Ravage: An Apocalyptic Horror Novel(100)

“What the? This was chock-a-block with stuff yesterday. There were weapons and water bottles.”

Mike chewed the inside of his cheek making his face look lopsided. “So, what then? Did somebody move it?”

Annaliese thought about it. “Or perhaps somebody stole it.”

“Who would be that much of an arsehole?”

Annaliese scratched at her chin and stared down at the empty space where the supplies should have been. “I’m not about to start accusing people just yet. It could be anyone. Let’s just go tell the others.”

Mike sighed. “Shawcross is going to flip his lid.”

“I know. Can’t say I’d blame him, if it turns out that we have a thief.”

Mike took Annaliese by her hand and began walking her away from the zoo. “Well, the only person I trust for sure is you.”

Annaliese laughed. “You don’t know it wasn’t me. I could be the thief.”

Mike shook his head. “You care too much about other people.”

“Me? I don’t care. People do nothing but disappoint me.”

“And yet you never stop trying to help. That’s why I know it wasn’t you. That’s why I’ve fallen in love with you the last couple weeks.”

Annaliese stopped and looked at him. She found it difficult to look him in the eye, but she made herself do it anyway. “You love me? Don’t be so silly.”

“I’m not being silly. This last week you and I have barely been apart. I’ve gotten to know you well. There’s no point hiding how I feel about you. Like I said, life’s too short.”

“You don’t know me well. None of us are really ourselves with all that’s happened.”

“I think the opposite. I think it takes a situation like this to show who people truly are. All of our bullshit – the vanity, the ego – is stripped away. The only thing left is who we really are deep down.”

Annaliese stared at Mike for a while, trying to find the right words. “Mike, I…”

“Can’t say you love me back. That’s okay,” he said. “I have time. Not much, maybe, but a little bit at least.”

Annaliese shook her head and giggled. “You’re always so dramatic. Come on, let’s go find Shawcross and give him the bad news.”

They headed out of the zoo and found Shawcross over by the cable car station. He had his hands cupped above his eyes and was staring down at the car park below.

“What are you doing?” Mike asked.

Shawcross spun around and studied them. “They’re back,” he said grimly. “Look.”

Annaliese peered down the side of the hill and saw that a few dozen infected people had found their way back to the car park that surrounded the Rainforest Cafe. More were wandering in from the distance.

“Oh, shit!” Mike said. “There’s almost a hundred of them down there.”

Shawcross put a finger to his lips and shushed him. “I’m sure if we keep a low profile, we’ll be quite safe. We’re prepared to deal with the odd one that finds its way up here. We just have to make sure that we do not attract them in large groups. Being quiet is key.”

Annaliese looked further into the distance. The fires that had been burning in the nearby villages for weeks had finally died out. It somehow made things feel even more final. Like the candle of civilisation had finally blown out. It was a lonely thought.

“They must have wandered back from the towns,” Annaliese said.

“Probably,” Shawcross agreed. “There’s obviously nothing left to keep them there so they’ve dispersed. A depressing thought indeed.”

“They’re all dead,” Mike commented.

Annaliese turned to look at him. “What?”

“Look, they’re all slow and clumsy. None of the fast ones are with them. Where are they?”

Annaliese saw that he was right. “Perhaps the infection has killed them all. Now all that is left is the dead ones.”

“It certainly smells like it,” said Mike, wrinkling his nose. “So, if there are only the dead ones left, maybe, eventually, they will die-off, too?”

“Perhaps,” said Shawcross. “But we still need to be careful. The dead are slower than the infected, but they don’t give up. I would like to think that we can liberate Ripley Hall at some point, but I think it would be best that we continue to lay low for now. No unnecessary risks. No commotion.”

Annaliese nodded. “If we’re smart, we may just make it through this.”

Eve came running up from the direction of the amusement park. She was panting by the time she reached them.

Shawcross looked at the girl and ran a hand through his slick ginger hair. “Eve, sweetheart. Whatever is the matter?”

“The supplies,” she said, gasping. “I’ve checked half a dozen places and they’re all gone.”

“Gone?”

Annaliese exchanged a knowing glance with Mike.

“You must be mistaken,” Shawcross told Eve.

Eve shook her head. “We have no food.”

“Actually,” Annaliese said. “The reason Mike and I have just come from the zoo is that we’ve discovered supplies missing there, too. I think we might have a thief.”