The Red Sky Series Box Set Books 1-4: A Post-Apocalyptic Survival Series Read online

  I looked up and noticed there was a touch of light peeking through the curtain. It would be morning soon.

  Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Danny watching us. When I turned, he quickly looked away. He didn’t look like he could have been a day over twenty.

  Poor kid.

  Nick stepped in front of me blocking my view of Danny. He grabbed the snack bar from my hand and devoured it in two bites.

  “How much food do we have left?” Nick asked.

  “Still what we have in the bags, but not much.” I crossed my arms. “I’m sure we can find more in some of the other apartments.”

  “Lots of stuff at Danny’s place. Well, something to worry about for another day,” Nick said nodding at Jamie. “Help me move their bodies?”

  Jamie nodded and followed Nick over to the first body. Danny’s brother. He lowered his head and started sobbing.

  I watched them as they dragged the body out of the door and into the hallway. Blair stared at her feet, and Bronx turned, looking at me over his shoulder. His face was swelling more and more by the minute.

  I turned toward the freezer to grab an ice pack but stopped. There was no ice. The only thing I could do to help Bronx was to offer him some pain relievers.

  As I walked toward the bathroom, I noticed the light at the curtain was brighter than it had been. Bronx followed my gaze and walked over to the window. He pulled it to the side so I could see the bright sun.

  I smiled, and he smiled back. The only thing I was going to allow myself to think about was that it was a good sign. We would figure things out. We would be okay.

  Twenty-Nine

  It had been several days, and things were still blurry. When I blinked, for a second, things seemed clear, but they’d quickly blur right back out.

  The swelling in Bronx’s face had mostly subsided, but the bruises were still visible. Nick and Blair were healing as well… at least physically.

  Blair didn’t talk much. Mostly she looked as though she was in a perpetual state of shock. The only time she was animated was when Nick was next to her whispering into her ear.

  It was clear they’d been through hell. I didn’t ask. None of us did. If they wanted to talk, they would in their own time, and maybe I didn’t even want to know.

  The rain had stopped, but some of the flooding remained. I frequently checked out the window, hoping it would have receded, but it hadn’t. Debris and the occasional pale body bobbed up and down as the water pulled them around the corner of the apartment.

  Nick and Jamie had scrounged through some of the other apartments and found more food, but our water was running low. We were going to have to go, but even Nick seemed to want to wait until we had to. Maybe for Blair. Maybe for himself.

  I couldn’t blame them for not wanting to go back out there. The idea was nearly terrifying. But I couldn’t let myself go there. I couldn’t let myself think about it.

  Besides, after what had happened, it only made me want to get to my grandma quicker. If she was still alive.

  “Hey,” Bronx said knocking lightly on my bedroom door.

  “Hi,” I said smiling at him.

  He closed the door slightly as he stepped inside my room. “Thought you were sleeping.”

  I shook my head and stepped away from the window. I tried not to frown at the small, nearly healed cut on his lip.

  Until the cuts, scrapes, and bruises were gone, I wouldn’t be able to forget. Who was I kidding? I wouldn’t ever be able to forget… the injuries and my blurry vision were a constant reminder.

  “Danny’s been crying to come out,” Bronx said.

  “Again?”

  “Nick let him out. Set him up near the window,” Bronx said. “He’s just a kid, but I just couldn’t be in the same room as him… not right now.”

  I swallowed hard as he took a step closer. He slid his hand around the back of my neck.

  “And I wanted to check on you,” he said, his voice rumbled through my body. “I hate when you're out of sight.”

  Bronx pulled me closer and pressed his lips to mine. I kept my eyes closed as he pulled away, not wanting the moment to end.

  “Nick wants to talk to us,” Bronx said letting his hand slide down my arm until he reached my hand. He entwined his fingers with mine.

  “He’s ready?” I asked.

  “Him and Blair both are.” Bronx lowered his head, so he was looking directly into my eyes. “Are you?”

