by Taja Kartio
I had to take a second before nodding, not lifting my forehead from the coolness the metal provided. It was like a chilly ice pack easing a rapidly building headache.
"Just not at a hundred percent yet," I whispered, taking another breath.
His head bobbed slightly, "We'll find a place to rest soon kiddo."
"Can't wait," I muttered as I began to continue up the ladder. Beckett was patiently waiting for me at the top, his hand already ready to take ahold of mine to pull me up.
I was surprised with our location as I finally got to the pavement. We weren't in the city at all. Outside of it, in fact. I turned back to see the cityscape a couple miles away. Lights glittered like the stars had dropped to the earth and formed into a variety of tall and soaring structures. A perfectly formed grid pattern.
Kale seemed to be thinking the same thing, "I thought we were supposed to be a few alleys out of the quarantine zone, not completely out of the downtown area?”
"Maybe Casey just decided it was better to lead us out the city altogether?” Alex suggested.
“Which is fine but we still have a problem,” Kale fumed with his hands on his hips. He turned from the city before us and pointed down to the freeway just a few hundred meters away, “We were picked up off the freeway where 280 meets 35W.”
Beckett followed his finger but turned back to him with nothing but a look that said ‘So what?’, “And? It’s like four miles away. If we kept a good pace and follow the freeway, we could make it to the suburban in like an hour.”
"Think we could really make it over there?" Alex asked.
I felt Kale stand beside me. I already knew what he was going to suggest.
Here's to being the burden of the group.
"It's too dark. We should find a place to rest until morning."
"Wouldn't it be best if we headed to the car now and get away from the city before morning? Those soldiers could find us again during the daytime. We all know that they've been rounding up survivors on the road,” Alex suggested as he kept his eyes constantly on the lookout for any signs of unwanted guests.
"Not to mention that it's too dark to go strolling through one of these houses for a place to sleep," Beckett added, "We don't have weapons other than a gun that will bring the whole neighborhood on us."
I felt Kales frustration begin to bubble beneath his skin. I realize he was trying to keep me safe and let me take a break to recover from my moderate exhaustion but they were both right.
"Do you know how dangerous it could be walking around in the middle of the night? We could have Infected right behind us and we wouldn't know it until they were right on top of us," Kale did have a valid point.
"By what we've seen. They're not silent. We would hear them before we saw them," Beckett also had a valid point.
"Dani needs to rest," Kale started, "We can't keep going until she-"
"Okay, Kale. I might not be feeling super awesome right now but I'm not dead weight. I can make it the extra miles if it means getting away from here," I cutted in irritably.
Before I could answer, there was a sudden explosion, distant but still a disturbing sound. A soft orange glow lit at the base of the buildings in the inner city, right where the quarantine zone would have been. Black smoke billowed and rose, curling around the towering buildings.
“What do you think happened?” I asked.
Kale let in a deep inhale, “The noise happened.”
Beckett leaned against the thick wire gate that guarded others from the Mississippi River, he pushed just about all his weight onto his palms. He actually looked a bit emotional, like he was having a hard time comprehending… whatever it was that was bugging him.
I set a hand on the gate beside him. I noted Kale standing beside me, “What’s wrong?”
Beckett sighed, “I don’t know. It’s just kind of hard watching your hometown go down like this, you know?”
Another explosion. This time, glass. The windows of the tallest building ahead of us bursted into flames, very high above.
Kale muttered, “There goes the IDS building.”
“That’s a very random place for an explosion,” I commented.
We stood for a while, just staring. It was kind of like time stopped. Other than the smoke and the slight flicker of flames casting on the buildings, everything was still. No cars drove on the roads tangled in the distance, nothing was moving. Even the moon stood still. Not even a cloud slowly drew by to hide its silvery beams.
"You can handle the trip?" Beckett asked, looking to me for my reassurance. He seemed to have had enough of the giant bonfire in front of us.
