Situation Z

by Semple, A. M.

“Fan out and use the trees for cover. Use your forty-five only as a last resort.”

  Russell had disappeared behind a white pine before Riley could respond.

  Wilson tapped Riley on the shoulder whispering. “Maybe climb a tree. I don’t think they can look up.”

  Riley turned to respond and found himself alone. “Guess I’ll take the middle.” He found an old pine to stand behind and was struck on the shoulder with a pine cone. He turned, spotting Wilson half way up a tree several yards away. Wilson was signaling for Riley to start climbing. Riley shook his head and grabbed an arrow. Before he could take aim, he watched as two of the dead dropped to their knees. Both had crossbow bolts in their heads. Russell and Wilson were as impressive as they were annoying. Maybe this wouldn’t be so bad after all.

  Loading his bow, Riley took aim at a man in a shirt and tie, ambling toward the fence. He was in bad shape. He was missing both hands and looked to have been dead for some time. Riley released the arrow and watched as it pierced his neck. The guy lurched backward under the impact but continued in their direction. Riley resisted the urge to look at Wilson as he pulled out another arrow. While he aimed, two others dropped to their knees on either side of the guy. Riley exhaled and cleared his head. Above him, the treetops shifted in a wind that sent his arrow off target, grazing the guy’s ear.

  Several shots later, the guy finally dropped, looking like a human pin cushion or cowboy in an old western. Wilson tossed another pine cone at him and gave him the thumbs up. Riley swore under his breath but managed to paste on a smile while waving his bow. Minutes later, they’d taken down most of the closest dead.

  A bird call from Russell got their attention. Russell pointed to a section of fence that one of the dead was passing through. From the way the fence was hanging, it definitely appeared to have been tampered with. That wasn’t good.

  Russell’s voice was whisper soft as he walked up to join Riley. “Looks like the dead may be the least of our problems. It’s safe to say someone brought them here to distract us.”

  Wilson’s equally quiet voice startled Riley from his other side. “We were right about a saboteur. We’ve gone from the hunter to the hunted.”

  Russell turned in the direction of the broken fence as he spoke. “It could be one or a group who did this. Someone needs to stay here just to be sure no one gets through.”

  Riley was surprised to hear himself volunteer to stay.

  “Good. Wilson, tell everyone patrolling the perimeter to take cover.”

  Wilson was gone in an instant. Russell was not far behind.

  Riley crouched down beside a tree, scanning in all directions before continuing the arduous task of wiping out stragglers, one at a time.

  ****

  Russell studied the area around the house with his high powered field glasses. He hadn’t seen anyone, but that meant nothing. He removed his orange hat and vest, balling them up and stowing them under a bed of pine needles. He approached the house cautiously, taking cover behind one tree after another before slipping in the back door. He was in total, stealth mode.

  Chapter 23

  Inside the house, Sadie shifted her attention from one monitor to the next. She’d scene Russell and Wilson leave the north end of the property and hadn’t figured out why. A rapid movement on a normally vacant part of the property got her attention. Panicked, she glanced down at the control board. “Camera eight, camera eight…how do I zoom in?”

  A hand reached in front of her to adjust a lever. Already on edge, Sadie shot out of her chair and screeched only to have a hand go over her mouth.

  Whoever it was got an elbow in the stomach while the heel of her shoe came down hard on a boot.

  “Thank God…I wore…my steel toed boots.” Russell’s voice was whisper soft, coming out in gasps as he struggled for air.

  Recognizing his voice, Sadie stopped struggling and waited as he removed his hand. “You scared…”

  Russell motioned for silence. Sadie’s eyes widened, but she held her tongue.

  Holding his stomach, Russell dropped into his chair and focused on monitor eight. A man was running along fence line one. He was in complete camouflage and holding a hunting rifle. He looked terribly familiar. Russell took an instant dislike to him. “I know this guy,” he whispered more to himself than Sadie.

  “You scared the crap out of me,” Sadie whispered back.

  “Sorry.” Russell shot the word over his shoulder, not taking his eyes off the monitor.

