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“Her twenty-sixth birthday…?” I trailed off. I thought she was younger than that. I didn’t realize she was so close to my age, and to
the
turning
. But still, to do this to someone was disconnected from everything I knew about family. Guilt welled within me as I remained disjointed. We had supplies to last them some time, if we’d only known about their situation. If I’d shared some supplies this might have never happened.

“The gunshot?” I asked, already knowing the answer. If she’d tried to shoot herself, then a shot from a pistol would be quick and hopefully painless. I just didn’t know how they could eat her. I looked around at the children’s tear-streaked faces, noticing out boney they were, and how terrible their breathing had become.

Peter began crying, matching the others in the room. The children gathered to their feet and huddled around him. It was too much. I left the room without as much as a glance back. I wanted out of this hell and grabbed Kyle on my way back to the stairs.

Chapter 4: It Begins

             
The rest of the day passed by in flashes of dismembered body parts and ambient smells. Nothing felt solid or real. The ground shook but didn’t move, and it was cold outside even with the sun at its peak. Olivia talked, but I couldn’t hear her. Everything buzzed but I was stuck, lifeless, in the most silent world that had ever existed. I was broken.

              I did my best to put on a smiling face as I tucked Olivia away for the night before returning to the outside world. I took a seat on the cement just outside the door. I wouldn’t sleep tonight; I didn’t think Kyle would either. Too many images were cascading through my mind.

Instead, I tried to focus my attention on the sky. Bright little specks sparkled in the darkness. A full moon hung just near the center of the sky. Somehow it eased my mind. I returned inside and made sure to double-check the locks on the door.

              Striding into the living room, I crashed on the couch, my legs aching and my mind shot. That familiar, musty smell of the house thankfully replaced the odor of burnt flesh my mind kept fixated on. I was used to the silence of the room, but now it reminded me of the same quietness at the Palmer’s. I needed to do something to distract myself.

I lit the globe inside a nearby lantern. The shallow light enveloped the room, and I felt much better. I kept a few old binders underneath the couch that were filled with clippings and pictures from someone else’s life. I reached without looking and grabbed the first one that touched my fingers. I tossed the brown, leather binder into my lap and opened it to the first page.

I had remembered how to read not long after
The Forgetting
,
something that most in this city had not been able to achieve. The words on the front page weren’t exactly foreign, but they also didn’t hold much meaning, at least to me. The words on the flap read:

             
To Julie,

                                          From the first moment to our last,

                                          I will always love you.

                                                                                                                              Robert

              The second page held photographs. There was a couple in each picture, smiling and holding the other. They were young in the first couple pages, but as I went on they aged before my eyes, a lifetime captured in photographs. I saw the beginning of a relationship, the middle, the end. In one picture they were up in the air somehow, lights of blue, purple, and pink flashing in the background as they looked down upon a lake or a river. In another they had the sun setting behind them. The glare was strong in the photo but I could still see them laughing. Further in the book they were in strange outfits and shoving cake in each other’s faces. I had no idea what that one was about, but it seemed fun nonetheless.

Flipping through another couple pages I saw them holding a baby. The woman, now a mother, was exhausted and hooked up to some kind of machine. Again I was confused, but I didn’t really need to understand. The next few photographs were when everything changed. Something was wrong. The lady was still hooked up to tubes and things, but she was bald and looked sick. Soon it was only pictures of the father with the little girl.

              I grasped the side of my head and felt a headache coming on. These weird, mini migraines happened so often I knew this was going to be a bad one. Gently laying the photo album on the couch, I cradled my head with both hands just before the blistering pain overcame my senses. My vision blurred and even the back of my eyes hurt. It passed rather quickly, but it left an overwhelming need to fall over.

              My scared vision caused shadows to start jumping off the walls like demons. It felt like the spirits had followed me, seeking blood after I’d intruded on their domain at the Palmers. I killed the globe of the lantern, and again the darkness covered the room, the shadows dying into the background.

I was losing myself, and couldn’t even decide what was better, the light or the darkness. Both had their terrors, both so unwelcoming.

