They came from the stars

Chapter eight

I stared at myself in the mirror and sighed. I'd probably lost thirty pounds at least, or more. Thankfully I had gained some muscle though. Using my finger I traced the jagged pink scars that ran down my sides and the one that had faded slightly on my neck.
   "You're alive" I said to myself in the mirror. And it was true. I was alive, and in this world that's all that mattered anymore.
   I dressed quickly and shivered in the cool air. It was hard to keep the house warm with no electricity and the only source of heat we had was a wood burning stove. It was going strong in the main room, but the heat didn't reach the bathroom.
   Trent was huddled by the fire with his hands up. His face was hidden behind and thick and scruffy beard. When he saw me he scooted over.
   "I made dinner" he said as he handed me a plate of mystery meat in a stick. The edges were slightly charred from being held to the fire.
  I sat down next to him and took a bite. It tasted like spam, which I guessed it probably was.
   A few months had passed since the run in with Molly at the motel, but it was still fresh in my mind. At night when I tried to sleep I could still hear Shane's screams and see the monster as it tore him apart. Sometimes it wasn't Shane it tore apart, but Trent.
   Winter had come and it was hitting hard. Six inches of snow already covered everything and it looked like more wasn't far off.
  With the temperature well into the teens and snow covering the ground we decided to call off our patrols. It was too cold and we already ran the risk of getting sick as it was. I doubted Molly or her crew would be out in this, even for a little bit if revenge on us. I hoped I was right about that.
  After dinner I stretched out and laid in front of the fire. Trent and I had pulled our beds out in front of the stove for added warmth. We ran the risk of catching the beds on fire, but it was too cold not to. I wasn't too keen on freezing to death.
  It didn't take long for me to fall asleep, but the nightmares came like they did every night. When I woke up I was drenched in cold sweat, which only made me colder.
   I changed clothes and checked the time on my watch. It was still pretty early and the sun hadn't yet risen. Trent was asleep beside me. Occasionally he would twitch or jerk. Sometimes he would mutter. I leaned down and kissed his forehead.
  "It's okay" I whispered in his ear. "Shhh."
He twitched, rolled away from me, and curled up tighter. It seemed like he calmed down a little bit though, so I grabbed some firewood and threw it in the stove.
   While Trent slept I cleaned our guns, took inventory on the dwindling supply of food we had, and did some push ups to keep my blood flowing. It was strange to me how much my life had changed in only a few months. I'd gone from high school to soldier in such a short time.
    Sometimes I wondered what would happen when this was all over. I wondered if I'd be able to go back to the life I lived before if suddenly all the aliens just took off and left us alone. But then I remembered that day wasn't going to come, and I focused my mind on reality rather than fantasy. Still, it was nice to think back to the days when I felt clean and innocent.
   With a sigh I grabbed a book and took a seat by the stove. In the dim light it was hard to read, so I gave up. I was going stir crazy. Without our daily patrols I had nothing to focus my attention on.
  Frustrated, I pulled myself up and grabbed my coat. I needed something to focus on. Grabbing my rifle, I headed out into the cold.
   Fluffy white snow covered every square inch of the ground and long, sharp looking icicles hung from the tree branches. The sun was starting to rise, but it was still an ugly gray day. Big, puffy gray clouds swept across the sky and an icy cold wind clawed at my exposed skin with frozen claws.
  I walked down the driveway and followed the snow covered road. The pond, which had been a stagnant, green thing in the summer was now completely hidden. It had frozen over and snow had covered it.
   My only purpose in this winter wonderland was to find food. I knew squirrels and most other small animals were hibernating, but my goal was something bigger anyway. My mouth watered at the thought of deer steaks.
  In my previous life I wouldn't have touched deer. As a kid I had grown up watching animated movies about talking and singing animals in the forest. I would have never gone hunting and I certainly never would have killed a deer. Now was a different story and I was a different person. That little girl had died in the invasion.
   Passing the paved road, I headed into the woods. My feet sank into the snow with every step. Sometimes I'd get unlucky and some of it would get in my shoes.
   For an hour I searched for any sign of deer, but found nothing. It was a long shot anyway. That didn't make me feel any better though.
  Deciding I needed higher ground, I started up a nearby hill. It was fairly steep and in the snow, almost impossible to climb. Frustrated, I stopped for a moment and turned around. I could barely see the farm through the trees, but I could see it. I took in the view for a moment, decided against going any further, and took a step forward.
  My foot caught landed on something in the snow and I stumbled backward, landing hard on my ass.
   "What the hell?" I grumbled.
In the snow it just looked like a lump. It wasn't until I looked closer that I realized that lump was a person. He was nearly frozen solid and covered in snow. His hands clutched a rifle in them and he appeared to be looking through the scope. He was looking right through the front window of the farm.

