By the time the hurricane, now broken and weakened, made it far enough inland to hit San Antonio, the entire gulf coast population of Texas was dead.
Still, infrastructure was affected throughout the eastern half of the state. Roads and bridges collapsed or were washed away. Mudslides pushed houses off foundations. In the city of San Antonio, the Tower of the Americas teetered in the gusts of wind now exceeding 100 miles per hour. The needle-shaped beacon was an icon downtown and was located across the highway to the west of the Alamodome. A gas explosion from the rotating restaurant on top of the tower caused structural damage the previous winter. Now, the hurricane’s remnants were strong enough to widen the cracks down the long vertical shaft of the monolith building. Concrete and steel supports crumbled under the storm’s wrath. One final gust pushed the Tower’s foundation beyond its breaking point, and the Tower of the America’s 579-foot height came crashing to the ground. It fell westward, toward the Alamodome where Jesse and his group thought the Neighbors were headquartered. Through the rain and wind, the sound of the crash was heard for miles.
The Burned Woman and Reverend Green were sitting in her chamber as the ground shook in the earthquake caused by the collapse. The restaurant smashed down into the elevated highway that cut through downtown and a cloud of dust and debris clouded the air briefly before the driving rain drove it into the broken freeway.
Thousands of figures, hungry and driven by instinct to feed, experienced the thunder of the icon’s collapse. Unaffected by the intensity of the rain and wind, they individually began to coalesce downtown. Little by little, this group grew into an overwhelming horde of the dead.
When Hal Kahn had peered into the unnaturally yellow dusk, just prior to the rain’s beginning, he was seeing the bringer of death for thousands and the most devastating natural disaster in American history.
Chapter 26
- Resident
Resident
The level of shock and panic when the child darted out of the hallway and into Daisy’s unsuspecting arms was astronomical. It seemed everybody was shouting at the same time as the tiny human, no more than preschool age, held the blonde researcher around her waist and would not let go.
A few in the group had small flashlights and clicked them on, casting flitting shadows on the walls of the rooms they occupied. Kahn tried to pry the child away but she just kept screaming as Daisy stood dazed by the circumstances. Finally, Kahn wrapped his arms around the kid, a little boy with unkempt hair and dirty clothes, and tried to use force to pull him away. Kahn felt the tiny ribcage and the ropy muscles of the boy’s arms and thought of his son, Daniel, who would never grow to this age. It was a depressing and sobering thought, and he yanked the kid hard to separate him from Daisy. The lights shone on him as he wiggled and yelled, “mommy, mommy,” over and over again, trying to escape and reach Daisy again. They tried to quiet the kid down, but finally Daisy had to just take him in her arms. He immediately calmed down and laid his head on her shoulder.
“That was intense, man,” Lars said, shining his light on the kid’s shaggy blonde hair. “How’d a kid get here?” Kahn shrugged in reply and reached over to take the mechanic’s bright flashlight. He quickly shined it down the hall, seeing a few open doors but nothing else besides the same untidy mess as the rest of the house.
“I think,” he croaked. “I think he lives here. Hey kid, what’s your name? Is anyone else here?” He shook the kid’s shoulder and the boy just dug his face further into Daisy’s arm. “He can’t be older than five. Maybe four?” Instantly, the group knew this small child couldn’t possibly be alone. Kahn shone his light down the hall
Daisy bobbed him around and took a few steps down the hallway to look for where he had been staying. Kahn followed behind reluctantly with the light. Behind him was the stunned group of Jesse, Ice, and Deb watching their trek closely. Daisy passed a bathroom on the left, a small office to the right, then a linen closet. The last two doors were opposite each other on the corners of the hall. They could see the one directly at the end of the corridor went into the master bedroom, but the second door was closed. Daisy slowed as she approached the crux of the dark corridor and reached out, turning the knob of the closed door and pushing it with a soft creak.
