Clifton Falls: A Zombie Story [Part 1]

by Taylor, Lee Andrew

  “Don’t blame your…self,” Jason spat out, coughing over the sheets. “I made…the er…ror.”

  But Wayne would always blame himself for this.

  He looked around the area Jason was in to see just a bed and some hospital equipment before seeing a tube lead into Jason’s arm.

  “Do you want me to do anything for you?” he asked, feeling queasy.

  “Could you tell… my… pa…rents… to… come and… see… me; bring me some clo…thes?”

  “Clothes? …Why do you need clothes?”

  “I’ll...need...to...get...chan…ged be…fore leaving...here.”

  Wayne wanted to hug him.

  “Will do,” he replied, leaving his seat. “I’ll tell your folks.”

  Then he slowly exited the room.

  THIRTY

  Mike sat in his office staring at Wayne, Craig and Doug. He’d just replaced his phone after speaking to someone from the lab, but just from the short conversation, the others knew it sounded important. They waited impatiently for Mike to speak, to let them in on what had happened, but he just kept staring.

  “Is everything okay?” Wayne popped up to ask, hoping for some good news to tell Jason. “Please tell me they found something useful.”

  “Chief!” Doug quickly snapped. “Are you alright?”

  Mike slowly looked away before breathing in deeply; sighing as he breathed out to say, “No…Not really…”

  He explained what the person on the phone told him about the fertiliser sample, saying it was still going through the testing process but early signs suggested there were abnormalities not recognised by anyone from the lab. The news had suffocated all positive thoughts that the men had hoped for.

  “…I should get the final results soon,” Mike sadly said, leaving his seat. “But, in the meantime, I need you two to go to the factory owners house.”

  Doug and Craig looked at each other.

  “What are we going there for?” they asked in unison, frowning at Mike.

  “To get him to give you any remaining fertiliser sacks left at the factory.” Mike walked around the room, hoping the distraction would help him to remain calm. But it wasn’t working. “Bring him and the sacks back here…He has some explaining to do…”

  Mike reached for a pack of pain relief pills and took two out, popping them into his mouth as Doug and Craig left his office. He swallowed them and rubbed his head.

  “…Bloody headache,” he said to Wayne, rubbing his head again. “It’s all I need right now.”

  “Are you talking about those two?” Wayne asked, laughing. “Because they sure do give me a headache.”

  Mike smiled even though it hurt his head.

  “How’s Jason doing?” he asked, wincing. “I’m sorry I don’t have better news to tell him.”

  “He’s stable, for now…His parents are visiting him.” Wayne noticed Mike seemed preoccupied over something. “What else was mentioned that’s got you all flustered?”

  “While we were laughing over how dangerous the fertiliser was, the boys at the lab were finding some strange shit inside it.”

  “You said they found abnormalities.”

  “But I never said what type…”

  Wayne froze.

  “…If what was said is anything like the truth then this town could well be in danger…Let’s hope that Blake guy can help solve this before more of what you fought comes back from the dead.”

  “Don’t leave me in suspense, chief, we’ve eliminated the last one and Jason’s in quarantine.”

  Wayne listened to Mike rant about the bank manager using the fertiliser on his garden and that his dead mother woke up because of it. Plus, how the farming fields at the factory had been sprayed with the stuff.

  “Yes, I know all that,” Wayne said, still feeling confused about where the conversation was going.

  “What happened on the same day that came out of the blue?”

  “That crazy rain shower.”

  “Exactly!” Mike rubbed his temples again and sat back down. “That strange shower must have washed the fertiliser onto the grave and also away from the fields.”

  “Damn, you’re good,” Wayne said, springing to life again. “Do you think the John Doe run down by the truck was infected with the fertiliser that washed away from the field?”

  “I’m not sure but it’s a good observation.” Mike clicked on his computer mouse before looking over the incident reports, but his expression changed by the second. “If the shower washed the fertiliser away then it may have ended up at the cemetery?”

