The Sands of Borrowed Time

by Jeffry Winters

  “So true,” Hayley agreed as she threw off her sweat-stained blouse. She held it up in the air, looking at Kyla through a tear.

  Kyla laughed, “May I suggest a denim shirt?” holding one out in front of her. Hayley threw her blouse over her head and ran over to Kyla, swiping the shirt from her hands before quickly putting it on. She walked over to the mirror.

  “Not bad, not bad at all!” she exclaimed, looking herself up and down in the mirror. “A bit tight around the boobs, but they will settle in eventually,” she continued as she lifted her breasts. Demelza came back wearing a pair of shades, taking them from her face and smiling before putting them back on.

  “How cool do you look!” Kyla exclaimed, patting Demelza lightly on the cheeks.

  “I fear we may need goggles, though,” Hayley interrupted, pointing out through the window. “Nevertheless, you're definitely a sight worthy of a poster girl.”

  “And for you, Kyla,” Demelza said, revealing a hat from behind her back.

  “Thank you,” Kyla said shyly, putting it on, pushing it down over her head.

  “You need to look more like a gangster girl, though, to fit in around here,” Hayley said, tilting the hat until it looked lopsided. “There, look, no one will fuck with you now," Hayley said, motioning Kyla to turn and look in the mirror.

  “Will certainly keep that darned sand out of my hair,” she replied, “even if I’m not quite up to gangster standard.”

  “I guess no one will care what they look like anymore,” Demelza said. “I imagine there is a lot of weird fashion occurring out there as people grab what they can.”

  Kyla shrugged, “Men in skirts, perhaps.”

  “Gross, with their hairy legs proud for the world to see,” Demelza added.

  They all giggled awhile as they continued to look around the store, trying on more clothes.

  “Time to move on girls,” Kyla finally said.

  “Where to?” Hayley asked. Kyla put her finger to her lips and puckered her cheeks as she pondered the question. There was a sudden loud lash of sand against the window, the skies getting darker by the moment. Kyla walked over to it, peering out, trying to see what other shops there were.

  “It's gone so dark,” Demelza said, looking anxious, “it's like the middle of the bastard night.”

  “Sign of things to come, perhaps. Let's hope it doesn’t get any worse,” Hayley said, looking out of the window, up through the dark orange clouds.

  “What was that?” Demelza shrieked under her breathe, scurrying for cover behind a clothes rail.

  “Shit!” Hayley said as she quickly followed her. Kyla could barely move from fear as she watched the dark figure casually walk past the window, barely a few feet in front of her, walking slowly but surely against the wind, holding down the hood on his coat to shield his face from the raging storm. She stood there shaking until the man walked out of sight, pulling his coat tighter around himself as he disappeared into the darkness. She took a deep breath, gasping for air before turning around, “Hello? Where are you guys? Did you see what just walked past the window?” Hayley raised her head above the clothes rail, meeting Kyla’s anxious eyes and nodded.

  Demelza opened up a gap between the clothes and peeked through, “Has he gone?”

  Kyla turned and looked back out of the window, “For now, but I’m not so sure when he’ll be coming back.”

  Hayley stood up, “This city is fucking brimming with life. Wherever we go, there is some dodgy cunt or fuckers lurking in the shadows!”

  Demelza waved her hands, “Get back from the window; there could be others.”

  “I’m sure there are, much more than we anticipated,” Kyla replied as she walked back to Hayley and Demelza.

  “We have been lucky so far, let's not get too complacent,” Hayley said.

  “Especially with your boobs poking out like that,” Demelza said, looking down at Hayley's plumped up assets.

  “Sure, I can wear something looser, something more appropriate for the conditions,” Hayley replied with a nervous smirk as she tried to loosen up her shirt. “I’m famished; shall we look for a grocery store?” she suggested. Kyla and Demelza nodded.

  “Come, let’s look further down the street, I’m sure I saw a supermarket as we drove in,” Kyla said as she walked towards the broken door.” Demelza hesitated, then Hayley gave her a gentle push. “We’ll be fine, no knows we're here, and if we’re smart, no one is going to,” Kyla said as she stepped over the broken glass. All three carefully looked up and down the street before stepping out into the storm. There was nothing, apart from darkness and the howling wind, blasting sand against the buildings.

