And Hell Followed: A Horror Novel

by Tatiana Xavi

  “Don’t worry, pretty boy. Even if Sami doesn’t want you, you’ll get snapped up lickety-split by someone with better taste.”

  Bellamy walked past us into the kitchen to search the cabinets for food. A part of me wanted to stay with her and talk. However, I wasn’t sure what to say to Bellamy, and I was more than a little scared about what she might say to me.

  Instead of talking with her, Ryan and I returned upstairs. He joined Morgan in the room they were sharing while I slipped into the room where Daddy and Zippy slept. Climbing into bed, I was careful not to step on either of them while reclaiming the middle spot.

  Without opening his eyes, Daddy pulled a blanket over me. Zippy did open her eyes for a moment to take my hands in hers then they were both asleep again. Listening to their breathing, I drifted to sleep, my thoughts on Leo.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Site four was a farmhouse hidden in the middle of overgrown cornfields. The location was ideal for making tiny amounts of noise without drawing too many zombies. People traveling on the roads were unlikely to notice us or even the house. Zombies also never wasted time wading through cornfields without knowing their food was on the other side. Though the unrulier fields made it difficult for us to see anyone coming. That was how we lost Mary Forest four months ago.

  For this reason, Daddy radioed site four as we approached. A convoy of cars with the US government insignias on the sides would send the group into a panic. Radioing our location and approach was dangerous too because others could be listening. Daddy’s solution was to use the radio to make animal noises.

  Sitting next to him while he mooed into the radio, I laughed and glanced at Zippy who was smiling. We waited awhile without hearing a response. Daddy tried again, this time with chicken noises. Again nothing.

  In the nearby town with our cars idling, Daddy barked into the radio and received a meow in response. The group knew he was on his way and hopefully they wouldn’t be too startled by the rest of us.

  That whole morning had an optimistic vibe to it. While site four wasn’t the townhomes, we would finally reunite with our group. Daddy could make up with Paul, and I would see Leo.

  Bellamy was super relaxed when she arrived for breakfast clean-faced. Never applying her clown makeup before getting on the road, she looked like a beautiful teenager. I figured she did this to avoid freaking out the group at site four, plus she was psyched after Daddy hugged her the day before.

  The convoy stopped where the cornfields ended, and a small yard began. Daddy exited first, wanting to calm Paul and Nick who were aiming their weapons at us. When they saw Daddy, the men walked onto the porch and down to the yard. Sherry and Molly followed with their weapons at the ready. I noticed a few of the kids including Haley, Noel, and Ava stood on the porch, watching and waiting.

  Daddy and Paul eyed one another then hugged. I liked how they didn’t dwell on the past. Daddy would never forgive Paul for leaving, and Paul would never regret going, but they made up anyway. Nick got a hug too. They were all looking at the cars as Daddy explained things.

  Stepping out of the Humvee, I walked toward Daddy and the others. Sherry gasped and ran to me. As she gave me a great hug, I relaxed into her familiar embrace. Since they hadn’t gotten through Daddy’s explanation before seeing me, they were confused as to how I was alive. Before I could tell them, Sherry took my hands.

  “Leo’s working behind the house,” she said. “He’s been bad off since we left you. Please go see him.”

  Without needing to be told twice, I hurried past the men while Daddy said if they thought my being alive was amazing then wait until they met Bellamy. Smiling at this comment, I hoped the introductions went well.

  Soon I was nearly running past the porch where Ava and Haley frowned at me. By the time I heard someone sharpening an ax, I could barely keep myself from calling out to Leo. Only my training forced me to stay quiet. Once I saw him though, I couldn’t speak anyway.

  His back was to me. Based on his posture, he seemed tired. His hair was messy, having grown shaggy the last year. Even if he’d lost weight from when he was a muscular competitive swimmer, he never looked better to me.

  “Leo,” I whispered, suddenly afraid to tell him all the things that happened the last three weeks.

  Glancing back, Leo froze. His dark eyes studied me then his shoulders sagged.

  “I can’t even tell when I’m sleeping anymore,” he said, turning away and sharpening the ax again.

  “I’m real. I got better like Grant said some people do.”

