The Extinct

CHAPTER

58





Eric sat still in the jeep, his heart beating quickly and pounding in his ears. The laughter they’d heard had stopped and was replaced with silence. Not even the crickets made a noise. It was terrible silence; unnatural.

“Maybe we should drive off for awhile,” Douglas said. “Then we’ll circle back and try and find Thomas.”

Eric nodded, not taking his eyes off the tall grass and forest that was in the distance. Douglas started the engine and instantly there was a roar and cacophony of laughter. A massive hyena lunged out of the grass.

Eric jumped and fell over Douglas as the beast rammed its head into the jeep, causing two of its tires to lift off the ground. He rammed it again and the metal creaked as the jeep flipped over onto its side.

Douglas screamed as his leg was crushed under the weight of the vehicle. Eric was thrown out and landed on the dirt. The beast circled around the vehicle, drool pouring out of its mouth in long strands as it spotted Douglas on the ground. It approached; Douglas’ screams piercing the night air as the animal put its mouth over his head and bit down. The loud crunch of his skull caused bile to rise in Eric’s throat and he stood and began to run.

He ran along the dirt road, his ankle throbbing with pain, and could see shapes in the grass chasing him. They would run ahead of him and then stop and let him pass just to run ahead again. The laughter was at a fever pitch, saturating the air. It was coming from both sides of the road.

Another hyena dove out of the grass in front of him and Eric nearly ran into him. He avoided the beast’s mouth and ran behind him into the grass. The animal turned and ran after him.

Eric let the grass whip his body as he dashed through it, not looking back. The laughter was circling him, running ahead of him and closing in from behind. He sharply turned to the right and then up, trying to place where the animals were by their laughter. But they followed his movements and ran ahead of him again.

He could see light up ahead and gradually saw the shape of a house outside the patch of grass he was in. Calling on the last of his strength, he dug deep and sprinted.

Eric burst out of the patch of grass and onto a flat clearing. Ten yards away was a white house with a large porch. He darted for it, hearing the snarls of the animals behind him. The porch light was on and it seemed like a beacon in the darkness. His legs were failing him and he was slowing down but he felt the hard wood of the steps as he ran up the porch and to the front door. It was locked.

A living room window was near the door and Eric covered his face and jumped through. The glass shattered and scraped his body and he felt the sting of cuts from his face down to his shins. He stood and ran as he heard a roar in the darkness behind him.

The house was elegantly designed; obviously a vacation house. Eric ran past a small kitchen and saw a closet door in the hallway. He opened it and ran inside, shutting it behind him.

The closet was small and smelled like clean linen and dust. His back was against some shelves and it gave him only enough room so that his body wasn’t pressed against the wood of the door.

His breathing was too loud and he tried to slow it. He put his ear to the door and listened. It was silent at first and then he heard glass from the broken window crunching under the weight of something. Slowly, the sound of deep pants approached him. He could hear the beast snorting, trying to pick up a scent.

Eric looked down to the crack between the hardwood floors and the closet; some light was coming through and he saw a shadow coming close. The panting grew loud as the animal stood in front of the door. It stopped and took in a deep breath through its nostrils. The snout leaned down and sniffed at the floor. Eric held his breath.

Suddenly the sniffing stopped and the beast moved on, and was gone. Eric exhaled and every muscle inside him relaxed. As he took a deep breath the thunderous sound of splintering wood tore through the night and the beast’s head rammed through the closet door, missing Eric’s stomach by a few inches.

Eric was pinned against the wall. He shoved his thumb into the animal’s eye, causing it to howl in pain. The hyena withdrew its head far enough for Eric to open the door and slip out. There was a staircase in the hallway and he ran up as the hyena’s roar echoed through the house. He got to the top of the stairwell and looked back; the beast was at the base staring up at him.

He dashed through the hallway and felt something grip his shoulder.

“Eric!”

He saw Jalani and she grabbed him and pulled him into a room. They ran to the back and Jalani led him up a ladder that went to the attic. They climbed and Jalani pulled the ladder up when they were in the attic, shutting off the entrance with a small wooden door and latch.

The beast crashed through the bedroom door and rummaged through the room, howling in frustration and bloodlust at its escaped prey. It tore the bed apart and smashed in the closets before stopping and staring up at the latch leading to the attic.

Eric stumbled and then wrapped his arms around her. She smelled of dirt and grass but he thought it was the most beautiful smell he’d ever experienced. “I thought you were dead,” he said out of breath.

“I lived,” Jalani said, “but I don’t where anyone else is. Where is Thomas?”

“I don’t know, we got separated. Douglas is . . . Douglas is dead.”

Jalani looked out the only window in the attic, a small hexagonal shape with a thin pane of glass. “We have no food or water. I fear we may soon be joining him.”