The meeting went better than anyone could have expected. Claiming that she had plans that couldn’t be altered -and also that she wasn’t willing to divulge what they were- Alice wasn’t able to attend, but she assured Arthur that she was eager to go on the mission with them and would follow whatever rules and plans that they put into play. That was good enough for Arthur even if it didn’t quite sit well with Kendra and Rex.
“I don’t know about taking her with us,” Kendra said as she and Rex stepped outside of the house for some fresh air and privacy. “I can’t explain it, but something isn’t right with her.”
“Do you think it’s because she’s obsessed with Felix?” Rex said with a grin.
Taken aback by his comment only briefly, she smiled in return. “She’s pretty obvious, isn’t she?”
“To everyone but him, I think,” he replied.
“Felix has been lost since Ari… what happened,” Kendra offered.
“Before, I think,” he said with conviction. “He was confused long before we came here. I sometimes wonder if he should have married her. I question if he was thinking straight.”
“She was pregnant,” she reminded him.
“Not with his child,” he replied. “He was trying to do the noble thing and I get it. I just question if the noble thing was the right thing.”
“You have to remember that it isn’t easy to meet someone of the opposite sex in today’s world,” she said, defensively. “The fact that he’s handicapped only adds to that dilemma. He felt like the luckiest man in the world to have caught Ari’s eye.”
Rex threw his head back in laughter. “That man has had more women after him in the few short years that I’ve known him than I’ve had in a lifetime on this earth.”
She cocked her head to the side. “Jealous?”
He pulled her close and rested his chin on the top of her head. “Not on your life. I know when I’ve found the best there is.”
A small giggle escaped her. “Smart man.” After a moment of silence, she added, “I probably shouldn’t be talking about this, but it’s troubled me for a while. My aunt gave Felix a concoction that she came up with to help him perform in the bedroom. I noticed a change in him after that. It makes me question the side effects.”
“I didn’t know that she did that,” he said with surprise.
“It’s a bit personal,” she said. “The only reason that I know is that he told me about it. I guess he was excited about the fact that he was still a man or something.”
Rex pulled away and looked down at her with a scowl. “So, he told you?”
She looked up at him and firmly said, “We were raised as brother and sister. We’ve always been bonded. Of course he’d tell me.”
“He may have been raised as your brother, but Ari’s accusations were not unfounded. Don’t even try to tell me differently,” he grumbled.
“You never said anything to make me think that you were bothered by it,” she said with a shocked tone.
“I know my wife and trust my wife.” He thought for a moment and then shrugged. “I wasn’t raised with siblings. I wouldn’t know about the bond, but I guess it can be tight enough to be a bit intimate.”
Ignoring his comment about the possibility of an intimate bond between her and Felix, she opted to focus on the rest of his comment. “Didn’t you have anyone to confide in?”
“My uncle and a few members of the group, but I wasn’t as open with my information as Felix seems to be with you,” he replied.
“He’s a sensitive man,” she said. “Surely you’ve noticed.”
He smiled and nodded. “Indeed.”
“Am I interrupting?” Felix asked as he stepped out into the cool night air. “It’s stifling inside tonight. I thought I’d grab a bit of air before I retire, but if you want to be alone I’ll move on.”
“Don’t be ridiculous,” Kendra said in a tone that was a tad bit forceful.
“It’s good that you came out. I wanted to ask your thoughts about the meeting,” Rex said.
“My thoughts?” Felix asked with confusion.
Rex searched for the right words. “Maybe not the meeting so much as Alice. I wanted to ask you what you think about taking Alice with us.”
Felix’s face took on a look of sadness. “Because of what happened to Ari?”
“Not at all,” Rex replied. Then, as if realizing the implications of his statement, he quickly added, “I mean, of course that, but more. Kendra and I don’t get good vibes from her, but we can’t place them. We’re just wondering if you feel the same?”
