The Remnants of Yesterday

by Anthony M. Strong

  “Look.” Emily pointed toward the tree line.

  As one, we turned and looked.

  I spotted a figure emerging from the darkness between the trees. It walked slowly, weaving a little as it went. It wasn’t until the figure entered a patch of sunlight that I realized it was a woman of about forty, her long hair, which at one time might have been beautiful, was now matted to her head. She wore a nightdress, the fabric dirty and ripped in places. Doughy pallid skin showed through the tears.

  “What’s she doing?” Emily said.

  “I don’t like this.” Internal alarm bells were going off. “I don’t like this one little bit.”

  The woman was in the clearing now. She stopped and looked at us, a dull expression on her face.

  I saw J.T. dismount from the porch, a look of relief on his face, and knew instantly what he was about to do.

  “J.T. Stop.” I shouted a warning. “Don’t.”

  “It’s alright, she works for me. It’s Elise Jenkins.” Even so, he faltered, hesitating.

  “Stay where you are. Don’t move any closer.” I turned to the others, making sure to keep an eye on Elise. “We should pick up our gear and get out of here. I have a feeling this place is about to become very unwelcoming.”

  “What about her?” Darwin asked, nodding toward Elise.

  “Just don’t lose sight of her. If she starts toward us, run.” I ushered everyone towards the cabin.

  We took it slow and steady across the clearing, not wishing to make any sudden moves that would draw more attention than we already had. Elise watched us, slack jawed and vacant, her arms dangling at her sides. She made no attempt to move toward us, and for that I was grateful.

  When we reached the cabin, Emily and Clara ducked inside to collect our packs, which we could not afford to lose. The rest of us stayed at the base of the steps, watching Elise.

  J.T. looked at me, his eyes wide. “What’s wrong with her?”

  “She’s crazy, that’s what,” Darwin told him. “And not life of the party crazy. More like munch on your raw flesh crazy.”

  I glanced toward the cabin, willing the girls to emerge, then back to Elise. She hadn’t moved. Perhaps she was summing us up, or maybe it just took a while for things to process now. Either way, she wouldn’t stay still for long, and I didn’t want to get into a scuffle with her. My encounter with Alice the crazy waitress hadn’t exactly been pleasant, and I had no desire to repeat the experience.

  Finally, after what seemed an eternity, the cabin door opened and the girls appeared, backpacks in hand.

  “About time,” I muttered. “Let’s go. We’ll make for the road.” I pointed toward the track leading from the clearing, where the bus was parked.

  “She’s moving.” Clara looked toward Elise, who now stumbled forward, her movements uncoordinated and erratic.

  “She doesn’t look very dangerous,” J.T. said.

  “Trust me, you don’t want to find out,” I replied. “If she’s anything like the other Crazies we’ve encountered, she can move at a pretty good lick if she wants to.”

  “Are you sure she doesn’t just need help?” J.T. was still struggling with the concept of Crazies.

  “I’m sure.” Who knew how many more of J.T.’s staff were wandering around the woods in a stupor. “Trust me.”

  “Can we go now?” Darwin as eyeing Elise with a look of loathing on his face. “I don’t think I like it here anymore.”

  “Come on.” I took my pack and made for the road on the other side of the clearing, with the others a step behind me. J.T. lingered for a moment, then hurried to catch up.

  We reached the midway point. Now we were well and truly exposed, out in the open. If any more Crazies came out of the woods from another direction, we might be trapped. I tried not to think about it and pushed on.

  It turned out that it wasn’t the Crazies we needed to worry about.

  “What’s that thing?” J.T. stopped in his tracks, looking back toward Elise.

  I spun around, a writhing fear clutching at my stomach. Even though I hoped I was wrong, I knew exactly what I would see when I looked.

  The beast was a few feet behind Elise, stalking her. It moved crouched down on all fours, creeping up without making a sound. Elise was blissfully unaware of its presence.

  “We have to do something.” J.T.’s eyes were wide with horror. “It’s going to kill her.”

