Endless Promises

An empty house, one of many empty houses, but its story is very different from all the rest. What went on within those brick walls is disturbing, touching and almost inhuman. Then again, humanity has been quickly declining to this very conclusion anyway. The humans, to put it in lighter terms have become extinct. All those nightmares and fears that tormented us for so long, finally surfaced as a reality. All those faint whispers of the dead returning to life, well those were no rumors; the fight against them was lost, miserably. Everyone was either turned, slaughtered, or committed suicide in fear of the two other choices. 1

But this story is not about the grand battle that took place between humans and the undead. This is a story about a mother, and the lengths she went to in order to keep her son – even when he was already lost. 2

She rested against the wall; a thick layer of sticky sweat blanketed her pale skin. She planted her butt on the floor as warm tears slid down her cheeks. 3

He’s gone. The woman thought, my boy is gone. 4

Her husband went on a search for him, their son, the light of their lives. How could she have let him run off like that? She tried so desperately to keep him home, behind semi-safe walls. But hell, no one was safe now a days, not anymore. The outside world seemed so foreign to her, the moment you step out that door, the chances of you surviving even five more minutes drops from slim to none. Anna knew there was almost no use in praying for her son. Her attempts would be futile; the monsters would have gotten to him by now. Anna’s son had only gone out there to find food, she tried to stop him, but his persistence and strength ultimately won. 5

“Anna!” 6

Her crystal, blue eyes darted up to see her husband struggling to get through the door. She rushed over, pulling it open to see he had their son leaning on his shoulder. 7

“You found him!” 8

Her hopes had not gone to waste. 9

“He was lying out by the market a couple blocks down, I’m lucky I got back before the others found me.” 10

Their son was placed on the floor, he was unconscious. 11

“Why isn’t he waking up?” 12

Anna questioned, reaching her trembling hand down to shake the boy. Just as her fingers traced his cold skin, he jolted, causing her to pull away. His body convulsed, limbs flailing every which way, foam and blood spilling from his lips as it erupted from his throat.. Anna covered her mouth as she listened to him gurgle and choke. The boy’s eyes snapped open, rolling into the back of his head before he fell limp once more. 13

“Chase!” 14

Anna shouted, the tears coming more and more. No! She couldn’t believe that she had prayed for so long in order to have it all thrown back in her face. Her husband kneeled at his side, observing his clammy, sheet white skin; a vicious bite mark was on his neck. 15

“He’s been bitten.” 16

Anna’s world was silenced; his words seemed so far away, like a mere whisper in the background amongst as wave of static. She couldn’t believe this, her son was not one of them! Did no one hear her prayers? Was there anyone out there to even listen to her prayers? Anna’s whole perception of God and some holy power were crushed. The only higher power in this forsaken world was the Devil. 17

“We have to get rid of him.” 18

Her husband spoke, scrambling to unhook the gun on his belt. The small, silver pistol he had carried around for years, which had never gotten any use until recently. But she would be damned if he put a bullet through her son’s head. 19

“No, stop!” 20

Anna pleaded, reaching for the gun desperately as he pulled it away. 21

“Don’t hurt him.” 22

“He’s dead, Anna.” 23

Her palm slammed viciously against his right cheek, blue eyes blazing with fire. Hot liquid pulsing through her veins and he froze in shock. Anna had never been physically violent with anyone. 24

“You won’t.” 25

She snarled as she ground her teeth, a red mark was forming on his face from the harsh impact. He lowered the pistol, his brows furrowing as he reattached it to his belt. 26

“What the hell do you expect us to do then, wait till he completes the transformation so he can tear us apart!” 27

Her husband growled, inching closer to her. 28

“Don’t talk to me like that.” 29

Anna ran to Chase, grabbing his cold wrists and dragging him with great effort towards his bedroom. Her vision blurred with burning, salty tears, but she pulled them back. 30

“Where are the chains?” 31

Yes, the family kept almost every form of weapon known to man; the chains they kept stowed away in the kitchen cabinets were for desperate measures. The man rolled his eyes and went to grab them, his cheek still slightly stinging. He brought them to her and watched in confusion as she used them to strap her son to the radiator that was located in his room. 32

