Inhuman [Book 1] Page 5

  He nervously shrugged and smiled – his facial expressions alone always helped to lift my mood. “Everyone knows a few beers equal a meal.”

  “What I meant to say was thank you. You’ve been a good friend... I still don’t understand why you won’t come have dinner with us.”

  “Look, man, don’t think I don’t appreciate it. I just know you need everything you have. You’re taking care of two people. I’m all alone, and you gotta look after that little girl.”

  When I went to thank him again, I noticed a dog wandering around behind him… I didn’t even want to think about it, but I had to. I softly said, “Don’t move, there’s a dog over there.”

  “Oh, man, I don’t wanna kill that poor dog – he might belong to someone.” He stared pleadingly. “Are we really there yet?”

  He’s right – we aren’t at that point yet… Although in a few days I could be kicking myself for not doing it when I had the chance.

  Either way, we just moved on. I looked down at my father’s watch – it was 8:09am. I planned on heading back in two hours, whether I killed anything or not.

  The region we resided in was mainly rocky and clear, with small patches of scattered wooded areas. So we’d have to drive for almost an hour to reach any real hunting grounds and, from what I’d figured, we only had enough gas left for two trips. Therefore, that had to wait until we were really desperate.

  …

  The two hours went by more like minutes. We had only gotten one rabbit and wasted a few bullets on some others as they escaped into the brush. Well really, Jim got one rabbit – I was surprisingly rusty.

  Tomorrow I’ll have to settle for the squirrels…

  As we headed back, Jim groaned out, “This isn’t good. I didn’t see anything else but damn tree-rats. One of us is gonna have to take the ride out toward the mountains and spend a day or two killing as much shit as we can.”

  I stopped and asked, “Wait, do you know how to make jerky?” I chuckled. “Can’t google shit anymore.”

  “Yeah, sure. My Uncle taught me how to make it. I mean, it was a long time ago so it’ll probably be pretty terrible, but if we can just manage to kill even one deer we’ll have enough to survive on for like a week. And by then something’s gotta change. We can’t possibly be without power and forbidden from entering town for another two weeks.”

  I didn’t say it out loud, but I thought to myself – Yeah but what if we are? What if something really horrible is happening out there and we just have no idea?

  I simply replied, “Yeah” and we kept walking.

  I’d spent a lot of time trying to think of why it was happening – probably too much time. So had Jessica and so had Jim. We just couldn’t come up with any logical explanation as to why the military had all the roads blocked, and most importantly, why cell service was shut off.

  Except one – society has collapsed due a widespread loss of power and people in the cities are rioting, looting and overwhelming the police.

  The issue with that theory was that it’s only been eight days and, like Jim pointed out – some states go without power for weeks at a time almost every year because of the weather. The truth was that the whole situation was monumentally confusing and nonsensical, which made it so our assumptions were probably nothing more than a waste of time and thought.

  Regardless of the actual situation, I was preparing for the worst because I was almost certain that we would have heard something if everything was fine beyond our little collection of homes. And the lack of cell phone service continued to be (in my opinion) the most damning piece of evidence suggesting that shit wasn’t fine at all…

  Upon returning to the area where I originally saw the dog, I noticed the sun hitting several small pools of blood in the dirt. I pointed it out to Jim and he walked over. “Damn. Someone must be really hungry. Too bad.”

  Yeah, too bad someone else got it before us.

  I knew it was a horrible thought, but the short hunting trip had basically been a failure, so it was looking like we were going to have to use up all the gas in order to, hopefully, get a month’s worth of food. Which of course, would be fine if things would be going back to normal soon. I just didn’t have that reassurance at the moment and I couldn’t risk thinking like that. I had my wife and daughter to consider – my life and feelings were secondary when it came to them.

  I’ll do whatever it takes to keep them alive…

  We were about a hundred yards away from the start of the homes, discussing what to do next as we walked, when two shots rang out in the distance. We transitioned to a sprint and Jim said, “I’d say someone was hunting, but that sounds like it’s coming from our street. Fuck, could it really be starting already?”

  I couldn’t even answer him – all I could think about was Jessica and Sophia. They were basically helpless, and if something happened to them while I was gone it would be my fault for leaving in the first place.

  I never should have never left.

  I should have told Jim we had to hunt separately.

  The very idea of something happening to them made my heart begin to race, and I could actually feel a rage inducing heat coming from within…

  We hadn’t heard anymore gunshots by the time we reached my backyard, so I didn’t think twice about heading around toward the front. Jim had enough sense to stop me. “Whoa, man, take it slow. We don’t know what’s going on yet.”

  I was so worried about Jessica and Sophia that I wasn’t thinking straight. I had to remind myself that getting killed by doing something stupid like blindly running toward gunfire could be a death sentence for them as well. I was their only real line of defense.

  If anything, I need to keep a cool head.

  Think before I act.

  Think.

  I can depend on Jim, but only for so much… it’s not like he’d fucking die for them.

