Falling Darkness Series - A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller - Books 1-3

by Kellee L. Greene

  “That was—”

  “Yeah,” Kate interrupted as she draped the back of her arm over her forehead. No matter how hard she tried, the room and everything else started to come back into focus. Kate reached around looking for her clothing. “Shit.”

  Ethan looked at her through sleepy, half-closed eyes. His head seemed to be stuck in the clouds.

  “What are you doing?” Ethan grinned. “You can’t run away it’s your room.”

  “Run away?” Kate looked at him and spotted her shirt out of the corner of her eye. “Why would I do that?”

  “I don’t know exactly but what are you doing? It’s usually not a good thing when a woman seems like she can’t get away from you fast enough. What’s the rush?” Ethan asked propping himself up on his elbow.

  Kate pulled on her pants and smoothed her palms over her thighs before combing her finger through her hair.

  “What’s going on?” Ethan’s expression grew serious. “Regrets?”

  “What? No! Of course not,” Kate said dropping her hands to her sides. “It’s this place.”

  Ethan stood up and pulled on his clothes. “You want to go? Should we leave? I’m sure we could—”

  “No, tomorrow. We need to warn everyone. To do what we can. It’ll be fine.” Kate forced a smile. “I’m fine.”

  “Well, okay, so… what do we do now?” Ethan asked.

  Kate crossed her arms. “I can’t wait to never be asked that again.”

  “Sorry,” Ethan said sitting down on the bed and waving Kate over. She sat down heavily next to him. He folded his hands between his wide-spread legs. “What should we do now?”

  “Let’s just stick to the plan. Town meeting… then we bolt.”

  “You sure? We can just pick up and leave all of this behind right now.”

  Kate hesitated. “Yeah. I’m sure.”

  Ethan nodded and stretched his arms over his head. He laid back on the bed, pulling Kate with him.

  “We should get some rest.” Ethan closed his eyes and let out a heavy breath. “We’re going to need it.”

  Chapter 25

  Kate’s eyes popped open. She’d been in a deep sleep, or so she’d thought.

  Her heart was pounding, and she looked over half-expecting Ethan to be gone, but he was there, taking in slow, calm breaths. The candle flickered on the table giving off an orange glow, but the room seemed brighter. Different.

  Then Kate heard the screams.

  “Ethan!” she said shaking him briefly before climbing over him. “Wake up!”

  She ran to the window already knowing something was wrong. Kate pulled back the curtains. Her breath felt stuck in her throat.

  “Ethan!” Kate squeaked as she pressed her hands to the glass. “Ethan wake up!”

  Nearly every building in the town was covered in flames. She looked down to the floors below and saw the flames building higher and higher.

  “What’s going on?” Ethan asked in a scratchy voice. He rubbed his eyes as he swung his legs over the side of the bed. His eyes settled on the window. “Kate?”

  “We have to get out of here,” she shouted, dashing across the room. Ethan caught her by the waist and charged over to the window hauling Kate along.

  “Jesus Christ!”

  Ethan pulled Kate across the room. When she stopped abruptly her hand slipped out of his.

  “What are you doing?” Ethan asked.

  “The bags,” Kate said bending down and pulling the bags out from under the bed.

  Ethan shook his head. “It’ll be too obvious.”

  “Do you really care?”

  He glanced back toward the window and shook his head. “Let’s go.”

  Ethan placed his hand on the doorknob and held it there for a moment checking for heat. He glanced at Kate briefly before opening the door.

  Smoke flooded Kate’s nostrils before she’d even stepped into the hallway. She tried to hold in a cough, but her lungs wouldn’t allow it.

  “This way,” Ethan said leading her down the hall.

  They both covered their mouths as they sprinted toward the stairs. There were so many screams and cries, some louder than others, that it chilled Kate’s bones.

  When they got to the landing on the second floor, flames raged up threatening to scald them and swallow them whole. Kate’s gasp was muffled by her palm.

