"I made bad decision after bad decision. I married my girlfriend when I was seventeen and dropped out of high school that year when I knocked her up. I began smoking pot when I was fifteen and that escalated to prescription drug abuse and heroin use by the time my daughter was born. I was unable to hold down a job and resorted to theft to pay for my drug habit. I'd disappear for days into a drug-induced haze and emerge hungry for more. I led my wife into the same habit and one day I came down from a high and realized my daughter had run out of diapers the day before. I had become what I hated." He sighed.
"So, when I made the decision that night to help my drug buddies rob a gas station, it was one more terrible decision in a long line of terrible decisions. I'm surprised I got off so easy, really; that was the seventh time in four years that I had been arrested. Taking that plea deal was probably the best decision I had made upto that point.
"Tamara, my wife, came to visit me every now and then but it was hard. I was held in Western Kentucky, all the way across the state from where she and Maddy lived. The first time she came to visit me, she looked like she was near death. She said that the State had told her to go to rehab or they'd take Maddy away from her, and she wasn't sure what to do. I talked her into rehab and didn't see her again for almost a year. But then she came to visit and brought our daughter. She looked a lot better and Maddy looked good too. She told me she had gotten off drugs and that things were looking up. She visited a few more times and then quit coming and then she filed for divorce a few years later."
"Wow," Jillian said.
"Are you still using? Drugs, that is?" Adam asked.
He shook his head. "No. I relapsed earlier this year after my mom died, but I was just finishing up rehab when all this went down, so I've been clean now for about four months."
Randy nodded.
"It's a daily battle, but I guess this a good situation to be in. It’s not like there are any dealers left to buy from."
"Good point," Adam said.
"So where are you going to go from here?" Randy asked.
"I don't know," he replied. "I guess I hadn't really thought that far ahead."
"I see."
"I mean, I guess I just had this vague plan to come here to see if my aunt was still alive, and then she died. I ran into Juan and saved him from some soldiers and we have been together since, but that was really just a couple of days ago."
"Okay."
"What does Juan have planned?" Jillian asked.
"I guess he just wants to get out of Bloomington-Normal. I don't know where he wants to go after that."
"You guys could come with us?" Randy suggested.
Jamie looked at him for a moment before replying. "To Chicago?"
"Yes."
"To Chicago," he repeated. "Hmm, it sounds like there are probably an awful lot of zombies there. Why are you guys going to Chicago?"
"It's home," Randy said. "Plus, for me anyway, I have an older brother who lives there and parents. I'd like to see if they're okay."
He nodded. "I get it."
"Yeah."
"Well, I guess that's better than wandering around aimlessly,” he said. "I'm in."
Chapter Fifteen
Katie Barnes
Day 6
She felt someone shaking her gently. Katie opened her eyes and looked up at Joel.
"Hey sleepy head, let's get going. The sun just came up. Rachel said we can probably make it to the cabin by noon if we leave now." He was smiling.
She rubbed her eyes. "Quiet night?"
"Yeah. Michelle woke me up a half hour early because she heard something outside. When I went to go look, I saw our intruder was a raccoon. It ran off when it saw me," he chuckled.
Katie laughed and yawned. "Yeah, let's get going." She walked outside and saw that Michelle was refueling the mopeds. "How's she doing that?" she asked Joel.
"The pumps still have some emergency power I guess," Joel replied, shrugging.
"Hey guys, I found some packaged pastries in the gas station. They should still be good," Rachel said, handing them all cheese Danishes.
Katie wolfed hers down. It tasted good.
They set out on the road again, with Rachel in the lead this time and Joel in the rear. The countryside gradually became hillier and more forested. Katie noticed a sign welcoming them to Pennsylvania and the Allegheny National Forest as they drove past.
After winding down multiple rural roads for what seemed like hours to Katie, they finally arrived at the cabin around noon. It was in the middle of a clearing, surrounded by tall beeches reaching toward the clouds. The cabin itself was somewhat modest, looking like it had a few bedrooms. A stone chimney jutted up on the side of the building. The front porch was covered and there appeared to be a scarecrow propped up in the swing.
