Escape: The Wasteland Chronicles Book Two

by Rashad Freeman

  “They’ve also got body parts in the fireplace.”

  Mark walked over and stared into the ashes with Lenny. Using the poker, Lenny jabbed at the severed hand and waited for Mark’s reaction. He glanced at Lenny and shrugged his shoulders.

  “Well, you can tell the others to come on in. I’m calling the master bedroom though,” Mark said nonchalantly.”

  “Yeah…what about the dead people?” Lenny asked and raised his eyebrows.

  “What dead people?” Benjamin asked as he stepped into the living room.

  “Lenny found a few hands in the pit. No big deal, besides I’m tired,” Mark said as he stifled a yawn.

  “No big deal?” Lenny repeated in astonishment. “Since when did chopping up people and burning them become no big deal?”

  Out of nowhere there was a thud near the fireplace and everyone whipped around. The door to a small broom closet slowly creaked open. Lenny aimed his rifle and narrowed his eyes.

  The door whined as it moved, the sound echoing into the empty house. Mark slowly stepped forward with his gun ready, excitement covering his face.

  “Who’s there?” Benjamin growled. “Show yourself or we’re gonna shoot.”

  There was another thud and the door slammed shut. Mark scowled then turned to Lenny.

  “I think you found your guy,” he smirked.

  “I thought you cleared this room,” Benjamin jabbed.

  “That’s the last door. Finding human remains kind of got me off track.”

  “So open the damn door already,” Mark said.

  “You open the fucking door,” Lenny shot back.

  “Fuck you. This was your room to clear.”

  Lenny fumed and then slowly moved towards the door. Gripping the handle he held three fingers in the air and started to silently count down. When he got to one he yanked the door open and stepped to the side.

  Someone lunged out of the small closet and all Mark could see was the gleaming knife they clutched in their hands. He automatically squeezed the trigger twice and the body fell to the floor.

  Lenny stepped around the door and looked down at the dead body. It was a man, possibly in his forties, but hard to judge from the wild hair that covered his head and face. He was filthy and had dried blood and soot all over his hands. The twelve inch blade lying beside him was also stained in blood and had obviously been put through a fair amount of use.

  “Guess we solved that,” Mark laughed. “House is clear now. Lenny go ahead and take care of it.”

  “Whatever, I’m going to round up the rest of our merry gang. You shot him, you burry him and clean that shit up,” Lenny said and then walked off.

  Mark laughed and collapsed onto a large, red sofa covered in floral patterns. Benjamin eyed him for a moment then decided that taking a seat wasn’t a bad idea. He found the matching chair and sat down, kicking his feet up onto the oak coffee table.

  “Nice place,” Benjamin mumbled.

  “Eh, it’ll do,” Mark responded.

  And with that they didn’t’ say another word to each other. They just sat in silence staring at the myriad of paintings that lined the walls.

  Eventually, Mark got up and dragged the body outside. He left a streak of blood from the living room all the way out of the back door. He didn’t bother to clean it and figured since the sun was going down no one would notice anyway.

  Twenty minutes later Lenny returned with the rest of the group. Drew and Javier were dumfounded as soon as they walked through the door.

  “Whoa!” Drew exclaimed, his eyes soaking in the expansive structure.

  “Can we stay here?” Javier smiled and tugged on Lenny’s arm.

  “Sorry bud, no can do. Just tonight, well maybe two nights until we find another car.”

  Javier frowned and then ran off with Drew to explore the rest of the house.

  “I didn’t know they had places like this in North Carolina,” Robert said.

  “What’d you think it was all backwoods and trailer parks?” Mark responded.

  Robert cut his eyes at him and then continued looking around. Gloria followed behind him, thanking Mark and the others for finding something so nice, even though it was temporary.

  “I’ll see what I can work up in the kitchen. I know everyone has to be starved and it’ll probably be a long time before we have electricity again,” Gloria added as she grabbed one of the supply bags on her way.

  “And look what I found,” Robert announced. He held up a bottle of wine as a greedy smile spread across his face. “They have quite the selection.”

  Lenny frowned, but Benjamin quickly grabbed the bottle and examined it.

