Fallen Grace (7 page)

I tucked Gus into the only bed in the house and kissed him on the cheek as he fell asleep. He looked so tired and defeated. His beard stubble had grown considerably, making him look aged and weary. I left the bedroom, shutting the door behind me, and ventured back to the kitchen in search of anything edible.

It was a small room. There was no dishwasher, just an old freestanding oven & stove, a refrigerator, and a few cabinets. I began searching the drawers and cupboards, avoiding the refrigerator and freezer. Whoever had lived here seemed to be fond of marshmallows and peanut butter. I found several jars of Skippy crunchy and three sacks of generic brand marshmallows; one mini and two large. In the second drawer I found a box of unopened raisins. I decided to gather what I found onto the small round kitchen table and packed what I could into my backpack. Once Gus rose we’d find a way to pack up the rest. My stomach was growling, so I opened the peanut butter and used two fingers to scoop out a big wad, which I shoved into my mouth. The resulting glue-effect in my mouth was heavenly. I recapped the jar and moved on to the last cabinet. I was delighted to find cans of SPAM. It had never been a favorite of mine, but the protein and fat would be so welcomed by all of us. There were eleven cans in all. Hidden behind them were two large cans of baked beans and a plastic bottle full of white vinegar.

I studied my huge find sitting out on the table. I was pleased with it overall. It was a lot of useful things that could keep our group going for that much longer. I took one more finger-scoop of peanut butter before heading back to check on Gus. Still not sensing any of the dead near, I walked back into the bedroom and closed the door behind me. Somehow I felt safer with it shut. My side was feeling much better since I had eaten something and I knew I was already healing.

Gus was snoring softly, so I walked over to the empty side of the bed and sat. I kicked my shoes off and flopped back onto the mattress, settling in alongside Gus. The light of day was fading quickly. I looked at him as he slept. He had changed since we had first met. He looked hardened. I’m sure the same could be said about the rest of us. I inched closer and pulled at the edge of the blanket that covered him until I too was underneath, needing to feel his warmth. I could tell the night was bound to be cold from the drafts already creeping into the tiny house. Gus turned onto his side, facing me as he slept. His breath smelled familiar as I nuzzled against him. I refrained from placing my ear against his chest, knowing the silence would be too painful. Instead I focused on the rhythm of his breathing as I fell asleep.

***

I woke cold. The bed was empty beside me and the room in full dark. I sat up, listening carefully at first with my ears. I was met, at first, with an eerie silence.

“Gus?” I called out, quietly. I was met with more silence. A faint scratching began against the side of the house, soon followed by the moan of the dead; it was guttural and feral sounding.

Gus? I reached out with my mind as I swung my legs over the edge of the bed and reached down, searching in the dark for my shoes. Gus?

“I’m here,” he whispered from the doorway. “Keep quiet, ok?”

“There’s one outside.”

“I know. It’s been scratching around the perimeter of the house for about half an hour.”

“I can’t hear it in my mind.”

“It’s not human.”

“What do you mean?” I asked.

“I caught a glimpse of it through the kitchen window. Looks like it was a dog back in the day. I’m gonna go out and put it down before it attracts anything bigger.”

“Gus, no. It’s too dangerous.”

“I’ll be ok, darlin’. I’m headed to the roof. I’ll kill it from up there.”

“How?” I asked a bit skeptically.

He sat beside me on the bed. It was too dark to see more than his basic outline. He placed a hand on my knee. His grip felt tired.

“I used a knife from the kitchen and some duct tape and made a makeshift spear out of a broom handle.”

“I don’t like this plan, Gus.”

The scratching on the exterior wall suddenly stopped. It was quickly replaced with a broken sort of howling. What answered it chilled me to the core.

“It’s calling to others,” whispered Gus. “There’s not time to argue, darlin’. We need to leave here.”

I quickly slid my feet into the shoes I had finally found with my hands. I had left them tied and just needed to pull the backs of each out from under my heels.

“I left some food on the kitchen table,” I whispered.

“Toss what you can into a pack. Be ready to run,” was all he said. “We leave in thirty seconds. No more.” He sounded on edge.

