Jake’s forehead creased. “Perry...you saw what happened. She’s dead.”
“I know that. I’m not deluded. I just...I want to find her body. I have to say goodbye. Make peace with this world before I go wherever she’s gone.”
Perry got to his feet and Jake was up in an instant, blocking his path. “What do you think you’re doing?”
“I’m going out there.”
“You can’t. You’re going to get yourself killed...and all of us with you. If you leave then they’re going to spot our hiding place. It’s not some damn heroic move to walk into the line of fire, Perry. You’re risking everyone’s lives.”
“So you just want me to wait down here until they find us and tear us down?” Perry snapped. “You’ve seen how they kill people...they’re brutal. I feel trapped down here, Jake. If we stay, this is where we’re going to die. They’re going to come down here with their bats and smash our skulls in.”
There was a whimper in the dark. Aaron was listening to Perry’s words a little too closely. Jake felt fury rise in him.
“You’re scaring everyone, Perry. Sit down and we’ll think of a plan.”
Perry attempted to surge forward, but Aby and Megan managed to grab him before he got to the stairs. Even with both of them restraining his arms, he was almost getting away.
“Let me go!”
Jake’s heart leapt in his chest. They were making too much noise. He grabbed Perry by the scruff of his shirt.
“Pull yourself together,” Jake hissed. “We’re not letting you go. You’re being selfish. Abigail’s gone, Perry. John too. Everyone out there is dead. It’s just us now, and I’m not going to let you ruin it for everyone.”
The pair of them were breathing hard, staring at one another with fury in their eyes. For a moment, Jake thought that Perry was going to attack him to get out, but after a few long moments, he backed off. The women let him go with a sigh of relief and Aby caught Jake’s eye for a moment. She looked worried. They’d contained Perry for a while, but he was right to an extent. If they waited down there, they’d be found eventually. Maybe not within a few hours, or even days, but they’d be found and killed eventually. If they wanted to get out alive, they needed an airtight plan.
“Alright, we need to come up with a plan,” Jake said, taking the lead. Someone had to, and Perry was too distraught to think straight. “We know by now that our only option is to get out...there’s nothing left for us here. They’ve destroyed everything you built here and taken it for themselves. Are there any escape routes that we could take?”
“You saw them all,” Perry muttered. “We could either have gone through the woods to the road or taken one of the two main roads out of town...that’s it.”
Jake’s heart thudded far too fast for his liking. He waited for someone else to miraculously produce another idea on how to escape, but the room was silent. He took a deep breath.
“Then we have to strategically fight our way out. We won’t be able to reason with these people...even if we tell them that we want to leave, they’ll probably still try and kill us. They have no morals.”
“So we fight dirty,” Perry says through gritted teeth. “I’ll do anything at this point. I saw what they did to my baby...if they think I’m letting them get away with that they’re sorely mistaken.”
Jake was about to protest, but he knew Perry was right. They had to stoop to their enemy’s level if they wanted any chance of survival. Even though he was worried that Perry’s temper was going to get them killed, he also knew that if he could harness his anger, then it would be a useful tool.
“Alright. So we fight our way out. But we wait for them to find us. They’ll be traveling in packs...I suspect of around six or seven, given the sheer number of them. If they try to storm this basement then we’ll be ready. Once we get out into the open...we’ll just have to wing it. Perry can take the lead...show us the way to the most likely escape route. It’s risky...but it’s better than nothing.”
There were murmurs of agreement around the room. Jake felt a little calmer now that they’d established a plan. He took a deep breath.
“Alright, everyone. Be ready to leave at a moment’s notice. Gather supplies to take with us if you can...prepare your weapons...and then we wait.”
Everyone did as he asked, slowly beginning to shuffle around the dark basement in preparation. Aby found his hand in the dark.
“Well handled,” she murmured. “Do you think it’ll work?”
Jake didn’t say anything. The truth was, he wasn't sure. It was the biggest risk they’d taken so far. They had no guarantees of getting out alive. But he hung on to the glimmer of hope that was still alive in him. He prayed that there was something left to fight for.
“I guess we’ll see.”
Once they were prepared, they waited silently in the dark. Jake and Perry sat themselves down in front of the stairway, waiting with their guns in hand. They were the front line, ready to shoot anyone down that tried to get in. Jake wished that he could rest a little while they waited, get some well-needed sleep in preparation for the battle to come, but he knew his body would never shut down properly in a time like this. He was wide awake, running on empty, but determined as ever. The longer they waited, the more confidence he managed to muster. He kept telling himself they could do it, over and over until he finally believed it.
His mood changed the second he heard footsteps above them. Fear now had a firm grasp on him. He swallowed and readied his gun.
“This is it,” he whispered into the darkness. “Get ready.”
They waited a little longer. The door knob began to rattle. Jake held his breath. He thought for a moment that maybe they should’ve tried to barricade the door, but then they’d have had no way out. It would just be prolonging the inevitable that they’d get in and start shooting.
Let’s get this over and done with, Jake thought to himself.