  She leaned in. “Who is he?”

  Russell squinted at the monitor. “I’m fairly sure it’s that jackass, Curtis, that gave me hell over my building permits. Tried to force me to bribe him. He’s got a lot of nerve trying now to sabotage my compound. Probably wants to take over now that the crap’s hit the fan. His tactics backfired on him last time he crossed me. Not sure how he expects to get away with anything again. Obviously not very bright.”

  Sadie heard pride and satisfaction in Russell’s statement and was relieved that he was confident about their odds against Curtis. “What are you going to do?”

  “Probably won’t have to do much. He’s woefully outnumbered.” Russell checked the other monitors. “So far I don’t see anyone else, alive that is. Not surprised, doubt a guy like that has many friends. Hold on a second…he’s heading in Riley’s direction. Dammit, no way to warn him.”

  ****

  Riley took off his orange hat and vest. He’d rather be hit with friendly fire than someone using him for target practice. He kept watch in all directions, then concentrated on several more dead as they passed through the open segment of the fence. He counted ten scattering in all directions. Since there was no fence between him and them, he came up with a quick exit strategy in case he needed it. Run like hell to the nearest gate.

  Resisting the urge to pull out his .45, he reloaded another arrow into his bow. He hadn’t been spotted, but two were heading in his direction. At least they were close enough so that he’d have an easier time hitting them. Lifting the bow, he took aim at the larger of the two, an overweight man with suspenders. He was probably in his sixties but had no visible injuries. There was no doubt he was one of the dead. His skin was grey.

  Riley released the arrow and watched with disbelief as the man dropped. Either it was a lucky shot or his aim was getting better. He turned to the next target, a woman missing an arm, her head hanging at an odd angle. He lifted the bow again. Seconds later, she dropped. Two for two, maybe this wouldn’t be too difficult.

  He turned around. It was still quiet both behind him and on either side. But the wind picked up, rustling the pines, making it harder to hear if someone was approaching. Not the best situation, but there wasn’t a whole lot he could do about it.

  He turned his focus back on the stragglers. Though their progress was slow, they would eventually end up against the second fence line. He would do his best to pick off as many as he could before that happened. He looked around and moved up against another pine.

  A gunshot came out of nowhere. The explosive sound grabbed the attention of everything around. Riley hugged the tree and watched as the stragglers moved westward, their groans louder and movement quicker. Whether or not the shot had been for him wasn’t clear. He still had an open path to the gate and decided to take it. He would have to move quickly, hoping the trees would provide some cover. He bolted, listening for another gunshot. He’d been crouching so long his legs fought him every step. The crunching of pine needles and small branches under his feet sounded overly loud to his sensitive ears. He was just a couple feet away from the gate, deciding whether or not it was safe to stand in the open long enough to type in the gate code. Russell’s voice came quietly over the speaker.

  “He hasn’t got a clear shot at you. Just type in ten zeroes.”

  Riley moved and typed with credible speed. He waited for what felt like an eternity until the gate slid open. As he passed through, Russell gave him hasty instructions. “Head east halfway down the prope
rty, and circle back to the house. We’ll catch this SOB.”

  ****

  Curtis crouched low in the thin brush. Even in camouflage, it hardly provided cover. He held deathly still and watched the man run for cover. It wasn’t necessary. He was a crappy shot and had purposely aimed wide. He just wanted to scare the guy away from the gate. Inadvertently, he’d sent the man towards it. He watched with frustration as the man slipped inside the safety of the fenced in area.

  Curtis had been hoping that Russell was still living alone. Now, he had at least two people to contend with. His simple plan had gone terribly wrong. It had seemed so easy when he came up with the idea. He’d been in his mobile home, contemplating his options, when he remembered Russell’s property.

