The Rule of Three

— 28 —

Jack took out the last of his meagre supplies and shared them with George. The poor kid sat hugging his knees, rocking back and forth. Jack wasn’t surprised. It had been a hell-filled few days for them both; he felt like doing the same. Watching George, Jack wanted more than anything to survive, to find Dee. To keep George safe.

After going through so much, and fighting every step of the way, he didn’t want to give in now, no matter how hopeless it seemed.

There is always a way out.

Jack sat listening for the creatures’ howls but could only hear them in the distance. Crawling out of their muddy root cave, he pulled George up and lifted him onto the bank.

Pop… Pop… Pop.

Jack spun around, back towards the dam. That was gunfire. Muffled, but definitely gunfire.

Hesitating, he listened as it intensified. The sounds of two distinct gunshots came down the river, reverberating off the limestone cliffs. Perhaps some kind of rifle? Jack couldn’t be sure. Then the unmistakable boom of a shotgun rang out. He recognised that straight away. His mind jolted back to a memory of Dee teaching him how to hold the gun against his shoulder. She patiently taught him how to line up the target. How to squeeze the trigger in between breaths.

Those idiots are going to bring that whole nest out…

Jack stood rooted to the spot, listening to the battle. He glanced around at the creatures as they ran howling and screeching back to the dam. Finally Jack looked down the river. “Hang on to this George, okay?” Jack said as he looped the much lighter pack over the boy’s shoulders.

The two of them waded back out into the river. He nestled George in the lifesaver’s embrace once again and let the current take them downstream, away from the gunfight. Away from the madness. Jack saw it as a slim window of opportunity. Flee while the creatures were distracted.

He could see the sun poking through the fluffy white clouds, its rays reflecting off the river and into his eyes. Jack wondered why the monsters were out in the midday sun. Normally they hid from its strong UV light.

A loud BOOM echoed down the river, breaking him from his thoughts.

Was that explosives? Hell. Whoever was at the dam, they were serious.

Jack heard the motorboat engine revving and turned his head, searching out the craft. It tore around the corner, the throaty sound of its engine reverberating around the cliffs.

The monsters’ howls and screeches followed. Jack’s eyes were drawn up. Fascinated, he watched as a black mass flowed out of every entrance of the dam and buildings. The creatures poured out of the doors. Windows. Tunnels. Everywhere. There had to be hundreds of them now. Standing near the back of the mass was the Alpha leader. It towered above the monsters. Arms outstretched like some evil priest, it urged its brethren on.

Jack raised his free arm, trying to signal the speeding boat. It was only a few metres away. He ducked under the water as it swerved around him. Jack spat out river water and hugged George closer. The craft slowed and fishtailed around. Jack could see the tall teenager and a bearded man looking at him. Slumped in the back of the boat was a smaller figure.

“Help, please… I have a boy,” Jack said, raising his tired voice.

The boat floated towards him. Or was he floating towards it? Coaxing his exhausted arms, he held George up. The bearded man frowned and hauled George into the boat.

Strong, gnarled hands grasped Jack’s and pulled him out of the water. “What the hell are you doing in the water?”

Jack flicked his eyes back to the dam and nodded. “Thank you,” he gasped.

The howls and screeches of the creatures became deafening, so loud they shuddered through Jack. He glanced up as the creatures started throwing themselves into the river like suicidal lemmings. The monsters had lost their fear of the water. His heart sank. Just for a fraction of a second he had thought he was safe.

“Boss. Get us out of here!” the bearded man yelled as he raised his rifle and began firing.

Jack felt the bow of the boat lift as the teenager opened the throttle, and he grabbed whatever he could hold on to.

He watched in horror as more and more monsters threw themselves from the cliffs, trying to reach the fleeing boat. A few managed to land on the boat. Digging their claws in, they scrambled and tore into the skin of the boat, their yellow eyes glaring at the humans.

The bearded man swung his rifle and fired. Calmly taking them out.

“Dee. We need you. Snap out of it!”

Despite everything happening around him… the boat speeding down the river… the gun rapidly firing… the creatures’ howling and trying to eat him… time slowed down for Jack. Dee? Here? After all that? Is this real?

Turning to the stern of the boat, Jack looked into those beautiful eyes staring back at him.

Covered in mud, blood and God knows what else, he launched himself into the arms of the one person who meant the most to him in the world. His rock, his shelter from the storm.

