The First 400 Days (Book 1): We Are What Remain

by Taja Kartio

  "Then I'll just wait until my next turn and try again."

  "That's not how the game works, Hollie. You have to pick a house," Ben stared at her with an annoyed frown. Both him and Toby had lost their amused smiles virtually all their will to toy with her. They just wanted to play the game.

  "But I don't want any of these houses," She stubbornly crossed her arms for like the hundredth time today and Toby dropped his forehead to the floor and let out a very low, defeated, heavy groan.

  "Alright," Alex dropped the wad of money in his hands contentiously, "I'm calling halftime."

  "Another one? Didn't we just take a halftime like ten minutes ago?" Ben questioned.

  Alex pointed to the clock on the wall, "Actually, that was about an hour ago, and yes, I'm calling another one. I need a break."

  "Again?" Hayden called as Alex stood and limped toward the stairs.

  "Again."

  Hayden glanced at me and I shrugged my shoulders. Hollie had been persistently adamant over several other aspects earlier in the game just like this, throwing a little tantrum over not getting what she wanted. She made some huge controversial deal over what she picked out of the deck by her own doing or what she got for a job or what her salary for that job was. She even got crabby over who the person was that shuffled all the cards together.

  "Why is he taking another break?" Hollie glared at the steps.

  "Because we've been playing for two hours and we're not even halfway through the game. You're stalling everything," I said as I arched my back, breaking the kinks.

  Hollie shot her dagger eyes on me, "It's not my fault!"

  I tried to give her my best 'I'm so done with all of your shit' face, "Yes, it is."

  It some form of a tantrum, maybe a kind of rebellion or insubordinance, Hollie flipped the game board. Game pieces and paper money flew, the board itself did a 180. She glared up at me, probably hoping for some kind of reaction but what was I supposed to do? Whatever she wanted for me to say or do, I didn't do it, and without receiving the proper response from me, Hollie proceeded to stand and kick the game board, destroying our game once more before storming away, hot headedly heading for the stairs.

  There was a moment of silence after the door upstairs slammed shut before Ben spoke up, "Well... That was entertaining."

  I turned to both the brothers, "Has she always been like this?"

  Ben ran both hands through his hair and left them on the back of his skull, "Not exactly. She's lived in the same neighborhood as us forever."

  "She goes to our school," Toby added, "Same grade."

  "And she used to be a pretty nice person, I think. I mean, we didn't really know her. She had a lot of friends, she was pretty popular, we weren't."

  Toby nodded, "Yeah and then her mom died in some car accident and she got really mean. Like she became the meanest girl in school."

  See now here I was feeling bad for her because I didn't have my mom either. I knew how rough it was. I got that, but why turn into what she is now? I didn't get that. Maybe a coping technique... I guess it would have been too much to ask if she hadn't gotten maybe the shittiest way to move on in the book, "What about Scott?"

  Ben shrugged, "Eh, he's always been a little rough but I know he wasn't quite as mean as he is now."

  So my basic conclusion was that Scott probably took his wife's death pretty harshly, got on the tight-fisted side of life, hated everything, and Hollie just seemed to pick up on it all. I felt bad for them, I really did but I and everybody else were struggling the way it was without this kind of bullshit.

  "Right," I exhaled deeply, "I suppose I should go make sure she doesn't do anything stupid."

  "Ya. You have fun with that," Toby smiled falsely.

  "We'll stay down here where it's safe," Ben added.

  I forged a nod, "Thanks for the support you guys."

  On the main level, several things were brought to my attention. One, Alex was standing by the living room with his arms dangling at his sides and his jaw slightly dropped. Two, Hollie was destroying the living room. When I say destroying, I mean it. Anything on a shelf was thrown across the room. Lamps were pushed off their end tables and end tables were punted like footballs. Nothing was left untouched.

  "She just came up here and started..." Alex gestured to the mayhem in front of us, "What the hell is her problem?"

  "Well, Ben and Toby just told me that her mom died like a couple years ago or something and that both her and Scott got pretty mean afterward."

