by Smith, I. J.
“We should give him a minute!” Sarah told everyone.
They all stood back.
Jack climbed into the van; Kat was curled up in the corner, only an old coat covered her naked body. He kneeled down in front of her. Reaching out, he raised her chin. Her eyes were red and raw from her tears; he looked into her eyes and did not see the girl he loved as a sister. She was broken in the worst possible way. He stroked the side of her face, her eyes turned to him.
“Kat?” he simply asked.
She stared at him like he was a stranger. Jack noticed the writing on her forehead the word, REAPER, written in blood. He licked his thumb and begun to wipe off the blood, but she pushed him away angrily.
Jack raised his hand, showing he would not touch her. Raven, Sarah, Jacob, and Adam stood by the open door.
Kat stared at Jack.
“Kat, I don’t know what to say,” he told her.
He attempted to hug her, but once again she pushed him away. This time so hard he fell backward.
“IT’S YOUR FAULT! I HATE YOU! I WISH WE HAD NEVER FOUND YOU IN THAT ROAD! WE SHOULD HAVE LET YOU DIE! YOU’RE EVIL! YOU’RE EVIL!” She yelled and sobbed.
Jack tried to comfort her once again, but she started to hit Jack, slapping him in the face multiple times, while screaming at him.
“GET AWAY FROM ME! GO AND DIE! I HATE YOU!”
Jack backed away, holding in his emotions. He stepped out of the van; looking at everyone staring at him. Raven approached him.
“She is just upset.”
Jack just looked at Raven, he never said a word. Walking over to Tommy he asked one thing.
“Where is Ray?”
Tommy glanced at the others. “Don’t look at them, just tell me!” Jack demanded.
“The village, we were looking for supplies and….” Tommy was still speaking, when Jack walked away towards the car.
Sarah raced after him.
“JACK!” she yelled out.
He ignored her.
“Where are you going?” She asked.
Jack stopped and turned to her.
“To finish this!”
As he walked to the driver’s side, he noticed the groaning of the crushed zombie that was still stuck in the wheel. Sarah watched as Jack pulled it out with his bare hands and stomped all over its head.
Racing to the passenger side, Sarah tried to get in.
“NO! I’M GOING ALONE!”
Jack climbed in the car and, within seconds, sped away.
Raven and Adam were consoling a sobbing Kat. Sarah walked back to Jacob and Tommy.
“He’s gonna die!” She told everyone.
“Maybe that’s what he wants,” Tommy replied.
“Nah, The Reaper is going to war!” Jacob added.
Sarah looked around. “I don’t get it, why would he go alone. He spent all this time looking for people and now he is just gonna abandon them. And what about Elle? He was looking for her, if he goes and dies, what was the point?”
Tommy walked passed Sarah as he went back to the van and only said two words.
“Elle’s dead!”
CHAPTER TEN
HELL
The sound of the dead groaning and banging against the doors was starting to upset the kids in the hall. Bray and Alice had barricaded the doorway with anything they could find, however the sound of the kids crying kept the zombies attempting to get inside.
Bray walked around checking for any other way inside when Rain joined him.
“Hi,” she said.
Bray gave a smile. “Hey, you OK?”
“Yeah, just hoping for a miracle,”
“Don’t worry; we are pretty good at miracles around here.”
Jennifer watched her dad and Rain talking, she was sitting with two other girls of a similar age.
“Oh gross, I think my dad is flirting with Rain!!”
The girls laughed at her comment, when a sudden scream made them jump up.
Bray rushed over to Jennifer, he looked in the direction of the scream and could see a young boy being dragged through an air vent. The rotted hands of a zombie tore away at the boy’s skin.
“STAY HERE!” He told Jennifer firmly.
He rushed over to the vent, the boy was screaming as blood poured from his open wounds. Before Bray could grab him, the zombie pulled the boy’s head through and bit into it, the boy’s screams stopped. Lowering his head, Bray shook. Within moments, zombies tried to crawl through the vent, Bray began to kick at them trying to force them back, but it was not good enough. Alice rushed over with a large knife and began hacking at the zombies as they dragged their corpses inside.
