by Jeff Olah
Sitting on the edge of the bed and lacing up his shoes he said, “There were tons of people getting out of their cars and running from each other on the freeway. They were weaving in and out of traffic on both sides and a few were even hit by cars. It happened near that military base up North. One of the cell phone videos made it look like they were eating each other. Ridiculous, I know… but that’s how it looked.”
“Yeah… that is weird, although I’m sure the police already have it under control and we’ve got much bigger things to worry about. We cannot be late again. You’ve got fifteen minutes. I’ll be out on the deck.” Taking the laptop, Megan moved through the hall and into the living room. She stopped, glancing at the television remote, before shaking her head and moving out onto the balcony and down to the wooden deck below. She placed the computer on the small table and opened it up.
The frame of the video Sean stopped on was three minutes and twelve seconds in. The image plastered along the screen was every bit as disturbing as the footage she watched minutes before from a completely different country. She clicked the play icon and covered her mouth as the last few seconds of the video ran to completion. The middle-aged balding gentleman was rightly stunned as one of his attackers shoved his own face and arms through the driver’s side window. Pulling him out onto the pavement, the ravenous aggressor was joined by three others who piled in and began tearing away the flesh of the semi-coherent driver.
Gasps and shrieks could be heard by those filming the events as the video came to an end.
Megan closed the laptop and sat in silence. She peered out over the expansive ocean as the tide rolled in, one long whitecap after another. What was this? How was it happening in two completely separate parts of the world at the same time? There had to be a connection and she was sure her brother, although ten years younger, would figure it out well before she did.
The phone startled her as she stood and started for the house. Through the open slider she could see Sean reach for the cordless and answer it on the second ring.
125
Megan waved at her neighbor, who sat two houses away playing in the sand with her three-year-old daughter. This morning ritual had begun within months of the little girl’s birth and never ceased to put a smile on Megan’s face. During the early days of her father’s departure, she’d sit out on the deck and watch the young family while sipping her morning brew, just long enough to ease the depression from her heart. Watching them interact without the benefit of being able to hear what was being said, she was in awe of their obvious bond. Megan paused at the slider a moment longer and smiled as the young mother continued building sand castles with her petite princess.
At the door, Sean spoke quickly and nervously before handing the phone to her. “Megan, it’s Dad. He’s freaking out again. He needs to talk to you RIGHT AWAY!” He handed her the phone and made his way into the adjoining kitchen to pour a bowl of cereal, grabbing the milk as she looked down at the phone.
Megan took in a long deliberate breath before answering. The conversations between the pair since he left two years ago had been disjointed and awkward to say the least. She often felt as though she knew nothing about this man and more anxious after each conversation. This would be no different… she was sure of it.
“Hey Dad, we’re running really late and I need to get Sean to school.”
“Slow down Dad, you’re not making any sense.”
“What are you talking about… but yes, we’ve seen the news?”
“No, I have no idea what you’ve been doing or where exactly you’ve been; you never told either of us.”
“Of course I’m upset; I have no idea what you’re talking about. You call here every few months with some incoherent story of impending doom and then we don’t hear from you again until your next rambling phone call or message.”
“No, I’m twenty-six years old and can handle myself, although it would have been nice for your son to have his father around. He’s becoming a man and you’re not even here to see it.”
“I don’t care… Yes, whatever… I’ll look. Sean, can you check my phone for an email from Dad?”
Finishing a mouthful of cereal, Sean set the half-eaten bowl in the sink and moved to the opposite counter, reaching for Megan’s phone. Unlocking and then calling up the mail app, he saw the message with two attachments. “Yep it’s here,” he said handing the phone to his sister and moving down the hall toward the bathroom.
Opening the email, her father’s intent was still unclear. “What is this? There is no body to the message.”
“OK… yes both attachments came through, but why’d you send two separate maps and why are they hand drawn.”
“You’re insane; I don’t have time for this. I’m not printing these. They are both stored in my phone. I have them, alright… now I have to go. Sean needs to get to school and I do have some work to do today. My first client is meeting me in less than an hour.”
Her father’s words through the receiver were less irrational than usual and almost in the form of a command. She’d often sensed a tone that must have been fueled by a lack of sleep and being overworked, although this conversation was different. He was calm and direct. The phrasing he used scared her and brought the images from the news station rushing back into her thoughts. She reached for the remote and depressed the power button.
Flipping from one station to the next, the programming was the same across every channel. She couldn’t watch more than a few seconds and each time she landed on another station, the graphic images forced her to look away. Her father was right; this thing was everywhere and he finally had her full attention.
Before reengaging her father on the other end of the line, Megan noticed Sean standing in the archway between the hall and the living room. He didn’t say a word and was frozen in place as she powered off the television and tossed the remote onto the sofa. “OK Dad, I’m listening… what do we need to do?”
“Yes, but I’ve never driven your truck before.”
