Edge of Instinct: Rabids Book 1 (13 page)

Amiel

Locking up the garage doors, and double checking them just to be sure, she decided she had better get as prepared for her trip the next day as possible. Taking her bag with her to the bathroom, she washed her head in the sink, and sponged down her upper body. She wasn’t about to take off the gun. As it was, she rushed through the cleaning, so that she could zip up her jacket again. Strange how the things that had seemed claustrophobic only days ago, were now the things that made her feel safe. Grabbing the bag in preparation to leave the bathroom, her eyes fell on Jaron’s book. A journal filled to the gills with information that could help her on her trip the next day. Yet while she could use all the help she could get, she couldn’t bring herself to touch the book again, not so soon after her last experience. She knew some of the entries were happier, at least she
hoped
they were. But the risk was far greater of reading another horror story, and being home alone so to speak, in this creepy garage was not the time to venture down that path.

With a silent promise to finish reading the journals when she got to Texas, she zipped it away into the concealed safety of the bag. She could practically hear Jaron laughing in her mind, saying ‘
what good will it do you then?
’ She ignored it and left the bathroom. Tossing the bag in Harley’s car, she made a frozen meal and stared at the garage doors with an almost morbid loyalty. The lights in the garage crackled to life, automatically turning on with the approach of night. Swallowing the food that had suddenly become a hard lump in her throat, Amiel’s eyes shifted to the cat walk where the surveillance screens flickered. Steeling herself, she grabbed a folding chair and climbed the steps to finish her meal in front of the screens.

Goosebumps broke out across her skin as the sun’s warmth disappeared altogether, leaving her to feel as though the garage were trapped in an ebony snow globe. The surveillance screens had switched over to a greenish hue that she guessed amounted to some sort of low lighting night vision. She choked on a gulp of water as shadowed shapes began filtering out of the darkness, approaching the blacked circle. She could see their eyes glimmering in the dark, their sporadic and primal movements as they circled the edge of what could easily be their doom should they venture too close. The tags around her neck began heating, and she gripped them in a fist, reveling in their burn and anger that began to permeate her. It grounded her, strengthened her. With a shaky breath, she leaned closer to a screen.

She was shocked to see just how human they appeared. Aside from school discussions, Amiel had not been allowed to view anything to do with the infected. But her mother couldn’t stop her from listening to the gossip of those who were allowed to learn more. The stories were vivid and horrid; the acts of violence something only an animal could be capable of. In her mind’s eye she had pictured them as disgusting zombie creatures, falling apart at the seams, moaning and groaning and limping everywhere with dead eyes. Instead, she found them to look no different from the average person walking down the street. There were minor details that set the warning bells off in your head, like the wrinkled and dirty clothing, the movements that were too fast and too graceful for a normal human. They stopped just short of the field, pacing up and down as though looking for any minor chink in the shield that would allow them access.

She sat a little taller in her chair as one male stopped just short of the blacked circle, staying in the shadows. He cocked his head from one side to another, before the glimmer of his eyes slid to land on the camera she was watching. Amiel jumped as his eyes seemed to lock on her own, though she knew that was impossible. Despite the shadows of the night obscuring most of his features, she could see those eyes. She could
feel
them. And she found that they held not the dead glazed over look she had imagined, but a chilling intellect and calculating predatory depth. She stared into these eyes and came to a grim acknowledgement. They were smart, they were fast, and they were utterly human in appearance. They were nothing like she had imagined. And that somehow made them more terrifying.

Goose bumps erupted across her skin as a demonic smile stretched his thin lips, eyes still boring their way through her. It was almost as though he knew she was watching, as though he could sense her fears. But of course that was ridiculous. Wasn’t it? She jumped a foot off her chair as he let out a garbled shout, motioning toward a nearby female Rabid. The female released a hideous scream, charged the fence, and sizzled away to lumps and ash. It happened so quickly it took Amiel’s brain several moments to catch up to what she had just witnessed. By then, the frightening male was sending another crashing into the invisible field.