“What are you doing?” 33

Sniffling her tears completely back, she gazed into his eyes with blaring confidence. Though her stomach was shifting uncomfortably, what was she doing? Chaining her dead son up, but why? Anna chose not to respond and slid passed him carefully, sifting through the knife drawer. 34

“When will the transformation be complete?” 35

She asked quite frantically, finally finding a nicely curved blade which she placed on the counter. 36

“Less than an hour.” 37

It truly didn’t take long for the virus to leak into the rest of his body. Soon her boy would not be able to recognize her face; the memory of her being his mother, the one who raised him from birth would be completely forgotten. Thrown out the window along with everything else that made him human. But he would always be her son; she would never let that go. Letting her baby slip through her fingers would be the last thing she ever did. 38

“Anna…” 39

Her husband pleaded, but she couldn’t hear him, not amongst all the thoughts racing through her mind. Anna had less than an hour before her boy become one step less than human. 40

“He’s secure in there, he won’t hurt us, let’s just go take a nap.” 41

Anna’s low voice carried on into his ears, and suddenly she sounded completely foreign to him. Running his hands through his greasy hair, he sighed, walking to the secure bedroom which was also known as the basement. No, it wasn’t the most romantic setting for a married couple, but safety at this point was more important than anything else. Besides, their marriage had been rapidly declining ever since this madness started; they hadn’t made love in months. And honestly, Anna wasn’t planning on doing it anytime soon. 42

Growling and snarling awoke Anna only hours later, feet pounded on the floor rapidly. She sat up with her husband still passed out at her side. Her boy, he was awake! Swiftly and silently, she tip-toed her way up from the basement – following each deformed howl into her son’s room. She pressed the door open only slightly and his movements ceased, eyes fixated on the door. Anna inched closer and closer, and finally her blue eyes locked with his dull, bloodshot ones. He lunged forward at the sight of the delicious meal, but he was restricted by the chains keeping him attached to the radiator. She flinched only briefly, and watched him struggle – however, she watched with a smile. 43

“Are you hungry?” 44

Her voice was sweet, unnaturally so when being faced with the flesh eating undead. A thick, juicy slab of meat was in the fridge, previously cooked and stored for them to eat. Her husband couldn’t know she was taking them from their stash. Anna sliced through the delectable pieces of meat and put them on a plate, they were blood red in the middle – cooked just like he liked them. 45

“Chase.” 46

The boy was still struggling, writhing around and screaming out desperate cries – he was so hungry. 47

“Oh, Chase here have some food!” 48

Without moving even one more step forward she placed the plate on the floor and slid it to him. He lashed out at it and devoured the food in only seconds; juice was flying in every direction, sliding down his chin as he clawed at his meal. But he wasn’t satisfied, he would never be satisfied. 49

“You can’t have anymore until later.” 50

Her tone was firm, as if he were going to actually heed her word. Anna closed the door behind her as she left, if the undead could express emotion, the flicker in his eyes would be confusion. Why would she be treating him like her son? Her son was dead, this was his replacement. 51

Perhaps she should prepare more meat for his future meals. Only two a day, she decided, she didn’t know how long the meat would last; her husband needed sustenance as well. The man of the house did not awaken for a few more hours; he trudged up the stairs while rubbing his tired eyes. 52

“Sketching?” 53

He saw her working on another piece, her pencil working vigorously against the paper. 54

“Yes, indeed, I haven’t done it in a while – I got a sudden burst of inspiration.” 55

He smiled only slightly, the red hand print that had been on his cheek has finally faded away, but the sensation of it remained. He wouldn’t be able to forget that moment even if he tried. That look she gave him, eyes burning like blue fire. It was like nothing he had ever seen before. His stomach growling broke him out of his trance and he retreated to the kitchen for a meal. As he opened the fridge he could see the slices of meat cut perfectly, and placed in their own individual bags, labeled Monday through Sunday. 56

“Anna…what’s with all the labels?” 57

She suddenly jerked from her seat, throwing the sketchpad to the couch. 58

“Don’t eat those! We have to save it! It’s the best meat! Here, I left you some in this drawer.” 59

