AN: Please don't murder me for this chapter...
Chapter Twenty-One
AUDREY
Dwight is standing guard at the entrance to the warehouse and I feel a little bit relieved to see him. Despite his intimidating appearance, he's one of the nicer guards. When I first started going on raids he used to go along too and we got along. Then there was that Corpse attack on Haven while we were out on a raid and his daughter died - not bitten but shot in the crossfire. After that he decided to stick closer to home and took up guarding the wall and training the men to have better aim.
Nathan grips my hand tighter as we walk up to Dwight. The giant blonde puts out a hand, catching Duke in the chest and stopping him up short. "You guys can't go in there," he says shortly. "Vince's handling some real emergency in there."
"Relax, Sasquatch," Duke says, shoving his hand away. "We've got our own emergency to talk to him about." Dwight scowls but he lets Duke shoulder passed him. Since we live with Vince, Duke and I can usually get our way with just about anyone in Haven. It's not the sort of thing we usually take advantage of but I'd consider this a worthwhile time to pull out that card.
Dwight watches us suspiciously as we walk passed him and I feel Nathan tense. "Hey," Dwight says casually. Nathan looks momentarily panicked before he stutters out, "H-hey." Trying not to smile at his awkwardness, I tug his hand to get him walking again. With Duke at the lead, we enter the warehouse.
The inside is a hive of activity, soldiers rushing back and forth and shouting orders to each other. The three of us stay close to the edge of the walkway as people run beside us, prepping equipment as they go. It takes me a minute to spot Vince among all the chaos but I finally find him standing near a row of humvees, rallying off orders to a cluster of the high-ranking guards.
"I don't know how he's going to react, so you'd better wait here," I say to the boys. We step behind a row of shelves where we're out of the way of the stampeding soldiers. "Stay here, I'll go talk to him." I squeeze Nathan's hand one more time and then slip back around to head up to Vince.
He sees me out of the corner of his eye just as I'm approaching. "Audrey, now's not a good time," he says, his wheezy voice tired and exasperated. "I'm handling a situation."
I look around at the rush of soldiers and down at the map spread across the hood of the humvee in front of him, frowning at the black markings that are filling up every roadway leading toward the compound. "Why? What's going on?" I ask.
Vince frowns, rubbing his hands together in a sign of anxiety. "There's a sizeable force of Skeletons heading this way," he admits. I glance again at the map, the realisation striking me through. Each one of those black marks is a group of Boneys, and they're all headed toward our home. Because of me.
"Vince, I need to talk to you," I say, the dangerous situation making this all the more important.
"Now?" Vince asks pointedly, adjusting the strap of the rifle hung across his back. I see him exchange annoyed looks with the guard member standing on the other side of the humvee hood.
"Yes, now," I repeat insistently. Vince smirks indulgently as I grab his arm and drag him around another jeep so we can have privacy. "Please, Vince, you have to listen," I start. "This is really important."
"More important than the hordes of Skeletons that are amassing to eliminate us?" Vince's voice is a sarcastic drawl and I can tell he's only half-humouring me. Time to go for the shock factor.
"The Corpses are changing," I blurt. It's not the wisest move but it achieves what I want; Vince is paying attention to me now. "I think they're coming back to life."
"Oh really?" Vince asks, still too sardonic.
"I've seen it happen," I explain. "I know it sounds crazy but-"
Vince snorts derisively. "It is crazy, Audrey," he cuts across me. "The Corpses aren't going to just change. We're their food source. They eat us. They are not going to just become vegan out of the blue."
I open my mouth to say something but before I can make any sound, Nathan steps around the shelves beside us and tries to square up with Vince. Even as he straightens his shoulders, I can see fear and determination in his eyes. I reach out and take his hand, and his posture strengthens even more.
"Nathan Wuornos?" Vince asks in surprise, his narrowed eyes widening abruptly. "My God, you've been missing for ages, we thought you were dead."
"Wait, you know each other?" I ask, glancing between Nathan and Vince.