  “Probably.” It was pretty much a given. I remembered the frenzied attack back at the motel, and our encounter with the beasts before we fled into the woods. “Rather her than us.”

  “She’s still human,” J.T.’s face was red. I saw a vein throb on his temple. “We can’t just leave her.”

  “Yes we can.” The force of Clara’s words surprised me. She grabbed J.T. by the arm, steering him forward. “If we help her, we all die.”

  As if to prove a point, it was at that moment that the beast decided to make its move. It shot forward, a blur of muscle and teeth landing on the defenseless woman’s back. Elise toppled forward, but she didn’t try to break her fall, instead her face hit the ground with a dull thud. Blood sprayed like a fine rain from her nose and mouth.

  The beast rolled her over and slashed with its paw, and then again. Elise was making mewling sounds, not really a cry for help, but more like whimpering.

  Another blow glanced off her neck, sharp claws gouging and tearing the flesh, and this time the blood arced up in a graceful curve before hitting the ground and soaking in.

  The beast opened its jaws and bit down, securing its victim, shaking the prone woman like a rag doll until she went limp, and then it raised its head and looked toward us.

  “Oh shit,” Darwin said, a tremble in his voice. “This is not good.”

  “Move.” I pushed Clara forward, then Emily. Darwin stepped around me, but J.T. just stood looking at the bloody corpse of his employee, and the beast that was now slinking toward us. “You too.” I reached out and grabbed his arm.

  “Get off me.” He swiveled, his face full of fear and anger.

  “If you don’t move, you’re next.” I gripped his arm. “Pull yourself together or you will die here today.”

  As if to prove my point, two more beasts emerged from the woods. Their eyes fixed upon us, and then, as if making a silent decision, all three shot forward, moving faster than I would have thought possible, closing the gap between us much too fast.

  55

  “RUN.” I SCREAMED the command at the top of my voice.

  J.T. who up until now seemed a little dazed, regained some of his will. He turned and fled, following the others toward the road. I waited for him to pass me and then did likewise.

  Behind us, I heard the creatures let lose a shriek of rage. I chanced a glance backward, and saw, to my horror, that they were almost upon us, their huge jaws open and ready for the kill. The lead beast still had blood on its teeth from the attack on Irene, and I had no desire to add to that.

  “It’s no good,” Clara yelled, a note of panic in her voice. “We’ll never outrun them.”

  “Just keep moving. Head for the trees, it will be easier to lose them there.” I had my doubts about that, but it sure beat being pursued in the open where we were sitting ducks.

  “No.” J.T. pointed toward the school bus. “The bus.”

  “We’ll be trapped.”

  “Trust me. The bus is our only chance.”

  “It won’t work. Remember what we told you yesterday?”

  “Dammit, just trust me. I can get it going.”

  “You’d better know something I don’t,” I said to him, then, to the rest of the group, “do as he says. Head for the bus.”

  We veered left, abandoning our prior route. When we got to the bus, J.T. pushed past us and reached out, gripping the passenger door release. As soon as it slid open, we piled inside and yanked the door back in place.

  The nearest creature hit the door with a loud thud.

  “That was too close.” Darwin
fought to regain his composure. He gulped down air, his face beet red.

  I went over to the window and peered out.

  The beasts prowled around the bus like sharks circling a hapless swimmer. Every once in a while one of them approached and sniffed, examining the vehicle, then circled once more.

  “They’re looking for a way in.” I hoped the concertina passenger door was sturdier than it looked. The door had already withstood one direct assault, but who knew how many blows it would take before it gave up the ghost.

  “Let them look all they want. We’re getting out of here.” J.T. slid into the driver’s seat. He reached into his pocket, and then cursed. “Damn.”

  “What?”

  “The ignition key. I don’t have it. It’s back on the desk in my cabin.”

  “Great. Just freaking great.” Darwin punched the closest seat. “We’re dead. Good job.”

