The Seventh Day (Book 2): The Last Hour Read online

  I don't think Miles or Kyle would do this. I know my dad wouldn’t.

  Everything feels wrong.

  But my senses and my skills are two different stories. I don't hear a single heartbeat. I don't smell anyone close by.

  The anxiety is based on possibilities but the knowledge is based on my ability to smell that far.

  When we reach the fence, I glance at Gus and Lee. “Let’s find a house to walk through to the golf course.” I might be strong but lifting my huge dog over a fence seems like a bad idea.

  We head to the right, strolling through the hot sun to the first house. The door’s been kicked in and the windows are smashed.

  “Looks like a nice neighborhood,” Harold mutters, staying vigilant as he enters the house first.

  There’s no smell in here. The windows and doors have been open a long time. Animal crap and garbage has blown in, as well as some old rotten clothes. That’s a bit gross. But when we get to the backyard, we see it. The golf course.

  “Good eyes, Lee.” Harold pats her on the shoulder.

  We stay on the old greens all along the neighborhood that was clearly quite nice at one time. The houses are large and fancy with pools, hot tubs, cabanas, and golf carts.

  Harold rushes to one and starts it after a couple of tries. He drives over and grins. “Your ride, ladies.” Furgus jumps on as if he’s an old hat at riding in weird vehicles. His feet might be sore from all the heat too though. He’s likely tired of all the walking. Lee definitely is. She’s struggling more than any of us but not saying anything. The moment she sits and sighs and starts rubbing her feet against anything she can, it’s obvious. Her dogs are barking.

  Harold drives us along the golf course. He’s sightseeing but I’m listening. I’m waiting for this to go wrong.

  Everything else has.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  “Do you think this is rotten?” Lee holds up a wrinkled apple. I know she doesn’t mean for her.

  “No. He can eat it,” I confirm and take a bite of my beef jerky.

  She tosses it at Gus. He sniffs it and scoffs, as if rolling his dog eyes, and heads for me. He licks his lips and sits, looking pretty.

  “Fine, have it.” I flatten my palm with the jerky in it and let him get busy. He’s already eaten his five pieces.

  He licks my hand to the point I’m wondering if he’s testing me for tenderness.

  “You wanna go home?” I scratch his ears with my wet hand. “I do too.” I stare into his soft amber eyes. “I miss her too.”

  He lifts those bushy eyebrows and whines. He knows who I’m talking about. We’re aching with the same pain.

  “How much longer do you think Harold’s gonna be?” Lee asks.

  "I don't know."

  We went from house to house, and eventually abandoned the last golf course and headed further up the coastline to a new town and a new golf course, the place where we’re currently sitting ducks, waiting for Harold to return.

  The undead are scarcer in this town but so is the food. Most houses have been looted, suggesting that someone is still alive here, but we haven't seen anyone.

  Harold is doing his turn at trying to find them, the other bitten. I’m beginning to think the whole thing is a lie.

  “I wish he’d hurry up. We need to go to a new place. Pebble Beach is eaten out of house and home.” She licks the inside of the beef jerky packet, smacking her lips from the saltiness. “Who even buys beef jerky?”

  “I’m not sure, but you know it’s bad when even the looters didn't take it.” I laugh.

  Furgus whines again.

  “What’s wrong?” I rub his beard. “Besides, you need a bath. Next place we go, you’re getting cleaned. You’re a stinky dog.”

  He rubs his face all over my legs, scenting me with that stinky beard. I swear he knows what I’m saying.

  “I’m starting to think we should just abandon and go back to Boulder, and you get Erin and Miles and Kyle and everyone else, and we go home to the mountain and do what Mr. Milson suggested. We get a farm and make this work.”

  “I agree.” Lee sighs, staring around the massive bedroom we’ve decided is ours.

  “We could get solar equipment and be totally off grid, even though there’s no grid, and have a well with unlimited water and be safe.”

  “Yeah, that sounds good to me.” I lie back and wait for the sound of the old man coming home.

  Only he doesn't come back.

  After two days, I begin to worry. We both do.

