Part One
Skye Williams sipped her orange juice and frowned at the television screen. The new epidemic seemed to be getting worse, with cases now confirmed in all the major cities, and many smaller ones as well. Even more disturbing were the scattered reports of cannibalism, mass hysteria and the shooting of unarmed people by the police.
The same messages kept being repeated over and over; stay inside, don't panic, and call 911 if someone becomes sick. Skye rubbed a hand over her face and sighed, wondering how long it would be until they found a cure and things could get back to normal.
She made her way into the kitchen and put the empty glass in the sink. It was lunch time, so she opened the refrigerator and found ingredients for a BLT, adding mayo to her grocery list when she noticed it was almost empty.
Skye had just finished cleaning up afterwards when the phone rang loud and shrill, making her jump. She hurried over and picked it up. "Hello?"
"Skye! Listen to me. You needa get outta town until all this shitstorm clears, ya hear me? It's gonna get much worse before it gets better an' it's dangerous to be around too many people now. Get yer stuff and get out while ya can."
"Hi Dad, nice to hear from you," Skye said with a hint of sarcasm. "It's not even my birthday!"
"I'm serious, Skye! Ya need to go, today." Kane Williams sighed loudly. "Look, I know I ain't ever been a great dad, especially since yer mother died, but I've always cared about ya. If I was ever too hard on ya, it was only because I wanted to make sure yer strong enough to handle whatever shit the world threw at ya. And y'are strong, Skye. I know you can survive this. I love ya, kid, and I'm so proud of ya." His voice broke a little at the end.
Skye was stunned. She couldn't remember the last time her father had said he loved her, and in 26 years he'd never told her he was proud of her. It was this, more than anything, that convinced her something was seriously wrong.
"Dad? Are you OK?" Skye asked, fighting back the impending tears.
"Yeah, I'm OK, Skye. Things are just getting a bit crazy out there. Some nut job attacked me in town today. Crazy fucker done bit my arm, of all things! I shoved him off and he followed me back to the car. Didn't say a word, just growled at me like some deranged… animal. I called the cops on the way home, told them there was a nutter on the loose."
"He bit you? What the hell! You should go see the doc, make sure everything's alright."
"Nah, barely even broke the skin. Put some ointment on it and wrapped it just in case," Kane reassured her.
"Maybe I should come visit you for a few days, give you a hand on the farm," Skye suggested. "Just until this pandemic is over and things quiet down again."
"They've grounded most flights, and it's too far to drive, 'specially when there's rioting and stuff going on. They'll declare martial law any day now," Kane sighed again. "I don't want ya to risk it."
Skye slid her back down the wall until she was in a sitting position. "Well, I'll come see you after all this is cleared up then."
"I'd like that, Skye. It's been too long since I seen ya last." There was a pause, then her father continued in a more serious tone. "I gotta go get the cows in now, but remember what I said 'bout getting out of town. Maybe hire a cabin in the woods with yer friends 'til it's over. Take plenty of supplies so ya don't have ta leave. Please."
"I'll think about it. Can't really afford the time off work at the moment, and I haven't heard of any pandemic cases near here, but I'll get some stuff packed today anyways, just in case it gets worse."
Kane wasn't pleased but didn't try to force the issue. "Take care of yourself, hey?"
"I will. You too. I'll talk to you soon."
"Goodbye, Skye."
"Bye, Dad." Skye stared at the phone for a full minute after hanging up, lost in thought.
Grabbing a pen and paper, she began making a list of all the essentials in case she had to leave. It came easier to her than most. For as long as she could remember, her father had been a doomsday prepper, and had drilled her regularly as to what to do in various survival situations. Skye had thought he was crazy, but she had to admit it did come in handy at times.
Once she was satisfied with the list, she began searching the house and laying out the collected gear on the table. She systematically went room to room, checking off items as she found them. She decided to head into town to get more food, and some plastic containers to transport everything.
Skye was just grabbing her keys when the phone rang again.
"Hi Skye, can I come hang out for a bit?" Hannah, her best friend, was sounding shaken.
"I was just heading into town to grab a few things, why don't I swing by and pick you up? Are you ok?"
"I'm fine, I just… Something happened at the hospital today and it freaked me out a bit. I'll tell you when you get here."
"You at home?"
"Yeah."
"Ok, I'm leaving now. See you in 5."
Hannah was waiting on the curb, arms wrapped around herself, when Skye pulled up. She climbed into the passenger seat and let out a deep breath. Then she looked over and gave a small smile. "Thanks, Skye. Jenny and Suzanne are away for the weekend and I didn't want to sit in an empty apartment after today."
"What happened?" Skye asked, taking her eyes off the road for a moment to glance at her friend.
"We had a guy come in in really bad shape after a motorcycle accident. He flatlined while we were operating but Pete got the defibrillator and bought him back and then he just woke up all of a sudden and attacked Vi. He bit a fucking chunk off her face! It was… God, it was… it was the scariest thing I've ever seen! We were trying to pull him off her but he wouldn't let her go and Vi was screaming and…" Hannah was white and shaking as she spoke. "We got him off her but he lunged at Diane and bit her arm as she tried to fend him off. So Pete grabbed the fire extinguisher and hit him on the head and... it killed him. His head - it just caved in like… like a watermelon or something. It was awful." She buried her face in her hands as she finished speaking.
"My god! That sounds like a bloody horror film or something!" Skye exclaimed. She pulled into an empty park and switched the engine off, turning to Hannah. "I'm glad you're ok. Do you want to stay at mine tonight?"
"Yes, please."
"Do you want to go straight there? I can shop tomorrow."
"No, no it's ok. I'm fine, let's just go in and get whatever it is and I might grab some vodka or something. I could use a drink."
