Human Nature (Book 4): Human Nature IV

by Borthwick, Finlay

  “What’s that supposed to mean?” Rajan asked him.

  Whilst remaining silent, Benji continued to cryptically grin at him.

  “Come on, you’re seriously gonna threaten us and then not follow up?” Rajan put on a confused expression; though in truth, he knew exactly how people like Benji worked.

  “…You’re in our territory.” Benji enlightened the group. “The Bandits will do with you as we please—”

  “Bandits.” Rajan mumbled to himself, completely ignoring whatever else Benji would have to say.

  There were distinct murmurs among the group upon hearing these words; it no longer mattered that Rajan had neglected to tell them the full extent of Garry’s dying words.

  “Who the hell are The Bandits, then?” Nate further questioned as Yelena shuddered behind him in fear.

  “We’re your worst nightmare, kid.” Benji was elated to say this to the group. “You and your little girlfriend back there?” He heckled as he noticed Yelena hiding behind Nate, “You’re both gonna die on these streets. You’ll never—”

  ‘SQUELCH!’

  All of a sudden, a cleaver had sliced deep into Benji’s head. As the blood splurged up, it covered Rajan’s face, startling him as it did so. Still squirting out blood, the corpse fell backwards into the dirty and damp road.

  After wiping several blood droplets from his face, Rajan turned around and saw Michelle bent down in a throwing stance; she was the one who had just executed Benji.

  “…We’ll never know what his last words were gonna be.” Michelle comically finished her victim’s sentence for him, in a way that felt more appropriate.

  Rajan didn’t even comment to Michelle about what she had just done. Instead, he allowed her to walk past him and pry her cleaver from Benji’s corpse.

  “Hey, guys?” Maylene had noticed something through an alleyway between two buildings. “We’re looking for a gigantic concrete wall, right?”

  Rajan answered in befuddlement, “I don’t know why you think it’s concrete, but—Yes. Why?”

  Maylene nodded down the alleyway, “I think I’ve found it.”

  And indeed, there, at the opposite end of the alleyway, there was a large concrete wall that was perhaps thirty to forty feet high.

  As Rajan moved to Maylene’s side, he smiled. “That’s it. That’s our safe zone...”

  Unknown to the group, the entire ordeal with Benji had been witnessed by two men on a rooftop.

  “That bitch just killed him.” The man without the binoculars remarked, having witnessed Michelle throw the cleaver straight into Benji’s head. “I’m gonna fucking kill her myself, Euan.” He vowed vengeance.

  Peculiarly, however, Euan was smirking. “I’d counted on something like that happening.”

  “What?” The other man was baffled by this comment. “Euan, our friend is dead down there. You mean you wanted him to die?”

  Still grinning, Euan affirmed, “Precisely, Johnno. Precisely.”

  Johnno gasped and shook his head in disgust, “Why?”

  Euan lowered the binoculars. Turning to face Johnno, he placed his hand firmly on his shoulder, “Because now—Well, now we have a reason to take all of those fuckers out.” Euan asserted, suggesting that he was beginning to grow a conscience against killing people for no reason greater than territorial control.

  “And if they make it to the safe zone? What then?” Johnno further queried.

  Euan laughed evilly, “Those four walls aren’t what keep us out of that place, Johnno – It’s the fact that the people within them dare not to step foot on our streets.”

  Johnno didn’t understand what Euan meant, evident by the perplexed look on his face.

  “They’re a self-sustaining micro society. If our new ‘friends’ go in there, then we can wipe all of them out and take back full control of this city… For Kyle.” Euan explained.

  Now, Johnno was grinning evilly as well. “For Kyle…” He echoed Euan’s words.

  Chapter 12: Danny

  With one of only two solar farms inside the safe zone having been severely damaged, the residents had decided two things: Firstly, several buildings houses would go without energy so as more of it could be directed to the hospital, and secondly, small groups would start going on scavenge runs outside of the walls again.

  Nikola had volunteered to take Rubin, as well as new friends Kieran and Valorie, out on the first supply run with her.

  “Are you sure you’re okay to go?” Sandra was concerned about how quickly Valorie had stepped up to the mark.

