by West, Mark
Excited to see our friends, we both sprint back to the house as fast as we can. Joseph is still working hard.
‘Wow, Joseph,’ I say, inspecting the gate he has started constructing. ‘This is great!’
He has already fixed pickets and mesh to one side of the opening, and in the centre of the road there are two small holes where he has inserted PVC pipe.
‘You place the pickets into the holes to close the gate. And, when it needs to be opened,’ he says in delight, ‘they can be easily removed, so you can peel the gate back. It’s temporary. Hopefully it’ll keep anything out that wanders past.’
I slap him on the shoulder. I’m very pleased with his work. ‘You’re doing well, mate.’
‘Thanks. Just trying to pull my weight. Pay you back for everything you guys have done for me.’
I’m about to answer when a familiar voice calls out. ‘Mr Kidd!’ I spin round, just in time to see a head retreat inside the white Colorado that’s now less than ten metres away. Thumping music is coming from the cabin. I watch it cruise past and park behind my trailer. I’m not sure where the second car is, but I can hear the engine grinding away and think perhaps it’s struggling with the rough terrain. The driveway is full of potholes and divots.
When the driver’s door opens white smoke wafts out. It follows Lincoln as he jumps from his seat and onto the ground. He pauses for a second and stretches, taking in his surroundings, then walks towards us, cigarette resting between his lips. ‘Hey man. Shit, I can’t believe we made it!’
He is wearing a pair of green cargo pants and a white long sleeve shirt with a brown stain across the front. His short hair is gelled back, and it seems he may have put on some weight since I last saw him; his muscular frame looks a little softer now. He strolls casually over, taking one last drag from his smoke before dropping it on the ground and stomping on it.
He gives Victoria a bear hug, squeezing her tightly and kissing her on the cheek. I can smell alcohol.
‘Good to see you, man.’ I extend my hand, give a quick shake and yank him in for a shoulder nudge. ‘So, what’s the deal?’ I ask, breaking the embrace and watching the other car pull up. I still have no idea who’s in it.
Lincoln takes a smoke from the packet in his pocket and pops into his mouth. ‘Bloody long story,’ he mumbles, bouncing the smoke between his lips. I wait impatiently while he lights the end and takes in a long drag, blowing grey smoke into the air. ‘I’ll tell you all about it once the others come over.’
Chapter 10
THE REALITY
Koda has magically appeared, tail waggling uncontrollably as he sits beside Lincoln. The other car’s engine has stopped, doors are open and people are beginning to emerge.
I spot Rohan’s stocky body first. He bustles over towards us, arms pumping like a soldier. He is covered in dried blood. The sleeves of his grey business suit are torn and I notice a few clumps of something stuck in his curly hair. A long machete is dangling from a bit of shoelace string on his right hip. There is more blood on the tip of the blade.
‘Hi Jackson!’ he yells, pace never slowing. ‘I need to get Aaron’s blood off me. Where’s a tap?’
Taken aback, I point to the water tank beside the shed. Rohan nods, continuing his power walk. He only glances back once.
‘Victoria!’ a girl calls, darting across the driveway. She flings her arms around my wife.
‘Amy, I can’t believe you’re here.’ She holds Amy tight.
Amy flicks her hair to one side and smiles. She rubs Victoria’s arm. ‘I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for these guys.’ She nods towards the car. ‘They saved my life!’
‘How?’ Victoria questions.
Amy’s dark hair shimmers in the sunlight as she runs a hand through it, removing a thick strand from her eyes. ‘It was sheer luck that they found me wandering along the highway. I’ll explain later, but for now give me another hug.’ She pulls Victoria in tightly, wrapping her muscular arms around her so that they meld into one.
I hear another girl calling out.
‘Rohan! Where’d you go?’
Piper strides over to join our reunion. She has long, brown hair and is wearing it in a plait on one side.
‘Hey guys. Thanks so much for letting us stay. It means such a lot.’ She puts her arms around us for a group hug. She’s soft and warm, and after all I’ve been through it feels comforting.
‘No problem,’ I reply.
‘Did you see where Rohan went?’
‘Rohan’s behind the shed. I think he’s rinsing off at the water tank.’
