by Miriam Bell
“Carter. They took him.” He exhales a large gust of air. “I followed after,” he pants “but I lost them when two infected attacked me,” Daniel explains, taking a deep controlling breath. “The infected, I killed them but when I looked back up Carter was gone.”
Lonnie’s skin turns pale as Jay performs a string of curses that would make any other girl’s mouth drop. He kicks the side of the plane with his large boot causing a small indention.
“Damn Carter. Probably didn’t even put up a fight.”
Jay turns away from us withdrawing back into silence. I fidget, waiting for Lonnie to say anything. He remains quiet.
“Well?” I address the group as Bryan reaches into the back of his bag and pulls out a strip of torn clothing.
He approaches Bryan mumbling a few words of concern and begins to wrap the material around his waist.
“We going after them?” I continue.
Silence follows. I try to look into their faces but they’re downcast. Daniel nods a thanks to Bryan even as red begins to splotch the new bandage.
“Wait.” I feel sick to my stomach. “You’re just going to let those crazy idiots take him?”
Panic saturates my voice as the quiet grows thick. A small bird sings from a branch nearby. A sweet song describing a beautiful winter day. I shove Lonnie’s shoulder. He steps back still avoiding my glare. I never thought of Lonnie as a coward before but with his inactiveness I begin to doubt his leadership all together. We trained to survive out in the red zone and protect ourselves from the infected, never had we had other living, breathing people take one of our own.
“I’m glad to know if someone took me, y’all would come to my rescue,” I say and sarcastically wave my hand in the air, accenting my point.
“Millie, stop.” Lonnie finally glances up into my stunned expression. “What can we do? You saw how many fires were lit last night. Do you honestly think we can do anything about it?”
Misery settles heavy on his features.
“Maybe we can’t. Maybe it's too late but how could I live with myself if I walk away? How can you?” I question.
Lonnie bows his head again.
“Coward,” I spit at him and gather up my supply bag.
“His life isn’t the only thing to be concerned about,” Jay says as I stare at his sweat soaked shirt.
“What else, then?” I sneer, letting my anger ride on each word.
“Carter will break,” he says calmly. “They couldn’t have picked a better hostage. He will tell them anything they want.”
Daniel straightens.
“That’s not fair Jay and you know it.”
Jay spins around on the scout full of hostility, “I told Emerson not to let him come. He isn’t ready. He wasn’t made for this.” He raises his hand toward the sky in a pissed off gesture. “Now he’ll be dead before we ever reach him and the cult will probably know all the inner workings of the prison.” Jay gazes helplessly into the trees.
“I’m with Millie,” Daniel whispers. “Carter is a scout, ready or not. Most of all, he’s my friend.” Jay makes a sound of disbelief. “We at least try,” Daniel continues.
“Daniel and I are going after them. You can’t be certain they’ll kill him or he will talk,” I remark, attempting to control my anger and fear.
“I’m certain you aren’t going after them, especially with Daniel- you might as well be going by yourself,” Jay says as his sight travels down to the supply bag I hold.
Daniel stiffens.
“What just a minute-” he starts to say but I cut him off, “What will you say to Clover when she finds out you just left a comrade out in the red zone?” I pause.
It is dirty trick to mention her but Jay has been fond of the young girl ever since she came to live inside the prison. I saw the hidden smiles he gave when he thought no one was looking.
“I’m going after Carter. You can’t and won’t stop me,” I say.
His face darkens at my last statement but he continues to stand as if a statue, observing my reactions.
I face him straight forward and repeat at a whisper,“What will Clover say when she finds out you left me in the red zone?”
When his eyes widen, I know I’ve won. Jay lets out a strangled curse.
“We might not make it back either way, Millie.” Jay comments and steps closer.
I drop my supply bag and pull out my axe. I hold the smooth metal in front, clutching the handle like the bat all those weeks ago when the infected stood outside Tom’s door. I don’t want to hurt Jay but I won’t be forced into doing anything I don’t want to do either- so I wait. After a long moment, a small smile forms on his lips but fades quickly leaving only soften eyes.
“I can track.”
