Scarlet Memories (Book 1) Read online

  ‘GRRWWAAH’ Came a voice from behind him.

  It was a sort of grunt mixed with a moan. He wasn’t completely sure which one he had heard. He whipped around to see Kendra off of the floor and heading towards him. Her face paler than before. Her eyes had a crazy look about them. As if they were strangers to her own body. She also had throw up on the corner of her mouth and cheek.

  ‘Kendra?’ ‘He asked.

  ‘What’s wrong with you? Are you ok? I just heard you take that fall… And I am sure I just saw you dead on that floor!’ He spoke to her, his voice quivering with fear.

  She lunged at him out of nowhere. Grabbing at his shoulders and arms trying to take a bite out of them any way that she could. Ian looked down and noticed her mouth open much wider than she had ever done before. It looked unnatural. It seemed that her teeth had gotten longer too. But, taking a second glance he realized that they were broken and jagged.

  ‘You’re one of those things!’ He cried, Pushing her away by her shoulders. Trying to avoid her jagged teeth. She just kept coming at him. No matter what he did. God that smell was revolting! He eventually pushed her so hard, that she fell against the employee refrigerator. Hitting her already battered head into the corner of the handle. Kendra lay on the floor not moving. Her body unconscious the blunt force trauma she had just endured. He knew he had to do something. But, what could stop a dead person…Thing…Creature? That was when he looked down and saw Kendra’s finger twitch. Her arms then began to move to push her lifeless body off of the ground. Droplets of congealed blood fell from the giant gash in the back of her head. Gross! He thought as he rushed to find something he could use to ‘put her down.’ He looked over at the sink area where they usually prepared their daily meals. This is one of the first times that he had come into the break room and found all of the dishes done. Why today? He grumbled.

  He had hoped that he would find a knife or something blunt to use. There was nothing. Not even a coffee maker. They were all used to getting Starbucks, so, there was no need for one. Ian could not believe that nothing of use was in the room. At that moment Ian decided to push passed Kendra and opened the fridge. He grabbed ahold of her long hair and slammed it between the fridge doors. Kendra spat drying blood out of her mouth and clawed at Ian trying to grab him from the legs. But, Ian moved away just in time. He slammed it so many times that her head began to crush. He could see her brains squishing out of her skull and falling to the floor with a splat.

  Kendra finally stopped moving. She was no longer slashing at him with her broken fingernails. Her arms and legs hit the floor completely still. Her body seemed truly lifeless now. Out of sheer curiosity, Ian pulled the door of the fridge open. He could see brains and teeth all over the floor. And that smell was so much worse now. It’s like it was coming from the brain itself. And Ian had gone and made a soup of it all over the floor! Putting his arm to his face, Ian jumped back wafting in front of his face. He grabbed the trash can and fell to his knee’s throwing up immediately into it. He could taste his meal from earlier. And the taste of the acid burning his throat. The smell of Kendra’s dead body coming up with each time he threw up. He had to get out of this room.

  Ian rushed to the break room door and into the dressing room area. He still had to warn Jim. Even if he was a complete jerk the guy deserved to know. Passing the many posters and signs that the crew had put up in the halls, Ian heard another noise. This time it was coming from Jim’s office…He rushed to his door. As he was about to turn the knob, he heard an all too familiar sound coming from inside the room. It sounded like the electric shaver Jim was always shaving with. He carried that thing around everywhere. Ian had no idea why he constantly shaved. It wasn’t like his beard would grow over night. Just another reason confirming the fact that Ian couldn’t stand Jim Cranston. But, he had come here to warn him and that was what he was going to do.

  Ian knocked on the office door before entering. He knew the consequences that would follow if he didn’t. Jim hated an unannounced entry into his office. He adored his privacy and promised anyone who ignored that request a long and enduring one sided shouting fest. Of course it was very rare for anyone to do this now. They had all had their share of hearing him rant.

