In the Lone and Level Sands (50 page)

****

It was after dinner. Keely lay on her back
with her head draped over the edge of the cot. Something about
seeing the stadium upside-down made her feel like things were more
right.

“How’s the drawing coming?” she asked.

“Great!” Brandon said.

Keely sat up, then lay on her stomach. “Can
I see it?”

“Not until it’s done. I’m adding a special
surprise.”

“I don’t like surprises,” Keely said.

“Everyone likes surprises,” Brandon replied.
“Besides, I know you’ll like this one.”

That night, a small group of zombies broke
in on the other side of the stadium. There was a lot of commotion
and a lot of shouting, but after a while, everyone calmed down.
Soon after, rumors of a woman having a heart attack and nearly
dying reached the edge of the stadium. Keely wondered how so much
could be going on that she wasn’t aware of; then again, there were
a lot of people in the place.

Everyone had been given earplugs to drown
out the moans. Keely didn’t wear hers. She fell asleep to the sound
of Brandon sketching.

****

Keely woke up in the middle of the night.
She sat up and looked around the dark stadium. Almost everyone was
asleep, and she could see flashlight beams and reflective clothing
on the officers wandering around the stadium. She was surprised to
see Brandon sitting up in his cot.

“Can’t sleep?” she asked.

“Bad dreams,” Brandon said.

“You’re telling me. I don’t even remember
what good ones feel like.”

“When I have good ones, they’re good because
I’m not alone.”

Keely sighed. She looked around the stadium
again, then got up and went over to Brandon’s cot. She sat at the
foot of it, legs crossed.

“You’re not alone,” she said.

Brandon tried to force a smile. “You
cold?”

“It’s hot in here.”

“I can’t help but remember what that guy
said, the first day. How we’re all going to die in here.”

“That guy’s an asshole. Don’t pay attention
to him.”

“I know,” Brandon said. “I just… I have a
feeling that something bad is going to happen.” Keely moved closer
to him and gave him a hug. He hugged her back.

“You had a bad dream, that’s all,” Keely
said. She was starting to feel tired again.

“I don’t know. I mean, whatever is going on
out there, it’s not over. It sounds like it’s getting worse. How
long can they keep us in here?”

“I don’t know,” Keely said. She was starting
to drift off.

Brandon put his hands on her shoulders and
gently pulled her away from him. Keely snapped awake. Brandon
looked at her like he might cry. Then, he kissed her. Keely tensed
up, wondered what she should do, eyes wide open. She didn’t feel
threatened at all, she felt warm, somewhat safe, but as his tongue
grazed hers, she pulled away. Brandon opened his eyes, looking
ashamed.

“Sorry, I shouldn’t have… I didn’t—”

“Brandon,” Keely said.

“I… love you,” Brandon said. “I know it’s
crazy, I know we’ve only known each other for a few days, but I
love you.”

“Brandon, I’m not—I don’t—I’m gay,
Brandon.”

Brandon only looked half surprised. “You
can’t… make an exception? Just once?”

“It doesn’t work like that, Brandon.”
Brandon turned aside. Keely got the feeling that he didn’t want her
to see him cry. “Look, Brandon, I like you a lot. I don’t know what
I would’ve done in here without you. But I don’t love you. I can’t,
that’s just not who I am. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be sorry, Keely,” Brandon said. He
looked at her and smiled. “Don’t ever be sorry for who you are. You
should only be sorry for being anything else.”

“Brandon,” Keely said. He hugged her, and
she hugged him back, as hard as she could. Minutes passed, and
Keely wondered how long they would stay like that. She was tired,
and her legs were uncomfortable. She leaned forward and pushed
Brandon onto his back, rested her head on his shoulder, and fell
asleep.

****

Keely woke up in Brandon’s cot. He was
sitting on the ground next to it. His drawing board was out, but it
was just lying on the ground near his bag.

“You okay?” Keely asked.

“Yeah,” Brandon said. “All of the beautiful
girls in the world won’t make that cot feel any less like a
concrete slab.” Keely laughed.

“Why aren’t you drawing?”

“Not in the mood, right now. Maybe
later.”

