Tommy had mixed feelings about alcohol. There were times when he loved having some drinks with his friends, maybe a bunch of them from time to time. But other times he thought it got in the way of life. He’d much rather spend his Sunday mornings working out, playing some basketball, studying, and playing video games all before 2:00 p.m. But if he drank a bit too much the night before he’d sleep until 2:00 p.m. His choice to drink or not drink typically depended on a coin-flip the night of the party. Tonight was heads, drink.
“We have wine from our aunt and uncle, whiskey from Bobby, vodka from me, and soda to mix, if you’re into that kind of thing. Sorry if you’re a beer fan we are fresh out, but we’ll get more tomorrow.”
“The festivity starts in an hour, please adjust accordingly.” Bobby said. “And this meeting is officially recessed, God Bless the Fortress!”
The group went their separate ways. Jordyn and the Stacey's were getting along pretty well, they decided to get dressed up for the event. Nick went in the living room to watch a movie. Ned stared at a wall some more. And Tommy, Bobby, and Matt decided to throw back a few shots of Jack Daniels before the party began.
“I got to say guys,” Matt said, “It’s not too bad around here. You guys are good at distracting us from the fact that there’s a zombie invasion going on.”
“Well you have to work with what you got, and make the most of it. That’s always kind of been our motto.” Bobby said.
“Well cheers to that.” Matt raised a shot up and threw it back. “I’m coming with tomorrow by the way, figure since it was my idea to bring Nick I should at least be there in case he freezes up.”
“Thanks Staff Sergeant, nice to have you with us.”
The girls came down in their dresses, stolen from their aunt’s closet, which drew some whistles from the guys. They all gathered around the table and took a shot as a group. Music played, people danced, laughs were heard. They played kings, quarters, flip cup with a smidge of hard alcohol in the cups. It was a great release, a night they all needed.
Casey tried to be the life of the party, as always. She drank far too much and yelled often. They had to shush her every few minutes in case any zombies were in the neighborhood. Nick tried to hang with the Nagels and Matt by drinking as much as them, he passed out on the couch two hours into the party. Tracey drank for only the third time in her life. She was a bit uncomfortable but she had fun. Jordyn enjoyed herself with a few mix drinks, her and Bobby spent a lot of the night talking with each other. Those two lovebirds, Tommy thought. Matt had a great time; he loved the games and hit it off quite well with Ms. Casey Stacey. Overall the group stayed pretty unified, they all sat around the table and the party didn’t become segregated into groups. And at the end of the night, Tommy looked over and saw Casey pulling Matt by the hand up to his room. Good for them, he thought, and he smiled.
Chapter 14
Grocery shopping, such a lackadaisical, easy activity. You write down what you need, drive to the store, and get it. Most people don’t need to leave the house with assault rifles and handguns. Why wouldn’t zombies be in there? Anybody who is alive and in the infected area will still need food. Nobody was sure about where the cognitive depths began and ended in the infected, but if they had any shred of thought or survival instinct they would know their food would need to get food eventually. The boys knew there would be zombies in any store they went to, just waiting for them to arrive.
Nick finally got his dream of getting out of the house after a week straight inside the Fortress. He was definitely beginning to become stir-crazy in the last few days. He was a little scared, but he knew he was protected behind a marine and two athletes with zombie experience. Any fear left he hid, he didn’t want to seem nervous around the guys. He wanted them to think of him as a vital contributor to the group, that having him with them was better than not having him. He knew they doubted him, he wanted to prove them wrong.
Food was becoming scarce in the Fortress for the first time since its title was given. All that was left were a few pieces of bread, three granola bars, a quarter of a jar of peanut butter, stale potato chip crumbs, old but eatable turkey deli meat, and a pack of graham crackers. The boys didn’t eat much that morning so the ladies could eat up without being hungry, and crazy Uncle Ned, even though Tommy hasn’t seen him eat much at all lately.
“Hey Bobby, how long has it been since Ned ate?” Tommy asked.
“No idea, I can’t remember him eating any time recently though.”
Tommy grabbed the remaining turkey and brought it over to Ned, who was in his usual chair, staring at the damn wall again.
