by Gouge, W. B.
David sighed, “Thank you…”
He looked around the room. Someone had wiped up the floor with a towel and left the bloody rag by the sink. The flowers were pushed up against the wall by the refrigerator, a grim reminder of better times not long ago. He didn’t know what to say to her. David hadn’t yet come to terms with what had happened but he had felt just fine a second ago, but her words were so sincere, so comforting that he immediately broke down. His eyes teared up, he swallowed hard trying his best not to cry while he looked back down at his glass. She got up and sat down next to him, then she put her arms around him and squeezed him tightly. And just like that he immediately felt better, his tense shoulders relaxed and he breathed deeply. He hadn’t been this close to anyone in a long time, not since his short lived relationship at school. Even that had not been like this, this was so much better, it was real. He put his arms around her too and squeezed her tightly. They both held onto each other for what felt like a long time, David forgot for a moment the reason he had been crying when then they heard footsteps in the hallway. They let go of each other quickly, but it was too late. Owen walked into the kitchen, “Oh hey love birds,” he started as they pulled apart, “Don’t mind me.”
They both were uncomfortable but kept quiet. David sniffled and whipped his eyes as Owen sat at the table and smiled as big as he could at both of them. “So… When is the wedding?”
“Shut up Owen!” Liz snapped.
“I’m just kidding, stop being a baby.” Owen replied.
Owen sighed and looked at the clock on the wall, it was ten-thirty. “Well, I guess we’re all staying here tonight.”
David hadn’t really thought about it, but they had several people and not a lot of room in the small farmhouse. It had been quiet after the attacker earlier and David hoped they wouldn’t again. They could all do with some rest he thought, “Sarah and Liz can crash in my room. We have the couch and the loveseat, and there is a spare room upstairs as well.” David said.
Sarah had walked in just as David finished talking, “I’m going to check on Edna in a second, let me just get some water.”
Sarah walked over to the sink and grabbed a cup. She leaned over the sink and filled the cup with water, Owen looked her up and down before turning to David with his eyes wide open. He opened his mouth let his tongue hang out as if he were panting. Sarah was pretty. She had sandy blonde hair she wore up in a bun, and had kind, pretty brown eyes. David shook his head at Owen, Liz groaned and stood from the table, “I’m going to go lay down if that’s okay?”
David rose as well, “Yeah, actually let me show you guys your room.”
David led the girls toward the stairs making sure to ignore whatever ridiculous hand signals Owen was making behind Sarah’s back. Upstairs David led the girls into his room and hurried to tidy it up as they walked in. “Sorry for the mess,” he said, “I just got here yesterday.”
David was embarrassed, but it didn’t seem to bother the girls. He pointed out that the bathroom was downstairs and showed the girls the hallway closet where the linens were. Sarah thanked him and then headed down to Edna’s room to check on her. David stood in the doorway of the room, Liz sat on the edge of the bed. They stared at each other for a second, David thought she looked like she wanted to say something so he waited to see what it could be. That’s when he noticed his bag sitting next to the bed. He hurried over and snatched it up and was relieved to see that the cold medicine was still there. “Is everything okay David?” Liz asked.
David didn’t answer. He stood there holding the bag in his hands and refused to make eye contact with Liz. He turned to walk out when he noticed the gun case behind the door. He grabbed the old case and placed it on the bed next to Liz. Then he opened it revealing a well-maintained rifle. It had been so long since he had seen it that he completely forgot about it. He picked it up, “This was my uncles rifle I think.”
The polished wood stock was well kept and the black metal of the gun shined in the light. It was surprisingly heavy in his hands. He took out the five round magazine and was disappointed to find it empty. He opened some of the drawers in the dresser to find towels and sheets. When he opened the bottom drawer he found a small cardboard box that had something jingling inside when he picked it up. He opened the box to find eight bullets for the gun. He loaded the magazine and slid it into the bottom of the gun with a metallic snap. David he gone shooting with hi grandpa several times when he was younger and he had become pretty good with the rifle. It made him feel a lot better to have the old rifle back in his hands again.
As they stared at the gun He and Liz were startled when Sarah yelled for David from downstairs. They both hurried to her side in Edna’s room. David’s heart sank when he saw her, his grandmother was sweaty and very pale. Sarah held her wrist and stared at her counted anxiously. Seconds ticked by as David and Liz watched helplessly. “Well? What is it?” David demanded.
“Shhh… her pulse is slow.” Sarah whispered, “And her fever is worse, much worse.”
David didn’t want to lose his grandmother too. His mind raced as he waited for Sarah to tell him anything useful.
“I can’t be sure without doing blood work, but it looks like an infection to me.” Sarah said.
Sarah instructed Liz to get some cold towels and Liz hurried to the bathroom. David waited until she was gone before asking more questions, “Well, what do we do to treat an infection?”
Sarah tilted her head to one side, “If it’s a viral infection, then nothing. We just have to wait until it runs its course. If it’s a bacterial infection, we use antibiotics.”
David didn’t say anything, instead he hoped that it was neither type of infection. He stared at Sarah as if there was more to say and he was waiting to hear it.
