Extinction Cycle (Kindle Worlds): Mother

by Hopf, G. Michael

  Without hesitation, Paul squeezed the trigger. The bullet exploded out the muzzle and struck the Variant in the chest.

  It howled and clutched the wound.

  The second Variant swung around and ran towards Paul, but its advance was hampered by a volley of gunfire from Sabrina’s AR-15. It crashed to the ground but wasn’t dead. The monster dug its nails into the hardened earth and dragged itself towards Paul.

  Paul cycled the bolt and finished the job by placing a round in its head.

  Sabrina ran up to Jason’s body. Alongside it, the last Variant clung to life, its breathing labored and blood oozing from the wound on its chest. Unforgiving, Sabrina leveled the barrel of her rifle at its face and pulled the trigger.

  Paul stood frozen in the street. He had survived the assault, but his team had suffered the loss of Jason.

  Kevin ran out of the front and towards them. “Are we clear?”

  Paul didn’t reply. He just stood, his feet anchored to the pavement and his stare fixed on Sabrina with her arms cradled around Jason’s body.

  Kevin came up and looked down on the gruesome scene. “Is he…?”

  “Yes,” Sabrina replied, her voice trembling.

  “Paul, you okay?” Kevin asked.

  Paul didn’t reply.

  “Paul! Are you hurt?” Kevin asked.

  Sabrina’s sadness turned to anger. She gently put Jason’s head down and stood up. Not saying a word, she marched over to Paul and punched him in the face.

  Paul reeled from the strike. He tripped over his own feet and fell down.

  “Sabrina, what are you doing?”

  “He didn’t warn us, nothing. He could have warned us, warned Jason. But he didn’t. He probably hid and let those things come!” Sabrina barked.

  Paul lay on the ground, rubbing his jaw. Still he had nothing to say.

  Kevin looked around. Soon the sun would be rising, and after all the gunfire, if more Variants were close by, they’d soon be coming. “We need to get inside, now.”

  “Damn you!” Sabrina yelled, kicking Paul’s leg.

  “Enough, get inside,” Kevin ordered.

  “What about Jason’s body?” Sabrina asked.

  “You know the drill; he stays where he lies. Now come on before more of those things show up.”

  Sabrina walked over to Jason’s body and whispered, “Goodbye, see you on the other side.” Wiping tears from her face, she briskly headed to the warehouse.

  Kevin approached Paul. “You good?” he asked with his arm outstretched.

  “I, um, I couldn’t radio. They came up too fast. I-I, um, thought they’d just keep going, but…” Paul mumbled.

  “Never mind, we’ll discuss this all later. Now get up, come on,” Kevin said.

  Paul took Kevin’s hand.

  Once on his feet, Kevin could smell the strong stench of urine. He thought about saying something, but now wasn’t the time. They hurried inside and joined the others.

  CHAPTER TWO

  Paul couldn’t sleep. He tried, but it was fruitless. The trauma from the attack was too much. Every time he closed his eyes, all he could see was the pasty gruesome face of the Variant hissing at him with its round puckered mouth.

  Sabrina also remained awake, her gaze fixed on Paul with hate-filled eyes.

  Trent and Ashley didn’t have any trouble sleeping while Kevin remained awake to provide security and make sure Sabrina didn’t attack Paul again.

  The remaining hours of night brought bone-chilling sounds from outside the warehouse. There was no need for explanation, Kevin knew what it was.

  The sun’s orange rays came streaming in through a long row of windows perched near the ceiling. It was a welcome sight for Kevin, as now he’d be able to catch a few hours of sleep. He leaned over and tapped Trent’s leg. “Hey, get up. Your turn.”

  Trent rolled over but kept sleeping.

  Kevin tapped harder and raised his voice. “Trent, it’s your shift.”

  “Let him sleep. I’ll take his watch,” Sabrina offered.

  Kevin grinned and replied, “No. You’ve been up all night too, and when I wake, I’d like to find Paul alive.”

  “Huh?” Trent mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

  “It’s morning; sun’s up. Your turn for watch,” Kevin said.

  Trent sat up and stretched. He looked at everyone and groaned, “Everyone is awake, and you’re waking me up?”

