Just Another Day in the Zombie Apocalypse (Episode 3)

by L. C. Mortimer

  That’s when it hit him: there were apartments upstairs.

  Maybe they didn’t need to keep wandering around to find a place to survive. Maybe they could do things college-style. Maybe they could just hole up in one of these buildings. No one else needed them. It’s not like there was a line of people waiting for houses. The only people around here were of the undead variety. Maybe their little group should stay.

  Maybe they’d found their haven.

  He zipped his pants and circled the building. His shoes crunched loudly in fallen leaves. He pulled out his Glock, hoping he wouldn’t actually have to use it. After seeing Alice take out those Infected earlier, he should probably just be more like her: a fucking badass. He should probably just go full freak show and attack the damn things until they stopped moving, but he still had his asthma to consider.

  If he couldn’t handle a slow jog on a good day, how was he going to handle fighting on a bad day?

  He walked around the back of the building. It was the one directly across the street from Alice and Mark. He knew he needed to be quick. He hadn’t told them where he was going, so he should hurry back. When they finished their shopping, Alice and Mark would want to keep moving, but maybe that wasn’t what they needed right now.

  Maybe they needed to just chill and cope.

  When they got closer to large cities, there would be more Infected and less chance of survival. A couple of zombies, Kyle could handle. A fucking horde? Um, not so much. He didn’t have any interest in fighting off hundreds of Infected single-handedly. No, he cared much more about being able to make it until tomorrow.

  He just wanted to make it through the day.

  He wanted to survive.

  There was an open grassy area behind the building before it turned back into forest. Good. If anything decided to come wandering out of those woods and, oh, wanted some lunch or something, Kyle would be able to have a clear view from upstairs. The building itself looked solid enough. He kicked the side of the stone building with his foot. It didn’t shake. Didn’t even send up any dust.

  That was good.

  He looked up at the upper windows, but there didn’t seem to be any movement coming from up there. Maybe the building was empty. He hoped so. It would be good to find a place they could lay their heads for a little while.

  He finished walking around the back of the building. There were two back doors, so he guessed it was two separate buildings inside. Maybe they could knock down a wall for extra space, or perhaps they’d all live on one side. He wasn’t sure.

  He wanted to go tell Mark, though. They could look around inside. They could go see what it was like.

  Just as he was about to go back to the front of the building, he heard the sound of glass shattering.

  Infected.

  They were here.

  Fuck.

  He started to run around the building. He had to warn Alice and Mark. They were probably still shopping. He hadn’t heard them call out for him, and they hadn’t come around. He wasn’t sure if they would stay put until he returned or if they’d come look for him, but he knew they wouldn’t think he’d gone far.

  Now there were zombies at their building, zombies in town.

  Had they been hiding inside the first floor?

  Had they seen Alice and Mark and thrown their bodies through the glass?

  They still weren’t sure exactly what got the attention of the Infected. It was probably noise, of course, but their group hadn’t been that loud. Had they?

  Kyle ran.

  It wasn’t far, but he was breathing heavily by the time he rounded the corner. He held his gun tightly, ready to raise it. He was ready to aim and fire and take down the sorry creatures who were trying to get his friends.

  Only when he rounded the corner, he was surprised at what he saw.

  It wasn’t an Infected.

  It wasn’t two or three or four Infected.

  No, what he saw was Mark holding Alice firmly in place and talking to her softly. He was whispering something in her ear and there were tears streaming down Alice’s face. She was holding a rock in her hands, and as Kyle took in the scene, he realized what had happened.

  She had thrown one.

  There had never been a zombie here. Oh, there were a few shamblers down the road, but those things moved so damn slow that it didn’t make a difference. Their lives hadn’t been in danger. Alice had freaked out and broken shit, and Mark had talked her down. The two of them were staring at the broken shards of glass that littered the road as Kyle approached. He felt vaguely like he was intruding on a private moment, but he needed to tell them what he had found.

  He needed to tell them that these buildings were in good condition, that they could hole up here. Only, suddenly he realized what a sad impossibility that was now because Alice had broken the glass on the first floor.

  One of the large floor-to-ceiling windows still stood strong, but as Kyle stared at it, he realized that if Alice could completely break one with a stone, an Infected could easily break the other side, too.

  These buildings weren’t as good as he had hoped.

  They weren’t as strong.

  They couldn’t stay here.

  “You came back,” Alice said, noticing Kyle. She pulled away from Mark and ran to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck and held him tight for a minute. It felt good to be touched. It felt good to have this small bit of comfort when he’d been feeling so lost. Alice had always been a good friend to Kyle, and it felt good.

  He felt safe.

  “Where did you go?” Mark wasn’t one to beat around the bush.

  “I had to take a piss.”

  “Got it.”

  “Then I looked around the buildings to see what the structures were like.”

  “Is that so?”

  “Probably not a good idea to stay, though. Look how flimsy the fronts are. The backs are amazing, though. There aren’t windows in the backs of these buildings. Not on the first floors. There are two doors, but those would be easy to board up.”

  “Sorry I ruined that plan,” Alice looked at the rock she still held in her hand, and she let it fall to the ground. “What should we do now?”

