Survival Instincts (Book 1): Sacrifice

by Andersen, J. . J.

  “Well John, I’m afraid that is not going to happen because you are going to help me and Phoenix with something. And it looks like we’re taking the kids.” Rae revealed earning her a death glare from John. His arms crossed over his broad chest, a slight beer gut getting in the way of the bags in his hand, the bottles clinking together sharply.

  “What are you talking about?” John demanded.

  “Things are about to change drastically. Not just here, everywhere. It’s not your everyday shit and I would love to sit here and explain it all in detail but we’re running low on time, so you’re just going to have to trust me while we get the hell out of here. Then I’ll tell you everything.” Rae urged killing the playful banter with her serious toned voice. Without waiting for John’s answer, Rae spun around and knelt down to the little girl’s level who was kneeling by her brothers’ capsule, letting him suck on her tiny, pale fingers.

  “What's your name sweetie?” Raelynn asked with a soft smile.

  “Everlynn.” She smiled. Raelynn chuckled,

  “Sounds a lot like my name, Raelynn but if it's easier you can call me Rae.” She smiled to Everlynn who smiled back “Do you think your dad is coming back for you and your brother?” Rae continued.

  “I don't think so, he said he might not be able to and that I had to find someone who could keep us safe.” Everlynn paused,

  “Are you going to keep us safe? John too?” She asked, hope in her voice, desperation in her bright blue eyes. If this situation had happened on any other day, Rae would have taken the kids to services to be placed in a secure home. She knew she wasn’t in the right headspace to look after any other children, especially the baby, after what had happened to her own. However, the situation on the street haunted her. She knew that Iowa was not going to be a safe place for much longer and Raelynn couldn't do that to the little girl before her, looking at her with such trust and hope. She had no choice, Everlynn and her brother had to come to Colorado with them. Once everything was over, she’d help get them back to their family, but for now they had to keep moving. Looking back at John, Rae nodded determinedly. Phoenix quickly pulled her aside.

  “You do know how much harder it’s going to be, getting to Colorado if we take them?” He whispered, his hand gripping her arm. Oh, if only he knew how hard it was really going to be, not just logistically but emotionally, mentally and every other way. She was going to have to hold herself together with so much more effort from that point, but they had no choice.

  “We have no choice, Nix. You saw what those things can do. Are you really willing to leave them here, knowing that could happen to them?” She whispered back harshly before looking into his green eyes, gauging his answer even before he spoke.

  “No, I can’t.” He conceded. Rae nodded then turned back to Everlynn.

  “I will look after you and your brother.” Rae smiled, “What's your brother’s name?” She continued, gesturing to the infant in the capsule, avoiding looking at it directly.

  “His name is James.” Everlynn told with a proud smile. With the sound of his name being said, the infant stirred and started to cry again. Raelynn’s head began to fog in response.

  “Well then, let’s grab some things. Nix go around the store and buy whatever is left on the shelves; medicine, plasters, sanitary I would be grateful for and anything else that might be useful for our camping trip. Everlynn you’re with me, John can carry your brother and we’ll go get some things from the hunting store and the supermarket, okay?” Rae ordered, a twisting in her stomach telling her they were using up their escape time and quickly. They needed weapons, ammo, food and water before they could leave though, otherwise they weren't going to make it very far. John grabbed the capsule and handed over the shopping bag with the baby items to Nix who started his task straight away, leaving him to raid the shelves. Raelynn took the girls hand in hers then left with John towards the hunting store and Rae knew he was only following her lead while they were in the company of the children, but as soon as he got her alone, she had no doubt he would demand answers. She appreciated the trust that he was giving her in the meantime though, as they moved through the hectic mall and into the hunting store.

  They found a trolley cart, placed the capsule in it, then loaded up on as many guns as they were allowed, ignoring the condescending looks they were given, shopping for so many guns and ammunition with a baby and child. Rae ignored them, knowing they would understand why soon enough.

