Chapter Three: The First Test. Or, Shit Hitting the Fan.
Inside the diner, it was relatively clean, not at all like it's outside appearance. Except for the knocked over chairs and tables, puddles and smears of blood on the floor and walls, and the man convulsing slightly on the ground, bloody material pressed against the side of his neck.
"What the fuck!" Tessa shouted, eyes on the man. "Don't look!" she shouted at Amy and Dylan, but it was too late and they were staring wide-eyed at the man, shouting.
"What's wrong with him?" Dylan asked.
"Oh my God!" Amy screamed, turning away and pressing her face into Tessa's side.
"What's going on?" Tessa shouted as the others piled back into the diner.
"That's Howard, my husband, he-he-," the older woman began, unable to finish as she dropped down beside him, her already red rimmed eyes spilling over with tears.
"Crazy bitch took a chunk out of his neck," Kyle told her.
"We need to barricade the doors. Block every entrance," Michael said. Bob started moving tables, turning them on their sides and pushing them against the doors. Others helped.
Tessa took in the soaked red material, the pools of blood, "That's a lot of blood. Why isn't he at a hospital?"
"The – I –bugs," Howards wife tried to explain between sobs, so Tessa didn't push her. Clearly, there was a reason.
"I…" Tessa began, "Do you want me to take a look?"
Tessa kept her head in a crisis, and she swallowed around the lump in her throat. She could keep calm through one of Dylan's temper tantrums, she could stop herself from snapping at their teachers who seemed to think she couldn't handle being their guardian, and she could handle the apparent coming apocalypse. It was because she could prioritize. She could put Amy and Dylan's safety before her own freak outs.
"You a doctor?" the teenager asked hopefully and Tessa hated to shake her head, "A nurse?"
"No." She was far from it. She had taken a first aid course though.
"Then how…?"
"I went camping one time," she said, dropping the duffle bag and setting down the riffle, going over to Howard. "I stitched my friend's leg up after she sliced it open with a metal tent pole that snapped. We were a long way from a hospital," she explained, "So I know how, I'm just looking to see if I can."
Gently, she pried the material away from his neck, trying not to make a face at the way it stuck and the red now covering her fingers. When she got a look at it, she nearly gagged, but managed to keep her face neutral. You learned how to do that when at nineteen you suddenly become a full-time mother, part-time cook, cleaner, doctor, mediator, chauffer, and anything else they needed.
It was a big gaping wound, obscured by copious amounts of blood spewing out. She looked up at Howard's wife, her pleading expression. "I can't…too much tissue's been ripped out. He needs medical attention," I said seriously, and her wet eyes closed in helplessness.
"No one's leaving," Michael said.
Tessa glared, "He'll die if he doesn't get help!"
"You leave and you'll die anyway," he said.
"The hospital's over an hour away," Bob said solemnly, "And how many doctors and nurses you think'll still be normal?"
Tessa looked back down at the man. He'd lost too much blood. It was a wonder he was still alive. His skin was cold, and Tessa thought he might be going into shock. He'd already passed out. She grabbed his wrist, searching for his pulse; it was slow. His blood pressure was low. Gently, she pressed the back of her hand against his forehead, "He's too cold; he's in danger of hypothermia. We need blankets or jackets or something."
"There's some in the trailer," Jeep offered and she nodded gratefully.
Michael sighed like I was getting on his nerves. Like trying to save Howard's life was putting him out.
"Hurry," he warned, and Jeep bolted out the door, the teenager right behind him. A couple minutes later, they came back with a pile of blankets and two thin foam mattresses. The teenager spread one of the mattresses out beside Howard.
"On three," Tessa said, gripping the unconscious man's arms. The girl grabbed a leg and Jeep grabbed the other. "One. Two. Three." They heaved slightly, lifting him up and placing him down gently. Tessa grabbed a blanket, wrapping it firmly around Howard's body before grabbing a thin, plain white sheet. Using her teeth, she ripped it in the corner, before tearing it apart, into strips. She removed the blood soaked shirt from his neck, replacing it with the strips, wrapping them around him.
