by Barry Slater
Doc Martin danced a song with Kim then Dwayne and Kim danced their bride and groom dance. When the music was over, Doc Martin, Captain Jack and Father Bryan applauded as Dwayne and Kim bowed.
“Enjoy your honeymoon,” Doc Martin said.
“You're a lucky man Dwayne,” Captain Jack said. “Of course I've always considered you lucky.”
“It's more than luck Captain,” Dwayne responded. “It's the music.”
“And the tuxedo,” Kim added. “Women go crazy about a sharp dressed man.”
“Take it easy on him Miss Kim,” Captain Jack teased. “Remember, he's a sharp dressed old man.”
“Goodnight everyone,” Dwayne bid. “Father Bryan, if you would shut off the generator when you go downstairs. Power left over from the solar panel batteries should give everyone enough light to bed down.”
Well lit, Doc Martin raised up his glass. “Come,” he said. “Oh angels of the night, who make love to me in my sleep, who are a part of me when I dream. It is love and war with us. You send me into battle night after night then reward me with your love and peace, your flesh so pale and soft.
“So come to me my little angels, for I love to dream about war and peace, as much as I love to dream about you.”
“Very nice Doc,” Kim applauded.
“Just a few words I wrote in my youth,” Doc Martin said.
“You're a poet and we didn't know it,” Captain Jack said. “Got another one?”
“I think of myself as an old man and as a child who are both thinking about me as I am now,” Doc Martin dictated.
“Sorry I asked,” Captain Jack joked. Everyone laughed.
“Hang in there Captain,” Doc Martin said. “You're gonna make it.”
“It's you I'm worried about,” Captain Jack said. “Coming up with stuff like that.”
“It's called 'imagination,'” Doc Martin said. “I hope people who have nothing have a good imagination so they at least can imagine that they have something.”
“Good night everyone,” Dwayne said shaking his head.
#
“Hi,” Kim said as she and Dwayne slowly approached each other in the master bedroom.
After the wedding ceremony, Dwayne had carried Kim across the bedroom threshold.
“Hi,” Dwayne said looking into Kim's eyes.
“The music was beautiful,” Kim complimented. “The composer did a wonderful job.”
“Thank you for this,” Dwayne said.
“It was a wonderful wedding,” Kim said. “I just wish Kayla could have been here.”
Kim stopped then shook her head. “I'm sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. I guess I'm still hanging onto the past.”
“It's only natural,” Dwayne said.
“Or a weakness,” Kim said thinking again about the loss of her entire family.
“Or maybe this is not natural at all,” Dwayne said. “Father Bryan may be onto something. If death, disease and dying is just a part of our natural world then why does it horrify us so?”
“Let's just not think about it,” Dwayne continued. He took Kim's hand. “Let's enjoy this. Hey, it's our honeymoon.”
“What would you like to do?”
“Let's finish that bottle of wine and whisper romantic things into each other’s ear.”
“MMM, Precious moments.”
Taking their time, they kissed romantically. After several glasses of wine, they slowly undressed each other.
The extended foreplay was magical; they tickled each other until they both had tears rolling down their cheeks. After the laughter, the two made love. Kim incorporated several of the yoga positions she had learned for occasions such as this. They both came to an intense orgasm then rested in each other's arms.
“Good night my love,” Dwayne said softly.
“Good night darling,” Kim said in her wonderful female voice.
Exhausted, it was only a moment before the two fell fast asleep.
#
“Good morning love birds,” Captain Jack said as he came in from night watch the next morning.
“I forgot to do my shift last night,” Dwayne said apologetically. “I'm sorry guys.”
“Father Bryan filled in,” Captain Jack said. “Everything went well.”
“We already had it planned that way,” Doc Martin said. “You shouldn't have to do guard duty on your honeymoon night. We expected no less than for you two to completely enjoy yourselves without worrying about anything.”
“Speaking of that,” Captain Jack said. “You two need more time alone now that you're married. It's your honeymoon for crying out loud. Go somewhere, or we all can go somewhere and you two can stay here and enjoy some privacy for a change. We could go scrounging around town.”
