Dead Cold

by Roddy R. Cross, Jr.

  “Same reason there isn’t any tire tracks in the snow, whatever direction the army bugged out in, it wasn’t this one.” Roland could see the big green sign of a 7-11 in the distance.

  “Makes sense, so where in Edmonton are we going?”

  “Well first we’re gonna stop at that 7-11. After that there’s a car dealership not far from there where we are gonna get transportation. Once we have wheel’s were gonna find somewhere to hide for the night and in the morning I need to try and find my sister then we’ll head to West Ed.” Roland looked to the city lights when as he said sister worrying crossing his tired face.

  “Dude I’m sorry.”

  Roland came back to reality at the other man’s words. “Don’t be it’s not your fault, it’s not anyone’s fault. After all I always wanted something like this to happen.” Roland fingered the P90 as he kept he gaze on the ground.

  “What do you mean “always wanted something like this”?” Cory’s features hardened.

  “I sucked at life Cory I was in debt, I hated my job, I hated my life and nothing ever seemed to work out. So I started hoping for the end of society all so I wouldn’t have to pay bills or face the girl that rejected me again.”

  “Everyone has a shitty life but you can’t honestly tell me that your friends and family dying at the hands of those monsters is better than what you had before. Can you?”

  Roland looked towards the city. “I’m not sure.”

  Cory just shook his head and the conversation ended as they continued their trek towards the city. They reached the 7-11 and Roland used the scope on his rifle to look inside from a safe distance. Nothing moved and the store appeared empty so the two men and the dog continued towards the front door their ears listening for anything. “Dude, why are we even here?” Cory asked looking around his face nervous.

  “I need something to drink and a pack of cigarettes, I haven’t had a smoke in almost two days.” Roland pulled open the door a blast of warm air hitting him in the face.

  “You’re gonna risk our lives for a pack of cigarettes?” Cory’s voice went up an octave as he asked.

  “You say that like it’s the craziest thing I’ve done, have you looked at my face lately?” Roland stepped into the store inhaling through his nose.

  “Guess not.” Cory followed Roland into the store his rifle at the ready.

  Keeping a close eye on Eve Roland went straight to the counter tearing open a pack of his cigarettes and lighting one taking a long inhale, a sigh escaping his lips with the smoke. Cory looked up from a magazine rack he had been looking at and shook his head but said nothing.

  Filling his pockets with two more packs of smokes Roland grabbed two of the expensive torches from behind the counter before moving to the cooler on the opposite side of the store. Following along the glass doors until he found what he was looking for pulling the door open and grabbing a Vitamin Water. Popping the lid the lid off he took a big drink savoring the taste.

  “Hey, Cory you know what’s great about the apocalypse?”

  “Uh, nothing?”

  “You’re such a pessimist; it’s not having to pay for anything.” Roland shoved a few bottle of Vitamin Water into his backpack and headed for the door.

  “You comin’?”

  Cory followed Roland out of the store Eve leading the way as they continued down the street towards the dealership. About three hundred feet from the store Eve started barking at a nearby fence and Roland heard moans coming from the other side. Before he could open his mouth to say anything the fence collapsed and dozens of the creatures spilled out into the snow less than fifty feet from where the trio was standing.

  Roland dropped his cigarette and brought up the P90 clicking on the laser sight as he flipped the selector to single fire and aimed for the nearest creature. Cory had also brought his rifle up and they both began firing into the crowd. Both weapons clicked dry at the same time and Roland realized they had barely made a dent in the amount of creatures they were facing.

  “To hell with this, there’s too many let’s get out of here!”

  “Couldn’t agree more, what are you gonna do about them following us?” Cory replaced the magazine in his FAL with a fresh one.

  Roland pulled on the grenades off his vest and smiled. “A little distraction should do the trick.”

  Cory nodded and brought out one of his own grenades. “How far away do you think we should be?”

  “How far can you throw?” Roland pulled the pin on his grenade, keeping the handle pressed down.