I hurried toward the bedroom doorway, stumbling against what I recalled was a dresser. Once I was out of the room, a sliver of moonlight lit my way and I was able to rush to the kitchen. As I did so, I heard Gus open the bedroom window. The sound of growling filled my ears and the stench of death was quickly upon me. As much as instinct told me to turn and go to Gus’ side to help him, I fought the urge and continued to the kitchen table. As I picked up the backpack I had left there, I heard Gus curse and the dog-creature yelp in pain.

“Son of a bitch!” yelled Gus, already running toward me. “We need to go, now!”

He grabbed the pack from my hands and then pulled me forward by the elbow.

“What’s out there, Gus?” I asked as we ran toward the back of the house.

“Just run,” he snarled at me as he fumbled to open the back door off the kitchen. “Stay with me, and don’t look back!”

Cold air hit my face as he opened the door inward. The smell of death and ammonia stung my nose. Gus ran through the doorway first, pulling me by the hand. Wind was blowing in gusts and intertwined with groans in the distance.

“We have to get over that fence,” said Gus, his voice raised in competition with the wind.

We ran toward a chain link fence. It was taller than I recalled from when I had peeked at the yard early in the evening. As we reached the metal barrier, Gus automatically lifted me up to give me a head start. I clung to the metal and worked to find footholds. It didn’t take long for me to reach the top, and as I tumbled over to the ground on the other side Gus was fast behind me. I rolled to my side to avoid him landing on me. The ground was sloped away from the fence, causing me to fall forward as I tried to stand.

“We need to get as far as we can,” Gus huffed.

He helped me stand and we ran. The moonlight faded as we entered an area of trees. My injured side was beginning to throb from the exertion.

“Gus, tell me what’s back there.”

“More of those bloated fuckers, darlin’. Like the Hunter that ate the dead kids at the motel.”

With that, I doubled my efforts to run. I wondered where we’d go. The only vehicle we knew of was now well behind us. We only had one backpack, no gun, and only two hatchets. Hearing my thoughts, Gus answered me aloud.

“Right now it doesn’t matter where we go. We just need to put distance between us and them.”

In answer, I gripped his hand harder. My shoes began to make sloppy sounds as we reached the edge of a swampy area that reeked of stagnant mud. Gus led me forward, and cold water filled my shoes and quickly reached my shins. A breeze blew from behind, carrying with it the stench of demise.

My head was spinning with the intrusions from the dead who were pursuing us. The water was suddenly up to my thighs, the sting from the cold causing me to draw in a sharp breath. Gus steadied me and whispered near my ear.

“We have to cross, darlin’.”

I nodded in understanding. I held my breath in an attempt to stay quiet as we moved forward. Once I was chest-deep, I finally gasped for breath. The Hunters were near. I could see through their eyes now. Gus was like a glowing red beacon to them, and I a cool blue; only a shade darker than our surroundings. Through their eyes, I could only see Gus and myself where our bodies remained above water.

I pictured Gus submerging under water in my head. Sensing what I wanted him to do, he didn’t hesitate and sunk silently below the surface. As I followed suit, our glowing images faded from the radar of the dead. I held my breath as long as I could, waiting for the group of bloated corpses to pass us by. I could only hope and pray that they would move on. I was numb to my core from the cold water, barely aware that Gus still held onto my hand. My lungs began screaming for oxygen, so I allowed myself to surface just far enough to breathe. The cool air filled my lungs, soothing the pain. The last of the dead faded from my head, and I tugged at Gus’ hand to signal him to surface. When he didn’t respond, I began to panic.

Gus, they’re gone. We need to go.

My thought was met with darkness. His hand went slack in mine.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck,” I hissed as I saw bubbles emerge where he should be.

I drew in a hasty breath and ducked quickly under the cold water. I reached out with my arms, searching blindly for any sign of the man I loved. In the dark, I had no idea which way I was facing or if I was even near where he might be. I had no idea which way was up or down. When I couldn’t suppress the urge to breathe any longer, I was forced to surface for precious oxygen. The night air hit my face and I coughed on water that I had started to swallow. I gasped to fill my lungs again, and forced myself under water, propelling downward. Feeling blindly with my hands, I frantically searched for him. My left hand brushed against something that felt like cloth. I grasped it in desperation, filling my fist with what I hoped was his shirt. Using the cloth to pull myself forward, I was met with what I knew had to be his body. I pulled as hard as I could, trying to lift him upward toward the surface of the pond. Making no progress, I ignored the instinct of my body to breathe in fresh air and used his body to pull myself toward the murky bottom. I searched with my free hand, finding one of his feet. It felt as if his boot were stuck under a piece of wood or a rock. My fingers were numb, making it difficult to tell. I pulled at his leg, hoping to dislodge it from the death trap. I knew time was running out, if it hadn’t already.

