“Forty-two?!” Mark exclaimed. “Wow, that’s quite the resume.”
“Yeah,” Thomas said, lowering his voice. “Like I said, Los Angeles was chaos. It’s been a long 11 months.”
Mark nodded in agreement. “Alright Thomas, last question for you, then you’re free to go. How many kids did you lose?”
Thomas let out a deep breath. Waves of emotions flurried inside him and settled on his stomach, tangling in knots. “None of my own, but I had a little brother.”
“Mmm,” Mark murmured. “My condolences. You seem like a good kid. I think we can make it work if you choose to stay with us at this camp. We’re a little light on food, but we’re working on getting livestock, a garden...it’s a nice place we got set-up here.”
Thomas shook his head. “No, sorry. I think I’ll get my belongings and be on my way. Maybe I’ll come back here eventually, but right now I need to head home.”
“Got anybody waiting for you there?”
Thomas looked up at Mark and smirked. “That’s four questions.”
Chapter Four
“They had these on pretty tight,” the woman who was bandaging up Thomas’ wrists said. She had dark brown hair pulled up in a pony-tail, and seemed to be just a year or two older than him.
“Yeah, it didn’t feel great,” he replied, trying to remember what the girl said her name was. They sat in a makeshift infirmary that the group had made out of the living room of one of the houses in the cul-de-sac they’d set up camp in. It was on the outskirts of town, a new development that, given another five to ten years, would have been right in the middle of the quickly expanding town of Spring. The windows were open to let light and cool air into the room since there was no electricity.
“So what are your plans once you leave here?” she asked as she dabbed ointment on his wounds.
“I gotta go into town and get some things from my old home,” he said, which wasn’t exactly a lie.
“Oh, you grew up around here?” she asked as she set the swab of ointment down and grabbed the gauze.
“Born and raised.”
“Where are you coming from now, then?”
“Los Angeles. I was going to college at USC.”
“Wow, so you’re smart and rich?” she said with a smile.
“Was smart and rich,” he teased. In reality, he would’ve been in debt for years after graduation. That was one plus about the end of the world: no more student loans. Although he wouldn’t be surprised if one day he woke up to a man in a suit standing over him, ready to collect on his debts.
“I was going to school too,” she said.
“Oh really?” Thomas said, trying to sound interested. He really just wanted to hurry up and get out of there so he could be on his way. Small talk wasn’t high on his list of priorities.
“Yeah, medical school. That’s why this—” she gestured around her “—is my responsibility. We have a surgeon who lives here who’s helping me fill in the gaps in my knowledge.”
“That must be reassuring for everybody here to have two doctors.”
“Well, one and a half,” she said as she finished wrapping his wrists. “Alright, you’re all done now.” She began to put away her equipment.
The front door to the house opened behind them.
“Hey Becca,” a young man called out.
Becca, Thomas thought. That’s it, Becca.
“In here, Joshua,” she called back.
The young man rounded the corner, and Thomas’ breath hitched in his throat. He couldn’t believe his eyes. They almost welled up at the sight of a familiar face. Judging from the similar expression on Josh’s face, he felt the same way. The two of them stared, their brains struggling to process what they were seeing.
“Holy shit,” Thomas finally said.
“Holy shit,” Josh repeated, a smile spreading across his face.
Thomas stood up and the two of them embraced in a hug, slapping each other on the back. Josh burst out laughing and Thomas followed suit. They pulled away and sized each other up.
“Look at you, man!” Josh exclaimed. “You’re all in one piece! Even got muscles now and everything.”
“Yeah the end of the world will do that to you,” Thomas said with a laugh. It was the first time he’d laughed in over a month. “You’re still ripped as hell of course. Always gotta make me look bad, don’t you?”
“Sorry to interrupt, do you two know each other?” Becca asked.
Thomas turned around as Josh put his arm around him. He’d already forgotten about her. “This right here,” Josh began, smiling from ear to ear, “is my little cousin.”
