Fatal Reaction, Survival

by M A Hollstein

  “Bill!” she shrieked, waving her hands at him, running in his direction. “Bill!” Amanda slowed down when she noticed he wasn’t alone. Two people were accompanying him. It took her brain a second to register whom they were. She recognized them from the hospital. They were the two scientists that had helped them.

  “Amanda?” Bill asked, strutting in her direction. “Where’s Benji?”

  Amanda’s tears increased. When Bill reached her, he wrapped his arms around her waist in a big bear hug. “You okay?”

  Nodding, Amanda sobbed some more. She was having trouble forming words. Susan and Liam came up behind them. Before Liam could ask where the boy was, Bill asked her again. “Amanda, where’s Benji?”

  “He’s inside,” she sniffled, wiping at her tears. “Bill… he’s infected…”

  “What do you mean?”

  Liam pushed past them and rushed to the garage. Susan was right behind him.

  “He killed them…” Amanda said to Bill. “It’s like he’s re-infected.”

  “How’s that possible?” Bill grabbed hold of Amanda’s hand and felt it trembling.

  “I don’t know.” Amanda shook her head. She hadn’t a clue how Benjamin could be re-infected.

  Bill entered the garage afraid he’d see the same monster that’d killed his wife. He’d never forget what Benjamin had transformed into, what he’d done. Benjamin was standing completely still, covered in fresh blood while Liam and Susan examined him.

  “Benji?” Bill asked, staring at his son in shock. “Are you all right?”

  Benjamin looked at his father; his eyes were returning to their normal color. “Can I get a toy?”

  “Um, yeah,” Bill said, unsure of how to answer. “Of course.” He looked down at the lifeless body of one of the thugs and recognized him. He’d seen him in and out of the house across the street from the apartments. Blood had pooled around the body.

  “What happened?” Susan asked Benjamin.

  He looked down at the man he’d killed and shrugged. “I don’t know.”

  “Do you remember?” she asked while feeling his pulse.

  “He was going to hurt Amanda,” Benjamin stated. “Can I have my toy now?”

  Bill kneeled down in front of his son. He stared into his eyes. “Hey, buddy. You sure you’re feeling okay?”

  Benjamin nodded.

  “I’m worried about you, sport. How’d you… well, this man…?” Bill wasn’t sure how to ask his son how he managed to take this man down.

  Benjamin pursed his lips together looking visibly upset. He averted his eyes from his dad’s.

  “Benji,” Bill put his hand on his son’s shoulder, “I’m not upset with you…just concerned.”

  “The voices,” Benjamin said. “They told me to.”

  “Voices?” Susan asked. “What do the voices tell you to do?”

  Benjamin shrugged. “I don’t know what they’re saying. Just feel them.”

  “Do you hear them in your head?”

  “Kind of, a little.” Benjamin shrugged again. “It’s more of a feeling.”

  Liam stroked his chin. “What kind of feeling?”

  “I’m hungry,” Benjamin said. “They’re hungry, too. Really hungry.”

  “That’s what I’m afraid of,” Liam said.

  “Why don’t we go find you something to eat?” Bill said. “We’ll get you a toy and some new clothes while we’re at it. Let’s go clean you up.” He guided him towards the door leading into the store.

  Once they were out of earshot, Amanda asked Susan, “What’s happening to him?”

  Liam was mumbling something to Susan. Susan shook her head and whispered something back to him. All Amanda could hear was her mention something about them communicating with him.

  “What is it? Who is he communicating with?” Amanda asked, concerned that they were talking amongst themselves and not including her. She didn’t like being ignored.

  “We should do it now,” Liam said to Susan. “Before it’s too late. We haven’t much time.”

  “Do what?” Amanda asked.

  “I agree,” said Susan, still ignoring her. “He’ll soon be a danger to us all.”

  Amanda stepped in front of both Liam and Susan, blocking them from entering the store. “Stop ignoring me!” she hissed. “I want to know the truth. Are the aliens in that ship communicating with Benjamin?” She pointed upwards.

