“What gash?” Kyle answered as he raised his arm and peered over his shoulder.
A large cut that spanned from his bicep to his forearm poked out of his shirt. Panic began to ensue as he thought about his run-ins with the Existing Dead. He thought maybe it was possible that one of them had scratched him as he’d wrestled with Chet. He didn’t remember. There was something strange about the entire situation. He had not felt it, and had been unaware it was even there.
He examined the wound again, then glanced at Morgan. “I think I might be infected.”
Chapter Twenty
The room felt a few degrees cooler. Kyle knew that being infected meant that he was going to die and come back as a bigger monster than what he already was.
“Don’t be so dramatic. I can see it in your face,” Morgan said. “If you were infected you would’ve already turned. Sit down and I’ll take a look at it.”
He sighed with relief when she said that. After all, she did know more about the Existing Dead then he did. If she said that he would have turned by now if he was infected, then that was gospel.
“How long does it usually take for someone to turn?” Kyle asked, taking a seat. He lifted his shirt to better expose the wound.
“We’ve seen people turn in a matter of minutes.” Morgan began to rub the wound with an alcohol wipe. Kyle flinched the second he felt the sting of the alcohol. “Jumpy?”
“Would it make me seem less of a hero if I said yes?”
“No, it’ll just make you seem more human. You kind of seem distant, like something is bothering you.”
“I’m fine. I’ve just had a rough week.”
“We’ve all had a rough week. Most of us have been dealing with this for a lot longer.”
“Yeah, I kinda missed out on all of that. For the first week or two I was trapped in a basement with my wife … ex-wife and my son Eddie. Both of them are gone now.”
“Sorry,” Morgan said as she put a bandage on his cut. “I lost my sister earlier today. I feel your pain.”
“You’re not grieving?”
“It’s kind of hard to grieve in times like this. Did you grieve for your son?”
“Not really. Eddie has helped me get through it. I probably wouldn’t have made it this far without him by my side. That little guy means a lot to me.”
Morgan stared at him for a moment. She tilted her head like a confused dog.
“I mean Victor, sorry.” Kyle quickly corrected himself.
Morgan continued to look at him questioningly. She’s seen this type of behavior before. Being in the medical profession, she had dealt with many patients with mental instability.
“I’m glad Victory was able to provide you with some company. But now that he’s home I guess it’s time for you to continue on your way. Where were you headed?”
Kyle stood from the chair, his body towering over Morgan. “I’m on my way to California. There’s a very special lady there. I need to make sure she’s all right.”
“She must be very special for you to travel to one of the most infested states.”
“She is. I kinda would like to take Victor along with me. Y’know, for support.”
Morgan half nervously smiled as she stood. The woman was tall, but Kyle still had a few inches of height on her. “I’m afraid that’s not possible. Victor needs to stay here with me.”
Kyle was instantly filled with rage. Something incomprehensible inside him snapped, and the only impulse in his body was to grab Morgan. He had to make her see that he needed Victor by his side. He was the one who had taken care of him when she had abandoned him at a gas station. Victor was his. But just as quickly as the rage and malevolence came, it went away. He relaxed. “I’m … I’m sorry.”
“I know what you’re going through, Kyle. I know that you see Victor as your son.”
Even though Kyle believed in his heart that Victor was his son, hearing the words finally made him realize how crazy that sounded. The bond with the boy and him was strong, but he would never be able to replace Eddie. And Jasmine would never be able to replace Mary.
“I think it’s best for all of us if you just leave. Continue on your journey. I’ll give you enough supplies to make it to California,” Morgan said.
Kyle nodded. His lip quivered a little as he realized his goodbye was drawing near.
Static began to erupt from somewhere in the kitchen.
“Dammit,” Morgan said as she ran to the counter near the sink. There was a small CB Radio there that Kyle never noticed before.
“Morgan?” A man with a thick Hispanic accent spoke from the radio.
She grabbed the hand held microphone and said, “Ignacio, I’m home and safe.”
“Bery good, is der anyting to report?”
“Yes! I found my son.”
“Ah, muy bien, Morgan.”
“A man named Kyle brought him home.”
“Two new survibors. Want to bing dem to Embassy?”
Morgan took one quick glance to Kyle. “No, I don’t think that’s—”
Before Morgan could finish Kyle interrupted. “Yes, I’d like to ask Greenly questions before I go to California. He might be able to give me information that would keep me alive.” He spoke loudly enough for Ignacio to hear on the other side of the radio.
“Is dat him?”
Morgan exhaled noisily and said, “Yes.”
“Bien, tomorrow morning I bring Ricardo and Virginia. We escort you three to Embassy. Is goin’ to be dark soon. Lock doors and estay inside.”
“Yes, Ignacio, I’ve been doing this for weeks now. I know the drill.”
“Bien, okay we see you tomorrow. Adios.”
Morgan placed the handheld on the counter. “It looks like you’re going to be staying the night with us. I’ll start dinner. Can you make sure all the doors are locked?”
“Yeah,” Kyle said. He walked to the living room where Victor lay on the couch. The boy wasn’t asleep. He wasn’t moving, either. “Hey, your mom asked us to go make sure the doors are locked.”
Victor smiled. “She asked you, not us.”
Kyle laughed. “Get up, you little shit. This is your house. I don’t know where all the doors are.”
“Fine,” Victor said as he stood. They walked to the front door and made sure the deadbolt was in place. “Done,” Victor said as he twisted the lock closed.
“Is that the only door? Your mom said doors. Plural, meaning more than one.”
“Hey mom,” Victor shouted. “By doors did you mean the garage doors too?”
“Yes,” came Morgan’s reply.
“Okay,” Victor said under his breath. He moved the ice pack to a different spot on his face. “This thing is cold. My face feels numb.”
Kyle stood in place for a second as the sound of pots banging from the kitchen gave him the sense of déjà vu. This scene was all too familiar. “Does this remind you of Susie?” he asked Victor.
“Not really.”
Kyle shook the memories of Susie and Angel from his head. This scenario was different. This was Victor’s mother they were dealing with.
“Are you all right?”
“Fuck, everyone stop asking me that,” Kyle said, agitated. “I’m fine. I’m just tired and I want to know what the fuck is going on with the dead.”
“And get to Jasmine, right?” Victor said, repeatedly raising his eyebrows up and down like a little pervert.
Kyle couldn’t help but laugh.
“Yes, son. That too.”
Victor opened a door that was directly under the staircase. It led into a dark but large room. Kyle walked inside, paused and took a deep breath. “Do you smell that?”
Victor took in a deep drag as well. “I don’t smell anything.”
Again Kyle inhaled a good gust of air, but the smell he thought he’d noticed was gone. He so desperately wanted something to be wrong with the place. Something that would make Victor want to leave with him. That’s all he wanted. He wanted to find Jasmine safe, and all three of them could live happily ever after. But there were so many goddamn things getting in the way. The most recent problem being a mother by the name of Morgan Cross.