  “I wonder where he is?” Lee asks, pacing.

  “I don't know but we need to go find him.” I get up and check out the window again. Nothing moves on the golf course where the helicopter is parked. “Maybe I can track the smell of him.” I give her a look. “I don't know. Maybe you should stay here and hide with Gus so I don't have to worry about fighting off the undead and the crazy.”

  “No.” She shakes her head. “They have dog leashes here. We grab one of those and we take Gus and bring guns and kill whatever we have to.” She sounds scared.

  I’m glad I’m not the only one.

  She tucks her hair up into a ponytail, it’s massive, and puts on a baggy tee shirt and some longer shorts. I do the same.

  Looking cute is pointless.

  When we get outside, I can’t smell Harold at all. But I remember he walked to the right, so I do too. Lee and Gus follow, he’s sniffing more than I am. Walking away from the condos we were staying in, I try to think like Harold.

  The golf course is crunchy and dry. He’d eventually want to find water. We’ve taken everything from the condos and clubhouses and houses nearby, anything that was left. As we go a little farther, a yard opens onto the greens. It’s the perfect spot to leave the golf course. It makes sense to me so I head that way.

  "Do you smell him?” Lee asks quietly.

  “No. But this seems like the place he’d leave through.” The backyard of the house is fancy, a mansion with a garden that reminds me of the old English castles. It’s stunning even now when there hasn't been a drop of water in ages.

  We enter through the back door and find a few empty bottles of water and an empty bag of peanuts.

  I wish I could smell them and tell if he drank from them but I can’t. I’m not a hound or a tracker.

  “This place is insane. I bet a celebrity lived here.” Lee wanders the house staring at their stuff. It’s insane. It’s the sort of house Beyoncé would have rented. Every room is opulent and classy. Lee starts rifling, searching through all the cupboards and drawers and finally shrieks, “Yes!” She comes out with a box of stuff. She passes me a ginger ale. I crack it and suck the top as it foams. I haven’t heard this noise in so long I forgot what it sounded like. The warm soda isn’t the way I remember it, it’s better. It gasses me up and makes me burp and burns down my throat in a way that screams I’m alive. I’m a kid and I’m allowed to have that one soda at Halloween or as a treat. My dad would sneak it to us so she couldn't say no.

  Joey would say it was spicy but I would drink it up. Not because I loved soda, I didn't. Drinking it now, I could say I love it. It’s better than nothing.

  She hands me water afterward. We share it and give the other big bottle to Gus in a bowl. He drinks until there’s nothing left and continues to lick the bowl.

  I hate watching him this way. Hungry and thirsty and a little desperate sometimes. It’s unfair that the animals were trained by us to live like humans and then we pulled the rug out from under them.

  She pops open a tin of Pringles, gives Gus one and eats one and passes me one. We all crunch and chew until the box of junk food is empty.

  My stomach aches from the crap food, but these days, food is food. It’s not the same as being up the hill and having options.

  Here we have nothing.

  Someone has beaten us to the good stuff.

  We head for the front door. I’m not even paying attention anymore.

  “Hey, there’s a bunch of Humm
ers in the driveway. Wanna drive?” she asks.

  Sounds flood my ears and I part my lips to scream at her as heartbeats and guns cocking fill the air around me.

  But it’s too late.

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  With guns in our faces, we’re surrounded.

  Furgus whines and growls and whines some more. I kneel and wrap my arms around his chest, holding him tight. “Please don't shoot.” I say it as I realize they’re like me. They hum like I do. Like Harold does. “We don't want to fight. We’re just trying to find our friend.”

  “We know. How do you think we found you?” A chubby guy smiles. “Get in the back of the truck and don't make a sound or she’s dead.” He points to Lee. “The undead aren’t far from here and they’ll smell her a lot faster if she makes noise.” A door opens for us in the back of the truck he’s next to. I walk Furgus to the truck and he jumps in like maybe these are our friends.

  Lee and I are less excited to be riding in a vehicle again.

  “Do you know where Harold is?” Lee asks.