  “What are we going to do?” Kate asked, and Ethan pulled her down the second-floor hallway away from the stairs.

  The fire crackled in the rooms they passed. There were countless people calling for help… their voices faded into painful cries before ceasing entirely.

  “This way,” Ethan said pushing the first room door open at the opposite end of the hallway.

  Somehow the fire hadn’t yet reached the far end of the second floor. The air was drastically cleaner inside the room, but it made Kate want to cough even more as she breathed it in.

  “Why are we in here?” Kate asked unable to hide her panic.

  “This was Tommy’s room,” Ethan said stepping over to the window. He yanked it open and looked down at the ground below. “There’s a tree.”

  Ethan stood next to the window and gestured for Kate to come closer. As she apprehensively made her way closer, he threw her backpack as far as he could away from the building. Kate grabbed his arm as she looked out the window down at the ground.

  The building below them was on fire, and the flames were dangerously close. “What are we doing, Ethan?”

  “Swing over to the tree… climb down,” Ethan said quickly. “We don’t have much time.”

  “I… I can’t do that,” Kate said taking a step back.

  Ethan caught her arm before she got too far and pulled her back. “You don’t have a choice. You can do this.”

  Kate pressed her lips together and nodded. She reached out to the tree limb and wrapped her hands around the thick, rough bark. Her legs swung side to side, and she moved her hands like she was crossing monkey bars at a playground.

  The branch creaked and cracked, but she made her way across. She made her way down the trunk and jumped several feet, landing on the ground with a thud. Her cheeks were hot from the nearby fire. She looked up at Ethan.

  “Hurry!” she said waving at him anxiously. She could see the flames devouring more and more of the building with every passing second.

  Ethan grabbed the branch and started to lean out of the window. It cracked loudly before he’d put nearly any of his weight onto it.

  “Kate,” Ethan said climbing back inside the window.

  “What are you doing?” Kate screeched.

  “It’s not going to hold me,” Ethan said looking over his shoulder. “Take these and go get Will. Run. Do not stop for anything. Meet me at the east gate.”

  Ethan reached out of the window and threw down a set of keys. They landed on the ground several feet away, but she easily spotted them. Kate scooped them up and squeezed them against her sweaty palm.

  Her stomach twisted into a tight knot. She shook her head. “Ethan, no!”

  The flame rose in front of her inching closer to the window. She swallowed so hard pain surged through her chest.

  “Go, Kate! I’ll find you!” Ethan said as he stepped away from the window. He vanished out of sight just as the flames swallowed the entire second-floor wall.

  “Ethan!” Kate screamed as she pressed her balled up fists against her thighs.

  Kate's heart squeezed inside of her chest and tears threatened to well up inside her eyes. She kept turning around to look at the building hoping she’d spot Ethan making his way out, but he wasn’t there. The aloneness she felt coupled with the screaming from around the town were almost crippling.

  As she made her way around the side of the hotel, she turned one more time to check for Ethan. When she turned back, she smacked into something solid. A nearby flame flickered and lit the object in front of her. It only took a second before what she’d run into registered in her mind.

  Sh
e wanted to scream, but her throat was dry from the heat. Her lungs tried to squeeze out the noise, but terror forced it back down.

  The Unholy reached out and dug its fingers into her shoulders. It opened its jaw as it moved toward her.

  The creature's mouth was inches from her neck. She moved it back with all her strength, shoving it into the flames of the burning building. The fire latched onto The Unholy’s tattered pants and spread over its body as it kept walking toward Kate.

  Kate backed away watching as the fire covered The Unholy. It was completely engulfed before it groaned and dropped to the ground. She could see its jaw still moving as it was consumed by the flames.

  Kate covered her mouth with her hand as she readjusted her backpack and ran toward the front of the hotel. Her eyes darted around looking into the shadows for more of The Unholy… and whoever else might be waiting for her.

  She stepped out onto the main road and pressed her hand to her warm cheek. Kate felt disoriented as she looked at the people running through the streets. There were screams and cries for help coming from every direction.