I nodded determinedly, "I'm good."
"Then let's go," He turned, beckoning for us to follow.
I could see Kale was about to argue again but I turned before he could say anything. If he wanted to chew me out later, fine, but right now I didn't want to be outside anymore. We were completely exposed out here. If a pack of Infected did happen to see us, we were probably, most likely, going to be toast.
Traveling may have been a little easier without the rotting corpses sprawled on the road to stare at. Dry blood pooled around each body elaborately like a splatter painting. I felt sick to my stomach thinking of the possible agony those people had endured in the moments before their death. I could almost hear their harrowing screams in my head, echoing off the walls of my skull like they were trying to find a way out. My memory brought me back to the first day of the outbreak when chaos filled our neighborhood street. How the Infected were merciless in their immensely disorganized kills. I shook myself of the disturbing memories and continued to follow my brothers and Alex on the freeway. The long stretch of road was just as quiet as the rest of the world. Abandoned cars casted long shadows on the moonlit pavement. I tried to keep my focus on the details of my surroundings, including the cars. What kind, what color, how many windows, how many of those windows were broken, how much blood covered the seats inside, how many… bodies were unmoving inside…
I didn’t even notice Alex halt in front of me. I collided right into his backside.
"Alex?" I sidestepped around him. "Why the hell are you stopping-"
He stopped me by grabbing my arm. His eyes were set ahead. I had been so zoned out that I didn't hear the silence break by a woman standing on the side of the freeway. She was hunched over. Her head pushed into her constantly twitching hands. Her moaning was not the typical zombie moan like from all those movies. It wasn't even low pitched. Her distress sounded like she could be crying but at some moments, she sounded like she was groaning in extreme pain. Perhaps a little of both. She didn't notice she wasn't alone. Not yet anyway.
Alex nudged me, nodding toward Kale and Beckett who had started for the cement median strip in the middle of the freeway. We hurdled it silently, crouching on the other side as a yelp left the Infecteds lips. I cringed but the sharp yowl wasn't one of alarm thankfully. It just seemed to be a random noise she made with her lips.
Kale gestured for us to keep moving. He put a finger to his lips. Stay silent.
Obviously.
The Infected didn't suspect a thing but we just didn't dare stand up again until she was a small speck behind us. My legs burned from crouching for so long. Unfortunately, I didn’t get relief forever. That Infected woman wasn’t the only Infected out on the freeway. Sometimes there was a single individual and sometimes there was a small horde of them. We used the medium and the abandoned cars as cover and for the most part, it seemed to work just fine. There wasn’t an overwhelming number that we couldn’t sneak by. The only part that sucked was how long this was all taking. Beckett said an hour as long as we kept a good pace but at this point, I felt like we’d been out here for longer than that. Double that.
"Shouldn't be too far now right?" Kale turned his head over his shoulder.
"I think I remember that billboard," Alex pointed. Some lame dentist advertisement, "We might have… What? A half mile left?"
"Sounds about right," Beckett said.
“Almost there, kiddo,” Kale noted my struggle, “Not too long now.”
Ya ya. Not long now. I got it. I just wanted to be sitting in that car now.
Run. Hide. Run. Sneak.
It felt like it was a lot longer than a half mile but we eventually managed to make it in one piece.
"There she is!" Kale squealed excitedly, pointing to the suburban sitting peacefully in the middle of the road.
"Did you leave the keys in the car?" Beckett asked as we got closer.
"Of course not," My brother dug his hand into his pocket, "Nobody drives my baby but me."
That was definitely the eldest brother and his baby car all right.
Kale turned to Alex and pointed to the passenger side. I climbed into the backseat with Beckett and immediately noted how much leg room I had.
"Everything is gone," Beckett said for me. His eyes were already looking in the backseat as well.
"What?" Kale looked back at us in complete disbelief, "What do you mean everything is gone?"
