Number 12 ran. He wobbled like a penguin, still holding his side. He seemed to have received a new-found energy with the lifeline he’d been thrown.
He made it to the ax without any of the Empties turning their focus away from the body of Number 32. Each was too busy trying to pull off the flesh of the fallen competitor.
The crowd went ballistic when Number 12 grabbed the ax.
Now armed, Number 12 looked even more mortified than before. Running was no longer an option. He was the only human alive on the field, and he’d have to take on these creatures by himself if he wanted to walk off. From the information Gabriel had gathered, if he failed to fight, he would die by the hands of humans.
Number 12 crept over toward the horde while the crowd continued to scream at him. Either by adrenaline or the sheer will to live, Number 12 swung the ax and connected with one of the creatures. The ax cut all the way through the back of its skull, shaving off the top of the Empty’s head. The creature fell to the ground, and the others lifted their heads from the carcass of Number 32.
Even from up in the stands and across the field, Gabriel could see the man shaking.
The ax fell from Number 12’s hands, and he turned and ran.
The crowd booed, yelling at him to “Stop being a pussy!” and to “Stand and fight!”
Again, the guards on the fence’s outer perimeter raised their weapons.
Number 12 made it to the chain link fence, the horde of Empties still halfway across the field. He held onto the fence and shook it, pleading to be let out. A guard on the other side pointed and yelled at him. Number 12 didn’t seem to be listening, as he continued to negotiate an exit from the sickening contest.
The guard turned away from Number 12 and looked up to the bleachers where Ambrose sat.
Ambrose, standing now, simply nodded to the guard.
The guard backed a few feet away from the fence and raised his weapon.
Number 12’s eyes went as wide as oranges. He turned and ran back toward the end zone near the field-house. The guard, having stuck the barrel of the rifle through a gap in the chain link, followed Number 12 in his sights. If Number 12 had been smart, he would’ve swerved, making himself a moving target. Instead, the guard fired, and the bullet bit into the remaining competitor’s calf like a rabid dog. Blood spewed from his leg, and he fell to the turf, face planting at about the twenty-five yard line.
Once again, the crowd cheered. Some even laughed.
One of those someones was Ambrose. Gabriel stared over at the gray haired man, who smiled from ear to ear and clapped. He looked down to the guard and gave him two thumbs up. The guard, as if he were nearing the end of a Broadway show, took a bow.
The horde snarled, lumbering toward the fallen competitor. Number 12 lay on the ground, holding the back of his leg and crying. Not just screaming came from him, but tears swimming down his face.
And as the horde reached him, Gabriel turned away.
The crowd erupted.
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
For the rest of the short drive, everyone in the vehicle remained silent. The quiet remained until Karl pointed ahead and spoke.
“There,” he said. “That’s the landmark.”
Ahead was a two-way stop. Karl came to a complete stop and pointed to a tree that was a short distance away from the red sign.
In the middle of the tree were three words carved into the bark with a knife: ‘Come For Us’.
“Come for us?” Spencer asked, curious.
“God,” Charlie replied.
Spencer still looked confused.
“They are asking God to come for them. To get them out of this nightmare,” Charlie clarified.
Spencer sat back in his seat.
As Karl made a right turn, he said, “Should be not far down this road.”
He drove until he came to the entrance of a neighborhood. Much like the place Karl and Spencer had been staying, it was a gated community. The location was far enough off the beaten path to where few people would find it without knowing it was there. The road inclined, and at the top of the hill, they arrived at a gate.
“This is definitely it,” Karl said.
Two guards sat perched on makeshift crows’ nests to either end of the gate. One of the men held an assault rifle while the other appeared to only have a pistol.
“Stop,” a strong female voice called out. It came from a loudspeaker, and it hadn’t come from either of the guards stationed up high.
Karl brought the van to a complete stop, and Will looked around for the person speaking to them.
“Shut off your vehicle and throw your keys on the dashboard,” the voice said. “Then keep your hands on the wheel. Everyone else in the vehicle, please put your hands behind your head.”
“What is this?” Spencer asked, frustrated. “Where the hell did you bring us, Karl?”
“They’re just being cautious,” Will said, raising his hands to behind his head. “Now, just do as they ask.”
Karl turned the key in the ignition, killing the engine. He tossed the keys up on the dash, then set his hands on the wheel. Everyone else in the vehicle followed the instructions, placing their hands behind their heads. The guards up top kept their weapons fixed on the van, and the woman behind the voice still had yet to show herself.
On either side of the road, there was grass for about ten yards before a line of trees started. There’d been trees along the road for the entire drive, so these woods likely went back several hundred yards. Will heard a rustling, and looked over toward it.
Out of the trees walked a woman holding at her side a megaphone. Three men carrying heavier artillery appeared behind her. The woman wore a military style jacket, faded green with the front open, with a tattered thermal shirt underneath. She had a dark complexion with oily black hair and dark brown eyes. She approached the van with little hesitation or worry. Arriving at the passenger side front door, she opened it.
“Are you armed?” she asked Will.
