The Decay of Humanity Series (Book 3): Demise of Humanity

by Dawn, M. K.

  “I’m sorry.” Axel pressed the heels of his hands to his eyes. “I’m fucking exhausted, and if I’m being honest, not sure I can handle anything else right now. At least, not until I get some sleep.”

  A fleck of red caught Britney’s eye. “Axel, I think this might be blood on the baseboard.”

  “Probably jammed his toe on the step up into the bathroom. I know I do it about once a week.”

  Britney opened the bathroom door, ignoring Axel’s logical explanation. A little voice inside her head kept nagging that there was more to this than a stubbed toe.

  The bathroom was just as pristine as the rest of the camper, which shouldn’t have been much of a surprise, since he couldn’t use it. Still, Britney continued to examine the confined area.

  “See anything?” Axel called from the main room.

  Britney dropped to her knees to take a close look at the shower drain. A thin line of water circled the metal. She grabbed the hand towel and blotted the area. Her heart sank at the sight of red stains.

  “There’s watered-down blood near the floor drain.” Britney showed him the towel. “Can you find something to use to pop the drain off?”

  “I saw a toolbox outside.” Axel returned a minute later with a flat-head screwdriver in hand. “Trade places with me. I’ll get the drain off.”

  “Do you believe me now?” The sound of cracking plastic made her jump. She poked her head into the bathroom. “You got it off.”

  “Broke the damn thing.” Axel peered down the drain. “Hand me that towel.”

  “Here.”

  Axel stuffed the towel down the hole, leaving only enough showing that he could pull it back up. A few seconds passed and Axel yanked on the towel. “That’s a lot of blood.”

  Britney chewed on her bottom lip. “Too much for a stubbed toe.”

  Axel tossed the towel aside and scooted past her toward the door.

  “Where are you goin’?”

  “To find Shifter.”

  Britney followed Axel outside. “Do you think he’s hurt?”

  “He was at some point not too long ago. The blood is fresh.” Axel cut between Shifter’s camper and his neighbor’s and made his way to the high grass behind them.

  “Where are you going?” Britney asked. “The homestead is the other way.”

  “You had a bad feeling earlier. I have one now.” Axel eased his way into the brown overgrown grass.

  Britney paused at the edge of the field, her stomach in knots. “You don’t think...”

  “That someone killed Shifter and dumped his body here?” Axel paused. “God, I hope not.”

  “But you think there’s a possibility?” Why else would he have come out here?

  Axel slowly moved his head left to right. “I don’t see anything. None of the grass has been parted. There’re no sections flattened.”

  “That’s good.” Britney breathed out a sigh of relief. “But still doesn’t explain the blood.”

  “Shit!”

  Britney watched as Axel fell out of sight. “Axel! Axel! What happened? What’s wrong?”

  Axel popped his head back up and held up something white. “I tripped over this.”

  “You tripped over linen?”

  He rushed over to her. “No. I tripped over whatever is inside.”

  Britney stared down at the blood-stained pillowcase, and her stomach turned. “What’s in there?”

  Axel unrolled the linen, reached inside, and pulled out a large hunting knife.

  “Oh, God.” Britney stumbled backward. “We need to find Shifter.”

  ***

  After a seven-hour manhunt, Shifter’s body was found hidden behind some rusty old tools in a shack of a storage building that hadn’t been used in years.

  His body was brought to the clinic, where Sloan had insisted on performing a quick autopsy, though it was clear how Shifter had died: knife through the abdomen. Still, Sloan thought it best if she confirmed the cause of death.

  “What is takin’ Sloan so long?” Britney paced outside the clinic door.

  Archer sat on the ground and leaned against the outside wall, eyes closed. “You know how your sister is. She likes to be thorough.”

  “This is ridiculous!” Britney paced. “We should be tryin’ to figure out who did this to him.”

  “Axel went to track down the twins.” Archer kept his eyes closed while he spoke. “After Sloan is done, we’ll get to the bottom of this.”

  “And then what?” They had never had anything like this happened before.

