Dead End Stories From the End of the World

by P. S. Power

  Next to her one of the girls that Jake didn't know looked a lot more pissed off than not suddenly.

  “No.” She sounded firm, angry and like punching Jake would be a good idea. “You don't have to do this Cam. That woman said we don't have to have sex with anyone we don't want to and that this guy is bad. Creepy. That he hurts people. I won't let him hurt you though. We won't.” She didn't make eye contact with Jake at all, but her voice hardly shook either.

  Cameron made a face that seemed disgusted, “who said that about the Dehist? I told you, he's safe. Maybe the last safe person anywhere. I offered to do him and he said I was too young. When was the last time you heard that, Laura? Someone needs a sock to the jaw.”

  The other girl shook her head.

  “No he just has you fooled. She said you might feel that way, it's because he has mind powers and can make you believe stuff. People have to do what he says or he'll just kill them. I've talked to people, he's killed like half the people that used to be here!” She yelled the last bit.

  Jake found himself staring at her down a firearm in his hand. She jumped back and screamed. Not too loud. Just enough he almost shot her. What saved her wasn't his kindness or even that he wanted to give her a chance to learn. Not now. They knew the rules. No, it was the clutch of people standing behind her.

  “Control the sound level please.” He said gently.

  The girls all froze in place and went silent. It was better. The room followed their lead. Jake put the nine away with a sigh.

  “Sorry. We have to keep the human sounds down. Especially now. If you want to call me names and malign me, go ahead, but softly, please. Now, who exactly said that about me?” Jake looked around the room and saw Heather staring.

  That got him to roll his eyes.

  “Seriously? We're still on all that then? What the fudge Heather? I'd thought we came to a truce or something? You know, you stop sabotaging my entire existence and trying to drive me away and I don't...” The only thing that came to mind was shooting himself in the head. Or her.

  She walked over to him, body set, shoulders ridged and fists clenched. Jake just took a deep breath and got ready. It was this crap again.

  Goody.

  In front of all the new people too. He just waited. Whatever would come... would.

  “You... can't Jake. If I let them get close to you, it's going to mess everything up. As it is I don't know if anyone will survive in the end. It's not fair, but we can't let everyone else die just so you can be happy either, can we? Besides, you don't deserve to be happy. You're creepy and bad. You almost shot that girl just now, because she was breaking one of your rules. Who made that rule up though? Oh, right, that was you wasn't it? Why? Because zombies might get us? Or is it just because you like to hurt people?” Her right hand came up, as if to hit him.

  Jake didn't move. He just watched her carefully. The girl had never been that tightly wound and pregnancy didn't seem to be smoothing things out for her either. Randy, her boyfriend, walked over slowly and put a hand on her upper arm, which got him shrugged off violently.

  “Poor Jake can't have unlimited sex so everyone else should just die? Is that what you're saying? What a loser. Just because you're too lame to get a girl that will actually sleep with you, we all have to pay? I hate you!” She stomped. It looked childish and petulant.

  Kind of cute really.

  Then she slapped him. Several times. It hurt, but pain was just another thing now, wasn't it? She hadn't yelled, so he just stood and took it. Everyone else was watching, which was awkward and several people started to gather around them, as if to lynch him. Only they didn't. When she moved in to hit him again Sue simply stepped in front of him, taking the blow instead.

  She didn't try to protect herself, not on the first blow, but after that she put an arm up to catch the flailing hand.

  “Stop girl.” She hissed, her dusky skin harder to see than Heather's pale face. “You don't hit A Very Good Man!”

  “Oh? What's so good about him? Go ahead and yell about how great he is, and he'll shoot you where you stand. I've had enough of this shit. He's evil and I hate him and he's going to get us all killed because he's selfish and a stupid-head!”

  Vickie came over, fighting a grin from her face, and Sammi walked in from the kitchen to see what was going on, and just came over when she saw the scene. It got worse then, as Jake was accused of having slept with her several times. And Cam. Then Darla.