  “It wouldn’t have started anyway,” I reminded him. “Cars don’t work anymore, remember?”

  “I already told you, it does work.” J.T. spun around in the seat, looking at me. “We decided to go swimming the other day. There’s a natural spring a few miles up the road. The bus wouldn’t start. The battery was dead. We charged it up and the damn thing still wouldn’t turn over. One of my guys is,” He stopped and corrected himself, “or rather was, a genius with anything mechanical. He took the starter out, a few other bits and pieces, poked around under the hood for a few hours, and somehow got it going again. Don’t ask me how.”

  “You don’t know what he did?”

  “Not exactly.”

  “So we can’t replicate it on another vehicle if we come across one that actually does have a set of keys.” I felt like I was the playing the lead role in some bizarre comedy show. Here we were, with possibly the only working vehicle in thousands of miles, and we didn’t have any way to start it up. Worse, the only person who might know how to fix another vehicle was missing. If there was a God, he was surely laughing his ass off right then.

  “Let me take a look.” Clara elbowed past me and approached the driver’s seat. She motioned to J.T. “Move. I need to get in there.”

  “Huh?” He looked at her, surprised.

  “Let the dog see the bone.” Clara almost pulled him from the seat, before taking his place.

  “What are you going to do?” I asked. The bus shook as one of the beasts barreled into it. I glanced nervously toward the sound of the impact, half-expecting to see the side window shatter.

  “I’m going to get us out of here.” She adjusted the seat forward to reach the pedals. “I need something flat, like a screwdriver.”

  “Where are we going to get one of those?” Darwin said.

  “Under the rear seat.” J.T. took off down the bus. “There’s a small toolbox.”

  “That’s lucky,” Emily said. “I don’t suppose you have a couple of shotguns back there too.”

  “Not likely. Just the toolbox. We’re not that lucky.” J.T. was heading back down the aisle with a blue metal toolbox. He put it on one of the seats, opened it and took out a flat-ended screwdriver. “Will this do?”

  “Perfect.” Clara snatched the tool and went to work, pushing the blade into the space between the ignition tumbler and plastic steering column casing. She grunted with the effort and pried back on the screwdriver.

  There was another crash and the passenger door buckled inward. “Better hurry,” I said, eyeing it nervously.

  “Almost there.” She continued to work on the casing.

  “Here they come again.” Darwin was at the window. He scooted backward just as the bus took another huge hit. A long, zigzagging crack appeared in the glass of the window closest to the door. “One more hit like that and the window will go.”

  “I know.” Clara pushed down on the screwdriver, standing and putting all her weight into it. For a moment nothing happened, and then the casing broke away with an audible snap. “Got it.”

  “Better make it quick. It looks like we’re about to get hit again, and I’m not sure we can take another one.” One of the creatures had backed up, turning, ready to charge. The other two lingered near the bus, as if sensing they were about to gain access.

  “Give me one moment.” Clara pulled at the wires leading to the ignition, tearing them from the unit. “There are three wires. We just need to connect these two like this.” She twisted two of the wires together. The dash lit up. “Good. Now we need the starter wire.”

  “Careful,” I cautioned. “We don’t need you electrocuting yourself.”

  “Well duh.” Clara held the third wire between her thumb and forefinger and sparked it against the other two. The engine turned over but didn’t start.

  “It’s working.” Darwin exclaimed. “Do it again.”

  Clara touched the wires together a second time. The engine coughed, sputtered, then fell silent.

  “Damn.” I glanced out of the window. The creature lowered its head, making straight for the weakest point on the bus, the dented passenger door. “Hurry up.”

  “I’m going as fast as I can.” Clara touched the wires together a third time. The engine turned over once, twice, and then right at the last moment, just when it looked like we were doomed, it sprang to life.

  “Hell yeah.” Darwin pumped a fist in the air. “That’s more like it.”

  Clara pushed the bus into first and rammed her foot down hard on the accelerator. “Hold tight.”

