The Apocalypse: Shelter

Chapter 8

Morgan's POV

"It's been a long day and it's getting late," Ella says getting up from the edge of my bed. She stayed and talked with Julia and I in our lodge for about an hour after she showed us around, "You guys better get some rest." She gets up and walks outside. I hear rain pouring down. I hear her say "Shit" before she runs into the storm.

"Well how do you like it?" Julia asks me excitedly.

"It's great," I say smiling, "I think we could finally stop running."

"I'm just glad we weren't out there too long," she says, "It would've just gone downhill."

I nod my head. I think of Nick's group still out there somewhere. Hopefully, that call that that man Toby got was Nick and his group. The flame of hope inside me keeps me going and it just keeps getting bigger and brighter every passing moment.

We lay down and pull the covers over ourselves. I think about our long day as I stare at the ceiling and listen to the rain pitter-patter on the roof. I finally feel safe here. There are many people and so much shelter. They're stocked with food too. I fall asleep with only good things filling my thoughts.

Nick's POV

I wake up to silence. I look around to see everyone still asleep. Then, I realize Jake is missing. I quickly get up and walk outside. A zombie lurks toward me and I push it away. It lands on the ground with a thud and I stomp on its head. I walk out the back door to find Jake dragging rotting corpses into a huge heap.

"What are you doing?" I ask a little bewildered.

"I'm gonna burn them," he says, "Why are you out here?"

"I woke up and realized you weren't there." I answer.

"It's not you're job to worry about me," he says sounding a bit frustrated.

"Oh, I'm sorry I don't want anybody else to die," I say frustrated at his attitude.

I start helping him move zombies. I drag five to the pile before he bursts.

"I don't need your help," he says through gritted teeth, "Just go back inside."

"Well I want to help," I say trying to ignore his annoyance.

"I don't need your help," he says, "We never needed anyone's help! We were fine until you guys came along."

"You think they died because of us?!" I say finding myself yelling too, "That's ridiculous. They died because of your little friend Michael."

Even though it is cold outside and I can see my breath when I talk, I still feel myself heating up.

"I can't believe I'm fighting with a middle schooler," he says rolling his eyes.

"That doesn't matter!" I say even more frustrated, "You're argument is more ridiculous than our age difference."

"I'm just saying, everything started to go wrong right when you and your friends showed up," he says seeming to calm down a bit, which makes his anger even scarier.

"Did you ever think that it may have just been a coincidence?" I say also cooling down a bit, but still seething with anger.

"I guess," he says calmly, "We've just come so far together. I just needed to blame it on someone."

We both calm down. We move the zombies without a word between us. It doesn't seem long before I drag the last one to the huge pile.

"I had a camp before this," Jake says after we finish.

"What happened to it?" I ask.

"It...um...got overrun," he says looking down, "After that I went on the road. Karen and Beth picked me up one day with their friend who died on the road after the car broke down. They had been neighbors. We came here and met Michael. That happened not too long ago. It's funny how it's only been a couple weeks, but it feels like it's been forever."

I process what he says to me. I realize that it hasn't been that long and I also felt like it's been forever. Beth walks outside with Riely and Lauren behind her. They look refreshed and calm. Maybe we could finally have a good day.

"What are you guys doing?" Beth asks.

"Nothing," I say, "just cleaning up."

Jake ignores everybody as he pulls out a lighter and throws it on the pile of zombies. Even without gasoline, it doesn't take long for the rotting corpses to catch as the flames engulf the pile.

"Shouldn't we do that at night for warmth and light?" Beth says to Jake sternly.

"The smoke will tell the people coming for us where to go," he says without taking his eyes off of the flames.

Just then, by sheer coincidence, I look up to see a black Jeep rumbling down the street in our direction. They pull into the parking lot and stop the car.

"That's the same car that was at the school," Lauren says.

Three men pile out, with guns in hands, and the biggest man aims right at Jake. He directs his attention to the rest of us.

"Who made the call?" He asks.

Beth tentatively steps out, "I did. What's going on?" She asks.

"I'm Brice," the man says, "This is Luke and Toby. We're here to take you to our camp. Except for him."

"Well I'm not leaving without him," Beth says as she walks over to Jake.

"What about you guys?" He asks, directing his attention to the rest of us while keeping his gun on Jake.

"Yeah, we'll come." I say.

"Wait," Lauren says, "What about them?"

"Well, we could take her. But we can't take him." Brice says.

"Come on," Jake pleads, "You can't just leave me."

Brice stares Jake right in the eye with no sympathy. It's a stalemate between the two of them.

"You know what you did," Brice says, breaking the unbearable silence, "And we can't have people like you walking around the place that we live with our families anymore. Now, Beth right? Come with us and you'll be safer than you've ever been, especially without him."

Jake instantly grabs Beth and pulls his gun on her. She looks terrified. He stares directly at Brice again, "You take one of us, you get the other. All or nothing."

"Don't do this. You don't have to be a monster," Brice says, as Luke and Toby try to usher us into the car. But everyone stays where they are, as if frozen in time. Zombies close in all around us.

"I already am," Jake says as he pulls the trigger.

Beth is shot right between the eyes, instantly killing her. Jake runs straight into the horde before anyone can do anything. Brice screams for us to get in, and we obey. Riely pushes a few zombies down with her field hockey stick, and whacks a few in the head before frantically getting in the car. Lauren immediately runs in, but not before almost getting bit by a zombie, which I stab in the head. I jump in after taking a look at the rest of them who are shooting every zombie in sight. Luke is in the car first, followed quickly by Toby. Brice is still out, getting surrounded, but somehow singlehandedly taking each and every one of them down like it's his job. And I get the feeling that it is his job. Leaving only a few zombies behind, but with more coming, he jumps in the car and shuts the door. We pull out of the parking lot, hitting a few of them, and drive away. The horde seems to cover and swallow anything we left behind, like waves on the shore washing over the sand, leaving nothing but the memories of what happened. When we'll return, I don't know.

"So," Brice says, "What're your names?"