“It’s difficult for me to look at her and not be reminded about what happened, but it’s getting easier as time goes on,” he replied. “Yesterday, I actually held a conversation with her. It was the first time since I met her. I was struck by how well aunt’s treatment worked on her face. It’s nothing short of a miracle.”
“She does work wonders,” Rex offered. “I’m sure Alice is grateful to her.”
“She seemed a bit messed up to me,” Felix mused. “I never took the time to think about what type of an impact Ari’s death might have made on her. I was so wrapped up in my own misery…”
“She seems to be handling it okay,” Kendra broke in.
“I thought so too until we talked and I saw how broken up about it she really was,” he said. “I think she just puts on a face for us. She was an orphan who was raised by an unkind group of wanderers, you know. They were going to eat her, but Arthur saved her.”
“What?” Kendra bellowed. “She’s a cannibal?”
Felix shook his head and scowled. “I didn’t say that. I said that she was raised by wanderers who ate people. I never said that she ate them. When they ran from the cyborgs, they got lost in the tunnels. They wanted to eat her when they got super hungry and thirsty. She escaped them and was found by Arthur. When they followed her here, he ran them off.”
“No wonder she’s so devoted to him,” Kendra said.
“It does explain their unusual relationship,” Rex agreed. “He dotes on her like Olga dotes on you.”
“My aunt doesn’t dote on me,” Kendra said with surprise.
“Live the life that I’ve led and you might think differently,” he said. “I’m not saying that it’s a bad thing. It’s good, actually. I was just pointing out that I was having a difficult time understanding why Arthur was that way with Alice. Now, I get it.”
“His doting ways could mean trouble in the long run,” Kendra said. “He’s blind to her.”
“Blind to what?” Felix asked. “Just what has she done or is she doing that we need to be aware of?”
“I don’t know,” Kendra replied. “It’s more a feeling.”
Felix’s brows knit together with disapproval. “If anyone should have reservations about Alice, it should be me. Yet, I’m willing to give the girl a chance and be grateful for her help. She was raised as an orphan within a group of wanderers on the surface. Her life experience could prove invaluable to us. Do you really want to toss it out the window because of a feeling that you can’t justify?”
“You seem to have taken a liking to her,” Kendra said in a tone that sounded accusing.
“Jealous?” he asked, defensively.
“Ari hasn’t been dead for very long,” she replied in an accusing tone.
“It’s been a few months and you of all people knew the dynamics of my relationship with her,” he replied with hostility in his voice. “I’d expect a bit more understanding from you, sister. Or, was that just something you said but didn’t mean?”
“Oh, we’re brother and sister alright,” she growled, “which is what gives me the right to stand here and say that I think you should start thinking with your head instead of your man tool for a change.”
“That was cruel,” he mumbled.
“Maybe so,” she replied, “but it needed to be said.”
“Did it?” Rex asked as he walked past them both.
Kendra’s jaw dropped at her husband’s comment as she watched him walk into the house without so much as a backward glance.
“You can be cruel and crude at times,” Felix said as he also started back toward the house.
“You don’t get to walk away from me like that,” she barked. “You and I haven’t finished our conversation.”
He turned and looked at her long and hard. “I think we have.”
Something in his mannerism made her hold back on her next comment as she watched him follow Rex into the house.
