Fortunes & Failures - 03

by T. W. Brown

  “I wouldn’t have—”

  “What’s going on?” Kevin strolled in carrying two bowls heaped with canned peaches. “Hey! Matt’s awake!”

  “This bastard scared the crap out of Erin.” Heather spun around to Kevin. “Then, when Shari booted him from their bedroom for being a jerk, he basically said he wasn’t going to help deliver the baby.”

  Kevin stood in the entrance to the room with a confused look on his face. He’d heard everything that was said, but still didn’t have a clue as to what was going on, or what to say. He glanced from a furious Heather to an equally angry Aleah then to a nervous and embarrassed Peter, and finally…a confused Matt. He set down the two bowls and walked over to the doctor, whose eyes had not left the knife in Heather’s hand.

  “Fine,” Kevin said as he grabbed the man by the arm.

  “What are you gonna do?” Aleah asked suspiciously.

  “Take him out back and shoot him.” Kevin drew his .45 and flicked off the safety.

  A chorus of “What?” came from everybody’s lips, including Matt’s. Peter’s head whipped around, his eyes practically bulging from the sockets.

  “You can’t do that,” Heather insisted.

  “Why not?” Kevin asked, nodding to the knife she still clutched.

  “Huh?” She glanced down at the wicked blade, then quickly jammed it into the sheath. “No! We thought that Shari and Erin might be zombies and that Peter was hiding them.”

  “Excuse me?” Peter sputtered.

  “You’ve been acting weird ever since we got back,” Aleah explained. “And when we realized that we hadn’t seen them since coming back from the run…Well, we just assumed—”

  “That I was hiding zombies?” Peter gasped in disbelief.

  “So,” Kevin shook the hand with the pistol in it, “you don’t want me to shoot Peter?”

  “No!” both girls said in unison.

  “Why not?” Kevin asked. “What’s changed?”

  The pair looked helplessly to each other, both stuttering and stammering.

  “Look,” Kevin shifted so that he could be sure everybody could see his face, “I wasn’t going to shoot Peter. And I’m a little surprised that the two of you could think I’m capable of such a thing.” His eyes locked on to Heather’s and lingered for a moment before continuing. “I’ve been through the whole deal where nobody gets along, and it doesn’t end well for anybody. So Peter said something stupid in the heat of the moment…” His eyes locked on the doctor’s for a few seconds. “Something very, very stupid. All of us are under an inexplicable amount of stress. Tiny things get blown out of proportion.

  “We have a lot to do in a short period of time. If you haven’t noticed, summer is almost gone. We’ve actually had it easy so far. We almost never go hungry or thirsty.” He pointed at Matt. “This guy was almost skin and bones when we found him and you all should look to him as a warning of what could be.

  “We need to get our asses moving. We’ve been slogging around the house and nobody seems in a hurry to go anywhere. And sure, we’re off the beaten path, but if one of those herds comes this way, we are truly fucked. So,” he clapped his hands together startling everybody and turned to Matt, “can you walk?”

  “We were just about to find out,” Matt replied.

  “Good.” He turned to Peter, “Get your ass in that room and don’t come out until you’ve apologized to Erin and patched things up with Shari.”

  “Errr…okay,” Peter mumbled and ducked out of the room.

  “And you two,” he turned to Heather and Aleah, “start putting together a list of essentials. We want to leave this place as a stocked waypoint when we leave, but we also want to be sure we have plenty of tools, blankets, food, and medical supplies.”

  “Okay.” Both girls nodded; Heather a bit meekly. Together they turned and scurried out of the room.

  “Wow,” Matt said, breaking the silence. Kevin turned around. “I just had flashbacks of my family’s last Thanksgiving.”

  * * * * *

  11

  Win some…lose some…

  “I’m out!” I yelled over the sounds of gunfire and the moans of the undead. Dr. Zahn handed me another rifle. “Thanks, now set as many loaded ones as you have, then take Thalia and Emily up to the tower with Teresa.” She opened her mouth as if to protest, then quickly nodded.

