The Infected Series

by L. J. Cuff

  “What are you guys doing?” Owen asked.

  “Infected are very clever and they seem to be learning, adapting to their surroundings… Almost as if there is some hidden version of humanity still buried deep within…” Dennis responded while he tapped on one of the windows. He continued walking as soon as he noticed no movement within.

  Mary was so focused on the woods, she walked into a metal box.

  “Ouch!” She exclaimed, holding her knee up to her chest. “Stupid damned thing!” She shouted, lifting her arm to punch the object.

  Dennis reached out and stopped her. “Don’t hit that thing…” He said.

  “Why not?”

  “Well, for one thing, it’ll hurt your hand…”

  Mary rolled her eyes in response then took a closer look at the object. “Is this what I think it is?” She asked, looked excitedly at Dennis.

  Dennis slowly nodded.

  “Think it still works?”

  “If it does, we can’t exactly throw a party inside with the lights on, that’ll just attract so many of them…”

  “No, but maybe we can get running water from a well…?” Mary asked, leaning in close to Dennis, awaiting an answer.

  “Let’s get inside and check this place out.”

  The four of them reached the front of the building around the same time. Dennis entered first while holding his knife up to his shoulder. He stepped up to the front desk with Mary who began tapping on the front bell. There was no response from the hallways or the other common rooms.

  “Seems nobody is home,” Mary stated, hopping over the front desk and inspecting the room keys. “I guess they didn’t do high tech here…”

  Claire rolled her eyes and held out her hand. “We bunking all together or…?”

  “Or just women in one and men in the other,” Mary responded, offering her a set of keys and giving another to Owen. “These are for room 213 and 214.”

  Dennis looked at the keys then at Mary. “Ok, let’s get Ben and Maude and get to our rooms.”

  “Really? We’re going to let the traitors into our rooms?”

  “Easier to control them that way…” He responded, motioning for everyone to exit.

  ***

  Mary swung open the back doors. The sun was almost completely set, leaving a dim view of the area. She looked inside and saw nothing. She stepped up and thoroughly checked all the hiding places but couldn’t find any trace of their two visitors.

  “Shit! I knew I should’ve stayed with them,” Owen exclaimed.

  Dennis shook his head and said calmly, “Only a fool would go out when it’s dark without a weapon and tied up.” He motioned for Mary to get out. “We’ll look for them in the morning, if they somehow survived. For now, let’s get some rest and use an actual shower.”

  Mary hopped out the back and Claire closed the doors behind her.

  The group walked around to the other side of the hotel and found the two rooms there. The men went into one and the women in the other.

  Mary opened room 214 and was immediately hit by a dusty smell. Entering through the doorway, she saw two meticulously laid out beds lying underneath a large painting. She stepped up to the first one and saw a thin layer of dust accumulated on it. She sighed as she ran her finger along the bottom edge then lifted it up to the dim light from outside.

  Meanwhile, Claire locked the door and closed the curtains. She looked inside the bathroom and found a well laid out room, similar to the beds.

  “Well, it seems no one has been here for a long time,” Claire stated, coming into the main room.

  “Yeah…” Mary responded, nodding her head. She looked at Claire and a smile slowly crept along her lips. “So… Is there running water?” She asked.

  Claire shrugged and returned to the bathroom. Mary quickly followed and they both marvelled as the taps turned on. They were slow at first and the water brown but after a few minutes, it cleared up.

  They looked at one another then back at the tap.

  “So who gets to go first?” Claire asked, raising her eyebrow.

  Mary smirked in response, her eyes gleaming. “Well, there’s only one fair way to settle this – rock, paper, scissors,” She said.

  The two of them held out their fists and shook them three times before laying out their choices. Mary had rock and Claire had scissors.

  “I guess you get to go,” Claire said drearily

  “I guess I do,” Mary responded giddily. “Now where is the light?”

  “Over there but don’t turn it on until you’ve shut the door,” Claire responded, straightening herself up.

  Mary furrowed her brow. “But you closed the curtains…?”

