The Killin' Fields (Alexa's Travels Book 2) (17 page)

Outside, noises of men working and muttering stayed at a muted level and the occasional animal call echoed softly. The sky waved softly and a light breeze dripping with that delicious scent roamed the town. It was a quiet, peaceful evening.

Mark didn’t like it. The noise earlier should have at least drawn the wolves to them. They should be under attack again.

Mark swept the town and the snoozing, working people. They’d been at that first station for a long time, had gotten used to following and doing what they were told. He didn’t expect to have trouble with any of them except for the soldiers and the two remaining gunfighters. During the battle with Merrik, their injured man had died. That trio was busy digging the grave. Even the mapmaker was taking part; Jim’s suit rumpled and face sorrowful.
The two gunfighters showed signs of stress and grieving, but the mapmakers cold glares toward the thief only got stronger.

Mark didn’t think the mapmaker looked like what his profession was. Instead of suspenders and glasses, the man wore a gunfighter’s long coat and two ivory-handled machetes. He was also toting a handgun on his hip, a rifle on his back, and a well-packed kit that said he planned to stay alive.

Mark slowly became aware of an icy chill running almost casually up his arm. He looked down with dread.

The corpse girl from the corn was at his side. Her hand, ghostly and faded with disease, was wrapped around his.

Mark tried to think, but it was almost impossible with her red orbs glowering at him in adoring hatred.

“If you wander off, you’re mine.”

Mark flinched, and the girl bared her fangs at him. Blood and drool rolled down the corner of her mouth and Mark felt the adrenalin kick in.

“Don’t.”

David’s calming voice helped Mark regain control enough to ask,” You see her?”

David swallowed, partly in nervous tension and partly from revulsion. “In a way that you can’t, I think. She’s walking. Dead.”

Mark watched the demon caress his tattooed knuckles lovingly. “Yeah, that’s what I though. Any ideas?”

David motioned Jacob over, but the rookie couldn’t pick anything out even when they pointed to the shadow and dripping blood. The preacher saw none of it.

During all this, the girl stayed still, giggling softly at herself. It was clear that she liked to torment her prey.

Mark felt the wind shift and shivered at the cold wave now swarming him.

The little girl looked at them with disappointment. “I have to go now. Master’s tired.”

The girl flashed her fangs one last time and slowly faded from view.

For a moment, neither man spoke, just let their thoughts go where they would. It was a long few seconds where they both resolved not to say anything. There was nothing anyone but Alexa could do and she already knew evil was following this wagon train.

David met Mark’s wide gaze with a face that was devoid of all expression. “Interesting world we live in.”

Mark agreed sagely, not betraying himself. “On levels these people can’t even begin to understand.”

David took up a place on the other side of the door and the two men returned to watching without saying another word on what had happened. Mentally, it was often hard to be with Alexa. All of them handled things as best they could, but their minds didn’t stop dwelling on it until they were relieved and able to join their mistress.

6

Come dawn, everyone was ready to go. There hadn’t been another night of rain and therefore, no attack, and the sleep had done all of them well.

Alexa waved two of her men into place on either side of the convoy and those four men spaced themselves out. Edward took Paul to the rear, and they were surrounded. Brian and Billy stayed alert as Merrik sent soldiers to walk near them, but the men didn’t look as if they would follow an attack order, and the driver let it slide.

Alexa marched at brisk pace and the travelers trailed her in sullenness. Few of them were used to being up so early, let alone already being on the road. The bleary behavior and stiff bodies caused too much noise, but Alexa didn’t offer reprimands that would fall on deaf ears. These people learned the hard way, and that was the only way. She wasn’t encouraged or disappointed in them for it. That was the response of most people since the war. The wonder was that any of them had survived the apocalypse at all.

Alexa’s men defiantly swept the corn and the variety of shadows that mocked them. They were used to walking with their mistress, but this was a very spread-out formation that none of them cared for. The sooner out of these slaughter conditions, the better.

