Apocalyptic Beginnings Box Set

by M. D. Massey

  “We’re just gonna drive. We’ll drop Ice-T over there off when we get close, so he can get on up to his people. Then take you on up to Fairfield.”

  He gets to his feet and tosses his bowl and plastic spoon into the fire. Everything’s pretty much packed, so I stand too and fold up my camp chair.

  I glance at Trey. His jaw tightens and his hands are clenched. It must have sucked, walking with Angus all night long. Angus is no dummy, he’s careful not to go too far with his racist comments. Trey’s more than fifteen year younger than him and in much better shape. Angus has got to know he’ll get his ass kicked if he takes it too far.

  “Let’s move out people!” Axl calls.

  13

  We stop only to get gas and eat, but we don’t even see many other people at the gas stations. Everyone we pass looks like they’re in shock. Some are still on the move, trying to make it to their final destination despite what they’ve most certainly lost. But others just sit, staring off into the distance with blank expressions on their faces.

  There’s very little conversation. Angus snores in the third row, with Joshua crammed up against the wall, while Trey sleeps in the second. His head rests peacefully in Parvarti’s lap. Axl drives and I ride shotgun, but even we don’t say much.

  We hit California, and my spirits lift a little. Emily isn’t far now.

  “What ‘bout Emily’s dad?” Axl asks, breaking the silence that’s been hanging over us for the past few hours.

  I don’t even hesitate to tell him. His presence is somehow calming. “Some guy from the trailer park. He was eighteen, still living with his mamma. She freaked out when she found out he got me pregnant. Told me to take care of it and stay away from her son. She didn’t want me to ruin his life. Like he was going places.” I shake my head. “Last I heard, he was in jail.”

  Axl snorts. “What’d he do?”

  I look at him out of the corner of my eye and try not to smile. “Robbed a few convenience stores.”

  Axl frowns. “Seriously?”

  I laugh and slap him lightly on the arm. “No! Drugs. That’s how I met him. My dad used to buy pot from him.”

  Axl chuckles and looks back toward the road. “Bitch,” he says. But there’s a lightness to his voice I’ve never heard before.

  “He was an ass,” I say. “First in a long line of asses.”

  “Look!” Parvarti says from the backseat, interrupting our conversation. “There’s a man out there.”

  I glance out the window and Axl slows the car a little. Southern California is dry and brown, with mountains and hills in the distance. The landscape around us is flat, though. There’s nothing in sight but flat, rocky dirt. No cars, no buildings, no people. Except one man. He’s about a hundred yards away, walking with his head down, his body slack. He walks without looking ahead. Aimless.

  “Son of a bitch looks shell-shocked,” Axl says.

  “Should we stop? Try to help him?” Parvarti asks.

  “Look at him,” Axl says bitterly. “He don’t want help. Looks like he just gave up.”

  My heart aches just a little. There’s something so sad about watching him walk across the dust alone. His shoulders are slumped low, like the weight of the world is on them.

  “Let’s get out of here.” I turn away. My throat tightens, and I try to fight back the tears, thinking about what he’s lost. Probably everything. And he isn’t alone in that.

  We reach the area where we’re going to drop Trey and Parvarti off around six in the evening. The sun is low on the horizon when we pull off the interstate.

  “We’ll find you a car. Looks like it’s ‘bout an hour and a half from here,” Axl says.

  “What are you going to do, steal it?” Parvarti asks.

  Axl snorts. “Where you think we got this?”

  Parvarti and Trey both look at him with their mouths hanging open and their eyes wide. I don’t even bat an eye.

  The streets are almost deserted. We pass the occasional car or see a random person dart down the street, but for the most part things are quiet. It reminds me too much of a post-apocalyptic movie, and it’s terrifying.

  “Have you spoken to your parents, Trey?” I ask, watching a woman dart from a small grocery store with busted out windows toward a car. She acts like she’s being chased.

  I’ve been too focused on how crappy I feel to ask him lately, but now I want to know what’s going on. It’s obvious the virus has hit California. Hard. I don’t know what to attribute the empty streets to, though. Death or panic.

