~ ~ ~ ~ ~
“We’re going to have to ration it,” mumbled Shawn. We all stared at the canned and boxed goods we’d organized on one of the shelves in the back room. Robby’s full deep freeze sat plugged in beside the fridge which was almost bare. Though the second truck’s raiding party had done slightly better than ours, it hadn’t been much more fruitful. Jenny’s house had been broken into as had Shawn’s and Jason’s. The only food they’d been able to salvage had been from the twins’ apartment and Robby’s house.
“I’m getting hungry just thinking of having to go on rations,” complained Brent. Though his brother didn’t voice his opinion, it was clear by the look on his face that he was in the same boat.
Lizzy’s gasp immediately turned my attention to Max.
“Bad, neutral, or comfortable, Maxy?” I watched as his eyes narrowed and his body stiffened.
“Bad. Very bad.” He shut his eyes and I frowned.
“You okay?”
He shook his head and went to stand by the far wall, his entire body trembling.
“Holy fuck! Dude, there’s five of them out there!” Grant was standing on a crate and looking out of the space we’d left in the windows.
Brent was at the other window. “Lane, dude, what do you want to do?”
Lane was staring at me, tense. We all watched as the door handle rattled.
“I have to… I don’t know what I have to do.” Max stood plastered against the wall.
“Shit. Maxy, what’s wrong?” The Yellow Eyes forgotten, I rushed to his side. My hand touched his arm and I swore again. “He’s burning up! Lizzy, get me a wet cloth.”
I looked up at Lizzy’s whimper. She gaped at us, shaking her head.
“Lizzy!”
Jenny ran to the mop room, grabbed one of the cleaning rags, wet it, and ran it back to me. “I’ll get him some water.”
I thanked her and pressed the cloth to his forehead. His teeth rattled and sweat beaded his brow.
“Oh, god, it hurts, Gabs.” A sob raked through him and he groaned.
“What hurts? Where does it hurt?”
His silver eyes met mine. “Everywhere.” He wiped the tears from his face with his arm but couldn’t keep up to the flow of them. Another spasm took him and he paled.
Lane knelt beside me. “Is it like before?”
Max shook his head. “No. Yes.” He groaned. “Yes, but worse.”
Lane looked at me. “Maybe it’s because they’re close.”
“They were just as close when they walked by the store,” countered Shawn.
“Oh, god, make it stop!”
All of us jumped and a few of us screamed as one rifle went off and then another. Brent and Grant reloaded and fired out the window a second time. I turned back toward Max as Grant took the last shot.
“Did you get them all?” questioned Robby.
The twins were pale and were staring at each other.
Brent managed a nod. “Is Max okay? Did it help?”
Maxy groaned and slid sideways down the wall so that he lay in a ball on the floor.
My throat tightened. “Oh, my god, Lane…”
“Aaarrrrgh!” Max opened his eyes and I gasped. The silver had fully taken over his eyes. “It’s close.” He groaned. “You guys… have to get out… Gabby… Get them out of here!”
Everyone was looking around frantically. My heart was beating so hard I was sure it would give up from exhaustion. A breeze blew through the building and I glanced at the door to make sure it was closed. It was.
“What was that?” Lizzy was stuck in place with fear.
“What?” Jenny looked up from her place beside Max. All of us yelled and Lizzy screamed as she was flung backwards and away from us. Her shoulder drove into the wall and she grunted with the impact.
“Lizzy!” Max tried to stand, stumbled and fell to the ground. All of us watched, stunned, as a man stepped out of the shadows in the far corner of the shop. His chuckle chilled me and I shivered.
“Well, then, little brother, it has been a while, hasn’t it?”
I gawked at him, unable to process what was happening. There was no mistaking who he was addressing; other than the fact that his hair was longer and a shade darker, what I was looking at was a slightly older version of Max with yellow eyes.
Max blinked away tears of pain. “Who are you?” He managed to get onto his knees, though I wasn’t sure how long he’d be able to stay upright with the amount of shaking he was doing. I moved to his side and hooked an arm under his while Jenny did the same with the other.