“What? That’s it? Will they fix this?” David sounded confused.
“It should, if this is an infection.” Sarah replied.
“How sure are you that this is an infection at all?” asked David.
“I’m not, but that what makes the most sense. She recently had a sudden onset of fever and fatigue which is typical of bacterial infection. I’ve never seen an infection progress this fast though. We want to be sure to wipe it out the first time, so we’ll want to give her some powerful antibiotics.” Sarah explained.
“We don’t have any…” David started when Liz hurried back with the towels.
Sarah took them and placed them on Edna’s forehead, neck and chest. “We have plenty at the pharmacy in town.” Liz added.
“Yes! You should have Cipro there, that should do the trick.” Sarah sounded determined.
“Well then we have to go and get it then.” David sighed.
David hurried to the living room with the rifle in hand and Liz following close behind. Greg and Owen were watching the TV when David entered the room and stood in front of it. “My grandma has a bad fever, it’s probably an infection and I have to go into town to get medicine. Can you two keep an eye on things here until I get back?” David’s voice cracked when he mentioned Edna, but he was able to pull himself together to finish his statement.
“I don’t know if that’s…” Greg started.
“What? Then I’m going with you!” Owen interrupted as he stood from the couch.
“I can drive.’ Liz said cheerfully.
David was surprised and happy, it felt better to have friends like them, and as much as he wanted them to come with him he knew he couldn’t ask them to go. After everything they had seen today it was way too dangerous. David knew that he couldn’t put them in harm’s way for the sake of his grandmother, this was his responsibility and his alone.
Greg stood up determined not to let Owen cut him off mid-sentence again, “Look, you all can’t go runnin’ around out there tryin’ to find medicine at a time like this. We’ve already seen what’s out there, and judging by what’s going on in the rest of the country, we can only assume that there are a lot more people like that running loose.”
&nb
sp; Greg looked each one of them in the eye at a time and each one of them looked at the floor as his gaze met theirs. They knew he was right, they couldn’t even look him in the eye, let alone deal with any of those crazy people on their own. David stood for a moment waiting for someone to object, but nobody did. Finally David spoke up, “I’m not asking your permission Greg. I appreciate your help earlier but this is my house right now and I make the rules here. Now if you want to stay here and keep an eye on things I would appreciate it, but I’m going to get medicine for my grandma no matter what…”
David stood still and stared Greg in the eye. He didn’t waiver, he didn’t look away. Greg looked back a David for a moment, then his expression changed slightly. “If I can’t talk you out of it, at least let me go with you. Something tells me you’re going to need my help.” Greg said.
David was caught off guard by the compassion in Greg’s voice. He thought he had a good read on him but now he wasn’t so sure. There was something there, something he hadn’t seen before and whatever it was, it made David feel much better about Greg tagging along. David turned to Owen who was chomping at the bit to protest, “Owen I need your help…” David explained.
“Yeah, sure man, anything.”
“Stay here, and keep my grandma safe until I get back. Don’t let anyone in and keep the girls safe. Okay?”
Owen looked disappointed, but he couldn’t turn David down. “You’ll need a ride.” Owen said, “Take my truck.”
David nodded and smiled as Owen started to explain, “If it starts to overheat cut the engine off and coast for a bit. Oh, and if the engine starts knocking just take your foot off the gas for a few seconds. And, keep an eye out for the check engine light. If it comes on you’ll only have a few seconds until the engine explodes!” Owen said.
David and Greg stood looking confused, they wondered if there could possibly be anything else they needed to know before climbing into that rusty old death trap when Owen cracked up and said, “Just kidding, it should be fine.”
At first David couldn’t believe anyone would make a joke at a time like this, but then he remembered it was Owen and he let it go. Greg however didn’t look at all amused. “Look man, we can’t be out there messing around with some piece of crap vehicle now is that truck gonna make it or not?” Greg demanded.
“It will get you there and back, chill out.” Owen brushed the question off.
David remembered his bag suddenly and hurried upstairs to his room. He came back downstairs with it slung over his shoulder, put the three additional bullets in his pocket and asked Greg how many bullets he had.
“Fifteen, and the revolver only holds six at a time.” Greg replied.
“I got eight for this, and it holds five.” David explained.
David and Greg slid the couch away from the door, Greg cracked the door open and scanned left to right. “It looks clear, let’s get going.” Greg whispered.
Liz spoke up one more time as they headed out, “I can drive if you want?”
David didn’t answer. Instead he smiled at Liz and slung the rifle over his shoulder. “If you want to help me, please make sure that Sarah has everything she needs for my grandma. And keep an eye on your brother. I’ll be back with the medicine as soon as I can.”
Liz nodded and smiled, “Be safe David.”
