Apocalyptic Beginnings Box Set

by M. D. Massey

  I wanted to be angry with him. I wanted to punch him. I wanted to kick him in the tomatoes, but my heart just wanted to continue to love him.

  I was so scared to lose him, but I was also scared that I would be leaving someone behind. I feared one of our family members was out there, hiding out, waiting for someone to rescue them.

  “To be honest, I have mixed emotions about this, Henry. We want to stay, but we feel it is best for our survival to go. We feel like we have no choice in the matter.”

  “Elaina…,” Henry whispered, “I understand. Sophie and I just want what is best for the group.” When Nick laughed, Henry whipped his head around, glaring at him. “For all of us. We are a family now.”

  It was my turn to laugh, then rolled my eyes. “Yeah, right. I’m pretty sure she wants what is best for herself.” I thumbed over to Sophie.

  “I thought you two were on good terms?” I looked over at Sophie, who was grinning. That grin aggravated me more and more every fucking time I saw it.

  “I have mixed emotions about a lot of things,” I grumbled as he glanced at both of us.

  “Right,” he said. “Well, it’s getting late. We should all get some rest. We’ll finish packing up in the morning, then head out.” I wondered if Claire and Nick would change their minds.

  “Aye, aye, captain.” I saluted and turned around, heading for Henry’s bedroom.

  I was halfway down the hall when I felt his cold hand grab my arm. I whipped around. “Can I help you?” He looked crushed, but I couldn’t help myself. I was still bitter and confused. I loved him, but my emotions got the best of me.

  “I, uh… I just wanted to ask you something…” His anxiety was obvious. He couldn’t make eye contact and he chewed his scarred lip.

  “And what would that be?”

  His gaze stayed down at his feet. I could see that he was unsure of himself. “Can I come back to our bedroom?” he whispered.

  I took a deep breath. “I don’t know.” Tears formed, my chin trembling. “I don’t know what to think. I know you’re hiding stuff. My heart wants to be with you, but I’m having a hard time wrapping my head around all of this.” I swallowed hard, trying to choke back that stupid lump in my throat.

  “I understand why you feel that way. I wish I could give you more, but I can’t because I’d lose you forever. I cannot risk that. It would crush me. You are my world.” He paused, wiping away his tears. “I will give you your space, but I love you so much. So fucking much. I will always be there to protect you, whether you like it or not. And I will wait for you, should you decide to return to me.”

  Before I bawled my eyes out, I turned away and left him standing alone.

  I was emotionally spent. As soon as my head hit the pillow, I was out. But I wasn’t asleep for long before I woke up because of another vivid nightmare. Drenched in sweat, I shook all over. I looked over at Claire. Thankfully, I hadn’t disturbed her. She was nestled in Henry’s thick blanket, sleeping like a baby.

  As I listened to her even breathing, I replayed my dream in my head. My mother walked through the seedy part of downtown, where my apartment was, screaming my name. She was lost and looking for me. Her sobs felt so real, I could feel her pain. I grasped my chest, my heart aching.

  I stood and dressed, then looked out the window. Dark, it wasn’t going to be morning any time soon. I headed for the bedroom door. Claire rolled over when I turned the doorknob, but she didn’t wake.

  The hallway was pitch black, I had to navigate it with my hands stretched out in front of me. I stopped briefly, thinking an undead was going to jump out at me. When I got to the second bedroom door, I wondered if Sophie and Henry had gotten together. I shuddered at the thought. I hoped they hadn’t. He was still mine, and no one could have him except me. If she even thought about making a pass at him, I wouldn’t be responsible for my actions.

  I gathered myself and felt my way to the dining table, the packs still on it. I searched one, finding a flashlight. I glanced at Nick, who was sleeping on the couch. Hoping he wouldn’t wake up, I turned it on. Henry’s keys lay next to what I assumed was his pack. They all looked the same. Without thinking twice, I grabbed the pack and his keys, quietly walking out of the apartment.

  I was foolish not to check outside the door before I exited, but I wanted to get out of there and see if I could find my mother. I needed to know if she was at her house. If she were, I could bring her back to Henry’s place and she could travel with us.

