by A. R. Wise
Soldiers gathered, curious at first, and then perturbed as the truth about Jeff’s plan began to spread.
“Are we still being evacuated?” asked another of the Chinese survivors.
“You can’t leave us here,” said a frightened woman as she clutched her infant son.
Jeff reached behind his back and pulled out a pistol. He fired into the trailer, aiming high. The bullet tore through the roof, allowing a shaft of sunlight to pierce the dark interior like a needle.
“Hey, hey,” said a soldier who came running over. “What the hell do you think you’re doing?”
“These people need to get out of this trailer right now,” said the normally mild-mannered scientist as his face flushed. “This comes straight from the top. This is the way it is. I’m sorry, but it’s the way it is.”
Jeff explained to the soldier that April Taylor had made the decision to transfer the prisoner. He gave a list of commanding officers who’d already conceded control to Taylor regarding test subjects. This wasn’t an issue up for debate.
As Jeff berated the soldier, Porter gazed in at the scared faces of people he wished he could help. Weeping women and children, husbands and wives. Each of them recognizing their lives were being traded for a single infected.
Finally, Jeff forced the soldiers to comply. They helped convince the Chinese men and women to leave their trailer, and Porter was loaded in. The doors were closed and locked, leaving him alone in the sweltering box, staring up at a single bullet hole window to the sky.
Day Four – 3:38 pm
“You’re okay,” said Roy. “You’re going to be okay.”
June twisted in her seat, a barrage of pain assaulting her. The extent of her wound was becoming clear. A bullet had torn its way through the side of her face, but she hesitated to touch the agonizingly painful wound. She leaned over to look at herself in the side view mirror, but their escape was still too frenetic to offer respite. As she looked into the mirror, she saw there were cars chasing them.
Her right eye was filled with tears, and she had to close it to see clearly. She tried to ignore the pain. She pressed her right hand hard to her cheek, hoping to stem the blood flow. The pain was too much to endure, and she quickly moved her hand away.
“Dad!” Allie screamed from the backseat.
“Get down,” her father commanded.
“They’re coming!”
“I said get down.”
A car slammed into their backend, jolting the Impreza forward. Roy lost control, and the car began to fishtail. He hit the brakes, causing smoke to rise alongside them as the tires streaked the pavement. The car behind them struck a second time, but with less effect. The Impreza’s tires had a better grip on the road now, and Roy hit the gas again.
June retrieved her bloody pistol, and turned around. “Allie, get down.” The teen complied, and June fired at the car chasing them. Wind whistled through multiple broken windows, whipping June’s hair around and flinging her blood onto the tarp that still covered Rose.
“Leave us alone, you fuckers,” said June as she shot at their pursuer. One of her shots struck the driver in the neck, and the sedan veered off the road and into the field preceding the concrete barrier set up around the school’s parking lot.
June recognized the area, and turned to Roy. “Follow this road to the highway.”
“Why?”
“Because Red might be there. My boyfriend.”
“He might be where?”
“On the road. He had a dog. If I know him, he went back to get his dog. Maybe he’s still there. Maybe he’s waiting for me.”
Roy looked at her, but then winced and looked at the road again, fearful of seeing her gaping wound.
“Is it bad?” she asked. “How bad is it?”
“It’s bad,” said Roy. “Try not to…” He dared another glance at her, and regretted it. “Try not to think about it. We’ll get out of here, and we’ll get you bandaged up. You’ll be okay.”
“It hurts so fucking bad. Jesus Christ, it hurts.”
The pain had centralized in her cheekbone, and it sent shocking waves through her entire body, as if her bones carried bolts of lightning to strike her furthest nerve endings. The teeth on the right side of her jaw pulsed, as if someone was pulling at them to loosen the roots. “I’m going to die. I’m bleeding so much. I need something to stop the…”
Roy swerved the car to the side as a van load of helpers joined the pursuit. The white van tried to slam into the side of the Impreza, but Roy avoided the attack, leaving them behind by several yards.
They gained ground, and June thought they’d escape, but then came more gunfire. Someone in the van was shooting an automatic weapon at them.
“Get down!” Roy tried to duck while still maintaining control. His head rest shook as two bullets tore through it, shredding the fabric and then punching holes in the windshield.
June pressed herself as far down as she could, with her head near the cup holders between the front seats. Her blood began to fill the holder as it gushed from her wound.
Rose and Allie huddled together, but they couldn’t escape the line of fire. Bullets tore through their seats, and it was only a matter of time before they were both killed.
Roy was screaming at his girls to get down, and they were yelling in terror.
June cowered, but then settled on a desperate plan while staring at the frightened face of Rose in the back seat.
June readied herself, and said a quick prayer to a God she’d abandoned with her father. Then she sat up, lowered her window, and prepared to offer herself up as a sacrifice in the hopes of giving Roy and his family a better chance at surviving.
“Get down,” said Roy, but June ignored him.
She rose through the open window, and reached up to grasp the luggage rack. The wind tore at her face, ripping at her wound and sending a spray of blood out across the side of the car.
“June!” Roy shouted at her as if it was his own daughter rising to protect them.