"Of course," Vince says. "Nathan was part of the Guard back when we first established Haven, he ran more searches than just about anyone here. Always determined to save everyone." He looks Nathan up and down and then frowns suspiciously. "How do you know Audrey?"
Nathan's mouth opens and closes, his eyes wide and alarmed. "He saved my life out there," I offer.
"I wasn't asking you, Audrey," Vince says and his voice has gone cold. "I was asking him."
Nathan still looks terrified as he struggles to get the words out. "I-I s-s-sav-ved-"
The comprehension dawns suddenly in Vince's face. "You're one of them, aren't you?"
"Nathan's different than the others," I say quickly. "When I was lost out there he saved me. He protected me. And he's been changing the whole time I've known him. I triggered something in him, and that's triggered something in all the others."
"And now he's triggered something in me." With a speed that he shouldn't possess at his age, Vince wipes out his sidearm and backs Nathan into a towering shelf. He presses the muzzle of the Rueger into Nathan's throat, his eyes flashing.
"Vince, no!" I say, grabbing his wrist, but he's stronger than he looks. "Please, they're getting better, I swear it."
"Things don't get better," Vince snarls furiously. "People turn to Corpses, and then I shoot them in the head. It's what happened to Dave, and to Chris, and now to him."
The click of a gun hammer being drawn back makes me flinch in horror, but nothing happens. I squint to see and Vince has frozen, his eyes wide in shock. Duke is standing behind him, the nose of his own handgun resting against the back of Vince's head. "Back off 'em, Vince," Duke says, his voice low and menacing.
Vince smirks. "You wouldn't shoot me," he says unconcernedly.
"For Audrey?" Duke says, raising a challenging eyebrow. "Oh you bet I would." Vince seems to consider this for a moment, and then he finally lifts his hands in a sign of surrender. Duke tugs the gun from Vince's hand and passes it to me. "Run," he says. "You two get out of here and be safe."
"Thank you, Duke," I say. I tuck the Rueger into the waistband of my jeans and then stand on my toes to kiss him on the cheek. I glance at Vince sadly and am met with only frustration and anger. Squeezing Nathan's hand tighter, I turn on my heel and we run out of a side door in the warehouse. We jog for a bit until we're alone in a narrow path between two buildings.
"Well that could've gone better," I say, clutching the stitch in my side. Nathan makes a puffing noise I think is supposed to be a scoff. "C'mon, we'd better keep moving." The words have barely left my mouth before the compound alarms go off. Panicked, I grab Nathan's hand again and tug him behind me.
We race down several streets, ducking through perplexed and scared looking people who are trying to figure out what's triggered the alarm, until we reach the wall that guards the secret tunnel. Nathan shoves the sheet metal out of the way and we duck through, blocking the path behind us.
"Safe?" Nathan asks.
"For now," I say, squinting through the dim light at the tunnel ahead of us. "But there's an army of Boneys on their way here. We've got to find somewhere better to hide."
"The others," Nathan says and I remember that he said he'd brought other changed Corpses with him. I nod in agreement and he leads the way down the tunnel. I never let go of his hand as we make our way through the dingy, echoing corridors, my other hand hovering over the handgun tucked in my waistband. Since he seems to know where we're going, I let Nathan lead while I focus on making sure we're not being followed.
"How did you even know about this path?" I ask as we're cutting across the empty football field.
Nathan glances over his shoulder at me and there's something furtive in his eyes, but he just shrugs and says, "M-memories." I want to ask him more, find out just how many memories he's gotten back, but then we're out of the field and I stop short in awe.
The entire lobby of the stadium is packed with Corpses, all of them shuffling in place and staring at us expectantly. There's dozens of them, so many more than I was expecting. Nathan had said thirty or so but there must be double that here. The one in the cop shirt - Nathan called him Gr - elbows his way to the front of the crowd and approaches us.
"Na-than," he greets and nods, then glances at me. "Aw-dree."
"Hi," I say, still staring around at all the Corpses. This many of them are changing - feeling and thinking and dreaming? This isn't just a little change anymore. This is an epidemic.