"As in, all our shit isn't in the car anymore," I turned to him, "What do you think we mean?"
His eyes narrowed in a slight glare and he opened his mouth to comment on my snappy remark until Beckett spoke again.
"Either the soldiers took it or scavengers were looking for food and supplies. Abandoned cars are a good place to search."
"So is there anything back there at all?" Alex asked.
"Nothing but empty boxes in the back," Beckett answered solemnly.
"Perfect," Kale grumbled as he put the keys in the ignition.
"Let's not worry about it right now, let's just get the hell out of here. We'll worry about supplies and food and everything else later," Beckett said.
No reply but I was sure it was an unspoken agreement for us all.
Let's get the hell out of here.
Sixteen
We slept in the car that night, parked on the side of a deserted road. I, and everybody else were so exhausted that we all slept like babies. We paid for it the next morning with knots in our necks and sore asses but we all agreed that it was better being here than it was hiding underneath a building in Minneapolis. The sun was up by the time we all woke up, and it was really the first time I'd been able to feel the sun's warmth on my bare skin in what seemed like forever. I could breathe the fresh air willingly and I could enjoy it all without worrying about soldiers or Infected... for the time being.
"Come on Dani," Kale rolled his head on his neck, "You're with me."
"Why?"
Parked at a Holiday gas pump, he jabbed one of the buttons, "Because I don't have a card on me and if I press cash," He poked the screen a bit harder to make a point before nodding off to the Holiday building, "one of the registers in there is going to have to approve this pump in order to get any gas in the tank."
"Why is it just you and Dani going inside? I can stand out here alone by the pump if you want Beckett to go with you," Alex said.
Kale gave him a look, "Ya. You're not staying out here by yourself. It's too dangerous. Beckett'll stay out here with you."
I noted how Beckett's teeth grounded together, "Alex will be fine. There's nobody out here!"
"You don't know that. None of us do," Kale patted the hood of the suburban, "My baby needs double protection."
"You want us to protect the car?" Beckett deadpanned though Kale was already walking away. He waved without looking back.
"I know you'll do great."
Exaggerating a sad frown, I mouthed 'Sorry' to my brother as I began following Kale toward the Holiday. Beckett rolled his eyes with pursed lips. Personally, I didn't see what was wrong with all four of us going inside the Holiday together. That would probably be safer, but whatever I suppose, Kale was calling the shots like always.
"You don't leave my side, alright?" Kale said quietly as we got closer.
I nodded and the eldest intuitively stepped in front of me. I tried to stay more relaxed but the intimate tightness of tense muscles was beginning to constrict around my bones. Kale held the handgun up at eye level and took the door handle, swinging it open softly. Nothing came running at first sight. A good sign so far. Kale then held the door open with his foot and knocked on the metal door frame. The noise bounced off the walls of the inside but there was no immediate response.
In we go.
Kale lowered the gun slightly and stepped through the doorway with me a stride behind him. Glass crunched beneath the soles of my shoes. It was a casualty inside, a drunken cyclone had come through and spewed products and foods off the shelves, which had then been pushed around on the floor. I should start getting used to every place we step into being in complete turmoil like this.
"Smell that?" Kale scrunched his nostrils.
It was meager, but there was a very distinct smell of spoiled milk and rotting frozen foods infused in the hazy air. The start of such putrid smells meant the fridges weren't running.
My nose twisted, "Ya."
"Power isn't on. There's probably an electrical box in the backroom."
I swept a hand forward, "After you."
He took the lead once again toward the only area of the room that led off to the bathrooms and another door that I presumed was the backroom. We passed by several catastrophic aisles still filled with junk food. On the end of one the aisles was a Cosmic Brownie.
"Oh, Kale," I said in a soft sing-a-long tone.
"What?" He was caught off guard by my cheesy voice until he saw what I was holding. The look on his face was priceless.
I waved the brownie in my hand, "It's the last one."