  “Richard died because of that dreadful storm,” Valorie remarked in angst, “I’ll be damned if I let the aftermath ruin anybody else’s life – I have to go out there and find the tools that Mac needs to fix the panels.” She justified her reasoning for being so eager.

  Sandra bowed to her friend before stepping aside, “Good luck out there.”

  “Good luck in here.” Valorie said in jest as she nodded towards the hospital; the lights inside were flickering on and off unpredictably.

  Inside the hospital, Cora was shadowing her mother; for now that the two of them were reunited, she had hoped to follow in her mother’s footsteps and become a nurse herself.

  “Ignore the blinking lights, Mac will have them fixed in no time assuming that these supply runs go well.” Erica reassured her daughter whilst training her to use the defibrillator on the wall in case of emergency.

  “Yeah, about that…” Cora scratched the back of her head.

  Erica planted her hands on her hips, “What is it, Cora?”

  “Well, you see, by Rylie’s calculations, my crew have been in this safe zone for around seven months now,” Cora explained, “We were able to live off of some of the supplies that had been buried away just whilst we set up a little garden.” She nodded through the window towards the not-so-little orchard that had meant Cora’s group hadn’t needed to leave the safe zone ever since they arrived.

  “Okay, so?” Erica couldn’t see her daughter’s point.

  Cora sighed, “So… I’m not entirely sure if my lot are ready to dive back into supply runs just yet. We haven’t been practicing any self-defence or doing any kind of survival training.”

  Erica laughed, “They’ll be fine. Nikola and Rubin are extremely capable survivors, dear.”

  Cora shook her head in desperation to rectify the misunderstanding, “Oh no, I didn’t mean it like that—I’m just saying, we don’t know how much the streets have changed out there. If things go, you know, wrong, or aren’t how we remember them to be, they could be in trouble.”

  Erica shrugged, “So what do you suggest we do? You said it yourself, the resources which Mac needs to fix up the southern solar farm,” the residents differentiated between the two solar farms using compass points, “Aren’t anywhere within these walls.”

  “I know, I do, I just—I don’t know, I guess.” Cora had run out of valid points to make.

  “Hey,” Erica brushed her daughter’s hair out of her face, “They’ll be fine, alright? As soon as Mac has all the equipment he needs, we’ll close the main gate up for good; just as we did a long time ago.” She smiled at her as she referenced the weirdly distant past.

  Feeling comforted by her mother, Cora smiled back at Erica in kind.

  Then, the reception doors squeaked open; it was Adela.

  “Oh,” Adela tiptoed back slightly upon noticing the tender moment between Erica and Cora, “I didn’t mean to interrupt. I’ll come back another time, sorry.”

  “No, no, you’re fine.” Erica permitted her to stay. “What is it, Adela?”

  After tasking Cora with separating all the medical equipment from each other, Erica had taken Adela into a private room.

  With Adela nervously lying down on the bed in front of her, Erica gently lifted her shirt up and tucked a piece of tissue along the bottom of her tummy.

  “This’ll be a little cold, okay?” Erica forewarned Adela as she squirted the ultrasound gel onto her pat
ient before rolling the transducer along her abdomen.

  Adela was taking deep breaths in a desperate attempt to keep herself calm; a million thoughts were racing through her mind, most of which involved the hypothetical scenario of Alek and Tia finding out the truth about her baby’s father.

  Looking at the monitor, Erica gasped as bright smile came upon her face.

  “What? What is it? What do you see?” Adela was desperate to see what exactly it was on the monitor that so quickly brought joy to Erica’s heart.

  With no words and a smile only, Erica turned the monitor to Adela’s view. “You’re three months pregnant.” She confirmed.

  Although Adela politely smiled at this news, she was very much aware of when exactly her baby had been conceived.

  “And look at this here,” Erica pointed to the centre of the screen with her little finger, “You see that little flutter there? That’s your baby’s heartbeat.”

  Adela’s whole world suddenly stopped, for nothing else mattered to her in this moment. In an instant, she began to cry with tears of joy, “My—My baby!” Joy was a rare emotion for Adela to feel.

