The Carnage Trilogy (Book 1): The Carnage [Unbending, Unyielding, Unforgiving]

by Birch, Matthew

  Chapter 33 - Monster or Man?

  Ed

  This whole situation descended into hysteria. Patrick's side has no one. All three Officers’ took Marcus's side without prompting once they heard the truth. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter if people look to you as a leader or not. If you make an inhumane choice then no one will follow because everyone has a limit to how much of a sheep they are. It's called morals and Patrick did not keep to them. Ugh, this arguing has been going back and forth for a little while now. Maya shifts uncertainly behind me, she’s holding herself back from doing something she'll live to regret.

  "Let's hear his side of the story first" I state uneasily. It's difficult to try and see it from Patrick's perspective. What he has done is beyond wrong.

  "HE LEFT HER BROTHER TO DIE!" Furious, Marcus himself has to hold back from unleashing his inner demon on Patrick. These times break everyone. Some of us fill the cracks in, but when they slip, we slip too, causing an earthquake of rage that can only be directed towards others when the circumstances should be otherwise.

  Marcus suddenly calms. Patrick, who had originally been ignoring him, finally pays an interest in what he has to say. Itching his black beard, he listens intently to Marcus's fairly kind words. "All I want is answers. Not trouble"

  "I refuse to give them" Patrick arrogantly breathes.

  Maya's patience wears thin behind me. I feel her weight shift as she steps forward. Shaking my head slowly, I give her the answer she doesn't want. But the one she needs to heed. She might still do it though. When push comes to shove, I won't be able to stop her.

  Placing a bony hand on her grey skin, Linda's sunken eyes stare into nothingness. She isn't with it at all as she checks her temperature. The very act of lifting her hand in the first place is too much stress for her body to handle. She lazily wobbles about like a drunk. Her dry lips crackle and her throat aches as raspy, unheard words protrude forward inaudibly. If it isn't obvious she's dying, I don't know what is. It's not like her to be this active. Why is she suddenly so active? Up until now, she has just clung to the unsympathetic Patrick...

  Unless...

  "You turned the young girl away because you needed the medicine for your own reasons-" I begin. All eyes are on me. Patrick's eyes burn into mine especially. Then suddenly he seems perplexed by my sudden rise. Maybe it's my choice of words that have him interested more than anything. Whether it's because he wonders if I have the right answer or if he is ready to disregard another pointless accusation - I know I have him this time. I see it on his ruinous face, how his eyes stare. He eases up on the number of blinks, and through his voice, I know he is going to lie. He won't risk the truth because the truth will destroy what little reputation he has left.

  Marcus eyes me up cautiously; he is ready to take my side this time instead of the other way around. If what I think is the truth is no longer a transparent thought in my mind, but something that holds meaning. Then this is going to cause a terrible uproar. If Patrick won't tell the truth, I will.

  You should always tell the truth. Even if it hurts, it is better for everyone in the long term.

  "Linda is clearly ill. She has a horrible fever and has been getting worse"

  Patrick narrows his eyes at me while catching a sideways glance at Linda who latches onto his body for support. His demeanour cracks, kindness and worry slip through but he hides it with shock. His face in alarm, he knows I am on to him.

  "You needed the medicine for her. You care for her clearly. You love her - don't get me wrong Patrick. That is sweet of you but..."

  Growing increasingly agitated. Patrick's fingers begin to, twitch slightly...

  "When the girl came and asked for help. You turned her down and put Linda first. And as much as I want to say that is okay. That little girl has a dying brother. We go against what this community is. We are meant to be a place for any and all survivors..."

  I can see the weight crushing down on Patrick. Holding up my hands defensively, I try my best to relieve Patrick of his no longer hidden burden. "But the truth is... you lied to us. Effectively, killing a young boy, hurting an innocent girl because she is trying to do what is right and most all Patrick. What you did was selfish and inhumane"

  "YOU THINK I WANTED TO TURN HER AWAY. YOU THINK I AM SOME HEARTLESS MONSTER. OUR PEOPLE COME FIRST"

  I flinch but step forward. I am not backing down. "That's where you're wrong... There were so many other ways you could have handled this Patrick"

  Marcus steps in, adding to the stress on the outnumbered Patrick. "Why didn't you tell us? At least we could discuss it. Maybe split the medicine fifty-fifty. Or even, send some of us out with the young girl so we could get her younger brother and bring him here until he recovers?" Marcus's voice holds no anger, no coldness. No, disdain for what Patrick had done. Only the disappointment our ‘leader’ has brought upon himself.

  "We, Marcus, are low on both food and water if you hadn't fucking noticed" Patrick sarcastically hisses at him. Anyone who attempted to sleep has woken to see this. The tension is harsh and eats away at everyone. My heart is full of dread. Maya is enraged. Marcus is exasperated. Patrick is supercilious. Lying to us and himself to hide his guilt. But, there is something else...

