The Departed

by Chase McCown

  We tried to run, but I don’t know how far the others got. We all kind of got split up after those things attacked. I was able to make it to this abandoned house, and I locked the doors behind me. I think I’m safe here. I don’t think any of them followed me this far.

  I guess we’ll find out soon enough.

  May 10th, 2025

  They were banging on the door last night. It seemed like they just kept banging on it for hours. They finally stopped a few minutes ago, but I don’t know if they gave up or if they’re just looking for another way in. They couldn’t know I’m in here, could they? Even if they did, they couldn’t find their way in.

  I pushed a bookcase against the front door, and I’m going to find something to block off the side door with inside the garage in a few minutes. The latch on the garage door is broken, but they aren’t smart enough to figure out how to get it open, right? I just need to block off this side door.

  Hopefully, that will be enough.

  *

  “That’s it,” Susan said. “The next page is blank.”

  “Wow,” Jacob said.

  “The side door is still intact. They must have been able to get that garage door open after all,” Susan observed.

  “We need to be more careful. These infected are smarter than I thought they were if they know how to ambush groups of survivors. It might be best to find that tire so we can get back in our car and back on the road,” Howard said.

  “Yeah, you’re right. While we’re walking on foot, we’re more vulnerable. Has anyone seen a tire yet?” Susan asked.

  “Hey, there’s one by the side door there,” Charlie pointed out.

  The tire looked to be new and in good shape. It had no leaks in it, and they were able to find the tools they needed to change out the bad tire for this one in the garage.

  Within minutes, they had the old tire replaced and were back on the road once more.

  They found the on-ramp to the interstate a short while later.

  Chapter 33

  May 14th, 2025. Fort Stockton, Texas.

  “Where are we?” Jacob asked as the four coasted along the interstate.

  “I don’t know,” said Susan, spinning the map around in her hands.

  “Hey, look, there’s a sign up ahead,” Howard noted.

  “Fort Stockton. Hmm. I’ve never been here before,” Jacob said.

  “I have,” Susan said.

  “Really?” Jacob asked.

  “Yeah. We went through our training here.”

  “Huh. What was it like?” Jacob asked.

  “The city or the training?” Susan asked.

  “Both, I guess,” Jacob said.

  Well, we only stayed for a few weeks, but the city was pretty nice. There wasn’t anything really remarkable about it. The training was pretty rough, though. Only a few of us were able to complete the camp,” she said.

  As Susan and Jacob were talking, Charlie saw a silhouette off in the distance. It was too far away for him to tell exactly what it was. He didn’t think it had the movements of the infected, but he wouldn’t bet his life on it.

  Soon, it wasn’t only one silhouette.

  One became two, two became four, and before he knew it, he noticed they were all over the town. An uneasy feeling crept over him, and he turned to get the attention of the others.

  “Hey, do you guys see those things over there?” he asked, pointing to the shadowy figures.

  Jacob and Susan stopped their conversation, and all four strained to make out what the vague shapes were.

  “Are they creeps?” Susan asked.

  “I don’t know, but whatever they are, they’re all over. Look,” Charlie said, pointing out several more of the things.

  “What should we do?” Charlie asked.

  “Hey, does we have binoculars?” Howard asked.

  “I think we have some back here,” Susan said.

  “Oh, yeah, here you go,” Jacob said, handing Howard a pair of binoculars.

  “They’re definitely infected. There’s a whole horde of them up there,” Howard observed.

  “Do they notice us?” Susan asked.

  “No, I don’t think so. They’re all just standing around, pacing, mumbling to themselves,” Howard said.

  There were at least twenty that Howard noticed and possibly many more he couldn’t see. The infected seemed to be focused on a building in the center of the city, at least for the moment.

  There was no way they would make it through this horde if they drew its attention. They had to find a way to sneak past them undetected.

  “We’re going to have to leave the car here,” Howard said at last.

  “What? Why?” Charlie asked.

  “If we get any closer with the car, they’ll hear us. We need to sneak by on foot,” Howard explained.

  Charlie stuttered, trying to find some way they could avoid this. He knew as well as Howard did, though, that turning around wasn’t a possibility at this point. They didn’t have much fuel left. Finally, Charlie sighed in resignation. “Alright.”

  All four quietly opened the car doors and exited the car, trying to make as little noise as possible.

  They gathered what supplies they could from the car and put them into backpacks to carry with them.

  “Alright, follow me. Stay as quiet as you can. We don’t want to draw any unwanted attention,” Howard whispered.

  He headed to the south, going from the cover of one building to another until they were on the other side of the horde. They could now see the infected easily. They seemed to be trying to get into one of the buildings in the city. It looked like a hotel, but from the angle they were at, Howard couldn’t tell for sure.

  “Should we see if there are any survivors in that building?” Howard asked.

  “No, forget it. Those things will see us,” Charlie said, shaking his head in staunch opposition to the idea.

