Death's Children (Book 5): Aiden's Mark Page 3

  He’d seen how fast the zombies were, how fierce and cruel their hunger. One mistake was all it would take. Not now. Not tonight. I’m already dead, but Dee still needs me. I can’t fail her now.

  The walls of the dorm streamed past in a blur. Monstrous faces leered through the windows, followed by falling bodies as the infected students threw themselves at Aiden and his group. Glass rained from the sky, and hollow thumps sounded as they hit the ground.

  A girl landed right in front of Aiden, her limbs shattering on the paved sidewalk. Pieces of bones poked through her skin, shining wet with blood beneath the merciless gaze of the distant moon. He never paused and vaulted right over her wriggling form even as she stretched crooked fingers toward his flesh.

  He’d scarcely run a few more feet when a wretched scream twisted his head around. Lacy had jumped over the fallen zombie but tripped when the girl’s grasping hands grabbed her ankle and hooked her jeans. Lacy had fallen hard, her chin hitting the ground and blood spilling from her clipped tongue.

  The zombie girl was on Lacy within seconds, biting into the flesh of her shoulder with gruesome relish while she screamed in pain. A second zombie crawled toward her, his back twisted and broken by his fall from the window. He sank his teeth into her face while his hands clawed at her scalp.

  Stephanie and Danielle ran past Lacy but never slowed, never tried to help their friend. The reason why was pretty obvious. On their heels was a crowd of raging zombies, the front runners within seconds of catching them. It was either them or Lacy, and Lacy was already down.

  Regret tore at his heart. Regret and guilt, but there was nothing to be done, and he knew it. Lacy stretched a hand toward him, her face contorted with pain. “Help. Help me, please. Aiden!”

  The infected fell upon her, and she was lost beneath a mass of writhing bodies. The last Aiden saw of her was one golden brown eye that stared at him through a narrow gap before it closed, and she was lost forever.

  Danielle caught up to him first and grabbed his hand. “Come on. It’s too late for her. Move!”

  With a last despairing look, Aiden turned to run again, followed by Stephanie. As it turned out, Lacy’s death caused the horde to slow, delaying them for a few precious seconds. It gave the group a slight lead, a small opportunity to get ahead of the monstrous throng, but their reprieve was small as more infected streamed around Lacy and her attackers, still intent on the fleeing prey in front of them. All they knew in their disease riddled brains, all they craved for and cared about, was blood and warm flesh.

  They rounded the corner of the building, and Aiden was ecstatic to see that Nicky had made it into the car. Even as he watched, she turned the key in the ignition. The lights flared to life, and the engine roared as she jammed it into reverse.

  Aiden gave it his all, his entire focus on the uneven ground beneath his feet and the stony gravel that threatened to bring him to his knees. His foot dipped into a hole, and he stumbled but managed to stay upright even as poisonous fear flooded his veins. Don’t fall! Don’t fall!

  Nicky’s mouth was open as she screamed at them, even though he couldn’t hear a word she said. The gap between him and the car closed with agonizing slowness. With a final burst of energy, he flung himself forward and grabbed the handle of the passenger side. He was about to jump inside when another scream caused his stomach to lurch. No! Not again!

  He turned and spotted Stephanie on the ground, her leg twisted at an unnatural angle. She’d lost her footing on the shifting stones and fallen hard. The very thing he’d feared would happen to him.

  The crowd of chasing zombies swarmed over her like piranhas, stripping the flesh from her bones within seconds. Ripping, tearing, biting, and gorging themselves on the bounty of meat her body provided.

  One infected girl caught his eye, and Aiden froze as recognition cut into his heart with the cruel precision of a scalpel. “Eliza, no!”

  Eliza paused for a split second with Stephanie’s arm clutched firmly between her fingers. Her mouth chewed on the morsel of flesh between her jaws, and her face turned toward her twin brother’s. Their eyes met, his horrified and hers a blank stare.

  She bared her teeth and half-growled, half-howled at Aiden. Letting go of Stephanie, she charged at him with her hands outstretched. Numb with horror, he was unable to move until Nicky grabbed his hand and pulled him inside the car.

