by J.W. Vohs
Zombie Crusade Snapshot:Ontario
J.W. Vohs
Zombie Crusade
Snapshot: Ontario
by
J.W. Vohs
Katie Carboni parked her SUV near the front door of the ice rink. “Looks like it’s our lucky day, kiddo. Front and center . . .”
The thirteen-year-old girl in the back seat didn’t look up from her phone. “Do I have to go in?”
Katie sighed. “I thought you would want to say hello to your brother’s teammates; that Connor Schrock is a cutey-pie.”
“Yeah, he’s alright. Tell him hi for me. And they’re not really teammates—this is just a clinic.”
“Teammates, fellow hockey players, whatever. Why don’t you get your nose out of your phone and tell him yourself?”
Finally raising her eyes from the small screen glowing in her hands, the girl glanced at her mother, then scanned the parking lot. “Hey, look—there’s Ms. Easterday. You should go talk to her.”
“I swear, Tracy, I regret the day we ever got you that phone. Fine. Stay in the car; I’m locking you in. Carolyn can keep me company till the boys are done.” Carolyn Easterday was newly divorced and had recently discovered the adventures of online dating. She always had a hilarious story to share, and, with Tracy in the car, Katie could be treated to an uncensored report from the front lines of the singles’ scene. Not only were Carolyn’s stories occasionally R-rated entertainment, they made Katie blissfully thankful for her own relatively boring life with her quiet and dependable husband.
Carolyn smiled and waved when she saw Katie retrieving two large containers of homemade molasses cookies from the back of her vehicle. “Hey, KittieKat, need any help?”
Katie disliked Carolyn’s habit of nicknaming everyone who crossed her path, and she especially hated the nickname, “KittieKat,” but she gritted her teeth and answered cheerfully, “Maybe you could get the door?”
“No problem, but if you keep baking those damn cookies I may have to stop speaking to you.” Carolyn dramatically swept her hand over her midsection before holding the door open for her friend. “Sixty pounds down, five more to go.”
“You’ll have to cut something off to get rid of those last five pounds, but I think there’s twice that much in that new bustline of yours. Maybe you can donate some back and get a partial refund.”
“Jesus, KittieKat, you’re so old fashioned. Who says bustline anymore? I just call them . . .”
“MOM! Heads up!”
A hockey puck sailed over the two startled women and bounced off the wall behind them. Katie dropped the plastic containers, and cookies scattered in all directions. Half a dozen boys were off the ice and scrambling for the cookies before Grant could reach his mother’s side. “That was close,” he panted. “I’m really sorry, Mom. And I’m sorry to you too, Mrs. Easterday. I, um, think Alec is in the locker room; I’ll go tell him you’re here. ” The teen was flushed from exertion, embarrassment, and just being in the general proximity of his mother’s shapely friend. As he turned to head off in search of young Alec Easterday, Grant ran smack in to the head coordinator of the summer hockey clinic, a retired star of the minor leagues named Robbie Peterson.
The middle-aged former forward slapped Grant on his shoulder with one hand while he reached out toward the women with the other. “What’s your hurry, Mr. Carboni? You should be polite and introduce me to these lovely young ladies.”
“Uh, this is my mom, Katie Carboni. And this is Alec’s mom, Mrs. Easterday.”
“It’s not ‘Mrs.’ anymore, Grant, and I’ve told you to call me Carolyn since you’ll be starting high school in the fall. You’re well on your way to becoming an adult, you know.” She turned her attention to the handsome coach and batted her eyelash extensions. “And you are?”
“Robbie Peterson. I’m surprised I didn’t meet you two at registration. Grant here’s been doing a heck of a job. Over half of our kids didn’t show up today, and one of our junior coaches was a no-show too. Grant helped out with the juniors—he’s got real talent.” He flashed a perfect smile at Carolyn before continuing, “Now Alec has a lot of heart; we just need to see how it all plays out when he finally hits his growth spurt. He’s fast and he’s got a good eye—we tried him out at goalie today and he’s better than our regular guys.”
“Goalie?” Carolyn sounded genuinely concerned. “Goalies are crazy. Everybody knows that. Goalies and drummers. My ex was a drummer.”
Robbie grinned, “And my ex left me for a goalie, but I don’t hold that against the position.”
Katie’s phone buzzed with a text from Tracy. “Excuse me,” she offered as she backed away from the conversation. She was starting to feel like a third-wheel and was grateful for the distraction. She read the text.
Hurry up.
How typical, Tracy wouldn’t come in but was tired of waiting in the car. Katie rolled her eyes and texted back, “Don’t be impatient—you can always come in.”
No. U don’t get it. We need to get home. Not safe.
Katie understood her daughter’s penchant for drama, but her mother’s intuition told her to take Tracy’s warning seriously. She texted back, “K. We’ll b out as soon as Grant returns from locker room.” She rejoined the adults to let them know that she needed to be on her way, but she was quickly drawn in to their dialogue.
“. . . staying home. It’s all over the news; I guess D.C. is a real mess.” Robbie noticed Katie and asked, “Everything OK? You look a little distracted.”
“We just need to get going as soon as Grant gets back. What were you saying about D.C.?” The uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach was threatening to become full blown nausea.
“Don’t you ever watch the news?” Carolyn knew very well that Katie did not watch the news—she said she found it too depressing. “Never mind, there’s just some weird outbreak in the states, like an epidemic. People are freaked out, and I guess there has even been some rioting in Washington. Robbie says our government is scheduled to make a statement in about half an hour. You probably won’t be able to get home in time to see the whole thing.” Turning back to Robbie, she explained, “They live on the island.”
