The Harvest (Book 1) (9 page)

She wasn’t all that certain she wanted to know what they looked like. Some images were hard to erase from her minds chalkboard. The chalkboard that came alive when she awoke at two am and couldn’t go back to sleep. The chalkboard with its detailed pictures of the Mayor’s wife, Chief Ruiz, and the countless faces of the departed she’d encountered along the way. Nope, she’d decided, seeing the enemy was no longer on her list of things to know.

One last check in the mirror confirmed she looked as horrid as she imagined. Attempts to fix her unruly hair proved pointless, so she pulled her wool stocking cap down over the mess. It was the first time in months she had given her appearance any consideration. She laughed a bit at the stupidity of worrying about what her new traveling companions might think of her hair. It didn’t matter a hill of beans, but in a small way it felt good to have something human to worry over. Good because, in complete honesty, she’d grown weary of being alone.

Behind her the door inched open. Madison looked up in time to see Austin reaching for her. The tiny room didn’t allow space enough to turn around. He grabbed her from behind, placing his hand over her mouth. She instinctively reached for her gun, cursing herself for not having it. She struggled against him, and he tightened his hold.

“They’re here.” He whispered in her ear.

Those two words were like an instant numbing jolt to her nervous system. Madison ceased struggling and leaned against Austin’s chest. He held on to her with one arm while reaching behind him to close the door. “You ok?”

Madison regained her composure. “I’m fine.” She shrugged out of his arms.

“Can I have the goggles?” He asked, holding out his hand.

She turned them over, leaning as far away from him as possible. He shut off the light, put on the goggles, and reached for her hand. “Hold onto my arm. Stay close. We’re going back to the freezer.”

“What? We can’t go out there?” She backed away from, bumped up against the sink and cussed. Having just made up her mind that she didn’t want to see the enemy and here he was suggesting they make a mad dash to the freezer amidst the enemy.

He pulled her to him, his voice low, but very much in command. “They’re in the main store. We move now, we live.” He turned to the door, opened it a crack and scanned the area out beyond the meat cases. When he felt her hand grab his arm, he pushed the door open enough for them to step out.

They moved swift and quiet. Only a few steps before they reached the storage room door a sonic screech pierced the airwaves and shattered the glass meat cases. Instinctively they froze on spot. Out in the store he could see shadows moving about. Madison’s grip on Austin’s arm tightened, her worst fears were about to come true. He grabbed her hand, pulled her down to her knees.

“Crawl.” He ordered and she obeyed.

After what felt like an eternity, they made it to the storage room door. Austin reached up for the handle, but stopped. He again pulled Madison next to him, up against the door, and held her tight around the shoulders. Instincts drove her to be silent and still, not a single muscle twitched.

Through the green panorama of the goggles, Austin’s eyes shifted from the crack under the storage door to its small glassless window. Up and down he watched the shadows moving. They moved closer, grew louder, and then stopped outside the door. Those same guttural noises he’d heard that day on the phone with Mitch floated through the opening.

They listened to the creatures communicate, the sounds growing louder. Madison pushed herself up against the wall, holding her breath she squeezed Austin’s arm twice. He squeezed back once as if to say yes there were two, maybe more.

There was a loud flutter, like a flock of very large birds had been disturbed into the air. Austin could only see shadows, but he was certain there was more than two. The creatures spoke to one another in short quick sounds. Then silence filled the room, so heavy Madison swore she’d suffocate.

A piercing screech again filled the air. The force blasted the metal door off its hinges, and sent it flying across the room where it landed at an angle against the wall, directly over where Austin and Madison sat. Austin grabbed the handle, held the door in place over the top of them. There weren’t many details that he knew for certain about the creatures, but one thing he had learned was they couldn’t see or smell through aluminum. So call it a stroke of luck, or call it whatever made sense, but that door was the only thing between them and a certain unpleasant death.