Becca looked at the two of them, eyes wide and amazed. “Are you serious?”
“Yep,” Thomas said with a laugh. “And don’t let him fool you, we’re only six months apart. Get outta here with that ‘little cousin’ B.S.”
“Wow, that’s...incredible!” Becca said.
“I know, right? What are you doing here, man?” Josh asked as he took his arm off Thomas’ shoulder. “What happened to your wrists?” he said, looking at them then back at Becca.
“Your buddy Mark had me in handcuffs while he ‘interviewed’ me,” Thomas said.
Josh tensed up, anger flashing in his eyes. “That son of a bitch hurt you?” he asked. “I’ll kill that bastard.” He clenched his fists and grit his teeth.
“Careful how loud you say that, Joshua,” Becca answered.
Thomas gave his cousin a reassuring pat on the back. “It’s okay man, I understand why he had to do it. You never know with all the crazy people out there.”
Josh took a deep breath and nodded his head. “Yeah I guess you’re right. I’m still gonna have a word with him.”
“Don’t sweat it, man. Becca here took care of me. They’ll be good as new in no time.”
Becca smiled and her cheeks flushed. “Well as long as you stay away from handcuffs you’ll be good.”
“I fully intend to,” Thomas replied.
“Come on man,” Josh said, backing towards the door. “Let’s go get something to eat.”
“Didn’t you come in here for something?” Becca asked.
Josh paused to think. Thomas could see the wheels turning in his head. “Shit, I totally forgot what I needed. It doesn’t matter anymore though. I’ve got family again!”
“YOU’RE DOING what?” Josh asked through a mouthful of mashed potatoes.
They sat at a picnic table in the backyard of the house that was used as the central communal area. A few other people were sitting at the other tables, enjoying their meals. “I’m going to kill Gabe,” Thomas repeated.
“Do you even know that he’s...you know...alive? Or dead or whatever?”
Thomas shrugged as he moved his food around his plate. The chicken breast and mashed potatoes didn’t seem too appealing given the current topic of discussion. “I’m not 100% sure. I know Mom and Dad didn’t make it. I couldn’t get them on the phone so I called our neighbor. He said they both left to get supplies and asked if they could keep an eye on the house while they were out and they never came back.” Thomas cleared his throat and then continued. “Before that I got to talk to them one last time though. They said Gabe was sick but the hospitals turned them away. There was nothing they could do. They had him in bed at home and would let me know if anything changed.” Thomas sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He was amazed at how easily the words came out. How nonchalantly he spoke about the last time he talked to his parents. He thought about that phone call so many times over the last few months that it didn’t even phase him anymore.
“And Gabe didn’t get better,” Josh said.
“He didn’t get better,” Thomas echoed. “So, assuming they kept him in the house, and assuming that nobody else has been through there, he could still be inside. I just...I gotta see, you know? The thought of him being one of those things? I can hardly stand it.”
The two of them sat in silence. Thomas could tell Josh was processing
everything he’d just told him. Finally, he nodded his head. “Okay, when do we leave?”
Thomas shook his head. “You don’t have to go with me, Josh. It’s going to be dangerous.”
“That’s exactly why I have to go with you. You really think I’m going to let you go into the city alone? I can almost guarantee you that Gabe is still there because it’s nearly impossible to get as far into the city as your house is. Once your parents left the house nobody’s probably ever been back. There’s no way you’re going to get there on your own. You need my help.”
Thomas thought about it for a moment. He didn’t want to put his cousin in any danger, but at the same time, he knew he could use the help. Besides, he didn’t think Josh was going to take no for an answer. “When’s the soonest you could be ready?”
“Shit, I’m ready right now.”
Thomas pushed himself up from his seat. “Alright then. Let’s go.”
Chapter Five
It took a while for Thomas to get used to having someone else traveling with him. Every once in a while he’d be lost in his own train of thought and would be startled by some form of noise coming from Josh.
