by Brant, Jason
The short bastard sheathed his knife and then sat down, giving her a warped grin that made her skin crawl. She didn’t even want to imagine the lewd acts running through his mind.
Finally peeling her eyes away from asshole number one, she peered around at the other men who had taken them hostage. Two more stood in the corners on either end of the truck. They were big dudes with greasy hair and gnarly beards. Before civilization fell, they were likely drug peddlers or ex-cons, if Cass still had her guessing hat on. They looked like worker bees who followed the queen bee.
Or the king in this case.
Cass settled her gaze on the man by the door who she believed to be the leader of the pack. He stood taller and broader than the other assholes, but not by a lot. Long hair and tattoos finished off his douchebag appearance. To be fair, he could have had perfectly quaffed hair and worn a tuxedo and Cass would have thought he looked like a douchebag just then.
His eyes had a different sheen than the others.
He didn’t appear as crazy.
Or as horny.
Intelligence hid behind the tats and the grime and the Metallica hair.
In a way, he reminded her of a bizarre version of herself because she had tats and grime and Metallica hair. But she didn’t kidnap people and leave her people behind.
He stared directly at her. “Calm down there, sugar tits, or I’ll have my men run a train on you in front of all your friends here.”
Cass glanced at Emmett and saw the pleading look he gave her.
She decided to shut up.
For now.
“Good.” The leader waved his gun around. “The more compliant you are, the easier this will go. I don’t want to shoot any of you, but I won’t hesitate to if it means my night will go a little smoother.”
Cass took a long, slow breath, surveying the other prisoners beside her. In front of her, facing in her direction, sat Doc Brown, Paul—formerly known as the Wildman of Monroeville—and his wife Liz—formerly known as Lance’s ex.
Sitting to Cass’ right were Greg—still known as the Bro Guy—Adam, and Adam’s wife Lilith.
The children were stashed somewhere in the front of the truck, hopefully buckled into a seat in the cab. Cass ached to know if they were okay, if the assholes who had kidnapped them were treating her child with care.
Missing from the back were Lance and Eifort.
She’d seen the shootout in the street as the truck had pulled away, screamed as a stranger threw something at one of their captors. Had tried to leap to her feet when she saw Eifort execute one of the bastards in the middle of the road.
But then the leader had slammed the door shut as the truck sped away.
The last light of the day had failed as the door closed, stranding Lance and Eifort in the middle of an abandoned city as the Vladdies ascended from their subterranean nests.
She could hear them outside, shrieking into the night as the van roared through Baltimore.
These men had managed to survive for years after the rest of humanity had been devoured, yet they were somehow stupid enough to stay outside at night while making a ton of noise. If they didn’t get off the road soon, Vladdies would swarm all over them.
“I know what all of you are thinking right now,” the leader said. “You’re wondering two things, most likely. First, you wanna know why we grabbed you. And second, you’re amazed we’re stupid enough to be driving at night.”
He winked at Lilith.
Cass bit into the cloth in her mouth as hard as she could, repressing the urge to fight her bonds again. Lilith was a sweet, petite little blonde who had escaped to Anegada with them so long ago.
Like several others who had managed to make it to the British Virgin Islands a little more than two years ago, she had been pregnant. A psychopath named Ralph had forced most of the women under his rule to get pregnant, by any means necessary, in an insane attempt to repopulate the country. Cass and the others had helped her as best they could, taking care of her needs and trying to make her comfortable.
Lilith lost the baby two months after they settled on the island.
She’d fallen for Adam while she was pregnant—despite the fact Greg was around all the time—and had married him in a small ceremony on the beach a year ago. Six months later, she had another bun in the oven. Her belly had grown quite a bit over the past few weeks, making her look even cuter than she had before.
Seeing that smug son of a bitch wink at her made Cass want to tear his eyes out.
Lilith squirmed away from him, pressing against Adam’s shoulder.
“We’ve been doing this for a long time, folks, so don’t worry about us being out at night. We’re professionals. You’re safe with us. From those freaks outside anyway.” The leader took a few steps forward, stopping in front of Emmett. “But we do have a slight problem here. Some of your friends killed one of my men, and that can’t go unpunished.”
Emmett squared his shoulders, glaring up at his captor. His mouth worked against his gag.
“If I take that outta your mouth, are you going to do something stupid like scream or bite at me?” the leader asked.
Emmett shook his head.
The leader gestured with the gun. “Remember what I said about not hesitating to make my life easier.”
Cass watched as the man yanked the gag out of Emmett’s mouth, letting it fall against his neck.
Emmett worked his jaw back and forth with a wince. “You’ve torn our families apart. We’ve already been punished.”
“That’s a fair point.” The leader glanced around, taking them in. “But if I’m being honest, I don’t really give a damn about your precious little families. I care about my men and the value of my cargo. If I’m down a man, it’s harder for me to move my wares.”
Did he just call us wares? Cass wondered.
The thought made their predicament feel that much worse. He didn’t see them as people, but as a product he had to move. What that meant for them, she didn’t know. It made her question just how insane the man speaking to them was. It took a special kind of crazy to not even view people as humans, but as items for the taking and using.
