AllFreeNovel
Share Us
Chapter One
*Reggie*
“Fuck.” The curse slips from between my lips before I can take it back. Cringing I wait for the sounds of my siblings stirring, terrified they will come investigate and see what I see. An empty shelf. Anger and resignation fill me as I shut the cabinets quietly, despite wanting to do nothing more than slam them as hard as I can. To let my emotions run free, if only this once.
Normally a lack of supplies wouldn’t be quite so dire, but we have let them fall too far without replenishing them. We only have enough rice and canned goods to last us maybe another month. With four mouths to feed, it goes quickly.
Then again, my father never planned on it being used for so long despite his self-proclaimed reputation as a doomsday prepper. Ruefully I look around the small bunker, a pang of grief making me rub my chest absentmindedly. If it weren’t for our father’s overzealous prepping, we wouldn’t have even lasted a month after the third wave hit.
The bunker is small, maybe 1200 square feet of space but it has been our home since the world fell apart. Lovingly I let the memories of watching our father dig and build it soothe my panic, if only for a little while. The small kitchen/living room combo is so familiar to me I navigate the path back to my bedroom with ease, running my fingers along the wall to avoid unnecessary noise.
Soon enough my sisters will wake and then we must discuss what we will do. Going above ground is always a risk, but one that we take every few months to see what supplies we can salvage. Above the bunker sits a warehouse my father stocked constantly throughout our lives and most of our supplies come from there or the garden just outside its doors.
It was only by chance that my parents bought this property at all. For the longest time we thought they were insane for being so dedicated to doomsday prepping…until doomsday was upon us. Grief hits me again as I crawl into my bottom bunk as quietly as I can. They prepared our whole lives for this, only to not make it past the second wave. Killed in a car crash when one of the beasts dropped from the sky and into their path. Their loss makes me even more determined to make sure that my siblings do not meet the same fate.
A soft snore from above me, where Kaine sleeps, brings me back to reality. Sitting and bemoaning our lot in life doesn’t change what must be done. If it were just vegetables, then one of us would run above ground to get what we need and be right back. But we have other needs. We are out of medicine as well. The barren shelf still held some cans, but the medicine is gone.
Silently, I run through our rotations and groan. We take turns leaving the safety of our bunker, sharing that burden, but some of us are more qualified than others. My three sisters are all wonderful people, but our strengths lie in different places. Kaine is the youngest and if my calculations are right, then she is up next to go outside.
My heart gives a squeeze of panic at the thought of sweet Kaine traipsing to the nearest town in search of medicine. Not that Steph and Michelle would fare much better. Kaine was only 17 when the waves hit, but Steph and Michelle are older than me. They were both well into their careers when the world ended. A hairdresser and a college professor. Both are great, long-lasting careers, but neither sibling is really built for the trek to town. Three days’ worth of travel through monster infested lands.
It is easily a whole day of walking, not to mention needing to be always alert. You can’t walk on the roads either. The monsters rove through the abandoned cars looking for their next meals. My heart gives another squeeze at the prospect of losing one of my sisters to the beasts. The term ‘monster’ just doesn’t seem adequate to describe the nightmares that roam around, waiting for their next meal.
With a sigh I sit up in bed, turning so that I can lean against the wall, staring into the oppressive darkness. The job of protecting my sisters falls like a familiar weight upon my shoulders. Before the waves, I was a sheriff’s deputy. Not necessarily made for monster fighting, but at least I know how to defend myself. The skills have come in handy lately.
After losing my parents, I’ve had a recurring nightmare about losing my sisters. The thought of sending one of them out for medicine is unacceptable to me. No. I will go. If I’m honest with myself, even if one of my siblings had been a Navy Seal in our past lives, I still wouldn’t let them go. I’d like to find some way to control the situation. To keep them close. The pain and trauma of loss ensures you never want to feel it again.
