by Kate L. Mary
Donnie spreads two blankets across the bookcase, then stretches out on top of it before pulling the third over him. He doesn’t even bother asking the other two men if they want one, not that I’m surprised. They don’t seem all that surprised either, really. When they stretch out in front of the fire, I can’t help hoping that all three of them will fall asleep. If they do, maybe Ben will be able to get me free. All I need is a knife, and I’ll take care of Donnie with one slice. I won’t bother taking my time with him the way I did with the creepers. One cut across the throat will do the whole world a favor.
Donnie is out cold in less than a minute, and Travis follows him. Jon doesn’t even try to close his eyes. He just lies on the floor with his hands behind his head, staring up at the ceiling. They must have a system set up. Shit.
After who knows how long, Walker lets out a little grunt. I turn as he lifts himself to a sitting position and looks around the room. His features contort with pain every time he moves, and I can’t help but notice that he holds his left arm close to his side. I’m not sure if he’s nursing an injured rib or arm, though.
Walker’s right eye is swollen shut, but the other one focuses on me. I give him a smile that’s meant to be reassuring. That’s meant to tell him I’m okay and nothing really bad has happened to me, because I know Walker well enough to realize that he’s only thinking about me right now. It doesn’t matter how banged up he is, I’m one hundred percent positive that the second he regained consciousness, his thoughts went to me.
My smile comes out too shaky to be reassuring.
I’m glad he’s awake because I was starting to worry about how long he’d been unconscious, but I’m terrified of what will happen to me now. Eventually, Donnie will wake up too.
We remain silent even though Walker isn’t gagged. Jon isn’t asleep, but if he’s noticed that Walker is awake, he doesn’t acknowledge it. He seems to keep to himself more than the other two—although I don’t believe for a second that means we’ll be able to depend on him for help. Anyone who aligns themselves with someone like Donnie is evil. There’s no other way to look at it.
The storm rages on and the hours pass. The rhythmic beat of the raindrops as they hit the house has a calming effect on me, and before I know it, my eyelids grow heavy. Walker is still alert though, and every time my eyes begin to droop he clears his throat, trying to keep me awake. I shift on the couch, hoping to move around so I don’t drift off, but my body won’t obey me. I’m exhausted, and before long, I find it impossible to keep my eyes open.
30
A hand slaps against my cheek and sends my body slamming against the back of the couch. I blink even though I’m wide awake. Donnie’s grin is evil and clear as day and the last thing I want to see. Behind him, Travis and Jon stand. Staring or waiting. I’m not sure which one, but I know it doesn’t matter.
“Leave her alone.” Walker’s voice comes out sounding like a growl.
I tear my gaze away from the man in front of me and turn to face my friend. His hands are now tied in front of him just like mine, and they’re clenched into fists. He twists his wrists like he’s trying to break free, but we both know he won’t be able to, and even if he could, there’s no way he could take all three of these men. Especially not right now.
Donnie slices the rope securing my wrists, then grabs my forearm and jerks me to my feet, spinning my body to face Walker. Pain shoots through my body, starting at my injured shoulder and spreading out in all directions so fast that it makes my head spin. It isn’t enough to block out the horror on Walker’s face, though. His one good eye is huge, and he hasn’t stopped struggling against the ropes.
“I will kill you,” Walker hisses, his voice deep and strong despite his battered appearance. “Don’t you fucking touch her.”
Hearing the profanity come out of his mouth brings the severity of the situation into a much greater light. Behind me, the bony plains of Donnie’s chest press against my back with every mouthful of air he takes in. When he exhales, the foul smell of his breath invades my nostrils and makes my stomach churn. His skin is sticky where it brushes against mine. He tightens his arm around my waist and pulls me closer until it feels like he’s trying to make us one person.
Donnie chuckles like Walker is a small child and he finds his naïveté amusing. “I don’t think you’re in any kind of a position to give orders.”