  “You always say that in my dreams. You always promise you’ve come back to me and I didn’t let you die. Once I believe you, I wake up.”

  Frowning, I stepped closer and touched his shoulder. He turned to look at me, and I was startled by the expression in his dark eyes. Leo looked broken.

  “I’m sorry I didn’t save you,” he said softly. “Mom says I dream about you because I feel guilty. She also says I shouldn’t feel guilty because it wasn’t my fault. She’s wrong, though. About it not being my fault.”

  “It wasn’t your fault,” I said, setting aside the ax and taking his hands into mine. “If you hadn’t broken training to save me, I never would have gotten another chance.”

  “But I didn’t save you. I just showed up when it was too late. If I had been with you, instead of thinking I had time, you wouldn’t have died.”

  “I’m alive. I’m right here,” I said, squeezing his hands.

  He slipped his hands out of mine then cupped my face. “I wanted you for a long time, but you were too young. I wanted for you to get older and date other guys. So that when you chose me, it would last forever. I was waiting for you, and I waited too long.”

  “We have another chance.”

  “Every night since I left you, I see you in my dreams, and you always tell me how everything is okay now. It’s always a lie, and I always believe it because the world is so ugly without you.”

  Reaching up, I touched his face, and he exhaled in a pained way.

  “I know you think you’re dreaming, but this is real. I survived, and I want you too. I don’t want to wait anymore to be close to you.”

  “You say that every night,” he muttered full of exhaustion. “I try not to believe you because I know it’s a dream. You’re persistent though, and it feels so good to think you survived. I finally give in and let myself hope. You can’t know how much it hurts when I wake up and you’re still gone.”

  Letting go of me, Leo turned back to the weapons he was sharpening.

  “In those dreams, did I tell you I wasn’t human anymore?” I asked, feeling disappointed and overwhelmed with how our reunion was turning out. I had been thinking about him for weeks, planning what I would say and how everything would be wonderful. Now Leo was broken and I no longer felt like the Sami he left weeks earlier. Unable to stop myself, I just blurted out what was in my head.

  “Did I tell you that I died then woke up with a hunger that needs to be fed, or else I start acting like an animal? In those dreams when I’m convincing you I’m real, did I tell you how I found a camp with food and hot showers and all I had to do to enjoy those luxuries was let men rape me? Did I tell you that?”

  Looking back at me, Leo wasn’t convinced. Even if he had believed me though, I didn’t know if I could have stopped talking. I kept telling myself how no one could change me and I had won, and the other guys had lost. At that moment, I realized maybe none of it was true.

  “And I met this guy Ryan, and he made me feel pretty, and I teased him because I wanted to feel pretty. I’m not, though. I saw myself naked, and I hadn’t seen that since the plague. I’m really ugly, and my body is gross, so I teased Ryan. Now he’s upset because he thought I wasn’t teasing. I hurt him and for nothing because I still know I’m gross under my clothes.”

  Wiping tears from my cheeks, I continued, “And a man bit me, and he wasn’t a man. He was some kind of monster. Then these freaks fed off me and changed me too. I�
��m not human anymore. I’m a freak like them, and I feel weird in my body like it’s not really mine. I also met a lady who acts like she wants to be my mom, but I’m not sure if she’s just pretending, so Daddy will protect her. I really want her to love me, but I feel nervous like she might be faking, so I’m scared to love her back.”

  Watching me with a confused expression, Leo was deciding if this was a dream or if I’d come back to him?

  “And those freaks who fed off me, they might have raped me. I always wanted you to be my first, but maybe they were, and I try not to think about it. I try not to care and just to be happy because I killed them with my nasty blood. I do care, though. I wanted to kill them for real like with my teeth and hands. I wanted to hurt them, but I didn’t see them die. I don’t even know if they raped me because I was unconscious and they messed up my body. I felt so weird when I woke up, and I wasn’t sure what they did to me. Did I tell you all that stuff in those other dreams?”

  Even crying, I felt a little better to have said the words. I told Ryan to let go of the pain, but it’s hard not to hold on. Letting out all of the pent-up feelings, I felt a little lighter.

