A Glimpse Of Decay (Book 2): Staring into the Abyss

by Santiago, A. J.

  As she drove off in a quest to find a clear path to the freeway, she didn’t notice that Hailey, mouth hanging open and eyes glazed-over white, was now standing silently in the middle of the park. She took a few unsteady steps in the direction of the van, but as Magda drove off, the dead mother stopped and turned around. She swayed back and forth, looking up at the sky and then looking around at her surroundings. She saw Brianna’s baby seat and began to plod towards it.

  Driven by curiosity, or maybe out of an instinct that was slowly fading away in the dark recesses of her dead brain, she reached down and grabbed ahold of the carry handle of the safety seat. She coughed and gurgled and then groaned as she stumbled her way towards a surrounding neighborhood, dragging the baby seat behind her.

  Chapter 9

  Day 21

  Cartersville, Georgia

  “Jerry, Michelle, open up, it’s Benjie.” He frantically banged on the front door of the couple’s home as he nervously looked over his shoulder. Michelle opened the door, her eyes filled with tears and her nose running. Quickly stepping inside, Benjie locked the door behind him. “Where’s Jerry?”

  “I don’t know where he’s at!” Michelle sobbed. “Right after he got off of the phone with you, he went to go get Momma and he hasn’t come back!”

  “He’s been gone since then?” Benjie asked in a shocked tone. “You mean you’ve been here by yourself all this time?”

  “Yes! I don’t know where anyone’s at!”

  Benjie sat down at the kitchen table and lowered his head, drumming his fingers on the table top. He needed to take a moment to gather his thoughts. He had really hoped that he was going to find his friend at his house. In fact, he had been counting on it. “Man, I just got back from Marietta. Me and Corina and her little girl were down there shopping when everyone started going crazy. We were in the mall and a bunch of people…like hundreds of them…came rushing in. They were running everywhere…like they were trying to get away from something, and then there were some other people who came in chasing after them…attacking them…and killing them.

  Next thing you know, they were chasing us and we tried to run inside of Forney’s Department store. Somehow we got separated and I’m running for my life because there’s this crazy-ass chick…with half of her face torn off…and she’s chasing after me!”

  “What happened to Corina?”

  “I don’t know.” He looked up at the ceiling, tears building up in his eyes. “I don’t know what happened to her. There was this rush of people and they just plowed us over…and I couldn’t get to her…and then she was gone.”

  Knowing that Benjie was in bad shape himself, Michelle knew that she needed to be the strong one, so she calmed herself down and wiped her eyes dry. Trying to keep her emotions in check, she took a deep breath and let out a big sigh. “So, you’ve been on the road since all of this started?”

  “Yeah, been sneaking my way back here. It’s really crazy out there.” Leaning back in the seat, he looked at her and said, “Those things are everywhere…whatever they are. Seems like some of them move fast while some of them move slow. I heard some people calling them ‘zombies.’ ”

  “So, you didn’t get to hear the president’s speech? He gave one yesterday.”

  “No, I didn’t.”

  “Well, he gave a speech on T.V. and the radio. He tried to explain what was going on…but he didn’t make any sense. What he was saying…well, it was just so...unbelievable.”

  “What did he say?” Benjie asked as he looked into her eyes.

  “Uh, he said some crazy stuff that didn’t make sense.” She knew that Benjie was having a hard time comprehending everything that was going on, and she didn’t want to confuse him or frighten him any further.

  “Michelle…what did the president say,” he asked in a serious tone.

  “I really don’t know what he said, or what he was meaning to say. It sounded crazy, that’s all I know.”

  “Okay Michelle, we’ll you stop beating around the bush and just tell me what in the hell he said?”

  “Okay…he said something about the stuff that was going on in Europe and how it spread to here. How the bombs in Russia scattered it out over the world and now it’s done spread all the way over to our country. He tried to explain how it had started off as a weapon…some kind of chemical thing, and how it causes people to…” She paused as she struggled with what she was going to say.