  I returned my attention to the horde’s leading edge that had figured out that following the road would make it easier for them to make progress toward their goal: us. At least fifty were limping up the slope. I sighted one in my scope and pulled the trigger. The back of its skull exploded, splattering the ones behind it. When it fell, it took the legs out from under a few of its bretheren. I didn’t have time to enjoy the effects of my shot, I simply moved to the next.

  “Jamie, no!” I heard from above.

  Looking in the general direction I had last seen him and Jon, I saw why Teresa screamed. Jamie had lost his footing and slid down the back side of the berm. The good news was that he hadn’t slipped into the space between the two berms which was packed with those things standing shoulder to shoulder. The bad news was that there were plenty of walking dead coming from the fields.

  Both Jon and Jamie had run out of bullets long ago, and were using handheld weapons. Jamie was on his back, holding one of those things at bay by the throat. Then, suddenly, its head rocked and it collapsed. I couldn’t clearly see his expression, but I could see that Jamie was looking this way. Teresa had taken the shot. He pushed the body aside and scrambled up the berm. Twice more, zombies that tried in vain to crawl up and get ahold of Jamie’s legs, fell to Teresa’s sniper fire.

  “The barricade isn’t working!” Sunshine pointed.

  Of course it wasn’t, I thought. It was designed to keep out a few, maybe even twenty or so of those things. When we’d started digging the trench, I’d given the instructions to leave the narrow roadway intact. My thinking was that it would allow us to drive a vehicle up to the house if we ever had the need. In saving us a few minutes of walking, I’d provided the only way that those things could make it all the way up.

  Almost on cue, the large metal gate from up the road where the actual entrance to this campground existed and had been relocated to our encampment, folded over. The way was still narrow, but far too many of those things were trudging up the path. Jon and Jamie yelled needless warnings. Actually, from my vantage point, they were now the safest of all of us.

  “Fire into the front!” I yelled. “If we can stack ‘em, it’ll slow down their advance.”

  I watched as the leading element that had been condensed betweent the berms stepped out onto that little piece of road; the piece I’d suggested we keep intact. Of course, plenty of them tumbled off either side and into the trench. Also, many of those that had trudged across the open fields had reached our trench and as more of their numbers came up from behind, tumbled in.

  I emptied my rifle, but it felt like trying to stem the flow of a busted dam with a roll of paper towels. The only thing positive that I could see at this point, was that it looked like the main body was fully upon us. Only a few stragglers were coming up the road where it emptied into the campground and plunged between the berms. Singles and small clusters continued to emerge from the trees, but it looked like the majority of this herd was currently gathered around us. Of course, the problem now was how we would deal with what we were facing.

  “What the hell are Jamie and Jon doing?” Melissa yelled.

  Both men had run down the length of their berm and were back by the entrance. Each one was moving into the open field. All of the zombies near them had turned and followed the closer prey. However, it just wasn’t enough to matter. Maybe a couple of dozen had taken the bait, but those were from the number that would eventually reach the trench. It was the few hundred coming up the narrow roadway that was the concern.

  “Don’t worry about them!” I yelled back. “I want you to get inside. Tell Dr. Zahn and Teresa to
transfer food, water, and ammo up to the tower.”

  “And put it where?” Melissa argued as she swapped out magazines in the pair of M4s at her feet.

  “I don’t care if you stack it on the roof,” I replied. “If those things get inside, maybe they’ll get bored and leave if you guys stay quiet.”

  “What do you mean ‘you guys’?” Sunshine asked before Melissa had the chance.

  “There’s no way in hell I can climb that ladder with my leg.”

  “But—” Brad started to protest.

  “But nothing,” I snapped. “We don’t have time for this! Keep shooting; every one of those things you don’t take out is one more I’ll have to deal with.”

  “I’ll stay with Steve,” Billy said grimly. “But he’s right…more shooting, less talking.”

