Midnight (Adrian's Undead Diary)

by Chris Philbrook

  Chuck and Patty looked at each other painfully for a minute, and then reached for the radio.

  I walked out of Hall A.

  -Adrian

  February 2011

  February 1st

  Goodbyes are always painful Mr. Journal. This one more than the usual.

  When I got back to the dorm last night I cried. A lot. It got so bad I inevitably started to think about Cassie, and how much I missed her. I wanted desperately to have her support right now. Jesus I miss that woman. I’d give it all up to have her back for just one hour.

  Just one hour.

  But that’s not happening is it? Like Gilbert said, I’ve got to earn my redemption. One day, God willing, I’ll make it to the big campus in the sky, and hopefully, she’ll be there waiting for me. Until then, I’ve got blood to spill.

  I wound up sleeping for about six hours until dawn again. Terrible dreams again Mr. Journal. I don’t remember what the dreams were about, but I remember violence. Otis was long gone and hiding under the couch when I woke up. He does that lately when I have bad dreams. Once I’m awake though he’s fine. I got him out from under the couch, got him some food and water, and took a long, hot shower.

  I knew from the radio conversation last night that Brian was rolling in at high noon to get the Williams family, so I had work to do. First thing after I got ready was to head down to the gas station. Outside I could smell the odor on the air of a burnt home. You ever been near a house fire? Lots of nasty chemical smells in the air, and this one was extra bad. I hopped in the plow, made sure there was a chain in it, and I headed down to the gas station. I had to move the spiked boards we dropped in the road. I approached it carefully, and made sure there was no one around. Of course, someone with a good rifle and some time behind a scope could kill me from far enough away that I’d never see them, but fuck it, I’m feeling a little down in the dumps today.

  I hooked the chain up to the burnt out truck, and then hitched it to the plow. I dragged the heap into the gas station yard and searched the station for anything usable. Wouldn’t you know, but there was nothing left. All that was left was just a few standing remnants of frame, and the warped metal of some tools and shit.

  I headed back up to campus. As soon as I pulled in I saw the Williams people in the windows of Hall A, gathering what few things they wanted to leave with. I suddenly got really fucking paranoid that they were going to steal valuable stuff I’d need to replace, but I calmed myself down. Everything that I couldn’t live without was already in Hall E, under lock and key. Whatever they took from Hall A they could keep.

  After I parked the plow I gathered up the stuff I wanted them to leave with. I had a rough idea of the 9mm ammo they still had, and I knew it was around 50 or so rounds, and I wanted them to have more. I grabbed them 25 more rounds to take with them. I anticipated Charles would take his shotgun with him, and that’s fine, but I really wanted him to take a pump action as well. I snagged one of the Benelli pumps that we got from the cabin, and a box of 12 shells for him.

  I also wanted them to keep the Marlin and the Tac .22, so I grabbed another box of 500 rounds. I wanted to give them one of the .38 revolvers we’d gotten, but I couldn’t find the one I wanted to give them. I think I left it in one of the gun cases and I didn’t bother looking for it before they left. That seemed like more than enough ammo to keep them safe and sound. I had no idea what kind of drugs they had over at STIG, so I made sure to grab them some antibiotics, ibuprofen, aspirin, vitamins, and some painkillers. I also grabbed them some food.

  Out of the cafeteria I snagged a flat for 48 cans, and filled it with various different foods. We had a full bag of chips spare, as well as two tins of juice. I also grabbed a few random tidbits like granola bars, a few chocolate bars, etc. I got it all in some cardboard boxes and moved it over to Hall A. I left it just out of the way of their sight, so they couldn’t see my surprise parting gift for them.

  It wasn’t much after that when I saw Charles trying to get my attention through a window. I headed inside. We sat down at the table and had a really awkward conversation that turned a little ugly.

  “Adrian, we’d like to leave here with a fair share of the food.”

  “Oh yeah. I’ve got a package of food ready for you already, and you can take whatever you want from what you’ve got here in the dorm as well. I’ve also got some weapons and ammo I’d like you to take.”