Alice was sitting at the breakfast table conversing with Rex, Olga, and Felix when Kendra sauntered out of the bedroom to join them. Their easy manner of conversation made her feel foolish about her outburst the night before. Although she’d gone to bed feeling righteous in her actions, the scene before her stripped away those feelings and replaced them with shame and regret.The sunlight coming through the large picture window rested on Alice’s once wrinkled face in a way that made her flesh resemble smooth porcelain. Seeing her well-shaped mouth smiling so alluringly at Felix was enough to take Kendra’s breath away. There was no denying that the girl was good looking with sex appeal as well. Leave it to her aunt to find a way to show it.Kendra was aware that the smoothness of Alice’s flesh did not continue to the torso that she had covered with clothing, but she also knew that it wouldn’t be an issue for Fel
“The children,” Olga gasped as she looked at Rex with a face that showed far more worry than he’d seen since he’d met her.He couldn’t blame her. The children were being cared for by Arthur’s friend Jeb and his wife to allow them the opportunity to focus total attention on their plans. The topic of leaving them in Hopeville until their mission was over had been a heated one, but Kendra wouldn’t hear of it. She’d just gotten Eugene back and had no intention of being separated from him ever again. As for baby Rex… she’d managed to escape the alien’s with him in tow when it was just her and a severely drugged husband in a pony cart. Surely, if she could keep him safe through that, she could keep him safe through anything.Panic filled Rex as he looked out at the crowd and saw a rope being strung over the branch of a tree. “I can’t believe it. They really intend to
“What took you so long?” Felix called out as the fugitives neared the tunnel’s opening.“We were about to come looking for you,” Alice added as she nervously paced back and forth.“They’re out for serious blood,” Kendra said as she leaned against a large boulder to rest. “We were lucky to get out alive.”Arthur was about to mention the fact that a few of the villagers weren’t so lucky and, then, thought better of it. Alice was already nervous around Olga and her family. Telling her that Kendra infected her attackers and they turned was probably not the best thing to do at the onset of their mission; if at all. Since Olga and Rex made no mention of it either, he assumed that they felt the same. He only hoped that Kendra would keep quiet as well.“We have to get the children,” Kendra said as she wiped at the perspiration on the back of her
The day and a half spent traveling at a steady speed through the tunnels seemed more like a year and a half to the small group. Each dealt with their own special demons in the dark. For Alice, it was the memory of running for her life. First from the cyborgs and, then, from her own people. For Felix, it was his time with Ari. For Arthur, it was concern about what happened back in Hopeville and how he, as the founding father, should address it once he returned.Olga and Rex spent their time in silent worry about Kendra. As did Kendra. She was not only fully aware that her behavior was shifting, but she felt a change going on in her mouth that concerned her.“I need to talk to you,” Kendra whispered when she guessed herself alone with her aunt in the darkness of the tunnel.“Can it wait?” Olga asked with a sense of urgency. “We should be out of these tunnels by early tomorrow. Then, we c
It was seven more hours of excruciating blackness before they saw a literal light at the end of the tunnel. Moods immediately lifted as renewed energy filled their bodies. Legs that only moments earlier felt weak to the point of barely able to support their torso suddenly experienced a surge of renewed vigor as they practically raced each other to the opening.Kendra was the first to reach the exterior of the tunnel. Although her first instinct was to race into the sunlight and pay homage to its brilliance while filling her lungs with fresh air, she knew better. Stopping just inside the opening, she flattened her body into the shadows while she visually inspected the area for cyborgs, aliens, or even humans who could prove dangerous. Prior to going into the earth’s core, she would have been cautious around a stranger, but not be prepared to kill or be killed. Her exposure to the dark side of humanity caused a considerable change in he
The peace and calm that the group felt about being able to camp under the stars without worry of being kidnapped by an amazon warrior or eaten by some prehistoric beast was a welcomed sensation. Because of this, sleep came fast and deep.They slept so solidly, in fact, that no one heard the small group of men entering the campgrounds just as the sun rose over the treetops.“What have we here?” said a deep, male voice.Kendra’s eyes were slow to focus, but she didn’t need to see the owner of the voice to recognize him. She’d heard it all of her life. Recognition brought her into immediate alertness. With lightning speed, she sat up and shook Rex awake.“Hello, cousin,” Rupert sneered as he locked eyes with Kendra. “Long time, no see.”The sound of strange voices quickly brought the others out of their slumber. Fortunately, they came to their senses quick enough to realize