As they all pulled to a stop, Rachel's face twisted in horror. "Daddy?" she asked, her voice trembling. She leapt off her moped and ran toward the scarecrow. "Daddy!" she screamed.
Katie and the others ran up behind her. The figure Katie had mistaken for a scarecrow was Rachel’s father. He was wearing a pair of denim bib overalls and appeared to have been dead for more than a week. Rachel hugged his corpse, weeping loudly. Michelle walked up, hugged her and looked at Rachel's dad, tilting her head.
"Huh, I thought I just saw his eyes open a bit," Michelle said, leaning over him. She put her hand on his shoulder. Unexpectedly, he turned his head quickly and bit her hand, his jaw clamped on her flesh. She began to scream loudly as Rachel jumped backward with a shriek.
Joel stepped in and swung the crowbar down into Rachel's dad's head. The corpse released Michelle's hand and slumped over.
"Michelle! Are you okay?" Katie ran to her. Michelle’s right hand was streaming blood from where he had bitten her, in the webbing between her thumb and index finger.
Michelle nodded, crying. She clutched her hand.
"Let's get you inside and wash it out!" Rachel exclaimed.
"Wait Rachel, we need to make sure there aren't any other Infected in the cabin!" Joel exclaimed.
"Okay, so you guys clear the cabin while I treat Michelle's hand," Rachel said urgently.
Katie and Joel ran inside and searched the rooms.
"The house is clear Rachel!" Katie yelled.
Michelle was rushed into the house and Rachel helped her wash her hand out and put a bandage on. A couple of hours later, everyone finally felt like they could relax. They would have to make sure Michelle's hand stayed clean, but it seemed likely she would be okay.
Joel built a fire in the fireplace as the sun set outside. Katie locked the doors and drew the shutters on the windows. Rachel sat down in front of the fire and was quiet for a really long time. Finally, she spoke.
"Daddy was a good man. He worked hard at a steel mill for many years and he had just retired a year ago," she paused to wipe some tears from her face. "He and Momma loved one another dearly."
"I'm sorry Rachel," Katie said, hugging her.
"It's okay. I mean, I guess people die. We've seen more people die in the last few days than I've ever seen die. I don't want us to ever reach the point where death is meaningless to us, but I guess we need to get used to it. It's probably going to be a while before things get better out there."
Joel approached. "I found a large bottle of Cabernet in the wine rack. You ladies want to share it?"
They drank from the bottle, passing it around.
"I know I've told you about Junior and my mother," Katie said later. "But I haven't told you much about Robby. I just said he died when I was fifteen and then I was sent to Canada to live with my aunt. I've never told you how he died.
"I remember we went to a baseball game in Kansas City. The Royals crushed the Orioles that day, but it was the most fun I had ever had. Robby had moved south to D.C. for school a few months earlier and I was really missing having him around. My dad was just easier to deal with when Robby was there. So it was a great surprise to wake up one day and see Robby eating
breakfast in our kitchen, talking to our dad. I skipped school that day and we drove to Kansas City from Baltimore for the game the next day.
"After the game, we drove back and listened to one of our favorite bands, Death Cab for Cutie. They hadn't released an album for a few years so we just listened to a couple of older ones and we just listened to them over and over and over again, the whole way back from KC," she laughed.
"He went back to school the following Monday and got busy with classes. He had always been a bit of a geek and he just poured himself into his studies. The last time I saw him was when he came home from school the second weekend in November. He was stressing out about some research paper he had due at the end of the semester, and I remember him telling my dad he wanted to change his major to molecular biology. He gave me his favorite Orioles hat before he left to go back to school. He said he had gotten a new one a few weeks before and wanted me to have his old hat.
"I called him on the Fourteenth because I had just had a fight with our dad. Dad had just been freaking out on me because I was failing a class, I think it was algebra. I was really upset. And Robby just comforted me and calmed me down and told me he loved me. I remember he made some corny joke about the Orioles and said he'd be back Friday and would take me down to D.C. to see the sights.