The teenager sat next to Howard's head on the other side of him to Tessa, brushing his hair off his forehead lightly.
"My name's Audrey," the teenager whispered as Tessa grabbed Howard's wrist again to find his pulse. She would monitor it so it didn't drop too low. Though, if it did, there was jack shit they could do about it. The movement hadn't caused it to drop at least, though it was frighteningly unsteady. "That's my mum, Sandra."
Tessa glanced at the near-hysterical woman, the slight shakes running through her body, and nodded at her once. "Tessa. That's Amy and Dylan."
"They your kids?"
"Brother and sister."
Audrey leaned back, blinking her eyes at the ceiling, "This is so fucked up."
"You're preaching to the choir, sister." Tessa got up, walking back to Amy and Dylan. "That's not going to happen to you. I won't let it," She said when she saw how fixated they were on Howard.
"I want to go home," Dylan said, his big brown eyes welling up with tears, spilling down his face, his voice a pleading warble, "I want my room!"
"We can't go back," Tessa said, her mouth hardening into a straight line.
"I want my stuff!"
"You can't -,"
"I want my blankets, my toys!"
"Dylan!"
"I want mum and dad!" He shouted.
It was like a slap in the face to Tessa. She'd tried so hard to be their mum and dad, but she couldn't measure up to them; couldn't give them the same things, the same toys, a nice place to live. His words just confirmed her suspicions that she was doing a piss-poor job at being their guardian.
"They're gone," she said stiffly. "And they're not coming back."
"Dylan," Amy said soothingly, grabbing his hand and holding tight. "We'll see them soon."
Her words sent a chill down Tessa's back, and she dropped down on her knees so she was roughly their height, looking them in the eye, "Both of you listen to me right now. There's something bad coming and I need you to be strong. I need you to do what I say. Nothing's going to happen to you. You hear me? Nothing."
"We're all going to die," Sandra said hopelessly, hysterically, "They may as well deal with it now."
"Mum!"
"Shut up," Tessa said warningly. Dylan started to shake.
"It's the truth!" She cried.
"Shut up." The words were a threat this time.
"You can't go saying that to some kids," The man whose name I didn't know said.
"But -,"
"Look Lady," Tessa cut her off. "I don't have time to deal with you. So if you don't shut the fuck up, I'll go find some duct tape and make you shut up, got it? Get your shit together. Stop wallowing and just deal; this is happening."
She didn't reply, just looked down at her husband, crying. More things were coming for them, and Tessa didn't have the patience to be gentle or careful with the woman. She needed to pull herself together and get a grip on reality, because this was happening, and they didn't need any weak links in this diner. Weak links could be exploited
"Thanks…?" She said to the guy, for helping her with Sandra.
"Percy," he supplied. "You're welcome."
"I'm Tessa, that's Amy and Dylan."
He smiled gently at them, "Hey there, guys. You hungry?"
Tentatively, they nodded, and Percy gestured for them to come into the kitchen so he could get them something. Tessa thanked him again as he led Amy and Dylan back.
Tessa started moving some of the tables as well, but they were heavy. Which was a good thing, considering they'd have to hold out against whatever wanted to get in. Michael grabbed the other end, pushing it with her, before setting his duffle bags down on the counter, prepping his riffles.
They made a line in front of the booths, standing ready with their weapons, waiting. They closed the blinds, and the sun was sinking lower, the diner getting darker. Tessa shivered.
Then the lights went out. Dylan and Amy screamed, grabbing onto Tessa, who gasped, bringing the gun up. Her heart was thundering so fast in her chest, she thought it was going to leap right out, and her fingers were nervous and cramping from her tight grip.
"Everybody stay calm," Percy's voice. She heard movement, and then there were streams of light around, shining in her face and other's as they got some flashlights. Bob shone it in Michael's face.