  “How it causes people to do what?” Benjie asked in a shaky voice.

  “Well, how it causes people to…well, to come back from the dead.”

  “Did you say, ‘come back from the dead?’ ”

  “Yeah, that’s what I said. And that’s what the president said.”

  “Holy Jesus, now I’ve heard everything.” He mashed his palms up against his forehead. “That explains why those people out there were calling them ‘zombies.’ Because they are zombies!”

  “But do you think that something like that could really happen?”

  “Why not? I mean, they’re cloning things out there…messing with things that they shouldn’t be messing with. But that doesn’t explain the fast moving ones. Those ones seem to be alive.”

  “Well, the president said that this thing happens in two stages or two parts…and that you’re alive in the first stage. I guess those are the ones who are still able to move fast.”

  “Man, this is way too much to believe,” he said to her, and to himself. He stood up, and with an urgent sense of determination he said, “Look girl, we got to get ahold of ourselves. I’m sure Jerry is fine, and I’m sure he’s probably got your momma with him. When I finally made it back into the city, I saw that the cops and the state patrol were shutting down some of the highways and roads around town, so that’s probably why they’re late. And it looks like everyone is trying to use their phones, so I’m sure all the cell towers are overloaded. That’s why we haven’t been able to use them. I’m sure of it.”

  “You think so?” The look in her eyes told Benjie that she was searching for reassurance. His attempts to explain things optimistically had brought a miniscule sense of calm to her, and she was now able to control her emotions.

  “I’m sure of it. Now, when Jerry got back here with your mom, what were y’all planning on doing?”

  “We were gonna head up to my daddy’s cabin.”

  “Where’s that at?”

  “It’s up near Rome…in the mountains. Daddy put a lot of work into the place, and it has running water and solar panels for power. Jerry figured we could stay up there ‘til all of this worked itself out.”

  “Jerry is a very smart man. Guess that’s why he’s the boss and I’m the dumb worker.”

  “Benjie, don’t put yourself down like that. You’re smart too.”

  He walked over to a front window. Pulling back the curtain slightly, he looked out. “What about your neighbors? Have you talked to them?”

  “I saw the Littles packing up and leaving yesterday. I’ve heard cars coming and going, but I’m not sure about the rest of them. I’ve heard some folks talking, but I haven’t gone outside. I don’t trust anyone.”

  “Well, that only leaves three other houses here in the cul-de-sac.” Benjie backed away from the window and walked towards Michelle. He nervously rubbed the palms of his hands on his thighs and he looked around as he grappled with what to do next. “Okay, keep trying Jerry and your mom. Maybe the phones will start working again. Also, watch the T.V. and see if they say anything else.”

  “And what are you going to do?”

  “I’m just gonna go check on the neighbors and see if they’ve heard anything, or see if they’re even still around.”

  “Please don’t leave,” Michelle pleaded. She could feel her composure fleeing her at the thought of being left alone again.

  Benjie could hear the panic and fear in her voice. “Don’t worry, hun, I won’t leave you here. I promise, I’ll be right back. I just gotta see what’s going on out there, tha
t’s all.”

  “Well then take Jerry’s shotgun, its right there in the bedroom.”

  Benjie reached behind his back and retrieved a 9mm pistol. “I’ve got this. You keep the shotgun right next to you. Okay?”

  She shuffled over to the couch and sat down. Drawing her knees up into her chest, she wrapped her arms around them. “Okay, but please don’t be gone too long. Once Jerry and momma get back, I’m sure that he’s gonna wanna head out to the cabin. You know, you can come too. There’s plenty of room for all of us.”

  Benjie placed the pistol back in his pants and he walked over to the door. “Shit, Michelle, I don’t know what I’m gonna do. I don’t know what’s happened to Corina and little Betty Joe. I kind of want to go back there and see if I can find them.” As he reached to open the door, he paused and looked down at the floor. “I don’t know if I could leave here without knowing what’s happened to them.”