  The clinic door opened, putting an end to the conversation. Sloan popped her head out. “The autopsy is complete. Why don’t the two of you come in so we can talk about the results.”

  Britney stormed past Archer who hadn’t even made it off the floor yet. “Did the stab wound kill him or what?”

  “Yes.” Sloan closed the door behind Archer. “He died from trauma to the abdomen. But there’s more.”

  Archer yawned. “More?”

  “Come with me.” Sloan led them next to the exposed autopsied body, which she hadn’t bothered covering up.

  Britney averted her eyes as bile rose up her throat. “Sloan, please. Throw a sheet over him or something. Not all of us are used to seeing our friends this way.”

  “Sorry.”

  The flapping of a sheet told Britney that Sloan had complied with her request.

  “You can turn around now,” Sloan said.

  Britney peeked over her shoulder first, to make sure she could handle the sight before her. Comfortable now that the torso and face were covered, Britney faced Sloan again. “Thank you.”

  “Of course. Now back to my findings.” Sloan uncovered Shifter’s right arm and pointed to the wrist. “Do you see these ligature marks?”

  Archer cocked his head to the side. “Rope marks?”

  Britney leaned in closer to examine the bruises on his wrist. They resembled something she would have seen on the true crime shows she used to love. “He was tied up?”

  “I think so.” Sloan showed them his other wrist. “They’re on this side, too. And that’s not all.”

  “Great,” Archer mumbled.

  Sloan rolled Shifter over by his shoulder. “He has a tattoo on his shoulder. Looks familiar, doesn’t it?”

  Britney spun around, her heart racing. “That’s the symbol of the Children of the Apocalypse.”

  “Mia and Eli both have one of those on their shoulders as well,” Archer reminded them. “Mia said it was forced on them.”

  Sloan adjusted the sheet over Shifter’s body. “This one appears to be forced, more so than Mia’s. And it’s new. The wound hasn’t even begun to scab over.”

  “Son of a bitch.” Archer dragged a hand through his hair. “We need to talk to the twins.”

  “Talk to them?” Britney wanted to scream. “I’m done talking to them. We need them gone!”

  Sloan snapped off her gloves and threw them in the trash. “We have no idea if they’re even responsible for this.”

  “Shifter was murdered, correct?” Britney asked. “There’s no question about that?”

  “Yes, he was murdered. Considering the angle of the blade, there’s no way the wound was self-inflicted.”

  “Okay,” Britney continued. “And Shifter has been very vocal about his dislike and distrust for the twins.”

  “He has,” Archer agreed. “But there’s no proof. We can’t accuse them of killing someone without some sort of justification.”

  “Then we interrogate them.” Britney refused to allow them to get away with this. “Separate them and force them to confess.”

  “Force them?” Sloan asked. “How?”

  “I don’t know.” Britney said. “Tell them the other confessed. See what happens.”

  Sloan’s eyes met Archer’s. “That’s not very ethical.”

  “Ethical!” Britney dug her nails into her palm. “We’re not living in an ethical world! We’ve had zero issues before the twins showed
up. And now, the farm is about to fall apart, and we have a murder! Jesus, what other kind of proof do you need?”

  “Axel should have found them by now.” Archer grabbed for his walkie-talkie. “Let me see if he’s found anything out.”

  Archer left to make the call outside.

  Sloan shook her head and started clearing the autopsy area. “We need to plan a way to dispose of not only his body but the others before they start to decompose.”

  “How do you do that?” Britney asked, confused about the calmness in Sloan’s voice.

  “Do what?”

  Britney grabbed her sister by the arm. “Do all of this and be so indifferent. This isn’t some random person. You knew him for two years and you look down on his dead body and don’t even flinch.”

  Sloan twisted her arm, freeing herself from Britney’s grip. “You think I don’t care? That couldn’t be further from the truth. I performed the autopsy because I care about what happened to him. The truth about his death is important, not only to the community but to me. Shifter was not someone I would consider a close friend. I’m not sure I ever had an actual conversation with him. But he did what he felt was right for our community. Looked out for us, protected us. He didn’t deserve to be tied up and executed, his body hidden and left to rot.”

