The Amour series (Book 1): The Embers of Amour

by LaRue, Coushatta

  She took a long look around and wondered what was left to enjoy. She heard the thunder again and decided that it would be a good time to start moving before the ugly, dark clouds got to her. She knew she needed to find food. She planned to find shelter inside the small town. She was not sure if it would be worth it however.

  She stood up and put the hockey stick under her left arm and lifted her left foot up. Sharp pain traveled up her leg towards the wound. The pain felt like a bug under her skin, moving slowly, clawing its way through. As she started to walk towards the opening of the courtyard, she took a short glance at the undead that had attacked her. She then looked down at her bite wounds and back at him, closing her eyes as she let out some air.

  It was awkward walking with the hockey stick as a crutch, but it worked. Abby was moving slowly with her spinning head. She was weary and felt paranoid as she left the courtyard. She was on a street that led towards neighborhoods, the highway, and into town. She stopped at a crosswalk and looked around. There were cars on the streets that had stopped suddenly, and almost all of the doors were open. She saw that there were no corpses in the cars or on the streets. She wondered if the town folks were lurking in the darkness of the abandoned buildings.

  Abby stared down the street that entered town, and she eyed it carefully. The wind blew stronger, and lightning flashed behind her. She was cold, and her clothes were dirty and covered in blood. She looked at the streets leading into neighborhoods and swallowed hard. She started towards a small narrow road that led into a nice looking neighborhood that had houses. All of the cars were leading from the houses, so she felt that maybe they would be empty.

  She struggled to stay standing as she wobbled along the sidewalk. Her vision kept blurring in and out, and she was burning up. Sweat was pouring down her back and chest even though it was cold out. Abby wiped at it with her right hand causing some pain in her broken finger. She narrowed her eyes at her finger and frowned. She had no idea if what she did to it would help it heal or make it worse. She only hoped that it would heal.

  The street around her was clean except for some litter. The houses she wandered past looked normal and not broken into. This town was clean and untouched. Somehow no one had come here since the outbreak. She knew she was lucky but felt unlucky. They may have had been the first group to find this town, but she knew they would not be the last. She needed to get supplies and leave as soon as possible. It would be better if she stayed, however she could not defend herself if people came. She kept looking at each house she walked by, stopping for a moment. She was scared to enter them but even more afraid to not.

  Finally she stopped in front of a small two story house. It looked well-built, and as if it had been made in the last few years. The grass in the yard was overgrown, and the bushes around the driveway were growing wildly, but the house reminded her of something calm and peaceful. She took in a deep breath and started towards it. Thunder roared above her, and that was when she noticed that the sky was grayer. She glanced up as a rain drop landed on her hot cheek. It was going to storm again. Her eyes filled with tears.

  Abby picked up her pace, so she could reach the door faster as the wind picked up. The wind rustled in the trees behind her and tossed trash around. The sounds were sending shivers up and down her spine, making her feel as if something was following her. She looked behind her gasping and saw nothing. She was more afraid that she was alone than that she was being followed. When she got to the door, it was locked as expected. She looked around the doorway which was in a little nook. There were dying flowers in small pots and little frog statues on the stone steps.

  She pushed over each one of the flower pots to see if maybe there was a key underneath. There was nothing. She shoved the frogs over as the thunder became more frequent. A pink frog with yellow stars on it had a small hole in its bottom. She moved it with her foot and heard something clank inside. She smiled with hope and bent over with a groan. She shook it in her right hand and heard something smash around inside. She shook it some more and let out a sigh of relief as a key fell out.

  Abby unlocked the door slowly, after putting the frog back down. The door opened with a loud creak. Thunder roared behind her as she finally stepped inside. It was warm and dusty inside. It smelt like an old person’s house to her. The walls inside the hallway were light yellow with a light hardwood floor. There was a staircase in front of her and two open doors to her left and one to her right. There was a closed door in the back next to the staircase. She heard nothing, saw nothing, but felt everything.

