Fatal Reaction, Survival

by M A Hollstein

  “What is that?” Bill asked.

  “The tracking device,” Liam said. “It was implanted in the back of his neck.”

  “Where’d he go?” Susan asked Bill.

  Bill shrugged. “I – I don’t know. Amanda took him to look for supplies.”

  “This isn’t good,” she said. “They’re communicating with him. That’s how he knew to remove the device. There’s no other explanation.”

  “What are you talking about?” Bill asked. “Who is? Who’s communicating with him?”

  “It doesn’t matter. We don’t have much time.” She turned her attention to Liam. “Flush it. Can’t take a chance of the device having been compromised.” Susan turned and left the bathroom and headed for the front door. Liam tossed the tracker into the toilet, flushed it, and followed Susan.

  “Wait!” Bill followed them. “I’m coming with you.”

  “He’ll get us killed,” Liam complained. “Leave him here.”

  Susan stepped outside and began to descend the stairs. She stopped and looked up at Bill who was staring down at them from the front doorway. “On one condition…”

  “What’s that?” Bill asked.

  “You do as we say. No questions asked.”

  “He’s an unnecessary risk!” Liam snapped. “Humanity is wearing on you. You’re becoming weak!”

  “Possibly,” Susan said, visibly thinking through the situation. “However, I’m still logical and in control intellectually. He can help to locate the boy. We must find him before they arrive.” She looked up at Bill. “Do we have a deal?”

  Bill didn’t like taking orders from anyone, especially a woman. But he was anxious to find Benjamin. He glared into her unblinking, beady, brown eyes. She held his stare, not backing down. “Okay. Fine,” he huffed. “Once we find Benjamin, we part ways.”

  Susan didn’t comment. She turned her back to him and continued down the stairs.

  ***

  Pulling into the parking lot to the shopping center not far from the apartments, Amanda parked the car. She sat there for a moment, staring at the grocery store. She’d been in there once with Bill, after the infection hit, a few weeks ago. Other than that, she hadn’t left the apartment complex. They’d gathered enough supplies at the time, plus with the food they had been gathering from the abandoned neighboring apartments, so they hadn’t really needed anything more since then. She suddenly felt nervous about entering the store. She wasn’t sure why. Something just didn’t feel right. She looked over at Benjamin who was sitting quietly in the passenger seat.

  Looking in her rear view mirror, Amanda spied the large hardware store at the other end of the lot. She was thinking of checking out both places. “You know what?”

  Benjamin looked at her. “What?”

  “I’m thinking we might find more things that we need at the hardware store. You want to try it first?”

  Benjamin shrugged. “Do they have toys?”

  “Hmmm,” Amanda frowned, glancing again at the store, “probably not.”

  “Oh,” he said. “Can we go to Walmart?”

  Amanda thought about it for a minute. There was a Walmart only a couple of miles away. And they’d probably have everything she’d need. Not only would they have groceries, but other supplies as well. Amanda wanted to find some camping equipment, maybe a fishing pole or two, and some weapons. Did Walmart sell guns? If not, she was sure they’d have knives. She glanced up again at the daunting ship in the sky. The little white light was still blinking. She hadn’t spoken to Bill yet about her plans, but she was thinking of leaving the area. She thought that it might be safer to be somewhere more hidden. Maybe somewhere up in the mountains like Big Bear. However, she wasn’t sure there was anywhere safe to go. All she knew was that she wanted to get far away. Far away from both the infection and the ship.

  “Walmart?” she asked. “Is that where you want to go?”

  Benjamin nodded. “My Mom always goes to Walmart.”

  “Okay,” she said, feeling a pang of sadness for Benjamin. Since his mother was gone, he’d never be able to go to Walmart with her again. “Let’s head to Walmart.”