As the morning faded into early afternoon and Alexa didn’t stop for lunch, there was a bit of grumbling but no one openly complained. Between the tempting smell and the shadow following them, darting out of view when spotted, it wasn’t a path that any of them wanted to be on for long.

Alexa increased their pace a short time later, sweat dripping down her sides in a familiar, almost comforting pattern. She didn’t care for the damp air or the blue of the sky, but it was the peaceful sense of sleepy contentment stealing over them that she did worry over. Nothing was this calm in the new world.

The corn lining each side of the dusty, weed-dotted dirt path began to look better as they traveled. The black mold faded and the yellow of the ears became visible again. The dirt at the base of the corn also changed from black and brittle, to warm and moist, it was inviting and mutters went around the convoy.

“It’s better here.”

“Yeah, but why?”

“Can we eat that if we boil?”

“Maybe the wolves don’t come in this area.”

Alexa kept marching and so did her men. When Edward and Paul caught up to the slowing rear of the train, they stepped around it and continued after Alexa. She hadn’t given an order to stop or even reduce speed and so they didn’t. In a matter of minutes, most of the wagon train was out their protective lines.

No longer as concerned now that the area wasn’t as dangerous, the travelers didn’t hurry to catch up until the screams began.

Alexa stopped, but didn’t send her men. She waited, hands resting lightly on the butts of her deadly guns.

The chaos died down quickly and the travelers caught up with one fatality and one serious wolf injury. The soldiers weren’t doing well.

Instead of listening to their complaints about the lack of protection, Alexa taught them a lesson.

“Stay with us or fend for yourself,” she warned. “We don’t break ranks for people who don’t obey my rules.”

She started walking again and this time, the travelers stayed much closer. Despite the feel, this wasn’t a good area and she’d reminded them of that by doing nothing. The soldiers hated her for it.

The brief wolf attack gave hope to some of the train, though. If that little hit was all nature had left, then humans were finally making a dent in the predators. In time, these might not be killing fields anymore.

The group settled back into walking and searching the corn, but the previous laughter and conversation was missing. The mood said not to get distracted by emotions when death could be only a row away at any given time.

Alexa approved. It was the attitude she had rolled through life with, and then carried into an apocalypse. Without it, she wouldn’t have survived the first year.

Undead Egos

1

The hut was pristine.

The group had been walking since leaving at dawn. It was now almost evening and everyone was moaning and muttering, whining for her to call it a night. As the shadows lengthened and stomachs rolled, bladders stretched, the complaints grew louder. Alexa’s men kept pace without complaint and waited for their mistress to deliver the news. Whenever she kept going after dark, she continued until dawn and then camped for the day. They’d spent weeks’ worth of hours traveling the roads with Alexa. It had started when she’d overheard one of her rookies say they never traveled after dark. He’d been listing it as a pro, but Alexa had viewed it as a con.

“Hey!”

Merrik’s shout drew attention, but no one stopped.

“Hey, warrior woman!”

Merrik’s taunt was met by Edward moving toward him from the rear.

“Leave him be,” Alexa ordered. She had spun, sure of how her men would react.

Edward pulled the punch, bumping violently into him instead as he stormed around and went to his post.

Merrik wisely didn’t follow. He strode to Alexa instead. “Where we stopping at,
Lady?”

It was an insult disguised as respect, and Edward growled from his place on the line.

Paul, who already hated Merrik, snickered. “I can give him a nosebleed.”

Edward’s head snapped down as if jerked by a string. His eyes narrowed into approving slits against the glare of carelessly held flashlights. “Do it.”

Paul concentrated on Merrik.

“Corbin didn’t know I could do things too. I’ve hidden all my life.”

Edward saw Merrik rub his temples and felt a reluctant respect for Paul. “What else can you do?”

Paul shrugged, trying not to trip now that it had gotten dark. “I don’t know you well enough to answer that.”

“And you won’t,” Edward shot back. “You heard her and no amount of headaches or pencil-pushing will change it.”

Edward motioned Paul to go in front of him and shook his head when Paul would have protested. “Save it for your fit at the end.”

Paul, face red, flipped Edward the finger, but did as he was told.