  “No,” Liam said, pushing past her. “They’re not the ones you need to worry about.” He swung open the door that led from the garage to the store.

  “What do you mean?” Amanda asked, but he left the room not answering the question. She turned her attention to Susan. “What did he mean by that?”

  “If you keep to yourselves, our government will leave you alone. The Order has no interest in harming you.”

  “What if we don’t keep to ourselves?”

  “I’d advise against it. The Human Protection Order is no longer in place.”

  “I don’t understand. Why are they just sitting there? It’s like they’re waiting. The little white light, the one that’s flashing, what does it mean?”

  Susan went to follow Liam, and Amanda gripped her arm. Susan tried to shrug her off. “Remove your hands.”

  “Please,” Amanda begged. “What is happening?”

  “There’s no time to explain,” Susan sighed. “We need to get that boy.”

  Again, Amanda quickly blocked Susan from entering the building. “Tell me the truth! You’re not scientists here to observe us. This wasn’t a virus given to us by accident, was it?”

  “It was an inoculation.” Susan averted her eyes for a moment and then looked up glaring at Amanda. “It was supposed to keep you safe. We didn’t know that the reaction would be fatal.”

  “You did this,” Amanda raised her voice, “on purpose? You wiped out almost the entire population!”

  “For your own good,” Susan said. “The alternative is worse. Believe me. We didn’t plan for this to happen.”

  “Are you fucking nuts?” Amanda yelled. “Why? Why did you do this? To take over our planet? Wipe us out? And what does Benjamin have to do with all of this? Is he your Guinea pig?”

  “You wouldn’t understand.”

  “Try me!”

  “We’re trying to save you!”

  “How? Because I’m not seeing it!”

  Again, Susan tried to move past Amanda. Amanda refused to let her by. “I’m not going to let you go. I want the truth. I want to know how this happened and why.”

  Susan shook her head. “We spread the virus. It was an inoculation to keep you safe. Unfortunately, there were side effects which ended up being fatal. Benjamin needs to be monitored.”

  “Keep us safe from whom? Who’s he communicating with?”

  Susan’s brown eyes grew large. “Your worst nightmare.”

  ***

  Pulling up in front of a run-down slate gray house with dingy white trim and a broken down car in the driveway, Jorge switched off the engine. “My home,” he said, sliding out of the driver’s seat. Mike followed suit and got out of the Corvette. Jorge walked up to the front door and unlocked it.

  “Bella,” he called as they entered. “Bella!”

  The inside of the house was in tatters. Clothing piled everywhere. There was also trash, magazines, newspapers, and lots of stuff in piles along the walls. Mike wondered if the house was like this before the virus hit. He figured it probably wasn’t much better. The inside of the house smelled of rotten food and urine.

  A little girl with braids was sitting on the couch reading a book. She looked up at Mike and smiled shyly.

  “This is my sister, Bella,” Jorge introduced.

  “I’m Mike,” Mike said.

  “Mike is a sheriff officer. He’s going to help us,” Jorge said to his sister. “He has a safe place we can go.”

  Bella closed her book and frowned. “I don’t want to go.”

  Jorge kneeled before her on the staine
d tan carpet. “We can’t stay here.”

  “Why not?” she asked, eyes filling with tears.

  “Mama and Papa aren’t coming back,” he said. “It’s just you and me now. We need to stick together.”

  “But… what if…?”

  “No one is coming back. They would’ve by now.”

  Bella began to cry. Jorge wrapped his arms around his little sister.

  “Abuela and…”

  “No,” he said. “No one. It’s just us.”

  “What if…?”

  “No.”

  “I don’t want to leave home,” Bella sobbed. “I want to stay here. They might still come home.”

  Watching the little girl cry tugged at Mike’s heartstrings. He could only imagine how hard it was for her to understand what was happening. He was having a hard time understanding the situation himself.

  “Hey,” he said gently, patting the little girl’s shoulder. “How about you leave a note for your family with my address? I don’t live far from here. That way if anyone comes home, they know where to find you. Okay?”

  The little girl stared at the ground and nodded.

