Broken Dreams

by Rissa Blakeley

  “I want Claire in the front so she can navigate.” Everyone got in, and they took off. “We will need to stop for gas soon so be on the lookout for possible sources.”

  Chapter 27

  I

  t took about an hour before Sophie, Claire, and Thomas got to Elaina’s and Nick’s apartment building. Excitement raced over Claire’s skin. There was one thing in particular she wanted to get from Nick’s apartment.

  “There! Right there!” Claire was frantically pointing at the plain, brown brick building that looked like a dormitory. Sophie pulled up to the front entrance. They sat there for a few moments, looking around and checking out the area. It seemed relatively untouched, but they knew better than that.

  “Thomas, get out the sniper rifle.” Claire and Thomas both looked at each other, worried about what Sophie had in mind. “Claire, where are the flats?” She pointed. Elaina’s was on the third floor, Nick’s was a basement apartment. “Okay. Here’s the plan. I’m going to sit up on the roof of the truck and pick them off as I see them. You two will go inside. You have ten minutes per flat. Any longer than that, I may have to leave you. Come out after each one.”

  “Heard,” Claire said. She and Thomas loaded their guns.

  “One of you take an axe and a flashlight, as well. Spare your ammo.” They all got out and Sophie hoisted herself up to the roof of the truck. “And no more strays!” she yelled as they marched off into the building. Claire waved at Sophie, acknowledging her command.

  ***

  The door was unlocked. Claire wondered if it was Henry’s doing when he came out to get them supplies several weeks prior, or if it was left unlocked by the residents. The front lobby looked clear. Claire looked at Thomas.

  “Ready?”

  “Can I say no?” he said, nervously.

  “What?”

  “I’m jus’ scared.”

  Claire smiled warmly at him. “Remember the medical building? You were awesome there.” Thomas nodded. “Come on. What do we have to lose?”

  “Nothin’, I guess.”

  Claire stepped through the door and began creeping toward the stairwell. Thomas followed behind, watching their backs. Before they made it to the door of the stairwell, they heard a couple of shots fired outside. Claire grabbed the handle and paused. She turned back and looked at Thomas.

  “Be ready.” Claire pulled open the door and the smell of death wafted out at them. She let go of the handle, allowing the door to slam shut, before she vomited. Thomas handed Claire the axe, then pulled off the long-sleeved button-down shirt he borrowed from Elaina’s father’s closet.

  “You think she’d be mad if I tore this up?”

  “I doubt it.”

  Thomas tore off the sleeves. He helped Claire tie one around her nose and mouth, and Claire helped him tie one on himself. She opened the door again. The smell was still exceptionally strong, but the shirt helped filter it some. They only needed to go down one flight of stairs, but it was pitch black. Claire clicked on the flashlight and screamed.

  “Shh!” Thomas hissed.

  “Sorry…,” she said. There were two true dead bodies rotting at the foot of the stairs. They had to have been there for a couple of weeks. It was a horrific, gory mess. “How do we get past them?”

  “We jus’ have ta step over ‘em.”

  Claire shuddered. She felt bile threatening, and it took all of her might to keep it down.

  They descended the stairs and Claire pulled on the door. She could barely get it open far enough to squeeze through because the oozy, decaying bodies were blocking it. She flashed the light down the hallway, then grabbed Thomas’ arm. There were a half-dozen undeads roaming, bumping into each other at the other end of the hall.

  “We need to go to the end.” Her voice was dripping with fear.

  “I’ll get ‘em.” Thomas handed Claire the axe, pulling the gun out of the back of his pants. He pushed past Claire, making it about halfway down the hall before shooting all of them, not missing a single time. He fist bumped the air. Claire shined the flashlight on them to make sure they were true dead.

  “Nice work!” she shouted.

  When they got to Nick’s door, Claire turned the knob, hoping it was unlocked. No such luck. “Shit. Now what?”

  Thomas tucked his gun in the back of his pants, and grabbed the axe from her.

  “Stan’ back.” He raised the axe, and came down hard on the door handle. The metal on metal sound was deafening in the heavy silence that was around them. He hit the doorjamb a few times and the door popped open. Quickly, he pulled out his gun, and Claire pointed the flashlight around the apartment.