  The door closed as Eliza slammed into it, snarling at him through the window. Her hands left smears of blood, Stephanie’s blood, all over the glass, and Aiden shook his head in grievous denial. “No, Eliza. Not you. Not you too.”

  Danielle screamed at Nicky to go, and she roared out of the parking lot, chased by several infected, but Aiden hardly cared. He felt numb to the core, like a block of ice had taken the place of his heart. She’s dead. Eliza’s dead. I’ll never see her again.

  The realization was a terrible one. As much as he’d disliked her moods and her selfishness, as much as he’d hated her for abandoning him, she was still his sister. His twin. Blood of my blood, and I failed her.

  Chapter 5

  Nicky drove to Danielle’s house in silence while Aiden brooded in the front seat. He was faced with the realization that he’d lost everything within the span of a few hours. His twin, his life, his family, and his love. His hands were stained with blood, as was his heart, and he had nothing left to live for. I couldn’t even save Lacy or Stephanie.

  Though he hadn’t known them well, he still felt responsible for their deaths, and the manner of their passing haunted him. I should’ve sacrificed myself for them. I’m dead anyway. Rather me than them.

  Again he checked his phone for news from Dee, but there was nothing. No messages, no texts, nothing. He tried calling her several times but without success. He was now more than an hour late for their arranged pick-up. “She’ll think I’ve abandoned her, or that I’m dead.”

  “What?” Nicky cast him a quizzical look.

  “Nothing,” Aiden replied.

  “Is this about your girlfriend?” she asked.

  “Just one more thing I failed at tonight.”

  “You didn’t fail at anything, Aiden,” Nicky replied. “You saved our lives, didn’t you?”

  “Yeah, and I lost Stephanie and Lacy in the process. Not to mention Eliza.”

  “That’s not your fault,” Nicky replied. “You did the best you could, and nobody could’ve saved them.”

  “Besides,” Danielle interrupted, “didn’t Eliza abandon you? She’s the one who ran, not you.”

  “Yeah, but―”

  “But nothing, Aiden. She left you to die. What happened to her afterward has nothing to do with you. It was her choice,” Danielle said.

  Aiden sighed. She had a point, and he knew it, but it was hard to let go of the guilt and self-recrimination just yet. “I still failed Dee. She’s out there somewhere, and I can’t even help her.”

  “Well,” Nicky said. “We’ve got a car. Let’s go look for her.”

  Aiden stared at her. “You mean that?”

  “I do.” Nicky twisted her head to the back. “Danielle? Are you up for a detour?”

  “Of course. We owe Aiden our lives. It’s the least we can do.”

  “Then it’s settled,” Nicky said. “When was the last time you spoke to her?”

  “About an hour and a half ago.”

  “Where was she?”

  “At the hospital. Emergency ward. I warned her not to go inside but to wait for me outside where it’s safer.”

  “Right. Hospital it is.”

  Aiden shifted in his seat as a sense of warmth flooded his chest. “Thanks for doing this, guys. You don’t have to, you know? I can go on my own.”

  “No problem,” Nicky replied. “That’s what friends are for.”

  For the first time that night, Aiden felt a little bit like his old self again. Maybe…just maybe there was still time. Time to find Dee and make sure she was safe before he turned into a freak. Two hours. That’s what Loll
y had. Thirty minutes left on the clock. If I go the same way as her. Maybe more, if I’m lucky.

  Nicky drove toward the hospital, and for the next twenty minutes, they combed the streets around it looking for Dee. They moved outward in ever expanding circles, searching block after block for any sign of her.

  They saw nothing.

  Nothing but death.

  Though they found no Dee, they found plenty of signs of the infection. In a matter of hours, it had spread throughout the city, fanning outward from the nightclubs, restaurants, clinics, and the hospital toward the suburbs.

  Everywhere they looked was chaos. People were running and being chased; there were car wrecks, fires, and police vans everywhere. Even barricades and overturned trucks. Corpses littered the road. More than once they were mobbed by zombies and had to race away from the scene before their windows were smashed to bits.