  We crept around the side of my house and leaned out to check down the street. When I looked back at Jim I could see that his trigger hand was shaking. Then I realized that mine was as well. “I don’t see anyone.”

  Get a fucking grip.

  Nothing’s even happened yet.

  It wasn’t long before we heard three more shots, accompanied by faint yelling in the distance. We each twitched, turning our heads toward the noise in unison. Jim said, “It’s definitely coming from down our road… We should go check it out, right?”

  As alarmed as I was by the gunshots, at the same time I was inexplicably relieved to know that they were nowhere near Jessica and Sophia. “Should we?” The want to help someone in need was there, though I wasn’t too sure about the idea of risking myself for anyone but my own family.

  “What if someone needs help?” he asked.

  But if something happens to me…

  “Chris.”

  They had to have heard the shots. She’s probably losing her shit.

  “I know. It’s just…”

  Since Jim didn’t have a family of his own, it took him a moment to figure out why I wasn’t so quick to follow. “Shit. I got you, man. Just go home. I’ll check it out.”

  While I hadn’t known Jim for all that long, we’d become very close. He was definitely someone I’d want for a lifelong friend, and his selflessness was just another example as to why. “No, I’ll go with you. You’re right, someone might need help.” I thought of Jessica and Sophia. “They would want me to.”

  Jim gave a respectful nod and we continued on, moving in between the homes, trying not to get ourselves shot by a paranoid neighbor. Lucky for us, quite a few people on our street had left with the others the day before so it was a minimal concern.

  The farther we went, the closer I came to understanding whoever was yelling. There was definitely some type of an altercation taking place. People were shooting at each other.

  Another shot rang out. Then a few seconds later, another.

  Rifles.

  Not handguns.

  We both ducked down and Jim said, “It
’s definitely people shooting at each other.”

  “Definitely rifles” I pointed out.

  “Yeah.”

  When one of the men yelled again, I could finally understand what he was saying. “You ate my dog you piece of shit! I’m gonna kill you!”

  “You hear what he said?” I asked through a sigh.

  “Guess it’s a good thing we didn’t shoot it.” Jim grabbed at his chin. “Should we do something?”

  I studied his darting eyes as I decided how to answer him. I couldn’t tell what he was thinking, but I knew exactly what I was… It’s starting.

  “No.” I regretfully shook my head. “If we kill anyone or get involved it could just make us enemies… or murderers. We should go home, lock everything up and stay alert. I really doubt going over there will accomplish anything besides putting us in danger for no real reason.”

  He nodded and pressed his lips together as his eyes moved to the ground. Judging by the yelling and the gunshots, there was no question that someone was going to die. It wasn’t something that needed to be voiced.

  The first step toward chaos.

  My mind raced, knowing that once a dead body turned up nothing would ever be the same, which is why all I could think about was getting home. Everyone was going to be on the defensive – in kill mode. It probably wouldn’t even be safe to walk through backyards anymore.

  They need me with them right now.

  Another shot cracked off, and before I could tell Jim that I had to get back, he said, “Just get home, they’re probably really scared.” He lowered his rifle, openly guilt stricken. “And you’re right, we shouldn’t get involved. We have too many problems already.”

  Day 32

  There still hadn’t been any word about aid or what was happening, and we were completely out of gas and less than two weeks away from running out of food. The plan to drive out to the mountains was only a partial success. The first trip, Jim went alone and came back with a deer and a rabbit. When I went, I returned with a very small deer and three rabbits.

  We each spent an entire day trying. We left before the sun came up and returned well after it went down. And we still only ended up with as much from both trips as we expected to get from the first one. It was a monumental disappointment.

  According to Jim, many of the people in the nearby areas weren’t very well off and had always had to hunt to help feed themselves. He concluded that it was why larger wildlife in the area was scarce – especially since it was still extremely cold. If anything, looking back on it, we were fortunate that neither of us ran into anyone and ended up in an altercation of some kind.

  Jessica’s (understandable) anxiety was escalating as the days went by. All she could do was sit in the house and watch Sophia because I demanded that they didn’t go outside, or even near the windows. I knew it was only making things worse for her, but that didn’t at all outweigh the foreseen risks.

  Sophia was starting to ask questions – why she couldn’t have more food or play in the backyard. It killed me on the inside to hear her say that she was hungry every day, but Jessica and I were already eating the bare minimum.

  We stopped worrying about the soldiers blocking the road, what was happening in the rest of the world, or even why things were the way they were. All that mattered was protecting ourselves and finding food. We didn’t have the time or the energy to think about anything else – or the luxury.

  One thing we did agree on was that help wasn’t coming any time soon.

  It had gotten to the point where it wasn’t only dangerous to leave Jessica and Sophie alone, but for Jim and I not to be together as well. Things had changed drastically – it wasn’t even safe to hunt anymore. After what happened last week, he was staying with us and helping guard the house.

  The last time I went out, just a little over a week ago, two guys I didn’t recognize tried to jump me and take the rabbit I’d just caught.

