Scarlet Memories (Book 1) (4 page)

They followed Jeremy down to the highway. It wasn’t very far from the warehouse really. And for everyone else in the group, this would be the first time they had witnessed the dead
things
out in the open. There were so many abandoned vehicles on the highway. Many with their doors still eerily wide open, as if someone would step out at any moment. Tons of broken glass shattered all over the road. Random belongings thrown carelessly to the ground. It looked like a war had come and gone through this area. The men in the car were the first to notice them. There were a few left inside of cars, locked away never to escape. Their bodies surely stinking from rot. Eddy noticed first.

‘What the hell?’ Eddy whispered seeming to ask himself. ‘Is that…’ He trailed off.

It was apparent that they were indeed the same creatures from the video they watched earlier that day. Everyone in the truck stared hard at the
thing
walking aimlessly between the cars. It continued on its path until it heard the sound of the vehicles coming towards it. It raised its head. The flesh was already looking sunk-in and bruised. It turned its head a bit more and they could see half of the jaw was missing. That would explain the color and condition of its flesh. He (Before it became the creature it was a male.) looked much worse for wear than Kendra did. From what he could remember anyway. It all seemed to happen so fast that he could barely remember some of the details. And he never really wanted to remember them in the first place.

The creature began shuffling towards the sound of the groups vehicles. Its slumping body looked very restrictive with its movements. The arms would lay against its side with only the hands twitching to grab at flesh. This one looked as though it had a leg injury before it died. The thing that now controlled its body used it to move about; causing the body to walk on the side of the leg in an odd area of the calf. The
things
hip popped up unnaturally on the side of the wounded leg.

The vehicle that Ian was riding in slowly crept by the creature. They could have been going at the same pace. It reached out at the truck trying to take hold of it. But, there was nothing solid for it to hang onto, so, it just fell violently to the ground beside the highway. It took it a second to get itself of off the ground and walk back towards the approaching vehicles. No one dared open their doors or roll their windows down with it inching its way towards them. Everyone kept up their pace and followed suit behind Jeremy.

‘What do you suppose caused all of this?’ Jason asked the other men. He still donned a concerned look on his face because he was watching the car behind them pass the creature.  They all seemed very concerned with its whereabouts. And for good reason of course. It could have been the most famous person alive and no one would go near it.

‘I don’t know. But, what I do know is that we probably need to avoid them at all costs. It looks like they are attracted to sound.’ Replied Spencer, his voice was shaking a little.

‘They aren’t very fast though.’ Ricky added. ‘But, it looks like there isn’t much that will keep them down either.’

Ian noticed that Susan didn’t look at the creature as they passed. He could tell that her mind was set on one thing and one thing only. Her only son Jaime. Ian hoped beyond measure for her, that he was alright.  He didn’t think she could/would survive without him. Getting there, to the hotel and finding him safe and sound was the only option. And maybe they could get more supplies for their return to the school?

At that moment everyone could plainly see a small horde of the creatures gathered in a field on the side of adjacent highway. They were all gathered around something that no one could see. Many of the creatures were drenched in what looked like dried blood and bits of flesh. And a few of them had gashes and missing limbs. It was a sight for sure and completely paranormal. It was when they nearly passed the horde that they finally saw what was at the center. A small calf from a nearby herd. All of its legs were pulled clean off. There was so much blood covering it’s almost all white body that it brought the redness out that much more. No one was paying that much attention to the road lying in front of them. It was only when Susan pulled her gaze forward that she saw the motorcycle laying in the middle of the road. She swerved to her right as quickly as she could. The truck jerked violently throwing the group forward. The truck ran off of the highway and into shoulder of the road. A few of their heads smashed against the car windows. Seconds later, Susan found herself in the direct path of a giant oak tree. There was no time for

her to miss this obstacle however, and the truck

slammed squarely right into the middle of it.

C
hapter Three: Sam

Samantha Thorne was sitting in her kitchen eating a bowl of cereal that she had just fixed for herself moments ago. She dipped her spoon into the bowl and scooped up a scrumptious bite of cereal flakes. The taste of sweetness was over bearing her taste buds as she took a generous bite. Through her open window, Sam watched as her neighbor walked out of the front of the hotel door. He was carrying a few luggage bags with him. It looked as though he were checking out of the Hewett today.

It was Monday and Sam knew that Monday’s were the best for people watching. She would sit here for hours on Monday just watching people come from far and wide to stay at her hotel. he was working at a local restaurant as part of the wait staff currently. She wasn’t making very much money. But, this hotel was all that she had. And everything that she owned was here with her in her hotel room. It was an extended stay hotel. So, many of the occupants would stay much longer than a week. She usually got to know tenants pretty fast.

Sam took her bowl and spoon and placed it into the dishwasher. She turned the knob to the ON’ position. The familiar sound of the dishwasher filling with water and sloshing around began. Sam walked back into her living room. She looked out of the hotels front window.               She could see more people coming and going. Today was her one day off from work and even from her online college courses that she had been taking. She would sit back and relax the day away. Hopefully, she could get in a bit of light reading later. Sam had recently started a new book. And today was the perfect day to really get in a fair amount of reading.