  As time passed, despair leached into Aiden’s bones. The optimism he’d felt earlier was gone, replaced instead by the virus. He could feel it now, moving through his muscles and running through his veins. His skin grew flushed, and his breathing labored. Sweat poured from his brow, and at times, he felt faint and dizzy.

  Finally, he had to admit the truth. He was too ill to carry on with the search. I’m sorry, Dee. So sorry.

  He took a deep breath. “Nicky. Stop.”

  “What?”

  “I said stop the car.”

  “Why?” Confusion filled her face, causing her nose to scrunch up and her spectacles to shift.

  “It’s the virus. I’m…not feeling well.”

  “But―”

  “No, buts. I can’t risk turning on you guys in here and hurting you.”

  “What about Dee?”

  “Dee’s gone. Wherever she is, I won’t find her in time. It’s already too late for me. I can only hope she’s okay wherever she is.”

  “No,” Nicky said, shaking her head. “I won’t leave you here to die.”

  Aiden sighed. “I’m dead already, Nicky.”

  He shifted in his seat and met Danielle’s eyes in the rearview mirror. “Tell her, Danielle. You know I’m right.”

  “No,” Danielle said, adding her voice to Nicky’s.

  “Yes,” he insisted. “Stop the car.”

  “Don’t give up, Aiden. Fight it,” Danielle said.

  “I can’t. It’s too strong. I can feel it inside me. Like something crawling under my skin, changing me into something else.”

  Danielle squeezed her eyes shut. “I get it, Aiden. I do.”

  “So tell Nicky to stop the car,” he insisted.

  Danielle’s eyes snapped open again, a fierce look filling the green orbs. “Nicky.”

  “No, Danielle. I can’t do it. I can’t abandon him,” Nicky cried.

  “Nicky, turn around and go to my house. Now.”

  “What?” Nicky and Aiden said at the same time.

  “I agree with Nicky, Aiden. We won’t leave you. We can’t. Maybe, just maybe you can fight this. Survive this.”

  “Don’t you get it?” Aiden shouted as anger at their stubbornness flooded his veins. “When I turn, I’ll hurt you. I’ll kill you. Heck, I’ll even eat you. You saw what happened to Stephanie and Lacy!”

  Danielle flinched, but she remained firm in the face of his rage. “I know. Believe me, I know, but we’ll take precautions. We’ll lock you up until…until we’re sure there’s no hope.”

  “What then?” he demanded. “What happens if I don’t survive this? If I die? I’ll turn into a zombie, and you’ll be stuck with me.”

  “I’ll make sure you don’t come back,” Danielle said. “That you don’t become one of them.”

  Aiden stared at her, faint hope stirring within his breast. He didn’t want to turn, didn’t want to become a walking corpse, a cannibal. It was a fate worse than death. A horror he could barely imagine. Perhaps…perhaps this is the best way. If I die, she’ll make sure I stay dead.

  “Are you sure about this?” he asked. “When the time comes, can you do it?”

  Danielle pressed her lips together and nodded. “I will.”

  “Promise me. Swear on your life.”

  “I swear it.”

  “Then…I guess I’m in.” He wiped a bead of sweat from his brow and swallowed as bitter bile pushed up his throat for the umpteenth time. “But you’d better hurry. I might not last very long.”

  “You heard him, Nicky. Step on it.”

  As they raced toward Danielle’s home, Aiden turned to look back at the hospital for the last time. I’m sorry, Dee. Wherever you are, I hope you make it. I hope you survive.

  Chapter 6

  Two weeks later, Aiden woke up feeling like himself for the first time in days. He yawned and stretched, relishing the return of good health and vitality to his body.

  Danielle had been right after all. He’d survived the virus. A miracle, for sure. Maybe it was in his DNA. Maybe he had a strong immune system. He’d probably never know.

  According to all the news reports airing live until all broadcasts ended, the virus was one hundred percent fatal. No known survivors existed. Which was why he couldn’t believe he was still alive. Whatever saved me didn’t save Eliza, and she was my twin. Non-identical, though.

  Perhaps, it wasn’t him. Perhaps he still lived simply because Danielle wouldn’t let him die. She’d been true to her word, after all. Upon returning home, she’d convinced her mother to let him stay, after breaking the news about the zombie apocalypse.

