She fell in step with him as he continued to stumble down the road, but he didn’t look at her. She took a deep breath.
“You know, I’ve been thinking...about what happened.”
“Have you?” Jake muttered. “Okay.”
Megan tried not to be offended by the fact he was dismissing her once again. She was getting used to it now, for better or for worse. “Well...it looks like someone took the time to lay us down in that truck bed. So someone must have cared enough to do that, right? Maybe we were in an accident and whoever else was involved felt guilty and tried to help us out. What do you think?”
“I think it doesn’t make any damn sense,” Jake replied gruffly. “Just stop trying to solve a mystery that we can’t solve. We’ll never get those memories back if we don’t have them by now.”
“But-”
“It’s not a possibility,” Jake snapped. Megan had no idea what she’d done to make him so irritable, but she was getting sick of his attitude. All she was doing was trying to help. She’d followed him blindly along the road because she trusted him, but now her faith in him was dwindling considerably. If she couldn’t rely on him then maybe she should turn back...they’d been walking in a pretty straight path down the road. She thought she could make it back to the truck on her own. Maybe someone would come back for her....
But Jake would never go with her. She knew that as a fact. And even though he was maddening, cranky, rude and aggressive in this state, she knew that Jake wasn’t always that way. She would never forgive herself if she left him behind. He would surely die on the road alone, and he’d most likely never find Aby anyway. As far as Megan was concerned, she was gone. But she didn’t want Jake to think that. The second he started to believe Aby was gone for good, he’d give up and Megan wouldn’t be able to pull him back out of the spiral he was in. She took a deep breath and fixed a smile on her face. Being able to smile when she was angry or upset was a skill she’d learned over years of her abusive relationship.
“I’m sure that Aby is okay, you know,” Megan said gently. “And she can look after herself...I’m sure she will find us. Just...maybe we should slow down a little. Stop, even.”
“We keep going until we find her,” Jake growled, still not looking Megan in the eye. In the moonlight, his eyes seemed bloodshot and feral. Megan shook her head to herself. How had it come to this?
She couldn’t believe how quickly they’d all come undone. Since they arrived at Dent only a day before, everything seemed like it was falling apart. Jake had been so confident going in, having escaped the police and numerous fights. But when they were attacked by the city folk and the prisoners from the local jail, everything fell apart. Jake’s confidence was quickly chipped away until there was nothing left. He almost died in a car fire and he didn’t even seem to care. It baffled Megan. She’s spent the whole time she’d been with Jake and Aby feeling like a liability, letting her emotions get the better of her and being judged for it. But she was the one who hadn’t lost her mind. She was scared and she had no idea what the future held for her, but she wasn’t letting it stop her from moving forward. If anything, Megan felt like she was getting stronger while everyone else was quickly crumbling to pieces. She glanced at Jake and his wild eyes.
Who is the weak one now? She thought.
She regretted the bitter thought immediately, and it played on her mind as they continued walking. She’d never been a bitter person before, and yet the new world was making monsters of them all. She let guilt wash over her for the rest of the walk, telling herself she deserved the aching in her body as night turned to day and they still hadn’t stopped walking. She kept hesitating from asking Jake to stop. She was worried that anything she might say would set him into a fit of anger. She knew from experience how to tread carefully around angry men.
Jake eventually stopped in his tracks and Megan glanced up from the ground to see what he’d spotted. They had reached a gas station. Megan knew the gas station itself was useless now, but she hoped that maybe the store inside might be of use. She tugged on Jake’s sleeve like a child about to ask their father for sweets.
“We should go in...see what there is for us to eat inside.”
Jake didn’t say anything, but he headed toward the door silently. Megan scurried after him, glancing nervously around them. She was worried that they might run into someone along their way, and she knew from experience that strangers never turned out to be friends anymore. Well, that wasn’t entirely true. She remembered their friends from Dent, the ones who took them to safety while they were on the run. Sarky Abigail, sweet as sugar John, strong-willed Perry. They had been the good kind of strangers...and over the time that Megan spent with them, she felt like she’d known them a lifetime. Time was strange those days. It felt like every day lasted for years. And when they all died trying to protect their town, Megan felt their loss like a stab to the heart.
