Although most of them had been on the third floor to deposit their luggage, what they hadn’t seen came as a complete surprise; it was almost like stepping into someone’s home...a large one. Upon entry from the stairs, was a long entryway and hall. The walls were painted a warm shade of beige and the floors were wood, with rugs scattered here and there. A few feet down the hall and to the left, double doors led into a room almost the entire length of the building. This, Dave explained, was the sleeping area for the children.
Lilly had designed this floor, so she took over the tour. While the children rummaged through the toy boxes and jumped on the beds, everyone admired the bright primary colors on the walls, there was even a mural on the back wall sporting a huge rainbow above a forest full of butterflies and an assortment of wide-eyed forest animals. Under the mural was a play area complete with toy boxes, shelves holding arts and crafts, and two small colorful tables with matching chairs. The floor was covered in a thick beige carpet. Each bed was different, with brightly colored bedspreads. Four small dressers painted in bright blues, reds, yellows, and greens were placed between the beds. Sunlight filled the room through the large windows, since they were on the third floor they were open; this was a bright and cheerful place, just perfect. Dave and Lilly were never able to have children, and Mick could tell that Lilly had really thrown herself into the project. Mick noticed on his way out that there were exactly enough beds for each child.
Once back out in the hall, she began opening doors on the right side of the hall. Each married couple had a room, on opposite ends were slightly larger rooms, one for Brooke and another for Jimmy.
Brooke’s room was done in pastel colors of soft purples, blues, and greens. The walls were a bluish-green with white trim. All the furniture was painted bright white. There were two twin beds with matching light green bedspreads. There was a dresser next to a small closet, and between the two beds was a night stand with a reading lamp on top. There was even a vanity complete with mirror. The carpet on the floor was the same as in the children’s room, but between the beds was a rug done in a swirl of pastels. Curtains matching the rug covered the large window.
Jimmy’s room was the same size as Brooke’s, also with two twin beds. But there the similarities ended. Done in a rustic style with earth tones throughout, the carpet was darker beige, and the walls were a deep brown. Instead of a vanity, he had a desk/bookcase combination. The bedspreads and curtains were done in the popular camouflage style. His dresser, bed frame, desk, and night stand were all stained a dark brown, and he also had a small closet.
The bedrooms for the married couples were just as nice. Each held full size beds, dressers, and night stands in finishes from light pine to dark mahogany. There were slightly larger closets, but not by much. The rooms were all carpeted in slightly different colors to match the varying colors each room boasted. Once again, Mick noticed there was exactly the right number of rooms to accommodate them all.
As the tour progressed, Lilly led them to the south end, where there were two dorm-style bathrooms complete with a shower area. The women’s bathroom even had a large whirlpool tub and both bathrooms had changing areas with floor-to-ceiling cabinets for their personal belongings.
As they headed back up to the fourth floor, everyone talked excitedly about what they had seen. Mick saw a look of happiness pass between Dave and Lilly, and he smiled to himself. They looked so much alike in height and coloring that Mick often thought they could have passed for brother and sister. Both were of medium height and slim, with sandy blonde hair and bright green eyes, although Lilly’s eyes were flecked with gold.
The fourth floor they had already seen, but Dave pointed out an enclosed laundry room on one side of the kitchen, and a walk-in pantry on the other. All the appliances were heavy-duty, large, and stainless steel. The dining area was just in front of the kitchen, there were two matching rectangle dining tables, and Mick figured they would easily accommodate all of them. At the other end was the lounge area, with an overstuffed leather couch and four large matching chairs. Mounted on the south wall was the TV and underneath was an entertainment center with more DVD’s, two game consoles, and a small library of assorted video games. To the left of the lounge were sliding glass doors that led out onto the balcony.
Last was the rooftop, and Mick knew immediately it would probably end up being everyone’s favorite place to relax. There were two patio areas set up with outdoor furniture, and behind those on the north side, sat a covered barbeque/smoker. A stone walkway split the roof into two areas; one side held fruit trees and a grassy area with a large swing set for the children, the other held rows and rows of vegetables and herbs including a small greenhouse near the back. By the fruit trees, a small stone fountain gurgled away with a pond beneath, and the children were delighted to see several multicolored fantail goldfish dashing here and there in the crystal clear water. The entire rooftop was enclosed with strong fencing, Mick realized it was for the children’s benefit and there was definitely no danger of anyone falling off the roof.
After the tour, the adults trooped back down to watch what was unfolding on TV. Brooke and Jimmy decided to stay on the roof to keep an eye on the kids while they played. Mick sat next to Cindy on the couch and looked over at her as he felt her hand close over his.
“Is this for real?” she whispered. She tucked a strand of her shoulder-length, curly chestnut hair behind one ear and gazed at him with a frightened look in her large hazel eyes. “What are we going to do?”