  “Good god. What a slob. We’ll have to talk about this.” They stepped inside, Thomas looking around at the mess.

  “He left it like this?”

  “Looks like it. There’s one thing I want to find. Be on the lookout for an acoustic guitar.” They slowly worked their way through the tiny, chaotic apartment. “Looks like a tornado ripped through here.”

  “There!” Thomas pointed over by the bar stool.

  “Yes! That’s it!” Claire said enthusiasm. She couldn’t wait to see the look on Nick’s face when she showed up with his guitar.

  “Is tha’ all?”

  “I don’t know. Maybe we can get…” They heard the telltale click of the hammer of a gun behind them. They turned around, and saw a man pointing a gun at them. Claire and Thomas both raised their guns in response.

  “I suggest you put that down.” The voice sounded familiar, but she couldn’t place it.

  “This is my boyfriend’s, and I’m bringing it back to him.”

  The man laughed. “Your boyfriend’s? I can’t tell you how many times I have heard that one over the past few weeks.”

  “Listen, asshole,” Thomas growled as best he could. “Do you really think we’d go through a pitch black stairwell, walk down a pitch black hallway, shoot six undeads, bus’ open this particular door just to steal a fuckin’ guitar? Don’ you think if we really were just lootin’, we would have just hit the apartments closest to the fuckin’ entrance?” Claire couldn’t believe her own ears. She was pretty sure that was the most Thomas had said in her presence.

  “Thomas, shut up!”

  “Claire?” She hesitated, not knowing if she should even acknowledge that he knew her name.

  “Yeah…?”

  “Holy shitballs! I can’t fucking believe it!” The man came closer and closer. They still had their guns up and ready. “It’s David!”

  “David!” Claire wasn’t too sure who he was, but she was going to play along.

  “Who the hell is this?” David asked, looking at Thomas.

  “He’s a friend of mine. We’re staying together.”

  “Are you…?” He pointed back and forth between Claire and Thomas.

  “Oh. Oh no! He’s a little too young for me. Family friend.”

  “Right. Aren’t you still with Marc?” It hit her then. David was one of Marc’s co-workers.

  “Uh…” There was an awkward silence. “Well, our ride is waiting so we’ll get going now. It was nice to see you, David.” Thomas still had his gun ready and watched David carefully. Claire started walking toward the door.

  “Wait. You said the guy that lived here was your boyfriend?”

  “Uh, yes. Yes, I did.”

  “But I thought…”

  Claire snapped. “He’s dead! Okay! Is that what you want to hear?” Claire’s voice rang out, echoing in the darkness. “He’s fucking dead! I had to shoot him!” She collected herself. “Is there anything else you need, David?” Clare stood stiffly, holding her cries in.

  “No. I’m…uh, sorry to hear that. Marc was a good man.”

  “Thank you,” Claire choked out. “Let’s go,” she directed Thomas, but David wasn’t finished talking yet.

  “My girlfriend is gone, too. She lived here, three doors down. I came here to find her, and she was one of those…things. I’ve been hanging around h
ere, wallowing in self-pity. I haven’t left her apartment in a week because those things in the hall appeared so I guess I owe you a thank you. I only have two bullets left.”

  “I’m sorry for your loss.” Claire was all business. She took another step toward the door.

  “Uh, can I ask one last thing?” Claire stopped and took a deep breath. “Do you have any smokes? I haven’t had a smoke in weeks, and I really could use one.”

  “I don’t smoke, but Nick does. Feel free to look around, take what you want. I’m sure he won’t mind.” Hoping it would get David off their backs, she was happy to allow him to loot Nick’s apartment.

  “Oh, cool! Thanks, Claire. I hope you…well, I hope you survive.”

  “You, too, David. Come on, Thomas.” They calmly walked out the door, stepped over the fresh true deads, and ran down the hallway. Thomas opened the door, and they stepped over the two decaying bodies, ran up the stairs, and back out the front entrance. They stopped once they got to the truck, and Sophie jumped off the roof.

  “Who was tha’?” Thomas’ breathing was still labored.

  “I have no idea, but we need to get out of here.” She opened the truck door and pushed the guitar in the back, deflecting the question. She just wanted to get home to Nick. Sophie and Thomas looked at one another and shrugged.

