“Noisy,” he mumbled in a soft voice.
“Hope it doesn’t give us away,” Kate said not taking her eyes off of the spot near where the hatch was.
“You should have let me take those bars,” Ethan said picking a large blade of grass out of the ground and twisting it between his fingers.
Kate bit her lip, so she didn’t smile. “I didn’t stop you.”
“You scared me. That’s the same as stopping me.”
Kate’s body stiffened when she saw the movement behind several of the distant trees. She tapped her index finger over her lips and pointed at the movement while keeping her hand low.
Whoever was approaching moved slowly and quietly. For a second Kate worried that it was going to be a group of The Unholy, but it didn’t take long for her to see the flashlights bobbing as whoever was carrying them walked.
Kate didn’t know them, but the second one of them knelt down and opened the hatch she knew they had to be part of Rosalie’s group. Maybe it would have been better had it been The Unholy.
Kate swallowed hard. “Shit.”
5
Ethan adjusted his position, so he was facing the hatch. They watched as the group of five descended into the underground warehouse.
“The girl with blond hair,” Ethan said, his voice quieter than a whisper, “that’s Rosalie.”
Kate couldn’t remember if she’d ever seen Rosalie before. Even at their distance, it had been impossible to notice that Rosalie was insanely beautiful. She wore her long golden hair in a loose braid, and her black pants fit tight to her trim figure.
It struck Kate as odd that Simon had designated her to lead the east of his world, instead of keeping her close. After all, Simon had claimed to like beautiful things, that was one of the reasons they were eradicating the disease. The Way would bring beauty back into the world taking out one Unholy at a time.
The last person stepped down inside the secret storage area, pulling the hatch closed behind himself. Kate let out a controlled breath.
“What do we do now?” Ethan said, his eyes wide as he rubbed his palms on his thighs.
Kate had seen the look on Ethan’s face more than once, in fact, it was nearly a daily occurrence. It was the way he looked right before they set out to hunt The Unholy.
“We wait. Then when they leave, we go back and tell Ethan what we learned,” Kate said, not missing the passing look of disappointment on Ethan’s face.
“Might Simon want us to do more?” he asked.
Kate shook her head. “He did not instruct me to do more.”
“Yeah, okay, you’re right. Damn.” Ethan shook his head. “Simon is going to be pissed. Maybe you should break it to him, after all, you are his favorite.”
“What?” Kate’s mouth dropped open. “I am not. The group of women in his room last night are his favorites.”
“Do I detect a hint of jealousy?” Ethan said sounding as though he were teasing, which was a good thing otherwise Kate may have jammed her blade into his muscular thigh.
“No,” she said without bothering to hide the disgust from her tone.
Ethan chuckled. “I’m only messing with you.”
“I know,” Kate said shifting her eyes to lock onto Ethan’s, “otherwise blood would be oozing out of the side of your neck.”
“You’re so violent.”
“I don’t want to be,” Kate said shaking her head as she pinched her lips together. She didn’t think they should be talking, they should have been keeping their voices down.
Kate wasn’t that worried about being discovered. She was armed and felt confident she and Ethan would win against the small group, but she didn’t want it to come to that. There was always a chance she’d be wrong. Kate believed that one day her luck would run out, and she didn’t want that day to come just yet.
“Okay, no more Simon jokes, duly noted,” Ethan said.
“Good. Now, quiet down.”
Ethan shrugged. “They could be down there awhile.”
“And they could come up right now. Either way, we don’t want to be seen.”
“Right,” Ethan said saluting Kate. She couldn’t stop her eyes from rolling, but Ethan had already looked away.
Kate and Ethan knelt on the ground shoulder to shoulder facing the hatch. Ethan had pulled out his gun, and Kate’s hand hovered above her blade, but everything around them was silent. Kate could hear Ethan breathing.
Ethan looked over his shoulder to check out the area behind them. His lips were close enough to Kate that she could feel his breath touching the side of her neck. He turned to face forward, hesitating for a moment noticing Kate watching him.
She blinked and forced herself to turn back to the hatch. Kate shifted her weight to loosen the air that had tightened between them.
She’d worked with Ethan daily, but sitting out in the darkness with him was different from their daily routine. When they were out eradicating The Unholy, it was Kate and a group of guys acting like guys, but Ethan was different without them around. He was… tolerable.
Even though they were kneeling, she felt small next to him. Ethan was tall, and nearly twice as wide, but it was all muscle. His dark eyes shifted toward her for a split second.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Ethan said tightening his fist. “Don’t trust me?”
“I don’t trust anyone.”
“What about our fearless leader?” Ethan asked.
Kate swallowed and thanked her lucky stars when the hatch opened. Something rustled behind them, and Kate’s eyes shot backward, but there wasn’t anything there but weeds, trees, and darkness.
Everyone except for Rosalie was carrying a box. They were all giggling and smiling, happy to be getting away with whatever was inside their boxes.
Kate was surprised that Rosalie had a team that trusted her so much they’d go against Simon. Then again, maybe they didn’t know that they were going against him. For all they knew, taking the supplies had been approved, but why would Rosalie be stealing the supplies on her own? There had to be more to the story, and Kate figured at least one of them was in on whatever Rosalie’s plan was if not all of them.
