The Last Legacy (Season 1): Episodes 1-10

by Lavati, Taylor

  “I’m sorry you got dragged into all of this. I bet you wish you were back at the house, huh?” I placed my hand on his shoulder. He looked down at it with admiration through the veil of the rain.

  “You know something funny?” he asked. I shook my head. “I’m actually glad you all found me. I woulda been stuck in that basement reading. Those eaters probably woulda gotten me if you all hadn’t come around. Plus, I like you guys. You accepted me no problem. Can’t say I’m complainin’ now. Although this rain is sure pissin’ me off.”

  “Well, I’m glad you’re with us. Even if you got a bum leg.” I smiled.

  “Hey!” he yelled, feigning hurt. “My leg can still outrun those bastards. Don’t knock it, girl.”

  “I’m just playing with you,” I told him through my laugh.

  “Give it to me straight, girl. How are you holding up?”

  “I have no idea. Everything goes so fast now and it’s hard to catch up. I feel like I haven’t fully processed a single thing I’ve gone since society collapsed.”

  “That’s good, though, right?”

  “I have this feeling.” I shook my head as I tried to find words to articulate what I meant. “I guess I just know it’s going to catch up to me. And when it does I might completely fall apart. That anticipation drives me mad.”

  “Don’t let it. You can only live in the now. If you’re always worried, you’ll never experience what little good this world has left.”

  I nodded, letting his words sink in. A gust of wind whipped against our faces, blowing rain that felt like pellets against my face. I turned against the wind to block them.

  “Seventy-nine bottles…”

  “You’re going to drain that kid,” Gavin said as Marcus continued to sing the annoying jingle. I had learned around ninety-four to tune him out, so it wasn’t really bothering me anymore. Now if only I could block the wind and rain…

  “This is the exit!” Scarlet yelled. Her voice was loud enough that it probably reached two exits ahead. I glanced behind us to make sure we weren’t being followed. I knew that John was smarter than to be out in the open. However, I still held out hope that it was a random act of violence.

  We got off for an exit that promised a boardwalk and the Long Island Sound. Not more than two blocks off the highway, Scarlet stopped us. The house we faced was a two-story beach home with a wraparound porch. The light blue of the exterior matched the darkened sky full of dark gray storm clouds. No lights were on, but I wouldn’t expect them to be anymore. I blinked as the rain picked up.

  Jim fell back next to me and grabbed onto my waterlogged hand. I squeezed his. I hadn’t realized that Marcus was still singing the stupid song, so I put my hand over his mouth and pulled him towards me, holding him facing out against my chest.

  “What do we want to do?” Gabe whispered as Scarlet stared up at the modest home. I blinked as rain slashed across my face.

  “Perimeter check first. Then you and I will go inside and sweep it,” Jim said with conviction. I nodded in agreement and pulled out my knife.

  “Stay with Mr. Gavin, okay?” I kissed Marcus’s forehead and ran to catch up with Jim and Gabe who were already across the street. Scarlet stood frozen in the same place, her feet planted.

  We walked together around the house. Luckily, there was a white fence surrounding three of the four sides, the front completely vulnerable and open. But it was mostly secure. Two dead eaters lay on the ground near the back door. I immediately thought someone was lurking inside.

  We went back to the front of the house. Jim pressed his ear against the front door; Gabe and I remained dead silent behind him. Jim shook his head, shrugging his shoulders as his hand twisted the knob. He gently pushed it open. The wood creaked its welcome but otherwise kept quiet.

  I stepped into the small foyer. The staircase in front of us lead to the second floor, and to our left was a living room. Jim nodded towards the room so we went that way. Next to the couch was a female body, her hands clasped over her chest.

  She had light blonde hair, freckles speckled over her nose. I couldn’t imagine her to be a day over sixteen. She wore a tight red dress that hugged a skeleton-like body. Her eyes were squeezed shut.

  “Dead?” Gabe whispered.

  The eater came to life in slow motion, lifting her body into a crawling position. Her hands reached for Gabe who was closest as he bent down to check the body. Gabe had no problem reaching into his pocket, pulling out his knife, and stabbing the eater right in the head. It went so fast, I barely registered his actions.