Anna hurriedly opened it to expose a very feeble amount of meat, but by her wide smile, one could easily tell it seemed fine to her. 60

“We need to save this good meat, my love.” 61

Her eyes sparkled and she returned to her work, he watched her carefully until he heard disturbing noises coming from their son’s room. 62

“What the hell?” 63

The man reluctantly walked down the hall, easily expecting the worst to be awaiting him. He was faced with the raging, blood thirsty body of his son. 64

“Jesus!” 65

The rotting demon reached for him, wanting just one more taste of blood on his tongue. 66

“Anna!” 67

His malicious shout echoed down the hall, and she wondered why in the world he would use such a tone with her. 68

“What is it?” 69

The sweetness in her voice quickly melted into annoyance, brows furrowed as she reached the infuriated man. 70

“Why are we keeping him in the damn house?” 71

His eyes trailed down to the plate that was on the floor, nothing left on it but meat juice. His neck was blazing red, veins being shown visibly through the skin. 72

“You gave him meat? Is that what those labeled packages are for?” 73

He glared at her with furious eyes, but her head was turned away – her focus was completely fixed on her thrashing son. 74

“Oh, you’re overreacting…” 75

Anna was clearly irritated by his attitude, so what if she kept Chase in the house, she didn’t see what the problem was. 76

She walked into the room and picked up the plate, Anna was still out of his reach so she wasn’t concerned about him grabbing her. 77

“He needs food just like we do, if I want to take care of him and you don’t then leave me to it. He’s safe and secure in that room, so if you don’t bother him, he won’t bother you.” 78

The man was baffled, his thoughts were jumbled, and he didn’t know what to make of this. 79

“Anna! He’s not our son anymore, he’s a zombie! You’re keeping a flesh eating monster in our home!” 80

“Don’t call him that!” 81

Anna’s voice rose to a sharp and menacing snarl, those blue eyes filled with the same fire that they held before when she slapped him. Her fingers curled tightly around the plate she held, her knuckles turning white. If he wasn’t careful, she would shatter that in his face. 82

“Well then what should I call him?” 83

He calmed down considerably, not wanting to anger her further. 84

“You will call him Chase, that’s his name.” 85

“He’s not Chase anymore.” 86

A shriek erupted from Anna’s throat and she threw the plate into the wall, pieces falling to the floor, big and small. 87

“You will call him by his name!” 88

Her tense muscles relaxed and she slouched over, a few awkward moments passed before she smiled. 89

“I’m going to sketch some more.” 90

The woman scurried away; he turned the corner and watched with caution as she put pencil to paper once again. He didn’t know what she was drawing; did he really want to know? He could sense Anna drifted further away from him with every second that passed. His wife was fading; all he could see of her was an empty shell when her spirit was slowly dissipating into nothing. Was there any way he could prevent her from being sucked into her own black abyss? 91

He could only sit back and observe as the days passed and she drifted away from him. His stomach whirled as he watched her prepare the meal for Chase, and the small portion she left for him was dwindling. The man’s heart would wrench every time he heard the deformed screams coming from his son’s room. Everything normal that surrounded him was collapsing; his reality was morphing into a nightmare. He decided it would be best for him to keep his distance, and contemplate a possible means of getting her back to normal. The longer that flesh consuming demon stayed here, the more danger they would be in. 92

Anna howled, frustrated and angry as she frantically rummaged through the fridge. There was no meat left! Nothing for her to give Chase! She could have sworn she had one more labeled pack in here! Anna checked the drawer at the bottom, there was plenty of her husband’s meat left, so why was all she left for Chase gone? 93

“Honey!” 94

Her husband called in a worried tone, rushing to her side wearing nothing but loose sweat pants. Her eyes narrowed towards him, lips forming into a displeased frown. He ate them! She knew that he ate her son’s food – but she couldn’t let him know that she knew that. Her husband would make her feed him the meat in the drawer. 95

No! I won’t feed him that shit! It isn’t good enough for him! 96

Anna thought, hot rage pumping through her veins. She allowed her muscles to relax and leaned against the kitchen counter as she stared at him with suspicious eyes. 97