  Cory pulled the pin on his grenade and they tossed both into the middle of the mob; the trio taking of running the second the grenades were air born. Roland had seen explosions in movies and had spent the better part of two days listening to gunfire but he was not prepared for the noise of two grenades going of in close proximity.

  They had put at least sixty feet between themselves and the creatures by the time the grenades detonated, the explosion causing both of them to dive into the soft snow. Roland turned back to see the monsters continuing to advance seemingly unaware of the explosion that had happened so close to them.

  “Awe hell, come on get up it’s about a kilometer to the dealership and we got some running to do.”

  “Right behind you.” Cory was up and running, Roland working to keep up.

  The two men kept a good pace and the slow moving creatures quickly fell behind until they were completely out of sight, the bone chilling moan a constant reminder that they weren’t far behind. They were running through a strip mall parking lot when the neon sign for the Dodge dealership came into view and Roland quickened his pace.

  “Home stretch now, buddy!” Roland’s excitement barely contained.

  Roland reached the dealership ahead of Cory and went straight to the showroom smashing the glass door with his P90. Once inside Roland looked around he eyes moving instantly to a cherry red Dodge Ram SRT10. Cory came up behind him panting.

  “You know for a smoker you move pretty fast.”

  “I want it.” Roland walked up to the truck and checked the ignition completely unaware of the other man.

  “What?” Cory rested his hands on his knees attempting to catch his breath.

  “Got to find the keys.” Roland muttered to himself leaving the truck and searching the nearby offices.

  Cory just shook his head as Roland went through every office looking for the keys and Eve flopped down beside the truck almost seeming to know she was going for a ride soon. Roland continued searching the offices all his attention turned to finding the keys for the truck so he didn’t notice that tapping on the big glass windows.

  Eve began barking at the windows drawing Cory’s attention the glass wall where dozens of shapes were pressing themselves up against the glass the weight making the thick glass groan. “Uh, Roland you might want to hurry up.”

  Roland looked up from the key rack he had been sorting through. “Why? What’s…? Oh shit.” His eyes locked on the mob pressing against the glass.

  “Faster would be better!” Cory took a step back as crack began materializing in the big glass sheets.

  “I’m trying! There’s a lot of freaken keys. Got it!” Roland pressed the unlock button on the key fob and the SRT’s lights blazed into existence. “Let’s go!”

  “Don’t gotta tell me twice!” Cory jumped in the passenger seat and tossed his backpack in the back.

  “Come on Eve.” Roland let the dog in the truck and threw his backpack next to Cory’s before hopping into the driver’s seat.

  “How are you planning to get out of the showroom?” Cory buckled his seatbelt as the truck’s Viper engine roared to life.

  “Over, under, around or through.” Roland smiled as he put the truck in drive.

  The glass wall shattered in the next instant and Roland flipped the P90’s fire selector to full auto and fired a spray of high caliber rounds into the stumbling horde. Stomping the accelerator to the floor Roland let out a crazed laugh as the sound of
exhaust and squealing tires filled the showroom; drowning out the moans of the undead. Cory gripped the door handle hard as the big truck smashed through the glass wall ahead of it and bounced towards the street quickly leaving the monsters behind.

  “So, where are we going?” Cory had relaxed his grip and Roland was lighting another cigarette the P90 resting on the center.

  “Somewhere safe, where those things can’t get at us.” Almost as soon as Roland finished speaking he saw the street lights start to dim and flicker.

  Block by block the power flickered and died until the entire city was dark the only light coming from Roland’s truck as he drove down the deserted streets keeping his eyes open for any movement. Cory had taken to staring out the passenger window at the dark buildings a testament to how quickly humanity’s greatest achievements could be reduced to empty ideals.