She provided a distraction to the gunman in the van’s passenger seat. He was a thin, bald man with a long, salt-and-pepper goatee. He aimed his M-4 her way, and she reciprocated by firing a series of quick shots at him. Soon, her gun clicked empty. Her attacker didn’t have the same problem. He leaned out his window, and aimed at her.
June feigned as if she was reloading.
The helper fired, and the M-4’s bullets began to strike the Impreza. A bullet grazed the top of the luggage rack, and she felt the impact’s vibration as she held on. She closed her eyes, prepared for the end, ready to accept the inevitable.
A bullet whizzed past her ear, cutting through her blood-soaked hair.
Another cut through her shirt, and grazed her side.
She pointed the gun at the van, and pretended to fire.
“June, get in!”
She ignored Roy.
The car began to drift, and a horrendous screech came from below. June looked down and saw sparks coming up off the pavement from one of the wheels. Soon, the car began to rumble, and she was forced to go back inside to avoid being thrown out. The helper with the goatee had stopped shooting, and June guessed it was because he hoped to catch them alive once their car was forced to stop.
“We’re going to have to pull over,” said Roy.
June recognized the road. This was where she and Red had been stopped by the police.
“Keep going as far as you can,” she said as she looked at the road ahead in search of the car where they’d been forced to leave their dog.
The Impreza was shaking violently, and a horrendous squeal came from beneath them. It sounded like pieces of metal were being bent against one another.
“Keep going! I see Red’s car. It’s up there. That Outback parked on the side of the road.”
Roy began to steer towards the distant car, but the Impreza struggled to move. Both back tires had shredded, and the van gained ground quickly.
“We have to distract th
em,” said Roy.
“If we can get to the car…” June pointed at the Subaru. “If Red’s there, he can help us. Trust me. We can make it there. He’ll be there.”
“Girls, I want you two to stay in the car. Hide. We’ll run and try to distract…”
“No,” said Allie as the Impreza came to a stop. “No!”
“Daddy,” said Rose as she reached out to him, her eyes filled with tears. “Daddy!”
“You have to hide!”
“We’re coming with you,” said Allie.
“We have to go, now,” said June as she saw the van approaching. “We have to run.”
It was too late for Roy to convince his girls to hide. The van was coming to a stop.
They all got out of the car. Allie pulled Rose out with her, and then handed her off to Roy. He carried his youngest daughter as he started running down the highway.
June and Allie ran as well, passing Roy as he panted. The helpers left the van, and the one with the goatee yelled out to them, “Might as well stop. Don’t make me shoot you.”
“Red!” June screamed, but saw no sign of him. The Outback parked on the side of the road was a football field’s distance away.
“Dad,” said Allie, as if she might be able to speed him up, but he was struggling to keep up.
The three of them continued to flee, and tried to find cover behind other wrecked cars. The two helpers ran after them, and the one with the goatee carried his assault rifle. June dared a glance back at their followers, and saw the gunman stop and aim.
“He’s going to shoot,” said June. “Run like this. Run like this!” She began to serpentine down the road, hoping to make herself a more difficult target.
Roy was determined to speed up, but Rose’s weight slowed him. June and Allie were at least ten yards from him when the helper began to fire.
Rose screamed out in fear.
“Stop running,” came the distant command.
“Red, please!” June cried out for him.
The Outback wasn’t far now. It’s driver-side door was open, but Red was nowhere to be seen.
A gunshot echoed.
June, Allie, and Roy continued running, moving side to side in a futile attempt to stay alive.
Another shot, and this time Roy screamed out.
“Dad!”
Roy fell, and Rose fell with him. The two hit the road, and Rose screamed as her father cried out in pain. He grasped at his leg, and held a fresh wound.
“Rose, run!”
“I got him,” said the man with the goatee as his fellow helper chased down their felled prey.
Allie started to run back to him. Rose stood, confused and afraid, paralyzed in the street as she clutched her hands over her mouth.
“Rose, run,” said Roy as he tried to convince his daughter to leave him behind. The helpers neared.
“Rosie, come here,” said Allie, hoping to beckon her sister forward.
It was too late.
A helper ran past Roy, and scooped up the child. He gleefully produced a wicked, bloody straight razor.
“Rose!” Roy stood, intent on rescuing his daughter, but the goateed helper drove a knife deep into his shoulder blade. Roy twisted and fell, the knife stuck in his shoulder blade.
The other helper pressed his razor to Rose’s cheek. He savored the slice, as if deriving perverse pleasure from making Allie watch. Once the deed was done, he dropped the child unceremoniously to the road, and began a march to her weeping sister.
“Allie, come on,” said June.
The teen looked at her, and then back to her family.
“You have to run, Allie. Please.”
“Rose, oh God. Rose.”
June grabbed Allie’s arm and pulled her along. “Come on!”
“Don’t run,” said the helper with the goatee. “I’ll shoot you too. Stop. It’s over. Stop!”
“Keep running,” said June. “Get to that car. Come on. We’re almost there.”
They ran to grassy median, and reached the Outback where June had hoped to find Red. She got to the car, and looked inside.
Red had been here, but he’d taken the supplies and the dog. There was a pair of wet pants wadded up on the driver’s seat.