  “People really started getting sick a couple of days ago,” Trey says. “My parents haven’t left the house, so last I heard they were good. But cell service has been sketchy the past two days. Haven’t been able to get through since yesterday evening,”

  I turn around so I’m facing him. “You mean your cell phone hasn’t been working?” Trey shakes his head. I look at the others. “What about you guys? Joshua, have you been able to get ahold of your lab tech friend? Have you tried anyone, Parvarti?”

  When they shake their heads fear sweeps over me. That’s a strange turn of events.

  Axl pulls into a car dealership and parks the car. “Trick is gonna be finding one that’s gassed up.”

  “You’re taking a car from here?” Trey’s eyes dart around, surveying the lot, and he shakes his head. “This is a bad idea.”

  “Listen here, we ain’t doin’ nothin’ different than anybody else. You saw the stores we passed. How many had their windows busted out?” Axl’s voice is rougher than usual. He’s getting impatient with Trey and Parvarti’s squeamishness. “Look, the window’s already broken! Somebody else had the same idea as us.”

  “What’s all the yellin’ ‘bout!” Angus pulls himself up in the back. He’s been asleep for most of the trip.

  “We’re gettin’ a car for these two so they can be on their way.” Axl opens the door and jumps out.

  Angus grins, like it’s the best news he’s heard all year. “Well, let me help you.”

  Everyone climbs out, and even though I’m still a bit weak I decide to get out too. We’ve been cooped up in the car for hours, and we still have more than an hour until we get to Fairfield.

  The guys take off, stepping through the giant hole in the window of the dealership in search of keys, while Parvarti and I stand next to the Nissan.

  “How are you feeling?” Parvarti asks.

  I lean against the car. “Tired, but a little better. What about you?”

  She sighs. “Worried.”

  “What about?”

  “Trey is so sure we’re going to drive off to his house and find his family well, but I’m not. He really thinks things are going to be okay, that you guys are overreacting and all this will be sorted out in a couple of weeks.” She chews on her lower lip. “I think he’s being overly optimistic and I’m afraid we’ll get there just to find everyone dead. Then we’ll be alone.”

  My throat tightens. “I understand.”

  “At least with Axl and Angus we’d have two capable people. Trey can shoot a gun, but he can’t hunt and he’s never made a fire. What if this is the end?”

  “But he has to try to find his family,” I say. “He can’t just assume they’re gone without even checking it out.”

  “I know, I know. I just…” She shakes her head and looks toward the building.

  “We’ll work something out.” I put my hand on her arm. “Maybe we can set up a place to meet, in case.”

  A sound echoes across the parking lot, and Parvarti and I both look in the direction. It was like an empty can or piece of metal being kicked across the asphalt, and it makes me think of Angus and his Coke can. I expect to see him sauntering toward us, but it isn’t him.

  “There’s a man,” I say. He walks through the line of cars, maybe searching for one himself. Doesn’t look like he’s spotted us. I look toward the building, hoping to see the guys. There’s no one in sight.

  Parvarti looks ready to bolt. “Should
we hide?”

  I turn toward the open car door and grab my purse. “No, he may need our help.” I pull my gun out and make sure it’s loaded.

  Parvarti squares her shoulders, trying to look brave. She doesn’t. She’s shaking like a leaf and I can practically hear her heart pounding. Maybe that’s mine.

  I walk toward the man, and Parvarti falls in behind me. His back is to us. He wears a dark suit that’s filthy and tattered. His feet drag against the ground when he walks, shuffling across the parking lot aimlessly.

  I clear my throat. “Sir?”

  He pauses, but doesn’t turn. His head snaps up. I wait for him to say something or look at us, but he doesn’t move.

  Parvarti’s eyes met mine and she shrugs. She’s as clueless about what to do as I am. I study the man and take another step toward him. “Are you okay?”

  This time he twists around so he faces us. His face is sunken and his skin is a strange shade of gray. His eyes are blank. They’re empty and unfocused, and for a moment I’m not even sure if he can see us.