‘Thanks.’ Piper turns, hands on hips, and yells towards the tank, ‘Rohan! What are you doing? It may not be safe out there.’ Her voice echoes.
‘Piper!’ Rohan’s voice is distant, and rather gruff. ‘I’m washing off Aaron’s blood. I need some help.’ Piper shakes her head and excuses herself before trudging off.
‘What’s up Jackson!’ I peer over to the second car to see Doug’s gangly body lazily getting out of the other side: a spider emerging from its lair.
He walks hesitantly over wearing an emerald green t-shirt with a picture in the middle: the Green Lantern, striking a pose and saying ‘Let’s light this Green up!’ Doug lives and breathes comic books. He’s my nerdiest mate: a skinny Keanu Reeves, but with less intensity and more geek.
‘Hey mate!’ I peer up at Doug’s towering figure with my hand outstretched. ‘What were you doing?’
‘Nothing.’
He slips something deep into the pocket of his jeans.
‘The idiot was playing his Nintendo DS.’ Lincoln answers for him. I notice Doug’s cheeks go a little pink.
‘Figures.’ I chuckle, jabbing him in the shoulder. ‘Anyway … I thought you were living in Sydney?’
‘I was, well am. I came down for the weekend. I’m staying with Rohan while visiting family. All hell broke loose.’ He stops and looks around. ‘Did you know Rohan slaughtered Aaron?’
I’m shocked. But I’d figured something was up between them. Rohan had said about all the blood on his suit. ‘What happened?’
‘Cut the guy in half when he attacked him. Bloody insanity if you ask me.’
‘Well, we’re glad you guys got out.’ Victoria gives him a hug. Rohan has to bend right down because she’s almost a foot shorter. ‘Seems we’re not the only ones who ran into … well, trouble.’ she adds, when they break apart.
‘It’s lucky you sent that message,’ Doug says, shaking his head, ‘I don’t know where we would’ve gone.’
‘You got the message?’ I ask.
‘Yeah mate,’ Lincoln says, pulling small hip flask from his pocket. ‘Didn’t know what the hell you were on about at first. Tried calling you, but the lines were all dodgy. Couldn’t connect.’ He unscrews the top of the flask, placing it to his lips and takes a long swig. My guess is bourbon.
‘I got it too,’ Amy says. ‘I couldn’t get a hold of you, or anyone for that matter.’ Her smile turns into a frown and she looks away, sadness in her eyes.
‘Did you see the reports?’ Doug’s rubbing his hands against his jeans.
‘Some. What did they say?’ Victoria asks.
It takes a good ten or so minutes for him to get to the parts we didn’t already know.
‘Reports were coming in about people attacking one and other. No one knows why. Apparently, it started in Sydney this morning and worked its way around the country.’
‘Sydney?’ I say, incredulously. ‘But we saw it in Canberra. How could it travel so fast?’
‘Who knows?’
Victoria quickly pulls her phone from her pocket. ‘No service still.’ She shoves it back just as fast.
Amy shakes her head. ‘It went down ages ago, but most news stopped way before that.’
The information is all just a bit too much by the end, or too little, and I find myself feeling ill wanting to know more. Victoria isn’t speaking either, or Joseph who has come to meet our friends. We are in shock
and I honestly don’t know what to think anymore.
Over the next thirty minutes we unload the cars. Lincoln came with a bunch of clothes stuffed into a duffle bag, whereas Rohan and Piper were renovating their kitchen at the time and managed to grab two full crates of food, another gas bottle, two heavy-duty torches and some camping gear they had placed by the front door ready for a trip they were going on. Unfortunately, Amy didn’t bring much, only what she was wearing and a few personal items stored in a backpack. Doug, on the other hand, brought his PlayStation 4, laptop, a Spiderman comic book, one Nintendo DS and some clothes. Reluctantly we let the electronics in the house. Not that we had the room, but he insisted.
By the time we finish unpacking, everyone is exhausted. Me especially, as I’ve been finishing off the fencing with Joseph and making the place somewhat secure.
Tears flow late into the night. We’ve all got loved ones we can’t contact, who might even be dead. They’re occupying everyone’s thoughts. No one is in the mood to talk and eventually everyone goes to bed, but not before eating a quick meal Joseph has prepared. He’s turning out to be a real asset.
