The Violinist

by Barry Slater

  Captain Jack decapitated the zombie with a powerful swing at full throttle. The Excalibur vibrated with a “ching.”

  The head saw Dwayne and Captain Jack's images swirling in circles as it rolled into the drainage ditch beside the driveway. The zombie's body dropped to its knees then fell forward.

  Dwayne pressed the “close” button as he and Captain Jack went through the open gate.

  All three men exhaled in relief. Dwayne leaned forward and breathed heavily.

  “Shit!” Captain Jack exclaimed in between breaths.

  “What?” Doc Martin asked.

  “We forgot to check the mail while we were out.”

  Doc Martin shook his head and laughed.

  “If it had been any further,” Dwayne said in between breaths. “I wouldn't have made it. I'm not in the kind of shape you're in Jack.”

  “But at least I'm not as old as Methuselah here,” Dwayne said placing his hand on Doc Martin's shoulder.

  Doc Martin smiled.

  “Too bad we couldn't have taken one of those zombinees as a test subject,” Captain Jack grumbled.

  “I know,” Dwayne breathed out. “We'll do that on our next trip out.”

  Kim Young

  “The blanket is fifty-two inches by eighty-three inches,” Captain Jack explained. “That's enough material to cover your body core with some left over. Now hold it in front of you.”

  Dwayne held the thermal blanket out in front of him.

  Captain Jack looked for Dwayne's heat signature through the thermal goggles.

  “Hey,” Captain Jack said. “It works! All I can see is your fingertips at the edge of the blanket.”

  “How are we going to wear this?” Dwayne asked.

  “We could cut an old shirt open at the seams,” Captain Jack said. “Then use the pieces as a pattern.”

  “Or you could just make a poncho out of it,” Doc Martin said. “Just cut a hole in the middle of it.”

  “That's a good idea,” Dwayne acknowledged. “I wonder if we are the only ones to think of this.”

  “We may never know,” Doc Martin responded.

  “OK Dwayne,” Captain Jack said. “You’ve got a pretty big head. What size hole do we need to cut?”

  “Oh a wise guy,” Dwayne said in his best Curly Howard impersonation. “So I'm the one wearing the blanket?”

  “You're the one closest to the zombinees,” Captain Jack explained. “It's extra protection along with your music.”

  With a look of discernment, Dwayne took a moment to brainstorm.

  “OK,” Dwayne said. “Just cut a hole. It doesn't have to be perfect.”

  Captain Jack estimated the size of Dwayne's head then cut an ellipse in the center of the blanket with a pair of scissors.

  It was a tight fit but Dwayne slid his head through the hole and maneuvered it into the small of his neck then worked it down over his nose.

  “Excellent.” Captain Jack stepped back and looked at Dwayne.

  “Let's try the goggles again,” Doc Martin suggested.

  Dwayne held his arms out straight. The poncho made a large, dark rectangle shape in the goggles.

  “Perfect,” Captain Jack said. “I can only see your face and hands.”

  “It's too noisy,” Dwayne noticed as he lowered his arms. The thin, metallic blanket made the inherent sound of aluminum foil. “Maybe we should just go ahead and make a shirt out of it. We can cut up along my sides and out beneath my arms and then tape the seams together with duct tape. It might muffle the noise if we can wear it under our clothing.”

  “The problem with wearing it underneath our clothing,” Doc Martin said. “Is when our body heats the blanket itself, it will show a thermal image.”

  “We could wet our clothes,” Captain Jack said. “The moisture would keep the temperature of the blanket down.”

  “Maybe we could cut out the pattern,” Doc Martin said as he rubbed his chin. “But still wear it outside our clothes.”

  “It would still be noisy,” Dwayne said. “Plus it would not be good for camouflage. We would look like a Christmas tree ornament out there.”

  “Let's try it both ways,” Captain Jack suggested. “And see which works best.”

  “Cut upwards along my sides.” Dwayne held his arms out. “Then out beneath my arms close enough to tape the seams.”

  Doc Martin taped the edges of the blanket together while Captain Jack cut up along Dwayne's sides with the scissors and to the outer edge of the blanket just below his arms.

