The Junkie Quatrain (3 page)

Holly gave him a look. ‘What would you think if I was in a rush to get my clothes off? You’d just use that as proof I’m early stages, right?’

Angie’s fingers fumbled to a stop on her jeans. Her blouse and shoes were off and her fly was open. She started again, making a show of how slow she moved.

The Dome nodded. ‘Fair enough.’

‘I just want to take my time and make it clear that I’m not infected.’

‘Whenever you feel like it, then,’ he said. ‘Just understand we’ll be sealing up for the night in about twenty minutes.’

She slid her belt out of the loops and caught the holster as it fell free. Twenty minutes wasn’t much time. She’d have to hope for the best. Three shrugs of her shoulders got her hoodie down on the ground, draped over her backpack. Her fingers worked their way down the buttons of her blouse, showing off a sleek sports bra.

Angie was sliding her pants down over her knees. She was shivering.

Holly took a breath, closed her eyes, and let her shirt slide off her arms. She heard the gasps. The Dome muttered something.

She opened her eyes and looked down at her arms. The left one had two circular scars the size of limes. On one, you could make out the individual teeth marks. Her right arm had three matching marks—two on the forearm and one on the bicep.

‘I know what you’re thinking,’ she said.

‘I’m thinking you better get out of here damned quick,’ said the Dome.

She held up her arms. ‘Look at them,’ said Holly. ‘Really look. These bites are old. They’re scars.’

Two of the men peered a little closer. The Dome wasn’t one of them. Neither was the impatient guy with the pistol.

‘These are old bites,’ she repeated. She spoke in a stage whisper, slow and clear, something a junkie could never do. She held the arms closer to the gate, turning them so they’d catch the red light shining in from the west. ‘They’ve been healing for almost two months.’

Pistol-guy shook his head. ‘You get bit you’ve got a week, ten days tops, and then you’re a junkie.’

‘That’s right,’ she said. ‘Exactly right. So if I’ve got bites that have already become scars, what’s that mean?’

The Dome pulled out a pistol of his own. ‘You really need to be getting on your way, ma’am,’ he said. ‘I’m real sorry, but you know we can’t let you in.’

‘Don’t you get it?’ Holly thrust her arms out again. ‘I’m immune. The virus doesn’t affect me.’

‘No one’s immune,’ said the Dome. ‘They found that out really quick.’

‘I’m
immune!’ She fought to keep her voice calm and slow. ‘I’ve been bitten half a dozen times and I’m fine. You can let me in.’

‘Ahhh, hell,’ said another man. ‘Both of them.’

She whipped her head around.

Angie stood there wearing nothing but her polka-dot bra and a green pair of boxer-briefs. She had her feet turned in at odd angles, and Holly thought she was trying to be modest. Then she saw the bruise on the other woman’s inner thigh, just below the hem of her underwear, and the dark scab of blood where the skin was broken.

‘You bitch,’ Holly muttered.

‘Pair of lesbo junkies,’ said Pistol-guy. ‘What a waste.’

Angie sniffed. She reached down and gathered up her clothes in a colorful bundle. Her cheeks were wet.

The Dome leveled his weapon at Holly’s head. ‘The two of you need to go,’ he said. ‘Now.’

‘Look,’ said Holly, ‘I barely know her. I didn’t know she was bitten. But it doesn’t change the—’

‘I’d rather not shoot you,’ he said. ‘You haven’t changed yet. But I will if I have to.’

She took a breath. ‘Please,’ she said to the Dome. She met his gaze over the pistol. ‘Listen to me. Look at the scars. You know I’m not infected. If you’ve got any doctors they can vouch—’

‘I’m going to count to five,’ he said. ‘If you and your girlfriend aren’t at the end of the block, we’ll shoot you both.’

Holly took in another breath. ‘I’m telling you, I’m not infected.’

‘One.’

Angie scampered a few feet away, the bundle of clothes clutched against her chest.