  Her voice was soft, quiet. She almost sounded defeated. Alice, who always had so much soul, sounded sad.

  “We keep going,” Mark said. “We’ll find somewhere to make a home, Alice.” He looked at Kyle and nodded. “We’ll find a place.”

  Chapter 6

  They got back in the car and drove down Main Street. They’d need to find another car soon. Theirs was about to sputter out of gas. They wouldn’t make it out of this town. Mark knew that much for sure.

  They passed other buildings like the ones they’d seen before, but the town seemed to be deserted. He wondered if everyone had died or if it had simply been empty before the infection came. He swerved to miss a wandering Z. There were a couple of them in the streets now. He blamed Alice, but he shouldn’t.

  That little stunt with the rock had scared him more than it should have. He tried to keep it together, but Kyle and Alice didn’t realize just how damn hard Mark was trying. He shivered as he eyed the buildings around them, trying not to shake the feeling of dread that washed over him.

  This town could be their heaven or their hell, and Mark didn’t know which.

  They approached a large building just as the engine finally stopped. He coasted into one of the parking spots and set the emergency break.

  “So this is it for us, huh,” Alice said.

  “End of the line,” Kyle added.

  “We could always take another car. Keep going.” Mark stated the obvious, afraid his friends hadn’t thought of that.

  “I’m tired,” Alice said. “I don’t want to keep wandering around.”

  Kyle nodded, but didn’t say anything. He didn’t have to. Mark agreed with both of them. This town was as good as any. There weren’t too many Infected wandering around, at least not yet. They could find a place, set up sho
p, and secure it. They could get a car or two and have stuff ready to go in case they needed to flee, but they didn’t want their life not to consist of running.

  They all deserved better than that.

  They all needed more than that.

  He stood, looking around. The sun was beginning to set. They’d wasted a lot of time today, but at least they were away from it all. At least they were away from Holbrook, away from the house they’d hidden in, away from the madness.

  Out here, maybe they’d have a chance at survival. Mark didn’t know if they should expect to meet other survivors or if they should plan to be lone wolves in the apocalypse. He wasn’t sure whether the zombies would return home once they realized they were animated. He had no idea if civilization would be gone forever or if it would slowly return.

  He simply didn’t know.

  What he did know was that they needed to find a place to stay, and quickly. They didn’t want to be outside after dark. Even if the Infected didn’t creep up on them, the monsters would be hard to see.

  “There are houses over there,” Kyle said, pointing down a side road. It was shrouded with trees, but Mark saw that there were, in fact, rows of houses down that road. There were also a number of Infected wandering on that street. A couple of them had noticed their little group and were slowly heading toward them.

  “More shops,” Alice said, pointing to the opposite side. “Hey,” she said, suddenly. A grin lit her face. “There’s a library.”

  Mark looked at where she was pointing. Sure enough, there was a large brick building with steps leading up to double doors. The word LIBRARY hung on a sign next to it.

  “Don’t you want a place with a bed?” Kyle asked. Alice’s face dropped, and Mark knew his friend had said the wrong thing. Poor Alice had been through the emotional ringer tonight and even though he agreed with Kyle, he thought they should give her what she wanted, at least tonight. She deserved a break. They could always find something different in the morning.

  “Looks as good a place as any, at least for tonight,” he said.

  “I’m sure there will be some couches or something,” Kyle agreed quickly, following his lead.

  They grabbed their backpacks from the car, but left the other supplies. They could come back for them tomorrow. Tonight, they just needed to get indoors before the sun set too much more.

  Mark wasn’t convinced a library would be the best place for them to stay long-term. Maybe they could haul in beds and supplies. Maybe he was just being a Fussy Francis. He just wasn’t sure that a library offered the amenities they needed in a home.

  Then again, he thought, looking at the building, maybe it would be just fine.

  The stone building was two stories high with almost no windows. It was strange, for a library, he thought. Didn’t most libraries have a lot of windows? He remembered his ex-wife complaining about natural light and how houses needed lots of natural light. Was that a thing with libraries? He wasn’t sure.

  “No, because the light will damage the books,” Alice said, and Mark realized he’d muttered his question out loud.

  “Oh,” he said.

  Kyle just laughed.

  The three of them approached the building. The Infected from the row of houses were about to turn the corner. Mark wanted to hurry inside before the zombies could see where they’d gone. He wanted to quickly get inside and lock up and just sit for a minute.

  He didn’t feel like he’d gotten to just sit, to just be, in too damn long.

  “Let’s check the back doors,” he said, but Alice shook her head.

  “No, the front ones should be open if the infection hit during business hours.”

  “Are you serious?” What the hell was it with people in Kansas and not locking doors?

  Seriously. It felt like one huge cosmic joke to Mark, and he didn’t consider himself to be the most appreciative of humor. They walked up the steps to the library and stood on the small porch in front of the main doors.

  “Let’s just give it a try, okay?” Alice pulled open the door on the left and an Infected jumped out, knocking her to the ground. It happened so fast that none of them were ready. Alice hit the top of the porch with a thud that looked more than a little painful.