  The vehicle lurched forward just as the charging beast reached it, but instead of hitting the door, the creature missed and slammed into the back of the bus just behind the left tire. There was a dull thud and the bus slid sideways, the wheels refusing to grip for a moment. Then we were screeching from the clearing, our tires kicking up mud and grass into the faces of the pursuing beasts.

  56

  WE JOLTED AND bumped down the dirt road, the trees whizzing past. Clara was surprisingly adept at driving the bus, steering it with relative ease despite the occasional curse word whenever the wheels dropped into a pothole or lost traction on the loose soil.

  “We did it.” Darwin pumped his fist in the air. “Holy crap we got away. I thought we were toast for sure.”

  “And we have a sweet ride to boot. No more walking for us.” Emily put her arms around him and planted a big wet kiss on his cheek. I wondered just how close they had gotten last night in that bedroom. Probably not as close as Clara and myself, but there certainly did seem to be a change in attitude between them. They were closer somehow.

  “Hey,” Clara spoke up from the front of the bus. “A little appreciation for the mastermind of this great escape would be nice.”

  “Sorry, you’re right.” Darwin looked apologetic. “Good job J.T.”

  “Jackass.” Clara scowled. “Next time I’m leaving you behind as a light lunch for the slathering monsters.”

  “You can try.” Darwin flopped down in a seat Close to the back of the bus, with Emily by his side.

  J.T. perched on the edge of a seat half way back, looking shell shocked. I understood how he was feeling at that moment. Just twenty-four hours ago, he was leading aerobics sessions for his team. Now they were all gone and he was on a school bus fleeing for his life. It was a hard thing to comprehend, as we all knew first hand.

  “Where does this road go?” Clara asked, keeping her eyes firmly rooted ahead. She gripped the steering wheel so tight, trying to stop it jerking around every time we hit a bump, that her knuckles had turned white.

  “Hey, J.T.” I walked down the aisle and nudged him. “Where are we?”

  “What?” He looked up at me.

  “Where does the road go?” Sooner or later we would end up on paved roads, which would enable us to move a bit faster, but would also present new problems. There would be other vehicles. Most of them – the ones that might present an issue – either wrecked or abandoned. If the going got too tough, we may have to ditch the bus and start to hoof it again, and I didn’t like the idea of that. Much better to kn
ow where we were, and avoid the main arteries altogether.

  “It links up with Route Twelve.” He shrugged, a weary gesture of resignation. “After that it depends where you want to go.”

  I suddenly realized I had no idea which direction New Haven was in. The bus didn’t have a GPS, not that it mattered. Given the state of current communications, there was no chance a GPS unit would work even if we had one. That left one option, an old-fashioned paper map. Only we didn’t have one of those either. “We need to find a gas station, pick up a map as soon as possible. Exactly how far are we from twelve?”

  “Five, maybe six miles.” He turned toward the window, sullen, his face reflecting in the glass. On that face, I saw confusion and misery. “I can’t believe you left her there to die like that.”

  “There was nothing we could have done for her.” I placed a hand on his shoulder. “It was what had to be done.”

  “It was murder,” He shrugged my hand away. “Murder pure and simple.”

  57

  WE REACHED THE paved road in no time. Thankfully, there were very few cars around, at least on this section, and those that we did come across were either off to the side, or only blocked one lane. The one time we found a mini pile up of three cars, we simply slowed down and nudged the closest vehicle forward with the nose of the bus until we punched a hole through. It seemed to work just fine, but that could have been pure luck on our part. I was not optimistic about our chances with a larger mess of cars, or if we ran across a sixteen wheeler.

  Now and again, we passed a house, a few of which looked like they might be working farms, with large barns attached, and equipment sitting idle. Not once did we see any signs of life. The landscape was eerie in its emptiness. I toyed with the idea of pulling over and searching the houses for useful items, such as food, water, sleeping bags, and blankets, but there would always be more houses, and after our latest encounter with the beasts I didn’t want to risk running into more of them, or any Crazies that might be lurking around.