She swallowed back tears as she and Jake silently walked around the store. She had to keep herself together. Now more than ever since Jake was incapable of leading them.
The shelves they passed were depressingly empty. The stockroom was, too. Megan was tired and hungry, but she didn’t complain. She didn’t want Jake to see how dire their situation was. If they didn’t find water and food, how would they survive?
“I guess someone else got here first,” Megan said with a sigh. “Why don’t we take a rest now and start afresh in a few hours? I’m sure we’ll come across somewhere similar soon enough…”
Jake opened his mouth and Megan prepared to receive an angry rant from him, but he stopped before he said anything. Then he just nodded and stalked out of the store again. Megan followed him around the back of the gas station to the clump of trees behind it. Wordlessly, Jake nestled himself in the roots of a tree and closed his eyes, wrapping his arms around himself. Megan sighed. She couldn’t believe how he was acting. He was like a spoiled child. He was completely different to how he’d been even a few days before. Megan sat down beside him and rested her weary head against the tree. She just wanted to shut off for a few hours and not think about anything. It had been days since she’d had a decent sleep. She felt her weariness pulling her under and she didn’t even have time to worry about what would happen if they were found as they slept. She just let her exhaustion take over…
When she woke again, the sun was beating down on her face, and Jake was staring at something in the distance. She sensed that something was wrong right away.
“Jake? What is it?”
He didn’t reply. He was getting good at tuning her out completely, like she wasn't even there. She grabbed his shoulder and shook it, irritated and afraid.
“What is it?”
He got up and began to walk off. That was when she saw the car parked outside the gas station. It was beside one of the gas terminals, as though hoping that the pumps would still work. Megan frowned and stumbled her feet. Why was Jake trying to interfere with the stranger?
She ran after him and found him facing off with an older man. He was probably in his early fifties, a little fat and round faced. He looked terrified of Jake with his heavy breathing and his crazed eyes.
“Tell me what you know!” Jake snarled. The man shook his head desperately.
“Please...I’m just here to try and get gas. I don’t know anything.”
“Tell me where she is!” Jake cried out, his hands balled into fists. The man shook his head.
“I’m sorry...I don’t know where your fiance is! I haven't seen anyone in nearly a whole day, I swear…”
Jake slammed his fist into the man’s nose and Megan cried out in horror. She was getting used to seeing senseless violence, but not from her friends. Not from Jake. The man clutched his nose with a whimper while Jake attempted to advance on him once again.
“Don’t hit me, please! I don’t know anything about her...but i know a place nearby. A lake. I know there’s a makeshift hospital there...injured people are being found along the road and bein
g taken there. Please, please don’t hit me again…”
Jake finally backed off, wiping blood from his knuckle onto his shirt. He stalked toward Megan, but passed her by without trying to get her to follow. Megan shot the man a fleeting glance, praying he’d be okay, praying that he understood how sorry she was for him to be bullied by Jake. Then she ran after Jake and grabbed his shoulder, forcing him to slow down .
“You can’t do that!” Megan insisted urgently. “You can’t just attack innocent people! We’re not like that...we’re some of the good ones!”
Jake’s eyes were filled with a familiar heat that Megan knew all too well. It was the look that men wore after the thrill of a fight. It was the pleasure of coming out on top, of feeling invincible. She’d been on the receiving end of that look too many times, but never did she expect Jake to look that way at anyone. It was like looking into the eyes of a stranger.
“Are you on my side or not? Do you even want to find Aby?”
“Of course I do!”
“Then make your choice fast, Megan. You’re either with me or you’re against me. And I’m not stopping until I find Aby. I’ll do whatever it takes.” His eyes were full of malice. “You’re either with me or against me.”
