The beast finished with the man in the corner and made its way onto other victims. Two more creatures entered the train car and immediately indulged in the smorgasbord of vulnerable bodies. And within a few seconds the victims turned into beasts as well.
“Son,” Marcus shouted.
Ali joined Marcus, and they carried Vic off of the train like they were moving a long coffee table. Vic did not weigh much, but he was all arms and legs. When they exited the train, they lugged him behind a bed of rocks and gently laid him on the ground.
“Should we go back and get Glenn now?” Ali said.
“No,” Marcus said matter of factly as he attentively watched the beasts dismantle the train and its survivors.
“But—”
“No!” Marcus said as he looked him in the eyes. “Look.” He pointed to a puff of smoke emitting from some of the other train cars. “We’re getting far away from here.”
“What about him?” Ali said. He slapped Vic in the face.
“Don’t do that,” Marcus said.
Vic’s eyes shot open. He jostled around, and Marcus placed his hands on his shoulders keeping him still.
“What the fuck happened?” Vic said.
“The train crashed,” Ali replied
“Another earthquake?” Vic asked.
Ali nodded.
“I didn’t feel a tremor,” Marcus said. “The creatures must’ve derailed the train from the control room when they attacked the conductor.”
“Oh,” Ali said.
“Enough about that,” Marcus shouted. “We gotta go.”
The three of them stood up. Marcus peeked around the rocks and witnessed the beast pick apart the train and the people inside of it. The few survivors that made their way off of the train were welcomed by the murderous mutants.
Ali looked over the ridge and saw the same. “Fuck!”
The three of them sprinted over the rocks and looked straight forward. After they were about two hundred yards away an explosion boomed from the accident site that forced Marcus, Ali, and Vic to whip around. But their glance was only brief enough for them to determine they were a safe distance, and that no creatures followed them. They continued their escape.
Eventually, their running devolved into fast walking which in turn became plodding through the desert. Marcus and the boys walked east as he was convinced they would discover a town, other survivors, or simply refuge.
Chapter Two
As the sun went down and their inability to see what was directly in front of them became evident, they took shelter under a rock formation.
“This has to get better right?” Vic said in the darkness.
“This is like a shitty camping trip,” Ali quipped.
“The only thing I can see are your yellow ass teeth,” Vic said.
Ali and Vic laughed. And even Marcus chuckled.
“It’s going to get better,” Marcus said. “It has to.”
The cave wasn’t much, but it served its purpose as a temporary sanctuary. Marcus used light from his cellphone to make sure the cave was safe. There was some moonlight that crept inside, but it was essentially dark, and they couldn’t see one another.
“We’ll sleep in shifts,” Marcus said.
“You can sleep first,” Vic said to Marcus.
“I’m not tired,” Marcus said. That was a lie. Of course he was exhausted, they all were. But he felt they needed rest more than he did.
“Well, then we all can stay up,” Ali said.
“No,” Marcus replied. “Get rest. I’ll wake you up in three hours.”
Ali laid out his Jansport and rested his head on it. Vic used the bare ground for his bed.
“My J’s are fucked up,” Vic said as he looked down at his shoes.
“That’s what you get for supporting that clown,” Ali said.
Vic rolled his eyes. He didn’t want to get into this argument, but it was inevitable. Plus, it’s not like they had anything else to do.
“You know I’m telling the truth,” Ali said.
“What truth?” Vic said.
Marcus overheard this same disagreement before and shook his head.
“Why do you wear Jordans?” Ali asked.
“Because he’s the greatest,” Vic said matter of factly.
“How would you know?” Ali said. “You’ve never seen him play.”
“That doesn’t mean it didn’t happen.” Vic turned to Marcus. “Right? Wasn’t he the greatest?”
“Don’t drag me into this,” Marcus said.
“We’re from New York,” Ali said. “We rep the Knicks.”