  Walmart wasn’t very far from where they were. She hopped onto highway 76 and drove a mile or two down the road. Unfortunately, the entrance to the parking lot was blocked by the remains of a regional transit bus. Amanda stared at it in horror. It had obviously been on fire. All that was left of it was the scorched, steel, skeletal-like remains. She maneuvered the car around the bus and was happy to see that there was just enough room to squeeze her car around it. She tried to avoid running over the dead bodies and human remains that littered the parking lot. Benjamin was quietly staring out the window. This was the first time he’d been out since they’d arrived at her apartment a few weeks ago. She knew that Bill had explained to Benjamin what had been happening in the world, but she wasn’t sure just how much Benjamin had comprehended. Seeing the devastation was entirely different than just hearing about it.

  Amanda pulled up in front of the building and switched off the engine. She stared at the closed front doors. Through the windows, lights could be seen inside the store. She wondered if they’d been on ever since the electricity came back on with the arrival of the ship. She also wondered if there was anyone else alive inside the store. The thought worried her a little. She wanted to find other survivors, but at the same time, she thought about that car she used to hear late at night, driving up and down Mission Avenue with the booming base. It had frightened her.

  “So,” she said, looking at Benjamin, “should we see if the doors are open?”

  Benjamin turned in the passenger seat to look out the window. Amanda noticed that there was a patch of dried blood near his hairline on the back of his neck.

  “Benji, what happened to your neck?” she asked. “Did you hurt yourself?” She went to touch him. “Let me take a look at it, sweetie.”

  Benjamin quickly covered his neck with his hand. He turned to face her and Amanda could’ve sworn his eyes flashed yellow. “I’m fine,” he said.

  Amanda furrowed her brow. “It doesn’t look fine. Does it hurt?”

  Benjamin stared at her. The yellow ring around his irises, left over from the virus, seemed more vibrant. “No.”

  Not believing him, she stared at him for a moment and decided to drop the issue. “Well, all right. While we’re here, I want to pick up some alcohol or Neosporin or something for your cut. We don’t want it to get infected. Okay? Don’t let me forget.”

  “Okay,” he said, undoing his seatbelt.

  They left the car parked right in front of the store. Amanda still took the keys with her just in case. She knew the odds of someone stealing the car was next to none since the majority of the population was gone, but she worried about the few still alive that may be lurking about.

  To Amanda’s surprise, the motion sensor detected them, and the front doors slid open. Goosebumps rose on her arms. Amanda grabbed hold of Benjamin’s hand. “Stay close to me.”

  Benjamin didn’t argue or try to pull away from her. He did as she said and stayed by her side. Once inside, the doors slid shut behind them, and Amanda practically jumped out of her skin. She nervously looked around. Not all of the lights were on in the store, but a good portion of them were, and music was playing. She guessed the store had a CD that just played repeatedly over the speakers.

  The inside of the store was in shambles and reeked of decaying produce and meat. The place had been ransacked when the virus hit. Amanda grabbed an empty shopping cart near the door. She looked around to make sure no one was there. For a moment, she just stood there, surveying the store while listening for anything other than the elevator music and the obnoxious buzzing of the lights and refrigerators.

  “I think it’s okay,” she whispered to Benjamin. “What do you think?”

  He shrugged and then nodded.

  “Okay, we’ll start with this aisle and just work our way around the store.” Amanda kept her voice low j
ust in case they weren’t alone. “Sound good?”

  Benjamin looked towards the other side of the store and tugged at her arm. Amanda looked in the direction he was facing and smiled. “That’s right. Toys.”

  Benjamin smiled up at her.

  With all of the chaos, and the world falling apart around them, Amanda decided the toy section would be their first stop. It was important to Benjamin. She knew their hours were numbered. Who knew how long they had left to live? Life was so uncertain. Why not make a little boy happy by getting him some toys?

  Carefully, Amanda worked the cart around obstacles on the floor. With her foot she kicked and pushed things out of the way, clearing a path so that the wheels could roll. She bent down, scooped up a box filled with beef jerky, and tossed it in the cart. Beef jerky probably had a long shelf life and didn’t spoil easily. It would be a good thing to store up on.

  They were about to walk past the pharmacy on the way to the toy section when Amanda had an idea. “Benji, let’s grab a few things here first, okay? After this, we’ll look for toys.”