Five
Aby
The scream that filled the air as Aby’s body connected with someone else’s was deafening. She immediately recoiled, unable to tell if the scream was coming from her own mouth, or from the woman in the bed. Maybe it was both of them. Aby stared at the woman sitting up in the bed. She was at least twenty years older than Aby, possibly in her early fifties. The woman’s shock seemed to subside quickly and the pair of them stared at one another in confusion.
“What are you doing in my house?” the woman asked shakily after some time. Aby swallowed.
“I...I thought no one was here. I...I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to break in...the door was ajar.”
The woman sat up straighter. Aby gasped as she saw how thin she was. It was like she’d been wasting away, her prominent bones pressing against her paper thin skin. Maybe Aby had found her at just the right time. If she hadn’t, she might simply have wasted away.
“I left the door open?” the woman asked, blinking several times. She brought a hand to her forehead like she was feeling for her own temperature. “I don’t know how long I’ve been out…”
“Do you...do you want me to leave?” Aby asked. She prayed that the answer was no. As much as she didn’t want to stay with this strange woman that she’d only just met, she also didn’t want to go back out into the wilderness. She’d surely die if she did. The woman observed her carefully, clearly trying to gauge whether she was safe with Aby. She made a small noise with her mouth which sounded disapproving, but as she swung her legs out of the bed to stand up, she didn’t seem in any rush, and the fear in her eyes was gone.
“You don’t need to go,” she said, sliding her slippers on from beside her bed. The room smelt stale and Aby tried not to wrinkle her nose at the woman, who was clearly not particularly hygienic in that precise moment. “You might even have saved me, young lady...I haven’t been out of bed in some time...I fear maybe I was slipping away. But I’m awake now. I’m not giving up so soon.”
Aby wanted to ask what had happened to the woman. It hadn’t been that long since the EMP began. She didn’t think it was long enough for anyone to get so skinny, to become so ill, to starve to death. Even Aby, who hadn’t eaten in some time, knew that she’d be okay as long as she had water. But the frail woman seemed to have slept through the whole thing. Still, maybe Aby could help her and get some help in return. They just needed to be able to trust one another.
The woman seemed like she was pretty trusting as she hobbled toward Aby and outstretched her hand for her to shake.
“I’m Peaches.”
“Peaches?” Aby asked, taking her hand gently. She was almost afraid of hurting her if she gripped too hard. Peaches frowned.
“It’s a nickname. There’s no need for you to know more about me. What’s your name, girl?”
“I’m...I’m Aby. I want to apologize again...I didn’t realize there was anyone here…”
Peaches waved the comment off. “It doesn’t matter. I’m used to people coming and going as they please. Just like my good for nothing husband.”
“He’s gone?” Aby asked carefully. Peaches sniffed, looking bitter.
“The second the power went out, he was out. He said he was finally given some kind of release...a way out of the life we were living together. He had a job he hated, a house he loathed...and a wife he couldn’t stand, from what I gather now. I only wish he’d told me that thirty years ago so I didn’t have to waste my time on a bore like him,” Peaches said bitterly. Aby sensed that maybe Peaches was hard work to be with, but she made a sympathetic noise to appease her. Fortunately, Peaches seemed pleased with the response.
“I didn’t know what the point of carrying was,” Peaches said, her face falling a little. “I took to my bed...I thought I might as well just die. What’s left for us on this Earth, Aby? I had no one and nothing...I’ve always had someone to care for me before and I don’t know how to do this thing alone. So I figured I’d just let death slowly take me. I wouldn’t drink anything or eat either. A coward’s suicide, I suppose.”
“Peaches...that’s awful. I’m sorry you felt that way,” Aby said honestly. She felt that even if Peaches was a bit of a nightmare, she didn’t deserve to feel so low that she wanted to die. “Well, I’m here now...maybe we can help one another.”