              “Come on, Jackson… just sleep,” I told myself. There was nothing else for me here, and I didn’t want to leave Olivia again. I definitely didn’t want to be a part of the waking world either. I reached behind the couch and brought out a bottle I kept hidden there.
Vodka
was labeled on the front of the clear bottle. I rarely used it as a sleep agent, but it was never more necessary than tonight. I took three gulps, trying to hold by breathe, stopped, recovered, and chugged some more. It burned so hot. Why anyone would drink this for anything but sleep was beyond me. Putting the top back on, I shoved the empty bottle beneath the couch and laid back. It took several minutes of impatient waiting, but the vodka finally hit back, hard. It would have taken me off my feet if I wasn’t already down for the count. I relaxed, feeling the liquid slosh around inside me. Soon enough, shapes contorted while the world begun to slow down. I closed my eyes and folded into myself. I slept for the first time in days, and didn’t dream once.

              A heavy knocking startled me awake. It took a few seconds to get my bearings before noticing a heavy weight on my body. I saw Olivia curled up and still asleep on my chest. Her body lifted slowly with my breaths, but her eyelids remained close. I didn’t tell her what happened the day before and never would. She knew better than to ask when she saw something was wrong. So she comforted me in her own way. I heard more knocking on the front door and this time Olivia heard it as well. She stirred from her slumber and rubbed her eyes while letting out a massive yawn.

              “Well… morning,” I said, trying to smile.

              Her hair was unkempt as always, blonde strands matted and clinging to her forehead. Her face was dirty and coated with a layer of sweat. She only grinned back. Lifting her gently up and away, I stood from the couch.

              “You stay here. Right here,” I instructed, pointing at the ground directly in front of her. After yesterday, she’d be lucky to go outside ever again. Olivia nodded, and took a seat on the couch.

              I walked to the front door, no idea who could be knocking. I doubted Kyle and Susan would be back, not for a few days at the least. So that left exactly no one I should be expecting.

I looked through my usual peep hole and a very fat leg clogged most of the view. I could hear whispering, but I didn’t immediately recognize the voices. They spoke quickly and quietly, and it seemed so very early. I hadn’t slept in so long that everything seemed strange and dulled. I was still adjusting, but I couldn’t ignore the pounding on the door.

              “What is it?” I asked. I didn’t open the door.

The crowd outside fell silent. They didn’t talk, or move, just stood there frozen.

“Well?” I asked. “I’m in no mood.” After what happened the day before, I didn’t think I’d ever open my door again. The rest of the world could just stay outside.

              “We have to talk,” Kelly said.

              “I don’t want to talk about it, Kelly,” I sighed. That fiery personality never got an answer from me about what happened yesterday. I couldn’t tell her, as I could hardly fathom it myself. I’d eventually tell her, just not right now. Of course she didn’t exactly like that answer.

              “Jackson, fuck, just let us in! It’s not
that,
man! It’s something else,” Kelly said, agitation in her voice.

I knew she wasn’t going away. Sighing heavier I twisted the locks on the door. Kelly pushed her way past me, followed shortly by the pudgy redhead and his sister.

“We have to talk,” Kelly insisted.

              Ricky turned around and shut the door, making sure to turn the locks back in place. That was odd. He shot a gaze at me that had an edge to it. Yesterday he was only full of dread. Plus he didn’t know what happened either. This look was different. His hair was greased out in all directions and sweat poured all over him.

              “Whatcha looking at?” Ricky sneered. At least that was normal. I sighed and waved towards the table in the middle of the floor. The two younger siblings obeyed, taking seats, but the fiery one remained standing, looking ready to explode. I couldn’t tell what this was about, but I was sure I’d find out soon enough.

              “So, what is it?” I asked. Olivia peeked her head through the entryway. I glared at her until she disappeared back into the living room. Bringing my attention back to the three guests, I saw the pudgy kid and his tall sister repeatedly looking at each other and back to me. Kelly remained confidently crazy, and near ready to burst with whatever she was holding in. She paced back and forth, either deep in thought or trying not to detonate.