“Truth? No idea yet,” Mick whispered back. “After what Dave told us, I think we do have a real problem. At least we’re safe for now,” he said as he gestured around the room with his free hand. “This place if really fortified and well stocked, so we should be ok for a while.”
Cindy nodded slowly, but doubt still clouded her pretty features. “I’m scared to think of what would have happened to all of us if Dave hadn’t called, but I think I’m so not gonna go there.” She shuddered and Mick let go of her hand to put a comforting arm around her shoulders.
Chapter 2
Early the next morning, most of the adults were already up watching TV. To everyone’s dismay, the situation had drastically deteriorated during the night.
Frazzled reporters were broadcasting from secure areas or even on their station rooftops, showing footage of people looting stores and businesses, and people fighting each other, although Mick began to realize that people were actually fighting for their lives as they were attacked by the ever-growing number of the walking dead. He preferred to think of them as the walking dead, the word “zombie” still smacked of the stuff of fiction. Streets were full of debris, cars, and dead bodies. Sometimes the noise was deafening and Mick couldn’t make out what the reporters were saying. There were sounds of breaking glass, gunshots, sirens, and screaming – lots of screaming. Some of the bodies stayed down...most did not. What surprised Mick most was how quickly everything had fallen apart.
While they watched, Sean and Scott made occasional comments. During their teenage years they went through a phase where everything scary was fun, including all the vampire, werewolf, and zombie stuff. They were busy speculating on everything from would the zombies behave like the ones in movies, to how long would a zombie last until it just shriveled up or decayed away.
In Mick’s opinion though, it just made the situation harder to take. How could something everyone knew was fiction become fact? Sean remembered reading somewhere that there were documented cases of people, through the use of drugs, who became zombies and did the bidding of their masters. To Mick, it sounded pretty far-fetched, but then how did he explain what was happening now? Could the entire world be destroyed, with only a handful of survivors here and there? Would they ever be able to leave Hudson Place? Would they be forced to leave, once their supplies ran out?
He didn’t want to think about these things, but he couldn’t help himself. If only they had some way to find out what was being done to stop this living ni
ghtmare, surely the government must be doing something. He knew Sean and Scott had been waiting for an activation call from the National Guard, when it didn’t come they called other soldiers in their unit; no one had heard anything. To Mick, it was an ominous sign that they may be completely on their own.
Denise and Sarah had moved out to the balcony and were sitting on a small bench talking. Mick noticed both of them suddenly stand up and walk over to the railing to look down at something off to their left. He saw Sarah pointing and she said something to Denise, who then turned and left the balcony, sliding the glass door shut behind her.
She stopped and tapped Sean on the shoulder. He was messing with Scott and whispering, “Brainssssss” in his ear, and Scott was threatening to put him in a headlock if he didn’t stop. Sean looked up sheepishly at Denise as she gave him a disapproving look. “Not funny Sean, quit clowning around,” she said. “You and Scott need to come outside with us, there’s something weird going on.”
Sean’s grin disappeared. “What is it? Looters?”
“Don’t think so, we’ve been hearing faint gunshots and a lot of sirens, but we think some of those zombie things are heading this way.”
Both twins jumped to their feet and dashed for the door, Mick shook his head as they both tried to get through it at the same time. He got up more slowly and followed them out, as he turned to slide the door shut, Dave grabbed it with one hand.
“I want to see what’s going on, too.”
Mick stepped aside to let Dave out, the balcony wasn’t especially large and with six of them out there, it was downright crowded. They all leaned over the railing to take a look.
“Damn!” Scott grunted. “Would ya look at that!”
Mick craned his neck around Sean in order to get a better look. He gripped the rail tighter as his heart began to race. He could see a few people walking down the street and as he watched, a larger group of about fifteen people turned the corner at the end of the block and headed in their direction. They were still too far away for him to be able to tell exactly if he was seeing the walking dead or not, but judging by everyone else’s responses he had a pretty good idea.
He squinted his eyes and said in a low voice, “They don’t seem to walk funny - you know - like how zombies in movies walk.”
“Yeah,” Scott breathed. “They’re not fast, but they’re not slow either. If they weren’t all messed up, you might think they were alive.”
As they continued to draw closer, Mick squinted harder and he could see what Scott was talking about. Their clothing was stained, torn, and bloody. Most of them looked like they’d been mauled, with bits of flesh hanging here and there. One looked like a woman; half her scalp was torn off and it was hanging down in her face.
Mick had seen enough. He turned away and headed for the sliding doors, then paused and turned back. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for us to be standing out here gawking at them. If they don’t see us, they might keep going.”
Dave was rubbing his chin thoughtfully, still staring down the street. “You have a good point there. Let’s all go in and see if they pass by.”