"I remember I told him I had already been to D.C., a lot of times! And he just laughed and said that we would plan a beach trip for the following spring then. I told him I loved him and said goodbye. I was so ready for Friday,” Katie said, sighing. She took another drink from the bottle of wine savoring the warm feeling in her throat.
"And then on Thursday night the phone rang. The landline rang. I remember thinking it odd because no one ever called that line. I figured it was a telemarketer or someone calling from the county jail. For some reason our phone number was really similar to the county jail's, so we would occasionally get collect calls from people trying to get free legal advice. Robby would actually accept the calls when we were younger and just give those guys crazy legal advice. We thought it was hilarious until our parents got the phone bill. They didn't think it was so funny."
The others laughed at that revelation.
Katie continued. "Anyway, the phone was ringing. My dad had just sat down for dinner and I had been in the bathroom washing my hands and I was closest to the phone, as it was in the den, so I answered it. It was one of Robby's friends from school, his name was Subhash. He asked for my dad. He sounded upset. So I got my dad, and I remember the conversation like it happened yesterday:
“'Hello? Yes, this is. What? Oh God, what? Is he okay? Oh no! Where are they taking him?'”
“I remember he hung up and looked at me.”
“'Your brother has been in an accident. We must go to him.'"
Katie sighed. "So we drove to the hospital. I remember I was freaking out the whole time, and my dad just wasn't saying anything! We finally reached the hospital just north of the District, and when we went in, Subhash and Robby's girlfriend Emily were sitting in the waiting room. Subhash looked really nervous and Emily's mascara was streaked down her face; she had been crying. The doctor came out to talk to my dad and he had a grim look on his face and my dad just calmly nodded while the doctor expressed his condolences. I found out what had happened.
"Robby had been on his way to get some dinner for he and Emily when another car coming the other way had crossed the center line and hit Robby's car head on. The driver of the other car was killed instantly; he was ejected from his car. Robby wasn't. He had been trapped in the wreckage and had called Subhash, asking him to call us. I remember Subhash was just so sad. We all were.
"Robby's aorta had been torn and while he seemed fine when the paramedics arrived, by the time they got him to the hospital he had bled to death," Katie felt tears begin rolling down her cheeks. "The doctor said we could go back and see him and I remember how peaceful he looked. He didn't look like he had been in a terrible accident; he just looked like he was asleep.
"The funeral was on a cloudy day the next week. The ceremony was nice and afterward my dad told me he couldn't handle raising me and he put me on a plane with some of my belongings and sent me to Toronto to live with my aunt and uncle."
Everyone was quiet for a few minutes.
Finally, Michelle spoke. "That's heavy. Rachel, I'm so sorry for your loss."
"Thanks Michelle. And Katie, thank you for sharing that," Rachel said.
"Guys, I'm pretty tired. I think I'm going to turn in early," Michelle said.
"Goodnight."
Rachel, Joel and Katie stayed up fairly late talking about each other’s upbringings and finishing off the bottle of wine. Gradually the fire in the fireplace reduced itself to glowing coals as the embers faded from white to orange to a deep crimson.
When Katie awoke the next morning, she couldn't find Joel. Where was he? She dressed and stepped out into the chilly morning. The sun had just risen above the horizon and its light filtered through the morning fog and the trees.
She saw Joel standing over a patch of freshly dug dirt holding a shovel about a hundred feet from the cabin.
"What are you doing early bird?" she called out to him.
He turned and walked back toward her. "I just buried Rachel's father. I felt it was appropriate to give his body some dignity."
Katie hugged him. He was sweaty from the work. "You're a good man Joel Ryan."
"Thanks," he replied, patting her back.
They turned and went back inside and ate breakfast. Around 9:00am, Rachel got up. A half hour later, Katie heard noise in Michelle's room.
"Guys, I don't feel so good," she cried out. "I feel hot!"
Rachel and Katie went to check on her. Katie put the back of her hand against Michelle’s forehead.
"You're burning up!" Katie exclaimed.
