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KATE
The six of us crouch on the rocky outcropping above the Pacific Ocean. I’d call it a ledge if it wasn’t so uneven and covered with sharp points. It’s ten feet wide at the tips and juts out no more than two feet.
The fire burns above us, pouring heat and smoke over the edge of the cliff. Below us, the ocean pounds away at a rocky shoreline.
There’s nothing for us to do but wait it out.
Does this count as a break? I decide to pretend it’s an aid station on the most fucked up ultra I’ve ever run in my life.
We huddle together. I find the closeness comforting, but the truth is that there isn’t room to be anything but squashed together. I’m sandwiched between Reed and Ben.
I lean my head back against the cliff face and close my eyes. How the fuck are we going to get off this cliff? Going down isn’t an option and the top is at ten feet above us.
I have a wild vision of us standing on one another’s shoulders, Looney-Tunes style, in a desperate bid to escape.
A ball of fire spurts over the cliff side, searing us with heat. We hunch down, doing our best to protect our faces. I squeeze Reed and Ben’s hand, wishing I could do more to protect the two of them. Wishing I could do more to protect all of them.
I look down at my watch. Thirty-two hours. We’ve been on the move for all that time. Alvarez and his people have been at the mercy of Mr. Rosario for eight hours.
My mind replays the series of disasters that have plagued us ever since we left Creekside. Running out of gas in Humboldt Bay. Getting attacked by pirates. Our boat getting destroyed by zombies in the rudder. Our subsequent shipwreck on the Lost Coast. The impassable tidal zone, hypothermia, and bear attack all seem like a really twisted joke.
We haven’t had a break since we stepped foot on Highway 1. Between zombies, bridges, and fires, it’s done its best to eat us alive.
And now here we are, huddling on a tiny outcropping, held hostage between the sea and the inferno.
A growl sounds above us. I look up just in time to see a zombie totter over the side of the cliff. Flames lick across his shirt.
He falls straight for us.
“Incoming!” Ben bellows. “Look out!”
The zombie crashes down on top of Ash.
Ben and Caleb act fast, the two of them like a well-oiled machine. Caleb stabs the zombie in the face while Ben grabs it by the ankles and flings it over the edge. Ash shrieks, batting at the bits of flame that sprang up on her shoulder. Eric jumps in and smothers it with his backpack.
“Are you okay?” Caleb grabs Ash by her good arm and turns her so he can inspect her shoulder.
“Si.” Her voice is shaky as she bats at the burned fabric. Beneath it is red, blistered flesh.
“Let me see.” Ben pulls out a small first aid kit. He cuts away the burned fabric, applies ointment to her wound, and wraps it with a clean bandage.
As he works, another zombie pitches over the cliff. It’s twenty feet away, burning from head to toe. It plummets into the ocean below, hissing all the way down.
“Um, guys? There’s more.” Reed raises a finger, pointing to the line of tottering bodies above us.
There’s at least a dozen of them. As we watch, another two fall off the ledge, burning as they fall into the ocean.
“Fuck me.” Ben glares up at the clifftop. “Zombie rain.”
One by one, they continue to walk over the edge. Most of their falls are silent, accompanied only by the customary growling and snarling. They’re smashed to pieces on the rocks below, blood and body parts littering the shoreline. If I had any notions of trying to climb down, the pulverized zombies change my mind.
Luckily, no others land on our tiny little slice of the world, though there isn’t one of us who doesn’t keep an eye toward the sky.
There’s nothing to do except wait out the firestorm. Fire and ash rain down on us. Smoke pours over the side of the cliff in a gray-and-white tumble.
We all cough. I pull my shirt up over my nose to block out the worst of it. The others do the same, a few of them pulling out bandanas.
“Put water on the cloth you’re breathing through,” Ben says. He takes a drink out of his pack and spits the water out on his bandana.
I squint my eyes in an effort to protect them from the smoke and ash. Of all the things I’ve encountered on a run, this is the first time I’ve come up against a wildfire.
We huddle together, waiting out the firestorm. It feels like days. According to my watch, several hours have passed.
We might die out here. Right here, on this ledge over the ocean with fire raging above us. I squeeze Ben’s hand and lean into him. He puts his arm around me and holds me tight, resting his forehead against the back of my neck.
I regret not taking advantage of the big bed when I had the chance with him. I’d let my brain get in the way. I make a silent promise not to let that happen again. If I have the chance to be with him—even if it’s on some dirty floor in a cold shed—I’m not going to miss out.
“Did you guys feel that?” Ash holds out both hands. “Is that rain?”
I squint into the smoke. A second later, a cold sting hits the top of my head. Another few seconds pass. Three drops hit the narrow space between me and Ben.
“God damn,” Ben exclaims. “We may survive after all.” He plants a kiss on my lips.
I’m so relieved that I grab him around the neck and kiss him back, just because I can. Because we’re both alive.
“Good thing we got chased by zombies and fire,” Reed remarks. “If not for near-death experiences, you two would never make out.”
Good-natured laughter fills the air. I can’t help laughing myself as I squeeze Ben tight with both arms.
The rain begins to fall in cold earnest. Thunder rolls through the sky, sending vibrations through the earth.
Never in my life have I been so happy for rain. I turn my face skyward, letting the fat, cold drops hit my skin. A fork of lightning flashes above us.
The wind picks up, whipping across our bodies. It isn’t long before we’re all shivering in the rain. I crane my neck, trying to gauge the severity of the fire above us.
The heat of the flames is gone. The ash that falls is sodden. There’s still smoke, though most of it has turned into steam.
We have to get off this ledge and find shelter, or we’re all going to be hypothermic. It would be nice to have a day where we’re not being yo-yoed between hypothermia and burning to death.
I shield my eyes from the ash and study the cliff face. “Any of you expert rock climbers?”
Five pairs of eyes turn in my direction. Everyone shakes their heads.
“All right,” I mutter. “Looney Tunes escape plan it is.” I survey our group. “Caleb, Reed.” I gesture to the two young men. They’re the tallest among us. Reed is the lighter of the two, his build lean while Caleb is the stronger.
“Caleb, you need to boost Reed up to the road. Reed, once you get to the top, you’re going to have pull us up, one by one.”
They stare at me.
“You’re serious, aren’t you?” Caleb says.
“Dead serious. Unless one of you knows someone who can pick us up in a helicopter, that’s the only way any of us is getting off this ledge.”
“I can always count on a big dose of crazy with you.” Ben slaps me on the shoulder. To the rest, he barks, “What you waiting for? You heard the woman. Let’s get the fuck off this ledge.”