The Seventh Day (18 page)

The conversation is making me like a weird third
wheel, so I settle back into the seat, watching as we draw closer to the
island. The clouds in the sky are a bit darker as we get closer to the other
side of the sound. The waves get worse as we approach land. Lee takes her hands
off the wheel and lets Kyle steer us into a dock near a rocky beach and a large
house. There’s a small sailboat already moored there so he goes to the far side
of the dock. When he slows and pulls up, Miles jumps off and ties us to the
dock. He walks up the wooden planks, scanning the area for biters or anyone
else, I imagine.

He waves a hand for us to join him. Erin hops off,
helping Lee. Kyle pockets the key and waits for me to climb off. My legs feel
weird on the floating dock and they don't improve as we get onto the huge lawn
leading to the large house. Each step is a little bouncy.

“If there are no biters here, where are the
people?” Lee asks and instantly I have to wonder the same thing.

Kyle glances around. “Maybe everyone is on the
base.”

It sounds logical but deep inside of me my tummy
magic disagrees. It tells me to get back on that boat and leave. It tells me to
go home. But the desire to find my father is so much stronger than the instinct
that tells me I am not safe here.

The lawn is manicured, the house is pristine, and
the smell in the air is salty and freeing, but I do not feel safe. Nothing
moves. No one snaps their teeth and there is no rustling in the woods, but I
cannot get past the fear it’s bad here. It’s bad everywhere.

Miles and Erin walk ahead, rounding the corner
first. I hurry to catch up, wanting to see what the front yard looks like.
Miles holds a hand up, halting me as he looks around with Erin. She crouches
and creeps through bushes and around a minivan. She waves her hand at Miles,
giving him
a thumbs
up. He stalks to the windows,
peering in and tests the front door, without knocking. When it opens he nods at
us and walks in, peeking and leaving the door ajar.

Erin waits but Kyle follows him inside.

Lee gives me a look, and I realize then that we are
the only two who don't know what the heck they’re doing.

Kyle comes back out, jingling keys. My eyes draw to
the minivan but my feet don't move. My jaw drops when he climbs in. “We can’t
steal this one too. Was the house okay? Was there anyone in there? These people
might be alive still.”

Lee points at it. “They might come back any second.
If the bridge was blown, the biters might not have come here. This is stealing
if these people are alive. We only take from the dead.”

I nod. “If they have martial law here we could be
shot for this.” Kyle ignores us.

Miles comes out, wrinkling his lips as he closes
the door. “The power, phones, Wi-Fi, and cell service are out here too.” He
runs a hand through his dark hair and points at the van. “Get in.”

Erin nods at Lee and me before she jumps in the
back, leaving the door open for us. Lee shrugs and follows her sister into the back
of the van. I climb in, not completely sure what I was expecting, but more
running wasn't it. I expected something far different when we landed.

When I sit in the back with Lee, she leans in,
whispering, “This is a bad sign.”

I whisper back, “I was expecting military or people
or something. That house is empty. If we are taking their van, where are they?
Why didn't they take it when they left? Why didn't they take their sailboat?”

When Kyle pulls onto the road from the long
driveway, my stomach sinks. Cars line the roads, blocking it in some places.
Biters are frozen on the streets and in the middle of lawns. They jerk to life,
chasing us immediately. “Uhhhh, guys, this doesn't look so different from my town,”
I mutter. “Only the biters here are faster. Warmer temperatures and all.”

Miles turns from the passenger side. “I don't think
I need to say I told you so—you three know that, right?”

Erin shakes her head, looking tense again. “We need
to see the base. My dad might be there.”

“Yeah, our dad and Lou’s might both be there. We
need to just see the base. Maybe it’s better there,” Lee agrees.

Kyle’s jaw tenses as he maneuvers through the
vehicles. Biters line the roads, standing frozen on lawns, driveways,
middle
of the roadway. They’re everywhere. Each one jerks to
the right three times before springing to life. They slam into the van,
smashing on the glass as we sail by.

