by R. M. Smith
She told each artist, “I should have brought some of my stuff. I’m a painter, too.”
“Well bring it next year,” they told her with a smile. “This is an annual event.”
I agreed. “Yep. Next year you’ll be the star of the show.”
The area was overcrowded. Some shoppers weren’t interested in the art work and had to walk through the art show to get to other parts of the mall. Paintings were bumped, another was knocked over. The artist was furious. People stood in the main walk-way visiting.
Pushing through, I said, “I hope there isn’t a fire. We’ll never get out of here.”
People stood in the way, gawking, not caring if there were people waiting or a girl in a wheelchair behind them trying to get through. Rainey said, “Jon, I need to use the restroom, ok?”
“Oh, ok.” I rolled her away from the art show over the tiled floors looking for a restroom. We finally spotted a restroom sign behind a large hanging banner which read: Try out the new Aerosol Flu Vaccine! Today Only at Nickelodeon Amusement Park!
Pulling up next to the short hallway which led to the restrooms I asked her, “You going to be ok in there?”
“Yea, I can manage.”
“Ok. I’ll be right out here if you need anything.”
“Alright.”
She pushed down the hall on her own. We were at the center of the mall close to one of the entrances to the amusement park.
I sighed.
I didn’t know what to do. I felt so sorry for her. I wished there was some way I could take her away from all of this.
I sat down on a bench. I thought: Well, why can’t I take her back to California with me? She said she never gets out of the house. Why can’t I tell Aunt Brenda that Rainey’s going to come stay with me in California for a month or two? It wouldn’t be that difficult, would it? I’m sure she’s mobile enough to take care of herself while I’m at work. I could always ask the landlady to check in on her or even ask one of the girls at the port office to stop by sometime. I’m sure they wouldn’t mind.
We could spend the evenings and weekends together. I could take her to the ocean. I know she’d love the beach. I’d collect sea shells for her.
It would be really hard to convince Uncle Kent, though. He wouldn’t be for the idea at all. I bet he’d actually be against it.
Maybe I could convince him somehow, get him to budge a little bit. He wouldn’t have to worry about his legs cramping up on him after carrying Rainey up the stairs every night if she wasn’t home. He’d have his farm all to himself without having to worry about Rainey. I think he’d appreciate it. Hell, I bet even Aunt Brenda would. She’d have her freedom again like she did when they came to California.
I have enough money to purchase a plane ticket for Rainey. Money isn’t an issue at all here. She could stay with me for a couple weeks, even a month – or even longer.
On purpose Rainey bumped into the side of the bench I was sitting on jarring me out of my thoughts. She giggled. “I’m back. Hey, let’s go into the amusement park, ok?
“Hold on,” I said. “I want to ask you something.”
“What?”
I turned her to face me. Around us, people walked by talking, hurrying to make purchases or heading into the park or toward the bazaar. Music played overhead, a slow waltz fighting to be heard over music blaring from some amusement park rides.
I grabbed her hands in mine. “Rainey,” I said. “Would you come with me to California?”
“Oh Jon,” she said, tears welling up in her eyes. “I would love to.”
I hugged her. I held her for a long time.
Separating, we rested our foreheads together looking down at our hands, smiles on our faces. After a few seconds we backed away from one another still smiling.
Our eyes didn’t separate. We stared at one another. Our smiles faded away.
I want to kiss her, I thought. But I can’t! Damn it, I think I’m falling in love with her!
Someone ran by. Someone hurried by behind me. I looked away from Rainey not wanting to break the moment but why are people running past us?
People screamed, stampeding past us out of the amusement park. A woman ran by dragging her little boy. He screamed holding onto a balloon in his fist. He let it go. It rose up through the floors of the mall above.
Around us people’s eyes were full of fear. They shouted, yelling at other people to get out of the way. I asked someone running by, “What’s going on?”
They shouted, “Zombies!”
I let go of Rainey’s hands and stood up, turning her around quickly in her wheelchair.
She asked, “Jon? What’s happening? Did they say zombies?”
