by Eden Darry
* * *
Loveday sat down with a bump, the weight of her pack pulling her down quicker than she would have liked. They’d made it to the superstore in good time, and just looking at it was freaking her out. It loomed over them, a hulking white and blue construction with rows of windows like blank, empty eyes. The reflection of the sun made it impossible to see inside. In the car park, vehicles were dotted about, abandoned. One had rolled right up to the doors of the superstore and planted itself like a belligerent bouncer, blocking the entrance.
If they needed a reminder everyone had vanished, this was a good place to be.
“Do you want to go in or stay out here with the pets?” Ellery’s voice pulled her out of her thoughts.
“Stay here.”
“Okay. I’m going to get some more water and pasta meals. Is there anything you need?”
“No, I’m good.” Loveday felt bad about sending Ellery in on her own, but the place was creepy. Also, someone needed to stay outside with the pets—at least that’s what she told herself.
So far, Ellery had shouldered the burden of their journey while Loveday tagged along. It wasn’t a position she was used to being in, but she trusted Ellery. It was strange. Loveday didn’t trust anyone. True, she was attracted to Ellery, but it was more than that. Despite her awkwardness, she had a quiet confidence, an innate goodness about her. It was evident in the way she paid so much care to the pets. The way she always thought about Loveday before she thought about herself. Even when that man in the town had attacked them, Ellery still couldn’t bear the thought of leaving him there injured. Loveday had never met anyone quite like her.
Loveday realized she was staring, and poor Ellery’s cheeks were bright red. She wondered what expression had been on her face. She smiled. “Hurry up, I’d rather not set up camp near here tonight.”
Ellery nodded. “I know what you mean. It’s got a weird vibe. I think because it’s so empty.”
Loveday looked around her. She didn’t like it here. That old familiar feeling was back. Something in her gut telling her they should leave. But they did need water and some more meals. And there was a chance her feeling was more to do with the creepy emptiness than anything else.
Ellery turned to go and Loveday reached for her arm. “Be careful, okay? Careful and quick.”
Ellery nodded and walked away. Loveday watched her go. The sun disappeared behind clouds. Loveday looked up. It was going to rain.
* * *
Ellery hadn’t wanted to let on to Loveday how freaked out she was about going into the superstore alone. She climbed over the car blocking the entrance and hurried in before she lost her nerve.
It was just an empty supermarket. If you didn’t look at the flowers rotting inside cellophane on the plant display. Or focus too long on trolleys abandoned in the aisles. She’d grab the things they needed and they’d be on their way. Even though the electric was off, the windows let in a lot of light which made it easier to see, though the back of the store was gloomy.
Most of these places were laid out similarly, and Ellery found what she wanted quickly. She was choosing the last items when she saw something move out of the corner of her eye. The familiar sensation of being watched prickled her skin and sent a flutter of fear into her belly. It was here. Shit. Shit, shit, shit.
She was in the middle of the store, near the tills. She could drop the stuff and make a run for it. Stop somewhere else. Somewhere smaller.
Something scraped then thunked onto the floor the next aisle over. A tin being pushed off a shelf. Then it happened again. And again. Scrape, thunk, roll. Scrape, thunk, roll. Getting closer. Ellery forced down the panic that rose up inside her. Her muscles ached to move, to flee.
“Ellery. Jackson.” The voice sounded rusty, and the words were spongy and soft. “I can hear you breathing.” Scrape, thunk, roll.
Ellery took two steps towards the tills. She strained her ears to listen for its footsteps, to try to place where it was.
“I can smell your fear.” Scrape, thunk, roll.
Closer. It was definitely coming closer.
Ellery took another step. The exit looked tantalizingly close.
“I can hear your primitive little brain straining.” Scrape, thunk, roll.
Ellery bolted.
She pumped her legs.
She pistoned her arms.
Something gave chase, and it was gaining.
She slammed through the exit and vaulted the car blocking her way like an Olympic athlete. Her lungs burned, but she managed to shout a warning to Loveday.
“Run. It’s coming. Run.”
Loveday grabbed Rocky, piled him in the pushchair with Claude, and was already on the move when Ellery reached her. They had to leave their packs, but it couldn’t be helped.
Ellery was painfully aware the pushchair was slowing them down, but what could they do?
Something hit her from behind, and the breath went out of her lungs. She dropped to her knees, and pain seared her kidneys as it struck her again. She heard rather than felt the blow which landed against the back of her head. She tried to look up, to see if Loveday got away, but couldn’t raise her head. The words Loveday, run, died on her lips as the world lost focus and the lights went out.
Chapter Thirty-Four
Terry wasn’t in the mood for this shit. They’d walked for hours, it seemed, with no breaks. If he didn’t know better, he’d think Dani was trying to finish him off. She strode on ahead, always keeping enough distance that she’d be able to bolt from him. The girl wasn’t as stupid as she looked.
Not that Terry planned on doing anything to her. For one thing, that fucking devil who sucker-punched him like a cowardly bastard would probably kill him. Terry didn’t mind admitting he was wary of it. He’d be a fool not to be wary of the devil. Because that’s what it was, wasn’t it? He’d made a fucking deal with the devil to get his son back. But the devil lied, and part of Terry knew his son was gone forever. Gone like most of the fucking country.