  “Hey,” Captain Jack noticed. “This left-over material is enough to cover your legs.”

  “Now,” Doc Martin said. “Tape the seams together but loosely, leave a gap if you need to.”

  “How do I look?” Dwayne asked. He held out his arms then turned around.

  “Like a knight in shining armor,” Captain Jack said in his best damsel voice.

  “To bad we don't actually have a suit of armor,” Doc Martin said.

  “I have one at home,” Captain Jack said. “It's a part of my King Arthur collection. I didn't think to bring it with me. At least it would have kept us from getting bit.”

  “Who would have?” Dwayne mused. “Who would have ever thought something like this would happen?”

  “Alright.” Doc Martin sensed that the two men were on the verge of despair. “C'mon guys, we're still alive aren't we?”

  Jean would call Dwayne her knight in shining armor. He thought of her then nodded.

  Captain Jack looked away. “Hanging in there, Doc.”

  “Then let's get on with living,” Doc Martin said.

  “Captain,” Dwayne said. “Scan me with the goggles.”

  “You look good,” Captain Jack said. “All I can see is your face and hands.”

  “That may be all we need to see,” Doc Martin said. “Just breaking up the shape of our bodies may be enough. In the way that wild animals are afraid of the figure of a human but not each other, it may be just the opposite for the zombies. The shape of person may be what attracts them.”

  “But we don't know for sure,” Dwayne said. “We don't know about any of this until we test it.”

  “On your live subject,” Doc Martin implied. “Or Captain Jack's dead subject, however you want to put it.”

  “Let's try it underneath my clothing,” Dwayne said switching subjects. “And see if that cuts down on the noise.”

  Dwayne went inside to change. In his bedroom, Dwayne noticed how much he was thinking about Jean. He was going to have to fight those thoughts now, in order to stay strong.

  Dwayne switched his mind to survival mode. In the master bath, he undressed then looked at himself in the mirror. He was much thinner. He had lost fifteen pounds of body fat from all the physical exertion and food rationing. That meant the surface of his skin would be colder and not create a thermal image on the blanket.

  He slid on a t-shirt then the blanket. He buttoned his dress shirt up over the blanket then pulled up the leg portions and then pulled his tuxedo pants up over them then slid into his jacket.

  The t-shirt prevented the blanket from making contact with the surface of Dwayne's skin and causing hot spots on the material.

  The tuxedo pants and jacket muffled the crinkling sound of the blanket. Dwayne tiptoed up the steps to the rooftop balcony then quietly walked out to Captain Jack and Doc Martin.

  “Is this quieter?” Dwayne asked.

  “Damn it Dwayne!” Doc Martin quickly sat up. “You scared the hell out of me.”

  “Shit!” Captain Jack said.

  “You guys seem a little jumpy,” Dwayne said. “Scan me with the goggles Doc.”

  “Hey!” Doc Martin said as he peered through the thermal goggles. “You look good. All I can see is your face and hands.”

  “And that's from walking up a flight of steps from a warmer room,” Dwayne said.

  “Your face and hands are already cooling down from the cold air,” Doc Martin noticed. “We'll have to figure out a way
to cover them.”

  “We can work on that later,” Dwayne said. “Right now we need a volunteer from the audience.”

  Captain Jack stood up. “Let's go get one.”

  #

  Taking the lead in the ghillie suit, Captain Jack scanned the trail ahead with the thermal goggles. He motioned to Dwayne then waited in the tree line at the pharmacy for Dwayne to come in behind him.

  There were no thermal images in the area. Dwayne's music would cover for them if they found themselves being overrun by zombies. If the rogue militants wandered into the area they would show up in the goggles.

  The sun's early morning rays beamed over the hill and through the trees behind them.

  There was movement outside the pharmacy. Dwayne moved quickly in between the tree line and the pharmacy and began playing.

  It was a child; the same little girl Captain Jack had seen before at the gas station with the deflated birthday balloon still trailing behind her. The little girl was captivated by the music and was magically lured to it.

  Several male stragglers fell silently in behind the little girl. A female, in her mid-twenties, watching from inside the pharmacy followed the stragglers.