“And if I can’t move my wares,” the man continued, “I’m not happy. You don’t want to know what happens when I’m not happy.”
In one quick move, he spun, pressing the barrel of his rifle against Adam’s forehead.
Lilith screamed against her gag, leaning even closer to her husband.
Adam shook his head violently, rambling incoherently behind the fabric in his mouth.
The leader put his finger on the trigger, easing it back slightly.
He paused silently as his passengers collectively lost their minds. Cass bucked and kicked against her restraints, muffled screams escaping her. The others jabbered and squirmed in their seats.
“Please!” Emmett leaned forward. “We won’t fight you. We’ll do whatever you want.”
The man remained motionless for a moment, then straightened and lowered the gun. “I have an idea.”
Adam squeezed his eyes shut, collapsing into his wife.
Lilith cried against his shoulder.
“Hard turn,” a voice from the truck cab hollered. “Hold onto something!”
The leader reached over Adam’s head to grab a pole running vertically up the wall. He watched Lilith as the truck cut to the right, tires squealing.
Cass’ momentum shoved her back against the wall, her head clanging off the metal. The truck felt as if it would flip on its side for a moment before the driver straightened them out and accelerated again.
“We’re clear of the city,” the driver shouted. “We’re ten minutes out.”
The leader pounded on the ceiling with the end of his rifle twice in answer. He let go of the pipe and stood between his captives, though his gaze remained on Lilith. “As I was saying, I have an idea.”
“Anything,” Emmett replied. His shoulders slumped as he fell back in his seat. He glanced at Cass before qu
ickly focusing on the man in charge. “We’ll do whatever you want.”
Cass was thankful Emmett was the one whose gag they’d removed. If the crazy bastard had pulled hers out, she would have done her damnedest to take a hunk out of his hand. Emmett’s personality was much calmer and more calculated. He was better equipped to deal with crazy assholes.
She had enough crazy of her own to manage.
“Good.” The man turned around and faced Emmett. “That’s good. My idea should make you happy then. Here’s what’s gonna happen. I’m gonna ask you questions about your friends, and you’re going to answer me honestly. If you do that, and I like the answers, then I won’t hurt any of you.”
“And if you don’t like the answers?”
“Let’s hope you won’t have to find out.” He nodded at the man who’d pulled a knife on Cass and threatened her with a little eye surgery. “Wayne can get very creative with the ladies.”
Cass growled as she glared at the man across from her.
He stared at her breasts while licking his lips.
“Anything,” Emmett repeated.
“Then let’s begin.” The leader rested the rifle against his shoulder. “We’ll start with you, big fella. What did you do before the world went to hell in a hand basket?”
“I was a physician.”
“Oh, shit. Really? You were a doctor?”
“I was. I am.”
The leader clapped his thigh with his free hand. “Well goddamn, boys! We hit us a bit of a jackpot here.”
“We sure did, boss.” Wayne continued undressing Cass with his eyes. His voice had softened, a husky quality sneaking in. “We sure did.”
“What about this mousy little guy beside you?” The leader nodded at Paul. “He a computer nerd or accountant or something?”
“He’s an expert at anything relating to communications and surveillance.”
“Elaborate.”
Cass’ concern continued to grow as the leader interrogated Emmett. The other idiots appeared to have a collective IQ somewhere south of one hundred, but their boss was definitely of another stock. An intelligent psychopath was the scariest.
Emmett glanced at Paul, who merely returned his gaze with dead eyes. He gave nothing away until he finally gave Emmett a brief nod.
“Have you heard of the Wildman of Monroeville?” Emmett asked.
“The crazy bastard on the radio a few years ago?” The leader cocked his head to the side as he took in Paul. “I don’t believe it. Sounds too good to be true. Say yinz.”
“Yinz,” Paul muttered.
“Say it louder and crazier, boy.”
“Yinz.”
“Well, I’ll be goddamned. That was you? We listened to you every day before you went off the air. We figured you were monster shit when you stopped broadcasting.”
Paul studied his feet in silence.
The man continued. “I can’t believe our luck on this haul. A doctor and the goddamn Wildman of Monroeville. And the kids and a preggers chick, too. We’re gonna be loaded after this delivery.”
“What do you mean by delivery?” Emmett asked.
“You don’t ask the questions here, Doctor.” The man cuffed Emmett across the cheek, snapping his head to the side. He admired his handiwork for a moment before pointing his gun at Adam. “Now what about this fella? He have any skills that translate to this brave new world of ours?”
Blood blossomed in the corner of Emmett’s mouth. He licked it away. “He was in sales.”
“Sales, huh? That isn’t worth a damned thing nowadays, is it?”
“But he’s been growing and cultivating our gardens and livestock for the past few—”
“So what? Everyone who’s still alive can do that happy crappy.”
“—and he’s incredibly handy with maintaining—”
The man cut him off by gesturing at Greg with the rifle. “This guy worthless, too?”
“Greg is great with hard labor and helping to—”
“Worthless.” The man glanced at the two of them. “You boys fell into some shit when you hitched up with this lot, didn’t you?”