  Eve had fallen asleep on the back seat; emitting on the occasional whimper or kick of her leg. They reached the Yellowhead Trail and Roland found he had to slow down and maneuver around the abandoned vehicles as he wondered what had become of the previous occupants. The news had said that Edmonton had been lost and all major arteries were clogged with vehicles and people attempting to escape whatever was happening. Snow had covered the vehicles and ground around them but Roland guess there was quite a bit of blood staining the vehicles and the ground around them.

  Chapter 13: How High

  They entered the downtown core and Roland saw something that instantly caught his attention; a dim light from the top floor of a high-rise apartment building. Slowing to a stop in front of the buildings entrance Roland shut off the truck and looked up towards the single square of light so high above the street. Shutting off the truck Roland opened his door. “Come on let’s go.”

  “Go where?” Cory removed his seatbelt.

  “To see whose still home.” Roland pointed up and Cory craned his neck to look at the tiny window.

  Grabbing their gear as Eve hopped out of the truck the two men headed towards the dark building. A honk from the truck made Cory jump as Roland locked the doors; the taller man turning to glare at him and Roland just shrugged his shoulders. Once inside the building Roland shot the lock off the entry door, the gunshot deafening inside the cramped entryway.

  Once inside Roland looked longingly at the elevator as Cory headed for the stairwell pushing the door open and looking up. Eighteen floors Roland thought as he walked to the stairwell shaking his head. It had been dark in the lobby only cloud covered moonlight for illumination but in the windowless stairwell it was darker than anything Roland had ever known.

  “Shit its dark in here.” Roland flicked on his taclight and looked up. “Well, this sucks, might as well get goin’.”

  “You’re telling me.” Cory clicked on his flashlight and the trio started up the stairs.

  The stairwell was warm and the winter clothes Roland was wearing just made it worse as he trudged up the stairs his boot steps echoing up and down the concrete square he found him self trapped in. After nine floors Roland sat down breathing heavily the sniper rifle’s barrel knocking against the metal railing with a clang.

  “I gotta stop; I’m way to out of shape for this shit.” Roland began digging in his pack for a drink.

  Cory took a seat next to Roland his breathing labored. “You’re telling me.”

  Eve came up to Roland panting and he tipped the wide mouthed water bottle towards her mouth letting her take a drink. When he was sure both his and the dog’s thirst was quenched Roland pulled out a cigarette and lit it smiling as he did.

  “Dude, you know that shit is bad for you.” Cory was resting against the wall his eyes closed.

  “I do, and I kept meaning to quit. Even did a few times; for a little while, but I think there are bigger problems right now.” Roland reached through the railing and flicked the ash off his smoke watching as it floated down seemingly forever.

  Cory just shook his head and stood up stretching his back. Following suit Roland got to his feet and looked up frowning before he dropped the cigarette down the stairwell.

  They reached the top floor and Roland sighed in relief as the entrance came into view. Looking at the Cory Roland raised a single finger to his lips and the motioned for the taller man to follow him. Roland pulled the door towards himself as quietly as possible, the squeak of the hinges seeming deafening in the dark stairwell. Ushering through the dog and the taller man Roland followed behind shutting the door with only a whisper of weather stripping.

  The two men and the dog moved quickly down the hallway towards a thin line of light peeking out from under one of the doors. Roland could hear voices coming from the other side of the door and he recognized the strong smell of marijuana. Lacking a better plan Roland brought up his right boot and slammed it against the door a thundering crack filled the hallway as the deadbolt smashed through the wall and the door flew inwards banging against the inner wall and rebounding.

  Screams came from the apartment as Roland pushed through the door and he followed the sounds and light to the living room his P90 held ready. Stepping into the living room Roland lowered the gun and looked around at four sets of scared, blood shot eyes. There were four people in the living room two guys and two girls; they were all dressed like punk rockers with band shirts, metal spikes, and piercings. The first guy was tall, skinny, and pale with black hair while the second guy was short, bigger and had tanned skin with blond hair.

  One of the girls had stark white skin with black hair and a curvy figure hidden under a Rob Zombie shirt. The last person in the room was a little bit bigger girl with neon orange hair.