  ‘Jim I’m sorry to barge in’ Ian started. His train of thought was violently interrupted by the images he now saw. Blood… Blood, guts, body parts, brains, everything that makes up the human body mass of Jim Cranston. The smell of the blood reminded him of the scent of iron and rust. God! What happened here? He glared around the room. It was dark and musty. But, from what he could see, it looked as though there had been a huge struggle starting at his desk. All of his nick knacks and paper weights were rolled across the floor. Far from where they were supposed to be. And there was a lamp thrown to the floor, the bulb busted. The filing cabinet closest to the majority of where his body parts lie, was tossed to the side as though it didn’t weigh very much at all. He had thousands of manuscripts in there! How the hell did someone pick that up? Much less throw it that far without any trouble? Ian questioned.

  What if Kendra did this? He asked himself. Trying to mull over a thousand scenarios in mind. It had to be her. She would be the only one who could do this. He thought, spotting Jim’s family portrait broken and ripped up on the floor. It made Ian think about his own family again. Were they alright? Did they get disemboweled like this

  Ian shut the door to the office trying to shake the scene from his memory. Unfortunately, it was instilled there forever. Something he would never forget. He knew he would need to warn the others that the threat had already been there all along. They had to get somewhere safe. This thing could get ugly quick and without warning. And there was no time to sit and dwell on things that he can’t change. He set out to tell the others what he had just experienced. The most bizarre thing that has ever happened to him. He had done things he wished he didn’t have to do. Kendra was his friend. They did everything together recently. They were midway through the shooting of the movie and were inseparable. Ian tried to think about the last time he had a friend that close. He couldn’t really think of anyone but Matt Rings. His old best friend in High School. He was the biggest guy he knew. With the biggest heart too. Matt was a survivalist junkie and somewhat of a doomsday prepper. He studied all things used for self-sustaining situations. He wanted to be able to live life without needing modern conveniences. And he was getting good at it. That’s when they went their separate ways to go to college. Ian went to Pace University in New York. And Matt… Well Matt went off to travel to teach himself the ways of the land. He was doing something that he loved. They lost contact shortly after high school was over. And Ian hadn’t heard from him from him in so long.

  Ian snapped to it. He was at the front of the warehouse now. Where everyone had gathered earlier to watch the video. Passing a corner, Ian ran into Jeremy. When Jeremy saw him his eyes looked concerned. ‘Are you ok’ He asked Ian. Jeremy was staring at the blood all over Ian’s pants and bottom of his shirt. To him, it probably looked like Ian had gone mad.

  ‘I’m fine’ he said waving his hands in front of his face. ‘I need to talk to you about what happened in there.’ Ian pointed to the back of the warehouse and dropped his gaze back down to the floor. How was he going to tell him that he just kind of... murdered the supporting actress and their boss? I mean, he knows that the world had gone to the dogs. But, it still seemed barbaric. But, this was the first sign of trouble for anyone in the entire group. They had managed to isolate themselves from the current situation somehow. It must have been because they were so busy with filming the movie that many of the cast and crew hadn’t traveled outside of the filming location for days. Only the select few who lived here in Texas really did. Ian pulled Jeremy to the side and spoke to him very quietly. He knew this would upset a lot of people once it got out. And now wasn’t the best time. Who knows what they would do if they found out this early on. Ian was barely able to handle it.

  ‘Kendra and Jim are de
ad.’

  Ian’s mouth suddenly ran dry at hearing the words come out of his own mouth. Somehow it made it seem more permanent. More real. If anything was real anymore. Jeremy dropped his jaw so far down it could have touched the floor. ‘What the hell do you mean they’re dead? We literally just saw them like fifteen minutes ago!’ Jeremy said to him in dis-belief. He watched as Ian began to recount what happened.

  ‘It was Kendra. Remember how she’d been sick?’ He questioned Jeremy. ‘I think she came down with whatever the hell is bringing the dead back to life. She must have gotten to Jim when she turned. She killed him too.,’ He paused. Wiping the sweat off of his forehead. ‘She ripped him to shreds and there was no saving him.’ Ian felt the image of Jim’s body parts strewn across the room coming back to the surface of his memory. ‘There was no way that he could be saved…’

  Jeremy looked up at Ian’s face. His emotions seemed mixed. But, the majority of emotion that he saw was of sadness.