"R-ready, for f-fight," Gr says, gesturing over his shoulder at the crowd.
"I can see that," I say. "This is incredible."
Nathan steps forward and fixes Gr with one of his stormy, intense looks. "B-boneys, coming."
The sentence has barely left his mouth when there's a clatter and cracking sound from above us, accompanied by the shrill sounds of sharp points being dragged across glass. All of us look up and my heart plummets. There's a cavernous dome of glass windows above us and its crawling with shadowy figures, their shapes dark against the steel gray sky of early morning.
Boneys.
GR
Corpses don't feel fear, but as I look up at the Boneys creeping across the glass above us, I'd have to say that's the closest thing I can think of to describe the concern in my mind. It's not concern for myself though. My eyes flick sideways to Nathan, his expression alarmed, and there's a sharp pain in my chest. Nathan. My Nathan.
I might only get flashes of memories but of that I'm certain. Nathan is mine. My boy, the little boy with the broken arm tucked beneath the homemade quilt. The little hand that fit inside my own. He's all grown up now, and he may not remember the truth anymore, but I know who he is. My son.
There are resounding echoes as the glass dome trembles, narrow white cracks shooting across the surface and branching like winter hoarfrost. I can see the way the glass is shaking, ready to crumble beneath the weight of the Boney horde that is bearing down on it. They are seconds from getting in.
Turning, I grab Nathan's shoulder to get his attention. "Go," I say, gesturing with my chin toward the corridor they just came from.
"No. Gr," Nathan argues, his eyes narrowed and determined. My lips don't move but on the inside I smile. Stubborn Nathan.
"Go," I repeat. "B-be, safe." I seize the little golden shield on the chain around my neck and yank, breaking the flimsy ball-chain. Taking Nathan's hand, I press the badge into his palm. "Go."
"Gr," Nathan says again. His fist closes around the shield but he doesn't move. His eyes, blue-gray and wide, are sad. He always was a bit intuitive about emotions. He knows this is goodbye. And he's not going to listen to me. Never did Before either, I think.
Deciding I need to bring out the big guns, I turn instead to Audrey. "G-go," I tell her. "K-keep, him s-safe."
Audrey's eyes seem a bit watery but she grits her teeth and nods. "Thank you," she says. And to my surprise, she leans in and presses a quick kiss to my cheek. The touch is warm - warmth. It's been so long since I've known warmth. Audrey smiles sadly and then she takes Nathan's empty hand and pulls.
Nathan doesn't look away from me but at Audrey's insistent tugging he takes slow, steady steps backward. I don't break eye contact, holding onto this moment. Nathan. No, not just Nathan. Nathan and Audrey. He deserves her, deserves the good and warmth. He always did deserve better than what this life gave him. Maybe now, with her, he can find it.
There's a horrible shriek and my eyes fly up just in time to see the spiderwebs of cracks finally surrender to the weight. I duck my head as giant shards of glass rain down and bring with them dozens of Boneys. By some miracle I don't get impaled by any of the larger pieces of glass, although the little fragments shred a patchwork of cuts into my clothes and skin. When I finally dare lift my head it's to see a Boney straightening up directly in front of me.
My hackles immediately rise and I snarl defensively. The Boney hisses in response, swiping a hand out and catching me by the throat. Over its shoulder I can see Nathan, struggling against Audrey's grip and trying to rush back into the fight. No, I can't have that. He has to go. He has to be safe.
"Run!" I say. Or try to say, because something is wrong with my voice. The Boney's released me but I can see tatters of greyish skin on its tapered claws. I touch my throat, feeling the deep gouges there, and my fingers come away covered in rust-coloured blood. Well damn.
Looking up, my eyes search out Nathan's. He's still standing exactly where he was before, apparently stunned into stillness. As our eyes - just like mine, his are; he may have gotten his mother's face but the eyes are mine - meet, a look of anguish rushes across his face.
"Dad!"
And for the first time since Before, a smile dashes across my lips. Dad. He knows.
The Boney grabs my face in its cold hands and with a quick twist I fe-