  “A merlot, this would make a nice addition to dinner,” he said.

  “My thoughts exactly,” Robert added.

  Ignoring Lenny’s judgmental stare, Benjamin and Robert uncorked the bottle and poured themselves a glass. Gloria watched them for a moment then took a swig from the bottle as she cooked.

  “What?” she asked Lenny with a slight giggle. “We have a lot to celebrate, we’re still here.”

  Lenny scoffed. “Aliens…aliens and you guys are damn alcoholics,” he said then headed out of the kitchen.

  Benjamin laughed and poured himself another glass.

  “Top me off too please,” Robert said and held up his cup.

  “This is more like it,” Mark said as he walked into the kitchen.

  Before long, empty bottles were scattered across the counter and the kitchen was alive with laughter and talking. Even Lenny came around and had a glass or two. The fact that the world was ending had become a distant memory.

  The evening quickly drifted by and after a giant dinner of assorted foods, everyone took turns soaking in one of the enormous Jacuzzi tubs. It was their first bath in weeks and that alone was almost enough to wipe away the memory of everything else.

  “So tomorrow Benjamin and I are gonna head out early morning to find another car. Mark is gonna stick with you guys, actually where the hell is Mark?” Lenny said as everyone sat around relaxing.

  “I haven’t seen him since dinner,” Rebecca responded. “Hey Gloria,” she said and snapped her fingers.

  Gloria slowly sat up and opened her eyes. “Sorry,” she mumbled. “I must’ve dozed off.”

  “Weren’t you with Mark earlier?” Rebecca continued.

  “Yes, yes he said something about checking outside.”

  Lenny stood up and started walking towards the back. Just then Mark burst through the door with a dark grin stretched across his face.

  “What?” Lenny said, shooting him an awkward glance.

  Mark raised his hand and wiggled it in the air. Between his fingers he was holding a set of keys that jingled as he shook them.

  “Guess who found a fully loaded Escalade with a full tank of gas? Guess you genius’ didn’t think to check the garage.”

  Lenny smiled at him and nodded his head. “Good job um...beast. Guess we’re sleeping in, no need to go car shopping. I think we’ll be in D.C. by the afternoon Robert.”

  “That’s good news,” Robert replied.

  Mark grinned and tossed Lenny the keys. “And that’s why I get the big bed. I’ll see you guys tomorrow.”

  “You keep em. You’re driving to D.C,” Lenny said and tossed the keys back to Mark.

  He caught them and smirked, then strutted up the stairs and disappeared down the hallway.

  “I think I’ll retire too. Come on Drew,” Robert said as he stood up and began to walk away. “Lenny, thanks again for everything. We couldn’t have done this without all of your help. And all of our survival depends on us getting to D.C.”

  “Whoa, not so fast. We haven’t even made it yet. Let’s celebrate when we get there,” Rebecca laughed.

  “True, true. But still it’s a miracle we’ve come this far.”

  Gloria stood up and took Javier’s hand and followed Robert upstairs. At the top of the landing they split off in different directions leaving Ben, Maddox,
Rebecca and Lenny in the living room.

  “And then there were four,” Maddox said with a smile.

  “Speak for yourself,” Benjamin grumbled and stood up. “I’m going to sleep, maybe five bottles of wine wasn’t the best idea.”

  “Hmph. Then there were three,” Maddox continued.

  “Sorry,” Rebecca smiled. She stood up and grabbed Lenny’s hand and led him to the stairs. “We’ve got um, plans.”

  Lenny looked back at Maddox and shrugged before trotting upstairs toward an open room.

  Maddox sighed and lay back onto the couch. He mumbled to himself and then rolled over and closed his eyes. Minutes later he was deep asleep and snoring loudly.

  Lenny and Rebecca’s room was decorated much like the rest of the house. 17th century artwork adorned the walls and the bed linens followed the same renaissance style as down stairs. The king-sized bed was covered with pillows and looked like it’d never been slept in.

  “Shit!” Rebecca stammered as they were crawling into bed.

  “What?”

  “I left my gun downstairs.”

  “Leave it until tomorrow. It’s not going anywhere.”

  “I can’t…what if one of the kids finds it.”