  “Yes but did you see them? They’re not very thick…”

  “Fair enough, see you in a few.”

  Claire left the room, allowing Mary to take a proper shower which she hadn’t done in months.

  The moment Mary came out, Claire entered, marvelling at how warm the water was.

  Claire came out to find Mary curled up on one of the beds, fast asleep. She did one final check of all the entrances and proceeded to do the same.

  ***

  The doorknob creaked as it slowly turned to the side. The door moved open only by half an inch but it was still enough for a little noise to be made. The infected let out a low, frustrated grunt before allowing the knob to return. It shuffled forward, towards the window, and let its nails trace the outer edge.

  Mary, freshly awoken but still groggy, heard the noise coming from the exits. She watched as the infected moved across the window, its shadow cast by the moonlight. She yawned and reached underneath her pillow.

  The infected returned to the window, this time tapping as if it was a door. It let out another low, long grunt before it reared back its head and punched it forward. Startling Claire awake. She nearly shot out of bed until she realized the infected might not realize they were in there. She looked over to the night table that held her gun. She reached over but stopped short when she noticed it wasn’t there.

  The infected reared back its head and was about to go again when suddenly an arm came up from the side. Mary let out a breath she’d been holding in when she saw the infected quickly fall to the ground. Claire looked over at her then back at the window where the same hand showed them a thumb’s up.

  Claire nodded slowly then tried to see around the dark room. She stood up very carefully so not to make any noise but couldn’t seem to find her gun. She returned to her bed and curled up under the sheets.

  I’m sure it’ll turn up in the morning, she thought, clutching her knife underneath her pillow.

  Mary also put her head on the pillow and although she closed her eyes, she couldn’t take her mind off of what happened. It wasn’t like Dennis to show a thumb’s up and she wasn’t convinced Owen would either. Wouldn’t they have knocked on our door to see if we’re ok? She thought as her mind finally began to wander.

  Suddenly, there was a rotten stench in the room. Mary shot out of bed and saw Ted standing in front of her. He was being held on a leash by Paul who was speaking but no words were coming out. Mary shook her head in protest. She raised her arms to defend herself and began shouting, “You don’t understand… Eric isn’t one of them… He ran from Abby…”

  Ted came closer, causing Mary to back away. She tumbled across Claire’s gun, still holding up her hands. She reached down to grab the gun but instead, it was replaced with Diane’s arm. Mary traced the arm and found Diane’s unrelenting gaze watching her. She crawled out from under the bed and growled at Mary.

  Mary shuffled herself backwards until she was on the floor against the wall.

  “Don’t worry, it’ll all be over soon,” Diane said in Abby’s voice. “After all, you’re the one that turned him on me…” She said before opening her mouth and sinking her teeth into Mary’s shoulder.

  ***

  Rays of sunshine came in through the window. Claire opened her eyes, looking directly into the light
. She sat up and looked over to Mary who was still snoring. Why did she open the curtains? She thought, looking over at the bathroom door.

  She threw off her bedsheets and walked over to the door. Reaching out for the handle she heard a low grunting coming from within. She paused and looked back across the room. Suddenly, something hit against the door, almost knocking it off its hinges. Claire stepped back, keeping her eyes forward. The back of her knees touched against her bed. She quickly ran around the side just as the bathroom door was opened.

  Claire gasped as she saw Ted step out. He growled at her, the skin on his cheeks sunken against his bones, making him barely recognizable. Claire shook her head as he stepped to the side, keeping his eyes on her.

  “Mary! Mary!” Claire whimpered, shaking Mary’s shoulder. “You have to wake up!” She continued but only got a snore in response. “Shit!” Claire shouted, pulling a knife out from under her pillow. She held it up to her shoulder in preparation for Ted’s pounce.

  Loud clapping emanating from the bathroom echoed through to the bedroom. Abby stepped through the doorway and glared at Claire. “I knew I should’ve left Mary here by herself but then…” She said, looking at Mary’s still sleeping silhouette. “Dying in her sleep is too good for the bitch that stole him from me!” She shouted, nodding forward.

