Demon Discord by M.J. Haag
Chapter One
My stomach growledas I stirred the oatmeal. I hated cooking. No, not true. I didn’t mind cooking, in general. I only hated not tasting what I was making when I was so damn hungry. Shifting my position, I lifted the spoon to my mouth, quietly blowing on the contents.
“No taste-testing, Terri,” Wayne said from behind me. “We don’t want the others accusing you of eating more than your share.”
Annoyed but hiding it, I nodded and returned to stirring the pot of oatmeal without tasting it. No matter how much I wanted things to be different, Wayne was right.
Tensions were understandably high in Tenacity. People were going hungry, and there weren’t any stores to run to for food. Those days were long behind us. Here, in this house protected by a wall of compressed vehicles, we were safely hidden away from what was happening in the world. Hidden, but not ignorant. Wandering humans infected by the plague existed even when we couldn’t see them. Or hear them. So did the creatures with glowing red eyes and a deadly bite who started the plague.
I shut off the stove and mentally redirected my darker thoughts to a more pleasant one.
“It’s done,” I said, removing the stack of ten bowls from the cupboard. We had just enough to feed everyone in the house.
Pausing, I put one back and thought of our missing housemate.
“Have you heard anything about Brooke?” I asked.
“Nothing specific. Aaron’s pretty sure she’s another female stolen by the fey.”
The fey.
I barely suppressed a shiver that wanted to run through me. Even after weeks of catching glimpses of them, I still found the fey terrifying. Unlike most other survivors who found them disturbing, I could see past the fey’s grey skin and pointed ears. What I couldn’t quite get over was their size combined with their sharp teeth and reptilian eyes. Those three things screamed predator to me.
I’d been present when Mya led a massive group of the fey to the front gate of Whiteman, claiming they had arrived to help. I’d witnessed the way the fey had pulled the heads from the infected with ease and no remorse. Since that day, Mya and Matt had been trying to spread the message that we humans had nothing to fear from the fey. But I’d also been there the night two of their kind had killed a few guards and let in the infected. I knew their true natures.
But the fey’s very inhuman physical attributes and killing tendencies didn’t turn away everyone. Brooke was a perfect example of that.
“I hardly think she was stolen,” I said, tucking a strand of my chin-length brown hair behind my ear. “She walked out of this house pretty willingly every morning.” It was her willingness that confused me. How could she possibly be okay spending time with one of them? Not only okay with it, but enjoyed it based on the way I’d overheard her talking to Sam, her roommate. I wasn’t sure how Brooke could see past a fey’s terrifying features enough to feel an attraction to one of them.
However, that seemed to be the case because she hadn’t come home last night.
“Still, if she’s not going to come back, she should let us know so Matt can reassign someone to our house,” Wayne said.
“You mean someone willing to leave for supply runs.”
“Of course I mean that. Do you enjoy going hungry?”
There was a note of disapproval and bitterness in Wayne’s voice. Something I’d heard often enough during our seven years of marriage.
“We wouldn’t be hungry if more of the people here would leave for supplies.”
“No one’s stopping you.”
I let the words roll off of me. After so many years together, I knew he was deflecting.
“What you’re doing is important too, Wayne. I wasn’t criticizing. Without the wood you bring back, we’d all be frozen by now.”
He went out every day, returning after a few hours with enough wood to keep us moderately warm throughout another night. No one in the house complained about the quantity. We all understood that it wasn’t easy to cut wood quickly and quietly. The men sacrificed speed to keep down the sound that attracted the infected. But just imagine how much wood we would have if he spent more than a few hours out there.
It wasn’t only Wayne who did the bare minimum. While he left the house for wood, only two other people took turns leaving for supplies. And not even every day. Bobby and Bram each left once a week. Just enough to keep us from starving. Bobby’s grandmother never went out. Like the other four women in this house, she could physically leave.
Fear kept us where we were, though. I understood that. However, that didn’t make it any easier to accept when my belly was cramping for food.
Abi and Greyly, the little girl Abi had found, came down the stairs. As soon as I saw them, I started ladling the oatmeal into bowls. Eight equal portions and a slightly smaller portion for the child. They’d barely sat down when Bobby, his grandma, and Bram descended as well.
“Sam’s coming,” Bobby said. “I heard her moving around. Any sign of Brooke?”
“No,” I said.
“Instead of worrying about Brooke, we should focus on what’s important,” Wayne said. “Either of you up for helping me cut some wood?”
“More heat sounds amazing,” Abi said. “Greyly was shivering in her sleep last night.”
There were no concerned or sympathetic looks to that comment, and I quickly ducked my head to hide mine. It wasn’t right that a little girl, no more than four, was underfed and cold.