Sam sat down on her comfortable bed and opened up her book. She began reading. A few moments pass by and Sam hears a knock at her door.
Who could that be
? She thought as she sat her book down onto the table next to her bed. There was another soft tap at her door.

‘Coming!’ She rang out.

She wasn’t used to visitors stopping by.
Maybe it is the bellhop with a message?
She wondered. Sam walked to the hotel door and peered through the peephole. She almost thought that there wasn’t anyone there. At first glance the hall appeared empty. So, Sam stood on her tip toes and looked a little further down. Finally, she saw a little brown headed boy standing at her door. He was almost too short to be seen. Sam wondered what he could want. She had seen this boy before. He was with his mother usually. She had actually seen them check in a few months ago. And by the looks of the tag that her mother wore around her neck, she worked with a filming crew. Sam opened her door.

‘Hey little guy. Can I help you?’ She asked looking the kid over, searching for anything that could be wrong with him.

He was a slender lad with dark hair and blue eyes. He wore a shirt that read, ‘My dog ate my homework.’
Hahhahah!
Sam laughed to herself as she read it. He had a concerned look washing over his face.

‘Are you ok kid?’ She asked stepping down closer to his level. He couldn’t be more than 9 or 10 years old.
Poor thing.
Her feeling of compassion
came out of nowhere.
She thought. The boy’s look soon faded and he opened his mouth to speak.

‘I’m trying to get a hold of my mom.’ The boy said, raising his cell phone up to her hands.

‘But, every time I try to call there is no answer. My mom always answers. Except when she is filming. But, she always text me before she does that and after she is done. She still has be text her even through that!’ He cried.

His words coming out so fast they jumbled together. The boy’s chest was slightly heaving because he spoke so quickly without taking a breath. He began to suck in air quickly. Sam thought that he might be experiencing a panic attack.

‘Hey, let’s just sit down for a minute ok? She asked him.

Sam grabbed his hands gently and guided the boy over to the chair next to her door. He gave her no trouble at all. And seemed to welcome the help she was trying to give him.

‘Let me see your phone.’ She told him, holding her hand out.

The boy looked at her sweetly and handed her his phone. Sam noticed that he was already beginning to sound and look better. The color was slowly returning to his face and hands.

‘She won’t answer…’ The boy exclaimed. Shoving his hands into his pockets. He had the look of complete abandonment. And as though He’d given up trying. She looked down at his phone. She pressed on the screen lock button on the top of the phone. The light of the phone swiftly kicked on to reveal that she needed a password to unlock his phone.

‘What is your password?’ She asked tapping on the screen to keep it from hibernating into safe mode.

‘adventkingfrost33’ the boy told her.

His words had slowed down considerably. The boy had been stressing so much that his face looked very tired.

Sam put in the password and quickly found  way to his mother’s number. The sound of ringing filled her ear. Ringing and ringing...No answer would come. Sam would eventually end the call. She looked at the phone again and this time brought up his text messaging. She could immediately see where the boy had already tried contacting her. His sentences were short and simple.

Are you ok?
He asked. Reading these words made Samantha’s heart drop. She hoped that his mother was alright. Her little boy was extremely worried. How thoughtful of him.

‘How about we wait for her to call?’ She asked the boy. She pushed a few strands of hair out of his eyes.

‘You can sit right here until you get in touch with her.’ Sam said looking him in the eye.

It looked as though his face lit up with joy. She could sense that he didn’t want to be alone. And judging by the way he had already handled things, he probably needed her help. It didn’t look like his mom knew that he had been calling. Surely, soon she will check her messages.

‘I’m really worried about her. I saw this.’ He said pointing at the phone in his hand.

It had a video on the screen. Sam took the phone from him and pressed the play button at the bottom of the screen. The video began and Samantha watched. She couldn’t believe her eyes only a few seconds into the video.

Are the dead coming back?
She asked herself. Samantha looked back at the kid. His eyes were widened by the thought of what his neighbor was witnessing. He had already seen the video of course. But, he knew that he never wanted to see it again. It scared him badly.

She looked back at the screen and saw a news Anchor alerting the media that the images were real?
They couldn’t be real!
Samantha cried. In her eyes this was probably just another hoax that some college wannabe animator put together. She had no reason to believe it. Until….Sam exited out of the video. She quickly mashed in the webpage for the local news 4. This was her go to site. She felt that she could trust its news. Once the page loaded, she noticed immediately that there was a breaking news article and clicked onto it. She bit her lips as she opened the article. Embedded into it was the same exact video that she had just watched.

Samantha lowered the phone. Her heart was beating fast. The article was warning people to stay inside and lock your doors. That these
things
were unsafe and dangerous. They are comparing it to the Rabies virus. The symptoms are similar! The article also warned that Marshal Law had been declared in many states. She looked down at the boy and moved back to shut and lock her door.

