Ravenous (Book 1, The Ravening Series)

by Erica Stevens

  ***

  Abby and I struggled to move our mother onto the piece of plywood I had uncovered from behind our sagging shed. Originally we’d planned to transport her in our old red wagon, but there was no way for us to maneuver it rapidly and quietly through the woods. I had to pause repeatedly to wipe the sweat from my brow as I fought to maneuver our immobile mother onto the small board. I hoped Abby would be able to hold up her end; she was strong for her size, but not used to physical labor.

  It was going to be a tiring walk back to the antique store if we didn't have help.

  Tears slid down Abby's face as she briefly stroked our mother's hair. I was captivated by the striking similarities between them. Even if our mother was gone forever (something I couldn't even consider right now), she would live on in Abby far more than she would in Aiden or I.

  For as long as I could keep Abby alive, anyway, I realized with a pang of longing. Abby was my responsibility now, and I had to keep her safe, no matter what happened.

  I moved to the window and cautiously pulled back the curtain. The streetlights, on a timer, had come to life a couple of hours ago. Almost all of the houses on the street were dark. A few owners had accidentally forgotten to turn off lights on their way out the door this morning, or perhaps they had left them on in preparation for their late return home tonight. A home none of them appeared to have come back to. If there were other people out there still moving about, they were keeping their presence as secret as we were.

  It was so lonely, so gloomy and frightening out there. I shuddered as I tried to keep my apprehension hidden from Abby. "It's been an hour," Abby whispered.

  "He'll come back." I replied more for my benefit than for hers. "Stay here Abby."

  She bolted from the bed and staggered toward me. "Where are you going?"

  "I'm going to pack some things. Just stay away from the windows."

  "Bethany..."

  I left the room before she could protest further. I felt bad leaving her there, but I had to have some time alone to think and attempt to sort this whole mess out. Not like that was going to be possible. I hurried to the bedroom Abby and I shared. Whereas I was a complete neat freak, Abby was the exact opposite. It was difficult to make out the mess of clothes on the floor by her bed, or avoid tripping over them. I hadn't seen or heard any movement for hours, but I felt as if the most minuscule noise would be heard all the way to the moon if I made it.

  I dug out my school backpack and dumped the contents on the bed. For the first time I didn't bother to place them neatly. There was no need; I didn't think I would be returning either here, or to school. I quickly gathered my clothes and shoved them into the backpack along with shampoo, conditioner, toothpaste, and toothbrushes. I would like to pack more, but I had to keep things as light as possible, especially without being able to drive anywhere. I grabbed Abby's backpack and began to shove clothes inside for her. Abby would have preferred to pack her own things, but she would have taken an excruciatingly long time to do so. I was nipping that little problem in the bud right now.

  I carried both backpacks, with their meager contents, out to the hall where I placed them by the door for later. I moved carefully downstairs, feeling my way forward as I tried not to trip over my own feet. Creeping into the kitchen, I pulled a trash bag from beneath the sink. I packed only a few perishables. We would have to eat them right away, but I was determined to bring as much food as possible and there wasn't much in the way of canned goods. I topped the bag off with paper plates, spoons, and forks before tossing in a can opener. From the pantry I pulled a case of water out before grabbing some of Aiden's Gatorade and a few sodas. In the end, I put the sodas back, Abby would want them, but they would only weigh the plywood down more.

  I placed the bag by the backdoor. Pressing my hand against the glass, I stared out at the night. Thankfully the moon wasn't bright tonight, but the stars twinkled in the sky. I allowed myself to recall the time before the aliens had come, a time when I had looked to the sky and dreamed of the possibility of something else out there.

  I wished the question had never been answered.

  At first they’d seemed peaceful, eager to help us, happy to impart their wisdom. But after the beginning peace and shared advances, things began to change. It started gradually, with a few rights stripped away here and there. It had been so gradual we hadn't truly noticed the losses until it had been too late. Weapons were barred to promote peace amongst us all. The aliens claimed they didn't possess weapons, or at least not ones they were willing to show us. It was obvious now their weapons were far more twisted and deadly than anything we ever could have imagined, or possessed.

  Then our cell phones were done away with. It was odd not to have the device strapped to me all the time, but the towers were taken down because the aliens claimed they did cause cancer and other health problems. Our government had believed them; apparently there had been evidence to support the alien's claim.

  Airplanes were banned next; their threat to the alien spacecrafts, and to human life, was the explanation behind that one. We travelled in alien space crafts when it was necessary, but it wasn't often they allowed humans on board. It was mostly government officials, powerful businessmen, certain wealthy, and some famous people allowed onto the smaller alien ships.

  The transition was eagerly accepted by some, but a growing dissent had started to move throughout the world over the past couple of months. However, it had been too late to stop the rapid acceleration taking place. The internet was next; they didn't offer a reason for this. There was no need to anymore as they had already methodically taken almost everything over and shut it down. Vehicles and driving had been banned last week, and finally people began to realize we were now separated from the rest of the world, cut off from the towns next to us.