Walker grunts in response. He wiggles and somehow manages to get to his feet, his features contorting in pain from the effort.
“Grab him,” Donnie says from behind me, sending Travis and Jon scurrying across the room toward Walker.
They’ve only made it halfway across the room when the entire house begins to shudder around us. The windows rattle in their frames and the walls shake like they’re made of paper. Under our feet, the old wooden floors creak like they’re about to break into a million pieces. It’s as if the house has come to life.
Donnie’s grip on me loosens, and he takes a tiny step back. “What the hell?”
“Is it an earthquake?” Jon asks. Just like Donnie, he’s frozen.
The house trembles even harder, and then a slow pounding starts. Like a hundred drums beating in perfect synchronization. The sound is deafening, and all I can think is tornado. It’s the only explanation my mind can come up with. I’ve never been in a tornado before, but with the roar swooping down on us and the house shaking the way it is, it seems to fit.
Then the pounding gets louder. Closer. That’s when it hits me that the noise is coming from the other room, right on the other side of the door. And now that I can hear it more clearly, my brain is able to acknowledge what it is. They aren’t drums beating and it isn’t a tornado or any other act of nature, and it isn’t the first time I’ve heard the sound.
Fear runs down my spine as the memory comes screaming back. The refugee camp, being crowded into a tent, half asleep. Then the pounding started as hundreds of creepers swarmed in. The footsteps were earth shatteringly loud despite how thin and gangly their bodies were.
“Creepers,” I whisper, my eyes darting toward Walker.
His brows shoot up on his battered face, and he stumbles back, leaning against the wall for support. Donnie releases me completely. He takes off across the room at the same instant as Travis, both men scrambling for their packs. Probably in search of weapons.
Ben is on his feet, and for once the kid seems to be totally with it as he darts for the window. I can’t move, though. It feels like my feet are stuck in place as I stand in the middle of the room, trying to think of a way out. The pounding has only gotten louder, and I know at any moment those things are going to come charging into this room. Walker is hurt and Lilly is still under the bookcase. I don’t give a shit about Donnie and his asshole friends, but the rest of us need to get out.
“Get that door!” Donnie screams just as Travis says, “They’re everywhere!”
At the window, Ben stops and presses his face against the glass, trying to see out into the darkness. “It’s clear on this side.”
He says it so quietly that his words are barely audible over the roar of the footsteps pounding in the other room, but that’s good. Maybe Donnie and his buddies didn’t hear it.
“Walker,” I hiss, finally moving.
I jerk my head toward Ben, and Walker nods. His wrists are still tied and arms are pressed against his chest like his ribs may be bruised, but he pushes himself off the wall and staggers toward Ben.
The door shudders, and the sound of splintering wood fills the room. Donnie and his men are yelling back and forth, but my blood is pounding in my ears, making it impossible to hear their actual words. Then the door bursts open with a crack, and the whole house feels like it’s going to collapse. Creepers pour in through the opening.
Gunfire fills the room as Travis and Jon start firing, and Donnie doesn’t stop yelling. The shattering of glass joins the noise, and I spin around to find the window now missing. Walker’s hands are free, and he has a shirt wr
apped around his fist as he punches out the glass still protruding from the frame.
“Shit!” one of the men yells.
I’m already moving toward the overturned bookcase when I turn around to find Jon on the floor, three creepers on top of him. The snarls coming out of their mouths are like nothing I’ve ever heard before. They’re vicious and high-pitched, and they send tremors of fear shooting through me so fast that it almost roots my feet to the floor. But I know I can’t stop moving. I need to get to Lilly, to get her out of here and away from this swarm of monsters.
“Eva!” Walker calls, “We have to go!”
I don’t acknowledge him as I throw myself on the floor next to the overturned bookcase. Behind me, the creepers keep coming, but the gunshots have ceased and the men are screaming. The agony in their cries makes my arms shake as I grab the bookcase. There isn’t much time.