Katie tried to keep her growing anxiety at bay by forcing idle conversation. “We run a bed and breakfast in Little Current. My husband used to be an engineer, but he gave it up to become a fishing guide. He’s never been happier. He is very involved with local issues; he’s on the town council . . .” She hadn’t had a full blown panic attack in years, but she recognized the tightening in her chest as a warning bell. “Robbie, do you mind going after Grant for me? You can tell him to meet us in the car . . . Who is that? Is he drunk?” A man was shuffling towards them from the direction of the closed snack bar area. He was making a strange moaning sound.
Connor Schrock’s mother had been sitting on the bleachers, talking real estate through the headset that seemed to be permanently attached above her ear. Just as Katie noticed the suspicious character, Melinda Schrock snatched up her briefcase and intercepted the staggering stranger. “Are you ill? Are you drunk? This community center is no place for—“ Her voice was abruptly cut off when the man lunged forward and sank his teeth deep into Melinda Schrock’s neck. Two enthusiastic bites later, her head was nearly severed from her body and blood was splattered throughout the dining area.
Carolyn screamed, and Robbie grabbed a hockey stick and ran directly at the creature. As he approached, there was no mistaking this thing for a normal human. Its eyes were coal black, it was missing most of its nose, and it had a huge hole through its midsection. It seemed almost content as it tore chunks of flesh from the former real estate agent and swa
llowed them ravenously. Robbie wielded the hockey stick like a medieval sword, smashing the monster’s head with a single, well-placed strike.
Katie called out, “There are two more coming out of the concession stand!” She quickly scanned the arena. A family with three kids was literally running out the back door. One of the younger coaches was collecting the handful of junior level players who’d shown up for practice. Grant, Alec, and Connor were just emerging from the locker room, with Alec in full goalie gear, minus the skates. “Carolyn, get to the boys—don’t let Connor see his mother! Go lock yourselves in my car with Tracy. I’ll be right behind you.”
Carolyn didn’t move. She was staring at what remained of Melinda Schrock. Katie wasn’t sure what to do, but she quickly decided that a sharp slap across Carolyn’s face couldn’t make the situation any worse. “Snap out of it!” She smacked Carolyn hard enough to knock her slightly off balance. Out of the corner of her eye, Katie saw Robbie’s stick swinging like lightning. A second later, the sound, akin to a watermelon spattering on concrete, let her know that at least one of the attackers had been neutralized. Then Carolyn was crying, but she seemed to have registered Katie’s instructions.
Unfortunately, the boys had headed toward the commotion, and when they saw Robbie bloodied and battling a moaning lunatic, they grabbed their sticks and ran to join the fight. The goalie gear slowed Alec down, and his mother was almost able to grab him as he sprinted by. Carolyn shouted, “Boys stop!” If they heard her, they ignored the order.
Robbie had better luck. He barked, “Get back,” and the boys instantly froze in place.
Alec was about ten feet behind the other two, and he was closer to the washroom doors. Just as Robbie dispatched what he thought was the final assailant, another freak stumbled into the commons. This one came from the men’s room, and it was missing an arm and dragging one leg as dead weight. It had the same black eyes as the others, but Katie had a terrible thought as she watched it lurch toward Alec. Evidently, Alec had the same thought. “Dad?” his voice was shaky, but the boy stood his ground. “Dad, we need to get you to a doctor.”
The creature formerly known as Boomer Easterday moaned and stumbled forward. Robbie literally leapt over a café table, but he wasn’t quick enough to prevent the monster from falling on Alec. The boy screamed as he felt something latch on to his forearm. Fortunately, the goalie glove prevented teeth from penetrating flesh. Robbie raised his stick to knock the creature away from its victim, but Carolyn beat him to the punch. The limp body rolled off of Alec, a steel blade runner protruding from its left eye.
“That thing is not your father,” Carolyn gently told her son. Then she added, to no one in particular, “But if it was he got exactly what he deserved.”
“Sirens,” Grant pointed out. “Help is on the way.”
“We need to check on your sister; she’s locked in the car.” Katie looked at the carnage around her. “Grant, Connor, I need you to come with me. Bring your sticks in case there are any more of those things around; then stay with Tracy until we talk to the police. Keep all of your gear on, too, even the helmets. Looks like it’s the best protection we’ve got right now. Let’s go. Stay close.”
The parking lot was nearly empty, but there were a lot of cars on the road. When Tracy saw the shell-shocked group emerge from the community center she rushed to unlock the doors to the SUV. “Mom, it’s crazy. I’ve been watching the news . . .”
“I know, sweetie. Connor, Grant, get in and lock the doors.”
“Hey, there’s my mom’s car.” Connor squinted at the vehicle. “She’s not in there. Have you seen her?”
The police pulled up before Katie had a chance to answer. “I’ll ask around. I better go talk to the officers now. Lock these doors.”
“What’s going on here?” Katie closed the door on Tracy’s question, but she figured the boys would explain as best they could. She didn’t know how to explain it herself. She took two steps toward the building when shots rang out. Katie instinctively dropped to the ground. Robbie, Carolyn, and Alec emerged from the front door.
Carolyn called over to Katie, “We’re heading for your place. We need to get out of Espanola, and Robbie’s a Haweater too. I’ll explain when we get to the island.” They ignored the gunfire and piled into Carolyn’s car. Katie climbed back into her own vehicle and revved the engine.
“What about my mom?” Connor was visibly upset.
“Use Tracy’s phone. If she doesn’t pick up leave her a message. Say you are coming to our place and that I’ll make sure you stay safe.”