  Parvarti takes a step back. “You think he’s in shock?”

  “He must be.”

  We both stand silently, looking at him. Waiting for him to speak. But he doesn’t. He begins to stagger toward us. A soft moan comes from his mouth.

  I swallow and take a step back, grabbing Parvarti’s arm. “Are you hurt?”

  He doesn’t answer, he just keeps walking. If that’s what you can call it.

  “Vivian,” Parvarti whispers.

  I raise the gun. “You need to back off.”

  He doesn’t stop.

  My pulse races. Why the hell did I think it was a good idea to approach this guy? There’s something strange about him. Unnatural.

  “Run.” I turn around and pull Parvarti toward the building.

  Footsteps follow us, faster than a few minutes ago. The moans grow louder.

  “He’s chasing us!” Parvarti yells.

  I don’t say anything, I just move faster. Dragging her with me. My heart races, and my breaths come out in short gasps.

  “Axl!” I scream as we get closer to the building.

  The man is right behind me, he has to be. His footsteps are louder and the grunting more persistent, but I don’t want to look over my shoulder.

  Angus sticks his head out through the broken window in front of us. “What the hell’s all the screamin’ ‘bout?”

  I don’t have to answer. His eyes go to the man behind us and his body stiffens. He steps from the building and yanks his gun out of his waistband. He aims it at the man.

  “Better stop,” he warns.

  The man doesn’t. I’m not positive because he’s behind me, but I think he runs faster.

  “I ain’t jokin’,” Angus growls.

  We reach Angus and rush behind him. I spin around, trying to catch my breath, and watch the crazed man run toward us. He’s fast, but he still drags his feet.

  Now that I’m safely behind Angus, I can relax a little. The man isn’t big and he doesn’t have a weapon of any kind. I’m not even sure he’s really much of a threat, because I’m pretty sure Angus could easily take him.

  Anyone else may have tried to reason with the guy. Wrestled him to the ground and tried to talk some sense into him. But not Angus. He pulls the trigger without giving the guy another warning.

  The bullet hits the guy in the head, directly above his right eye. His body goes limp and he drops to the pavement.

  Angus lowers his gun and spits on the ground. “Dumb son of a bitch.”

  “What was wrong with him?” Parvarti asks.

  “What the hell’s goin’ on out here?” Axl steps outside with a handful of keys.

  Trey and Joshua follow him, and their eyes go to the dead man on the ground.

  “This crazy bastard was chasin’ the girls. Had to take him out,” Angus says.

  “Are you okay?” Trey wraps his arms around Parvarti.

  She nods but doesn’t say anything, and for a moment everyone just stares at the dead man.

  “What happened?” Axl asks. “What’d he say?”

  “Nothing.” I sweep my hair off my face. It’s moist and sticks to my forehead. “We saw him walking around and went to see if he needed help. He looked—lost. He didn’t say anything to us. Just started running toward us like a crazy person.” I look at the keys in Axl’s hand. “What took you so long?”

  “No electricity.” Axl turns toward the parking lot. “Makes it hard to look for keys.”

  The men walk off without another word, headed toward the cars. I don’t follow. I’m too exhausted to wander through the rows of cars, and the crazy man has me a little shaken, so I head back to the Nissan.

  Parvarti follows me and stands awkwardly by the door as I climb up and sit in the passenger seat. “He just killed that guy.”

  I sigh and lay my head back against the seat. “I know. I don’t really like it, but I don’t think talking to him would have helped. You saw him. He was out of his mind.”

  “He could have tried to talk to him,” she whispers.

  I don’t answer. I’m too tired to comfort her, and to be honest, I don’t think I really care. Maybe the guy wanted to die. Maybe he saw Angus and that gun as his way out.

  Parvarti eventually goes to the back of the Nissan and opens the door. She gets busy pulling bags out and I know I should help, but I don’t. I just want to get to Fairfield and see if Emily is okay. To make sure she’s taken care of. My worst fear is finding her dead, but the second very real possibility is that she’s alone. That both her parents succumbed to the virus, and she’s having to fend for herself. That would be awful.

