“Good, let’s get as far as we can by car,” Brad says.
“What about stopping and filling up the tank?” Mika asks.
“Not likely,” Brad replies, “all of the gas stations around here have been cleaned out. Can’t say the same for all of them, but it’s not likely any of them have gas.”
“What about syphoning gas from another car?” Fanny asks.
“No hose,” Brad reasons. “Our best bet is to find another car once we run out of gas.”
They drive on in silence; the road seems endless. Fanny keeps the Jeep going, dodging and swaying around each and every stray car left stranded on the road. Mile markers pass by, the sun fighting to set behind them. Fanny hits the brakes, sending the back end of the Jeep fish tailing before screeching to a halt.
“What?” Brad stammers as he sits up straight, his eyes looking heavy and a red mark on his forehead from the window. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing’s wrong,” Fanny says with a happy chuckle, her eyes glowing happily in the rear view mirror.
“Then why did we stop?” Mika asks.
“Look,” Hope says pointing her finger out the window.
Mika and Brad turn their attention to the old sign just visible on the side of the road. The color is faded, most of the green covered by graffiti, but in bold off white letters they can clearly read, “WELCOME TO TEXAS.”
“Well looks like we are at least headed in the right direction,” Mika proclaims.
“Do you think this road continues to Houston?” Hope asks.
“Hopefully,” Fanny says sifting the Jeep back into drive and continuing on again.
“The sun is starting to set,” Mika says watching the blankness out his window, “maybe we should start thinking about finding a place for the night.”
“Do you think it’s wise to stop?” Hope asks turning in her seat.
“Better than running out of gas with nowhere to go,” Mika details.
“Good point,” Fanny says, scanning the area for an acceptable stronghold.
“There,” Brad points pulling himself between the two girls.
Fanny slows the Jeep down to barely a crawl as she fixes her gaze on the giant pole dug deep into the dirt. She tilts her head back and mouths the words, “Red’s Liquor”, as she pulls into the empty parking lot.
“Are you sure a liquor store is really the best option?” Fanny asks skeptically.
“Better than anything else around here,” Brad says stepping out of the vehicle, his handguns at the ready as he looks around.
He checks the surroundings, nothing but concrete and sand as far back as the eye can see. He turns back at the sounds of doors closing.
“I guess it’s not as bad as it looks,” Fanny says after pulling her back and shotgun out.
The liquor store almost looks like a small house. The windows are placed high, with dark tint and several different posters keeping out most of the light. The walls are a pale gray color, the roof an off white tiling with an old red, white and blue beer flag strapped to one side. One by one they take three concrete steps up to the door. The door is silver framed with glass lining both the top and bottom, each with the same dark tint as the windows. Fanny pulls the handle on the door receiving a welcoming sound of bells ringing on the back of the door. Fanny reaches up and pulls the bells off, tossing them off to the side.
“Sorry, that was annoying,” She says.
Hope pulls out her flashlight, cranking the black handle several times as fast as she can, stopping after a few moments and turning the light on. The beam pierces through the darkness lighting up the corners of the liquor store. Brad walks in behind her and flips the switch right near the door. The lights in the building spark and flicker, most burning out seconds after turning on. The few lights that remain keep the inside of the building dimly lit, but lit none the less.
“I can’t believe there is still a building with any sort of power,” Fanny says admiring the glow of the lights.
“Solar panels on the roof,” Brad says, “you might want to scope out the outside before entering a building.”
“Keep talking to me like that,” Fanny says getting up in his face, “and you’ll be sorry you gave me a gun.”
“Hey, I’m just keeping you honest sweetheart,” Brad winks.
Fanny scowls at him before walking away, “keep your eyes open. Hope come with me, we can check out the back of the store. Brad and Mika can check the back room.”
“Actually, I was thinking I could check out the back room with Mika?” Hope asks sheepishly.