  Claire felt a small pinch in her neck and suddenly, the world went dark.

  ***

  Mary awoke with a start, holding her head in her hands. She put herself onto her hands and knees and gagged. She felt a gentle touch behind her shoulders. Looking over, she saw Dennis with a concerned expression.

  “Oh good, you’re awake,” Someone from outside the cell snorted.

  Mary looked up at Dennis then back at the cell door as it opened. Two people came in and grabbed her. She pulled back, causing them to stumble forwards. Dennis reached out and punched the one closest to him. He pounced on her as she backed up.

  The second person kept an iron-like grip on Mary. She spun herself around, holding the person’s hand then quickly let go, hitting them into the side of the cell. Mary stood still, glancing over at Dennis when suddenly, someone from behind put a string around her neck.

  Mary punched at the person who was pulling her backwards but they kept dodging every blow. They moved her towards the cell door. Dennis jumped off of the other person and leapt towards Mary and her attacker but quickly stopped when a gun was pointed at him.

  The cell door was slammed shut. The person holding Mary released the string and kicked her forward. Her head hit into another cell. For one brief moment, she stayed on the ground. If I stay here long enough, they will stick me back in the cell then we can come up with a plan, she thought, keeping her eyes shut tightly.

  An infected, who was sniffing Mary’s hair, grunted at her. It reached out and traced its bony finger against her cheek. The smell caused her to gag forcing her to get up on all fours.

  “Knew it,” A person from behind chuckled, before placing her knee in the middle of Mary’s back and tying her hands in the middle. “Now, we don’t want to let our leader go hungry, do we?” She asked, pulling Mary up to her feet.

  Dennis watched helplessly as Mary was escorted out of the room. She was brought to a stairway that led up to a courtyard in the middle of the motel. She looked from left to right and saw curtains behind each window being opened as she was pushed forward.

  In the middle of the courtyard was a small cabin. Mary pushed back at her aggressor, who was too well equipped for the occasion. She was forced forward with the person even kicking into her knees and putting her feet under Mary’s to continue the walk.

  They rounded the side of the cabin to reveal it had only three sides. Instead of the fourth was a large table and a throne with a cage beside it. Dozens of people were gathered, all holding plates, watching Abby sitting on the throne.

  The person behind Mary forced her to her knees as Abby spoke.

  “Normally, we would thank you for your sacrifice and bringing extra people to our group but…” Abby began, “Since you took my Eric from me and your group looks well fed… Well, this is so much better…” She motioned for Mary to be brought forward.

  The person pulled Mary back to her feet and gave her a swift shove. Mary kicked the person in the knees and began running, only to be apprehended by two others who quickly lifted her into the air and slammed her into the table.

  Two people tied her feet while another two pulled her arms out from behind her and tied them to opposite corners. Mary was completely immobilized.

  “You fucking bitch! He ran from you because you’re a cannibal!” Mary shouted at her.

  “Really? Is that true, my love?” Abby asked, reaching towards the cage.

  “No, don’t believe a word of it,” Eric responded, shaking his head.

  Abby looked him in the eyes with a serious expression. Slowly, a sinister smile crept across her lips. “You always were a terrible liar,” She stated before returning her attention to Mary.

  She turned back to the crowd and raised up her arms in victory. “And now, we shall feast on her! She will live on in each of us!” She proclaimed.

  ***

  Meanwhile, after Mary was out of sight, Dennis looked around his surroundings. Seems all the guards want to participate, he thought, looking over at the last one left. He glanced over his shoulder at the infected that was adjacent to him.

  He stepped over to the cell wall, just out of the infected’s reach. He looked over at the guard whose back was turned and smiled back at the infected. It grunted in his direction then pushed itself even harder against the cell wall.

  He quickly pushed the infected’s arms against the cell and punched it in the nose. It loudly growled in response while trying to pull itself free. He punched it again, this time in the eye.

