The Infected, a PODs Novel

by Michelle K. Pickett

  “Are we—”

  “Pssh, we’re great.” He waved his hand in the air, as if to bat away my worry. “You and I are fine. I can’t imagine you not in my life.”

  “I never deserved you, Devlin. You’re an amazing person, and will make some girl very, very happy. I’m jealous of the lucky bitch.” I smiled at him.

  He laughed and kissed me quickly.

  I stood and slipped into the house, and David’s arms. Where I belonged.

  After dinner, I went to bed. I was somewhere in the hazy part of sleep, where you aren’t awake, but you’re not quite asleep either, when I felt someone lay down next to me, his chest against my back, and his arm around my middle. I snuggled against his warmth.

  “David,” I sighed.

  We talked most of the evening. Neither one of us mentioned the whispers from other rooms in the house, although I know we both heard them.

  “Are you sure… How do you know… What if… Maybe the new strain of the virus takes longer… What will we do if…?”

  Part of me understood why they were afraid. If it had been one of them, I’d have asked the same questions. How did we know Devlin and David waited long enough to make sure David wasn’t infected? We didn’t know the incubation period of the new strain. It could be longer than the three days of the last strain.

  I eased myself out of David’s arms and padded to the door, closing it with a faint click.

  A little chill is better than listening to them prattle on about how my fiancé might turn into a monster and eat them all in their sleep.

  David looked at me and smiled. “It’s only natural for them to be scared. I’m scared.”

  “I know. But I’m not worried, David. You’re fine. You did your time in isolation. You aren’t showing any signs of the virus. You’re fine.”

  “Eva…” he let out a breath, jamming his hand through his hair. “You are stubborn.”

  I smiled. “That’s what you love about me.”

  “Yes,” he agreed. “That’s one of the many things I love about you.”

  We left early the next morning. Our supplies were running low. We followed the highway and scavenged through each neighborhood we came to. Some were already cleaned out, but we were able to find enough untouched by looters or the military to replenish our food, ammo and other supplies.

  We were also able to find vehicles. We’d look for school or church buses first. Then we’d look for cargo vehicles. Finally we’d look for pick-up trucks. If we were careful we could fit ten people per truck. It wasn’t a comfortable ride, but it beat walking, and it shaved a lot of miles off our trip.

  We made it through Oklahoma in three days. It was late when we crossed into Texas and the sun was making its descent behind the horizon.

  “If we veer off the highway a little we can hit Shamrock. Might get lucky and find some supplies. Surely find some houses to bunk in.” Roy scratched his belly and stretched.

  “Sounds good.” David looked around the group to get everyone’s consensus before turning toward Shamrock.

  “You know what this place makes me think of?” David asked.

  “McDonald’s shamrock shakes.” My mouth watered just thinking about them. I was trained like one of Pavlov’s dogs.

  “No, but now that you mention it, I wouldn’t mind one of those. Actually, I was thinking of Lucky Charms cereal.”

  “Hmm. Yeah.” I followed David up the porch steps of the house we were going to bunk in. David opened the front door, and Rebecca rushed out of the house.

  “I’m not staying here. I’ll sleep outside before I stay in this house, Juan. There’s no way you’re getting me to sleep in there!” Rebecca yelled over her shoulder as she ran down the porch steps and into the front yard, Juan following close behind.

  I went inside and found Judy glaring at Roy. “Hey. What’s up with Rebecca?”

  “First bedroom on the right.” Judy’s eyes never left her husband’s.

  “Okay.” I looked at David and he shrugged. We walked to the bedroom. It took my eyes and brain just a half-second to communicate what they saw—and they didn’t like it.

  “Oh, hell no!” I turned and plowed into David’s chest. “Move, David. I’m on Rebecca’s side. There’s no way I’m sleeping in this house!”

  “Eva, every house we’ve slept in has belong to someone who’s dead,” David said calmly.

