Surviving Earth: Makayla's Journey (6 page)

Chapter Ten

The cars left in the parking area did offer us gas, which at this point, both vehicles need.

"Blu, come guard while I syphon the gas." I say as I gather what I need.

"Sure, Mak." He says casually.

"Lainey, Logan, wanna try checking each car for needed supplies?" I ask looking in their direction.

I know Logan isn't too happy about me making decisions on where we stay, but he can kiss my ass. I am not putting anyone's life in danger just because he finds it easier to stay here.

After gathering what we can we hit the road again in search of a safe place to sleep. A few hours later we were all gathered together in a simple house we found along the road. After quickly checking the three rooms and the outside, we make quick work of securing it for the night.

After laying Gage on the lone sofa, we set him up with his fluids and the antibiotics. I hold out hope he will wake up soon.

"I'll take first guard duty. You guys get some rest." I say, rubbing my eyes.

Sitting at the small kitchen table, I look into the night from the one lone window and let my thoughts drift a bit. My life has definitely taken some turns during the last two years; from living a life with my parents to now trying to survive with three kids to look after. My dad would tell me, "Mak, you have this. Go survive. Show ‘em who they're messing with." A tear leaks from my eye at the thought of my dad.

"Damn!" I say aloud. Why did this have to happen to him?
I miss you Daddy, where ever you might be
. Quickly clearing my thoughts, I stand to walk the perimeter of the small home.

I hear a scratching noise coming from the living room, where Lainey, Logan, and Ricky are all asleep so I walk in and inspect the room, not seeing anything out of place. We boarded the windows up the best we could with the two small mattresses we found and put the fridge in front of the door, assuring we were not disturbed during the night.

When I'm almost at the window, the scratching gets louder. Then I hear the whines of what sounds like a dog, but I know better. All the animals died off soon after the Earth dried up. The whining and scratching becomes more frantic, then I hear the moans of a flesh eater nearby. Lifting the mattress off the window I look out, there on the doorstep is a small dog. He is no bigger than my ankle. I see the zombie ramble closer, fresh meat in it's sight.

Lifting the window, I tear the old worn screen off, grabbing the dog up just as the zombie reaches its side. A rotten arm with half the hand gnawed off lands on the back of my arm, the struggle for the dog becoming harder and harder as the seconds tick by.

"Lainey, Logan, please help." I say in my first real panic. If I happen to get bit, it will be over. I might as well walk out into the woods and shoot myself. The zombie’s teeth near my arm before I am suddenly jerked backwards and me and the pup are in the house. I look up into Logan's eyes just before he shoots the zombie’s head off.

Damn. More would be coming and soon, but it couldn't be helped. Cuddling the dog to my chest, I mumble a quick, "Thank you, Logan."

"You're lucky. Just what the hell were you thinking?" He asks angrily.

Pointing a finger to my chest I say, "I was thinking of saving something, which I've done on more than one occasion; including you!"

Wiping a hand across his mouth, he looks out the window. "More will be coming now. Maybe we should just leave." He says as he puts the window back the way it was before.

"Wake Lainey and Ricky. I'll get Blu, Tessa and Gage." I say quietly, still holding onto the small dog.

A few minutes later we are on the road at night once again. This time Blu drives as I stare off into the distance, the truck lights catching the dead eyes of zombies as we drive on. I am exhausted and need sleep, but I know Blu may need a second set of eyes.

"Mak, rest. I've got this." He says quietly, looking me in the eyes. God, he looks just as tired as I do.

"I'll stay awake till the sun starts to rise, then maybe I can sleep. Besides, it’s time for Gage's meds." I reply.

Just before the sun breaks across the land I see a sign that says
Welcome to Colorado
, which makes me happy for the quickest of seconds.
I'm coming Clara and Beth, it's just taking awhile to get there. Don't lose faith, I'm coming
.

I awake sometime later to someone licking my face. "Ugh, cut that out." I say as I push whoever it is aside.

"Mak, wake up." I hear Tessa say softly.

"Umm, what's wrong, Tessa?" I ask with my eyes still closed.

"We need you to wake up, Makayla!" Someone shouts at me. That immediately wakes me from my slumber.

Reaching for my Glock, I look around for any foreseeable dangers. Seeing absolutely nothing, I look for the voice that screamed for my attention.

"What's wrong, Blu?" I ask irritated at being woken from my sleep.

"We're getting low on fuel and so are they." Blu says with a shrug of his shoulders, meaning Logan and Lainey.