  Wayne hadn’t thought of that and didn’t want to think it, but, if what Mike said was true then it was a possibility. The cemetery wasn’t that far from the fields.

  “Do you honestly think something inside the compost is waking the dead?” Wayne nervously asked, fearing it to be true. “But, surely it couldn’t spread that far.”

  “I don’t know for sure, but I’m not taking any chances…If the results come in to confirm our fears then I want everyone from the holiday village evacuated until further notice.”

  “Let’s not be so hasty.” Wayne closed in on Mike to see frown lines appear on his face. “That village is busy this time of year…We don’t want to spook people if we can avoid it.”

  It wasn’t long ago that Wayne wanted to tell the world but now he was trying to stop his chief from thinking the same thing.

  “Hopefully, the results will be in our favour.”

  THIRTY-ONE

  Karen almost jumped out of her skin after her front door was knocked on; her heart skipping a beat after opening it to find two officers standing on her doorstep.

  “Hello, officers,” she nervously said, thinking they were there to tell her to return to the hospital to identify the Smythes. “Can I help you?”

  “Yeah…Is your husband in?” Doug replied.

  Karen frowned. She didn’t expect that.

  “Yes, he is…Why?” she asked, feeling upset to not be considered as an option to talk to about her boss. “What has he done now?”

  “Can we come in?” Craig politely asked, smiling. “It’s important.”

  Karen opened the door wider and let them inside before closing it to lead them into the living room, but their presence spooked Blake.

  “Alright, officers,” he said, trying to remain calm. “What appears to be the problem? ...Have I upset the chief?”

  Blake panicked when they stared at him, thinking he was about to be arrested for disturbing the peace.

  “Everyone upsets the chief,” Doug said, smirking to make Blake feel relaxed. “We’re here because we need to confiscate the fertiliser you’ve stored.”

  Blake’s eyes lit up.

  “Hold on,” he quickly rushed from his mouth. “Are you telling me that my fertiliser’s infected?”

  “We don’t know the full details…The chief just gave us the order to see you.” Craig smiled again at Karen before turning back to Blake. “He needs a word with you after we’ve retrieved the bags.”

  Blake placed a hand over his mouth, feeling shocked that his theory about the compost was even given a second thought by Mike. He trembled from more fears of being arrested as he nervously kissed Karen on the cheek.

  “Stay by the phone,” he said, kissing her again. “I won’t be gone too long.”

  Blake walked into the hallway, grabbing his coat from a wall hook and placing it on before slowly moving towards the front door; seeing the officers close behind as he opened it. But Karen raced out of the other room to hug him.

  “Now make them believe you were right about the fertiliser,” she whispered, letting go to watch him leave the house.

  ***

  The police car pulled up outside the factory gates at 5.30 pm as staff members clocked off for the evening. Most either stared at the car or checked to see who was inside, but not Todd. He was still finishing off the daily paperwork.

  The officers escorted Blake from the vehicle as people remaine
d eagerly watching on, but their nosiness slowed everything down. They swamped Blake with questions about – Why he was with the police? And If he knew what had been going on in town? – but he just smiled at them as Craig rushed him to keep moving.

  “Go home!” Doug shouted at them as he blocked their view of Blake. “He’s helping us with our enquiries.”

  “Enquiries about what?” one of the workers asked, as his concern for Blake escalated. “Are you okay, boss?”

  Blake looked up and waved. “I’m fine…Now please go home. Your shift has ended.”

  He then followed the officers towards the main doors.

  ***

  Todd saw them on the CCTV as they entered the building; his face scrunching from many thoughts of what was going on as they walked towards Blake’s office. But he didn’t move until hearing them close in.

  “Hey, Blake, what are you doing here?” he asked, leaving his small office to reach the others. “I thought you were spending some quality time with your wife?”

  Blake glanced around the area to worry Todd before whispering, “Is anyone else here?” Happy to receive a ‘No’ as he reached his office.