Seven
It was dark as hell outside. The single blue light on the barn down by the road seemed forever away and did nothing to banish the darkness of the front yard. It made David feel like a kid again, terrified of the dark, only now he knew there were real monsters in the world. Broken glass from the window crunched under his feet as he squinted into the darkness, his vision slowly adjusted to the night. The pile of bodies still lay under the old tree and Owen’s pickup truck sat in the driveway, otherwise the yard was empty and quiet. The night air had cooled a bit since he had last been outside. The breeze picked up, threatening to bring a late summer rain. The pair hurried to the truck feeling exposed on all sides, Greg climbed into the passenger seat with his pistol in hand and David stood the rifle up in the floor board before he climbed into the driver’s seat. David pushed the plyers forward and the old engine roared to life. “What the hell?” Greg asked staring at the makeshift starter.
“It’s a security system.” David explained as he backed the truck up, turned around and headed for the road.
David slowed down as they passed by the body of the old man in the driveway. He looked out his window at the mauled corpse, the sight made the hair on his neck stand up. His throat and face had been shredded with tacky pieces of flesh hanging from the edges of the wounds. His arms were lifeless and sprawled out as if he had fought to the last moment. Each limb was covered in bite marks, just like the people that had killed him. David shuddered, “Why did they do that to him?”
The darkness suddenly felt as if were closing in around the truck and David did not feel safe in the tiny cabin despite the two firearms. He swallowed a knot in his throat and pressed the gas pedal a little harder, the sooner they got the medicine and were back in the house the better he would feel. Out on the road the headlights revealed only a few feet in front of them and the tall corn stalks on each side of the road as they whipped past. David kept his speed low and his eyes on the road. The last thing they needed was to get into an accident on this dark road and end up walking to town through miles of pitch-black corn fields. David focused on driving and as the minutes passed but the silence grew uncomfortable. David began to wonder about Greg, “So how did you end up at our place?” David asked.
“My car broke down. I walked for a while, until I saw your house.” Greg looked forward when he spoke, and didn’t elaborate, instead he kept a sharp eye in front of the truck.
“Where are you from?” David asked.
“St. Louis.”
David nodded and kept his eyes on the road, “Ok… Where were you headed?”
“Pittsburgh. My ex-wife lives there.” Greg’s voice was lower now.
David looked over at him, then back at the road. Greg obviously didn’t want to talk about it, whatever it was. David decided to just leave it alone. But for some reason Greg continued, “She’s the only person left that I was ever close to.”
David kept quiet and watched the road as Greg spoke. “Our daughter died twenty years ago in a drunk driving accident. After that we just stopped talking, and then stopped caring. We split up, went our separate ways. I’ve always been a loner, never made many friends. When all this shit started going down all I could think about was getting back to her. Making sure she was okay, but I hadn’t talked to her for fifteen years and I have no idea where she might be.”
David was surprised what came out when Greg let his guard down. He couldn’t have imagined that much time passing without seeing someone he cared for. And he was only twenty years old, twenty years seemed like a lifetime. After a long pause Greg continued, “After my car broke down I came to my senses about it. How would I even find her, I didn’t know what to do. So I just started walking.” His voice cracked a little, after that he turned to stare out the window.
David didn’t say anything for a while. He felt sorry for Greg, it must have been hard to be so alone for so long. David had only been away at school on his own for a year and had messed everything up so bad he had to come home with his tail between his legs. But at least he had a place to come home to, and people who cared for him.
Up ahead on the road they saw blinking yellow lights. David slowed down and squinted to try to see better. There was a car on the side of the road parked halfway in the corn field. David began to feel uneasy about the situation, as they passed by he could see that the driver door was open and the lights were still on. David slowed down and stopped in the road while he and Greg peered through the window. A bloody smear could be seen beginning at the driver side door along the car ending at the tail light, the license plate was from Chicago. “We better go on, nothing good happened here.” Greg said.
Dav
id suddenly wasn’t sure what they would find in town. The situation going on in major cities couldn’t be going on here in this quiet town. But then again, it had made its way to his grandparent’s house, why couldn’t it be here too? David wasn’t sure what was going on exactly, but he was sure that nothing like this had ever happened before. He wondered how long it would be until the government would be able to put things back the way they had been before? As he finished that thought he realized that things could never go back to the way they were before. Too much had happened already. His grandfather was dead, how many other families had lost someone? How many grandfathers, mothers, brothers and sisters had been lost to this?
David had been quiet since they had passed the abandoned car, in the distance David could barely make out an orange glow. A reflective road sign began to appear up ahead on the road. “Now Entering Dry Creek,” David said sarcastically.
The houses on the edge of town were dark, and it was very quiet. The knot that had been growing in David’s stomach grew even larger as they drove past the houses. He tried to convince himself that it was late, and everyone must be in bed by now, but the signs were all around them that told him things were not going to be alright. First, they passed a pair of cars that had apparently smashed into one another in the road, no one was around, no police, no ambulance, no people at all. Then a little way down the road they passed another body in the street, this time David didn’t slow down but he could see enough to know that this person had been torn to pieces too, just like the old man in his driveway.
As they pulled up to the first stop sign by the old lumber company, David saw the back end of a bus like the one he had been on yesterday. It was turned over on its side, the under workings of the vehicle hidden partially be the corner of an old warehouse. David slowly pulled up to the stop sign, they both scanned the street for movement. “Where is everybody?” David whispered.