The Withered Series (Book 1): Wither (29 page)

His
steps are unsteady.  From time to time he raises a hand to bat
away unseen things.  We stop frequently to drink but water is
not enough and we can’t risk giving him too much too soon.  Who
knows when we will find another reliable water source?

I
should have known he was feverish the instant I saw he return from
the woods.  Thinking back to the farmhouse when he seemed
unusually warm, camping in the woods or the shack when a fire wasn’t
enough to warm him, but he’d improved, hadn’t he?  Days
went by with little signs of discomfort, so much so that I’d
let my fears slip away.  Then I think on two nights before,
sleeping beside him at the cabin, snuggling up to his radiating
warmth.  My hands upon his flaming skin…

He
should have said something. Warned us.  Surely he has known he
was ill for several days.  Maybe he’s been ill since the
night he broke us out of the military base and it’s just taken
this long to really settle in.

I
have not noticed any other symptoms yet, but maybe he is hiding those
as well. It doesn’t matter now.  Alex and Victoria see it
but I pray that they fear only that he has fallen ill with the flu,
though I doubt it.  Everyone jumps to the worst conclusion these
days.

Both
refuse to meet my gaze so I take the lead, marching ahead with
purpose.  The trek through the hills is arduous. The path is
steep, the crevices slick from the recently fallen sleet.  

When
we finally reach the edge of the forest, I halt. Ducking low, I
motion for the group to do the same.  Alex kneels beside me.
 Cable on the other side. I can feel the heat flowing in waves
off him.  I want to say something but I bite my tongue.  Now
is not the time.

There
is a gully before us, no steeper than any that we have hiked today
but this one gleams in the broken moonlight. The storm must have been
worse here.  A sheet of ice lies between us and the highway
below.  

On
the other side of the road I spy a large building. A tall gas sign
rises to the sky.  Several semi-trucks sit in the parking lot.
 A pile up of cars betrays the panic travelers experienced in an
attempt to escape a fate that was already sealed.

“I
don’t like this,” Alex mutters.  Victoria nods in
agreement.

I
glance toward Cable and sigh, knowing we have no choice.  “Our
need hasn’t changed.  That building looks like an old
truck stop.  It probably still has food, clothes, maybe even
some camping supplies that we could use.  That meal we had last
night will only take us so far.  We need to keep up our strength
if we hope to keep going.”

“There
are probably survivors holed up inside enjoying all of those things
right now.”  I glance at Alex but he shrugs, agreeing with
Victoria’s assessment.

“How
far is the nearest town?”  I ask, tugging the map from the
side pocket of Alex’s backpack.  I open the worn pages
carefully.  They have been beaten and battered over the past two
weeks.  I don't know how much longer it will remain intact.
 Another reason why we need to risk going into that truck stop.
We can find maps out of this state.

I
watch his finger trail down the dimly lit page and blow out a breath
of frustration.  “Twenty miles at best. Maybe a little
more.”

From
the corner of my eye I see Cable close his eyes.  I know he’s
suffering in silence, trying not to be a burden.  “I’ll
go,” I say as I try to fold the map but finally give up when I
realize it’s a puzzle I’m not going to figure out in the
dark.

“No!”
Alex and Cable shout at the same time.

“Keep
your voices down,” I growl, sweeping my gaze on the road
before.  Abandoned cars dot the highway, some heading in a
northerly direction along the road but many plunged hood first into
an embankment.  Several are little more than charred remains and
I try not to wonder if the driver made it out or if they now wander
this road with their flesh completely melted away.

I
see movement among the cars, halting and labored.  I point to
where several Withered Ones walk repeatedly into car doors, slamming
their torsos into the metal until the door finally gives way and they
can continue on their path. I shudder at the sight.  

As
the clouds shift overhead, casting us in darkness, it illuminates the
road in the distance and my throat feels parched as I stare out over
the expanse.

“There
are hundreds of them,” Victoria whispers.  She wraps her
hand around Alex’s arm as she kneels beside him. She is
hurting.  Her limp has become more pronounced.  She blames
it on bad hips but I think all of this traveling has just been hard
on her.  I’ve never asked her age but I’d guess
she’s at least in her mid-sixties. She should be bouncing
grandkids on her knee instead of trekking through the woods at night.
 