  Benjamin didn’t say anything, but it was apparent he wasn’t thrilled with the idea. Amanda thought she could see a hint of disappointment in his eyes as he frowned.

  “I promise,” she said. “I’ll make this quick.”

  Benjamin gave her a half nod.

  Amanda glanced around the pharmacy. The entire section was a disaster. Shelves had been knocked over, and items were scattered all over the place.

  “Stay by the cart,” she instructed Benjamin. He didn’t say anything. Again, he looked longingly towards the toy section.

  Amanda turned her back to him and climbed over a shelving unit lying on the floor, and began to rummage through the items. Everything was a jumbled mess. She started looking for things she felt could be useful to them. She found boxes of Tylenol, Ibuprofen, antihistamines, and Band-Aids. She put them all together in a pile on the floor. She also found bags of cough drops and bottles of cold medicine that she added to her stockpile.

  She then climbed over more shelving units, working her way in the direction of the pharmacy counter. She wished she had the foresight to have grabbed one of those handheld baskets at the front of the store where they kept the grocery carts. A basket would’ve been helpful to carry all of the little items she was gathering. It was going to be a real pain in the neck to try to scoop them all up and carry them as she climbed back over the shelving units.

  When Amanda finally made it to the counter, she grabbed hold of the edge of the cold Formica and leaned over to get a look in the back. The lights were off in the pharmacy, but the room was lit up just enough from the lighting in the store, for her to see the mess. Pills, bottles, and boxes were thrown all over the floor. She felt it might be beneficial to take a few extra minutes to search for antibiotics. The cut on the back of Benjamin’s neck had looked pretty bad. She’d stolen a couple of glances at it since they’d entered the store. She worried the wound would become infected.

  “Hey, Benji,” she said, pulling herself up onto the counter. She spun around on her behind and slid off the countertop into the pharmacist area. “I’m going to look for some antibiotics. Okay? Do you know if you’re allergic to anything?”

  There was no answer.

  “Benjamin?” she asked. “Benji?”

  There was still no answer.

  “Shit!” Amanda cursed under her breath as she stared in the direction of the cart where she’d left him. He wasn’t there. Her breath caught in her throat. “You’ve gotta be freakin’ kidding me!”

  For a few seconds, Amanda held completely still and listened for footsteps. Unfortunately, the only thing she could hear was the damn elevator music and the humming of the fluorescent lights.

  He probably took off to look for toys, she told herself. The toys were just a couple aisles down from the pharmacy. Practically every Walmart that Amanda had been in were set up in a similar fashion. Amanda was pretty sure they were alone in the store but didn’t know that for a fact. It bothered her that Benjamin would take off after she told him to wait for her. She wondered if that was normal for him. Did he do that to his parents? Then Amanda remembered herself as a kid. She remembered her Mom commenting that if she turned her back, even for a minute, she and her sister were getting into things. She guessed it was the same idea. She turned her back, and Benjamin disappeared. Since Amanda didn’t have any kids of her own, she wasn’t used to shopping with one. Her nephew was still young enough that he’d be strapped into the seat of a shopping cart.

  Since Amanda was already behind the counter, she decided to take a quick look around. She picked up several pill bottles and boxes looking them over. She scrunched up her nose, trying to comprehend what she was reading on the labels. She hadn’t a clue what most of these medications were. She might as well have been reading a foreign language.

  Digging through the mess, she found a bottle of Amoxicillin which she was allergic to, but could be used by Bill or Benjamin if needed in the future. Deciding she could always come back later, to look through the bottles more thoroughly, Amanda took the bottle of antibiotics with her and scooted back over the Pharmacy counter. She scooped up the Tylenol, Ibuprofen, and other supplies that she’d piled up on the floor, and carried them over to the cart. There was still no sign of Benjamin, and she was growing concerned. A mixture of fear for his safety, and anger at his defiance, washed over her as she wheeled the cart towards the toy section.