  I resumed firing, and eventually everybody else joined in. The bridge—that’s what I now called the section of road that remained intact and allowed those cursed monsters to continue their march to our bastion—was littered with corpses that would walk no more. Still, far too many continued in their steady approach with the certainty of the tide.

  The door flew open and Teresa stepped out, “What the hell is this crap about you staying down here?”

  “I can’t make the climb.”

  “Then we’ll—”

  “NO!” I yelled cutting her off. “And there isn’t going to be a discussion. No more picking and choosing when I am the leader. I need to know that, if something happens to me, and you can bet that I’ll be fighting till the end, I have to know that Thalia and Emily will be taken care of. Now get your ass back in that tower!”

  Tears filled Teresa’s eyes. She opened her mouth, then closed it again and leaned in to kiss my cheek. I returned the gesture kissing her forehead.

  “Here they come!” Fiona called.

  “Go.” I nudged Teresa and turned back to the problem at hand.

  Just as Fiona had said, they had indeed rounded the corner and were coming for us. I surveyed the scene and made a decision.

  “Fiona, Billy, Brad, Sunshine,” I called over the gunfire. They stopped and looked at me expectantly. I could see it in their faces. They actually believed that I would have an answer, a solution. “Form a line at the head of the driveway. Once they reach the parking lot, they can fan out again. We need to take down as many as possible before they reach the top of this hill.”

  To their credit, I could see each of them swallow their fear. Each brought an M4 and as many loaded magazines as they could scoop up and carry—seven or eight apiece—before they headed down the stairs. I, on the other hand, was confined to the porch. Since I couldn’t shoot over the heads of my companions, I returned my attention to the bridge. At the least, I could slow down their advance. Hopefully, this would allow my improvised firing squad to bring down enough so that when we had to switch to close-in fighting, we stood a chance.

  As I reloaded, I scanned the fields for a sign of Jon or Jamie. Apparently both had sought the relative safety of the woods. I was sure that Jon had a plan and that he and Jamie were up to something. Unfortunately, I had no idea what that might be. I was just grateful that they were out there. If I fell, at least I would die knowing that Jon would eventually come to the rescue.

  A roaring engine brought my attention back to the road that emerged from the woods. There was a loud ‘brrrp’ from a heavy machinegun as a military Jeep with a .50 caliber mounted in back skidded to a stop just past where our night014w7atch stand sat.

  Jake Beebe stood in the driver’s seat and brought an M16 to his shoulder. He commenced firing into the rear of the mob that was packed in between the berms, while Jesus Sanchez practically vaporized them with the .50 caliber. Once they’d cut down a huge number, Jake dropped back down behind the wheel and moved forward, rolling over the carpet of fallen corpses. Zombies being what they are, many of those that had just moments ago been heading our way, turned to face their final demise.

  Like a piece of taffy, the mob began to pull apart at the center. The good news was that more of them were turning to face the barrage from the Jeep. The bad news was that we’d still have to face a frightening number up here. The leading edge was almost to the little parking lot in front of the Visitor’s Center—our home. My four-person firing squad was backing up steadily. They would be forced to switch to handguns and personal handheld weapons any time now.

  “Fan out!” I called. “Try to keep them in front of you. Brad, stick with Sunshine; Billy, you stay with Fiona and watch each other’s back.”

  As much as I wanted to watch Jake and Jesus, I was needed right here. I could now be selecting targets without the danger to my friends. Switching to my .45, I moved down the rail of the porch. I knew that if those things made it past the parking lot, I’d be cut off from the house; that couldn’t be helped. The slide locked back as I emptied the first of my five magazines.

  A handful of heartbeats later, I was reloaded and selecting targets once more. The others were switching to their hand-to-hand weapons as the zombies were now in the small parking lot. Trying to shoot them amidst the melee was too dangerous. It was obvious that Sunshine was the least adept of the bunch, so I kept most of my attention on the zombies around her.