Concerned, I said, “I don’t know, yeah I think so.” More people sprinted past. It’s a prank, I thought. There aren’t really zombies in here. Just in case, I said, “Let’s follow those people, ok?”
Down the mall crowds had massed together in front of and into the art show. Booths had toppled over. Paintings had been knocked down and stepped on. People pushed, shoving, trying to get through. Quickly I rolled Rainey up to the rear of the group waiting, hoping the crowd would clear before we got smashed or trampled by more running people. Another surge of people came running up behind us and bumped me hard from behind. My weight pushed down on the wheelchair causing it to lean backward. Rainey grabbed onto the wheels and steadied herself. I stumbled to the side trying to catch my balance. More people shoved into me pushing me further away from Rainey.
She yelled for me. “Jon!”
The panicking group pushed me uncontrollably away from her. I tried to fight my way back to her but I was submerged in bodies.
Over the crowd I could hear Rainey screaming for me. “Jon! Jon! Over here!”
I needed to get back to her!
I pushed my way to the edge of the crowd. I fell into an empty store. No one was in it. No one was shopping. Everyone including the clerks running the store had left.
This can’t be a prank, I thought to myself. All of these people can’t be involved with it, can they?
Rainey was now on the other side of the art show.
Digging into the rolling crowd, I fought against the tide. Hundreds of people ran shoulder to shoulder, crashing through the art, their faces drawn down in terror. Men women and children screamed in fear. “Zombies! Run!” Sliding my back against a wall, I crept slowly toward Rainey, avoiding elbows. She was still screaming for me.
Abruptly, the crowds ended. A few stragglers ran by. The mall emptied out. Damaged art work lay trampled on the floor. A cheery waltz played to the emptiness. People’s screams faded off running toward the exits.
I shouted, “Rainey where are you?” My voice echoed. I slowly walked the mall back toward the amusement park but Rainey wasn’t anywhere in sight. Had she gone into a store? Did she get whisked away by the crowds? Did someone grab the back of her wheelchair and roll her away to safety?
“Rainey!” I yelled again to the quiet isolation of the mall.
I walked back to the entrance of the amusement park. There aren’t any zombies, I told myself. Zombies aren’t real. Come on!
More people were slowly moving around inside the park. They walked back and forth, their arms swinging. These people were tall. Were they on short stilts? Were they amusement park workers?
Is this part of the prank?
Their clothes were bloody. I stepped through the entrance to get a better look. People lay dead on the ground with growing pools of blood around them. Several people’s bodies had been ripped open, their clothes torn back exposing shredded skin. Others were being eaten by zombies. The zombies had their faces shoved deep into bodies. One zombie had both of its hands shoved deep inside a man’s torn open stomach. It pulled a large bloody intestine out of the man’s belly and began to chew on one end of it. Blood and yellow fluids spattered out the other end splashing onto the ground. The man on the ground stared at me with dead glazed over eyes.
The zombie
lifted its head. Chewing, it looked at me. It lifted its bloody chin in the air, opened its mouth, and clacked its teeth together one time.
Shocked, I stepped back into the mall.
That looks real! Really good make-up effects. Maybe they’re shooting a movie in there…but I don’t see any movie cameras…
Turning around, my heart beating faster, I whispered, “Rainey, where are you?” I jogged back the other way through the mall toward the destroyed art show, passing empty stores and the tall vaccine banner. It swung slowly back and forth.
Rainey whispered, “Jon! Jon over here!”
A Burger King rotating floor display had hidden her from my sight. I had walked right past her!
One of the zombies followed me out of the amusement park. It lumbered, leaning forward to the side, closing in on Rainey.
I sprinted over to her.
She noticed the zombie. Scurrying, scared, she rolled herself backward toward me. She bumped into a bench. It caused her wheelchair to spin around and face me.
Crying, her face was covered in fear.
I was within a few feet of her. The zombie leaned down. It furiously bit down into her right shoulder. She screamed.
Terrified and without thinking, I ran past Rainey, grabbed the zombie by the arm and yanked it away from her.
