the farm. It isn’t hard to reach, really. Takes about two hours by car, but all you have to do is take the Great Memorial Highway, and then make a left turn right after you see the neon sign that says, ‘Harold’s Diner.’ Just follow the map from there.”

  “Why are you telling us this?” Amy whispered. “Aren’t we going together?”

  “We are,” Garrett replied quickly. “But plans don’t always work out the way we want them to. This is just in case we get separated.” He lowered his voice. “I didn’t mention this earlier because I didn’t want to worry the others. But I’m sure everything will work out just as we planned.” He reached out to chuck Amy under the chin. “Cheer up, kid. We’ll all be fine. Stay positive, all right?”

  They watched as Garrett climbed down the ladder and hopped into his balcony. He gave them a cheery wave before entering his apartment. Deep in thought, Justin pulled up the ladder and let it drop on the floor. A while later, he pulled out the folded paper and stared at the map with intense eyes, as though he were memorizing all the details.

  Amy looked up and saw a few people in the building across from theirs staring at them. They were the same people who’d stared at her earlier in the afternoon. Even from this distance, Amy could see that they weren’t faring well at all. Once their meager supplies ran out, hunger and desperation would soon drive these people out from the safety of their apartments in search for food. Some would make it. But many others would not. Amy tore her gaze away, suddenly feeling immense guilt for having food to eat while others were starving right before her eyes. She couldn’t bear to look at them.

  “We should start packing,” Daniel said, startling Amy from her torturous thoughts. He and his wife, along with Benson and Walter, had joined them.

  “Don’t forget the armor!” Benson added, sending Daniel a reprimanding look. “That’s the most important part.”

  Justin blinked and hurriedly pocketed the map. He turned to smile at the boy. “That’s right. We’d better pack and get those cardboard armors ready. We’re leaving in three days, so let’s stay busy.”

  Everyone seemed optimistic, even excited, about leaving. But Amy still couldn’t shake off her previous feelings of premonition. It didn’t help that the map inside Justin’s pocket only served to increase her fear.

  This is just in case we get separated, Garrett had said.

  Just in case.

  Chapter 12

  The first day went by quietly, and the second day looked like it would turn out the same. Justin and Amy packed some of the canned goods and packaged meals into separate backpacks, along with medical kits and personal items. Justin paused as he held up his wallet.

  “Do you think we’ll need money and credit cards?” he asked with a sudden grin.

  Amy shrugged. “Who knows? Some people might still want cash. I know I’m definitely not leaving my ID card, passport, and credit cards behind. They go where I go.”

  Justin tossed his wallet into his bag. “What else? We’ll need a spare change of clothes and sho
es. Maybe a thick jacket. We’ll definitely need bottled water. And a Swiss Army knife. What else?” He paused to drum his fingers on his thigh. “Hmm. Oh, yes. A flashlight and a box of matches.”

  Amy raised her brows. “Wow, you’ve really thought this through. But we won’t need most of them in the campervan.”

  “Maybe,” he agreed. “But I’d feel safer knowing that I have these items nearby. You never know when we might need them.”

  Regarding weapons, Justin had taking a great liking to his baseball bat. Amy decided to take Justin’s old golf club and use that as her weapon. She’d never played golf before, but she liked the way it felt in her hands.

  Next, they cut up thick boxes to make their “protective gear.” Amy wondered if they were wasting their time. After all, these things couldn’t protect them from a Runner’s bite. She grumbled this out as she used both hands to cut through the thick paper with her small scissors.

  “That’s true,” Justin concurred. “But think about it. A Runner will claw at you first before biting you. I think the cardboard will save us from getting eviscerated. Even those few precious seconds will give us time to fight back or stab them in the eye.” He nodded to himself. “Garrett’s right. It really is better than nothing at all.”

  By the time they were done, Justin and Amy had cardboard wrapped around their lower and upper arms, thighs and calves, and a long, thick piece around their chest. They had left their elbows and knees exposed for better flexibility.

  “We look like idiots,” Amy complained as Justin laughed heartily beside her. He insisted that she should twirl around so that he could inspect their handiwork. She rolled her eyes and did a dramatic pirouette.

  “You look fine to me,” he said, still chuckling. They took the cardboard off and decided to have lunch. Deciding on beef and chili, they sat down at the kitchen counter and scarfed down their meal.