  People got uneasy about it, though the little girl shook her head and stalked over.

  “Jake is a good fighter, and worth sleeping with, but I don't have sex, not at all, and he couldn't make me. Oh, he might be able to kill me, but force me to do anything I don't want? Not likely. So, tell me Heather, why are you trying to ruin him? What do you gain from it?”

  Sammi shrugged, “she's a full immersion precog, but this seems a bit over the top. The only outcomes I can see from this are highly negative. Explain please Heather.”

  Instead she started a litany of times Jake had been alone with the girl. Going off to talk alone, or when Sammi was too close to him. The same followed with Darla, and Cam had been in bed with him. Everyone knew that.

  “She's only fourteen! Jake thinks he can just sleep with anyone he wants though, doesn't he?”

  It didn't matter that the girls denied it, the women were all from the U.S. and that meant the allegation was the same as proof to their old way of thinking. He could feel the stares, the anger building in them. It was based on lies and not rational, but that didn't matter.

  In short, it was totally fucked up.

  Jake rubbed his forehead and wondered what the point was. He just felt so tired now, like he wanted to die, just to get some rest. Just to be done now. Maybe that was it? Did she want him to kill himself? Or go away forever?

  From the back one of the new women muttered, “We can't have that here. He needs to go.”

  Nate stepped in then and tried to explain that Heather was saying things to try and make that happen, but the words had already come out, hadn't they. No one tried to order him out of the place, but women huddled their children close and looked scared.

  Of him. Like he might rape them all. Then kill them.

  Holy, fucking, hell.

  Heather didn't look triumphant, she just gasped and looked sweaty. Uncomfortable. Which she should, he figured, since it had to be hard work ruining someone's life like that.

  Then she stormed off up the stairs, leaving Randy to stand alone, his eyes wide.

  “It's, she didn't mean it. I...” The guy was nearly twenty and looked scared, as if he expected to die in the next few minutes.

  Jake could see that. It was one plan after all.

  Nate walked to the center of the room.

  “God, this isn't... Jake's a good guy and didn't sleep with anyone at all. He's a virgin for goodness sake. Heather is just a bit confused, it's the future is pressing in on her and she, well, it doesn't make sense... her mind is so cluttered...” He walked around the room then, trying to make things better.

  Jake didn't have the ability to read minds, but at least half the women seemed inclined to think the worst of him, no matter what proof was offered. They didn't have the right to do that, but that didn't seem to matter to them. Slowly, as people stared at him looking angry and fearful, a slow rage built in his gut.

  “Whatever.” They didn't deserve to have help from anyone, did they? Not if they were going to think things like that about him.

  Heather...

  Why she'd done it Jake didn't know. Maybe the girl didn't even know herself. That was really possible given who she was. Worse it might not have had a point at all. She might just have been mad at him for some reason. Hormones maybe, or because it was Tuesday. It didn't matter. Now he was hated again.

  Despised by people that he'd done everything he could to help. He watched it growing behind their eyes.

  Fucking hell.

  Fine. If they didn't want him there, he
wouldn't be around. He could do that. A wave of darkness came over him, ringing in his mind. He could take the nine millimeter and stick it in his mouth. Then they wouldn't have to keep trying to ruin him at all. It was a good enough idea Jake started for his weapon.

  “No!” Nate yelled the word loud enough to get Jake to draw on him, which made half the cleaners get a weapon out and point it at him, which nearly started a gun battle right there.

  “Sorry!” The leader husked. “Weapons away. I,” He made little hand gestures at Carl and Spence, who had handguns pointed at him, and Vickie who had one pointed at Spence, taking him as more of a threat than Carl in the moment. It was an interesting choice.

  “Jake, you can't just leave or... we'll all die. It doesn't work when you aren't here. We've tried it.”

  Jake didn't know what he was supposed to do about that anymore.

  “I can't stay either. Look at them, convicting me based on lies? You know what they're thinking, that 'where there's smoke, there's fire', even I can see it. You know what? Screw it. I'll put up with a lot, ridicule, nightmares and disdain, but no one claims I hurt children. That's the last straw, Nate. I can't accept that. I won't.”