  “Will,” she said looking down the road. She hoped it wouldn’t be too late.

  Kate took off running. Down the road, there was an Unholy with one arm, limping as it made its way down the street. She turned back, glancing at the hotel, hoping to see Ethan, but instead, she saw someone on the fourth floor standing in the window. They hesitated for a moment before leaping to their death.

  “Oh my God,” Kate said turning forward.

  Nearly every building she ran by was up in flames and those that weren’t, would be in minutes. The whole town would be turned into ash in a matter of hours. Gone. As if it hadn’t ever existed. And it would be taking far too many people along with it.

  Kate had to hold out hope that one of those people wouldn’t be Will. Or Ethan.

  She turned the corner and breathed a sigh of relief when she saw Will’s building hadn’t yet been engulfed in flames. Kate had time, but she didn’t know how much. The house next door was crackling loudly, and wooden boards were snapping in the inferno.

  Kate’s fingers trembled as she attempted to insert the key into the lock. She let out a heavy cough as a thick cloud of smoke blew past her. Kate gasped when the key slipped inside, and she was able to turn the doorknob.

  She stepped inside the house, closing the door behind her. Her eyes darted across the room settling on the door she knew Will would be behind.

  Kate quickly unlocked his door and frantically looked around the room. Will was standing near the window trying to get it open even though it was surely nailed shut.

  “Jesus Christ! What is going on out there?” Will asked, his voice filled with panic.

  “Someone set the town on fire,” Kate said raising a brow. “Literally.”

  “Then I’m even more glad to see you than I already was,” Will said. “Unless you plan on keeping me in here.”

  Kate shook her head. “No, of course not. Come with me. We need to hurry.”

  “No need to ask me twice,” Will said looking over Kate’s shoulder. “Where’s your friend?”

  “Ethan?”

  Will nodded.

  “He’s going to meet us at the gate,” Kate said as she turned away. “Oh, I should probably warn you about The Unholy.”

  “What about them?”

  “They’re scattered throughout the town. I’ve only seen two but watch your back.”

  Will looked around as he followed Kate down the hall toward the front of the house. He stopped as she looked out of the window.

  “Coast is clear,” Kate said reaching out for the doorknob.

  “One sec,” Will said grabbing something off of a nearby table.

  “What’s that?” Kate asked.

  Will shrugged and held up the pen. “My weapon.”

  “This is one case where the pen is not mightier than the sword,” Kate said.

  “Ha,” Will said without cracking a smile.

  Kate sucked in a breath of the cleaner air as she yanked open the door. She and Will ran from the house, just as the siding was catching on fire. Will’s eyes moved from house to house, from shadow to shadow.

  “This is awful,” he said between breaths. “How did this happen?”

  “No idea.”

  At the end of the road stood three Unholy crouched down over a body that was still moving. Kate stopped abruptly and grabbed Will’s arm, leading him in a different direction.

  “I thought you were the best at fighting those things?” Will asked.

  “I’m also not stupid.”

  “Jesus Christ,” Will said clutching his pen. “I wish I had a better weapon.”

  Kate pressed her lips together as she glanced at him. “I wish you did too. This way.”

  Kate turned a corner and drew in a sharp breath. She stepped back into Will who caught her by the waist. For a second, Kate thought it was one of The Unholy, but it wasn’t.

  “Well, well, well,” Maya said gawking at Kate and Will. “What’s this all about? Where are you two off to in such a hurry?”

  “You do see what’s happening right?” Kate asked.

  Chuck stepped out of the building across from Kate’s office, and Kate swallowed hard. He was carrying a duffel bag full of weapons.

  Maya looked over her shoulder and then back at Kate. She cocked her head to the side. “Oops.”

  “Wait, I don’t… I thought he was….” Kate’s words faded as fear filled her veins.

  Chuck approached smiling at Kate. “Wow. I bet this is quite a shock, huh?”

