Rock and a Hard Place – Eight-
Innocence Lost
Todd and
Jacob met in the most unconventional way; both were smashing the heads of
walkers that converged around them. They had each taken refuge in an abandoned
mall along with a larger group of survivors and they were able to live for a
few weeks off the supplies and company. But all good things must come to an end
as one night the mall’s glass floor to ceiling windows could no longer hold
back the tide.
A flood
of walkers flowed inside and crashed against their makeshift barriers like
water on rock. The group was soon overcome and one by one they fell. By the end
all that was left was Todd and Jacob who before this hardly even spoke to each
other. They now stood back to back while Todd clubbed the last walker.
“I…I
think that’s all of them.” Todd exclaimed utterly exhausted, his breath coming
in spurts.
“Shit,
shit, shit. They’re dead…they’re all dead.” Jacob said bent over letting his
meager lunch expel from his stomach.
“We
gotta go; it’s not safe here anymore.” Todd grabbed what he could from the
fallen and started to head for an exit. He knew he couldn’t let them get
surrounded again. The only way they survived was due to the sacrifice of the
others. Two men could not hold back a major herd like that alone.
“Where
are we gonna go? There’s nothing, man.” Jacob was still trying to catch his
breath. He was only 24 years old and worked at a pizza shop before the world
ended. He had seen too many lazy days on a couch with a video game controller
in his hands instead of being active.
“I don’t
know, but we need to find a safe place. We can’t be out on the road after
dark.” Todd looked up and down the empty road as if waiting for a sign. After
picking a random direction, they walked the road for hours all the while Jacob
complaining about his feet. Todd thought back to his life before, where his
only compliant was working too many hours on his landscaping business and not
giving enough time to his girlfriend Amanda. She left him shortly before the
world went to shit and he didn’t know what became of her.
Looking
ahead, Todd saw a shape on the horizon. “Move!” He said in an urgent whisper.
The two rushed off the road and hid in the brush. They had learned to take
precautions with both the dead and the living.
The
figure got closer and Todd could see it was that of a little girl. She wore
dirty denim pants and a t-shirt that used to be pink with a red hooded
sweatshirt that was many sizes too big; it almost swallowed her. Her face was
muddy and her hair matted with a blank stare.
“Hey,
little girl, are you okay?” Todd ventured out.
“I…I…lost
my mommy. Can you help me find her?” Her voice was small and unsure. Todd
guested she was about 11 or 12 years old. Todd had never had children but hoped
one day to be a father, he couldn’t just leave this girl alone on the side of
the road.
“Come on
man. She’s not our problem.” Jacob spoke behind him.
“What?
She’s just a little girl.”
“She’s
not your little girl besides we don’t have enough food and water for her and
us. I’m sorry, but kids have no place in this world anymore. They’re better off
dead.” Jacob went to walk past her.
“You’re
an asshole, Jacob. It’s not her fault that she can’t defend herself; it’s not
her fault the world went to shit. You won’t even attempt to help her? Bastard!”
Todd shouted knowing he shouldn’t, he didn’t want to attract walkers but the
callousness of Jacob’s remark was shocking.
“Whatever
dude. Look, she’s your responsibility then, I don’t even like kids.” Jacob
continued down the road, not looking back to see if Todd would follow.
“What’s
your name, hon?” Todd kneeled down and pulled her jacket closed against the
evening chill.
“Becca.”
Her voice sounded more distant.
“Becca,
what a pretty name. Becca, you can come with us. We’ll take you someplace safe
and maybe we can help you find your mommy but you do know there’s a good chance
that your mommy…that your mom….” Todd couldn’t even bring himself to say the
obvious. It was most likely that Becca’s mom was dead or worse, a walker.
“I
know…it’s just…I’ve been alone so long. I need…I need help.” She began to cry.
“I can
help you Becca. My name’s Todd.” He smiled but never saw the small sharp knife
slice its way from left to right across his throat. Todd didn’t feel pain in
his neck but he couldn’t breathe and his vision began to darken. Becca’s blurry
face went from crying to smiling as she held up the bloody knife as a taunt.
Todd’s body fell with a sickening wet thud.
“You can
help. I just need your stuff, I don’t need you.” Becca whispered. “I don’t need
anyone.” She looked up at Jacob’s retreating back. He didn’t see what she’d
done and didn’t know what to expect as Becca walked up behind him. She needed
his bag too.
Becca
relished at the power she had. She wasn’t an adult so she wasn’t strong and
smart but she was innocent; at least that’s what the adults think. She lets
them think that. She’s found a way to survive in this cruel dark world by being
cruel and dark herself.
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