"Don't tell at him Jillian he is my Nephew"
Your nephew leans back in his chair and plays with a paper napkin, eyes staring down at the shape he's making.
"Sorry, but I'm not used to arguing with a toddler," Jillian says.
"We're all on edge right now. Let's take a deep breath and speak more civilized to one another." Lyle aims the remark at Jillian, who pouts and rolls her eyes.
"We have things we need in the car," Jillian says. "It makes the most sense to go early while things are relatively quiet. It'll never really be safe outside, but this is our best chance to get to the car and get back fast."
"So you're going to the car, grabbing your gear, and coming back?" you ask. You scoop up a huge mouthful of the hash mixture and wash it down with some juice.
"That's our plan," Jillian says. She finishes the last bite of breakfast and places her dish in the sink. "We should wash everything all at once to conserve water," she says and turns to look over at Lyle, her eyebrows raised.
He sighs and lets out a short grunt. "I guess I'm finished, too." Lyle rises and cleans up after himself. "I just need to use the bathroom before we go."
The two head into the next room. As soon as the kitchen door swings shut, you hear a heated conversation between them, though you can't make out what they're saying. Your nephew's mood has certainly changed since yesterday. He doesn't have that spark he had and seems more pensive. And what was he packing into that suitcase? With breakfast over, you walk into the living room to plan your day.
You check the time—8:30 am.
Jillian walks downstairs two at a time, and when she reaches the bottom, she turns, arms folded, and waits for Lyle. A few moments pass, then he takes the stairs with slow, deliberate steps.
"I could have been there and back by now," Jillian says to Lyle, then turns to you. "We'll be back as soon as we can. Here's my cell number in case you need to reach me." She hands you a slip of paper.
"When we're back, I'll be happy to help with any chores around here." Lyle smooths out his hair and places a baseball cap on his head.
You unlock the door to let them leave, and they thank you on their way out.You still don't know much about your two guests, and curiosity motivates you to see what Lyle and Jillian are really doing on the trip to their car. As they walk away from your house, you peek outside. Once they're a fair distance away, you step to your pile of gear and gather some items you'll need while outside following Lyle and Jillian.Your nephew sits by the window, peering out through the blinds. As you walk towards the door, he looks over and smiles.
Taking Johnny poses too much risk. You have no idea where Lyle and Jillian are going, and they might encounter danger on their trip. "I'll be back soon, Johnny. No need to come with me," you say.
Max lies on the floor by the door and looks up as you pass. "Stay here," you say, stroking his head.
When you hit the pavement, you spot the two strangers stopped at the corner, with Jillian yelling loud enough to hear above the whistling wind. She stamps her feet and points at Lyle, whose shoulders are slumped and hand rubs the back of his neck. You wonder if she has any clue that zombies are attracted to loud sounds, but she doesn't seem to care as she berates her companion. And you spot quite a few zombies in the area. With the density of the population in Nightfall, you anticipated sizable numbers of infected. Luckily, all of them are at a distance, chasing cars or other people or locked in their homes.
With Lyle and Jillian's lack of progress, you catch up to them by sneaking along their path, hiding behind cars as you follow. The air feels unseasonably cool, but since it snowed a few days ago, it's still warmer than recent weeks.
You follow behind the pair, observing and listening as they walk down the center of the street without any care for their surroundings or who else might be watching. Luckily for them, the area lacks any zombies, or people for that matter, and only the fleeting sound of birds tells you life still exists in Nightfall. No gunshots, no roaring motors, no zombie wails—nothing but the peaceful chirps of birds overhead and the impassioned yells of the two strangers.
Shadowing Jillian and Lyle proves trivial, as they don't seem aware of anything or anyone except each other, but you can't hear their heated discussion from this far out. Moving closer might tip them off to your presence, though the closer you get, the easier it will be to listen in to the conversation.You pick up your pace while keeping low and out of sight of the two, maneuvering from parked car to parked car, an overturned transit bus and a blackened and burnt military jeep. Lyle and Jillian argue as they walk and keep their eyes ahead, defying the odds as they draw attention to themselves. It doesn't take long before you're crouching no more than twenty feet from them.
"Please just stop yelling," Lyle says, squeezing the bridge of his nose.