  The fluorescent overhead lights were out in this section of the store. She turned the cart to the left, to enter the first aisle past the pharmacy, but there was too much debris in the way. She left the cart where it was and decided to climb the mountain of toys that’d been tossed from the shelves. It was too dark for her to see what was at the other end of the aisle. She couldn’t tell if maybe Benjamin was down there.

  “Benjamin,” she whispered. “Benji…” Boxes of toys slipped beneath her feet, and she fell hard on her bottom. A bolt of pain shot up her spine into her head. She clutched the back of her neck. Her patience was wearing thin. The last thing she needed right now was to throw her back out of place when there was an alien spacecraft hovering above them in the sky. She was seriously rethinking her stupid decision to bring Benjamin with her shopping. She should’ve left him at home. He’d have been safe, and she wouldn’t be in so much pain. God, my lower back, and neck hurt like hell.

  “Benjamin!” she raised her voice a hair, pressing her hand to her tailbone area as she got to her feet. “Where are you?”

  “Hello! Helloooo, Walmart shoppers!” she heard a man’s voice boom over the speakers. His voice echoed throughout the store. Amanda froze. Her anger at Benjamin was quickly replaced with fear. Where was he? She noticed that the elevator music had stopped playing.

  “This here is Julio, and this is my Walmart Superstore. All shoplifters will be prosecuted. Please, show yourself now. There’s no use in hiding. We know you’re here and we know that you’re an idiot. You left your car parked in front of my store. If you don’t come out, we will find you. And trust me, you don’t want us to find you.”

  “Good one!” another man jeered in the background.

  Amanda cringed and sucked in a sharp breath. She needed to think. There was more than one man in the store. Her mind drifted to the car with the booming base. Maybe these were the gangsters that’d been driving it.

  Careful not to make too much noise, Amanda decided to get on all fours and crawl through the toys, working her way to the back of the aisle where it was the darkest. Every move she made, no matter how slight, thundered in her ears. She wondered where Benjamin was hiding. She prayed that he was smart enough to stay hidden. She didn’t know what these men would do to them if they were found.

  At the end of the aisle, Amanda quickly scooted to the next, in search of Benjamin. She wanted to call his name but was too afraid of being heard. She wished she could see better; it was so dark. But at the same time, the darkness was probably a good
thing. She wondered if they stayed hidden long enough whether or not the men would grow bored and leave. She hoped that there were other stores they were claiming as well. Ones that they’d have to go check on. That was the only plan she could come up with, and it wasn’t a very good one. Stay hidden until the men left, and then sneak out. Even if the men had done something to the car, they were close enough to walk home. The apartment complex was only two or three miles away.

  Amanda then thought of the note they left on the table for Bill. Would he come looking for us? She’d mentioned they’d be back before dinner. Surely he’d be worried once dinner time came and went. But would he think to look for them at Walmart? Probably not.

  Since meeting Bill at the hospital, Amanda had grown to know him pretty well. She’d realized that he could be a male chauvinist pig, but he was also a fighter with a good heart. He was the type of man that wouldn’t take crap from anyone and would do his best to protect his loved ones. Even though living with him over the last several weeks had been a challenge, he made her feel safe. She knew he’d do what he could to protect her and Benjamin.

  Even though there was nothing between them other than a roommate situation, she believed Bill would be there for her. And maybe, if things were different, there could be something more between them. Bill had recently lost his wife due to the infection, and Amanda had lost her boyfriend, Jasper. The more she had thought about it, the more she wondered about how Bill’s wife died. She knew how awful it was to see Jasper grow ill. She’d tried to talk to Bill about it, but he had refused. So she’d left the topic alone. She knew he was grieving. If, and when he was ready to talk about it, she’d be there to listen. Everyone mourned in different ways. She still thought about Jasper, wondering if he was still alive somewhere. She’d lost him amongst the hordes of people at the hospital.

  Just then, a loud crashing sound caused Amanda’s entire body to jerk. She practically jumped out of her skin. The sound was close. Too close. Someone was entering the first toy aisle. She heard more toys topple from the shelves. She could hear someone grunting while climbing over the boxes, struggling with the mess.