Bryan’s timid voice sounds from behind me. I turn to look at him. His speckled hair is messy but his always present calm penetrates through.
“If you want,” he continues. “They will expect us to go back the way we came and fast. They might even have others already there to intercept us.”
Lonnie nods his head letting out a weary sigh.
“Let’s go,” he says as he steps between Jay and I. “Millie is right. I couldn’t live with myself if I didn’t at least attempt to save him.” He gives Daniel an encouraging nod as he passes. “Bryan, lead the way,” Lonnie says as he picks up his supply bag.
I trail behind the guys for a few yards, my mind racing. I can’t believe they were considering not following after Carter and his captors. He’s a fellow scout. Birds sing as my mind turns to Connor once again. He would have never left me at the mercy of these people. My heart drops at the idea of never sparring with him again or bantering during our breaks from chores- never seeing my dad, Clover or Tessa. I blink away tears and change my course of thoughts. When I glance up, Lonnie is watching me from ahead. A sympathetic countenance forms on his face as he continues to walk backwards like he knows the recurring thoughts that plague me. For a brief moment I think I should apologize for how I spoke to him but the notion quickly vanishes. He shouldn’t have questioned leaving Carter to a dark fate. We came out here together. We should go back home together. As he turns back around, I observe Bryan and Daniel both talking quietly together, trying to pick up the trail. Jay keeps behind them, a knife in his hand.
I don’t see the infected at first but a sickly odor catches my attention. My steps lighten as a decayed body drags itself from out of the brush. The dead doesn’t notice my presence only follows after the light whispers of the men. Her body is frail and weighs next to nothing- muscles loosely cover the bones of her arms. She doesn’t make a sound, only drags a large clump of tangled hair on the ground. The strands tenderly touch the hard dirt as her fingers desperately reach out. I sneak up behind her. My eyes catch the movement when Lonnie turns back around again to check on me. In an instant, he perceives the dirty decomposed face yearning for his flesh and the swing of my beautiful crimson hammer through the air and into the woman’s skull. The sharp edge buries deep into the remains of her brain as she stills. I quickly place my foot on her back. The easy snapping of bone does not stop me from separating her head from her neck with my matching weapon. The axe’s blade comes away with a thick brown goo. I stare at the substance.
“Geez, Millie,” Lonnie says, removing the infected head still attached to my hammer. “You okay?”
He tosses it into the thick briars nearby.
“Sure,” I reply, motioning to the torso.
The goo seeps out from the woman’s neck.
“She started following you. Didn’t even see me.” I comment and look into Lonnie’s concerned face.
His wavy hair sticks to his forehead with sweat. The sense of humor and lightness I always associated with him is gone. He resembles his twin more in this moment than he ever has.
“You walk in front of me. No questions asked.”
My temper flares.
“Why do guys always feel I need to walk in front of them?”
Lon
nie’s voice hardens, “I said no questions asked.”
“We’ve been tracking for hours and that’s the only infected I’ve seen.”
He opens his mouth to argue.
“No,” I stop him and point at his stern face. “That wasn’t a question.”
His eyes narrow on me.
“Do y’all smell smoke?” I hear Daniel’s voice in the distance.
They’re far ahead of us now, not realizing the commotion that had just taken place. Jay stands between us bow ready, head snapping back and forth between us. I run toward them wishing to smell anything besides the rancid stench of the infected lying on the ground. Lonnie sprints close behind me.
I come to a stop beside Jay and sniff. A slight odor of smoke drifts on the wind.
“Yeah, That’s smoke,” I say, answering Daniel’s question.
I peer into the sky for any signs of where it’s coming from.
“I can’t see anything with all these trees.” I remark, annoyed.
My eyes flick to the ground when a branch snaps. Expecting to find an infected, I draw my unclean weapons, readying myself to strike- only to find Bryan kicking away a dead branch.
“I’ll climb a tree. Wouldn’t be the first time today.” Bryan comments, grabbing a hold of a low hanging limb.
He skillfully climbs up the old oak until the thick limbs obscure my view of him.
“Wonder what’s on fire,” Daniel says.