  “Shut up.” It’s the only thing any of them says to us the entire ride.

  We finally reach our destination, passing through huge gates into a massive villa on the sea. When we climb out, I taste the ocean in the air. I smell Harold too.

  I think he’s alive.

  We walk with Gus on a tight leash up to the enormous front doors. When they open it’s not what I expect. A massive beast of a man, a giant maybe, comes lumbering over with a huge grin on his pale face. “You must be, Lou!” He’s excited to see me. I don't know how to take that. He offers a hand. “I’m Lester.” He takes my hand in his and gently lifts it. “Enchanted.”

  “Me too.” I’m leery and confused and yet slightly excited we’ve found the old man. He’s sitting with a drink in his hand across the room, legs crossed and even wearing clean clothes. He might as well be on a beach vacation. “Harold.” I narrow my gaze.

  “I found ‘em, Lou.” Harold beams and lifts his drink, toasting me and his good fortune.

  “And they brought us here with a massive gun escort and were rude to us. So what did you tell them? They came expecting hostility."

  “What?” Lester’s eyes widen.

  “She-she had a gun, Lester,” the chubby guy defends himself.

  "She's a little girl." Lester’s demeanor changes as he reaches forward and lifts the chubby guy clear off the ground. “Apologize to our guests,” he seethes impressively. I almost pee my pants for a second time in my life.

  Lee’s shaking fingers grip my arm and Furgus growls and backs away, hiding behind me. He’s a huge chicken sometimes.

  “I’m-I’m sorry, Miss Stoddard.” His knowledge of my name sends a chill over my body. Who are these freaks and what did Harold say?

  Lester drops him, letting the man fall to his butt. His lips trembles for a second as he gets up and rushes from the house. “You have to forgive us for our rude welcome, I can’t imagine what you must think of us.” He wipes spit from his bottom lip. “Come and meet the king.” He holds a hand out, toward Harold. The old man is a great talker, but I can’t imagine what he’s convinced them of.

  We shadow Lester into the grand room with the view of the ocean and beautiful grandeur. I follow Harold’s stare to the opposite side of the room, to a set of eyes I don't expect. They belong to a young man, one closer to my age than anyone else’s. He’s handsome and dignified; just standing there, leaning against the bar, it’s obvious. I try to place him from a movie I've seen or celebrity gossip. He's someone important.

  A smile slips over his lips and his gaze lazily travels me and Lee and then Furgus. That’s when a true expression crosses his face. “An Irish wolfhound.” He pats his knee. “Come here, boy.” Furgus obeys, apparently assuming this man is someone to listen to. “You are handsome.” He pets him. “Did you know that only royalty was allowed these dogs? It was a sign of wealth.”

  “I did.” I’m not certain if he's speaking to me or Gus but I answer, “I’m Lou. This is Lee. That’s Furgus. Who are you?”

  He grins, petting my dog and ignoring me.

  “This is King Liam Cotswold, the first of his name,” Harold says as he saunters over. “And he’s going to bring all of America under his rule.” His eyes dazzle as if he’s known this all along and our stupid trip that lasted weeks has been for nothing. "And save everyone."

  “How long have you known this?” I bark, ignoring the fact we’re with other people.

  “From the moment I met him two days ago.”

  “Harold is too kind, and he exaggerates. He doubted me for about three hours.” His eyes dart to Lester. “It was three hours, was it not?”

  “You’re always right, my king. It was three hours.” Lester chuckles.

  “Are we in some kind of twilight zone?” Lee steps forward, finally finding her voice. “What is happening here? Who the hell are you people?”

  The king’s eyes narrow, growing cold. I step in front of her, blocking her with my body. “They’re less than us, Lou. You shouldn't attach yourself to them.”

  “I was attached to her before I changed,” I say flatly, not buying his weird king speech, Lester’s large song and dance, and Harold’s twinkly eyed lies.

