Hellspawn Odyssey (5 page)

“Braiden, this isn’t the time, mate,” Kurt whispered, trying to calm the teenager before he did something drastic. Braiden relaxed but refused to break eye contact with the awful woman.

In the distance three more men were approaching, casually and in no rush. They knew the fence and the firearms would ensure cooperation in the group that had reached their base. The lieutenant stepped forward and appraised the survivors, looking at each. He was well turned out, his uniform crisp and ironed, six-foot-tall and with misty blue eyes that were unsettling when they met your gaze. It was as if he was looking at their souls, judging them for their deeds past and present.

“What can we do for you folks?” he finally talked and his voice was warm and friendly, but the eyes still exuded ice despite the smile.

“I’m Kurt, this is my family and that’s Debbie and Peter,” Kurt started.

“Pleased to meet you all, I’m Lieutenant Baxter, 42
nd
Artillery Regiment,” he replied and nodded at the group.

“We need your help. We have been through hell to get here,” Kurt said and the massed groans from the thousands of moving corpses half a mile away was testament to the fact.

“I’m sorry but we are under strict orders to not take any refugees, our facility is small and we simply cannot house civilians,” Baxter answered, still smiling.

“But you have to
!
We can’t go back out there, look at those things!” Kurt shouted at the senior soldier and the smile disappeared in an instant. “I’m sorry, but going back means death, please?” Kurt implored.

“I know what is out there
.
I have lost men to them before we barricaded the bridge with the vehicles,” Baxter said, reliving the first hours of the outbreak and remembering the brave men and women that had been on guard duty, who had died rather than abandon their posts.

“I’m so sorry to hear that. We can help you. We can pull our weight and earn our keep.” John took over, seeing the look of frustration that was boiling below the surface of his son.

“It’s just not possible, I’m truly sorry, believe me. We have had to turn others away, some forcibly.” The lieutenant emphasised the final word, telling the group that they would be shot if they tried to break in.

“Who is the commander here? Can we speak to him and plead our case? There must be a way,” John pressed on, ignoring the threat because the tearing teeth were far more terrifying to them.

“You are talking to me,” he stated, all warmth now gone, only the icy stare remaining. “And I am telling you that you must leave the island or you will be treated as a threat and be fired upon.”

The other soldiers cocked their weapons but didn’t aim, the message was loud and clear. Only one of the troops had a look of sympathy, the rest were as resolute and committed to their orders as their commander.

The family huddled up. All hope was lost now, their spirits crushed. They had all secretly known that the army would take them in, house them, feed them and protect them. The truth was; they had risked the journey for nothing.

“I’m sorry everyone. I don’t know what to do,” Kurt said, lost and forlorn.

“We keep moving!” Braiden whispered, which allowed him to talk with no pain.

“That’s a great idea, let’s just go and say hello to the creatures over there!” Debbie rounded on Braiden who was still furious at her. Before he could act she defiantly stormed over to the fence. “Now you listen here, I pay my taxes, which pays your wages. So technically you work for me, now I am demanding you
let us in
!” her voice rose to a shriek at the end.

The lieutenant took out his sidearm and fired a shot directly over her shoulder and she could hear the hiss of the passing slug as it tugged at her hair.

“Jesus! Don’t shoot!” Peter shouted and grabbed at Debbie who was staring in shock at the man, before falling onto her rump as she was yanked away from the fence.

“You have five minutes to leave, after that, shoot them,” Baxter told his men who looked ready to carry out the order. Only the young private looked uneasy at the prospect of firing on some of the last remaining humans on Earth. With this he walked away and the four subordinates took up positions to cover the group, their rifles and pistols were raised though not aimed any more. The single shot had been a suitable deterrent.

The family made their way back to the small boats, slump shouldered and quiet. They exchanged looks, lacking the words to convey the sense of desolation they all felt. Even Debbie was mercifully silent for once, though the shock would not last, they were sure of that.

“Hey, wait!” shouted the young soldier and the family looked back to see him approach the fence. The three others were not happy that he was trying to talk to them and disobeying orders, but they didn’t interfere. “There was a FOB set up at St Richard’s Hospital at the start of this.” Kurt just shrugged, unsure what the man was trying to tell them.

“Sorry, forward operating base. Some of our guys were dispatched to secure the medicines, equipment
,
and medical staff to help fight the outbreak. They may still be there,” he explained, desperately wanting to help them.

“You know how many of those things are between us and the hospital?” Kurt asked and the look on the young man’s face told them he did.

“It’s a chance,” he replied, knowing how weakly it came across.

“Have they been successful?” John asked, seizing this small sliver of hope.

“We haven’t had contact for a while,” replied the soldier and the conversation was over.

John and Kurt looked at one another and climbed in after the others, picking up the oars and pushing off from the stony beach. The silence that marked their return to the jetty was only interrupted by the occasional sound of water splashing as another zombie was displaced and fell into the water, ready to begin their unceasing flow with the changing tides.

They reached the barnacled moorings and tied the boats off before climbing back onto the wooden dock. They stood there for long minutes, holding one another silently, only Peter and Debbie standing to one side, estranged more so than ever. Paige reached out and pulled him in and Gloria tried to do the same with his cold fiancée but she just stepped back and ignored the gesture, while shooting hateful looks at Peter.

“So what do we do now?” Sam asked and Honey looked from face to face as if she waited for an answer too.

“It will be dark soon
.
I think we should reverse the vehicles to block the dock, then bed down in one of these larger vessels,” John suggested.

“Why don’t we try for one of the houses? The ones on stilts that we passed
,
” Debbie added, joining in for the first time. It was likely because she wanted more luxury than the hard floor of the boats. It would be a lot warmer and no one raised any objections.