“Tsk, tsk, little one. And to think I thought I should save you when mother decided you weren’t fit to live. I’m your brother, Max. I stopped by your apartment earlier, but it seems I missed you. I have to say, I’m shocked. Why in the world would you stoop to living in such conditions? My dogs have houses bigger than your living space.” He shrugged. “You really don’t remember me? I’m hurt, really I am. Does the name Glade bring back any memories?” Glade took a step forward and Max groaned as another surge of energy seemed to pulse through him.
“I don’t have a brother. My mom died giving birth to me and she didn’t tell anyone who my dad was.” Max pulled himself to his feet. “And fuck you. I like my apartment.”
Glade snorted. “All of it lies and stories. Let’s see if we can’t jolt your memory, shall we?” He extended a hand toward Lizzy who gasped as though he’d touched her.
“Leave her alone!”
Glade raised an eyebrow at Max. “Oh, I’m not going to touch a hair on her head, little brother, but if you don’t want her to die, you’d best remember who you are and do it quickly. My pets are hungry and she’s been marked.”
“Where is he?” Lane ran over to Lizzy as Glade disappeared into thin air. “Maxy? Is he still in here?”
Max fell to his knees. “Yes!”
The front door flew open and Marie screamed at the sight of seven Yellow Eyes walking into the shop. One of the women ripped Lizzy from Lane’s grasp while a second one attempted to pull him to the ground.
“Lizzy!” Max could barely manage to look up.
I yelled to Marie to get in the office with Ashley. Pete took up his sledgehammer and swung as hard as he could at the Yellow Eyes on top of Lane. Her head snapped back and she slumped to the ground.
Jason raised his rifle and dropped it in frustration. One bad shot in the shop would mean dead friends. Jenny tossed me my bow and pulled hers out of its case. I took aim at one of the men making his way toward us, held my breath, and let the arrow fly. I exhaled with relief as it sank into his chest. The sound of Jenny’s arrow connecting with one of the women was followed by Grant’s cheer. Bobby, Lane, Jason and Shawn rushed forward to pull the other four off of Lizzy.
“Stop!”
All of them hesitated at Max’s yell. He’d gotten to his feet and we watched amazed, as the air between him and the Yellow Eyes started to waver.
My heart pounded in my chest and I gulped in air to try and calm it. A fraction of a second later, a wave seemed to fly through the atmosphere and the creatures were sent slamming into wall. Lane rushed to Lizzy’s side and I ran to Max as he fell to the ground in a heap.
“Marie! I need you in here!” Lane’s panicked eyes met mine and my heart sank.
“Jenny, stay with Max!” I rushed to Lane’s side and swallowed hard at the sight of Lizzy bleeding everywhere. “Jason! We need towels!”
I heard his boots hit the floor as he ran for the closet. Lizzy was covered in gouges, bites and scratches, some of them deep. I tried to focus on what might be the worst of them and where I should be applying pressure. Blood was seeping into what was left of her clothes.
“Jenny? How’s Maxy doing?”
“He’s breathing. He’s out, though. He’s not responding to anything I’m doing.”
I swore. “Brent, Grant, get him on the couch and cover him up.” I grabbed a towel from Jason and pressed it into a bite mark on Lizzy’s hip. M
arie took a deep breath and tried to figure out what needed attention first.
“The bite on her leg. We need to stitch that one.” Her voice quivered. “Oh, god, maybe I should do the one on her chest…”
Pete handed Ashley to John and knelt beside his fiancée. “Hey. It’s okay. Just pretend this isn’t Lizzy. Think of it as someone you don’t know coming in to the clinic.”
She closed her eyes, inhaled deeply, and nodded. Having worked in a clinic and helping with minor emergency patients for a year before Ashley had been born, she was definitely our best hope at getting Lizzy patched up.
“Where’s all the blood coming from?” John was keeping Ashley happy by rocking her gently, though by the devastated look on his face he was moving by pure reflex and might actually have forgotten he was holding her.
I looked down and realized I was kneeling in a puddle that was slowly spreading. “Lane, something’s wrong!”
“I need you to roll her over. I think it’s coming from under her.” Marie’s eyes were saucers in her head but she was managing to sound calm. I moved to Lizzy’s head while Jason took her legs and Lane reached for her torso. We turned her onto her side.