  Years ago, Russell had applied for building permits. It had been Curtis’s job to approve permits for the outbuildings. He’d considered Russell a nut at the time. The guy was preparing for an apocalypse. Curtis had even tried to take advantage of the man’s stupidity by trying to force him to pay extra for the permits. Russell turned out to be sharp as well as crazy and had threatened to sue him. Curtis finally had to back down. Though the incident left a bad taste in his mouth, he quickly forgot about it. It wasn’t till he took inventory of his inadequate food and supplies that he remembered Russell’s home. He knew it would be well supplied and would provide a safe haven from any attack.

  Curtis wasn’t the best strategist, but he managed to come up with a plan. He thought he would draw Russell out and be able to take over the place for himself. He put his plan into action at sunrise that morning. Dressed in camouflage, with his hunting rifle over his shoulder, he slipped out his back door. His timing was good. He was able to leave his property without attracting attention to himself. He ran next door and tore the cover off his neighbor’s ATV. He’d borrowed it a couple of times and had no trouble starting it up. It was little more than a fancy, riding mower to him. He wasted no time getting onto the road, but he still found himself swerving around his dead neighbors. Once he was out of biting distance, he took out the air horn he’d brought along and gave it a couple short blasts.

  Shadowy figures started drifting in his direction. He waited till they were a short distance away, then tapped the gas and headed for the hills. He’d been off-roading with the stiffs for five miles. What started as a few stragglers had grown into a large group by the time he’d gotten to Russell’s property.

  Now, as he hid in the brush, he noticed some groans. He turned to find a group of dead heading in his direction. His gunshot had drawn quite a bit of attention. They were moving slow. Most of them were in bad shape. Though the group had grown a lot, he’d lost at least half of the originals getting here. He wasn’t afraid of their groans any longer. They were pathetic.

  He’d left his ATV parked out just beyond the first fence. He figured it wouldn’t be too difficult to serpentine his way back to it. He spied one of the dead pulling ahead of the others. “Christ, not the guy in the grey jogging suit. That dude was in better shape than the rest of them.”

  Earlier, it had taken several rifle butts to the head to get the guy to fall in with the others. But now ‘Sweats’ was pulling out in front again and closing in on him. Curtis glanced down at the butt of his gun, hoping it would hold up against the rock hard cranium of the guy, yet again. Then again, maybe it was time to come up with another plan.

  ****

  After seeing Riley pass through the gate, Russell shifted the camera in Curtis’s direction. Numerous dead were heading toward him. He and Sadie watched as Curtis gave one of the dead a blow to the head with the butt of his rifle.

  Sadie leaned forward. “I’m surprised he didn’t kill the guy. He could get bit.”

  Russell shrugged. “Probably low on ammo, and he’s already attracted a lot of attention.” Russell adjusted the camera so they could see Curtis take off toward the gaping hole in the fence. Most of the dead followed, several getting close as he slipped through it. He kept his distance, but seemingly waited for them to catch up as he continued down the hillside.

  Russell nodded. “Not much of a saboteur. Horrible plan. I imagine he led them quite a distance to get here. Never a good idea to join sides with something that wants nothing more than to eat you.” He glanced at Sadie and back at the screen. “A plan should be foolproof and allow for things to go wrong. And believe me things always go wrong. He’s probably just now coming up with a plan b. We’ll be ready for him.”

  “What are you going to do?”

  Russell was pleased that Sadie no longer sounded frightened. “We’ll wait for the others to return, gather info, then take him and his dead army out.”

  “Just that simple?”

  “Yeah, pretty much.”

  “Huh.”

  Russell pointed to one of the monitors. “Riley’s coming in.”

  They turned in unison as Riley appeared a minute later.

  “What’d I miss?” Riley asked.

  Russell chuckled. “Glad you’re still alive. Any injuries?”

  Riley shook his head. “No, whoever the guy is that’s shooting is a crappy shot.”

  “Good.” Russell filled him in as they waited and watched for the others.

  ****

  Curtis jogged down the embankment to where he’d left his ATV. He kept his pace slow enough for most of the dead to keep up. He had a plan. It was weak, but it could work.

  Starting up the ATV, he drove slowly around the perimeter of Russell’s property to where the outer fence would be closest to his house. He didn’t have the best memory and was guessing as he navigated through some dense brush. He slowed to a stop just outside the first fence.