  “Do I need to explain? Go take a piss, and when you come back, you’re on watch,” Kevin said.

  Trent mumbled something unintelligible and sauntered off.

  Sabrina jumped up and came over to Kevin. “Can we talk?”

  “Sure,” Kevin replied.

  She plopped down next to him and whispered, “You need to find out what happened last night.”

  “I will.”

  “You must or…”

  “Or what, huh?” Kevin snapped.

  “I talked with Trent and Ashley; they agree.”

  “Agree with what?”

  “If Paul was negligent or cowardly, there must be consequences,” Sabrina griped.

  “What would you like me to do? Hold a trial, and if he’s guilty, take him out and shoot him?” Kevin mocked.

  Sabrina leaned in and said, “We all work well together, we’re a team, but if one person is not doing their part, we don’t function. In fact, it can be dangerous, deadly even, like we saw last night.”

  Kevin patted her on the arm and said, “When Trent gets back, I’m going to take a nap. When I get up, we’ll discuss it more.”

  “No, when Trent gets back, you need to question Paul on exactly what happened last night. I can’t wait any longer.”

  Trent lumbered up the stairwell, his hand sliding along the worn metal railing.

  “Wake Ashley,” Sabrina ordered Trent.

  “For what?” Trent asked.

  “We’re going to get the truth about what happened last night,” Sabrina answered.

  “Can’t this wait?” Trent asked.

  Ashley yawned and said, “I’m already awake. Go ahead.”

  Sabrina turned to Kevin and glared. “You’re up.”

  Kevin sighed heavily. “I’m fucking tired.”

  “Jason died. We need to know, now,” Sabrina insisted.

  “I’m with Sabrina. Let’s see what dopey has to say,” Trent mocked.

  “Enough name-calling, Trent, we’re a team. Shit happens. I seem to remember that time north of Denver—” Kevin said.

  “That was an accident!” Trent blurted out, interrupting Kevin.

  “My point,” Kevin said.

  “I think you’re overly defensive of Paul because he’s your dead girlfriend’s brother,” Ashley snarked.

  Kevin nodded his head in disgust.

  The entire time, Paul sat and listened, but when his sister was mentioned, he perked up. “Don’t talk about Megan.”

  “There’s the peanut gallery. How about you tell us what happened last night?” Sabrina said, shifting to look at Paul squarely.

  Kevin stood up and barked, “Shut up, everyone. Shut the fuck up!”

  Everyone grew quiet and stared at Kevin.

  “Apparently this couldn’t wait,” Kevin said, looking at each person before settling his gaze on Paul. “What happened last night? Why didn’t you radio about those creatures?”

  “It all happened so fast. I first heard this odd sound. I wasn’t sure what it was. I looked, and just like that, they were feet from me. If I had radioed you, they would have spotted me and killed me.”

  “Better you than Jason,” Sabrina quipped.

  Kevin pointed a stiff finger and snapped, “Enough!”

  “I thought they’d just pass by, you know, like they were heading somewhere else.”

  “Did you turn your radio off?” Kevin asked.

  “Yes.”

  “Why?”

  “Like I said, I thought they’d just pass by. If I radioed, they would have heard me and then—”
<
br />   “And then Jason would be alive,” Sabrina snapped.

  “Seriously, enough,” Kevin scolded.

  “But I was wrong. They didn’t pass by; they somehow knew I was there and began to stalk me. Next thing I know, Jason comes out. Two of the three jumped him. I killed the third,” Paul explained.

  “If you’d warned us—” Sabrina said.

  “Sabrina, I won’t tell you again,” Kevin said.

  “Fuck you. This douchebag, this fat, lazy slug got Jason killed. All he needed to do was warn us. He couldn’t even do that. He can’t be part of this team anymore. I don’t trust him,” Sabrina roared.

  Kevin looked at her then towards Ashley and Trent. “You guys feel the same way?”

  They both nodded.

  “We agreed that we needed a unanimous decision on things like this. I say no. What he says makes practical sense. He thought they were passing through, but they didn’t. We don’t know that if he had alerted us, Jason and I wouldn’t be dead along with Paul. You’ve seen those things, they’re lethal. We’re lucky as hell we took those things out so easily last night,” Kevin said. He sighed and continued, “It was a tragic mistake, nothing more. Paul’s intentions weren’t devious. He decided on the spot and shit happened. It’s like how Megan was killed. We make choices and sometimes those choices result in a fatality. Last night it just happened to be Jason.”

