Jacob's Odyssey (The Berne Project Book 1) (28 page)

I sat on the edge of the bed and opened my backpack and got out my notepad and pen and the penlight Sarah had given me. Then I closed the blinds and sat back down and turned on the penlight and began writing them a note. In it, I told them we had to be completely quiet. There could be no talking, only whispering in the ear when necessary. Other than that, we couldn't make any kind of noise. I told them it would be best if we went to bed now and got a good night's rest, got up early in the morning, maybe five o'clock, and took the Tundra to the facility. I told them taking the Tundra was a better option than traveling through neighboring backyards. I told them it would only take a few minutes to get there and that we'd be fine. And I told them the key to staying safe would be for us to be completely silent till morning. Each of them used the penlight to read the note and nodded their approval after reading it.

I knew we needed to contact the people at the research facility. We might not be able to text them in the morning. I knew cell towers had backup power, usually batteries and generators, but I didn't know how long they would last. I thought a day or two at most.

Sarah's cell phone still worked and she texted them and we worked out an alternative plan in case the cell phones stopped working. They would expect us anytime between five and six in the morning and they would have someone waiting by the back door to let us in if we couldn't text them. We'd knock and they'd let us in. They texted us that they had backup power at the facility and that we'd be fine there. And then they mentioned something about relocating to a secure location in the coming days.

I was surprised at the mention of relocating to a secure location. Was there really such a place? I wondered where it was and how they would get there. Could they take Sarah and Becky and Raj with them? The thought excited me, but I needed to take one thing at a time. Just get them to the research facility in the morning. The details of a secure location could wait.

After they settled into their rooms, I lay awake and thought about what would happen in the morning. With a little luck we'd be fine. We'd managed to come this far and we were ever so close. Beyond the pervasive silence in the house, I could hear the soft murmuring moans of the infected sifting through the bedroom window and I wondered how close they were.

And as I lay there, I realized I hadn't thought much about Alex the past few days. I hadn't dreamed about him either. It could have been because I was so busy with Sarah and Becky and Raj. I wasn't sure. And I didn't know if I was simply numb from all the excitement and tension of the day or what it might have been, but I didn't feel the same level of angst about Alex that I'd become so accustomed to feeling.

After a while, I rolled onto my side and curled up. I was incredibly tired. My bat was still in my backpack, but I was far too tired to grab it. My mind and body felt remarkably still. For a time, I listened to my breathing till it blended into the darkness.

I heard the moans and knew they had to be close by. And I knew I wasn't dreaming. Not this time. My mind was foggy and I had to force myself to sit up in bed. I dug the heels of my hands into my eyes and rubbed them lightly. Then I blinked and squinted till I could see clearly in the bluish-black light. I reached down and rummaged into my backpack and found my iPhone and checked the time. It was just past four-thirty in the morning. Sunrise would be sometime after six, but by five-thirty it would be light enough to travel.

The moans were several decibels higher than they'd been last night. And I might have been more concerned if I hadn't been half asleep. I heard a throaty moan in the immediate vicinity, clear and distinct, and I perked up and listened. The moans sounded like they were coming from the backyard. I was suddenly wide awake. I eased myself off the bed and went to the window. I lifted a single blind and peeked into the backyard. An infected male was bending down, inspecting a doghouse near the back fence. He wasn't alone. Two more of them were in the backyard wandering aimlessly in the filmy predawn light. I glanced into the backyard next door to my right and there were two more infected stumbling about in the yard.

I would have wondered how they'd gotten past the gate and into the backyard, but I already knew. The Swimmer. Had he opened the gates to both homes? At first, I thought he might have known we were here. But if he'd known, it didn't make sense that he'd open the gates to both homes. And if he'd known we were here, he would have helped them break into the house.

I hustled across the hallway to the bedroom where Raj was sleeping. He was in the teenage girl's bedroom. I went to the window that faced the street. The window had white sheer curtains pulled back on the sides. I crouched low and looked out the lower corner of the window into the street. They were everywhere, dark silhouettes scuffling about in the early morning twilight, waiting and listening for the slightest hint of a meal. In the little over a half block I could see, there must have been at least a hundred of them, probably more. And I wondered how many more there might be waiting for us past the curve on Fortuna Way.

Gates to the backyards across the street had been opened too. The Swimmer must have opened the gates to all the homes in the vicinity. It was the only thing I could think of that made sense. I wondered if he'd spent the whole night doing it. He must not have been as badly injured as I'd imagined.

And then I knew we were in real trouble. We couldn't use the Tundra because there were too many of them out in the street, and traveling through backyards was out of the question now too. I slunk to the floor with my back against the wall and tried to think of what we should do. The only thing I could come up with was hiding in the attic. But it was a bad idea. With the air conditioning gone, the attic would be like an oven. It would have been hot before, now it would be intolerably hot. We'd never last there very long. And what if the infected lingered around for a week or more? Then I thought we could just stay put in the house and only go up into the attic if they tried to get into the house. It was probably the best option. But I didn't like that idea much either.