  "She must have developed some some anger disorder."

  I watched her throw a picture frame at a vase, both broke, "A serious anger disorder."

  "She needs to calm down. What if she breaks a window?"

  "Like what happened to their last place?" I asked, suddenly nervous now that the idea had been brought up.

  He nodded, "Exactly."

  "So how do you want to stop her?"

  He shrugged, looking like he was at a loss. Me too.

  Then Hollie headed for us. At first, I thought she might have added Alex and I into her equation of destruction but she ended up ignoring us completely. She shouldered past and made a beeline for the front door. I shared an edged look with Alex before stepping forward.

  "Where are you going, Hollie?"

  She barely turned back, "Away from you assholes!"

  "You have to stay here!" I bounced forward, almost slamming my hand on the door to stop her from opening it. Hollie already it cracked open and her foot was caught between the door and the frame, she didn't seem to show any signs of discomfort and used her foot as leverage to squeeze her way through.

  "I don't have to do anything! You're not my father!"

  "Your father wanted you to stay here too!"

  "No, he didn't!" Hollie pushed the door farther. She was a lot stronger than she looked.

  Alex finally stepped in after another few moments and took her by the arm, trying to pull her back. We were going to have to lock her up in a closet or something to stop her from not only leaving but destroying everything in the house. I felt like I was trying to control a hundred pound dog from running after a squirrel in the front yard.

  Hollie turned and lifted her foot, nailing Alex in the leg right where he'd been shot days earlier. He cried out and dropped to one knee, his grip loosened on Hollie enough for her to pull away and slip out the door. Alex waved me away, a signal to go after the loose cannon now running down the driveway. I think I chased after her more for the fact of what Scott would do or say if he found out Hollie was out wandering or something. I'd probably would have been the one to blame for her leaving the house.

  "Hollie!" I hissed, "Come back!"

  She turned around while still in step and tapped her hands to her chest, "Try and make me!"

  Really? That's something so ridiculously fucking stupid that a second grader might say, "We shouldn't be out here! It's dangerous!"

  She stopped suddenly at the foot of the driveway and her reasoning was obvious. Outside the cul-de-sac, on the main neighborhood road, was an Infected. It stood there stiffly, staring in our direction with a slight squint like it was trying to contemplate whether we were friend or foe. How convenient... This was like bad horror movie convenient timing. Of course there would be an Infected right now.

  "Hollie," I said slowly, "Don't move."

  She didn't answer or make so much of an acknowledgment that she heard what I said but I was going to trust she was being smart enough to actually listen to me.

  There was only one Infected, at least there was as of right now. Any activity, a battle cry, could trigger more Infected into our area and with everyone off on doing a special for HGTV: Apocalypse, that wouldn't put us in a such a great situation. Not that standing out in the open like fresh meat would be any better, we needed to figure out how to get inside the house without attracting more. It would be impossible to avoid any kind of conflict with the one staring us down but Alex and I could overpower him. Even though Alex was injure
d it was a two against one odds and I liked those odds better than anything that could completely spiral out of our control.

  "Dani?" Hollie whispered. For the first time today, there wasn't a snippy tone in her jagged voice. She now sounded genuinely scared.

  "Don't move," I whispered again, "Just give me a second."

  Okay, okay. Think. The Infected was relatively far away, a few hundred yards. I knew the suckers were fast so I hoped that Hollie would be able to make it back up the driveway and into the house by the time it even reached the end of the driveway. I mean, it had a fence to run around too. We should have plenty of time. I hoped Alex had recovered and was aware of the current situation, hopefully getting some kind of weapon just in case. Guns were out of the question as Kale had his handgun with him and any other potential firearm were in Scott's van. We were going to have to wing it if things went south.

  "Hollie..." Her head twitched and I cringed, "Don't move, don't move. Listen. When I say run, I need you to go directly to the front door. Got it?"

  "Yes." She whispered, her voice cracking like she was on the verge of tears.