“We
should go,” Alex says and starts to rise.

“No.”
 I grab onto him.  “Wait.”

He
turns back, shielding his face as the wind whips globs of slush from
the trees.  It pelts down on us.  “This is insane,
Avery.  We need to find shelter.”

“Just
watch them,” I whisper.

Never
has there been an opportunity as great as this to just observe their
behavior.  From this vantage point we are safe, relatively at
least.  The woods are to our back and we only saw three Moaners
all day.

“Can
you see it?”

Alex
casts a glance toward me then follows the direction I’m
pointing in.  In the ever shifting clouds, our window of sight
narrows and expands without warning. It makes it hard to focus on any
one place for long, but it’s long enough. I hear the inhalation
of breath from beside me.

“They
are moving together,” Alex says in a hushed tone.

I
nod.  “A herd with one apparent goal in mind.”

Victoria
leans out around Alex to look at me.  “What goal?”

I
swallow before answering. “To head south.”

“Figured
you would say that,” Alex mutters and glances over the top of
the overpass less than an eighth of a mile from us.  Though that
area isn’t currently lit by the moon, I can still decipher
movement.

“Maybe
they really don’t like the cold.”  I glance over at
Cable.  The dark circles under his eyes seem more prominent than
before.  

“We
have two choices.” I turn back to look at Alex.  “Ride
this ridge and walk parallel to those Moaners and hope we stumble
across a cave or shanty to sleep in, or we head for that truck stop
and find somewhere to hole up for the night.  Maybe even find
something to eat.”

Alex
glances toward Victoria. “What do you think?”

I
notice that her glasses no longer perch on her nose and she’s
given up trying to tame her hair, instead embracing reality.  Fear
pinches her wrinkled features, but as she glances down at the
movement on the road below, I know which she views as the lesser
danger.

“I’d
rather be able to see them in the light of day,” is her
response.  I hide my smile, knowing that Cable will side with
me, if for no other reason than to rest for a few moments.  The
tent, with its massive slit down the middle, is useless against the
elements.  We left it set up in the woods. Who knows, maybe it
will save some poor soul’s life one day?

Alex
sighs heavily. “What’s the good in being a leader when my
vote never counts?”

I
clap him on the back.  “A good leader knows when to take
counsel.”

“Oh?”
 He rises beside me. “Is that what it is?  And here I
thought you guys just liked telling me what to do.”

Alex
and Victoria lead the way toward the overpass. It is the easier of
the two paths, but also far more dangerous.  Despite the six
cars abandoned across the bridge, there will be far too much time
when we are out in the open, exposed to the naked eye.

I’m
not fool enough to think that the truck stop will be empty.  And
if it is, I’d bet the last drops of water in my bottle that
it’s being watched.

Grasping
Cable’s hand, I follow behind, my gaze steadily sweeping our
surroundings.  For once I would welcome the wind to help conceal
the sound of our passing.  Even the raspy moans below bring a
bit of relief.  

“This
is a bad idea,” Cable mutters.  I feel the tension in his
body, his muscles taut as he searches the shadows before us.  

“I
know, but we didn’t have a choice.”

“Of
course we did.”  He looks down at me and I see his
eyebrows pinched into a frown.  “I know why you pushed for
this.”

“Yeah,
cause I’m hungry.”

He
yanks on my arm.  “Don’t play dumb, Avery. It
doesn’t suit you.”

Ducking
down behind the first car, I crane my neck to see through the
passenger side window.  Alex and Victoria have reached the
second car but are only twenty feet ahead.  

“You
should have told me.”  I crouch back down and search the
ground, wishing I had a weapon.  As if sensing my frustration,
Cable hands me his knife but I push it back at him.  “You
know how to use it better than me.”

Grabbing
my wrist, he uncurls my hand and places the handle in my palm.  “You
need to learn.”

“Trial
by fire, huh?”