The male never took his eyes off the camera, never glanced at the ashes piled at his feet, though his smile widened in a silent challenge. A challenge that said, “
Look what I can do to those of my own kind. Imagine what I can do to you.
” One word came to mind as she stood frozen, staring at this strange being
. Raider
. The rest were different, they obeyed this one. They were still far too human in appearance, yet watching their twitchy untrained movements she recognized them as mindless Rabids. But this man, their leader, had to be like the Raiders Jaron had mentioned in his book. She couldn’t see his features in the cameras, but she could tell he was rather good looking; handsome, feral, cold and calculating, killing his own just for the enjoyment of the fear it would strike in those he somehow knew to be watching. It was just like Jaron had said. This Raider was playing with her. As though answering her silent speculation, the Raider’s hand lifted and he waved.

Amiel surged to her feet with a horrified gasp, knocking the chair over behind her with a loud crash that scared her again. She quickly backed away from the screen, running down the steps to escape the horrible view of the laughing Raider. She tossed her half empty meal on the floor for the dogs, who were more than obliged to devour the contents. There was no way she could stomach it now, and maybe it would fill the dogs up enough that they wouldn’t eat her. Grabbing up the shotgun and her duffel, she launched herself into Harley’s car, slamming the locks down. Back pressed against the far door with both guns at the ready, Amiel’s body trembled as she fought against the debilitating fear surrounding her. She searched desperately for her anger to dissipate the fear. It wouldn’t come, her heart pounding against the walls of her chest like a terrified humming bird.

She stared out into the dim lighting of the garage, vaguely aware of the dogs taking up their sentry positions on either side of the car. She squeezed her eyes shut as the muffled scream of another Rabe’s death cry filtered through the thick glass of the car windows, hot tears leaking from her lids. Her eyes flew back open, the fear of the unknown keeping her from closing them again. The hours slipped by so slowly that Amiel thought she would go insane with the waiting. Or have a heart attack from the constant wild skittering of her heart. As the sun began its slow accent, chasing the shadows away, the screams lessened and she finally began to relax. Ever so slowly, Amiel’s eyes slid shut.

She jerked back against the door when something slammed into the opposite side of the car. A strangled scream surged from her throat when she saw the creepy Raider pressed against the glass. Shadows still concealed most of his features, yet a maniacal smile graced his face as he slammed against the glass shattering it and crawling in toward her. She screamed again, raising the shotgun to fire directly at his face. The sound of the gun startled her awake and she found herself in the safety of the car. The back passenger side window was blown out, the shot gun still smoked in her hands and Tandy’s dogs were quickly fleeing from the vicinity of the car. Her pounding pulse was like a throbbing roar in her ears, eyes wild as she tried to separate dream from reality. Either the rabid was lying on the ground outside the door, or she had just about killed Tandy’s dog.

Her eyes shifted to find the dogs, who now stood by the garage door, barking. Then she heard it; a horn blaring in the distance. Tandy’s horn! She fought to untangle herself from the strap of her duffel, and shoved open the door, cringing as more glass tingled to the ground. No Rabid on the ground. She felt relieved and guilty at once. No one was going to eat her, but she’d just wrecked Harley’s car.

Taking the steps of the catwalk two at a time until she reached the switches, she scanned the surveillance camera and saw Tandy’s truck waiting. She prayed he hadn’t been waiting out there for very long. She pushed the blue button, and the field flickered out. Immediately the truck pulled across the blackened line, and she pressed the button again. Racing back down the stairs, she forced her way through the leaping dogs, and unlocked the doors. She sent them running out, then ran back up the stairs. The camera’s revealed Tandy had stepped from the truck and was now standing next to it, leaning casually against the hood. Breath catching in her throat, uncertainty assailed her. The Rabids last night had seemed too human. Would she be able to tell if Tandy was? Would the dogs?