When everything goes to shit, you start to lose your sense of security. In this way, I gain back some of that control and I don’t have to fear losing one of my sisters. If medicine wasn’t needed badly, then I wouldn’t even be considering going out, but my eldest sister, Steph, fell grabbing supplies a few weeks ago, cutting her arm. She has had a pesky infection that won’t go away ever since. We’ve been giving her our meager medicine, but just when we think it will go away it flares right back up.
She most likely needs a tetanus shot, but I don’t happen to have one or even know where I’d get one. As it is, our stash of antibiotics has been used up. She has enough for a week or two at best. After that we only have two bottles of peroxide. Fear starts to rise, threatening to close my throat as I consider all the what-ifs. Resolutely I shut my brain down, going into ‘deputy mode’ as my sisters call it.
Shutting off anything but logic and action I make a list in my head of everything I will need when I’m out and about. Running through my father’s collection of guns I decide on which two I want to take with me before climbing back out of bed, unable to sit still.
“What are you doing?” Kaine grumbles through the darkness, no doubt staring down at me as I pace back and forth in the small, free space of our room.
“Nothing, go back to sleep.” I mumble back, still making plans in my head, silently mapping which route I will take.
“You are planning. I can tell. You only pace when you are in ‘deputy mode’.” She grumbles, the bed squeaking as she leans over the edge to drop down before me. Of all my sisters, she is the closest to me in build. We are both about six feet tall and both have muscular bodies. Steph and Michelle are both short and willow thin. She materializes before me, close enough that I can make out her features, knowing instinctively that she is sizing me up.
“I am not.” I mumble, looking away from her intense blue eyes. It is on the tip of my tongue to tell her what worries me but just like all the times before, I take what control I can. Even if that means protecting her from everything. At 20, she is old enough to know, but old habits die hard.
“Bullshit.” She says before shouting, “Guys get in here. Something is bothering Reggie.” She shrugs at me when I curse at her before moving to switch on the dim overhead lighting. We both take a moment to blink away our sudden blindness.
It only takes a few moments before our older sisters can be heard making their way down the hall. Michelle is the first to appear, her shock of blonde hair disheveled as she wipes the sleep from her eyes. Steph follows closely behind, her injured arm clutched to her chest, wrapped tightly to keep it clean. Steph shares my dark hair and green eyes, inherited from our mother, whereas Michelle and Kaine are fair like our father.
“What is wrong? The satellite clock says it's only six in the morning.” Michelle grumps, always the direct one.
“Ask Deputy Obnoxious. She was pacing around and moving so much I couldn’t sleep.” Kaine gripes back, motioning towards me. All three sets of eyes move to mine, the unspoken questions in them threatening to bring back the panic from before. I must speak carefully, or they will fight me tooth and nail. If I can’t convince them to let me go, then I will leave without their knowledge. Either way I will save them.
“I simply noticed we are low in supplies. It stressed me out.” Tactfully I watch for their reactions, each showing a varying degree of shock. Their reactions are not unexpected, but a pang hits me in the chest all the same. Their fear is like a stab to my heart.
“How low are we talking? Our vegetables are stocked well, I just went out a few days ago to collect more.” Michelle demands, the sleep gone from her harsh eyes. Taking a deep breath to steel my nerves, I look away from Steph, not wanting to see the devastation on her face when I mention medicine.
“I’m not talking about food. I got up to prep Steph’s antibiotics this morning and noticed the medicine cabinet is all but empty. We have enough for maybe two more weeks.” The silence that follows my statement is almost tangible.
We all know the reality of our situation. We can sit in our bunker and playhouse for as long as we have food, but the true test is medicine. Without it, a simple fever could kill one of us. With the influx of monsters, the possibility of catching an unknown bug is higher every single day. For just a moment, the concrete walls feel like they are caving in on me, like we are simply prolonging our suffering. We are desperate to survive in a world that wants us dead.
“I’ll go outside and get more supplies.” Steph’s quiet voice breaks the silence, pulling me from my downward spiral.