“Keep going! Get her on her stomach, now!” Marie grabbed a towel and followed Lizzy’s back down until she was pushing down over her friend’s kidney with all of her weight. I put another towel into her outstretched hand.
“Marie?”
Light blue eyes met mine and my heart sank at the shake of her head.
“I’m not trained for this.” She lifted the towel just enough for us to have a quick look. The entire left side of Lizzy’s lower back was a gaping wound. “She needs a hospital.”
I’d been keeping my finger on her pulse to make sure she was still with us. “Fuck.” I wiped my hands on my jeans and tried to find the beat I’d lost.
“Gabby?” Lane watched my face for my answer.
I swallowed hard and put my ear by her mouth to see if I could feel a breath. Tears streaked down my face as my eyes met his.
“What? You mean…” Brent blanched and sat heavily on the floor.
“I…” I cleared my throat. “She’s gone.” A sob made its way up my throat. “Oh, my god, you guys… I…”
Everyone stayed where they were, too devastated to move. We all looked from one to the other. All of our faces were identical; tears streaked cheeks, jaws clenched in an effort to keep some control over the sobs, and chests heaved.
Pete pulled Marie into his arms while John went to sit with Ashley by Max and Jenny on the couch. My eyes met Lanes and any control I was keeping over the tears dissipated. The sight of the tears rolling down his face was enough to undo me completely. One sob shook me and then another. I sat back on my heels and wrapped my arms around my legs, hiding my face in my knees, barely registering the fact that Shawn was covering Lizzy with a blanket.
“Gabby?” Jenny had to repeat my name twice before it registered. I cleared my throat and wiped my arm across my face before looking up.
“I don’t want to bug you, but Max won’t wake up.”
I scrambled to my feet and rushed to his side, the thought of losing both of them crushing the breath out of me.
His face was pale and his skin felt clammy under my hand as I held it against his forehead. “He’s still fevered. Does he swallow when you put water in his mouth?” I glanced back and saw her nod. “There’s Advil in the office. Can I get you to crush a couple up and put them in a bit of water?”
She jogged away, no questions asked.
“Maxy, honey.” I brushed the hair out of his eyes and knelt beside him. “It’s alright, Maxy. We’ll get you better. Hang in there, okay?”
Lane put a hand on my shoulder and I leaned my cheek against his fingers.
“He’ll be alright.” He adjusted the pillow under Max’s head before taking his pulse. “He’s warm, but other than that he just looks like he’s sleeping. Maybe whatever he did drained him.” He took a deep breath and blew it out of his nose. I looked up at how exhausted he sounded.
The front door opened and my throat tightened once again at the sight of Robby and Shawn carrying Lizzy outside. Jenny handed me the water.
“I’ll… I’ll clean up,” she offered and headed to the mop closet.
All I could do was nod my thanks.
“Okay, Maxy. You need to drink this.” Lane held his head still while I spooned the drugged liquid into his mouth. I sighed with relief at the sight of him swallowing. Lane waited until he was done before gently opening one of Max’s eyes. His whole body relaxed. “Green.”
We took a seat beside each other on the floor against the couch. Lane gave a small gesture with his head and soon the rest of the crew as well as the Harris’ were sitting with us.
“I don’t know what to say, guys.” Lane scoffed and leaned his head back. “I have no fucking clue what to say.” He shook his head and closed his eyes. “I don’t know what the fuck is going on, I have no clue what is up with Maxy… I just…” His voice broke and he swallowed hard. “I just don’t know.”
John blinked, the twins frowned, and everyone’s eyes turned to me. My heart jumped with the realization that if Lane wasn’t in control of the situation then I was second in command and it was up to me to fix this. I inhaled deeply and put a hand on Lane’s thigh.
“I don’t know either.” I gave them all a sad smile. “But we’ll try to figure it out.”
“Does anyone remember hearing anything at all that might have seemed odd the week or so before this shit started?” Pete voice was muffled in Marie’s hair as she leaned back against him, baby Ashley on her lap.