  Pulling me into a hug and caressing my head, Leo consoled me in the gentle way I remembered about him. In his arms, I felt loved.

  Leo still wasn’t sure if this was real. Only time would prove to him how his dreams had finally come true.

  “I’m sorry,” Leo said, holding me gently and twirling wavy strands around his fingers. “I went looking for you that day to talk about how I felt, and I hoped what you felt was more than a crush. Then I thought about how I might be dumping my crap on you when you had enough to deal with. I talked myself out of looking for you. If I hadn’t, you wouldn’t have been bitten, and all the other stuff wouldn’t have happened either.”

  Looking up at Leo, I couldn’t believe how silly we had been tiptoeing around our feelings all this time.

  “I met a girl who can control zombies. We also found a place with hot water and occasional electricity and all kinds of other comforts. We would never have met Bellamy or found that place if I hadn’t been bitten. If you want to take the blame for that day, you need to take credit for the other stuff too.”

  Leo sighed, sounding exhausted. “I want this to be real. Even with all the pain you’ve suffered, I want you to be in my arms. But I’m afraid you’re not, and I’ll wake up and live another ugly day without you.”

  “I’ll be here all day and all night and tomorrow and the next day. I’ll stay until you know no dream could be so long. Also once you meet Ryan, you’ll wonder why you’d dream about someone like him.”

  “He wants you, huh?” he asked with a slight grin.

  “Only because he doesn’t have anyone else. I think he’ll like Ava. She’s tough, and he needs someone to boss him around.”

  Grinning, Leo tightened his hold on me and studied the woods. “The day you were bitten and I held you, I told you how I loved you, but you were asleep. I wanted to tell you when you woke up, but your dad came, and I never got a chance. Then we were leaving, and I realized I would never have another chance. I tell you in my dreams, though. I hope this isn’t a dream. Even if it is, I’m going to tell you again. I love you.”

  “Even if I’m not human?”

  “You’re still Sami, and I’ve loved you for a long time.”

  “I love you too,” I said, nuzzling my face against his chest. “We shouldn’t keep secrets from each other anymore. The world is different, and we keep thinking it’s not. Like we have forever to get to the point. I know dumping all the stuff on you about the last three weeks was probably too much, but I’m glad you know. I don’t want to wait anymore.”

  Leaning down, Leo kissed me softly, his lips so gentle. Soon his embrace intensified, gaining heat. He seemed a little nervous as if I might disappear on him. Pulling him tighter against me, I tried to be as real as I could. I wasn’t sure if it helped, but his kisses deepened. By the time he pulled his lips away, I could barely stand. It was exactly the kind of first kiss I’d always hoped from him.

  “Can I meet Ryan? I need this to be real, and you’re right about me not dreaming up a guy who wants to take you away.”

  “I’ll do anything you need to make this real. The sooner you trust I’m here, the sooner you’ll get a decent night’s sleep. You look exhausted.”

  Wrapping an arm around me, Leo walked around the house. “This girl can control zombies?”

  “Yes, and she has some with her. They all have mustaches and Bellamy’s crazy too, but she’s also funny. She thinks she’s death, though. You’ll see, but don’t be scared by the zombies. She’s powerful, and she can control them even when she’s asleep.”

  With his arm still around me, Leo smiled. If he didn’t look so exhausted and worried I’d disappear, I might have thought he was staking his claim on me. We walked past the house to where everyone remained tense, if not friendly.

  Our group didn’t like stragglers because sharing resources with people who wouldn’t last the week felt pointless. These stragglers though were seasoned pros after the last few days.

  Nick and Paul were excited to have Abner around because as our numbers dwindled there were fewer and fewer strong people to pick up the slack. No matter their relief at having another military man in the mix, Sherry and Abner got in a little Army ribbing on the Marines in the group. Laughing at the military bickering, Daddy looked more relaxed than I’d seen him in a long time.

  As I looked over the group, I noticed Ryan walking toward Leo and me. Holding Morgan’s hand and smiling, he still looked grumpy.

  “Leo,” Ryan said then sighed. “Okay, fine. I’m Ryan, and this is my sister Morgan. I’m sure Samantha told you all about us.”

  “About you anyway,” Leo said, shaking Ryan’s hand.