The people at Jorissen's would be expecting us. If we were stuck in the attic for several days or a week, they might leave for their secure location and leave us behind. If that happened, Sarah and Becky and Raj would be left with nowhere to go.

I knew cell phone service would be dead in the next day or so. After that, we'd no longer be able to communicate with the scientists. Chances were if we didn't get there today, we'd likely never get there. It had to be today.

I looked over at Raj. He slept soundly, curled up comfortably in the bed, sleeping on his side with a pillow covering his head. He hadn't heard them yet. I decided not to wake him. Not for a while.

Then I heard the unmistakable sounds of a picture window under attack. It was up the street toward Jupiter Drive. I didn't have an angle that would allow me to see the house, but I didn't have to see it. I knew what would happen.

I left Raj's room and stood in the hallway. I didn't know what to do. I felt numb, though I wasn't panicked or afraid. What concerned me most was the prospect of facing Sarah and Becky and Raj without a clue as to what we should do. I had led them here and now we were surrounded by the infected. I glanced at the door to Sarah and Becky's room. It was half open like all the doors upstairs, and I thought about checking on them, but I was hesitant.

And then I got the seed of an idea. A sudden inspiration. It came out of nowhere and was hardly brilliant, and it might even have been a little insane. But I couldn't think of anything else. I went back to my bedroom and inched one of the blinds up. By adjusting my vantage point, I could see three other backyards besides the backyard to the home we were staying in. Two of the yards had two infected in them and the third yard didn't have any. It confirmed what I was thinking. There weren't a lot of infected in the neighboring backyards, and that made the idea I had plausible. Dangerous but plausible.

I tried to think of a better plan, one that wouldn't involve me going out there amongst the infected, but there was no other viable plan. If I wanted to get them to the facility this morning, this was the only plan that had a chance.

Then I began to think about the possibility of staying put till the infected tried to get into the house. When they attacked, we could hide in the attic and there was no way they could get to us even if they knew we were there. We just had to stay quiet. Eventually, the infected would go elsewhere to find food. This was by far the safest alternative. And who's to say the people at the facility wouldn't wait for us? They might.

I went to Sarah and Becky's room to check on them, but also to see if Sarah might be awake. I peeked around the door and saw them lying in bed. Even in the dim light of the room, I could see Sarah's eyes open. I stepped around the door and walked over to the bed. She followed me with her eyes. She lay quietly on her back with Becky's head resting on her stomach. Becky was sleeping soundly. Sarah had lightly covered Becky's ear with her hand, not wanting her daughter to hear them.

Sarah's eye and cheek looked about the same as yesterday except for the discoloration under her eye which had darkened perceptibly, though it could have been the lack of light in the room. The good news was Sarah's cheek hardly looked swollen. The bag of ice-cold peas seemed to have done their job.

Sarah was wide awake. She looked at me the same way she had back at the underpass. There was a steadiness in her dark eyes marked by a quiet determination. And I knew Sarah would do whatever was necessary to protect Becky. Nothing would shake her resolve. She would never flinch when it came to protecting her daughter. And in that moment I knew I would go ahead with the plan. I would go ahead with it because it was their best chance, maybe their only chance.

I leaned down and whispered in her ear. "It's going to be all right," I told her. "I know what to do."

I left them and went to my room. I grabbed my notepad and wrote down the specifics of the plan. Then I got my iPad out of the backpack and went into Google maps to plot out the route I'd take. I zoomed in so I could see the outline of the individual homes. I knew exactly where I needed to go. Not much more than a block. That's all I'd need.

*****

After they'd read the plan, they looked at me as if I were crazy. Sarah shook her head in disbelief and silently mouthed the word no. Raj just stood there with his mouth open in a kind of quizzical wonderment. Even Becky looked at me queerly as if I were an odd duck.

I quickly wrote them a second note and didn't mince words. I told them it was the only plan that had any chance of getting them to the facility this morning. There were no other options. Then I finished the note by reminding them that they had agreed before we ever left to follow my instructions implicitly. I told them there would be no vote.

They sheepishly went along, even Sarah, though she gave me a hard look I couldn't quite decipher. It wasn't that I'd convinced them of the soundness or efficacy of my plan. There simply wasn't an alternative and they knew it. If we waited around, there was a good chance we'd all die. We might survive in the attic for a while, but what would we do after that? The facility would likely be lost as an option if we waited. Then where would we go with the East Bench crawling with the infected? And with the backyard gates open now, traveling through backyards was no longer a viable option. If we stayed, we'd likely die. I was convinced of that. And I convinced them too.