Rachel carefully unwrapped Michelle's hand. It looked red and puffy around the bite. Rachel frowned. "It looks like the bite's infected," she said. "Hang on, I'm going to go grab a thermometer from the bathroom." She left the room and came back a few moments later with an infrared thermometer. She swiped it across Michelle's forehead and waited for it to beep. When it did she furrowed her brow. "One-Hundred-Point-One degrees. You definitely have a fever. Based on that and your hand, I'd say you have an infection. If we could get a hold of some amoxicillin or Cipro, that might help."
"Hey, we passed a pharmacy in the last town we drove through," Joel said. "It was in a strip mall. I'll go check and see if they have any antibiotics. You guys stay here."
"Joel, you can't go alone!" Katie exclaimed, grabbing his arm.
"Katie, I have to go alone. You have to stay here. We can't leave Rachel and Michelle alone. Besides, I have a crowbar," he forced a nervous smile.
"Well, be careful! I'm going to have a hard time forgiving you if you don't come back!"
"I will be. I love you," he leaned over and kissed her before he left.
After he left, Rachel cleaned out the bite wound on Michelle's hand. Katie went into the living room because she didn't want to watch. She heard Michelle crying out in pain.
A few minutes later Rachel came out and sat down across from Katie. "She's going to try to rest. I told her I'll be checking her temp every couple of hours.” She shuddered. "I feel terrible that she got bitten. Her hand is pretty bad. The inflammation has it puffed up to almost twice its normal size and the area around the bite is as red as a cherry," she frowned. "I hope Joel gets back quickly with antibiotics. Otherwise I don't think we'll be able to save her hand."
"What? You think we might have to amputate her hand?"
"In the absence of a medical facility to provide intravenous antibiotics, yes. Otherwise she could go into septic shock. I mean who knows what kind of bacteria were living in my dad's mouth? The mouth of a living human being is one of the filthiest places, as far as microbes go. I'd imagine the mouth of a dead human is worse."
Katie and Rachel sat there quietly for a long time. The sounds of th
e forest were all they could hear. It was actually comforting. Right before sundown, Katie heard the sound of a moped approaching.
"Joel!" she got up and ran outside. Sure enough, Joel was driving up.
"Hey! I got some antibiotics!" he shouted triumphantly as he pulled to a stop. He and Katie walked in and he handed them to Rachel. Rachel then disappeared into Michelle's bedroom.
"What took so long?" Katie asked.
"Well, let's just say the strip mall wasn't empty. I had to kill about a dozen Infected. Then I had to get into the pharmacy. Then I had to find the antibiotics. Then I had to high tail it out of there," he sighed. "Busy day!"
"Well, I'm glad you're okay," Katie said as she hugged him and kissed him on the cheek.
Rachel came outside. "I gave her some antibiotics. Her fever hasn't gone up since this afternoon. We'll see how she does and go from there."
On the morning of November 4th, Michelle's fever had dropped and the swelling in her hand had gone down significantly. In the afternoon, however, the fever returned and shot up to 102°. She also developed chills and back pain.
On the 5th, she had little bright red circles all over her arms and legs and her back pain worsened significantly. Rachel warned Katie and Joel to stay out of Michelle's room, as it was likely she had some kind of virus. By the end of the day, Michelle's fever had hit 106°.
On the 6th, she began to bleed from her gums and nose and complained of constant back pain. The next day she began vomiting blood and became delirious.
On the 9th, Rachel exited Michelle's room around noon. "Michelle just died," she said quietly.
Katie got up and ran to her, to hug her.
She rebuffed Katie. "Don't hug me. I have some of her blood on me. We don't know what she had so we don't know how contagious it is. It's probably blood-borne though. Let me go take a hot shower and then we can hug." She was trying to be stoic.
As Rachel walked to the bathroom, Katie sat down, stunned by the news.
"My roommate just died," she said, looking at Joel.
He came over and put his arm around her. They sat there quietly for a while, while Katie wept. Rachel came out of the bathroom a few minutes later and came over. Katie stood up and hugged her. Both women were crying now. Joel stood there quietly.
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