We’re the only
vehicle
on
the road and I don't see people, not normal ones.
Just the
biters who are frozen in their yard, looking emaciated and windblown.
There are no people in the windows, waving us down. Or people in the streets,
fleeing for their lives.

As we leave the quiet streets of the residential
area we are in, we enter a little town called Coupeville. It’s small, with
waterfront pubs and restaurants. The people of the town who have left their
houses all stand, looking ragged and homeless, and possibly made of wax until
we get near enough that they hear us. Then they become enraged, moving faster
than I have seen biters move. The speed of them here on the coast is alarming.

Kyle drives around the town, which reminds me of a
calendar I saw once, muttering to
himself
about bad
ideas. I don't listen to him. I’m trying to appreciate the quaint fishing village
and how the look of it makes me almost feel serene. It lasts but a second
before the biters take the impression away.

“Shit, we’re almost out of gas.” Kyle slaps the
steering wheel.

Miles laughs. “You rich people are always the most
reckless.”

“They weren’t that rich. You see how small that
boat was? And rich people don't buy minivans.” Kyle mutters some more while
lifting his middle finger and still scanning for something, maybe a gas
station.

Miles turns back and I expect his doting eyes to
find Erin’s and maybe they’ll kiss some more. But his blue stare searches out
mine. He looks as if he’s asking me if I’m okay. I nod subtly but he doesn't
turn around. He gives me a look that I have seen him give Jamie a bunch of
times. I inwardly sigh while outwardly returning the same look, pretending it’s
cool that he sees a little sister and not a girl. He’s checking on me because
the area is terrifying. I get that.

“Ha, look! We’ve lost them!” Kyle gets excited.
“And we found a gas station.” He drives in, stopping at the pump like it’s any
other road trip. “It might be our lucky day.” He winces. “I shouldn't have said
that. It was cocky.” He looks up. “I take it back. Please don't make me pay for
that.”

It makes me laugh. He thinks the same way I do.

Erin opens the door, getting out slowly. She grips
to her gun, not making a sound as she crosses the still parking lot. Miles follows
her as Kyle jumps out but waits at the pump in case they find a generator in
the back.

I hop out and lift the cover off of the hole in the
parking lot where the gas is stored in the ground. I never knew that gas was
stored like this before.

In the silence of the parking lot a noise starts
low—a hum like a car. As it gets louder we all stand, bracing ourselves
for what is coming.

Across the way at a strip mall, a small white car drives
through the parking lot and across the road to the gas station. It looks weird
seeing it, all alone and noisy in this suddenly quiet world.

The lady driving pulls up in front of us, and gets
out with her hands up as if we are dangerous criminals. “Are you getting gas?” she
asks tearfully. Before any of us speaks, she starts to sob. A child climbs out
cautiously, giving us the apprehensive stare down.

Kyle lifts his hand, speaking calmly. “We are
getting gas. Are you okay? Is she okay? Is she your mom?” he asks the little
girl who ignores him.

The woman shakes, twitching and sobbing. Kyle walks
to her slowly, taking her in his arms like he’s the crazy-woman whisperer. She
doesn't fight him on it; she collapses onto his broad chest and lets him hold
her, a perfect stranger. The child starts to cry but stays, gripping to the
door.

Lee glances back at me, her eyes are filled with a
knowing look. We both realize it instantly: the military base is clearly not a
safe zone or this local woman would be there.

A loud hum starts up as the lights flicker and the
pumps all begin making a clicking noise. I cover the hole in the ground as Lee
jumps up and starts filling the van before the generator stops.

Erin squeals inside, clearly finding something akin
to the Twinkie on
Zombieland
.

When I look back, Kyle is filling the lady’s car
and some jerry cans for her.

The woman holds her child, both still visibly
shaking. When her eyes meet mine, I smile, not sure what to do. “You from
here?” she asks me, starting the small talk because our eyes accidentally met.

