She grabbed the stick with both hands and leaned back to yank it into gear. The grinding sound filled the cabin again, and the stick remained fixed. Multiple hands slapped against the right side of the vehicle as the dead clamoured to get inside, leaving smears of blood and grease on its body.
Kristin glanced at the gun and radio before she gave the stick one last tug. With another jarring, mechanical snort, it moved back and lodged into the reverse slot. She eased on the gas, and the truck began to pull away from the damage, minus some of its front-end, which was still impaled on the jagged metal. Spinning the wheel, she drove into the perimeter, sandwiching the animated corpses between the fence support and the truck. As one of the skulls shattered, it fractured the passenger window.
She managed to back up far enough to fully block the hole before the leaking engine gave out and it grumbled to a halt. She could still hear the hands slapping the exterior on the opposite side. Taking a moment to breathe, she pushed the sweaty strands of hair from her face, snatched up the Beretta and walkie, and jumped out of the cabin.
5
Ethan turned his nose up at the fat fugitive slumped against the side of the Management Centre. Harley’s body had already begun to stink. His head was twisted and his vertebrae protruded from his neck.
He reluctantly sifted through Harley’s pockets, coming away with six shotgun shells and a half-eaten packet of watermelon bubblegum. He put his finds into his own pockets and faced the dimming sky. Dusk had well and truly fallen. The light filtered through the clouds as a peculiar shade of blue grey, tainting the grass and the tops of the trees.
The temperature had also dropped a few degrees. When he ventured inside the building, the large open spaces were cooler than outside. Blood marked the spot where Salty had been knocked down. Chairs had been overturned and one computer rig was in pieces. Each of these signs reminded him of their violent encounter – and nothing more than Fukes’s body. The pool of blood had already started to congeal around him.
Ethan stepped over his legs, making a concerted effort not to look at him. He made for the security monitors and took a seat in front of them. He took a deep breath and tried to rub the tiredness from his eyes, remembering he had not eaten all day. Sitting in a room with a fresh corpse was not at all in his comfort zone, but he did not fancy the idea of dragging it outside either.
He ignored the smell and the grumbles in his stomach to focus on the security feeds, switching from one camera to the next on 60 second rotations. He noticed one screen had switched to footage of the main gate and rolled his chair closer. The road leading in was clear, and the shadows were so thick that the trunks of the trees in the surrounding forest seemed to blend into one mass.
Another camera, positioned on the west side of the preserve, displayed the image of the military truck wedged awkwardly in the breach.
The next monitor showed Kristin on her way back, looking dishevelled but still in one piece. The solar panels no longer retained their glow without any sun to power them.
He caught a glimpse of the interior of the visitor centre just before the feed changed, and then placed his head on the desk, tapping his fingers until it cycled back around again. In the lounge, Salty lay with his arms over his face, so it was difficult to be sure whether he was asleep. Vincent was kneeling by the sofa next to Emily, his head on the cushion next to her stomach. He almost felt jealous of them, even if they were sleeping with one eye open.
The crackle of the radio behind him sent a cold jolt through his gut. ‘Hey, Fukes, Harley. This isn’t fuckin’ funny anymore. Over.’ This time, the gruff voice on the other end sounded agitated. ‘Come on, sound off. We ain’t heard shit from you in three hours.’
Ethan did not move from his seat. He just stared at the radio, which was still attached to Fukes’s belt.
‘OK, you better have run into trouble. We’re packing up and comin’ straight over there.’
There were no more transmissions after that.
Ethan rose from the desk and walked over to the body. As he bent down to reach for the walkie, he thought about what he could say in response. He wanted to confidently announce to them there was a small army behind the fences, and they had stripped their colleagues of their weapons and sent them on their way.
He plucked the device from Fukes and tucked it into his own jeans, making sure it was the opposite side of the walkie from the facility.
6
Vincent lifted his head from the sofa, the front of his hair sticking up after his brief nap. He couldn’t understand what had woken him so abruptly, but then he heard the hollow clunk of boot-heels on the hard floor of the foyer.