  She moved very slowly, her hockey stick tapping on the floor, her heart beating fast. She looked to her right and saw a small cozy living room. The walls were blue and had the same flooring as the hallway. There was a large leather sofa and two armchairs next to it on either side. A glass coffee table sat in the middle with magazines on it, and a large flat screen tv sat in front of a large covered window. There were a bunch of photos of dogs all around with a happy couple. The dogs were a large white husky and a small brown dachshund.

  A large dog bed sat next to a smaller one in the corner of the living room with a bunch of toys around it. She stared at them with an empty expression before turning around. The hockey stick made a squeaking sound on the wood floor that echoed through the hall. She hoped no one was inside with her. The room was starting to become dark as clouds settled above the house. She heard rain start to fall on the roof. She listened to it tapping softly. A chill ran through her.

  Abby made her way into the small kitchen that looked as if it had just been remodeled. The walls were white and the counters were black marble with white speckles. The table was beautifully handcrafted with little designs of birds carved into the sides. Everything looked normal expect for the dust. There were dishes in the sink, moldy dog food in two pink bowls on the floor next to a refrigerator, and pots and pans were still on the stove.

  It made Abby feel sad. She frowned and moved forward into the kitchen. She slowly placed her backpack on the table next to dark blue plates that had been sat up perfectly for breakfast. She traced her fingers across the dusty table and sneered at the dirt on the tips of her fingers. Abby swallowed hard and felt numb inside. She was not sure what she should do or if any of this was even worth it. She still was infected, she still was dying, and she was still going to turn.

  Abby stared around the kitchen hesitating on the refrigerator and thought better of opening it. She looked at the cabinets and pressed her lips together. Thunder roared outside, and it made Abby shake violently. The rain was very heavy, and the wind was howling. She realized that it had gotten very dark inside of the house and looked down from the cabinets and started to search the smaller drawers. She was scared to be alone in the dark.

  She found spoons, forks, and knives. In the next one she found more kitchen utensils, and finally in the last one she found matches and birthday candles. There were pens and straws and other random things inside too. She grabbed the three boxes of matches and the set of candles. One was a big pink four while another was a purple two. She left the tiny colorful ones inside the drawer. She shut it and turned around towards the table and looked at the doorway. She knew there had to be more candles inside the house somewhere, but she wanted light now. She looked around the table for somewhere to put the candles.

  Lightning flashed in the darkening sky outside, and a sting of pain ripped through Abby’s leg. She let out a cry and sniffled as her left leg shook. Hot tears rolled down her pale cheeks as she glanced downward. She stared at her pants and the rips in it that the undead had made. She rubbed her lips together and frowned. She walked over to the sink, her head spinning more, and her stomach growling. She found a bar of light green soap and grabbed it.

  She wandered back to the table and sat the soap on one of the plates. It was hard and very dry, but she was able to dig the candles into it. She took a match out of one of the boxes, lighting it. Abby stared at the flame with hollow eyes and watched as the candles burned. It was not
much light, however it was good enough for her. She turned towards the cabinets and opening one of them she let out a gasp. It was full of food. She opened the next one, then the next one, and found they all had food. She shivered in excitement and reached upwards to grab something.

  Abby was not sure of what to grab for a moment then grabbed a can of spaghetti rings in sauce. She saw some canned spam and grabbed that too and a box of crackers. She placed them on the table behind her then looked around. She walked over to the stove and touched it. It was an electric stove. She looked around and saw some magazines and then back at one of the pots on the stove. She wandered back towards the table and looked at the spaghetti rings and frowned. She was very hungry and needed something in her stomach now. She pulled one of the wooden chairs out and sat down. She moaned at the feeling, eyeing the spam. She opened it and smiled.

  Abby reached for the crackers and pulled out a packet. She reached for the spam and noticed her bloody hands. They were shaking and very pale under the blood. She took in a deep breath and poured the spam out onto another plate and saw the fork next to it. She grabbed it and started to cut the spam into pieces then she placed some on the crackers. She picked up a cracker with spam on it and brought it to her mouth. It smelt good, however she gagged. She closed her eyes and then put the cracker into her mouth.