He had to try, though. It wasn’t completely out of the realm of possibility that somehow this girl was the key to getting back Little Terry. If the devil walked the earth and people had vanished, then it wasn’t unlikely, was it?
“Mr. Pratt, we should get some more food and water. We’ll hit the motorway proper soon, and there aren’t any services for over twenty miles,” Dani said.
He stopped and looked around. They were by a petrol station. A couple of cars sat uselessly by the dead pumps. Over by the entrance to the shop, the newspaper stands still held papers from before. Terry picked one up. “You go ahead, love. I’m going to sit out here in one of them cars and have a rest.”
Terry picked the red car because it was new and looked comfortable. The door was unlocked which was handy. When he lowered himself into the front passenger seat, his knees popped and cracked, and he sighed with the pleasure of being off his feet. He shouldn’t be this unfit for a man of his age, but it was what you got from too much beer and too many kebabs. And Shirl’s shitty cooking.
Terry scanned the front page. It was all about the storm. They hadn’t got it too bad in London. Apart from everyone fucking disappearing. He turned a few pages until he came to a story that caught his eye. It was about Rosemary Decker. Well that was interesting, wasn’t it?
Apparently she was some religious nut who was convinced the storm was going to bring about the end of the world. Terry laughed. Not such a nutter after all. Why did she want Dani, though? Did she even know about Dani, or was he going to turn up with the girl and she’d have vanished like the others?
Behind him the rear door opened and the car dipped slightly as someone climbed in.
“Hello, Terry.”
Terry’s balls climbed into his throat, and he hated himself for his fear of this fucking thing. Terry started to sweat. “What now?” he asked and tried to keep the tremor from his voice. He couldn’t bring himself to turn around and look at it. He thought it might send him mad.
Terry couldn’t place its accent. It spoke normally enough, but something about its voice was off. Most likely because the devil wasn’t used to speaking English.
“It’s amusing to me how you humans assign religion to the things you do not understand. Even if you are not religious.”
“I’m a Catholic,” Terry said.
“You beat your wife and you drink too much. Not a very good Catholic.”
Terry sucked in a breath. “I don’t—”
“Oh, don’t waste my time with denial, Terry. It’s no concern of mine who you beat. My concern is that you get the girl to Rosemary Decker.”
“Unharmed?”
He didn’t know how, but Terry felt it shrug.
“Doesn’t matter to me what state she’s in, as long as she’s alive.”
“Why?”
“Information above your pay grade, I’m afraid.”
Terry bristled. No one fucking spoke to him like that. No one treated him like that. Not even this fucking devil thing—or whatever it was. “Fuck you, mate. No one tells me what to do.” Stupid thing to say, maybe, but fuck it.
“I thought you wanted to see your son again.”
“He’s gone. Just like the rest of them. You lie. It’s what you do.”
“Are you sure?”
The seat creaked behind Terry, and he felt it lean close, felt its breath on his neck. And there was that weird Plasticine smell again.
“What if I’m not lying, Terry? And even if I am, what have you got to lose?”
And that was the crux of it. What did he have to lose? Nothing at all. Terry had already lost everything that mattered to him. He’d feel some guilt, of course, leading the girl to her death like that, but really, she probably would have died out here on her own anyway. And it wasn’t like he kidnapped her—she wanted him to go with her.
And there was a chance. A chance he’d see his boy again. Wasn’t it worth it for that? Even the smallest chance?
“Very good, Terry,” the thing said, and Terry felt it move away from him. Felt the car dip again as it climbed out.
Still, Terry didn’t turn around. Didn’t want to see it, even if it did have to get in and out of cars like a normal man instead of teleporting or whatever the fuck devils did.
Terry picked up the paper with shaking hands and tried to concentrate on the article about Rosemary Decker. The Plasticine smell lingered.
Chapter Thirty-Five
Loveday leaned against the side of the van. Her arms ached from dragging Ellery. She thought she might be able to get her up and inside, but Ellery was too heavy. She made do with laying her by the back doors, with Loveday’s jacket under her head.
Loveday hadn’t seen what hit Ellery. She heard a grunt, and when she looked behind her, Ellery was sprawled on the ground. Whatever hit her was long gone. Loveday should have listened to her gut back at the superstore. She knew something was off. Instead, she let Ellery go inside because Loveday was selfish. Catering to her own needs, as usual.
Now, here they were with Ellery lying unconscious and all their stuff at the superstore. Loveday could go back and get it, but until Ellery woke and told her what happened, she didn’t want to risk it. But it was getting colder, especially at night. The van wouldn’t offer them much protection from the weather. It hadn’t rained yet, but Loveday could tell from the heavy grey sky it was only a matter of time. She hoped Ellery woke up soon.
But what if she didn’t? It wasn’t like Loveday could call an ambulance. There was only the two of them. She couldn’t think about it. Ellery had to wake up.
