Day One (Book 1): Alive Read online

  Kember rolled her head to the right, yawned, but remained asleep. I watched her through the passenger window, and then turned and headed for the front door, ever vigilant as I approached and at the front doors I could see that they had been unlocked at some point and opened, as they were not flush with each other. I grabbed the cold red handle and prepared myself for what may lie just inside the store. I could see through the large sheets of glass, but with several isles that were several feet high, anyone or anything could easily be hiding just out of sight… waiting.

  I cautiously moved into the dimly lit store, my eyes shooting from right, where I couldn’t see from the outside, over to the left where the register was. Nothing was out of place, no one waited to jump me and tear me apart as they had done to Mary. The cigarette racks drew my attention and suddenly I wanted one. It had been quite a while since my last smoke and I was jonesing, so I slowly made my way down the counter, crossed behind and grabbed a pack as I glanced around to make sure no one was watching me. The last thing I needed was to be arrested for stealing or looting as it would be called during a major civil breakdown.

  “Hello.” I said in a soft voice, as I didn’t want it to travel very far. Only the hum of the coolers in the back of the store replied. I moved out from behind the counter as I fiddled with the wrapper on the pack of smokes, grabbing a small lighter as I neared the door to ensure that no one was in the parking lot and that Kember was still safe. I had turned the motor off and locked the SUV before leaving, although I hadn’t armed the alarm, worried that the noise would travel over great distances and give away my position.

  I placed the cigarette to my lips and lit it. It was wonderful and I felt a little weight slid of my shoulders as I exhaled. I eased toward the coolers in the rear of the store, picking up a few snack cakes in the process before locating several plastic bottles of strawberry milk and fruit punch. I grabbed them and with the door open grabbed a tall energy drink, opened it and began downing it. It felt good going down my throat, wiping the long collected dust free and energizing me.

  It wasn’t until I reached the register, with an armful, that I wondered how I’d pay for everything with no cashier around. The thought of just leaving crossed my mind, after all, the world was going to hell in an express elevator so who really cared, but I wasn’t a thief by any means… a coward yes, but not a thief.

  “How is this going to work, because I don’t know how to run a register?” My voice seemed to travel as though I were yelling in the silence of the store. It was eerie.

  I quickly glanced to the parking lot again, ensured I was still alone and confirmed that. With everything on the counter I finished the energy drink and sat the empty can down, quickly rounding everything up and counting it all in my head, rounding up as I placed it into a small plastic bag. The thought of taking more with me forced me to look back toward the isles. Money was not an issue, as I had plenty of that with me as well as a few credit cards, so I could easily afford anything or as much as I needed. It probably wouldn’t have value for too much longer, so I might as well enjoy it while I could.

  “No, because as sure as I buy all this stuff the National Guard will feed us real food and it’ll be a waste of money.” I said; still not clear whether the world around me would ever be the same again. I still clung to the humanity I had grown so accustomed to, which made it even harder to let go.

  I slipped a hand into my pocket, found nothing, and then went for my wallet to realize it wasn’t there either. Oh shit! Without any money or credit card to pay for the stuff I’d have to put it all back, yet I couldn’t just quench my thirst and let my Daughter go thirsty. No, that would be horrible and I decided that times had changed and I need to change with them or fall behind. All of the stuff was going with me. All of it!

  I moved from isle to isle grabbing what I liked and several things I knew Kember would eat as well. Yeah, it wasn’t all that nutritional for us, but it was better than doing without. My task so enveloped me that I lost not only track of time, but also my ability to continue to ensure that I was alone and no one was either inside or outside. That was when, seemingly out of nowhere, my mind jumped several steps ahead to where the National Guard were. They would more than likely want some form of ID to prove who I was when I arrived, and without my wallet how would I do that? I hoped, for our sake, that they would see my Daughter and overlook this small fact. If they didn’t, we would be out in the world truly alone. That wasn’t a comforting thought.

  “I could always drive back and get it… I mean I could speed, that way none of those damn things get me.” The idea sounded even more absurd saying it than when I had thought it up. “Yeah, why don’t I just shoot myself now and spare those things the extra energy they’ll expend trying to get me… because if I go back now, they will get me.”

  Something hit the floor somewhere close by and I shot my eyes in its direction. Although I could see no one, that didn’t mean that someone hadn’t seen me and was hiding just out of sight, waiting for me to stumble by where I’d be out of screaming range from the Military. I suddenly wished that I hadn’t listened to logic and brought the .9mm in, that way if anyone came out at him I could hold them at bay and escape. I looked toward the SUV and hoped that Kember was still asleep.

  Grab the stuff and make a run for it! No one is coming back to this place anytime soon and when they do all of this stuff will be ruined… just go!

  This time and without a fraction of hesitation, I listened to reason, grabbed the four bags of drinks and junk food and headed for the door. I was stopped instantly by one of those things walking aimlessly in the parking lot looking up into the darkened sky. I ducked behind a coin operated machine that was three feet tall and placed there to rob people legally of their money.