  I could feel her. I missed her so much. Even if she had been a thorn in my side, she was still my mother and I loved her dearly.

  I paused at the apartment building’s main entrance, shining the light across the street, seeing a few undeads roaming around. They looked like lost souls. I felt bad for them, but I couldn’t let my emotions get in the way again. Every time I did, I would freeze up. I needed to be alert.

  I whispered to myself, “Breathe, Elaina.”

  With the Sig in one hand and keys in the other, I took a few deep breaths and opened the door. The truck wasn’t too far away, so I made a mad dash for it and hopped into the driver’s seat. My nerves danced the jig all over my body. The first thing I noticed was that the truck smelled like Henry. It was that spicy body wash he had. He always smelled so good. I let out a long, staggering exhale.

  “Calm down, Elaina…” My heart raced. The air was thick and muggy. It was so uncomfortable, my clothes sticking to me. I didn’t remember it ever being that humid this late in the year. The only thing I could think of was that a storm was coming in.

  Looking up to the sky through the windshield, I saw nothing but stark blackness. No stars, no moon… It was creepy. I glanced at the dash, hoping there was enough gas to get out to my parents’ home. I closed my eyes and started the truck.

  “Please let there be gas in this beast.” I opened one eye and peeked at the gas gauge. “Less than a quarter-tank.” Shit, I thought. It wasn’t enough, but it was more than I had expected.

  There had to be less in Sophie’s. She had driven her truck a few times more than Henry had. I was sure her keys were hidden in her cleavage, where she hid all her other valuables, and I wasn’t about to go hunt them down to check. I wasn’t sure what Henry’s plans were for gas. I assumed he had already siphoned from every vehicle around the area.

  I unzipped his pack, checking its contents. “Water, fruit leathers, ammo, knives, bandages…vials? Needles? What the hell?” I paused for a moment, examining the vials and needles before I dug through the rest of the pack. “A siphon still in its package. Boy Scout Henry comes through again.”

  I held it up and looked at it. I had no idea how to use one of those things, nor did I have the patience to read the directions. I jammed everything back into the pack and tossed it over to the passenger seat.

  I put the truck in gear and crept down the street, avoiding rotting true deads in the road. Nauseated by the smell, my stomach became uneasy, my mouth filling with saliva.

  “Calm down. Calm down,” I said. Concentrating on my driving seemed to help.

  I made it to the end of the street. So far, so good. Now I needed to get on the highway. I remembered Henry saying he had to make a few roads of his own when he went to mine and Claire’s apartments. The only way I could get to my parents’ home was the highway. I couldn’t wait to get there. After my dream, I just knew my mother had to be there.

  Slowly, I inched my way toward the on-ramp. Weaving around undeads, true deads, and randomly parked vehicles in the middle of the road took forever.

  Suddenly, huge droplets of rain started to fall. “Shit!” I yelled.

  The closer I got to the highway, the harder it rained. The wipers didn’t do a great job clearing the windshield, either. The truck was filthy and the wipers smeared the dirt and undead goo.

  “Ugh! Come on! It would be helpful if I could see!” I turned on the washer fluid. Empty. “Of course! Damn it!”

  I stopped where I was, turned off the wipers, and let the
rain come down on the windshield for a couple seconds. I turned them on again, and it was a little better.

  “Stupid fucking cars!” I threw it back in drive and continued creeping toward the on-ramp.

  The lightning and thunder happened almost simultaneously. I hated thunderstorms. The lightning always made me nearly piss myself. When I was a kid, the next door neighbor’s house went up in flames in a crazy storm. Ever since then, I had a real fear of lightning.

  I tried to pick up the pace, but there was too much debris scattered everywhere. Plus, the rain was making it hard to see.

  “Stupid fucking rain!” I yelled.

  There were a lot of undeads just wandering about. I will admit that I was scared out of my mind. I worried about what would happen if I needed to stop and get out. Maybe taking off wasn’t such a brilliant idea. I knew I should have thought this through instead of being impulsive. Then I saw the sign for the highway.

  “Yes! Wait… What the fuck?”­­ I squinted to see through the windshield. “Oh, my god,” I whispered as I stopped the truck and put it in park.