All those years alone had been worth it to spend the last three with her. She was a woman of beauty, intelligence and magic. She had taught Jack so much about life, about ways to appreciate it.

Even after these nightmares had torn his world apart, he had never given up hope of finding her again. It had been his motivation, his energy. His one ring. He had kept the image of her in the forefront of his mind. Those long, confused hours stuck to the wall. Through everything. Dee’s beautiful eyes and smiling face had kept him going.

Jack embraced Dee and sobbed. Holding her against his body, he was afraid to let go.

“I thought I had lost you,” Jack said, kissing her cheek.

“Me too,” Dee said.

“Dee. Come on!” shouted the bearded man.

Dee pulled herself out of Jack’s embrace and, racking her shotgun, started blasting at anything that moved in the water.

“Jack. In that bag. Grab a gun!” Dee said, gesturing with her head.

Jack found the bag and unzipped it. There were half a dozen guns that he didn’t recognise and two shotguns. He hadn’t fired a shotgun for a few months, not since that day at the firing range shooting clay pigeons. Jack gritted his teeth.

He looked around him. At the howling monsters throwing themselves into the river. At the little red-haired boy, George, huddled against a seat. At his wife, Dee, firing into the black mass of monsters. At the teenager steering the boat down the river. At the bearded man, rifle held to his shoulder, firing quick, controlled bursts.

Each of these people was fighting, fighting to stay alive. Fighting for the human race.

Jack checked the safety was off, and shells were loaded. Planting his feet, he tried to get his balance in the moving boat. Frustration boiling up, he joined the fight.

The Variants continued to throw themselves into the river. A couple more managed to land on the bow of the boat, but between himself, the bearded man and Dee, they dealt with them quickly.

The boat swung from side to side, dodging the beasts. Jack fired at a creature swimming towards him, taking off part of its head. He grimaced as it sank under the waves. Jack glanced up, searching for another target. The river in front of him was clear.

“Go!” Jack said, pointing.

The teenager heard him and opened the throttle, launching the boat free of the raining terrors.

As the boat pulled away, a loud bellow echoed down the cliffs. Jack shook his head and looked up at the Alpha. It glared down at the fleeing humans. With one last bellow he turned away, and his army of demons followed, howling and screeching.

Jack saw the bearded man raise his rifle and look through the scope, but he held his shot.

For now, they were clear of the creatures. The boat sped down the wide muddy river. Soon the high limestone cliffs gave way to rolling farmland.

“Why didn’t you shoot?” Dee said as she hugged Jack.

“No point. I don’t think this calibre would penetrate all that bone and hide,” Ben said. He lowered the weapon and glanced at them. “I guess this is Jack?”

A smile broke out on Dee’s face. “Yeah, it sure is.” She squeezed Jack tighter.

Jack caught her gaze. He knew what she was thinking. Somehow amongst the insanity, they had found each other. He could once again look into those blue eyes.

“Ben, Jack, Jack, Ben. And the tall one driving is Boss,” Dee said.

Jack and Ben acknowledged each other with a nod before shaking hands.

“Thank you. How did you know where I was?” Jack asked, shaking his head.

“A bit of guesswork. A bit of technology and a lot of luck,” Ben said. “I asked one of the collaborators what they were up to. He told me about the nest. When Dee came along looking for you, I figured it was the first place to look.”

“Thanks,” Jack said. He glanced down at Dee and raised an eyebrow. “Technology?”

“Find My Phone,” Dee said. “Your phone is thirty kilometres upriver.”

“Yeah. I crashed the car and ran into some of those beasts.”

Jack cast his eyes down. With all that had happened, it felt weird to talk about it.

“Guys,” Boss said, turning around. He pointed to the far bank. Dozens of Variants were charging down, screaming and howling at them.

“Keep going, Boss. Get us to the car,” Ben instructed. He reached into his combat vest and slammed in a new magazine.

“Boss?” Jack said.

“Another time, Highlander.” Dee grinned, her eyes twinkling in the afternoon light.

Jack returned the smile.

Boss turned. “Hey. We’ve been waiting for you.”

“You have? Well, I would’ve got here a bit sooner, but I ran into a bit of bother with some locals.”

Jack reached down and ruffled George’s hair. “This little fighter is George. He saved me.”

Dee crouched down to George. “Hey, little guy.”

Jack’s heart skipped a beat when the little red-haired kid wrapped his arms around her. He’d known she would like him. Perhaps, in spite of the apocalypse and the horrors they had faced, he and Dee had found that missing piece.