In the front of the train, Merrik was raising hell and being ignored, but as the hut came into view, everyone listened to his angry words.

“We’ve been on the road for twelve hours. We need a break!”

Alexa didn’t answer.

Merrik stepped in front of her, forcing her to halt. “That hut is fine. We’re stopping.”

Alexa sighed, stepping around him. “Only death waits inside. Do as you please, but my men and I will keep going.”

Merrik tried to grab her arm and Alexa spun out of his reach and kicked his legs out from under him at the same time.

Merrik smacked into the pavement with the side of his face, rattling him and drawing blood.

Paul snickered. “Okay, she’ll give him the nosebleed.”

Merrik jumped to his feet and scampered after her.

Mark stepped in his way, slamming their chests together.

Merrik fell backward and smacked his head on the ground.

“You heard her, same as everyone else,” Mark reinforced. “Keep going or be left here. Alone.”

Most of the wagon train kept going and stayed inside Alexa’s perimeter. The soldiers, however, had no choice but to follow their leader.

2

Merrik waved three of his men forward. “Secure that domicile. We’re making camp now.”

The men muttered, but didn’t protest. Merrik had the look of someone who would shoot if questioned.

The hut was small, with a bamboo roof that should have blown away in the weather years ago. Small iron rails led to the doorway that was covered in a fine layer of cloth that shimmered.

The three soldiers stepped into the hut reluctantly; fingers tight and itchy as one held the curtain back for the others to pass. They rushed forward into the dark.

The lights on their guns illuminated the small, round building and the piles of old bones lying scattered across the dirt floor. The inside of the hut was bare and dusty, without a single stick of furniture. There was only remnants of the dead who’d clearly been there a while.

“Over here,” the taller soldier whispered.

The men went into the rear area, ignored the broom and mop, the rusted bucket, and came back out into the main room.

“What’s that?”

The two men turned to find a yellowish light behind them, glowing from the same closet they’d just cleared.

“Did we miss that?”

“No way,” tall soldier denied nervously, gun coming up.

The three men moved back into the closet.

The light was a hovering orb in the center of the room and it spun, color fading and brightening each time it dipped and rose.

“What is that?” one of the men repeated.

Tall soldier had lowered his gun. “Beautiful.”

The orb lit up brilliantly, blinding, causing arms to rise for protection.

A long, clawed hand came from the orb and swiped out. It raked clothes and skin from bones, spraying blood and drawing screams.

Gunfire lit up the room this time, hitting walls, the orb, and the other two soldiers.

That long claw raked out again and took the last soldier’s head from his tall body. It thumped to the floor, face frozen in agony.

A soft mewling echoed and then there was silent darkness again.

Merrik waved two more soldiers forward, but this time, the men refused.

“Do it yourself, sir.”

Merrik drew his gun. “Do it!”

“No, sir.”

“You will.”

“Or what?”

“Or I’ll kill you.”

The men exchanged quick glances, choosing their fates, and two of them took off running.

Merrik shot both of them in the back.

“I want that hut cleared!” he roared.

This time when he motioned men forward, they went.

The screams and gunfire had stopped many of the convoy, but not Alexa and her men. When she kept walking, the other travelers caught up. When Merrik and his remaining men joined the rear, Alexa didn’t say anything and neither did anyone else. It was a hard lesson, but they’d all learned it, including the surviving soldiers. Merrik was extremely unstable.

3

The fog found them again a few hours before dawn and it was an ugly feeling to be mired in it. The shadows in the dampness twirled and danced, making them all uncomfortable, but it bothered their animals the most. The mules tugged restlessly against their harnesses, occasionally letting out a soft bellow of concern. The horses whinnied and pranced sideways even under the easiest grips, chickens gurgled in alarm, and it combined to create an atmosphere of near panic.

Alexa didn’t stop, though she was aware of the unrest. The first days of control had to set rules and limits. If she calmed them and explained her ways every time they got scared, she would always have to do it and there was never enough time for that when things exploded. They had to follow her without question or take their chances on their own.