  “So?” John prompted the conversation she had been hoping to put off a little while longer, but he deserved to know more, especially since they were relying on his help. Rae sighed as they looked through the camping gear, pulling down tents and air beds.

  “Something happened. And it's bad.” She began, her voice hushed, shoving some jackets and coats into the full cart, her hand still in Everlynn’s, “Unbelievable as this might sound, the un-sugar-coated version is that the worlds pretty much at an end, John. Something has come out into the world that is very dangerous and has some serious side effects.” She started.

  “What kind of side effects?” John asked warily.

  “The kind that I can’t say at the moment, but they are bad. People aren’t the same after this gets a hold of them, but I’ll tell you more about that later. What you need to know now, is that I’ve come back to find dad because he knew this was going to happen and left a message with Nix that we have to go to Colorado. But that’s not even the best part. The best part is that all that’s happening or about to happen is because of my mother. She’s been working with this lab in New Mexico creating a human enhancement product that was meant to have had a successful trial but has gone horribly wrong.” Rae explained. He paused in his tracks, making her turn back to him.

  “Raelynn. Putting aside the fact that your husband’s name makes me want to punch something, your mother is dead. She couldn't have done any of that.” He said forcefully, his voice softening at the reminder of her mother's death, knowing that normally it would have been a trigger for her. And if she was being honest, it still was, but in an entirely different way, “Andrew and his bloody theories.” John continued muttering under his breath just loud enough for her to hear.

  “Funny you say that, because she's not dead. She faked her death. She's in New Mexico with a whole new life and this thing she has created is everywhere John. The only way to stop it is if we meet up with dad in Colorado and find out what he knows because he tried to warn me and either he knows how to cure it or he’ll help me get to the people who do” Raelynn explained as John’s eyes widened before he smirked and wiggled one of the guns.

  “Right, well looks like you'll need these if you want to survive.” He joked and she looked at him with furrowed brows.

  “You mean, we. You’re coming, right?” She asked and he shook his head.

  “Not today Poppet, I got some catching up to do with my bottles. I mean buddies.” He joked but she couldn’t help but respond with a frown.

  “I can't do this without you. Help us get to him, please. You owe dad this much at least John and you know it.” Rae pleaded, reminding John of just how many times her dad had helped him get out of some very bad situations with some worse people because of his drinking habits and gambling addiction, unfortunately it had pulled her dad into them too much and she was sold as a result. It was not just her father’s fault that she was in the position she was in and that was the only reason he knew more than most about it and why she didn’t feel, in the least bit guilty about reminding him of the fact.

  “Well I suppose I can catch up in the car if Phoenix drives.” He sighed resulting in a smile from Raelynn before they paid for their things and finished up at the hunting store. John packed up all the things into the two camping bags they bought, while Rae grabbed as much food as she could from the supermarket with Everlynn. By the time they made it back to the pharmacy, they were completely stocked on everything they needed. John with one huge camping bag, a gun case and the baby capsule which was t
he weirdest combination, Rae had ever seen and had her smirking at the strange glances it earned while she carried the other camping bag on her back, Everlynn’s hand still tucked safely in hers. Phoenix was waiting outside the pharmacy for them with four bags full of his haul as they turned up. He was waiting on a bench patiently as if he had all the time in the world but Rae knew from the way he picked his fingernails, the way his leg shook and the way his eyes darted restlessly over the people moving around him until he found her, that he wasn’t as patient as he seemed. They dumped their things next to Nix who shuffled over to make room.

  “Damn, that’s a lot of shit for a camping trip.” He commented. Rae nodded, checking through the things in the pharmacy bags he had. There was a couple of things missing though so she looked back up into the shop, which was almost bereft of things now, not that the cashier noticed.