  It was too late by then. We had nothing left, they had taken it all, and we had allowed them to do it. Now they had come for our lives. They were sweeping through our streets, literally sucking the life from people. I shuddered, my hand pressed flatter against the glass. I wanted Cade back; I had to know he was ok. I wished Aiden were here, that I knew if my brother was safe.

  I needed Bret also, what I had done with Cade was awful, but I did love Bret. He was impossible not to love. He was so honest and caring there were times when I thought he was too good to be true, but he was. Times when I felt like less of a person because I knew I wasn't as good as he was, and I never could be. I was withdrawn, adrift in the world with little idea of where I planned to go, even before all of this had occurred, and I could be extremely cynical. I knew the world was a cold, cruel place just waiting to strike down the ones we loved. But Bret didn't see it that way. He saw it as something good and wondrous, something beautiful. He saw it as something to be treasured and enjoyed every day.

  Bret was an amazing man who I couldn't begin to fathom, and wasn't entirely sure I wanted to. Someone like Bret shouldn't be figured out; he should only be enjoyed and cherished. And I did cherish him, even if his kisses didn't cause the same heart stopping physical yearning Cade's did. Even if I had never felt completely understood and accepted by Bret. At least not in the same strange way Cade seemed to understand and accept me.

  Bret thought I could be better; he tried in subtle and not so subtle ways to change my reserved nature. It was strange to realize Cade seemed to accept me for me, seemed to believe I was already stronger and more capable than I believed myself to be. He had more faith in me than anyone I had ever known before and it humbled and awed me.

  An aching sadness began to fill me. If Bret was frozen then there was a good possibility his light would be taken from this world. That would be one of the greatest losses this planet would ever know. Yet, if he wasn't frozen, there was the distinct possibility he wouldn't emerge from this the same; his inherent goodness would be tarnished by the evil threatening us now. If he knew about my feelings for Cade, and what had just passed between us, a part of him would be broken.

  He trusted m
e completely and loved me with an open honesty I hadn't been sure I deserved even before I kissed Cade. Now I was certain I didn't deserve it. Bret could never know; I could never hurt him in such a way, or allow him to be hurt so badly. I’d always known I wasn’t the great person Bret believed me to be, but he didn't have to know just how awful I really was, not yet anyway. He would find out soon enough, if he still moved. Bret would finally acknowledge I wasn't the perfect person he thought I was. I just hoped it didn't destroy him.

  I moved away from the window. I hated the stars now, despised their mocking brilliance. The stars had held their own secrets, but they’d been horrible secrets they'd spewed upon us in waves of hatred and death. I wondered if the rest of the world was sharing in this horrendous experience, or if the aliens were moving around the planet at a leisurely pace. Perhaps they were methodically taking over the world one town at a time until it was completely theirs. I felt it was more than likely it was the whole world at once. They wouldn't take the chance of others finding out what was going on, and finding some way to stop them.

  If there was any way to stop them.

  There was no way to know what was going on elsewhere though, no way for us to establish contact outside of this town, without leaving it. I had no idea how we would get our mother that far if it ended up just being Abigail and I. I'd tackle that problem if we came to it.

  Moving through the kitchen, I avoided the table as I made my way back to the hall. I had just stepped out of the room when a light flashed over the back door. I froze, my heart hammering, my adrenaline pulsing rapidly through my body as I stood breathless and shaking. The light moved rapidly over the backdoor and bounced around the room. At first I thought it was the beam from a flashlight, that either the aliens or some idiot was making their way through the woods behind our home. Then I realized it was one of the smaller spaceships I’d seen only twice before.

  They were usually docked within the larger ships, hidden away. But when they had emerged they'd flitted about with the easy grace of a firefly. The smaller ships had been purposely brought forth in order to show the government, and the people, the dexterity and speed they possessed. They had been brought out as a way to gain trust, as a promise of more hopeful futures for all of us, promises that had turned out to be nothing but lies.

  Now one of them was on the move again, but this time it wasn't whimsical and fascinating. Nothing good could come from its sudden appearance. I slipped further into the shadow of the stairs, uncertain how to handle this sudden development. I didn't think they were moving on already. Instinctively I knew they wouldn't leave until they made sure they had all of the people, and blood, they could gather.

  The lights danced around the room, flashing off the countertops, floor, and table. It seemed as if they were trying to search for us within the house. But that was crazy. There was no way they could know we were here. They couldn't. Or could they?

  I shuddered at the thought, my heart pounded as my throat went dry. Cade was out there somewhere, unprotected and vulnerable to the searching lights. I took another step back and then froze as I realized the lights were also bouncing across the front windows, filling the living room and hall. I couldn't move, there was nowhere for me to go, no way to escape the increasingly frantic bounce and sway of the beams.

  I could hear the frantic staccato of my heart as it hammered against my ribs. I didn't breathe, I wasn't sure I could draw air into my constricted chest. I stared at the roof above me as I prayed Abby was away from the lights, that she didn't attempt to go near a window. I loved her dearly, but sometimes she didn't think through the consequences of her actions. I hoped this wasn't one of those times.

  I remained still as stone as the lights flashed over the house and me. The ships were moving far slower than they had during their exhibition. What the hell were they doing?

  And then, the screaming began.