Kristin looked like she’d been through the wringer. Her clothes were damp with sweat and her limp had returned. He rushed over to her, searching her body for cuts and scratches, and cupping her face in his hands.
‘Jesus. Are you OK?’ He picked away some of the strands of her hair so he could properly see her face.
‘The hole is covered, if that’s what you mean. I hope those vehicles in the parking lot will start because the truck won’t get us another mile. How’s Emily?’ She tried to peer over the back of the sofa to get a glimpse of their daughter.
‘Better. She’s sleeping.’
Kristin went to her. The little girl had fallen asleep with her mouth open. Being under the blanket had caused her cheeks to flush. She felt compelled to lean over and kiss her forehead, but she didn’t want to disturb her rest. She remembered watching her sleep as a baby, how peaceful she had always looked. This serene image of Emily was suddenly supplanted by the memory of the decomposing mother she’d encountered at the breach and the half-eaten child she had been carrying. She shut her eyes and turned away, trying to erase it. When she opened them, Salty was stirring on the sofa opposite. He pushed himself into a sitting position, holding his head, as if he feared it would fall off if he didn’t.
‘Shit. What happened?’ he groaned.
‘It’s done. How are you feeling?’ she said.
‘Like I got the mother of all shine hangovers. I’ll live.’ The wiry man snorted and reached for his cap, perching it on top of his head, above his bandage.
‘Have you heard from Ethan yet?’ Kristin said.
‘Not yet,’ Vincent replied.
She walked to the aquarium where they had left their bags and unzipped one of them. Taking out a bottle of water that only had warm dregs at the bottom, she chugged it back, then discarded it on the floor.
‘Slow down,’ Vincent said. ‘Take a seat.’
Kristin shook her head. ‘I’m going to search for food. Where is it kept?’
‘There’s a restaurant upstairs. The kitchen is always pretty well-stocked. There’s some canned and frozen food too,’ Salty said.
‘Even better.’ Kristin proceeded to empty out the contents of each bag. A power ball that Emily had packed fell out and bounced over to Vincent.
‘Kristin?’ he said.
‘We take as much as we can carry. Leave some space for medical supplies from the clinic.’
‘What are you talking about?’
‘I know what’s up her ass,’ Salty said. ‘Thought we understood that the answer was no the first time you asked.’ He scowled, looking like he was determined to get up, even if he had to fall back down again.
‘All we established was that I’m the only one who can see this place for what it is.’ Before she could go anywhere, Vincent caught hold of her.
‘Kris, wait. Even if we can get one of those cars to start, where are we gonna go in the middle of the night?’
‘The coast. It’s virtually a straight shot to Jersey from here.’
‘You hankerin’ for a swim, Mrs. Graham?’ Salty said.
‘Travelling through those other cities? We’d never make it on the highway,’ Vincent said.
‘Then we’ll go around them.’
‘Ma’am, I think maybe you’ve been out in the sun too long today,’ Salty said.
�
��Jake, please.’ Vincent held his hand up to warn him off.
Kristin ignored them both and continued to gather up the now-empty bags.
‘Y’know, I was dumb enough to think I’d gotten through to you. Now it’s clear you’re outta your goddamn mind,’ Salty said.
‘It was your call to lead us here and I’m grateful – I really am, but you don’t get to decide whether my family stays. We’ll speak to Raine and Ethan – see what they want to do.’
Salty rubbed his sore head, suggesting the current conversation was only making it worse. ‘Fair enough, but I get to decide what you take from this place. The vehicles and medical supplies stay where they are.’
Kristin threw the bags down in disgust and strode to the sofa, where he sat down. ‘There are four cars on that lot, and you’ve got more than enough meds, you son of a bitch.’
This time, Salty found the strength to stand. ‘Mind yourself, Mrs. Graham. Court’s in recess right now.’
As Vincent moved to get in between them, the fizz of static came through his radio – Kristin’s too. ‘Erm… you there, guys?’ Ethan said. ‘We’ve got company.’