  “We can also come back and check on your house anytime you want. How does that sound?” Bella nodded, fresh tears tumbling down her rosy cheeks.

  “I’ll write the note,” Jorge said.

  “I want to write it, too,” Bella cried.

  “Okay,” he said. “Go pack some clothes and things. Then we’ll both leave a note. Okay?”

  Bella nodded, rubbed at her eyes, and took off down the hall.

  “Thanks,” Jorge said to Mike. “I’ve been… it’s just us… and…”

  Mike patted his shoulder. “You’ve done a good job keeping her safe.”

  Jorge forced a weak smile and nodded. “I don’t know what to tell her, especially since the spaceship…”

  “Unfortunately, there are no answers,” Mike said. “All we can do is stick together. Help each other. You’re a good kid…even if you do steal cars from cops.”

  Jorge’s jaw dropped. “About that…”

  “Water under the bridge,” Mike chuckled. “Go get your things.”

  Jorge nodded and then headed down the hallway to find a bag to pack a few things.

  ***

  Ellie spat on the ground and began to gag. The taste of gasoline penetrated her senses. She had a bad feeling that would happen. She shoved the end of the hose into the gas can and was happy to hear the trickling of gasoline. She looked up at the SUV. Max was standing on his hind legs on the back seat, licking the window.

  “You got this?”

  Ellie looked up. She was kneeling on the ground next to the car. “Yeah, I think so,” she said, thankful that Mike had left the hose and gas can in the back of the SUV. Ellie turned her head and spat again, trying not to throw up. Everything was smelling like gasoline and her tongue burned. It’d probably be days before she’d be able to taste or smell anything again.

  “Hiro Onishi,” he said. “My name.”

  “Hiro?” Ellie asked, hoping she was pronouncing it correctly.

  “Yes,” he said with a nod. “Pronounced like the English word, hero. And my granddaughter is Yuka.”

  “My name is Ellie,” she said, wiping the gasoline off the palm of her hand onto her pant leg before holding her hand out to him in greeting. Hiro shook it. “I’m so sorry about your restaurant.”

  There was a sudden loud noise. Hiro turned his head and looked down the street. There was a loud rumble of motorcycle engines in the distance. Ellie’s heart drummed in her chest at the sound. The sound was increasing. That meant the Crusaders were on their way.

  “Oh my God!” she shrieked, jumping to her feet and removing the hose from the tank of a Champaign colored abandoned Honda Civic. She hoped she had enough gas to get them out of there. She emptied the contents of the gas can into the tank of the SUV, shoved the gas can and hose into the back of the vehicle, and scurried around to the driver’s seat. Hiro was already in the passenger seat, talking to his granddaughter in Japanese.

  He had his semi-automatic weapon resting on his lap.

  Ellie started up the engine and drove down the freeway. She swerved around a couple of accidents but knew there was no way that they’d be able to get away before the motorcycles caught up to them. The bikes would be able to zip around the roadblocks.

  “Shit!” she yelled when they came to a halt. She couldn’t get around the cars blocking the road. There was an exit a mile up ahead, but no way around the abandoned vehicles. There was a steep drop off the shoulder that would land them in the water below. Ellie did a hasty, three-point turn, jerking them around in their seats. Hiro’s granddaughter was lying on the floor, staying down, as he’d instructed. Max almost fell over and squealed with fright. He jumped off the backseat and joined Yuka on the floor.

  Ellie was now racing back the way they’d come. She’d have to get off at a different exit and work her way through the streets until she could get back on the freeway at an entrance that was past the standstill. As she raced down the road, two motorcycles entered, heading in their direction.

  “What do I do?” she screamed in a panic.

  “Keep going!” Hiro instructed, aiming his weapon out the window.

  “But what if I hit them?”

  “They’ll move out of the way. Don’t slow down.”

  “But what if…?”

  “They don’t want to die. Go faster!”

  The motorcycles were coming right at her. Ellie stomped on the accelerator, surprising the Crusaders. She nearly missed them as they both swerved around her, avoiding a collision. Ellie glanced in her rearview mirror. She could see them slowing down. One had already turned around.