  A few minutes later a black Honda Pilot pulls up next to us, and the men all climb out.

  “Got this mother gassed up and ready to go,” Axl says.

  He gets to work, helping Trey load the car while Angus climbs in the driver’s seat of the Nissan. I climb out. No way I want to sit in a car with Angus. Plus, I need to talk to Trey before they take off.

  I find him at the back of the Nissan, going through the car to make sure he has everything. “Hey, I wanted to talk to you before you guys headed out.”

  “What’s up?”

  I look over at Axl to make sure he can’t hear us. “Parvarti’s worried about you guys heading back to your place and finding things aren’t good there. She doesn’t want you to be alone.”

  He frowns and stares at the ground. “I know it’s a possibility, but I can’t just walk away if there’s a chance my parents are still alive.”

  “I know. Nobody expects you to. I just think we should come up with a plan to meet up in a few days, just in case.”

  He glances toward the front of the car, and I follow his gaze. Angus isn’t paying attention to us, thankfully. “What did you have in mind? Cells aren’t working, it’s not like I’m going to be able to call you.”

  “I was thinking we could pick a place, maybe in San Francisco or something, and set up a time to meet. We can go there and wait for a day or so to see if you show. If you don’t, we can assume everything is good on your end.”

  “That’s a good idea. It would be nice to be able to meet back up in case…” He swallows and blinks a few times, then clears his throat. “But will you be able to get them to come?”

  I look over my shoulder. Axl is watching us. “I can get them there.”

  “Okay. So where do we meet?”

  “I don’t know. What do you think?”

  “Someplace that would be good for you guys to hang out for a day or two. A hotel maybe?”

  I perk up. “Yeah. That sounds like a good idea.”

  “My parents always stay at the Mark Hopkins when they go into San Francisco.”

  “I don’t know where that is, but we’ll figure it out. Will two days be long enough?”

  “Yeah. That will give me time to get home and check on my family, and get some things together if I have to head out.”

  “Okay then,” I
say. “I’ll get them to the city and to the hotel. Be there by Sunday at the latest.”

  “What’re you two yappin’ about?” Axl asks, walking over to us.

  “Nothing,” I say. “Just saying goodbye.”

  “Well let’s get on with it. We still got a good hour to go ourselves.”

  I turn toward the Pilot where Parvarti stands, waiting for Trey. “Be careful,” I say, giving her a hug. It’s a bit awkward. We didn’t really get a chance to know one another that well, but it seems like the right thing to do.

  “We will,” she says.

  I put my mouth up to her ear and whisper, “Trey and I talked. We worked out a plan.”

  She smiles when I step back, her eyes full of relief.

  “Thanks for the ride,” Trey says to Axl.

  Axl nods and walks back to the Nissan without saying anything. Angus doesn’t get out to say goodbye. Not that any of us expected him to.

  “Hope your parents are okay,” Joshua says, shaking Trey’s hand.

  Trey gives me a quick smile, then he and Parvarti get in the car. I watch them drive off, and my stomach feels heavy, like it’s full of rocks. I don’t think he’s going to arrive home to find his family untouched by all this, and I fully expect to see him in San Francisco in two days. As long as I can get the brothers to agree to go.

  14

  The drive to Fairfield is as quiet and uneventful as the rest of the day has been. We pass ghost town after ghost town. The world’s population seems to have disappeared overnight. The closer we get, the heavier my stomach becomes. By the time we pull off the interstate, I’m pretty sure I’m going to throw up.

  “Which way?” Angus asks.

  I lean forward so I can get a better view. The sun has set and there are no streetlights. The electricity is out, just like it was at the dealership.

  “Make a left at the next street.”

  “Pretty swanky neighborhood,” Angus says. “Looks like you made the right choice, givin’ her up.”

  I have the sudden urge to punch him in the throat. “Turn right at the next street,” I say through clenched teeth. “And drive slow. I’m not positive which house it is. I haven’t been here in over four years.”