The zombie’s teeth clenching down on Rainey’s shoulder had been tight. She was pulled up out of the wheelchair. It fell over. She dangled out of the zombie’s mouth by her shoulder. Blood began to pour down the front of her shirt.
She screamed in pain.
This is a real zombie. This is no prank.
It stood in front of me, easily three feet taller than me. Its skin had turned gray. The black hair on its head was long, sweaty, and hanging down into its yellow eyes. This zombie was a girl, no older than Rainey or I. Her yellow teeth were pointed and covered in blood. Her head had grown longer, elongating from front to back. Her arms were longer than ours, thinner but much more muscular. The veins on her arms had popped out. Her fingers were long with sharp chipped nails. The clothing she wore had been shredded to bits but I recognized it as a Nickelodeon Universe uniform.
The zombie opened its mouth and Rainey fell to the ground like a dropped ragdoll.
The zombie cocked its head toward me and began to loudly clack its teeth. It clacked them hard, hard enough to break the enamel on the tooth. The sound echoed through the mall.
Further down the mall toward the amusement park I heard more chattering start. It got louder and louder.
It’s calling out to the other ones!
I scooped Rainey off the floor and ran. I skirted around the destroyed artwork, ran down the length of the mall past all of the stores Rainey had fallen in love with and out to my car. I was scared to death. Rainey felt like dead weight to me. Blood from her ripped shoulder ran down the front of my shirt.
The parking lot was full of chaos. Cars had jammed at the exits. People were fighting to escape, driving through downed fences, down into ditches, driving anywhere to escape. I lifted Rainey over my shoulder. I sprinted to my car. I forgot how far away we had parked. By the time I got there I was out of breath.
Opening the passenger side door I leaned Rainey down into the seat. She slid down. I sincerely hoped she wasn’t dead.
“Rainey, can you hear me?” I softly patted her on the cheek. Her eyes were closed. Her mouth hung open. The blood on her shoulder had clotted.
She opened her eyes for a flash of a second.
They were yellow.
Did her arms get longer, too?
Running back to my side, I jumped in, started the car, and headed toward the packed exits.
Zombies came running out of the mall. They were fast! The added length in their legs gave them extra speed. They crowded around the cars slamming their arms down shattering windshields. They pulled people out of their cars through the broken glass and began to feed on them.
Rainey passed out.
On the way back to the farm I kept looking over at her, hoping she’d wake up or say something, but she stayed quiet the whole time.
Every time I looked over at her it seemed to me that her arms and legs were longer. The pigment in her skin had turned gray.
Rescue vehicles sped past heading to the mall. Police cars. Ambulances. Fire trucks. The air filled with sirens.
Thick clouds came rolling in from the north by the time we made it back to the farm. I ran to her side of the car, opened the door and reached in to get her.
Sounds of whipping coming from the barn stopped me. I heard Uncle Kent yelling, “Where’s Rainey?” Smack! “Where’s your sister?” Smack!
I left her sitting in her seat and ran up to the barn. A cold wind blew. Inside, Uncle Kent had tied Ben to one of the barn support beams. Ben’s back was covered in bloody slices.
Aunt Brenda stood to the side, a hand covering her mouth.
I yelled, “Hey! Stop that!”
My Uncle Kent spun around at the sound of my voice his face covered in sweat. Aunt Brenda looked at me, too. She had been crying.
“You!” Uncle Kent yelled pointing at me. “Where’s my daughter?”
“In my car!”
“Bring her ass up here. She’s got a due to pay.”
“I’m not going to let you beat her anymore,” I yelled, my voice stern. “You’ve done it enough!”
He screamed, “Who the hell do you think you are?” He took two steps toward me, the belt swinging. “Don’t tell me what I can or cannot do to my children.”
Ben shouted, “Dad! Leave him alone!”
Uncle Kent swung the belt at Ben. It whipped his face. “You shut up, you hear me? Keep that trap of yours shut!”
Aunt Brenda begged, “Please Kent. No more.”
“Brenda, your daughter left my house without my permission,” Uncle Kent said, his hand gripping the end of his belt tightly. “She needs to pay!”