  But Todd seemed curious.

  “What’s goin’ on?” he quickly said, following Blake inside to see him search for something. “Should I be worried?”

  “Maybe!” Blake snapped, flinching after seeing Todd become emotional.

  He wanted to tell his foreman everything but knew he couldn’t.

  “…Look,” Blake calmly said as Todd stood by the door. “I can’t go into too much detail but I need to find the key for the storage barn.”

  “Why?”

  “Because these officers are here to take the fertiliser away.”

  “In that car outside?” Todd almost laughed at the officers. “Do you know how many sacks we have?”

  “We’re waiting on a van to arrive,” Doug said, checking his watch. “It should be here soon.”

  Blake searched his desk to find the key under some papers, smiling as he picked it up. He then headed for the door but Todd stood in his way.

  “What’s wrong with the fertiliser?” he nervously questioned, moving to one side. “Is there something wrong with it? I hope not because we’ve used some of it.”

  “Todd, I honestly don’t know, but the police want it just in case.”

  “Just in case of what? Come on Blake, you’re scaring me now.”

  “I wish I could tell you more. I honestly do…But you just have to trust me.” Blake stared at Todd until he made eye contact. “Do you?”

  Todd nodded.

  He found no other reason to question Blake. The officers were enough proof that something wasn’t quite right.

  “I’ll give you a hand shifting the stuff,” he said, hoping his offer could be used as a way of an apology. “It’s the least I can do.”

  Blake tapped him on the arm and smiled.

  ***

  The men entered the storage barn as a van closed in.

  Craig waved at the driver before moving a hand back and forth; guiding the reversing van inside the barn to smile as it came to a halt. But his smile fast turned to a grimace after remembering seeing the contaminated fertiliser all over Doug.

  “Best to put on gloves,” he said, cringing. “We don’t want to catch anything.”

  Doug agreed but Blake and Todd felt lost. They looked at each other and gulped as thoughts of touching the compost scared them; both looking at their hands and wanting to disinfect them before going anywhere near it.

  “Is it that dangerous?” Blake worryingly asked, putting on gloves. “My hands won’t fall off if I touch it, will they?”

  “Do you want to take that chance?” Doug quickly snapped, walking towards a pallet filled with the bags. “I wouldn’t…Not now, so best to keep those gloves on.”

  The driver got out and joined the others, grabbing a bag before carrying it towards the van. Then, he put it down and opened the back door.

  “I’ll get inside,” he said, entering. “And stack em’ up.”

  “You do that,” Craig happily replied, closing in to hand over the bag he was carrying. “And now for the one you’ve dropped down here.”

  He picked up the other bag as Doug, Blake and Todd arrived; each sliding the compost sacks towards the other man as he raced around trying to stack them. No one was letting up. They moved at speed and got the job done.

  “Thanks for that, Todd,” Blake said, taking off a glove to shake the man’s hand. “But you need to keep this to yourself.”

  “He’s right!” Craig and Doug yelled; almost laughing because of the insane timing.

  “I hear ya’.” Todd backed away and nodded. “You have my word.”

  THIRTY-TWO

  They arrived back at the station to deposit the sacks inside the police storage warehouse before escorting a nervous Blake towards Mike’s office. But every step brought with it a faster heartbeat as he closed in on the door.

  “Come in!” Mike shouted as the door was opened to reveal the three men. “We meet again, Blake…Take a seat.”

  Blake tried to smile as he sat down but struggled to do it whilst Mike’s expression remained firm. He couldn’t work out what emotion the chief was showing, so, until he saw a glimmer of a smile, wasn’t going to relax. He waited for Mike to speak again but the silent seconds caused him to sweat.

  “Why don’t you two go home, get some rest while it’s quiet,” Mike said to Doug and Craig, nodding as they walked back to the door. “I’ll keep you informed if anything happens.”

  “But what about you? You need to rest as well, chief,” Doug said, glancing at Blake.