Bray pulled his gun, but was stopped when a young girl’s screaming caught his attention. He turned to see a boarded-up window had cracked open and a zombie was pulling the young girl by her hair towards it.
“Go!” Alice told him.
Bray rushed over. As he reached her, the girl’s hair and skin was being torn from her skull, her face smothered in blood, within moments she was dead. Bray got a glimpse of Rain trying to push back at another broken boarded up window.
“We can’t hold them back!” she shouted over to Bray.
Bray looked around and noticed a skylight. “Jennifer, come over here!”
He pulled a large table under the skylight and stood on top; he lifted Jennifer up and held her as she forced the skylight open. She struggled, but managed to crawl through.
“KIDS COME ON!”
One by one, Bray lifted the children up through the skylight and onto the roof, until only he, Rain and Alice remained.
“OK, NOW YOU TWO!”
Rain rushed from her position and jumped into Bray’s arms, he lifted her up.
“ALICE COME ON!”
Alice hacked at the head of a rotting corpse, and then ran. The boards that covered the windows collapsed, Alice slipped on the floor. Bray reached out, as the zombies piled in. Just as Alice grabbed Bray’s hand; a zombie grabbed her and tore into her back. Alice fell forward as the zombie bit into the back of her neck, tearing the flesh from her body.
As she screamed in pain, she spoke one last time. “SAVE THE KIDS!”
Bray watched for a second as she was ripped apart by more zombies. Bray jumped up and grabbed the ledge, Rain and Jennifer both grabbed his arms and pulled him up onto the roof. He lay back on the gravel roof, looking up at the sky becoming lighter. Bray covered his eyes, not wanting anyone to see his tears.
Zoe sat on the edge of the toilet roof, her legs dangling down. The zombies below were reaching up trying to get her. She leaned over and spat at the dead below. Looking over her shoulder she could see Paige sleeping, Eddie was sitting crossed legged beside her. Ryan had been walking around in circles for hours.
“SIT DOWN!” She yelled at him.
Ryan strolled over to her; he sat beside her and also dangled his legs over the edge.
“That’s as close as your gonna get, assholes!”
Zoe broke out laughing. Ryan looked at her with a confused smile.
“What?” he asked.
“Nothing! I am just remembering the first time we met. You would run away from trouble, shit you would have thrown someone else in the zombie’s path, if it meant saving your own life,” she replied.
Suddenly Ryan began to laugh too.
“Yeah, the good old days!”
“But seriously, you have changed. You saved a lot of lives and your always first to volunteer!”
Ryan looked down. Zoe looked worried that she had upset him.
“I can never make up for the things I did, so many good people died and I lived. It doesn’t seem fair, does it?”
Zoe placed her hand on his knee.
“You are a good person, remember that. Elle trained you how to fight, but you chose to become the man you are today.”
Ryan smiled. He looked out over the park, looking at the hordes of zombies surrounding them.
“Well safe to say, we are fucked now!”<
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“How many bullets do you have left?” Zoe asked.
Ryan glanced at her. “Only one, and I am saving that for my friend over there.” He said quietly, as he indicated to Eddie.
Suddenly he was taken unaware; Zoe smiled at him and leaned over and kissed him, as she pulled away their eyes locked and both reached in for another kiss, but stopped.
Gunfire echoed across the park, Zoe and Ryan jumped up and looked out. A fleet of black 4x4s appeared from nowhere, gunmen hung out of the windows. They drove around the caravan park shooting everything that was not alive. The zombies fell like flies, the cars stopped in the middle by the bus and a large group exited the vehicles and continued to fire.
Eddie stood alongside Zoe and Ryan.
“YAY! THEY’RE HERE TO SAVE US!”
Ryan looked at the black vehicles and could see the red circled with the painted M in the middle.
“I’m not too sure about that.” Ryan replied.