Kahn and Lars both jumped as another figure darted out from the darkness of the room with an animal-like howl. It jumped at the small child in Daisy’s arms as Kahn dropped the light in shock. They were draped in a cloak of darkness when the light struck the ground and clicked off. Kahn reached forward blindly and gripped Daisy’s shoulders. She was struggling with the new aggressor and slammed the door wide open with the distinctive crash of broken glass. The little creature was fighting for control of the child and the three-year-old’s screams were piercing in the darkness. Lightning flashed outside and the room was instantly visible. Two small beds framed a tiny chest of toys and piles of stuffed animals all over the floor. Kahn saw the long, stringy blonde hair of the attacker and its size and realized what was happening.
“Daisy, Daisy! Stop!” Kahn grabbed the flesh of her upper arm hard enough that she later had a hand-shaped bruise on her bicep. She fought for a moment more before listening to Kahn’s instruction to let the kid go. When she did, the larger figure carried the smaller one to one of the beds and pulled both of their bodies into the farthest corner of the room. The entire struggle had only taken a matter of seconds, but Daisy and Kahn both panted and doubled over in exertion and shock. Jesse had made it to the room and Lars had recovered the dropped light. Both shined bright beams at the children.
The wild animal that had fought Daisy for control was a little girl, about ten years old. She breathed heavily with dilated pupils showing the degree of fear she felt toward these strange people. Kahn had seen a flash of her blonde hair, just like Daisy’s, and the little boy she gripped tightly in her lap had a matching disheveled tuft. The children had identical button noses, slightly upturned, and spots of rosiness appeared on their cheeks.
“What the hell was that?” Lars shouted, the beam of his flashlight shaking.
“It’s a little girl,” Daisy said. Then she knelt carefully down, addressing the children. “It’s okay, kids, I didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Where did they come from? Did they survive here all this time?” Deb, coming from behind, asked the group.
“I don’t see how that’s possible,” Jesse replied. He tapped Kahn’s arm. “Did you know this guy had kids?”
“No, I didn’t know the guy. He just, attacked us.” Kahn thought back on the incident. The big man, David Wither, smashed a display case in the gun shop. He couldn’t recall all the details, what was said or even the order everything happened. The sound of smashing glass stood out in his mind. Then, the odor of the looting patron as he grappled with Kahn and pushed his revolver down to Kahn’s skull. His nostrils burned with the memory. A blur of emotion ran through him as he remembered the ringing gunshot from his brother-in-law and the weight of David Wither’s body as it fell lifeless to the floor. These children-- who were these children?
“It’s okay,” Daisy continued, duck walking to the corner bedpost and talking gently to the kids. “My name is Daisy. What’s yours?”
“I’m not good with kids,” Deb said coldly, turning to leave the room. She brushed past Jesse and Lars and met Captain Louis and Ice in the hall, explaining the situation as they returned to the main dining room where Kimble and the two Wiggins remained. Jesse, Lars, and Kahn stayed with Daisy as she enticed the kids to talk.
“Is this your little brother?” she asked. The little girl nodded in reply. “What’s his name?”
“Jack,” the girl croaked. She hesitated before continuing. “I’m Isabella. But I don’t like that name so everyone calls me Bella.”
“That’s a pretty name, Bella. My name is like that, too. My parents named me Margaret but I’ve always been called Daisy, like the flower. Isn’t that funny? Hi, Jack. I’m sorry you guys were scared of us. We’re real
ly nice people and we won’t hurt you. Do you live here?”
“Yes, Daisy.”
“Oh, what a nice house you have. Where are your mom and dad?” The little girl frowned at the question and gripped her brother tightly. “Oh honey, don’t worry. I just want to make sure you’re okay.” There was another moment of hesitation before Bella reached her hands up and covered Jack’s ears.
“Our dad left and never came back a long time ago. Mom tried to find him. She came back because one of the monsters bit her arm,” Bella paused and pushed her hands so hard into her brother’s ears that he grimaced. “She got sick and turned into a monster. We hid and were really quiet until she went away. Our door was open so she walked outside and went to Mrs. Garcia’s house. She bit Mr. Garcia and Mrs. Garcia. There was blood but I covered Jack’s eyes and locked all the doors. Mom didn’t come back after that.”
