Lionel shot upright in bed, cold sweat soaking his back.
Why didn't I just die?
The thought echoed in his head like a curse.
A night of torture had left him wishing for death, but waking up only ant facing the real nightmare waiting for him.
He dragged himself out of bed and shuffled into the kitchen to make breakfast for his mother.
The fridge door stood wide open. Vera was hunched over the freezer compartnt, gnawing on a raw steak.
She heard him and slowly turned her head. Cloudy eyes fixed on Lionel.
A wet, gurgling sound ca from her throat—her version of a greeting.
Lionel's stomach lurched, but he kept his face blank.
He filled a glass at the sink and drained it in one go. The cold water helped steady him a little.
At the table Lionel ate in silence, face empty.
Across from him his mother rocked in her chair, blood still sared around her mouth.
He caught himself thinking maybe this wasn't so bad.
At least she wasn't screaming curses at him anymore.
For the first ti in years he actually felt a strange sense of peace as he kept eating.
The doorbell rang.
Ding-dong! Ding-dong!
Lionel jumped so hard his spoon clattered into his plate.
He bolted up, grabbed his mother's arm, and tried to drag her toward the bedroom.
The bell kept ringing—now mixed with hard pounding on the door.
He had no choice.
"Coming! Just a second!"
He wiped down the kitchen as fast as he could, took a deep breath, and opened the door.
A middle-aged nurse stood there holding a dical bag.
"Hi, I'm Mrs. Vera's community nurse. I'm here for her regular check-up."
Lionel's mind went blank. Sweat poured down his face.
His mother had always been cruel, but she was the only family he had left. He couldn't lose her.
He stamred.
"Uh… yeah, my mom's not feeling great today. Can you co back another ti?"
The nurse frowned.
"I'm a nurse. If she's sick that's exactly why I should check on her."
"Step aside, young man."
She pushed past his thin fra without waiting and marched straight into the house.
Lionel was too weak-willed to stop her. He could only watch helplessly as she headed for the bedroom.
Vera stood frozen in the middle of the room.
"Good morning, Mrs. Vera. How are we feeling today?"
The nurse set her bag down and tried to start the exam.
Vera didn't respond.
The nurse was used to it. She pulled out her stethoscope and leaned in.
The second she got close, Vera exploded.
She lunged forward, mouth wide, and sank her teeth deep into the nurse's arm.
"Ahhh!"
The nurse's scream was pure agony. Blood instantly soaked her white coat.
Lionel panicked and rushed in to pull his mother off, but Vera's strength was terrifying.
In desperation he did the only thing he could think of—he stepped between them and kicked the nurse square in the chest.
Both won flew apart.
Lionel stared in horror at the nurse's arm.
It had been torn off at the elbow.
He turned back.
His mother was crouched on the floor, happily chewing on the bloody severed limb.
"Oh my God… your mother's insane!"
The nurse clutched the bleeding stump, face white as paper, body shaking violently.
"I'm sorry! I'm so sorry! I'll call an ambulance right now!"
Lionel spun toward the phone.
He'd only taken two steps when the screaming behind him suddenly stopped.
No way.
He turned around slowly.
The nurse had stopped trembling. She was staring down at the ragged stump where her arm used to be.
The bleeding had already stopped.
"Nurse? Are… are you okay?"
Lionel's voice cracked.
She didn't answer.
Lionel dropped onto the couch and buried his face in his hands.
It was over. Everything was over.
The doorbell rang again.
Ding-dong! Ding-dong!
Lionel walked to the door like a zombie and opened it.
A well-dressed middle-aged couple stood outside.
"Hello. We're from the community board. We received Mrs. Vera's application to join and we're here to inspect the property."
"My mom's not really up for visitors right now."
Lionel repeated the sa weak excuse, but the couple ignored him and walked right in, noses wrinkling at the old house.
One minute later.
Lionel sat on the couch again, staring blankly.
Four people now shuffled aimlessly around the living room, occasionally letting out low growls.
What the hell was this?
It looked like so kind of disease, but he'd never heard of anything like it.
Ding-dong! Ding-dong!
The bell rang a third ti, this one impatient and aggressive.
What was going on? His house usually went months without visitors. Now they were showing up one after another.
Lionel dragged his feet to the door.
The second it opened, a massive man—easily over three hundred pounds—shoved him aside. A whole crowd of relatives poured in behind him.
The fat man bellowed.
"Kid, get the hell out of my way. I'm here for Vera. This house was supposed to be mine."
He stord inside with his entourage.
This ti Lionel didn't even get a chance to speak.
A few minutes later.
Lionel stood in the middle of the living room, watching a dozen swaying, growling figures wander around.
The most terrifying part?
Neither his mother nor any of the people who had been turned showed the slightest interest in attacking him.
They acted like he didn't exist.
Why?
Why won't they touch ?
Lionel paced helplessly.
He felt like he was losing his mind. He needed to talk to soone—anyone.
Then he rembered the grocery store owner's granddaughter.
They'd only just started dating two days ago before his mother dragged him ho.
He made up his mind, locked the front door, and ran toward the store.
…
At that exact mont Luke pulled up in front of the grocery store.
He walked inside. Only a young girl sat behind the counter, chin in her hand, looking bored.
Luke stepped up.
"Hey. Is the old lady who works here around?"
The girl looked up.
"Oh, you're looking for my grandma? She's in the back."
She pointed toward the rear of the store.
"Thanks."
Luke nodded and headed straight for the back room.
The mysterious old woman sat at a small table like she'd been expecting him.
"Child, you look lost. I can help you."
Luke nodded. The woman was definitely strange, but she was right on the money.
"Yeah. I've got a bit of a problem."
He dropped the heavy sack onto the table and untied the top.
Jason's bones spilled out.
In the short ti since he'd left camp, a fine layer of new flesh had already started growing across them.
"Holy shit—what the fuck is that?!"
The old woman scread and toppled backward, chair and all.
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