“Let’s knock the door down!” a gruff voice outside said. Whoever it was began to bash their shoulder against the door rhythmically. Each butt of their body against the door made Jake’s heart leap in fear, but he refused to let his fear betray him when the battle came. He gripped his gun with sweating hands. We’re going to survive. We’re going to survive. We’re going to survive…
The door bust open.
There was a battle cry from outside and Jake didn’t hesitate before pulling the trigger. The light from outside blinded him at first and he couldn’t see if he’d hit his target, but as more gunshots went off, men from outside flooded down the stairs. Perry leapt forward with a knife, stabbing a man twice his size through the heart expertly. Jake had been right that Perry’s rage would be good for them…
Aby appeared beside Jake and shot one of the men before grabbing his shoulder and pulling him backward.
“Spread out!” she cried. “If we clump together we’re an easier target…”
They concentrated their fire on the stairs, but the enemies kept coming. Jake felt like he was in a video game, too disconnected from his own reality to register each bullet leaving his gun and hitting home. He saw a man lash out with a knife and slit Aaron’s throat, but after a jolt of shock, he was back in the zone. His shots never seemed to miss. He was getting better.
By the time the last attacker had made it into the basement, everyone was fighting hand to hand and the stairs were littered with bodies. Jake caught Aby’s eye as she stabbed a man in the stomach and then kicked him hard. He knew what she was thinking. They had to run while they still had the chance. He whirled around to slash at a man advancing on him. He knew he’d hit the target when he heard him gurgle on his own blood as he bled out.
And then he ran for the stairs. He felt selfish. He felt wrong knowing he was leaving others behind. But he hoped they’d make it out too, following his lead. Their plan had always been to find the escape route, after all…
He looked over his shoulder as he clambered over the bodies on the stairs. Megan was behind him, wide e
yed and terrified. He felt a rush of relief, continuing up the stairs at speed. Aby had already emerged at the top of the staircase, safe and sound.
They’d lost so many already, but the three of them were out, at least. As Jake helped Megan up the last few steps, he looked out into the darkness of the basement for Perry. He was a liability, but he was strong and Jake knew they needed him. He was going to get them out of there.
And then suddenly, he was clambering up the staircase. Jake encouraged him with a wave of his hand.
“You can do it, Perry...come on…”
Perry tripped up the last step and then they were out. He was breathless, listening to the sounds of the chaos below.
“There’s no saving them,” he said darkly. Then he grabbed the door hand and pulled it closed. Jake’s eyes widened as Perry locked the basement with a wooden panel through the handles. He was condemning everyone in there, enemy or not.
“Perry…”
“Trust me, they’re dead,” he snapped. “Let’s go.”
Jake had no choice, but to follow Perry. He seemed unhinged, but Jake knew he should be grateful they weren’t being pursued. He was alive, even if only for a little longer.
“This way,” Perry hissed, leading them into a dark alley between two houses. “If anything happens...just run, okay? Head for the woods. There’s cover there. You might just make it out alive.”
Jake nodded even though Perry wasn’t looking his way. He was beginning to realize that Perry’s ruthlessness was going to keep them alive. Leaving someone behind was unthinkable, but the consequences if they didn’t were worse.
Emerging from the alleyway, they began to run toward the woods. The streets were eerily quiet, though he could hear laughter from within the houses. Their enemy had become complacent, certain they’d won and killed everyone in sight. Jake wanted to go back and teach them all a lesson, but he knew that they only had one chance left to get out. He wasn’t going to waste it.
And then he heard a cry. He saw that someone had rushed out of the dark and hit Perry across the face with a badly aimed punch. Jake’s heart leapt. Were there others waiting in the dark for them?
“Go!” Perry cried out. Jake hesitated, but only for a moment. As Perry began to fight the man back, he began to sprint for the woods.
He didn’t look back.
Twenty-One
Perry
Jake didn’t look back. Perry almost wished he would. He suspected that Jake’s retreating figure was the last he’d see of his friends. He knew as he faced up to his attacker that he was in real trouble now. His friends were lagging behind, but they were coming at Perry fast. In moments, he’d be overwhelmed.
He was determined to slow the attackers down, at least. Even if he was going to wind up dead, he could give his new friends a head start.
His gun was his trusty friend. He’d come to understand it like a long term lover. He’d perfected the ritual of loading it up, shooting the enemy down, then rinsing and repeating the process. As the enemy left the safety of the houses to take on fresh meat, Perry let his anger fuel him to take them down. It was so damn easy to take their lives when they’d taken so many of his friends from him. They fell like flies and he smiled as he took them down. He knew he’d soon run out of ammo. He knew he wouldn’t be able to keep it up forever. But for a few moments of bliss, he could enjoy revenge.
The air filled with silence as he ran out of bullets. He didn’t hesitate before tossing the useless weapon aside. It had been good to him, but it was over now, and there were still hordes of people rushing at him. He could show them a good fight for a while, but it would end in his death. He knew that for a fact.
I’ll be with you soon, Abigail, he thought as his fist smashed into the nose of his first assailant. He felt satisfaction as he watched him crumple to the ground. He was still powerful. He was just outnumbered.