“Don’t worry, sweetie, we’re going to take care of you now. Are you going to be okay if we go talk for a little bit? Are you afraid of the storm?” Daisy asked. Bella shook her head.
“No. But it’s Jack’s bedtime. You’re not supposed to get out of bed, Jack. Go ahead.” The little boy slowly climbed out of the bed with his sister and got himself under the covers inside the opposite bed. “He’s four, I think, but maybe he’s still three. I think he had a birthday and since Mom is gone I have to take care of him now. He doesn’t talk much anymore, since Mom left. I think he’s scared. We stay quiet at night because there are monsters outside. He’ll fall asleep soon and then I go to bed, too.” She knelt down next to her brother’s bed and stroked his hair.
“Bella, we’re going to go talk and then I’ll come back and check on you,” Daisy pushed the others out of the room and gently closed the door again. They walked together down the hallway and joined the remainder of the crew in the front of the house. Kimble and Ice sat next to each other on the far side of the table. Deb leaned against the wall with her shoulder, glancing over as Jesse entered the room. They could hear some clattering movement in the adjacent kitchen until Jesse called the others to the room. Captain Louis, Wiggs, and Ricky joined the big group in the small dining room.
“What’s going on?” Wiggs asked. Daisy and Kahn glanced at each other and then both looked at Jesse. He sighed and addressed the group.
“There’s some kids, two of them, living here. It sounds like they might be the kids of the guy who lived here. Wither’s kids,” he stated.
“Did you ask them?” Captain Louis asked. “There’s a lot of food and trash everywhere. If they are the Wither kids, they’ve been here for months.”
“Yes, and they’re alone. The girl said their dad disappeared and their mom was bit,” Jesse continued. “I don’t get how they could have survived this long on their own, even if they did get food from the neighbors or something.”
“That seems highly implausible,” Louis snapped.
“She’s a smart kid, and she had no reason to lie to us,” Daisy snapped back.
“Bunch of strangers come into their house and they’re going to just tell you the truth? And you believe them?” Deb snorted.
“Yes, I believe them. They’re just kids,” Daisy glared at Deb and crossed her arms, waiting for the battle of words to continue, until the sharp hiss of water got their attention. Everybody turned toward the kitchen entry and watched as Ricky opened the cabinet, chose a cup, and filled it from the running tap. He turned the water off and took a big gulp of the clear liquid until he noticed everybody staring at him. He got nervous and put the cup down.
“I’m sorry! I was thirsty. I should have asked if it was okay first, right?” He looked to his brother who was shaking his head.
“No, Ricky, it’s okay. But the water worked, man! We’re all just surprised. Did it taste funny?” Wiggs flashed a big smile and his brother shook his head.
“No, it tasted good. Can I drink the rest?”
“There was a water tower about a mile away, I remember seeing it on the walk. If it’s close enough it’s probably feeding to the house with gravity alone. No need for pumps when the water pressure alone keeps it flowing,” Lars said.
“I guess that answers how they could have survived this longon their own,” Daisy replied.
“There’s tons of food in here too. In the pantry. And it’s all piled up with trash and wrappers and stuff,” Wiggs added. The group contemplated their discovery and what it meant for their mission.
“Well, I think this is the best thing that could have happened to us,” Jesse said suddenly.
“What are you talking about?” Deb snapped.
“Think about it. We came here on the slight chance that there might be something linking the dude that lived here to the Neighbors that took Mel. Now we have something even better, leverage!”
“They’re not prisoners of war, Jesse, they’re just kids,” Daisy exclaimed.
“No, if what you say is right, then these aren’t just kids. They're the grandkids of the Neighbors' leader. He’ll want them back. I’m sure he’ll trade anything for them. This is how we’ll get Mel back.”
“That’s a good idea,” the captain stated.