“There is a lot more scrounging to be done,” Dwayne agreed, “that's for sure. Maybe we could do that and see what we can find, like a treasure hunt.”
“Let Kim wear the thermal suit and you take your violin,” Captain Jack said. “You guys take the truck out for a ride; make a day out of it. It's Christmas day for Christ's sake.”
“Let's do it,” Kim said smiling.
“You guys still need to be careful,” Doc Martin said. “Want me to go with you?”
“Hell,” Captain Jack said. “Why don't we all go with them. That way they can really have some time to themselves.”
“I just don't think this is a good idea Jack,” Doc Martin said and rubbed his chin.
“They've got a hand set,” Captain Jack explained.
“We'll be fine,” Dwayne said. “We'll call if we run into trouble. If we're not back in three hours, come looking for us.”
“Hey listen,” Captain Jack said thinking twice about the danger of Dwayne and Kim going out alone. “On second thought, it was only a suggestion. You guys don't have to go.”
“I'm taking my wife shopping,” Dwayne said. “There may be some Christmas Day sales.”
“OK,” Captain Jack said. “See if you can find some lottery tickets while you're out.”
#
Dwayne and Kim drove hand in hand to Highway 50 then turned left toward Round Hill. There were no zombies at the gas station.
“Maybe they've gone home for the holidays,” Dwayne punned.
“That would work,” Kim laughed.
Dwayne drove slowly past the pharmacy. It was void of zombies also.
No one around, not even those with the virus, was isolating. Kim's emotions began to stir. The past blindsided her. The memories came flowing in. The fear of things never being normal again overwhelmed her. She understood Dwayne's yearnings for those times.
Kim now knew something even more terrifying. The fact that she wasn't as strong as she thought she was gripped her.
“Can we go to the mall?” Kim asked after a moment’s pause.
“Sure,” Dwayne answered.
Kim moved closer to Dwayne and wrapped her arm around his.
Dwayne was Kim's rock. He was the only thing stopping her from being completely paralyzed with fear now that they were back in no man's land. She closed her eyes and pictured the two of them in a field of flowers. There, no one could harm them.
Kim opened her eyes but kept the image in her mind as they drove through the town of Stateline to the California side of the lake.
The Tahoe Crescent shopping center was deserted. Broken shop windows and scattered products were all that remained. The food court had been cleaned out by survivors who had been pushed back to the water's edge over a month ago and contracted the virus there.
“Where is everyone?” Dwayne questioned. “There should be people here. A few at least.”
“Maybe they caught the virus.”
“Then there would be more zombies here.”
“That is strange,” Kim said. “Maybe they have left the area.”
“Everything looks like it's been abandoned for some time now.”
“Let's go home,” Kim said uncomfortably.
Outside, the sky was gray
overcast and snow flurries began falling on the truck's windshield and melting.
Back at the gas station, Dwayne and Kim were met with an impossible sight. Hundreds of zombies had come in from the shore where the last of the survivors had succumbed to the virus. Forced to the lake’s edge for water, they were trapped. There, with their backs against the water, the zombies had waded into them. Those who could swim were devoured from below the water’s surface by zombies that did not need oxygen to breath. The zombies crowding Highway 50 were drawn earlier by Dwayne and Kim's drive to the shopping center in Stateline.
“Where did they come from?” Dwayne asked.
Kim was too stunned to answer.
The highway was covered with zombies. Dwayne had no choice but to grind through them. The more athletic of the zombies climbed onto the hood of the truck blocking Dwayne's view of the road.
Dwayne stayed on the accelerator, keeping the truck at a steady ten miles per hour but the zombies were gathering faster than he could drive through them.
The truck quickly bogged down in the quagmire of bodies. Dwayne tried to turn around but the wheels, caked with tissue and body fluids, spun the truck across the asphalt and onto the shoulder of the road.
Sliding on the wet grass, the truck rolled onto its driver's side then slid down the embankment and stopped.