“The smell is too strong to be a camp fire,” Lonnie replies, wiping the sweat from his brow.
I lift my sight to the large branches. Eventually, Bryan swings down and lands with a heavy thump.
“It isn’t far ahead.” He points in a direction through the heavy trees. “We need to go that way.”
Lightly rubbing his left wrist, he winces.
“Did you hurt yourself?” I ask already knowing the answer.
“I think I’m becoming an old man.” Bryan says and gives a light chuckle. He begins to stretch out the injured hand.
“All the more reason to come back with us to the prison.” I say.
He gives me a knowing glance.
“We’ll see, Millie.”
I smile slightly at his expression knowing he’s humoring me. Bryan had been nothing but kind and I was extremely grateful.
“Let’s go,” Lonnie speaks up, interrupting us.
Jay follows behind him with his bow facing down. My eyes connect with Daniel’s as he passes by and remains silent. We continue to travel through the woods as the smoke thickens in the air.
“This smoke doesn’t smell right,” Jay comments, breaking our silence.
“It smells…” Lonnie pauses breathing in deep, “metallic or coppery,” he finishes.
“We’re close,” I say stopping, “should we split up in two groups?”
Daniel shakes his head and says, “The smoke is right beyond the hill. We should stay together.”
Lonnie nods.
As a group, we sneak up the steep hill. I cringe every time a branch snaps or leaves crackle. When we reach the top, I catch sight of cult members below and hide behind the trunk of a large oak tree. The others do the same. My breath quickens as I peer beyond the trees. In front of us is a small clearing surrounded by pines. A creek winds through the meadow giving the landscape an almost serene appeal if not for the horror unfolding within it’s borders. Bile rises within my throat.
Below seven men stand. They are filthy, encrusted with mud and God knows what else. Only two are clean wearing thick cloaks and the familiar crow masks. The taller of the two has a cloak made of patched material and stands menacingly in front of Carter while the other I recognize from earlier has a deep blue cloak. He wears the thick cloth with an air of confidence. The leader?
Both faces are hidden by the leather masks and heavy hoods draping their heads. I still, frozen in fear, as the leader steps away from the billowing smoke. What I see is something I will never be able to erase from my mind. A blackened human body, not yet fully consumed by fire, sits with arms strapped above the remains of his head. I realize now why the smoke smelled differently, the odor of burning flesh and hair. The man had been lit on fire and watched as he burned to death. The realization leaves me immobile.
One of the filthy men, steps up to the still smoking body and splashes a bucket full of water on the corpse.
“Be cleansed,” he says as the body sizzles- smoke swells causing me to retch beside the tree I hide behind.
“You have an unclean soul, my friend,” the taller cloaked man says to Carter. “You see now what we do to unclean souls.”
The men behind him snickers. Carter visibly shakes before his abductors, grunting words behind his gag.
“It's okay,” the mask mans says smoothly. “You told us all we needed to know. Relax.”
The man pulls out a small blade and places it snugly under Carter’s chin. He gives a disturbed mocking laugh under his mask. Drawing a thin line of blood, he backs away and turns his back on his victim.
Carter begins to struggle with his bindings. The man in the blue cloak turns at the sounds of the scuffle and pushes past his companion. With lightning fast speed he kicks out at Carter’s chest sending him flying backwards. The scout lands hard on the ground with a strangled cry, rolling back in forth in pain. He gasps frantically for air when I notice the dark spots of blood staining his shirt. Someone had stabbed him.
I gaze over to Lonnie with a panic expression. He mirrors my fear with apprehension. Jay places a hand on his shoulder and motions for me to stay down. I nod understanding we must act as a team. We’d done several drills involving team work when Lonnie and Jay occasionally joined Connor’s class. Daniel, however, saw things differently. He shakes his head and draws two large knives from his sheaths- sweat dripping down his forehead.
Lonnie mouths the word, “No” but there is nothing he can do.