Fanny grunt and sighs before giving in to Hope’s request. Hope smiles before regaining her composure and following Mika behind the counter and past the flaps into the storeroom. Fanny takes a look at Brad, blushing momentarily before shaking out the emotions and walking through the building.
“Something smells like rot and decay,” Fanny whispers.
“Yeah, but it might just be something perishable,” Brad wishes.
“When have we ever been that lucky?” Fanny rolls her eyes.
There are only a few shelves dividing up the store, three old glass coolers lined along the back. To the left there is a counter with more bottles stashed on the few shelves.
“It’s kind of eerie,” Fanny says.
“What is?” Brad asks.
“It doesn’t look like anybody tried to raid this place at all. I would have thought everything about this old world would have been destroyed,” Fanny reasons.
“This place is out in the middle of nowhere. People probably never made it this far,” Brad says solemnly.
“That’s not really reassuring,” Fanny says before stopping in her tracks, the sounds of chewing and munching swimming in his ears.
She puts her hand up stopping Brad behind her. She points to her ear, signaling for him to listen. The munching sounds grow louder as he nods acknowledging that he can hear them too. He points to the right before taking a few steps down the aisle helping Fanny corner whatever it is making the noise. They both turn the corner, guns pointed as they find themselves in the presences of a young girl. She doesn’t seem to be any older than six or seven, an old white nightgown the only thing covering her. There are a few rips and tears scattered along the shirt, a few blood stains around the collar and stomach. She is sitting with her legs crossed, her feet exposed. Her pale legs ripped apart with several scabs and removed skin. Her hair is long brown and patchy, with several spots balding, a few even missing skin and revealing the gray matter that was once her brains. The little girl has the remains of a leg in her hands. She brings it to her mouth and peels portions of skin off as she munches down on the bone. She stops momentarily lifting her head and revealing her milky white eyes. Her nostrils flare as she sniffs ferociously stopping at Brad and Fanny’s location.
“I think she’s on to us,” Brad says unloading a fury of bullets.
The little girl throws the remains of her meal off to the side as she crawls on her hands and feet in Brad’s direction. Brad backs up, giving her enough room to get to her feet.
“SHOOT HER!” Brad says dodging down another aisle, the Zombie girl following closely behind.
Fanny pumps her shotgun before lifting it up and pulling the trigger. The shell shatters releasing the tiny bearings that scatter around the Zombie child leaving her with multiple wounds on the side of her face, the rest shattering the glass doors behind her. Fanny pumps the shotgun again, releasing the empty shell and loading the fresh one. The child turns her attention to Fanny as she slowly starts toward her.
“What are you doing?” Brad asks getting back to his feet, “finish her!”
“Don’t worry, I’m going to,” Fanny says waiting for the Zombie to get closer. She holds the gun out waiting as the child roars, showing its teeth. “Supper time bitch,” Fanny says firing the second shot, blowing the child’s head clean off its body.
The rest of the child falls to its knees before collapsing onto the floor.
&nbs
p; “That was intense,” Brad says limping over to Fanny.
“But it had to be done,” Fanny says cocking the gun one last time.
“You know, you scare me sometimes,” Brad chuckles.
“Good, remember that in case you ever think about double crossing me,” Fanny says.
“Cross you? Like what I try to eat you?” Brad asks confused.
“You know what I mean, and you know what I did to Justin.” She scowls.
“You know what, you’re cute when you’re psychotic,” Brad smirks.
“Shows what you know,” Fanny says grabbing Brad by his jacket collar and pulling him close, “I’m cute all the time.”
Brad leans in and steals a quick kiss prompting Fanny to let him go. He walks away continuing to check out the rest of the small building. Fanny stands still, not moving after the surprise kiss. Her knees shake and she feels her cheeks warm up with blush once again as she runs her hand across her cheek and over her lips softly as she replays the kiss over in her mind.
“Find anything?” Hope asks startling her friend.
“Uh…uh,” Fanny stammers, “yeah, we uh, well.”