“No,” Daisy shouted. “We can’t just give these children to that murderer. He killed Hal’s family.”
“These children belong to that murderer, lady. I don’t care about them. I care about my wife!” Jesse’s shout was punctuated by an explosion from the thunderous storm outside with enough strength to rattle the windows. The gale seemed to have accelerated in the darkness and in the brief pause in conversation they all realized how much force was hitting the house.
“This is a scary storm,” Ricky said, refilling his water cup.
“Yeah, it is. Where did it come from?” Deb asked.
“Well, we don’t have the Weather Channel anymore,” Daisy retorted, still feeling contempt over the argument.
“It’s pretty powerful. What if it’s a hurricane?” Lars asked.
“Then we’re in the best place we can be, for now,” Jesse replied. Another huge gust of wind and rain shook the house.
“There’s nothing we can do about the kids tonight. We’re all tired and should talk in the morning once they’re awake. We can figure out what to do then. Plus, the storm should be gone by then,” Kahn suggested, looking at Jesse for backup. He ran his fingers through his stringy hair and nodded.
“Okay, that’s fine. We could all use some rest and rehydration anyway,” he agreed. When no further instructions came, the group slowly dispersed back to what they were doing. Jesse walked with Deb and joined Captain Louis and the brothers in the kitchen. Kimble sat heavily in a chair in the far corner of the dining room, Ice hovering over him, and Kahn contemplated talking with him about the Wither grandkids. Ice spoke in a low tone to the shadowy man and Kahn decided against it.
He turned with Daisy and went to walk back down the hallway, taking Lars’ flashlight again. He waited at the door as she softly entered. He heard her voice and the reply from the girl, Bella, before she exited and closed the door behind her.
“Kids are okay. Why don’t you check the room next door?” Daisy gestured to the open master bedroom and Kahn swung the beam of light into the room. There was a big bed with a long window on the wall above. The rain was pelting the glass and the light sparkled around the room. When Kahn turned back he saw Daisy disappearing back down the hallway.
Kahn’s heart pounded as he entered David Wither’s master bedroom. The blanket was pulled up to the top of the queen-sized poster bed and there was a red hat hanging from the tall post nearest the entry. He closed the door behind him and swung the light around the room, feeling relief that it was a normal bedroom just like his own.
Before the fire.
Before David Wither’s father burned it to the ground.
He almost absentmindedly took off his boots and socks and pulled the wet coveralls off his body. He dropped his pistol belt and ammunition bandolier on the floor and lay his rifle against the dresser. He tossed
the red hat into the far corner and hung his coveralls from the post to dry. As he walked into the bathroom he turned the faucet on the sink. It sputtered a bit before clear, clean water hissed into the drain. He bent over and drank thirstily from the spout until his belly was full. He wiped the water running from his stubbly chin and found a towel hanging from a rack on the wall. He tried the shower and, with a bit of knocking, the water began to flow. It would be cold, but they could all clean themselves at least, with leftover soap and shampoo regarded as treasures in this temporary home. A little treasure would be nice before they calculated their next move. He turned the shower off for now.
There was a little walk-in closet along the same wall as the bathroom. He found the men’s clothing hanging there much too large for him, but there might be something for Kimble or one of the Wiggins brothers. He pushed aside some women’s clothing on the other side and exposed a small dresser along the side wall. He opened the top drawer and found a large square book with Album stylized across the cover in script lettering. With trembling hands, he opened it and was greeted by pictures of a happy family. There was a blonde woman holding a baby in the bed behind Kahn, little pink hat almost matching the newborn flesh. The same woman with Bella a few years ago with a Back to School sticker across the page. Then, finally, a picture of David smiling with his daughter and infant son. The smile jumped off the page, becoming a grimace as Kahn’s memory of the man’s attack merged with the images of the man as a father.
There was a soft knock at the door and Kahn realized he was standing in his t-shirt and boxer shorts. He quickly turned off the flashlight as the door opened. Someone entered, closing the door as they did.
Nation Undead (Book 2): Collusion Page 18