The beasts nails clicked, clacked across the concrete floor as they moved closer to them. They seemed to pause in front of the door and sniff the air. Austin felt Madison flinch and gave her arm a squeeze, willing her to hold it together. More clicks moved across the concrete to stop in front of the door. There was the flutter of wings. The beasts spoke to one another in their odd language that was neither human nor animal. From the various tones Austin guessed there were at least four, but there was an awful lot of clicking, so he couldn’t be sure.

Something bumped into the door, causing it to shift. Austin grasped the handle with both hands, preventing the door from sliding away. He willed all of his strength into his arms, ignoring the burning protest from his strained muscles. He willed the creatures to leave, to spare them the savage death so many others had suffered.

Knowing enough about what they looked like, Austin was grateful Madison didn’t know what loomed on the other side. If she could, she would see milling about in the storage room five creatures that most certainly had escaped from a horror story and couldn’t possibly be real. Five beasts that in size alone dwarfed the storage room to appear no bigger than a broom closet. If she had known what they looked like, she never would have followed him out of the bathroom.

What would have blown even Austin’s mind was that outside the store hundreds more waited in the streets, waited for their leader to return. The Alpha of the group, easy to pick out if you had the luxury of observation, towered over the other four in the storage room. Using hard quick sounds, the Alpha gave a command. The other beasts obeyed and exited the storage room.

Under the door, Austin listened to their clicking footsteps fade away. He relaxed his hold on the handle. Silence filled the room. Madison dared to breathe. Then there was a click clack on the floor. A clawed foot stepped next to the open end of where they were hiding. Austin examined the foot, took in the fierce talons, the skin was smooth and hairless. Again he was thankful Madison couldn’t see what he was seeing.

Sudden immense pressure pushed down upon them. The beast had stepped on top of the door, smashing Austin and Madison between the door and the wall. At the point when they were unable to breathe, when Austin was about to push back, an animalistic screech coming from outside the store exploded across night air. When the noise subsided, the creature on top of the door clucked in fast bursts, its tone angry. The pressure on the door increased and with a swoosh of air that created a suction affect, Austin lost his grip on the handle and the door went careening across the room.

Austin jumped in front of Madison, ready to protect her, ready to fight to the death, when a loud crash of metal overhead drew his attention upward. Above him, through the sheetrock and wires, he could just make out a jagged opening through the roof.

“It went through the roof.” He whispered to Madison while helping her up. “I think they’re gone for now.” He continued to hold on to her.

Unable to get the shakes under control, she allowed Austin to hold her up. He opened the storage door and held Madison until they reached the freezer door. He knocked twice. Luke, who had waited with his ear plastered to the door for the nine minutes and fourteen seconds they were gone, pushed the door open. 

This was the closest humans had come to the alien beasts and lived. Although Austin and Madison weren’t aware of this, it wouldn’t have surprised them to know just how lucky they were to be alive.

7 DODGE CITY, KANSAS

After two weeks of rigorous travel on foot the trio arrived in Dodge City. They staggered into the snow laden city around five in the afternoon, just as the sundogs faded behind the dimming sky, leaving the main sun to sit alone above the horizon. It too would soon be swallowed by darkness. Darkness so complete, it left not a star shining in the sky.

With no grocery store in sight, Austin decided on the Dodge City Diner. He couldn’t risk being caught anywhere out in the open or near open spaces after night set in. Their close call in Oklahoma remained fresh on his mind, the image of that clawed foot, those eerie sounds, were difficult to erase. He knew it was a minor miracle they were alive, and guessed Madison thought the same.

The diner’s exterior appeared in good shape. Surprised to see the glass entrance doors were intact, Madison did a quick survey of the place before going inside. It was duly noted all windows were still in one piece. This was good, she thought. Broken glass was usually accompanied by corpses, those on the ground and the occasional ones that fell from the sky. The way she saw it, the more shattered glass the higher the odds were stacked against them.

“The Dodge City odds, or gods, are with us.” She proclaimed once inside the diner, where the guys were already scouting for provisions.

Luke handed her a bottle of almost thawed water. “How’d ya figure?”

“No broken glass and no bodies lying in the street or anywhere else for that matter.” She accepted the water and headed for the lady’s room. She passed Austin on her way, ignoring his piercing stare. So what if she had to go to the bathroom at every stop. What woman wouldn’t? She shut the door firmly behind her, maybe a bit harder than she intended, and then scolded herself for allowing him to get under her skin. Again.