  “Who the hell are you?” The tall guy was attempting to control his laughter.

  “I’m Roland, and this is Cory. The dog is Eve. Who are you people and why are you here?”

  “I’m DJ, he’s Caleb, Cassandra is my girlfriend, and I’m not sure what her name is.” He indicated the black haired girl.

  “My name is Valerie, and we’re here because DJ said evacuating would be a bad idea.” She was staring at Roland.

  “Well, you were right about that but I don’t think getting high in a high rise is the best idea.” Roland was a little uncomfortable by the way Valerie was looking at him.

  “Well I though it was a good plan.” Resentment oozed from DJ’s mouth as a he spoke.

  Without warning Eve rushed to the balcony and started growling her hackles raised. “Everyone shut up and put out those candles.” Roland’s voice was harsh and dangerous as he rushed to where the dog was standing.

  The candles were doused quickly; the room instantly dark and in the silence Roland heard what Eve had already heard; the moan of a lot of undead. Taking of his backpack Roland unhooked the sniper rifle and flipped open the scope covers. Opening the balcony door Roland stepped out into the cold night air the moon giving the cityscape and eerie glow. The moans were louder now and Roland looked down towards the street his eyes growing wide the horde was massive.

  It filled the street below looking for all the world like a mass of ants marching south through the city. Bringing the scope up to his eye Roland got a better look at the creatures surprised at how diverse they were, some were naked, some clothes and all ages from toddlers to the elderly. Roland could hear someone behind him at the doorway attempting not to laugh and he turned from the rifle to see Caleb, his hand over his mouth. Caleb uncovered his mouth and was opening it to say something when Roland drew one of his Browning and aimed it at the shorter man’s head.

  “If you don’t shut the fuck up I will blow your brains all over the living room.” Roland’s whisper was harsh and violent the words themselves seeming to cut the much shorter man as he backed into the apartment his hands raised.

  Roland lit a cigarette and brought the scope up to his eye again trying to find the back of the horde but unable to see one from the apartments balcony. He could see the creatures brushing up against the SRT on the street and he sighed as the passenger side mirror was torn off.
It took two hours for the horde to pass, only a few stragglers remained and Roland considered trying to shoot them from the balcony but didn’t want to alert the receding sea of undead. Turning away from the street Roland went back into the apartment shutting the door behind him.

  Chapter 14: Tough Decisions

  Eve had retreated to the apartments shattered doorway and was growling quietly but Roland took no notice as his stomach emitted a much louder grumble. Clicking on the safety Roland put the Timberwolf next to his bag and headed to the kitchen while Cory talked with the other four. Opening the fridge Roland chuckled.

  “Real good survival plan.” The fridge was filled with beer, condiments and little else.

  Checking the cupboards Roland found a box of crackers and started eating tossing a few to Eve who hungrily devoured the orange circles. Tossing the empty box onto the counter Roland walked back into the living room, avoiding Valerie’s gaze as he went and retrieved a Vitamin Water from his bag.

  “So what’s the plan?” The question surprised Roland and he turned to look at Caleb.

  “What?”

  “Well Cory says you seem to know what you’re doing so we are just wondering what the plan is now?”

  “Well I’m hoping to find out what happened to my sister, grab some things from West Ed and then back to the Garrison to try and find out where Stonedecker went.”

  Cassandra spoke up then. “I heard on the radio that there were people hiding in the mall, hold on.” She pulled out a portable radio, the kind that charged with a crank and flipped the power switch.

  After a few seconds of static a deep voice came through the tiny speaker. “If you can hear this we are in the West Edmonton Mall, we have food and other supplies. We can protect you here. The Police and Military have fallen apart.” The radio faded and shut off.

  “Okay, grab your coats and shoes and let’s get going, most of the creatures have passed but they may come back we have to hurry.” Roland hooked the Timberwolf back onto the backpack and slung the pack over his shoulder.