Sundown Series (Novella): Alone Read online

  ALONE

  By: Courtney Konstantin

  Copyright © 2017 by Courtney Konstantin

  All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof

  may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever

  without the express written permission of the publisher

  except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Dedication:

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Epilogue

  Dedication:

  To my Brainstorming Bestie. Without you the Duncan Family never would have left my brain and found their way onto the page.

  Chapter 1

  The shade of the trees was oppressive, pulling the ceiling of the sky down to close in on the woods. The branches left pockets of darkness, nightmares waiting to spring at any unsuspecting passerby. Even most animals seemed to feel the fear seeping through the forest, as nothing could be heard beyond the chirp of a far off bird. The sun was a bright orb in the sky, but that sky wasn’t for the trees. The trees created their own sky, and their own nightmare.

  The nightmare moved through the woods; sickness, staggering. Infected bodies, once full of life, human beings, were now mindless bodies moving through the forest, on the hunt for a meal. That meal was human flesh, the healthy kind, with clean, uninfected blood pumping through it. Those types of walking meals, the healthy people, ran and hid from these walking sick. One bite, and they would be joining them in the never ending search for food.

  Easton Reynolds pushed back into the rotted tree, hiding his sister Candace behind him. For a sixteen-year-old boy, Easton was tall, with wide shoulders. His body was toned from years of playing baseball, which before the plague, he appreciated for the attention of the girls. Now, all he wished was to be small and invisible. He could feel his thirteen-year-old sister tremble with fear behind him, and he tried to keep his cool as best as possible.

  As the infected rambled by, Easton couldn’t help but picture his mother, in her infected body in the Walgreens days before. One bite and losing blood caused her to lose her true life. Alex Duncan had ended her infected one. Alex. The name vibrated through Easton’s mind. She could have left the teenagers in the Walgreens. Decided they were too much trouble, and left in her RV with her kids Billie and Henry. But she didn’t, she took them in, and they were a makeshift family now.

  Easton and Candace had lost their mother in the plague filled time, but they had gained a family. Compatriots in grief and survival, the small group bonded quickly and strongly. The calls of Alex’s daughter’s name had ceased when the infected entered the forest. Billie was somewhere in the trees, and Easton hoped Alex or the man with her, Marcus, had found the little girl.

  The idea of Billie alone in the woods chilled Easton to the core, and he again debated leaving their hiding spot to continue the search. He would be in these musings, but would then feel Candace squeeze his arm, and he knew he couldn’t move until it was safe for her. Easton had to hope that Alex had Billie, and had made it safe back to their home, the RV.

  An infected passed so close to Easton he could have reached out and touched it. The smell of decay wafted into the hole they were crammed into. Candace covered her nose with her hand, not used to the smell. Easton had fought enough of the infected with Alex that he knew the smell, it was familiar to him. The infected couldn’t see them in their dark hiding spot, so Easton stayed still, to not attract the attention of the hungry.

  The infected lingered near the opening of the rotten tree, and Easton tightened his grip on the knife in his hand. Alex had given him the knife, and he knew it would be better in close space, versus the bat he normally fought with. The infected was a large man, his shirt ripped to shreds and stained with blood. His black eyes swung around the forest, eerily studying its surroundings. Easton wondered if they saw like normal humans, but he doubted it with their eyes going completely black with the infection.

  The large man finally moved on, and Easton let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding in his chest. He tried to roll his shoulders, to release some of the kinks that were forming. The small hole didn’t leave space to sit or shift, and his body was starting to protest the statue he was having to be. He worried that he would have to fight, but the stiffness would slow him down.

  They hid, watching as the sun had moved across the sky. In the distance Easton could still see moving shapes, but the majority had moved beyond their hole. He eased his way slowly out of the hole, looking all around, motioning for Candace to wait. The foliage was trampled in spots, reflecting the horde that had wandered through the woods. Easton followed their trail with his eyes, and was filled with fear as he realized they headed straight from where they had come. The RV.

  Panic began to prickle through Easton, causing the hair on his neck to stand up. He felt stuck between a rock and a harder rock. Their best chance in the world, was to get back to Alex, back to their family, and move on to the Montana compound they were headed for. The compound in Montana, sounded like the perfect place to live out the rest of the plague filled days. But the path to that compound was currently full of infected dead, searching for him and his sister.

  “Decide,” Alex’s voice came through Easton’s head. She would want him to make the best survival decision for him and Candace. And standing there not moving wasn’t the right choice. As he turned, and motioned for Candace to come out of the tree, a small group of infected stumbled into sight. Easton saw them. The growls that left their mouths confirmed they had seen Easton and Candace too.

  Chapter 2

  “Easton!” Candace exclaimed, but in a small fear filled whisper. Her face was pale and her brown eyes were huge as she gripped her shovel in front of her. She had only been near the infected a few select times, and Easton had kept her safely away in the RV the rest of the time. He was sure she wouldn’t know how to swing the shovel to protect herself if it came down to it.