  “Yeah, but I didn’t have to lie next to their rotting corpse when I slept! They’re dead. In bed. They’re dead in bed.”

  David bit his bottom lip to keep from laughing, but lost that war. He belted out a laugh. I glared. I found no humor in the situation. At. All.

  “You’re starting to sound like a Dr. Seuss book. You’re talking in rhymes.” David started laughing again. When he could contain himself enough to speak, he said, “We’ll sleep in another room. It’ll be fine.”

  “Ah, nope. You sleep with your new friends. I’m going to find the living and socialize with them.” I brushed past him and toward the front door. I walked by Judy and Roy who still glared at each other. “Give it up, Roy. You’ll never out glare Judy.” I chuckled and went outside in search of a new house.

  The further west we travelled the less we had to worry about the weather. It was warm enough we didn’t have to worry about ongoing freezing temperatures during the day. Although, the temperature dropped at night.

  We also worried less and less about the Infected. After the pack of coyotes that chased Devlin and David, we hadn’t seen another infected animal or human. We were starting to become cautiously optimistic that we’d outrun the group of Infected that were following us.

  “Where do you think they are?” I looked around at the flattened landscape of the Texas panhandle.

  “I think they are east where the food is. Either that, or the virus has run its course and they’ve died off,” David said, threading his fingers with mine.

  “I hope you’re right.”

  “Aren’t I always?” he grinned.

  “Sure, Einstein, keep telling yourself that. You’re bound to be right one of these days.” I bumped my hip into his and smiled.

  We’d made it to Amarillo, Texas. The city was eerily quiet. Paper and garbage blew through the empty streets. Buildings, once bustling with activity, were empty shells of glass and metal, the people that once filled them long dead.

  “It’s creepy.” I gripped David’s hand tighter.

  “Mm-hmm.”

  “What’s wrong?” I followed his gaze into one of the parking garages lining the overpass we were walking across.

  “I’m not sure. I just want to get out of the city. There are too many places for things to hide.”

  Gee, thanks. I just thought it was creepy. Now I think it’s creepy and scary.

  The streets were bare of cars, other than those sitting silent, long abandoned, and covered in a layer of fine sand and grit. Most had their windows broken out. Glass sparkled like mini diamonds when the light hit it on the pavement. The glitter rainbow’s beauty in direct contrast to the destruction around us.

  Some vehicles were stopped in the middle of the street blocking our path. While others were wrecked, still in the same spot the accident happened. I tried not to look at those. They were the worse, especially if one or both of the vehicles had burned, and the passengers were still inside. They weren’t images one wanted etched into their brains when they went to bed at night.

  We’d check any car or truck that looked like it might still be usable or have gas in, but a city that large had already been cleaned out by the military. We knew the likelihood of finding any supplies was almost zero, and the need to get out of the city outweighed the possibility of finding what little may still be left. It was too dangerous for us to wander through a city we knew nothing about and risk part of our group getting lost. So we kept moving.

  “What is that?” Judy put her hand over her eyes to shield them from the sun and squinted in to the distance.

  I followed her ga
ze and frowned. “I don’t know”

  She sighed and adjusted her pack. “Something else for us to go around. Fallen trees, crashed up cars, junk everywhere, and now whatever the hell that is up yonder. I just want to get outta here. It gives me the creeps. I feel like eyes are following everything I do.”

  Aw, geez, Judy. Don’t say that.

  A chill ran down my spine, like someone snaked their finger nail over my back. I shuddered. “I know. I want to get away from this place, too. I think we all do.”

  The closer we came to the mound in the road, the slower Judy walked. “I don’t like this, Eva.” She reached out and grabbed my hand. “I don’t like the look of that.”

  It was right after she said that I saw a woman in front of us lean to the side and vomit. Two more followed.

  “Yeah, that’s what I thought.” Judy nodded her head, and squeezed my hand like a vice.

  “What? What’s going on?” The people in front of me blocked my view.