Loveday sighed. The wheel had come off the pushchair too. She’d driven it over a rock as she ran, and the bloody thing went spinning off under a car and tipped poor old Claude out. He was inside the van now, mainly sleeping, but occasionally waking up to give Loveday a dirty look. She’d apologized, but apparently he wasn’t ready to forgive and forget. She could go and get the wheel, try to put it back on. It wasn’t like she had anything else to do. They were stuck here until Ellery woke up. Loveday watched her. The steady rise and fall of her chest. It looked like she was dreaming. Her eyes were moving back and forth under her eyelids, and Loveday thought that must be a good sign.
Although what Loveday knew about head injuries wouldn’t fill the back of a postage stamp. Ellery could be in a coma for all she knew. Shit. She shouldn’t think that way. Ellery would be fine.
Loveday inspected her head again, felt the bump, no bigger than a marble. She would be fine. Loveday stroked her temple, ran her fingers through Ellery’s hair. She couldn’t lose her. And not just because Loveday knew she wouldn’t survive the journey alone. Not even because they had come to be friends. Some part of Loveday recognized some part of Ellery, and they’d slotted into place like a dovetail joint.
She’d felt it that day on the bench where Ellery found her crying. She felt it when they lay beside each other each night. Even if they never acted on it, there was something powerful between them, and they would always fit together. Loveday knew that if she lost Ellery, she would lose some part of herself. The part that gave her the courage to walk up to the man with the knife, the part that desperately wanted to save Dani. Perhaps the last part of her that wasn’t jaded and tarnished and scared and selfish.
She rocked back on her heels, tucked her hands under her armpits, and looked up at the sky.
If it was possible, the clouds were greyer and heavier. The temperature had dropped. It would be dark soon. How would she keep them both warm? She supposed she might be forced to go back to the superstore after all.
Loveday looked over at the cars abandoned like a giant child’s toys on the road. She had an idea.
The first car she tried was locked. She considered smashing the window but decided to try a few more first. She couldn’t feel anything watching her, but better safe than sorry, and there was no point making noise unless she had to.
Loveday was luckier with the next few. One had a couple of fleece-lined blankets inside. They smelled of dog, but beggars couldn’t be choosers. She also found a wind-up torch, first aid kit, a family bag of salt-and-vinegar crisps, two bottles of water, and an unauthorized Britney Spears biography.
Chapter Thirty-Six
Rosemary looked at the three women and two men. She’d decided to send a group off to look for the girl. She was getting impatient. They were running out of time. The people in front of her had volunteered, and they looked healthy and strong.
After the unfortunate incident with that woman, lots of people left the hangar. She’d briefly considered refusing to allow it. But as quickly as they left, more people arrived, and the numbers were improving again. It was good, though. This way, only the most devoted would be part of her new world. The Judases who snuck out in the middle of the night would be judged by the storm that was coming. A storm bigger than the one before, which would change the shape of the world. All human accomplishment would be rubble at the bottom of oceans.
The people standing in front of her were the ones she wanted by her side when that time came. Obedient and unquestioning, they accepted what she told them about the girl. They were true believers, good Christians who trusted Rosemary as God’s representative on earth and believed fully in the teachings of the Bible.
She told them to stick to the main roads and motorways in the hope they would intercept the girl somewhere in the Midlands, depending on how quickly she was walking.
Rosemary hadn’t had any visions for a while. She took it to mean she was on the right path. It troubled her she couldn’t mark the progress of the girl, though. But Rosemary felt her. Felt the foul sickness of that creature in her bones, getting closer all the time. God trusted Rosemary to destroy the girl, and Rosemary would not fail.
* * *
Ellery floated above everything. She saw towns and cities and the networks of roads that connected them all snaking across the
landscape. She was too high and it shouldn’t be possible, but she saw clusters of people below, all moving in the same direction. North. They looked like ants.
A huge body of water raced inland from the east. It gained speed and height until it crashed onto the shore and then kept going, obliterating everything. Buildings, trees, pylons were torn up from their foundations and propelled along in the swirling mass of water.
The ants began to run, but they had no chance. The water scooped them up like unruly children. Smashed them against the floating debris and held them under.
The water kept coming. Wave after wave after wave. And now it came from the south and the west, flooding the land and destroying everything in its path. The mark of mankind had been slapped down and torn apart in minutes.
This is how it ends, Ellery thought. Thousands of years and this is how it ends. Not in days, not even in hours but in minutes. As if we never were. She felt numb. Couldn’t quite comprehend it.
She looked to the north. The water hadn’t reached all the way there. Spots of green were visible, poking above the water. Enough to live on? Maybe. If they could get there in time.
What did the girl Dani have to do with it? Why was she so important?
Ellery’s stomach dropped in time with her descent. She was rushing downward. She flew in an arc, and then she was flying over the water, heading north.
On the small area of land, people milled about, but none of them saw her. They were gathering around a pile of rocks, picking them up. Some tested a stone’s weight and either put it back and chose another or, seemingly satisfied, walked away. Ellery decided to follow them.
“Well, what was the alternative?” one woman asked another. Both were in their thirties.
“I don’t know, but it seems wrong,” the other woman said.
The first woman looked scared, leaned in close to the other. “Don’t say that sort of thing. You’ll get in trouble—and me with you.”