  “Charming!” Hayley shouted. “It’s getting worse for sure, I can barely see six feet in front of me!”

  “Good, then no one can see us!” Demelza shouted back. All three walked slowly down the sidewalk holding on to each other as they struggled against the wind. Lashings of sand stung their faces, and the warm, suffocating air felt heavy on their lungs. There was a bakery store, but as they wiped the sand away from the window, and peered inside, they saw that the shelves were empty.

  “Remember the taste of fresh bread,” Hayley said as they sheltered in the alcove by the door.

  “Yes, the smell as it baked would make your stomach ache for it,” Kyla added.

  “It's warmth, and the butter melting in your mouth,” Demelza added dreamily as she peered out into the sandy mist.

  The darkness lifted momentarily as a hole appeared in the clouds, the Sun glimpsing through breaks in the clouds.

  “Look across the street,” Demelza suddenly said as she noticed the supermarket across the street. All three looked up and down the street before hurrying across, seeing that the door had already been knocked down. They walked inside, seeing a tip before them. The shelves had been pulled over and strewn across the floor. There was some food, but only the remains, leftovers from pillaging.

  “It fucking stinks,” Demelza said as she looked at the devastation before her, the food looking like dried up puke. Maybe it is puke! she thought as she felt her stomach turn.

  “Looks like the place has been ransacked,” Hayley said with disappointment evident in her voice.

  Kyla gave her a reassuring rub on her shoulder, “You know, there must be a storage area, round the back or something.”

  “There may be,” Demelza said as she pointed towards the back of the supermarket, where there were some hanging plastic drapes. They stepped around and over the broken shelves, looking intently through the scratched plastic drapes, looking for signs of food.

  There must have been a struggle here, Demelza thought as she looked at the mess, desperation perhaps, as they all continued up the corridor. They pushed the drapes aside and walked through, looking at the warehouse before them, the tall stacked shelves mostly empty. They all split up as they eagerly looked for signs of food.

  There has to be something; Hayley thought, something that everyone has missed, hidden at the top perhaps, as she looked upwards at the towering shelves above her. There was the grunt of an engine coming to life, the smell of diesel quickly filling the warehouse.

  “Hayley?” Demelza spoke worriedly, scared to speak too loud. “Is that you?” There was no answer as the sound of the engine got louder, a flashing orange light circulating through the shelves. “Kyla?” she said a little louder. She suddenly gasped as a forklift truck swiftly turned into sight towards her, exhaling with relief when she saw Kyla at the wheel and Hayley sitting across its fork, high above her. Kyla slowed the forklift to a stop, beckoning Demelza to squeeze in the cabin next to her.

  “This should do the trick,” Kyla said with a self-satisfied grin. “There are some crates left right at the top, right over there.” She swung the forklift around and drove it back around the corner from where she came. Demelza could see them almost immediately, stacked right at the top of the shelves at the end of the corridor. There were layers of tins covered in polyethene, separated b
y cardboard sheets on top of wooden crates. Kyla lowered the forklift as they neared the crates, Hayley jumping off.

  “Take her back up, see what she can find,” Hayley said, waving her arms up.

  Kyla whistled cheerfully as she manoeuvred the forklift up and lifted off the top crate, lowering it back down to the ground. Hayley and Demelza began to whistle also, their faces beaming with joy as they saw the crate was full of corned beef tins. The crate hit the ground with a thump, and they gathered around it, eagerly ripping off the polyethene covering. Demelza took off the little key from one can and began unwinding the metal strip off. There was a clang as the metal strip broke.

  “Shit, why does that always happen?” Demelza asked, looking annoyed. She tried another, with the same result, throwing the can at the shelves. Kyla and Hayley burst out laughing,

  “Steady on girl, waste not, want not.”