  “You’re siding with this fat fuck?” Sabrina barked.

  Paul sank down further and put his head lower. He felt horrible about what had happened, and in retrospect, he wished he had just radioed.

  “Stop the childish name-calling,” Kevin said.

  “I’m out. I can’t do this anymore,” Sabrina said, throwing her arms into the air.

  Kevin shook his head and sighed. “C’mon, guys, we’ve been together for weeks now. You’re going to up and bail on me and Paul? If we’re going to survive against those things, we need numbers.”

  Ashley gathered her personal belongings and stuffed them into her backpack.

  “Ashley, you’re leaving?” Kevin asked.

  “I’m with Sabrina. Paul is…well, I’ll just put it frankly, he’s a liability. I need to make it through this; I must make it through this. He messes up everywhere we go, and now it’s cost Jason his life,” Ashley replied.

  Kevin looked at Trent.

  He grinned and said, “I’m with the ladies, sorry, bro.”

  Sabrina approached Kevin and placed her hand gently on his shoulder. “Come with us. Dump the baggage. I know you feel a loyalty to him because of Megan, but she’s dead.”

  “I can’t,” Kevin said, shaking his head.

  Sabrina looked over her shoulder at Paul, who was sulking in the corner. “He’s gonna get you killed.”

  “Where are you guys going?” Kevin asked.

  “The Yukon, like we’ve planned all along, but first I need to go see if my cousins are still alive in Idaho Falls.”

  “That’s right, your cousins,” Kevin said, remembering her need to deviate from the route.

  “All we need to do is find some wheels and we’ll be solid,” Sabrina said.

  “There’s plenty around. Take your pick,” Kevin said, referring to the fact they only had a single vehicle, a crew cab truck that had been Megan’s, and Kevin was now the rightful heir of it. “You’re making a mistake.”

  “No, you are,” Sabrina said.

  A screeching howl came from outside, near the parking lot.

  Everyone went silent; their eyes widened.

  “Variants!” Kevin said with urgency, grabbing his rifle.

  Trent ran down the catwalk to a strip of windows that overlooked the street and the parking lot. He peeked out and saw two Variants examining the remains of Jason and the dead Variants. They crawled around on all fours, their backs hunched like hyenas. “I see two of them. They’re near the bodies from last night. Wait, hold on. They’re coming towards the front doors.”

  Banging sounded on the glass front doors.

  Kevin, Sabrina, Ashley and Paul all readied themselves, rifles in hand. From their positions on the second-floor loft, they’d be able to bring concentrated fire upon anything that came into their field of view.

  Scratching came from the back door.

  “Trent, did they move to the back?” Kevin called out.

  “I can’t tell. I lost sight of them when they went to the front,” he replied, running down the catwalk to a panel of windows that looked down on the backyard. He peered out. “It’s the same two. It’s like they’re casing the place. And they’re gone, they took off.”

  “Stay on lookout. Ashley, go to the front windows and post there,” Kevin ordered, naturally falling back into his position as team leader.

  Sabrina stepped up to Kevin and nudged him.

  He looked at her and said, “I suggest you hold off on leaving until nightfall.”

  “Yeah, that’s what I was going to say,” she said. “Listen, about all of this, I’m sorry, I hate to leave you in this position, but I feel strongly—”

  “There’s no need to apologize. I like you, a lot; you’re a natural leader. You’ll be fine; we’ll be fine. It’s just I find it harder to survive out there with fewer numbers. Hell, those things run in packs, they even know the importance of hanging together.”

  She leaned close and whispered, “Kev, I don’t trust him. I don’t. Something tells me not to. You know that whole woman’s intuition thing.”

  Kevin shot a look to Paul, who was still kneeling behind the railing, his rifle in his shoulder. “He’s just quirky is all. I’ve known him for about a year. He’s not a bad guy, just odd.”

  “Please reconsider,” Sabrina urged.

  “I made a promise to Megan. I won’t leave him,” Kevin replied.