They were on the outskirts of town, the afternoon sun bearing down on them. The buildings were spaced apart, but it wouldn’t be long before they got more and more dense. The denser they were, the more dangerous they would be.
The weight of the AR-15 strapped to Thomas’ shoulders gave him an immense feeling of comfort. It hugged him from behind and made him feel much safer. He wasn’t sure if Mark had exactly let them borrow the guns and ammunition like Josh had said, but he wasn’t going to argue. He looked at it as restitution for the way he was treated when he first came to the camp.
“I guess I can’t be too upset at your camp for tranquilizing me,” Thomas said with a smile. He looked over his shoulder at Josh, who had sweat dripping from his brow.
“What do you mean?” he asked.
“I was 25 miles outside of town when that horde came up on me. You guys knocked me out and carried me most of the way to town.” He bounced up and down on his feet. “I feel rejuvenated. I could probably run all the way to the house and not stop.”
“If you don’t keep your voice down, you might have to, whether you like it or not,” Josh replied.
Thomas turned around and kept on walking. It was strange to be walking through a place that he was so familiar with, yet seemed so alien and foreign. What he was seeing with his eyes didn’t match up with what he saw in his memories. It was a strange feeling, one he’d be happy to quickly forget. He wanted to hurry up and get it all over with and get out before the new memories infected the old ones.
“Oh shit, look at that, Thomas,” Josh said.
Thomas turned to see what he was looking at. Parked on the side of the road, just ahead of them, sat a mini-van parked half on the sidewalk. He instantly recognized the vehicle. The entire back of the car was covered with bumper stickers. There wasn’t an inch of paint visible. From “Coexist”, to, “My other car is a Cessna 172”, and Thomas’ personal favorite, “Ammo is expensive so don’t expect a warning shot”. It was so hilariously ignorant and blowhard, which perfectly summed up the man who drove the vehicle, Old Mac.
“Damn, I never thought I’d see that piece of junk again,” Thomas said as they walked towards it.
The van and the person who drove it was something of a celebrity around Spring. Everybody knew the car due to the absurd number of bumper stickers adorned on it, along with the fact that Old Mac only had a few brain cells standing between him and a mental institution.
Thomas walked around the dirt covered van and saw that the front was all busted up and beat in. The windshield was shattered so bad you could barely see inside the thing. “Looks like he hit a couple of bumps,” Josh said.
Thomas nodded and kicked one of the tires. Something moved in the driver’s seat. Thomas almost jumped out of his skin as he scrambled to unholster the 9mm pistol attached to his side.
“No way,” Josh breathed.
It was a person. “Was” being the key word. “Is that him?” Thomas asked. The zombie strapped into the front seat had skin that was so leathered it looked as if a single touch would cause it to lose its integrity and crumble. It moaned and lashed out at the two of them, but the seatbelt it wore kept the creature strapped in.
“I don’t know who else it could be,” Josh answered.
Thomas took a step forward and the zombified version of Old Mac lashed out even more aggressively. It wanted nothing more than to tear Thomas apart and feast on his insides.
“What are you doing?” Josh asked, grabbing Thomas by the shoulder.
“We can’t just leave him like this,” he answered.
Josh nodded and took his hand off Thomas’ shoulder. “Just do it quietly.”
“Yeah, I know. I’m the one who’s been living on the outside for the last 11 months.” Thomas holstered his pistol and unsheathed the large knife he had strapped on his left side. He reached through the broken driver’s window and batted Old Macs thrashing arms aside. He slid the knife under his throat and stabbed upwards towards his brain. Old Mac fell limp, finally at peace. Black blood oozed out, some of it getting on his hand. He pulled the knife out and wiped it on Mac’s shirt before putting it back in the sheath.
“Hey, look over there,” Josh said, pointing at something on the other side of the van.
Thomas looked to where he was pointing, but couldn’t see what got Josh so excited. He followed him around the side of the van, and then realized what he’d been pointing at.