Kendra’s group felt like tortured and mortified hostages as they were forced to sit back and watch as Rupert and his men took turns with Alice in a spot that left nothing to the onlooker’s imagination.None were more affected than Felix as memories of what happened to Ari flooded his head. He hadn’t been there to witness it like he was with Alice and had only imagined what it was like for his poor wife. Of course, Ari had been a virgin and Alice was not. Ari had been taken by force and, although he was certain that she’d have rather not have to do it, Alice was willingly and silently allowing the men their turns. Even so, seeing them ravage Alice’s body with absolutely no regard to her comfort or modesty gave him an idea of what his poor wife had endured. He could imagine all that he wanted, but to witness firsthand gave the ordeal an entirely different feeling of wrong.“You reek of sex,&rdq
Rupert’s almost superhuman strength made Kendra believe that he’d been enhanced by some type of drug to assist him with his mission for the aliens. Since he was abnormally strong, she assumed that his companions were as well. A worry in the back of her mind over how they’d be able to handle half a dozen powerful men who had gotten the jump on them held steady while she focused on defending herself from her attacker.She’d used every ounce of strength that she possessed to fight him off, but he was slowly winning. Her heart sank with despair as he took her nipple into his mouth and alternated between suckling and biting it to the point she feared he’d draw blood. With the remembrance of what she’d witnessed them doing to Alice and his abuse of her breasts, she had a fairly clear idea of the direction this rape was going.With his mouth holding her breasts hostage in the most painful fashion imaginable, the last of he
As planned, the mission began the following day. Small groups were sent out to all corners of the earth with the orders to set off the virus within a month of the onset of their mission. This would allow time for some of the travelers to go great distances. They felt that even if the virus was released earlier by some than by others, the aliens wouldn’t have time to understand what was happening and come up with a solution before the entire race was contaminated.They were right.Within six months the elimination cure was released and the planet was, once again, in possession of the humans.The leaders of the planet who had partnered with the aliens contracted the virus and were not cured by Olga or any other member of the crew. It was time for new blood. They wanted new leadership that was capable of displaying compassion and love. Not just for the humans, but for all living things as well as for the planet.
“I wanted to wait until we got the planet back so that I could take you on a nice honeymoon,” Felix admitted as he gave his new bride a light kiss on the lips.“I’m glad that you didn’t,” she said as he protectively guided her through the crowd to the head table of the reception area that had been set up in the courtyard to accommodate all of the residents.The ceremony was kept short and, unlike his reception after his marriage to Ari, there was no alcohol served. Even so, spirits were high and laughter abounded.Several of the recovered were adept musicians who managed to fashion an instrument out of various scraps found in the woods and around the compound. The music that they produced was not only amazingly good, but it aided in bringing the mood to its highest point.The hours passed so quickly that the jovial partiers were amazed to see the sun peeking over the horizon. It was when they for
Olga sat in the corner of the room in a deep trance state while Rex carefully lowered his wife into the ice bath that the lovebirds had prepared. Even with the stress and concern over Kendra’s condition, he was able to find a bit of joy in the news that Felix and Oriana were to be married. He wanted nothing more than for his family to be happy and whole.By marrying Oriana, Felix was burying the intense sadness and guilt that had ridden on his shoulders since Ari’s death. He didn’t believe that Felix was responsible for the poor young woman’s death and he hated to see the man punish himself with such grief. His marriage would change all of that. In turn, it would change the dynamics of the family in a good way. Since Oriana and Kendra didn’t have the negative history that Kendra and Ari had, the family was already in a better place with this match.Although concerned and a bit impatient for her to