  Lenny grunted. “Fine, I’ll get it. You crawl in bed and get naked.”

  Rebecca smiled and nodded her head. “Yes sir!”

  Lenny followed the winding steps downstairs into the living room. He stopped at the entrance and stared at Maddox who was hanging off of the couch. He sounded like a hibernating bear as he grunted and snorted in his sleep.

  “Jesus,” Lenny mumbled and tossed a pillow from the adjacent sofa.

  Yawning, he left Maddox sleeping and started to look around the living room. Their stuffed bags littered most of the floor. Maddox had kicked his shoes off and his filthy socks were draped over the coffee table. They filled the room with a musky, cornmeal smell.

  A bundle of water jugs was piled near the wall. They’d been tied together with rope and left out in the open. Ben had declared he would keep the water under lock and key, but after he got into the wine all of that was forgotten.

  Lenny headed into the dining room and stared around with a clueless guise. “Damn it woman,” he grumbled. “You can find it yourself.”

  Huffing, he turned and walked toward the kitchen. As he rounded the corner he ran into Gloria and almost knocked her over.

  “Adios mio!” she yapped and spilled water onto the floor.

  Lenny started to laugh. “Sorry, sorry. I didn’t mean to scare you. You let some of that Puerto Rican out, huh?” he chuckled.

  “Cuban,” Gloria corrected him with a smile. “What are you doing down here?”

  “Looking for a gun.”

  Gloria raised her eyebrows.

  “No…Rebecca left hers out. You haven’t seen it have you?”

  “Can’t say that I have.”

  Lenny slid past her and grabbed a bottle from the counter. “What’s got you up so late?”

  “I…I couldn’t sleep. Just too much has gone on. Everything is so crazy now. I know we’re getting close to D.C., but Lenny I’m scared.”

  Lenny took a sip of his water and turned to her. He wrapped his arms around her shoulders and pulled her into his chest. “Everything’s gonna be okay,” he whispered.

  Gloria relaxed herself into him and took a deep breath. Lenny felt safe, like a soft blanket or a shaggy dog. She felt like nothing could touch her while she was in his arms.

  “You’re sweet,” she whispered.

  “I’ve been called many things, but sweet has never been one.”

  “Well you are,” Gloria insisted.

  Flustered, she pulled herself away and looked up into Lenny’s eyes. Lenny smiled back at her and before he knew it she was kissing him. It wasn’t a friendly or even a timid kiss, it was hard and gritty. She rammed her tongue into his mouth, pulling his head forward with a strength he never knew she had.

  With great effort Lenny pulled away, but Gloria clenched him tighter and shoved him into the counter. She pressed herself onto him, pulling at his shirt and moaning in his ear.

  “Don’t…don’t stop it. I need you, I want you,” she said in an uncharacteristically grapy voice.

  Running her hand through his hair, Gloria licked his neck and bit his ear. Lenny tried to slide away from her, but she moved with him, leaning her body into his.

  “Gloria, stop,” Lenny said. “You can’t do this.” He held out his hands and gently pushed her away.

  “What?” she snapped. “You don’t want me? Am I not good enough for you?”

  Lenny frowned. “It’s not that…I, I’m with Rebecca and you, you have Robert.”

  Gloria straightened up and backed away. She blinked and her eyes seemed to focus and the lustful craze that consumed her suddenly washed away. “I’m so sorry. I…I don’t know what came over me.”

  “It’s okay, don’t worry about it,” Lenny said, trying to sound genuine.

  Gloria gasped and ran out of the kitchen. Lenny called after her, but she quickly turned and fled up the stairs.

  Lenny shook his head. He grabbed his water and drained the bottle empty. “What the fuck was that?” he mumbled to himself. Confused and tired he headed upstairs and quietly crept into his room.

  All of the lights were off when he walked in. The room was cascaded in a blanket of darkness. Swinging his hands blindly he felt his way to the bed and slid under the covers.

  “Your gun isn’t down there,” he said.

  Rebecca didn’t respond and Lenny slid closer to her.

  “You ready for me?” he whispered into her ear as he brushed his hand up her side.

  Her response was a muffled snore.