“Hey Uncle Ned, want some turkey?” Ned grumbled, and didn’t break his gaze with the wall.
“It’s really good!” Still no answer, “You need to eat something Ned.” Tommy pleaded, and moved it toward his mouth.
“NOOOOOOOO!” Ned leapt out of his chair and let out in a sharp, harrowing yell. He sat back down and continued his staring match with the wall. Ned has officially gone crazy, Tommy thought.
The boys got ready for the mission. They threw on their camouflage and almost unnecessary bullet proof vest, which held extra ammunition clips, a flare and a grenade. Nick didn’t have any camo so he wore a dark green shirt and khaki pants, close enough. Bobby handed Nick an assault rifle.
“Please, let me reiterate this, do not shoot one of us with this, ok?” Bobby said, not at all joking.
“I won’t.” Nick replied.
They hopped in the four door Humvee and got in the zone by playing Bon Jovi’s “Living on a Prayer” the entire way to the food store.
“Alright let’s go over the game plan,” Matt said from the passenger seat, “When we do encounter zombies, which I think we will, myself, Tommy and Bobby will start shooting. Nick your job is to watch our backs and yell, hit, shoot, whatever you have to do to alert us if zombies are coming from behind us. Got it?”
“Yeah.” Nick said unconvincingly. The fear was setting in his gut. He was scared, he didn’t want to show it or tell them but he couldn’t help it, he was borderline shaking.
“You sure, Nick? It’s an important job.” Matt asked again.
“Yeah yeah, I got it.” Nick reassured.
“Ok then, after we clear the store of zombies we’ll grab a cart and start the shopping, but stay cautious even after we take them out, you never know. Alright let’s do this boys.” Matt said as they pulled up to the supermarket.
The parking lot was desolate except a few straggling, abandoned cars. It was a cold, windy day in late November, as clouds loomed over the supermarket like a haunted house in a TV show. Wind nipped at their bare forearms exposed by the three-quarter sleeve length camo shirt the Nagels had on. Matt had a long sleeve on but it nipped at his bare neck. Nick couldn’t feel the wind because he already had chills throughout his body.
They cautiously walked through the doors of the supermarket, guns raised. They knew there were zombies in there. They kept quiet as they began to creep in between the cash registers and the front of the aisles. A loud crash went off at their feet, as Nick accidently knocked over a ceramic poodle on display.
Some loud grumbles were heard from the other end of the supermarket, as the boys stopped in between aisles 2 and 3. They heard the patter of running feet approaching. Their guns were raised, and ready. Out of aisle 16 zombies began spewing out. The boys unloaded their weapons and began taking them out, they aimed high and kept their guns steady. It was as easy as keeping their guns straight, because the zombies kept coming out of the same aisle, they were running right into the sea of bullets fired from Tommy, Bobby, and Matt.
Nick froze at the sight of the zombies. His face showed distressing fear and morbid curiosity. It was the first time he had seen the zombies he’d been hearing about for 9 days. His body was stiff as a board and his mind could focus on nothing but the sight of these creatures being shot down like fish in a barrel. It was a creepy sight, but something about it kept Nick’s eyes focu
sed on it.
Nick didn’t think to watch their backs, he didn’t notice the zombie fly out of aisle 2, and tackle Matt to the ground.
“MATT!” Tommy yelled.
“HELP HIM!” Bobby demanded as he continued his fire on the aisle 16 horde.
The zombie was biting at Matt’s neck, and he couldn’t get it off, it was too strong. Tommy aimed his sights at the zombie, but couldn’t get a clear shot; he didn’t want to shoot his cousin. He aimed and aimed but couldn’t pull the trigger. Finally, Tommy dropped down to floor, laid on his left shoulder, and was able to shoot the zombie in the head, knocking him off to Matt’s right.
But the damage was done, Matt had been bitten several times in the neck. Tommy got to his knees and crouched over Matt, thinking of any possible way to help him. But there was nothing he could do, and he wept. The last of the aisle 16 sewage spill of zombies was stopped by Bobby’s bullet stream, and Bobby turned to see his cousin gripping the wounds at his neck.