  “I understand, you’re a man of your word. I respect that,” she said, rubbing his arm.

  “I need some sleep. At nightfall, we’ll all leave to go to the truck so you can get your stuff,” Kevin said. The truck was parked in a hidden location not a mile away.

  “Sounds good. Go get some shut-eye,” Sabrina said and quickly embraced him.

  He returned the embrace but was stunned she had done it. “What was that for?”

  “I’m just going to miss you, that’s all.”

  “I didn’t really say, but I’m sorry about Jason. I know you two—”

  “I’m sorry too, but that’s the world we live in now,” she replied, fighting back tears. “Go…go lie down. Get some rest,” she said, pushing him away.

  He watched her walk off, her hand wiping tears away. He turned back to see Paul staring at him. “What?”

  “Nothing,” Paul answered.

  “Then why the hard stare?” Kevin asked.

  Ensuring no one was in earshot, Paul said, “Don’t trust them.”

  “Why?”

  “Just don’t. They’ve been whispering to each other a lot lately, well before this,” Paul said.

  Not in the mood to hear conspiracy theories, Kevin simply said, “I’ve always had a healthy skepticism, don’t worry.”

  “Good.”

  “Are you tired?” Kevin asked.

  “No, I’m good,” Paul said, standing up.

  With a leery eye towards Sabrina below, Kevin said to Paul, “I need you to be my eyes while I sleep. If you feel tired at all, wake me. In fact, wake me for anything, okay?”

  “Okay,” Paul said. “I’ll wake you for anything, I promise.”

  Kevin opened his eyes. The space around him was filled with an orange glow. It was late afternoon. He had slept ten hours without interruption. He shot up and looked around the loft. In the far corner he saw Paul lying curled up and snoring loudly. His eyes darted to the other corners of the area, but no one else was there. He jumped up and looked over the railing, but the others weren’t on the ground floor either.

  “Paul, get up!” Kevin barked, rushing towards him. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a piece of paper rolled up a
nd shoved in the trigger guard of his rifle. He grabbed it and unrolled it. His eyes widened in shock as he read it.

  Paul, groggy from his long nap, slowly sat up. He rubbed his eyes and asked, “What time is it?”

  Kevin crumpled the paper in his hands, snatched his rifle and raced down the stairs.

  Shocked, Paul jumped to his feet. “What’s going on?”

  “They took the truck!” Kevin replied as he hit the ground floor and sprinted towards the front doors.

  Paul ran after him.

  Kevin burst from the entrance and raced towards the cornfield.

  Frantic, Paul was close behind. Outside, he began to scan the area, looking for any sign of Variants.

  Without concern, Kevin tore through the dry stalks. His anger overcame any concern. He couldn’t let them take the truck. In it was everything they needed to survive on the road. Tools and ammunition were the main things he was concerned about losing, but what also angered him was the fact the truck was Megan’s. It was the last physical memory he had of her.

  Paul’s heart felt like it was going to explode. Even after weeks on the road, with limited food, he hadn’t lost much weight. His belly bounced with each footfall and his face was bright red.

  Kevin exited the cornfield and cursed loudly when he saw the truck was gone. “Shit!” Anger turned to rage; he kicked and threw whatever was in front of him.

  Paul emerged and instantly fell to his knees. He gasped and coughed for air.

  Seeing Paul, Kevin snapped, “I asked you to do one simple thing, stay up and keep watch!”

  Coughing, Paul managed to spit out, “I’m sorry.”

  “Sorry doesn’t cut it. We lost all our gear, water, ammo and the truck!” Kevin bellowed.

  “Bro, I’m sorry. I don’t know what happened,” Paul whined.

  Kevin paced the dry flattened grasses, kicking any rock he came upon.

  Paul got to his feet. He walked towards Kevin. “We can find another car. There are abandoned cars everywhere.”

  Kevin clenched his jaw, veins in his neck throbbing with anger. “Sabrina was right. You’re a fuckup, a total fuckup.”

  “I’m sorry.”

  “No more, that was your last chance, you understand?” Kevin scolded.

  Paul nodded.

  Kevin brushed by Paul, bumping his shoulder, and marched back into the cornfield.