Rather than administer a dose of the elimination cure that would equal the normal amount placed in an inoculation, Olga opted to systematically treat her niece with a minuscule drop under the tongue, while monitoring her in between each dose. Although it didn’t kill her as Olga had secretly feared, the tiny doses of the elimination cure made Kendra violently ill with flu-like symptoms.In order to keep worried and curious eyes and ears away, Olga capitalized on those symptoms and lied to the other healthcare workers by insisting that her niece had, somehow, contracted some type of virus and should be quarantined. This also gave her the excuse to constantly monitor Kendra while she was undergoing a process that was unfamiliar with unknown results.At one point, the older woman wanted to stop the treatment for fear that it was doing more harm than good, but Kendra wouldn’t hear of it.“I can feel my body changing inside,” she in
Kendra had a difficult time keeping her mind focused on hunting during the day to the point that her husband softly asked what was wrong when they were out of earshot of the other hunters. She’d gone to bed the night before to find him in an exceptionally amorous mood and hadn’t wanted to ruin a night of passion with such a topic. So, she’d kept it to herself and done her best to get some sleep.When morning came, he was up and joining the rest of the hunting crew before she had one eye opened. There was just no appropriate time to speak to him about it. Until then.After looking around to make sure that they were alone, she’d quickly shared the information with her husband and then begged that he not let it affect him to the point that the others would notice. It was at that precise moment that he realized the position they’d put themselves in by curing the zombies and inviting them into their home. If
By the end of a fortnight, the compound had another twenty recovered zombies joining their cause. Kendra and Rex were kept busy hunting to keep food on the table. Eddie proved to be an adept hunter. He also was wise to the areas that the zombies favored. They took advantage of both of these things whenever possible.It took a while for the recovered zombies to regain their full mobility and strength. The gymnasium was put to good use for this. On more than one occasion Olga thanked and praised Rex for guiding them to this fabulous place that they called home. It was as if he knew that they would be building an army and would be in need of the facilities the property offered.Once a recovered zombie was functioning normally, he or she was put to work. A zombie rescue team was formed under Kendra’s guidance and select males and females were recruited from amongst the healed to assist in capturing more zombies for healing. &
Everyone held their breath while they waited to see if the cure that Olga released in the human zombie’s cell was going to work. No one was more eager to see success than Kendra.She already knew about the puddle of goop that reminded Felix of vomit before he’d told them because she’d slipped out to the confines around sunrise to check on the human zombies. She’d communicated with the intelligent one and told it that they were attempting to cure it. Her heart practically broke in half when its eyes watered as if it was about to cry.She spent about twenty minutes conversing telepathically with it. She learned that he could remember very little of his life as a human. He did, however, recall the final moments. He was a father and a husband. His wife was the first to contract the disease while he was away for a few days hunting. When he returned, he found her eating the last of their three children.
Felix entered the kitchen with a scowl on his face. The others were busy having breakfast. The only one missing was Arthur. He looked at his aunt with a raised brow. She slowly shook her head.Realizing that she wouldn’t welcome a question about Arthur’s whereabouts, he slid onto a stool and broached the topic of the three aliens instead.Grabbing a slice of bread he said, “I think we’re going to need hazmat suits to clean up after those three out there.”Olga set her cup on the counter and braced herself against the countertop with her elbows. “I haven’t been out there yet. What happened?”“It looks like they melted or something,” he replied as he stuffed a large chunk of bread in his mouth. “There’s nothing but a puddle of some type of slop in the cell. It reminds me of vomit.”“Gross!” Kendra said as she shoved her
Kendra followed her aunt out of the containment building. Filling her lungs with the crisp night air, she reveled in the feeling of freedom. Being a bound captive of Alice and her alien friends for even that brief time had made a negative impact on her that brought forth the other bad memories of being badly used that she struggled to keep buried and would one day have to find a way to release.She’d stayed behind with her aunt after the others left to monitor the progress of the alien’s turning. It took several hours before they were beyond the intelligent zombie stage and beginning to rot. Since it took months for a human, Olga was pleased. By the time they left, the three alien zombies were lying on the floor, immobilized. She expected them to expire by morning.“I’m sorry that you went through that again,” Olga said as she put her arm around Kendra’s waist while they walked toward the hou