  I chewed my cheek for only a second. “I am. You?”

  “Yeah, as ready as I’ll ever be.” Bronx smiled so wide I worried he’d open the cut on his lip. “Still don’t know what to do about the kid.”

  “Not much we can do.” I shrugged.

  “By that you mean…?”

  I narrowed my eyes at him. “Bringing him with us.”

  “We could just let him go,” Bronx said.

  “Alone? He’s just a kid,” I said hating that I didn’t want to send him away. Hating that I cared what happened to him. “I know I sound crazy after what he and his family did to all of us.”

  Bronx squeezed my hand. “I’m not sure he did all that much.”

  “He didn’t stop them. He didn’t speak up.”

  “For all we know, he tried,” Bronx said stepping to the side to peer out the window. “That bastard probably did everything he could to make sure his sons stayed in line.”

  “You sound just as conflicted as I feel,” I said crossing my arms as I walked toward the door. I peeked out of the opening into the other room, but I couldn’t see anything. I couldn’t even hear anything.

  Bronx stepped up next to me and nodded. “You ready to do this?”

  “I guess.”

  Bronx followed me into the living room. Nick stood and hauled Danny into the bathroom while he begged him to stop.

  “Please! Don’t lock me in there again!” he shouted. “I’m not doing anything wrong!”

  “We just need some privacy,” Nick said before slamming the bathroom door. He brushed his hands together as if he’d just finished weeding the garden. “Shall we have a seat?”

  I sat down on the sofa, Bronx was to my left and Jamie to my right. Blair was curled up in the chair, staring at Nick who was standing in the middle of the room.

  It was strange how we were all sitting in my living room like this again. Nick leading the conversation. A lot of things had changed since the last time we’d all been together like this.

  “It’s time to talk about when we leave,” Nick said rubbing his hands together. “The water is slowly receding. I measured yesterday, it’s roughly six inches deep, and very likely once we get to higher ground we won’t even have to worry about it.”

  Nick paced one way, and then the other before stopping to face us again. It seemed like he was trying hard to convince us, but I wasn’t sure that any of us needed convincing.

  “We can double check the packs, and whatever else we need we’ll have to find out there. Our water supplies are low. I think it’s time,” Nick said.

  “I think we’re ready,” Bronx said. “I’m sick of looking at the bloodstained carpet.”

  I nodded.

  Nick turned to Blair.

  “I’m with you,” she said chewing her fingernail as she looked up into his eyes. “Whatever you want to do.”

  Nick turned to Jamie and Jamie offered him a small nod.

  “Okay,” Nick smiled. “Tomorrow? Now?”

  “Tomorrow,” I said. I wanted just one more night in my bed because I probably wasn’t ever going to see it again. Was it weird how I was going to miss my bed?

  “Tomorrow,” Nick echoed. He let out a heavy sigh as he crossed his arms across his chest. “There is just one more thing we need to talk about.”

  I cocked my head to the side.

  “What’s that?” Jamie asked.

  “Danny,” Bronx said before Nick could respond.

  Nick’s head bobbed up and down as he pointed at Bronx. “That’s exactly right. Danny.
”

  “I don’t care what happens to Danny,” Blair said. “I think we should throw Danny out the window.”

  “No!” Danny shouted as the chair thumped against the tiled bathroom floor.

  Nick stormed across the floor and slammed his fist into the bathroom door so hard I thought his hand was going to go right through the wood.

  “You don’t get a vote,” Nick shouted.

  “I should get a vote,” Danny said, his voice mostly muffled by the door.

  I stood up and turned to face Nick. “He’s just a kid. He didn’t do anything to us.” I bit my lip. “Did he do anything to you?”

  “No,” Nick answered with a stiff jaw. “But we can’t trust him.”

  “Yes, you can!” Danny shouted.

  Nick rolled his eyes at the door. “Our other option is to let him go. Let him fend for himself.”

  “That’s fine,” Blair said as if it had been decided.