  “The foetus is healthy,” Erica’s more professional side shone through her choice of terminology here, “But I’m afraid it’s a little too early to tell what gender it is.”

  “It’s a boy!” Adela exclaimed through her happy tears, having no doubt whatsoever about her baby’s gender. “His name is Danny.” She proudly announced to her nurse.

  Erica herself was now becoming tearful; she was having flashbacks to the day that she first found out Cora was going to be a girl. “That’s—It’s a beautiful name… Danny.” Erica was indeed fond of Adela’s choice.

  Alek was being rather quiet, keeping to himself in his armchair.

  Emile, too caught up in his own worries, had neglected to realise that something was not right with his fiancé.

  “My heart—It bleeds for poor Tia.” Emile proclaimed. “She doesn’t deserve any of this,” he was referring to more than Alek would possibly ever realise, “Such a sweet and innocent little girl.” His guilty conscience grew.

  Alek remained silent, cradling his shoulder as he did so.

  At last, Emile noticed that not all as well, “You alright, dear?”

  Alek idly nodded in verification, “Yeah, I’m fine.”

  “…Is that all?” His partner’s blunt answer was not enough to convince Emile. “Why are you holding your shoulder like that?”

  Alek shrugged, causing him to wince lowly.

  “Alek?” Emile prompted him with disenchantment, “Show me your shoulder.”

  Alek turned away.

  “Alek, show me!” Emile marched over to him and pried Alek’s hand away out of its’ clenching position. Then, he tore open the collar of Alek’s shirt. “Oh my God, Alek!” He exclaimed in a frightful astonishment.

  Somehow, Alek had been shot. There was a small bullet stick in a wound in his shoulder, the area around it having reddened up with swollen veins.

  “What the hell happened to you?” Emile caressed the wound to get a feel for it.

  “…Shot.” Alek bluntly responded with a still face.

  “Yes, I can see that,” Emile rebutted, “But when?”

  Alek sighed, “Before the storm.”

  Emile shuddered, his eyes jittering from side-to-side in a heartbroken manner, “…How long, Alek?”

  Alek looked up into his lover’s eyes, completely unfazed, “Two days.”

  In an instant, Emile rushed Alek onto his feet, “We have to get you to Erica right now!”

  “No!” Alek refused as he attempted to break from Emile’s grip.

  “Yes, we do, you idiot!” Emile berated him in a caring way. “The bullet didn’t go through, Alek! If we don’t get it removed as soon as possible, the lead will poison you!”

  “Just—Leave it.” Alek was becoming too weak now to resist Emile’s ushering.

  Ignoring Alek’s mindless grunts and quickly turning the door handle, Emile kicked the door open with force, as he forced Alek out of the cottage.

  “Emile… I said no!” He planted his feet firmly on the ground, causing Emile to skid him all the way past the destroyed solar farm.

  “Why not? Why don’t you want the bullet removed?” Emile questioned, still forcing Alek along as he did so.

  “It’s too—Too risky!” Alek protested as he rapidly shook his head.

  “What do you mean it’s too risky?” Emile did not understand this response in the slightest. “Marianne and I removed the last bullet that you got shot with, remember?”

  Alek nodded, “Exactly.”

  “Okay, let’s stop for a moment.” Emile stood in front of his lover and gripped him firmly on both arms, “What do you mean by ‘exactly,’ Alek? I’ve removed a bullet from you before, so you don’t want me to do it again? How does that make sense?”

  With droopy eyes, Alek elaborated, “It’s the same place I got shot before,” he noted, “If you take it out, there’s an increased chance that I will—”

  “No, you won’t.” Emile intervened, refusing to let Alek say that word. “You’re gonna be absolutely fine, okay? I’ll—I’ll get you to the hospital, I’ll get Marianne—And Erica! And Tina!” He would throw everything on the line here and now if it meant saving Alek’s life; but how much of that resolve was love and how much of it was guilt?

  “Erica’s happy…” Alek further explained, “She’s just found her daughter—I don’t want to start giving her flashbacks to—To Czechia.” He blinked intently in an attempt to keep himself awake.

