You and Me against the World: The Creepers Saga Book 1 (11 page)

Quite the sense of humor

Brandon turned the SUV around and drove away from the group.

“Will they be okay?” Susan asked from the back. She sat in the middle of the leather bench seat next to Goldie. The quiet girl drank her Coke.

“They’ll be as okay as they can,” Brandon answered.

“So I heard Devin say you were the medic,” Thorn said.

“Yeah, not really. We take turns. We have some pretty sick elderly back at the school. We do what we can.”

“Do you have training?” Thorn asked.

“If you call biology courses training; I was going to be a doctor. I’m guessing I just moved way up on the waiting list.”

Thorn nodded but said nothing.

“What kind of doctor are you?” Brandon asked.

“Oncology.”

“Ah, cancer. Who would have thought there’d be something worse than that? And what about your wife, Susan?”

“Oh, Susan’s not my wife. She’s a … a friend from the hospital. My wife died.”

“Creepers?”

“No. Cancer.”

“God’s got quite a sense of humor, doesn’t he?” Brandon said. It sounded like something he had thought about often.

Thorn and God had finished up their business two years ago.

“You still believe in God, Brandon, even after all this?” Thorn asked.

“I hope there’s a God.”

“So you know that life has meaning?” Susan asked.

“No,” Brandon said. “So when I die, I have someone’s ass to kick for all this bullshit.”

Thorn laughed.

“Do you have family … left?” Susan asked.

“I’m one of the lucky ones. I don’t know what happened to my family. It’s better than knowing the ugly truth, I think. To be able to believe that maybe they’re somewhere safe.”

“So the quiet one, Goldie—she knows the truth about someone she loved, doesn’t she?”

Brandon looked in the rearview mirror for a moment, surprised by Susan’s intuition.

“Before this, Goldie was a little spitfire; always had something to say.”

Brandon paused again; Thorn watched him decide how to proceed.

“She was home with her stepdad when the world went to shit. We don’t know all the details, but several Creepers broke in. Her stepdad, Ray—”

“Wait—didn’t that guy, Connor, mention that Ray was Devin’s dad?”

“Yeah, he did. Devin and Austin are brothers. Goldie is their stepsister. So is Annie.”

“That’s amazing,” Susan said from the backseat.

“How so?” Brandon asked.

“That they all survived.”

Brandon nodded reflectively and then looked at Thorn. “Maybe there is a God.”

“Were the others with her?” Thorn asked.

“No, just Goldie and her dad. Well, her mother was there, but I think she had turned by then. I only know for sure that Devin was with me in Orlando.”

“You made it all the way back here from Orlando?” Thorn asked, surprised.

“A few of us did.”

“How?”

“Devin was determined to come back. There was really no stopping him.”

“Please tell me the rest about Golden,” Susan said.

“So what we know we have pieced together. Goldie’s not really talking as you noticed.”

Thorn nodded.

“When the Creepers broke in, Ray gave her his iPod and put her in a closet. I guess he figured the iPod would block out the sounds.”

Thorn turned and looked at the iPod the girl held.

“Yep, that iPod,” Brandon said.

“After he put her in, he and their dog, Zeus, stood in front of that closet.”

“Oh my God,” Susan whispered.

“Yeah, I know,” Brandon said. “From what I saw, it looks like he tied his arm to the door handle so they couldn’t drag him from it. He had that .38 she carries. We found four dead Creepers in that short hallway. Three were shot in the head, and one was mangled by the dog.”

“Must have been some dog?”

“I think he went about a buck thirty or so. You’ve seen what these Creepers can do. There wasn’t much left of either of them. They never left that door though.”

Brandon trailed off for a minute and then said, “It was fucking epic.”

“I’ll say,” Thorn said as he imagined that hallway scene.

“A lot of their blood spilled under that closet door,” Brandon continued. “We found Goldie right where he had told her to stay. She sat in that pool of congealing blood for three days while we worked our way back from Orlando. She still had the iPod on; the battery was dead, of course. Now the only time she’ll take it off is when it needs to be charged. Golden makes the play lists that we use for these little outings.”

That explained the era of the music selection; it was her dad’s music.

“And as you have seen,” Brandon said and looked over at Thorn, “you don’t want to complain about the music selection.”

“No, I think not,” Thorn agreed.

In the backseat, Susan put her arm around the quiet girl. The girl remained stoic; her blue shark eyes stared into the glow of the iPod. Thorn could hear the music in the silence. He wondered what the girl saw while she listened. He hoped that when the time came, he had the courage to stand in front of that closet door for someone he loved.

Chapter 8

The South Shall Rise Again

Y
our mama don’t work here

Thorn felt like a crash victim pulled from the wreck. The past weeks had been a rollercoaster ride of shock followed by long periods of boredom. The final adrenaline-pumping arrival of the young band of rescuers had taken the last from him, and he sat exhausted in the front seat of the SUV. Their approach to South High School surprised him, but he didn’t have enough emotional energy left to react. The school was only a half mile from his hospital, and yet somehow it had survived the bombs. They seemed to be backtracking to the place where it had all begun for them.

