About a Woman, a Zombie Chronicles Novel

by Mark Clodi

  A wave of nausea hit Dora in the stomach as she lifted herself from her bed. With some effort she turned her good morning, 'Oh fuck me' into 'Good morning little baby' as she rushed for the bathroom. The vomiting made her feel marginally better, but she was not fooled, Dora knew unless she got a few calories into her stomach the vomiting would happen again. Cleaning off her face from a bucket of water next to the sink she toweled off, took her morning constitutional and cleaned up again. A few minutes later Dora was dressed in blue jeans, a heavy shirt and gray woolen socks on her feet. Heading downstairs she smelled coffee and eggs. Paige darted in from the front door to quickly turn the pan of eggs, calling a quick "Good morning." to Dora as she darted out again.

  Dora smiled and took over cooking the eggs, wondering what had Paige so riled up. A couple minutes later she found out as the young woman brought a dirty, struggling boy in through her front door with Mary's help. Alex brought up the rear, looking rather stern with his arms crossed and a bruised eye. Dora raised an eyebrow at him and said, "What is this?"

  "This," began Paige, "is a 'Willy'. He is giving us no end of trouble. Maybe you can calm him down?"

  "Willy, do you know me?" asked Dora to the still struggling boy.

  He stopped moving so vigorously and said, "Yeah." in a sullen voice.

  "Then what is the problem? Why are you fighting us?"

  "I am not staying here. Not with you."

  "Why?"

  "This is so not fucking fair." muttered Alex.

  Turning to him Dora half smiled and asked, "What are you talking about?"

  Pointing at the group including Willy, Alex said, "This. We have been wrestling with him after cornering him like a rat twenty minutes ago, we get him to you and you get him talking in two seconds. That is not fair. We sheltered him, we cared for him…" Mary put her hand on Alex's fore arm and he stopped speaking.

  Turning back to Willy, Dora asked, "Okay then why aren't you staying with us?"

  The boy was a mass of bruises, mud and dried blood. He was missing a chunk of his hair above his right ear, that scab was oozing pinkish blood down that side of his neck. His eyes were defiant and tinged just a little bit with something Dora thought of as 'insanity'. Finally he looked at each adult in turn and said, "You're all gonna die."

  "Well, yes, we know that Willy, but what has changed?"

  "You know?" he asked incredulously. "Then why aren't you leaving? Why aren't you at the fences?"

  "Wait, wait, you mean we are going to die today?"

  "Yeah."

  "Let's just back up the bus a bit here, okay? How do you know this?"

  "I heard them last night, I was close, to the twins I mean. They had that one guy, Tiller with them, one of the girls, she was talking to all of them. Said you were taking the buses out of here, not today, but tomorrow. She said you knew all about the twins and Tiller and the fake army guys."

  "How could she know?" asked Mary, her hand coming up to cover her mouth.

  "Yes, how, Willy?" The boy shrugged. Dora asked Paige, "Is anyone missing from last night? The zombie's news is fresh, so they had to take someone last night."

  "I will get a head count and see if anyone is gone." said Paige rushing out the front door.

  "So why did you come back, Willy, if they are going to attack us?"

  "I came to get Beth out."

  "Ah, young love! So sweet, so fresh. Can you get her out?"

  He nodded his head.

  "What if I told you we would be taking the buses and leaving this morning? Would you come with us instead?"

  Slowly he nodded his head and whispered, "We have to leave now. They are watching."

  "Alex, you better go get the troops out, everybody needs to get up, even those who were on watch last night, half of them on the fence and get the rest loading up the buses, tell them we plan to leave in thirty minutes because it is an emergency. See if you can contact Jake somehow." The plan had been to pick up Jake as they were leaving.

  Alex nodded and went to get people moving. Dora turned her attention back to Willy. "You look like shit my little man, I guess that is why Mary wanted to bring you up here and clean you up?"

  Mary said, "Yes, but he wasn't cooperating."

  "Well now you cooperate Willy, you do everything she says and stop making a fuss so she can get done quick. And when she is done with you, you need to help her get Mike and Peter into the buses, got it? That is how you say sorry for causing such a fuss."

