After The End (17 page)

I heard Sunny gasp as the night’s humidity
engulfed us. The stars twinkled above and were reflected in the
eyes of half the camp; my words trailed off as we halted. All
around me there were blank faces intermixed with the occasional
wide-eyed expression of astonishment.

What did they think I would
do about this kind of thing? It’s not like we can send him off to
mess with another innocent child…

…sometimes you need to be
able to destroy the monsters in the world.

Streams of tears were mingling with Yogi’s
smatterings of blood. No one spoke for what felt like hours; my
heart pounded over the hooting of an owl and the sniffling of a
pedophile. Slowly, Randolph took two steps towards me.

“I’ll give you a hand; someone get the gate,
we don’t want to waste all night on this prick.”

A path cleared as we hefted the limp form and
strode to our task. The kids were all in the main cabin, safely
tucked away from the wicked creatures out to cause them harm.
The Boogie Man won’t be coming back
tonight.

We neared one of the pits and both vampires
fed on the captive. They took their nourishment harshly. I smashed
the condemned man’s other knee, feeling it turn to mush under the
weight of the simple tool.

With a small kick to the ribs, he tumbled
into the trap, a wooden spike impaling his elbow on landing. The
muted groans of his anguish floated up to us as our community left
him in the darkness.

We ambled back within our walls, back to our
loved ones waiting for us in the light of the fire. Yogi huddled in
his open grave to await death in whatever form it may take.

Tomorrow was another day. There’d been
dangers unforeseen and unacknowledged before. We learned our lesson
with Yogi: just because someone is uninfected with Z-bug, doesn’t
mean they aren’t sick.

It didn’t take him long to die. When Chase
and I checked the pit in the morning, we found a fleshie eating
through his torso. As it paused to lunge up at us, I saw one of
Yogi’s lungs rapidly expanding in the exposed cavity. The
half-digested remnants of the man’s supper decorated the floor of
the pit while the decaying zombie chewed a piece of stomach.

Both dinner and diner looked at me with
protruding eyes. Chase looked away and I choked down the rising
bile as the scent of it all hit us like a baseball bat. Reaching
into my pocket, I decided to show both fiends mercy. Gathering some
brush, Chase and I set the pair on fire within the confines of the
deep trench.

There were no screams. There was only the
licking of flames, the sizzle and crackling of wet skin, and for a
few moments the ripping of flesh. With a silent look, we continued
with our patrol of the traps. When we finished, the fire had burned
itself low. We tossed a few shovels of dirt on the embers,
smothering the reek along with the fire. There was no point to
removing the remains; there was food to be gathered and clothes to
be washed. Life goes on.

It was a few days before any other strangers
arrived at our walls. Trudging slowly up the low hill in the
darkness and dragging what looked like a body, our sentry at first
mistook them for a herd of zombies. It was my night to stand duty
at the gate. Wiping my sweaty palms on my pants, I drew my sword
and lifted my crank-up flashlight; the footsteps stopped instantly
and startled faces shone back at me. The thing they were dragging
was a drained feral pig in a stick.

“They’re not Dead, just not ours.” I shouted
behind me.

Brandishing the tip of my blade at the small
group, I kept them halted about ten yards away. Reinforcements
arrived in less than a minute. Chase and Sunny were first with the
Nurse and Sindbad close behind.

With a hand signal, the canine was sent to
sniff the drifters for contamination. He came back to his master
and, with a motion, granted the five strangers a temporary
reprieve. Little was said for the next couple of moments; tense
expressions and gestures stood in for a meeting. All eyes rested on
me, as I knew they must, so I made the call.

“None of you are infected, but we still don’t
know you. We aren’t letting you in this camp tonight. I’m not
sending you away in the middle of the night, but we can’t take you
in either.”

The pack stirred as Caelinus landed beside
me. Crude weapons were raised. I stifled a chuckle as I noticed a
butcher knife duct-taped to a broom handle.

“Friends of yours, Squirrel?” the vampire
commented as he assessed the situation. I noticed that Daemon had
landed silently behind the fearful people.