  “Why wouldn’t you at least ask me to help you, then?” Emile further asked with a heartbroken tear.

  “…Because I love you, and I hate it when you worry.” Alek asserted. Then, he passed out.

  “Alek! Alek, no!” Emile caught his partner as he fell, hoisting him up to carry him in both arms. “That’s it! We’re going to the hospital!” Emile gritted as he bulked himself up to hold Alek’s weight.

  In an attempt to get to know the vilomah, Mac was currently on watch at the front gates with Dawn.

  Things were rather quiet for some time; Mac didn’t quite know what to say, for everybody only talked about Dawn in one way.

  “I know what you’re thinking.” Dawn, finally breaking the silence, informed him. “You’ve got the same look in your eyes that the rest of the people here do when they look at me—That poor, poor woman.”

  Mac sighed, “I’m sorry, Dawn. I really am. It’s just—Well, what exactly do you say to someone in—” He didn’t know how to word it politely.

  Knowing what Mac was trying to say, Dawn finished his sentence for him, “To someone in the situation of grieving for their deceased child every single day?”

  Contritely, Mac nodded.

  Dawn turned her entire body to face him now, “You say… Anything. Literally anything.” She affirmed. “Losing your child is one thing, but when everybody around you is too afraid to even acknowledge you? It’s like you’ve lost all of them as well—For a grieving parent, silence is the real killer.” Having wanted to explain this truth to somebody for so long, Dawn just said it for what it was.

  “I—I can’t even imagine, Dawn.” Mac shook his head dismayingly, “Nobody deserves to go through that. Not even in these times.”

  Dawn smiled, “I appreciate your condolences, Mac.” Despite how broken she was on the inside, Dawn was far past the grieving stage of acceptance.

  As Mac quietly turned to face the main gate again, a peculiar look came across him. “Hold it right there!” He yelled out into the tunnel as he flicked off the safety switch of his rifle, planting the barrel of the firearm firmly through the gate bars.

  “Mac! What are you doing?” Dawn asked in discomposure before she herself looked down into the tunnel.

  Approaching the gate from within the tunnel, there was a group of nine survivors. The man at the front had his hands raised in a gesture of relinquishment, whilst the rest of his g
roup hung several feet behind him in a scattered and unorganised formation.

  “That’s far enough! Stop right there!” Mac commanded, to which the man at the front instantly complied.

  Dawn continued to watch this interaction with both great excitement but also great fear; seeing a new group of survivors warmed her heart, though the fact that Mac could pull that trigger at any moment and change everything had caused that same heart to begin palpitating as well.

  “What’s your name?” Mac shouted through the gates at the surrendering man.

  “I’m Rajan!” He shouted back. “We mean you no harm! We simply and humbly seek your assistance!”

  Mac kept a firm grip on his rifle, “Assistance with what?”

  “Well, what do you know about The Bandits?” Rajan enquired.

  The mention of this group had caused both Mac and Dawn’s eyes to widen; for Mac had heard stories about The Bandits from Cora, whilst Dawn had heard the same tales from Elliot, Gwen, and Annabelle.

  “…Stay there!” Mac shouted a further order as he reached for his walkie-talkie.

  Carrying Alek in his arms, Emile busted through the hospital doors.

  “Help! I need help out here!” He cried out.

  Instantly, Cora came rushing out of one of the appointment rooms, “Emile! Oh my God! What’s happened?”

  “Alek’s been shot!”

  Cora was flabbergasted, “What? When? By whom?”

  “That doesn’t matter right now!” Emile protested. “Cora, where’s your mother? I need her assistance right now!”

  Understanding Emile’s predicament, Cora guided him to the room where Erica was performing Adela’s ultrasound.

  Erica had just wiped the gel away from Adela’s abdomen.

  “Thank you, Erica.” Adela smiled appreciatively at her nurse. “Without you, I don’t know how I’d be coping with this pregnancy.

  Erica took her patient’s hand, “If you ever need me, you know where I am.” She smiled in kind.

  Then, all of a sudden, the door was flung open; Cora, with bated breath, stood there in the doorway.