Maybe they were planning an escape? A revolt. All Kate knew for certain was that as soon as she and Ethan informed Simon, whatever they were up to would be put to a swift end.
“What was that?” the guy next to Rosalie said aiming his gun at the trees, that Kate and Ethan were hiding behind.
“You’re hearing things,” one of the other guys said.
Rosalie’s eyes moved across the area slowly. She wore an expression that seemed to be a mix of worry and aggressiveness.
Her finger moved upward slowly toward her lips, and she clicked off her flashlight. The other two that were holding flashlights also clicked theirs off.
The area was dark. And the moonlight didn’t provide much light.
Rosalie’s finger moved away from her lips, and she pointed toward the trees where Ethan and Kate were hiding.
Kate slowly turned her head, an icy chill moved down her spine as she met Ethan’s wide eyes. They’d been spotted, and when Rosalie and her friends didn’t take off running, Kate knew this was going to be a confrontation.
Kate couldn’t tell Ethan for fear of making too much noise, but she was certain they had the upper hand. She was sure she could take out at least two of them before they even stepped within twenty feet of her an Ethan.
Her hand moved quickly to her hip, and she pulled out her gun. Ethan stared at Kate. She could tell by the look in his eyes that he was ready and waiting for her to give the go ahead.
Kate aimed her gun at Rosalie. She planned to take her out first, hoping at least one of the others would drop down to her side to help. It wouldn’t be hard for her and Ethan to take them out, after all, they saw Rosalie and her gang, but it didn’t seem as though Rosalie’s men had seen where Kate and Ethan were well enough to take proper aim.
The grip on her gun was tight, she waited for Ro
salie to take another step, but Rosalie stopped as if she knew what would happen if she moved. Something rustled in the weeds and grasses behind Kate, but she didn’t want to take her eyes off of Rosalie.
Whatever was behind them moved faster. Kate could hear it better, and she recognized the noise immediately. The heavy, uncoordinated stomps of The Unholy were hard to mistake.
“Shit,” Kate mouthed, keeping her eyes firmly planted on Rosalie.
The groans and moans from The Unholy grew louder. Kate was going to have to take the diseased creature out before she could deal with Rosalie, but the second she moved, Rosalie’s men would shoot her dead. It would give away her location and not to mention Ethan’s, but it wasn’t a hard choice for Kate. She preferred the bullet to the bite and hoped Ethan would too.
Reluctantly, Kate took her eyes off of Rosalie to throw a glance over her shoulder. The Unholy’s black eyes were already locked on to Kate. Its target was set.
“God dammit,” she heard Ethan say under his breath. “Shoot it.”
“Not yet,” Kate said watching the creature move closer.
It looked as though The Unholy’s arm had been dislocated and was only still attached because the stained shirt it wore held it in place. The skin that covered the creature was gray, and Kate could see where it’s every vein had been located because blackness had traveled through them and pushed them closer to the surface. It was so human-like, but at the same time, it was a disgusting monster.
The creature had been a person, with a job, maybe a family, but now all it wanted was to infect others. Its mouth curled up at the end as it took another step towards Kate.
She jerked her arm and aimed her gun at the spot right between The Unholy’s thick eyebrows. Just as she was about to pull the trigger, a gunshot rang out, and a hole appeared nearly in the exact spot Kate had been aiming.
Even though she knew it couldn’t have been him, she immediately turned to Ethan. He shook his head.
“Got him!” one of the guys with Rosalie cheered loudly.
“Shut up,” Rosalie scolded. “You want its friends to show up?”
“Sorry,” the guy said. “It usually takes me like six shots to take one down.”
Rosalie’s eyes shifted away from him in annoyance, and she turned on her heel. “Let’s get the fuck out of here. I don’t think David has enough bullets left to take out any more of those disgusting creatures.”
“Well, now that I know I—”
“Shut up,” Rosalie said, her voice already quieter as they quickly moved out of the area.
Kate watched the light from their flashlights bobbing up and down illuminating the trees and foliage as the group hastily left the area carrying their stolen supplies. She didn’t dare move even though she was right, there would be more coming, and it probably wouldn’t take long for them to show up.
Several minutes after they couldn’t see the lights any longer, Ethan broke the silence. “We should go.”
He was nervously watching the area behind them. Kate listened but didn’t hear anything. If a pack of The Unholy were coming, she was sure she would have heard it, but in the darkness, she didn’t really want to even run into a few strays. They weren’t quiet, but Kate was better at fighting them during the day than she was at night.
“Let’s go,” Kate said holding on to the tree trunk as she stood. The world started to spin. She was feeling a bit lightheaded, not because of what happened but because she hadn’t eaten.
“You okay?” Ethan asked, and Kate instantly nodded. She didn’t want him to think she wasn’t up for traveling back to Simon’s town.
Kate didn’t want Ethan to know how weak she really was. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
She let go of the tree and stepped out into the open. The instant she did, she heard the rustling to her right, and when she turned to the left, she saw movement.
They were coming. It was too late.
6
A cloud moved through the sky revealing the full moon which lit up their surroundings. Kate couldn’t hold in her gasp.