"Fine, but I can't guarantee we're going back there!" Jillian yells as she strides just ahead of her companion. "You might think his place is safe and somehow he can magically give us everything we ever need, but once this epidemic is over…"
"This epidemic will never be over!" Lyle shouts, louder than the young woman. "Don't you get it? The infection is destroying civilization. There's no going back, and we need to think about survival now. Not just living from score to score, but how we'll eat and how we'll live through the night. He knows what he's doing, and we'd be fools to leave when there's someone willing to take us in, who hasn't asked us for anything. Do you think you could bury your instinct to con everyone we meet and just try to think clearly about our future?"
Jillian sulks as she walks, feet scuffling along the ground. "We'll see.The couple quicken their pace, and you match their speed. They turn a corner, and as you round it, you spot a small parking lot beside a run-down, boarded-up building, long abandoned. This is the old Milford Paper Mill, you remember, now a brick-and-stone monument to the demise of an industry. A lonely red sedan sits just past a broken chain-link fence, and Lyle and Jillian pull aside a section of the mesh wire to reach their car.
Now the sounds of the infected pick up, as a stream of wails arrives from every angle. Your skin prickles, and you can't help but look over your shoulder every few seconds. And then you see them in the window of the paper mill, a pair of infected clawing at a window, eyes set upon the unaware couple in the parking lot.
You slide in next to the shell of an old industrial vehicle, hiding close enough to hear them talking, but far enough away that there's no way they could see you eavesdropping.
"Look, all I'm saying is, we stay with him and ride this thing out. Everything's changing, and we have no idea what civilization will look like in a few days." Lyle pops open the trunk of the car and takes out a small canvas bag.
"I guess you're right. He is kind of cute," Jillian says as she opens the passenger-side door. She takes something out of the glove compartment and tosses something into her mouth, which she chews.
Lyle frowns. "Try to make me jealous or try to hurt my feelings, but I'll try to keep us alive."
"Aw, baby, you know you're hot," Jillian says with a wink. "But in all honesty, Aaron is a nice guy. I do like him, but someone that willing to help strangers makes me wonder if he can be tough enough to survive against the dregs of humanity this outbreak is producing."
The two zombies disappear from the window, and you try to move into a better position to spot where they went. The brick face holds little else but graffiti and a steel door, although rust outlines the frame, and the hinges appear weak.
Lyle leans against the back of the car and hangs his head. Even at this distance, you see worry on his face: dead-set eyes, twitching mouth, veins bulging in his neck. "I should get in touch with Simone."
Jillian spits the gum out of her mouth. "Why? She hates me."
"If anyone has a plan for surviving in this mess, it's her. She's probably on some base hunkered down with elite soldiers surrounding it."
"But what if she doesn't want to see you? See us?"
"She has to," Lyle says and walks around the car. "She's my daughter."
A heavy clang explodes from the metal door, and it bulges outward with sudden force. Lyle and Jillian spin toward it but freeze in shock at the sudden noise. Another heavy blow to the door sends it swinging open, and the two zombies rush from the building at the fear-struck couple you rush to help Lyle and Jillian before the zombies can reach them.Your new companions have no way to defend themselves, and while their motives might be questionable, you can't stand by and watch them get ripped apart by these zombies.
You stand from hiding and ready your AK-47 as the two infected beings cross the yard. They wear dark suits, soiled and torn, and one wears a light-gray fedora still held on his head, while the other bears a striking resemblance to your high school math teacher, Mrs. Dougherty.
Lyle twists the head of his cane and draws a thin blade from its shaft as long as a sword, while Jillian throws herself into the passenger seat and slams the door.
"We can fight them," Lyle says, raising the sword in a defensive stance. "Besides, the car won't start. We can't—"
"Get in!" Jillian yells, her voice cutting through the howls of the two zombies fifty feet away. "They'll kill us, and we can't outrun them!"
Lyle steps toward the car, but then turns back to face the advancing zombies. He draws his arm across his forehead to wipe away the sweat and glances back at Jillian, who shouts for him to get inside.
As you take a step from the vehicle you've used for cover, you hear the thunder of a heavy engine, and from the side street, a military jeep courses over the sidewalk, fishtails, and races up to the paper mill's gate. A woman with flowing red hair mans a .50 caliber machine gun and bounces on the back. Neither the woman nor the two men in the front seats wear military uniforms, and as the jeep screeches to a halt just outside the parking lot, the man in the passenger side hops from the vehicle, carrying an FN P90, a futuristic-looking submachine gun with a blunt barrel and top-mounted magazine.