When I flip it over, I’m greeted by the terrified eyes of my sister. She’s curled up, her body wrapped around her pack and her hands covering her ears. Seeing her cowering in fear takes me back to the prison camps and makes my body ache in pain, but there’s no time to reminisce about the past.
I grab her arm and pull her hand away from her ear, then yank harder, trying to urge her to her feet. “We have to go!” My voice is high-pitched with panic, like I’ve sucked in a mouthful of helium.
Lilly doesn’t fight me, and within seconds we’re running across the room, hand in hand. There are so many creepers that it feels like the walls are going to burst. The cries of Donnie and his friends have lessened, and I steal a glance over my shoulder as I move, but the second my eyes land on the mangled mass of flesh and bone, I wish I hadn’t looked. Donnie’s arms protrude from his body at awkward angles like he’s a contortionist or his body is made of pipe cleaners. He’s still alive, but just barely. Even though he was an asshole and just a short while ago I found myself thinking that he deserved to be tortured for all the pain he’s inflicted, a jolt of pity shoots through me.
“Eva!” Walker yells again, bringing my attention back to the window.
The guys are already outside, and despite the pain on his face, Walker is leaning through the window, urging me to keep moving. I push Lilly ahead of me as I force my feet to work faster. Footsteps pound against the floor at my back, and I know without having to look that the creepers are coming my way.
It hits me that Walker was right earlier. They’re here for me. All the pain I’ve inflicted on them has finally caught up with me, and they’re here to get their revenge. Maybe I deserve it, I’m not sure, but I do know that I have to get my sister out of here safely. I can’t fail her a second time.
We reach the window, and I put myself between Lilly and the creepers. “Go, go, go!” I scream, spinning to face the advancing creatures.
I catch sight of my pack, the contents spilled across the floor, and my knife catches my eye. It’s in my hand before I even have a chance to think about it. There are three creepers less than two feet away from me and more on their way. Even though I’ve skinned dozens over the past few months, my body is shaking with fear. There’s no way I’ll be able to take all of them.
Lilly cries and claws at my arm, trying to pull me with her as she climbs through the window. “Eva.”
“Go, Lilly!” I scream, the words almost getting caught in my throat. “I need to know you’re okay.”
Walker calls my name and Lilly doesn’t stop sobbing, but all I can do is focus on the creepers in front of me. When the first one is close enough, I charge. I slam into him and he falls, and I slash my knife across his body as hard as I can. The blade slices into the creature’s slimy skin, cutting him from the middle of his stomach all the way up to his neck. His screams rise up until I’m sure they will blow the roof off the house. All around us the other creatures scream back as thick, black blood seeps from the creeper in front of me.
I slash my knife across him a second time, then a third and a fourth, and on and on until I’ve lost count. It’s like I’m possessed, because I can’t control how fast or how many times I bring my knife down. Even the throbbing in my shoulder doesn’t slow me down.
The creeper lets out a howl of pain with each slice of my blade, and all around me, his friends do the same. It takes me a few seconds to register that none of them are attacking me. I’m panting when I stop stabbing the creeper under me, and I look up to find all his friends doubled over. Holding their heads like the torture I’ve inflicted on this beast is hurting them as well.
“Eva!” Walker screams, and I look over my shoulder to find him still standing at the window.
I roll off the creeper, and scurry toward Walker. Behind me, the alien moans lessen. Footsteps move after me, and I haul myself off the floor and move at a full sprint.
When I reach Walker, he grabs my arm and jerks me through the window. The wood frame digs into my stomach, and sharp pain shoots through my shoulder, making me grunt, but when I land on the old wooden porch, I can’t complain. I’m out of the house, I’m alive, and so are all my friends.
Lilly rushes to my side. “Eva!”