His training really is
coming along well.

“Knock off the battle poses.” They held their
arms steady. “This is Caelinus, he’s part of our village. If you
folks put away the weaponry, we can have a little chat and figure
something out.”

Crowbars and improvised spears lowered. The
man in front maintained his crossbow; it was aimed at my chest.
Daemon’s fangs glistened in the moonlight as they descended in
response to the threat. I breathed gently, trying to mellow myself
out, and sheathed my sword.

“There’s no need for this to turn bloody.” I
maintained eye contact with the bowman. “You’ll be unharmed and
given water outside the wall until we can have a town meeting.
We’ll even bring a couple of burning embers out so you can cook
your pig. That is assuming that you don’t attempt to injure your
protectors or myself. “

I motioned at each of the Undead guardians
while the young bowman with swirling tattoos withdrew his
artillery. There was an audible gasp of surprise as the fledgling
vamp retracted his fangs and said “Hello.” My point made, the Nurse
and Sunny went to bring some water to our guests.

“If anyone’s injured, let me know; we have a
nurse here and he can patch you up. He and Sunny will be back with
something for you to drink in just a second.”

The guy hung the crossbow on his shoulder and
faced his group.

“Alright we rest here tonight. Start putting
out the bedrolls against the wall. I’ll take first watch. Quince,
show their medic your shoulder once we get set up.” The leader
smiled. “And someone cook that pig and give our hosts a good-sized
haunch.”

As his people carried out his instructions,
the man approached me and held out his hand.

“Hi Squirrel, I’m Troy. We get the message
with fang boy there: you hold the cards. I’ll make sure there isn’t
a problem with my crew and you just keep those guys from making us
a midnight snack. Everything else can be worked out tomorrow.
Deal?”

I shook Troy’s hand with a strained laugh.
The tension in my chest eased.

I have to find a less
stressful way to make acquaintances.

“Deal. By the way, Cal and Daemon are going
to be the ones keeping the zombies from you all night; I’m just
keeping you guys from causing us any trouble.”

I turned my back to him, signaling for the
provisions to be brought out to the small group of interlopers.
Forrest and the Nurse strode out to administer aid to the
newcomers.

“By the way, any attempt to breach the wall,
will result in your swift executions. No offense, just covering our
asses.”

Chase and I helped tend our guests for the
next half hour. No one spoke except for minor pleasantries.
Finally, the four of us withdrew into the fort, barricading the
gate behind us.

From my post on the small tower next to the
entrance, I watched over Troy’s group until 1 o’clock. The shepherd
sat on the far side of the flock, facing the wilderness, with his
bolts at the ready. The stiffness in my shoulders crept up my neck
and into the base of my skull. Tendrils of pressure resonated
through my head. When Marley Guy took over the watch, Troy checked
out the other guard and myself before scanning the clouds for the
vampires. The confident, youthful dignitary nodded to me and took
his rest.

That night, I stayed awake contemplating how
to handle this new group of strangers. While Troy and his four
companions appeared to be minimally armed and harmless, they still
posed a potential threat.

Could they be acting as a
decoy or scout detail for that murderous horde? Are any of them
sexual predators? How can I do the right thing to protect my
community?

Logically, having the fang boys glamour them
into revealing their intentions seemed wisest. I worried about the
fallout it could bring in camp, but the role I was thrust into was
guardian of their safety.

This sucks, but it is the
only way to be certain we can trust outsiders. It’s what has to be
done, no matter how unpopular. Pasts will have to come
out.

I watched the little crew drowsily rotate
their guards; the new sentry dozed off within ten minutes.

Ughhh, and I have to train
them as well as keep them safe. Fuck.

Intent on mulling my concerns over with Cal,
I headed over towards his cabin.

One of the vamps landed a
little while ago, hopefully, he’s still up to a chat.

Stretching my achy neck to the side, I was
greeted with cool palms rubbing the anxiety from the muscles. I
could sense his grin behind me.

“Thanks Daemon.”

“How’d you know it was me,” he laughed, “it
could’ve been Cal. You know he cares about you.”