Everyone thought of his question and played back the events of the week before my birthday. Work had gone smoothly, I’d had a great time with Lane out at a friend’s place the weekend prior when we’d all gone horseback riding for the day. Granted, the mare I’d been on had been a little more edgy than usual, but with the wind blowing harder than usual, that wasn’t anything out of the ordinary. I frowned.
“Iggy was off, too,” I mumbled.
Everyone gawked at me like I’d grown a second head. Lane’s dark blue eyes met mine.
“You’re right.”
Brent snorted. “How can an iguana act ‘off’?”
“He wasn’t eating well and he was restless. He was moving around his tank a lot more than usual.” I looked to Lane who nodded to show he agreed. I pressed on. “When we went riding the Sunday before, Ginger was skittish. She is one of the laziest mares around. I mean, I didn’t think much of the fact that Dolly was being a meathead, but Carl was having a hell of a time with Ginger.”
“Mom’s dog was acting weird,” offered Jenny. “He was growling and barking at people. That dog never barks and it sure as hell never growls.”
Robby and Shawn were nodding.
“He tried to bite Maddy before supper.” Shawn frowned at Robby’s statement. “It was before you got there. Dad told him to go lay on his bed and that was the end of it.”
“So, are we thinking that the animals knew this was coming?” Jason ran his hands over his face.
“Maybe.” Lane gave a disbelieving shake of his head.
“The weather is all fucked up, too,” stated Brent.
“The weather’s been getting weirder and weirder for the past few years; that’s the joys of global warming, dude.” Grant rolled his eyes at his brother.
“But the night this shit started it was minus forty and it climbed to plus ten in the matter of hours. Don’t tell me you forgot that freak thunderstorm,” countered his brother.
Brent smirked. “Yeah, that was pretty fucked up.”
“Animals are acting weird, the weather is all buggered up, and people are turning into zombies.” Pete wrinkled his nose. “That doesn’t clear anything up.”
I reached back and pressed a hand to Max’s cheek. “His fever is coming down.”
“Right,” grumbled John. “And then there’s Maxy, the silver eyed old man, the �
�comfy’ feeling Max felt, and that freak who said he was Max’s brother. We can’t forget all that shit.”
“Did you see how he just pushed those things off of Lizzy without even touching them?” grunted Jason.
“He’s going to lose it when he wakes up,” whispered Marie with tears in her eyes.
“This is fucked up,” mumbled Lane with a shake of his head.
I leaned my head against his shoulder and tried to keep the fresh tears from rolling down my cheeks. “Royally fucked up.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~
I pressed my lips to Max’s forehead then lay back down on the floor beside Lane. He pulled me against him.
“How is he,” he whispered.
I shrugged. “The fever’s still gone. He seems fine, really. His breathing is regular, his heartbeat is steady… it’s like he’s sleeping.”
“So long as we can keep him drinking, he should be alright for a little while longer,” offered Lane.
“It’s already been three days, Lane. He can’t live on water and any time we try to make him a shake or a smoothie to drink, he chokes on it.” Both of us fell quiet as we thought about what we would do if Max didn’t wake up soon.
Lane checked his watch and snuggled deeper into the covers. “Try to get some sleep. It’s just four o’clock.” His lips pressed against my forehead and I smiled.
“You get even less sleep than I do.”
He grunted away my accusation. “I always sleep less than you. You’re a sleeping machine.”
“A girl needs her beauty sleep,” I countered with a chuckle.
I felt him smile against my hair. “No, you don’t. You’ve always been beautiful.”
My heart fluttered. “See. All that sleep is paying off.” I blushed despite the teasing tone I managed. My yawn caused him to laugh and the sound vibrated through me. I tightened my hold around him, hanging on to the pure happiness of that sound.
“Hey, what’s wrong?”
I shook my head. Repeating the obvious wouldn’t change the fact that everyone was scared shitless and it sure as hell wouldn’t fix anything. I focused on him and how he’d always made me feel safe; how even though our situation seemed hopeless, lying here with him gave me just a hint of faith that all wasn’t lost and somehow we’d live through this.
Angered Seasons: Volume Two (Zombies, Aliens, and Meat-Eating Vegetarians?) Page 5