  “I’m sorry.” It wasn’t the way Britney handled grief, but she understood where Sloan was coming from. “I shouldn’t have judged.”

  Archer opened the door. “Axel has Eli at the house. He’s not talking. No one is sure where Mia is. I’m going to help them track her down. The two of you head to the house and meet the rest of the Council there.”

  “What about the body?”

  Britney snapped her head and glared. Hadn’t they just had a conversation about this?

  Sloan cleared her throat. “Sorry...what about Shifter?”

  “Can it wait a few hours?”

  “A few, perhaps.” Sloan glanced over her shoulder.

  “We should be back at the house in under thirty minutes.” Archer hurried off.

  Sloan slipped on her jacket. “I’m not sure I like the way things are heading.”

  “Me either.” Britney made her way out the door. “But we need to find out what really happened to Shifter and about everythin’ else that’s been happenin’ around here.”

  “You think the twins are responsible for it all?” Sloan asked as they made their way toward the house.

  “I don’t know, but I’m goin’ to make damn sure we find out.”

  ***

  The Council waited in the dining room for Archer and Axel to return. Eli sat at the table across from Sloan, picking at his fingernails, not saying a word. Smith stood guard at the door, making Britney feel less nervous about the accused killer in the room.

  From the dining room, Britney heard the front door open and shut. Several sets of footsteps headed toward them.

  Smith took a wide step to the right, allowing Archer, followed by Mia and Axel, to enter.

  Britney’s eyes fell on Mia’s bruised and bloodied cheek. “What happened to her?”

  “Someone grab the first aid kit.” Sloan jumped from her seat. “I need to clean the wounds before they get infected.”

  “What happened?” Britney repeated.

  Axel took his seat next to Britney. “We found her that way. She said Shifter did it.”

  Britney’s mouth fell open. “What?”

  Mia hung her head and sniffled as fresh tears ran down her cheeks. “It’s true. He confronted me last night during the attack. Said that I caused all of this. And when I told him I didn’t, he called me a liar and struck me.”

  Terrance left his seat and guided Mia into the chair next to Eli. “Did you kill him, honey?”

  Britney closed her eyes for a brief second to keep from rolling them.

  Mia’s eyes grew wide. “I didn’t kill him. He hit me, and I ran away from him, back to the camper to find my brother.”

  Eli stiffened in his chair.

  “And did you find him?” Terrance asked.

  Mia nodded as she dabbed the corner of her eyes with a tissue.

  Terrance continued to question her. “Did you tell him what happened to you?”

  “Yes.” Tears clogged her throat.

  “Was he angry?” Terrance’s eyes drifted to Eli.

  Mia’s head shot up. “Of course, he was angry. He loves me and would do anything to keep me safe.”

  Eli gritted his teeth. “Mia.”

  She turned to face him, laying a hand on his. “It’s okay, Eli. We have to tell them the truth. They’ll understand. You did it to protect me.”

  Britney whispered to Axel, “Are you buying this?”

  “I’m not sure,” he whispered back. “Her face looks bad.”

  Archer patted Terrance on the shoulder. “Thanks. Why don’t you let Slash in there so she can take a look at Mia’s face?”

  Terrance gave Mia a reassuring smile and returned to his seat.

  They gave Sloan a couple of minutes to examine Mia’s face, which was looking worse by the minute.

  “She’s going to need stitches,” Sloan announced. “I need to take her back to the clinic...maybe not the clinic, but I’ll need some supplies and a relatively clean working space.”

  Makayla stood up. “I’ll go back to the clinic and get what you need. There’s a bucket of clean water in the kitchen if you want to start cleaning the wound.”

  Sloan turned to Archer. “Do you need either one of us to stay?”

  “No.” Archer glanced down at Mia. “Get her cleaned up but she shouldn’t leave the house. Once we get Eli’s story, we’ll need to speak with her again.”

  “We won’t go far.”

  Before leaving, Mia squeezed Eli’s hand. “You know what you have to do.”