  Both lanes of the on-ramp looked like a parking lot. There were cars backed up down to the street.

  “Fuck me! How the hell am I supposed to get to my mom now?” I hadn’t anticipated anything like this. I knew I would have some issues getting there, but I hadn’t thought I wouldn’t even be able to get on the highway.

  “Damn it, damn it, damn it!” I pounded on the steering wheel, tears falling. The thunder and lightning was directly on top of me, the rain falling harder and harder by the second. My thoughts became scattered and scrambled.

  There was a small group of undeads looming around the cars. I felt hopeless, lost, and confused…like how my mom felt in my nightmare. I put my head on the steering wheel and cried, thinking about giving up.

  Henry jumped out of bed, scaring the shit out of Sophie. “Are you mental? What the fuck is wrong with you? I’m trying to get some rest here, jackass.” She rolled back over and snuggled under the blankets.

  “Something’s wrong.” He pulled his pants over his boxers, then grabbed his shirt and vest, putting them on.

  “Something’s wrong?” Sophie propped herself up on her elbows. “What could possibly be wrong in this fabulous fucking paradise?”

  “Elaina. Something’s wrong with Elaina. I can feel it.”

  “You need to gear up to go into your bedroom?”

  Henry bolted out of the guest bedroom and barged into his room. Claire jumped up and screamed. “Shhh! It’s just me.” He grabbed the small flashlight out his vest.

  “Good Lord! You scared the shit out of me!”

  “I seem to have that effect on women at the moment.” The bed was empty. He scanned the room. “Where’s Elaina?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “She isn’t in here!”

  “Maybe she’s in the bathroom.”

  Claire pushed past Henry and ran into the master bath. Empty. Henry ran down the hallway to check the other bathroom.

  “Elaina! Where are you? Elaina!”

  “What the fuck? What’s all the yelling about?” Nick rubbed his eyes.

  “She’s not here!” Claire panicked.

  Nick jumped up, suddenly realizing he was just in his boxers and, apparently, having a rather lovely dream. He grabbed the blanket, pulling it over his lower half.

  “Ahh… Give me a sec.”

  Claire gawked, licking her lips. “Ye-yeah… Okay.” She turned around, blushing. Claire had just seen more of him than she ever thought she would.

  “Just get your pants on, boner boy! We have to find her,” Sophie said as she strolled out of the guest room in her spiked heels, pulling her hair back into a messy up-do.

  Nick found his pants and shirt, pulling them on. “Where is she?”

  “I don’t know! You were in here. You should have heard her leaving!” Henry snapped.

  “I was sleeping!”

  “Get a pack on,” Henry barked. “We’re going out to find her.”

  “I’m going, too,” Claire said.

  Henry looked at her. “We can’t risk all of us. You and Sophie stay.”

  “No! I’m going, too!” Sophie protested.

  Nick blew his top. “What do you fucking care?! You have been nothing but trouble for Elaina since you arrived here!” He pointed to himself. “Her brother…” He pointed to Henry, “and her fiancé are going to go track her down! She means nothing to you!”

  Henry flinched at the word fiancé. He wasn’t sure if they were even together, let alone still engaged, seeing as her ring was in his pocket. Nick struggled to get his boots on through his anger.

  Sophie clenched her jaw. “Regardless of what you think, I do care about her because I can see how much Henry loves her.”

  “Enough!” Claire yelled. “This is no time to argue about who loves her more! If we all go, it’s more eyes looking for her. Now, let’s move!”

  “Fine! Whatever. Everyone grab a pack so we can get the fuck out of here.” Henry went to the table, seeing his pack and his keys gone. “Bloody hell!” He pounded his fist on the table.

  “What?” Sophie asked.

  “My pack and keys are gone.” He stalked to the plastic bag-covered window and peeled part of it back. “Shit! She took my truck! Damn it, Elaina!”

  “Where could she have gone?” Sophie asked, genuine concern lacing through her words.

  “I don’t know!” Henry snapped.