  The group of infected, effectively cut off their quickest escape toward the RV. Which turned the teens in the opposite direction. Though Easton had confidence in his abilities against the infected, he didn’t want to risk Candace. And if he failed, she would be alone. That prospect wasn’t acceptable.

  Hand in hand the teens ran in the other direction. One of the infected was faster than normal, and Easton had to pull Candace to a sprint before they could leave the infected behind. Low branches whipped Easton in the face, scratching and cutting his exposed skin. He veered off to the right, avoiding another infected that was bouncing off of a large tree. Their loud steps caught its attention, but it was too slow in responding and it just bounced off another tree.

  Slowing to a fast walk, Easton checked their surroundings. Candace was gasping for breath, but she didn’t complain. The panic Easton had been feeling began to intensify as he realized he just wasn’t sure where they were. They tried to walk a straight line when they first came into the forest earlier that day. But running and avoiding the infected had thrown his sense of direction off.

  Easton stopped, and then turned in a full circle, looking for anything that would indicate which direction they should go. He then stood still, listening to the forest. Far off he could hear moans and movements of infected walkers. Going backward didn’t seem an option, with over fifty walkers in that direction. Easton found himself again praying that they didn’t get to the R
V with the family in it.

  “I think we keep going forward,” Easton whispered to Candace. She looked back the way they had come, insecurity on her face. Losing their mother had crushed them both. But the Duncan family, Alex, Henry, and Billie, had filled the void quickly. Losing them now, seemed inconceivable.

  “We don’t have a choice, Candy,” Eaton said softly, taking her hand in his again. She looked at her big brother, trust shining back at him. She nodded softly and squeezed his hand. Easton turned and began to pick their way through the forest, away from the infected that wanted to eat them.

  The forest was full and congested with trees and fallen logs. Easton tried to pick a straight path as best as possible, using the technique Alex had taught him. Pick one closer landmark, reach it, and then pick another from there. Continuing to do that, effectively kept the teenagers going a straight direction. Though that direction took them away from their family.

  Easton was turning to help Candace over a fallen log, when she cried out and pointed behind him. He was fast with his knife, but faster still with his bat. He swung around quickly to see what had scared his sister, knife in hand, to be surprised by three infected coming straight for them. How hadn’t he noticed them before? The shadows seemed to hide the danger throughout the forest.

  “Stay back, Candy,” Easton said, and pulled his bat from the sheath Alex had created for him. His swing was strong with the bat after all his years playing baseball. Confidence flowed through his veins as he prepared his stance for the first swing.

  The first infected to reach them was a middle aged woman, wearing cutoff shorts and a tank top. If she hadn’t been staring at him with black dead eyes, he might have been able to see her as a live person. But she shambled toward him, one leg dragging strangely, as if she broke an ankle at some point. Swinging for her temple, and dispatching her was easy for Easton.

  He didn’t feel guilt in the action anymore. He didn’t feel repulsion any longer. He felt strong. He felt righteous, protecting his sister and other living people of the world. The ease in which normal life had changed surprised Easton. When he allowed himself to think about it, he believed it should have been harder to adjust to the new world. Instead, he found himself falling into a new role. A protector. A provider.

  A growl sounded, from deep in the ruined throat of the next infected. A detached part of Easton wondered how it was possible for the man to make any noise at all. He was young, not much older than Easton, but he was much smaller. He had glasses hanging by a chain around his neck, which struck Easton as odd for a young man. Easton found himself noting small things about the infected, before he swung at his head. The blow tossed the infected against a tree, where his head made a sickening cracking sound, before the body slumped to the ground.

  The third infected of the group was faster than the other two, reaching Easton quickly, giving no time for preparation. Easton noted the speed difference, and decided he would need to think about that more later. They were getting faster, no longer were all of the infected rambling aimlessly, but now some seemed to run, or at least walk at a very fast pace, for what they wanted.

  Easton pushed the infected back with his bat, and yanked his knife from its sheath. The infected came at Easton again, trying to grab the arm that held the bat, but Easton slammed the knife into the temple of the infected before it could get a hold. As the infected fell, Easton kept a strong hold on the knife, causing it to pop free of the skull with a loud slurping noise. He stood for a moment, waiting for an additional attack. When none came, he sheathed his weapons and looked back at his sister. She was pale, with a mixture of fear and awe on her face.

  “Candy, let’s get moving,” Easton whispered at her, motioning her forward with one of his hands. She didn’t move right away, just studied him. He walked forward and grabbed her hand to pull her over the log if he had to. That seemed to break her trance, and she began to climb over herself.

  “I know I’ve seen you fight some, from the RV windows, but that was crazy,” Candy whispered.

  “Crazy? How?”

  “I mean, you learned really quickly, how to do that. How to kill those things.”

  “Alex taught me as we went. She was, IS, a really good teacher,” Easton stressed the word is, refusing to accept their separation was permanent.