  Eli dropped his head. “I know.”

  Britney kept her eyes on Mia as Sloan guided her out of the room. She didn’t know why, but something about what she just told Eli made her insides turn to mush.

  Archer took Mia’s seat next to Eli. “I want you to tell us what happened to Shifter.”

  Eli cleared his throat, and the cocky teenager he’d been before faded, replaced by a scared little kid. “Mia and I got separated during the attack. When I couldn’t find her, I went back to our camper to wait. That’s where we agreed to meet if anything like this happened.”

  “How long did you wait for Mia?” Archer asked.

  Eli’s eyes darted back and forth. “Not too long. Ten, fifteen minutes or so.”

  Archer tapped a finger on the table. “How did she look? How was she acting?”

  “How do you think she was acting!” Eli slammed his fist on the arm of his chair. “He hit her! He fucking hit her in the face!”

  “That must have made you angry,” Archer said, “seeing your sister that way.”

  Eli dropped his head. “Of course, I was angry. He hurt her. What was I supposed to do?”

  Archer glanced at Axel before responding. “Can you tell us what happened?”

  “I...” Eli swallowed hard, “I killed him. It was self-defense.”

  Britney’s stomach lurched. She wanted nothing more than to jump across the table and rip out his tongue for the lies he so easily spun, but it was hard to deny what her eyes had seen. Someone had clearly hit Mia in the face. Britney just couldn’t believe that Shifter had done such a thing.

  “Did he come after you?” Axel asked, his voice laced with tension. “Follow Mia back to your camper and try to finish what he started?”

  Eli kept his eyes down. “No. I went to look for him.”

  “During the attack?” Archer asked. “That doesn’t seem very logical.”

  “I brought a knife.” Eli’s hand trembled.

  Archer sucked in an audible breath through his nose. “What kind of knife?”

  “A large blade.” Eli pursed his lips. “I don’t know what kind.”

  Axel tilted closer. “You brought the knife with you with
the intention of killing Shifter?”

  “No! There were infested all over the place. I brought the knife with me to protect myself!” Eli clenched his jaw. “I planned to confront him about what he did to Mia and make sure it never happened again.”

  Britney jiggled her leg under the table, struggling to keep still. Shifter was a lot of things: brash, hot-tempered, and at times, unreasonable, but he would have never hit Mia—not only a woman, but a child—that just wasn’t him.

  “Where did you find him?” Archer continued with the interrogation.

  Eli scratched his cheek. “The old shed.”

  “How did you know to look for him there?” Archer pressed.

  “I didn’t.” Eli shook his head. “I followed him inside the shed. He ducked in there, trying to get away from the infested.”

  Axel shifted in his chair. “I’m confused. Did you found him in the shed or did you follow him?”

  Eli’s pupils dilated. “What?”

  Axel crossed his arms over his chest. “First, you said you found him in the shed, then you said you followed him into the shed. Which is it?”

  “Uh.” Eli popped his knuckles. “I meant I found him near the shed and followed him.”

  “I see.” Archer stood and paced behind Eli, almost as if he’d done this before. “Then what happened?”

  “I asked him about Mia.”

  Axel cocked an eyebrow. “And?”

  “He confessed.” Eli shrugged. “Said as soon as this attack was over, he’d finish the job.”

  Britney couldn’t stay quiet any longer. They had agreed that only Axel and Archer would speak, but the entire situation was driving her mad. “Did he say why he was hell-bent on killin’ her?”

  Eli jumped from his chair and slammed his palms on the table. “He’s a fucking loon, that’s why! Bastard never gave us a chance. Hated us from the moment we met.”

  “Let’s everyone calm down.” Archer grasped Eli’s shoulder and forced him back into his seat. “What happened next? After he threatened to continue to come after her?”

  “I plunged the knife in the stomach.” Eli’s nostrils flared.

  Britney clutched her chest. “You stabbed him? Just like that?”

  “It was self-defense,” Eli spat.

  “So, he attacked you?” Archer asked.

  Eli’s eyes bulged. “What?”