  The Infected was still in the same spot, positioned in our direction. The only difference was the slight tilt of the Infected's head. It knew we weren't like it, so what was it waiting around for?

  I took a breath and prepared myself, "Run."

  Hollie spun and it was that very sudden, sharp movement that set the Infected off. To my surprise, it didn't let out a cringe-worthy scream but I didn't want to keep my hopes too high. I waited for Hollie to sprint past me before I also turned for the front door. Alex had it wide open for us.

  I was only a few feet behind in step but Hollie was quicker than I anticipated and the second she reached the doorway, she threw her body into Alex's and while he stumbled back, Hollie turned for the door and slammed it shut, leaving me on the other side.

  "Hollie, what the fuck?" My hands went for the doorknob but I could barely turn it. It was locked from the inside, "Open the door!"

  I turned again, this time facing the Infected who was barely a few paces behind me. I managed to turn quickly enough to avoid a potentially lethal attack from behind but I was nowhere near fast enough to stop it's claw-like hands from taking me by the shoulders and throwing me off the front porch. I flew onto the paved sidewalk from the driveway leading to the front door, back first. The hard landing knocked the wind out of me completely and I couldn't find air to suck in, it was like my lungs were surrounded by metal bands. Hands found my shoulders once again but instead of lifting me off the ground entirely for another free throw across the yard, my upper back was hoisted upwards and pushed back down. The back of my head smashed against the ground and I was suddenly seeing stars. With the oxygen that still hadn't found a way down my throat and now the series of concussions this Infected asshole was trying to place in my skull, I felt a surge of panic. I was having an extremely hard time fighting back and if I couldn't fight back, I was basically dead.

  Then the Infected stopped it's jaws opened wide, white teeth baring. Even dazed, I knew what it was about to do. My hands went for its neck but I had a hard time keeping it's mouth from lowering closer and closer to my skin. I could feel my muscles begin to quiver against its absurd strength and eventually, it's hot breath encircling my senses. There was a short moment of silence where it seemed the entire world had gone mute before the weight was taken off of me. The finger nails that had been dug into my shoulders were unlatched, painfully, and air was suddenly thrown into my lungs. My vision was a bit fuzzy but there was movement to the left of me, not too incredibly fast, more shuffling around if anything. I heard several grunts, followed by loud smacks like skin on skin contact. My eyes had just started clear up when a raw quality scream ricocheted in my ears. It was a painful sound. Alex was writhing on the ground with the Infected overtop of him, it's teeth sunken into his neck.

  Shit.

  I struggled to get to my knees, as I was still recovering from my attack. A foot or two away from Alex and the Infected was a large cooking knife, just sitting peacefully in the grass. Alex must had dropped it. Unbeknownst to the Infected, I took the knife by the handle and swung, managing to lodge it in the Infecteds skull. There was no gurgle or short breath to be taken, the creature immediately fell over sideways. I took no second glance at it and turned my attention to Alex who was stared at me with wide eyes. Blood poured thickly from the bite wound in his neck as if in slow motion. I tried to cover the wound with my hands the warm liquid squeezed through my fingers. There was so much.

  I turned over my shoulder just as the front door opened up with both Ben and Toby standing in horror over what had just happened.

  "Help me you guys!" I shouted desperately. Neither one of them wasted a second and tore out of the house to my side, "Ben, go get a towel from the bathroom and go to the kitchen and make sure the table is cleared off. Toby and I will meet you there."

  Ben did as I asked, leaving Toby and me to handle Alex's surprisingly heavy body. I placed one of Alex's hands on his neck, telling him to keep pressure but I wasn't sure how much he really understood. The shock was setting in and his breaths spurted in chunky fragments. I took him by the armpits while Toby got a firm grip underneath Alex's knees.

  Hayden was by the doorway. He too had bulging eyes.

  "Shut the door, Hayden," I mumbled gruffly just as Toby and I passed through the doorway.

  Ben was where I asked him to be, in the kitchen beside the table with a large green towel in his hands. Toby and I set Alex on the table a little rougher than I wanted but I didn't have time to worry about that. I took the towel from Ben and placed it over Alex's neck.