  “One down,” Jim said as he hugged the wall around the living room, moving past the now-dead eater and the couches. The fireplace was dark, but ashes sat in the pit that looked fresh. Jim bent down and put his hand into the blackness. “It’s still warm.”

  “Shit,” Gabe muttered as he stepped through the back archway. A door led to what I guessed was the basement, but Gabe and Jim moved past it into a dining area. The room was completely clear, but also empty of any and all food. My stomach sank, grumbling.

  We found a bathroom that was empty, and a small coat closet near the front door. As we walked up the stairs, they creaked beneath us, giving our location away. The old age of the house made it impossible to get around the second floor without sounding off alarms with every footfall.

  Gabe went to clear the first bedroom while Jim and I waited in the hallway, but as the door opened two eaters stumbled out like they were waiting on the other side. Gabe fell forward into the eater closest to him. Jim lunged, getting the eater right in the top of his skull with his knife before it could bite or grab Gabe.

  Gabe shoved the body backwards and knocked the other eater down. Jim pulled him up by the armpit just in time. The eater crawled forward, reaching for the men’s legs but Gabe brought down his hunting knife right through forehead, the bone cracking in a way that twisted my insides. I gagged.

  “Shit,” Gabe groaned as he stood up, wiping the blood on the knife on his pant leg. “That was way too fucking close.”

  “Tell me about it. Had a mini heart attack,” Jim said as they slapped hands. It was like they had scored the prized buck. I shook my head as we moved to the next room and then the next. Neither had eaters.

  “Well, Scarlet’s sister isn’t here,” Gabe said, shaking his head.

  “We didn’t check the basement,” I said as we clonked down the stairs. It didn’t matter if we were loud now that the house appeared vacant. If we were staying the night we’d have to clear out the eater bodies, but I didn’t know what the plan was now.

  “How do you know there’s a basement?” Jim asked as we stood in the foyer.

  “Well, one, it’s a house. Most have them. And two, I saw the door by the back of the stairs.” I glared at him just to add insult to injury.

  “I knew we brought her for a reason,” Gabe joked as he pulled me into a hug. I slapped his chest. Out of habit, Jim flicked up the light switch and then laughed to himself.

  “When do you think that’ll stop happening?”

  “Hopefully never,” I said, not wanting to lose the life we once all had.

  Jim paused at the top of the stairs and listened for any sort of noise. A ticking sounded from below. It could’ve been anything. Jim took the first step down, stopping to listen. Then took another step. They spoke like the steps above us. Gabe and I followed right behind, me sandwiched between the two.

  I pulled out a flashlight from my pack and tapped Jim’s shoulder with it. He reached his hand back and took it, pressing the button. A beam of yellow light shot out like a spotlight. Jim pointed it to the concrete floor.

  At the last step, Jim shined the light around us in a circle. The walls glowed. I tried to get a feel for what surrounded us, but struggled. Everything was concrete, from the floors to the ceiling and walls. It felt like a jail-cell.

  A few wooden tables stood empty in the center of the left side. Some cardboard boxes were shoved in a corner. A big black boiler sat dead silen
t. Jim shined the light under the staircase.

  A bundle of blankets piled like a makeshift dog bed were directly beneath the wooden stairs. I glanced at Jim at the thought. But when Jim put the light on the blankets, it moved a bit. Jim raised his hand in front of me and then crouched down in front of the pile.

  “Hello?” he asked.

  “Please,” the female voice begged. “Don’t kill me. I have no food, no water. I’ll die alone anyway.” Jim peeled back the blankets, revealing a woman with red hair and sunken eyes.

  “Do you know someone by the name of Scarlet?” I asked as I leaned forward. My heart beat fast in my chest. The similarity in hair was enough to draw a connection, but I didn’t want to get my hopes up. As far as we knew, the girl in the living room was her sister.

  “Do you have my sister?” The woman shot up from the blankets and nearly decked Jim in the face with a flailing elbow. Her body shook as she struggled to even sit up.