  The boy looked at her a moment before his anger turned to fear, then he nodded meekly. Dora smiled warmly and said, "Good! See? We are all on the same side here, we love you Willy and just want what is best for you. Now scoot and let me finish cooking these eggs."

  Mary brought the boy over into what used to be the living room, she stoked up the fire and wheeled a privacy curtain between Willy and the front door then told him to strip. The boy protested weakly as his hands started unbuttoning his shirt. Dora could still keep an eye on both of them while she scooped the eggs out into a big bowl, she took a few bites to calm her stomach and made a face at the taste, the eggs were just how Paige preferred them; with no seasoning at all.

  Getting into the cupboard Dora took down three cans of bacon and opened them up, she dumped the congealed mass of fatty strips into the still warm pan. Dora started the process of spreading the thin strips around the pan to get them fully cooked. The canned bacon was not as good as fresh, but they would not be taking it with them, so she might as well use it this morning. While that was cooking she got into the cupboard for some spices and liberally dosed a bowl of eggs with onion powder and salt. She brought the bowl over to stand by Mary who was scrubbing the dirt off of Willy while inspecting him for bite marks.

  Mary had already checked his pubic region and gotten him into a clean pair of boxers, the boy had goose pimples all over his body and without his clothing on the extent of his wounds was fully revealed. One of his legs was bruised black and blue from just above his ankle to almost mid-thigh. On the right side of his back from just below his rib cage was a long cut that stopped at the belt line, it was scabbed over, but not fully healed yet either. Dora whistled and spooned up a bite of eggs which she held out to Willy, he ate it without thinking.

  "You got yourself into a fight or two didn't you?"

  "Yeah, I was looking for Jack."

  "I heard. Did you find him?"

  "Yeah. He didn't make it."

  "Did you finish him off?"

  Willy shook his head, "Uh-uh. He did. I couldn't find him for a long time, then I went back to where we hid at and started going around in circles, like Jeff taught us and I found another hole, it was just…" Willy held up his hands about two feet apart, "that big and didn't really want to go down it, you know, if there were zombies in there or something. I came back with a light and didn't see anything, but it ended in a basement that was mostly covered over. I found him there, he done himself. I didn't have to. He knew he was turning." Tears came to the boy's eyes, eroding clean white streaks over his dirt clad face.

  "Aw Willy, I'm sorry!" said Dora reaching out to embrace him, which caused Mary to squawk in protest, "Sorry Mary."

  Willy let Dora hug him for a moment, he even returned it half-heartedly, then he shoved her away and tried to regain his dignity, continuing his story, "Anyway he was done for, but I didn't want to come back in. It was like before when I was alone out there. I didn't mind being on my own and now I know better on how to live, thanks to Jeff and what other people taught me how to do."

  "Didn't you miss us?" Dora asked spooning more egg into his mouth.

  He swallowed and shook his head. "I felt bad for Beth when I heard the other zombies talking, I mean, I felt bad for everybody, but I didn't know how to get all of you out." He shrugged his shoulders.

  "Dora, go get him a bowl of his own, he can feed himself, and if you aren't burning that bacon my nose is lying." said Mary.

  Dora went over and stirred the bacon around, then brought Wil
ly his own bowl of eggs, he just wanted salt and pepper on them, no onion powder. By the time Dora got back Mary had sponged almost all of the dirt off of the kid's upper body and was dressing the wound on his head.

  "Gimme a second before you give him that." said Mary, she finished cleaning up hole in his skin above his ear and then had him roll over on his belly so she could clean up the cut on his back. "Dora, toss another couple logs on the fire and get a blanket for his legs, would you?"

  Dora nodded, handing the bowl of eggs to Willy by the time she had a blanket to drape over his legs the food had disappeared. "Hungry huh? So maybe you miss the regular meals here?"

  "No, not really, but the food is better, candy bars get old after a while."

  Dora was back with the last of the bacon when Paige came in, she moved over and spooned up some eggs for herself, taking a handful of bacon too. "No one is missing. Everyone is okay. Alex has them loading the buses now and watching the fence. He went to the front gate to try and flag down Jake."

  Making up a large plate of food, Dora handed it to Paige who said, "Thanks, I already have a bowl."