For a while, they didn’t say anything. They
got breakfast without saying anything, and they returned to their
cots without saying anything. Keely hoped Brandon didn’t hate her.
He just lay there on his cot, not doing anything. Finally, he got
up and sat next to her.

“So, do you have a girlfriend?” he
asked.

“Yeah,” Keely said, trying not to feel
awkward.

“What’s her name? What’s she like?”

“Her name’s Katie.” She searched for the
right words. “She’s the best girl in the world. She’s my best
friend, she’s always been there for me. She brings out the best in
me.”

“Where is she?”

“She was on her way to Seattle the night
that… You know. She was going to move up here for good, as soon as
she could. I was so happy. She was, too.”

“Did you find her at the airport?”

“I didn’t go. Too risky. It happened before
her plane was scheduled to land. I wanted to leave so badly, but I
couldn’t. God, I hope she’s okay.”

“I’ll bet Katie is just fine. And… she’s a
very, very lucky girl.”

“Thanks.”

“Hey, know what? I’ll bet she’s even coming
to try and find you,” Brandon said.

“I left her a note letting her know I’d be
here,” Keely said.

“She might already be here, then!” Brandon
stood up and offered Keely his hand. “Come on, let’s see if we can
ask the officers if they have some sort of census going.”

The two headed down the row. They noticed a
lot of people had left their cots, and all of the officers were
gathered by some tables near the main entrance. When they got
closer they saw that all of them were on their knees, with their
hands tied behind their backs. Some men were standing on the
tables, all were heavily armed.

“What’s going on?” Brandon said. Keely felt
uncomfortable; she and Brandon were near the front of the
crowd.

“What are you, deaf, kid?” one of the men
said. “I said we’re the kings of this castle! You answer to us or
you get the fucking guillotine, that’s what’s going on!” Keely
looked over at the holding cell nearby. Kirk was standing there,
smiling widely at her. For a moment, the rest of the stadium, the
shouting from the gunmen and the murmuring of the crowd
disappeared. And then the lead gunman said something that brought
her back.

“All right then, let those fine men out of
there!”

A man went to the cell and opened it,
letting Kirk, his goons, and the food thief out. He handed them
guns.

Keely wanted to disappear before Kirk could
find her again. Brandon must have sensed this, as he took her by
the shoulders and pulled her back into the crowd. They headed for
their cots as the gunman continued his speech.

“Now, all of you assholes get yourselves
back to your fucking cots before I start using you all for target
practice!” His voice faded as Keely and Brandon worked through the
crowd, but soon after, gunfire rang across the stadium. People
screamed, babies cried, and everyone returned to their cots. Keely
and Brandon didn’t see any police officers anymore.

****

It was late, and Keely was hungry. She could
see Brandon in his cot, but both were afraid to move. She looked
around and saw some people listening to music, some on laptops, a
few talking quietly. She turned back to Brandon.

“You can draw, you know.”

“I know,” Brandon said.

“I’m still waiting for that surprise.”

“There is no surprise. I’m done with that
drawing. I messed up, didn’t like it. I’ll draw a different one,
sometime. A better one.”

Keely felt sad. She was terrified, everyone
was. She was worried about Kirk, now that he and his goons were
armed and had free reign to do what they pleased. She felt tears
begin to well up, and shook her head. She hoped he didn’t remember
where her cot was, that she’d never see him again.

“I’m scared,” Keely said.

“I’m scared, too.”

Keely looked around. Now the flashlights
didn’t mark police officers but ruthless men with guns. She looked
back at Brandon.

Keely sat up, then slid to the ground.

“Keely, what the hell do you think you’re
doing?” Brandon said.

“Shh,.” Keely looked around, then crouched
over to his cot and lay down next to him.

“Keely, you could get in a lot of
trouble.”

“If we’re going to be scared, we at least
shouldn’t have to be alone.”

She hugged Brandon, rested her head on his
shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her. Soon enough, they were
both asleep.

“What the hell do you think you’re
doing?”

Keely’s eyes shot open. It was day. A man
with a gun ripped the blanket off of them. Brandon woke up,
too.

“Did I fucking say you two could fuck
around?”