“The Knicks are garbage though. You wanna talk about something I’ve never seen. I have never seen the Knicks be a good team,” Vic laughed. “Never.”
Ali paused, because he had a point. “It doesn’t matter. You supporting the enemy.”
“What do you want me to wear?” Vic said.
Ali thought.
Before he could come up with an answer Vic replied, “You want me to wear some Melos? Cuz his shits are Jordan brand!” He grinned.
“Why you gotta always shit on Melo?” Ali said.
“Cuz he’s a chucker. And the Knicks have been losers since he got there.”
“We were losers before he got there too,” Ali said.
Vic rubbed his chin. “And they’re still losers. So, he hasn’t helped not one bit.”
“Man,” Ali said. “When we win that chip, I don’t want to see you at the parade.”
“How you gonna stop me? I’m gonna be there,” Vic said. “With J’s on!”
All three of them laughed.
“All right now,” Marcus said. “Try to get some rest.”
As uncomfortable as Vic’s and Ali’s sleeping arrangements were, they didn’t stay awake long.
Marcus kept his focus on the one entrance into the cave. If anything or anyone peeked through, he was going to smash it in the head with the large rock he clutched. Just past the entrance he noticed the stars. He silently hoped Nadine was still alive and safe. He knew for a fact it was tearing her up inside that she couldn’t get into contact with them.
Marcus’s eyes shut for a few seconds, but he willed them back open. He’d pulled all-nighters many times before, but to say this was a unique situation would be the understatement of a lifetime. There’s a big difference between popping No Doz and guzzling Dunkin Donuts coffee while cramming for a Chemistry mid-term. But tonight he was willing to stay awake until the sun came up. And even though he told Ali and Vic that he’d wake them up in three hours, he knew that wasn’t happening. He’d let them sleep through the night. His decision was pretty reckless as there are consequences for sleep deprivation. Consequences he was aware of, but he didn’t care.
“No,” Ali muttered in his sleep as he tossed around on the ground.
Five hours had passed. Marcus looked at him. He didn’t want to wake him, but couldn’t sit idle as his son suffered. Ali’s eyes opened.
“What?” Ali said.
“You were having a nightmare,” Marcus said.
Ali looked around even though he could not see much. Vic was still sound asleep. Not much could disturb Vic when he’s knocked out.
“It’s okay,” Marcus said. He’d formed a habit of saying that now. But at this juncture, there wasn’t one person who believed anything was going to be okay. Everything that occurred was very far from okay.
“What time is it?” Ali tried to get up.
Marcus put his hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry. It’s okay.”
“But you said—”
“It doesn’t matter what I said. Go back to sleep.”
“You need some rest,” Ali brushed his hand off. He stood up.
Marcus knew he was right.
“I’m up now,” Ali said. “And I’m not going back to sleep.”
Marcus thought about it. Do I trust Ali to stay awake? Not really. But there really wasn’t much of an alternative.
“I got this,” Al
i said to Marcus.
Marcus could hear the earnestness in his voice. He decided to lay down in Ali’s spot, using his backpack. He gave him the giant rock to hold…just in case. He thought he was going to play possum for about an hour before telling Ali he was relieved, but he nodded off as soon as he allowed his eyes to take one extended blink.
Ali manned the guard until the sun rose. It was about four hours or so. He burned through a list of different CDs: The Lox’s “Money, Power, & Respect”, Showbiz & A.G.’s “Goodfellas”, Fu-Schnickens’s “F.U. Don’t Take It Personal”, and The Roots’ “Illadelph Halflife”. He got a little nervous that his batteries wouldn’t last, but he did have some backups in his backpack. In order to get them, he would’ve had to wake up his dad. And that was something he wasn’t willing to do. Marcus slept peacefully. No disturbance. Nothing.
“Shit,” Vic said. “I slept through the whole night?”
“Yep,” Ali said.
Marcus rolled over. He took a few seconds to get his bearings. “Is everyone all right?”