“I’ll go to the shed and get another blanket for her,” I said.
Abi shook her head.
“Danielle and I went yesterday. Everyone’s having the same problem and had the same idea. There weren’t any extra blankets left. Matt said he would ask Ryan to keep his eyes open for more when they go out for today’s supply run.”
My heart ached as I glanced at Greyly, who was shoveling in her oatmeal, and old resentments resurfaced. I was still bitter at Wayne for getting a vasectomy, even when I’d begged him not to. It didn’t matter that the world had gone to shit and had ripped so many families apart. I’d wanted kids of my own, and it festered that we would never have that chance now.
“Then, I’ll need to wait in line for whatever tonight’s supply run brings in.”
Abi gave me a grateful smile as her cousin, Danielle, joined us. The woman’s hair was still wet, and I envied her that today was her shower day. By limiting hot water use, the propane tank out back would hopefully last until Matt and Mya came up with a refill plan. It was a smart strategy. I just wished we were one of the houses with the big enough solar panel system to heat our water too. Cool water sponge baths just weren’t the same as an actual shower.
As soon as everyone finished, they piled their dishes in the sink for Grandma to wash and got ready to do their part.
We all had our roles. I cooked and traded supplies. Grandma washed dishes and clothes and kept the common areas of the house tidy. Abi and Danielle went out and socialized, gathering information about who needed what, so I knew what to trade. No one had any idea what Bram and Bobby did on the days they weren’t out on a supply run, which was Wayne’s major source of contention. Why should they get days off when the rest of us couldn’t?
I didn’t share his attitude. The thought of leaving the protection of the wall terrified me, and I couldn’t imagine what it took for Bram and Bobby to leave once a week.
While I went downstairs and took inventory, I listened to Abi, Danielle, and Greyly leave. The house grew quieter as I sorted through a tote of baby clothes. Most people made do with what they could find. But it was common knowledge that a few of the women from Tolerance were pregnant. If that girl Emily came around, maybe I could trade some—
“Hurry up, Terri,” Wayne called from upstairs, making me jump.
I took the small pile of onesies and sleepers upstairs, where he paced in the kitchen.
“Baby clothes? Is this town filled with idiots? A baby is the last thing we need. Can you imagine what their crying will attract?”
“Since one of them is close to giving birth, I’m pretty sure the apocalypse didn’t play into their decision making,” Grandma said dryly before looking at me. “It’s a smart idea, Terri. You saw a potential need for what we have, and I hope you’re able to make a decent trade for it.”
“She wouldn’t need to if your grandson pulled more supply runs.”
“Wayne,” I said with soft warning.
Ignoring me, Grandma turned away from the sink to face Wayne
“If you’re not happy about how often he’s going out, talk to him. Don’t wait until he’s gone to complain about it.”
Wayne’s face grew red, and he opened his mouth, likely to yell, but was cut short by the door opening.
My heart seized when Brooke walked in with a giant fey trailing behind her. His reptilian eyes scanned the room, lingering on each of us before his lips tilted in a predatorial smile.
I shivered.
“If you’re here looking for breakfast, you know the rules.”
“No, thanks, Wayne. I found something more satisfying.” She took the fey’s hand and kissed the back of it. “I’m just here for my underwear unless you want to tell me I have to give up my rights to those too.”
Wayne made a disgusted sound.
“No one would want your underwear.” Shaking his head, he walked past them and out the door.
Brooke looked at me.
“I don’t know how you put up with him. He’s a real asshole sometimes.”
“It’s the stress,” I answered. “He doesn’t like seeing us go hungry or cold.”
“Well, I can do something about the one, but not about the other.” She reached into her jacket with a smile and pulled out a box of pancake mix. “It’s the add water kind.”
Grandma took the box and hugged Brooke. “You’re good to think of us when some of us don’t deserve it.”
The dig on Wayne annoyed me. He wasn’t perfect by any means, but he was trying to survive, just like the rest of us.
“You’re welcome. And don’t let Wayne get to you. Traumatic events change people.”
I glanced down at the baby clothes to hide my reaction to that and wondered if Brooke would have been so willing to jump into a fey’s arms if not for the apocalypse.
“Are those baby clothes, Terri?”
Looking up, I met her gaze.
“Yes.”
“According to what Solin told me, there are more than a few hopeful baby-daddies who’d be willing to trade with you for those. They’re obsessed with the babies-to-be and would do anything to ensure they have what they need. You’d have to come to Tolerance to negotiate, though.”
My gaze shifted to the fey beside her, and a sick feeling settled into my stomach. I knew going to Tolerance meant more than only leaving the safety of the wall. One of the fey would need to carry me there.