Matt looked up at the ceiling, and had a light smile. He thought of his squadron, who were as close to him as family. He thought about seeing them in the next life. He felt himself beginning to slip into a deep sleep.
Sergeant Major Matthew Mickelson reached down to his hip, grabbed his pistol, put it to the side of his head, and pulled the trigger.
Chapter 15
Now was not the time to grieve Matt’s death. There could still be more zombies in the store, and the house still needed food. Tommy knelt at Matt’s side for a few more moments, not wanting to leave him. Bobby shared the feeling, but he knew they had to keep their heads on a swivel, and was also cautious to get too close to Matt because he was infected. He grabbed Tommy and helped him up. The three of them had to swallow their sadness for the time being and load up the Humvee with as much food, drinks, and toiletries as they could. Nick was still in a fog, he followed the Nagel brothers around like a puppy.
The entire trip after Matt’s death was silent. They did not say a word at the store, just threw things in the cart and moved on to the next aisle. Before leaving, Tommy and Bobby visited Matt’s body one last time. Bobby took the gun he used to end his own life as a token to remember his cousin. Tommy unhooked the dog-tags from around Matt’s neck, thoroughly wiped the blood off on Matt’s shirt to make sure he wouldn’t get infected, and put them around his neck.
On the ride home Tommy’s grief turned into aggressive anger and hate towards Nick. This was all his fault. He never should’ve agreed to letting him tag along. He was nothing but a liability that cost the life of his cousin. Tommy’s blood was boiling. They walked through the front door of the Fortress. Tommy turned and threw a haymaker that caught Nick on the left side of his jaw, knocking him to the ground in a daze.
“Get out!” Tommy screamed, “Get the hell out of my house! Get out! Get out!” Bobby pushed Tommy back and up the stairs to Tommy’s room. The girls then realized they came back with one less person than they left with. The door to Tommy’s room shut as Tommy continued to struggle against a larger Bobby.
“Stop, Tommy!.” Bobby said.
“I want him out of here!” Tommy yelled.
“He can’t leave.”
“WHY NOT?”
“If he leaves Jordyn might follow, you know her, she wouldn’t just leave a friend alone to die out there.” He said quietly. That shut Tommy up, he obviously didn’t want Jordyn to leave, she was like a sister. And Bobby’s right, she wouldn’t leave a friend out to dry. But the burning rage still boiled in him.
“Is that the first time you’ve hit someone?” Bobby said with a smile, trying to calm his anger.
“Yeah,” Tommy smirked, “never been in a fight before.”
“That’s shocking, you can be kind of an ass.” They both chuckled. Tommy was surprised how well Bobby calmed him down. “Beach trip tomorrow?” Bobby asked.
“How’s the weather going to be?”
“How the hell should I know?”
“Fair, let’s do it.”
They’ve been hoping the beach trip would fall on a warm-ish November day. Adam and Alysia Abbott lived in a house 200 feet from the sand of New Jersey beaches. Adam was Bobby’s age and played high school baseball together, they were pretty good friends now but definitely drifted away a little after college. Alysia was in Tommy’s grade, and they were good friends since middle school. They also had lost touch a bit since graduation. This trip was mainly a reason to go to the beach, but they figured it’d be nice to see if some old friends are still okay.
“I’m going to go tell everyone that there will be a ceremony out in the backyard for Matt tomorrow morning. Clear your head for an hour or so and then come down.” Bobby said as he walked out.
Tommy thought a lot in that hour. He thought about his anger towards Nick, which very slowly faded. He thought about his cousin, and how much he would be missed. He thought about his brother, who was always there when he needed him. And he thought about Melanie. He had to go to Pittsburgh. No more waiting, every day that passes is another day he isn’t with her. Every day that passes she is more and more at risk. He was done waiting, but it’s dangerous going right across the path of the zombies. He figured his chance of Bobby and he making it was about 50%, and alone he guess about 30%, but Bobby would be 100%. After everything Bobby has done for him, he couldn’t put his life at risk like that. Tommy decided he would go alone, the day after tomorrow’s beach trip.
The hour was up and Tommy went downstairs. Nick’s face dropped when he saw Tommy, not out of fear to be hit again, but out of sadness because he thought he deserved to be hit again.