The zombie from below the toilets roof, changed direction and headed towards the popping noise of the gunfire. The bodies piled up in mass numbers, Zoe noticed a blonde woman get out from the lead car and shouting orders to the others.
It took only minutes to dispatch the dead that surrounded them. Zoe and the others climbed down from the roof and approached the others. Ryan held his gun, pointing towards the blonde woman.
“That’s not a nice way to greet someone who just saved you!” Pauline said.
Zoe stepped forward. “Forgive me! But anyone calling themselves Mercy, we don’t tend to trust them.”
Pauline holstered her gun; she waved her hand telling her people to lower their weapons.
“You have nothing to fear from us; in fact I am here to speak with Jack about something I think might interest him.”
Ryan frowned as he stared at her. Zoe grabbed Ryan’s hand. “Lower the gun!” She muttered to him.
“Jack’s not here! Not sure when he will be back,” Zoe told her.
Pauline looked upset; she placed her hands on her hips and walked closer to Zoe.
“Do you mind if we wait? We can help you!” she asked.
Ryan spoke out before Zoe could reply. “You want us to trust you?”
“Yes!” Pauline simply replied.
Ryan sighed as he looked around. “There is a building on the other side of the park. Children were staying there.”
“Say no more!” Pauline stopped him.
She turned to face her people. “FIVE OF YOU REMAIN! THE REST MOVE TO THE OTHERSIDE AND SECURE THE OTHER BUILDING! BE CAREFUL THERE ARE KIDS IN THERE!”
Turning back to Ryan, she nodded.
Paige stood between Ryan and Eddie.
“What a beautiful dog!” Pauline said.
Suddenly Paige barked loudly, Pauline jumped back.
“She is a great judge of character!” Ryan said.
Pauline simply smiled.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
PROMISES
The sun began to rise over the small village, the sunlight hitting the blood-soaked car. Driving recklessly through the street where a few zombies roamed, Jack slammed on the brakes making the car skid. Jack rested his head on the steering wheel. He suddenly lost it and began punching the wheel. A zombie suddenly slammed against the window, and Jack looked at it through angry eyes.
Jack threw the door open, forcing the zombie back. Pulling one of his machetes he went crazy and began smashing the blade against the skull of the zombie. As the body dropped to the ground Jack dropped on top of it, continuing to smash the skull into a thousand pieces. Blood sprayed up and all over Jack. He dragged himself back and sat looking at the corpse.
Eventually he stood up; he heard the groaning and slobbering of another zombie. He looked around and could see two legs pointing out from behind a car. Jack walked over; as the body came into view he staggered. His breathing became heavy, his eyes changed as he looked at the zombie tearing into Ray’s stomach. Intestines, flesh and blood covered the ground; the zombie looked up at Jack. Flesh hung from the zombie’s mouth as it groaned; blood poured from its mouth.
Simply Jack walked over and slammed his machete into the zombie’s head. Jack grabbed the zombie and pulled it back and dropped it to the ground. He fell to his knees in front of Ray; he pulled the body of his friend up. Jack could see the bullet wound in his head, he held Ray close for a moment.
“I’m sorry!”
Laying Ray’s body back down, Jack just sat there, looking at his friend. Not wanting to move, he began to speak to his friend.
“You should have left me in the road where you found me. I know you think I am better person, but I’m not. You don’t like the person I can be, but I am that person. The ones that did this, their pain is just about to begin!”
As he sat there he suddenly heard clapping behind him. Jack stood up and saw five large men clapping their hands.
“Awww, did your boyfriend die!”
Jack remained silent.
One of the men stepped forward.
“So you’re The Reaper. I have to honest I was expecting more.”
As the men laughed, Jack continued to remain silent and just stare at them.
“Can I ask you something, how is the girl?” the man laughed.
Jacks anger grew, clenching his fists.
“She sure had a sweet body, such perfect rounded titties and that cute little toy between her legs was just begging for a man to break it in!”
All five men laughed loudly As Jack approached them, “Where’s MacLeod?”
The men continued to laugh.