Holly looked him in the eye.

‘Two.’

‘Fuck you,’ she said. She bent down and scooped up the belt and pistol. Her shirt and hoodie slipped through the strap of the backpack. Her boot caught the handle of the bat and kicked it up into her hand.

‘Three.’

She marched down the road after Angie. She heard the Dome call out one more number. He never finished his count. They walked for another block, just to be sure.

‘I’m sorry,’ said the other woman. ‘I didn’t think they’d make us—’

Holly hit her in the stomach with the bat. It was a quick jab, and the air went out of Angie with a
whoof
. She dropped her clothes and fell to the ground.

‘Why didn’t you tell me?’ growled Holly. ‘You could’ve gotten us both killed.’

‘Hey,’ snapped Angie. To her credit, she flinched when she realized how loud she was. ‘You’re bitten, too.’

‘But
I’m immune
,’ said Holly. ‘I almost had them convinced and you messed things up.’

‘You didn’t have them—’

Holly raised the bat.

Angie shut up. She grabbed her jeans and wiggled into them on the ground. They slid up her legs and hid the bite.

‘Do I even want to know how you got that?’

‘My boyfriend,’ she said. ‘He went out searching for food. A couple of them got infected somehow. We were fooling around. I just thought he was being kinky and got a little carried away.’

‘So your sanctuary threw you out?’

Angie paused and looked down at her half-buttoned blouse. ‘After they killed him and the others, yeah.’

‘How long ago?’

‘I told you, just last night.’

‘How long ago were you bitten?’

‘Two nights ago. He bit me, they realized he was infected the next day and threw me out.’

‘So two nights, that’s it? Forty-eight hours?’

‘Not even. Barely even.’

Holly sighed and set her backpack down on the ground. She pulled her shirt on and tied it in a quick knot across her chest. ‘Sun’s almost down,’ she said. ‘I need to find somewhere to sleep.’

‘What are you thinking?’

Holly yanked the hoodie up. ‘I’m thinking I can’t trust you. Go find your own place.’

‘What? Come on, it was just two days ago. If I’m infected it’ll take another three or four days before anything happens.’

‘So I trust you for two days and then what?’

‘I don’t know. If you leave me out here alone I’m just going to die.’

Holly slung the backpack across her shoulders and snatched up the baseball bat. ‘You’re infected. You’ve got six weeks, tops.’

‘Unless I find someone with the cure.’

‘What?’

Angie climbed to her feet and tugged her jeans up an inch. ‘There’s a cure. People talk about it all the time.’

‘There’s no cure.’

The other woman shook her head. ‘If you soak the bite or the cut or whatever in hydrogen peroxide before symptoms set in, it can kill the infection. That’s why you can’t find it in stores. People took it all.’

‘Of course they took at all. It’s basic first aid.’ She reached up and rubbed her temples with her free hand. Then she glared at Angie. ‘Seriously? Hydrogen peroxide? Do you think things would be like this if you could kill the infection with something you can buy at Target?’

‘I don’t know,’ said Angie. Her cheeks were wet again. ‘What am I supposed to do? I don’t want to die. I have to do something.’

A cry echoed from somewhere south of them. Another one answered it.

Holly sighed. ‘Come on,’ she said. ‘Let’s find somewhere safe for the night.’

* * *

The RV was parked six blocks away from the sanctuary. They found it just as the streetlights were flickering to life. The Los Angeles power grid was a delicate balancing act, but for now it was still working in more places than not. Everyone knew it wouldn’t be that way forever. Probably not for much longer.

The door was locked, but Angie scampered up the rear ladder and pried open the skylight. Inside was dry and kind of warm. Holly yanked all the drapes shut and propped up a few thin cushions from the seats and benches to block the windows even more.

They found bowls and silverware. There were a few cans of soup and half a box of crackers in the cupboards. It made for a fine dinner. They sat at the table on the cushionless benches and could almost pretend the world was fine for a little while.