  Jake stopped to bundle up before walking out, it was cold, so much so the hair in his nose felt like it stuck together with each breath in. If he was walking home, he'd need more to wear. Was it insane? Probably. He couldn't see anything coming for him and there'd be no early warning of fear from the scent. He could hear them walking though, if he tried. Maybe it would be enough? At that moment he just didn't care at all.

  People were talking to him, but while he heard the words, the meaning just went past him totally. It wasn't until someone grabbed his arm, hard, keeping him from leaving, that he paid attention. It was Vickie, she looked frightened, which wasn't normal for her at all.

  “Jake, no one thinks you did anything. Besides, all of those girls aren't girls at all. Sammi is the oldest one here I think and Darla's second. Cam's too young, but I was there and know for a fact you didn't touch her. Don't do this.”

  Blinking hard, Jake looked around. Yeah, some of the faces looked worried, but in the back the women still looked accusing. Bitter and hateful.

  Jake pointed that out.

  “They don't know me at all, but still, a few lies and they think they have a right to make me leave.” Then he bit the next words off. He didn't want people to die. Getting angry wouldn't help right now. Jake knew that. He walked toward the door, seething inside anyway.

  That's when Rita, standing in the back of the room took a half step forward. She spoke quietly enough it was hard to hear. There were tears on her cheeks.

  “Jake... raped me. He said if I told anyone, he'd kill me. I was so scared, but I can't...” she sobbed.

  What? Several other women stepped forward and said something similar. Nate looked baffled, and held out a hand toward Jake and then, oddly, Sammi.

  “They're lying. I mean I know they are, I can hear it, but I can't... They aren't thinking about why. They know it's not true, but... Why?”

  Becky Fines shook with rage and pointed at Jake hard.

  “Don't cover for him. I thought we were past having to deal with people like that. All men are pigs. We should kill him.” She looked ready to try. Jake took a deep breath and got ready to fight. Whatever this was, it seemed to be big. A huge thing that he didn't understand at all. Some kind of plot to get rid of him? Why?

  Did they all hate him that much?

  Apparently so.

  He drew his nine millimeter and walked toward the door, not saying anything. Telling people that these others were lying wouldn't work, would it? He was so angry anyway that he nearly just started shooting. If it wouldn't have potentially hurt innocent people too he would have.

  Behind him people started arguing, softly, but it was real enough.

  “Fuck it. You don't want me enough to make up lies like this? Fine. I'm gone. But later, when you all need me, remember this; I've given you all too many chances.”

  Then, without another word, he walked into the night.

  Chapter Ten

  Nothing tried to eat him on the way home, the crunch of dried, fine snow under his boots the only sound. That and his own breathing. He felt both hot and cold, rage eating at his soul. How could they say that about him? Rita claiming he'd raped her? What the fudge? They'd never even hugged that he remembered. She thought he was all creepy. Then, she'd been one of the people that had voted him out the first time, hadn't she? One of Holsom's women, who had it out for him.

  The others that lied had been too. Except Heather. She came in on the day that Derrick ran away. If they'd even ever spoken, it had only been in passing. What was her excuse, since he hadn't made her precious Derrick go away? Just honest craziness? Simple dislike?

  It didn't matter. He was done with them, and that place.

  Tears washed down his face, cold but not freezing. It wasn't fair. Then, life wasn't. Really, Jake half expected to find his home filled with raiders or zombies when he got there, or burned down. None of that had happened though. He checked the whole place just in case, but it was fine, just as it had been left.

  He got a fire started, using a match, since no coals were left at all and while hot, his rage didn't seem like enough to really do the trick. Nearly though. It took work not to think about going back in the night and killing them all. At least the liars. Jake felt his heart pound and breath go fast in the still cold room, the stove sucking in air through the front vents hard, sounding like a jet plane.