Fanny moves out of the way and reveals the Zombie child’s body.
“But she’s so young,” Hope sighs sadly.
“I know,” Fanny replies, “it’s very unsettling.”
“It’s also almost unlikely,” Mika says looking over their shoulders.
“What do you mean?” Brad asks circling back around.
Mika pushes his way past the girls, kneeling beside the Zombie girl’s body, “look closely at the body, there is barely any decay. And the places where decay has set in look almost… unnatural.”
“Meaning?” Hope asks.
“The Zombies are finding new ways to procreate,” Mika says getting back to his feet, “they’re reproducing, finding a way to keep themselves as the dominant species.”
“But that is unnatural. These…things are dead,” Fanny spazzes.
“How is that so farfetched a thought?” Brad asks, “Think about it, whatever happened to them brought them back to basic instincts. Basically to kill, eat and survive. Reproducing is, in reality the only way to really survive.”
“But I thought the Zombies were sterile, at least that’s what we were taught,” Hope chimes in.
“Was there any proof of that? I mean what do we honestly know about them?” Mika asks.
“What about mutation, to the virus?” Fanny asks.
“That would explain that ugly mother fucker back at the grocery store when we first met,” Brad nods.
“Ok, so basically we are screwed,” Fanny says throwing her hands in the air, “we have no idea what we are actually facing and we don’t know what is out there waiting for us.”
“Maybe not, but that doesn’t mean I’m willing to give up,” Brad says throwing his arm around her shoulder and pulling her close.
“Me either,” Hope says, “I’m in it till the end.”
“We are stronger as a team,” Mika says, looking Fanny in the eyes, “besides, we’ve already come this far.”
Fanny sighs, rolling her eyes, trapped in the middle of nowhere the thought of the unknown waiting for them. “All right I’m in too.”
“Good,” Brad smiles, “now that that’s taken care of I just have one follow up question… where did Zombie girl get the snack?”
“Oh that’s simple,” Mika says, “the back door was wide open and there are signs of a fight having taken place back there.”
“Ok, creepy,” Fanny shudders.
“Will this place still work as shelter for the night?” Brad asks.
“Yeah, we forced the door shut and barricaded it with whatever we could find,” Mika replies, “If anything it won’t hold long, but it should hold for the night.”
“Still I think it would be wise if we slept in shifts,” Fanny suggests, “just to be safe.”
“I’ll take first watch,” Hope says.
Chapter 19
Hope sits alone by the tinted window, a small portion of the tint scratched out giving her a slight view of the nothingness outside. Her eyes are trained on the full moon off in the distance, her droopy eyes mesmerized by the silver glow radiating above her. Her sword rests beside her, the hilt resting against the window ledge and her pistols lay out in front of her ready to go in case of trouble.
“How’s it going?” Mika asks walking up behind her.
“Peaceful,” Hope says not taking her eyes off the moon.
“Nice night?” Mika asks struggling to see past the tint.
“Yeah,” Hope mutters, “just enjoying the moon.”
“Any particular reason?” Mika asks sitting beside her, and resting his machete on the opposite side.
“It kind of silly,” Hope says finally pulling away from the window. “But when I was younger I used to go outside with my father and enjoy the soft glow. He used to tell me tales of how people traveled there and many other different stories. But for some reason, now, here in the middle of nowhere I find myself looking back up at the moon and wondering whether or not my father is looking at it too, thinking about me and worrying.”
“I’m sure he is,” Mika says resting his hand on her shoulder sending a shiver down her spine. He moves his hand, placing it back in his lap. “I’m sorry if I did something wrong.”
“No, no,” Hope says reaching her hand over and wrapping it in his, “it’s not you. It’s just after what Justin did… it’s still hard to let another human in.”
“I understand,” Mika says stroking her hand with his thumb, “just know I would never stoop that far as to take advantage of you.”