  “They’re going to follow us,” she said.

  “Let them,” Hiro said.

  “What if we run out of gas?”

  “What if we don’t?”

  “I don’t want to lead them home.”

  “Just drive!” he instructed.

  Ellie got off at the same on-ramp she’d exited earlier. She turned left and then made a sharp right. She went down the main street parallel to the freeway in the direction of home, hoping to catch another freeway entrance.

  ***

  As soon as the Crusaders left, Aaron’s mind reeled. He needed to get the hell out of there while he had a chance. Ronnie had appointed Seth to watch over him. Aaron was holding the video camera in his hands, re-watching the video that Ronnie made him take.

  “You air that yet?” Seth asked.

  “I’m working on it,” Aaron said. He had no intentions of continuously airing it. Ronnie had aired the video without realizing it. Aaron knew that if Ronnie realized he could air the video on his own, there’d be no reason to keep him alive. His mind was racing, working on a plan to escape. But if he couldn’t find a way out, he’d have no other choice, but to air the video every hour as demanded and hope no one realized he wasn’t needed. Aaron felt sick to his stomach as he re-watched the video. Ronnie introduces himself to the world as their new leader. The man in charge. The leader of the Crusaders.

  “You’d better,” Seth threatened. “You heard Ronnie.”

  “You have a TV?” Aaron asked.

  “Yeah.” Seth nodded to a closed door, which led to the waiting room off the garage. “Inside.”

  “I need to go back to my place and hook up the camera to my computer…”

  Seth squinted. “You think I’m an idiot?”

  Shaking his head, Aaron explained, “No. No…. it’s just, well, I need my computer to be able to play this on a TV.”

  “There’s a laptop inside,” Seth said. He picked up a gun from the stash on the back table. “Go hook it up.”

  Aaron got up from the folding chair where he’d been sitting in the center of the garage. “Dude,” he said. “I need my computer. I need the software for this to work.”

  Seth sneered at him. “Too bad, kid. You’ll have to make do with what’s here.
”

  Aaron shut his eyes and sighed, “It won’t work.” He shook his head, lying through his teeth. He’d already rigged the camera, and the video had actually aired, twice.

  “You’d better make it work,” Seth threatened. “Or else.”

  Aaron got up from the chair, and Seth made sure he was aware of the gun without actually saying anything. “I’m worried,” Aaron murmured, “at what Ronnie will do…”

  “He’ll kill you,” Seth said. “Now make it work!”

  “Without my software…,” Aaron shook his head, “it can’t… I can’t…” He slumped his shoulders and stared down at his feet. “I just can’t do it.”

  For a moment, Seth didn’t say anything. He eventually broke the uncomfortable silence. He knew it wasn’t just Aaron that’d be punished for not following orders. If Ronnie came back without that machine gun, he’d be in a dangerously bad mood. Seth didn’t want to take a chance of adding to that aggravation. He’d already seen Ronnie kill a couple of their brothers that’d had a difference of opinion. What would Seth do to him if his orders weren’t carried out?

  “Where do you live?”

  “Not far from here.”

  “And you’d be able to do this thing with your own computer?”

  “Yes.”

  “Got any family? Friends?”

  “No,” Aaron said. Unfortunately, that was the truth. He might still have family alive in Northern California, but no one he knew lived in the San Diego area. He’d just started his first year of college at San Diego State. He was all alone. His college roommate that he shared an apartment with, never came home the day the outbreak occurred. He didn’t know anyone else. And so far, there were very few people he’d come across that were still alive. He’d been going door to door trying to find survivors. Those that he did find were staying hidden trying to wait it out. He was sure there were more people alive in the neighborhoods he’d been canvassing, but they were too afraid to let anyone know they were there.

  Seth stomped a massive boot hard on the floor. “Damn it!” he swore, and then made sure to make a production out of the gun he was carrying to get his point across to Aaron. “Let’s get this done before they get back.”

  “Okay,” Aaron agreed. “We gonna drive?”