She’s sobbing when I pull myself to my feet, but I grab her hand instead of hugging her and drag her away from the house. Across the porch to the stairs, then out into the dark night. Running as fast as I can with Walker at my side breathing so loud he sounds like a dog in heat. Next to him, Ben jogs, as silent as ever while the house still rumbles at our backs. But the creepers aren’t following us.
Thankfully, it stopped raining sometime while I slept, making it easier for us to see as we charge into the darkness. We make it past the barn, then rush into the field, for once ignoring the sharp prick of the weeds as they brush against our bare skin. The ground is soft and muddy, and with each step, my feet sink deeper into the earth. Walker starts to slow, forcing me to drop my sister’s hand and help him. When I grab his right arm and sling it over my shoulders, he doesn’t resist. Meaning he’s in more pain than I thought he was.
Walker leans against me. He still has his left arm pressed against his side, and his face contorts with pain at every step. It’s dark, and even though I can’t see him well, I can’t stop looking up to make sure he’s okay. In the moonlight, his injuries look ten times worse. His face seems distorted, almost.
“Tell me you’re okay.”
Walker nods, then winces. “I’m fine. We’re all fine.”
“Can you make it?” I ask, gasping for breath just as much as he is.
“Yeah.” It may be dark, but I can still see how strained his expression is when he says it.
“We need to find a place to stop,” I say, almost to myself.
Ben suddenly veers to the left. “This way.”
I follow even though I have no idea if he knows where he’s going. I do know that I don’t, so letting someone else take charge isn’t going to hurt us any.
Lilly keeps pace with me, and despite how worried I am about Walker, I can’t stop glancing her way. In the moonlight my sister’s eyes look huge, but I’m not sure if she’s scared or just alert. I do know that even if I have to die trying, I will get her back to Hope and to safety, because I don’t ever want her to have to go through anything like that again.
We reach the edge of the field and stop when we find ourselves on an empty road. It seems to stretch out for miles in both directions, but at this point, I don’t have a clue where we are or which way we need to go to reach Hope. We’re all panting and exhausted, and Walker is putting almost his whole body weight against me, making my knees shake unsteadily and the throbbing in my shoulder increases.
“Where,” I gasp, “to?”
“Left,” Walker grunts.
“Will that take us back toward the farmhouse?” Lilly’s voice shakes with uncertainty.
Walker shakes his head, but before he can say anything, Ben says, “No. We crossed the field and we’re now on the complete opposite side. A totally different road.” He starts walking, not looking over his shoulder to see if any of us
are following him.
I shift Walker’s arm further up on my shoulders, then urge him to move as I head after Ben. Walker’s dragging his feet, clearly more in pain than he’s letting on. The way he keeps his arm against his side has me worried. He may have broken a few ribs.
“Are you okay?” I ask even though I’m sure he’s going to lie.
Walker huffs a few times like he’s having trouble getting air. “No.”
31
Walker wheezes with each exhale and Lilly huffs at my side like she’s out of breath, but Ben is as silent as he normally is as he leads us down the road. The moon is bright enough to light up their faces, and the terror in my little sister’s eyes is so visible it threatens to take my breath away.
We almost didn’t make it out of that house, but even more terrifying than that is the realization that Jed was right and the creepers are working together. I haven’t seen a group that big since before the liberation, and I’m not sure what it means. If the creepers have decided to take a stand, if they’re going to round us up again, if the ones evacuated have returned. The last one seems unlikely because we haven’t seen any ships, but who knows. Maybe this time they decided to sneak in. Maybe they thought a surprise attack would go better. Maybe.
“There’s a house,” Lilly says, startling me out of my thoughts.
I can just make it out in the light of the moon, the roof barely visible through the trees. It doesn’t look like it’s in great shape, but it will provide us with enough shelter that I’ll be able to check Walker over and we might be able to get some rest. Which we need. We’ve been on the road for maybe an hour now, and at this rate, we’re not going to make it much farther. Walker needs a break.
“Let’s get inside and see what we can do about Walker,” I say.