I turned to face the young vampire.

“He thinks of me as a fellow soldier or maybe
a daughter; not a neck-rub type person.” I forced a playful frown.
“Of course, I was hoping it was Cal. But I guess you’ll do.”

We broke into childish giggling and he
motioned for me to take a seat. I shrugged off the remaining muscle
constriction and plopped onto the edge of the bed. Experienced
leader or not, I felt compelled to talk these worries out before
taking action.

Sometimes Daemon can surprise me with some
pretty sage advice and he’s always been a good listener.

“Can we discuss those guys out front?”

He nodded while he leaned back on his elbows
next to me. We spoke until after 2:30AM. We ended exactly where I
started; it was the option with the most palatable consequences.
Although the burden was eased, it was only a minuscule relief.
Stretching out to a chorus of pops and cracks, I braced myself for
the full weight of added responsibilities.

By tomorrow evening, either I’ll be killing
these five and preparing for an attack or working to ensure their
survival and usefulness.

“Guess it’s time I start the alternate
schedule for if they join us.”

I began pulling my copy of the calendar from
my pocket. The fledgling rose to his feet.

“Okay, I’ll grab your notepad and a pen. Back
in a sec.”

Carefully unfolding the wrinkled paper, I
glanced at the date while Daemon bounded out the door.

For an instant, I felt the world drop and my
vision form a blurred tunnel. September 15th.
It’s my little brother’s twelfth birthday.
I heard the
door open but couldn’t look away from the torn sheet of paper.

Last year I bought him a
copy of Thrillville so he could build theme park rides with his
PlayStation 2.

Someone was talking to me; something wet ran
down my face.

He always loved to see how
things were built.

I heard a deep sobbing, a voice going hoarse
from misery. The calendar dropped from my trembling hands. The
sounds were coming from me, the wetness on my cheeks poured from my
closed eyes.

Strong hands wrapped around me. I collapsed
in grief against Daemon’s shoulder as he caressed my head. He kept
whispering gentle words of comfort.

“It’ll be all right, Squirrel. Everything’s
okay. You’re safe here, just calm down. Leave this stuff until
tomorrow and sleep. I’ll take care of you, just get some rest and
we can handle everything in the morning.”

His words echoed in my ear over and over,
punctuated by my crying and the slow rhythm of his strokes.

I couldn’t even keep my
family safe. Owen’s birthday is today and I have to run a village
and I can’t do it. I’ll make another bad choice and everyone will
die. I give up; I just want to go home. I want to see them
again.

He held me tighter, asking, “What’s wrong?
What can I do to help?”. The fear and affection made his voice cut
out.

Mom and Dad would’ve liked
Daemon. If the world hadn’t died, I could’ve brought him home for
dinner one night. I could’ve gone out with him and kept being
insignificant, but loved. Can’t have either now. No family. No
Daemon. Just death, worry, and killing. I have to live to protect
others, but I’ve already failed when it mattered.

My tears lessened as I pulled away from his
arms and looked into his eyes. He wiped my tears with his thumbs
and gave me a caring smile. I leaned forward and kissed him. Daemon
started to kiss back, then abruptly withdrew.

He doesn’t understand that
I’m ready to take the risk. I don’t care anymore; I’m either going
to live or die, not just keep surviving.

My lips followed his while my arms draped
around him. We embraced as our passion grew. I could sense him
holding back his desire even as he pulled me closer. Daemon’s hands
danced down my spine and along my hips, his silky caress lingering
at my thigh. My heart pounded. I dug my fingertips into his
muscular back. His long locks tickled my eyelashes as he slowly
eased away. His eyes shone green with a different hunger; our
shirts seemed to evaporate from the heat between our bodies.

I ran my hand up the back of his neck and
into his unruly mane, grabbing it and gently pulling him back to
me. As we pressed together on the bed, Daemon sucked my earlobe,
his fangs grazing my skin. I felt his warm breath in my ear. He ran
his mouth along the nape of my neck while I reveled in the
sensations he caused with such little effort. His sharp teeth slid
into the vein and there was the familiar tug of his feeding.