“Yes,” Will said. “We all are.”
She looked Will up and down. He’d used a towel to wipe most of the blood and matter off of his face and from his hair, but his outfit was still covered in body fluid.
“What happened?”
“We had a run-in while on the way here,” Will said.
“Human?” she asked.
Will shook his head.
The woman scanned everyone else in the vehicle. Then she focused her attention to the rear compartment where the group had placed all the things they meant to barter.
“Why are you here?” she asked.
“I met Adam while out on the road,” Karl said. “We met at a gas station. He gave me directions and said that you all would be willing to do some trading. We have a list of things we need, and we’ve come with items to trade.”
The woman glanced into each of their faces, not moving from her cold stare. The three guards behind her remained with their weapons crossed over their chests, not aimed at the van.
“We’ll need your ammo. You can keep the guns.”
Before Will could say anything, Spencer leaned into the front seat and said, “No way, man.”
“Shut up,” Karl yelled.
Taken back, Spencer faded into the back seat.
“Give them your ammunition,” Karl said, speaking to all three men in the car.
Will hesitated, trying to read the woman. She held a cold stare on Karl, but shifted it to Will.
Charlie handed both his and Spencer’s ammo through the window. Karl followed suit.
“Do it, Will,” Charlie said to Will.
Will sighed, and turned his bullets over to the woman.
Still staring at Will, the woman shouted, “Let them in.” She backed away from the van.
The gate opened, and Karl swiped the keys off the dash. The engine roared to life and he pulled forward through the entrance.
There was almost a quarter-mile stretch of pavement between the gate and any houses. The la
nd leading into the neighborhood had once been decked out with beautiful landscaping, but flowers in the median had died off and the bushes along the curb were now unkempt.
When they reached the first house on the corner, there were another two men waiting on them. Neither man held a weapon, but each had a pistol affixed to their side, and one of the men also had a large knife on his hip. Karl rolled down his window as he pulled up beside the two men.
“What’s your business here?” the man with the large knife asked.
“Here to see Adam and hoping to do some trading.”
The man looked into the van, scanning the faces of the four people inside before shifting his gaze to the items in the back.
“All right,” the man said. “Go up the road and take a right onto Calvin. You’ll see a group of people outside, and Adam’s place is 345.”
“Thanks,” Karl said.
The man tapped on the window seal and backed away from the van.
The houses they passed appeared empty and no one stood outside. Strangely, it looked like this neighborhood had seen little action. Either nothing had happened here, or the survivors living in the area had done a good job of cleaning up.
Karl hung a right on Calvin.
Several people loitered in the street and yards, turning to watch the van approach as it came around the corner.
Spencer said, “I don’t like this.”
“It’ll be fine,” Charlie said.
“How do you know, man?”
“No, he’s right,” Will said. “If they wanted to kill us, they could’ve already.”
Karl pulled the vehicle forward, and everyone outside just stared at them. He drove until he had no choice but to stop, as no one in the road had moved. He saw the number ‘345’ posted on a mailbox behind the group.
“Hang here,” Karl said. He stepped out of the vehicle and approached the group.
“This just doesn’t feel right, man,” Spencer said again.
Even though Will had said it was fine, he had his own doubts. He wished that he hadn’t agreed to turn over his weapons at the gate. In fact, it seemed like a really stupid decision in this moment.
Karl walked up to the group and spoke to a man. They shook hands, and the man thumbed over his shoulder toward 345 Calvin Street—Adam’s house. The man shouted at someone else, and a teenage boy hurried through Adam’s yard and knocked on his door.
The door opened, and a man appeared in the doorway. They spoke for a moment, and then the man looked over the teen’s shoulder and waved at Karl. The two men met halfway across Adam’s yard, and it was as if they’d known each other since grade school. They hugged, shook hands, and chatted for a moment before Karl looked back and waved to the van.
“I guess we’re safe to get out,” Charlie said.
Will opened his door and stepped out of the vehicle. The air had a cool tinge to it, and the breeze blew down the center of the open street. He shut his door and, when he turned to face the group, everyone in the street stared at him. He glanced to the houses, and the eyes of people standing in the yards and on porches stared him down. Standing still, he looked down at his clothes. They were covered in blood. He had wiped his face off as best he could, but could still feel the dirt and dried blood on his cheeks and in his hair.
He found a cloud on the horizon to focus on, looking past the crowd. Even so, he could still feel all their eyes on him as he approached Adam’s house.
***
There was a half-bath located on the first floor of Adam’s home. He allowed Will to use it to clean himself up, providing him with a couple of hand towels. The house had no running water, but Adam had been kind enough to give him a couple of bottled waters to rinse off with. Will wondered if he would have to pay for the bottles later in a trade.
A vanilla-scented candle illuminated the space. Will got as much of the crud out of his hair as he could, and then he used the remaining water to clean off his face. As he looked in the mirror, even in the dim light he could see how much he’d aged in such a short period of time. The stubble on his face would grow thicker, which would help keep him warm in the oncoming winter. New lines had formed on his face. The dark ones under his eyes didn’t wipe away with the blood and dirt.