  “She’s our friend. Come with us. She’s just outside.” I reached for the woman, taking her hand and pulling her up. But she bent over, clutching her stomach. “Here,” I said as I pulled out my bottle of water. I handed it to the woman and let her drain it even though I was thirsty, too.

  “Thank you,” she mumbled as she tried to stand up straight.

  “Have you eaten at all?” I asked as Jim and I tried to get her up the wood stairs. I took her hand while Jim guided her back from behind. Her body was frail, her arms skinny little poles. Her hand shook in mine as she stepped up.

  “Not in a few days. Looters took everything I owned and left the door open for the monsters to come in. I had to lock myself down here in the pitch black. It’s been so long I can’t keep track.”

  “Well, you have us now.”

  Jim tugged the front door open. Scarlet’s sister clutched my shoulder as I struggled beneath her weight. The group stood near the curb of the street, Marcus and Gavin sitting while Scarlet stood in front of them, pacing up the street. She spun around at the noise of the door and her eyes connected with us. She burst into tears. Scarlet sprinted across the road but halted in front of us.

  I propped Scarlet’s sister against the door frame and stepped to the side, not wanting to intrude on their moment. Scarlet had her mouth covered and stepped forward. I slid past onto the porch beside Jim, my own emotions bubbling to the surface.

  “Sandra, what happened to you?” Scarlet gasped as she uncovered her mouth.

  “You’re not going to give your big sister a hug?” Sandra forced a laugh. Her bones protruded from her skin, making her features angular and skeleton-like. We needed to give her some food fast.

  “Let’s go sit down and eat.” I put my hand on Scarlet’s shoulder and led them into the house and to the left. I nodded towards the living room that had two large couches. Jim and Gabe each put one of Sandra’s arms around their necks and helped her get seated on the smaller of the couches, Scarlet running to sit beside her.

  Gavin was the last in the house. He shut and locked the door behind him. I hung back near the entry way. The sun had already begun its path downward. We’d be stuck staying here the night. And the house was nowhere near safe. The entire front sat vulnerable with open windows, not a single blind to hide behind. Just imagining the endless possibilities made my stomach spin.

  “Gavin, can you get Sandra a can of beans and some fruit? We’re going to check around the house,” Jim said. The men dropped their bags in the corner of the room, decorated in dark reds and browns. I kept my knife in my back pocket, my gun at my hip. My fingers trailed down the cool metal to double-check its availability.

  Jim nodded towards the entryway. Gabe and I followed him, pausing at the bottom of the stairs. “We can’t stay here for the winter,” Gabe said with sorrow in his voice. I knew it wasn’t the plan to stay, but it didn’t lessen the blow.

  “We could stay in the basement. But there’s no way to generate heat. Concrete wouldn’t hold it. We’re stranded.” Jim banged his fist against the stair bannister.

  “Relax.” I put my hand on his forearm and looked up at him.

  “How can I relax? Your lives are in my hands. I’ve got my fucking psycho brother following us, it’s cold as shit out there, and now we’ve got a malnourished woman who’ll be no help. When is it going to end?” His face grew red as he dug his fingers into the wood of the railing.

  “Your brother?” Gabe asked, furrowing his brow near the front door. I widened my eyes at Jim’s over-telling. He never let himself get this worked up, but the gravity of our situation couldn’t be ignored.

  Jim looked to me for help, his eyes wide with alarm.

  “We think his brother might be the one who attacked Scarlet,” I said, turning to face Gabe. “We left his brother’s safe house after he tried to rape me, and the house burnt down. He might be doing it to get back at us.”

  “It could be anyone, though.” Gabe shrugged as he leaned against the doorframe. “Lots of people I know turned into complete savages after the fall. It happened so fast, and nobody knew what was going on.” His dark eyes found mine and held me.

  “Someone wrote Jim’s name on the front window of the 7-11 where those red smudges were. It was chicken scratch, like a man wrote it with his finger. It looked like it was blood. Nobody else would know his name.”

  “It’s him,” Jim stated. He sat on the bottom step of the stairs behind me. My eyes softened. His body hunched over itself, his face between his hands. Empty blue orbs. My heart ached at his broken posture. I gave him a half-smile, unsure how to fix him, and turned back to Gabe. He ran his hand through brown hair.