A fleeting thought entered my head, which I dismissed. If Gus were dead, he’d be waking up soon. If that happened, I’d rather be dead anyway. Even though my eyes were closed, I could see tiny specks of silver behind my eyelids. I had to breathe. I knew I had to let go and make it to the surface. I tried to force my body to stay submerged, but it had other plans. As I began to let go of Gus’ leg, he finally broke loose of the snare. I kept a grip on his shirt and kicked as hard as I could to propel us both upward. As my head broke the surface, I felt his arms encircle me. I was forced under water again, my lungs still begging for a full breath of air. They had been cheated when I was barely able to inhale. I struck out, trying to free myself of whatever Gus had become. Fear was finally hitting me; the reality that death might be facing me like a brick wall.

I clawed at Gus as he found my arms and gripped at them, painfully so. I tried to scream and was met with a mouthful of water, causing me to sputter in protest.

“Zoe,” choked Gus. “Stop fighting me!”

The sound of his human voice, be it rough from choking on water, startled me.

“Gus?” I asked with desperation.

“
Yeah,” he choked out.

I let my body go slack, no longer fighting his touch.

“We need to get out of this water,” he breathed against my face. I could hear his teeth clattering together.

I hadn’t been aware that he had pulled me to shore until my feet hit the bottom. Soon, we were lying in the muck of the bank catching our breath. He held me to him for warmth.

“We need to get our wet clothes off and find shelter, darlin’.”

“’Kay.” It was hard to talk through the cold that had seeped into my bones.

Gus was already shedding his first layer of clothes. I tried to work mine off, but my numb fingers fumbled, making little progress.

“C’mon, babe, let me help. We have to get moving and warm up.”

His hands worked at my clothes feverishly until I was in just a wet bra and panties.

“Shoes too,” he muttered.

I managed to kick off my own shoes and he peeled my soaked socks off of my feet. I stripped out of my final layer of clothing, welcoming the feel of the night air. It was cold, but not as frigid as the wet clothes had been. He helped me stand and we began moving away from the pond. The mud squished between my toes, making horrible sounds.

“Let me know if anymore dead come close, ok?”

“Sure,” I replied.

We walked briskly through the remainder of the swamp. My feet were thankfully near-frozen and unaware of who-knows-what that I might be stepping on. Eventually we came to an asphalted road, where our progress was quicker. The moonlight was fading and dawn was upon the horizon.

“Gus, up there,” I said, growing breathless. “Buildings.”

“I see them,” he said. “Do they feel clear?”

“Yeah.”

We picked up our pace despite my side cramping and my leg muscles aching. I couldn’t tell what the structures were just yet, but I knew shelter meant life. I laughed, despite being out of breath.

“What?” asked Gus.

“Us,” I huffed. “We’re running down a street naked as jaybirds.”

“Ayup.”

“I’m…so…cold.”

“Hang in there.”

The first building we reached was a Denny’s. The windows had been shattered and glass still littered the sidewalk and half of the street. We dashed to the other side to avoid cutting out feet.

“That one there,” said Gus. “A Big 5. Well find clothes and blankets.”

He grabbed hold of my hand and pulled me around a corner to the small sporting goods store.

“Not here,” I said in warning. “There’s one inside.”

The signature of the Roamer inside was faint, and only entered my head once we were right in front of the store.

“Ok, over there,” he said. “Let’s try that building.”

“A candle shop?” I asked.

“Sure. It’s shelter.”