“Last chance, where is MacLeod?”
The men all pulled knifes, metal bars and approached Jack.
“First, we break you. And then, we’re gonna fuck you!”
Jack pulled both machetes from his sides and rushed at the men. Taken by surprise the first man was met with both machetes slamming through his stomach. The others watched as the blades appeared through his back.
“KILL THAT FUCKER!”
As the four men rushed at him, Jack looked directly at them.
“Don’t kill them all,” he muttered to himself.
As a man rushed him, Jack ducked under the swinging metal bar and sliced through the man’s leg, as he fell to the ground screaming Jack yelled.
“STAY!”
A knife sliced across Jack’s arm, causing a deep cut. Jack did not even flinch. He grabbed the man by the throat and slammed his machete through the man’s head. The fourth and fifth man circled Jack.
“HERE, KITTY, KITTY!”
Jack gave his half-smile.
Both men attacked at once. Getting hit in the back, Jack fell forward. Jack grabbed one man’s ear and pulled so hard he ripped it from his head. He side-stepped and slammed his foot into other’s knee. With two dead bodies lying around, Jack could hear the screams from the three he left alive.
Jack walked around them.
“I don’t really need three of you, just two will do.”
Jack walked over to the man whose leg he halfway sliced off.
“I guess you’re the unlucky one.”
Jack grabbed the man and dragged him along the ground, he looked across to shop. A zombie was pushing against the glass; he was locked inside the shop looking out. Jack dragged the man to the shop door, kicking it open he threw the man inside.
“NO! PLEASE!” He screamed.
“Bon Appetite!” Jack muttered.
Jack walked back over to the two men still alive. He grabbed them both and dragged them along the ground towards his car. Opening the boot, he punched both repeatedly until they were unconscious and threw them both in the trunk.
“Now, you get to meet The Reaper!” He gave them an evil grin before slamming the lid shut.
Jack jumped in the car and quickly drove away.
Driving down a long road, he kept thinking of Ray and Kat. He felt guilty, he blamed himself. As he drove, he approached an old workshop with a sign that read: ‘QUALITY HANDMA
DE FURNITURE.’
“Perfect,” he muttered to himself.
He parked up outside and looked at the building; it looked like an old-fashioned cottage converted for commercial use. Jack sat for a moment, his mind turned to Elle. Closing his eyes, he could remember the last time he saw her. Standing on the stairs after they made love, he remembered stroking her face. Her skin was so soft, her eyes pierced his soul, and her freckles were such a beauty they were forever burned into his memory. Opening his eyes, a tear rolled down his face, one perfect moment in his life is all he had ever had. For the first time since he discovered her death it had really hit him emotionally. Jack wiped his eyes, he took a deep breath.
“Time to die!” he muttered.
He left the car and checked the workshop, no zombies or anything inside.
“Perfect!” he muttered again.
He walked to the trunk and when he opened it, he noticed one of the men was now awake and staring at him. Jack smiled at him as he dragged him from the car, slamming the trunk shut once again.
He dragged the man inside. In the center of the workshop was a work bench. Jack threw the man on the table; he positioned the man’s head into a vice and began to tighten it.
“OH MY GOD! OH MY GOD! NOT LIKE THIS!” The man begged.
Jack tightened the vise so hard it was impossible for him to move, he walked around the bench.
Looking at the man, Jack noticed the beer gut, the long beard and dirty blood stained clothes. The man on the bench struggled waving his arms and legs around. Jack moved over to the tool shelf, he grabbed two hammers, one of them a ball-peen hammer.
“I’m gonna save that one!”
He held the heavier hammer and picked up a pile of long nails. Jack walked over to the bench, grabbing one of the man’s hands he hammered a nail though it and into the bench, pinning him down. After doing the same to the other hand, Jack grabbed one of the man’s legs; he positioned the nail over the man’s ankle and took great pleasure in nailing both the man’s legs down.
The man screamed in pain as blood dripped from the table. Jack grabbed a chair and sat next to the vice.