Leaves raced across the ground at the young man's feet until they came to a halt at the base of a tree. He heard the laughter of a young child behind him. "Luke what are you doing back there?" Kriss heard leaves crumble behind him. When he turned and looked back he saw a small boy lying in a small pile of leaves.
"This is fun daddy. You should help me make another pile. Please daddy? We can make it big." The small boy looked at his father in hope that he would help. Kriss rose from the park bench and walked over to his son's side. He grabbed the small boy's arms and pulled him from the pile. The leaves crumbled under their feet.
"I'm sorry Luke but we have to go home. Your mother will have dinner ready soon and she won't like it if we are late."
Kriss began to walk toward the gate to the park. Luke quickly caught up to him. The park was beautiful in the late fall when all the leaves were on the ground. Kriss now saw the large white gate at the entrance to the park. The rest of the park was surrounded by a six foot brick wall. The park had been there nearly as long as the city itself.
They walked out of the gate and onto the sidewalk. Kriss grabbed Luke's hand and began to walk. The streets were unnaturally empty and so were the shops. Kriss and Luke walked quietly down the street. As they neared a bus stop the man saw a young woman sitting on the bench with a large rag on her arm.
"Ma'am are you ok?" he asked.
"Yes I should be fine. Some drunken idiot bit me. I'm going to the hospital to get it looked at." She replied. The woman moved the towel to reveal bloody human teeth marks on her arm. Kriss winced and shielded his son from the sight. The two of them began to walk again but with more haste. When they reached the end of the next street he looked at his son and smiled.
"Would you like to see a really cool short cut Luke?"
"Sure daddy."
Kriss walked with his son across the street and into an ally. He pulled a ladder down from an escape exit and began to climb. Luke followed. When they reached the top of the first platform Kriss pulled down a set of stairs and led Luke up them. He repeated this until they reached the top floor of the building. All that was left was a window that Kriss tapped on.
A beautiful woman came to the window and opened it. "I thought I told you not to use the escape exit. You know how much it scares me when you do."
"I'm sorry dear I just wanted to show Luke. Maybe he will need it one day." Kriss lifted his son through the window and into the apartment then climbed in behind him.
The room was a small living room with a TV and couch. Kriss followed the woman into the kitchen. As they walked the shine of her ring caught his eye they had been married for 7 years and their life had been happy together. "That corporation, oh darn what's it called honey?" She stopped for a moment and looked deep in thought. "Umbrella!" she said with a small shout and feeling of achievement. "The news said that they had some sort of computer error and the whole place was in a state of panic. Wonder why it was so important Oh and Dinner will be ready shortly." The woman proclaimed in a soft warm voice.
About the time the words left her mouth a loud beeping pierced Kriss's ears. Smoke bellowed from the kitchen of the small apartment. He darted across the room and grabbed a fire extinguisher and ran toward the kitchen. Smoke quickly filled his lungs. As he pulled the ovens door open Kriss felt as if his lungs had stop working. With his last breath he filled the oven with the contents of the fire extinguisher.
The smoke stopped and the empty container hit the floor. His body fell to the floor limp. As the room cleared his wife ran into the room. "Oh no…Oh no…Luke get your daddies inhaler for mommy quick." After a few seconds the young boy ran into the room and handed his mother the inhaler. The woman placed one end into the man's mouth and pressed the end of the container. The medicine filled Kriss's lungs. He began breathing again. His wife pulled his unconscious body into their bedroom and lifted him onto the bed.
A loud scream pierced the dark silence. Kriss snatched his body up. The bed sheets clinged to his shirtless chest. A bead of sweat rolled down his forehead. He flung the covers away from his body and bolted toward the door. He twisted the knob and pulled the door open. The sight that was revealed was horrendous. Blood splattered the walls of what was once his living room. His wife's body lay lifeless in the middle of the floor. The man quickly moved over to her side. Kriss rolled her over and felt for a pulse but no signal was returned. As he sat there for a moment he began to weep. Another scream rang in his ears. It came from Luke's room. Kriss leapt to his feet. As he began to run to the boy he saw the bloody 9mm pistol that they kept in the bedroom on the ground. He grabbed it and ran down the hall.
When Kriss reached the door to his son's room he knew he wasn't prepared for what would be inside. He pushed the door open. Inside stood what seemed to be a man. It was more like a diseased creature. He was wearing a hooded sweatshirt and jeans. Luke was curled up on the floor in front of him.
"Daddy he hurt mommy"
"I know Luke. He won't hurt anyone else"
The man looked down the barrel of the gun. The small red dot lined up with the side of the creatures head. The creature slowly turned and looked at the gun. Its jaw dropped and he let out a tremendous shriek. He ran toward the gun. The man pulled the trigger. The loud gunshot rang in his ear. The bullet impacted the skull and sent blood splattering around the room. The creatures' body fell motionless to the floor.
Kriss dropped the gun and ran to his son. He fell to the floor and held his son. He pushed away from the body until his back hit a wall. Kriss began to weep. Kriss and Luke sat there in silence until the sun rose the next day.
That was almost three years ago. A lot has changed in just a short time.
A/N: After I get my first review I will post the next chapter. I hope you enjoy it. I loved writing it.