"Okay, we locked in here so what the fuck we doing now?" Kyle asked harshly.
Michael looked up, "The roof." Tessa looked up apprehensively.
"What about it?" Bob asked.
"We need to go up there." The duh was implied.
Bob led the way, and Kyle, Michael and Percy followed. After a moment's hesitation, Tessa followed as well, telling her kids to stay put, she'd only be a second.
"No!" Amy said. They'd been glued to her side, so she either had to stay there, or they had to come with her. And she wasn't going to take them up to the roof. "I don't want to be alone!"
"I'll stay with them," Audrey offered, her voice raspy. Tessa looked at her, sizing her up. She was handling this situation better than her mother, and she was younger. Tessa nodded.
"Thank you." It wouldn't be for long.
Night had completely fallen now, and the air was cold. Tessa forgot how it was scorching during the day and freezing during the night in the desert. Goosebumps raised over her arms, and she rubbed at the exposed skin, mentally scolding herself for not bringing a jumper. At least it was warmer in the diner.
"Alright, Rambo, you got us up here, now what are we doing?" Bob asked.
Tessa walked to the edge of the roof, looking out into the distance. It was barren, empty, but it shocked her how beautiful it still looked. It felt wrong that it could be so beautiful when the world was so close to breaking. A tinkling tune started up, and Percy gestured slightly, "Listen, listen! You hear what I'm hearing?"
Tessa frowned as she recognized the tune; it was a sound she knew from her childhood, it was a sound every kid knew. And now, it sent shivers down her spine as what felt like tiny, razor sharp ice shards stabbed all over her skin, and it wasn't from the cold. "Oh, fuck no."
"What the hell is that?" Bob asked.
"Sounds almost like…" Percy trailed off.
"Ice Cream," Kyle finished. "You can't be fucking serious, right?"
The fucking ice cream truck jingle. Tessa was beginning to feel like she was stuck in a freaking horror movie. A fierce shiver raked over her body, and she clamped her mouth shut to stop her teeth from chattering. The wind kicked up, making her hair dance wildly around her face.
Michael pulled off his over coat, then the zipper jumper he wore over a navy fitted shirt and leather vest that held his weapons, handing the jumper to Tessa without even looking at her, his eyes stuck on the horizon where headlights were growing brighter. Tessa frowned, "I'm fine."
Then Michael did look at her. "If you catch a cold, your senses will dull and your reflexes will slow. You're no use to anyone sick."
"Gee, thanks for the concern."
"You're no use to those kids if you're so sick you can't protect them properly," he pointed out.
Tessa grumbled, taking it from him, hating that he made a valid point. She almost sighed at how warm it was from him, zipping it all the way up. It was too big on her, but she pushed the sleeves up so they weren't in the way. She could deal with it.
"Alright, there's a safety switch on the side of your weapon; you won't be needing it. Push it all the way down two clicks," Michael said. Tessa squinted in the dark, finding the switch and doing as he said. "Now when it starts, you hold on tight, otherwise you're going to blow you hand off."
She couldn't help it, she turned to look at Percy, wondering if that was how he'd lost his hand. It was a plausible explanation; she saw his dog tags hanging around his neck. He'd served in the military.
"What the fuck y'all looking at me for?" He snapped, and Tessa snorted, turning it into a cough and looking away. She brought the gun up, holding it level. She'd never actually fired a gun before, certainly not one this freaking big. It weighed her down, heavy in her arms and she wasn't sure how long she'd be able to hold it up for.
The ice cream truck came into view properly now, driving right up to the diner, headlights blazing. Tessa took deep breaths.
A strangely tall, gangly man emerged from driver's side, stepping down. His face was blank. He started sniffing at the air.
"Oh, man, he don't look that bad," Kyle said. The ice cream man's head snapped up to look at him, his neck cracking. "Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit!" His mouth extended down and he let loose a hoarse roar, like a wild animal sounded like. "Oh shit!"