  It tasted very good, but her body reflexes wanted her to throw it up. She kept chewing even though the missing tooth made it hard to eat. She ignored the pain and ate another one and another, until all ten crackers were gone from the plate. She still had some spam left so grabbed more crackers and ate the rest, until her head started to calm down. She noticed sweat on her arms and could feel it running down her face. She felt so hot inside; but when she touched her face, her skin felt cold.

  Abby looked at the flickering candlelight and listened to the rain beating down onto the roof. She swallowed hard and knew she needed to find something to drink. She pushed herself away from the table, grabbed her hockey stick, and stood. She looked at the refrigerator and sighed. She walked towards it and reached for the door but hesitated. She placed her hands on it and opened it quickly. The smell hit her like a ton of bricks; and it made her move backwards, coughing. Abby closed her eyes then hurried to open them and stared into the refrigerator. It was filled with rotting food as expected. She shut it and started to cough and gag. She had to force herself to stop, so she would not throw up.

  Abby looked around again and walked over towards the stove. There was a walk-in closet near it. She opened it and saw bags and cans of dog food and other pet things and some cleaning supplies. Then she saw a six pack of a yellow sports drink and some water bottles. The case of water was half empty, but there were four bottles left. She shuffled awkwardly to pick them up and walked back towards the table. She opened a water bottle and started to drink heavily. The water poured out the sides of Abby’s mouth, and she started to cough.

  Thunder roared outside, and lightning flashed. Abby was still hungry, so she opened the cabinets again and took more cans of food out and energy bars. She found some chocolate snack cakes and grabbed those too. She grabbed a box of cheese crackers and a can of almonds. She turned towards the table and put it all on the table before placing a few of the cans and the cheese crackers into her backpack. She then opened the snack cakes and ate one. She let out a small laugh as she ate another.

  Sleep was starting to edge into Abby’s eyes. She was exhausted, and her leg was throbbing. She placed the snack cakes and almonds into her backpack then looked at the candles, watching the flame flicker and die. She put the three bottled waters in the backpack with three bottles of the sports drink. She walked to the staircase and gave it a long look. It was going to be hard getting up the stairs with her leg and even harder now that it was dark inside. She yawned and started towards it.

  Abby took in a deep breath as she started up the stairs. It was difficult to walk up the steps with the hockey stick, seeing as she almost fell a few times. When she made it to the top, she glanced back down at the door then up at the ceiling. The rain was falling hard now. The hallway upstairs was very dark and had three doors. One was open to a small welcoming bathroom. She passed it and looked at a white door and swallowed hard. She opened it slowly. Inside was a workout room and the walls were filled with inspirational quotes and dog toys.

  Abby turned towards the door across from it and opened it. It was a large bedroom. A king-sized bed sat in the middle of the room, unmade with two black nightstands next to it. A black dresser was on the right side of the room next to a computer desk with more pictures of the couple and their dogs. Across from the bed was another dresser with a flat screen tv on it. A walk-in closest was open to the left, and Abby walked towards it. She put her bag onto the bed and then saw a real candle sitting on the dresser. It was a vanilla scented candle. She lit it with her matches and smiled. She brought it over to the nightstand next to the bed.

  Abby sat down on the bed painfully and groaned. She was sweating, and the rain was making her head pound. She smelt of piss and blood and something else foul. She looked down at her pants at the ripped opening and saw that blood was trying to come through her bandages. She blinked and rubbed her eyes as she laid herself down. Abby turned towards the door and wished she had shut it. She stared at it and tried to remember if she had locked the front door. She could not remember and wanted nothing more than to go check and lock both. However before she could do anything, sleep took her.

  Chapter three

  Abby woke to the sound of thunder screaming in her ear and rain smashing into the window. She rolled over onto her back and let out a cry as she grabbed her leg. She regretted it as her hands pressed onto her sore wound. She felt the warm wetness of blood under her fingers. Her blue eyes opened to shadows on the roof above her and the smell of vanilla. Her hair was soaked in sweat; and as she rose to sit up, she could feel that she had urinated on herself again. She could see her bandages now in the light and saw that blood was seeping from them.