  They took him upstairs to the spare bedroom and tied him down with ropes. There he stayed until the virus ran its course, though they did their best to make him comfortable.

  It wasn’t easy. He grew increasingly ill as the virus tried to take control of his brain and body. For days he drifted in and out of consciousness, barely aware of his surroundings. His muscles cramped, and agonizing pains stabbed through his temples until he swore he’d rather die. He vomited blood and could keep nothing down but a little bit of water. Fever raged through his veins, and at intervals he even hallucinated. It was hell. Pure, unadulterated hell.

  Throughout this time, he often dreamt of Dee and Eliza, Stephanie and Lacy. He relived the memories of the latter two’s deaths and Eliza’s crazed face until he refused to sleep for fear of the nightmares. They were bitter memories. The kind that killed.

  Thoughts of Dee helped him through it. She was still alive. He knew this; he felt it in his heart. Maybe it was a forlorn hope, one he clung to when things got so bad he wanted to die. But whatever the truth might be, he chose to believe she was out there somewhere, alive and kicking, still the bad-ass girl he’d fallen in love with. To think anything else would be to admit defeat, to know for sure he’d failed her as well.

  Through it all, Danielle and Nicky were there, nursing him back to health and refusing to let him give up. In his rare lucid moments, they talked and laughed as if nothing was wrong. He grew to love them both as sisters. The kind he’d never had in Eliza.

  There were moments of sadness, of course. Times when they reflected on all the friends and family that were lost to them, perhaps forever. Neither Nicky nor Aiden knew what had happened to their parents, but by tacit agreement, they avoided the subject.

  Danielle’s mom was a wonder. The woman was made of steel. Not once did she threaten to kick him out or kill him, though he had no doubt she was capable of it. An ex-cop and single mother, boarded due to medical reasons, she set about fortifying the yard and house the moment they arrived.

  After that, she conducted daily patrols with her shotgun and pistol and even went on a run for supplies. She returned with a car load of food, water, and medicine, as well as two extra guns for the girls.

  So here they were, at last. Two weeks into the apocalypse and still alive. A breeze fluttered through the open window, and he breathed deeply of the fresh air. Mid-summer, it was warm already even so early in the day.

  Aiden got up with a sense of eagerness. He was more than ready to lea
ve his bed behind. It had been his home for far too long already. He had a cold but refreshing shower, his first in days, and put on his old clothes, freshly laundered by hand. Though the electricity was off, the water remained on. A minor miracle they didn’t expect to last.

  He brushed his teeth and trimmed his beard, a new affectation. It hid the raw scar on his cheek which still ached at times. Afterward, they all sat down to breakfast. It was the first time he’d been able to join them at the table, and it was a happy occasion.

  He cleared his throat. “Ma’am, Danielle, Nicky, thank you for everything you’ve done for me. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be sitting here today.”

  Danielle’s mother eyed him shrewdly as she passed a basket of cherry tomatoes from her garden around the table. “Call me Liz, and it’s true.”

  “Um, I…”

  “But since you saved Danielle’s life, it was the least I could do.” She reached into her pocket and removed a cellphone. “This is yours, I believe. I charged it before the power went off in case there was something important on it.”

  Aiden took the phone with a sense of wonder. “Thank you, ma’am...er, Liz.”

  He switched it on, unaware that he was holding his breath. The welcome screen appeared...and there she was. Dee, smiling in that wicked manner of hers, eyes glowing.

  After simply staring at her face for a minute, he automatically checked for messages. His heart nearly stopped when he saw there was one from Dee. It was dated the same night of the outbreak. She must have sent it after he failed to show up, and somehow it got through to his phone.

  Danielle noticed his reaction and frowned. “Is something the matter?”

  “No, quite the opposite. There’s a text from Dee!”

  “What does it say?” Danielle asked, bouncing up and down in her seat like an excited child.

  “She said she’s going home to her parents. They live out in the country, and it will be safer there. They’ve got their own water and electricity. Food too. Even guns. She gave directions and hopes I can join her there.”