  “We still need a couple of things, I’m going to go and check whether there is any stitching packs left and I’m guessing the antibiotics are in that cabinet behind the cashier, so I’m going to see what it’d take to get him to give them to me without a prescription.” Raelynn said leaving John and Nix with the kids and rushing back into the store. She went to the checkout, reading over the medicines locked in the cabinet. She looked up at the cashier, but he just sat there spaced out, still and staring at the floor. She waited for him to serve her, but he said nothing. Rae sighed loudly trying to get his attention, but he remained slumped, so she moved around the counter and clicked her fingers loudly. That's when she noticed his slight grunt and closed eyes. The lazy bugger was asleep. Rolling her eyes, Rae grabbed the keys from under the counter and grabbed a few of the prescription bottles that could come of use if the drug problem wasn't dealt with quickly. She put the keys back then put a hundred-dollar bill in the register and went to leave the shop with her items, pausing to pick up the stitching kit she had wanted. She was almost at the exit when there was a loud bang from behind her. Rae spun quickly to the noise, instantly picking up that the cashier was no longer seated. Raelynn rushed back over to the counter and peered over it, gasping as the cashier was in the throes of a full-blown seizure, his whole body convulsing violently. Watching wide-eyed, Rae was paralyzed. She didn't know how to help or what to do for the cashier especially when his body finally stilled, and foam began pouring out of his mouth like vinegar and baking soda had been poured in it. The cashier’s eyes rolled into the back of his head, his body stilled, and Rae could barely breathe. She didn’t know if he was dead or alive, but she did know that his behaviour looked very familiar and bore a remarkable resemblance to the things she had seen on the street. As the cashier remained unresponsive, she had almost convinced herself that she was just being paranoid when her eye caught the one thing she had hoped could be avoided until they were out of the mall, but now they were out of time. A syringe laid next to the cashiers outstretched hand with a bright blue liquid in it, identical to the ones from the tapes she had seen. Exalt was here.

  Before she could run, the cashier’s eyes opened wide, a cloudy grey covering them completely. She rushed out of the store, knowing it was only going to take him seconds to get off the floor and come after her.

  “RUN!” She screamed at the others as they stared at her, rushing towards them. Nix didn’t hesitate, knowing what the growling, frothing white-eyed male chasing her meant. He pulled a camping pack on, grabbed the loose bags, then snatched James’ capsule up as John burst into action.

  John grabbed Everlynn and buried her in his chest, picked up the gun case then ran as Raelynn had said, with her following behind. But it was too late. The drug had already taken hold of more than just the pharmacist cashier. People started screaming as the creatures began frothing and convulsing on the floor, eventually getting up and chasing people, gnashing their jaws with feral growls. They attacked without care and without memory of who they were before the drug took hold. The cashier was still after her, his attention focused on her, the more she ran which was becoming harder and harder to do with everyone screaming and getting in the way, trying to escape the monsters as well. Rae was getting further behind the others and knew she only had a small window to escape the mall before it was overrun by the creatures and their victims, and desperate not to become one herself she stopped in the middle of the chaos, yanked her handgun from the front pocket of her jumper, aimed and fired, shooting what used to be the cashier directly in the head. He dropped and the screams became louder and even though the guilt of having to shoot another human had her stomach churning, she couldn't afford for it to be there. Pushing her feelings to the side, she took off through the crowd to follow after John and Nix who had made it out to the carpark. She followed them to Nix’s car where John came to an abrupt halt a few inches away from it, screwing up his facial features.

  “I'm not getting in that!” John protested “I'll take the zombies over that hunk of junk.” He complained.

  “Shut up and get in.” Raelynn screamed at him and he shook his head in complete defiance, looking around smiling at a better option.

  “I've got a better idea.” He said running towards a very large black Ute. John smashed the window and climbed into the driver's seat, Nix followed jumping into the back, each child either side him not questioning the moral dilemma of the situation, the fear on his face clearly driving him to do whatever meant getting out the quickest. Rae however wasn’t as distracted. She grabbed her things from Nix’s car and brought them over, throwing them into the back with the other stuff before climbing in the passenger seat, giving John a droll stare.