"Those are my favorite," His jaw dropped slightly and his eyes followed the delicacy like a dog begging for a treat.
"I know they are," My smile was mischievous as I started to tear the wrapper slowly, "All this apocalyptic crap is miserable. I think we deserve a little treat."
I tore the plastic packaging off and let it fall to the floor.
Kale grinned as he took the half I held out to him, "We won't tell Beckett we stopped for a quick snack."
I shook my head, "Never."
In sync, we both took a large bite and grinned as we chewed. As an added joke, we purposely opened wide and displayed the feasted goodies in between our teeth. Gross yes, but something Kale and I tended to do more often than we should. Beckett hated it.
Unfortunately, the good moment was over as soon as it started as soon as a crash broke the air. Kale dropped the brownie and turned, "Back up."
I did so. The front door wasn't far off.
The noises were muffled but distinct. Something was shuffling around in the back and I doubted it was human. Our kind of human.
I felt my heel hit something. The moment there was contact, my stomach dropped and I looked behind me to see a pop can quickly rolling across the floor. I couldn't stop it from connecting with a metal shelf hard enough to make a very loud 'clunk' noise. There was just enough force on the shelf that a small jar of salsa that'd been sitting on the edge fell. The glass shattered on the floor.
A high pitched squeal followed.
Kale pushed me backward, "Get outside."
Was he staying in here? "But what about you?"
"Just go!"
I nodded and stumbled back. Get Beckett. Get Beckett. Kale was strong but it was a struggle with even one Infected. By the sound of it, there had been more than one in the back. Get Beckett.
Alex was leisurely kicking at the pavement and the youngest brother was leaning against the suburban on the pump side, clearly still annoyed with Kale from earlier but the moment I bursted through the front doors, he bolted upright and met me with a couple of quick steps, "Dani? What's wrong?"
I point
ed back toward the gas station breathlessly, "There was a crash in the back room and then I accidentally kicked a pop can and then Kale told me to run out and and-"
Alex came around the car with a questioning look while Beckett tried to slow me down, "Woah! Take it easy."
"Beckett! I can't! There are Infected in there!"
There was a gunshot.
Two.
Three.
I spun around in a panic, "Kale!"
Probably shouldn't have screamed. I realized my mistake the moment more screeches tore in the quiet air. Not from the Holiday but from elsewhere. Three of them. I wasn't even sure where they'd come but they ran at full speed, all with a lethal intent. Beckett grabbed my arm and pulled me back hard enough to throw me to the ground behind him. Two of the Infected had Beckett back up against the suburban and the other had disappeared, probably in pursuit of Alex.
"Run!" My brother huffed.
Terror struck me and completely paralyzed my muscles. I couldn't even process what was happening or what my brother had just ordered me to do.
What do I do? What do I do?
"RUN DANI!" His yell was shrill and it somehow jumpstarted my brain.
So I ran. Without even thinking, I just ran. I pushed myself off the ground and sprinted around my brother and around the car. I didn't know where Alex was but I didn't turn to look. I just ran. Past the pumps and down a dirt street behind a neighborhood of forlorn looking houses.
At the sudden sound of a gunshot, I stopped.
What am I doing?
Why the hell was I running? Ya, Beckett told me to but I should be doing everything I can to help bring those Infected down. Not leave everybody behind.
Before I could even turn around, I was thrown to the ground. Not just pushed over but tackled. The force hit me like a train. Arms wrapped around me and propelled me across the dirt, sending me skidding and rolling. Heavy dusty particles expelled into the air from the sudden rough movements. Through the dark chalky haze, I saw the Infected getting to its knees. A dirty white shirt that looked like oil was splashed across the front and a faded pair of ripped jeans. I scrambled onto my back as it bursted forward, it's wretched fingers taking hold of my ankle. I swung my free leg and the Infected across the face hard enough that for it to release its grip on me. Wasting no time to find my footing, I turned the other way back toward the gas station.