INK: Red (INK Trilogy Book 1) (10 page)

Aiden high-fived and Edsel screamed out in pain. "Argh."

Idiot!

"Sorry."

"My fault, I forgot. Hey, good job there. Right, one second..." Edsel ran around to the passenger side and manhandled the dead Eventual out, dumping him unceremoniously into the trash. "What you waiting for then? Hop in."

"The plan?"

Edsel ran around to the driver side as Aiden crossed his path going the other way.

"Yeah, the plan. Sort of."

~~~

"So that
was
the plan?"

Damn, this kid is too smart.

"Well, yeah. I'm kind of thinking on my feet here in case you hadn't noticed. And my feet are very sore indeed. At least we got away, right?"

"Right."

"What?"

"Well, we need to know where we're going to, otherwise how will we get there?"

He ran it through in his mind, and looked at Aiden suspiciously. "You messin' with me?"

"Me? As if."

They both burst out laughing.

DAD

Edsel and Aiden were very similar in a lot of ways: both only had one parent around once The Lethargy came, and neither of them found it in the least bit surprising. When it was all you knew then what was strange about it? But Edsel had two parents before then, so maybe he was lucky? Aiden only ever had one parent it seemed — poor kid.

Maybe that was better. My dad was always a waste of space anyway.

Edsel found himself drawn into a conversation he didn't think he would ever have with anyone else now Kathy was gone — especially a little boy.

It had started as Aiden called him Ed again and Edsel nearly exploded before containing himself, thinking maybe an explanation would be better.

"Look, sorry about that, it's the tiredness, this damn Ink, and the stress. I didn't mean to snap, okay?"

"Okay," mumbled a scared looking Aiden.

Get it together Edsel, he doesn't know. How could he?

"I've never told anyone this, but it's probably best you know so I don't snap at you again, and if I do then you know why. My dad used to call me Ed, used to always call me that. It was kind of our thing, you know?"

"Yes, my dad always called me Aidy." He smiled sadly, clearly remembering.

"Right, well my dad up and left when The Lethargy came, and we never saw him again. Not me, not my sister, not my mum. So I never let anyone call me Ed after that. You know, as it was what he called me? You understand?"

"Sure. Sorry. Where did he go?"

"He joined The Eventuals, took The Ink, got shipped off somewhere I think. Never heard from him again."

"Is he behind you being attacked then?" asked Aiden, eyes wide.

"Nah, that would be too convenient, right? We lived somewhere else then; he wouldn't know anything about where I was. Chances are he's dead anyway. Wouldn't surprise me. Well, anyway, I know it's a bit childish, silly really, but he was the only one who ever called me Ed. Even in school they called me Edsel, so I really don't like being called it. It's simply not my name."

"Okay. Um, thanks."

"For what?"

"For sharing. For talking. I haven't spoken to anyone since my dad died. Only Martha."

"Hey, we're buddies, we can tell each other anything. Okay? And yeah, I bet Martha wasn't much of a conversationalist; chickens are like that."

"Sure. Thanks."

"So we're good?" Edsel looked over at his new partner, checking the boy was alright. The last thing he wanted to do was scare him, but he really couldn't stand the name.

"We're good," nodded Aiden.

As he drove, Edsel thought back to the time when his father had left. Edsel was growing into a man, his sister was ten, and The Lethargy had ruined almost everything. His father just finished things off.

~~~

"Where's he gone?"

"I don't know," said Edsel's mother, whispering so they wouldn't wake his sister.

"He can't just get up and leave, it's not safe."

"He hasn't just gone out Edsel," she said, trying to explain. "He's gone. For good."

"How do you know?"

"Because all his clothes are gone. He's taken most of our food, some of our water, half the weapons and pretty much everything else of use. He's gone."

Edsel couldn't believe it. Sure, the man had been completely miserable since things fell apart, and had grown increasingly insular, interacting little with his wife and family, but this? "Did he say anything?"

"He didn't say he was going, but he's been talking more and more about The Eventuals ever since they first appeared. He's gone to them, I'm sure."

And that was it. He never came back. He left them to fend for themselves and that was when Edsel had to grow up fast. He looked after his mum and sister as best he could, learning how to find provisions on his own, although it got increasingly dangerous, especially without backup. He had always gone out with his dad before — two made things much easier.

The trips had always left him with a knot in his stomach though — not out of fear, but dread of spending time with a man that was always abrupt, never good company, and didn't believe in showing love to his son, or the rest of his family for that matter. It was almost a relief when he finally left, and Edsel coped — he cared for them. First his mum became permanently lost to The Lethargy and he helped her make the final journey to The Noise, then his sister — she was already broken. He suspected the slow decline of their mother was a large part of the reason why his little sis succumbed to The Lethargy — she was already half way there already.

"Hey, hey hey hey. Edsel, look out!"

Edsel came out of his reverie and slammed on the brakes, just missing a car abandoned across the road. "Sorry, I was thinking."

"We nearly hit it."

"I know, I said I was sorry. Promise me something?"

"What?" said Aiden, worry spread across his face.

"If you ever have a family, always look after them, always be there for them. Tell them you love them."

"Um, okay. But I'm only twelve, I won't have a family for a long time. If ever."

"You'd be surprised, things will change, already have. People will have kids at younger and younger ages, they already do. Just, you know, in case..."

"In case they get The Lethargy."

"Yeah. Anyway, promise?"

"Promise."

"Good lad."

"Now, you ready to fill your belly? I know I am."

"Too right, I'm Marvin."

"Marvin?

"Starvin' Marvin," said Aiden, smiling.

"Nice one." It was good to see the young boy smiling, because there was very little to be happy about.