   "Get up Trent" I screamed as I threw open the front door, oblivious to the cold air it was letting in.
  He stirred and rolled over to face me.
"What the fuck?" He snapped groggily. "Close the damn door!"
  "There's a man in the hill" I said as I closed the door behind me. "He was watching us!"
  That seemed to catch his attention. Trent snapped back to reality and was up in seconds. He reached for his gun and gave it a quick check.
   "Did he look like one of Molly's goons?" He asked.
  I shook my head. "He was frozen to death." I felt my stomach churn. "He was wearing a collar."
  "Son of a bitch" snapped Trent. "That means he's been there since before it started snowing. Who knows how long he was actually there. I'm sure his buddies know all about us too."
  "What should we do?" I asked.
He frowned and pulled in his coat.
  "We need to make sure there aren't anymore of them walking around out here. Then we need to figure out what to do next. It may not be safe to stay here anymore."
  
  The sense of ease I'd had yesterday was gone now as we crept through the forest, eerily aware that we may being watched. It was pure luck that sniper hadn't killed one of us already. Knowing he was out there for so long, watching, waiting for one of us put me on edge. But why hadn't he moved? It looked like he'd simply let himself freeze to death. Had he been given an order not to move until he had taken us out? I shuddered at the thought of someone or something controlling me against my will. It terrified me to think that they had no free will. If I was in that situation I'd want someone to put a bullet in my head.
   Three hours of searching yielded no more zombies, so we headed back to the hill where I'd found the sniper.
  "Poor guy" muttered Trent.
"We could use that rifle. It has a nice scope" I said as I reached for it. Using all my strength I tried to pull the rifle from his hands. There was a cracking noise, followed by a disgusting pop. I tumbled back and nearly screamed. I'd come away with the rifle, but I'd also snapped off his hands. They hung from the rifle, still frozen in place. I turned and vomited.
  Trent chuckled. "That's nasty as hell."

  I stared at the flames dancing inside the stove. Trent was busy cleaning the new rifle.
   "We should go. As soon as the weather breaks" he finally said.
  I turned and looked at him. Shadows cast on his face gave him an aged look and he looked thirty years older than the man I'd met months ago.
  "To where? Where are going to go?" I asked.
He sighed.
  "I don't know. But we can't stay here. Molly's going to be coming after us as soon as the weather breaks, and the zombies already know where we are. I have no doubts they'll send more men when the weather breaks. I say let those two duke it out and we get the hell out of Dodge."
   "What about Jake?" I asked.
"Jake's dead. We're not. If we're going to survive then we need to be ready to make the hard choices."
  Though he was saying the words, I didn't know if he believed them. I could see sadness in his eyes. It would be a hard decision and I didn't know if he could actually do it. I'd have to wait and see.

  The weather broke three days later. Though it wasn't warm enough to thaw the ice and melt the snow, it was bright and sunny.
   Fearing an attack from either Molly or the zombies, we decided it was time to make our move. During the harsh weather the battery had died on the car and with no way to charge it we were forced to leave it behind. It didn't matter anyway, the roads weren't plowed. We would have to walk.
  It was a somber experience as we packed what little we had and split it between the two of us with backpacks. Neither of us spoke. It was hard to give up the only home we had left and to take our chances on the road. Especially during the winter.  The risks out there were high, but to stay meant a certain eventual death.
  I pulled on my gloves and the improvised snow shoes I had made from tennis rackets. With a final sigh, I pulled open the door. Stepping out into the sunlight, I was greeted by a gust of cold air. At least it was warmer today than it had been.
   Trent was right behind me. Though we both doubted we would be coming back, he locked the door as if we were just going out for the day.
  As we descended down the driveway I took one final look back at the house that had become my home for the last few months. The warmth and safety it once meant was now lost and I couldn't help but feel a gnawing feeling of dread in my stomach.
   Trent stood beside me, his eyes watering. I knew he wasn't just saying goodbye to the home we'd made, but the unmarked grave that sat close by. He had already said goodbye to Jake once and now he had to do it again, this time permanently.