  “Oh wow, that’s great, thanks. We can load it all in their truck when they get here.”

  “Yeah I’ll help you guys. It’s not a ton, but they’ve got food there, and I’m sure we’ll be trading more soon. That or you guys will come back once this is dealt with.”

  “Well how much stuff is it? I mean, we were thinking a straight split of the food. There’s five of us, and just one of you, so we were expecting to take you know, about 75% of the food.” He seemed confused that I wasn’t just giving it all to them.

  I got angry, but I stayed calm. “Chuck, in that case I think it’s fair that you guys take whatever it is you gathered on your own. Which is nothing. What I’m giving you, is what the girls and I gathered the past few days together, plus extra food, plus several weapons, and a shitload of ammo you didn’t come here with. I think I’m being far more than fair.”

  He was steaming, “So you’re just gonna throw us out on our asses with next to nothing? That’s ridiculous! If you’d just talked to Sean instead of fighting him this wouldn’t be happening! This is all your fault goddamn you!”

  I stood up and pointed a finger in his face, calm had gone the way of the dodo. “You fucking brought this on ME you asshole. YOU led them to MY home, the one I almost died to make safe, and I KILLED people so you can sleep here at night. Sleep right near the wood stove I found, out of a house I cleared by myself. You eat the food I gather, and have electricity from the generator that I PUT HERE!” I nearly smacked him across the face bitch slap style but I turned and walked to the door.

  At the door I said one last thing, “Chuck. You’re leaving here with more than you came with. Get your family safe, and have the best life you can. Don’t regret this decision. Own it.”

  And I walked out.

  I didn’t see him again until when the STIG truck pulled up to the bridge. I didn’t move the vans away this time, I just stood there, waiting for them to come out of the truck. I had the weapons packed into a single rifle case from the grocery store roof, and I had brought the big box of food and ammo out too.

  Brian jumped out of the passenger side of the truck and his sidekick Darryl waved out the truck window at me. Now that there’s some trust established, he seems to have warmed to me.

  Brian’s first words to me were, “Holy shit man. What happened at that gas station?”

  All I did was nod solemnly. He knew not to pry. He shook my hand for sometime ad eventually we grabbed the box of stuff and brought it to the back of the big truck. He threw the door up, and we hefted into the back. After a good shove inside I wiped my hands off, and stood there, waiting as the Williams family trudged their way over the bridge in our direction.

  He finally started talking, “What’re you going to do?”

  “I killed three of his people Brian. They were waiting in ambush at the gas station for us after they torched it.” I remember licking my lips a lot. They’re dry and painful right now, too much time outside. I need to look for Chapstick.

  “We saw the bodies and it serves them right Adrian. If Sean’s fucking you over like this you know you’ve gotten underneath his skin. This is a power play Adrian. He’s trying to show his people that you’re a threat, and that you’ll be dealt with.”

  I laughed. He didn’t know the whole story yet. “There’s more to what happened at the gas station than you know Brian. After I dropped those three people I searched their bodies, and took their guns.”

  “Good, anything decent?” He asked. He seemed excited at the prospect of new weapons and ammo coming into town.

  “Brian th
eir guns weren’t loaded.”

  I let him think about it. He spat on the ground when he put two and two together. I spoke up before he had the chance to, “He had me kill those people on purpose. He knew I’d do it, and he put patsies out there with empty guns for me to kill. I eliminated that cocksucker’s competition. I murdered innocents for him Brian, and he will fucking pay for it.”

  Brian nodded slowly. “You want help? I’ll give you Jason, he’s got some military experience, I’m sure he’ll be useful.”

  I shook my head. “No, but thanks. I need to do this solo. I’ve got some ideas on what to do and how to do it, I just need to think about it. I do know this; if he’s killing off his own people like this, then that means he’s not very popular at home right now. My bet is if I kill him and only him, the rest of his people will throw in the white towel and call for a truce.”

  Brian agreed. I’ve got some planning to do.

