Survival (5 page)

“Holy shit!” Noah cried.

Caddy turned the wheel, aiming for three more creatures at the base of the window.

The things had already begun to scatter, and Caddy connected with only one of them, pitching it backward and onto the grass. The others chased after the passing vehicle.

Noah looked back at the house. Caddy’s mother hung from the top window, waving her arms in distress.

“Help!” she shrieked.

Noah turned his attention back to the windshield. To his dismay, the car was headed straight for the neighbor’s detached garage.

“Look out!”

“I see it!”

Caddy swerved, but she was too late. The sedan barreled into the side of the garage. The hood crinkled; the tires spun and spit grass. She threw the car into reverse, but it wouldn’t budge.

“Dammit!” she yelled.

“They’re right behind us!”

Noah reached for the button to roll up the window. But there wasn’t time. The creatures were already on top of them, dragging their nails along the side of the car. Before Noah could react, one of them poked its head inside and grabbed him.

He cried out and thrust the rifle in its face. At one time the thing had been a man with a goatee and shaggy hair; now it was little more than a monster. Noah squeezed the trigger, watching the top of its head explode. A backdraft of gore sprayed over the seats and his clothing, enveloping his nose and mouth.

Caddy began to scream.

He swung the rifle in the other direction, but one of the creatures had already reached through the open window and pulled her from the car. She flailed and kicked, but it had her by the hair, and she slid over the top of the windowsill and into the grass.

“Caddy!”

Noah whipped open the passenger door. His hands were slippery with blood, the rifle wet with remains. He toppled onto the grass, mouth pooled with adrenaline.

From the second story of the house, he could still hear Caddy’s mother screaming. He staggered around the back of the vehicle to Caddy. The air reeked of exhaust and engine fluids.

When he reached the other side, he found Caddy struggling with the infected. Her shirt had been torn open, and the thing held a clump of her hair in its fist.

“Get it off me!” she shrieked.

The creature bucked and flailed. Noah raised the rifle, but found himself unable to fire. The thing was right on top of her. What if he missed? What if he hit Caddy?

Instead he ran up and swung his rifle stock. The weapon connected with its head, but the thing persisted. Frantic, Noah hit it again, but the creature continued to claw. He surveyed the landscape.

Something glistened in the grass. Caddy’s knife.

He grabbed hold of it and held it over the creature.

Noah plunged the blade into its skull, sending it reeling back onto the grass. Caddy rolled out from under it.

The thing writhed several times and then went still.

Noah struggled for breath, his lungs heaving. He tried to focus, but his body was exhausted. All around him was noise: the hum of the car engine, the thud of his heartbeat, the whimpers of Caddy and her mother. He closed his eyes and reopened them, but the noises didn’t go away. Instead they converged into one, like a single entity threatening to take him over.

His brain had reached its tipping point. Rather than fighting his way back to reality, Noah had tuned it all out.

He looked up at the sky. The eternal blue was as magnificent as it had ever been; the sun shone against the horizon. He let the rifle slip through his fingers and to the ground.

All around him was death and chaos, but the world above was as beautiful as it had been a few weeks ago, whispering promises of freedom and serenity. If only he could transport himself there…if only he could escape the nightmare he’d found himself in…

If only he could…

Noah collapsed.

H
e awoke to a face he didn’t recognize. A woman with shoulder-length brown hair was smiling at him, pressing a cloth to his forehead. He was resting on a soft surface, his body stiff and sore. He attempted to sit up, but his head was swimming.

“Who are you?” the woman asked.

Noah opened his mouth to answer. Another voice cut him off.

“This is Noah, Mom. He’s our guest.”

Noah turned his head to find Caddy standing beside him, her lips pursed with concern.

He tried to sit up, but his body was still weak.

“Lie down and relax,” she said.

“What happened?”

“You passed out.”

“Did we get all of them?”

“Yes. They’re gone for now. Don’t worry.”

Noah reclined on the bed, letting his shoulders sink into the pillow. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d slept in a bed. In fact, the last few nights he’d hardly slept at all.

The simple comfort of a mattress felt like heaven.

“Take this,” Caddy said, handing him a cup of water.

He creased his brow.

“It’s from a spring in the woods. Behind the house.” She beckoned toward the window. “After what you told me, I went out and filled a few containers.”

Noah took the cup, still confused. “How did you know where to find it?”

“I’ve lived here my entire life. I know these woods inside and out. Besides, I read a lot.”

“What about bacteria? Did you boil it first? If you didn’t boil it, we could—”

“Already did. My mother and I have a small camping stove. It won’t be the best thing you’ve ever tasted, but it’ll keep you hydrated.”

Noah took a long sip. The liquid was lukewarm but refreshing. He glanced over at Caddy’s mother and introduced himself.

“I’m Noah.”

“I’m Theresa,” the woman said. “Are you feeling better? You were asleep for most of the day.”

“I’m fine, thanks to you both.”

Theresa smiled, but he saw her brow furrow. In spite of her friendly demeanor, she seemed confused.

Caddy looked over at the woman. “Mom, can you give us a minute?”

Theresa padded from the room, giving a few confused glances over her shoulder on the way out. Caddy took a seat in her chair and pulled it close to the bed.

“My mother has Alzheimer’s,” she said. She looked down at her hands, wringing them together. “It’s been a hard road. We don’t have any other family, so things have been difficult. And now with all this going on…it feels like her confusion has gotten worse.”

“I can only imagine.”

“I’ve done my best to keep her calm, but it’s been difficult to explain all this. Even when I do, she forgets.”