I wake early, rapidly checking my phone and hopeful that yesterday was all a big dream. But it wasn’t, my phone is still without service and I can’t connect to the internet to check the news. I’m tempted to drive into town but stop myself, remembering the horrors the previous day brought. So in the end I do nothing but wait.
Around midmorning, we all gather in the living room to discuss our current situation. I peer at all the weary faces of the people around me on the couches and chairs and wonder what everyone is thinking. I’m not sure what to say, so I just stare back with the same weary expression and wait for someone to speak.
‘What now?’ Amy asks, breaking the silence. She is sitting on the edge of the dining room table, legs hanging freely and swaying backwards and forwards.
Everyone turns to me expectantly, searching for answers. For some reason they seek my reassurance. I don’t know if I have the answers, but I know I must say something to try and boost their spirits.
‘I guess we wait.’ Not the words I should have picked first. I speak again, a little clearer this time. ‘We may be here for a while, so we need to sit tight.’
‘What?’ Doug asks, scrunching his face back at me like I have said something wrong.
In a way I may have. My words aren’t making sense to anyone. I need to get across what I’m really thinking while I have the chance.
‘Who knows how long we’ll be stuck up here,’ I add. ‘I mean, what we’ve already encountered has indicated people are going crazy. It’s like they’re infected with something.’
Doug interrupts again. ‘That’s what the news told us.’
‘Well, you know.’ I pause for a second. I swear if a pin dropped I would be able to hear it tinkle along the timber floor. ‘Like Zombies.’ There’s a gasp. Piper’s eyes well up making them shiny.
Lincoln jumps in. ‘It’s true. The ones I killed at home were clearly infected with something. They weren’t my neighbours anymore.’ He begins to mutter under his breath, making a fist and shoving it into the pockets of his jacket.
‘I agree with Lincoln,’ Amy says. ‘Norma was kind. But when I saw her yesterday she was a crazy killer.’
‘Who’s Norma?’ Rohan asks.
Amy shifts on the table to face him. ‘She was my landlord.’ She wipes at her eyes. ‘A sweet old lady. But she attacked me yesterday morning.’ A few tears escape, rolling down her cheek and onto the floor. ‘I had to kill her … I’ll tell you about it later.’
Victoria walks over and squeezes her shoulders.
‘What’s not to say this is all over and we’re sitting up here unaware?’ Doug grunts. ‘What if the police have dealt with it?’
‘I admit I don’t know,’ I answer. ‘But I do know something—’
But before I can continue, Rohan cuts me off. ‘What’s that?’
‘Yeah Jackson? What do you think you know that we don’t?’ Doug adds abruptly.
‘Look, I don’t know if it’s over, okay?’ I argue. ‘I would hope the police or military or whoever has sorted this whole mess out. But seriously guys, from what we’ve seen, don’t you think it isn’t that simple?’
Amy jumps in. ‘None of this is simple, Doug. People have been killed; families torn apart. Don’t you think it’s beyond the authorities now?’
‘Amy’s right,’ Victoria adds. ‘I’m pretty sure we saw an officer get mauled to death. He didn’t stand a chance.’
‘Did you see the blood?’ Doug asks, suddenly animated. ‘It’s weird. It has some strange black stuff swirling through it. D’you think it’s infectious?
‘Nah.’ Rohan jumps in. ‘Got some in my mouth the first day. Tasted weird, but hasn’t affected me.’
‘You swallowed it?’ I ask.
‘Yeah, good dollop too. Tastes disgusting; like rusted metal. But, like I said, I’m fine. You saw me, I was covered in the stuff. Surely I would have changed by now. Mind you, I never got it in my eyes.’
‘Got some on my skin the first day too,’ Lincoln adds.
‘Same, and I feel okay,’ Amy says, confidently.
‘I guess we can safely say it’s not airborne. And skin exposure seems okay, although best be careful of any cuts … and protect your eyes.
No one says anything for a moment.
‘Savage animals,’ Rohan says bitterly, breaking the silence.
‘You can say that again,’ Amy says, shaking her head. ‘Seems like you got two choices. Join them or be eaten.’