Satisfied that Salty and his wife had put their personal feud on hold, Vincent snatched the radio from his waistband and answered ‘we read you, Ethan. We’ll be right there.’
Salty grabbed the shotgun they had taken from Harley. He then handed Vincent Fukes’s six-shot pistol. ‘You better wake the rugrat.’
7
The gentle hum of the light around the facility started to rise as their photocells activated in response to the descending dark. Ethan was occupied with one particular monitor inside the Management Centre. He’d altered the settings so it continued to show the feed from the main gate. The lights there had not fully charged yet, and the two men outside with their Hummer kept momentarily disappearing in the pockets of shadow under the trees.
They had pulled up right next to the car Fukes and Harley arrived in. Both men were prowling from one side of the gate to the other, peering through the fence and occasionally punching numbers into the control panel.
Ethan was unaware that he was biting his own fingernails as he watched every move and gesture they made.
‘Helloooooo?’ Again the voice crackled through the radio that he’d placed on the desk next to him. Ethan saw one of the men had raised his walkie to his mouth. ‘Look, this ain’t fuckin’ funny, man. You gonna let us in or not?’
The door to the Management Centre slid open and Ethan spun on his chair to see the rest of the group enter – all except Raine.
Emily walked unaided, but still clung to her father’s arm.
‘Where’s Miller?’ Ethan said.
‘We don’t know,’ Kristin said. ‘I saw her just before I took the truck to the fence and she wasn’t in a good place.’
‘Screw her. We’ve got more pressing shit to worry about,’ Salty said. ‘What are they doin’?’ He made it to the monitors first, leaning in next to Ethan.
‘They’re just standing at the gate. They’ve tried to communicate a couple of times.’
‘Have you spoken to them?’ Vincent said.
Ethan shook his head.
Before Vincent could sit down at the desk, the radio hissed again. ‘Hey, we ain’t dumb enough to think someone ain’t listening. We know our friends are in there.’
Salty looked back at Kristin, who was now comforting Emily. ‘You sure you plugged that leak?’
‘There’s no way they can get through. There are too many of those creatures gathered around it anyway,’ she said.
Salty searched the other monitors for confirmation that the breach had been blocked, and he found it. There were at least thirty of the dead, either trying to clamber up the side of the truck or trapped between it and the fence.
‘We just want our friends back. You let us in and there ain’t no need for this to escalate.’
Vincent grabbed the radio from the desk and answered. ‘My name’s Vincent Graham.’
‘What are you doin’?’ Salty said.
Vincent ignored him and continued. ‘We were brought here by an employee of the facility. What do you want?’
‘Just to work this out,’ the man said. ‘We’d feel a little better about things if you told us why you got our buddy’s radio.’
Vincent paused for thought before he went back. ‘It’s complicated.’
‘It always is. Now, I know you ain’t about to spin some bullshit. So where Fukes and Harley at?’
Vincent turned and saw Fukes’s corpse, lying exactly where he’d bled out. ‘They’re here – with us.’
‘OK, so put ‘em on.’
‘That’s not going to be possible.’
‘Why’s that?’
‘They held us at gun point. They were going to rape my wife. We had to stop them.’
This time, the pause came from the other end of the transmission. ‘So by “stopped”, you mean killed them, right?’
‘We were only defending ourselves. They attacked us.’
‘Well then, Vincent Graham. You tell your wife from me, it ain’t over for her yet. When I get in there, I’m gonna fuck her in the ass while you watch. Then I’m gonna gut her like a fish. Then I’m gonna—’
Salty snatched the walkie from Vincent and screamed into it. ‘Set one foot past that fence, we’ll turn you as stone-cold as your friends. You hear me? This is ours. It’s ours!’
Vincent reached over him to try and take the radio back. They both rolled around on the desk, tugging at the device. Their momentum took them into the wall, and the radio smashed against it. Its case shattered and its electronic guts spilled out onto the floor.