  “I’m the king of our people. Our people are, well, I don't like saying better because the comparison is unfair, but we’re superior to the humans. We’re the natural survivors of this world.” He paces, mesmerizing us with his gait and the way his eyes express his words, not the other way around. “We’re stronger, we’re smarter, we’re faster, we’re less wasteful and needy, and we don't die from small things like affliction or bullets. The undead don't see us. The blood that travels on its own doesn't hunt us. We’re immune to the perils of this world, and we’re going to make ourselves stronger and create a new type of being, one who will help heal the earth, not destroy it more.”

  “Bravo!” Lester claps.

  “Have you noticed, Lou, you don't need light in the dark? You don't need heat in the cold. You don't mind the heat of the desert. Or notice the wind except for it bringing sounds and smells. You don't ache or need for anything. Though you require food or drink, you can survive on very little. There’s no requirement to eat too much or sleep for too long.”

  “I guess.” I ignore the part about food since I still eat too much, but that's a Lou thing not a human thing.

  “Have you seen the sicknesses that are beginning to spread in the cities? Humans are dropping like flies again.” He continues to walk as he talks, “Their species is dying off and ours is just being born out of the ashes of theirs. The time of government and democracy and all the special snowflakes is over. We must lead humanity for its benefit and lead our people for ours. No more choices for the individual, everything for the state.”

  “Are you insane?” I accidentally say the thing I’m thinking.

  “No.” He laughs and winks at Lester who chuckles along. “It’s impossible for one of us to be insane. The bots clean us of everything. We can’t have a sickness like insanity. We can’t have any illnesses at all. Not even a cold.” He grins, pausing his steps in front of me. He stares down on me and then leans to the right, talking to Lee behind me. “And you don't have to stay like this forever. You, Lee, can join us. We can fix you. Save you. Make you one of us.”

  “What?” She steps forward.

  “What?” I echo her sentiments.

  “Yeah, I can save her.” He smiles wide and offers Lee a hand. "I can make you strong and perfect like Lou."

  She brushes by me, taking his hand in hers. “How?”

  “I’ll show you.” He brings her to a doorway.

  “Lee, wait. This is a bad idea,” I interrupt.

  “Don't you want her to be saved, Lou? Don't you want your friend to be with you forever?” He turns to Lee. “Doesn't she love you?”

  “She’s just worried,” Lee defends me. “But I want this, Lou. I want to be saved.” She sounds certain.

&n
bsp; “Have you tried this on others?” I can’t imagine this is a good idea.

  “Of course.” He scoffs and turns away from me, dismissing me and my doubt.

  I glance at Harold who gives a micro shake of his head. His eyes are not so twinkly now. There’s something else in there.

  Lester follows the king and Lee through the doorway and closes it behind them.

  “I don't like this,” I whisper, barely audible.

  “Don't say a thing. Someone was killed yesterday for questioning him. He’s running this like a true monarchy, only he’s not lenient at all.”

  “How did you find them?”

  “They found me. I was wandering, lost and thirsty, and they offered me water and a ride here to meet the king. Said it was a formality of being on his land. He greeted me, gave me the spiel, and asked me where my friends were. They’d been watching us for some time but lost us in the houses.”

  “How did they know where we were? They were sitting outside the house we were in, waiting for us.”

  “I know, they were watching us. He scares me, Lou. Don't anger him, don't talk back. He has the means to bring the Littles and everyone else here. Do everything he says and he'll rescue your sister.”

  Gus interrupts us by flopping at my feet with a harrumph, as if telling me to listen and be good.

  “I'll try, Harold. I swear.” I swallow hard and wait for the door to open up and Lee to come back out. But she doesn't.

  He comes back, leaving Lester and Lee in there.

  “Is she all right?” I take a step toward him.

  “Of course.” He narrows his gaze. “You’ve never seen someone changed?”

  “No, of course not. Just the undead.”

  “That was something, wasn't it? Watching them rewire right in front of you and then attack!” He laughs. “I don't think I’ll ever forget the moment I saw that. Disturbing and yet fascinating.”

  “I just found it disturbing.” I try not to sound too bitchy, but I don't know what his angle is, and I’m getting tired of listening to him talk like this is the greatest thing that ever happened. “What did you mean about the illness in the cities?”