After coming outside I can say it's still the same, the sight which I witnessed when all this mess started. No..it looks much worse. Lifeless bodies spread on the ground like someone just randomly threw them there. It's a common scene that my eyes got used to. Chaotic..no rather i feel calm now.
It's been so long that now there isn't even any foul smell coming out of them or maybe I can't even tell the difference because I got used to it. Nevertheless the game of Killing in order to live is over now but i bet there are still people who just want to kill for the sake of enjoyment.
Now, do I look for the old man? If he's outside in order to search for the girl then it's quite obvious to look around the area near the orphanage. But it shouldn't take much time and he's gone for a while now.
Without any plan I stupidly started walking towards the park. It's my instinct that's telling me to go there, maybe because children playing there is something that comes to my mind when I think of it. At Least searching there is better than looking randomly.
But as soon as i reached near the gate of the park i heard some kind of noise and it was coming from the other side of the gate. It sounded as if some kind of animal was chewing down the bones and to my surprise I was right. As I peeked from the corner there was a leopard tearing apart the body of a young boy which I guess it found just laying down there.
It's dangerous to stay here, I better get out before the leopard gets my scent.
It's not the first time I'm seeing something feeding on a human corpse. Vultures which I thought I would never see in real life were around everywhere after this shit started. Not only the wild animals I have also seen street dogs biting into the corpses like it has been their life all along.
But certainly it's the first time I have seen a leopard.
While returning back I made sure that no one was following me.
Knock knock..
Knock…knock..knock
"Who?"
"It's me Racheal, Open the door."
Racheal is answering the knock, so the old man isn't back yet..
"Keith, what took you so long?"
"I ran into some problems while I was searching for them."
"What?"
"I will tell you some other time. Is the old man back?"
"About that..i think you should see it for yourself."
She seemed concerned while saying these words. So, I went to his room and found him talking to a person whom i have never seen before.
"Oh Keith, meet Alex. He is an old friend of mine."
"Hello Keith."
"Hello"
An old friend? Hmm..he never mentioned something about bringing a friend back. Was he really out looking for the girl or something else. This old friend of his, from the looks of it , he seems like a healthy middle aged man but his build is something different. How he's able to maintain a body like this?
"Old man, I'm going to look after kids, let's go, Rach."
And as we left the room, I felt as if Rach followed me with something in her mind. Something she wanted to ask of me.
"What are we gonna do Keith, Gramps is clearly up to something. I'm having a really bad feeling."
The fact that many kids vanished and him bringing a man here, now that we questioned what's been happening. It all just suggests that the grandpa is behind all this and he's been selling the kids off to the auction that I heard about.
Maybe we should just run off from here…no it's too soon . I should not just believe what I am seeing, I have to catch everything happening around me. Not to forget I don't even have a place to take them to.
"Racheal, do you believe in me?"
"Yeah, but If you ask me to just blindly believe in you, that would be a little difficult. Plus Grandpa helped us when we had no one so it's kind of hard thinking that he would do something like that. But why are you asking this?"
"Then, let's wait and see, I am getting the feeling that it's not as simple as it seems but if I ever feel like it's getting dangerous then we will run off."
"Okay Keith, if you say so."
Yes, I have to give it some time before I know the whole picture.
"Big brother, Gosh is crying again."
"What happened Gosh why are you crying?"
Racheal asked him and sat down while wiping out the tears falling down his cheeks.
"Lydia..why isn't she back yet?" He replied with his weak sounding voice.
"Don't worry Gosh, Grandpa will bring her back when she's better. You have to wait a little longer." I replied to him..i lied to him but for how much longer i can keep this hidden from him. I know that one day I will have to tell him the truth.
"Hear that Gosh, big brother is saying she will come back once she's good again."
"Okay, big sis."
"Okay now come with me Gosh, i will teach you what to do if someone tries to grab you from behind. Follow me to the other room."
"Yes, I'm coming, Rian."
After they left Racheal again asked a question, with a desperate voice indicating how much she was worried.
"Keith, is it really okay for us to stay here any longer than this? I just can't stay calm in a situation like this."
"Rach, what if Old man was never the culprit and all this was just supernatural. We would be abandoning our only shelter by running away. I said I would protect you but my number one priority will always be my brother. And for all of us to survive we have to take every step with utmost caution."
Why isn't she replying, she just looked at me with a cold gaze and then left without saying anything. The desperate look she had somehow turned into a blank expression.
Maybe she got angry over something, it's hard to understand girls in any kind of situation.
After that we all ate our dinner together, and i got to know a little more about this friend of the old man named Alex.
Apparently before this apocalypse, he used to be a police officer but now there's no need for a policeman on the streets so he's just wandering here and there trying to help as many people as he can. This is too far-fetched and also the very fact he is still alive means he had to kill someone one way or another so that he would not vanish.
After we finished dinner we all talked a little more, then all of us went to sleep. Gosh was given an empty room and as usual I slept in a different room with kids and Rach.
But in the middle of the night I felt if someone was shaking me, as I opened my eyes, Rian's frightened face was in front of me.
After seeing that I woke up, Rian's face lit up a little, he came close to my ears and whispered.
"Big brother, I am scared."
"Why what happened, Rian?"
"Big brother..I woke up to go to the bathroom but I heard some sound, like someone's digging behind the orphanage. But when i got close i saw grandpa digging up a hole with a lantern and in the darkness there was a hand covered with blood. The watch on that hand was the same as the one the police uncle was wearing."
Does this mean that the old man killed Alex and was burying his body in the darkness of night so that we won't find it?
Wait.. should i just take the kids and Racha and run off while i still can.
"Big brother, I'm scared."
"Don't be scared Rian, let me think of something."
"Listen Rian, did the old man see you while he was digging ?"
"No, I quickly ran off as soon as I realised what was going on."
"Okay Rian, go to sleep. We will act normally tomorrow like you never saw something like that. I plan on going outside tomorrow and search for a new shelter and Rach will be protecting you all in my place."
"Yeah big brother, i understand. We can't just run off without having a target location in mind."
"Yes, you are smart, Rian. Don't worry, go to sleep, I will keep watch tonight."
This is the only best option that I have. Not only this, I have to explain this situation to Rach tomorrow.
Even though I said I will keep watch while they sleep, Rian was awake for a long time. Changing sleeping positions, opening and closing his eyes at a shorter duration. Maybe he still hasn't recovered from the scene he just witnessed.
Maybe he's scared of being left alone.I think in his eyes he doesn't want to be only one who is protected by me but also wants to protect me. He's worried that he may lose me if he fell asleep and someone attacked.
To tell you the truth, I kind of envy his bravery. After everything that has happened he still managed to mature to this level and have an understanding of the situation just as good as me. On the other hand, I'm still the same.
I acted tough, wanted to be independent, and wanted to pass highschool as soon as possible so that I could move out. But in reality I was scared that as soon as I moved out, I would lose the only place where I belonged. They will forget about me, I will be all alone. And now too, I'm just trying to be brave, taking the lead, thinking of everyone but in reality I'm scared that I would lose them, I will be all alone just like I imagined.
Hahaha.. I'm just a coward, who needs a reason like this to protect the people who believe in me.