  “What about Elaina’s flat?”

  “Bad idea. Let’s just go back to the house.”

  “Skipping yours as well?” Sophie asked.

  “Yes! Let’s just go!” insisted Claire. Everyone got in the truck, Sophie slammed it in gear, and they sped off.

  ***

  They had driven for about ten minutes and Claire was still acting rather odd. Sophie thought maybe she could get her to talk about it.

  “So what happened back there?” Claire dissolved into a puddle of tears. Sophie looked back at Thomas, and he shook his head. “Claire talk to me.”

  “We ran into someone in Nick’s apartment. It was David Tasker. He was one of Marc’s co-workers, and a royal asshole. Marc said he was shady…a smooth talker and a scammer. I just wanted to get out of there, in case he tried to pull something.” She pulled off the shirtsleeve, which was draped around her neck, and covered her eyes with it.

  “Did he say something unkind? Because we can go back and I’ll take care of it. I’m quite ready for a fix.” Sophie had a sadistic enthusiasm that only she could pull off.

  “No! Jesus, Sophie. He was asking me about Marc. I don’t want to talk about it, alright!” She covered her face and put her head against the window, trying to block out her thoughts.

  “Alright then.” Sophie was gripping the steering wheel. “I still need a fix,” she mumbled.

  “Dammit! Thomas, give me her pack!” Thomas swiftly grabbed Sophie’s pack and tossed it up to Claire. “Thank you!”

  “Sure, no problem.” He was leery of the attitude in the front of the truck. Claire pulled out the needle and vial, tied off her arm and began a draw on herself.

  In less than a minute, Claire was tossing a vial at Sophie. It was as silent in the truck as it was outside on the streets. She pulled the truck over and threw it into park. After she tossed back the vial, she laid her head back on the headrest, closed her eyes, took a few deep breaths, and let the mini high whisk her away for just a moment.

  “We had better get moving. It’s going to be dark soon.” Sophie’s eyes popped open and looked over at Claire. Her eyes were shiny and bright again. Claire thought of Nick when she saw them.

  “Right. So much for that high,” she drawled. Sophie thought that if they didn’t sleep so long, they could have completed the travel that day. “I’m not too keen on driving through the night again.”

  “We need to get back. I don’t want them to worry so much that they leave to try to find us.”

  “Claire, I’m not driving through the night. Period.” Claire was ready to throttle her.

  “Okay, Queen Sophie. Where are we going to camp out then?”

  “I don’t know!”

  “Well, maybe your royal bitchyness should fucking decide!” Claire really wanted to get back to Nick. She wanted to feel his cool arms around her body, wanted him to whisper in her ear that everything would be okay, even though she knew it was a lie.

  “Really, Claire? Are we going to get snippy?” Thomas was looking between Sophie and Claire.

  “Yes! Yes, I will get snippy if I damn well want to! Has it ever occurred to you that maybe I don’t want to do this anymore?”

  Sophie laughed, then grabbed Claire by the collar. “Has it ever occurred to you that you have a choice, and I don’t?! This is my life! So shut the fuck up before I kick you out on the curb!” Sophie let go of her shirt, shoving Claire back into the seat.

  “I can’t believe that you think I have a choice.” Claire crossed her arms.

  “Fine, we’ll do it your way.” Sophie slammed the truck into drive and roared down the street. She was easily going sixty miles an hour through the city. Thomas was cringing in the back. Sophie swerved around herds of undeads, hitting a few in the process.

  “You know, you have a blatant disregard for these people!” yelled Claire. Sophie didn’t respond verbally but, instead, accelerated. When Claire looked at the speedometer, it was hovering over eighty. “Will you slow down?! You’re going to kill us all, you crazy bitch!”

  Sophie laughed. “Kill us all,” Sophie said to herself. “I’m already half-dead!”

  “I’m not, and neither is Thomas. And we don’t intend to be any time soon!” Sophie stood on the brakes. The truck screeched to a stop. She threw it in park, opened the door, walked angrily to Claire’s door, yanked it open, and wrestled her out of the truck.

  “You are a goddamned maniac, Sophie!”