  They didn’t have guns so I only walked away with bruises and a split lip, but I was forced to kill one of them. They just wouldn’t stop kicking me, and I couldn’t allow them take my rifle… It was one of the worst moments of my life and, even though I knew in my heart that it was justified self-defense, I felt like a murderer.

  I didn’t see them as bad people. They were just starving, probably dying – desperate to feed their loved ones… Both of them were so thin.

  (I couldn’t stop thinking about it. More than anything, I wanted to tell Jessica, though I decided to “spare” her – partially due to shame. Whenever I looked back, I kept telling myself that I could have just scared them away.)

  Three nights ago, when others began showing up, it was painfully clear that Jim’s theory was correct. The less fortunate were the ones who attacked first, and it was simply because they began to starve before the rest of us.

  And much like killing that man, every detail still played out in my head daily as though it had just happened…

  We awoke to gunshots, yelling and cries for help. And when Jim and I reached the front windows, we saw that a large group of armed men had descended upon the neighborhood. By then there were already barrel flashes coming from inside some of the homes across the street.

  I turned to him and said, “They aren’t just robbing them – they’re fucking killing anyone they run into.”

  “Fuck” was all he had to say in return.

  The sheer terror I was feeling almost didn’t allow it, but I forced my eyes away from the window and checked to make sure both of my guns were fully loaded – safeties off. “Get ready. They’re probably coming here next.”

  “I’ve already got one picked out – the guy with the green bandanna around his face. The second it looks like they’re heading this way I’ll fire… You never know, they might just leave.”

  I began counting them, stopping when I got to ten. “Fuck, Jim. We won’t be able to hold them off. Do you think I should have Jessica take Sophia into the woods and hide?”

  Jim took a deep breath. “I, I don’t know… I mean… If they somehow spot them.”

  “Shit” I barked. “I don’t know what the hell to do. Both choices could get them killed.”

  For hours, we watched them go around the neighborhood breaking into different homes. And we eventually came to the conclusion that they’d been watching us because it seemed like they picked all the homes with people who couldn’t defend themselves – starting with my elderly neighbor Hank and his wife Charlotte who lived across the street.

  They never even came near my house. Of course it was only a guess, but it was just too much of a coincidence. It truly seemed like they knew exactly who was armed and who was defenseless.

  That night neither of us got a moment of sleep. We were too worried that they might come back and try to catch us off guard, so we took up positions at windows on opposite sides of the house for the rest of night. I watched the front, he watched the back and I had Jessica lock herself and Sophia in one of the bedrooms with no windows and move furniture up against the door.

  Although, as staggering as it all was, the next day was even worse. We saw something that could never be forgotten – something that would change my opinion of human nature forever – something that would most likely haunt my thoughts and dreams until the day my consciousness ceased to exist…

  Once the morning light appeared, Jim came over and kneeled next to me. “We should go check all the homes they raided and see if they left anything behind.” Guilt laced each word.

  I frowned heavily and looked at him like he was crazy.

  “Chris, they’re dead. We’re still alive. Your wife and daughter are still alive. We need anything we can find. Even if it’s just one can of food… We have to do this.”

  I continued to stare, even though what he said had already convinced me. He probably thought I was judging him, but really, I was looking past him and thinking about what we were going to see when we walked in those homes. I knew it would be foolish not to go check. I just didn
’t want to…

  Before we walked outside, I stopped and said, “We need to be really careful, even though we saw them leave. They could be hiding – waiting to ambush us or something like that. Especially if we’re right about them watching us beforehand.”

  “I already thought of that. I say we just make a run for it. Get to cover as fast as we can.”

  I agreed by way of a single nod, let the rifle slide behind my back and took out the Walther. We stepped out, I closed the door behind us and then we sprinted across the street to Hank’s house. As we did, I quickly looked in all directions while keeping both hands on my pistol, ready to fire – I didn’t see a thing or pick up a single sound other than our rushing footsteps.

  When we made it up the steps and got to the front door, I could see that they simply shot the lock to pieces and walked right in... Probably only took a few seconds.

  I led the way since Jim only had a rifle. A long gun with a scope wasn’t really worth a damn indoors, so he stayed directly behind me, practically aiming over my shoulder while I eased the door open.

  Hank’s frail, thin body was lying at the bottom of the stairs, appearing as though he was running up and near the top when they shot him. It was gruesomely twisted, bullet ridden and his left leg was broken. The bone had forced its way out through the skin just under his right knee. His head was tilted back, facing the door.

  From the moment we walked in his eyes were permanently fixed on us.

  When Jim saw him, he muttered, “It… It looks like they kept shooting him just for the hell of it.”

  I swiftly walked over to the front window, tore down one of the larger curtains and draped it over his body. And I didn’t do it for him, or out of respect. I was did it for myself.

  Jim and I had agreed that we “made the right decision” by not getting involved and unnecessarily putting ourselves in danger – putting my family in danger. I knew he was right, though I couldn’t help feeling that in reality we hadn’t made the right decision, but the selfish one. Even though those men were the ones who killed him, my conscience incessantly suggested that we were partly responsible as well.