“Red!”
“What’re you doing?” asked Allie. “We have to keep running.”
“Red!” She looked around in desperation, and the sinking realization that she’d been abandoned hurt worse than the wound on her cheek.
Allie moved to the front of the car and hid. “They’re coming.”
June looked back at the two men headed their way. It wouldn’t be long before they reached them.
“There’s another one,” said Allie. “Oh fuck, there’s another one.”
June looked at the frightened girl. She was pointing up the highway, away from the approaching helpers. June followed Allie’s gaze, and saw a police car coming down the hill. It’s engine roared. The squad car veered to the side, and got onto the shoulder where the Outback was parked. It wasn’t slowing down.
There was a dog barking in the passenger seat, and a handsome driver scowling as he sped up.
“Red,” said June, a smile creasing her wrecked face.
The squad car soared past them, sending lashing wind whipping at June’s hair. Red had arrived, and he aimed his car straight for the men chasing June and Allie.
The car slammed into the helpers, throwing the men high into the air and then into the median where they crumpled and rolled to a dead stop. Red came to a screeching halt, and then turned to drive past Roy and Rose, and towards June. He got out of the car while screaming June’s name. He ran to her, and Porter followed.
“June, Jesus, June,” he said as he came at her. He never hesitated his approach, utterly fearless, never once worried that she might be infected. “We need to get you help. Oh my god. What happened? Are you okay?”
She collapsed into his arms, a mess of tears, agony, and relief.
“Dad,” said Allie as she rose from her hiding spot. She stared past Red and June, and at her father who stood in the middle of the road, past the still running squad car. He held Rose in his arms, and limped their way.
“Allie, no,” said June as she broke away from Red’s embrace to stop the girl from running to her father.
“Let me go,” she said as she tried to pull away.
“Allie, no! You can’t.”
“Dad!”
He approached.
Red drew a pistol, but June put her hand over his, lowering the weapon.
“Allie,” said Roy, his voice mired by sorrow.
“Daddy,” she said, heartbreak cracking her voice. “Rose.”
“Honey, you have to run. You’ve got to go with June.”
“Dad,” she whispered as she walked towards him.
“No, Allie. You can’t… Stop, honey.”
Rose was crying, and her father pressed her face to his chest.
“Dad,” she took another few steps towards him.
“Please, honey, you have to save yourself. We’ll be okay. I promise. We’ll be fine. They’re going to find a cure, and when they do you can come back for us. We’ll stay here. Okay? For now, you have to go with June. Please, honey.”
“I love you, Dad. I want to give you and Rose a hug. Can I say goodbye?”
“Allie, no,” said June.
“Don’t come any closer,” said Roy. He set Rose down, and turned her around to face her sister. “Give Allie a wave. Say goodbye. Tell her you love her.”
“Why?” asked the child. Her voice was hoarse from screaming.
“Because she’s going to go away with June for a while.”
“No,” said Rose. “Allie, don’t go.”
“She has to go, baby,” said Roy. “Now wave goodbye to her. Tell her you love her.”
The entire family was weeping their way through a tortuous goodbye.
“Bye, bye, sissy,” said Rose. “I love you.”
“I love you too,
Rosie. I love you so much.”
Roy wiped away tears. “I’m proud of you, Allie. And I love you so much. June’s going to keep you safe. Take care of each other. Don’t worry about us, we’ll be here. When this is all over, we’ll still be here.” He picked Rose up, and started to back away.
“Wait,” said Allie. “Dad, wait, please.”
“You have to go, Allie.”
“Dad, wait!”
He reluctantly paused.
She took a deep breath, and tried to speak through her choking sorrow. “You’re the best Dad anyone could ever ask for.”
June fell into Red’s embrace, tortured by the family’s goodbye. She pressed her face to his chest and wept.
Allie continued, “I never said it. I should’ve said it. You were the best Dad in the whole world. I’m so sorry for everything – for what I used to say, and how I was when Mom left. I’m so sorry. I love you.”
“I love you too, baby. You don’t have anything to be sorry for. But you have to go.”
Allie put her hand up and stopped as if caught in a frozen wave. She told him she loved him a few more times, and he begged her to leave as he walked away backwards. Eventually, he turned and carried Rose away. The child looked over her father’s shoulder at her sister, her face streaked with tears and blood. She waved with her little hand, and Allie waved back. Then the child’s hand rested on the handle of the knife that was still stuck in her father’s shoulder.
“Come on,” said Red. “We need to go.”
Day Four – 6:42 pm
“How is she?” asked Allie.
“Not good,” said Red, his hands covered in June’s blood. “She’s asleep now.”
They were in the showroom of a car dealership. The floor-to-ceiling windows that comprised most the walls gave them no shelter from prying eyes. Their squad car sat on the polished floor, parked amid broken glass from the window they’d smashed when they arrived. June was laying in one of the offices, and Red took Allie to the garage, away from the open showroom. Porter followed dutifully.
“The bullet tore up her cheek. It smashed her cheekbone. The whole side of her face is turning purple.”
Allie winced in sympathy. “How was she able to fall asleep?”