  “So, we’re playing grand theft auto now?” Rae said as John started up the Ute with the spare keys hidden in the sun visor and peeled out of the car park, dodging the screaming, crying people running from the ravenous creatures that chased them. He smirked as he turned to them.

  “No, we’re playing survival and usually it's either them or us. I’m just making sure it's not us because I guarantee that thing back there that you call a car, was not going to help us survive.” John said in a logical way that she couldn't find fault with, especially not while they drove over the footpaths to avoid screaming people. Rae buckled up, ordered Phoenix to secure the kids then rifled through the glove box in front of her. She found what she was looking for; a map. With the traffic hectic, John swerved through cars to get out of town, making map-reading incredibly difficult for Raelynn. She looked over the map to find the quickest travel route to Colorado, Rio Grande National Forest in particular and a hotel that they could regroup and make a plan at, somewhere that was far enough away that it wouldn’t be overrun yet, but close enough that they could get their shit together as soon as possible.

  “So where am I taking us?” John asked through gritted teeth, his eyes darting back to Everlynn who was wide-eyed and silent, a slight tremor in her small bones as she looked out the window. The little girl was scared, which Rae could empathize with and knew that was the only reason John was holding it together instead of demanding more details. She appreciated the effort and scanned the map again, holding in her own panic.

  “Hampton Inns. It’s a hotel in Nebraska, it's a few hours away but that’ll hopefully be long enough to outrun this mess, at least while we sort out our route to Colorado and get these kids some food and rest” Rae said.

  “I've seen Hampton Inns before. It’s expensive and high class.” Nix grinned, leaning forward between the two front seats.

  “Hell no. I am not going there. That's a three-and-a-half-hour drive and the deal was, that Nix drives so I can drink. I’m not waiting three and a half hours for that to happen and I’m not staying in a tourist trap made for people who put their pinkies out while drinking tea and eating brunch. I’m not doing it.” John grumbled. Raelynn sighed, damn drunk only thinking of one thing. Like rich people or snobby people rather, didn’t enjoy their own drinks?

  “John, it has a bar. A well-stocked bar with all the best alcohol money can buy. And if you get us there without dying then I will pay for you
r tab and you can drink all the damn alcohol you want, okay?” Raelynn said promising something she knew would incentivize him and help her get back at Jose because he had been the one funding their trip so far, his credit card being the only money she had.

  “Hampton Inn, here we come.” John chuckled, accepting her deal as she had known he would.

  Chapter Seven

  Most of the car trip was awkward silence between Raelynn and John. John kept glancing over at her, wanting and waiting on her to explain more, but she couldn’t. Not yet, not while Everlynn was already so terrified. John’s patience had its limits though and they'd been driving for over an hour in silence. He hadn't had a drink and he hadn't heard a word out of Raelynn. He sighed obnoxiously loud to prompt her, but she just pursed her lips in retaliation.

  “What the hell is going on?” John eventually demanded but Raelynn replied with a loud sigh to avoid answering. She was very reluctant to tell John anything, she knew she would sound crazy and far too much like her father. “Go on.” John continued impatiently, making it harder for Rae to ignore and made her sigh once more, but this time in defeat. Raelynn looked over her shoulder and smiled at the three people in the backseat that made up a very cute picture. Phoenix in the middle, Everlynn laying on his lap, snuggled into him and James on his left. All three, sound asleep. And as cute as it was, she clenched her jaw at the fact that she couldn’t use listening ears anymore to hold off John’s questions.

  “Would you believe me if I said zombies?” She tried, knowing it was the closest description she had for the creatures. They weren’t biting and turning people, rather eating and killing but the word implied the same ravenous, rabid, crazy things that were loose in the street thanks to Exalt. As insane as the zombie concept was, Rae’s eyes widened at John’s understanding nod.