  “Do yourself a favor, and don’t look at it. It’s a funeral pyre. They either burned some Infected here, or they burned some people they thought were sick. Either way, it's a stack of charred corpses.”

  “Why’d they burned them here? Doesn’t this seem like an odd place?” We were walking the loop around the city to get to the exchange we needed to take us into New Mexico. It wasn’t like we were at a hospital or even a funeral home. We were in the middle of a freakin’ highway!

  Judy shrugged a shoulder and blew out a breath. “It’s an odd world we live in. I guess it’s fittin’ things be done in an odd way.”

  For a group of sixty-one adults and children, we travelled quietly. Although, there was really no reason for us to be quiet. I think it was the general unease of being in such a large city alone, or maybe the stress of days spent trying to evade the Infected. Whichever it was, it made us move quickly and quietly.

  Occasionally, we’d hear the far off bark of a dog, or some other, unidentifiable sound, and our pace would quicken. By the time we left the city behind us, our nerves were frayed and we were all mentally and physically exhausted.

  “I think we should stop. It’s getting dark.” I rubbed my forehead.

  “What’s wrong?” David took my hand from my head and kissed the palm.

  “Nothing, I just have a headache. It was my first trip to Amarillo. I needed a souvenir.”

  He smiled before placing a gentle kiss on my forehead. I looked over David’s shoulder and my gaze locked with Devlin’s. He looked away quickly, his jaw clenched.

  Oh, Devlin. I’m so sorry.

  “Looks like a farm up ahead. I’ll go tell everyone we’re stopping,” David said.

  “Okay.” I watched David walk away and took a deep breath. “So… how’s it going?” Devlin looked over his shoulder at me.

  “I said I was happy for you, I didn’t say I liked it.”

  “Ouch.”

  He threw down a rope he was holding and put his hand on his hip, cursing. “I didn’t think seeing you together would be as hard as it is. I mean, you two were always like horny teenagers before. It didn’t bother me then. Why should it bother me now?”

  “I’m sorry. We’ll be more—”

  “Don’t,” he growled through clenched teeth. “I don’t want you changing the way you act because of me. I’ll work through it.”

  “I don’t want it to cause weirdness between us, Devlin, especially between you and David.”

  “It won’t. Besides, things are going to be weird between David and me for a while. I hope we can work through it, but…” Devlin rubbed the back of his neck and looked at the sky. He sucked in a deep breath. “Look, I screwed things up royally. I acted like an asshole, and he has every right to be pissed at me, I’m not making the same mistake twice and letting some girl come between us.”

  “You weren’t the only one who made mistakes. And no girl’s worth throwing away the friendship you and David had.”

  “This one is,” he whispered.

  My heart fluttered inside my chest and my cheeks heated. I floundered for something to say. “No, Devlin, I’m not.”

  “Who said it’s you?”

  I stared at him before I burst out laughing. Devlin grinned at me.

  “What’s so funny?” David asked, walking up beside me. He put his arm around my waist and pulled me around so I was walking with him, away from Devlin.

  “Nothing,” I said, still giggling. “We were just debating on how long it’d be before Roy found some rattlesnake for us to have for dinner.”

  David smiled. “Not long enough for Judy, I’m sure.”

  We walked another eleven days. Occasionally we were able to find vehicles to help shorten the long, arduous trip. Towns were becoming further and further apart. And when we did come across one, we were lucky if we found enough rations to feed everyone. A few cars or, even better, trucks with gas in them was a bonus.

  Sand and grime covered our faces as we walked. The desert conditions of the west Texas and Eastern New Mexico landscape was flat, sandy, and windy. It blew sand in our mouths and eyes, and when we breathed we inhaled it.

  The flat, brown terrain looked the same. Roads were numbered, but otherwise had no landmarks to guide us to the PODs—not that we knew what to look for. The last time we found the PODs, it was by accident. We’d just happened to see the army tents in the distance. So once we passed Portales—the closest city I could remember to the PODs—we really started scouring the landscape for them.

