"My name is Malachi Burgess," Malachi stated. I kept quiet knowing it was a last will of some sort.
"I'm your typical working man, working a typical office job when I was young. I won't bore you with many details but I can say, I wasn't a good man in my life. No, I never tried to be." He continued.
"I've done horrible things in my life that could've ended my life behind bars. But like any story or novel joke. I met someone who I considered my treasure." he said while removing his reading glasses.
"Meredith Oswald. A woman I didn't deserve. But she decided I was worthy of that love anyway. Long story short, I turned over a new leaf because of this particular gal. Then, a lottery invitation to a newly built border town arrived for us." he said while bandaging his injured hand again.
"We accepted and attempted to live our last days away in peace in this new place. Away from all the bad blood I left in my former community," he said as he nestled himself comfortably in his chair.
"Mistakes of my youth I suppose. We bought this small apartment with our savings." gesturing at the building.
"Rented the 1st floor. She invested in a flower shop with the little money we had, to do what she enjoyed doing. On my part, a small library." he said emphatically while covering his mouth.
"All things were going well. But I guess karma caught up to us. No, to me." he started to tear up. Clearly, in emotional agony.
"We heard about a widespread pandemic but we ignored it. Thinking that the local authorities will take care of it. We were wrong apparently. Yesterday at noon, some group of rioters was wreaking havoc on the café down below when my wife told me to call the police. When I came back after the call, I saw her being grappled by a sick-looking man. I tried to get him off but I guess my strength is insufficient because of my age." Malachi stood up and looked outside the window.
"Forgive me for telling you all of this. Please just consider this me venting out my frustrations," he said with a bit of appreciation in keeping quiet.
"I kicked the man down the stairs and dragged my bleeding wife to my store here on the 3rd floor. She was bitten on the shoulder. I still shiver remembering how bloody her clothes were. Then, that is when I noticed all the chaos that was happening a bit distance from our apartment." Malachi looked at the border town that is completely still right now.
"I was so engrossed on reading, that if only I stood up that time. I could've noticed the chaos and dragged my wife out of here," he said while looking like it just happened.
"I nursed her until evening. I couldn't risk dragging her across town with all those unclean as you call them, wrecking all the damage they could. The hospital couldn't send an ambulance due to the chaos over there. Sounds of cars crashing, buildings exploding, all the screams, the cries for help. All those deaths, I didn't care." he said with a bit of anger in his tone.
"All I cared about was my wife. She was so deathly pale by nearly midnight. She called to me and we talked." he paused.
"We just talked about our cherished memories, all the laughs and heartaches." Malachi started to muffle a cry.
"I knew, I knew that it was her dying wish. To cherish every moment we had that night. Just as we were young. She wanted to cherish life with a broken guy like me. Just as she thought she was broken as I was a broken man myself." he said with a whimper.
"Her last words to me were, "Even if I went ahead of you. Make your life worthwhile. I love you." and still rings in my ear even today."
"She closed her eyes with a smile no less and breathed her last. My whole world. My everything, my treasure, was gone. I cried myself to sleep that night. To cherish something that I lost and will never have again. I wanted to kill myself then and there but I have to fulfill her wish. Make the remainder of my life worthwhile."
"I woke up at dawn, tried to rest her remains in the flower shop that she so loved, and got out of here. But by the moment I put her down outside my library to check if the flower shop was okay, she opened her eyes." Malachi said while drying his eyes.
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
"I was caught off guard. I stumbled and fell. Stunned like a deer caught with headlights. I thought she was okay, that she was alive. I reached out my hand to steady her but the moment I realized that she, no, IT was one of them it was too late. That thing! Isn't my wife anymore." Malachi bellowed with anger in voice.
"No life in it's eyes. No soul. Just an empty shell. Whatever ungodliness is in my wife's body? It was never her. " he added.
"She bit my hand and I nearly cried because of the pain. If I screamed I bet those things would've overrun this place already. But in the end, I endured the pain and put that thing down." He exclaimed.
"So the corpse we saw outside..." I beckoned. "Yes, she WAS my wife. But I couldn't accept that it was her. Like I said. It's just a shell. I don't believe these things have a soul or a representation of one." Malachi answered.
"Do you have any kids?" Bennie asked "Oh no. No, we do not. It turns out, she couldn't conceive a child but even still, I loved more than she ever thought I would." Malachi answered with a bit of a laugh.
"Even I wouldn't wish my children to live in this kind of hell anyways," he added.
He walked in front of us. We stood. "So that's the reason young ones. We all know that whatever this is. It's over when they bite you and I could've continued to live even if I didn't get bitten. Maybe in days or months. But I would've been broken in years remembering that I lost my wife." Malachi said with a bit of resignation in his eyes.
" I am old. I already lived a good life. Had a good wife. I want to rest beside her in my last moments." Malachi reached out to his pocket and clasped my hand. I opened my hand and saw a set of keys. Maybe keys to the building and a key for a car.
He sat back down. "Take whatever supplies you need. My only humble request is that you keep me and the body of my wife in the flower shop. I want to be laid to rest with her there. Try not to disturb our place so much when we're gone." Malachi chimed with a chuckle.
"My pick up is in D-4, garage 3. The key to the garage door is also in that keychain. It's well maintained and ready to go." Malachi reached for something in his vest pocket.
"Please take this with you." Malachi reached out to me and I took it. It was a small locket. "But.." I argued.
"Just something to constantly remind you young ones, if you don't want to lose someone important to you." Malachi looked straight into our eyes. Eyes like a predator, full of malice and hatred. Emotions swirling in his demeanor.
" I can already feel that I am not long for this world anymore. I don't want to walk around aimlessly like those soulless corpses outside. So heed my words and heed them well. Let that locket remind you of what I am going to say."
I don't know about feeling killing intent but Malachi exuded hostility. Like if we were the ones who killed her wife, we would be killed right then and there. He kind of reminds me of Bennie when he's unhinged and uncaged during a fight but multiplied.
"The unclean are not the only ones who will become monsters. If you boys wanted to defeat monsters, you have to become monsters yourselves." Malachi said while calming down.
"Thank you for your warning and mercy sir," Bennie answered. I was too dumbfounded to answer but Bennie knew Malachi was right. That if this is the end of days. We must be prepared to become monsters ourselves.
"I would like to sleep. Please. Let me rest in dignity." Malachi said in barely a whisper. He closed his eyes and laid back on his chair.
With no hesitation, Bennie took a pillow and walked in front of Malachi. He took out the M9 Baretta pistol and covered Malachi's still face. I grabbed his shoulder and signed to wait. I took out a thick magazine and rolled it into a makeshift suppressor. It would still be loud but a lot quieter if he only used the pillow. I lined up the rolled-up magazine directly opposite the pillow to where Malachi's temple would be. Right now, we don't care if it's loud. We just want to honor this man's final request.
Bennie inserted the pistol into the hole, looked at me and I nodded. Our final act of courage for the man named Malachi and his wife Meredith.
Bennie pulled the trigger.