Junkies howled and groaned outside. Some of them sounded close. Angie looked at the wide windows. ‘Are we going to be safe in here?’

‘They don’t like enclosed spaces,’ said Holly. She set her bowl in the sink out of habit. ‘If we keep quiet and don’t give them a reason, they won’t come in.’

‘You sure?’

‘I’ve been doing this for over a month now.’ She shook out the thin blankets on the bed. They were a bit dusty, but clean. She stared wistfully at the cramped shower for a moment and then set her backpack down on the shelf next to the bed.

Angie looked at her, then at the bed. ‘How are we going to—’

‘Do you snore?’ asked Holly.

‘I don’t think so, no.’

‘Then you can have half the bed.’

‘It’s not going to make you feel—’

Holly’s hand swung across her throat in a quick slash. She didn’t blink. She pointed past Angie to the window.

A shadow moved across the drapes, bold and dark from the streetlight. It was someone with wild hair and thin shoulders. The shadow shifted as the junkie stumbled a bit closer.

Angie clapped her hands over her mouth. Holly looked at the bat. She’d leaned it in a corner near the bedroom entrance.

A loud groan came from outside the camper, followed by a string of nonsense syllables. Another moan came from somewhere nearby. Then a third voice gibbered for a few moments.

Another shadow moved across the drapes. They could only see the top of the head. Then another. And another. They could hear the dull slaps of uneven footsteps and the faint rustle of fabric.

There was a bang and the RV rocked. Angie cried out, but behind her hands it was just a squeak. Holly glared at her.

Something heavy hit the outside again. It was closer to the window. Still on the opposite side from the door. They heard moans and hoots and nonsense chattering and then hands were pounding on the wall of the camper. Some of it sounded like slapping palms, some like knuckles, and some like hammering fists.

Angie stared at Holly’s hips and nodded. It took Holly a moment to realize she was looking at the pistol. She shook her head and Angie nodded harder. The other woman reached for the holster and Holly stepped back, putting her hand near the baseball bat.

The pounding lasted almost a minute, then settled down and ended. The cries and shouts and gibbering started back up, punctuated with a few snarls. Rubber and leather and bare skin smacked against the pavement as the pack suddenly burst into motion and ran howling down the street.

Holly glared at her roommate. ‘Next time you try to take my pistol, I’ll beat you senseless.’

‘They were going to break in!’

‘They liked the noise. They didn’t even know we were in here.’

Angie closed her eyes. The web between her finger and thumb was bleeding. She’d bitten it trying not to scream during the assault. ‘How can you be so calm about this?’

Holly shrugged. ‘What’s the point of getting worked up?’

‘They could’ve killed us.’

She shrugged again. ‘They didn’t.’ She made a point of double-checking the snap on the holster. ‘I’m going to bed. Tomorrow’s going to be another long hike. Maybe we can reach Sherman Oaks.’

* * *

Holly woke up crying. She always did. It was the same dream and it took her a minute to remember that it was in the past. Six weeks in the past.

She was just starting to doze off again when she realized Angie’s arm was around her waist.

It didn’t surprise her that much. Everyone has habits in bed. Up until two nights ago Angie’d been spooning with someone. She’d probably been half-asleep when she snuggled up against Holly. She was warm.

Besides, the extra body heat was nice considering the thin blankets.

Holly shifted on the mattress, folding the pillow in half to support her head. She heard Angie’s breathing shift and felt warm air on her neck. ‘Sorry,’ Holly whispered. Another bed habit.

‘S’alright,’ murmured Angie. She sounded groggy. Her hand patted Holly’s belly twice.

Then it slid up under her shirt to cup her breast.

She tensed up, wide awake again. Angie seemed asleep. Holly was willing to excuse it as another random movement.

Angie’s fingers flexed, spreading back and forth. A hot breath flowed across the back of Holly’s neck. She felt lips settle on her shoulders. The arm across her chest pulled tight, and she could feel the other woman shifting.