  There is something in his eyes. Something I have never seen before...

  Maya

  I see that the man who has done what he's done can't change the past. He seems to have already accepted that, believing what he has done is right. Now his action reflects the group and we too, have to live with it. Things may never get better after this. Patrick isn't a cruel, hard-hearted person. He has priorities. A leader who made a tough choice, ill-advised and audacious though, was the choice.

  Tracing my eyes down Patrick's shaky arm to his twitchy fingers, slowly, he reaches for the handgun strapped safely to his belt. I see, but I don't think. My reflexes have a split second to react. Body in control, one step ahead of my brain - instinct driving me forward to protect Ed who I push aside from Patrick who in the heat of the situation makes another choice he has to live with. His impetuous move to pull his weapon out on Ed...

  Swooping forward, I push the handgun downwards and pull his arm forward with a refined tug so I can wedge his elbow in-between my body and armpit. I jump slightly as the trigger is pulled once-

  I freeze up and watch his merciless eyes. He actually would've killed Ed if I didn't step in-

  Patrick scowls at me-

  Spontaneously, I bring my right arm around and bend it so my elbow swipes his jaw. Patrick releases the handgun - it hits the floor with a thump. He stumbles back, his eyes hazy as his hand races to his jaw.

  "Next time, you won’t get off so lucky. Trust me, I could do a lot worse" I gesture to my own arsenal of weapons. The damage I could’ve done would have ranged from a bullet to the head of being gutted, stabbed, or simply beaten. He's been forewarned and hopefully, will not try ill-thought attempts on Ed's life again. Or anyone's for that matter.

  “Is that a threat Maya?” He wipes his face, his eyes scanning mine. His tactics are as pathetic as he is. All bark no bite. Though, I can’t deny that his bite would’ve been brutal had he succeed. Snorting, I ignore him. He is fully aware how serious I am. Now he is nothing more than a pitiful man who tries his hardest to hold onto what he once had – a good reputation.

  When I look over my shoulder to see if Ed is okay, I see him goggle-eyed at the indistinct trail of smoke that rises gradually into the air.

  "I can't believe he'd try it" aghast, Marcus steps forward towards Patrick who is in the middle of kindly telling Linda he is okay. After seeing Marcus advancing on him, he pays us attention again. Putting on a brave face, Patrick steps forward, almost as if, ready, to face the consequences.

  "We are helping the girl. You are the one who is going to be fucking doing it" Just like that, Marcus takes the reins. There is no leader here. However, your reputation among the group is everything. With your reputation, comes influence, and thus control.<
br />
  Patrick glares at Marcus. Marcus glares back. This group is breaking apart and there is no way to fix it now. Helping Marcus and Chloe was one thing. But this is something you can't fix. This is like dropping a plate that smashes into millions of tiny little pieces and trying to fix it with sellotape. It's not going to happen. No matter how hard you try, it'll always be a cracked, shadowed version of its former self.

  Chapter 34 - Alice in Dead land

  The Next Day

  Maya

  Sitting at the end of my bed is Ed, who has horrible, wrinkled bags under his eyes. Making his face look fairly gloomy despite the cheery attitude and smiley face he always has. This world is affecting his health. Hopefully it won’t affect his mental mind. Calmly, he watches the young girl who tosses and turns in her sleep. Wiping my own eyes, I stifle a yawn and I lean up from where I had been lounging on Marcus's bed.

  "Sleep well?" Ed asks, his concentration focused on the poor girl who had suffered so much. I don't even understand how she survived so long. Nearly three weeks has past and here she still is, with a younger brother no less. I watch Ed blankly; did he really stay awake all night? Selflessly keeping watch over the young girl. His own life on the line after what Patrick did...

  "Kinda. It was nice of Marcus to offer me his bed so we could keep an eye on her" I reply while pushing my racing thoughts aside for five minutes. Ed nods at me in acknowledgement. "He only did it so he had an excuse to keep an eye on Patrick" Which to be fair, isn't wrong. Marcus looks like he could kill Patrick. He almost did in the kitchen, now he is one step closer to ending that bitter waste of a human even more.

  Patrick has royally fucked up this time.

  Glancing my way, Ed quietly says as to not disturb the young girl, "Get some more sleep if you want" Although he sounds more like he is demanding then asking. It is fairly intriguing to see him in this dark, ominous light. Patrick tried to take his life and I have a feeling he stayed up out of fear for himself. Regardless of the strict supervision over Patrick for the rest of the night, Ed has clearly been on edge. Only creatures or monsters have tried to kill him so far. It's quite the shock to have a human try to take your life. Since it is only us in this room, and I can clearly tell the door is closed, I think I know how to cheer him up a bit. I move forward and playfully steal the cap off Ed's head. He just watches me without a hint of a reaction. When I frown, he grins. The bastard was toying with my emotions. His sunken eyes travel around my face, tracing my eyes, messy hair, everything...