Edward moved up to trade places with Daniel, eager to use his calming skills on the livestock. Alexa had already told them there would be a short time of safety through here and Edward was assuming this was it by the way she wasn’t tightening their guard or checking her weapons. The rest of the group didn’t know anything except that they were terrified. It made for a long transition into dawn.

They couldn’t pick out anything except corn from any vantage point so far and it wasn’t something they liked, but compared to the other people here, they were cool and calm. These folks twitched at the corn moans, though many of them had clearly been here for a long time. If they hadn’t calmed in those weeks or months, it meant something had kept that from happening. Now, they knew what it was.

Jacob drew leather as a cold chill came over him, spinning to see a large shadow swooping down behind him.

“Grab it!”

Jacob stared in surprise as one of the family’s hogs was lifted into the air and taken away by a creature with an eight-foot wingspan and irises as bright as the sun.

“What the hell is it with this place?” the preacher swore tiredly, rubbing at his scars.

“Hell,” the family slave walking near him murmured lowly. “Endless roads of eternal hell.”

Jacob holstered, resuming his place in line as he scanned the sky for the big flyer. “Yeah, I get that too.”

4

As the sky finally lightened, Alexa increased their pace. She wanted to be camped, fed, and sleeping. Alexa steered them around a narrow curve in the corn and raised her hand. Behind her, the train slowed and stopped. Each driver waited nervously for the call to stay or go on.

Alexa’s tilted head worried Edward. She was trying to figure something out and anything she didn’t know was trouble for everyone. He switched with David and moved to her side.

Alexa felt Edward come up beside her, but didn’t react. There was a light vibration to the wind that suggested problems were on the way. She was trying to determine what type.

Alexa’s fingers tapping the side of her holsters snagged Edward. She didn’t stop the restless tell and the horseman recognized the feeling. He spun a hand in the air to alert the other men and began checking his gear. It was time to survive.

“This way,” Alexa led them into the corn, hoping for cover, and the convoy was quickly surrounded by the tall stalks. She directed them to a quick trot as the others noticed the vibration. Except for Alexa, it was no longer just an uneasy feeling. It had become a flutter of panicked hunger.

“What the hell is that?!”

“Look out!”

The butterflies were large, with wings shaped like puzzle pieces, and their black eyes glared insanely at the sight of the travelers. The animals in the convoy sensed the coming chaos and saved time by acting up right then. The a horse bucked violently, a mule pulled the reigns from an unsuspecting hand, and three chickens ran into the side of their cages, popping open all the doors on the entire rickety coop setup. All hell had broken loose before the swarm hit them full blast from the left side and smothered the travelers under darkness. The sky vanished under black and white wings and tiny, razor-sharp teeth. Screams filled the air.

“This way!” Alexa led, slapping at the worst of insects around her face as she tried to stay low.

A few of the soldiers rushed by her in their panic, blindly stumbling into the corn.

The butterflies were vicious in their hunger. Blood came in trickles and rivulets as the larger insects swarmed together around the throats of the animals who couldn’t swat them away.

“Help!”

The rear wagon had stopped as the mule pulling it stopped, bleeding. Two of Alexa’s men grabbed the driver on their way by and rushed after the group, dragging the older man between them. Their boots left grungy, smeared tracks of red. No one cared about the wagon.

The butterflies, hungry and angry, were small but effective. They evaded swats and swipes and dove in to take a drink of blood or slice open a source with knife-like wings. Impossible to avoid, the flying menace would take a toll if Alexa didn’t do something.

Everyone expected to hear her guns, but bullets were useless against so small a foe. Alexa led them through the deepest part of the corn, following her instincts. “A little further!”

“A little further!”

“We’re almost there!”

“Keep coming!” her men encouraged.

The travelers kept as close to Alexa’s heels as they could, forcing panicking animals to obey, but it wasn’t enough to keep them together. Three soldiers were cut off by a fleeing wagon and stumbled blindly into the corn as they were swarmed. Daniel veered off after them and grabbed their arms, shoved them into line. “Run!”