Looking around I see night coming on the horizon. "Why, didn't you stop before now? What the hell? You should have woken me!" I shout angrily.

"You needed to sleep, Mak. Besides we have stopped twice, there just weren't any cars or trucks nearby." He says while slamming his hands on the steering wheel.

Placing a hand on his arm I quickly apologize, "I’m sorry, Blu. We need a break for once."

"Surviving is hard and maybe we're all leaning on you too much and keep adding to your load." He says, sorrow radiating from his young face.

Pulling up beside the Land Rover, we decide to keep a watch for a good place to stay the night. Five miles down the road we see smoke billowing into the air.

"STOP!" I yell, I didn't want us getting any closer.

"Why? What's going on?" Blu asks.

Pointing towards the smoke I say, "We do not want to get closer to that. It’s never a good sign to see smoke. See those woods over there, back into them."  I say gesturing to the set of trees on our left.

Just as we pull into the trees three trucks pull out of the road where the smoke is coming from. The men inside are shouting and having a good time, pistols raised in the air shooting.

"Y'all stay here, I want to go check this out." I say opening my door.

"Makayla, wait. It could be dangerous. Let me or Logan go along." Blu says reaching for the door.

"No, no, no. You're right, it may be dangerous, but it's easier for me to slip in and out than for two of us. Please stay here and keep watch over Tessa and Gage." Closing the door, I start creeping forward slowly, my gun braced on my hip.

Coming out from behind the trees, I notice the smoke has now turned black; floating higher and higher into the air. Running across the road, I step onto the path we saw the trucks pull out from; my gun cocked and loaded. I am ready for anything, or so I thought.

The carnage that lays before me is sickening. Beaten and battered bodies lay strewn around the wreckage of three cars; the cars are burning furiously. Bodies hang out of windows, the bodies of babies and children lay thrown about.

Nausea rises into my throat, trying to control it takes everything in me. Those people had been monsters. They just left them here for the zombies to clean up. Rage builds inside my heart and I want to track down every single one to torture them slowly. My katana cutting off pieces of their flesh, feeding it to the flesh eaters while they watched.

Turning, I notice for the first time that the sun is starting its slow trek toward the Earth. I have to get this cleaned up fast. I know the zombies will be coming out from the shadows soon.

Rushing back to our hiding place, I grab a shovel and Logan. "Lainey, Ricky get in the truck with Blu, Gage and Tessa. Let us take the SUV." I say quickly.

Throwing the shovel in the backseat, we race across the road. Pulling up to the destruction, I see Logan turning green.

"What the hell? Why would they do this?" Logan asks, shaking his head at the grizzly mess. Patting him on the shoulder, I start to dig a mass grave. It is the least I can do for these poor souls.

"I'm not sure, Logan. Some people are just evil. I would love a few minutes alone with the ones responsible for this though." I say gesturing with the shovel. The sight of those pitiful people will remain with me for the rest of my life.

Logan and I take turns digging the grave, then one by one, we place the bodies in the grave. I say a silent prayer for each of them as they are covered with dirt.

Meeting back up with the others, we leave the cover of the trees. We need gas and a safe place to bunker down for the night, but I want nothing more than to get the hell out of here. Those evil monsters could come back and I will not risk Tessa, Gage or Blu's lives.

Darkness is spreading across the land when we spot a small, one-story brick house; two hours from where the grizzly murders happened. Grabbing up my gun, katana and my small flashlight I start the process of inspecting the house. All the rooms are bare save the living room, the small sofa and table will not afford us much protection from the night so we will definitely be keeping a watch.

Laying Gage on a few blankets I set him up with his fluids and crumble the antibiotics. "Wake up, Gage please!" I say as I slightly shake him.

Placing a comforting hand on my back, Lainey takes over for me. "He'll wake up, just give him some time." She says softly as she arranges his IV bag.

Dinner for tonight is set out on the table, I’m not sure who went to the trouble, but I appreciate it. We are getting low on water and everything else so I know it is time for another stop for supplies.

Grabbing a granola bar and a cup of water, I give it to Tessa. She gives me a brief smile, "Thanks, Mak."

"Sure sweetie." I say bending over to hand Blu the same dinner. It isn't much, but it will sustain us through the night.

"I'll take the first watch since I seem to have slept the day away." I say to the room in general.

"Mind if I sit up with you?" Lainey asks, dropping near my side.

"Sure, I can use the extra set of eyes. Especially with us not having much to block the entry points." I reply, leaning against the wall, my eyes trained on the lone kitchen window. The sofa sits against the front door, the table by the back door and the curtains are pulled tight. We are as ready as we can possibly be.