  “Watch and learn,” Kyla said as she took out a large knife from her jacket pocket. She held a can in her hand and pierced the tip of the knife through the metal, slicing her way around the can until the top fell off, revealing the meat inside. They all ate hastily, saying nothing, getting through several cans between them until Kyla finally said, “So, not a bad little town, so far.” Hayley nodded in agreement, “Sure has been fun, so far.”

  “Where next?” Demelza asked.

  “Well, I would usually suggest cocktails after such a delightful meal,” Kyla replied, “but I fear the circumstances won’t permit such pleasures.”

  “We're so unlucky, I guess,” Hayley laughed.

  Demelza shrugged, “Maybe we shouldn’t stray too far from the buggy, just in case we lose our bearings.”

  “Maybe you're right,” Kyla said, but we’re only down the road, “not too far away.”

  “Tomorrow, early, we will resume our northward journey, safe in the knowledge of fresh clothes to keep us warm, and plenty of beef to keep away the hunger pangs,” Hayley said reassuringly.

  As they walked back out into the street, the storm had eased a little, the sand not so thick in the air anymore. They all looked around.

  “I take it back, this isn’t such a bad little town, it's a fucking awesome town,” Kyla said. “I feel so much better after all that.” Hayley smiled and patted Kyla on the shoulder.

  “You look wonderful, good to see the colour back in your cheeks. I was getting a little worried.” Kyla smiled as they turned to walk back across the street.

  “Hey! I said Hey, who’s that over there!” a man’s voice suddenly shouted out to them from across the street. Kyla could feel a rush of blood to her head as she turned to look over her shoulder. “Hey, you three, stop there!”

  “Shit, it's the man, the man through the window!” Demelza exclaimed nervously, “Leg it, back to the buggy, run for fucks sake!”

  “Hey, stop!” the man continued as he started running over to them.

  “No! No one must know about the buggy,” Kyla whispered at the top of her breath. She drew her knife, pointing it towards the man running towards them, making it obvious of her intentions. He abruptly stopped barely ten feet away, holding his hands in the air. He pulled the hood up from over his head and laughed at them, revealing black and yellow teeth, along with dark, sullen eyes. Eyes that had lost their lustre so long ago that it was difficult to tell the pupils from the irises. He continued to laugh, looking the three up and down, one by one.

  “My, my, three young girls all alone in the big city, looking for the bright lights, no doubt.” The girls said nothing, standing still, looking at each other, unsure what to do. The man stepped a little closer.

  “Back! Back off! Kyla shouted, reaffirming the existence of the knife in her hand, pointing it violently towards the man. The man continued to laugh, his black skin wrinkling.

  “Hey, sweet little thing, no need to be so rude.” Demelza stared at the man, He looks like a right pervert, the way he's eyeing us up. His charm is about as seductive as his looks.

  “She's just communicating the ground rules,” Hayley said to the man.

  “Ground rules?” the man asked, pretending to look bewildered. He laughed again, stepping two steps closer, “Any rules or laws that this city had, or anybody had, I think may have expired a while back.” The man stared at the three menacingly, narrowing his eyes as he looked at Kyla. She swallowed hard, feeling sweat around the handle of the knife. The man stepped closer still, Demelza completely frozen from fear, Hayley feeling her heart thump through her chest.

  “Now, why don’t you put the knife down little girl so that we can chat in a civilised manner like grownups.”

  “Never,” Kyla said, her hand beginning to shake. The man laughed again, his throat starting to sound hoarse as he cackled away, eyeing Hayley's breasts.

  “Then, you give me no choice, no choice at all,” the man said as he pulled a shotgun from under his coat.” Kyla and Hayley looked at each other, each seeing the fear in the others’ eyes. All three backed away, a little.

  “You still like this place?” Demelza asked, looking across at Kyla.

  “What's that my little flower?” the man asked. Demelza said nothing, looking like she had lost all functionality from surprise, fear, and confusion.