  “I’m sure they’re alright, just like Jerry and momma are alright.”

  “Let’s hope so.” Benjie opened the door and without looking back he said, “Lock it. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

  Michelle jumped to her feet and rushed over to the door, locking the dead bolt. She then went over to the window and peeked out as Benjie made his way over to the house next door. After a few nervous moments she pulled herself away from the window and went back to the couch. She tried dialing both Jerry and her mother, but the phones were now going straight to voice mail. She picked up the TV remote and began to flip through the channels. Two of the local affiliate channels were completely off-air and a third station was transmitting a message from the Emergency Alert System. She checked the national news networks and came across a lone channel that was still transmitting.

  The news report was chaotic and unorganized. An elderly, disheveled looking anchor with uncombed silver hair—someone she didn’t recognize—was sitting behind a desk with a blank green screen behind him. He was trying to pipe-in several different reports, but the video signals were failing and the studio could only receive audio feeds.

  Correspondents with desperate, traumatized voices were making reports from various parts of the country. One frightened female reporter was trying to make a hurried report from Oklahoma City, but the frenetic activity taking place in the background made it almost impossible for her to say anything understandable. Yells and shouts, along with police sirens and gunfire, drowned out her voice, and in the next nerve-racking moment, the reporter was screaming in terror as the signal abruptly went dead.

  Clearly disturbed at what he had just heard, the anchor looked at the camera and cleared his throat. “I’m sorry, but we seem to have lost contact with our team in Oklahoma City,” he said with a scared look on his face, “but we’ll see if we can reconnect with them shortly.” The man glanced around the room, as if looking for a sign or gesture from someone off-camera. After receiving some guidance through his ear piece, he looked back at the camera and composed himself as he nervously tugged at the waist of his sports coat.

  “Alright ladies and gentlemen, I’m being told that we’re now going over to our field correspondent Cheryl Baxter, who is reporting from Omaha, Nebraska. Cheryl, are you there?” A small box with the picture of an attractive woman with short dark hair was placed in the upper right corner of the screen; “Cheryl Baxter” stenciled underneath her image. The anchor paused for a moment and his eyes shifted to the left as he waited for a response. After a few tense seconds and some crackled audio static, a voice came over the TV speaker.

  “Yes, I’m here.”

  With a sigh of relief, the anchor look up to the ceiling and said, “Thank God. Are you and your crew alright?”

  “Yes, for the moment at least,” Cheryl replied in a stressed tone.

  “Can you tell us what’s going on where you’re at? Unfortunately we’re not able to get a video feed from your location.”

  “It’s an incredible scene here just outside of Omaha,” she said in an excited voice. “Right now our van is just south of the city on Interstate Eighty. We’ve pulled over so I can make this report, and as I stand on the side of the highway and look back at Omaha, I just can’t believe what I’m looking at.”

  Taking a deep breath, Cheryl began her hurried report. “Right now there is a frantic evacuation of Omaha taking place. The authorities have lost control of the city and I’m not even sure if the Omaha Police Department is still in existence. The populace is fleeing in droves and traffic is at a standstill on just about every roadway leading away from the city. A large fire has pretty much devoured most of downtown, crossed the Missouri River, and is now burning out of control in Council Bluffs. We’re trying to make it to Lincoln…we’ve received word that the Nebraska National Guard is trying to set up a safety zone there, but we’re not sure how long that will last.”

  “Cheryl, can you tell us what you have experienced there in Omaha?”

  “There have been breakouts all across the city. It’s just like in other large cities across the nation, the disease, or whatever it is, is spreading at an alarming and overwhelming rate. That’s the only way I can describe it. The municipal resources were completely depleted within three days of the first reported incidents, and now, on this fourth day, the city has, for all intents and purposes, fallen.”

  “Have you witnessed any kind of violence there in Omaha?”

  “Yes, we’ve seen countless acts of violence throughout the city. Lots of looting and rioting, open attacks on police and firefighters and random killings on the streets.”