The mirror let her know just how road worn she has become. Dry skin, cracked lips, matted hair. ‘God awful’ her momma would have declared. She fished toothpaste and a toothbrush from her backpack. At least her oral hygiene hadn’t suffered much, she mused. Funny to care so much about such a thing as clean teeth, but in a world gone mad it was important to find an anchor.  Mundane things were good solid anchors. No thinking required.

Using one of the cigarette lighters she picked up at a gas station, Madison defrosted her toothpaste in a small glass. As soon as it became pliable she scooped it out with her toothbrush, poured water into the glass and commenced to spreading cool freshness throughout her mouth. She never before gave so much thought to the wonderfulness of a fresh mouth. Minty fresh.

A knock on the door startled her. She opened it a crack.

“Do you wanna wash your hair?” Austin inquired.

“What?” Her response was muffled behind her hand. “Hold on.” She turned away, spit in her glass, back handed her mouth to wipe off any residue left behind. She opened the door all the way. “Did you ask if I wanted to wash my hair?”

“There’s gas left in the tanks. We can heat water for your hair.” He offered in his usual stand offish way.

His cold mannerism would have irritated her, because despite having spent every waking and sleeping moment together of the past two weeks, Austin had yet to let his guard down around her. Luke was an open book, but Austin, forget it. However, right at this moment she didn’t give a flying flip if he ever warmed up to her. They had hot water and hot water trumped a cold attitude these days.

“What about scissors?” She asked.

“Scissors.” He frowned.

She mimicked cutting her hair. “Easy maintenance right?” She gave him a weak smile.

“Less water. Could leave enough to wash your…your feet if you wanted to.”

“Great. You’ll do the honors.” She walked out past him.

He followed after her. “Oh hell no.” He said, shaking his head. “Luke can cut it.”

“What’s the big deal?” Madison turned to face him. “It’ll grow back.”

“Right. And until it does you’ll whine and cry about what a bad job I did. No thanks sister.”

“Who’s whinin’ and cryin’?” Luke walked up to them.

“Austin is. And he’s chicken shit.” Madison laid this out as a challenge.

“Bull shit. Austin ain’t chickin’ shit ‘bout nothin.” Luke proclaimed in full sincerity. In his eyes the captain was the shit. He’d even go so far as to bet Austin could walk on water if the captain decided that’s what had to be done.

“Then why won’t he cut my hair?” Madison asked Luke, but directed her gaze on Austin.

Although Luke idolized Austin, he was quick to take Madison’s side whenever the opportunity arose. “Yeah. Why won’t you cut her hair?”

“Shit. I’ll cut your damn hair if it’ll shut you both up.” He answered. “Find some scissors before I change my mind.”

Luke and Madison scurried off to the kitchen in search of scissors. Austin watched them go. He didn’t smile or frown or exhibit any expression that might give away his thoughts, but his hand went to rubbing his head. His mind drifted back in time, back to when he and Roxanne were first married.

Austin had just finished basic training and they were dirt poor and dirt broke on top of being dirt poor. Roxanne had come into the bedroom of their shoebox sized apartment carrying a pair of scissors. He joked with her that she planned to stab him in order to collect the insurance money, but she’d only wanted him to cut her hair. He’d done such a bad job of it, but she never complained.

Madison and Luke returned drawing Austin back to the present. Sensing his surly mood, Madison handed the scissors to Luke. “Luke can cut it. I really don’t care how it turns out.”

“I’ll do it.” He responded, softening his tone enough to catch Madison’s attention. She bit her tongue to stop any insults from hurling out, declaring a cease fighting in her mind. Peace over pride was a good thing.

With a table cloth wrapped around her shoulders, Madison sat on a bar stool and held her breath. Austin took his time chopping away the layers of her thick wavy hair. For her part, she stared straight ahead, not wanting to see her only redeeming female quality falling to the floor.

“How short?” Austin paused in his butchery.