  Mark’s heart stopped beating for just a second as he saw what was happening. The entire thing seemed to happen in slow motion. He couldn’t move quickly enough to stop her from falling.

  Alice screamed, trying to push the creature off herself, but Mark’s brain managed to turn back on. He quickly kicked the damn thing in the head, and it fell to the side. Kyle got off a shot and it collapsed where it was. A small pool of blood formed around the creature’s head.

  “The librarian,” Kyle said thoughtfully, looking at the zombie’s worn cardigan and grey hair.

  “Are you okay?” Mark asked Alice, helping her to her feet. She was shaking. It was a close call for her, and she liked to be in control. She certainly hadn’t been in control of that.

  “I’m okay,” she whispered, looking over her arms and legs. “I’m not bit. She didn’t get me. I’m not infected.” She glowered at Mark. “Don’t shoot me, okay? See? Not infected.” She held up her arms, showing that she was, in fact, not bitten.

  “Company,” Kyle said, and jerked his head down the road, where the Infected they’d seen from earlier were wandering closer and closer. There were more now, maybe a dozen, and they were headed for the little trio.

  “Inside,” Mark said. Maybe they were trapping themselves inside, but they needed to go somewhere, and this was as good as anywhere. They’d worry about escaping in the morning. They’d worry about finding somewhere else in the morning.

  Chapter 7

  The library was quaint, Alice thought. There wasn’t really a better word for it. Just quaint.

  There was the librarian’s desk right by the entrance. It was a large, round desk. A swivel chair enabled the librarian to look around the entire library without having to get up. Alice walked forward and ran her hand over the smooth, polished wood.

  The style of desk reminded her of small towns and her childhood. She couldn’t see much else yet because it was so dark inside. There was no power here, it seemed, but wasn’t that a bit strange? Shouldn’t the library have a backup generator?

  Kyle locked the door and Mark fished a flashlight out of his backpack. Alice walked over to the door and flipped the light switches. Nothing. She thought most government buildings had backup generators, but maybe that was long ago. She’d have to remember to ask Mark about it later. Maybe they could find one and try to get it working.

  Aside from the initial zombie, there didn’t seem to be any more, at least at first glance. Instead of freaking out because there was a horde of infected or dead bodies all around, Alice was taken aback by how clean the library seemed compared to the outside world.

  Shelves filled the huge room. Floor-to-ceiling shelves lined the entire room and every wall.

  “We’re never leaving this building,” Alice said, and she tried to fight back her grin. She’d never been so happy. Fuck you, zombie apocalypse. She had books! She had something to keep her entertained. She had an activity now. She could have knowledge now. Who cared if she didn’t know how to change a tire or fix a broken window? Books could tell her. She could learn all of that and right now, Alice had nothing but time.

  She was going to get so smart.

  Mark shined his flashlight around the room, but there didn’t appear to be any Infected hiding. He was a little nervous, but Alice didn’t blame him. It was better to be prepared and none of them knew what they were getting into. None of them knew what might be lurking in the shadows.

  “Be careful,” he whispered. “There might be more.”

  Kyle motioned for Alice to help with the doors. They were locked, but that didn’t mean anything. Who knew how strong these creatures could be if they set their mind on fresh food? Mark held the flashlight while Alice and Kyle carefully, quietly, moved one of the small tables
from the alcove by the entrance in front of the door.

  They moved slowly and cautiously. Alice was proud of how quiet they managed to be. They’d come a long way in just a few days. Hell, they’d come a long way in just a half-hour or so, when she threw the damn rock into the glass, effectively crushing Kyle’s plan for safety.

  She felt bad about that.

  The apocalypse was making her more than a little crazy. She knew it. They all did. She wasn’t dealing with the stress well and she’d like to think that a good night’s rest would help, but Alice wasn’t sure if that was true. Maybe nothing would make her feel normal ever again. Maybe she would just be crazy now.

  There were worse things to be.

  “Come on,” Mark said, motioning for them to follow him. “Let’s go find a place to get set up.”

  They walked down an aisle of books. Alice fought the urge to stop and peek at the titles and authors. She shouldn’t be such a huge nerd, but after a few days on the run, she could use a bit of normalcy. She could use a little rest. Maybe she should browse a little bit and find a book to read before bed, but she knew that she shouldn’t.

  It had been a long day of death and fighting. She needed a shower, some coffee, and a quilt. If she could only get a quilt, she’d be able to wrap herself up in it and pretend none of this was happening. She’d be able to pretend the world wasn’t dead. She’d be able to pretend she was just at home sleeping off a cold.

  At the end of the aisle they stopped at a large door. It didn’t lead outside; that much was obvious. This was an interior door with a little glass window they could see through to the other side. Well, they should have been able to. Mark shined his flashlight through, but it was still difficult to see through the double-paned glass. The flashlight’s glow reflected back at them. He frowned, but tried once more. This time, he angled the light down and was able to see a little bit more clearly.

  “Let’s try this one more time, shall we?” He opened the door and jumped back, but nothing came out this time. They breathed a collective sigh of relief. The door opened into a little area that had more doors. One door was for the restroom, one was for the basement, and one led upstairs.