Broken Dreams(18)

I was in shock about how rapid the virus was spreading. Henry looked back at Claire, then over at me. “Listen. I know this is hard to see and understand, but you just have to trust me. I am not going to let anything happen to either one of you. I promise. Remember, I still love you, Elaina, no matter what you think. And Claire, you’re like a sister to me. There isn’t anything I wouldn’t do to protect both of you.” Claire nodded her head and her eyes welled up with tears.

I stared at all the carnage. I was missing my family before I even knew if they were human, undead, or true dead. I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach.

Henry was weaving around crashed cars and the undeads that were roaming, looking for a mid-day snack. We started seeing more and more cars just sitting in the middle of the street.

More bodies. More blood. More gore.

The closer we got to the church, the more death and despair was present. My stomach churned. “I don’t feel so well.” I could feel my face getting hot, and the sweat beaded on my forehead. Henry looked over at me when I slapped my hands over my mouth, trying to repress the feeling of needing to vomit.

“Do you need me to pull over?” I nodded, careful not to puke all over the interior of the truck. “Let me find a safer spot, then I’m going to jump out to cover you.”

I was trying to hold the lurching demon in. It was working hard, fighting me every step of the way, trying to escape. Finally, he pulled over and jumped out. I whipped opened my door and dropped to the ground. In seconds, Henry was standing over me with his gun ready.

It felt like every ounce of food I had from the past week was trying to come out. I didn’t think I would ever stop but, thankfully, I did. I sat there on my knees, sweating and shaking.

“You alright, love?” Henry stroked my hair. I nodded and then wiped my mouth with the back of my hand. As tough as I tried to be, all the blood and guts shit was really getting to me.

Henry grabbed my arm and helped me get back into the truck. With luck, we weren’t noticed by any of the undeads. They were too busy snacking to realize there was more fresh meat in the area.

“Claire, reach in back there and grab a bottle of water out of that bin.” Claire dug through the bin and she pulled out some bottled water.

“What is all that in there?” Claire handed me the water. I rinsed my mouth out and started sipping on it.

“Proper supplies that we may need. I always keep it in here because you never know what’s going to happen.” There were medical supplies like needles and vials, antibiotics, bandages; food and drinks; extra clothes; weapons; and a variety of other survival items.

Feeling a little bit better, I piped up, “Are you going all doomsday prepper on us?” Henry rolled his eyes, then we continued our way to the church.

Further down, we came up to Main Street, where the church was located. I took a deep breath, trying to prepare myself for what lay ahead. I heard Claire do the same. I looked back to her and grabbed her hand. The tears were running down her face.

I kind of understood what she was feeling. I, too, lost the man that I loved. It wasn’t the same, though. In fact, it was a bit selfish for me to compare the situations. I had a new Henry to get to know if I desired, but she didn’t have a new Marc to move forward with.

Henry slowed down and stopped. The streets were littered with gore and crashed cars. The church was still five blocks down. “We’re going to have to walk from here.” He popped off his seat belt. “Both of you will need your guns.”

“I’m alright. I don’t think I could shoot anyone anyway.” I couldn’t tell if Claire didn’t want to use the gun, or if she was afraid of what she may have to do with the gun.

“Trust me, you will want it and will learn quickly. We have to stick close together. I will be in the back, covering both of you. If you see any undeads, aim for the head. Remember, the only way to kill them is to destroy their brain.” I grabbed my stomach again. “Sorry, love.” He looked over at me and, with a tenderness that I was familiar with, he brushed my cheek with his thumb. That was my Henry that I knew so well… sweet and apologetic.

I loved that Henry. I hoped, with everything I had, that part of him would never go away. If I chose to stay with him, of course. I was still unsure.

“It’s okay,” I said in a near inaudible voice. I took another sip of water, with hopes that my stomach would calm down.

“Ready?” Claire and I both nodded. “On three.” Then Henry took both of us by surprise. “Three!” he yelled. What the fuck happened to “one” and “two”? Did they count different in England? We all hopped out and I ran to the driver’s side, since it was closest to the buildings.