  ‘That must have been horrible to witness. We have to tell everyone. They need to know to be careful with these things. I checked with them and most of them want to get back to their loved ones. They aren’t looking to stay here. And I don’t blame them.’ He shook his head. ‘Neither do I. But, there is something we have to worry about. These things are strong and fast and we have to be careful not to cross paths with them. And if we do, we have to be prepared to handle them.’ Ian thought back to his toss up with Kendra. ‘Kendra came at me. She wasn’t herself. She was one of those things. Had been sick all day. Remember?’ He was repeating himself.

  ‘We had to send her to get rest? It must have happened then. And it didn’t take her long to take care of Cranston. You don’t want to see him. In fact, we can’t let anyone back there. This is something they don’t need to see at all.’ Ian shook his head and ran his fingers through his hair. It was drenched in sweat. He had been through a lot already today. And he knew this wasn’t the end of it. No, it was the beginning of what he believed to be hell on EARTH.

  The two decided they would both tell the swell of people out there what had happened. And then they would let them decide if they wanted to stay together, go in groups or try to make it on their own. Of course, they would shoot for option one; staying together. The more people we have the better. We need the numbers. Ian thought. He suddenly was remembering a lot of things Matt had taught him. He hoped more would surface soon. He knew he would need it. Plus, it felt nice thinking about his old best friend again. He did miss him. And things sure would be better if he were still around today. He hoped that where ever his friend Matt was; that he was in a better situation than he was in at the moment.

  Ian took a deep breath. Allowing his lungs to expand fully. He was nervous about telling the others what he knew. Knowing that there was a chance that people would leave. The thing that was taking over peoples bodies was right here. In the very same building. But, as far as anyone of them knew, it had stopped with Jim and Kendra. It really wasn’t safe to stay here much longer anyway. They needed a plan.

  Ian and Jeremy walked into the filming area. Everyone was too busy talking to each other to notice them step up onto the main staging area. They both looked around the room. The sense of terror was heavy in the air. So heavy that you could almost taste it. If they were going to make a plan, they needed to make sure it was something that wasn’t thought of out of fear. That could get them into a lot of trouble. They needed to get somewhere safe. And this was hardly it. This warehouse had too many ways to access the inside.

  Jeremy cleared his throat loudly so that the place would hopefully quiet down. Finally, a few people heard him and started ‘shushing’ the others. When they had won the attention of the audience they at once began.

  ‘We know that many of you don’t have anywhere to go.’ Ian said. Opening up the first button of his button down plaid shirt. It had suddenly gotten much warmer in the room. Everyone was staring at them wondering what to do next.

  ‘I need to tell you something that I just witnessed. And I need you all to remain calm.’ Stated Ian bringing his hands up and down signifying complacently.

  He took another deep breath and prepared himself for the next part.

  ‘Kendra and Jim are dead.’ There was a start of an uproar in the crowd. You could hear people asking one another how this could happen. ‘I don’t know how, but she turned into one of those…things.’ He paused between words. He wasn’t quite sure what they should be called. No one had a clue what it was that brought it in the first place. ‘I was forced to defend myself from her. And it’s not a pretty scene.’ Ian lowered his head. The tears welling up in the corner of his eyes.

  ‘She was my friend. I never wanted to see her like that. ‘Sweat was beginning to pour from his scalp. He was very nervous about the next part. ‘Jim was an innocent by stander in all of this. It looks like she got a hold of him before he could find help. These things are strong! We can’t fight against them if we don’t have a way to defend ourselves. And we can’t just go running outside looking for a fight either. They tore Jim apart… We need a plan.’ The whole room got quiet at that point. They all seemed to agree with Ian about needing a plan.

  Jeremy piped up finally,’ I think we need to discuss changing locations. Now, I know we can’t stop you from leaving. But, it would be in everyone’s best interest if we stuck together. What does everyone think about that?’ Immediately Jeremy and Ian wished that they had gone about this in a different way. The whole room started shouting. Before you know it people were shoving one another. Yelling obscenities.