  “Dammit! I knew this was a bad idea from the start,” I said glancing over my shoulder to ensure no one was sneaking up behind him and for a possible alternate route of escape. No one was. “Great, now what do I do?”

  The sound of the front door opening slowly called to me and I froze in fear. I wanted to close my eyes and wish myself someplace safe, like a deserted beach in the South Pacific.

  “Hurry up, man before that thing see’s us,” a frantic voice said in a high whisper.

  “I’m coming; just go I got the door,” another voice broke in.

  I watched silently as two Young Men entered the store, moved past me in a rush, oblivious to the fact that they were not alone as they most certainly must have thought. They crouched down one isle over from where I was and remained there.

  “Why did we come in here, man? There was a vehicle out there we could have used to get away.”

  “Don’t be so stupid. Whoever that thing belongs to is either dead or they ran away. No one’s going to leave the keys in their vehicle, especially not now.”

  I felt the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. I had only caught a glimpse of the two Young Men and with my wife’s SUV being the only vehicle out front, I knew it was time to leave. If they knew I was in the store with them they could easily get violent for the keys or would they be willing to just get a ride from me and call it even. I seriously doubt they’d call it even. I’d call it murder and car theft, they would call it surviving. Either way, I had to leave now and keep them, as well as that thing outside, from seeing me in the process. But how?

  “Well it’s better than sitting in here the rest of the night.”

  “How do you figure? No one knows we are in here, we are surrounded by all the junk food and drinks we could ever want, smokes and stupid travel games to pass the time.”

  A hiss followed the comment and I wasn’t sure if someone else was coming through the front door or if one of them was conveying what they felt without speaking. Either way I needed to get out of the store and back to Kember immediately. I pushed up a few inches on my knees, straightening my body out, to see the thing still in the parking lot, but now it was much closer to the highway and looking toward the interstate. I co
uld possibly make it out the door and to the SUV unnoticed by that thing, but what of the two Young Men in the store with me? Would I be able to leave without alerting them, and if not, could I make it to the SUV before they got to me? I knew I could “what if” all night long and get absolutely nowhere with it or I could do it and see. What did I have to lose in each scenario?

  “What the hell do we have here?” One of the Men said.

  “What is it?” The other asked.

  “We aren’t alone.” The first replied.

  Apparently when I was shifting back toward the floor, I must have made a slight noise that one of the Men heard and leaned up to investigate. I spun toward the doors expecting to see the thing now inside with us, yet as my eyes befell the doors I saw nothing that hadn’t been there when I arrived. The thing in the parking lot was gone. Where had it gone though? If it was behind the pumps, which I couldn’t see from where I was, and I tried to make a daring escape while being chased by the two men, the noise would draw its attention. Maybe that could be a good thing, that is, unless they caught me before I reached the SUV. Then it became a bad thing.

  I spun to my right to see both Young Men looking over the merchandise shelf directly at me. They both held a glare that didn’t frighten me per say, rather it made me wonder what they were going to do now that they knew they were not alone anymore.

  “Don’t make any noise. All it takes is one peep and that thing will be bashing those thin windows in before we can try and find a way out of this place,” I stammered, hoping to throw them off balance, if only for a minute or two.

  “What are you doing in here? You work here or something?” The Man on the left asked.

  “I heard there was a containment area at the interstate and figured I’d stop and get some smokes before heading that way.” I held up the newly opened pack of cigarettes for them to see.

  “That your SUV out there?”

  “Would I be here if it was?” I asked, hoping that they were not smart enough to see through my narrow disguise. I might have been a coward when it came to death chasing me, and I had every right to act that way, however, I wasn’t a coward when it came to the two Young Men in front of me. They were not much bigger than me, yet there was two of them and only one of me. I’d still fight them if it came down to it and I would use everything around me as a weapon to get the advantage over them. There were no rules when it came to fighting, I hadn’t used any in the past and I certainly wouldn’t be directed by them now.

  “Shit!” The Man said.

  The Second Man eyed Brandon closely as he spoke. “You armed?”

  That question needed no thought, as I knew if I said yes it could lead to a fight for ownership, if they were desperate enough and unarmed themselves. Saying no had its own set of problems as well. They could be armed and worried that I was a better shot then they, yet if I wasn’t armed then I was quickly a target for them to rob, if that’s even what they wanted to do.

  “I got a pocket knife, does that count?” I replied and pulled it up to where they both could see it, feeling more and more like the idiot I was so good at being. If they were armed and figured out somehow that the SUV was mine, I would be shot dead in just minutes.

  “Dammit!” Man One said. “Isn’t anyone armed these days?”

  I felt a sigh of relief at his statement. I would get to live a little longer.

  “Have you even checked to see if it’s unlocked, we could hotwire it if it was?” Man Two asked, still watching the stranger very closely.

  “I tried the driver door earlier, and then that thing showed up while I was in here getting something to drink… so I decided against going back out there at the moment.”

  “Shit, shit, shit. Now what the hell are we going to do?” Man One asked in negative tone.