  “You think he’ll kill us?” Gabe asked.

  “Anything’s possible. We kept it from the group ‘cause I need to deal with it myself. If he’s after anyone, it’s me.” Jim focused in on Gabe. I wasn’t sure what he was trying to say.

  “No. He’d be after me,” I cut in. His brother would blame me for the change in Jim. Jim went along with the grain until they kidnapped me. I could completely understand how the blame would be put on my head. He’d be coming to kill me—or worse.

  “They’re going to keep following us,” Gabe said. “I mean, they took Scarlet. They had to have been following you all for days, no?”

  “Since we left the hideaway,” I said as a chill crept up my spine.

  “We can’t keep running. We have to face him. Are there more people with him?” Gabe walked towards the living room and back again, pacing. His face pinched together. Both men radiated nervousness that ignited my fears.

  “They have ruthless men who are more than prepared to kill. We have an injured girl, an old man, and an underfed woman. It would be suicide.” Jim shook his head and waved me over. I sat on the stair below him. His arms rested around my shoulders as he tugged me towards his chest.

  “We outsmart them.” Gabe shrugged with a tilt of his head, as if that was the easiest, most obvious thing ever. I rolled my eyes. This was a harebrained idea that would no doubt backfire.

  “And how do we do that?” I asked him with drawl.

  “Ask Jim.” Gabe pointed behind me. “He knows his brother and the guys. How do we outsmart them? Trap them? Run to them? You’d know.”

  “We have to hope they don’t come tonight. ‘Cause we have a lot of preparing to do. The only way we’d ever have a chance of coming out alive is splitting them up. But I don’t think they’re that dumb to just walk in and go separate ways.” Jim’s arms tightened.

  “Either way, we have to cover these windows for the night. We need to make a fire to warm the house,” Gabe said gesturing to the many windows surrounding us.

  “There’s cardboard in the basement. That’s good for the windows. You guys go outside and cover the front. I’ll get the living room windows.” I hopped up from the stairs and reached back to pull Jim with me. I nodded to them, and we went our separate ways, trying to make up as much time as possible so we’d be prepared for the night.

  I pulled out my flashlight
and trekked down the steep basement stairs. I always had a thing about basements completely creeping me out. Since we cleared it before, I knew I’d be okay—yet this nagging swirl in my chest still brought anxiety to me. It was the horror movie cliche that always told me monsters lurked in the basement.

  I laughed to myself as I shook my head. Monsters lived outside these walls, walking the streets like they were human, only their main goal was the kill. If I was scared of some imaginary vampire then I had much more deeply-rooted problems.

  The boxes were right where I thought I saw them at first. I pointed the flashlight towards the ceiling and braced it against the wall so it would reflect the light. The cardboard was soggy from condescension dripping off a low hanging pipe. I ripped the cardboard in long squares since I figured the likelihood of having staples or tape was low.

  I ripped into a box that had ‘Samantha Lee’ scribbled in black sharpie on the front. Inside were children’s clothes, all in pinks and light yellows. Sandra must have had a daughter. I folded the clothes and piled them on the cement, not wanting to disturb their memory, and then tore the box apart.

  When the stack of cardboard was too tall to balance, I piled them in my arms and grabbed the flashlight from the floor. I couldn’t see much, so I took my steps slow. I dropped the cardboard in the living room, making all heads turn towards me.

  “Sorry,” I said as I began to separate the cardboard and hold it against the windows, measuring to test which fit where. “Do you have nails or tape or anything?”

  “Top kitchen drawer,” Sandra answered, nodding towards the way I had come. “I can help—”

  “No. Stay and catch up with your sister. I’ve got it handled.” I waved my hand as I ran out of the room.

  Jim and I seemed to be in sync with one another. We woke up at the same time early the next morning. Jim rolled over, his elbow catching me in the ribs. I was already staring at him. I smiled when his eyes fluttered open, and he tucked his head into my neck, nuzzling in.

  “No intruders?” I asked as I wrapped my arm over his body.