Everyone was happy to oblige except for Sean and Scott. Mick finally talked them into watching from the roof with binoculars. “You can go up there and watch all you want, I don’t think they’ll see you if you stay down.”
With one more look, they joined the others and headed inside. Dave shut and locked the doors to discourage anyone else from going out on the balcony.
“Let’s hope they do go by,” he said to Mick as they headed for the kitchen to see if they could help Lilly and Cindy with lunch.
Mick nodded, but said doubtfully, “Oh, I’m hoping, but I have my doubts.”
“Me too,” Dave sighed heavily. “Me too.”
****
They didn’t go by. As the day wore on, their numbers grew around the building. The noises they made were horrendous. They moaned, groaned, screeched, and wailed; they crawled all over one another, clustering around the building beating their mottled hands on every surface they could reach. Mick began to think there must be something, possibly the simple fact that they were alive, that drew the creatures to them.
The city of Ambrose wasn’t that large, the population had hovered around sixty thousand for the last twenty years, yet it seemed that most of the walking dead were finding their way to Hudson Place. The constant noise was maddening and the children were frightened. After a lengthy discussion, it was decided that they would start shooting the creatures. No one wanted to chance the zombies finding their way in and their sheer numbers would spell disaster if they did.
Anyone who could shoot including Megan, Darrell’s wife, who had served in the Marines and was a crack shot, would take turns in pairs on the balcony. They would watch for survivors and kill off any zombies in the immediate area. Mick was hardly surprised when Sean and Scott volunteered to take the first shift.
They headed down to the second floor to gather up the weapons and ammunition they needed. Mick and Darrell went down with them to bring up a metal gun cabinet that could be locked. Always mindful of the kids, they knew they needed a way to secure the guns that would be kept on the balcony when not in use.
The children were scared with all noise going on outside and it was decided that Lindsey and Megan would watch over them and try their best to gently explain what was happening and what to expect. They thought they had handled it fairly well until the first shots rang out. The littlest ones all tried to climb into their laps at the same time; they were all crying.
Lindsey looked around the children’s room, trying to think of something to take their minds off of what was happening. She spied the CD player and gently disengaged Sally off her lap. Heather was still clinging to her leg when Sarah appeared in the doorway.
“Help,” she said in a small voice, motioning toward Heather. Sarah immediately strode over and took Heather in her arms. “I’m gonna play some songs for the kids,” she explained as she hurried over to put a CD in the player. “Let’s try to get them distracted.”
Fortunately it worked although it took a while. They sang songs and danced along with the music until the children were calmer. Megan left for a bit and returned with a tray full of juice boxes, crackers, and cheese.
Although shots were still ringing out, Lindsey was amazed at how quickly the kids adapted, after awhile they barely flinched. She was still worried though, and when Sarah suggested they bring up a TV from storage so the children could watch movies on DVD, she readily agreed. They wouldn’t need to constantly change CD’s and the noise would help drown out more of the sounds from outside. They could even leave it on at night until the kids feel asleep. Lindsey set off to find Dave.
****
“I got ‘em!” Sean lowered his rifle and grinned. “Let’s see what you can do!”
Scott merely grinned back then turned his attention to the street below. “Noooo problemo bro,” he said lightly. He slowly lifted the rifle to his shoulder. “See the guy in the blue jean jacket? Watch this.”
Sean picked up his binoculars, eager to see what his brother could do. “I bet you can’t hit him from here,” he goaded.
Scott whispered as he concentrated, “Just watch, little bro.”
Sean smirked and said, “Little bro my ass, you’re only a minute older than me and that doesn’t mean much in my book.”
Scott glanced at his brother, winked and turned back to the task at hand. “Watch and learn....just watch and learn.”
“Just get on with it already!” Sean let out a gush of air as though getting tired of the exchange, although the truth was he was curious to see if Scott could hit his target.
Scott turned toward the street and began humming as he slowly squeezed the trigger. He turned triumphantly toward his brother. “Ha! Look at that! Sweeeet!”
Both watched the creature topple headfirst onto the concrete, most of its head blown off by the single shot.
“Damn! Nice shot! I was certa
in he was too far away,” Sean acknowledged with a shake of his head as he once again grinned at his brother.
“Oh yeah! Uh huh!” Scott crowed and did a little dance that got Sean laughing. They were just high-fiving each other when Mick stepped out onto the balcony, walked past them and glanced over the railing at the pile of bodies below. He turned and eyed his sons.
“You two sound like you’re having too much fun out here, ready to come in for some lunch?”
“You don’t have to ask us twice,” Sean replied as he eased his lanky frame out of the chair he’d been sitting in. He put the binoculars down on a table next to the gun cabinet. “What are we having?”
Zombified (Book 1): Hudson Place Page 2