  But two days after we’d passed Portales, we still hadn’t found them. The longer we walked the tighter my chest became, and a prayer that we’d see the tents soon played over and over in my mind.

  What if we’ve missed them… what if they’re gone like the patient told Devlin? We’ve went through everything for nothing.

  “I don’t see them anywhere,” David murmured. I squeezed his hand in answer. “It seems like we’ve went far enough that we should have seen something by now.”

  I’ve brought these people on a wild goose chase. I’ve given them false hope. I’m no better than Area-One.

  Devlin walked up beside me. I looked up at him and he smiled at me. “You were right,” I said around a huge lump in my throat. I swallowed back tears.

  “Nah, we just haven’t been looking in the right spot. We had to walk down a side road to get to the PODs last time, remember? Maybe we should walk down this road a little way and then walk parallel to the main road and see what we find.” Devlin motioned to a road we were approaching. It was more a wide trail, than a road. It had just enough space for people to get from one farm to another, or from their farmstead to town.

  “Can’t hurt,” David agreed, and turned down the county road.

  I laid my hand on Devlin’s arm and squeezed lightly. “Thanks.”

  “Don’t thank me. I want to get there and take a damn shower.”

  I laughed. “You need one.”

  “Yeah, well, I hate to tell you this, princess, but you need one, too.” Devlin chuckled.

  We walked all day. There was no road or path to follow. We walked over farm land in some areas and over harsh desert ground where the land was rocky, uneven, and difficult to maneuver over.

  We’d stopped at an old farmhouse for a break that afternoon. We were taking turns filling our canteens at an old hand well-pump, and washing our hands and faces before lunch. I was splashing the cool water on my face when a shot rang out. I jumped, a small scream escaping my lips.

  David laughed behind me.

  “What the heck!” I yelled looking around to see what had happened. I saw Roy laughing, holding up some kind of animal.

  “Roy caught dinner,” David said, still laughing.

  “Great. I’m not even gonna ask. I’m sure I don’t want to know what I’ll be eating tonight.”

  “Probably not.”

  After lunch, we continued walking. We crossed another county road without finding the PODs, and decided to stop for the night. Judy coo
ked Roy’s mystery meat for dinner. That woman could make shoe leather taste like a gourmet meal.

  I set up my tent next to David’s. Jessica was on the other side of me, Devlin on the other side of her.

  I held David’s hand out the opening of my tent until I fell asleep. I slept until I felt something cold and wet against my skin. I held my breath, and forced myself to be still. I listened for David over the blood rushing behind my ears. I could tell by his breathing he was awake.

  “Let go and roll toward me quickly,” Devlin whispered.

  I let go of David’s hand and rolled to the right. David jerked the animal forward. Devlin sat up and fired. The animal went down, blood pouring out a wound in its side.

  David jumped out of his tent, grabbing his gun as he did. “Is it infected?”

  “Yes.” Devlin toed the animal’s face. It had pus oozing from its eyes and its body was beginning to bloat.

  “Why didn’t it attack? It was there, smelling our hands.” I rubbed my hands up and down my arms.

  Roy rubbed his eye with the side of his hand. “This coyote’s gums aren’t blue. The sickness hasn’t completely taken over yet. It probably wasn’t exactly sure what to do. Problem is, where there’s one—”

  “There’s more,” Devlin finished.

  We were up and moving at dawn, still walking parallel to the main road. I was becoming more and more convinced our trip was for nothing. The land was flat. We could see forever, it seemed. I saw a lot of brown rock and dirt, the occasional tumbleweed or two, but I didn’t see the hundreds of green army tents.

  It was late that morning when something caught Jessica’s eye. She walked next to me, keeping me informed of the entire group’s gossip, when she abruptly stopped talking.

  “What’s wrong?” I didn’t particularly want her to continue yammering about the boy in the green hoodie that she had a crush on, but the way she stopped talking so suddenly put me on alert, and I immediately scanned the group, searching for David.