  “And the…the reanimated?” The anchor paused as he tried to think about how to word his questions. “Have you actually been able to see any of these so-called reanimated or resurrected people?”

  “Freddy…to be honest with you, I don’t even know how to describe what we’ve seen. I’ve seen people who have been shot dead, and then they just to get up and start walking. We’ve seen acts of cannibalism being committed by these reanimated people, and we’ve also seen others who seem to be intent on attacking or assaulting anyone who they come into contact with.”

  “And those people, are they reanimated too.”

  “No, they’re still ‘alive’. Or at least I think they are. They act crazed and enraged and they seem to be impervious to pain. Yesterday at a police roadblock we saw hundreds of these infected people charge at the officers and deputies. The police had no choice but to open fire on them, but they still kept charging until they overtook the roadblock. I’m telling you, this is hell on earth. I just can’t comprehend what we’re seeing here.”

  Freddy, the anchor, stared at the camera with a bewildered look on his face. He fidgeted in his seat; looking as if he wanted to bolt from the studio at any moment. After a few seconds, he stood up and removed his ear piece. He looked at someone who was sitting behind a glass wall in a control room and he said, “Hey, how much longer are we going to be on air? I need to get out of here. My wife needs me.”

  “Just stay on the set!” a voice yield back from somewhere off camera.

  “Bullshit!” Freddy shot back. “Look, I’m just the weekend anchor. I’m out of here!”

  “You better not walk out of here or else you fired!” said the voice from the control room.

  “Then fire me! I’m not sticking around this place any—”

  A knocking on the door startled Michelle, causing her to jump up from the couch. She ran to the door and leaned against it, looking through the peep hole.

  “Hurry up, it’s Benjie!”

  She opened the door and Benjie rushed in, slamming the door behind him. He was out of breath and was obviously upset.

  “What happened?” She looked back through the peep hole in an attempt to see the source of Benjie’s distress. “Are they out there? Those things?

  “No, it’s nothing like that.” He placed his hands over her shoulders and gently pulled her away from the door. “That son of a bitch across the street, he pulled a gun on me and threatened to shoot me
if I didn’t get off of his porch!”

  “Oh, you’re talking about Mister Cavanaugh,” She said in a relieved voice as she turned to look at Benjie. “Yeah, he’s mean and cranky.’

  “You’re not kidding. All I was trying to do was ask him about what he was planning on doing. He didn’t want to answer the door, so I was talking to him through the window, then he starts yelling at me to leave him alone and he pops out with a damn deer rifle in his hand. Aims it at my melon!”

  “He’s never been fond of visitors. Jerry and I would just avoid him. He never had a nice thing to say to no one and he was always hollerin at all the kids in the neighborhood. So, did you get to talk to anyone else?”

  “Nope, they’re all gone…or they’re not answering the door. There’s a truck in the driveway next to Cavanaugh’s house, but no one was home.”

  “Yeah, that’s the Hensons. The have a van. If it’s not there, then they must be gone too.”

  Benjie walked over to the kitchen table and plopped down on one of its wooden chairs. He had to calm himself. It wasn’t every day that someone threatened to shoot him, and his easy-going nature wasn’t built to handle all of the stress he was being smothered with. Without thinking about her reaction, he blurted out, “Did Jerry call?” In the next instant, he was hating himself because he knew that Jerry wasn’t going to be calling, and asking that question was like pouring salt on an open wound.

  Michelle shuffled back to the couch and tossed herself down onto the cushions. She curled up in a fetal position and said, “No, he didn’t call. Neither did Momma. And they don’t answer either.”

  Realizing that he needed to quickly change the subject, he saw that the TV was on. The image on the screen was odd looking; a quiet, empty television studio with a green screen in the background behind the anchor desk. He pointed to the TV and asked, “What’s that all about?”

  Michelle remained silent for a few seconds as she pondered on the fate of her husband and her mother. She then realized that Benjie had asked her a question. “Uh, what did you say?”