Reaching out, I’m about to grasp Daniel’s shirt when I’m distracted by a roar of laughter. A second fire flickers to life. Carter renews his struggling, desperately attempting to break free from the two men restraining him. Fresh smoke leisurely escapes from beneath a pile of dry wood. A stripped tree trunk of a small pine stands secured within the middle of the kindling. I watch in horror as the men drag Carter toward the growing fire.
“Don’t worry,” the cloaked man says, “Your soul will be cleansed from the infected’s bite.”
They hang him high on the tree, the flames barely touching his feet. He was bitten? Carter once again struggles and Daniel reacts. There are a few times in my life when time has moved slowly. One being when I was younger, I fell off the prison’s bordering fences almost breaking my arm. Lonnie had dared me to climb over and pick some of the muscadines growing just a few yards away. It was before he and Jay had joined the scouts, before we could ever imagine something like the gruesome infecteds. I remember reaching the very top and swinging my leg over on the other side. I’d felt more free with the prison below me than I’d ever felt. The air smelled fresher, the color of the trees, greener and as I fell off the top, the world slowed down and the ground felt harder as I landed.
At this moment in time my surroundings slow once again as Daniel charges ahead into the group of cult members. His fierce expression, one of a man who has something to prove. My vision sharpens, my body grows lighter and I follow after him, waiting to experience again the same impact I’d had on that day so long ago.
With my grip tightened around my weapons, I race down into the meadow. I cram all my fear and dread down into the pit of my stomach and allow only my fury to rise. I channel the intense emotions just like Connor had taught me and strike out at the first man I come to. He is stocky and more filthy than I’d realized before. I fly toward him with the element of surprise. When I near him, I spin quickly gaining momentum and slice my axe with perfect precision through his neck. It isn’t enough to behead him but it’s enough to kill him instantly. His bright red blood splashes onto my clothes but I don’t slow
down. Instead, I add his soul to the many who will haunt my days if I live past this event in my life. I turn to face another man, already in action. His hands encircle around my throat and squeezes. I strike out with my blade and barely miss the bulge of his belly. The grip constricts, sending pain throughout my nerve endings. I try again, slicing only air. Dark spots begin to speckle my vision as I listen to the distant sounds of fighting.
I choke out a gasp of surprise when an arrow flies and strikes the stranger in the center of his forehead. The diseased smelling man falls to the ground in shock, releasing my neck in the process. I cough, venturing to focus on the scene around me. The sound of metal upon metal fills my ears and I strike out again with my axe. The blade lands at the base of a man’s neck. When he screams, Daniel rams the point of his knife into his eye. The man drops to the ground, motionless.
“Run Millie get Carter!” He howls through the grunts and yelling of the men around us.
Daniel’s blood soaked clothes give him a savage appearance, wild and deadly. Looking past him, flames leap out catching Carter’s struggling legs on fire. The gag still in his mouth muffles his cry of pain.
“Carter!” I cry and rush forward.
Daniel follows dodging Lonnie who punches a man in his gut repeatedly before he falls to the ground. As I draw nearer to Carter, a flash of color catches my attention. The figure in the deep blue cloak steps in my pathway. We both come to a halt. He lifts a long blade in my direction, readying to strike but before he can, the other cloaked man lashes out at me first.
I block the attack with my hammer and counter with my butterfly axe. He reflects my hit but not my second swing. The point of my hammer buries itself in the hollow of his neck. He screams in agony as blood spurts onto my shirt. I jerk at my weapon, striving to release it from the man’s flesh. He billows in torment and passes out from the pain. His weight collapsing against my smaller frame causes my feet to stumble as Daniel sprints toward the blue cloak, knife in hand.
“No!” I scream, throwing my unconscious attacker to the ground.
The masked man pulls a small bottle out from under his blue cloak and shatters the liquid onto Carter’s chest. Flames flash and a sound of pure agony echoes throughout the meadow. Daniel reaches the stranger with a roar and lunges. His gore covered knife is met with a short-handle sickle and wrenched away. A matching weapon appears out of nowhere and slices through Daniel’s chest as he jumps unsteadily back. Taking advantage of an opportunity the stranger sweeps out, kicking Daniel’s legs out from underneath him. He falls back, his head hitting the unyielding surface of a half buried rock.