‘What’s your name kid?’ She asked handing him his phone back. She would have a look at hers later.

‘Jaime.’ He said. All traces of anxiety in his voice were gone.

‘What a cool name!’ She said, brushing back his brown hair.

‘My name is Samantha. But, you can call me Sam.’ She told him with a smile spreading across her face.

‘Have you eaten yet?’ She asked walking into her kitchen.

She figured that the boy needed something to eat. She knew that there was a major crisis going on outside but, she needed to keep things relatively normal if she wanted this kid to be safe. He didn’t seem like he dealt well with being upset. And frankly Sam wasn’t sure how she felt about the situation either. She had decided that she should figure that out later. There was no time for freaking out.
Hopefully Jaime’s mother is ok...
She thought to herself. She didn’t need to alert the boy that his mother was in a complete and utter horror show wherever she was.

‘Do you like grilled cheese?’ Sam asked looking to the boy for his answer.

‘It’s alright. Yeah!’ Jaime replied.

He licked his lips watching her butter the frying pan.

Sam spread a little more butter onto a couple of pieces of bread and then placed them into her toaster. After a minute they popped back out.

‘Can I have two pieces of cheese?’ Jaime asked, his eyes wondering over to the cheese situated on the counter next to them.

‘Of course!’ She exclaimed.

Anything to keep him happy
. Sam placed the extra piece of cheese onto the toast and added the other half of the bread. She flipped the grilled cheese and a few minutes later ‘voila!’

‘Here you go!’ She told Jaime. Beckoning him to sit down so that she could serve him the lunch. Jaime needed time to check the news. And not just her local news here…National news. She was worried of what she might find. Now that she thought about it more, that video might be authentic. No matter how much she wished right now that it wasn’t true; she had to come to terms with the idea. She had the boy Jaime to look after now. His mother was out there. And there was ono telling what has happened to her. Sam really started doubting herself.

Sam began checking out several news podcasts and news channels. They were all showing the same videos on loop. There were very few updates on the situation. More than likely due to the fact that Marshall Law had taken affect in most of the United States.

‘You got any milk?’ Jaime asked sneaking into her room.

He was holding his plate which was clean of any food that had previously been there before. His expression seemed to ask for more.

‘Sure, it’s in the fridge, help yourself.’ She told him motioning her hand towards the fridge. Sam watched as he made his way back into the kitchen. She would use this time to make a few phone calls. She grabbed her phone off of her desk and began dialing the first person she could find in her contacts. Her mother Cynthia.

‘Jaime, when your done with that, why don’t you go into the living room and watch some cartoons? I’ll put them on for you.’

She grabbed the remote and found a suitable channel. Something that wasn’t news. So, far the children’s channels were safe for him to view.

‘Ok.’ He said.

He gently placed his dishes into the sink for her to wash. She thought he was being more courteous than most 10 year olds that she knew or ever met. She didn’t mind cleaning his dishes. But, who cared about that right now? She went into her room and closed the door. Sam clicked the green phone button and pressed the phone up to her ear.

She heard the dial tone and then the sound of her mother’s number being dialed.

Ringggggg…inggggggg… Sam waited for her mother’s familiar voice to answer. But, her phone kept on ringing.
Not mom too?
She was beginning to get more worried. She tried the number several times until she decided that she would try again later. Along with trying for Jaime’s mother as well. Sam decided to try her friend Morgan. This time there was an answer. A very frantic one.

‘Morgan?’ Sam asked. She heard her friend’s voice screaming on the other end.

‘What’s happening Morgan?’ She screamed. Sam held her hand over her mouth to hide the horror she felt at hearing her friend’s blood curtailing screams. All that Sam could hear was Morgan’s voice. Eventually she couldn’t even hear that. The sound of an ominous screeching noise came from the phone. Sam ripped the phone away from her ear and stared at it. She threw it onto her bed. She couldn’t stand to hear the sound. Sam threw herself onto the floor next to her bed and buried her face into her palms. She allowed herself to sob uncontrollably. Morgan had been her best friend since she was 7 years old. She had never been closer to anyone else in her life.

‘Are you ok?’ Jaime questioned.

Samantha jumped up and began immediately wiping her face to hide the tears streaming down her cheeks.

‘Yeah kiddo. I’m fine. Why aren’t you watching TV?’ She asked Jaime placing a hand on his head.

She walked into the living room and stared at the TV. The emergency broadcast Network had been set up in place of the channel Jaime had been watching.

‘I had to turn the volume down.’ Jaime said throwing the remote towards the couch.

‘It was getting too loud and the cartoons stopped playing!’ He had an unamused look about his face.

‘Look, how about we leave the TV alone for a little bit. I need to run down stairs and check with the front desk about something. Do you think you can stay here and wait for me to get back?’

His face changed from unamused to scared.

‘I’ll only be a minute. I just need to see if they got my mail for the day.’ She smiled,. trying to cheer him up.