Noah heaved a sigh. He couldn’t picture what the Theresa’s life must be like. It’d been hard for people without her disease to accept the situation.

“Leaving her alone makes me worried sick,” Caddy said.

She pointed to the doorway, where a slew of colored Post-It notes were attached to the doorframe. He read one of them. “
Stay in the House. Be Back Soon.
”

“Does she understand what they mean?”

“Usually, but not this last time. If we hadn’t gotten here, I’m not sure what would’ve happened. Thank God she didn’t leave the house.”

“I’m glad we got here in time.”

Caddy sighed.

“So what’s going on, Noah? Is this some kind of poison?”

“My understanding is that it’s a virus.”

Noah went on to explain everything he knew, narrating his journey from Albuquerque to White Mist, his subsequent travels with the other survivors, and their run-in with the agents.

“So this whole thing was planned?”

“It sounds that way. The people who did this are trying to wipe out the population. The infection didn’t get all of us, so they’ve been systematically eliminating the survivors. I think some of us might be immune. Have you seen any of the men in white coats in town?”

Caddy shook her head. “No, I haven’t, thank God. I’ve had enough on my plate with the creatures.”

The girl dipped her head. Noah tried to envision what her life had been like. When the infection had hit, he’d been traveling on the highway, miles away from the place he’d called home.

He couldn’t imagine watching his hometown disintegrate.

“Are there any other survivors?” he asked.

“You’re the first person I’ve run into in days.”

“Well, thanks for stopping to help me. If you hadn’t, I would’ve been dead.”

“Don’t worry about it. It’s nice to have company for a change. Besides, it’ll do my mother good. She loves visitors.”

As if on cue, Caddy’s mother called out from the other room.

“I should go check on her,” Caddy said. “I’ll be back.”

“No problem.”

“Stay here and rest. If anything happens, I’ll come get you.”

Caddy stood and slipped from the room. With his host gone, Noah studied his surroundings.

By the looks of it, he was in a guest bedroom on the first floor. The walls were an ocean blue, decorated with paintings of boats, sandbars, and seashells. A starfish sat above the doorframe. Even though they were a thousand miles from the ocean, the setting was calm and serene.

He closed his eyes and envisioned a swell of waves lapping at a beach outside. Anything was preferable to the nightmare he’d found himself in.

The last time he’d been to the beach was several years ago in Portland. He’d accompanied his parents to Cannon Beach, and they’d strolled on the sand for hours, admiring the magnificent rock outcroppings and taking in the scenery.

The memories hit him like a tidal wave. He tried to dismiss them and fall back asleep, but his mind was too restless.

He sat up. Muffled chatter filtered in from the other room. His head was still sore, and his body ached, but the rest had done him good.

His stomach rumbled. Although his thirst was quenched, he could still use some food.

He got to his feet. His clothes were ripped and stained, and he hadn’t showered in days. He felt a wave of embarrassment. Had the two women noticed when they’d carried him inside? He hoped not.

There were two windows in the room: one on the front wall and one on the right. Both had been covered by furniture and boards had been nailed across the panes.

He peered out the front window. Through a crack in the barricade, he was able to get a glimpse of the neighborhood. The houses were silent and still. He stared into the windows across the street, expecting to see faces peering back at him, but the houses appeared empty.

So Caddy hadn’t been lying. By the looks of it, she and her mother were the only survivors. If there’d been anyone else in the neighborhood, they’d already fled.

His thoughts roamed to the creatures in the backyard. Even though they’d disposed of that bunch, there were bound to be others. The three of them could hide here for a while, but they’d need food and weapons.

If they were going to stay, they’d need a plan.

“I thought you were asleep,” Caddy said. She frowned at Noah, her face filled with concern.

“My brain won’t shut off. It’ll be dark soon, anyway, and we need to keep watch.”

He peered around the living room. The center was wide open—all of the furniture had been shifted in front of the windows. It was as if magnets had been implanted into the walls, sucking the contents of the house against the sheetrock. Theresa sat in a lone armchair in the corner, a magazine on her lap.

He followed Caddy into the kitchen. With the sun setting, the house had taken on an eerie aura. Shadows crept into corners; shapes shifted on walls. Several times, Noah caught himself staring at boxes or pieces of furniture, certain the objects would come to life and grab him.

The kitchen windows were boarded, allowing little light into the room. Caddy led him to a counter near the sink. On top of it was a pile of supplies. He let his gaze wander over a pile of flashlights, batteries, and knives. He noticed there were no firearms.

“I’ve been collecting whatever I can,” Caddy whispered. “I got most of this from the neighborhood. A lot of the houses had already been picked over and the food was gone.”

“When did that happen?”

Caddy sighed.

“About two days after the infection. Two cars pulled through with looters. They wrecked what was left of the neighborhood and took everything they could find.”

“Did they come in here?”

“They tried, but I threatened to shoot them. I said there were others with me.”

“And they believed you?”

“The pistol helped.” Caddy gave a grim smile and patted the pistol at her waist. “I guess they figured I wasn’t worth the trouble. Unfortunately, I ran out of bullets.”

“Is this everything you have?”

“Yes. I was going to try and get more, but the infected had other plans.”

“The infected. That’s what I’ve been calling them, too.”

Caddy shrugged. “It seems to fit.”

“You don’t have anything else?”

“Nothing except your rifle.”

“We’ll have to figure something out,” Noah said. “But not tonight. We should plan on staying inside. It’s too dangerous to go out in the dark.”

“Agreed.”

“We’ll need food as well. I wouldn’t trust anything you got from town. The last thing we need is for one of us to get infected. I think our best bet is to check my truck. Maybe the men who attacked me left something behind.”