“Yeah,” Ali said. “I told you I had everything covered.”
Marcus sat up and stretched his neck. “Not the best sleep I’ve had, but much needed.”
“Tell me about it,” Vic said. “When should we start moving?” he asked Marcus.
“Now,” Marcus said. “Start packing up. We need weapons.”
They looked around the cave which was much easier now that there was daylight, but there was nothing but rocks in their vicinity.
“Get the biggest stones you can find,” Marcus said.
“I have two t-shirts in my backpack,” Ali said.
Marcus was confused.
Ali continued, “We put the stones in the shirts and swing them around like weapons.”
Vic smiled.
“Great idea,” Marcus said.
They rounded up all the stones they could. Vic took off his undershirt from underneath his t-shirt and put stones in there.
They each took sips from one of the four of their remaining bottles of water. Then, they exited the cave walking eastward. Marcus thought about asking Ali and Vic to walk faster, but he didn’t want them to burn themselves out. They had a long day ahead. And who knew where it’d be safe again to take a break. He believed a steady pace was ideal. He also didn’t want them to be exhausted if they encountered any danger.
The sun was relentless. It beat down on them like Evander Holyfield. If it wasn’t for the beast that could’ve been lurking, Marcus would’ve been a lot happier waiting until sundown before traveling. Fortunately for them, they didn’t come in contact with any of the beasts. Unfortunately for them, they really didn’t come into contact with anyone or anything. Marcus got more and more nervous with each mile they walked. He thought they would’ve run into other survivors or at least a major road. They were now down to their last bottle of water. He didn’t let his anxiety show.
The sun set, and it reinvigorated the group. They marched while holding onto the hope that if they didn’t find any help, that they would find a nice place to sleep for the night. Two more hours passed, Marcus noticed Ali’s wobbly legs. He looked around. Nothing. Then, he looked a little further to the left of their path. He saw what he thought was a flickering light. There was a possibility his eyes were playing tricks on him, and he knew that. But it also could’ve been something, or better yet, somebody.
“What are you looking at?” Ali said to Marcus.
Marcus didn’t want to tell him in an effort to protect them from high hopes.
“That’s a light,” Ali said.
Marcus sighed, it wasn’t an illusion.
Vic came over. “You think that’s a human?”
“I don’t know,” Marcus said.
“We gotta go over there right?” Ali said.
“Of course we do,” Vic said.
An unresponsive Marcus knew he had no other choice.
“Okay,” Marcus said. “But keep your weapons ready.”
They trudged over towards the light. The light was about three hundred yards away. Halfway into their investigation they were able to make out that it was coming from a road. They picked up their pace. If it was a car, Marcus didn’t want the car to leave before they reached them. For all he knew, it could be their last hope.
It was a car. And people stood on top of the car as it was surrounded by coyotes.
“We gotta help them,” Ali said.
Marcus knew he was right. But not because it was the right thing to do, but that they had a vehicle.
As they stealthily approached, they were able to determine that there were five coyotes. The coyotes weren’t large, but resembled medium-sized dogs. They barked ferociously and tried to make their way up onto the car, but couldn’t manage.
“Let’s go now, while they’re distracted,” Ali said.
Marcus nodded.
They ran up on the coyotes. Marcus swung his t-shirt filled with rocks and took out two of the coyotes.
On top of the car was a man, early forties, wearing a khaki colored suit that was caked in sand and a teenaged blonde girl who wore slim-fitting blue jeans and a black cardigan sweater.
One of the coyotes lunged at Vic after it realized they were being attacked. Vic smacked it on the side. He got back up. He bashed it again.
The man hopped down from the roof of the car and tried to help. A coyote jumped on his back. He spun around in an attempt to shake it off. Another coyote jumped on him.
“Dad!” the girl screamed from the top of the car.
Ali raced over and hit the coyote on his back. It didn’t loosen its clutch on the man. In fact, the man’s yell seemed like it made the coyote grip tighter.