Tessa lays with one arm draped around her new best friend, the puppy Logan and I'd rescued. I heard her calling him Survivor all day today and it definitely fits. He is a great guard dog and usually becomes aware of the zombies way before us.

"I'm going to do a walk through. I'll be right back. Please stay alert and listen for any and all sounds from outside. Survivor will warn you if flesh eaters are close by." I say as I stand, wiping the seat of my pants. "Here, use this only if you absolutely need to." I add as I hand her a short pistol.

Walking from room to room, my mind once again flies to Clara and Beth. Damn it's taking forever to get to them. I still hold onto the hope that they are both alive. I know, I just knew I will feel it in my bones if something happened to my bestie. We've known each other since we were in diapers. She had a much softer life than me since her dad wasn't a survivalist, but I'd taken the time to teach her how to survive. For her sixteenth birthday I'd given her a knife big enough to skin a deer and I'd taught her how to use it. I'd also taught her how to shoot. She was almost as good as I am, but she wasn't spot on like I was. Clearing my head, I continue my perimeter check. 

After my quick search through each room, I'm about to return to the living room when I hear a bump then I hear Survivor growling. Racing back into the living room, I look out the kitchen window. Just on the other side stands the largest zombie I've ever seen. The man, in his former life, must have been huge. He stands well over six feet tall. He is licking the window and staring straight inside, almost as if he knows what he is doing. His skin is rotten, at the point of falling from a body that, at one time, had been stocky. Now he is wasting away. 

He starts banging on the glass as his tongue leaves streaks of yellow pus in its wake. By now Survivor’s growling has woken everyone in the room and we all stare, wide-eyed at the monster just beyond the window. Hushing Survivor, I back into the room, everyone needs to be up and ready to go.

"Get ready." I whisper just as the window splinters, the pane crashing in the sink. "Shit, get up and get everything together." I say, walking towards the door with my katana already in my hand. 

"Mak, wait. Let one of us go with you." Blu says frantically.

"No. Get Gage and Tessa, then load up the truck and be ready to haul ass, in case I don't come back." I say with my hand on the doorknob.

The growling and moaning were getting intense as Survivor is held tightly to Tessa's chest. "Makayla, please be careful." Tessa says softly.

"I will sweetheart, now once I'm outside get everything together for me, ok" I say with a nod of my head.

"Ok." She simply replies.

Walking out into the darkness, I hold my katana in front of me as I travel to the kitchen window. Briefly looking around the corner, I notice there are now two zombies, both beating on the side of the house. They will soon draw more unwelcome attention to the house and the people inside and I know I will have to deal with them quickly, before the situation becomes even more dangerous.

Walking casually around the corner I say "hey" and both zombies jerk in my direction, their moans becoming louder as they notice me for the first time. They lumber my way, arms outstretched. Excitement at their chance at a meal making them move a little faster.

My katana makes zips through the air in front of the shorter one, slicing deeply into her arms. Pulling backwards, the zombie’s arms fall at her side. This, of course, doesn't stop her. She continues her moaning walk forward. The brown sludge of her blood seeping forth from the gaping wounds where her arms once were. Twirling, I run my katana deeply into her neck, disconnecting her head from her body. She falls on the spot.

Turning, I see the giant zombie is almost on me, it's arms reaching out to grasp my hair. I'm yanked off my feet by the force of his hold. Falling backwards, he soon falls on top of me, teeth chattering. I fight with all my might to move him, but he doesn't budge. Hitting his jaw only knocks loose a couple teeth. They fall on my face, which gives me the idea to keep hitting him and knocking more teeth loose, but he will not give up his hold on my hair.

His nails start scratching at my arms, his hunger driving him onward. "Close your eyes and mouth, Mak!" I hear Logan shout and barely have time to do so before I feel zombie goo fall around my body. The zombie falls, dead on top of me; a gaping hole right through his forehead. Sighing loudly, I try to push him away, but he is way too heavy.

The lights of the truck light up the night around me as Logan and Blu drag the dead zombie off me. After taking a second to catch my breath, I look at them. "Thank you, I was sure this was my last night on Earth." I say, swiping the zombie’s blood and guts from my face.

“No problem.” Logan says, brushing a hand down my arm. He has never so much as touched me before, but this slight brush sends shivers down my spine. Before I can think about it too much, Lainey is at my side.

"Here, Makayla. I wet it with some water." Lainey says, handing me a wet wash cloth.

"Thank you." I respond, taking the cloth to begin the task of wiping off the zombie’s remains.