"Oh my God," Tessa whispered. His arms and legs extended, growing, and dropped down like a freaking four legged spider.
Michael started shooting, the rapid fire of his riffle bright in the darkness, each bullet released a loud crack next to her ear. Bob joined in, firing the shotgun.
The ice cream man landed on his back, bloody bullet holes in his chest. He twitched, then stopped moving.
"Is that it?" Kyle asked incredulously.
More lights appeared on the horizon, getting closers. Cars. Lots of them. Tessa reached over, punching Kyle in the arm, "You speak too fucking soon. Just shut up."
The number of swear words she used per day had substantially increased.
More cars kept coming. Lots, too many. Tessa closed her eyes, fear making her fingers bloodless and twitchy, "Oh my God."
"No! Shoot them!" Michael shouted.
Tessa didn't need to be told twice. She pulled the trigger, and it was like the gun had a life of its own, vibrating in her hands. It kicked back into her shoulder, ramming hard and jerking her back a step with each bullet. She was too small, her frame too slender, her skin too soft. And she used to think those were good things. Now she wished she was bigger, stronger, tougher. She aimed at the cars, hoping she was hitting them, but really she was just aiming blindly; she couldn't hold the gun still enough to control it and aim properly. Some cars swerved out of control. Bullet casings rained down on her feet. One car flipped, exploding.
Beside her, Michael moved to the other end of the roof, and she looked over. "Fuck!" More cars were coming in the opposite direction. He set the missile launcher up, aiming it at the oncoming truck and cars, which exploded, before picking up his riffle and shooting again. Tessa moved to help him, pulling down on the trigger. Dust fanned up, making it hard to see the cars properly.
The cars parked along the road, and the people started getting out, walking eerily calmly towards them. She spotted a little girl, younger than Dylan, in a pretty dress and holding a balloon, walking towards them. She was just a kid. Tessa faltered. She was just like Dylan and Amy. Michael lifted his gun and started firing again.
"They're just regular people!" Kyle shouted.
"Not anymore!" Michael replied, not pausing. "Keep firing!"
Tessa pushed away the sick feeling in her gut, trying to ignore Kyle's words. She couldn't afford to stop, or give up. Michael was right. They weren't people anymore. They were trying to kill them. Tessa pulled down on the trigger, but she wouldn't aim at the little girl. Someone else was going to have to do that. They were getting too close, and there was too many of them to shoot.
"Don't let them get near the windows!" Michael shouted.
If they got to the windows, they'd be able to get inside.
Inside.
To where Dylan and Amy were. She aimed right down, at the ones closest to the building, panic flaring in her chest.
When she heard a window crash, she pulled back. She had to go downstairs, she had to protect Amy and Dylan.
"Hey!" Kyle called as Tessa took off back down, heart in her throat. Michael grabbed her arm, spinning her back around to face him.
"Let go!" Tessa shouted desperately, trying to squirm out of his tight grip. "Fucking let go!"
"You need to stay up here!" he said forcefully.
"No, I need to be down there! Let go, or I'll blow your goddamn head off," she screamed, leveling the rifle at his head so he knew she wasn't kidding, wasn't messing around. He looked at her, the desperation in her eyes, and let her go. She hurried back to the ladder leading down.
Oh, please, God, if you just let them be alright, please, I'll do anything! She thought fiercely. It wasn't a prayer, it was a plea. When she burst downstairs, it was chaotic. There was a shattered window, and Howard was being pulled through it. Audrey and her mother were trying to pull her back in and Charlie ran over to help, Jeep following. Tessa moved forward to help until she spotted Amy and Dylan cowering in the corner, holding onto each other and crying.
And the shadow of a man moving towards them, so close, too close to shoot if she didn't want to hit them accidentally; she was no marksman. She wasn't that good a shot. Tessa dived on him, getting the jump on him, but he shucked her off, throwing her across the room, her riffle flying from her hands. She slammed into a booth, the wooden corner of the chair digging into her back, jarring her teeth. She'd be bruised for sure, but she barely registered the pain. In a second she was back up, charging for him, this time grabbing his legs and pulling him down, sliding slightly. She reached for her gun in her waistband, brought it around and shot him in the head.