He let out a battle cry as he grabbed a pistol from his first attacker and shot him through the skull. Then he turned on the others advancing on him. He managed to take a few of them down before his weapon ran out of bullets.
Perry didn’t know whether to scream or cry or run or rage. All he had now was his fists to rely on. It wasn’t going to be enough. He told himself that he was a hero. His last stand would help the others escape. But it didn't feel like a victory. His entire town had been reduced to dust. Everyone he knew was dead. Now he was going to join them.
He laughed a little manically as he surged forward to meet his next assailant. He had nothing left to lose. He had no fear of how much it was going to hurt to die. He was sure they’d make it painful for him, after all. All he could think of was how many of them he wanted to take to the grave with him.
Those sickos were the reason his livelihood was destroyed. Hell, maybe one of them helped to kill Abigail. He let out a cry and smashed his fist into the throat of his attacker, but moments later, there were three of them on him at once.
He tried his best to fight back, but the punches were starting to land. He barely felt the first few punches, feeling so disconnected to his body that it felt like it was happening to someone else. But then someone hit him square in the nose and he felt the blood trickle down onto his lips. The pain was delayed, but then it was so prominent that it blinded him.
He staggered back. There was no one to catch him now. No one to save his back. He fell hard on the floor and hit his head on the tarmac. His head lolled to the side and he could see the others running toward the woods, so close to getting away that Perry told himself that whatever came next would be worth it. Someone had to get out of this mess alive.
It just wouldn’t be him.
His body jerked as the prisoners began to kick him, laughing out loud as they did. He went to a place in his own head where he couldn’t even feel it, his dizziness overwhelming him. As he lay there, absorbing all of the violence of an entire town, he closed his eyes and thought of his daughter’s face. Her laugh. Her wedding day in the village where it seemed like life was almost perfect.
One swift kick to his ribs shattered the memory. Suddenly, it was like he could feel every single blow to his body in one go. He cried out, but there was no one to hear him. No one to save him.
He kicked out, but it was useless. He was being overwhelmed. There were at least six people standing over him, kicking him harder and harder to beat him into submission. Perry was ready to give up, but he could see that they weren’t ready to let him go. They wanted their fun with him first.
He felt a knife rip through his skin. His arm was being peppered with stab wounds. He screamed, but it was drowned out by the sound of his assailants laughing. Always laughing. He was their entertainment for the evening.
He felt an almighty tug on his arm and then the absence of it entirely. They’d ripped it clean off. Perry wailed, but they didn’t stop. They wanted to make him suffer. He prayed for death. He prayed to be saved.
Hands closed around his throat. It felt like the hands of God, choking him out, letting him go. He closed his eyes and thanked him for letting him go. He thanked him for an end to all his suffering.
Was it worth it? It had to be. To see the others escape...he’d done one last good deed.
His eyes closed forever.
Twenty-Two
Megan
The tears wouldn’t stop coming. She couldn't believe they’d just left Perry behind. She didn’t really know him and yet she felt the loss like a punch to the gut. Only hours before she’d been comforting him, trying to tell him he had something to live for. Now, as she looked over her shoulder, she could see him being torn apart by the savages, his screams imbedding deep into her mind. She knew she’d have nightmares about those screams for years to come.
She had to look away as she ran, but she still saw the sight of him being beaten and choked in the back of her mind. She thought she knew a thing or two about cruelty. She thought she’d been the victim of it back when she was with her abusive boyfriend, but now, she felt as though she was luck
y. She was alive and breathing, at least.
For now.
Her sobbing was slowing her down and the others had realized it. Aby grabbed her arm hard and forced her to keep running, even though she was gasping for air so hard she felt like she might faint.
“You’ll thank me later,” Aby said. “You’d rather be breathless than dead, right?”
Megan didn’t even have the strength to nod in response, but she agreed with Aby. She wished she could be more like her. Since they’d met only a few days before, Aby had adapted. She’d become hardened and strong. Megan felt like she’d only become weaker. Back at the barricade, she thought she had made a breakthrough, but the events of the past few hours had reduced her back to rubble.
But she kept going. Through the woods, they ran as hard as they could. There was no one else in sight, but Megan didn’t trust her instinct to relax a little. She felt like she should keep running and never stop. But all of a sudden, Jake and Aby began to slow down. Megan followed their lead. Even after everything, she still trusted Jake’s instincts more than her own.
“Right, we have a decision to make,” Jake rasped, putting his hands on his knees as he tried to regain his breath. “We can keep going on foot. We’re pretty fast...we might be able to outrun the prisoners so long as we’re not out of stamina. Plus, we will be more stealthy on foot. It’ll be easier to hide, for sure…”
“But going on foot didn’t help much today, did it?” Aby said sharply. “Look at what just happened to Perry.”
Megan bowed her head. She thought if she spoke she might start sobbing again. So instead, she just listened.
“But a car is easily spotted...and hard to find, especially these days. We need to find one that will work, has gas in it and has the keys nearby...and we can guarantee that the prisoners didn’t leave any of their vehicles just sitting around. We would probably have to go back on ourselves in order to get one…”
The End of the World Series | Book 2 | Survive The Onslaught Page 12