“I know that,” Hope says trying to force a smile, “but my body, and my mind just don’t seem to get it.”
“And there is no use fighting the mind,” Mika winks, “I knows what it wants, and more importantly what it doesn’t want.”
“Thanks for understanding,” Hope says.
“That’s what we do for each other right? We save each other and we do everything we can to keep each other comfortable,” Mika says.
“Can I ask you a question?” Hope asks turning her attention back to the moon.
“Sure. You know you can ask me anything,” Mika says nudging her shoulder.
“It’s kind of silly, considering everything we’ve been through together,” Hope stutters.
“Nothing is silly if it’s on your mind,” Mika urges trying to get her to speak.
Hope turns her head her lips quivering, words unable to escape even after she swallows her fear. She closes her eyes, releasing a small tear as she inhales deeply through her nose, slowly letting the anxiety out between her tender lips. “Do you honestly think we can survive?”
“What you mean us?” Mika asks slightly taken aback. “Our group?”
“Yeah,” Hope nods, “I’ve only been on land a little over a week and yet I’ve already had to watch several people die. Everyone except Fanny and I died after getting off the boat, Amanda, the Major, Cynthia… even Justin. What makes us think we are any different than any of them?”
“Because we are survivors,” Mika replies, “look at everything we made it through.”
“You should have died at Cynthia’s hands, the poison… I thought we waited too long. Fanny rushes into everything like she’s invincible only to wind up close to death herself.”
“And you?”
“Where do I start? The church? The bunker? Justin? I just keep missing death, but how long can I keep up that dance?”
“Do you know what each of those things have in common?”
“What?” Hope asks her eyes starting to water up.
“We were there for each other. Just like we always will be,” Mika says getting a slim smile from her. “I will always be here for you, I promise that.”
“I don’t know if I can believe that,” Hope says choking on her words.
“You should,” Mika smiles, “because I… I like you Hope. From the first
moment I watched you take charge, ready to risk your life for your friends back in that church, a piece of me fell for you.”
“I… I never knew,” Hope says the tears drying up and her face starting to shine as the moonlight connects with her pastel skin.
“I know I’m older then you and this has to be insanely weird to hear, but there is just something about you,” Mika drives.
Hope leans in quickly pressing her lips against his dark ebony lips. His free hand reaches up bracing around her head, holding her steady until she pulls away.
“I don’t worry about the age,” Hope says her face showing more sign of life then she has since coming to the mainland.
“That’s good to know,” Mika says with a wide smile.
“I’m getting kind of tired,” Hope says after a long yawn.
“Go get some sleep. I’ll take over the watch,” Mika says with a nod.
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, suddenly I’m feeling wide awake.”
Hope gets to her feet with little struggle, her crossed legs asleep, tingling as she takes her first few steps. Mika hands her the handguns that she places inside her pockets. She reaches out for her sword, holding the faded and frayed red wrap around the handle. She takes one last look at the window, the tint and posters blocking her view, but she knows the moon is there and that her father is waiting her back home.
Her footsteps echo through the small silent building every time she lands her foot on the black and white patterned linoleum. She finds Fanny sleeping, the slight sounds of her snoring escaping from her lips. She shakes, and her face scrunches up. Hope can tell by her face that she is dreaming terrible things. Her shotgun is wrapped tightly in her arms and her machete rests nearby. Brad isn’t far away, Hope can see his feet twitching, almost running as he sleeps.
This is what we are reduced to, Hope thinks to herself as she makes herself comfortable on the cold floor. My friends are huddled close to me, each of them less than an arm’s reach away from a deadly weapon. Neither of them sleeping comfortably, the look on Fanny’s face says it all that her mind is racing with thoughts of death and decay. Brad’s feet can’t stop running, even when he has nowhere to go. And to be honest even with everything Mika said to comfort me… I still think it’s too much for us. I think we are all going to die here.
Omega Virus (Book 2): Revisited Page 18