“Shit!” Dwayne whispered. “Are you OK?”
Kim had landed on top of Dwayne. Dwayne was lying on the driver's side door glass which was pressed against the wet mud at the bottom of the gully.
The zombies began sliding and tumbling down the wet grass into the gully. Dwayne had twisted his ankle between the accelerator and brake pedals and was beginning to feel the pain.
“We've got to get out of here before they overwhelm us,” Dwayne said. The adrenaline began to well up inside his throat.
Kim's eyes were wide open. Fear began to pull at her jaw.
Dwayne stood on the steering wheel with his good foot and pushed the passenger door up into the air.
“Give me your hand,” Kim reached for Dwayne. He could feel the weakness in her grip. “Climb up!”
Dwayne handed his violin case up to Kim then pulled himself out of the truck cab. With the thermal suit on, Kim was invisible to the zombies but the shrilling began at the sight of Dwayne standing in the cold air on the side of the truck.
Kim covered her ears. The falling zombies rolled against the truck then recovered and looked for a way to get to Dwayne.
Lowering himself on the opposite side of the truck, Dwayne opened his violin case then pulled the bow across the strings of the Stradivarius.
The zombies stopped their shrilling.
Dwayne stopped playing and motioned for Kim to come down. “Come on!”
Kim was overcome with fear as she frantically looked for a way to get down from the truck as the zombies began to shrill again in the absence of the music.
“Slide down!” Dwayne said.
Kim sat down on the upper edge of the fender and slid down the width of the hood.
“Wrap your arms around my waist.” Dwayne could see the panic in her eyes. “Stay behind me, no matter which way I turn.”
Dwayne started the music. The zombies calmed. The shrilling stopped. Their eyes softened. Each one sorted through bits and pieces of their memories.
A mother remembered her children playing baseball in the back yard as she prepared dinner. A young man remembered making love to his high school sweetheart. It was their first time together.
“We'll lead them up the gully,” Dwayne said, “to an easier place for us to get back up on the highway.”
He limped as Kim stumbled on the wet rocks behind him. The bottom of the gully rose to where Dwayne and Kim could climb the slippery shoulder. The dead followed them with their eyes then slowly moved in their direction.
Once they were back on the asphalt, Dwayne stopped playing then handed the handset to Kim.
“Call Captain Jack,” Dwayne said.
The shrilling resumed. Kim was shaking. Dwayne took the handset and Kim wound her arms tightly around Dwayne's waist.
“Captain Jack!” Dwayne shouted into the handset.
“Captain Jack!” Dwayne repeated. He waited for a response but there was none.
“We must be out of range.” Dwayne looked at his watch. “We've been gone for only an hour. They won't expect us back for another two hours.”
Dwayne resumed playing just before the crowd converged on them.
“Hold tight,” Dwayne shouted. “We'll head toward the house.”
Dwayne led Kim and the crowd to Captain Jack's derelict truck and held the passenger side door open.
“Get inside,” Dwayne said.
Dwayne got in beside Kim just as the crowd caught up. The incessant moaning resumed.
“You have to call Captain Jack from inside here while I play outside or he won't be able to hear what you say,” Dwayne explained. “Tell him we're at his truck.”
Kim wiped the tears from her eyes. “I haven't been much help have I?”
“It's OK,” Dwayne replied. “We—I—made the wrong call on this one. We turned left when we should have turned right. So next time, we'll just go to the dollar store instead of trying to be all fancy at Macy's.”
Dwayne kissed Kim on the cheek and smiled then stepped outside and drew his bow across the Stradivarius.
“Captain Jack,” Kim said into the handset. “Captain Jack,” Kim tried again after a moment of silence. “Are you there? Can you hear me?”
Dwayne led the gathering crowd away from the truck.
“Kim?” a staticky voice came on the handset.
“Jack!” Kim said excitedly.
“How's it going?”
“We're in trouble. Please come help us.”
“Where are you?”
“I'm inside your truck near the house.”