  "Good for you! This is for our prisoner; you may remember him, next door in Nina's back yard? I wouldn't want him saying we violated the Geneva conventions by not feeding him or something."

  "Shit." Paige said, a piece of burnt bacon halfway to her mouth.

  Dora looked at her for a second and said, "You didn't check on Tim did you?"

  "No." Paige took the plate, grabbed the keys to the handcuffs and headed into Dora's back yard. Dora turned the remaining bacon off and grabbed up a shotgun to follow the other woman out. Paige went up to the break they had created in the wall between the houses and cautiously looked into the other yard.

  "Tim?" she called cautiously.

  The sleeping back moved.

  "Breakfast time Tim, you hungry?"

  Tim's head emerged from the sleeping bag. Dora walked up to the opening in the wall, while Paige got closer to the form on the ground.

  Tim didn't look good, his hair was matted to his head, his eyes were barely focused and as his head emerged from the sleeping bag Paige recoiled. She set the plate of food down on the floor of the great hall and said, "What the hell happened to you?"

  Tim pulled the sleeping bag to his waist and pulled on a jacket that he had been using as a pillow. "I was finally brave, for once." He said this more to Dora than Paige. "I made my own deal with the devil."

  "Oh shit." Dora said softly to herself, Tim didn't appear to hear her, he looked at both of them and then grabbed for the plate of food.

  "Tim, what happened? We know someone told one of the super zombie about our plans, was it you?"

  Tim's hand paused halfway to his mouth, he swallowed slowly and then said, "You left me out here with no protection. They walked right in here and got to me. What was I supposed to do?"

  "I don't know." said Dora, "Something brave?"

  "She was going to kill me."

  "I'm going to…" started Dora only to be cut off as Paige said again, "Tim what did you tell them? Who was here? Tell us what happened."

  "You have to promise not to let Dora kill me." Tim said to Paige.

  "Why would she listen to me?"

  "You're lovers, you have sway with her."

  Dora let out a harsh laugh that turned into a full-fledged fit, Paige just put her hand to her mouth and blushed red, before saying, "Tim, we're not lovers. I am not interested in Dora that way."

  "You lying whore! Everyone knows you share a bed with her! And she sleeps with Mike too."

  Somehow being disparaged by Tim didn't bother Dora in the slightest, in fact it made her laugh more and she was laughing so hard she couldn't speak. Paige turned around and looked at her, scowling, "You're not helping! Go back in the house if you can't control yourself Dora!"

  Dora wheezed for a moment, before she pulled herself together enough to say, "I am sorry. I am sorry you lying whore!" Then she started laughing again, she managed to get through the hole in the wall between the back yards before she had to sit down again. Mary came out of the house and found her there laughing so hard she was crying.

  "Dora?" Mary asked with concern, "Is everything okay?"

  Behind Mary, Willy appeared, wrapped in the thin blanket he looked like a little lost waif from a British remake of 'Oliver Twist'. "I…I'm fine, Tim, he just cracks me up sometimes."

  "I couldn't tell if you were laughing or crying. What's happened?" asked Mary, in one hand she still had the wet rag she had been cleaning Willy with, in the other she was carrying an ugly looking revolver.

  "It was Tim. He's the one who sold us out to the zombies. They came here last night, got through our watchers and he told them everything, isn't that right, Tim?" this last was called over her shoulder through the wall where Tim was greedily shoving the last of the eggs into his mouth.

  Mary went into the yard, followed closely by Willy, who Dora saw was also carrying a pistol; instincts ran deep with the humans who were still alive. The two of them stepped over to stand next to Paige, where Dora joined them after she finally got herself under control.

  "So Tim, tell me again, with clear words, how you were brave?" asked Dora.

  Paige stepped off to one side of the man, moving back slightly too. She had the handcuff keys dangling from one hand.

  Tim looked at Paige and Mary and said, "You have to promise you won't let Dora or anyone on the council shoot me, or I am not saying anything!"

  "Tim, no one is going to shoot you, the damage is done, we just want to know what you told them." said Mary.

  "Promise!"

  "Tim, I won't shoot you unless you don't tell me what the fuck you did." said Dora, raising the shotgun and pointing it at the man.