“Jesus Christ,” Ethan said spinning in a slow circle.
It was like The Unholy were coming out of their hiding spots. They all moved at the same pace, and they all wanted the same thing. To infect Ethan and Kate with their poison.
Kate raised up her gun aiming at the closest, but every time she blinked several more popped up. There were at least twenty on one side and another twenty on the other.
“Which way back to town?” Kate asked, her words flooding out of her mouth. There wasn’t much point in keeping her voice down, it wasn’t like Rosalie would come back.
“That way,” Ethan said, pointing to the west.
“Thought so.” Kate was staring at a thick gang of The Unholy.
Ethan held his blade in one hand and his gun in the other. “Are we fighting our way through?”
“You think we can?”
“I know you can,” Ethan said, which didn’t help ease Kate’s mind.
It was possible they could fight their way through, but they were going to have to decide. The groups of Unholy were moving in quickly. When the surroundings grew darker, Kate looked up toward the sky and noticed a big cloud moving into the hug the moon which would drastically cut down on visibility.
“Fuck,” Ethan said noticing the change.
The noises from The Unholy got louder. Kate had seen it, but when the closest one touched her shoulder, her body jerked. She spun on the ball of her foot like a dancer and rammed her blade into the side of The Unholy’s head.
It’s black, diseased eyes locked onto her as it froze like a statue. The creature dropped to the ground at Kate’s feet, and she stepped away, not wanting to get tangled up if they had to fight.
“The hatch,” Kate said.
“We can do this,” Ethan said.
“We can do it better in the morning,” Kate shouted, tugging on Ethan’s arm.
He looked slightly disappointed but lifted his feet and followed Kate to the hatch. She took out the key and unlocked it just as another approached.
Ethan lurched forward and kicked it in the stomach. The creature bent in half, and Ethan stabbed The Unholy in the back of the head. It dropped to the ground as if whatever was powering it had simply turned off.
“Come on,” she said, watching as The Unholy seemed to move quickly toward them.
Kate climbed down the ladder, and Ethan followed quickly, almost stepping on her fingers as he moved down after her.
The hatch door started shaking as The Unholy tried to figure out how to lift it. One of them managed to get it open several inches, enough for Kate to see a pair of black eyes peering in at her.
“Is there a lock on this side?” Kate asked as Ethan quickly climbed back up the ladder. He grabbed the handle and pulled the door closed. His muscles contracted every time the door moved away from him.
“I’m not seeing anything,” Ethan said his eyes moving around the square hatch. “Not sure I can hold this all night. Oh, wait.”
Ethan held the door down tightly as he pushed a small metal bar through a double loop. It didn’t look like it would hold, but the door stopped moving. Kate could still hear them on the other side.
“That should do the trick,” Ethan said, his eyes glued to the lock as he took a cautious step down the ladder. “I hope.”
The Unholy groaned and moaned. Kate could imagine them clawing at the hatch to get inside. She wasn’t sure if they’d give up, and maybe by morning there would be even more of them.
Maybe if they didn’t return, Simon would send out a search party. He’d want his information, or if he thought Kate and Ethan were up to no good, he’d want to punish them for their sins. But for the time being, all Kate and Ethan could do was wait.
“How will we know when it’s morning?” Ethan asked staring at the door above him.
He’d made it down to the tile floor, but his knees were bent slightly looking ready to dash back up the ladder if need be.
There were no windows, and there was only one way out. At least that they knew of, but it seemed unlikely that there would be another exit. Even if there were, it too could be coated with The Unholy.
“I have no idea,” Kate said. “Maybe not until they stop moaning.”
“What if they never stop?”
“They’ll give up eventually, right? I mean they are clustered around Simon’s fence constantly trying to claw their way through. They must forget sooner or later.”
“Sure, but how much later? They still come up to the fence.”
Kate chewed her fingernail. “But not as much.”
“There isn’t much we can do about it. Unless you want to try to fight your way through?” Ethan asked, raising an eyebrow as if it were a dare.
Kate rubbed the back of her neck. “Too tired.”
Ethan chuckled.
“If anyone could fight their way through that crowd it would be you,” he said.
It was Kate’s turn to laugh. “You give me far too much credit. Everyone does. I’m just a receptionist.”
“No,” Ethan said shaking his head. “You were a receptionist, but now you’re the best Unholy killer the world has ever seen.”
“The world?”
“What’s left of it anyway.”
Kate felt a weakness in her knees. She needed to eat something even if it meant she had to steal from Simon.
The moans and groans continued to seep through the door, but as long as it stayed closed, it didn’t bother Kate. She made her way over to the shelf where Ethan had returned the box of granola bars.
“Do you dare?” Ethan said plopping down into the office chair. He spread his legs out wide and swung himself from side to side as he watched her stare at the box.
Kate dug her hand inside and pulled out one of the bars. Her stomach felt like it started chewing on itself leaving her with little choice.
“I dare,” she said ripping open the foil packaging.
Ethan grinned. “At least we’ll be together in the afterlife.”
Falling Darkness Series - A Post-Apocalyptic Thriller - Books 1-3 Page 4