“We will need to clear the area to be safe. I only saw three or four by the homes. We will need to be careful of the large group by the clubhouse
.
Do we risk moving the vehicles and the noise or shall we try and go on foot?” Kurt asked.

“I would be happier being closer to the vehicles. If we need to escape quickly I would prefer it if we don’t have to cross the marina to reach our transportation,” John answered and Kurt had to agree. Following the main roads and pathways it would only be about five hundred feet and on foot through the storage racks probably half the distance. In a world of walking horror, it could mean certain death.

They drove slowly back into the rows of stored boats, small and large laid out on racks ready for their owners who would never again take them out on the open sea. Kurt glimpsed the square community of twenty homes and came to a stop.

“Shit!” he muttered.

“What’s the matter, sweetheart?” Sarah asked, leaning forward. Kurt’s pointing finger indicated the much larger numbers who were now wandering around aimlessly by the stilted sanctuaries. Around twelve were immediately visible with more probably hidden by the environment, far too many to risk fighting for a good night’s sleep. Kurt opened the window and pointed for John to survey too, he could see the look of disappointment register on his father’s face. John thumbed backwards, trying to say ‘Boats?’ and Kurt gave him the thumbs up, slowly reversing, careful not to rev the engine and bring attention to themselves. They parked blocking the access ramp
.
The only way in would be to break through the van and climb out through the back doors.

They took all of the bed sheets and duvets they had salvaged to use as covers for the coming night. It was going to be long and bitterly cold, sleep would be difficult. The rhythmic motion of the boat and their fatigue would aid them. They picked a small for-hire fishing boat that had a sizeable canopy which would be a lifesaver if the grey sky shed the rain that was massing in the clouds overhead. Without mattresses they tried to use some of the thick duvets for comfort, but it left them with little to lay across their bodies when the temperature dropped.

“Shit!” Kurt muttered, sitting down on the edge of the boat in frustration.

“It’s ok, Dad, me and Braiden will go and see what we can find on the other boats,” Sam said and the boys set off to forage for anything that could help.

“Don’t panic, Kurt, worst case scenario is that we sleep on the deck and get bad backs. We will be warm enough.” Peter smiled, still cheerful in spite of their situation. Kurt nodded, appreciating the sentiment.

Honey chuffed quietly in agreement and licked his hand, Peter stroked her and she lay down, exposing her belly which he gently scratched causing her hind leg to kick involuntarily.

“Thanks, Peter. You are right, we will get through this,” Gloria said and smiled at their new friend.

“Great, a freezing floor and sharing blankets with strangers. Count me out
.
I am sleeping in the van.” Debbie huffed and picked up a duvet. Kurt grabbed it and pulled it from her hands aggressively, putting it back on the pile and meeting her furious expression.

“You sleep in the van and you do it without our blankets. Understand?” Kurt spoke quietly. He was seething and she knew it, he would either hit her or throw her into the dirty water.

“Fine, fuck you all!” She stormed off and Peter was tempted to go after her but he knew it was what she expected. Kurt sighed with disgust and passed a duvet to Peter.

“You should go to her, we will be ok.” Kurt was tired in body and soul. Fighting the Hellspawn was one thing, but his faith in human nature was being tested to the limit by the prevalence of malevolence and selfishness in those he encountered. What was the saying, the meek will inherit the Earth? Bullshit, Kurt thought to himself.

“No, she can sit there and get cold. She will come back in time,” Peter said and put the cover down, “Shit, where are the keys?”

“Here, don’t worry.” Kurt pulled them out of his pocket. “Do you really think she would have driven off?”

“No, well I don’t think so, but I’m glad you have the key anyway,” Peter told him. In truth, he wouldn’t have put it past her to leave them all stranded.

“Peter, how the hell did you end up with that?” Kurt asked, pointing at the van, meaning Debbie.

“Kurt!” Sarah admonished him. “Don’t be so rude.”

“No it’s ok. We met at university and have been together about six years, she was doing Sociology and I was in Business. We met at a student night in Portsmouth. We were only friends to start with. She didn’t want to be tied down to just one guy,” Peter explained and they tried to be understanding.

“When did she become… difficult?” Gloria tried to be diplomatic and Peter laughed.

“She has always been a bit of a bitch,” he replied and cast an anxious look down the jetty, fearing she would hear him.

“Then why did you stay with her?” Paige asked, genuinely interested in their dysfunctional relationship.

“I guess I was scared to leave. I tried to at the beginning, then she would attack me and threaten to kill herself. I caught her taking a bottle of painkillers once and I just decided to stay and see if she would change if I loved her enough.” Once again, Peter could hear how preposterous he sounded and was grateful his new friends didn’t mock him. Paige stood up and hugged him, pity and sadness for this poor soul pouring forth. Metal clanged as the back doors were slammed shut and they all grimaced and watched for renewed movement on the horizon. Luckily the quick bang wasn’t sufficient for the walking dead to pinpoint the location of the sound and none came to investigate.

“Oh God, she must have seen you hug me,” Peter said with real fear in his voice, he would be made to pay for this.

“Don’t worry. She won’t be touching you again,” Kurt vowed and meant it. He would gladly leave her to fend for herself if she tried anything.

“She just gets angry sometimes,” Peter repeated the same excuse again, the same one that domestic violence victims the world over have used to justify their ill treatment.

“Never. Ok?” Kurt clasped his shoulder and their eyes met. Peter grinned and Kurt smiled back, his mood lightening a bit.

“Dad, we have some stuff!” Sam declared, passing over armfuls of cheap, but spongy life preservers.