Edsel performed a quick three point turn and slowly backtracked until he could take a different route around the outskirts of the city. The car had been a real bonus, even if it was a rather cramped Seat Leon. Although the roads were hard to navigate they weren't impossible if you knew them well. Edsel had spent a number of years now roaming the city so knew the main routes and whether they were passable or not — he remembered where he could and couldn't get through. Often when roads seemed impassable there was a way if you took it slowly or didn't mind a few dings. He'd walked most of them, only driving sporadically as it was a real giveaway if there was anybody out to do you harm.

He'd made his way out from the heart of the city, taking larger roads that were easier to scrape through if he took care and nudged abandoned vehicles out of the way. He'd made this trip before, not long ago actually, just a few months, fretting all the way about Kathy being safe while he went to try to find them food. On such trips he would leave her at home even though she protested, but he'd explained that it was safer if he went alone, and he'd be able to focus better.

I love you Kathy, but boy were you a distraction when I was driving.

He couldn't help but smile at memories that now would never be built on year after year.

Although he'd not exactly been on top form since his escape from The Eventuals, he did actually pride himself on surviving quite well within the urban environment. But as time went on he knew it was becoming an increasingly dangerous place to live, as well as ever more difficult to find food.

He'd struck gold though, and was sure that there would still be plenty left unless someone had all of a sudden discovered his find accidentally, just as he'd done.

It had been a rare occasion that he'd taken Kathy out with him, her protests at being left alone again were simply too insistent. He hated risking her safety, knowing it was safer to stay indoors and take the random chance that somebody would check the house looking for food and find her there and have bad intentions. Going outside increased the risk of attack tenfold, not to mention injury as many buildings became more and more unstable as they were gutted from fires.

Kathy had loved the lake, and they spent a pleasant, if cold afternoon walking around its perimeter until she pointed out that there were fish in abundance. He wandered back to where he'd parked the car and picked up the sign that was face down on the ground — he'd ignored it on the way in, assuming it was just a board naming the lake or something similar. It was a stocked lake, there for fisherman to idle away a few hours with a guarantee that they'd get a bite. He'd wandered over to a small hut only to find that it served as a place to buy a license, get bait, and even buy rods or tackle.

An hour later, with a tiny fire burning brightly against the cold, they'd eaten freshly caught trout straight from the lake. It was one of the best days of his life.

~~~

It looked exactly the same, the little wooden hut was still in order, the car park — more a muddy patch of ground than anything — was empty, and all seemed quiet. Edsel walked over to a tree near to the hut and scooped away the earth. He'd found a good Shimano reel and rod and had buried them shallowly in a well-wrapped bag after use, just in case the hut got ransacked.

Luckily he'd also buried a lighter, a torch for if he decided to stay or got stuck, and a knife that he'd gone out and bought only days after The Lethargy had been officially announced, even though his mum went mad and told him not to be silly. It wasn't long before she changed her mind about that though.

At least something's going right at last. Now we can eat.

His stomach gurgled in eagerness as the day wore on and the sky cleared of clouds — it was going to be a cold night.

Edsel felt better already. They may have only been a few items, but they were his — something personal, familiar — and he felt a little more at ease knowing that he had the lighter and knife even though he was no fighter.

It always amused Edsel when he watched movies after The Lethargy, until the power died totally — the hero always able to fight off hordes of attackers with guns and knives, the loner coming out victorious each and every time. The reality of life once society collapsed was very different and there were actually very few people that didn't just completely freeze and begin to whimper when confronted by those trying to take what wasn't theirs. Life was scary, the mean came out on top, and the kind-hearted were not the ones most proficient at fighting.

Plus there were no damn guns either. The UK didn't allow firearms unless under very strict control, and Edsel didn't even try at the time to make his way to the few places that were allowed to stock such things — reports on the news in the few days after The Lethargy had repeatedly announced that those were the first places to have been raided by anyone smart enough to get a head-start on the fast crumbling society. He'd gone looking eventually, but it was a waste of time.

Still, he had his knife, he had a rod, now he just needed some worms and to get a fire going.

"So, you have two choices," said Edsel. "You can either be on worm duty or fire duty. Which is it?" Edsel knew the answer, but thought it would lighten the boys spirits.

"Worms!"

Yes, result.

"Oh, okay, wasn't expecting that."

"Haha, just kidding. Fire, definitely."

"Okay, you hunt around for some dry wood and here's the lighter. Do not, and I repeat, do not, lose it, get it wet, let it run out or lose it."

"You said that."

"I know."

Edsel dug in the dirt with his knife until he found a few worms and popped them into a rusty can. He watched to see that Aiden was alright making a fire by himself and was pleased to see the kid had already got it going — nice and clean, no smoke.

Smart kid, he knows to only burn properly dry wood.

Edsel went fishing and tried not to think about the last time he'd stood on the very same spot, Kathy waiting by the fire, excited at the promise of a fresh meal.

Half an hour later, with a whole trout eaten each and another cooking away, the man and boy shared the last can of Pepsi between them and were, for a brief period of time, almost happy.

BRR

Edsel woke in the middle of the night absolutely freezing. They'd moved from the campfire into the car, but it was colder, so had returned to the fire, burning as much wood as they could without it acting like a beacon saying 'come get us, we're over here' — a real possibility if The Eventuals were now out in force after him. Them.

Even during the summer it was incredible how cold it got at night without a sweater on, and despite the burning of his skin, and the slight fever he was sure he was running, Edsel shivered uncontrollably, the fire doing a poor job of keeping him warm.

Aiden snuggled up next to him, amazingly trustworthy for a child that had led such an unfortunately sheltered life thus far. Maybe it was simply the need for a father, that familiar male bond that the boy had obviously been missing so much. Something Edsel missed too if he would but admit it. Maybe not missed, as he had never had it — wanted, he wanted that bond, now never would.