‘Makes sense,’ Doug says, sitting up in his chair.
‘What makes sense?’ Piper asks.
‘What Amy said. Become one of them or become food,’ Doug responds bluntly.
Everyone is staring at him, perplexed.
‘Put it this way. You stop and fight and you’re more desirable to eat than if you run away.’
‘What?’ Piper’s face is in shock. We’re all shocked.
‘Let me explain.’
I can see Doug is uncomfortable with the attention, but he keeps going.
‘Once bitten most people would run, right? You know, because the Infected are slow. But not everyone runs. So, the ones who do stop and fight are being eaten because they are still … human. Whereas the ones who get bitten and run must change later and become part of the pack. They’re no longer a food source.’
No one says anything.
‘I only assume this from what I have heard.’ Doug shrugs. ‘It’s common animal instincts.’
‘I think you need to keep that shit to yourself from now on,’ Lincoln grumbles. ‘No one needs to hear you talk about us as a food source.’
There are a few murmurs of agreement and Doug sinks back in his chair. But I know he is right, we all do. Just no one wants to admit it.
‘Look, guys’ I jump back in, gaining everyone’s attention. We need to be talking about something else. ‘With what we’ve all seen, we know this is serious. It’s not a joke or a hoax, like some may think. To be honest, I don’t think this is going away quickly. We know for a fact that these infected people are real and all over the area. We’ve all experienced how dangerous they are. No one knows how this has happened, and no one knows when it’s going to end. I believe we should sit tight and prepare for the worst.’ Heads begin to nod in agreement, everyone’s attention purely focused on me and my words. ‘This place can protect us, as long as we’re careful and organise things properly.’
‘Shouldn’t we try and locate our missing families?’ Piper interrupts. ‘Bring them all here to ride it out.’
Rohan is sitting next to her on the couch and places an arm around her shoulders. ‘We’ve no way of finding them, Piper.’ He pulls her in firmly and begins stroking her hair. ‘Our phones are still down and it’s too risky to just go looking for them.’
Piper begins to sob. Rohan peers at the group telling us to continue.
‘We need to get
more supplies,’ Victoria says. ‘There’s no way the nine of us can survive living off the chips and chocolate we took from the service station.
‘Good point,’ Doug calls out.
‘Yeah, I agree. What will we eat then?’ asks Joseph, who hasn’t said a word the entire conversation.
I think for a moment, before jumping back in. ‘Let’s focus on our strengths.’
‘Go on,’ Lincoln urges.
‘Well, if we write up a list of essentials and prioritise our time, we can accomplish a lot as a small group.’ I walk over to the drawer, pulling out a note pad and a blue felt tip pen and hand them to Victoria. ‘Can you?’ She willingly accepts and I smile back appreciatively. ‘Thanks.’ I give her a wink.
The discussion lasts around an hour. We soon come to terms that we may be stuck up here in the mountains for a little while longer. Listing everything we need to survive, we agree the best way to achieve our goal is to organise ourselves into smaller groups.
Rohan, Lincoln and I are assigned as the builders. Our job is to secure the property as best we can, providing a safe area around the cottage where we can roam freely without having to look over our shoulders. The area within the rock wall that Joseph and I repaired is too small. If we are to survive up here for a long period it is not sustainable, especially if we need to grow food in the future. So, it is decided we need a large fence: something big enough to protect us if those things ever came. That was our job.
Amy, Victoria and Piper are to oversee the food supplies. Frankly us guys can’t be trusted. They will work out a list of food required to ensure we don’t go hungry, and ration what little we have in the meantime. They’ll also look at preparing gardens so we can grow stuff in the future. It’s hopeful thinking, but not impossible.
Doug is our gopher. He doesn’t take too well to the name. Basically, his task is to help where he can. If someone needs help digging a hole or gathering supplies, we can call upon him without interrupting another group.
The last is Joseph. During my brief conversation with him, I discovered he has an array of skills ranging from basic carpentry all the way to electronics and plumbing. He mentioned to me while building the fence that he had a few ideas on how to improve the place. With his creative mind we decide not to assign him to one task, but to give him free rein of the place. I admit I’m a little nervous as I hardly know him, but from my first impression I think he’s a genuine guy.