  That night he didn't sleep. He just sat on the ground by the fire. There was no reason to do anything was there? People were bad, and humanity probably deserved to all die. Some of them did for certain. At least Nate knew for a fact that they were lying. Not that anyone else would listen.

  When morning came he got up and washed, the water cold enough to shock him into going outside and starting a fire under the water heater, making sure the tank was topped off first. Then, an hour later, he cleaned up, shaved and made sure all his weapons were loaded.

  Then he went hunting.

  Yeah, he didn't need the meat, but it was something to do. He got two sheep, and spent most of the day working on that, then he brought the frozen hides, the ones he'd been keeping in the barn, into the living room and decided to climb up on the roof, snow or not and try to clean the chimney. Not that he knew how. Jake nearly fell a dozen or more times, and made a mess in the living room, but by dinner time he figured the thing was clean enough to use.

  Then he bathed again. The water was hot this time. Nearly searing. It didn't matter. No one cared if he hurt after all, did they?

  That thought triggered the rage again, which came in waves, making him shake and want to kill again. Finally, after dark, he huddled in the kitchen and made something to eat. A beef stew. Made mainly of meat. It was enough.

  That night he slept, not able to stay awake any longer. When he woke up the next day he felt a little disappointed. It would have been easier if he'd just died in his sleep, wouldn't it? For a while he just lay in bed, contemplating putting the nine, no, the forty-five, in his mouth and removing the top of his head with it. It was tempting, but he just couldn't. Something inside him wouldn't let that happen, and he knew it. Instead he got up and decided to do something useful.

  What that was going to be he didn't know.

  Jake decided to go hunting again, knowing that the House still needed the extra food, even if half of the people there deserved to die. The other half didn't. That meant he should help them out, right? He got the idea when he saw the herd of cattle, still nearly a hundred strong. If he led them, or rather drove them, closer to the House, they could kill them and he wouldn't have to carry meat in and leave it on the doorstep. Less work overall.

  It turned out to be a lot harder to drive cattle alone than he'd thought, requiring constant running while hitting two pieces of wood together, praying the whole time he didn't have to suddenly fight anything,
since his hands ached from the cold already. The one really interesting thing was that the herd grew as he went. Yeah, some fell behind, but another herd, large but not as big, joined up. They probably thought they were being led to where the food was.

  It made him feel bad for a bit, but that didn't stop him from keeping them going.

  It took a long time, half a day at least, even if it was only three miles away from his house, about four and a half from where he found them, Jake figured. As he closed in on the place the cows tried to stop. After a second he got why.

  The whole building was absolutely surrounded by zombies. The greenhouse was visible, which it shouldn't have been from where he stood. It had collapsed into the back yard, which had obviously taken some doing. The frame was freaking sturdy, thick logs set deep into the ground. It had to be the super-z running around that had done it. It bashed into the white sidling again and again, people shooting from the upper windows. They didn't hit much.

  Well, it explained why no one had come to visit at least. That made him feel a little better. He'd expected at least a few people to come and try to make him feel better. Nate maybe. Or Vickie. She was his girlfriend, or had been. Now... who knew? He knew he was innocent, but would anyone else believe that?

  Of course it was a moot point. The swarm was pretty worked up and seemed just about ready to break into the place. Without food the zombies seemed a lot more proactive about getting at it. The one good thing was that they did try to bite each other a lot more. After a second Jake worked it out. No scent. They couldn't tell they weren't just people.

  Working himself behind the cows he pulled the nine and started running, firing once, then sprinting hard to keep the now running cows going in the right direction. Directly toward the buildings. Which meant the mob of undead.

  He didn't know what he expected. Not much to tell the truth, but what he got was a disaster. It was like two freight trains colliding or something, the dead not reacting to cows at all, just stood still, and the bovines were not that impressed by the small size and weight of the zombies, trampling them under foot. In less than half a minute a third of the place was clear. The others ran and started trying to eat the ones on the ground. Not getting good mouthfuls, the frozen flesh being hard, they took a lot longer trying to eat than they did in the summer.