Linda Andrews - Extinction Level Event

Hinges creaked as Irina eased the door closed.

Manny waited until he felt a hand on his shirttail, before creeping across the yard to the neighbor’s house. His neckline pressed against his throat, so he slowed his pace. In the sliver of dark heaven, stars twinkled, but the moon had escaped with her comforting silver glow. He skirted the front of the house and crunched over gravel before sneaking across the covered porch of the next one. Puffs of dust rose in their wake as he led them to the third house.

His human train obediently followed.

Adrenalin pumped through his veins, chasing away the chill that abraded his cheeks. Sneakers tapped on concrete as he ducked behind the hedge edging his neighbor’s walkway. Rasping came from behind him. No one said a word, but he paused to let the niños catch their breath. Peeking over skeletal limbs, he surveyed the street.

One light still burned at the corner. Its jaundiced glow glinted off the budding leaves before dying. Not that way. He wouldn’t risk it. A ghostly white grocery bag wrapped around the streetlight’s base, fluttered like trapped wings. Holding his breath he listened for the others. A shuffle and a snort. One sniffed. Good. Time to move again.

Manny eased forward. For a moment, his shirt tightened then it loosened. Right foot. Left foot. Right. Left. Steady as a heartbeat. Well, not quite. He crept around a station wagon with four flat tires then reached a wooden gate. Reaching over the top of the fence, he pushed the nail out of the lock hole and lifted the latch. The gate swung open silently.

Lucia’s sneakers scraped his heels as she tried to walk through him.

Manny hissed through the pain, reached his free hand behind him and stopped her. Blinking the tears from his eyes, he peered into the backyard. The high weeds shushed him as they swayed in the breeze.

No one there.

He hoped.

Pushing the gate open a little further, he slipped into the backyard. Sweeping the bat through the weeds, he headed for the back fence and the alley beyond. The stench of rot swelled in the darkness. Tiny feet scampered over plastic bags. Squeaks punctured the rattle and clank of shifting cans and bottles.

Behind him, someone sneezed.

“Bless you.” Irina whispered.

“Shhh!” Manny hissed and stopped. Ears cocked, he listened to the night. Over the pounding of his heart, he heard rats scurry through the mounds of refuse and branches creak from the wind’s onslaught. No shouts from the soldiers. No burp of automatic gunfire. Thank God.

Thorns scratched him as he waded deeper into the yard. Vegetation rustled as the rest pushed their way after him. Reaching the fence, he prodded the grass with his foot until a hollow k-chunk answered. He paused, listening.

Only the rats and his entourage seemed to have heard. Stepping on the cinderblock, he swung one leg over the four-foot tall chain link fence. He hopped a little to protect his man parts before finding his footing in a sturdy pile of garbage in the alley. Clearing the fence, he reached over for Lucia. His arms trembled as he lifted her.

She set her hands on his shoulder. Her nails dug into his skin as he swung her into the alley.

Placing her down in a relatively clear spot, he waited for her to release him. She dug in tighter and her trembling transmitted through him. “Luce.”

Her hands sprang away before she hugged herself.

Manny tweaked the pom-pom on her hat before turning to the next niño. Metal rattled. Perched on the top of the fence, Mary reached for him—her hands opening and closing like pinchers. Irina stood behind her, holding the little girl steady. When he set her down, his fingers brushed Irina’s arms. Lucia pulled the five-year old into her embrace as soon as her feet touched the ground. Like he’d seen his father do, he clucked them both under the chin, and then turned back to Jose.

Irina had his brother up on the fence like she’d done for Mary.

A small weight lifted from Manny’s shoulders as he set his brother next to the girls. It was nice to have someone else to depend on, someone to help—to not be completely alone. He spun back to lift the last niño. Mikey leapt from the fence, hitting Manny squarely in the chest. Wrapping his arms around the small body, he staggered back. His foot punched through spongy refuse. Rats squealed. Dampness oozed against his ankle. With one hand, he caught himself on an overflowing dumpster. Mush trickled through his fingers.

Irina jumped to the ground behind him. Glass crunched.

“Did you hear that?” A woman’s voice cut the night; her accent sharpened the consonants at the beginning and end of words.

Not Irina’s voice. Manny’s heart stopped before battering his ribs. Holy shit! Still carrying Mikey, he grabbed the hand of the nearest niño and lurched forward. His gaze bounced from one side of the alley to the other. Hiding spots. The darkness swallowed his markers.

Stumbling sounded behind him.

He turned to check on the others. Light shone over the block fence at the end of the alley. If she looked this way, she might spot them. Please, God, no. Manny spun around and that’s when he saw it. A milk jug sitting atop a large dumpster.

One hiding space. Heat surged through his body. They might make it. He trudged forward. His feet found the familiar spots to step, keeping the noise to a minimum. Rats scattered in front of him.

“You’re always hearing stuff, Candy.” Light arced over the sky before a loud thump rolled down the alley.

A soft mewl sounded behind Manny. Irina must have recognized the voice or the name. All the more reason to not get caught. He didn’t slow, but shook himself free and used one hand to push open the lid of the can. Just as he designed, the garbage on top remained immoveable and silent. He managed to lift Mikey over the edge and set him inside the empty container.

A loud oomph followed the scattering of debris. “Why couldn’t we use the streets?”

A hand gripped Manny’s bicep, and then a foot placed itself on his thigh. He grabbed hold of the person and lifted him in. Fabric scratched his palms. Jose. The two boys sunk into the belly of the can.

Damn. It wasn’t big enough to hold them all.

“Because we don’t want to get caught with the guns.” Sitting on the brick fence, Candy held the flashlight up to her face, bleaching her tan skin. “You know the plan.”

Irina puffed to a stop behind him and tried to shove Mary into his arm.

Manny set Mary on his hip then reached down and grabbed Irina’s hand, jerking her forward. “In.”

The niños stood a better chance of surviving if they split up.

She tugged on her hand for a moment.

He held firm.

With a sigh, she braced her free hand on the rim and used his bent leg as a step. She paused on the lip and a soft grunt echoed in the can. Finally she slid inside.

“The plan sucks.” The other gangbanger said. “Come on, I’ll catch you.”

Manny lowered the lid, scooped up his sister and jogged down the alley. Where was the other hiding spot? The blobs all looked the same. He passed one house. Then two. The racket behind him told him the other girl had gotten off the fence.

Shit. Had he passed his other hiding spot? He ran by yet another house. His thighs burned from jogging over the uneven ground. Still no sign of the coffee can.

“Hurry up.” Candy snapped. “We can’t be late.”

Warmth seeped through his shirts. Manny detected the odor of urine above the decomposition. Mary tightened her stranglehold around his neck. Aches laced across his shoulders from carrying the two girls. His foot came down on something and his knee popped.

Pain bolted up his body, ricocheted inside his skull. The next step threatened to bring him to his knees. Hide. They needed to hide now. The night fractured ahead. Manny limped forward. It was a gate. And miracle, it was open.