  Nick looked at me as if waiting for my call. The problem was, I didn’t know what call to make.

  “Whatever you decide,” I said. I exhaled as I looked at Bronx and Jamie. They both stared up at me wearing the same blank expression. I narrowed my eyes at them, something a bit too close to a scowl. “What?”

  “Nothing,” Bronx said shaking his head.

  Jamie looked away.

  I walked across the room and stood in front of Nick. “You shouldn’t kill him.”

  “Thank you,” Danny said sounding as if he’d been crying.

  “That doesn’t mean I won’t,” Nick said pounding his fist into the door again.

  I leaned closer to Nick and lowered my voice. “Stop scaring him.”

  “He deserves to be scared.” I started to walk toward my room, but Nick grabbed my arm. “You ready for this?”

  I hesitated. My mouth curled up into a smile.

  “I am,” I said sounding surer about the decision than I ever had about anything in my entire life. And I was sure. After a good night’s rest, I was ready to leave this apartment behind. I was ready to leave the whole city behind.

  I wasn’t excited to walk seventy-five miles to my grandma’s, but we’d get there. If there was anyone that could do it, it was us.

  We’d gotten through hell, and it was time… it was time to leave it behind. If there was help out there, eventually they’d find us. It didn’t matter where we were as long as we were together.

  BLUE CLOUD

  By Kellee L. Greene

  Chapter 1

  I peered out of the window up at the sky. It was still stained red, but it was fading with each passing day unlike the bloodstains on the carpet of my small apartment.

  It had been several days since Nick had killed the men who were trying to get answers we didn’t have about what was going on outside. The men that had killed Maggie just hoping to get Nick or Blair to talk. They’d gotten what they deserved as far as I was concerned.

  The men had been hoping to find a cure… an antidote, something that would save them from the disease spread by the red sky, but they were foolish to think they could find it inside my apartment. Just because we somehow managed to fight off the illness unlike most of the population didn’t mean we had the answers. It had just meant that we had gotten lucky.

  Nick and Bronx had gone through our bags countless times making sure we had everything we’d need to walk the seventy-five miles to my grandma’s house in the country. A destination we hoped to find safety. No one said it out loud, but I was sure it wasn’t just me that was worried about leaving the apartment after what we’d just gone through with the gas mask wearing men.

  The men’s bodies were gone, but the gas masks were on my counter reminding me constantly of their evil. At a glance, I could swear that I still saw their eyes staring out at me.

  There had been a sense of safety inside my apartment, but that had been shattered the moment the men had busted their way inside. Truth was, we were lucky to still be alive.

  Nick, Blair, Jamie, Bronx, and I had to figure out what to do with Danny, the son of the man who’d tried to crush Bronx’s skull. That was the last thing we had to figure out before we left my apartment behind to embark on our long journey.

  I’d be lying if I said we weren’t putting it off as long as possible. The journey, not the dealing with Danny. We were worried about taking that first step outside of the apartment after everything we’d been through.

  We didn’t trust Danny. Couldn’t trust him. But he was just a kid, and he was just as scared as the rest of us, maybe even more so. He didn’t have anyone. We at least had each other.

  “So, should we take a vote?” Nick asked as he twisted the handle of his pistol in his hand. He was casually leaning back against the counter where the five guns we’d acquired were lined up. One from each of Danny’s family members.

  “Please!” Danny begged. “Don’t kill me. Please, oh, please don’t kill me.”

  “Dan, Dan, Dan.” Nick clicked his tongue as he leaned forward. “Silly boy. You don’t get a vote.”

  I crossed my arms and let out a heavy sigh. Nick knew it annoyed me when he tried to scare the poor kid more than he already was. Maybe he deserved to be scared, but it didn’t feel right. I was surprised Danny hadn’t pissed himself, and even though we were leaving soon, I didn’t think my carpet needed any more stains.

  “Want to know what I think?” Blair said looking at her fingernails. She’d pulled her blond hair that looked two shades darker since returning into a tight ponytail.