They walked in together, quickly selecting their purchases. Skye wandered the aisles, looking for anything she might have forgotten to put on the list and adding powdered milk and a tub of Ben and Jerry's Phish Food to the cart.
They paid at the counter and hauled the goods out to the car. As they were loading everything into the trunk, a homeless man began shuffling towards them. Hannah saw him first.
"Skye, that guy is coming straight at us. I'm getting a real weird vibe," she murmured.
Skye glanced up, and also got a strange feeling looking at the man. She put the last bag in the car and closed the trunk. "Get in the car, lock the doors. I'll return the cart and be right back."
Hannah nodded and Skye hurried to do as she said, jogging on her way back when she saw the man was now at the passenger door.
"Hey! Back off, man!" she yelled at him when she got to her door. He let out a strange growling noise and started to move around the car to her. Thoroughly freaked now, she unlocked the door and jumped in, locking it again behind her.
Hannah was shaking again, and as Skye went to put the key in the ignition she noticed her own hands weren't very steady either. She got the car started and was putting it into reverse when the man reached her door and scratched at the glass, leaving a bloody smear.
Hannah whimpered and Skye accelerated backwards out of the park, not even checking for other cars - thankfully there were none coming - and sped off.
"What the hell is wrong with people at the moment?" she asked, not expecting an answer.
Hannah shook her head and shrugged, a little calmer now that they were moving again. "I dunno, but I hope that's the end of it. Pretty random that two freaky things happened in one day though." She shuddered. "They gave me this week off Uni to 'get over the shock.' I'm thinking I might go away for a few days, maybe to mom's."
"Might not be a bad idea," Skye agreed, keeping her eyes on the road. She debated mentioning the call from her dad, then decided Hannah had had enough for one day; she didn't want to worry her further. They drove the rest of the way in silence.
Mark's silver F-150 was parked outside her house when they pulled in the drive and Skye spotted him sitting on the porch, along with Alex, Catrina, Megan and Nick.
"I forgot it was movie night tonight," Skye sighed, not really in the mood anymore. She looked at Hannah. "I can send them all home if you want."
"I forgot, too." Her friend hesitated a moment. "No, it'd be good to do something normal after today."
"Alrighty then."
They climbed out of the car, grabbed a couple of bags from the back, and went to greet their friends.
"Hey guys, been waiting long?"
"Yeah, like an hour," Mark leapt off the railing and winked at her.
Catrina rolled her eyes at him. "Nah, we just got here a few minutes ago."
"Shush you!" Mark gave her a gentle shove. "I was trying to guilt her into sharing that ice cream."
Skye glanced down at the bags. "Not gonna happen. But if you help me get the rest of the stuff from the car I'll whip up some brownies."
"Deal!" Mark gave one last longing look at the ice cream and then they all wandered over to the car to unload.
Skye unlocked the front door and everyone trooped down to deposit the items on the kitchen counter.
"What's going on here?" Mark asked, noticing the pile supplies on the table.
Skye almost brushed it off and said she was planning a camping trip, but then decided on the truth. "My dad called today. He reckons things are about to get real bad and that I should get out of town until it settles. I thought it wouldn't hurt to get things ready just in case I do need to leave in a hurry."
Hannah looked at her sharply, surprise and a moment of hurt on her face. "Why didn't you say anything earlier?"
Skye sighed. "I thought about it, but decided you'd been through enough today. I was gonna tell you tomorrow, I swear."
Hannah stared at her, then nodded.
Mark and the others were looking between them in confusion.
"What happened today?" Megan asked.
Skye told them everything, watching the confusion get replaced with shock as she told of her dad getting attacked and then horror as she related Hannah's experience at the hospital, and finally concern as she described the actions of the homeless man in the parking lot.
Nick let a low whistle. "That's quite a fucked up day!"
"Pizza's on us tonight," Catrina added. "You guys take it easy, we got it from here." She smiled reassuringly.
"Thanks guys, I'm OK now," Skye told them. "I'll get started on those brownies."
"Luke will be here any minute, he was picking up Danni and Felix and stopping to get the beer," Nick announced, helping himself to a coke from the fridge.
"I'll go set up the seats. Nick, Mark, come give a hand," Megan called over her shoulder as she disappeared into the lounge.
Catrina dialled for pizza while Hannah poured herself a vodka soda. "Want one?" She offered the two girls. Catrina shook her head.
"I wouldn't mind a drink," Skye nodded as she mixed the gooey batter, adding in extra chunks of chocolate.
Hannah poured another glass and put it next to her.
"Is that a bow?" Mark asked as he re-entered the kitchen, poking through her supplies.
"Yep."
"Can you shoot it?"
"Like Robin Hood," Skye smirked at his surprised expression. "Dad used to take me hunting."
"You've said before, I just assumed you meant with a gun."
"Well, we used guns sometimes, but mostly we used bows. I prefered it. Used to pretend I was a warrior princess," Skye chuckled at the memory. Mark smiled too, and swiped his finger through the brownie mix as she poured it into a pan.
He sucked it off his finger. "Yum!"
"Hey! Keep ya grubby paws out!" She smacked him playfully. He laughed and disappeared back into the lounge.
The rest of the night passed in a haze of pleasant chatter and laughter. Luke and the other two girls soon showed up, bringing along Danni's younger twin sisters, Mikaela and Sophie, who were visiting for the weekend. The pizza followed shortly after, and they all settled in to watch a comedy, feeling the need to lighten the mood.
As the night was drawing to an end, Skye looked around at everyone, squished into her small lounge with its one couch, the mattress commandeered from the spare room and various chairs and cushions borrowed from around the house. She smiled, glad to be surrounded by such good friends.
It was the last time they would all be together. Because the next day, all hell broke loose.