  For fucks sake, don’t look so scared Demelza, this guy is feeding off it, enjoying it, Hayley thought, not so sure how robust she looked herself. The man walked closer to Hayley, looking at her breasts as he did so. He lifted her chin with the barrel of the gun as she tried to look down, away from his dark eyes. He stared into her eyes, a long mocking stare. There was madness in his eyes that seemed disconnected from his laugh as if they were two separate entities, Hayley thought. Then he turned and stared into Kyla’s eyes, tilting his head and smiling with pity, keeping the gun hard pressed against Hayley's chin. His eyes moved down across Kyla's quivering lips, down to her breasts, then back up towards the knife. Kyla could feel his eyes like a spider crawling across her skin. He laughed again, the sarcastic laugh of someone sure to win. There was a sharp crack as the barrel of the gun slammed suddenly into his face, breaking his nose. He choked with surprise, quickly turning to see Hayley let go of the gun, stumbling backwards looking dazed and confused. He held his hand to his bloody nose. He looked at the blood in his hand, his face filling up with a bad mix of testosterone and adrenaline fuelled anger. Hayley pushed him backwards swinging her leg around his. As he tripped, Kyla ran over to him, slashing his neck with her knife with one vicious swipe. Hayley went for her gun as blood spilled down the man’s face, down his arms and over the black barrel of the gun. The anger in his face turned to shock, Demelza looking on in fear, still frozen to the spot.

  Hayley was just about to pull the trigger when she thought better, No need to attract any more weirdos. She looked on, watching Kyla thrust the knife again and again into the man’s chest, going nuts with frenzy. The sound of each stab was disturbing in its own right, the man's pain evident in his wide-open eyes as he struggled to breathe through his slashed throat, the blood gurgling down into his lungs.

  “Kyla stop!” Hayley finally exclaimed. “Stop, he's done, more than done, save your energy!” Kyla looked up to her, her face smeared with blood. She turned away again and with one powerful thrust she stabbed the guy one more time, his eyes already closed, his body already still. Kyla stood up shaking, leaving the knife in the man’s chest, and spat in his face, watching it mix with blood and running across his skin until it dripped onto the dusty floor. She looked down at herself, feeling the dark, sticky blood between her fingers, its metallic smell making her feel nauseous. She looked at Hayley and Demelza and cried.

  Space Gun

  The girls yelled along to the music as they bounced around the dunes in their truck, Summer rocking her head from side to side as she peered out of the passenger window at the dry lake beds. Isla looked the picture of content, twisting her shoulders to the distorted rhythm of the guitars. Dagger hung his head through the window, poking his face into the oncoming stream of air. His
eyes were half closed, and his tongue was hanging from his mouth as he relished the warmth of the air buffeting around his head. Isla reached down to turn up the volume further, but the dial was rotated as far as it could go, the music fighting against the growl of the double V8 engine as it pulled them up and over the dunes.

  Their Dad had told them to scout below the dry waterfall, to find a path down and report who and what was there. He wondered why so many were coming their way. It was worrying him and why now?

  Visibility was good down on the plains, the weather being quiet compared to the hills. There were just grey clouds tinged with orange, streaming by a few hundred feet above them, a watery Sun glancing through from time to time. The truck weaved and swung easily around the large dunes on its desert-modified suspension as Isla drove the truck, the steering wheel juddering through her fingers. As the song ended with a drum roll, the roar of the mighty V8s became a song in itself, matching the attitude of the distorted guitars. The truck tipped over yet another dune peak, the tyres digging deep into the dry sand. Isla suddenly freaked out, slamming on the breaks, the truck continuing to slide down the dune for several feet before it came to a gentle stop. Dagger barked, staring up at the strange structure before them.

  “What the fuck!” Isla cried out, looking at the towering, white barrel before them as she wiped the dusty windscreen to get a clearer view.

  “Shit! Summer added, as she too looked up in gaping awe, her attention caught by the curious black windows at the top of the structure, following their contours as they narrowed to a blunt nose. Dagger jumped through the window and onto the sand, running excitedly towards it. He turned to bark at Isla and Summer.

  “What is it Dagger?” Summer shouted, sliding her hands down her cheeks. Isla’s eyes darted up and down, looking at the strange red lettering that covered its right-hand side. There were four large letters; a snaking N and S, interlaced by a couple of upside down rounded V’s