  “Lucky for us now,” Candace whispered.

  “Yes, lucky for us now.”

  Chapter 3

  The trees began to lessen and the kids could see an open space beyond. Easton, having no other ideas of where to go, followed the ray of sunshine he could see. Anything was better than the darkness they were caught in. Squeezing Candace’s hand, he motioned toward the thinning trees and increased his pace.

  Before they broke from the forest, Easton could see what looked like a campsite. He slowed down, and pulled his bat from its scabbard. They walked into what was a single tent site, but now had five tents closely grouped. The tents were a grotesque scene of the apocalypse. They were ripped and broken, blood splashed on the ground and the walls. Easton stood silently for a moment, studying the site.

  “What do you think happened?” Candy asked in a quiet voice.

  “Well, that horde came from somewhere. Maybe they were the campers?” Easton replied, as he led her passed the tent site, toward a larger open area. The next area was a large campground, full of pop up tents, cars and one trailer.

  The kids held tightly to each other, as they made their way through the park. At every turn, there was signs of attacks and fighting. Bullet casings littered the ground. But there was no one left alive that they could see. The blood was dry in most places, the fight long gone.

  Easton led his sister to the nearest tent that didn’t look destroyed. Motioning her back, he unzipped the tent and with his knife held ready he peered inside. There were sleeping bags and an ice chest inside. Suddenly feeling the deep thirst in his throat, Easton flipped open the ice chest, and was greeted with a bottle of water and two Gatorades. Knowing that whoever had those supplies wasn’t coming back, Easton grabbed the drinks out and handed one to Candace.

  Candace popped open the drink and drank deeply. Her eyes never stopped moving around the campground, Easton could see her fear reaching unbelievable levels. She had finally started to feel safe, after everything they had been through. Being with Alex, and her kids, in their RV, went a long way to making her feel secure. They had been moving toward a solution. Even with the fighting of the infected along the way, Easton could see how she may have thought they were over the worst of it. She had been wrong.

  “Why do you think Alex didn’t tell the kids about their dad?” Candace asked suddenly.

  Easton glanced at her for a moment, but was silent in thought. They were in the woods that day because Alex’s daughter Billie had run from the RV. She had run after she heard Alex admit to their companion, Marcus, that her husband was dead. Easton had been just as surprised as everyone else, Alex had never confided that information to him. Billie in her seven-year-old mind, just wanted to flee the situation, and Easton could understand that.

  “Knowing Alex, whatever her reason was, it was to keep them safe,” Easton replied finally.

  Nodding, Candace replied, “It was horrible to come out like that though. Poor Billie and Henry.”

  Henry, Alex’s young son, had taken to Easton quickly. He was a social child, so easy to become attached to. Easton didn’t know what it was to have a little brother, but it had been fun playing and joking with Henry over the days they were together. Easton found himself praying again that the family was safe in the RV.

  “What are we going to do, East?” Candace asked.

  Easton looked around, and then judged the sun low in the sky. With the number of infected in the woods, he wasn’t sure it was safe to go back that direction. And that was the direction to get back to the RV. The direction to get back to their family unit, and the safety of their group.

  “We need to get back to the family,” Easton said.

&
nbsp; “I know that. But how?”

  “I don’t know yet, Candy,” Easton replied with a sigh. He crawled into the tent that wasn’t damaged and rummaged around. He smiled when he found a Hello Kitty backpack. But his smile quickly faded when he realized that a child had been there, and was probably dead now. Climbing back out of the tent he showed the backpack to Candy, who just raised her eyebrow. She had grown out of her Hello Kitty stage years before.

  Easton tossed the remaining drinks into the pack and moved to the vehicle parked next to the tent. The doors were all locked. Easton found that fact interesting, the locked doors gave the indication that there was lack of trust within the campground. They wandered to the trailer. There was no vehicle hooked up to it. Near the front hitch additional tents were pitched. The feeling of the campground was that they were busy fitting as many people into the small area as possible.

  Thinking of finding shelter for the night, Easton walked to the trailer door. Splatters of blood showed on the side of the trailer. When he reached the door, he pulled the handle slowly, and was rewarded with a satisfying click as the door opened. He pulled his knife and slowly entered the trailer. Nothing moved inside, and he motioned Candace in, closing the door behind her.

  The interior of the trailer was bare. Some of the cabinet doors were left open and bedding was tossed carelessly on the floor. Candace turned in a circle, taking in the mess. It was hard not to compare the trailer to their RV home with the Duncans. Their RV felt lived in, felt like a home. This trailer felt empty and cold. There were no crayons or nail polish spread on the floor. No smiling children.

  “Do you think these people got away before the plague?” Candace asked.

  “Not sure. Maybe, since it looks like their vehicle is gone,” Easton replied.

  Candace sat down gingerly at the kitchen table. She looked at Easton, hoping for some solution to their situation.