  Mike shrugged his shoulders. “I’ll grab a nap in here when I can.”

  Doug waved before walking away with Craig.

  Mike turned to Blake to see him fidget nervously. He knew the man was worried.

  “Do you know why you’re here?” Mike asked, now smiling to ease Blake’s tension.

  “You think something’s wrong with the fertiliser.”

  “Yes, that’s right.” Mike walked up and down the room before stopping to say, “I want to know where you got it from? I need to speak to your contact…”

  Blake leaned forward after finding his courage again; smiling because Mike’s thought pattern had swayed towards what he’d suggested about the strange delivery.

  “…But don’t get too excited,” Mike quickly added, walking a little more. “I’m not overly convinced that the fertiliser is extremely dangerous to the public but I’ve opened an investigation based on what you told me and because of a weird ingredient found inside it.”

  Blake’s curiosity was knocked for six after hearing that the fertiliser did consist of something strange, but he knew the evidence wasn’t enough to accuse his stock of the murders.

  “My supplier lives in the city…I will phone them, see if I can get the scientist’s number who helped create the stuff.”

  Mike nearly fell over after a sudden intake of shock swept over him.

  “Hold it right there!” he bellowed, pointing at Blake. “A scientist helped create it? …You never mentioned this before.”

  “Because I didn’t know that what was added could be harmful before.”

  Blake explained again why he phoned about the fertiliser, and it wasn’t because it smelt a bit funny. He mentioned why a scientist got involved in helping to create the compost and how the ingredients inside it could change the future for the farming industry in making it more profitable. But none of what he said sounded convincing enough to suggest that the stuff could harm anyone.

  “Do you know what ingredients are inside it?” Mike asked, staying calm.

  “No, but I’m sure I can find out for you…”

  Blake dialled his supplier.

  Mike watched closely as Blake rushed over to the whiteboard, writing a phone number onto it before smiling and ending the call.

  “…This is the number for where the stuff was made,” B
lake said, drawing a line underneath it. “The scientist’s name is Doctor West.”

  “Okay,” Mike blurted out, becoming excited. “What are you waiting for? Get dialling.”

  But Blake wasn’t budging.

  “I’ve done my bit,” he said, replacing his mobile back inside his trouser pocket. “This is down to the police now.”

  Mike wasn’t expecting to be snubbed.

  He waited for Blake to change his mind, thinking he would come to his senses and make the call, but Blake just looked to the floor. He seemed nervous like he was about to experience another panic attack; his hand gripping his chest to worry Mike into reaching for his phone.

  “Okay!” he hollered, hoping Blake was alright. “I will do it.”

  He stared at the board and dialled the number before turning to see Blake sit back in his seat, close to laughing as the call was answered.

  “Good evening, this is Doctor Shane West speaking. How may I help you?”

  “This is Chief Inspector Mike O’Sullivan…I’m phoning from Clifton Falls Police Department…We have a very serious problem down here and I think you can help sort it.”

  “I’m sorry Inspector, but how am I going to help you?” Shane asked, scratching his head.

  “I have Blake Taylor with me…Do you know him?”

  “I’ve never heard of the man,” Shane quickly said. “What’s this about?”

  Mike glared at Blake, thinking he was being played by the man, but Blake whispered, “He doesn’t know me directly but he’ll know my supplier.”

  Mike nodded and returned to the call.

  “We may have our wires crossed…He said he received a delivery of fertiliser the other day that was tested at your lab.”

  Shane scratched his head again. “Blake, did you say?”

  “Yes.”

  “If my memory serves me right I think his factory was down as a guinea pig for the first batch, but I’ve not received confirmation of its progress.”

  “That’s because he’s had problems with it.”

  Blake gave Mike a weird look like he was waiting for him to let Shane have both barrels from an imaginary shotgun, thinking he would surely give the man a hard time over what the fertiliser had done to the town. But Mike was calm.