  Abby started to cough dryly and breathe heavily. Her head was spinning and throbbing. Her blood was racing like hundreds of needles were piercing through her skin. Without warning she vomited. She twisted her body to the side and puked onto the bed, until all she could do was dry heave. She grabbed at her chest and squeezed one of her breasts as a pain crawled around it. She started to cry and mumbled curses under her breath.

  She started to shake and fell onto her side as her body started to seize. Her wound felt as if it was ripping her leg apart. She screamed as she dug her fingers into the wound. The pain was unbearable. She cried and shook, and before she knew it the episode was over. Her heartbeat had been racing but now was calm. Her body that had been burning now felt cold. Her wound was numb, even though she felt so drained.

  Abby laid there on the bed, mouth opened, eyes fixed on the vanilla candle. It had burned down into the middle of the candle. She watched it for a few minutes as her breathing returned to normal. She was still alive. She was a human. This scared her more than anything. Abby rolled onto her back and let go of her wound. She brought her hand up and stared at it in the candle light. Lightning flashed outside, and it showed more of her hand. The blood on it looked black and smelt rotten.

  Abby dropped her hand onto the bed and clutched the blankets. She squeezed her eyes shut as her lips closed and opened. She had never felt so alone and confused in her life, and it made her angry. She smashed the headboard of the bed sending a loud echo throughout the house. She cursed loudly and let out an angry cry as she smashed it again and again. Abby cried out sadly and rolled over to bury her face into one of the pillows on the bed. She cried, until she could not cry anymore.

  Abby had been laying there for what felt like hours, staring at the one window in the room. She had been listening to the sound of the rain and thunder. The candle had burned out some time ago, however she had found a small electric lantern under the bed that was now next to her head. She was afraid to be in the dark. S
he swallowed and realized how dry her throat was. Her body was weak, and her mind felt disconnected and woozy, but she was able to pull herself up. She took a long look at her dirty clothes and grimaced at the puke next to her. She grabbed her backpack and opened it. She took out a bottle of water and drank all of it.

  Next Abby pulled out the cheese crackers and opened the box. She stopped to look at her bloody hands. She narrowed her eyes but dug into the box anyway. She sat and ate the crackers as the numbness in her body swam around. She opened another bottle of water, which she drank much slower this time. After eating half of the crackers, she sat the box back into the backpack. She then put it on and pulled herself to the edge of the bed. She needed to clean her wound again and find new clothes. She struggled to stand with the hockey stick. She grabbed the lantern and wobbled as she made her way out of the bedroom.

  Abby walked to the bathroom and shut the door and locked it. She put the backpack onto the bathroom counter then opened the drawer under it. There were a lot of cleaning things, shampoos, soaps, pads, tampons, and two bottles of alcohol. She grabbed them and placed them all on the counter. She looked into the mirror and saw how awful she looked. Her hair was matted with sweat and blood, and her eyes were red and pale. There were deep dark circles under her blue eyes. Her face was very thin, and her cheekbones were showing. She looked closely at the strange blue lines near her small ears then at the cracks in her dry lips. She opened her mouth and saw her gums looked blackish.

  Abby’s eyes filled with tears, and she covered her face with her hands. She shook her head and put her hands onto the counter, swaying a little. She looked at herself again then at the necklace that had blood on it. She gave it a long look; and when she sighed, a tear rolled down her cheek. She tried the water in the sink; and as she expected, it did not work. So she took out a new bottle of water and opened it. Abby then stopped and looked at the toilet. She held herself up on the counter and moved a basket of rags off the top of the toilet. She sat down on the toilet and moved the lid off the back. There was water in it. She put her hands in it and started to wash them, and then she grabbed a rag from the basket and dipped it in the water. She closed her eyes as she cleaned her face.