Peaches let out a dramatic sigh. “Well, I don’t have anything else to be doing....whatever you need, dear, I suppose I can help.”
“Well, first thing’s first, let’s get some food down you.”
“Oh, I don’t know...I’m not hungry,” Peaches said. Aby raised an eyebrow at the older woman to let her know that she saw through her. Peaches analyzed the look and then sighed, shrugging.
“Alright, I suppose some food wouldn't be so bad…”
They both went out to the kitchen and Aby prepared them each a slightly mouldy sandwich. The bread was so stale that it had a crunch to it and they had to pick lumps of mould from it, but it was otherwise okay. Aby forced herself to eat it and then watched Peaches eat every bite of her own sandwich. The truth was, she needed Peaches. Going it alone was hard. She needed someone with her to stop her going insane.
“Is this your home, then?” ABy asked, looking around her as Peaches finished her sandwich. Peaches shook her head.
“Holiday home. We come here to try and get some peace and quiet...look how that turned out,” Peaches snorted. “And we’re miles from anywhere useful. There aren’t many towns around here...and there are practically no houses in the area. I think it’s safer out here….but getting food somewhere like here was a task even when we had a car. That’s why it seemed so easy to give up….it would take maybe a full day of walking to find a store.”
Aby felt very lucky at that moment for finding the house when she did. Taking a sip of water, she wiped at her mouth.
“People will come for us eventually…”Peaches said darkly. “A house like this, out in the woods...it’s a safe haven. Somewhere people would be willing to fight and die for. I thought when you found me that it was over...I thought someone would end it all for me quicker. I’d rather die than have anyone find me...they might do horrible things to me...maybe they’d even feast on my body to stay alive…”
Aby winced at the horrible thought. She could see that Peaches was both dramatic and dark minded. She watched in horror as Peaches reached for a knife across the counter, staring at it lovingly as though it was her saviour.
“It would be easier to end things, don’t you think?” Peaches sighed dreamily. Aby leaned over and snatched the knife from her grasp.
“No, I don’t think that at all,” Aby said bluntly. “Give me one momnet…”
Unable to breathe, she took outside and took in large lungfuls of air. Of course th
e one ally she had found was on the edge of madness. She wanted to help Peaches, but she seemed like she was on a pretty dark warpath, trying to destroy herself along the way. Aby feared what would happen if she took her eyes off Peaches for even a moment. Would she try and hurt herself, or even Aby? She had been close to her own death and that was hard to forget in a hurry.
But the alternative was to go back out on her own again. How was she meant to find Jake and Megan if she was starving to death, or being hunted by those men in the forest? The house was the safest place she could be. Maybe she’d even find some things of use elsewhere in the house, like weapons. Aby turned the knife over in her hand. It was more of a weapon than she had out in the woods.
Aby took a deep breath and prepared herself to go back inside. When she entered the room, Peaches smiled up at her.
“Well...if you insist on keeping me alive, then I guess we’d better prepare.”
“Prepare for what?” Aby asked. Peaches’ eyes glittered with something between madness and glee.
“Everything.”
Six
Jake
Jake couldn’t stop the anger that seemed to surge through his veins permanently now. He hated himself for becoming this way. As Megan trailed behind him, clearly keeping her distance from him, he sighed to himself. He’d never spoken to her as harshly as he had earlier that day. He knew he was lucky she was still sticking with him, trying to keep him in check. His fight with the older man could easily have got worse if she hadn’t interfered.
He knew even at the time that it was happening that what he was doing was wrong. He’d never tried to start a fight with an innocent person before. Sure, he didn’t know the guy. He might’ve been a brute, willing to take down Jake if he’d been given the chance. But something told Jake that he was a decent man and he’d had no real need to hurt him. Something overtook him...thinking he had some possibility of finding Aby had turned him wild. It was becoming very obvious to him at this point that he’d do anything to find her, even if it went against his own moral compass.
The End of the World Series | Book 3 | Survive The Destruction Page 3