With an anxious breath, she twisted the red lever just enough to allow the dogs to exit the gate, then watched the screens with tense anticipation. The dogs took off out of the gate, racing toward Tandy. Were they racing to him in happiness, or racing in to tear him apart? Tandy dropped to his knees, arms wide open and the dogs slid to a halt right in front of him, tails wagging, tongues covering his face in kisses, not bite marks. Climbing to his feet, he turned and waved at the camera before moving back to the truck. Though she knew the action had been meant to console her, just his wave had sent a shivering flash back through her mind of a handsome savage toying with her mind.

Freeing the vision from her head with a quick shake, Amiel opened the gates, allowing the truck to drive through. Tandy’s truck stopped just outside the doors, and she could hear him calling out her name. Her feet stayed rooted to the stairs, tongue frozen to the roof of her mouth. He pushed through the doors, eyes searching until they found her at the top of the stairs.

“Ah, there you are.” He walked over with a bright smile, a cup in one hand, and white baggy in the other, arms open wide to show them off. “I bring gifts.” His cheerful smile faded as his gaze honed in on her fully, especially on her hand where it twitched just above the gun strapped to her thigh. He paused, searching her face. “Amiel? Ya alright, honey?” One look in his clear, penetrating but friendly eyes, and her feet finally unglued themselves. She surged down the stairs, tears streaming down her face as she threw herself into his wide open arms. He awkwardly patted her on the back with the hand that held her drink.

“There there now.” He cleared his throat, obviously at a loss as to what else to say. “I’m alright. No teeth marks, scratches, or nothin’.” When she sobbed harder, his consoling tone changed to a more protective one. “What happened?” She clung to him, spilling out everything, ending with her dream. At the end she cringed as she glanced over his shoulder at the car.

“Um…I’m pretty sure that I wrecked Harley’s car. Oh, and almost shot one of your dogs.” He pulled back, brow lifting. She bit her bottom lip, wincing. “I think they were jumping on the car to let me know that you were waiting outside…and…I was still dreaming, so I thought it was the Rabids trying to get in.” She shrugged with guilt. “It may not be such a great idea for me to sleep with guns anymore.” Tandy stared at her for a long moment, before bursting out laughing and hugging her in that one armed man hug men do.

“There’s never a dull moment with y’all around, girl. I think I’ll miss that when ya settle in down in Texas.” With a shake of his head, he handed her the cup and bag. Blinking and rubbing her eyes, she dropped to the couch. She was dead tired.

“You aren’t mad?”

“Why’d I be mad at ya for defendin’ yourself? Even if it were just a dream, it’s a good thing that your instincts kicked in.” He glanced down at his dogs and grunted when one of them cowered as though it were in trouble. “That one there’s the one that should be worried. They know better than to jump on that car.” He gave another stern grunt, but bent to pet the cowering dog on the head. It immediately rubbed its nose into Tandy’s hand, grateful for its owner’s forgiveness.

“Eat up girl, we gotta move out.” She mmm’ed in appreciation as the scent of coffee and donuts greeted her nose.

“Thank you so much for the food and coffee.”

“Well, I’ve noticed y’all ain’t much a mornin’ person. Figured ya didn’t sleep much last night neither, based on how jumpy y’all was when I left. Thought this might help. Guess I was more right than I knew.” He settled a hip against the couch, arms folding over his wide chest. A sigh of pure pleasure escaped her lips as she bit into the fluffy goodness of a glazed donut.

“Your ma’s real unhappy with ya right about now.” She nearly choked.

“You saw her?”

“Listened in on the gossip mill at the coffee shop. She’s got everyone in town hoppin’ like they was on hot coals. Was a lady in there jabberin’ away to her gal pal, all about Malinda callin’ everyone ‘bout her ‘disobedient daughter who is probably shackin’ up with some loser right about now’,” he quoted. Amiel squeezed her eyes shut with a groan. Leave it to her mother to start spreading around rumors like that. “Don’t worry yourself none, honey. I didn’t take it too much to heart.” He winked at her jovially, before walking toward his bike, and starting his travel prep.