And then they went to their rooms and gathered their things.

When we had everything we needed, Raj went up first. He stepped onto the chair and easily pulled himself up into the attic. Then I handed him everyone's backpack, including my own. After that, I handed him my bat. I knew there was no way I'd be able to take it with me. Raj handled the bat as if it were made of precious jewels. And then he gave me his own determined look and nodded to me as if we had some sort of understanding or unspoken agreement.

Sarah went next. She stood on the chair and reached up and Raj grabbed her by the wrists and she grabbed his. Then she stepped into my cupped hands and I lifted her up while Raj helped pull her up into the attic. I stepped onto the chair and then lifted Becky up with me and then lifted her up to Raj and Sarah. The chair groaned from our weight as I lifted her.

I knew there was a chance the infected might have heard the sound, but I wasn't too concerned. They would likely hear me when I went downstairs anyway. I wanted them to hear me.

I had them leave the trap door uncovered. They would only replace it if the infected broke into the house. If everything unfolded as planned, they could come down in about thirty minutes or so. Placing them in the attic was just a safety precaution.

I checked my watch. It was five-fifteen now. If things went well, they could be at the facility before six.

I moved the chair into the nearest bedroom. If the Swimmer came into the house, I didn't want him making the connection between the chair and the trap door. And I knew Raj was long enough and strong enough to let himself down from the attic when the time came, and then he could always retrieve the chair.

I went into the boy's bedroom where I'd left the Glock and the extra magazine. I didn't know whether I'd need the extra rounds or not, but the idea of having a full magazine in the Glock made me rest easier. I grabbed the Glock and the magazine and headed downstairs. I went as fast as I could and made no effort to be quiet. My thigh muscles didn't care for the stairs, but they weren't nearly as tight as they'd felt yesterday. I knew I'd be able to move quickly if the need arose.

I went into the kitchen to make sure the back door was locked. I wanted to make sure the house was as secure as possible. I could hear one of them pawing at the back door and rasping in a low, gravelly voice.

After I'd checked the kitchen door, I headed for the living room. Except for the Glock, I would travel light. I had my lock pick set in the front pocket of my shorts, and I wore my watch so I could monitor the time. And that was it other than the t-shirts. I had on three long sleeve t-shirts I'd found in the master bedroom upstairs. I'd chosen a forest green tee to wear on the outside. The t-shirts were light enough that they wouldn't inhibit my movements. Wearing the t-shirts was a precautionary measure in case one of the infected took a swipe at me. I didn't want to get infected from a scratch and I thought the three layers would be sufficient to protect me.

There were three of them in the front yard moving steadily in their lumbering gait toward the picture window. They must have heard one of the noises and were coming to investigate. I stepped in front of the window in clear view and ejected the used magazine and set it down on the arm of the couch in front of the picture window. The magazine would be too bulky and heavy to lug around with me. Once outside, I would need to move quickly.

I raised the Glock to eye level and put the full magazine into the magwell and shoved it up till it snapped into place. The sharp, metallic clicking sound got their attention and they suddenly came to life. Their moans became animated and they moved with a rejuvenated liveliness.

I waited till they were less than ten feet away and had a clear view of me, then I fit the Glock as snugly as I could into my waist band in the back. I was hoping the Glock wouldn't be juggled loose as I ran. As they approached, I ducked down in front of the couch and out of sight. I wanted them to focus on the picture window. I lay prone on my stomach and crawled quietly to the front door. By the time I got to the door, they had already begun raucously pounding away at the window, grunting and moaning hysterically. I knew that would likely draw the infected from the backyard—from everywhere else too.

I stood up and got myself ready. I would have to unlock the door, open it, lock it again, close it and run out in about two seconds or less. I took a moment to rub my thigh muscles to loosen them up. My shins felt okay.

Once outside, the next thirty seconds to a minute would be critical—for me and the plan. I knew they would be drawn to me and would follow me. I was hoping to get at least two houses up toward Jupiter before I'd have to get into a backyard. If I could get two houses up, that would draw them away from the house we were in. At least, that's what I expected would happen.

I took a deep breath and opened the door, but before I could lock it, I noticed an infected woman just off the one-step cement landing. She was heading toward the picture window, a middle-aged woman, fleshy in her arms and upper torso. The moment I opened the door, she turned around and moved toward me with a fanatical urgency. I panicked and fumbled around trying to lock the door. By the time I had the turn-lock in the vertical position, she was back on the landing reaching for me. I grabbed the door jamb with both hands for balance, bent down low and side-kicked her as hard as I could in the stomach. She stumbled a few steps back and fell off the landing, her arms still reaching for me as she fell. I slammed the door shut behind me and began to run.