  “Let’s quit fucking around and get out of here!” Nick whipped open the apartment door and stormed out, the rest of them following closely. They didn’t even bother checking for undeads as they opened the main entrance door. As they ran to Sophie’s truck, the rain started to come down hard.

  “Toss me the keys!”

  Sophie threw them at Henry. They all hopped in just in time to avoid an undead staggering toward them. Before starting the truck, Henry stared at the cracked windshield, then looked at Sophie. When she shrugged, he shook his head.

  “Please save your ammo. We may need it.” He started the truck and slammed it into drive, pushing the pedal to the floor. The tires spun on the wet street.

  Henry weaved left and right, avoiding cars and true deads. He stopped at the end of the street. “Does anybody know where she might have gone?”

  “Clueless,” Sophie said.

  “Obviously.” Claire rolled her eyes. “I don’t know. Maybe her apartment?”

  “No,” Nick said. “Our parents’ house. I bet she’s heading there.”

  “Shit. She can’t go that way. Cars are clogging the on-ramp.” Henry gunned it. The rain came down harder by the minute, accompanied by constant deafening thunder and lightning.

  “Watch the gas. It was about a quarter tank when Nick and I came back.”

  Henry looked at the gauge. Sure enough, it was just a hair below a quarter tank.

  “I have a siphon… Shit! She has my pack!”

  “Relax, Captain Anxiety. Take your finger off the panic button for a moment. Remember, I have one, as well. The trick is finding a car we haven’t siphoned already.” Sophie dug through her pack.

  “Sorry. I’m just worried sick about her. I don’t know what I would do if something happened to her.”

  “I know. Just calm down.” Henry nodded. She reached up and tenderly rubbed his ear with her thumb and forefinger. “Deep breath. She needs you to focus right now. We’ll find her.”

  Tears streaming down my face, I searched for tissues in the front seat of Henry’s truck, not finding any. I needed to carry something if I were going to be fucking crying all the damn time. I pulled up my shirt and wiped my nose on it, thinking how crazy trying to go to my mother’s house was.

  Lightning striking all around me, the thunder was constant, vibrating the truck. I turned the truck off so as not to waste gas. I pounded my fists on the steering wheel a few more times, accidentally hitting the horn.

  I screamed until my throat burned, which ma
de me feel alive for a brief moment. It was raining so hard, I couldn’t even hear myself. When I felt a thud on the left side of the truck, I didn’t want to look, but I had to.

  “Oh, my god!” I screamed, seeing an undead throwing himself into the driver’s door I turned on the ignition again and hit the lock button. “Fuck!” He clawed at the window, leaving nasty bits of rotting flesh on it. I screamed again. Feeling more thuds, I looked around the truck. There were more climbing over one another, trying to get at me.

  I froze. I wasn’t sure if I should throw the truck in drive and try to do a U-turn, or if I should throw it into reverse and blindly floor it in the hopes that I didn’t hit anything substantial.

  “Think, Elaina!” Scared out of my mind, I decided my little adventure ranked as the number one dumbest thing I had ever done. I felt like giving up again. Maybe I should just open the door. Henry would move on.

  No, he wouldn’t. He would die alone. I couldn’t do that to him.

  Everything was falling apart. Henry wasn’t my Henry anymore, some hooker-looking ex of his was trying to intimidate me, my best friend was lost emotionally, my brother was no longer himself, and the rest of my family was probably all true dead. I didn’t even want to get into what state the country was in.

  The undeads continued to beat themselves against the truck. Seeing a bright light coming up behind me, I thought it was lightning at first. The thunder was so loud, I barely heard what I thought were gunshots. I looked around. The undeads were gone, goo smeared all over the driver’s side window.

  I wasn’t sure who was shooting back there, but I wasn’t going to open the door, just in case.

  My head spun, dizzy with thoughts and fear. There was a banging on the passenger side window. I screamed as I looked over, eyes widening. “Henry!”

  I couldn’t believe it. I had never been so glad to see him. He frantically waved for me to come out the passenger side. I scooted over. As soon as I unlocked the door, he whipped it open and pulled me out of the truck. He held me tightly, spinning me around in the pouring rain. I wrapped my legs around his waist. For a moment, I forgot everything else.