Things just got interesting."Light 'em up, Rosie," the man with the submachine gun yells. He has long whiskers stretched to the side, and tattoos cover his gun arm.
The machine gun erupts, spraying a torrent of bullets at the zombies. You dive behind the industrial vehicle and cover your ears as the gun's noise blankets the area. A line of exploding asphalt travels up to the zombies and tears their legs and torsos apart. The two undead crumble to the ground in a trail of blood and torn flesh. Still, the two infected creatures try to rise and, when they fall again, claw at the ground, dragging what's left of their bodies towards Lyle and Jillian.
When the machine gun's barrage ends, Rosie laughs and cheers behind a stream of smoke from the barrel. "Look, Dillan. They're still alive."
"I got 'em," the man called Dillan says and fires single rounds from his submachine gun at the head of each writhing zombie some forty feet from where he stands. Both drop flat to the ground, motionless.
"Thank you so much—" Lyle starts to say, but goes quiet when Dillan fires a shot into the air.
"Shut up, grandpa," Dillan says, balancing his boot on the front bumper of the jeep. "If you think we killed those freaks to save your ass, you're dumber than you are old."
Jillian slumps low in the passenger seat, and Lyle takes a single step forward.
"Toss the poker, grandpa," Dillan says and lazily aims the gun at the man. He swings the barrel to point at Jillian. "Get out of the tin can, Missy."
The side door swings open, Jillian steps out, bottom lip quivering and hands held at her lap, and creeps along the sedan's front end.
"Good, good," Dillan says. "Now, Driver here is gonna come grab your gear and search the two of ya. Be nice, 'cause he hasn't had coffee yet today and can be irritable when not properly caffeinated."
He points to Driver, who climbs from the jeep. He's shirtless with a scarred back, and as he walks through the torn area in the fence, he scratches his face with vigorous strokes.
"Don't hurt 'em too bad," Dillan says to Driver.
Watching from cover, you surprise-attack Dillan and his group while you have the chance.Dillan is the clear leader of the group, so killing him would likely discourage the remaining two from further conflict. However, Rosie is the biggest threat, as she's operating the machine gun. Driver is the closest to Lyle and Jillian, so taking him out might save your two guests. Unfortunately, Driver is also farthest away.
Your primary target is the driver.You head out from behind the vehicle and sneak along the street toward Driver. He and his crew are so focused upon Lyle and Jillian, they don't notice you creeping along the road and climbing through the broken chain-link fence. You keep low to the ground and stay quiet as you cross the parking lot.
You ready your AK-47, and just as you prepare to attack, Driver cuts to the other side of the sedan, and his gaze finds you.
"What the…" he yells and spins, raising an assault rifle.
Your AK-47 strikes his shoulder, and Driver staggers as blood sprays out of the wound.
"Shoot him!" Dillan yells from behind you, and you turn in time to see Rosie spinning the machine gun in your direction. You dash to the far side of the sedan and dive at the last second. Gunfire erupts, and you hear the vehicle take the spray of bullets. Smoke rises above you, and exploding glass rains down.
"Let's go!" Dillan yells, and the machine gun fire continues, forcing you to stay tucked behind the vehicle. When the heavy noise of the gun dies out, the jeep's motor revs up, and you poke your head up to see it driving away with Dillan and crew inside.
You rise from the cover of the sedan and rush to see what's become of the two people you followed here. Jillian is kneeling on the ground with Lyle next to her. Blood covers his chest, and Jillian mixes screams with cries as she cradles his head and rocks back and forth.
You drop down beside Lyle and check for the wound causing the blood. Ripping open his shirt, you see the bullet hole in his chest near the heart. There's nothing you can do to save him.
Lyle's lips part. "Kill me. Through the head. Don't let me turn," he says through labored breaths.
Jillian leans over and kisses his forehead and cheek. "Don't leave me."
Lyle's hand takes hers, and he squeezes her fingers. "I'm gone, Jillie-bean. Don't let me turn." He lets her hand go, and he swings it out to point to his sword cane. His eyes close and breathing stops, and you and Jillian stare at the weapon."I'll do it," you say and reach for the sword cane.
"No," Jillian says and grabs the sword. "I will. He asked me."
You step away. Jillian strokes Lyle's hair and stares at his open eyes, then she whispers to him, too low for you to hear. The breeze picks up and cools your skin, but with it carries the stench of the zombie corpses. You turn and scan the area to ensure no zombies have been drawn by the noise and that Dillan and crew aren't lurking nearby. You see no one, and when you turn back to Jillian, she's holding the sword with the tip pointed downward. With a shriek, Jillian plunges the sword through Lyle's temple.