A tall chain-link fence surrounded the school’s property, and beyond it, Thorn could see the soft glow of lights in some of first-floor windows. Brandon picked up his walkie-talkie and keyed the microphone.

“Gatekeeper, our ETA is sixty seconds.”

“Got it, Brand,” a young girl’s voice called back over the radio. “Hear that, lighthouse?”

Bright arc lights flashed on and lit up the front entrance. The light hurt his eyes, and Thorn turned his head. Brandon glanced over at him.

“Sorry, should have warned you. We keep them off. They bother the neighbors.”

A Creeper charged across the road in front of the SUV and ran toward the lighted gate. Brandon pressed a button, and the sunroof slid open.

“Goldie, in front,” he called.

Goldie grabbed the roof and pulled her top half through the opening. She had to stand on the seat for her arms to clear it. She brought her .38 to bear on the running infection. Brandon accelerated into range. Thorn heard the gun boom and watched a dark hole appear in the back of the Creeper’s head. It galloped a few more feet, then fell to the ground, and rolled into the grass. Goldie fell back into the vehicle.

“You kids must have belonged to a gun club at one time. You’re all a hell of a shot.”

“Yeah,” Brandon said and chuckled. “The Xbox gun club. Looks like those first-person shooter games had some value after all.”

Brandon swerved through the open gate at a speed that both scared and impressed Thorn. In the backseat, Susan let out a small scream when the SUV listed deeply in the turn.

“More Xbox training?” Thorn asked as he held on to the dashboard.

“Need for Speed,” Brandon answered. “And to think my parents bitched that I spent too much time in front of the TV.”

As the SUV sped through the gate, Thorn saw two teenage girls with rifles strung on their backs. They slid the gates closed.

“Lighthouse, we’re clear,” Brandon called on the radio.

The lights extinguished immediately.

“You have power,” Susan noted.

“Yes, we have generators. We conserve, though, for the important things.”

“Cooking and refrigeration?” Susan asked.

“Well, that and air conditioning.”

Thorn assumed he joked, but when they walked into the gymnasium, the air was comfortable, almost cool.

“You weren’t joking about the air,” he said.

“No, we try to keep the place about seventy-eight or so.”

“Does it make sense to use the fuel on something like that?”

Brandon looked at him. Thorn saw something sad and tired in his eyes.

“Doc,” Brandon said in a low, even tone, “how long do you think we’re going to survive here? Fuel is probably going to last longer than we are.” He was stoic for just a moment, and then he shook it off and smiled. “Come on, I’ll give you the lay of the land.”

The operation was impressive. Thorn and Susan had holed up for weeks like refugees. Here, a group of kids—well, kids by his standards—had built an entire world. They had running water, they had stoves and refrigerators, and they had beds and a triage area. Someone had set up a projector screen where they played movies once a week.

“Brandon, how many generators do you have?”

“All of them,” he laughed. “Seriously, though, we have them set up on the roof and out back. You’d have to ask Webster for an exact count. He’s the mechanic. During the day, we only run the rooftop units. Up there, the noise attracts fewer Creepers. Since we sleep during the day, those mostly run air and refrigeration. We’ve barricaded off much of the school. It helps conserve fuel and because there were just too many halls to watch for invaders.”

“Can those things get inside the fence?” Susan asked.

“Not that we’ve seen, but it’s still better to be safe.”

As they spoke, Brandon walked them to the triage area, where they had erected makeshift walls and lined the beds up like an emergency room. An attractive young girl of about twenty was putting a Band-Aid on a small boy’s finger.

“Dr. Thorn, Susan, this is our head nurse, head cook, head organizer—well, pretty much Caroline is in charge of everything inside the school, including Devin.”

Caroline smiled at them and held out her hand.

“Hi,” she said.

Thorn shook her hand. “Sounds like you have a lot of responsibility.”

Caroline laughed and said, “Well, if I didn’t, then this place would be nothing but Xboxes and beer cans.”

Susan laughed too.

“Are you another of Devin’s sisters?” Susan asked.

“No, I’m his girlfriend. I think he saved me just so he’d have someone to bake him cookies and wash his clothes.”

Susan laughed again.

“You two seem a little young to already sound like an old married couple.”

“Oh, don’t let the banter fool you, ma’am. The two lovebirds can’t be apart for more than an hour without missing each other,” Brandon said.

Thorn smiled.

If not for that kind of love, why bother surviving all of this? Why indeed?
another voice in Thorn’s head countered.

“So how can we help?” He asked.

“Tonight, all you need to worry about is a shower and a good night’s sleep, Dr. Thorn,” Brandon answered. “When was the last time you had any of that?”

“A long time,” Susan answered.

“Caroline, can you help get Susan settled in the girl’s dorm and I’ll show Dr. Thorn to Bro Commons?”

Caroline gave them a surprised look. “Oh, okay.”

“What’s the matter?” Thorn asked. He worried they were being an inconvenience.