“No, we’re from everywhere. How long has it been
since the island went?” I don't want small talk. I want my dad and to go home
to my sister.

“Six days.” She sniffles. “We watched the news a
week ago and saw all the footage but nothing was happening here. On our local
channel they said they were taking the bridge out to prevent anyone bringing it
on the island. We heard the naval base was a safe zone, but when we tried to go
there, the lineup was insane. They checked everyone in the line. People started
screaming and when I looked back, people were trying to hurt other people. I
assumed a riot had broken out. I left the lineup and drove across a field. We went
home and locked up the house, like my husband told me to.” She pauses, reliving
something. Her eyes narrow as she continues, “Before things got bad, my husband
called in a panic from Boston. Told me the city was going nuts and to batten
down the hatches so I had some supplies. He said it was some kind of sickness.
But when we got home, what we saw
was people
attacking
other people in the streets. One of our neighbors bit the other one.” She
kisses her daughter’s head. “We left the house today because we wanted to see
if the base was really a safe zone. We saw some of them falling down, the
biters, just dying on the spot. The ones in the yard were dropping like flies.
We thought it might be safe but there’s still so many. I just wonder if
anywhere is doing well.”

I wince, completely overloaded and not sure what to
add to the epic tale. I like that she skipped the small crap and went straight
for the answers I wanted.

Lee looks into the gas station and nods. “No.
Me and my sister
have driven from coast to coast and it’s
bad everywhere. We thought the base was safe too. We came from Bangor.”

The woman sighs, looking defeated. She tucks her
dark hair behind her ear and folds her arms over her child. “I don't know where
we’ll go from here.”

“We’re going to check the base now, if you want to
follow us,” Kyle offers as he puts the lids on the jerry cans. “You can ride
with us if you want. If the base is going strong you’ll be safe, and if not, we
can get you to the mainland.”

She shrugs and carries the jerry cans to the back
of the car. “I guess we can try that but we’ll bring our own car.” Her eyes
dart to her daughter.

Miles strolls out of the gas station with a tray of
hot drinks. “Coffee anyone?”

Lee raises her hand. “I’ll take one of those.

He passes her one that seems specific. “Erin made
yours.”

Lee cocks an eyebrow after the first sip. “It’s the
frikkin’ z-apoc and she’s finally got my order right.”

“Oh, that's funny.” The lady stops crying and
laughs. “I’ve been saying that for years. Z-apoc.”

I raise my eyebrows. “I always say
Shaun of the Dead
.”

“Yeah, you do.” Kyle snorts, shaking his head. I
don't remember saying it in front of him but I guess I have.

The little girl nods. “My mom does say z-apoc, a
lot. She makes me use hand sanitizer all the time when she says it.”

“I'm Gale, and this cheeky little thing is
Melissa.”
The lady points, earning a frown from the little
brunette.

Lee grins wide, completely friendly and bold with
strangers. “I'm Lee. This is Lou, and Kyle is your gas server today. Miles is
the coffee boy and my sister, Erin, is the girl inside of the gas station
dancing around like an idiot.”

Miles hands her a coffee and smiles. “Where were
you headed?”

“Nowhere. I’m from here.” Gale frowns. “My husband
was in Boston last time I spoke to him but he was headed back to California for
work. I don't know if he made it out or if they canceled all flights. I heard
rumors of quarantines. Like we may not be able to get out of certain states. I
wasn't sure if I was leaving the island today or not.”

Miles shrugs. “We drove across. We never saw a
single quarantine. I think it happened too fast. I don't think they stood a
chance at moving as quickly as this sickness does. I don't think California is
a good idea though. Oregon and Washington seem safer to me than Cali. Less
populated.”

“Well, I need to find my husband.” Her voice sounds
like she’s made up her mind. “I thought he’d try to come to us but then I
realized maybe he can’t. Maybe the airports are shut down and he’s stuck
somewhere. Maybe with the military somewhere.”