"Goodbye," she says.
From a distance, the sounds of zombie wails roll in. Jillian leans on the sword cane's handle and uses it to stand, then yanks it out. Her tears stop, and she wipes her cheeks on the back of her arm. A change comes over the woman as if harsh reality has set in, and she slides the cane back into its shaft and walks to the car. Grabbing her bag, she heads for the break in the chain-link fence. "We should go.You return home to a full-body tackle from Johnny and an excited German Shepherd. Neither give you a moment to get inside before the greetings commence.
"What happened, Ares? Are you okay? See any zombies?"
Jillian walks to the staircase and pauses. "I'm going to bed. Is that okay?"
"Sure, Jillian," you say. After the day she's had, she deserves to be alone and rest.
You walk past your nephew and drop your gear down. He has so many questions, and you tell him…
Everything that happened. you don't want to shelter him from the truth.You tell him about the paper mill, the zombies attacking, Dillan and his gang, and how they killed Lyle but spared Jillian.
"He was a nice man," is your nephew's simple response.You check the time—9:45 am.
Your phone rings, and seeing it's Jaime's number, you answer.
"Hey, Aaron," he says in a breathy voice, like he just yawned.
"Hello. You okay?"
"I didn't get much sleep last night, so I just woke up. I stayed with those people I met, and we've been scavenging for supplies non-stop. They're not really my kind of people, though, so I'm going to split up with them soon and come straight to you."
"Sounds good. One thing—"
"Sorry, before I forget, I need to ask a favor. My cousin Moses is in Nightfall for a meeting that he was attending when this mess happened. He's stranded but happens to be nearby. I told him to stay at your place for a few days. I hope you don't mind, but there's nowhere else for him to go. Hotels are booked or closed, shelters are overrun with people. He should be there soon. I promise he'll be no trouble."
"Um, well—"
"I owe you, big time. I should be at your place late tonight. What do you need me to bring?"
"I could really use cigarettes" "I didn't know you smoked," Jaime says. "Cigarettes aren't too hard to find. Also, I heard there's a store—Thelma's Convenience Store on Walnut. You know the place. It still has food and other goods for sale. Opens sometime in the afternoon. At least, that's the rumor."
Through the phone, you hear sudden loud voices and the heavy strum of an automatic weapon.
"Jaime, is everything okay?"
"Yeah, these fools I'm with are messing around with weapons, like we have time for target practice. I better go," Jaime says, his voice dropping at the end. "I'm real sorry for not getting there sooner. You need me there, and I need to be with a real friend. I'm going to leave and be there—"
The line disconnects before Jaime finishes.You check the time—10:00 am.
A knock comes from the back door—several quick knuckle raps. You leap from your seat and rush to the kitchen, wondering who could possibly be there. You forget the rules of the apocalypse for a moment and open the door before checking to see who it is first.
"Hello, Aaron," a woman says. She stands with her back to the side of the house, hands tucked snugly in the front pockets of her skinny jeans. She's tall and lithe but wears a baggy T-shirt with the logo of the Two Turtles Tavern, a bar in the area, and a Rockies baseball cap. You see no weapons or gear and notice sandals on her feet. It's Rachel, Vince's cousin. You haven't seen her in months, maybe a year. She comes to visit him every so often, staying for weeks at a time, and often would greet you in passing. The relationship always remained neighborly, from collecting mail delivered to your house while you were on vacation to bringing over a tray of fresh-cooked brownies. Once, she jump-started a dead battery in your car.
"Hi," you say blankly. "Can I help you?"
"Most likely. Mind if I come in?"
AM GOING TO GIVE AARON PERSONAL INFORMATION
Date: Sunday, May 13, 2012
Post-Apocalypse Day: 2
10:00 am.
PROFILE
Name: Aaron Amah
Gender: Male
Profession/Background: Military Commander
Rank: Captain
Hair Color: Black
Eye Color: Blue
Race/Ethnicity: Black or African Descent, East Indian, Native American, Hispanic
Pet: German Shepherd
Pet's Name: Max
Primary Weapon: AK-47
Secondary Weapon: AR-15
Armor: Kevlar vest
Helmet: None
Clothes: Combat uniform
Primary Vehicle: sedan