  “Hey! Stop that!” The guard shouted, holding a gun pointed at Dennis.

  Claire began laughing loudly. “Yeah, right, like you can make that shot!” She called out.

  The guard turned his head towards Claire and retorted, “Maybe you should go first then!”

  Dennis placed both his hands on the gun just as the guard returned his focus. He quickly pulled forward, causing the guard to hit himself on the metal cell, letting go of the gun.

  “Amateurs,” Dennis proclaimed, cocking the gun. He reached out and pulled the keys from the guard’s pocket. He quickly opened his cell door and that of Claire and Owen’s.

  “You’re not going to leave us in here, are you?” Ben’s shouting was from a few cells away.

  Dennis and Claire exchanged glances then looked back down at the cells.

  “I’ll go help them, you get Mary,” Owen responded, taking the keys from Dennis’ hands.

  Dennis looked him in the eyes and whispered, “Be mindful, they will probably betray you.”

  Dennis and Claire ran up the stairs, into the courtyard. They saw the people gathered around the log cabin. “I guess that’s where we’re going,” Dennis said to Claire, motioning for her to position herself on the other side of the courtyard.

  Suddenly, he was thrown to the ground and so was Claire. Their hands were bound behind them. Dennis’ ankles were also shackled and they were both dragged towards the cabin.

  As they rounded the corner, Abby’s voice sounded out. “It’s so good of you two to join us,” She said joyously, “I knew you would try to help her.” She held up a knife above her head, aiming for Mary’s heart. She brought it down, stopping just an inch short. Mary screamed into her gag.

  “No,” Abby shook her head, “This way is too good for you.” She reached over and took a small knife. She looked over at one of the guards and shouted, “Bring him in!”

  Ted was brought forward on a leash. He growled at the crowd but continued walking towards the table. He took a seat at the head. He looked down at Mary and licked his lips.

  Abby pulled the gag out of Mary’s mouth.

  “You fucking bitch!” Mary shouted.

 
“Yes, but I’ll be a live one,” Abby responded with a smile. She lightly traced a line down Mary’s chest and when she reached the top of her abdomen, she held the knife like a dagger. She steadied herself against the table and slowly pushed down. Mary screamed.

  “Fire! Fire!” Someone shouted from behind the cabin. Abby turned to look, leaving the knife inside Mary’s stomach.

  The smoke billowed out of the buildings. They were fully engulfed in flames. The windows shattered from the inside with the infected contained within screaming in pain. One of them was visible in the windows, pulling against its collar in a desperate bid to escape.

  People ran towards the doors, trying to enter but the flames kept them from getting in.

  Abby glared at the guards holding Claire and Dennis. She angrily walked towards them and slapped one. “I thought I fucking told you to catch them right after they got up the stairs!” She shouted.

  “I’m sorry, ma’am, but we did,” One of the other guards responded.

  Abby looked them straight in the eyes forcing them to cast their eyes downward. “Who the fuck do you think you are to talk to me like that?” She asked indignantly.

  Claire began chuckling.

  “What are you laughing at?” Abby inquired, reaching to her shoe for a knife but not finding any.

  Claire smiled broadly and kicked Abby in the teeth. She then jumped forward, leaping off of Abby and over the guard’s heads. Dennis body checked the first guard then looked over to the second one who was running away. Claire was about to kick her two guards when she noticed they were also gone.

  “Hmm… I guess we kind of ruined this one for her too?” She said with a smile.

  She stepped to Dennis’ side and went around his back, allowing him to reach out for her shackles. After a few moments, Dennis and Claire both realized they couldn’t untie themselves without the guards that were gone.

  They looked at one another then back at the cabin. They ran towards it but found the table empty.

  “You fucking assholes! I knew I should’ve killed you in your sleep!” Abby shouted, lunging at Claire.

  Claire jumped back, causing Abby to lose her balance and fall to the ground. She lifted herself up, growling in Claire’s direction. She kept herself on all fours and moved to the side, just like an infected would.