              “Shit. Damn it. You even know? No, you can’t know yet. I mean this is fucked up. This is…” Kelly stuttered. She threw up her hands in revulsion and shook with absolute wrath. The brother and sister remained silent, unwilling or unable to speak while I knew that it was best to allow Kelly to let out her anger.

              “This is some broken, bullshit, sadistic, angry, bitching thing. It doesn’t even make sense! The damn people are going fucking wild down there!” Kelly exclaimed.

I spotted Olivia once again peeking in. I pointed and made the sternest face I could, and she ran to her room, knowing she shouldn’t be hearing words like these.

              “I’m not following,” I said, throwing my hands in the air. I had a pounding headache, and felt slightly sick to my stomach. The damn vodka always hit me wrong, even only a few gulps.

Kelly’s voice was loud enough to echo in the tiny room, and between my ears. “How about you two?” I asked, eying Jamie. Maybe she could be more concise because I had no idea what the hell Kelly was carrying on about.

Jamie didn’t initially answer. She remained fixated on her brother, as if encouraging him to answer for her. Surprisingly, he remained tight-lipped.

              “She doesn’t know a damn thing. They only know what I told them!” Kelly yelled. She was out of tune, and so lost in her own anger that she was turning blue in the cheeks. The brother and sister turned away, and leaned further away from Kelly, trying not to get involved.

              “Okay,” I said slowly. “Let’s start from the beginning.” I went over to the wall, leaning a shoulder against the peeling wallpaper and crossed my arms. My vision remained blurry and I wasn’t completely awake. Having to deal with Kelly this early sucked. She was so loud my head was ringing.

Kelly continued her rant, though I wasn’t really listening. I just couldn’t find my attention. Her voice cracked, sharpened, and whistled with angry plight, but the words threaded together in a string of nonsensical ideas. Her voice carried on until it abruptly stopped. I looked around the room, noticing that the three of them were watching me.

              “What the hell!” Kelly shrieked. She stormed up to me, and stuck a fist in my chest, thundering about my lackadaisical attitude. She scared the world out of me, even though she was half my size.

              “I’m listening, I’m listening, just take it down a notch,” I pleaded. “I have no idea what you’re saying. Just…” I wasn’t given a chance to finish. Kelly punched my chest even harder, and whatever anger was left inside her boiled out.

              “I’m trying to fucking tell you!” She whispered fiercely. “There is some crazy shit going down in this city, messed up stuff! Okay, get this.” She paused briefly, gaining some sort of grip on herself. “After you left the Palmers’… I went back in later that day.”

              “You did what?” I shuddered at the thought, but I shouldn’t have expected anything different from her.

              “There was nothing there. I don’t know what the hell you guys were freaking out about; the house was empty. Anyway, that’s not my point. After I left that house I went Downtown because I needed supplies. That’s where I saw IT.” She paused again. “It’s on the side of a fucking building, dude! Numbers, big, big, numbers!”

Kelly trailed off, lost in thought as if something mysteriously popped into her head. I struggled to follow, but she wasn’t giving me much to go on.

What numbers?

              Ricky waved me over. He had something on his mind that needed to be let loose. I hoped it was more than just a joke. Pushing myself off the wall, I left Kelly behind for a second to figure out what Ricky wanted. He moved away from his sister and looked like he wanted me to follow.

              “What is it?” I asked.

              “Bats, she’s out of her damn mind,” he said. That was Ricky’s nickname for Kelly. I didn’t exactly get the description, if it had reference or meaning. “She came flying up here this morning pounding on our door like this hare-brained creeper thing. I figured she was going mad. Jamie though it best we let her in before she broke down the door.” He sneered and looked back at his sister. “Bats has been going on and on. I don’t know what she thinks it is but…”

Ricky stopped, as if prying ears had suddenly fixated on him. He glanced around, praying that
Bats
wasn’t listening. He saw Kelly glaring at him and he cocked his head sideways and trembled. I couldn’t help but laugh, on the inside of course. Kelly was absolutely the most chilling when like this, aimed and loaded, pointing directly at you, and her aim was straight on the little chubby redhead.