“What’s wrong? I heard you scream.” 98

“Nothing-nothing’s wrong!” 99

He didn’t exactly believe her but as far as he was concerned, he needed to stay on her good side. Anna got more violent with every insane outburst brought on by their arguments. He was no longer sure of how far she would go to keep that monster in their home. 100

“You sure?” 101

She nodded rapidly. 102

“Of course. 103

A smile stretched across her lips, but a flicker of malice still sparkled in her eyes. The man inched closer, reaching a hand out to brush against her smooth, rosy cheek. Anna was always so beautiful to him; her blonde curls framed her face so well, accentuating her high cheek bones. Everyone always told him he was so lucky to have such a beauty in his life. But now her beauty was being overshadowed by her fading sanity. He was losing her to whatever it was that was plaguing her mind, and he was afraid. 104

“You know I love you, right?” 105

He feared she had forgotten, they barely spoke to each other now. They didn’t hold each other, kiss, or make love; he missed the days when everything used to be simple. 106

“I love you too.” 107

She spoke quickly, eyes darting about the room as he came face to face with her. Anna squirmed because she wasn’t used to him being so up close and personal to her face, they hadn’t been physically close in so long, she hadn’t even thought about it actually, she didn’t concern herself with such silly things – especially when she had her son to take care of. What was he thinking about? She wondered, was he really trying to get romantic with her at this point in time? Her nose wrinkled in disgust at the thought, he wrapped an arm around her waist and pressed her body against his. 108

“What happened to the days when we used to be happy, Anna?” 109

His lips quivered and she briefly thought that he might begin to cry, but his eyes were dry as ever. Anna didn’t answer his question; she decided it was best for her to just stay silent, until she made the right move. Her son had no more meat to eat, and she needed to provide him with something, she would need to resort to desperate measures. 110

“I miss how things used to be between us, before all of this happened, can’t we just go back to normal, baby?” 111

He drew his face in closer to her, his lips getting closer and closer to meeting with her own. She allowed him to, she didn’t show hesitance, but then again she didn’t let him know that she was eager either. Finally he planted his soft lips upon hers, pulling her close and releasing all the love and desire he felt for her over the months that he had been unable to express it. Her husband only wanted their relationship to go back to normal, he wanted her to let go of all this insanity even though it wasn’t that simple. He needed to get their son out of here or else they would be dead for sure. Anna was sucked in to the kiss, but she didn’t forget her goal and reached behind her, the knife that she placed out a few days before was still there. She demanded he keep it out there so that she could take care of the meat every day. Anna got a tied grip on the handle and as he held her, still kissing her, and in one swift movement she thrust the blade of the knife into his gut. His eyes snapped wide open and her eyes slid open as well to meet his, warm, red liquid flowed up from his throat and slid down his lips, pressing onto her's. 112

"It's too late..." 113

Her montone voice sent a final chill down his spine and she plunged it deeper, hearing the flesh squish against the cold metal. Anna pushed her husband away from her body, disgusted by how close they were. She pulled the knife across his stomach, creating a large gash, and then she yanked it out, blood spilling to the floor like a crimson waterfall. Flaps of stomach skin stretched down as his internal organs began to pour out, spalttering to the floor, fluids creating a massive puddle on the tile at her feet. His limp body collapsed in a heap, her husband gasped for air desperately in the last seconds that he was alive and Anna watched with a wide smile as the breathing ceased. 114

"Food for my son." 115

Anna whispered and dropped to her knees, working in a rush wish bare hands and a knife to cut the long organs that stretched a few feet long into small chunks that were bite sized for Chase. She chopped away and placed the rest of his organs in small containers and put them in the fridge so they wouldn't waste. She grumbled in annoyance as she was forced to drag his dead weight to her son's room, thrashing and growling was heard from the hallway and it soon erupted into hungry shrieks once she entered the room. Chase reacted the same way everyday she brought a snack in, but this time it was a large meal. 116