  “Figures,” Lenny grunted and rolled over onto his back. Yawning, he stared at the ceiling and interlaced his fingers behind his head.

  He closed his eyes and considered how far they’d come and how much he’d changed in the process. Not long ago his days were spent drinking and shooting at steel targets on the range. His biggest concern was dog food for Rango. Now, he had…well he had a family. A group of people he cared about and wanted to make sure they stayed safe.

  Most times he just reacted, but if he stopped to think about the pressure, the responsibility was enormous, almost overwhelming. He was their shepherd and they were his flock. He had a duty, an obligation to keep them safe. For the first time in a long time, Lenny’s life had purpose.

  He turned onto his side as his mind drifted to Gloria. She’d hit the wine bottle pretty hard that night and God knew she deserved it. Losing a child amongst the chaos would make anyone unpredictable. As long as she never brought up the kitchen, Lenny wouldn’t either. Things were complicated enough.

  Lenny sighed and for a moment all of the pressure just floated away. He relaxed further into the mattress and slowly, fatigue and darkness consumed him.

  CHAPTER 18

  THEY’RE BACK

  Lenny awoke to a deathly scream. He quickly rolled over and felt for Rebecca, but she was gone. In a panic he flung the sheets off of the bed and darted to the door.

  Exploding into the hallway, he paused as the scream shrilled into the air. The amount of pain and terror contained in that single note was mortifying. It was a desperate cry for help, it was Rebecca and it was coming from Mark’s room.

  Lights and doors were opening as the others came to investigate the noise. Gloria slipped out of her room with Robert right behind her wearing nothing but his boxers. Benjamin staggered into the hall with a pistol in his hand, shaking his head to clear the cobwebs.

  “What the hell is going on?” he yelled in bewilderment.

  Lenny tore down the hall, his heart racing like a thoroughbred. As he rounded the corner that led to Mark’s room he slid to a stop. Horror gripped him, making his muscles rigid and unmovable. Fear stole his breath, stifling any sound or call for help. It wasn’t until he heard her voice that life seemed to flow back into him.

&nb
sp; “It’s not…it’s not mine,” Rebecca cried.

  She was standing outside of Mark’s door. Her clothes were soaked in crimson ooze. Her face was swollen and in her bloody hand she gripped a long, silver knife.

  Her entire body was trembling. Dried tears were stuck to her face. A deep gash marred her lips that quivered with each staggered breath.

  “M…M…Mark. He…he raped…he tried to rape me,” Rebecca could hardly utter the words.

  Lenny rushed forward and grabbed her. He scooped her into his arms and looked her over. “Are you…are you okay?” he asked as he rubbed his thumb across her lip, wiping away the blood.

  “Oh, this?” Rebecca asked, touching her face. “I’ll…I’ll be fine. It’s not my blood, it’s not my blood Lenny.”

  “Where is he? Where is that mother fucker?” Lenny growled, his concern being replaced with rage.

  Rebecca flicked her hand towards the room. Lenny gently rubbed her face and then stepped around her. In a flash he burst through the door and stopped just inside of Mark’s room.

  The lights were still off and he reached for the switch, but paused when he heard a gurgling noise. It sounded like someone was trying to talk to him with a mouth full of water.

  Lenny flipped the lights on and his mouth fell open. Mark was sprawled across the floor. He was fully dressed and his eyes stared blankly at the ceiling. His massive hands were covering his neck trying to stop the tidal wave of blood that was spilling from a gash that ran across it.

  Lenny beamed down on him with a menacing look. Mark met his eyes for a moment and then with on last gasp for air his body went limp.

  “What the fuck?” a voice called from behind Lenny.

  He turned around to find Benjamin and Robert standing in the doorway. Benjamin was fully dressed and Robert had managed to pull on a t-shirt and pants. Their faces mirrored his with shock and disgust.

  “He was going to rape her,” Lenny stated.

  Robert gasped and covered his mouth. Benjamin looked to Mark and then to Lenny, but didn’t seem to have any reaction. Gloria squeezed between them both and almost passed out with what she saw.

  “Oh my God! Oh my God!” she repeated over and over.

  “We need to do something with the b—” Lenny started to say, but was interrupted by a booming vibration that shook the entire house.