“Sir, I can assure you that both are extremely—”
“Shut up, Doc, or I’ll do something you won’t be too happy with.” The man bobbed his head at Wayne. “We’ve got two for H.K. The rest, we’ll take up to Valerie.”
“You got it, boss.” Wayne gestured to Cass with his pistol. “I want a piece of this one before we get there, though. She’s feisty. You know I like it when they squirm.”
“Follow the rules, Wayne. Val will cut us off if we damage the goods in transit.”
“Can’t we keep her like we did some of the others? I bet she could last a good long time, unlike some of those weaker bitches.”
“Not this time, my friend. One of those kids upfront is hers, and you know Val pays double if the mother and children are together.”
“But—”
“We’re here,” the driver shouted from upfront. “Someone get the door before those damn things track us out here.”
4
Lance stood by the door, listening intently to the awakening world outside. He hadn’t heard a Vladdie for the past thirty minutes, but that didn’t mean the bastards weren’t out there somewhere, waiting for their prey to make a mistake.
Birds had begun to chirp a few minutes ago, their songs reminding him of the old days. Personally, he didn’t feel a great loss for his old life, but he certainly mourned for the dead. Every morning in Pittsburgh, pigeons had perched outside his apartment building and made an enormous racket. He hadn’t needed an alarm for that last year or so, instead waking up to those damn things.
Birds were one of the few animals unaffected by the Vladdies taking over the food chain. They didn’t have to fear the brutes stuck on the ground, so they flourished without man’s technology screwing up their skies.
Now they sang, flew, and shat all over the place.
Lance wondered if those were ravens out there squawking.
They were in Baltimore, after all.
He had no idea if ravens were actually heavily populated in the area or not. But he did know he hated that football team with a passion.
It was when a dog woofed from somewhere in the neighborhood that he knew the coast was clear. Any land-based animals still alive were smart enough to know to keep their mouths shut during the night.
How a dog had managed to survive in the city, he didn’t know.
Lance felt along the door in the dark. They’d blown their candles out a few hours earlier, hoping they could get some sleep. Lance hadn’t slept a wink. He searched the edge of the door for the locks. His fingers found several bolts and chains that he worked open. The heavy bar across the door took a little more effort to remove and lean against the wall.
Sunlight spilled into the dark basement as he swung the door open, casting his shadow across the floor. He spotted Eifort standing on the other side of the long room, ear pressed against a metal slab welded over a window.
She turned toward him with heavy eyes and an expression somewhere between hate and fear.
The kid was asleep on the floor, curled up in a ball with his head resting on his pack. He flinched when the light fell upon his face, wincing against it.
“Time to go.” Lance stalked across the room, then grabbed the plastic bag he’d loaded with canned goods and water. “Take us to the man you said could help us find our families.”
“Yeah, okay.” Brandon hopped to his feet and stretched a bit, arms rotating around in large circles. “Sorry about falling asleep like that.”
“It’s fine.” Eifort crossed the room in a hurry, holding a hand out toward Lance. “Water.”
He tossed her a bottle from his bag before turning and climbing the stairs.
The kid shut the door, locked it behind himself, and vaulted the stairs in a single leap.
“Which way?” Lance asked.
“South. We’re going to The Light.” Brandon s
tarted around the house, then headed down the driveway.
“The Light?” Eifort stuffed her pistol in the front of her waistband, then cracked open the water bottle. She downed it in three gulps.
“You don’t know what The Light is?”
“Never heard of it.”
“We’re new to the area. We figured we’d check out the schools before deciding if we wanted to move in permanently.” Lance took up their rear, checking behind them for company every now and then.
The last thing they needed was someone getting the drop on them now.
“Oh, hey, a smart ass. What a pleasant surprise.” Brandon walked down the street toward a twisted gate leading into a cemetery. “The Light is the building I live in downtown with a whole bunch of other people.”
“You live downtown in a major city? Are you nuts? This place is crawling with Vladdies.”
“Vladdies? The hell is a Vladdie?”
Eifort said, “The creatures. Why we call them that is a stupid story.”
“We just call them demons.”
“Whatever.”
“No reason to be mean. I’m just saying.”
“Look, kid,” Lance said as he jogged to catch up to him. “My wife and kid were taken from me last night. I’m trying not to freak the fuck out right now. Eifort is in the same boat. So cut us some slack and tell us what we need to know.”
Taking a deep breath, Brandon stopped. “I’m sorry. I can’t imagine what you’re feeling right now. We have a long walk ahead of us though, so I can fill you in on some stuff while we’re going.”
“And you’re sure this person you’re taking us to can help?”
“Pretty sure.”
“Pretty sure?” Eifort grabbed his shoulder, spinning him toward her. “My baby is out there without me, and—”
“Whoa, whoa.” Brandon held his hands up in a submissive gesture. “If anyone around here knows where to find the Bandits, it’s her. I’m trying to help you out here, so take it easy.”
Lance tried to calm himself. Knowing his family was out there without him made him want to scream. But the kid had saved them from certain death, and he was now their only chance at finding their loved ones.
“We appreciate what you’re doing,” Lance finally said. “Let’s keep moving.”