  “You know, I hate to say this, but for once I actually agree with Charlie. We won’t be any help to anyone dead, and there’s no way we could get close enough to investigate without drawing the attention of them. I say we just keep going,” Susan said.

  Howard sighed reluctantly but finally agreed. “Let’s get a move on, then. We need to be out of here before the sun goes down.”

  They continued on before coming to an abandoned car. It was in good shape but was stuck in the dirt on the median. The four were able to move the car off of the median, and after loading their supplies, they continued on.

  Chapter 34

  May 14th, 2025. Junction, Texas.

  Howard stopped the car about half a day's drive from Austin. The sun had long since fallen over the horizon, and Howard had been beginning to drift to sleep while driving.

  “Let’s set up camp,” he said.

  The others gladly agreed. Everyone was tired at this point, and none of them wanted to drive further that night.

  Susan and Charlie gathered firewood, and soon everyone was settling in for the night. Howard kept first watch, but Charlie couldn’t fall asleep. Something had been on his mind for the past few days, and he couldn’t keep it to himself any longer.

  “Howard?” Charlie asked after the others had fallen asleep.

  “You still up, Charlie?” Howard asked.

  “Yeah. I was hoping you could answer a question for me.”

  “Sure. Shoot,” Howard said.

  “Well, why are we doing this? What I mean is…what’s the point? Why are we holding out hope that DC will be any better than things are here? Why are we holding out any hope that we’ll even make it there?” he asked.

  “Where were you when the outbreak started?” Howard asked.

  “At my apartment,” Charlie answered.

  “Well, why’d you leave?”

  “A creep fell onto my balcony! I had no choice. I had to leave!”

  “Exactly,” Howard said.

  “What?”

  “You didn’t have any choice. None of us did. Now, we’re just do
ing our best to survive. Hope is one of the few things we have left. It’s all any of us is operating on. Without hope, we may as well all die right here. Hope is what’s keeping us alive,” Howard said.

  “But for what? We’re probably going to die in the end anyway. What’s the point?” Charlie asked.

  “We don’t have any guarantees in life, Charlie. You just have to have faith and trust that God will see us through, as He’s done so far. Without that, there isn’t any reason to keep going. In the end, you have to make a choice. You can keep living the way you’re living, or you can put your faith in something greater than yourself or myself or anyone else. Otherwise, none of this matters,” Howard said.

  When they had first met, Charlie would have snapped back at Howard for suggesting something like that. But right now, Charlie was tired.

  Everything was so bleak and hopeless that the idea Howard suggested was almost enchanting. He didn’t know whether he actually believed it was possible, or if he even wanted to believe, but there was a certain charm to it that he couldn’t shake.

  If there was a reason to keep fighting, Charlie might just be interested in learning more about it. Right now, though, he was too tired to think about that kind of thing. Those thoughts could wait until the morning.

  *

  The four finally made it to Austin, tired of driving and even looking at the inside of the car. The city was in ruins, and bodies littered the streets. Store windows were smashed in by bands of looting survivors in the initial stages of the outbreak.

  Now, there was nothing but silence. They hadn’t seen any infected yet. Most had probably followed the survivors out of the urban areas and into the countryside.

  “If I have to sit in this car any longer, I may jump out,” Jacob half-joked as they entered the city.

  “Yeah, I think we should take a break here,” Howard agreed.

  “That sounds good to me. We need to resupply anyway,” Susan said.

  “Don’t get me wrong, I don’t want to get back in that car any more than the next guy, but where are we going to stay?” Charlie asked.

  “There has to be a hotel around here somewhere,” Jacob said.

  “Sure. There’s probably something not too far from here,” said Howard.

  “There are probably some supplies, too,” Susan said.

  “Let’s check out the hotel first. I think we could all use some rest,” Howard said.

  They wandered through the massive city for what seemed like hours but finally stumbled across a hotel. Howard went up to the front door to open it.

  “It’s locked,” he said.

  Charlie groaned. “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  “Unfortunately, no. Hey, maybe there’s a side door left unlocked,” Howard said.

  They scanned the side of the building for a few minutes before finding a side entrance. It, however, was also locked.

  “Hey, look up there,” Charlie said.

  He pointed out a window that had been left open. It was pretty far off of the ground, but it was directly above a dumpster.

  “Good eyes, Charlie! One of us could climb up there, crawl in through the window, then open the door,” Susan said.

  “I can do it,” Jacob offered. He climbed up on top of the closed lid of the dumpster and hopped through the open window. A few minutes later, the front door opened.

  “Hmm, ring bell for service. I’m guessing I don’t want the service of anyone who answers this bell.” Jacob laughed.

  “Probably not,” Susan agreed.

  “Grab a room key while you’re over there, Jacob,” said Howard.

  “Get four keys. I don’t think anyone else is using them,” Susan corrected.

  “Good point.”

  Jacob got the keys and handed them out, and the group began searching for their rooms. Jacob had made sure to get keys that were within one room number from each other so that if anything happened, the others would be close enough to help. They found the rooms a short while later, and each began to settle in.