His
gaze is intense.  I don’t move, even when I hear Alex and
Victoria advancing, leaving us behind.  He digs in his pack and
pulls out a short handled ax, one of the few remaining tools we have
left from the farmhouse.  “How could you stand there this
morning and promise that you would be with me when you knew you were
infected?”

Cable
grits his teeth and looks away.  “Because I’m not
going out like them.  I’ll find a way to stop it.”

His
sentiment is almost laughable, or at least it would be if I didn’t
have tears choking off my airway.  “What else are you
hiding from me?”

“Nothing.”

“Cable—”

“Nothing.”
 When he turns back to face me, his face is so near I could
trace every curve and line on his face, feel his breath wash over me.
 “You explored my body pretty in depth two nights ago.
 You should know.”

At
the mention of our time spent in each other’s arms, Cable
tenses.  “Oh shit.”

“What?”

He
hangs his head.  “I was infected when we…when we…”

“Don’t.”
 I grip his arm.  Between Cable and Sal’s bite I know
my chances are not so hot at the moment, but I refuse to regret
spending that one night with him.  “It happened and I’m
glad it did.”

“Really?”

I
laugh at his blatant surprise. “Why do I get the feeling that
you always think the worst about me?”

Reaching
out his hand, he rubs his thumb across my cheek. “I could spend
a lifetime figuring out how to read you and I’d still have so
much to learn.”

I
sober at his words, knowing that a lifetime is exactly what he no
longer has.  “Hey,” he whispers, tugging my chin so
that I will look at him.  “I’m not going anywhere. I
promise.”

“You
can’t keep that promise.”

“Have
I ever let you down before?”

I
turn away, knowing that with every final breath he would fight the
change.  But it won't be enough.  It never is.

“They’re
leaving us behind.”  I wipe at my nose and swipe my hand
over my cheek to hide my tears.  “We need to move.”

Cable
follows right behind me, his hand on my lower back. I’m not
sure if he does that for his own peace of mind or simply that he
needs to touch me as we weave from car to car.  By the time we
hit the final vehicle we are over halfway across, but there is a
large gap between us and the end of the road.

I
can’t see Alex or Victoria anywhere.  I look long and
hard, praying that they made it to one of the semis and are waiting
for us.  I turn and press back against the car, trying to
prepare myself.

“No
matter what happens, I want you to run and keep running,” Cable
says.  His shoulder presses against me. I am drawn to his heat
like a moth to flame.  My fingers ache from the cold.  I
lost feeling in my toes quite some time ago.  My ears and nose
may still be a part of me. I’m not really sure any more.

“Can
I trust you to do the same?”

He
smiles and for a moment I almost imagine him happy and healthy again.
 “I guess you’ll just have to find out.”

“Fine.
 Stay on my ass and try not to fall behind.”

“It
will be a pleasure.” I glance back to see him grinning from ear
to ear as he cocks his head to openly check out my backside.  

“Wow,
and I thought you were a gentleman.”

I
don’t wait to hear his response, knowing that it will only
tempt me to linger. Keeping my head low, I dash out into the open.  I
run full out, sliding my feet like a skater over the thin layer of
ice.  I listen to the moans echoing up from below the overpass
and the sound of Cable’s boots hitting the pavement behind me.
 

“Over
here,” a hiss comes from the shadow of a semi and I veer to the
left.  Alex’s arm reaches out for me and I slam to a stop
against the truck.

“Shh,”
Victoria scolds as Cable slows to a halt with far more grace than I
just displayed.

I
toss him a ‘show off’ glare before ducking low and
crawling beneath the rig with Alex. “See anything?”

“Not
so far. No movement apart from the odd Moaner. No signs of survivors.
 There are patches of footprints over to the right, but there’s
no way to know who made them.”

I
search the bay of darkened windows before us.  Racks of books,
cheap gift items, and a cash register stand not far from the door.
 Beyond that I spy several aisles of shelves.  The back of
the shop is awash with shadow.

My
breathing sounds loud in my ears.  My heart thrums in my chest
and I fight to lower my pulse. It won’t do me any good to run
in there kamikaze and get my head blown off.  

“What
do you think?” Alex glances over at me.