  “I think we already know your vote,” I muttered.

  Blair didn’t talk much since she’d been back, and when she did speak, it was to say something negative about Danny. She hated him and didn’t mind making that clear every chance she got. She still wanted revenge for whatever she’d gone through. For what she saw Maggie go through.

  “Since we’re leaving,” Nick said taking a step forward, “I’m going to do something I hope I don’t end up regretting.”

  “You won’t,” Danny said with wide, hope-filled eyes. “Oh, you really, really won’t.”

  Nick tucked his pistol into the back of his waistband and picked up a steak knife off the counter. He gripped it tightly, keeping it close to the side of Danny’s face.

  Nick reached forward and grabbed the back of Danny’s chair, tipping it forward at a forty-five degree angle. Danny’s feet moved against the floor trying to regain his footing. Nick’s face was expressionless as he saw the rope behind Danny’s back. When it ripped apart, Danny flopped forward falling to the floor at Nick’s feet.

  He quickly scrambled to get to his feet glancing at Nick repeatedly as he walked to the door. Danny’s eyes darted around the room connecting with each one of us. He definitely didn’t trust us not to change our minds and shoot him in the back.

  “You know how lucky you are, right?” Blair said with a blank expression as she cocked her head to the side.

  “Yes, yes I do. Thank you,” Danny said backing up closer to the exit. His body jerked as if he thought someone was sneaking up behind him when his back touched the door.

  Danny wiped at the tears streaming down his cheeks as he turned and opened the door. He stared at us, looking as though he wanted to say something, but then he turned and ran down the hallway.

  “Bye Dan!” Nick shouted, and it sounded like Danny moved his feet even faster.

  Blair grinned as Jamie closed the door. Nick crossed the floor to the window and stared down at the pool of water below. I listened, imagining his every step as he took the stairs down to the first floor, wading through the water, and climbing out of the broken window.

  “He’s going back home,” Nick announced. “You know,” he said without turning around. “They have a lot of supplies there.”

  “I’m not going back there,” Blair said almost before Nick had even finished his sentence.

  “Right… right, I know,” Nick said.

  It seemed as though he was trying to forget what they’d gone throug
h. That was typically how Nick dealt with things, only in the past, he’d taken drugs to aid him in not dealing with things.

  “We should have enough with what we’ve packed anyway,” I said glancing at the bags near the closet. They were lined up, ready to go… the bags had been ready long before we were. “And we can probably find more along the way, should we need to.”

  Nick nodded. His eyes had glossed over. Either he wished he had some of that powder left or his mind had gone back to what had happened inside that house… thinking about whatever Danny’s family had done to them in search of answers. Something they still didn’t talk about.

  Nick clapped his hands, and everyone in the room jumped at nearly the exact same moment. All of us brought back to the present with a sharp thwap.

  “Tomorrow morning’s the day.” Nick grinned. “Rest up. We’re leaving this place no matter what.”

  He looked at me as if he hoped I’d back him up. I exhaled loudly. “Yes, no matter what.”

  Over the course of the day, I alternated between napping and eating, as did the others. We took turns at the window as if we expected something to go wrong at any moment, but nothing did.

  There wasn’t anything out there, at least nothing that I could see. It was just us, the red-tinged sky, and the water that didn’t seem to be going anywhere even though the sun was shining brightly.

  I didn’t say it to the others, but I didn’t believe help was ever going to come. If help had been out there, I’m sure they would have found a way to us by now. There would have been some kind of an attempt to get a message to survivors, a rescue of some kind, but there hadn’t been anything.

  Whatever had happened to the outside world, some kind of chemical attack, an EMP, both… whatever it was, must have been significant. As I stared out of my bedroom window, I wondered if we’d ever find out exactly how significant the attack was.

  It seemed as though time was moving in fast forward, and before I knew it, the sun was kissing the horizon. My bedsprings squeaked as I sat down on the edge of my bed. I twisted my fingers together nervously.