  “This is pretty nice,” Susan said to herself, not meaning to speak aloud.

  “Yeah,” a voice sounding like Howard’s responded.

  The group settled in for a peaceful rest—something they hadn't had the leisure of experiencing since before the outbreak.

  Susan took out the Bible Howard had given her. She began reading again. She flipped to John, and she picked up in the first verse of the first chapter, again searching for what kept Howard so hopeful in such bleak times.

  “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning, and through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made. In Him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.”

  She closed the Bible, deep in thought. Was that what it was talking about? That last sentence—was that what Howard meant? For some reason, she couldn’t stop thinking about it. The question of what kept Howard going kept gnawing at her. She kept fighting because she didn’t have any other choice. For Howard, though, it seemed different. He seemed genuinely hopeful that things would all work out in the end.

  Howard’s eyes shone with a certain hopeful light. He almost glowed with a peace and tranquility that infected his entire character in a way that was impossible to ignore. It made him a better soldier, a better leader, and a better person. She wished she could be the same, but she didn’t know how. So she sat dreaming, hoping, and wondering.

  She flipped through the pages once again, searching for the answers.

  Meanwhile, Howard was also deep in thought. He was thinking a million thoughts at once, but none clear enough to focus on and pick out. He stood up and began to pace around the room. He remembered hotels like this usually had bibles in each room. He opened the dresser near his bed and found one. It was a bit dusty but a welcome sight to be sure. He flipped through it, hoping to find guidance.

  Charlie was happy to finally get a real chance to rest. The bed was a huge improvement over the car they had been accustomed to, and it didn’t take long for him to fall asleep.

  Jacob had a tougher time finding rest, though. He was reminded of his father and what his father had become. He took out a picture of his father and himself from his wallet and tried to remember better times, before everything had gone south. He and his father had been arguing before the infection hit, and they’d never really had time to make amends before his father turned.

  *

  September 3rd, 2023. Hollywood, California.

  Jacob woke up, stretched his arms, and casually checked his phone to see the time.

  “Ten o’clock? It can’t be ten already!”

  He checked his alarm, which was unplugged.

  “No, no, no!”

  He hurried to get dressed, brush his teeth, and get ready so that he could make the audition.

  “Finally awake, huh? Want some eggs?” Jacob’s father asked as Jacob came down the stairs.

  “I can’t, sorry. I’m just going to grab something quick. I’m late for that audition anyway.”

  “Oh, right. Just remember to be back before three. It’s your mother’s birthday, and I thought we’d go down and visit.”

  “Sure. See you then,” Jacob said as he went out the door.

  Jacob’s mother had died a few years back, and Jacob’s father visited the cemetery every year on her birthday. Jacob knew it was important to his father, but right now all he could think about was making it to the audition in time.

  He arrived at the audition a few minutes later, out of breath and panting. He saw a man closing up the doors of the studio outside and rushed to stop him.

  “Wait! Hold on, just a— Aren’t—” He struggled to gain his composure and then started again. “Aren’t there auditions here today?”

  “There were, but they’re over for the day. Sorry,” the man answered.

  “They can’t be. W
here’s the director?”

  “He’s already gone home.”

  “I can’t believe I missed it! Okay, thanks for your time,” Jacob said.

  He went to the park to take his mind off of the audition, and he walked for a few hours around a small pond there. It did help, and he was soon lost in the tranquility of the park itself. He returned home at about four, but his father wasn’t there. He then remembered what his father told him that morning.

  “I’m going to hear about this when he gets back,” Jacob said.

  An hour later, his father returned. He didn’t say anything to Jacob, though. He simply went up to his bedroom and went to bed. He could tell his father was disappointed.

  *

  He hoped it wasn’t too late. He tried to remember that brief look of humanity that had crossed his father’s face when they last met, but he couldn’t help thinking there was little hope that things would ever go back to the way they had been.

  Chapter 35

  May 22nd, 2025. Austin, Texas.

  Susan and Jacob sat playing chess together on a table they had set up in the hallway of the hotel, at this point stalemated by their mutual ignorance of the game itself.

  “You know, I’ve always hated this game.” Jacob laughed.

  “Yeah, me too,” Susan agreed. “My grandfather used to make me play with him, and I always lost.”

  “I used to be pretty good,” Charlie noted. “I don’t know if I ever really liked it, but I was pretty good.”

  “Alright guys, listen up,” said Howard, who had just returned from a walk. “It’s been a week, and we need to start getting ready to move out. The car’s almost empty, so we need to refuel it. We should also find some food, water, and ammo.”

  “Well, it was fun while it lasted.” Jacob sighed. “I’ll look for food.”

  “I’ll see if I can find any ammo,” Susan offered.

  “I’ll fill up the car,” Charlie said.

  “That leaves the water for me. Jacob, did you see a supermarket around here?” Howard asked.

  “Yeah, I think so. I’ll show you.”

  The four headed out, Jacob and Howard for the supermarket, Susan for the gun shop that was nearby, and Charlie for the car.