The building was half a block down and was old, resembling a haunted house from old-time movies. The front boasted stone gargoyles and a short wrought iron fence with sharp points on top of the posts. It had a small yard that was overgrown with leggy weeds. A black cat sat on the steps eating on something. As we advanced up the walkway toward the porch, it became apparent that the cat was one of the dead. The feline was feasting on one of the larvae we had seen back at the beach, albeit a much smaller version. The cat had large patches of fur missing, with open wounds covering half of its body. The rotting cat watched us, its eyes unblinking. I wasn’t able to hear it in my mind, which didn’t surprise me. I hadn’t experienced a link to any of the living-dead-animals. An unearthly hiss greeted us as we got closer; the feline crouched down, ready to attack. It reeked of death and decay.

“Back up, Zoe,” warned Gus.

I did so, and saw that he had picked up a stick that was lying to the side of the walkway. I stayed back while he approached the hellish animal. It growled at Gus, again crouching. I couldn’t tell if it meant to attack him or was protecting its prize mega-maggot. My question was answered when it leapt at him. He had been prepared, and whacked it hard with the stick he held. The creature was tossed backward into the yard, where it lay unmoving.

“Is it dead?” I asked in a whisper.

“Not sure,” he mumbled as he walked to it. He stuck the sharp end of the stick into its head. “It is now.”

I followed him up the four concrete steps to the porch.

“It’s clear,” I said. “Unless there’s any animals inside; I can’t hear them.”

Gus tried the knob on the door.

“It’s locked.” He paused to think. “Ok. See that window up there?”

I looked to where he pointed; a window on the second story.

“
Yeah. It’s open.”

“I need to climb up and go in. Do you want to go with or wait here?”

“Heck no,” I said. “I’m not waiting out here. I’ll go with you.”

The climb looked like an easy one. There was a concrete ledge around the foundation and an attached flower pot above. From there the window was only a short distance.

“You can hoist me up and I’ll go in first,” I suggested.

“Sounds good.”

We began the climb, me in the lead. Aside from making sure our footing was steady, it wasn’t much of an effort. Soon, I was pushing on the bottom of the window, attempting to slide it upward. It had swollen from time and weather and was difficult to loosen. I could sense Gus’ pleasure at watching my bare butt as I struggled to enter the building.

“Got it ok?” he called from below.

“Yeah, it’s just stuck. Hang on.”

I wiggled the window frame, finally freeing it. Once it was open wide enough, I pulled myself up and toppled into the room beyond. My landing was a bit rough, as the floor on the inside was farther down than I had anticipated.

“Coming up,” Gus called.

I stood, rubbing an ache that the fall had caused. The room in which I stood was dark, but the emerging daylight outlines basics. A chair, a bed, a dresser, a TV, and a crib. I turned toward the window when I heard Gus climbing through.

“It doesn’t look like a candle shop to me,” I whispered as Gus shut the window.

He turned and looked around. “Ayup. But let’s not question it.”

“I’ll look through the dresser,” I offered.

“We need to warm up first,” said Gus as he walked to the closed door on the other side of the room. “The door has a lock, but let’s move the dresser over to block it.”

I joined him beside the dresser and together we lifted it. It wasn’t far to the door, thankfully, as the dresser was heavy. I knew that Gus would have moved it without my help, but with us both working we were able to move it quietly.

We walked to the double-sized bed together and climbed under the down comforter. I wished we had more blankets, but was grateful for what was there. Our cold bodies eventually began to warm.

“Gus?” I whispered after a long moment of silence.

“
Yeah?”

“What happened back there? In the pond?”

“My damn foot got stuck.”

“Well, I know that. But it felt like you were…gone. I couldn’t feel you anymore, you know, inside myself, and your hand went slack.”

“Honestly, Zoe? I think my body was in shock. I held my breath as long as I could, but eventually breathed in water.”

“Did you die?”

He laughed.

“It’s not funny, Gus!” I said harshly.

“Shhhh. I know, sorry.” He kissed me on the forehead, still chuckling. “I don’t think I died, babe. I think I inhaled water and it shocked my body. Kinda like I passed out. I’m really not sure how I came to and got the water out of my lungs.”

I scooted closer to him, craving his body heat. “You stink.”

“Thanks.”

I rested my head near his shoulder and allowed him to wrap his arms and a leg around me. We lay like that for an undetermined amount of time. Eventually my chills began to calm. My feet began to ache from what I knew had to be wounds from fleeing the dead in bare feet.