  ‘I want everyone to stop for a minute!’ Ian shouted at the crowd. This was pointless time they were wasting. They needed to do something quick. Ian pulled Jeremy to the side quickly. ‘How about we vote on it?’ He asked. This was the only thing that he could think of. And if someone didn’t want to stick together, well they could just go. They didn’t need someone dragging them down.

  ‘We are going to vote on it.’ Said Jeremy.

  Chapter Two: Journey

  ‘Everyone that wants to stick together and find another place to seek shelter raise your hand.’ Nearly everyone in the room raised their hands. There was a select few who looked rather upset and brooding. From what Ian could tell, most of them were from Texas and probably had family close by. ‘If you don’t want to stay here, you can go as you please. But, those of you that are sticking with us, we need to start packing supplies for the road.’

  Ian motioned to Jeremy that he was going down into the crowd. Jeremy started talking to the crowd about food and water. And about how everyone needed to grab only the necessities. ‘Don’t pack so much that you can’t run.’

  Ian walked between the people in the crowd. He was looking for Susan. Susan was a sweet older woman in her late 40’s. She recently divorced her husband. And took this job on to get away from her old life. She was one of his best assistants. Susan had brought her 10 year old son Jaime with her to stay for a couple of weeks with her at the Howett Hotel about five miles from here. ‘Susan!’ He raised his voice over the crowd so that she could hear him. Susan met him in the middle of the room. ‘Where is Jaime? He needs to stay close.’ Ian asked her looking around for any sign of him.

  ‘He is still at the hotel. ‘She cried. Her eyes streaming tears down the sides of her face. She looked as though she had been crying for some time by this point. The one day she decides not to bring him into the studio! Ian scowled. ‘I need you to call him right now and tell him to stay put. We don’t need him out in the streets.’

  As if they didn’t have enough to worry about. Now this? As far as he knew, Jaime was the only family member of the cast and crew that tagged along for the ride to Texas. They were going to have to help him. He couldn’t stand the thought of the poor guy being left alone to fend for himself. ‘Susan?’ He asked looking over her. She was a mess. She didn’t seem to care what Ian was saying to her. She could only crash her face into her palms and sob.

  ‘Susan!’
He shouted. ‘I’m not going to leave him there. I need you to calm down. Stick close to me. Ok?’ He asked her. Looking deep into her eyes to make sure she heard and understood him. ‘Alright?’ He asked again. ‘Yes, ok.’ Susan said. Her eyes glowing with hope once again. It must be so hard for her being so close and yet not being able to comfort him. He didn’t blame her for getting the way she did. Ian just needed her to snap back into reality. They didn’t have the time. ‘Go look for some supplies for yourself. Pack light, if you can. Only what you can carry and only essentials.’ He told her grabbing the sides of her arms gently helping her steady her feet. She nodded and started off towards her things in the corner. She didn’t have. Looked like she probably had a little bit of food and a change of clothes. Ian felt so bad for her. He would have to keep a close eye on her.

  Ian met back up with Jeremy. Who was talking to a few people on the stage. ‘Hey!’ Jeremy said, waiving him over. ‘I was just talking to Ethan from the Lighting Department and he told me that there is a school that’s about 3 miles north of here. It’s pretty fortified. Built with three levels within. High walls, small windows and plenty of food. The locals there fixed it to double as a shelter for the town. Texas was prone to severe weather at odd times.’ He looked at Ian with an excited tone to his body behavior. ‘What do you think of that?’

  Ian weighed their options. What very few they had left. He still needed to get Jaime. And that was something he had to do. ‘Where is this school at exactly?’ he asked. ‘There is something that I have to do before we make it there. Susan’s kid is stuck at the hotel near the highway about five miles back. You know the one?’ Ian pointed towards the back of the warehouse. ‘We can’t just leave him there. It’s not a very big hotel so we can be in and out quick… And if we don’t?’ He paused. He didn’t even want to think of what Susan would do without her son. She would be alone in this world. ‘Well, I don’t know, he’s just a kid. ‘