  Just about then the Williams people arrived, and it was a mess. Charles wouldn’t look at me at all, and Patty was crying. She hugged me, and we got her up in the back of the truck. Randy hugged me too, and he was falling apart. Poor kid was just sobbing, begging his mom and dad not to make them leave. Abby didn’t look at me either, she was still angry. Chuck couldn’t get into the back of the truck because of his busted arm, which pissed him off even more. Brian wound up making him ride bitch in the front.

  I helped Patty and Randy up, and Abby told me, “I can do it myself.” Gotta love that kid’s spunk.

  Brian handed them a flashlight, and pulled the truck’s door down. As the door slid shut I could hear Randy sob. Talk about a heart breaking moment. I completely felt like the Nazis loading the Jews onto the trains headed to the concentration camp. I mean, that was the moment in a nutshell. I was sending people off I knew might not make it. I was hopeful.

  Brian and I shook hands again, and he offered any assistance I needed. I thanked him, and said the same. I told him I’d be in touch once I knew what the plan was. He said he appreciated it, and he got in the truck. I watched them back up the hill and disappear.

  A couple minutes later as I was walking back over the bridge I heard the distinct noise of snow crunching underfoot behind me, and I dropped and brought up the M15. Running down the road and crossing the bridge was Abby. She had all her shit with her and was running, all elbows and knees towards me. I damn near shot her for the second time. Kid is stupid sometimes.

  She ran right up and slid to a stop about 5 feet from me. Her nose was running and her eyes were red. She steadied herself, cleared her throat and said one thing to me.

  “I’m not leaving you here alone to deal with my family’s problem.”

  I gave her a hug. Such a strong kid. She had banged on the truck to stop and told her family she couldn’t leave me alone. She apologized to her parents, kissed her brother on the head, hugged her mom and dad, and ran back here. I really don’t want her here, but I have to admire her standup attitude. She’s taking responsibility where her family can’t. It’s what a strong person does. They do what is required and responsible, despite being afraid. Hope she didn’t learn that from me. I’m a terrible role model.

  We got her shit set up in a room down the hall from me. Despite the fact that we have the woodstove functional in Hall A, we’re gonna be here in E. More resources, weapons, the solar panels, etc. Plus there’s no in splitting up and wasting twice the fuel on two generators.

  Damn little sense now that the gas station nearest to me is gone. I don’t know how I am going to deal with getting fuel. We’ll need to hit larger stations further away and really make substantial fuel runs. None of this 20 gallons at a time bullshit. We’ll need to load up all our drums and get 300 gallons in one trip. Otherwise we’ll be wasting too much fuel just getting the fuel. Now in my moist, wet dreams I envision us finding a fuel truck on the side of the road somewhere.

  Fat fucking chance right?

  So the rest of the afternoon was getting her settled, eating some food, and making murderous plots to end this Sean motherfucker. Oh, and Brian radioed us to let us know they made it back safe. Guess I don’t have to worry about them anymore.

  Now, all my thoughts and evil intentions are fixed wholly on Sean.

  Hear that you little bitch?

  I’m angry, and I’m on my way.

  -Adrian

  February 2nd

  It’s about 11pm. There was another explosion outside about twenty minutes ago. It was loud enough to shake the plates in the cupboards, and send Otis scrambling.

  Since then there have been a series of smaller explosions. The night sky is glowing orange from the fire and it flat out lights up the clouds for miles around when there’s another burst.

  I can’t exactly pin down where the explosion was, but my educated guess is that it’s more than 10 miles away, and probably on the other side of downtown somewhere.

  I sent out a radio call five times now to the STIG people and they haven’t responded.

  I think STIG is right about there. Abby is starting to freak out.

  I’m not sure what to do.

  -Adrian

  Guilt

  Charles and Patty watched their 17 year old girl turn from them and run away down the rural road towards her old private school. She’d left them, and they both knew it would never be the same again. This wasn’t like the time they’d brought her to the boarding school when she was a freshman. This time she was leaving them for herself and her needs, not theirs. And she wouldn’t follow them where they were going anymore.