Drool dribbled around his gaping open mouth, his bloodshot eyes were fixed on the pile of meat in front of him and he grabbed it with pale fingers. She could see that his clothes were more torn than usual, and his skin was beginning to rot away, patches here and there were gone completely, exposing dead muscles and bones beneath them. His flesh was sliding off where the chains were bound around his wrists but he didn't seem to mind, it wasn't as if he could feel anything. He attacked the body of his father like a wild animal, remains of his body went flying in all directions and splashed against the walls. But he continued to lick, bite, chew, and swallow until there was nothing left. At least she had enough meat to keep him satisfied for a little while longer. 117

And that food lasted a week, Anna became flustered as she had to feed him more than twice a day so that she wouldn't have to hear him wail or gasp due to starvation. Her hands grasped at the empty fridge and she screamed long and hard, was there really nothing else to give him. 118

No there has to be something else, something! 119

Anna wouldn't believe, she couldn't believe it, there was no way. She would have to provide it for him herself, just like always. Tears running quickly down her cheeks, she clumsily grabbed her trusty knife once more, staring at her reflection in the blade. Her once beautiful face was smeared with dirt and sweat, grease kept her hair stringy so it no longer fell in large curls. Those crystal blue eyes that used to make every man fall for her, turned dark and murky, clouded by horrendous thoughts. Chase screamed again, his cries were morphed and demonic, but now it was as if she couldn't take it anymore. 120

"AH! SHUT UP!" 121

Her voice became hoarse, she pounded her fist repedetively on the counter top and shook her head back and forth, she covered her ears to try and block out the noise. He never tired, he was always hungry, and she couldn't provide him with what he needed. 122

I've given him all I can give... 123

She paled, eyes wide as she looked around frantically, no she had to give him more! This couldn't have been all she could give him! 124

Anna closed her eyes, her mind taking her back to before the madness began, when he was a little boy, so frail in her arms. 125

I will always be there for you, baby. I will never give up on you, I will always do whatever I can for you...I promise. 126

The words replayed in her mind over and over and over again, until they meshed together and she couldn't decipher her thoughts anymore. 127

"One more thing I can give him." 128

With weak and trembling legs she bounded to his room and threw open the foor, she still gripped the knife tightly between her fingers. Chase reacted as he normally did and tried to reach her, waving his arms about. Her eyed locked with his, but his held no emotion, they never did no matter how many times she searched for it. 129

"You want more? Here! Have more!" 130

Anna slid the blade down her arm, shaking the knife so the blood spattered onto his face and he licked desperately, so hungry. He was still so hungry. Red fluid spilled over her arm and she panted, grinding her teeth together as pure agony raged through her slit open arm. Anna shook her arm and out flew more blood, she waved it and waved it until finally her arm feel so weak she could no longer move it. But Chase...he was still hungry. 131

"You're still hungry..." 132

She whispered and fumbled through the drawer of his dresser, the color had washed from her face and her bleeding limb had become officially numb. She pulled out a pistol, there was one in each room for ultimate protection. She held the gun up with a trembling hand and aimed it towards the chains that were keeping her son from getting to her. For so long he craved to have a piece of her and finally, she was going to allow it. 133

"I love you, Chase..." 134

I'm sorry I couldn't keep my promise. 135

Anna pulled the trigger three times, one chain snapped, and one arm was set loose, she turned around and closed the door and then shot three more bullets, so the other chain snapped off. It took less than a second for him to reach her, dead, icy cold hands grabbed her and sharp, blood stained teeth clenched into her neck. She screamed out, grasping as his torn clothing as he gnawed on her skin, tearing out chunks, leaving a gaping hole in her neck for blood to pour out. Her calls were silenced as she was left gasping on the floor, just conscious enough to feel the pain of each piece of flesh being ripped from her body. A sea of red formed around her twitching body, he grunted and grumbled as he continued to feed, gulping down the blood and scratching at her with his nails until he broke through. 136

In the end there was nothing left of her to turn into an undead, Chase was too hungry, she kept him restricted for so long and now he was able to get exactly what he needed. The son crashed through the window, racing through the field to join the small group that was out there feeding on the remains of a few neighbors. 137

Anna's body, or what was left of it, was on the floor of his room, her head was detached from her body, her neck chewed through, hands eaten off and slivers of flesh lie around on the floor. Her heart and organs were torn out and consumed. But in her mind she did all she could to try and satisfy him. 138

And still he was after more. 139