“Nick, I’m sorry I hit you.” Tommy said, “It wasn’t your fault what happened to Matt. We shouldn’t have put so much responsibility on your shoulders your first time out.” Nick nodded half-heartedly. He still felt to blame, but really appreciated the words from Tommy.
The next morning, Tommy awoke with a gut wrenching stomach thinking about the previous day. He quickly went downstairs hoping people would be talking about something else to distract him. Instead, the Stacey’s had designed a tombstone out of a piece of cardboard and a sharpie. It read:
R.I.P.
MATTHEW MICKELSON
Sergeant Major of the United States Marine Corps
Beloved member of The Fortress
07/04/88 - 11/29/15
Semper Fidelis
The Fortress members made their way outside for the service. In light of the circumstances rule number 2 of the Fortress was lifted so all could attend. Ned couldn’t be persuaded to come; they decided it wasn’t worth the trouble. Matt and Ned were on separate sides of the Nagel family anyway. The tombstone was placed on the right side of the yard against the fence. Tommy and Bobby dug a deep line in the grass to firmly secure the cardboard in the ground. Everyone was upset about his death, even the Stacy’s who met him yesterday. A member of the Fortress is gone. Now was the time to grieve Matt’s death.
“I’ve been thinking about what Matt would’ve wanted to be said here,” Bobby said to the group, “and I think the first thing he would want cleared up is that it wasn’t your fault Nick. We shouldn’t have given you such an important duty on you your first time out. Don’t blame yourself.” Nick stared at the grave with water clouding his eyes as Bobby continued. “Matt was a survivor, the kid fought overseas for years and made it out with the same big smile on his face that I used to see as kids. He took on the biggest pack of infected anyone has seen before he even knew what they were, and made it out. And when he got bit, he…” he coughed to fix his broken voice, “he did the most courageous thing I’ve ever seen. He took his life because he knew… he knew he would kick all of our asses as a zombie.” Some smiles appeared on their grief stricken faces. “Matt, you’re my cousin and my friend, and I’m going to miss the hell out of you.” Bobby kissed his fingers and lightly slapped it onto the cardboard grave. Tommy stepped up to the grave and faced the group.
“I lost my cousin today, my best friend before t
hat, and countless others along the way that I don’t even know about…” He held a long pause, formulating his thoughts, “We are all going to lose people in this, some of us already have. The only thing I can think of right now is the sky... They’ll never be able to see it again. It looks amazing today. It’s huge, this whole world is huge and we get stuck in the small section that is invaded by goddamn zombies. We really got the shit end of the stick. Everything I used to worry about is stupid. Doing schoolwork, getting an internship, worrying about what I wanted to do with my life, none of it matters anymore. I just want everyone to be safe, my family, my friends, my…” He paused with a tear in his eye, “my girlfriend. But I’m not losing anyone else… I refuse to.”
Chapter 16
Tommy began to prepare for the Pittsburgh trip tomorrow. He packed all of his weapons and ammo in a red duffle bag, but there was a small problem, he didn’t know the address of Melanie’s brother’s apartment. He had been there once before to visit with Melanie, he tried hard to visually remember where it was. He knew it was just outside of the city, and that they went over a traffic-infested bridge not too far from the condo. Luckily for him, his nomad aunt and uncle had a ton of maps in their closet from the ancient pre-internet days. Tommy found a very large one of Pennsylvania, and folded up so that Pittsburgh was showing. He began to scan the 12.9 square mile city for one of the seventeen bridges that would stand out among the rest. The names didn’t help. He then looked at the roads accompanying the bridges, and one stood out. Route 30, Fort Pitt Bridge. He scanned down the map across the Fort Pitt Bridge, over the Monongahela River, out of the city. The only thought he had of how to find it was that there was a lone road that had a 180 degree loop followed by a right turn into the condominium complex where Anthony Kendall lived. Tommy searched the map for this shot in the dark, and after about 20 minutes his eyes widened at the sight of it. The loop, the right turn, it all checked out. Unfortunately the map was so old that the condo complex had not been built yet, so he couldn’t know for sure. But it had to be it, it had to be where Melanie was.
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