  Securing the trail, Captain Jack preceded the procession as Dwayne and the small crowd made their way back toward Dwayne's house.

  From inside the McDonald's across the street Colonel Tibbets and the last of his snipers, Colbert, watched Dwayne lead the ensemble into the tree line.

  “It's him,” Colbert whispered.

  “Look at that,” Colonel Tibbets said quietly. “It's the freaking music!”

  Colbert zeroed in on Dwayne through the shattered plate glass. He clicked the safety off his M24 sniper rifle and placed its crosshairs on the back of Dwayne's head as he ascended the hill up to the backwoods trail.

  “Wait,” Colonel Tibbets said as he placed his hand on Colbert's shoulder.

  “I can take him,” Colbert complained. “We're about to lose sight of him. This may be our only chance to take him out.”

  “No,” Colonel Tibbets said calmly.

  “Why not?” Colbert demanded. “I thought that's what we were here to do.”

  “Look at him,” Colonel Tibbets said as he nodded his head toward Dwayne. “He's got them eating out of the palm of his hand. Now think carefully, who is in our merry little band that you know of that can play a violin?”

  “No one.”

  “Exactly. We need that violin and the man playing it.”

  Upon arrival, Captain Jack alerted Doc Martin from the end of the outer fence.

  “It's us Doc,” Captain Jack whispered into the handset then scanned the tree line up to the access road with the thermal goggles.

  “It's clear up to the front gate,” Doc Martin said from the rooftop balcony. “Come on in.”

  Captain Jack entered the gate code into the keypad. Dwayne singled the child out from the rest of the crowd—figuring it would be easiest to work with—and led her through the gate.

  Dwayne continued playing as Captain Jack removed his ghillie suit then positioned directly behind the child the hand truck Jean had used for moving heavy bales of hay.

  The little girl was spellbound by the vibrating strings and Dwayne's graceful movements as he played.

  Captain Jack wound the rope he and Dwayne had taken from the hardware store around the little girl and tied her securely to the hand truck.

  Dwayne stopped playing. The little girl returned to its state of zombiism, moaning insistently and trying to lash out at the heat source she was seeing.

  “Don't stop!” a voice screamed out from the stragglers.

  “Who the hell said that?” Captain Jack shouted.

  “The young woman!” Dwayne shouted. “Jack, scan her with the goggles.”

  “She's putting out heat!” Captain Jack said in surprise.

  “I'll get her.” Dwayne quickly opened the gate. “You get the zombies!”

  Captain Jack dispatched the two shrilling zombies in front of the young woman with head shots then took aim at the zombie behind her. Dwayne ran to the woman and pulled her down to the ground.

  “Jack!” Dwayne shouted.

  A direct hit from Captain Jack's AK47 blasted out the back of the zombie's head. It reeled back then pitched forward across the young woman's back then fell hard onto the ground with the thud of dead meat.

  The young woman began weeping. After a moment of watching the zombie to make sure it was dead, Dwayne pulled the young woman to her feet then wrapped his arm around her. He picked her up, cradling her in his arms, then carried her to the house while Captain Jack covered their retreat.

  “What's going on?” Doc Martin asked. He met Dwayne at the front door. “Who is that? Is she OK?”

  “I don't know,” Dwayne answered. “I'm taking her upstairs.”

  Doc Martin and Captain Jack followed Dwayne as he carried the woman into his bedroom and laid her on the bed. Her long, bright red frizzy hair covered most of her face. Her heavily freckled face and hands were streaked with dirt as were her clothing.

  “She's freezing,” Dwayne said then pulled the comforter over her.

  “Is she injured?” Captain Jack asked.

  “Doc,” Dwayne said. “Check her out.”

  “Gimme some room, damn it,” Doc Martin complained as he nudged past Captain Jack.

  “Sorry Doc,” Dwayne apologized as he stepped back out of Doc Martin's way.

  Doc Martin checked for fever then her pulse. He probed her ribs and abdomen then checked her arms and legs.

  “She has no open wounds or broken bones,” Doc Martin said as he stepped back from the bed. “She's exhausted. She's dehydrated and undernourished. She needs rest.”

  “Does she have the virus?” Captain Jack asked.