  Okay. Now what? I really wished Beckett was here. I could really use him right now. He would know what to do.

  I took a deep breath, "Ben, I need you to get a bowl of warm water and some smaller washcloths. Toby, find one of the first aid kits. Hayden, go lock the front door."

  "What about me?"

  I knew my eyes were daggers the second I heard her little voice. Hollie stood at the dining room entryway with what looked like a shocked expression. I mean, I was sure she was shocked and appalled and startled just as the rest of us but did she have any idea what she'd done?

  "I want you to stay where the hell you are and out of our way."

  She obeyed thankfully. The damage of her doing in front of her should be enough to keep her quiet for three seconds.

  Ben came over to my side of the table with the two small kitchen washcloths and set the bowl of water on the chair beside me. Toby was seconds later, rushing with a small red case in his hand.

  "What now?" Toby asked.

  "Uh, I need two things. There's a box in there that should say something like 'Large Non-Stick Pads', find that and then look for a role of clear tape," I then turned to Ben, "Dab one of those washcloths in the water."

  "The door is locked!" Hayden called, jogging back into the kitchen. I nodded my approval and kept my eyes on Alex.

  Real blood was nothing like movie blood. I'd seen it plenty of times before, even in larger quantities, but seeing an injury to this extent and trying to literally keep the pints of thick scarlet in someone's body was an entirely different feeling. Not a good one at all. I lifted the towel from Alex's neck and felt incredibly queasy. My stomach seethed at the gory sight. The teeth marks were easy to see in between all the carnage but at least the blood flow was beginning to slow down enough for me to lift the towel completely. I took the damp towel from Ben and tried to effectively clean as much blood off of Alex's neck as I could.

  "Dani," Alex's voice was ragged.

  I nodded, "Hey trooper."

  "How does it look?"

  My sigh was bitter, "Like you got bit."

  He chuckled softly, causing a little fresh blood to bleed from the wound, "Well crap. I guess I didn't think my end would be turning into one of them."

  Them. The Infected. It didn't even cross my mind until he said it. This was just like th
e movies. A bite from one of those sons of bitches and it was game over. I'd never actually seen the process and I really didn't want Alex to go through that. Not that I wanted to watch anybody go through that.

  "You're not going to turn into one of them," I had to try my hardest to keep my head on, especially as tears threatened to build up in my eyes.

  "The news stories of everyone else around the world says otherwise."

  I cringed at that, "News isn't always right you know."

  He laughed once again, "I don't think they are going to lie about the zombie cycle process that's happening around the globe. I mean, it's all common knowledge anyway."

  I shook my head, "None of this should be real in the first place. It's all made up from stories."

  He shrugged lightly, flinching at his own movements, "Nothing we can do about it now."

  I glanced at him with a frown, "You're taking this all a bit too casually, you know that right?"

  He smirked, "Well like I just said, there's nothing we can do about it now."

  I cleaned away the majority of the blood and gestured to Toby who was holding both the pads and a small roll of cloth tape, "Is there a bottle of some kind of antiseptic in there?"

  He looked down at the bag with a nearly blank face, "Uh... Like this?"

  It was a small bottle of Isopropyl rubbing alcohol, "I guess that will do."

  Alex watched me pour a large quantity of alcohol on one of the pads with a scrunched nose, "You should save that for someone who's going to need it."

  I eyed him, "You need it."

  "I mean save it for someone who's actually going to live more than a couple of hours."

  "Shut up," I gently slapped the pad on the bite wound and Alex's body immediately tensed up, convulsing slightly at the stinging sensation I was sure he was experiencing, "Let me have the benefit of the doubt."

  "Sure. Just do your thing I guess." He muttered between tightly gritted teeth.

  "You took the pain a lot better than when you were shot." I ripped several small sections of cloth tape from the role and gently placed them on the pad that covered the entire bite wound.

  Alex's eyebrows rose for a moment, "Ya? I guess I built up some pain tolerance in a short amount of time."