Once he’d used all the water, Will dried off his face with the second towel, blew out the candle, and exited the half-bath.
The door opened up to the living room, where Charlie, Karl, and Spencer sat on a long, three-piece sofa. Adam sat across the room in a recliner, gesturing with several hand motions as he spoke. He was tall, around six-foot-three, and was balding on top. Like Will, he had a new beard growing in, though Adam’s was a little more mature. He wore a hooded sweatshirt with a hole in the front pocket. He looked over to Will and smiled.
“Feel better?” Adam asked.
“Much,” Will said. “Thank you.”
“Karl here was telling me what happened. You’re really lucky.”
You don’t know the half of it, Will thought, chuckling. “Yeah, I was.”
“Please, have a seat,” Karl said, signaling toward another chair on the other side of the room.
Will went to the chair and eased into it. A fresh bottle of water sat on a nearby table, and Will opened the top and took a swig.
“Thanks,” Will said, pointing the top of the water bottle toward Adam.
“Not a problem,” Adam replied.
“You guys have been here since people fell?” Charlie asked.
Finishing his own sip of water, Adam nodded. “Pretty much everyone who lives here now was here before. We have a couple of stragglers, but we’re so hidden back here that we haven’t had to worry about much. The population in this area is dense. This was the first of several subdivisions being developed in these parts, but then, well...”
“Yeah,” Charlie said.
“We’ve met a few other people when we’ve ventured out into the world. No one since we met you,” Adam said, signaling toward Karl. “We’re pretty well stocked here, so we’ve been fortunate enough not to have to leave too often. But from what I’ve heard, we’ve been pretty lucky.”
“How many people fell?” Will asked.
“Seven,” Adam said.
Will’s eyes widened. “That’s it? You guys made out very well. When it happened, I was the only person alive where I was. I had to kill more than seven to get out, and that was in a 50,000 square foot building.”
“I’m sorry to hear that,” Adam said. “We do know that we’re very fortunate. The truth is, this neighborhood isn’t even finished, so there weren’t a lot of folks here to begin with. And the construction was a blessing in itself. We’ve got enough lumber to last us maybe twelve winters.” He took another swig of water. “With that, maybe we should get down to business.”
“Oh, yeah,” Karl said. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a folded piece of paper. He opened it and handed it over to Adam.
Adam leaned over and grabbed a set of reading glasses from a table next to him. He put them on, and then looked at the note.
“Hmm,” he mumbled.
“What?” Will asked.
“You guys sure need a lot of medical supplies,” he said.
“Do you have them?” Will asked.
He continued scanning the list for a sec, and then nodded. “Yeah, I believe we have most of this. We were able to raid a pharmacy up the road right after everything happened. So we have quite a few prescriptions. I can tell you that these aren’t going to be cheap.”
“That’s fine,” Will said sharply.
Adam looked up from the paper and lowered his glasses down his nose. He eyed Will for a moment curiously.
“You got a painkiller addiction or something?”
Charlie butted in. “We have a badly injured child with us. He’s resting in a house back with Karl’s group. Those painkillers and antibiotics are for him.”
“Must be a pretty serious injury,” Karl said.
Will’s attitude had changed o
n a dime. What had once been a pleasant conversation was now just annoying him. He hated negotiations. Especially now, when bartering over supplies could mean the difference between life and death. Seeing that Will was becoming frustrated, Charlie took the liberty of explaining to Karl what had happened to Dylan. When he finished, Adam’s expression soured.
“Jesus Christ,” he said. He rubbed his forehead, sinking back into the recliner.
“We need those things so that he can recover,” Will said. “Without them, he’s going to be in a lot of constant pain, and we could risk infection.”
“All right,” Adam said. He pushed himself out of the chair and stood. “Let’s go see what you’ve got to trade.”
***
Outside, many of the same people still loitered. A small group of adults stood in the middle of the road, circled around three children playing with a jump rope. One child stood at either end while the third jumped. They counted with each leap, and the girl jumping had just passed twenty skips.
Karl led the others across the yard, down to the van. He opened the back doors and Adam peeked inside. Again, he used his reading glasses to get a better look at everything.
Ignoring all the canned food, Adam put his hands on the generator.
“It work?” he asked, looking back.
“Sure does,” Karl said. “Just needs gasoline.”
Adam looked inside the van again, and began rummaging through the weapons. He put his hands on a shotgun. “Do you have any shells to go with this Remington?”
“Your gatekeepers took all the ammunition, but we’ve got it. There’s also a few other things in that box next to the generator.”
Karl picked up the box and looked inside to see two knives and a pistol.
“All right,” Adam said. “So are you willing to part with all of it?”
“All of it?” Spencer asked, sounding surprised.
“What are we going to get in return?” Karl asked.
“You’re not actually considering this, are you?” Spencer asked Karl. “We just brought all this so that they’d have options. Now you wanna give it all away?”
Empty Bodies (Book 5): Damnation Page 10