“I know exactly where you are. Where is Dwayne?”
“He's outside.”
“Is he OK?”
“He hurt his ankle. He's playing his violin.”
“Zombeenies?”
“Yes, a lot of them. More than I've ever seen, Jack.”
“I'm on my way. Stay on the handset. Stay calm. If anything changes, let me know.”
“Dwayne,” Kim called out from the truck window. “Captain Jack is coming.”
“OK,” Dwayne said as he continued to play. “I want you to get out of the truck and head toward the house.”
“I'm not going anywhere without you!”
“I'll be right behind you,” Dwayne said. “Use the thermal suit. Remember, they can't see you. Smear some wet dirt on your face; you'll be practically invisible to them.”
Kim scraped up some of the mud from the side of the road with her fingertips then rubbed it on her face. The cold, wet dirt brought her back to the dark reality her mind was trying to escape.
“Stay up front,” Dwayne instructed. “Stay ahead of the crowd. They'll probably follow us in.”
Halfway to the house, a fast moving zombie pushed through the crowd, unaffected by the music. As it moved in, the zombie focused on Dwayne's thermal image.
Dwayne brushed the zombie aside then continued playing. The zombie quickly recovered and bit down on the sleeve of Dwayne's jacket.
The polyester filling blew into the air when Dwayne pulled his arm away, leaving the insulated sleeve hanging in the zombie's mouth.
The zombie resumed its attack. Dwayne kicked it in the chest forcing it back into the crowd.
Dwayne pulled his torn jacket off and threw it over the zombie's head then quickly resumed playing. The zombie pulled the jacket away then lunged. Dwayne pushed the zombie back with his bow, placing himself between Kim and the zombie.
Without warning, the zombie's head exploded with the deafening roar of a shotgun blast as Captain Jack came into view out of the swirling snow.
“That's the one we dreaded seeing,” Captain Jack said as he ejected the spent shell.
<
br /> “Why didn't it stop?” Kim asked trembling.
“It couldn't hear the music,” Dwayne answered. “It was deaf.”
“Can you hear me now?” Captain Jack asked then kicked the zombie to make sure it was dead. “You should have taken this with you.” Captain Jack handed the Zombiemaster to Kim then handed Dwayne his .45. “And you should have taken this.”
“They're catching up,” Kim pointed to the approaching crowd.
“Better start the music,” Captain Jack advised.
“Let's get back to the house,” Dwayne said.
Dwayne resumed playing the Stradivarius. The crowd of corpses fell in behind them as Dwayne, Kim and Captain Jack made their way up the access road. Stragglers began filtering in from all directions.
At the front gate, Captain Jack punched in the gate code then closed it as Dwayne and Kim passed through.
“Where's your jacket?” Captain Jack asked.
“I gave it to a zombeenie,” Dwayne answered. “He looked cold.”
“Hey Doc,” Captain Jack shouted to Doc Martin on the rooftop balcony. “Throw down a jacket for Dwayne, would ya?”
Doc Martin went into the master bedroom and came back with Dwayne's tuxedo jacket.
“This is all I could find.” Doc Martin held the jacket out for Dwayne to see.
“That will work,” Dwayne said.
“How did you hurt yourself?” Doc Martin asked.
“We rolled the truck,” Dwayne answered.
“That was our last vehicle?” Captain Jack asked.
The crowd filled in beneath the press and began pushing against the front gate.
Father Bryan came outside and gazed upon the desperate situation developing before him. “The sheep have followed the shepherd.”
“They've zeroed in on us,” Captain Jack said.
“We've got a decision to make,” Dwayne said.
Everyone knew what Dwayne meant without him having to explain it.
“It's Christmas day.” Captain Jack was the first to speak out. “I'd like to give the world a gift, a lot fewer zombeenies. They're already here so let's do it. Let's ask the wise old man. Doc, what do you say, what are you feeling?”
“I feel like kicking some zombeenie ass for Christmas,” Doc Martin replied from the balcony.
“I agree,” Dwayne said. “Father Bryan?”