  Hopping off the vehicle, he dug through his pack and grabbed his bolt cutters. He patted his shirt pocket making sure he hadn’t lost his lighter. He looked behind him and saw the large group of dead had thinned a little. God, they were losing steam. About a hundred were left, many of them pushed through the brush, but others were slowed down, getting branches caught in their clothing. He clapped his hands and whistled. Their chorus of groans grew louder, and they picked up their pace. Good, they were part of the plan, and he didn’t want to lose any more.

  He cut his way into the first fence and slipped through. Pushing through the grass and brush, he made it to the next fence. It would definitely need more than bolt cutters. With his new plan there was no question in his mind that the gate would be opened for him. He grabbed a handful of brush and twigs, making a small pile. He took out his lighter, aiming toward the bottom of the pile. He watched with satisfaction as the grass began to smoke and burn but swore a moment later when the wind blew it out. He turned back to see several of the dead that made it to the hole in the fence. They still hadn’t figured out how to get through.

  He grabbed more grass, cupping his hands around it as he lit it. When it began to smoke, he added some more small twigs. They began to glow as the small fire took hold. He was feeling confident about plan b till he glanced up at the surrounding land and then back at what he knew was a pathetic excuse for a campfire.

  Searching around, he spotted a large sage bush with numerous dead branches. He snapped off a number of them and marched over to the tiny fire. The branches were so dry that dust filtered through the air as he broke them in half and added them to the blaze. The fire choked, then caught, sending up larger flames. Within minutes, Curtis had stripped the bush of the rest of its dead branches and had a satisfactory fire going. He rubbed his hands together, a maniacal laugh escaping his lips. He was probably losing it, but it really didn’t matter at this point. He grabbed the end of one of the larger branches. The other end was burning steady, and he used it to torch nearby grass. The wind had picked up, sending sparks in the direction of the second fence. It seemed plan b just might work out after all.

  Chapter 24

  Marjie and Gary walked along the western fence line. Both were on edge and struggled to come up with something to say. An awkward silence stretched out between them a
s they approached a small hillside. Marjie spoke her thoughts out loud. “I can’t stop thinking about all those dead up north. What if Wilson, Riley and Russell get outnumbered?”

  Gary glanced down at her then back at the horizon. “Wilson is like a cat. I swear he has nine lives. We’ve gotten this far. It’s hard to imagine anything going terribly wrong under Wilson or Russell’s watch.” He hesitated before speaking his next words. “I can’t believe Russell moved Jane. The man is a mystery. I’m sure there is a book there.” He stopped at the top of a ridge, staring out at the fields and pines, thankful visibility was good.

  Marjie shuddered. “Maybe we should keep moving. I don’t think we should be out in the open.”

  Feeling foolish for having stood there too long, Gary grabbed her arm and guided her down the ridge and into a stand of pines. “I’m sorry. I wasn’t thinking. Let’s wait a moment before continuing in case we attracted attention to ourselves.”

  Marjie nodded. “It’s easy to forget just how cautious we have to be. Fortunately, Wilson’s been drilling me on all kinds of survival skills.”

  “He is well-schooled in just about anything that has to do with staying alive under adverse conditions.”

  Marjie started to agree but spotted something moving just to the south of them, along the fence line. “What’s that?” She pointed in the direction of the movement.

  “I’m not sure.” Gary raised his bow ready to take aim, but whatever Marjie saw had moved out of view.

  A bird call sounded from behind them. It was a combination of distressed blue jay and whippoorwill.

  Marjie exhaled in relief. She recognized Wilson’s signal. He’d been teaching her what he called bird code along with everything else. The blue jay whippoorwill combo translated to “Heads up, it’s Wilson.”

  She and Gary watched as Wilson seemed to appear out of thin air, then raise his crossbow and angle it slightly away from them. They both turned in time to see a deer collapse to its knees. It was where Marjie had seen the movement. She didn’t like watching a deer go down but was thankful it wasn’t one of the dead.