  “No,” Doc Martin answered. “She has no fever or congestion.”

  “Thank God,” Dwayne said.

  The young woman blinked open her emerald green eyes then looked up at Dwayne.

  Dwayne knelt down beside the bed and took the woman's hand in his.

  “What's your name?” Dwayne asked.

  “Kim. Kim Young,” the young woman answered. “Where am I?”

  “Don't worry,” Dwayne said as he placed his hand on her forehead. “You're safe. Now get some rest.”

  #

  Dwayne sat by the bed while Doc Martin rested on the couch downstairs and Captain Jack stood watch on the rooftop balcony.

  The young woman—Kim—hadn't moved all night. Besides being dehydrated, she appeared to be in good health. She had the lean, physically fit body of an athlete.

  Dwayne watched as Kim slept. She was lying on her side with her palms together on the pillow beneath her cheek. Her breathing was smooth and regular. She was not sneezing or coughing and there were no black circles around her eyes. If she had the virus, she would be showing signs by now.

  “How is she?” Doc Martin asked as Dwayne descended the stairway.

  “She's still asleep,” Dwayne answered. “I'm going to start up the generator. I'll get some hot water going so she can take a shower when she wakes up.”

  “A hot meal would do her a lot of good too,” Doc Martin said.

  “Then a hot meal is what we'll have,” Dwayne said. “A hot meal together would do us all some good.”

  There was a commotion upstairs. Dwayne was met with screaming halfway up the stairway.

  “NO—NO!”

  Dwayne found Kim struggling on the bed with tears flowing down her face.

  “Kayla!” Kim screamed. Dwayne grabbed her flailing arms. “Don't touch her. Leave her alone!”

  “Hey,” Dwayne said. “It's OK. Everything is OK.”

  Doc Martin rushed upstairs. “Is she alright?”

  Coming down from the rooftop balcony, Captain Jack held his AK47 at the ready.

  “She's alright,” Dwayne said calmly. “She was just having a bad dream.”

  “Where's Kayla?” Kim asked as she looked around the
room.

  “Who's Kayla?” Dwayne asked.

  “My daughter, the little girl you brought here with your music.”

  Dwayne looked at Doc Martin and Captain Jack with discernment.

  “She's outside,” Dwayne said. “In the storage shed.”

  “Can I see her?”

  “She has the virus,” Dwayne responded.

  “I know,” Kim said. “I just need to see her, please.”

  “We can go after it warms up outside,” Dwayne said. “Right now we need to get some food in you. There's hot water for a shower. You can try on some of the clothes in that closet if you'd like. Maybe something in there will fit you.”

  “How long did I sleep?”

  “Since yesterday.”

  Kim was silent.

  “Take your time,” Dwayne said.

  “Thank you,” Kim said as Dwayne turned toward the stairway.

  Dwayne stopped then looked back at Kim. “You're welcome. I'll see you downstairs.”

  Kim tried to smile. Dwayne tried to return Kim's smile but failed miserably then closed the door behind him.

  Downstairs, Dwayne joined Doc Martin at the kitchen table. Doc Martin poured Dwayne and himself each a glass of water then stirred in a spoon full of cocoa powder.

  Doc Martin sat down then looked at Dwayne.

  Dwayne rubbed his face then looked down at his glass of chocolate water. “Well, it’s certainly nice to have company.”

  “Poor girl,” Doc Martin said as he took a drink. “Looks like she’s been through hell.”

  #

  After Dwayne left, Kim had slowly began to explore the bedroom. Pictures of Dwayne and Jean were on the dresser. Jean's jewelry and makeup were still on her vanity table just as she had left it. Kim looked through the clothes in Jean's closet and picked out a pair of blue jeans and a shirt. She found fresh underwear in the dresser drawer and laid them out on the bed. Kim took a hot shower in the master bathroom then dressed and then went downstairs.

  #

  Dwayne and Doc Martin stood up as Kim came down to the dining room.

  “Kim,” Dwayne said. “This is Doctor Fredrick Martin. Doc, this is Ms. Kim Young.”

  Doc Martin smiled and offered his hand. “Nice to meet you.”