In The End Box Set | Books 1-3 Stevens, GJ (story books to read TXT) 📖

the road in a car which couldn't be his, wearing a broad smile as he saw me fending of the mentally damaged young woman who needed help.

“Mackenzie. Fucking knew you'd get left behind. Did they miss you because you're so fucking short?” he said as he pulled up.

When I didn't reply, he turned to Mike's house as more of the roof caved to the ground. “He toast?” he asked, eyeing up the burning house.

I didn't know what to say, distracted by the ever-increasing ferocity of the woman lurching towards me.

“She fighting you off?” he said, eyeing her up and down.

I looked back and he must have seen my harried expression; he jumped from the driver's seat as he pushed the door wide.

Forcing the woman away again, I noticed the triangle of the long knife gripped tight in his right leather-gloved hand.

“You don't get it?” he said, laughing as he spoke.

I shook my head. I didn't have a clue what he was talking about.

“You think she's fit, right?”

I stepped back, not responding. The woman swapped her attention to Damien and let me step back without following. I watched as he offered out his left hand.

The woman snapped her teeth together before lurching forward and biting down with a snap as she just missed the thick leather. Damien grabbed her by the hair before she could rise for another strike and her eyes rolled to see what had her in a hold.

“She's not there anymore,” he said, twisting her face toward me.

I shook my head. What I saw was a woman in trouble. I tried to protest, but the words wouldn't come.

“Still don't get it, do you?”

When I didn't reply, he thrust her head forward. Her bloodshot eyes snapped wide, latching onto mine. I jumped back and she lurched again, her hands grabbing my arms. I stumbled backwards to the ground and she came after me, her body and the wicked stench falling.

I tried to scrabble back, pushing hard with my legs, but they couldn't move against her weight.

Her head punched forward. She had my arms pinned to my side. Her breath stank like rotting shit, the stench forced out with her every effort. I looked deep into her eyes, hoping to see I'd been right, but there was something missing; everything missing. Only decay left.

In my peripheral vision I saw Damien's boot arrive by my head and he leant down.

“You get it now?” he asked; his breath didn't smell too much better. His hand reached out to her hair, pulling her head up.

She didn't complain; her mouth continued to snap open and closed.

“Choose. I haven't got all day.”

I turned to see the sun glinting off his knife as he knocked her right grip from my arm and pushed the handle of the blade into my hand, letting go of her hair.

Her head snapped forward and without both my hands to keep her at bay, I watched her wide mouth fill my view.

60

Teeth snapped, grazing my nose and her head pulled back, saliva dripping cold to my cheeks as she dived for a second try.

Despite knowing she was trying to take off my face, every muscle in my body felt tight and wouldn't release. My mind couldn't let me muster the will to take her life, my hand frozen around the handle of the knife.

She lurched forward again, her perfect white teeth snapping together. I knew there was something wrong, something alien; absent, but I couldn't put my finger on what it was.

I did the only thing possible in the moment. Closing my eyes, I gave up.

Feeling her weight collapse over me, the air forced from my lungs and my eyes shot open. I rolled her to the side, turning away as her blood, cool as ice, splattered across my face.

Panting for breath, I looked up and saw Damien standing over me, a wide, yellow-toothed grin beaming down, blood dripping from a paring knife in his right hand.

“I saved your life, you pussy, now you owe me,” he said, and snatched the knife from my hand. “Welcome to the new world, baby,” and jumped back in the Land Rover, leaving me lying, panting on the floor.

With his door slamming closed I stood staring at the body, her brown hair still perfect with just a thin line of blood running slowly from the wound at her temple.

“Get in,” Damien shouted, but I didn't move. I was still transfixed on the dead woman at my feet. He repeated, his tone sharper. This time it wasn't a request.

It was time to choose again and I took the cowardly way out, climbing into the passenger seat, knowing I'd failed the test. I couldn't protect myself and knew the only way I was going to survive was to surround myself with those who could to what needed to be done.

We didn't speak. The hierarchy had been established. Instead, I watched out of the window, stared along the empty roads; the parked cars all gone, too. The streets empty of life; only farm animals out in the fields.

We drove for about ten miles, not seeing a soul while the fires on the horizon grew in number. When eventually we saw people in their cars, they were queuing. I could see some sort of checkpoint way off into the distance, but I couldn't even muster the courage to tell Damien to stop the car and let me out as he turned the wheel away, following his instinct to keep from anything official.

His only reaction was when we came across a small group of what seemed to be people he knew. I was barely introduced to the four when their intent became clear; they were breaking into a small group of houses, helping themselves to everything of value.

Damien was happy to go