  "Uh..." the young girl mumbles.

  "Ed" I change our attention to her instead of me.

  "I know," he says before leaping forward as the girl springs up and looks around dramatically.

  "Where is my brother?!" she says frantically before thrashing at Ed who defends himself. "Is he okay?!" she screeches and flees to the wall, grabbing the duvet covers as she goes to cover herself. This is not how I saw this going, but I guess I should have expected it.

  "Hey, hey... Please, don't worry-" Ed tries his best to keep her calm in the best soothing voice he can put on but he hardly makes a dent. This first impression is not going well. I watch as he simply takes the cap off my head, leans over, and places it on the girls. The gesture is so, confusing and sudden that the girl shuts up and uneasily looks at him. She’s probably unsure of what to think, just like me.

  "Now, as much as I would like to talk and get to know you and you're story and blah, blah, blah. We have your younger brother to save" Ed gets straight to the point. Next, he begins talking about what happened and how sorry he is. He will try his best to make things right and I believe I have never seen him more down to earth then I have right now. Ed is taking control. Some time passes before everything has been said. The young girl traces her slender fingers across her heavily freckled face until she reaches her swollen, black eye... "W-why?" she stutters fearfully. Poor girl must be frightened because of what he did.

  "Hey, don't worry about it. The guy who did that won't lay a hand on you after what I did" I give her a rare smile of mine. Something even Ed is fascinated to see. "The lengths you are going to right now..." he whispers. I poke his cheek to get him to shut up.

  "Anyway, I elbowed him in the face" I continue. The little girl cheekily grins but wipes it away quick. "I still don't like the idea of him being around..." Her meek, little voice rings out into the room. I don't blame her for how she feels. I bet she is tougher than she looks though to have survived this long. No doubt she has had to suffer one way or another like the rest of us...

  I'll do everything I can to help her.

  The door opens with a creak - Marcus peers inside. "Ed," he says. Ed nods and gives me one last smile before he stands to leave. Once the two men leave the room, I get up and close the door. This young girl deserves more than a cold persona, so there is no need to hide from her. Flashing my winning smile, I choose now as the right to time to properly get some information on her younger brother. "So, tell me about me you and your brother"

  The girls face perks up slightly. "Well, I am sixteen and my younger brother is nine. I have been keeping us both alive for a while now. We had others but they all passed away because of the weird creatures..."

  "Tell me about them"

  "They are... different..."

  She must be talking about the monsters.

  "I had my family and some friends of theirs. They all died in the first week. My dad taught me everything I needed to know" she seems to be a little more uplifted now, being more open and lenient with me. Most likely feeling welcome and safer after what we've told her. It's good if she trusts us, although, I wouldn't expect her full trust.

  "No matter what happens, everything will be okay" I give an awkward thumb up and quickly scold myself mentally for such a sudden, cringe-worthy gesture. The young girl just raises an eyebrow at me. Withdrawing my thumb, I officially decided I hate myself.

  "But yeah, everything will be okay" I quickly say again to move us on from that. Giving me a disinterested look, the girl makes it obvious from the sceptical expression on her face that she doesn't believe me. Sighing, I stand to leave. "I don't want the hat" the young girl tosses the hat at me; I catch it and place it back on my head with honour. It's good to have it back! I wanted it the second Ed gave it to her.

  Oh my god.

  I am sentimental over the blue cap.

  Damn you, Ed...

  * * *

  Ed

  Sitting opposite me is the better healed Ben and the fairly pessimistic Chloe. Sitting beside me is the courageous Marcus who goes over the plans to rescue the young boy. The catch is, someone needs to stay behind to keep watch at least. Not on the station, but Patrick himself. Of course, William was the first person to step forward, proclaiming he will keep a steady eye on the killer. We ALL rolled our eyes at him. Lazy coward won't do lay finger on him...

  I'll stay..." I can hear the reluctance in Ben's voice. You'd think staying here would be better than going out there. After last night I am not so sure that is the case. Everyone is wary of Patrick and for good reason after the stupid stunt he tried pulling. Staying in his room with Linda, he has been quiet, too quiet...

  "We can't forget about Linda" Chloe relaxes into the sofa and scratches her greasy hair, ripping some of it in the process. She sighs and tosses it aside. "God a warm shower would be nice right now..." she mutters, upset at the loss of her hair.

  "We'll split the supplies," Marcus says fairly. We all give some sort of low response in agreement to Marcus. It's only fair the young girl and her brother get some, while we keep some for Linda. We are doing what Patrick should've done and that's help both sides.

  "Hey, maybe we should bring them both here; we can't seriously just give them half of the medicine and move on?" I state the obvious flaw in our plan. We'd be doing just as much wrong as Patrick to leave them stranded out there with the ever-growing threat of the monsters. Marcus hums in acknowledgement. "So be it" he agrees after a few seconds while his index fing
er scratches at a spot on the side of his nose.