Turning to her brother and attempting to appear somewhat in control of her emotions, she continued. “Sean, we’re not going to school today. Empty your backpack and grab as much food as you can from the pantry. Anything in a box or a can will do and remember to grab the manual can opener.”
“Megan, what was that on the TV? What is Dad telling you? Where are we going?”
“Sean, I’ll explain once we get on the road. After you fill your backpack, please grab my gym bag and fill it with the rest of the food, but leave room for the last of the water bottles that are in the fridge.”
“Umm… this is bad isn’t it?”
“We’re gonna be fine, fill the bags and put them in the rear cab of Dad’s truck. We are leaving in two minutes. I promise we’ll be okay.”
Sean hurried away as Megan stared down at the phone knowing this may be her last conversation with her father. “Dad we are going to be okay… aren’t we?”
“Yes, I have one in the safe in my room…. Yes, I understand… behind the driver’s seat as well.”
Her heart doubled its pace within the last thirty seconds as her body temperature began to climb. “Dad I have to put the phone down for a moment so I can print them, I’ll be back in a second… Yes, I do remember him. He was a nice man, although it has been years, will he remember me?”
“OK, I got it. Trust me I know how serious this is. I’ve seen things on the news this morning that I’ll never forgot. Hold on for one second while I print the maps out. I’ll be right back.”
Setting the house phone on the kitchen counter, Megan fumbled around attempting to print the attachments her father sent. As Sean walked by, and without acknowledging her, he simply said, “Print icon, middle row on the right.”
“Thanks,” Megan said as she jogged to the office behind the kitchen to retrieve the documents. She studied them for a few minutes to familiarize herself with the route they’d have to take out of the city and folded them neatly, shoving them into her b
ack pocket. Returning to the kitchen, she almost tripped over Sean as he finished up in the pantry and headed for the garage.
Switching phones and placing her cell on the counter, Megan walked toward her room as she continued with her father. “Dad, we are ready. What else?”
“Dad… Hello?”
Her father was gone. His line had gone dead.
126
Sean waited at her bedroom door and time was slipping away faster than she liked. Megan pulled open the walk-in closet door and moved inside. Without turning on the light, she fumbled for the last duffle bag and wadded up a few pairs of jeans and t-shirts into a ball and tossed them in the bag. As Sean followed her in, he hit the light switch just as she reached for the gun safe and put it under her arm.
“Megan, what’s that for?”
“Just a precaution,” she said.
“Precaution for what? What did Dad tell you? Where are we going?”
Moving around her brother, she motioned for him to follow as she quickened her pace and headed for the garage. “We don’t have time, but you remember those videos you saw this morning?”
“Yes,” Sean answered.
“It’s happening everywhere…”
“You mean around here?”
“I mean everywhere.” Megan paused for a moment to collect herself before entering the garage and opening her father’s workbench. Snatching the keys from the third drawer, she continued, “We are getting out of the city right now and going somewhere safe.”
“Where?”
“I’m not exactly sure where this place is, although Dad said we’d be safe there. We have to go now; it’s almost a hundred miles away and…”
Sean was just as confused as he was terrified. He loved his sister and even more than that he trusted her, although this didn’t sound like her. She was the skeptical one in the family and after their mother and father left, she was his constant. She made everything okay. This was different and not her at all. “And what Megan, what comes next?”
“We have to make one stop first.”
“Why doesn’t this sound like something Dad told you to do?”
Megan turned and hugged her little brother, softly kissing his forehead. “Because it’s not, but we have to do it, I’d never forgive myself if…”
“We are not going to that train station, if it’s anything like that freeway, we wouldn’t make it out. She left us remember, not the other way around. She doesn’t want us and never did. She’s a drug addict. She’s not worth it.”
“Sean… she’s our mother.”
“No she’s not, not anymore.”
Megan was just fourteen and her brother not yet in kindergarten when the woman who’d been emotionally destructive long before the physical abuse began walked out the door and never returned. The lies about her whereabouts were covered in more lies about what she was doing while she was supposed to be in her office. These cover-ups careened into blatant shows of disrespect to their father as her drug dealer began showing up at the house, demanding payment and threatening harm to her children.
Rehab had failed for the sixth time as she calmly packed a suitcase and walked out the door that sunny Friday afternoon. Sean was out on the deck and Megan was sitting in front of her middle school waiting for the ride that once again didn’t show up. The embarrassment of having to be driven home once again by the school’s principal turned to anger when she realized her four-year-old brother was left to fend for himself.
Social services were called by a watchful neighbor and the siblings spent the next four days in the care of the county, until her father arrived home from his business trip. He worked for months to convince the powers that be to give him full custody and absolute parental rights. His wife was gone long before she left the house that day and he turned his entire career upside down in order to be granted the privilege of raising his two children.
Their father set up a home office and two of the six bedrooms were used as his workspace. The large corporation he worked for at the time was simply happy he didn’t decide to quit altogether and made the necessary concessions to keep him on the payroll.