  I knew Ryan was squeezing too hard. Morgan must have also noticed because she pulled his arm away.

  “Be nice.”

  “This is me being nice, Mo-mo.”

  “Don’t call me that, Ry-ry.”

  Smiling, I patted Ryan’s hand. “I told Leo how I teased you. He doesn’t seem mad.”

  “Did you tell him everything?”

  “It doesn’t matter,” Leo interrupted. “No matter what happened between you two, I want Sami. Nothing you say will change my mind. Good luck with Ava, although she seems hot for the Asian dude.”

  Glancing to where Ava was laughing at something Kei said to her, I knew that laugh. It was Ava’s “cutesy” laugh. To most people, it didn’t sound any different from Ava’s regular laugh, and it certainly didn’t sound cutesy. For those who knew her though, Ava was a full-on giggly schoolgirl. Based on the way Kei played up his silly behavior, he was swooning over her too.

  “Haley’s nice,” I said, and Leo smiled.

  Shaking his head, Ryan grunted. “I’m not looking for a girlfriend, but thanks for playing matchmaker.”

  Morgan laughed at Ryan who responded by whispering something to her baby bump that made her yank his ponytail.

  “Watch the violence, friends,” Bellamy said, appearing from the crowd. “I wouldn’t want to ruin pretty boy’s good looks.”

  Ryan rolled his eyes, but Bellamy just smiled. She then focused on Leo.

  “Interesting,” was all she said before walking away.

  Looking around, I noticed how the two groups melted into one. By dinner, the old group and new group was essentially one big group. Shocked by how quickly the straggler designations faded, I wondered if we really would be singing Kumbaya soon?

  Chapter Fourteen

  Around dinner time, a cold snap hit the area. As soon as the large farmhouse became an icebox, a disagreement broke out when Ryan suggested starting fires in the house’s three fireplaces.

  The group’s unity immediately split down the new/old lines. Bellamy announced zombies refused to visit when she was in such a good mood. No one understood, but I figured she was saying we could have as many fires as we wanted without zombi
es bothering us.

  Paul looked willing to submit, but Nick, Sherry, and Molly vetoed him. I didn’t know they could even do that, but apparently, there was a power structure I wasn’t aware of.

  Eventually, Bellamy walked outside and started a fire for her and the mustached zombies. Abner joined her and then Ryan and a shivering Morgan. Next Zippy left, only to return for her sleeping bag, claiming it was warmer outside than in the house.

  Sherry, Nick, and Molly finally relented. Sitting through the discussion, I watched Leo who held me and waited to wake up. I knew he was exhausted and scared, but I still enjoyed being close to him. I’d spent a lot of time over the years dreaming of Leo holding me. The reality was better.

  While Ryan was irritated with the affection, he also seemed happy to be at the farmhouse. No doubt relieved to have all the extra armed people around, Ryan figured if Morgan’s safety was left to him that he would fail her. With the backup from more seasoned survivors - even twelve-year-old Jacob was skilled at packing heat - Ryan could relax a little.

  Once the house warmed, my eyes drooped. Sitting on a couch wrapped up next to Leo, I grew even sleepier when Zippy laid a blanket over us. I wanted to go to bed, but Leo was scared to sleep. Every time someone mentioned the late hour or going to bed, Leo tensed next to me.

  Daddy must have seen me dozing off because he knelt and pulled off the blanket. “Time for bed, Sami.”

  Leo deflated next to me, and I wasn’t the only one who noticed. Sherry seemed worried about Leo, and I wondered what he had been like the last few weeks. The Leo I knew tended to be the calm one, always upbeat, sometimes to the point of people telling him to shut up.

  He wasn’t upbeat as Daddy pulled me up from the couch. Zippy appeared next to Daddy.

  “I was planning on sharing the bed with Sami while Zippy enjoyed the comfy airbed on the floor,” Daddy said, and Zippy smiled. “Instead, Sami and Leo can have the floor while Zippy keeps me warm.”

  Leo blinked, not understanding. Once he did, Leo jumped up and looked to his parents as if they might ruin things. I almost laughed at how we were still kids, needing our parents to give us the green light for everything.