  “I guess,” Kate said not sure if he was referring to the fires or the fact that he was standing in front of them, alive and well. “What’s going on here?”

  “You weren’t supposed to make it out of the hotel,” Maya said.

  Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Chuck’s hand slowly inching toward the inside of the bag. Kate reached for her gun, but it wasn’t there. She must have lost it.

  “This looks really bad doesn’t it?” Maya said, crossing her arms as she smirked at Kate.

  Dread ran through Kate’s body like ice water. She didn’t know what was going on, but she knew she was in trouble. Big trouble.

  Maya sneered. “I guess since the fire didn’t finish you off I’ll have to.”

  Chapter 26

  Kate shook her head. “I don’t understand. Why are you doing this to me? To everyone?”

  “Really?” Maya asked practically spitting out the words. “You killed Simon. You took him away from me. From all of us. What made you think you could do that?” Maya took a step forward. “You need to pay for what you’ve done. For your sins.”

  “He locked you up!” Kate said.

  “It wasn’t the first time,” Maya said with a stiff jaw. “He would have let me out eventually. He always did. Imagine my surprise when you showed up to tell me you’d murdered my husband.”

  Kate’s mouth dropped open. She remembered the picture she’d seen in Percy’s home. If her heart was still beating, she couldn’t feel it.

  “It’s really too bad I had to do all of this just to try to get to you. All of those lost lives are your fault,” Maya said cocking her head to the side. “All of their blood is on your already blood-soaked hands.”

  “I may have killed Simon, but I didn’t do this. This is all you,” Kate said.

  “You forced my hand,” Maya said jerking her head toward Chuck, but just as he was about to pull out one of the guns, his hand changed direction. He started to raise them up, palms outward.

  “Keep them where I can see them,” Will said aiming Kate’s gun at Chuck. He bumped his elbow lightly into Kate and gestured down the road with a tip of his head. “It’s time for us to go.”

  Will stepped in front of Kate, waiting for her to take a step back.

  “She’s not going anywhere,” Maya said pulling out her own gun faster than Kate thought possible.

  Just as Maya’s finger twitched near t
he trigger, something slammed into the side of her body. A gunshot rang out as Maya crashed to the ground.

  Kate looked her body over expecting to find a hole from the bullet, but she hadn’t been shot. Neither had Will.

  The Unholy looked up at them before it dove down toward Maya’s exposed neck. She screamed for Chuck as she writhed under the weight of The Unholy.

  Maya’s limbs flailed as she tried to get it away. Chuck grabbed The Unholy by its hair and peeled it off of her. Her hands shot up to her neck attempting to cover the blood smears on her skin.

  “Let’s get out of here,” Will said pressing his hand against Kate’s back.

  “Get them!” Maya shouted as Chuck finished off The Unholy.

  Will and Kate ran down the street, and she refused to look back at Chuck and Maya. She probably should have grabbed the gun back from Will and taken them both out on the spot, but her mind hadn’t been clear enough to make that decision.

  Kate gasped when several pieces of a building that were thoroughly engulfed in flames fell down in the road in front of them blocking their exit.

  “God dammit!” Kate said looking around the area. She heard the whimpering before her eye locked onto the dog frantically moving around inside its cage. Kate grabbed Will’s arm and pulled him out of the street. “Help me.”

  “Kate!” Will said, the urgency in his voice clear, but she ignored it.

  The dog barked as they approached. Kate looked around before kneeling down next to the cage. She reached inside trying to calm the dog.

  “It’s okay Max,” Kate cooed. “My friend Will and I are going to get you out of here.”

  “Do you have the key?” Will asked.

  Kate shook her head. “Unless one of these works.”

  Will handed her the gun as he grabbed the keys out of her hand. He tried them one by one, but none of them worked. Will stood and kicked the door with the bottom of his shoe. The cage rattled noisily, but it didn’t budge.

  “We have to go, Kate,” Will said stepping back. All of the fires around them were so hot it felt as though Kate was inside of an oven.