  As I slammed my last magazine home and let the slide jack forward, I noticed that it had grown strangely quiet. Looking around, I spoted Jesus and Jake at the bridge. They’d cleared the road all that way! At some point they’d gotten out of the jeep to clear the mess of bodies and body parts off the bridge to enable their crossing. I also noted that our trench was a roiling sea of undead.

  The ‘Fearsome Foursome’ had methodically eliminated the zombies that managed to get this far. Now, everybody seemed unsure as to what to do. Down in the fields I could see several stragglers still wandering this way. But the worst of the threat was over…and we’d survived. Looking at all the corpses littering the ground, I was awestruck. It seemed like we’d overcome an impossible situation.

  Part of my mind refused to accept it. It seemed too incredible to fathom that we’d just faced so many of those things without suffering a single casualty. Then I began to search for any sign of Jon or Jamie. A small nugget of uncertainty began to grow in my gut. With the sound of gunfire gone, I could hear my companions talking as they moved through the carnage in order to ensure that the ones that were down would stay that way. I could hear the Jeep idling somewhere down the driveway. They were just around the corner by the sounds of it. Part of me truly wanted to hope, to believe, that we’d survived this latest horror. However, past experience would not let me. There had to be another shoe that would drop any minute now and cause pain, grief, and heartbreak.

  The door to the house opened, and out stepped Melissa, Teresa, Dr. Zahn and the girls. Each of them was carrying a weapon; even Thalia who clutched a hammer in one tiny fist. Something felt odd, then I realized I was smiling.

  “Papi!” Thalia squeeled and hurried over to me, careful to hug me on the side of my good leg. “Did we win?” She looked up at me expectantly.

  “I think so, Princess,” I said, then looked up at the others. “I really think so.”

  The sound of the Jeep pulling up brought everybody’s head around. Jesus stood in the rear, a big grin on his face. As Jake put the vehicle in park, he leaned down and opened the passenger door. A fuzzy-eared Border Collie came bounding out and scrabbled up to a shreaking Thalia.

  “Somebody missed his master,” Jesus said.

  I felt a nudge at my side. Emily had come to stand beside me. I put my arm around her shoulder and holstered my pistol. I noticed she was holding a handaxe. As odd as it seemed, I made a note to myself to ensure that she would learn how to use that weapon effectively.

  “Where’s Jon and Jamie?” Emily looked up at me and asked.

  “They’re doing a sweep of the woods,” Jake answered as he trudged up the stairs. “We actually passed them on the way in.”

  “Thank God you guys showed up!” Fiona exclaime
d, still clutching a dripping machete.

  “We heard the gunfire and hauled a—” Jesus started, then glanced at Thalia who was scratching Buster’s exposed belly; a sight that couldn’t help but remind me of my dog Pluck. “We came in a hurry,” he amended.

  “You got here in the nick of time.” Sunshine glanced down at the blade in her hand and dropped it with a disgusted shiver.

  “Yeah,” Jake hopped out of the Jeep, “about that…we were on our way back.”

  “Did you find that bastard Jason and blow his brains out?” Teresa asked with a mixture of hope and anger.

  “Sadly, no,” Jake replied. “I think he is long gone.”

  “Yeah,” Sanchez added. “It was a bust. And let’s face it, the world is an easier place to vanish in now days.”

  “So you said that you passed Jon and Jamie?” Teresa asked, changing the subject back.

  “Yeah.” Jake nodded. “They’re gonna do a sweep as well as make sure that all the noise doesn’t bring another mob of those things stumbling into camp.”

  “Sarge said that they will probably be a day or two away from camp,” Sanchez informed us, kneeling down beside Thalia and Buster. “¿Te extranjaste tu perrito?”

  “Sí.” Thalia’s head popped up at the sound of her native tongue. Then, a flood of words came out of which I understood nothing. A tinge of jealousy shaded the edge of my heart as I watched the two converse in Spanish.

  “What do we do now, boss?” Jake was standing beside me and Melissa was giving me a raised eyebrow which meant that somebody had likely asked that question at least once already.