Perched up against the wall, underneath an awning that led into a small two-pump gas station, sat two adult sized bicycles. One was black, the other red. “You think these will still work?” Josh asked as he grabbed the red one.
Thomas pointed at the tires. “They’re both flat.”
“I bet there’s an air pump somewhere in this gas station.” Josh walked towards the front door. “It’s worth a look at least. This would make getting in and out of the city way faster.
Thomas shrugged and followed behind Josh. “Whatever it takes to get all this over with as soon as possible.”
DESPITE THE CIRCUMSTANCES, Thomas hadn’t felt so good in a long time. Riding through town with his cousin, on a bicycle, feeling the cool breeze blow across his face, was almost magical. It was the little things in life he learned to appreciate. If it wasn’t for the fact that he was on his way to kill his little brother, it would’ve felt spectacular.
Alas, he was on his way to kill his little brother, and that tends to put a dampener on the mood.
“Left up here,” Josh said, as if Thomas didn’t know the way to his own home like the back of his hand.
“I could do this at night with my eyes closed,” Thomas called back.
“If it’s nighttime why would you need to close your eyes?”
“Moonlight and shit.”
Josh nodded, “Fair point.”
They turned onto the street, looking both ways despite knowing there wouldn’t be anyone coming. Old habits die hard and such. They continued riding down the street, not pedaling too fast so as to conserve their energy. The farther into the city they got, the faster they would need to pedal. They had a couple blocks before they would need to pick up the pace.
They reached another intersection and Josh slowed down. “You think it’s quicker to go right here? We could take it all the way to the high school and cut through the park.”
“Sounds good to me,” Thomas said, and the two of them turned right.
Right after turning, they slammed on their brakes so hard that Josh almost lost control of his bike. Directly ahead, a group of 20 or 30 zombies milled about the road.
And they were all looking right at the two of them.
Thomas turned his bike around and pedaled as hard as he could. The zombies behind them began screaming and charging, ready to dig into their next snack.
“Go, go, go!” Josh shouted as he
pulled up beside Thomas. The two of them pedaled fast, dodging and weaving through debris and cars littered about the road. Now the wind was harsh, biting at Thomas’ eyes causing them to water. There was nothing peaceful or enjoyable about this bike ride anymore.
Thomas stole a glance behind him, and his heart sank to his stomach. The zombies were not only keeping up with ease since they didn’t get tired or feel pain, but their numbers had increased. The cries of the horde attracted nearby stragglers to join their numbers. Every zombie in a six block radius was rushing to join the chase, eager for a bite.
Thomas pushed himself to pedal faster. Him and Josh were neck and neck. You don’t have to be faster than the zombies, just faster than the person next to you, he thought remembering a random meme he’d seen a long time ago. Seriously? he thought. You’re thinking about memes right now? It was funny the things one’s mind would jump to at the most inappropriate moments.
“Cut right!” Josh shouted. He turned almost on a dime, Thomas following close behind. They rode down a narrow alleyway between two buildings. Thomas looked over his shoulder and the quick turn mixed with how narrow the alley was, thinned the horde a significant amount. Still, they weren’t out of the woods yet.
They shot out of the alleyway and back onto the street. They turned right and continued to make their escape. For a brief moment, Thomas felt hopeful. He thought they were going to get away.
And then his chain popped.
Chapter Six
I’m a dead man. Thomas looked over his shoulder. There were less of them but they were still coming. He still had some momentum but he was already starting to slow. Josh got further and further ahead. You don’t have to be faster than the zombies, just faster than the person next to you. The meme popped into his head again. You’re welcome, Josh.
“MY CHAIN POPPED!” He finally found his voice.
Josh looked over his shoulder and his eyes grew wide as saucers. “Shit!” he pointed at a church up ahead to his right. “Head over there!
The Children Are Not People [Short Story] Page 2