  “Well, if it involves going out there, you can count me out. I’ve seen first-hand what those things can do to someone… not something I want to experience again,” I exclaimed, trying to make them think I was no hero type, but simply a coward. Which I was.

  A roll of thunder tumbled across the sky and sent the thing into a violent frenzy. It began beating on the gas pump, punch and kicking anything that was within reaching distance and I watched horrified at what it could do without any form of pain.

  “Jesus! Look at that damn thing… it’s gonna kill us all,” Man One stated. His friend turned to him and gave him a look of disapproval, shaking his head.

  “Knock it off!” he said. “It doesn’t know we are in here and we’re going to keep it that way, understand.”

  Man One nodded his head reluctantly, although the look plastered across his face spoke otherwise.

  “The interstate is just a few hundred feet away. If we can sneak out the back, then we can work our way through the darkness. That way it can’t see us – there has to be a car out there we can take.” He turned toward me, the suspicious look held firm. “The three of us together give a greater advantage.”

  I wasn’t going to go anywhere with them, as Kember was just outside and hopefully still asleep. I silently prayed that she would not wake up and begin crying, as I was in a rough spot and neither direction I could see would lead me very far. If I was going to survive I had to think straight and outsmart the two Men.

  “Did you hear me, man?” Man Two asked.

  “What?’ I said, still wrapped in the idea of looking for a way out.

  “I said the three of us will make a good team until we get out of the area.”

  There it was. The words I wished would never have been spoken, but they were. The plan was to bypass the interstate at all cost and move further away from help and deeper into the unknown. Only someone with something to hide would run from help, especially with the world falling apart as it was. Going the opposite direction was a sign of guilt as well as a sentence of death, neither of which I was inclined to tag along with.

  “No, I’m good right where I am. You two want to leave, go for it, but I’m staying right here,” I said quickly and it drew the attention of the Second Man with heightened suspicion. His eyes moved from me to the SUV, and then back to the items I was holding on to.

  “Quite the combination there, wouldn’t you say?” Man Two asked.

  “Come again?” I said, feeling the noose tighten around my neck. The Man was on to me and I needed to throw him of the trail quickly or I wouldn’t last much longer. Somehow I had been too evasive with my words or to swift with an answer. However it went, the game was almost up for me and if I did nothing soon, it would be game over. I was outnumbered, and although one of them was in a deep emotional state, it didn’t mean that he could not prolong the feelings long enough to help his buddy kill me and steal the SUV with ease. After that Kember’s life wouldn’t mean much to them. They might not be the ones to actually harm her, but they could just as easily put her out somewhere and let those things have her.

  “An energy drink, two things of fruit juice and some strawberry milk,” he said stroking the light hair on his chin, as if thinking deeper into the situation. “I would say that’s a combination not intended for just one person.”

  I looked at him putting on my best confused expression. “What are you saying?” I asked. “Just because I have an assortment drinks that means I’m not alone… is that it?” I looked around the dimly lit store. “Do you see anyone else here with us? Cause I sure as hell don’t!”

  The Second Man looked at the SUV once more. “They could be out there in that SUV waiting for you to return.”

  “And I told you it wasn’t mine, as well as the fact that it was locked,” my words were becoming increasingly defensive and they were giving me away even though I wasn’t fully aware of it at the time. The anger building for these two Young Men was getting the best of me. I knew what kind of lowlifes they were and how far they would go to get what they wanted. They only cared about themselves and it angered me beyond words.

  “While we are being honest here. Why are you bypassing the National Guard?�
�� I asked, eyeing the Second Man. “With what’s going on out there it would be stupid to run from the only help that can actually do something about it… that is, unless you had something to hide?”

  He ignored my statement. “If it’s yours just tell us and we can all leave here together.”

  “Even if it were my vehicle, which it isn’t, I’m not as stupid as you’re hoping I am. The second we leave here together, I wind up with a bullet in my head down the road and a nice ditch to rot in. Sorry, but no thanks.”

  A smile curved upon the Second Man’s face and I was now more than sure what their true intentions were. Now more than ever I wished the pistol was with me. The anger by itself wasn’t enough to blind me to the point of cold blooded murder, but their unfolding actions were. I could easily have raised the pistol and shot both of them in less than two seconds, found the back door and left. That thing would wind up getting in here and finishing them off as I drove safely away.

  “So who’s all with you?” Man Two asked.

  “Me, myself and I.”

  “Look man, this ain’t no fucking game here! If that’s your SUV then we can use it to get out of here.”

  “Like you said, there should be at least a few cars out there on the interstate… so go take your pick.” I fired back defiantly.

  Man Two suddenly found humor in my words and shook his head a few times. It was the look of a man trying to keep his cool when all he wanted to do was create havoc to whoever was in front of him. “Ah, man. You are making this so much harder than it really has to be.”

  “For who? You or me?” I asked tightening my grip on an unopened can of soda. It wasn’t a bullet, although if I was able to hit one of them square in the nose with it, it would be more than enough to even the odds.