  "No you can't shoot me at all, you promise me." Tim said again to the other women.

  Paige shook her head, "No, I don't think so. I can't promise that. I don't have any control of her."

  "I can't either, I don't want Dora to shoot you. Please don't shoot him Dora, but I can't make a promise I know I can't keep."

  Tim started to cry, bowing his head down to his chest he wept like an infant, muttering about how unfair everything was.

  "Tim" Dora said firmly, "If you don't start taking we don't have any use for you. How about if I promise you I won't shoot you? Would that work?"

  "No! Promise them! Promise them you won't shoot me, you wouldn't lie to them! Promise them you won't have anyone else shoot me either!"

  Dora shrugged her shoulders, thinking of what she could do to Tim if she needed to, there were other ways for him to die, after all, finally she looked at Mary and Paige and in a clear voice she said, "Paige, lover, Mary, my good friend, I promise not to shoot Tim or have anyone else shoot him either." Turning back to Tim she asked, "So what did you do?" Dora lowered the gun and pointed the barrel at an angle away from the man.

  "I had to tell them. The little girl was here, you call them the wonder twins. She came to me last night when everyone was sleeping. I had to tell her or she was going to kill me. But I didn't tell her the truth about everything. They have names you know, she was called, Andi. She was not right…not right in the head, not stupid, but more like damaged, like mentally ill. She kept repeating 'Sam Waller says' this and 'Jim Tiller says' that. It was crazy."

  "It was just one then, not a whole group of them? So what did you lie to Andi about?"

  "As much as I could, she had this way of rolling her eyes whenever I tried to tell her something that wasn't totally true, it was like she could see through me."

  "Well, honestly Tim…" began Dora before Mary elbowed her in the ribs.

  "So I couldn't deceive her very much. I lied about when we were leaving, I told them we needed to fill the buses with diesel today and we were leaving tomorrow. I told her that we couldn't leave today, no matter what because we had people who were too hurt to move and we needed that fuel."

  "Well, that's good really, if she bought it." Dora's eyes na
rrowed, "You told them everything else? That we knew about them keeping us here, knew there were no Iowan's close by?"

  Tim nodded once curtly.

  "You fucking douche. I mean I knew you were a cowardly little shitbag, but to sell us out so fast? Why? All we ever wanted from you was for you to do your share; that was it. There's little room for 'I' in this new world, the place works together, fights together and dies or lives together and I do not understand how you could still manage to fuck us over chained to a goddamn post in Nina's yard!" Dora raised her shotgun and pointed it in Tim's direction.

  "You promised!" screamed Tim.

  Dora paused, her voice took on an icy tone, "You told them everything. Giving them bad information only helps us a little. You told them everything. I cannot believe it. I should have shot you a long time ago, you fucking prick." slowly, hands trembling, Dora lowered the shotgun and said, "Paige I think…"

  The gunshot rang out in the silence of the morning, it was followed by two more shots, all three of which hit Tim in the upper chest. Mary knocked Willy's arm up and the fourth shot struck the stone wall on the far side of Nina's yard. She wrestled the gun from his small hand and pushed him to the ground where he let go of his blanket and stared back up at Mary defiantly.

  Chapter 38

  "Oh Willy! What have you done?" Mary said rhetorically as her hands automatically engaged the safety of his pistol. She tossed the gun to Paige and rushed forward to Tim, who was not moving on the ground. Dora was still reeling, she did not know how to react to what had just happened, she wanted to pick Willy up and give him a big hug and a fist bump for doing what she had wanted to do. However, she had not meant for him to be the one pulling the trigger.

  "What kind of world do we live in when thirteen year olds can kill unarmed men chained to a post?" Dora muttered to herself as she held out her hand to the boy on the ground to help him up. She got him on his feet and looked him in the eyes, he was a skinny, shivering boy standing barefoot with his overlarge boxers riding low over hips too narrow to hold them up, there was no hint of fear or regret in his eyes. Dora reached down and pulled up his underwear up, saying, "You might want to hold onto those." She bent over and picked up the blanket off the ground, it was wet from the dew on the grass, but she put it around his shoulders anyway and hugged him close, whispering, "Everything will be okay, don't you worry hon, everything will be fine."