“Oh, nothing. I’m sorry, I just assumed you two were together. Well, you know, a couple.”

“Oh, umm, well, no,” Thorn stammered. “Just friends and survivors.”

Susan made an odd expression. It wasn’t anger exactly. More like disappointment, and Thorn looked away.

“Come on, Doc, I’ll show you the bros’ area.”

They walked through the gym, and Thorn saw Golden sitting by the door. Brandon noticed his concern.

“She doesn’t like coming back without them. She’ll sit there until they return.”

Thorn counted twenty-two people: ten children around eight years old, and twelve elderly. Most of the seniors were in poor health. Only the spritely Mrs. Wilkes appeared healthy as she read
The Little Mermaid
to four little girls who sat wide-eyed around her chair.

“It’s a crazy mix of survivors,” Thorn observed.

“Yeah, we take ’em as we find them. Nick and Webster rescued the kids from a bus on the first day.”

“I got to meet this guy, Webster.”

Brandon laughed. “You already did. His name is Chris. Webster is just his nickname, and don’t ask. I have no idea why.”

“Those two girls at the gate, they looked older than these other kids.”

“Yes, that’s Brittney and Vanessa. They’re thirteen or fourteen, I think. They were here with Josh, John, and Joseph when we arrived. The five of them were in the park across the street when the bombs fell. They hightailed it to the school to hide. Lucky they did.”

“What about the seniors?”

“Night sweeps like tonight. When the shit hit the fan, they stayed inside. We find them in their houses and usually in pretty rough shape. We haven’t been able to do too much for them.”

“I’ll see what I can do,” Thorn offered.

“Much appreciated, Doc. Come on, I’ll show you to the accommodations.”

Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned

The shower wasn’t hot, but it was warm and it felt great. Thorn was even able to shave off the scratchy growth from his face. Afterward, Brandon took him to the sleeping area.

“Sorry, it’s not much, but the curtains will give you a little privacy. No one sleeps at night anyway, so you’ll have the place to yourself.”

They had converted several classrooms into makeshift dorms. Someone had painted the heavily barred windows black to keep out the light and heat. Two young teen boys patrolled the hallway with shotguns. They were mirror images of each other.

“Twins?” Thorn asked.

“Triplets, actually. The third is in the lighthouse tonight. Don’t ask me which is John, Josh, or Joe; I have no idea.”

“Do we need guns inside the school?”

“We take turns playing nightlight. Everyone sleeps a little better knowing someone has their back. I asked the boys to come off fence duty to give you and Susan a little peace of mind.”

Thorn nodded. It did provide some comfort.

“Is it safe to leave the fence unguarded?” he asked.

“Honestly, we have had very few visitors, and none have thought to climb over.”

“I noticed they’re most active during the day.”

“Us too, so we sleep during the day since it’d be crazy to go out while the Creepers are active. We take turns on guard duty. The seniors, though, are too old to change their habits, so they’re still on a regular schedule—well, except Mrs. Wilkes. She has adapted. Well, if there’s nothing else, I’ll leave you to get some sleep.”

“Nothing else. And Brandon? Seriously, thanks for everything.”

“No problem, Doc.”

Brandon left and Thorn found it impossible to sleep. He was tired, but the weeks of sleepless nights had changed his own internal clock. He tossed and turned on the mattress for an hour and then decided to walk back to the gym. He wanted to get a better look at their triage unit. In truth, he wanted to feel useful again.

Caroline and Susan were busy counting and sorting boxes of supplies. Caroline smiled, but Susan seemed a little distant.

“Can I help?”

“No luck sleeping?” Caroline asked.

“No. Looks like I’m not the only one.”

Susan gave him a half smile.

“We can always use another set of hands. We have a strict policy, ‘Your mother doesn’t work here, so help out,’” Caroline said.

Thorn laughed and then remembered with a sad pang the little sign in the hospital’s staff lounge that read the same.

“So what can I do?”

“You’re a doctor, right?”

“Yes. Oncology—cancer—was my specialty.”

“We have a bunch of medicines the guys brought back from pharmacies and homes, but no one has thought to go over to Barnes and Noble and grab me a book so I can figure out what half of them are for.”

“I can help with that. What about your patients? Anyone really bad off?”

Caroline’s expression drew tight, and her brow creased a little. In that moment, Thorn realized just how authentically caring this young woman was; Devin was a lucky guy.

“Most of them are bad off, Dr. Thorn. Their illnesses are beyond anything I can handle. Alzheimer’s, Parkinson, cancer, heart conditions. Mr. Paul has a lung condition …” She stopped and wiped away the tears from her eyes. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be so emotional.”

Thorn touched her hand. “Hey, it’s okay. You’re doing a lot here. I can help, and Susan’s an excellent nurse. Let us take some of this burden, okay?”

Caroline nodded. “Yes, okay. Most of them are asleep now, but if you can help with the medicine, I’ll take you over to triage a little later.”

“Sounds good.”

“If you two will excuse me, I want to make sure no one is burning down the kitchen. When the team comes home, they’re starving, and I’m making meatless chili.”