"Are you okay?" she screamed at them over the gunfire and screaming and shouting. They didn't answer her, just held onto each other tighter.
Charlie screamed and Tessa whirled around to see a man trying to pull her through the window. Tessa grabbed her arm, throwing her weight back next to Jeep as he tried to hold onto her. Tessa leveled her gun at him and was about to pull the trigger when Michael was there, a knife in hand as he cut off the man's hand.
They flew backwards with their momentum, Charlie landing on her and Jeep as Howard was pulled out the window. Michael fired at the windows, smashing the unbroken ones and hopefully killing anything else trying to get in. Then it was quiet. Gunfire on the roof ceased, and nothing else tried to get in.
"We got 'em running! We got 'em running!" Tessa could hear Kyle shout on the roof.
Sandra started to move towards the broken window and Michael grabbed her, lifting her up and moving her away, "No, no, no, he's out there! He's alive, he's out there!" She cried and it broke Tessa's heart, how raw it sounded, desperate. Hopeless. "He's out there!"
"He's gone," Michael told her, looking her in the eye. "He's gone."
Slowly, she collapsed onto a booth seat, tears running down her cheeks.
Charlie started to get up, panting and making pained noises, holding her stomach. Jeep grabbed one arm to help, and Tessa grabbed the other. "You okay?" Jeep asked her softly.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm fine," she replied, but she sounded far from it. She looked to Michael, "Thanks."
His head cocked to the side slightly, "I told you not to do anything brave."
Tessa rolled her eyes and turned back towards Amy and Dylan.
And stopped dead. Because they weren't crying anymore.
They were smiling.
Dun dun dun!
Hey guys,
I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I enjoyed writing it. Though, not the end part.
Anyway, let me know what you think. I love hearing from you.
And thanks so much to those who reviewed – you guys make my day.
Review replies;
Haphazard Suy: First off, thanks so much for taking the time to review!I'm definitely glad you decided to give it a try :P Thank you so much, I'm glad you think my writing style is pleasant and that my story is timed perfectly. Yay! I'm super glad you like my character Tessa (I like her too, haha), and I'm relieved you think she's likable and authentic. She's different to the characters I usually write, and older too, so she's kind of unfamiliar territory and I'm never sure if I get her right, so thank you so much for letting me know and making me feel better about that. :D Oh, me too! I love reading about scent and the eyes, so naturally I like writing it too. Particularly, I like researching the different types of smells, and what kind of fragrance they are, and what smells are considered attractive to the opposite sex and what not. Anyway, thanks so much for reviewing – it means the world to me! I hope you enjoyed this chapter too.
Watergoddesscasey: Yay! I'm glad you liked it! Thanks so much for letting me know – that way, I know I'm on the right track at least. :D Thanks so much for reviewing again! I still hope you want to keep reading!
Sakai213: I'm so glad you're enjoying this so far! I'm enjoying writing it :D Haha, wow, same name? Must be a pretty special name then, :P Thank you so much for reviewing, favouriting and alerting! It means so much to me!
ZabuzasGirl: Haha, thanks for reviewing chapter 1 and chapter 2! It means a lot to me, and I'm super glad you're enjoying it and want to read more, and want to read it immediately, haha! Thank you :D
DoubleL7: Aw, thank you :D I'm so glad you're enjoying it! So long as there are people interested in reading it, I plan on continuing it, so thanks so much for letting me know! Seriously, it means a lot to me! I'm glad you got into it in the second chapter – I got into writing it! I always feel like the first chapter sort of sets the scene, and the second chapter brings in the depth to that scene, so I'm glad you enjoyed it! Hopefully you enjoyed this chapter too, and still want to keep reading :D Thanks so much for reviewing!