  Abby had banged on the inside of the back of the truck they were in until Darryl and Brian in the cab heard her. Patty had tried to stop her daughter, to calm her down, but when Abby’s mind was made, almost nothing would derail her. Especially not now, not since the world had ended, and little Abigail had grown up. Patty had a flash of memory from just a few days ago, when her daughter had stood over an undead teenager with a pistol and blew the girl’s head off at point blank range. Abby had done it to save her mother’s life. Dirty Harry had nothing on Dirty Abby.

  The Williams family, father Charles, mother Patricia, daughter Abigail, and young son Randall, had survived on their own in their family home for six months following the apocalypse. The end of the world came at the hands of the dead. One day, Wednesday, June 23rd to be precise, the dead refused to stay deceased. All across the world they had risen, and bite by bite their ranks increased until the remaining living was scattered, starving, and scared.

  Their daughter Abigail had been at her private school the day the world ended. She’d been trapped alone there overnight and was eventually freed by a staff member at the school named Adrian Ring. Abby had left Adrian behind to return home to her family in their small town of Westfield, but when she left, he told her she and her family could return. He was going to make the school’s campus safe to live in, and they were welcome to return.

  The Williams family had hidden in plain sight, windows covered, moving only at night and silently when they did. They ate everything they could find, and only decided to do something about their situation when all the food in their neighborhood was gone and the town’s remaining survivors were closing in to scavenge their home. When things became desperate for the family, Abby lobbied hard and won her parents over to the idea of going back to the school to be with Adrian. Adrian was a tough man. He was smart, clever, and knew how to use weapons effectively. Abby knew he would still be safe, and she knew they could find safety from the undead with him.

  They arrived on campus Christmas Day. The trip through the hills between the two towns was treacherous, and they ran out of gas. Fortunately they found one of the school’s trucks on the side of the road a couple miles from campus, and with a little luck, it started for them. The last few miles they rode packed into the front of the Ford. Adrian welcomed them in, gave them a warm place to stay, and that night he even fought off an attack by the scavengers who had followed them from their hometown.

  T
hey ate like kings with him. He taught them how to shoot, and together they helped turn one of the dormitories into a new home for their family. He even led them into his town on their own scavenging raids. It was scary, but every time they went out they returned with the things they needed. The worst thing that’d happened to them in the month they’d been with him was a broken arm suffered by Charles. And frankly, everyone knew the injury could’ve been avoided. His arm was stepped on by zombies when they were being overrun at the police station downtown. He thought he was out of bullets, and ran in trying to save their group and kill the zombies with his bare hands. He’d forgotten about the loaded pistol on his hip. Live and learn Charles had mused.

  The scavengers that ran their town of Westfield hailed from the high school there. They were led by a man named Sean Stockwell. Sean was a state senator, and with his asshole buddies on the force they had formed a council and were controlling the entire town. Sean had followed the Williams clan to Auburn Lake Preparatory Academy, and when Adrian told him to leave, they attacked. Adrian had killed two of the men before Sean ran off, but just a few days later, Sean returned in force.

  Down the street from the school there was a lone survivor who had befriended Adrian. His name was Gilbert Donohue and he was retired from the restaurant business. In a prior life before that he was also an ex Green Beret. He and Adrian had set an ambush, and when the Westfield people returned to take the food and the campus by force, they walked right into the trap. It was a bloodbath. All but two of the Westfield people were killed in the ambush. Sean escaped.

  Things quieted down, and eventually the Williams family, Adrian and Gilbert wound up getting in contact with another group of people in the same town. This new group was led by the local Chief of Police, Brian Moore. The same Brian in the front of the truck they were in. His group was much larger, over a hundred survivors, and their sanctuary was a solar panel manufacturing plant across town. They had successfully completed two mutually beneficial trades, and the future was starting to look very bright for both groups. Even if the walking dead were not gone, some civility had at least finally returned to their lives.