“We should go soon,” I said. “We need to get back.”

“Ayup. I’ll look for clothes.”

Gus kissed me tenderly on the cheek before rolling out of bed. I was suddenly overcome by a feeling of dread. I tucked the blankets under my chin and watched as Gus searched the drawers of the dresser. Daylight was now streaming in through the window, making it much easier to see. I frowned to myself when I noticed that Gus was covered in fresh bruises. By the way my body was feeling I probably was as well.

***

Gus had found a pair of nylon shorts in a lovely shade of vomit-green for himself as well as a baggy yellow t-shirt. He topped the outfit off with a couple of pairs of men’s tube socks. There hadn’t been any other clothes aside from an old nightgown that was once white. It was dingy now, more of a gray-yellow. It had two-inch straps and a low cut neck and the hem fell to my ankles. I copied him with two pair of socks. We surely looked silly, but it was a step above being fully nude.

We opted to not move the dresser to explore the rest of the building. The crib in the room was starting to wear on me, bringing back memories of Molly that would best be left for another day. Gus seemed aware of my inner turmoil and suggested we leave and search for a vehicle. I had a nagging feeling that we needed to be back at the motel.

Gus climbed out the window first so that he could help me to the ground. I hoisted myself onto the window ledge and sat on my butt. The street we were on seemed to lead nowhere. The sun was shining and it was unusually calm with no breeze. The air smelled fresh. I wasn’t accustomed to that anymore. I inhaled deeply, savoring the smell, before climbing down into Gus’ arms.

“You’re still so cold, Gus,” I said.

“I’ll be fine, darlin’.” He took my hand in his and we began walking back the way we had come. “We’ll head back to the neighborhood. Take our chances on the car we left.”

“’Kay. There’s sure nothing around here. It’s like everyone just disappeared.”

“I noticed. It’s different than other towns we’ve come across. No cars sitting around. No signs of the people that were here.”

We continued walking, hand-in-hand.

“Zoe! Gus!”

We both turned at the sound of a vaguely familiar voice calling our names.

I put my hand up to shield my eyes from the rising sun. In the distance I saw two figures running toward us. Gus immediately took a protective stance beside me.

“Zoe!” called the female voice again, followed by joyous laughter. “Zoe!”

“Oh God, Gus, it’s Agnes!” I choked out as I began running toward the other woman. “Agnes!”

The other figure walked toward us, limping. As Agnes and I met in the middle of the road, we embraced tightly.

“I thought we’d never see you again,” I said.

I hadn’t gotten a chance to know either of them well, but was beyond thrilled to see them again.

“Hey Zoe. Gus,” said Linus as he caught up. “Good to see you, man,” he said with a smile as he clutched Gus’ hand in a manly exchange.

“Likewise, brother. Where’d you two come from?” asked Gus.

Agnes’ face lit up. “Once we left the group we ran into a pretty messed up situation,” she said. Her face fell under a shadow of sorrow as she recounted events. “We almost stumbled over a small horde. It was dumb luck that they didn’t see or hear us. Linus twisted his ankle pretty bad pulling me back from their view. We hid in a pile of concrete rubble for hours until the dead moved on. Oh Zoe, it was so horrible. They had humans with them and we could hear their agony the whole time. There was nothing we could do to help them.”

The girl began crying, and I simply wrapped my arms around her. I knew all too well how horrible the feeling of not being able to save others was.

“I finally talked some sense into Agnes,” explained Linus. “Talked her into coming back to find the rest of you.”

“How the hell did you find us?” asked Gus.

“The others told us their general plan,” said Agnes through a sniffle. “We’ve been trying to get this far for days.”

“Let’s get moving,” said Gus. “I don’t like being out in the open for this long. We’re trying to find a rig to haul the others.”

“Where are they?” asked Linus as we all began walking down the road as a group.

“We lost Bobby, the girl Zoe and I picked up. You hadn’t met her. Nathan and Boggs are at the motel with Abbey and Susan. Zoe and I came looking for a big rig to drive out of this place. There’s some bad shit here. New kinds of dead. And Susan’s hurt bad.”

“How far is the motel?” asked Agnes.

“Just a few miles. We have a small run down car we had to leave back at a neighborhood. We’re making our way back there now.”