As his contract ended some years later, the military came calling. With Megan now an adult and Sean needing less and less attention from their father, the decision was made that he’d go back out into the world to continue his work. He spent as much time as he could at home with his children, although as time wore on, he was called upon by people he couldn’t say no to, so he hesitantly accepted the additional projects. He never spoke about his work and within the last few years the pair had only seen their father twice.
“Sean let’s go, I want to get out of the city before the whole world realizes what’s happening.”
Rounding the truck as his sister hit the button opening the garage door, Sean jumped in and Megan set her bag behind the seat, climbing behind the wheel. “I still don’t think stopping at the station is a good idea, if Dad said we need to get out of town don’t you think…”
“Let me do the driving Sean, I promise we’ll be okay.”
“If you say so, although…”
“Although what?” Megan asked.
“I just want you to acknowledge that she’s not worth it. She wasn’t then and she isn’t now.”
Megan didn’t respond. She adjusted the seat and mirrors, shifted into reverse and backed down the driveway. The neighborhood was still quiet and looked like any other day, with moms walking their children to school, and businessmen adjusting their ties as they followed one another out of the neighborhood.
The local crossing guard waved to Megan with a curious look as she pulled her father’s massive, jet black truck to a stop. Megan lowered the window, not quite knowing what to tell the man she’d seen at this corner since she herself walked Sean to the elementary school a few blocks away. There was no way to explain what she thought was happening, so she waited for him to speak.
“Nice truck young lady,” he said.
“Thanks…”
“You going four-wheeling?” The man said with a slight chuckle.
“No, just the usual. How long are you out here directing traffic?” Megan asked, hoping the man would be on his way soon.
“Bout an hour more. Gotta make sure the kiddos all get to school safe. Then it’s off to meet the wife for breakfast. Have a good day.”
“You too, take care of yourself.”
As Megan pulled away, she felt bad for leaving him here and not at least asking if he’d seen the morning news. She wanted to turn back and ask him to get in, to at least take him to his wife and make sure they made it safely to one another, although she couldn’t save everyone. Her priority at the moment was ensuring the safety of her brother and herself. If the things her father told her were true, they didn’t have long. Rounding the corner to the main artery out of their development, it became clear that the hell she witnessed this morning had already fallen on her city.
Sean was the first to speak. “Megan, it’s already here…”
127
The sea of bodies spanned the width of the highway. The creatures chased, cornered and hurled themselves at their unsuspecting prey. There were too many to count and at this distance, the ability to distinguish the attackers from those being savagely attacked became increasingly difficult. Megan pulled the truck to a stop and fought the urge to peer to her left to check her brother’s reaction, which she’d assumed was every bit as disjointed as hers. Fear paralyzed every muscle in her body; she couldn’t focus on what her next action should be. The thought of being overrun by the approaching crowd ran a close second to the terror she witnessed in the rearview mirror.
The friendly, if not altogether saintly crossing guard only made it to the opposite side of the street before he was pulled down from behind by one of those things missing an arm. The crossing guard was able to save four children and their parents during the initial onslaught. He’d closed the gate leading to the school after the last child stepped away from the sidew
alk and ducked in behind the fence. Megan watched him struggle to push back against his assailant as three more peeled off the main horde and joined in the massacre of her friend. Within no more than ten seconds the battle was over and he was gone. “Ed…” was all she could manage.
Back to Sean, Megan noticed he’d also witnessed the action to the rear, although he quickly turned his attention back in the direction they were headed. He pointed at the baseball field to the right of the highway, as Megan pounded the gas pedal to the floor, narrowly avoiding a small group closing in on the truck from the driver’s side. “Sean, what do I do?”
“Go around them, use the field. That’s the area that looks clear.”
Accelerating quickly toward the side of the road and with less than fifty yards to go, the larger horde became aware of the speeding vehicle and started in their direction. A few looked almost normal, other than their milky white eyes. They were sprinting toward them as the other more devastated individuals walked slowly, most dragging one injured body part or another. Attempting to avoid a collision with the beasts that led the pack and reach the field before they did, Megan swerved into the ditch that ran parallel to the road and then back up onto the greenbelt running alongside.
“Sean, what about the fence?”
Shouting above the whining of the engine, Sean said “GO THROUGH IT! HURRY THEY’RE CATCHING US!”
Cutting the wheel to the right, the truck ripped through the chain link fence and for a few seconds drug the two sections it had pulled free. As the divided fence tore loose, the crowd began pouring out onto the field. Multiple bodies became entangled in the mess as others trampled over them and continued to follow the truck as it tore across the open grass.
With less than one hundred feet to make a decision, Megan focused her attention out the left side of the truck. The roadway was clear and it was a straight shot to the train station her brother so desperately fought to get her to avoid. She turned the wheel slightly and shot straight for the opening created by the large gate apparently left open for the early morning service workers that tended to the city parks. The rearview mirror still held the images they were running from, although speed and time pushed them farther away with each passing second.