The man grabbed Keely by her hoodie and
yanked her off of the cot, throwing her to the ground. She
stumbled, lost her footing, and fell. Brandon sat up.

“Hey, leave her alone!”

The man turned to him. “Watch your fucking
mouth. This is your only goddamn warning, and you’re goddamn lucky
you’re even getting one.”

The man turned back to Keely, grabbed her by
the back of her neck, and lifted her to her feet.

“So, you think you’re clever, sneaking
around behind our backs? Think you’re smarter than me, do you?”

“No, it’s not that—”

The gunman backhanded her. She almost fell,
but caught herself. She was just glad to have his fingernails out
of her neck.

“What was it then, huh?”

Keely could tell Brandon wanted to get up,
to make sure this man never hurt another person again. With her
eyes, she begged him not to.

“Fucking look at me!” the gunman said.

“I was c-cold,” Keely said. The man paused
for a moment, and then burst out laughing.

“Cold! If that isn’t just the boldest
fucking lie I ever heard. It’s fucking hotter than hell in here! I
tell you what, I got some friends who are mighty lonely at night. I
bet if I toss you in a room with them, they’ll keep you warm!” He
laughed some more. Keely was disgusted, but she still hoped Brandon
wouldn’t try to start a fight.

Fortunately, the man left them after his
angry tirade. Maybe he couldn’t find his way back, maybe he had
other things to do. It didn’t matter. Keely remained in her cot,
thankful that he was gone, still worried that he might come
back.

Most of the refugees spent the morning in
silence. A few children sobbed, some cried. Outside, the moaning
and scratching against wood were louder than ever.

A few quiet, terrifying hours passed. Then,
someone screamed and pointed: One of the barricades had given way,
and zombies were pouring into the stadium. Two of the gunmen had
been close by, and both were quickly overtaken by the wave of
zombies. Some of the other gunmen rushed to the scene.

The people in the stadium pushed backward.
Keely and Brandon had a lot of room, but Keely watched as some
people along the sidelines of the field were pushed against the
walls, some being slowly suffocated. Across the stadium, a group of
people reached one of the barricades and started tearing it
down.

The stadium was falling apart. Keely didn’t
know whether to be afraid, or grateful.

“Now’s our chance, we can escape!” Brandon
said.

“How?”

“We’ll go around the zombies as soon as
there’s a gap. We can get out the same way they got in.”

The two walked toward the breach, but stayed
away from the zombies. There were dozens of them eating away at the
people in the stadium like it was a grand buffet.

Brandon and Keely crept closer to the edge,
getting within a few feet of the oncoming zombies. Then, Brandon
spotted something. “Wait here.”

“What are you doing?” Keely said. Brandon
got closer and closer to the zombies. “Get back here!”

Brandon knelt down by one of the fallen
gunmen (who was still being torn apart) and grabbed a rifle, then
doubled back. One of the zombies noticed Brandon and followed.

“Look out!” Keely said. Brandon turned, shot
the zombie, and then returned to Keely.

“Sorry. We could really use this, though. It
might help us get out of here.”

A few minutes passed, and the zombies didn’t
let up.

“This isn’t working,” Keely said. She looked
around; in the sea of moving bodies, she couldn’t tell who was or
wasn’t a zombie anymore. Then she spotted something. On the other
side of the stadium, the survivors had succeeded in tearing down
some of the barricade covering one of the exits. There was only a
small wall of plywood left. The people were now lifting each other
over it, to safety.

“Over there,” Keely said, pointing to
another barricaded exit near them. “We’ll make our own exit.”

They made their way toward the end zone, but
about halfway heard someone call for help. Keely turned to see Kirk
lying on the ground, badly wounded. He had been bitten.

“Please… help me!”

“Forget him, Keely, let’s go!” Brandon
said.

“Please, I don’t want to turn into a monster
like them,” Kirk said.

“You’ll never be a monster like them,” Keely
said. “You’re a monster of another kind.”

“Just kill me. You should be more than happy
to.”

“Let’s leave him here to rot,” Brandon said.
Keely took a deep breath, then she took the gun from Brandon and
pointed it at Kirk’s head.