  “Drive!” Claire stood there glaring at her. “I said drive!” Sophie bellowed. Claire turned and strolled to the driver’s side. Sophie jumped in the passenger side and buckled up. Thomas was barely breathing in the back. He was seriously thinking about walking back to the house.

  Claire quietly got in, put on the seat belt, adjusted her mirrors, and casually put the truck in drive.

  “Alright then. You decide. It’s your choice and you lead the way, princess,” Sophie snapped. She slowly accelerated, acting oblivious to Sophie’s demand that she was now the leader. Anger was rolling out of every pore in Sophie’s body. Claire continued to drive casually, which made Sophie even angrier. Claire smiled. It was something Elaina would have done.

  “Just fucking drive!” Sophie bellowed.

  “Aye, aye, captain,” Claire said. She jammed down the accelerator, and they took off.

  As the night rolled in, so did a thick, heavy fog. Claire was having difficulty seeing what was in front of the truck, forcing her to drive about twenty miles per hour. Sophie had calmed down for the time being. She and Thomas were leaning out the windows as two extra sets of eyes for Claire.

  She held on tight to the steering wheel, and her arms were shaking. Finally, she said, “Should we pull over?”

  “I think that might be a good idea. We can’t keep fighting through this fog just to risk crashing.” Sophie did her best not to say “I told you so”. “We’re close to the on-ramp. Let’s pull over near it and wait for the fog to lift some.” Claire nodded and carefully pulled the truck over, even though she was unable to see the side of the road. She was trying to hold it together. Not knowing what could be five feet or less in front of them terrified her.

  Claire turned the truck off to conserve gas. “I’ll take first watch. I’m too jacked-up to rest.”

  “Alright then. Thomas, hand me one of those blankets, please.” Sophie curled up against the passenger door, shutting her heavy eyelids.

  “I’ll stay awake wit’ you.” That was the first thing Thomas had said for a while.

  “Thank you, Thomas.” Claire was quiet for a few minutes. “You know, when we first met you, I wanted to knock you out, but you have turned out to be an amazing person.”<
br />
  “Thank you,” he said with a bashful smile.

  “What do you miss the most? Besides your family, of course.” Claire was trying to make conversation and get to know him better.

  “Hmm…music. I really loved it. Music was my escape.”

  “Once we get the iPod to Henry, he’ll have music in his truck. We probably should have grabbed the car charger from his truck before we left. Did you play an instrument?”

  “No. We couldn’t afford that.” He looked sad.

  “Well, Thomas, if it makes you feel any better, I tried and failed miserably.” They both laughed a little.

  “So Nick can play the guitar?” He ran his fingers over the strings.

  “Yes. I can’t wait until we can give it to him. Over the years, I heard him playing so many times. He’s amazing. And he can sing with the best of them. He has a real gift for it.”

  A rush of warmth ran through Claire. She knew she was making the right decision to fall into Nick’s arms. It just felt like it should be that way. Like it always should have been that way.

  Claire and Thomas talked for hours while Sophie slept. Claire hoped that she would sleep off her bitchyness.

  ***

  The morning sun began to burn off the fog. When the warm rays broke through and settled on Claire’s face, she woke with a start, not realizing that she had fallen asleep. She looked at the passenger side, and Sophie wasn’t there. She whipped her head around, and saw that Thomas was asleep, lying across the backseat.

  “Thomas! Wake up!” He jumped up, nearly knocking himself out on the back of the driver’s seat.

  “Wha’?” he mumbled.

  “Where’s Sophie?”

  “Huh?” Thomas rubbed his eyes. He looked in front and saw she was gone.

  “Oh, my god! Henry is going to kill me if we lose her!” Panic had taken over. “We have to find her!” She opened the truck door and jumped out. The fog was still lingering, but it wasn’t nearly as dense as it had been overnight. She wasn’t sure if she should call out to her.

  Thomas got out, gun at the ready. Claire’s breathing was rapid and loud, and he held his finger to his lips. They both stood still and were as quiet as possible. Suddenly, Thomas held up his hand, signaling that he heard something. He slowly crept away in the direction of the noise. She was worried he would run into something he couldn’t handle. The sounds became louder and closer. Thomas held up his gun, ready to shoot. Then Sophie appeared out of the fog, and let out a short scream.