Salty wriggled out of Vincent’s grip and pushed him away. ‘Get the hell off me,’ he spat.
Everyone looked at the contents of the broken device in stunned silence.
‘That went rather well, I thought,’ Ethan said.
Salty didn’t take his eyes off Vincent. ‘You lay on hands again, Graham, you’re gonna be pickin’ your teeth off the floor.’
Kristin put herself in front of Salty. ‘This chest-beating isn’t helping. What are we going to do?’
‘You said it yourself. Those things are startin’ to gather on the west fence. It won’t be long before they make their way over to the gate. They can’t stay there forever, so we just wait ‘em out.’ Salty’s shoulders rounded and he backed away from the group, taking up the shotgun again.
Emily sat on the chair, quietly munching on a cereal bar Vincent had discovered earlier at the visitor centre. She chewed it right down to the edge of the wrapper, then decided to push more of the bar from inside of it.
The night was completely upon them now. The mounted lamps around the facility projected all manner of menacing shapes onto the floors and walls. Many of the structures suddenly became giant beasts, stalking the grounds of the preserve. In every dark corner they had a glimpse of something rotten, ready to stumble out into the light.
Kristen and Salty sat close to the monitors. Salty spent the time unloading and reloading the shells in the shotgun so he could count them.
Vincent noticed the two men outside were moving further along the fence, presumably looking for a way in. It made him feel grimy, but he prayed that they would encounter the dead gathered near the truck and end the anxiety his group were feeling. Sadly, the men became aware of the creatures before they reached them and kept their distance.
‘Will they get in, Daddy?’ Emily whispered, her mouth still full of toasted oats and nuts.
‘I don’t think so. Everywhere’s locked up pretty tight.’
She discarded her wrapper on the desk and turned to catch a glimpse of Fukes’s face down on the ground. Kristin had covered him with a blanket, but it wasn’t quite big enough to mask the circle of dried blood around him.
Vincent realised this and twisted her chair back towards the screens. ‘Try and pretend he’s not there, sweetie. We’re going to move him soon. I promise.’
; ‘What are they doing now?’ Emily pointed to the monitor that was broadcasting the images from the main gate.
Vincent leaned in and squinted to see them through the shadows. Both of them were crouching close to the base of the fence, just twenty yards or so from the gate. They appeared to be fixing something to one of the supports where the energiser was housed. One of them got up and tracked back to the Hummer. When he emerged from the back, he was carrying a large metal spool of wire.
‘Is anyone else seeing this?’
As soon as they heard Vincent’s comment, Kristin, Salty and Ethan gathered around the screen and watched the men make their preparations.
‘Jesus H. Roosevelt Christ! They’re armin’ explosives,’ Salty said.
‘What?’ Vincent almost pressed his nose against the screen to get a better look.
‘That’s C4. When it blows, it’s gonna make that breach we had look like a pin-prick.’ Salty lifted the shotgun and pumped the fore-end. ‘You two up for this?’ he said, looking at the Grahams. ‘You wanna leave – I get it. But you need to fight before you can do that now. Not for this place – for yourselves and your daughter.’
Vincent and Kristin stood and pulled out their weapons.
‘What about you, Twilight? Are you gonna contribute?’
Ethan reached into his pocket and handed Salty the five shotgun shells he’d retrieved from Harley’s body.
‘I guess that’ll have to do,’ Salty said.
‘Ethan, will you stay here with Emily?’ Vincent said.
‘No, Daddy.’ Emily jumped down from her seat and threw her arms around her father, but was barely able to reach up to his waist. ‘Please don’t go. You promised.’
‘Sweetheart, it’s OK. Your mom and I won’t be far away, but you can’t go outside with us. It’s dark and the bad men are out there.’
‘But what if they come here?’ she said.
Vincent pushed her to arm’s length and held her chin up so she was forced to look in his eyes. ‘Emily, listen to me. They won’t get past us. I won’t let anything hurt you. OK?’
Everything Dies [Season One] Page 19