Ali didn’t know what to do. “Help,” he said. Ali was tentative with his blows as he didn’t want to accidentally hit the man and injure him. Blood began to spurt out from a chunk of his back as the man screamed out.
Marcus and Vic came over to help as the coyotes tried to drag the man underneath the car. Marcus dropped his weapon and tried to pry one of the coyotes from the man. He ripped it off. Ali swung and crushed its skull. The other two coyotes released their grip and must’ve realized they were outnumbered after witnessing the fall of the rest of their group. They ran off into the night.
The damage they inflicted to the man proved to be enough to seal his fate. He laid on the ground on the sand-covered pavement.
“Be still,” Marcus said. He knew the man couldn’t adhere, but he didn’t know what else to say. He also didn’t want to get near him, because if he was infected by the virus he could turn at any moment.
The man wished he could’ve listened to Marcus and not move, but the pain was too excruciating. He turned over and moved into the beam of the headlights. Now Marcus, Ali, Vic, and the girl were able to see the severity of his injuries. They all gasped. Everyone including the man realized he didn’t have long to live.
“You can come down now,” Vic said to the girl.
She shook her head.
“It’s safe. We won’t hurt you,” Vic said.
She slid down the trunk of the car. She walked around the front and knelt down by the man.
“I’m sorry,” the man said.
Tears flowed down her face.
“Please…be safe,” the man said.
Marcus didn’t know what to say. He didn’t know this man. He was a stranger. Should he offer to take care of the girl? The last time he took two children under his wing, it didn’t ideally work out. His responsibility was Ali and Vic. And he wasn’t totally confident he could protect them.
“She’ll be fine,” Ali blurted out. “Wherever we go, she goes.”
Ali didn’t even know if the man heard him. He stopped blinking as his life faded.
The girl clutched his hand and cried.
Marcus looked around. Unaware of what was out there, he knew they had to make a move. He looked inside the car. The keys were in the ignition.
“It doesn’t work,” the gi
rl said.
“What?” Marcus replied.
“It died,” she said. “My dad tried to fix it. And that’s when they came.”
Why else would they be out here? Marcus thought. He was well versed in a lot of subjects, but a mechanic he was not. He did what any man would do, he opened up the hood of the car. He had no clue what he was looking at or what he was looking for. And when accompanied by Ali and Vic, he knew they didn’t have answers either. A paleontologist, an artist, and a teenager who idolized Raekwon the Chef stared at the car. It sounded like the opening to a horrible bar joke.
Ali looked at Marcus with a “now what?” expression.
“Did it overheat?” Marcus asked the girl.
“I don’t think so,” she said.
He walked over to the driver’s side hoping there would be a light on the dashboard pointing him in the right direction.
Marcus thought to himself, I’m a fucking doctor. I can do this.
The check engine light was on.
“Shit,” Marcus said.
“It’s okay?” Ali asked.
Marcus had no clue what to do. And he knew the more he tinkered around with the car, the darker it would get. And there was a large likelihood they still wouldn’t have a vehicle. A flat tire he could figure out but not this.
“I don’t think we’ll be able to get this to work,” Marcus said to Ali, Vic, and the girl.
“Great,” Ali said.
“What now?” Vic said.
“We keep moving,” Marcus said. “Stay close, but not on the road. Keep moving east. And somebody should come along.”
“Your name,” Marcus said to the girl.
“Christina…Christina Skye,” she said.
“My name is Marcus. This is Ali and his friend, Vic.”
Her mind wanted to smile, because that was the response she was taught to do. But she couldn’t force one out.
They all understood.
“Was that your father?” Vic said.
She nodded.
“I’m sorry,” Vic said. “With what happened.”
“Christina, do you have any supplies?” Marcus asked.
She didn’t respond.
Ali popped open the trunk. There were a few jugs of water and three suitcases.
Scattered Screams: (The Disruption, Book One) Page 6