Uncle Kent stormed toward me. I stood my ground but he knocked me over easily with a simple shove.
He yelled, “Where is she? Where’s…”
He stopped in his tracks and dropped the belt. “What in God’s name?”
I scampered to my feet.
Rainey was no longer sitting in my car. In the cold wind she crawled up the dirt driveway toward us. She tried to walk but her legs weren’t strong enough; they pitifully dragged behind her. She dug her hands into the dirt trying to pull herself forward. The pretty young girl once known as Rainey Crossman was now gone, replaced by a dead thing scavenging forward ready to feed; but due to its handicap-ridden body, it couldn’t. It pathetically crawled clacking its teeth, its head cocked at an angle.
Back inside the barn, Aunt Brenda quickly ran over to Ben and untied him. Ben hurried to the back of the barn, unlocked a gun rack, and pulled down a shotgun. He started loading it.
“Rainey?” Uncle Kent asked going down to his knees in the dirt in front of her. “Rainey, baby, what happened to you honey?”
Her yellow teeth chattered as she distortedly crawled toward us. Her hair had begun to fall out. Her head had elongated. The blood had stopped running from her shoulder. Long strings of saliva dripped from her chattering jaw.
Aunt Brenda saw Rainey and screamed.
Ben came out of the barn with the shotgun. He hadn’t seen Rainey yet. He pointed the gun at the back of his Dad’s head.
His voice shaking, Ben said, “I’ve had enough of you beating me. Controlling me. Not letting me live my life. I’m tired of your lies and the way you use people only for your own selfish gain. I’m leaving, just like Rainey did. It’s time for me to make my stand. I’ve made my decision. I’d rather be in prison than to spend the rest of my life living by your rules!”
Aunt Brenda screamed, “Ben! No!”
He said calmly, “Mom, call the cops.”
Ben shot his father in the back of the head. Uncle Kent fell onto his face. The gunshot echoed out into the darkness. Aunt Brenda dropped to her knees next to him.
Rainey closed in.
“Holy shit!” Ben yelled shocked by the sight of the creeping thing. He didn’t recognize it as his sister.
Its crippled legs dragged but had grown two feet longer. Its arms were longer too, muscular. It chopped its teeth at us.
I couldn’t move. I was in a state of shock.
Rainey had her sights set on Uncle Kent. When he fell on his face she attacked Aunt Brenda instead. Rainey dug into her mother with razor sharp fingernails. Aunt Brenda’s skin ripped away like tissue paper. Begging for mercy, Aunt Brenda tried to fend Rainey off but Rainey’s grip was too strong.
Ben yelled, “Get off her!” He still hadn’t realized it was Rainey.
She didn’t stop. Rainey bit deeply into the side of Aunt Brenda’s neck. Blood ran down her jaw.
Ben shot Rainey. Her body was thrown off by the shotgun blast.
Aunt Brenda screamed in pain. She held the side of her neck. Blood poured through her fingers.
Rainey attacked again, pawing deeper into Aunt Brenda’s back, ripping into her lungs, pulling the bones, breaking her ribcage. She bit deeply into Aunt Brenda’s shoulders tearing tendons ripping veins.
Ben shot Rainey again, this time in the head.
She stayed down.
Blood gurgled out of Aunt Brenda’s ripped skin. She lay on her side, dead.
I sat down hard leaning my back against the side of the barn. I was speechless. Mortified. Tears ran endlessly down my cheeks.
Ben stood over their dead bodies with smoke curling up from the end of the shotgun.
“God damn,” he finally whispered.
He lowered the weapon.
CHAPTER ONE
Faces in the Frost
“It ain’t either,” Ben yelled, crying standing over Rainey’s dead body. “That’s not her! You dropped her off somewhere in town, didn’t you? She’s not dead. That looks like a rabid dog or something. No. Rainey’s not dead. I don’t believe it!”
“A zombie got her,” I cried sobbing. “It bit her shoulder. I tried to save her but it was too strong! I brought her back here as fast as I could.”
“A zombie? What?”